Battlestar Hyperion: The Invasion of Aerilon
Part 1:
Condition Three
Battlestar Themis, Battlestar Group 53, Entering Virgon Orbit:
19:00 Hours, Cylon War Day 1583
"Welcome back to War Watch here on Channel 1 News. This episode is dedicated to the boys and girls on board the Battlestar Themis, who managed to divert a Cylon convoy away from the President's transport," A cheer went up around the officer's rec room as the Colonial officers aboard the Battlestar Themis watched their daily dose of Colonial broadcasts. Seated in the centre of the room, freshly promoted Captain John 'Busman' Jenkins sat with the ship's CAG, Major Jacob 'Kilo' Moore. "And with that, I hand you over to our correspondent on Gemenon; right in the middle of the battle with advancing Cylon Centurions. Mike, are you there?" The screen split down the middle and showed a journalist crouching inside a Colonial Militia trench as gunfire filled the air around him.
"I'm here, thank you Rosaline. As you can hear, the Colonial Militia is currently evacuating the city of Illumini as Cylon forces push ever closer to the capital," The reporter on Gemenon shouted in a clearly terrified tone.
"And how are the Colonial Militia faring today Mike?" The female news anchor asked him.
"The Militia has so far been pushed outside the city and we are holding out across a river from the Cylons now. We were ambushed by landing Raiders and most of us are still in the city, either dead or captured. As you can tell, we lost our cameraman and most of the crew as well," The reporter told the anchor.
"How long do you think until the Colonial Fleet can send reinforcements?" The anchor asked again.
"They have. The Battlestars Atlantia and Athena already have their Fleet's here and I've heard that the Mars will try and be here soon but the majority of the Fleet is engaged elsewhere," The reporter ducked his head down as a mortar round hit the ground just behind him.
"This is it!" The leader of the Militia cried as they jumped up and began to push out of the trench around the reporter. The reporter, now clearly even more scared than he was before, looked off to the side of the camera and a hand offered him a Colonial side arm.
"I don't think we'll be able to hold this position any longer so I'll hand you to Will Bates on board the Battlestar Themis for a better run-down of the war. This is Mike Green, signing out," The reporter grabbed the camera and shook it around as he tried to run away from the fight. A moment later the camera fell to the floor and the reporter tried to shoot a Cylon Centurion now walking across the Colonial trench. The Cylon quickly fired back and the camera cut to static.
The screen cut back to the newsroom as the anchor sat silently in shock. Still chocked up, the anchor attempted to continue. "Thank you Mike... now let's... umm, go to the Battlestar Themis where Will has Admiral Rogers on the line for us... Will?" The screen cut away to a reporter in a suit standing in the middle of the Themis' bustling CIC.
"Thank you Rosaline," The second reporter said as the camera switched to him. Next to him, a short, bearded man stood in a Full Admiral's uniform with a piece of octagonal paper in his hand. "This is Admiral Rogers," The reporter said, turning to the Admiral. "He commands the Battlestar Themis and is responsible for the quick thinking that saved the president just hours ago near Tauron. Admiral, how do you think your men did?"
"I don't know; you'd have to ask them!" The Admiral joked. "But no, they did incredibly well and they deserve much more than the toasters allow,"
"So how do you think the war is going currently?" The reporter asked.
"I think it could be going better, that's for sure," The Admiral said sadly. "If we can halt the Cylon advance on Gemenon, I believe we can gain enough momentum to destroy the Cylon holdings on Sagittaron,"
"So do you think the Fleet is doing enough?"
"The Fleet? I think the Fleet is doing everything it can under the current circumstances and Fleet Admiral Stryker does everything possible for the people of the Colonies. And with the Battlestars Pacifica and Dauntless, and their Fleets coming out of dry-dock, I think we can start to make a significant..." The Admiral trailed off as a Colonial officer walked up behind him and whispered in his ear. "I'm sorry, I have to take this," The Admiral apologised as he was led back into the centre of the CIC. The reporter turned back to the camera.
"That was Admiral Rogers everybody. I think we'll go back to you Rosaline while I find another officer to interview," The reporter said as he started to exit the CIC.
Captain John Jenkins looked over at Major Moore as the Major rolled his eyes and stood up. "Where are you going Kilo?" John whispered to his friend.
"Someone's got to take that interview," Jacob told John. John chuckled as Jacob went to leave the room.
