Aboard RNS Dutertre, Tau-31, 1836 Gallia Standard Time
Sean Dumont, the First Officer of Dutertre checked the ship's systems with Captain Philipe Belkhodja and got confirmation about all systems. They 'showed green'. They were on yet another mission at Leeds, a fleet of Libertonians and small number of Bretonian showed and Dutertre ordered to meet with GRN reinforcements. Sean went to check the Warwolf Cannon personally and left the captain at bridge alone. Captain went to observation deck to command the ship in the upcoming battle.
While Dumont gave orders to helm officer to set course on Leeds. Then instead of going to observation deck, he went to crew decks and with a trustworthy loyal Marine he sent following words to crew that is loyal to Dumont. "It is time, people." With that, crew would overtake the ship wholly at Leeds. Loyal marines already distributed energy pistols of theirs to weaponless crew members. They werent the strongest pistols in the GRN Arsenal but they had to do the job. Some of the marines checked their gear and made sure they had energy cells for their rifles for the entire endeavour. However there was one catch. There were still a sizeable amount of crew that was loyal to Captain Belkhodja. Dumont's crew would need to face around 45:55 odds, while it wasnt that much on paper, it looked like worser the time neared for the action...
Dutertre finally emerged from the other side of Jump Gate and proceeded to Planet Leeds.
Philippe Belkhodja was an old cripple. He had lost his legs in a battle many years ago, so he moved in a wheelchair. He did have the option of cybernetic limbs, but he was a hard conservative and suspicious of high technology. The tried and tested old school way was his way.
Although Belkhodja could not walk through the ship, he could feel the ship as if it was part of his body, and in space, he was an acrobat. There were, however, hundreds of men aboard the Dutertre, and in order for the ship to function properly, they had to be disciplined. Most of them knew nothing of Belkhodja's prior achievements, and all they saw was a disabled man whose head was at the height of their waist. The captain solved the problem the old way. Whenever he performed an inspection of the crew, all of them had to kneel when they stood in line, so that their heads were lower than his. But this was only superficial, and his true method was cruelty. His hearing was damaged by explosions, so he was used to speaking very loudly, even while having a casual conversation, and he was content to use his trained voice while giving orders, and especially while scolding his personnel for not executing them perfectly. At those times he resembled a small dog that compensated for its size by barking loudly. He did not bite, himself, but he had a number of well paid brutes from the Foreign Legion to enforce discipline physically for him. There was a certain chamber aboard the Dutertre where his brutes occasionally brought repeatedly disobedient crewmen, but they have never brought anyone out. Cleaners were not allowed in, and some men rumoured that, when they passed by the chamber, they could feel the smell of rotten meat. Public floggings were rare -- but everybody fixed their view at the flogged when they returned, because they were frighteningly disfigured. And everyone remembered it well, so there was no need to repeat this many times, and flogging, as well as all other disciplinary measures, became rare over time. As the Dutertre smoothly slid through vacuum, the bridge would be in perfect tranquility for most of the time. It was what Belkhodja enjoyed the most. As he held his hand on a wheel of his wheelchair -- an iron grip, in a way -- he enjoyed stroking his long grey beard with the other and watching the space ahead slide by. He was watching his conquest. All of the space that his ship passed through, in his mind, was automatically transferred to the King, to whom he was fiercely loyal. But yet, although he could see everything, no one could see him. He was always encircled by his brutes. No one could see him until he himself emerged from his castle of muscles to give an order or scold someone. The first thing that everyone who saw him would notice was a scar on his nose, which had once been almost cut through, and his eyebrows that sported the shade of grey that could be seen on the facade of a government institution building. Due to his age and wounds, one of his eyelids was always half-closed, giving him a sort of a "no-nonsense" look, which brought to memory everything that could happen if an order of his was disobeyed.
