tal ravis – Molten Aether FFRP

Operation Flintlock Act 2

Operation Flintlock’s Act 1 by Solas Tempus focused on evacuating Romulus before a supernova, involving strategic planning and the formation of an evacuation fleet. Act 2 faces new challenges: the STV Bonhomme Richard intercepted a remotely piloted Romulan Warbird, achieving tactical engagement without destruction for intelligence. Meanwhile, the STV Insane Prince encountered a damaged Romulan craft within a space-time anomaly. Additionally, the NVV Duzitzapa dealt with an infestation of Aloftex Arachnid species, raising concerns about biosecurity.

We have completed Act 1 of Operation Flintlock, this is the plot that has Solas Tempus attempting to evacuate Romulus before the Super Nova occurs which starts off the 2009 Star Trek movie’s alternate timeline. Act 1 was mostly scouting and preparation. Now we are into Act 2, and the convoy is headed to their 2nd stop now. Here is a summary of Act 1 and the beginning of Act 2.

Act 1: Preparation Phase

Operation Flintlock was initiated by Solas Tempus in response to the critical threat posed by the impending supernova of the Romulan star. The preparation phase involved extensive logistical and strategic planning, including the deployment of scouting missions to secure viable planets for the establishment of Hermod Outposts. These outposts were intended to serve as logistical support points along the evacuation route. The operation also faced challenges related to the use of AI by Solas Tempus, which required careful navigation given the Romulans’ historical apprehension towards artificial intelligence. The phase concluded with the assembly of a substantial evacuation fleet, led by the flagship STV Basilisk, supported by a diverse array of escort vessels, prepared for the complex task ahead.

With meticulous coordination, the fleet embarked from Solas Tempus space, marking the operational phase of Flintlock. Under Admiral D’Amico’s leadership, the fleet, notable for its size and armament, surpassed historical precedents such as the Federation’s engagement at Wolf 359, indicating the scale and importance of the mission at hand.

Act 2: Conflict

First Stop: Gamma Ovalos Terminal

The fleet’s arrival at the Gamma Ovalos Terminal on the moon of Gamma Ovalos 2 facilitated a critical check-in process, ensuring all vessels, including the newly identified STV Bonhomme Richard, were present and fully operational. This juncture allowed for a strategic reassessment and logistical evaluation before advancing into less secure regions.

STV Bonhomme Richard Scouting

The STV Bonhomme Richard, under the command of Captain Tal Ravis, detected an anomalous signal during its mission in support of Operation Flintlock. Preliminary analysis indicated the presence of a Romulan T’Liss class Warbird, displaying unusual behavior consistent with remote piloting rather than manned operation.

Upon closer inspection, the Bonhomme Richard’s crew observed that the Warbird’s warp signature and power output were inconsistent with standard Romulan military vessels, suggesting potential modifications or sabotage. Captain Tal, adhering to protocol, initiated communication with Admiral D’Amico on the STV Basilisk, requesting guidance on engagement rules given the suspicious nature of the Warbird.

Admiral D’Amico’s directives emphasized caution, advising against direct confrontation and instead recommending surveillance and intelligence gathering. Captain Tal ordered the Bonhomme Richard to shadow the Warbird discreetly, aiming to intercept communications and ascertain its intentions without revealing their position.

The Bonhomme Richard’s attempts to decrypt the Warbird’s transmissions revealed that the vessel was not transmitting standard communication signals but rather telemetry and control data, confirming suspicions of remote operation. This unusual finding prompted a reassessment of the threat level and potential strategies.

As the situation developed, it became clear that the Warbird was on a course that would intersect with the convoy’s trajectory, posing a direct threat to the fleet’s safety. Captain Tal, with approval from Admiral D’Amico, made the decision to prepare for a tactical engagement, aiming to disable the Warbird without causing its destruction, thereby preserving the opportunity for intelligence recovery.

The engagement resulted in the successful neutralization of the Warbird’s operational capabilities, allowing a specialized team from the Bonhomme Richard to board and secure the vessel. The operation yielded valuable intelligence, including the recovery of the Warbird’s AI core, which was subsequently analyzed for information regarding its origins, controllers, and objectives.

The incident resulted in minor injuries among the boarding team and superficial damage to the Bonhomme Richard due to unexpected defensive measures activated by the Warbird in its final moments of operation. These casualties were treated promptly, and the ship’s systems were restored to full functionality with minimal impact on the ongoing mission.

