RSC-2W-0571, Vertangos System
in Lissajous orbit about the systems Vertangos-Solar L2 Lagrange point
Sinn'Are'Sen cracked one eye open as the humming sound in his ears increased. His mind sluggishly tries to place it even as he instinctively tries to stand from his bed. Sin's knees strike something hard and he jolts.
“Cryosleep?”
“Welcome back to the realm of the awake Sinn. Hold on while I crack the lid on your tube.”
“Thanks Dara Tonn. I take it we have arrived?”
“Two weeks ago actually. I've been sitting idle waiting on a RPC courier that just arrived in-system. The local listening post's contingency orders were rather stubborn, and a touch out of date, so the Veil Division had to send a manual update crew out before it would let us approach the object.”
“Why? And how far out of date?”
“Thirty years, give or take, and it didn't have the 'except for specially designated PRC personnel' clause in the 'do not approach' order. That's been fixed.”
“So we have a hyperpusle com capable platform in-system in addition to the one in your hull?”
“Correct. -0571 has a newer unit with a faster pulse rate but less range as second wave scouts are expected to be within reasonable reach of a relay. The local listening post has the old HPC-04b installation. Big old brute of a thing that can hit Krigertenkere directly instead of bouncing off of two or three other relays the way I'd have to route things. It will also serve as a local backup for logs and the like just in case. Tube opening now.”
Sinn half climbed half fell out of the cryosleep tube. He crouches on the deck and rubs warmth back into his legs, driving off the chill and restoring blood flow.
“Hey, where's Aubrey?”
“In her quarters feeling rather ill. Just the standard post-cryo 'gribblies'. She doesn't handle cryosleep as well as you do apparently.”
“Few people in the Republic do. Something to keep in mind for next time.”
“Right. Want to take a look at our target?”
“We actually have a clean sensor read of it?”
“'Clean' is debatable. Many of the returns are garbled to some degree but the general dimensions remain consistent. One point four kilometers long and zero point three kilometers abeam at the most, but hull material and thus mass is difficult to estimate. Were it made of Republic-standard materiel I'd estimate a mass of seven megatons or so, but... Head to the bridge and take a look for yourself. I don't know what to make of the raw visuals. Radar return shows metal, but the shapes are almost organic.”
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Sinn scrubs the sleep-crust from his eyes and paces down the passageway towards the bridge.
“What do you mean 'almost organic'?”
“The core shape makes logical constructions sense for a ship: a roughly hexagonal cross-section that probably houses an internal hull of the same pattern. Structurally sound, easy to reinforce, and common in both Republic and other known species ship designs. But the armor on the outer hull looks more like the scales of a pangolin instead of any logical armoring scheme. What I believe to be sensor arrays with seventy percent confidence have the visual appearance of barbels. The list goes on, but you begin to get the idea.”
“I think I do anyway. Bring it up on the main bridge display please.”
“On screen.”
“What the actual...? Is that engine cowling bent?”
“Stretched actually, like pulled taffy.”
“We know the Astral Veil is home to some wild phenomena, but... It's like someone built a ship inside the Astral Veil. It's the only reason I can think of for some of those structures to be created without ripping the ship to bits in the process. Any sign of weapons, sensors, distress beacons...?”
“The ship is well and truly a hulk in terms of it's emissions, but there is clear evidence of six escort-grade missile tubes and numerous point defense systems. At least that's what the installations would be for a Republic ship. Given that this hulk is clearly not a Republic ship however...”
“Gotcha, proceed with caution. How is Aubrey doing?”
“I've got a comlink open and the bridge feed on my tablet. It almost looks like an Empire Reaver-class escort if one was built by a madman. Astral Veil touched for sure.”
“Right, anything you can tell us about the class?”
“Not much. Six missile tubes, heavy point defense suite, fast engines both in realspace and in the Veil, not much in the way of armor. Bad reputation for rough Veil transits. If this one really is Veil-warped then...”
Sinn grunts in agreement, “reality and the rules thereof went out the window at some point. Cracking my Psychic senses, let's see just how bad this is...”
Sinn takes in a deep breath, lets it out, and opens his psychic third eye. Details are impossible to make out at several light minutes away, but the pulsing flare of psionic energy is clear for any with the eyes to see.
“Damn. That hulk is still lousy with psionic energy. It's almost as if something in it's construction is a conduit for Astral Veil energies. It's stable, which is odd. I'd have expecting it to be 'wild' like the depths of the Veil or a Reality Erosion. Dara Tonn, what do the power and lifesigns reading look like on her?”
“I haven't been permitted to get close enough to scan myself, but going from what the local listening post picked up It appears to be a survivable atmosphere with your respirators. The air is probably breathable and just as likely lousy with dust, mold, and who knows what else. Power readings fluctuate fairly regularly, so expect related issues: lights, powered hatches, etc. may well be unreliable. Power generation equipment is probably malfunctioning, but I can't tell if it's because the equipment itself is damaged or the power connections are. Local gravity is present at an estimated zero point six Gees of force. I'd advise that magnetic boots might be helpful but we don't have any. And the deck plates aboard the hulk may well be non-ferrous anyway.”
Sinn nods in appreciation, “Wall Walk and Float will prove useful if they are safe to use. Considering how much latent Psionic energy is trapped aboard the hulk I have my doubts about that. It's going to be awfully easy to over-channel power and end up with side effects.