Currently, the Dutertre was not moving. "Navigator, continue to Leeds!", the captain's obviously already irritated voice interrupted the silence on the bridge. The ship did not move. "Navigator!", he called the responsible to explain. The navigator's name was not relevant. He was only a function. "Sir, it seems there has been a malfunction... We have lost contact with the engine room... And with the marine unit... Sir! We have lost contact with every section of the ship!" The captain's expression did not change at all. "You mean, YOU have lost contact? Then YOU will go and check it!" "At once, Sir!" The navigator rose abruptly and left the bridge. He ran in a few minutes later, sweaty and wheezing. He locked the door immediately, and then turned towards the captain. But before he managed to say what he had intended, his strength let him down, and he slid down the door. In his wake there was a red stain. The captain's eyebrows formed a shape that resembled a hybrid between an agitated, spiked, carnivorous butterfly and a bear. His eyes became two supernovas. "ARNOLD!", he called the commander of his guard. "Open the door and lead the way out! Mitsubishi, you will push my wheelchair, push as fast as you can! The rest of you, form V around me! If we're being boarded, I MUST reach the marines before the enemy does!" They rushed through. "Bridge staff! Stay at your positions! If the enemy enters, deal with them -- or you will have to deal with me!", he shouted before the door was sealed again.
Aboard RNS Dutertre, Leeds, 1855 Gallia Standard Time
With Dumont's orders, it started. Blaster shots everywhere, burns, the smell of ozone, screams, more blaster shots. It was kind of chaotic but at the same time organized for one side which was Dumont's due to most of the marines being on his side. He opened his Communicator and yelled at helm officer. "Helm, what is the status on the bridge" and then he remembered marines probably EMP ed the ship with grenades already. Just a second later statics from Communicator confirmed that. Luckily Dumont had marines next to him fighting remaining Belkhodja's crew. After the last one in the vicinity fell, Dumont yelled at nearest marine. "Gather at least haft dozen men and meet me at stairs leading to Bridge. We are going to check in." "Sir, we are gathering right now but i suggest getting at least 12 men because of Captain's brutes. They are a hardy lot." "So be it, Lieutenant Dechamp, gather a dozen and meet me there." he looked at two marines unrelated from the group he ordered. "You two, coming with me" He passed the engine room, then the crew decks and lastly he passed through the Armory. Thanks to his physical training he beaten down two unarmed crew member before they could reach any weapons. Dumont told one marine to guard Armory just in case of and meanwhile EMP's effects wore off at lower decks. Systems cracked and buzzed and communicators beeped all over the decks, however he still could not reach bridge. After some moments of trying to establish communication he saw the marines coming to him. 13 of them armed with fully loaded rifles and some had unused EMP grenades. "Good to see you people, lets move out." "Yes, sir!" As they were about to climb the stairs, they saw Captain's Guard Commander, Arnold. "Bonjour, Arnold, were you going somewhere?" "Yes, Captain lost contact with the ship entirely, he believes we are being boarded, what the hell are you doing here, Dumont?" He drawn his pistol and aimed at Arnold. "Just ensuring your death, monsieur Arnold." "You filthy Galli-..." A shot was fired and Arnold was no more. He let a grin go out, imagining Captain's reaction and unbenknowistness. Dumont and Marines moved to the bridge. When they made it to bridge they saw Captain's door sealed and rest of bridge staff's faces as White as stone. "Alright, now i want you guys to tell me Captain's position, his guards and all that included." He drawn his second pistol and aimed randomly around. "SPEAK, NOW!"
Arnold was supposed to scout ahead. He did not expect a bullet from a friendly uniform. Just as Dumont and his men had left the site, Belkhodja appeared, shielded by his henchmen. They noticed Arnold's body, but that changed little. The captain assigned a new scout and they continued. As the corpse was blocking the way, Mitsubishi pushed the captain's wheelchair over it. Death was part of war, but these soldiers did not need any justification for death. They were less soldiers than mercenaries. The more of them were killed, the more each individual was paid. Arnold became a number in the casualty list and his name was never mentioned again.
