15/01/2015 – Tempest Secrets Revealed (2)
Grants tells the Battlecruiser Austerlitz they are the Liberator, they are here for shopping and need supplies. The commander of the ship is incredulous but after several questions tells them to hold. A number of Pursuit ships also move into range of the ship.
Drent and Dirk go down to the teleport area and try to work out how to operate it. The actual teleport controls seem dead. Drent works out they need to launch a probe. After some discussion, they realise the probes are where they can teleport to. They need a probe on the surface of Derwyn in order to teleport down. This could be seen as a hostile act and decide against it at this time.
Cyrus locates the homing signal and calculates it is coming from somewhere in the asteroid belt beyond Derwyn.
Shuttle Journey
Drent and Cyrus decide go to one of Liberator’s shuttles and set course for the source of the homing signal in the asteroid belt. This will take a few hours despite the shuttles high speed. It is capable of Thrust-8 but will still take a few hours to get there.
The Austerlitz begins to demand further information from the Liberator about why it has launched a shuttle. Grant soothes their concerns a little, but three Pursuit craft are launched by the Austerlitz to follow the shuttle.
An hour passes. Grant becomes aware that two more Battlecruisers are heading for the Liberator from the planet Dyvers and will arrive in a few hours.
After another hour, the shuttle closes in on the source of the homing beacon, it approaches two large asteroids in the belt. Two mining ships interpose themselves between the shuttle and the asteroids and communicate, saying this area is private, owned by the Derwyn Mining Company and off limits. They are authorised to open fire if they come closer.
Cyrus tells them he is looking for a lost probe. They are sceptical and tell them to stop and negotiate, or they will fire. Drent slows up the shuttle. The miners say the asteroid where their probe is supposed to be is a simple supply drop off and pick up point. There is little there.
The two Battlecruisers from Dyvers are getting closer to the Liberator every moment that passes.
Miner Problems
Cyrus has Drent manoeuvre around for a better sensor sweep. Sensors detect that under the surface of the second asteroid is some sort of large capital ship with many life signs and a strong power signature. More than just a drop off and pick up point.
Cyrus tells them that he has detected their hidden capital ship on the surface. They initially say nothing. Then suddenly the mining ships open fire. The beam lasers damage the shuttle a little but a lot less than they should. Drent turns the shuttle around and moves away. The three Pursuit ships from Austerlitz are now approaching them. The two mining ships continue to fire for a while, but stop as the Pursuit ships get nearer.
On the Liberator, an Admiral Travis begins to question Grant further about their presence there. He tells him the planet Derwyn is Interdicted and under Martial Law. The presence of his ship is unauthorised. Also his ship is violation of Sector Law by not transmitting a transponder and his ship is associated with dissidents. Grant’s attempts to bluff him about his name, home world and the origin of the ship do not seem to cut much ice.
The Admiral then tells Grant that the Austerlitz is launching a boarding party to inspect their ship. He must co-operate. Sensors confirm a launch of a large shuttle and three escorting pursuit ships from the Austerlitz towards Liberator. Grant does not know what to do. The navigation controls are still locked out.
Confrontations
Drent stops the shuttle. There is no point going all the way back to Liberator, they need this code and need to stay near the asteroid. Cyrus decides to transmit to the approaching Pursuit ships the sensor data he has about the second asteroid with the hidden ship. Two Pursuit ships break off to investigate. The third stays by the shuttle.
One of the Battlecruisers heading towards Liberator from Dyvers now breaks off and heads towards the asteroid Cyrus has just sent sensor data from.
The two mining ships engage the pursuit ships, but one of them is damaged and the other begins to withdraw. Then sensors show the ship hidden in the asteroid is taking off.
On the Liberator, Grant is watching helplessly as the ships from the Austerlitz move nearer. Then suddenly the Flight Deck goes dark and all the controls turn off. The same computer voice from before suddenly speaks. Where are you? It is urgent that you come rescue me. Grant points out the ship can’t go anywhere. The voice says he is releasing computer control for 6 hours.
Grant tells the ship’s computer to head towards the asteroids where the shuttle is at maximum speed. Liberator does so – at a speed in excess of Thrust 15 according to Tarrant. Both approaching Battlecruisers from Dyvers now change course to follow, but they are much slower.
Mika Hunt Revealed
Cyrus detects that the source of the homing signal is this new ship that has launched. It is a large mining frigate heavily armed. It engages the two Pursuit ships, helping out the other mining ships and destroying the Pursuit ships. The third Pursuit ship watching the Liberator shuttle withdraws to safety.