"You stay here; I'll take the interview. You've done more than enough today and I'm sure they wouldn't mind speaking to the CAG's second-in-command. Jacob nodded and sat back down in his chair as John stood up and took his place. John quickly put his hand through his formerly smart brown hair before swinging open the door and stepping out in the corridor.
Battlestar Themis Level 15, BSG-53, Entering Virgon Orbit:
19:07 Hours, Cylon War Day 1583
John walked towards the general CIC area and saw the reporter and his cameraman wandering around the ship, clearly lost. "Excuse me?" The reporter called to John. John, fairly obvious in his flight-suit, pointed to his chest as if to ask the reporter who he was talking to. The reporter nodded and John walked over.
"Are ya lost?" John asked playfully.
"You could say that. We'd like to find someone of importance to speak to," The reporter told John. John nodded for a moment, feigning deep thought.
"You're looking for Kilo then?" John asked. The reporter looked at him confusedly for a moment. "He's the Commander of Themis' Air Group. That's pronounced CAG by the way," The reporter nodded once he understood. "I'm afraid I told him to get some rack time. He's been up for 30 solid hours since we left Leonis last,"
"Oh... so... who are you, exactly?" The reporter asked.
"Captain John Jenkins, pilots call me Busman," John held out his hand to the reporter. "I'm the lead of the 2nd Eagles and I'm the CAG's second," The reporter smiled and shook John's hand.
"Would you mind if we had a talk on camera?" The reporter asked quickly.
"Why not?" John asked, covering up the fact that that was what came here for. The cameraman switched on the camera and the reporter eagerly got his microphone out and readied himself for the interview. A minute later the cameraman gave the reporter a thumbs-up and they began. The reporter held his finger to his ear as they heard the news anchor speak to them from back on Caprica.
"Thank you Rosaline," The reporter said as he turned to John. "This is Captain Jenkins, he's a squadron leader here on the Themis and he was involved in the Themis' recent action over Tauron. Captain, what's it like serving on a Battlestar like this?"
"It is... different. Different from other employment but I love it. It's also probably the most important job in the Colonies at the moment too. I mean without us, you're all bread for the toasters, aren't you?" John told the reporter.
"So what's it like stepping into the cockpit of a Viper MkII on a moment's notice, Captain?" The reporter asked.
"What's it like? Well it's exhilarating to say the least. Definitely puts the spice on your day, never knowing if it may be your last time in cockpit," John said.
"I can only imagine..." The reporter mused. He went to asked John a question when the Condition One klaxons began blazing.
"Action stations! Action stations! Set Condition One throughout the ship. All hands prep for FTL jump to Aerilon!" The reporter looked around him as John instinctively zipped up his flight suit and prepared to run to his Viper.
"What's going on Captain?" The reporter shouted as John turned and prepared to leave.
"Cylons over Aerilon by the sounds of things. If the Athena's caught over Gemenon, we're all that can save them," John told the reporter. "I'd suggest finding somewhere to sit," John said as five Viper pilots ran past them towards their planes. Dumbfounded, the reporter looked at John for inspiration. "This is what we do, you'll be fine. Now how'd you like a front row seat for whatever's going to happen out there?" John asked. The reporter looked at John as he led them towards the bow of the ship.
Battlestar Themis Observation Deck, BSG-53, Prepping to Jump to Aerilon:
19:13 Hours, Cylon War Day 1583
"Here we are," John said as he pushed open the door to the Themis' now empty observation deck right at the front of the ship's alligator head. "I hope you're still rolling," He said as the camera turned into the room and got a beautiful shot of the two Victorious-class Battlestars (Hyperion and Theia) as they retracted their flight pods and prepared to jump away.
"So what happens now?" The reporter asked, holding his microphone towards John.
"We finish FTL calculations in about twenty seconds and jump to Aerilon. Damn toasters couldn't have picked a worse time," John drifted off.
"What do you mean Captain?" The reporter asked quickly.
"I mean we were at Condition Three! That means we were at stand-down status for the first time in months and had our Alert Vipers back inside the hangar," John was cut off by two prototype FTL capable MkII Raptors as they flew over the Themis and jumped away while still in visual range. "Now you stay here while we jump away and maybe you'll get a nice shot of the Cylons once we jump in. I heard the Cylons gave their ships a new paint job and everything!" John joked as he slammed the door closed and ran out of the room.