When they reached the central barracks, they entered a vast space of silence and darkness. At that point, apparently, someone at the bridge managed to activate the ship's reserve powercore. As the enormous system of bunk beds lit up, instead of finding relief that power was restored, they found out that the compartment was completely empty. "WHERE ARE MY MARINES!?", Belkhodja realized that he had lost control of the situation and channeled his rage through his vocal cords. "Phone! PHONE!", a vein on his forehead almost burst as he stretched his arm towards the communication device installed in a wall. "Call me the bridge!" One of the brutes quickly dialed it up while Mitsubishi pushed the captain next to the phone. "Will someone tell me what is going on aboard MY ship!?", Belkhodja screamed at the device. He received only interference for a few moments, but gradually a voice became recognizable. "##idge calling captain, please respond. Bridge calling captain, please respond."
"Come on, imbeciles!"
"It's our own! It's not the enemy, it's a mutiny! Don't go to the central barracks, apparently that's where it started."
"I am in the central damn barracks, you imbecile, and it's as crowded as in your skull here! WHERE ARE MY MARINES?" "Moment...", the officer's voice trembled. Not due to the captain's tone, to which he had already got used to. He feared his other comrades, former comrades, who were closing in on the bridge as he spoke. "Mon Dieu! The prison bay is full! And there is a crowd closing in on the bri..." That is all he managed to say before the captain heard a loud bang and "SPEAK NOW". "MERDE!", Belkhodja's voice echoed throughout the vast, empty section. He slammed the phone against the wall and broke it in half, cutting his thumb, which sprinkled the floor with blood. "Quickly, prison bay!"
Aboard RNS Dutertre, Leeds, 1920 Gallia Standard Time
"Speak, i said!" a bang was heard and the officer who was speaking to Captain fell to the ground. Dumont heard the Captain's last words with heavy interference.. "Quickly, prison bay!" Now he knew where to find Captain. He whipped out his Communicator and said "Dumont to Prison Bay, Dumont to Prison Bay, Captain is going there, do not let him escape!" "Sir, we need reinforcements, Captain's guards arrived here faster than we expected! We cant ho-" "DAMN IT!" A bang and some blaster shots could heard from the other side of the communication. Then he heard Captain's voice. "How DARE you!? In THE KING'S ship!? Men! Pour la canaille, faut la mitraille!" Some weapon loading sounds, victory screams and door sounds could be heard from prison bay. "Oh s#!t, HE IS FREEING THE PRISONERS AND ARMING THEM!" Dumont yelled at Communicator. "PRISON BAY FALLEN! WE ARE GOING THERE TO REINFORCE, EVERYONE, CAPTAIN IS AT PRISON BAY AND HE IS CAPTURING THE SHIP PIECE BY PIECE AGAIN!" Dumont forgot the Captain's resourcefulness and then started to saw his plan's weaknesses. He could not do it on his own. Luckily he had a backup plan. "Lieutenant Dechamp, connect me to General LaFlamme".
Alors, Messieurs. Rapportez. - three people surrounded the holomap table in the middle of the small tactical briefing room.
[We've been experiencing heavy combat movements from the Gallic Royal Navy in the past few days], mon Général. - Quentin Pelletier, one of the scouts, responded to LaFlamme. - [Several capital vessels could be seen moving from Languedoc towards Bretonia through the Tau-23 passage, including ships such as the RNS Souverain, the RNS Dutertre, and other dreadnough-class vessels accompanied by ample battlecruiser and gunboat support. At the same time it appears the RNS Guillestre and the RNS Dax remained in their positions, suggesting their task is the defense of supply lines.]
[Well, that explains the increased GRN presence in Cortez, worrying news.] - Pierre looked at the holomap in front of them with a concerned look while the map shown the details of the report as illustration. He then looked at the other scout: - Monsieur Fillon, [do you have anything to add?]
Oui, mon Général. [As it appears the GRN did not solely use the Tau-23 passage, the RNS La Riche left its position towards Fort Albi with forces approximated to be of a battlegroup's size, we have lost track of them once they passed the fort.] - Marc Fillon spoke his part of the briefing. - [To take up its task at protecting Orkney from us, the GRN relocated the RNS Montmorency from Languedoc. If I can make suggestions, I would advise inspecting this new warship for potential weak spots], Général.
