The Aftermath of the First Battle: Dreamcrusher

Posted on Tue Mar 10th, 2020 @ 2:34am by Captain Daniel "Karass" McKnight & Commander Patricia Kingston & Lieutenant Commander Selgae It'kla & Lieutenant Commander Tanya Stevenson & Division Admiral Celeste Yamaguchi-Hobbs & Zuko Omakan & Command Master Chief Petty Officer Maiev Shadowsong & Lieutenant Commander Jennifer Nettles & Lieutenant Commander Kameron "Foehammer" Solusar-Yamaguchi

Mission: Mission 79: Sound Trumpets! Let Our bloody Colors Wave
Location: Over the Gorn Homeworld
Timeline: 1200Hrs - April 12th, 2392

Lieutenant Kameron Yamaguchi smiled. "Sir, the Klingon force is breaking off their attack... Looks like they've had enough for one day."

McKnight raised an eyebrow. "It's never that easy with the Klingons and... This was way too easy," he growled softly. "Secure from alert," he added.

Zuko shook his head. "This Klingon commander is not an idiot, he knows he is outmatched, so he is not going to try and fight us head on, we have to be ready for hit and run attacks."

McKnight nodded. "Klag. I did a little research on him and he's more or less a genius as Klingon generals go. We're going to have a hard time dealing with this guy."

'Foehammer' turned his head. "So... taking him out is more or less not going to work?"

"Not really Lieutenant," McKnight answered. "While that might be good for us. All we have to do is keep him on the defensive for a little while and the situation might sort itself out for us."

Shadowsong turned her head, she was dealing with an unwanted pregnancy and everyone who knew her knew it. "Klingons get off on death..." she growled in a dismissive tone of voice.

McKnight shrugged. "Perhaps."

Yamaguchi turned from the science station where he was working. "Do we know what the Klingons senior leadership looks lie these days?" he paused "I confess. I've not been paying attention to it."

"That more or less makes two of us Lieutenant," Shadowsong responded with a soft sigh. Nettles then spoke up. "I make three.."

Selgae nodded her furry head. "Four," she responded. "Klingons tend to enjoy and seek death a little too easily for my liking..."

"Some guy named J'mpok," Zuko answered. "He is the one who sent the empire into this war."

"J'mpok," McKnight said quietly. "I've heard that name before. If he is Chancellor then we have simply brought forward the inevitable"

"How so?" Celeste McKnight inquired as she regarded Zuko with a smile. "Two wounded and discharged already." she turned back to McKnight. "Go on with what you were saying?" she inquired of him.
"You know him... Don't you?"

"Unfortunately, I have had dealings with J'mpok in the past.." McKnight said quietly. "I was on the USS Ready or Not, an old Akira Class Destroyer when she was still classified as a Heavy Cruiser. It was during the battle of Daxura near the end of the Dominion War..."

Celeste nodded, recalling those events. "I was assigned to the USS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong, an old Excelsior Class that was honestly ten years past her life expectancy." she paused. "I was present at the battle of Chin-Toka... It was fast and ferocious... But we took the system and kept it for good.." she paused. "What happened to you.?"

"J'mpok was commanding a Negh'Var battleship and he was getting his ass handed to him by a dozen or so Jem'Hadar attack ships... he blamed the Federation for letting his men die without honor and me in particular for denying him entry to Sto-Vo-Kor."

"Sounds... personal."

"Deeply," McKnight answered quietly. "For him that is."

"It was only a matter of time," Zuko commented," Only a matter of time before an anti-federation hardliner would take charge. Not to mention it was inevitable that this particular Klingon conflict would be particularity disruptive, due to the manner of Martok's disappearance. It was too sudden and unexpected, so there was no real successor lined up. Not only that but the normal method of becoming chancellor, defeating the previous one in honorable combat, didn't happen in this case."

McKnight regarded Zuko. "It also would unify the empire against a common threat. Us. We also had a ship involved as well...the equivalent of a Destroyer whereas they lost the first of their new battleship class..." he then shrugged. "Enterprise-E was a good ship, hopefully, she can work her luck one last time.." he sighed softly.

Zuko gave a mild chuckle. "Yeah the enterprise always does manage to work her way out of a situation, but it matters little, regardless of the outcome of that mission, that was Enterprise-E's last mission anyway, given that Enterprise-F is already under construction."

McKnight nodded. "That's true. But she deserves better than to be simply lost in space.." he sighed. "and with the new Klingon flagship no less..." he shook his head.

Kingston raised an eyebrow. "Well isn't sometimes best said that no news is good news?"

"How so?" Selgae inquired from her post.

"They could be alive and well," Kingston explained.

"They could also be dead with nothing left of anyone remaining." Nettle responded in a dry tone of voice.

Yamaguchi winced before he frowned. "Are you always so cheery?" he regarded her with distaste. "The next time I feel the need to be depressed. I'll come see you," he added.

Nettles regarded Kameron. "You enjoy being overly optimistic.," she responded.

"You're just being an arrogant ass," Kameron responded in a rather snide tone.

"Lieutenant?" McKnight regarded Kameron Yamaguchi with a smile. "You have such a way with words.."

Nettles smiled darkly before adding with a sardonic tone. "Not all wars are won so easily Lieutenant... you'll learn that soon enough."

"Not all wars are won by hiding from the enemy.. Lt Commander.. you'll find out soon enough," Kameron responded in a snide tone.

That was when Kingston intervened. "Obsolete weapons do not deter, you don't have a defense policy based on someone else's good intentions.."

"The only thing the Klingons will respect..." Selgae responded. "Is fire and blood... they respect the way of the sword so long as they aren't losing..."

Celeste Yamaguchi was seated in one of the nearby chairs. "It's when they lose that they start to resort to acting like children in that they didn't get what they expected, everyone else running away and letting the Klingons simply show up and say. "You're conquered."

Kameron regarded the pregnant female present. "Sounds rather... shortsighted but.. that me talking."

"You don't win by wishes and hopes Lieutenant," Nettles responded.

"You don't win by being stupid either..." Yamaguchi answered. "Hey, you wanna rush in there, please... be our guest.."

McKnight noticed the hostility between Nettles and Yamaguchi was getting out of hand. "People... Please.. Let's keep it civil." he said evenly. "Nettles, stop it with being depressing... and Kameron lay off.
Let's remember that the enemy is out there... and not in here." McKnight noticed he had everyone's attention. "If you forget that... you'll answer to me. is that clear?"

"Yessir," Yamaguchi answered.

"Yes. Sir." Nettles was slower to responded and her response sounded almost insolent.

McKnight regarded his Chief Operations Officer. "Miss Nettles. Walk with me a moment." he turned to Zuko. "'Scuse us a moment will ya?" and with that, the older Vulcan and Human hybrid walked into the ready room. Nettles followed in silence.

"So... you wanna share what that was about?"

"No," Nettles responded.

"That's what I thought... Besides, I know what it was about... you are just being your usual toxic self but you might want to get it into order. Because frankly... I've been hearing more than a few complaints about you from others and picking a fight with others on the bridge in front of me and the skipper is where I draw the line. That was your first major fuck up... It'll also be your last. We're at war now and I need everyone at their best... If you can't do that then tell me now and I'll find another assignment for you."

"Sir..-" Nettles sighed before she was cut off mid sentence. "Dismissed!" McKnight barked at her so she turned and went back out the door. McKnight followed a moment later as he made his way back to the Exec's chair. "Man I hate this job some days.." he muttered.