CHAPTER NINE
"Approaching primary docking port now, Commander", the Helm Officer called out, "Distance closing at twelve feet per second".
"Commence countdown to contact at T-10", Cain instructed.
"Yes, Sir", Helm acknowledged.
The PEGASUS had made the rendezvous with the CEREBRUS without incident. As a precaution, Tolen had brought the PEGASUS to Condition Two, but that didn't stop the one watch not on alert to crowd the various ports and viewscreens.
"Now that is something you don't get to see every day", Sanders said with classic understatement.
"I know what you mean", Cain replied, "Any one of the old COLUMBIA-class battlestars would be a rarity. The fact that it's the CEREBRUS makes it even more memorable".
The pilots of the two ready-alert squadrons from each wing thought so too as they flew cover for the PEGASUS as the Battlestar made it's final approach to its aged and derelict sister.
"Knock off the sight-seeing", Tricia communicated from her viper, "you'll get a chance to see the CEREBRUS in more detail later. Until then, watch out for possible hostiles", she ordered. Tricia was acting as Group Leader for this deployment – which she didn't object to at all.
On the bridge of the CEREBRUS, both Engle and Hunter were monitoring the maneuvering of the PEGASUS towards the topside docking port while the escorting vipers flew a screening pattern around both battlestars.
"Helm seems to have the touch", Engle commented as he watched the viewscreen.
"For something as massive as the PEGASUS, I think you'd need more than a 'touch'", Hunter replied with a smile.
True, the onboard computers do a lot of the work, but it still needed a deft control from the helm officer to ensure that everything went off without a hitch. Any miscalculation could cause substantial damage, and given the lack of repair facilities, that was something that had to be avoided.
"Countdown commencing in Ten seconds… Mark!" Helm announced, activating the countdown clock on the DRADIS console.
"Easy does it", Sanders whispered as the countdown went lower and lower.
"Contact in three, two, one, Dock!" Helm called out as he touched a final control zeroing all relative motion between the two battlestars.
With barely a shudder, the latches around the edge of the docking probe of the PEGASUS clicked its locks onto the receiving ports of the CEREBRUS's docking port. Next, as the automatic latches all secured themselves, the docking probe itself was partially retracted.
"Full contact confirmed with the latches", Helm called out, "looks like we have integrity with the seals".
"Withdraw the docking probe fully and start pressurizing the port", Sanders ordered.
"Yes, Sir", Helm acknowledged.
With the latches firmly in place, the port could now be pressurized. Not only that, the power couplings from the PEGASUS were also plugged into the power sockets of the CEREBRUS. As the docking port pressurized, power started surging through the couplings.
"We've got power coming in", Engle reported as he saw the readouts on his engineering console climb. As they did, dormant consoles started coming to life.
In the base of the docking bay on the CEREBRUS, Souster's marines noticed the lights coming on, and the sound of the air conditioning system activating.
"It's like bringing a corpse back to life", Corporal Pulver quipped as the lights in the rather dusty bay area went brighter with the increase in power levels from the PEGASUS.
"An apt analogy", Souster replied. He then turned to face the other marines.
"As soon as the readouts show total pressurization on the other side of the hatch, get it opened up", he ordered the marines. That needed to be done as the automatic hatch opener was non-operational and the manual wheels needed a fair amount of elbow grease.
"El-Tee", one of the marines reported a few seconds later, "We've got green lights on the display. Pressure equalized in the docking port".
"Okay then, let's wind this door open", Souster said, "we've got folks on the other side who want in".
With that, several marines went to the two large manual wheels and began turning them.
It seemed like an eternity, but in reality, it was only a couple of minutes to wind open the CEREBRUS side of the hatch. Waiting for them on the other side was Major Thyssen.
Thyssen stepped through the open hatch onto the CEREBRUS and saluted first the colonial emblem on the side of the wall, then Souster.
"Permission to come aboard, Sir?" Thyssen asked formally.
"Granted, sir", Souster replied.
As Thyssen walked further in, other technical personnel started to enter the CEREBRUS from the PEGASUS. Most of them were laden with tools and checklists.
"Looks like we'll have to get the automatic hatch opener operational before we leave", Thyssen observed as he looked at the marines take a breather from their exertions.
However, their break would be VERY short. Souster saw someone familiar walking through the hatch.
"Squad, Attent-SHUN!" Souster shouted as Lieutenant Howe – accompanied by Commander Cain – entered the CEREBRUS, saluting the colonial seal as they did so. Behind them were two other squads of marines.
"Well done, Lieutenant", Cain said to Souster as he offered his hand. Souster shook it.
"The CEREBRUS is secure, Commander", Souster formally replied.
"You can stand your squad down now, Lieutenant", Howe said, "Have them report to debriefing at 2200".
"Yes, Six", Souster acknowledged, using Howe's call sign.
As Souster marched his marines back on board the PEGASUS, Cain turned to Howe.
"I'm heading up to the bridge", he announced, "have your other squads deploy around the CEREBRUS. Report anything worth mentioning to Colonel Tolen".
"Understood, Commander", Howe replied.
As Howe turned to give orders to his squad leaders, Cain walked out of the bay area and into the CEREBRUS proper. The numbers of PEGASUS personnel flooding into the ancient battlestar didn't distract Cain from marveling at the old ship.
He noted a couple of staff from the PEGASUS Life Station wheeling a few gurneys through the passageway he was in. There was a body on each of the gurneys covered with a sheet, and the Colonial flag. The bodies would be transferred to the PEGASUS morgue pending final disposition.
Back on board the PEGASUS, Tolen and Sanders were listening to the individual team leader's reports as they went through the CEREBRUS. Tolen turned to Sanders.
