The Great Expedition of the Roger Young
14 Aug 2020LilliSWE
This is the story of the crew aboard the Roger Young. This redesigned Federal Corvette has been given a vital mission to explore and search for a habitable planet around the Horsehead Nebula/Barnard's Loop area. Commander Cassandra "Cassie" Stockton reporting for duty, Admiral! I receive my orders from Rear Admiral Macer as the crew say their goodbyes to their loved ones. "I promise you, I will find a new world. I, we, won't let you down, sir." The Admiral salutes me and says, I know you won't, commander. I return salute and proceed aboard the Roger Young. I am extremely impressed in how they redesigned this corvette. The frame shift drive has been upgraded with new guardian technology to boost jump ranges between systems. This is something Federal Corvettes desperately needed! The hardpoint layout remains the same however. Living quarters have been increased in size due to the slightly larger design of the ship. The hangar bays have been increased to house more fighters. The addition of a size 7 hangar, it allows for 30 Condors, 1 Eagle and 1 Adder.
Commander Stockton, XO Damian Rokwell reporting for duty. Greetings LT. Glad to have you aboard. My XO is a veteran of Senator Patreus' naval fleet. A bit harsh and by the books, but an excellent leader. "Shall we address the crew, sir?" Yes, I do believe it's that time. The two of us proceed to the hangar bays where the crew have gathered for the address. "ATTENTION on deck, shouts LT Rokwell."
Good evening crew of the Roger Young. Many of you I have led before, but for all you new people, I am Commander Cassie Stockton. We have been gifted a great opportunity to find a new habitable world in which to settle. Our destination lies within the Horsehead Nebula and Barnard's Loop. I'd be lying to you if I said this is going to be a piece of cake. As many of you know, bug territory lies between us and our destination. Avoiding that region of space is unavoidable. We only know of the Pleiades/Witch Head region as definitive bug zones, but it's all basically uncharted space around there, so we have no idea where they may really be inhabiting. This ship is fitted with the latest experimental weaponry to defend ourselves, but our goal is to avoid as much contact as we can with them. This is going to be a long journey, ladies and gentlemen. We all need to watch each other's backs out there. I'll give you all time to settle in and report to your stations. We depart in 2 hours. DISMISSED!
"Good speech, commander. Let's hope their ears were working properly." They're a good bunch. I've read through all their dossiers and I've flown with many of them. And with you on board, we're in good hands. "You're too kind, Commander. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to stow my stuff and prep for the voyage." Absolutely LT. I'll see you in the CIC in 2hrs. Dismissed.
After mentally preparing myself, I begin my walk to the ship's CIC. Officer on deck, shouts from LT Rokwell as I enter the command center. I look around at the command crew as they stare back at me with anxious eyes. I whisper to my XO, "They're ready!" I grab the phone and activate the speaker ship wide, "Attention crew of the Roger Young, the time has come. Time to depart on this vital mission. Everyone to your stations and prepare to depart!" Mr. Harper, set navigation take us out of the dock. "Auto-launch sequence initiated, Commander. We're leaving the station now." "Flight control: You have left station safe zone, fly safe Commander." "FSD spooling up, sir." Count us down, Mr Harper. "FSD initiated in 5......4......3......2.......1.....GO!"
The Story of the Roger Young will continue through multiple points of view from several pilots. Stay Tuned for the next installment.