[Exalted] Industrial Legends

[Heaven's Reach ST]

With such intense training compressed into such a short time there was not as much time for other things as there might have been otherwise, however there was time for Marshal Dren to take Marshal Hawkin's and his entire crew aside for a moment, including his assigned command crew, the exalts who had gone with him so far, both to give guidance on their next target location and to show them something completely new.

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"Behold, Dawn's Wrath.. this ship was commissioned decades ago under Denansdor Industries and only just completed, we don't have the technology to create a ship as powerful as some built during the Solar Dynasties, but this ship was built a Orichalcum alloy, and designed to be piloted by a Dawn caste and attuned to to his anima. It's slightly bigger then a frigate, but not as a big as a cruiser, it uses subspace technologies to make the docking bays bigger inside then outside, allowing the starfighter bay to hold up to 12 ships, and it's weapons make it comparable to a battleship, but it's maneuverability is comparable to the fastest of frigates, it's the most elegant weapon in our arsenal.. and we want you to take command of it, take it to Kry'sta'tor and do what you must to insure victory."

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[SalmonMax]

Kestrel raised her hand with that smug little 'excessively innocent' expression on her face.

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When Marshal Dren just looked at her, she lowered her hand and said, "If we know where we're going now, and that there's going to be a fight, why send just one ship? Is this the only one you can spare?"

[Dan Hawkins]

"I was wondering that myself, Marshal Dren. What will become of the Voidswimmer, my ship, and the Dawn of Penultimate Endings Beyond the All-Spanning Void. Beyond that, Janos has a ship of his own now."

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"I am flattered at being offered so glorious a command, and I do accept, on behalf of myself and crew, however, i do want to know what will be done with the other ships. More than that, it will take a few days to transfer over the effects of my crew to the Dawn's Wrath, if that is what you have in mind."

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Inwardly, he was smiling, already suspecting that he knew the answer. "Once an Admiral, always an Admiral, Nova, and the Marshals can't resist putting their very own Dawn Caste Fleet Commander into play."

[Janos Tem]

Janos remained mostly silent. It would simply not do to point out to the proud Marshal that Janos could quite clearly recall a time when craft such as his beloved Dawn's Wrath were the rule, rather than the exception to it. An impressive ship, no doubt, but could be done better. Given the time and inclination, there was no doubt in his mind that he himself would be able to improve on the design of this ship. By the time he finished with it it was very doubtful that the vessel could still be called a frigate, though, any more than he could still be called human.

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Moreover, he was interested in hearing what the Sidereal had to say about his own vessel. It would be a simple matter to shunt his own vessel off to his Throne World and leave it there until such a time as he wished to call for it again. That being the case, he did not intend presently to do such a thing and would not unless the Marshals attempted to take it from him. That would be unwise on their part.

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"As do I, Marshal. Also I assume there will be information made available on who we will be fighting when we get there. We do not wish a repeat of Sunder Seven. A surprise visit from the Empire, even something as pathetic as one of their battleships, is not a welcome one."

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((5 motes spent into Malefactor Anima power to give himself the effects of an extra dot of Appearance to emphasize the point))

[Heaven's Reach ST]

"We're giving the Voidswimmer to Sun Kai and the vara Captain Noble Endeavor will retain command of her vessel, both of them are going to be given crews and are going to be assigned to your task force, which will include at least a talon of dragon blooded warriors as part of their crew complements. This will have Marshal Hawkin's as fleet commander, as well as Captain, the Dawn's Fury will be your flagship, we are promoting you to Senior Marshal as a result. Should Janos chose to bring the vessel he has.. 'obtained' I would ask that it also answer to you as fleet commander. Which should answer your question, Kestrel, we are sending a small fleet, lead by a cutting edge vessel.." He paused a moment then glanced at Dan and Janos, and smiled slightly. "This ship is cutting edge for what we are capable of now, the solar dynasties would not have spurned this ship, but it was not the best they were capable of, I know, it is the best we can build with the skills and resources we have now, though with the return of the solar's, that may change in the future."

