Circadian Units did not belong to the Imperial Military. They had their own missions and chain of command. No one knew for certain exactly who they answered to, but most thought the Priests controlled them. They were brutal, ruthless units that did anything and everything necessary to accomplish their mission. While the units were made up of her people, they no longer belonged to any clan or family. They were completely isolated from the rest of their society and acted as if they were another race entirely. If they took an interest in the planet of Hyperion, it would not be a good thing for the population there.
CHAPTER FIVE
TDF Star Dancer
Deep Space Entrance vector
Aurigae system, Durnam Sector.
Commander Jennifer Williams, Commanding
"You know, since Ian mentioned this assault, I've always wondered why the system doesn't share the name of the planet like most other systems in the Talosian data base?" Jenny asked, looking at the image of the planet on the main viewer.
"The Aurigae system is far removed from nominal Talosian 'space'. It is the most distant of their colony worlds. The system had originally been discovered by a Benesian survey mission, but they did not explore the system. Through an agreement with the Benesians, the Talosian Alliance claimed the system with plans to build a remote ship yard and mining facility here. However, when they arrived, the colony ship discovered that the planet was ideal for agriculture.
"The agreement with the Benesians was contingent on this being a mostly dead system. When they discovered there was a viable planet here, they named it Hyperion and forbade the development of heavy industry on the planet. For some unknown reason, House Bjorin never built the facilities here it had intended," Star explained. "It was captured by Imperial forces with a minimum of fighting due to the lack of assets placed here to protect it."
"Maybe the Admiral should insist it be annexed into the House Cronos so the people here would at least be taken care of," the comms officer suggested.
"That is an excellent idea and I will make the suggestion to Councilor Noren after we finish taking it back," Ian said as he entered the bridge. "I can't insist, but I can make the suggestion based on past Bjorin stewardship."
Jenny stood and smiled at him. "As you know, we've arrived at our entry point and have begun scanning. Raptors Damocles and Icarus have already launched and are on course for the planet."
Ian nodded. "We're actually here early. We're going to delay out here for a bit longer than planned to make up the difference. Tell the Icarus and Damocles they will have a bit more time on planet than originally planned."
Jenny glanced over at Chloe who nodded and took care of it. Having all the combat departments available to the commander seemed like a good idea, but it had yet to be tested in a combat situation.
"Admiral, Fleet Admiral H'joles is on secure comm for you," the communications officer said.
Ian grinned up at Jenny. "I'm going to get a lot of exercise on those stairs to my office!" he nodded to the comms officer. "I'll take it up in my office, Ensign." He turned and re-climbed the stairs to his loft office.
After raising the security curtain around his desk, Ian accepted the call. "Good Day, Fleet Admiral, what can I do for you today?"
H'joles was smiling, so Ian knew it couldn't be bad news. "You can recommend those teams of yours for medals when they return! They have planted several hidden surveillance devices in the Grimaria system and we have begun receiving data from them. Not only that, but they have managed to inflict massive damage on the enemy while they did it! They've been very busy while they try to lure the enemy fleet in."
He lost much of his smile though. "Unfortunately, their efforts have not, as yet, been successful. The last reports we have received indicate that only light elements of the fleet have been sent to the system to investigate the
CHAPTER FIVE
TDF Star Dancer
Deep Space Entrance vector
Aurigae system, Durnam Sector.
Commander Jennifer Williams, Commanding
"You know, since Ian mentioned this assault, I've always wondered why the system doesn't share the name of the planet like most other systems in the Talosian data base?" Jenny asked, looking at the image of the planet on the main viewer.
"The Aurigae system is far removed from nominal Talosian 'space'. It is the most distant of their colony worlds. The system had originally been discovered by a Benesian survey mission, but they did not explore the system. Through an agreement with the Benesians, the Talosian Alliance claimed the system with plans to build a remote ship yard and mining facility here. However, when they arrived, the colony ship discovered that the planet was ideal for agriculture.
"The agreement with the Benesians was contingent on this being a mostly dead system. When they discovered there was a viable planet here, they named it Hyperion and forbade the development of heavy industry on the planet. For some unknown reason, House Bjorin never built the facilities here it had intended," Star explained. "It was captured by Imperial forces with a minimum of fighting due to the lack of assets placed here to protect it."
"Maybe the Admiral should insist it be annexed into the House Cronos so the people here would at least be taken care of," the comms officer suggested.
"That is an excellent idea and I will make the suggestion to Councilor Noren after we finish taking it back," Ian said as he entered the bridge. "I can't insist, but I can make the suggestion based on past Bjorin stewardship."
Jenny stood and smiled at him. "As you know, we've arrived at our entry point and have begun scanning. Raptors Damocles and Icarus have already launched and are on course for the planet."
Ian nodded. "We're actually here early. We're going to delay out here for a bit longer than planned to make up the difference. Tell the Icarus and Damocles they will have a bit more time on planet than originally planned."
Jenny glanced over at Chloe who nodded and took care of it. Having all the combat departments available to the commander seemed like a good idea, but it had yet to be tested in a combat situation.
"Admiral, Fleet Admiral H'joles is on secure comm for you," the communications officer said.
Ian grinned up at Jenny. "I'm going to get a lot of exercise on those stairs to my office!" he nodded to the comms officer. "I'll take it up in my office, Ensign." He turned and re-climbed the stairs to his loft office.
After raising the security curtain around his desk, Ian accepted the call. "Good Day, Fleet Admiral, what can I do for you today?"
H'joles was smiling, so Ian knew it couldn't be bad news. "You can recommend those teams of yours for medals when they return! They have planted several hidden surveillance devices in the Grimaria system and we have begun receiving data from them. Not only that, but they have managed to inflict massive damage on the enemy while they did it! They've been very busy while they try to lure the enemy fleet in."
He lost much of his smile though. "Unfortunately, their efforts have not, as yet, been successful. The last reports we have received indicate that only light elements of the fleet have been sent to the system to investigate the
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