NCC Gunship Custodian Commander Lieutenant Alfred Nolan
Greetings Field Maestre:
The Custodian left the Freeport 11 drydock for the first time today, after repair works for the incident a few days ago. All serious damages has been fixed, and destroyed systems have been properly replaced. Therefore, through this transmission I present my report on today's activity.
The patrol carried out today has passed during the first hours without combat, and we have not found any type of Nomad movements in Delta system. Nothing outside of the usual scanner signals of merchants coming and going on their routes. We've had an encounter with a Serenity-class transport ship, the Ol'Reliable, belonging to the freelancer company MRI. If I'm not completely mistaken, it's the same company that brought us the biodomes and other materials to Pygar, to begin the expansion works at Faith Haven. We spotted him crossing Delta on his way to Nauru Terminal and followed him there to make sure he was safe on his way.
When the Ol'Reliable undocked from the mooring fixture at Nauru terminal we had the opportunity to chat by radio with its commander, whom we warned of the Nomad dangers existing in Delta. He told us about an MRI associate who must have recently had some kind of horrible experience with his ship in Delta, related to a strange transmission that he must have intercepted. He hasn't been able to tell us much more, because it's an information that he seems to have heard from third parties, but I think it's something that we should investigate. It could be related to the rise of Aberratio Incubi in the area.
While we were chatting, an Evocatus-class fighter-bomber and a Praetorian-class bomber have appeared on the radar, with a Corsair affiliation beacon. Both, with the callsigns Rikana and Gazolina, have remained a few kilometers from the Nauru terminal, roaming the area. They seemed interested in the Ol'Reliable, so I offered its commander an escort out of Delta. In principle he has accepted, but since the verbal hostility of the Corsair was increasing, he preferred to return to dock in Nauru until the space cleared. For my part, I've remained there in case any situation arose in which Ol'Reliable might need our help.
The Corsairs have been provoking us through radio communications, I suppose trying to intimidate us into leaving, or attempting to start a fight, but neither has happened. I'm well aware of the direct orders from the High Command not to confront ships of the Corsair Empire unless it's absolutely necessary, so as not to increase the already existing tension due to Freeport 9. Finally, I think that the Corsair pilots have gotten bored of waiting, realizing that the Custodian had no intention of engaging in combat against them, and left to search for more profitable prey. The Ol'Reliable has decided to continue to stay docked in Nauru Terminal for security, so we've continued with our patrol after saying goodbye.
Sir, before you reproach me, with all due respect let me say that I know perfectly well that we aren't on Omicron Delta to be the system police, but only to maintain the security of our commercial convoys against the Nomad aberrations. I assure you, I had no intention of interfering in Corsair business, nor would we've done so today if it hadn't been an MRI ship. From what I have heard, that company seems to have the favor of Monsignor Richelieu, and he's known to have a good relationship with them, so I've assumed that it would please His Eminence if we didn't allow the Ol'Reliable to be looted. If I've made a mistake, I take full responsibility.
We did the second part of the patrol accompanying Lieutenant Kerensky's Militant Lance. We met at Freeport 11, where we docked to refuel, and then left to continue the mission together. A few kilometers from the Freeport we found the two previous Corsair ships, arguing with a Phoenix fighter. Apparently the Corsairs were demanding their fees from merchants too close to the Freeport, and the Phoenix pilot was trying to expel them from the vicinity of the base. We've decided not to intervene directly in the conflict, since it didn't affect us, but we've positioned the two gunships next to the Phoenix pilot to provide a certain deterrent presence, and support him if he was attacked. Fortunately, the Corsairs have left again, and we've been able to continue the patrol after saying goodbye to the Phoenix pilot.
We've traversed the void of Delta for hours, without finding any Nomad activity. We only have seen some merchants, and the two previous Corsair ships doing their piracy business, which we haven't at all interrupted as ordered. Once the entire system has been scanned, we've inspected the clouds, starting with Palau and continuing with Tokelau. In Palau we haven't found anything, although we expected it. In Tokelau, we have sighted a hostile signal that upon approach has turned out to be a xenomorphic Nomad abomination.
This monster was gigantic, the size of a battlecruiser. As we approached, we began to receive the well-known semi-telepathic transmissions through which the Nomad xenomorphs express their feelings of hatred towards their victims. Lieutenant Kerensky and I have briefly debated what to do, and we've decided to attack the aberration, despite being quite aware that its size made us assume a combat power that surpassed us.
We split up, flanking the Nomad, and applied turn-based strike tactics to try to weaken its protective shields, but its regeneration capacity appears to be greater than we imagined. On two occasions we have managed to expose its exterior and damage it, although we've barely managed to scratch its skin, or whatever it's that it is wrapped in. For its part, the aberration has reacted quickly despite its size and slowness, and has bombarded us with bioenergetic projectiles repeatedly. In the end, both Lieutenant Kerensky and myself have come to the conclusion that we didn't have enough firepower to seriously damage that thing, and yet we ran a very high risk of losing both gunships, so we've retreated out of the Tokelau cloud and returned again to Freeport 11.
We're currently docked at the base, making small repairs to our ships from the damage suffered in the battle against the giant abomination of Tokelau. Sir, our firepower is still too weak, and Delta infestation appears to be increasing, but rest assured that we'll get out there again as soon as both gunships are ready to continue our duty.