User blog:I am that guy/Operation: Homeward Bound

- Baltic League Battleship Baltica -

The flag bridge of the Baltica was a far cry from the command deck of Hancock. Despite this, Kaznizki found it manageable. He gazed into the master holographic display, memorizing its information to review in his mind. On the clear blue holographic water, the 13 green imitations of the Leagues surviving Caelmare contingent trekked across the alien sea.

Kaznizki would've prefered to wait for reinforcements, but there was no time. On old Earth, the League was commissioning Vengence BBs and Curroptor BCs like there was no tomorrow; the problem was interstellar transportation. Construction of the Carrier class transports took much longer, and the shipyards orbiting Eris were still very much a work in progress.

All of which lead to Kaznizkis lack of proper resources for Operation: Homeward Bound, the rescue of League personnel from unknown forces. "Unknown forces", that was a term which had produced endless speculation in all ranks. The current rumor is that Vindicator was destroyed by the UAC, with them looking to take the planetary system for themselves. It was out there, but not even as "out there" as the one that placed blame on TEO.

The League ships sailed on, and Kaznizki and his flag crew watched as the fleets' holographic models crossed a red-hued barrier on the display, marking the boundary of the 75km no-go zone.

Seconds passed, then minutes, then hours, and still nothing. No sign of anything that had killed Vindictor or the recon drones sent after her.

- Royal Manticoran Ship HMS White Haven -

The last hours had been a hassle unlike any the Navy had experienced. It was one of complete surprise. Less than three hours ago, primary radar stations had picked up 13 contacts entering the radar shield. The typical expeditionary squadrons were busy being reorganized into battle squadrons. Super-dreadnought production had picked up, the small High Ridge class battleships and older Dreadnoughts were being rotated to the rear, making room for heavier units at the front.

Jack McKeons squadron was one of the few which were battle-ready, and the only which was in position to intercept. His original two super-dreadnoughts and two dreadnoughts had been reinforced by a number of lighter units, as well as three battlecruisers. Finally, in a few hours, McKeon was scheduled to rendezvous with HMS Queen Caitrin, MD-02, the recently reactivated mega-dreadnought.

The thoughts produced a small grin on McKeon: thirteen ships couldn't stand against his task force. Task force? Hell, it was a fleet. His grin widened in humor, and evolved into a smile as the "task force" passed a defense fort, it's battery of high-caliber rail guns leveled at the horizon in the direction of the advancing Baltic League fleet