Trés bien, [I'll make sure to---] [Bridge calls General LaFlamme. Bridge calls General LaFlamme.] - radio voice coming from the holotable's speakers interrupted Pierre. Oui, Durand. C'est LaFlamme ici. Qu'est-ce que c'est? [Headquarters say we are being hailed over the neural net, but the transmission specifies your person being addressed.] [The briefing is not over yet. I told you I will answer incoming calls once we are done here.] - he said that with a bit of annoyance in his voice. Oui, [but it still seems quite important. The transmission is coming from the Dutertre.] RNS Dutertre? - the three of them looked at eachother in surprised disbelief. Oui. [A certain Lieutenant Dechamp claims there is a mutiny ongoing and requests help from us.] De vous, Général. [It could be quite an opportunity.] - Quentin got enthusiastic. [Or a deliberate trap.] - Marc warned for carefulness. [We have to find out the truth either way. Durand, what is the safe comms window?] - Pierre looked down onto the holotable when querying the communications officer. Trente secondes. [Past that they can find us here.] Donc, [we'll be quick then. Patch them through.]
Aboard RNS Dutertre, Leeds, 1930 Gallia Standard Time
"Sir, we are patched in." After Dechamp said this he gave the communicator to Dumont. "Bonjour, General. I am First Officer Sean Dumont. We organized a munity and i am the leading figüre of said munity. However it did not go as we planned. We are losing forces at a rapid pace and Captain Belkhodja started to regain the ship's control piece by piece. We need reinforcements ASAP. We are about to be sorrounded. I and Lieutenant currently positioned at the Bridge while fights happens at various places in the ship, Over." Dumont turned to Dechamp. "Lieutenant, get me status report from squad leaders."
[That doesn't sound too good.] - Quentin whispered to Marc. Tais-toi, [let the General handle this. And let me pay attention, I'm curious.] - came the response.
D'accord, Officier Dumont, oú vous vous trouvez, quelle systéme? Agincourt. Euh... Leeds, [near the jumpgate to Tau-31.] [In the vicinity of Glasgow Outpost?] Oui.
Pierre frowned. - Well, that's quite deep behind the enemy's lines. - he thought. After a brief pause of thinking he continued: - Donc, [we will try to help you, but before that we need to assess what available assets we have nearby. I will call you back in five minutes, hold tight until then, and make sure no information leaves the ship about what is happening onboard. LaFlamme outl.] - he cut the transmission quickly, not waiting for a response.
Vingt-huit secondes. Trés bien, et merci Durand. [Now, let's see what we can do with this situation.] - he wondered, then quickly left the room.
Aboard RNS Dutertre, Leeds, 1930 Gallia Standard Time
"General, we still have control of bridge" Dumont said, then realised LaFlamme already cut the comms. Then he thought "I hope he can bring those Crayterians with him too". Then he turned at Lieutenant. "Contact the helm and tell them get us out of vicinity of Glaslow if they can." "Sir, Captain taking control of it by the looks of it. We cannot order helm to take risk." "Fine. We will guard the bridge then." Just as he said that he heard the door to bridge getting knocked and broken and some of the Captain's marines getting in. Dumont shouted "Everyone, take positions and defend the bridge! We cannot let it fall, support is on its way!"
[General on the bridge!] [At ease.] - Pierre stormed into the bridge, quickly heading for the starmap holotable. - [Hail and query the Chardonnay, I want to know what assets the Flottille Flamme Rouge has in or near Leeds. Now.] - he demanded sternly while bringing up the holomap of the system.
Contact and information exchange was done within a minute: a group of two gunboats, a fighter wing and a pair of interceptors are returning from a scout operation and a missed skirmish opportunity, back to the CLN Candide. The battlecruiser is hidden in the Stokes field, close to the disabled Newcastle jumpgate, too far away to get to the RNS Dutertre within reasonable time. The returning group is close enough to turn back, but the amount of boarding parties on the gunboats is just insufficient.
For a few seconds Pierre struggled with brainstorming a good enough resolution for the situation from only these options at hand, then ordered the returning group to stop and decided to find out whether he has more to work with, or not: - Alors, [hail Fleet Admiral Richard.]
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