Battlestar Themis CIC, BSG-53, High Hestia Orbit:
19:15 Hours
"...then where the frak are we Lieutenant?" Admiral Rogers shouted after the jump was completed.
"Getting a fix sir... Hestia sir. We're not far away," Lieutenant Thompson, the ship's Tactical Officer, reported.
"And the Fleet?" The Admiral asked again.
"Scattered around us sir, but still within voice range," Lieutenant Thompson said as John walked up to the command table behind Jacob.
"Admiral," Jacob said as the two pilots snapped into a salute. The Admiral briefly returned the salute and looked back up at the DRADIS console above him.
"At ease boys," The Admiral said without so much as looking at them. "I suppose you heard our predicament,"
"We did sir," John replied. "So where are we?"
"Hestia. So it could be worse," Admiral Rogers said, finally looking the pilots and away from DRADIS.
"And the rest of '53?" Jacob asked.
"They're here but we'll need to send new coordinates to them. Could this day get any frakking worse?" The Admiral grumbled.
"Admiral! Four DRADIS contacts!" Lieutenant Thompson called.
"Oh for frak's sake!" The Admiral shouted in dismay. John stood silently, trying to stop himself from laughing.
"Wait sir... I'm getting Colonial transponders; it's BSG-35. Sir, they're transmitting us jump coordinates," Thompson told them.
"Thank the gods," Admiral Rogers sighed. "Let's spool up and get out of here,"
"Admiral!" A voice called. It was the Themis' XO, Colonel Eleanor Blaire. "Recon has returned. It seems the Cylons sent them here too,"
"What are the chances of that?" John mused to himself. A moment later the DRADIS screen filled with images of two standard Hades II-class Basestars and one hexagonal Kuiper-class Basestar in the centre of a triangle formation along with two Light and two Heavy Escortstars and numerous Raider squadrons.
"Recon estimates half the fighters are standard Mark 5 Raiders and the rest are Mark 8s and possible Stealth variants in play," Colonel Blaire told the pilots and Admiral.
"Frak me..." Jacob whispered.
"So we jump in and take them?" The Admiral asked. "That doesn't sound like you Eleanor,"
"We don't have a choice, but I've signalled to the Pacifica and Dodona for help and they should arrive in the middle of the fight. We'll also see if BSG-32 can spare the Rycon," Colonel Blaire told Admiral Rogers. Rogers thought for a moment and turned to John and Jacob.
"Do you two think our boys can handle it?" Rogers asked. "Bearing in mind we've still got to get down to the ground,"
"I can lead the ground teams in a Raptor and if we jump behind the lead Basestar we can do enough damage before they know what's going on," John suggested.
"But they'll just turn around John," Jacob told John.
"Not if the Atlas and Pythia jump in front of them, they can keep their attention," John told his superiors. Admiral Rogers nodded and turned to John.
"Good plan Captain. You'd better get to your bird," The two pilots saluted Rogers and jogged out of the CIC.
Battlestar Themis Hangar Deck/Raptor 109, BSGs-53 and 35, Hestia Orbit:
19:20 Hours
The Condition One sirens blazed once again and John scrambled up the side of his Raptor. "Never thought we'd fly her again after last time," John turned around and saw his best friend, Lieutenant Matt 'Virg' Virgon approach the Raptor that had once been theirs.
"Yeah, Ouranos XII didn't do much for my 'street-cred', you know?" John joked as he pulled Matt into the Raptor next to him. The leader of the Marine strike team boarded after Matt and sat down in the rear turret at his men filed into the Raptor. John stepped over to his seat and switched on his wireless as the Themis jumped.
John switched the exterior speakers onto the Raptor's frequency and let the Marines hear Lieutenant Thompson give his orders. John watched the Vipers being launched from the rising elevator pad that led to the flight deck. "Strike One, you are cleared for launch. Good hunting," The LSO called as the magnetic clamps released as the Raptor took off with the four other Raptors on its tail. John twirled the Raptor around as they shot out of the tiny gap the extending flight pods made between it and the hull of the ship.