STV Insane Prince Scouting

The STV Insane Prince, under the command of Vladimir Zima and Oscar Masing was dispatched by the Basilisk to investigate sporadic energy readings approaching the convoy at a distance of approximately 1,580 AU’s from the convoy’s path.. Upon arrival, the vessel encountered an anomalous space-time distortion, displaying chaotic energy patterns and a sizable spherical disturbance in space-time, approximately 50,000 km in diameter.

Upon closer inspection, the anomaly exhibited intense distortions in space-time, with light bending and reflecting in unusual ways. The crew identified the source as a T’Liss class Romulan craft at the heart of the disturbance, presumably causing the chaotic space. Attempts to communicate were met with static, prompting a decision to engage. Initial attempts to penetrate the anomaly were unsuccessful, leading to a series of recalculations and maneuvers to breach the event horizon and approach the Romulan craft.

After several attempts, the Insane Prince successfully penetrated the anomaly, revealing the Romulan craft with a significant portion of its structure obliterated. It was concluded that the craft was not mined but instead, the chaotic distortion was a result of an unusual energy field generated by the vessel. The field, once stabilized, revealed the craft’s damaged state, with the central bridge and upper decks destroyed, indicative of a catastrophic internal failure rather than external munitions.

Infestation Aboard the NVV Duzitzapa

The NVV Duzitzapa experienced an unexpected shutdown of monitoring systems in one of its cargo bays, leading to the discovery of a significant infestation by unknown arachnid-like entities. The situation escalated rapidly, requiring immediate containment and eradication efforts. The malfunction of cargo bay sensors prompted an investigation by Engineer Itza, who discovered the cargo doors unresponsive and the monitoring systems offline. Upon manual override and entry, she encountered numerous head-sized spiders with red-glowing teeth, seemingly consuming ship materials.

Itza immediately requested security assistance while attempting to stun the entities with modified phaser settings. The creatures dispersed, utilizing the ship’s ventilation system and access corridors to spread throughout the vessel. A coordinated effort between engineering and security personnel ensued, focusing on containment and eradication.

Investigations revealed the source of the infestation to be contaminated food crates, likely harboring eggs of the Aloftex Arachnid species, known for their potential to infest and damage spacecraft if unchecked. Efforts to seal off ventilation and access points were partially successful, with some entities evading capture.

The use of electro-static fields and targeted pesticide applications, combined with manual eradication efforts, significantly reduced the threat. However, the incident highlighted vulnerabilities in cargo inspection protocols and the need for enhanced biosecurity measures. The ship sustained minor structural and system damages due to the infestation and subsequent containment efforts.

Fleet Admiral Thomas Returns

On December 21st, 2385 Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas was admitted to the military hospital at Nimbus Station under the care of his personal physician Doctor Nevyn. Details are scant at best with military officials having declined to make any comments thus far on the apparent rescue and recovery of the Admiral, thought dead over a year ago. The operational details are scarce, but we do know that the rather new STMC recently dispatched a unit along with several other vessels on a classified mission. Further we also know that acting Fleet Admiral D’Amico left suddenly at around the same time.

As of this moment the hospital will only state that Admiral Thomas is being cared for and is stable but still listed as critical but expected to pull through. No other information is available on his condition or the circumstances which lead him to be classified as deceased. Many are confused by this sudden change in status and how the Concord could get things so wrong. Some may recall that when he was declared death his wife, Drem Confoscho, took leave from her command of the Drakon following some troubling murders on the vessel. Since then the woman has been rarely seen though her command was restored.

Was there a Coalition?

According to unofficial sources a distress call was received by numerous receivers just prior to resources throughout the sector being activated. A number of reports have also come in that a civilian component was present, several cargo, transport, and merchant vessels somehow also responded to this distress call including the famed recluse Marcus Trent head of Excalibur Inc. The coalition force reported included Federation, Klingon, Romulan, Avali, Concord, and Civilian elements but details are sketchy as to exactly why such a large force was deployed or how they all came together in the first place. A coalition of this nature has not been seen since the Dominion War over 10 years ago. One interesting note to make is that the infamous Tal Ravis also is rumored to be part of the assault team, though requests for comment from Mr. Ravis himself or his commanding officer have gone unanswered. Mr. Ravis is known to have been involved in rescue efforts previously and to have been a prominent figure in several battles within the Schatten System itself, once brought up on charges for his misuse of a powerful experimental weapon during one such battle. Even though he was under investigation and facing imminent charges at the time, Mr. Ravis participating in the daring rescue of Admiral Thomas and was cleared of all charges. It appears that Admiral Thomas owes Tal Ravis again, as one anonymous sources states that he lead the team who actually performed the rescue.