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After that he turned to a holographic display. "Ok, mission perimeters.. the Industrial Moon of Kry'sta'tor is one of the most ancient surviving complexes remaining in the galaxy, lunar geomancy includes dozens of earth manses integrated into the design, parts of it appear to only accept solar commands and have been closed to access for centuries, we believe that here is were both the stellar seed and the ravager orb can be found.. normally that would put it out of reach, except we have word that the enemy is sending a circle of Warlocks.." he glanced over at Janos. "And a small fleet of ships.. the empire has also gotten involved here, and their intentions do not seem to be friendly.. what is worse, we have indications a Death Knight is in the same are.. it's got potential to become a clusterfuck of epic perportions.. and that doesn't count the system defenders, who have some exalts among their number as well." He paused.

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"I believe that's enough of an indication of what your up against, but I believe you can succeed, our forcasting's give you the best potential to do so, at least, of all our options...so unless any of you have further questions.. I'd say it's time to get into gear."

[Janos Tem]

Janos observed the display as the various parameters were gone over and nodded once at each new piece of information.

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"It is an indication, but there is some very valuable information that is missing and should be made available if we have it. Marshal Dren. Do we know the castes of the Warlocks being sent? The Empire's ships, are the mundane vesels or artifacts primarily? Do we have any clue as to what sort of Death Knight we are dealing with? What is our relationship with the system defenders? Do we have one? Are they primarily mortal or some form of god-blooded?

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"My apologies for the rapid questions but it allows for prioritization. For example, a full circle of Warlocks is a force of nature and should be dealt with with extreme prejudice. However, if it is less than a full circle then there is the possibility that the Empire or even the Death Knight may deal with them for us. Regardless though, time is of the essence and the longer we stand around here the more likely it is that the Ravager and the Seed will be gone when we arrive. Perhaps file can be sent to our ship's logs, after all we should have a few days to study it"

[Dan Hawkins]

Dan nodded. Janos raises very good questions, and, I second his request for such a file. I realize time may not be on our side, but it is no short journey to the system, If all the information is made available to us, I can say we can be underway in six hours, using that time to formulate a plan for dealing with as many variables as we can."

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"You say small fleet, but that it is very vague, though my command is only four ships, the quality of the crews and ships themselves would rate them far higher than a modern light fleet."

[Sunstar]

"I have to agree this guy." Sophia said point at Janos. "We can talk about our plans while we're on the move."

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She said looking at Dan.

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"Just give to word and I'll go make preparations. Sooner we're all geared up and moved, we can do this shit."

[Heaven's Reach ST]

"Very well then.. this information will be set to your ship, so you can pull it up when desired.. but here's a basic overview in answer to your questions - Display please.

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This Commodore Erika Carthak, she leads the the imperial forces and has a small fleet of her own, though the majority of them are all standard build, about 8 frigates, 4 cruisers, 2 battlecruisers, and 1 battleships... , there is a single artifact ship, as Flagship, a cruiser built of red jade named the Stellar Flame, built by the Cathak Syndicate and commanded by one Commodore Alicia Carthak, a Fire Aspect of comsiderable experance and power, she is not friendly in any way toward us, the lintha or the legitamite leadership of the star system, our spies indiciate that if she can claim Kry'sta'tor for the empire generally and for Cathak specifically, she will.

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Now, the local forces, there is a family of dragon blooded, mainly of earth aspect who are very influential within this system, who can provide some local defenses, but they are mainly a plantary based force. The system government is one of a parlementary democracy, the bloodline of the rulers is more mixed, but this woman is a earth aspect, a terrestial sorceress and the queen of the nation, she has applied to the Marshal's for aid and between herself and the Star Chamber, they have extended a promise of signing on with the marshal's should we be able to preserve their independence.

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Queen Emerald Sonata

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The Lintha forces appears to be about a dozen ships, nothing near as standardized as the Empires, but they are lead by a trio of Warlocks of various degrees of power and their flagship appears to be a artifact demontech.. the ship's been christened 'Demon's Reach'

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Warlocks - First

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Name: Sevus Torm

Caste: Defiler

Capabilities: Has demonstrated considerable sorcerous ability with regards to his patron, She Who Lives in Her Name, he has been seen to summon demons, unleash bolts of white fire, telekinetic power and increadble strength of will. He seems to love the joy of the hunt and kill, and does not care for diplomacy.