Strike One shot out of the Themis as the Battlestar began firing all batteries at the lead Basestar, which was struggling to defend itself. John pulled the Raptor into a bank around the bow of the ship, giving the reporter a great shot of the MkI Raptors as they made their way down to the sprawling world of Aerilon below them. "Busman, Bale: We see you and are coming around to give you escort," Called John's good friend, Lieutenant Dale 'Bale' Linear who just happened to be from Aerilon.
"Copy Bale. Themis, Busman: I count two Raider squadrons coming up from Aerilon," John told the Themis as Matt prepared the guns on the wings of the Raptor.
"Copy Busman. Squadron 4, intercept bogey's coming in at bearing 198 Carom 323," Came the Themis' reply. John looked to his right as another Viper squadron launched and prepared to intercept the incoming Cylon ships.
"Virg, have you got our guns ready yet?" John asked Matt as they rapidly approached the Raiders.
"Yep, transferring control now," Matt replied as the Vipers escorting them gracefully overtook the Raptors and engaged the Raiders in front of them. "Now! Shoot now!" Matt shouted as a Raider boosted towards them. John opened fire immediately and took out the Raider before it could get too close.
"Strike One, Themis: Atmo Transports are launching from our starboard pod. Clear out those Raiders before they get taken out!" The Themis called to them. John nodded to himself and fired everything he had at the next five Raiders. Two Vipers broke away beside him and looped behind the Raptors. One of the Raiders broke off and followed the Vipers to the back of the Raptors and locked on a missile.
"Skipper, he's got a lock on us!" Matt told John as he put the few more KEW rounds into the nearest Raider.
"You, in the back!" John called to the marine manning the gun. "Take out that Raider. I'll deal with the missile," John gently banked to either side while the marine put some rounds into the Raider before cutting the engines and flipping over and then blasting the engines and zipping just inches from the Raider. The missile copied him as the marine began to fire again. The Cylon pilot of the Raider suddenly realised what was about to happen and attempted to break away but was hit by its own missile and was destroyed instantly. "Splash one!" John shouted joyously.
"Strike One, Bale: Raiders are done, form up on those transports and let's get the frak down to Aerilon!" Lieutenant Linear told John.
"Tally Bale. Strike One on me," John said as he flipped over again and blasted past the other Raptors towards the atmospheric shuttles still leaving the Themis.
"Captain, look out behind!" The marine shouted as he opened fire on a burning Raider that came spinning towards the Raptor. John flicked his eyes around his seat and then did a 360 degree spin before aiming the Raptor at the burning Raider as it tumbled past them.
"Take this you frakkin' toaster!" John shouted as he opened fire on the carcase of the Raider, quickly eliminating it.
"Good shot Busman," Matt said as they formed up once again.
"Cheers," John replied. "Strike One, prepare for atmo re-entry in two minutes," John told the other Colonial craft as he blasted the Raptor out of their current orbit and towards the surface of Aerilon.
Raptor 109, Northern Aerilon Aerospace:
19:34 Hours
John breathed a sigh of relief as the Raptor finished its re-entry burn. "Busman, Bale: We're going to head back to the Themis in one," John heard Lieutenant Linear say.
"Bale, Busman: You get back up there, I'll deal with the rest. Just bring me some pretty pictures of the battle okay?"
"Copy Busman," Bale said. "Pythons on me," John watched as the Vipers banked synchronously to the left and pulled back up towards space again.
"Right," John said to Matt. "Can you find us a good spot to land the others while we ready the farm we're going to be based out of?" Matt nodded and switched his screen to satellite imagery. After about a minute Matt spoke again.
"Got one. It's about twelve clicks to the west," Matt said triumphantly. John looked at his screen as Matt pasted its location onto his map.
"Strike One, Busman: Head to these coordinates and set down until I give you the signal. I'll establish contact with our local support and call for you. There should be tree cover there, so do try and stay hidden, but remember, not wireless signals to anyone other than the Themis if you are in danger," John ordered.
"Tally Busman; we'll see you later. Leprechaun out," Came the reply from Strike One's other leader, Captain Leroy 'Leprechaun' McGill. The other Colonial craft spit away from John's Raptor and dived down towards the tree line.
"How long until we arrive at Base-Camp?" John asked Matt.
"ETA is about ten minutes at this rate," Matt replied.
"Okay. Then call the Themis and ask for two Vipers for alert duty," John told Matt. Matt nodded and put his headset back on. John leant back in his chair and watched out of the window as they flew across the Aerilonian plains. This was going to be fun...