A voice transmits from the frigate, asking the shuttle who they are and what they are doing. Cyrus recognises the voice as Mika Hunt and decides not to chat much. Instead, Drent pilots the shuttle back to rendezvous with Liberator, which is approaching.
Liberator slows down and the shuttle docks with it. Drent and Cyrus return to the Flight Deck. Tarrant points out that maximum speed has been draining power very fast. There is not much power left. He recommends Thrust-10 for the remainder of the journey towards the mining Frigate, which is currently stationary.
Cyrus thinks the frigate is going to jump, but it does not. Sensor readouts suggest they are having difficulties.
Teleporting
Liberator now approaches the mining frigate. The Dyvers military ships are also approaching, but are still a couple of hours away. Mika Hunt communicates with Liberator, recognising Grant’s voice when he replies and tells them that Liberator is his ship and they should hand it over.
The crew discuss what to do. They could teleport over and try to rescue whoever it is who has been sending the homing signal. They can only teleport between the ship and a properly deployed teleport probe according to ship’s computer. They can’t put a probe on the outside of the frigate, they will all die. So they decide to try to get one into the frigate’s docking area.
They head for the teleport centre and use the controls to successfully launch a probe into the docking area of the other ship. The teleport controls come alive now they can detect a working reception zone within range.
Drent, Cyrus, Grant and Dirk all gear up in Vac-suits just in case. They find some bracelets that are obviously part of the teleport process and each wear one, taking extra to rescue whoever is giving the signal. Then Drent teleports Cyrus, Grant and Dirk over, then gets Tarrant to transport him over.
They arrive next to a column with a deployed metal surface around it on the other ship. Dirk has intense tooth ache for a few seconds.
On the Frigate
Two docking bay technicians are looking on incredulously. The crew point their guns at them and have them surrender, persuading them to tell their colleague on the other end of the intercom that everything is OK.
They have hand detectors for the homing beam, which is coming from the rear of the ship. The docking bay is at the front. They get the two technicians to guide them to the back of the ship, passing a couple of colleagues but they do not raise the alarm as they look busy.
Tarrant tells them that Mika is demanding to dock with Liberator and the frigate is closing in. He has instructed the computer to keep the distance between the two ships. The Dyvers Pursuit ships are also now approaching fast.
They are heading for the living quarters and soon realise the signal is coming from Mika Hunt’s personal living quarters.
Sloane
When they open the door, Sloane is just stepping out. He is surprised and suspicious, but chats to them and backs off.
Then he opens fire on Grant and a fight breaks out, in which is he eventually shot down. The two technicians sneak off during the fight.
Cyrus used the fight to locate the source of the signal, some sort of advanced computer sitting in a holding case. He is disappointed that this is what they came all this way to rescue, but takes the machine, together with a small key that is nearby and of similar design.
They also steal all the food that is lying around in the room, eating some of it as they are all starving and desperate for real food.
Drug Processing
Alarms are raised and they realise it is time to leave. They signal Tarrant to be ready to teleport them back. In order to avoid a squad of guards heading in their direction, they divert to the lower section of the ship. Down there they discover the whole of the lower section has been converted into a vast chemical processing plant. They now realise this is where Tempest is being made and distributed from. Cyrus is disgusted.
When they reach the docking bay, they find Mika Hunt and 8 guards waiting for them. There is a standoff, with everyone pointing guns at everyone else.
Mika is angry that they have taken Orac, the computer from his living quarters, who he accuses of betraying him. He built the Liberator and they must hand it over.
Escape Trick
Cyrus whispers through the communicator they can offer to teleport back, but without the bracelets Mika will stay here. They decide to do exactly that and Mika falls for it. By the time he starts to sense a deception, Tarrant is in place to teleport just them back, leaving Mika fuming.
The crew rush the new computer and themselves back to the Flight Deck. They switch on this computer, using the key Cyrus picked up. It congratulates them on rescuing him. His name is Orac. He will release control of the Liberator to them on three conditions. They keep him safe. They do not interfere with his scientific investigations. They do not pester him with frivolous requests.
The crew, including Tarrant, agree to this. Orac has them introduce themselves to Zen, the ship’s computer, and says from now on Zen will only answer to their voice commands.
Zen confirms automatic control is released and that navigation computers will now accept their spoken commands.