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Name: Blood Scourge

Caste: Scourge

Capabilites: Adding incredible speed to bloody minded madness, he is an assassin who loves knives and also loves to torment his chosen targets and kill them slowly, though he also seems to love slaughter for it's own sake.. he's also suprisingly stealthy before he strikes, do not underestimate him, he can come out of nowhere to strike with sudden and direct force.. and he's crazy, making him much less predictable then more sane folks.

OOC: Mature Image

Name: Cathena

Caste: Fiend

Capabilities: Be careful of her, she's seems to mix the powers of malfeas with those of the ebon dragon, she's seductive, corrupting and deadly, she seems equally capable on the diplomatic table as she on the battlefield, and we're not entirely sure which of humanities ofshoot races she is, if she is even human. She's known to do things for shock value, and appears to be the leader of this group of warlocks.

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Title: The Warlord of Blood and Ash

Caste: Dusk

Capabilities: The Dusk caste seems to reverse the capablites of the dawn, he may be your most dangerous foe here, he freely seems to switch between all forms of combat as much as our friend Dan here does, he prefers melee, but seems to be a warrior on all levels, but he combines all of that with considerable capability as a necromancer.. He has a single ship at his command, but it's a soulsteel battlecruiser with a ghostly crew named 'Grave Digger'

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Marshal Dren paused. "Also, Marshal Hawkins, we are going to assign a twilight geomancer to your crew, he should be ready before you leave, if he's not already aboard the ship.. " He glanced over at Janos..

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"And, Janos, I believe the Marshal's have an offer for you, we'd like you to aid this mission's success, but there is also a research and development team that could use your skills and expertise."

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[Dan Hawkins]

"A Soulsteel Battlecruiser." Nova's voice held the tone that someone in another world would have used when saying "Jesus Wept" "He doesn't need that much more than that monstrosity. Our own fleet is strong, but all the same I'd rather not have to go nose up with that and certainly not with a Mirror of my own caste at the helm."

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The others, the Lintha and their Infernals, and the Fire Aspect Imperial gave him pause. "If we start a battle, it will be a major incident. How prepared is Marshal command for that? Our mission has top priority, but if we are forced to engage, and destroy Imperial ships, it's going to be the spark that sets off everything."

[SalmonMax]

"Look," Kestrel said, though she'd been quiet since the mention of the presence of 'abyssals.' "These people hate each other as much as us. Maybe we can get them fighting between themselves, then sneak in and grab the prize while they're distracted."

[Janos Tem]

Janos observed the readouts of the expected Exalted forces. There were mortal and dead forces as well, but they ultimately didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. The crews of each and every one of those ships lived and died based on the competency of their Exalted masters, whether they knew it or not, and could be swept away at with a moment's consideration. Similarly, answering forces could be constructed and arrayed in such a way that they would find themselves similarly distracted if being simply wiped from the board was deemed 'unacceptable'. It certainly would not be the first time morality had entered into the equation in such a way as to tip the scales out of his favor.

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"Marshal Dren, I will hear your proposal. What sort of project is this team working on that is so great that I would be withdrawn from my assignment just before such an engagement? I imagine that we will not be greeted with open arms when we get to this world. When dealing with the Death Knights, the Loyalist Green Sun Princes, the language of awe and terror is the only one they know. This new Twilight must be some piece of work if the Marshals believe they have found a more fluent speaker than I."

[SalmonMax]

"Or maybe," Kestrel pointed out, "they just don't want to recruit any more."

[Heaven's Reach ST]

Marshal Dren looked to Dan first. "Do what you must, the marshal's will back you, it is possible this could strain our relations with the Empire further, but even if you end up destroying all of their forces in the system, it will not come to war.. they don't want that at this point, the empire is stretched considerably by some of the rising difficulties on their borders." He then addressed Janos question

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"You have a silver tongue, Janos, so much so that you could convince a mouse that a cat wouldn't eat it, but you have many other abilities as well, and your skills at crafting are almost unparalleled. " the marshal responded to the warlock's question. "And we don't want you to take on one project, we want you to lead this research and development team, the full details of the projects they are working on are classified, but they are working on several planetary defense systems, as well as some powerful weapon systems, these are only a few projects at the moment, you would have access to that information if you agreed." He paused.