Finally we are reasonably certain that a group of four arrivals from an alternate timeline joined Ravis in the team to rescue Admiral Thomas. Tina Lockwood, Jedidah Shafir, Qing Shan, and Eugen Strauss were sighted by multiple sources disembarking with Ravis and his usual team. These four have the distinction of being the only known splices to have occurred outside the Schatten System, they appeared at Starbase Tranquility in the Markab System. Little is publicly known about the quartet other than they are exceptionally skilled operators.

Possible New Weapon?

Other reports have come in that Solas Tempus used an as-yet completely classified vessel which has yet to be publicly known. The vessel itself was said to be the largest vessel ever constructed. A triangular shape the ship was said to have provided cover during the battle and her arrival turning the tides. Additional reports also say that Solas Tempus captured an enemy space station of some kind, supposedly spherical in shape with incredible weaponry. Neither of these reports have been confirmed at this time and requests for comments of Solas Tempus also gone unanswered.

Fight Over Barrier

Mysterious ship that appeared near barrier few days ago was today attacked by Solas Tempus strike force after getting confirmation that crewman that disappeared are aboard.

STV Epoch and 2 squadrons of Peregrine fighters accompanied by Jaina and Tal Ravis in their own fighters (X-Wing and Scimitar respectively) attacked the heavy-armed vessel. During the attack the ship responded with their own squadrons, destroying at least 2 fighters in initial contact. Shortly after pilots of Peregrines started feeling weird about whole fight, some even fleeing field of combat. This was later confirmed to be a form of psionic attack known as Battle Meditation. Reports from the Epoch crew show that they suffered similar symptoms.

We received statement from one of pilots, flight officer Gabrielle Valenzuela;

It was like back head feeling that you are about to die, you instinctively want to run, find safe place, it was hard to resist, I was among ones that did run away. I’m not proud of that but it was like that, I was afraid of death. Hell I couldn’t even believe that we all risked life for one random person! Now I do feel bad about it, after all every life is important.

After ship defences were lowered, strike team composed of Jedi Master Reman and Tobi Angelos beamed aboard to search ship for missing personnel and Jyn. After they found Jyn the strike team was forced to fight through her own enraged attacks, before Jyn managed to injure Reman who holds to the story that he allowed this to happen. Just before getting tackled to ground and was knocked unconscious. Jyn is currently resting in sickbay, her status has not been made public as yet, though it is known she is allowed select visitors.

The crew of the unknown vessel informed Solas Tempus that it’s designation is INV Raven’s Hand, an Harrower Class Dreadnought. The last words of it’s captain, before one of Sith aboard killed him, asked Captain Leonard of STV Epoch to keep his crew safe. The safety of the crew of the Raven’s are of course being held safely in Solas Tempus custody abiding by the standards of humane treatment of prisoners. Solas Tempus released a statement ensuring that the crew will be treated with dignity and respect during their questioning and debriefing. The future of the enemy vessel is unknown, Solas Tempus declined to comment but rumors suggest the vessel may be either stripped down for research or perhaps refit and introduced into the fleet.

Lilith Returns Home

After months away the victorious USS Lilith returns home. Nimbus Station quickly launched low-yeild torpedoes into space around the vessel to create an effective light show as 9th Gemini Wing launched an honor guard for the vessel to escort it to the Umbral Shipyards for repair. Reporters were on hand for the docking of the vessel at the ship yards where her command crew disembarked. Everyone was in high spirits and responded stoically when asked about the mission and how it felt to have completed such an important mission.

The crew of the Lilith was also treated to a banquette in their honor, where Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas personally congratulated each member of the command crew and the team of Operatives which lead to the resolution of the Infinity Wave. In the following days the command crew is slated to obtain Distinguished Service Medal while the actual infiltration team that boarded the enemy vessel and cleared the anomaly will receive the Solas Tempus Cross. Other awards to the vessel’s crew will be handled by the Commanding Officer, Neo Akazuli.

