Matt B Blogging

009. So long and thanks for all the hull breach

The Ultraviolet, looking for all the galaxy like a derelict, is drifting silently, while Mongoose waits for the Eidolon Capacitors to finish charging.

[Hearten - weak hit - +2 spirit, -1 momentum]

Mongoose feels a brief moment of euphoria at having actually retrieving ALL of Vayan's important belongs from the Drift Runner. But weighing up what she should do next, she spends way too much time going through all the options and scenarios.

But yes, risk Lagrange to see Wayfinder and get some answers from that dodgy piece of crap. Mongoose had an initial good feeling about Wayfinder - to be so totally wrong makes Mongoose sad, and angry at herself.

[Set a course - miss with a match]

Mongoose powers up all Ultraviolet's systems, and immediately gets the warning that there's a ship on intercept! That Savarin Interceptor!

[Enter the fray - caught in a trap: miss]
[React under file -edge- weak hit]

Mongoose full throttle towards the Interceptor, spiralling pattern, trying to avoid the tracer rounds racing to hit Ultraviolet.

[Resist damage, weak hit]

She spins the ship to a perpendicular axis, full thrusters - dodging the shots, but not creating much distance.

So she turns and opens up her guns

[clash - miss]

But she's outclassed, and misses every shot. And that's when she sees the Drift Runner, under power, and slowly turning to join the fight.

[react under fire - edge - weak hit]

She tries to get some distance from the two ships, but the interceptor is still firing

[withstand damage - strong hit]

Flying panicked, Mongoose's erratic course corrections briefly confound her enemy - only glancing shots

Then, through her comms: "Power down or we will destroy you."

"Huh, you don't want your core? If you stop shooting, I'll jettison it!"

[react under fire - shadow - weak hit]

"and I'll shoot out your engines"

[withstand damage - weak hit -1 momentum]

I can't catch a damn break!

Mongoose wildly jerks the ship around, firing wildly

[clash - miss - pay the price]

All shots miss, and the interceptor has switched to an ion cannon - meant to disable, not destroy - and it hits - the breakers spark and explode, and the ship goes dark and tumbles through space.

"Astrid! Help me restore power!"

[repair - strong hit]

Mongoose rushes to storage, grabs a handful of fuses, while Astrid removes the smoking ruins of the old ones - Astrid takes the replacements and starts installing them, while the interceptor appears closer and closer each time Ultraviolet spins around.

A light turns on - power restored, but it doesn't look that way to the Interceptor yet. Astrid jumps back in the pilot seat, studying the rotation for the best time to open fire.

[gain ground - wits - weak hit]
[strike - strong hit!]

She times it perfectly! Her volley badly damaging the port side of her enemy, spinning it off target. She thumbs the salvage tether controls and fires it into the side

[gain control - wits - strong hit]

full reverse sends the interceptor into a flat spin, and Mongoose opens fire again

[strike - weak hit]

and something silently explodes on the Interceptor, and a puff of fire filled atmosphere escapes into the void and the ship is destroyed!

That's when the warning light that she's being painted with targetting lasers lights up again, the Drift Runner is upon her!

Mongoose goes full throttle, changing vector during the burn, getting ready to jump

[react under fire - weak hit]
[withstand damage miss]

A massive beam of light comes on from behind, off the starboard bow, off to infinity, and then moves quickly to port - briefly disappearing out of the front viewport when it hits the back of Ultraviolet. There's a horrible screech of metal, and the hull breach klaxon sounds.

"Astrid! Seal the breach!"

[repair - strong hit!]

Whatever Astrid did back there, it's green lights across the board!

Mongoose loads Lagrange into the nav computer again, and engages the e-drive

[take decisive action - strong hit]

And she's free!