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"Still, it's your decision, we have a dozen different situations all over the galaxy developing, some of them as complicated and as desperate as this one.. this is hardly the only situation involving the tomb-stars, or the yozi's, though it has potential to become one of the worst if we can't get our hands on all of the orbs involved. Devon is a geomancer and a sorcerer whose incarnation runs back to the early days of creation of the solar exalted, he would be very useful on the ground, with regards to the moon's geomancy, but he doesn't have your capabilities or convincing manner."

[Janos Tem]

The contempt with which Janos regarded Kestrel and her comment was more than apparent, the disgust at her audacity was only barely concealed. He had considered a response to her though Marshal Dren began speaking before he did and it would simply not do to interrupt the Marshal.

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"The Twilight's name is Devon. I believe I understand. He is either extraordinarily confident in his own abilities to the point that he has has named himself after a legend, or is, in fact, the legend he claims to be and would be more than fluent in the language of awe and terror."

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Janos turned to Dan.

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"Captain, you are my superior. I will state for the record that although I find Scout Kestrel's recent behavior beyond appalling, I have no issue with the rest of your crew and I consider you a competent, if kind, leader. What would you have me do?"

[SalmonMax]

"Oh please. I didn't do anything," Kestrel retorted. "You came to me, expecting me to roll over like your Lintha friend, and now you're pouting like a three year old because I didn't."

[Dan Hawkins]

"I would have you remain with us for this next mission Janos, your expertise will be wholly invaluable towards the successful accomplishment of our goals."

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He looked at the two adult exalts and nodded. "We will need everyone working together to get the job done."

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"Once we are done, if you would like to take up the research position, you're free to do so."

[Janos Tem]

Janos's calculated baiting had worked like a charm.

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"Understood, Captain. I will remain."

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He turned to Marshal Dren.

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"At this point, Marshal Dren, I will be remaining as part of Captain Hawkins' retinue. If it is still available when we return, we will revisit this discussion."

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Janos nodded once, as if to say that his mind was settled on the subject before regarding Kestrel.

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"Scout Kestrel of the Night Caste. I find myself compelled to correct your ignorance as you seem to be oblivious to the reason for the offense. Put simply, one should never presume to know the thoughts of those above them in station. You have done so repeatedly in the last few minutes. Therefore, while I have a hard time believing that it has come to this, since my efforts to mend the rift between us have failed, it must be said. If you have nothing constructive or of worth to say, and this hateful spite and sarcasm is neither, I ask that you simply remain silent.

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"Captain Hawkins appears to approve of your continued presence and both he and I, to say nothing of Marshal Command, find use and merit in your appointment to these missions. As such I will work with you to the best of my abilities, up to and including providing any femtotechnological supplies you desire to become more efficient at your duties.

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"However, until such a time as interactions outside of our specific mission parameters can be handled without this venom and sarcasm and in a manner more befitting Exalted than children, I must insist that there not be any"

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With that, he turned away from Kestrel and faced Marshal Dren, pausing for what seemed like a long moment.

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"Forgive me, Marshal Dren, Captain Hawkins. Such discussions are not meant for briefing rooms. I apologize and accept what consequences are deemed appropriate."

[Heaven's Reach ST]

Ignoring the discussion between Kestrel and Janos, Marshal Dren addressed the easier matter. "I believe the option will still be avalible when you return, Janos.. Enough talk then, as Exalted, action is our greatest form of discourse, please, go to your ships and prepare to move out, you have a very small fleet, no many ships I admit, but the ones you have are powerful out of proportion to their classes with regards to their capabilities, but how you chose to use them is up to you.. part of this mission is going to require going underground on the moon, it's something of a maze in there, and quite a few manses as well, so chose carefully... I leave the matter in your hands."

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With that said, he left, leaving them with their instructions and giving them time to get to know their new ship, before departing for the tense situation they have been gifted with responsibility for.