Lance Thomas, when reporters spoke to him briefly during the reception had this to say;

They went into an unknown situation and knew they could not fail, that we were all counting on them and they didn’t let anyone down. It is gratifying to know that the faith we put into them was not misplaced. It isn’t an easy thing to repair the timeline and keep the fabric of what we know from unraveling, but that is what my Operatives do. It’s like running into a burning building with a war zone inside, you have no idea what you’ll find inside, you know the longer you’re in there the closer you come to catastrophe, but you don’t have much of a choice. Someone has to deal with it. They did exceedingly well and I’m very proud of them.

The Commanding Officer, Captain Akazuli, commented;

To put it simply, failure was not an option. When failure isn’t an option, there is only one option that remains, period. We had our orders and we saw it through.

Vladimir Zima, who served not only on board the vessel but on the actual team who boarded the enemy ship, is quoted as saying;

Not bad for a coal miner, I’d say. I need a drink.

Tal Ravis, who also served on the actual team that went aboard the enemy vessel had something far more colorful to say;

These fuckers need to learn that im a lot scarier than they are.

One thing is abundantly clear, whatever can be said about Solas Tempus and the leadership of Admiral Thomas, he picked a team that came through from a very difficult and unpredictable situation.

Disrespecting the Dead

Another person under investigation, Tal Ravis is again in the news after a video has surfaced from an anonymous source of him urinating on a dead member of the group only known as Onyx. Other sources have confirmed that this did actually occur, though it is unclear why he would take such an action.

We contacted Mr. Ravis for comment, when asked about the incident he responded:

“When operating for sustained periods of time in non-linear, asymmetric environments far from a host station or vessel, access to dedicated hygenic facilities is greatly limited or denied outright. Field experience from years of operating in the fringes of inhabited space has allowed us to come up with an adequate solution; we find that Onyx agents make for acceptable outhouse substitutes.”

While the response is direct and honest it is also disturbing, showing an irreverence to the death of a living being. Few government agencies have commented yet given the nature of the other investigations that have gone on, it does point directly to the idea that Mr. Ravis is potentially unstable.

A Questionable Pattern Evolving?

A questionable pattern is starting to become clearer as new documents are against released to the public. The source of these documents appears to be the same as the source that released the documents dealing with the Spartans and still remains anonymous. Reading the documents makes it clear that there may be more of a story to tell with regard to the universe which they came from.

The Spartan documents make mention of a group called the Covenant, for which we know very little with the exception that the group which commissioned the Spartan’s to be made was in some kind of conflict with them. This fresh set of documents tells of the Covenant committing utter acts of atrocity against the human races, going so far as to “glass” planets, a process which involves destroying all life on a planet through orbital bombardment with high energy plasma weapons. Weapons which, incidentally, the newly arrived vessel Severed Grace has. Questions have been raised in the highest levels of government, questions that the Department of Military Actions and Services has few answers to. Largely the department has left the running of the Schatten System to Solas Tempus, as the primary facilities in the system are military in nature – the organization has adopted a policy of allowing newly arrived vessels and people to promise they will abide by the local laws to avoid being incarcerated to sent back.

Sending a newly arrived person or vessel back can take months as the Janus Project can take a significant amount of time to find the originating reality to return a new arrival to. However, if Solas Tempus is willing to allow such dangerous individuals as the Spartan’s and a Covenant battle cruiser to remain in the system unchecked with with an obvious conflict between those two sides there is a serious question to be made on whether or not Solas Tempus is competent to manage such things, at least under their current leadership.

Rebel Alliance Revealed!

Documents have been obtained by our reporters that the Rebel Alliance has had similar dealings as the Spartans. Detailed information from the X-Wing of Alema on pervious missions tells a rather extensive story of the Rebel Alliance having a complete and total disregard for the the lives of civilians. In one mission to a planet which is not named, the Rebel Alliance slaughtered 10,000 or more civilians to destroy the Imperial outpost. Another mission killed some 1,600 people, without giving the option for surrender.

In the first completely actionable information found is a detailed report about a mission involving a significant amount of civilian casualties. The pilot, Alema, is reported as being the cause of 1,045 civilian deaths when her fighters caused extensive damage crushing an entire village in a rock slide when she accidentally fire a torpedo into a rock face. Further, the Rebel Alliance command is noted to know that a future mission will have a high likelihood of civilian casualties.

Other Investigations Painting a Picture

Two other investigations also paint an additionally disturbing image of how things are run in the system; that of Tal Ravis and of John Angelos, both of which have active investigations into their conduct with similar subject matter. In the case of Security Chief Angelos the question has been raised about his relationship with a young 16 year old resident of the station and while STS has declined to release her name to the press for obvious reasons this runs parallel with the potential relationship being had by Mr. Ravis and a new arrival who – by all accounts – is even younger. Both of these add to a dangerous image of Fleet Admiral Thomas and his second, Admiral D’Amico, paying little attention to civilians which rely on them for protection.

