Chapter III. Welcome To The Neighborhood.

12 September CY450

Man, I'm really starting get tired of this. We've been pushing the drive units hard for the past two weeks and all we've found so far is a bunch of rocks and the occasional cloud of dust. Sure, the ship is performing as expected, but the crew is beginning to get a little antsy...can't say that I blame them. Sometimes, I think the folks back at Fleet have their collective heads up their collective arses. This ship and many of its systems are untested in combat. Colonel Rathbun is beginning to become a major thorn in my ass. The SOB actually thinks we can go waltzing back to Earth and put an end to this madness by all by our lonesome. If he had seen some of the things I've seen...

"Captain Fujimura, your presence is requested on the bridge."

"Fujimura here. I'll be up there in a few minutes." The stocky Asian male sighed as he closed his personal journal. After a few minutes, the commanding officer padded across his sparse quarters to his locker to slip a set of coveralls on before heading to the bridge. It wouldn't do to have the commanding officer of the RSS VIGILANT showing up on the bridge in his skivvies.

A few minutes later, he was stepping off the lift to the bridge. He took a minute to survey the bustle as the officers and crew of the mid-watch scrambled to and fro. He made his way to the command station where a blonde haired man was busily reviewing tactical displays.

"What's the story, Commander Oswald?" asked Captain Fujimura.

"Good morning, Sir, sorry to bother you this early in the morning, but CIC has detected what appears to be several small ships on the periphery of the magnetic storm we've been studying for the past couple of days. Why someone would want to venture into that mess is beyond me. In any case, one of the ships seems to have sustained some damage and the other two ships appear to be rendering assistance," opined the officer of the watch (OOW) as he unfolded his lanky frame from the command station.

"Any indications that they've spotted us?" asked Fujimura as he studied the sensor readings.

"We've detected intermittent sensor sweeps in our general direction, but nothing to indicate they've spotted us," responded the OOW.

Fujimura continued to study the displays at the command station, "I guess this warrants a closer look. Have Commander Shultz prep a couple of his flyboys for a looky-loo. In the meantime, bring us in a little closer in case things go sideways."

"Aye, aye, Sir. Flight, rouse a couple of your boys and have them conduct a quick fly by of those ships."

"Roger, Command. We'll have a couple Rhinos launching in about twenty minutes. Would you like a couple of 8x10s for posterity?"

"Negative, smart ass. Just get those crates airborne," chuckled LCDR Oswald.

Fifteen minutes later, two squat fighters, appropriately code named "Rhino," launched from ship's hangar bay.

"Rattlers Four and Seven, you guys know the drill. Just a quick look-see and report what you see. For Pete's sake, try not to get your asses shot off. Those fighters are expensive."

"Roger that, Flight. And, sir...we're glad to hear you're concerned about our safety, too," groused the element leader, "Hey, Tiny, are you still with me back there?"

"Off your portside and trailing about 100 meters, Rattler Lead," came the cheerful reply from Rattler Seven.

"Well, then, let's go have a look."

Both fighters oriented themselves with their reaction jets before they accelerated towards the group of unknown ships. Meanwhile, the appearance of two fighters did not go unnoticed on the three ships at the edge of the magnetic storm.

"Sir, we have two Dreads approaching from astern!" screamed the sensor operator aboard the Tarakan cruiser RONIN, "But they don't match any configuration that I've ever seen, and there's nothing in our database that matches them. Sir, we're being actively scanned by the lead Dread."

RONIN's captain frowned as he glanced over the sensor operator's shoulder at the displays. "They're kind of far from anything not to be supported. Have you detected a mothership or carrier, LT Nagumo?"

"Negative, sir."

Captain Bunya continued to frown as he considered his next move. After a few seconds of thought, he turned to the communications officer. "Hail the two Dreads and warn those women that we'll atomize them if they come any closer."

"Unidentified Dreads, this is Warship RONIN of the Tarakan Liberation Front. Do not come any closer or we will open fire."

"Rattler Lead, guess we weren't as stealthy as we should have been. I got no idea what these "Dreads" he's talking about are, but I guess we should back off. I'm being lit up by some sort of fire control radar."

Rattler Lead silently cursed. "Crap. Engage active ECM and stand off. Break, break. Command, we've been detected and they're threatening open up on us. What are your instructions, over?"

"Do nothing. We should be on scene in five mikes." LCDR Oswald turned to his commander. "Well, Sir, what do you want to do? It doesn't appear that they've detected us yet. Do you want me to go to battle stations? "

Captain Fujimura continued to frown as he sat in the command chair and studied the tactical displays. "No, bring up ECM. Have Rattler Lead hail the lead ship. We'll continue on course and maintain a low profile."

"Warship RONIN, this is Rattler Lead of the Republic Space Forces, our scans indicate your ship has sustained damage. Do you require any assistance?"

"It's a man, but what self-respecting man would pilot a...Dread?" mused the RONIN's captain to no one in particular, "Those Dreads couldn't have come all the way out here without a carrier of some type. Let's see how this shakes out. Comms officer, open a channel to those Dreads... Rattler Flight, this is Captain Arato Bunya of the Tarakan Warship RONIN, we have sustained minor damage during our passage through the magnetic storms, but we have everything under control. Thank you for you concern...That should keep them off guard," Captain Bunya said as he turned to his sensor chief, "Have you detected any other ships in the area?"

"Negative, sir, although sensors have picked up some sort of anomaly fifteen kilometers astern of those two Dreads and closing. I would venture to guess their carrier has some sort of stealth abilities. We would have picked up something that large a lot sooner. We've also completed preliminary scans of the Dreads. Some of their systems are bit more primitive than our own, but they pack a respectable amount of firepower. If I were a wagering man, I'd say they'd be a match for our Bangatas."

"Keep those silly thoughts to your self, Chief Jordan. This is becoming more and more interesting. Have the Bangatas brought to readiness. I'll show those she-men and their women puppet masters what a real man of Tarak can do if it comes to that," Captain Bunya grunted as he turned to study the two mysterious Dreads on the screen.

Meanwhile, aboard the VIGILANT...

A slightly built man stepped off the bridge lift and quickly walked over to the command station where the Old Man was busily studying the tactical and sensor displays.

"Sorry, I took so long; I was reviewing the training schedule for the next two weeks. What's up, Boss?" asked the VIGILANT's executive officer, Commander Stephen Renfro, "Huh, looks like we have ourselves a First Contact scenario."

"You know, I think you've been watching too many of those old science fiction vids. No, I think they're human, but something about them doesn't sit well with me," Fujimura replied with a grin, "We're coming in for a little look see. In the meantime, have Colonel Rathbun get a platoon suited up. Also, have Commander Shultz make space on the hangar deck, we may have visitors shortly. We should be in place soon."

"That's why they pay you the big bucks," answered CDR Renfro as he sauntered off to refill his ever-present coffee cup.

"That man and his coffee," Captain Fujimura thought with a chuckle before turning his attention back to the tactical displays. "EWO, de-energize active ECM and begin broadcast of our IFF codes. LCDR Oswald, energize all navigation and work lights and open a wide spectrum broadcast to the lead ship. Let's say hello to our new "friends.""