[Dan Hawkins]

"Alright everyone I want you to head to your ships and prepare readiness reports. Find out what you need and requisition it. I want all ships ready to move as soon as possible. Effect what transfers are needed, and when we're ready we'll jump out. En Route I'll develop a fluid plan based on what information we have, and with any luck it will give us at least some ability to use the strengths of everyone to greatest effect."

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Dan looked at them all. "I know you all will not fail me, or Creation itself in this mission."

[Heaven's Reach ST]

With that, everyone departed, heading to their various ships, new or old, and soon enough Dan found himself aboard his new command, though the majority of his crew was transferred to Dawn's Wrath. As soon as the dawn caste himself stepped onto his new ship, it seemed as though the entire ship was resonating with him, and soon enough it was apparent why, as the ship seemed eager to bond with her new captain, her spirit was alive.. and aware.

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The others within the ships assigned to this small task force didn't have as much to discover about their ships, as they had already been active and spent some time aboard them, not to mention they were older, though except in the case of the Noble Endeavor, not as powerful as this young starship.

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A mental touch upon his mind, a query and request to allow contact as Dan began to attune himself to his new command..the moment he agreed to it, there would be a manifestation of the ship's spirit and delight was in her thoughts as she contacted him

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Welcome Aboard.. my Captain

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Some time was allowed for everyone to be prepared, as soon as everyone was ready, the ships were prepared to begin transport on command.

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Dawn's Wrath provides the following affects - she's naturally designed to attune to a Dawn cast - so a Dawn Caste Captain provides the following benefits - adds his essence to accuracy, damage and maneuvers for the ship, regardless of who is using the systems at the time. In addition, as long as he is in the captain's chair linked into the ship's systems, he may use his own firearms charms to enhance any firing of the ships weapons, or use Melee charms to enhance the star lance.. as though the ship was a firearm he was firing.

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Starship Stats

Weapons: Weapons pods mark the four corners of the frigate, with three more along each side and the dorsal and ventral hulls. Each pod is outfitted with a pair of heavy vehicular blasters (as blaster rifle, with Damage 12L, Range 200, Ammo unlimited). The six foremost pods are also outfitted with mass drivers (as sniper rifle, with Damage 15L, Range 600, Ammo 300).

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Lastly, the Ship's Spirit, aka her Material Intelligence is awake and aware, and can be considered as slightly more powerful, but equivalent to level 5 Warstrider AI (page 146 - Wonders of the Lost Age)who can manifest to anyone aboard the starship, and communicate telepathically with her captain or crew, or transmit telepathic messages between any member of the crew

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MI Appearance (when manfesting a holographic presence)

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Dawn's Wrath Material Intelligence(no physical stats, she's the ship's spirit, her body is the ship): Perception 3, Intelligence 3, Wits 4, Charisma 4, Manipulation 3, Appearance 4 (possesses relevant abilities to her purpose as an aid to her captain and crew at 3 dots...she is linked to the Celestial Mountain, can be considered to have a lore rating of 5 in terms of any data stored there. anything else is 0 dots) Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 4, Temperance 4, Valor 5 Essence 3, Pool: 30 Charms(Captain or AI may spend to activate these charms): Measure the Wind, Tracking (Can use to track across canals throughout the galaxy), Camouflage (is in effect, a starship cloaking field), Donning Spiritual Armor (adds to starship Shields), Uncanny Prowess (may aid whoever is at the piloting station), Essence Bite (Damage is added to ramming attempts, or folks attempting to board the ship)..

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Personality: She is a warrior, her design has her thinking of everything from a veiwpoint of combat, and she does have considerable tactical and strategical knowledge... her absolute loyalty and affection is the Captain first, then her crew, beyond that, other's mean little to her. She has deep conviction to serve her Captain and crew, incredible self control and the courage of dragons

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Attunement: Special - The Ship's MI will normally only allow a Dawn Caste to attune as captain (but supernatural persuasion might be able to get though that).. it costs a dawn caste only 5 motes to link them.. and once that is done, others in the crew with the ability to do can also attune to the ship's systems for 5 motes, adding their own essence to any actions they take with regards to the starship's actions, furthermore, if they are also a Exalt, they may add an appropriate excellency to their actions for post (Example: Evasive Maneuvers can use Dexterity Excellency or a Dodge Excellency, Sensors can use an Awareness, Perception or Investigation Excellency to enhance ships sensors)

[SalmonMax]

Not having a specific ship assignment, Kestrel just followed Hawkins onto the Dawn's Wrath, then onto the bridge. She looked around appreciatively, then said, "Going to be weird having men on the crew again, eh?"