Akron Mystery Intensifies

Solas Tempus released documents recently which reflect a mysterous encounter with a derelict vessel, the USS Akron, the boarding party encountered resistance from unknown parties and Solas Tempus has been tight lipped about its possible connection the computer system anomalies and system failures which occured after the boarding party returned to Nimbus. It was noted, however, that derelect vessel was able to follow us through the wormhole intact and is currently in the Schatten System, though the exact location has yet to be disclosed. Further details are not forthcoming and have been classified by Solas Tempus.

It has also been confirmed that at least one person is missing since the boarding party to the Akron, that of Flask, who worked on board the USS Drakon and is noted as being a valuable member of the crew. His exact location is unknown at this time, while the official statement is that he is on an a classified mission under direct orders of Admiral Sal D’Amico there are uncomfirmed rumors that he was left on board the Akron for some unknown reason. As a final note, an area near the asteroid belt close to Schatten II has been cordoned off and has been declared a no-fly zone, reasons could be related to the Akron but Solas Tempus has not responded to request for comments.

Tal Ravis – Improper Conduct?

Accusations surrounding the now infamous, Tal Ravis. His name is most recently known for the daring rescue of Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas but also of the far more infamous role in the destruction of not only an aggressive force attacking installations here in the Schatten System, but also over half of the Umbral Shipyards, which caused the appearance of the Umbral Rift. Sources inside the security forces for Solas Tempus have revealed that there are accusations of misconduct relating to a peculiar new arrival, which has caused some serious concern. This new arrival is reportedly very young and could be involved in an improper relationship with Mr. Ravis. While details on exactly what kind of relationship may be suspected are confused, it is documented that the new arirval has been seen calling him Master on numerous occasion and is prone to appearing in public in scant clothing. Admiral D’Amico’s office has declined to comment and Solas Tempus Security has similarly said that they are unable to confirm or deny whether Mr. Ravis is currently under investigation or not.

Disturbing Documents Released

New documents have surfeced from an unknown source which detail the programs which trained the Executive Officer of Nimbus Station, Lt. Commander Mike-037. The documents tell the story children being abducted and replaced by clones and then trained for military service starting as young as age 6. Detailed in the documents are reports of children being not only educated in general terms but conditioned for combat. At age 14 the children are left in the forest as a final test, upon rendezvous with each other they are promoted to Chief Petty Officer.

While so far this is not an uncommon practice among militaries in our own universe, the documents released then detail the augmentation of the young teens over a period of 4 years where some 40 of the original 70 children die or become too disabled to continue. Following this the remaining 30 “Spartans” are put into what appears to be standard military training routines. They finally see combat later and are extensively successful.

At the same time the political machinery behind the program promotes the idea that “Spartan’s Never Die”, this is done through a variety of ways but most notably, none are listed as dead, simply Missing in Action. Later, a reporter native to that universe is killed when attempting to inform the publica bout the truth to the program. This is done to cover up the fact that the Spartan’s commited war crimes, mass killings and slaughtering of civilians. The detailed atrocities are extensive and paint the image of a monsterous group of people who have dangerous propensity for extreme violence.

OOC: A link to the original data is provided. Ask Mike for Details.

Borg Prisoner?

On condition of anomyniity, sources within Solas Tempus Security have confirmed that a Borg is being held. The Borg has reportedly been severed from the collective. It is unknown the purpose for the continued incarceration of the Borg, security chief Angelos has been unavailable for comment thus far. This raises serious questions for the continued security of the station.

Announcements

A new vessel, the Severed Grace appeared and created a tense situation temporarily where it was possible the vessel may turn hostile. Someone from the same universe, Orn’VaOrnomai, was able to diffuse the situation shortly after the vessel’s arrival.
John Angelos and Itza were married on May 13th, 2385 not long after returning to the Schatten System.
A new vessel has appeared through a Splice, the Irvyn, which appears to be some form of ironclad flying vessel and is currently docked with Nimbus via the ocean docks. It’s Captain Clancy spliced in separately.
The head of Solas Tempus, Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas, and Captain Drem Confoscho of the USS Drakon have announced their impending marriage, though a specific date has not been set.