"Looks like there is indeed a lot that we can use from the old girl", he noted.
"Yes, Colonel, but I'd rather be on board the CEREBRUS myself instead of being back here listening to what others are seeing", Sanders lamented.
"So would I, but Commander Cain wanted us to remain while he went on board, Privilege of rank, I'm afraid", he replied, "but don't worry: we'll get our chance".
While Tolen, Sanders, and the other unlucky stay-behinds cooled their heels on the PEGASUS, the others who were on board the CEREBRUS were enjoying the opportunity. None more so than both of the strike wing crew chiefs. Chiefs Brubaker and Krag were down in the landing bays looking over the viper II's, and the maintenance equipment with gleams in their eyes.
"With the power levels now up to par – thanks to the PEGASUS – Chief Krag reported to Captain Syke over the wireless, "there will be no problem getting these ships launched and over to the PEGASUS.
"They are all flyable?" Syke asked.
"All the ones I've checked have their reactors still warm, and the launch tubes are now powered up", Krag replied, "plus the landing bay elevators are working again so we can get the javelins out that way".
"Well, just make sure you don't get into Sheba's way when you do so", Skye pointed out.
Tricia had her squadron alight on the port landing bay of the CEREBRUS, rather than bringing them back in on the PEGASUS. As the COLUMBIA class of battlestar had atmospheric force fields on the landing bay maws, the pilots could step straight out of their vipers instead of having to elevate down to a pressurized level.
The force fields were a miracle of colonial technology. Allowing spacecraft to enter and exit the landing bay, it kept the atmosphere inside the ship from escaping, plus acted as an effective shield against the radiation and temperature extremes of the hard vacuum of space.
"Makes me wish that they didn't do away with the force-field concept", one of the pilots said as he climbed out of his viper.
"If you've read your tech manuals, you'd know why", Tricia replied.
While convenient, the force fields were vulnerable to damage from outside attack. The COLUMBIA class battlestars had a lot of defensive armament around the maws, but too many crews had been lost in the first Cylon war when hits on the battlestars caused the fields to fail. People and equipment caught on the landing bay deck when that happened ended up getting blown out into space. It had eventually been decided that it was safer to leave a landing bay deck un-pressurized and instead to have ships that landed taken into airlocks. A lengthier process, but it lessened the risk of crew loss.
While Tricia and the other pilots under her command were marveling at the fact that they were the first fighters to land on the CEREBRUS in forty years, up on the bridge, Hunter and Engle were awaiting the arrival of Commander Cain.
"What's taking him so long?" Engle asked Hunter, "He said that he was on his way up here half and hour ago".
"I suppose he's sight-seeing some", Hunter replied, "after all, in his shoes, I'd like to take a good look around as well".
"Attent-SHUN!" a technician suddenly called out, "Commander on the Bridge".
"Carry on", Cain replied, then he headed up to the upper bridge area to shake hands with both Hunter and Engle.
"A lot roomier than the CIC on the PEGASUS", Cain noted, looking around.
"But I prefer the technology back in PEGASUS CIC" Engle replied.
"I decided to take the scenic route to the bridge", Cain explained, "and I'm kind of impressed with how the old girl stood up to her last battle. She's taken one heck of a pounding, but still in one piece…" He then paused.
"Commander Tyler?" Cain asked, pointing to one of the corpses that were still on the bridge. The corpse was covered by the CEREBRUS flag – which Hunter had gotten from the conference room that he was in earlier.
Hunter nodded. Cain knelt beside the mummified corpse, and then mouthed silently a prayer. Standing back upright, he turned to Hunter.
"That was a nice gesture covering Commander Tyler in his ship's flag", Cain said quietly, "Do make sure that he is the last one to be taken off the ship".
"That order has already been given, Commander", Hunter replied.
"You did well, but I'm going to need you to get back to your peregrine. You and Coffin fly the AVENGER back to the PEGASUS and get her ready to go out again", he ordered.
"We get any follow-up information form our probes?" Hunter asked.
"Not yet, but when we do, I want you ready to depart in a moment's notice", Cain explained.
"Very well, Sir", Hunter said, "You have the bridge", he formally stated before saluting Cain.
Cain returned the salute, and then nodded. Hunter smartly pivoted on his heels and left the bridge.
After watching Hunter leave, Cain then turned to Engle.
"So, anything else to report, Captain?" he asked.
"It's good to see things powered up, but just to reiterate: without a dry-dock, there will be no way to get the CEREBRUS back into battleworthy condition", Engle replied, "the energizers simply cannot be repaired, and we can't just keep her plugged into the PEGASUS power supply".
"I sympathize, Captain. It's sad not being able to get the CEREBRUS back into fighting trim, but if we have to leave her, at least her supply of fighters, javelins, and ordinance will be able to be used by the PEGASUS", Cain noted.
"The viper fuel storage tanks are intact and the fuel has been tested", Engle reported, "so we can certainly top up our tanks with the fuel stores here".
"What about the ordinance?" Cain asked next.
"Well, Commander, as far as ordinance is concerned, I've just gotten a follow-up listing from one of the weapons specialists down in the starboard bay", Engle stated, "he found not only a goodly supply of ammunition compatible with our own defensive batteries, he also found a number of medium-yield nukes".
"How many?" Cain asked.
"Fifteen in the eighty to one-hundred kiloton range", Engle replied, "considering that out own nuke supply is low, they can certainly come in handy".
Cain nodded at that. The nukes, not to mention the other items that could be salvaged from the CEREBRUS would indeed come in handy. Still – he thought – the CEREBRUS deserved a better fate than being scavenged for parts and supplies. He decided to take more of a look around while he could…