She sniffed and sighed.

"Love that 'new ship' smell. So where do you want me?"

[Dan Hawkins]

"The Ship and AI are female, Kestrel, they transferred over my crew, and after noticing some things, so is the Entire crew, once again, even the new ones." He looked at her. "I didn't do it, this wasn't me, Command made these decisions."

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"Take Operations, there at the front. I trust your skills will be put to good use there." Sophia will take Comms, and Althea will end up on navigation." He stood surveying the bridge and station, before sitting in the Command Chair. He let his own essence flow out, uniting with the ship, and marking it as His. "Dawn's Wrath, begin final procedures for departure from Marshall Station Alpha." His First order to the ship given, he knew she would comply flawlessly, and smiled inwardly. He would endeavor to prove worthy of such a fine ship, and knew she wouldn't fail him.

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His thoughts turned to what awaited them, and he nodded. "This will be a grand undertaking."

[SalmonMax]

"This will be a giant furball," Kestrel corrected as she took her station. "Also, seriously now, I'm starting to think you can't deal with a little competition here, Dan. Two crews of all women? Really?"

She shook her head. "I know...you didn't do it, this wasn't you. If I had a credit for every time someone bleated that to me I'd be buying twelve of these ships and donating them to charity."

[Dan Hawkins]

He nodded. "That too."

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"As to the crew, look up the manifests yourself, this was all arranged without my prior knowledge." He actually unlocked the files for the new crew for her, sending them to her console for when she had the whim to overlook them. None of the transfers were over his name, most came from Dren, or another Marshal, named Shiga. Marshall Shiga of course was one of the deputy directors of Personnel, someone essentially in charge of human resources for the Marshals.

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He shrugged. "Can't say it's an unpleasant thing, if the new crew is anything like the Voidswimmer's they're competent in the extreme, loyal, and diligent in their duties." Dan was very much in "Ship Captain" mode, and while there were several officers he did and had slept with, The enlisted crew weren't an option.

"I've heard that one alot too...." he said remarking on the last part of her comment.

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"Sun Kai should be fine in command of the 'Swimmer, and Janos is the wildcard. Considering I don't yet know this ship's capabilities, and I know Noble Endeavor's, I'd say that battlecruiser is our trump card, Thank God she's mostly a stealth cruiser."

It was almost comical considering how much larger the ship was. "Of course by the end of this, who knows what Janos will have done to his ship.."

[SalmonMax]

"The Lintha's ship," said Kestrel flatly. "It's only his while the crew's his. We'll see how long that works for him."

"Anyway..." she looked over her console and rolled her eyes when she saw the crew data icon there, announcing it's newly unlocked state. As if that meant anything where the exalted were involved. "...we've got clearance to depart. All dockings and moorings report clear. Hatches and airlocks sealed...the board is green."

"We can leave at your order."

[Sunstar]

Sophia had taken her station and familiarized herself with the lay out.

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"Coms are up and running, Cap'. Anytime you wanna address the crew or make contact with the other ships, we're good to go"

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She paused for a second.

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"Anything you'd like to say to the crew before we depart?"

[Dan Hawkins]

Dan shook his head, "Nothing now, I'll address them once we're underway." Althea took her position, and Dyna signaled that Everything was ready. "Alright, Take us out."

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"Open a channel to all other ships in the fleet." Once this was done he nodded. "Comrades,we embark on our first action as a formal fleet, work together and support each other, and we will be victorious. Coordinates have been sent to each ship for our arrival point, Plot courses and synchronize now, Once we are at the jump point, We will set out."

[Heaven's Reach ST]

End of Thread.. new Thread on it's way.. +4 XP