NRV Republic: Prepping for Battle (Open to NR, Invitation Otherwise)

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Defender-class Star Destroyer Skyrider
Republic Engineering Corporation Shipyards
Sumitra Sector

To: Admiral Lion El'Jonson, Fleet Command
From: Captain Kieran Devaneaux, commanding N.R.V. Skyrider
Subject: N.R.V. Republic Testing Phase

Admiral -

I am pleased to report that the testing for the new Republic-class prototype is exceeding expectations. I was momentarily concerned that attempting yet another Mon Calamari hybrid design would cause groans in R&D, but it appears that the vessel's performance more than makes up for the lack of "first impression enthusiasm", as I termed it. I expect that Republic will be ready for service within the next two to three weeks - enough to send to Bestine, provided the Imperial Sovereignty does not decide to hit us somewhere first. The only question is who will command her; I will not leave my post here on Skyrider until I either determine someone is able to take over here, or you find an able captain for Republic.

As for keeping it quiet, I have personally assured that the highest security is maintained here at the shipyards until Republic is integrated into my command and we are able join the fleet. Any leakages will be dealt with quickly....personally.

With any luck, you guys will have finished mopping up the mess the Sovereignty left on Bestine, but I will await your command in case you need us.

Semper Verus,

-K.E. Devaneaux, Captain
New Republic Vessel Skyrider
REC Freedom Shipyards


"Communications, code it and send it, top priority." Might take some time, Kieran Devaneaux thought to himself. We're a LONG ways from the fleet.

[Lion El' Jonson]

Viscount-class Manta
Flagship, 2nd Fleet
Coruscant Spacedocks

In his private office aboard his flagship, the Manta, Lion took an opportunity to stretch. The office was huge, a dozen times larger than the one he'd had aboard his previous flagship, an MC-90. He'd outfitted it personally, modeled after Admiral Ackbar's office. A massive fish tank surrounded the office, and it had been stocked with sea creatures from Mon Calamari, Pantolomin, and Vargas. Likewise, it was more humid in his office than in the rest of the ship; although this made most humans uncomfortable, Lion had gotten used to it. It was a bit self-indulgent, but the Mon Calamari Officers under his command had certainly appreciated the design. He still marveled at the sheer size of the Viscount-class Battleship he'd been assigned. One of only five in the entire New Republic, they outgunned, outran, and overshielded the Imperial's Venerable Super Star Destroyer. They were exceptional in every way, from carrying capacity to sensor power to backup systems. Even the entertainment options were better.

A beeping from his computer console drew his attention. A message had come in, under the top peacetime priority. Likewise, it was encoded with one of the top peacetime encryption schemes. Something like this warranted his attention. Lion placed his hands on the desk, and a holographic keyboard appeared. He entered his password, and then the daily encryption key. After that, he slotted one of his rank cylinders into the desk, and the message opened.

The tags at the top showed him the message's path. It had originated from Sumitra, then routed through the sector's communication hub. From there it had been sent to Phindar, then Wayland, and then passed off to the Roche Asteroid Field. It went from there to Taanab, then Talasea, to the Sector Base at Kuat. It had been handed off to Caamas, then to the Sector Command Base at Borleias, before it had arrived at the New Republic Fleet Command Headquarters on Coruscant. It had been sent to his office at the NRFCHQ, then routed to the Manta.

Lion shook his head. Somebody must have really wanted to speak to him if they'd gone through the trouble (not to mention the cost) of bouncing a message from all the way out in the Sumitra Sector. Lion looked at the Author tag and smiled. Captain Devaneaux! It had been a while since he'd last seen him. He'd been off supervising the testing of a new ship. Lion read on, pleased with the contents of the message.

"The New Republic could really use ships like these..." he thought, before bringing up the reply box.

To: Captain Kieran Devaneaux, commanding N.R.V. Skyrider
From: Lord Admiral Lion El' Jonson, Commander 2nd Fleet (aboard Manta)
Subject: Re: N.R.V. Republic Testing Phase

Captain, that's excellent news. Thank you for the update; it sounds like we could really use something like the Republic right now. I'll pass along your wishes to the boys at Bestine.

Please keep me updated. It'll be safer to contact me through my private direct holocomm frequency; its encryption codes are attached to this message; there were quite a few bounces in that transmission, and I wouldn't want an opportunistic Pirate Group getting word of your ship sitting around in the Sumitra sector.

At the moment, the Senate is primarily concerned with the results of the Bestine raid, but I'll approach the Senate Defense Acquisitions Committee (SENDAC) today and advise them of the possibility that we'll be submitting a request to fund the construction of a new class of vessels. They'll likely want to see the testing results before they stand allocating funds, however.

Thank you for the update, Captain.

-L.E Jonson, Lord Admiral
New Republic Vessel Manta
2nd Fleet, Coruscant Spacedocks

Lion attached his personal frequency encryption codes to the message and then coded it with the same scheme that Captain Devaneaux's Communications officers had used, before sending the transmission. With that done, he pushed his chair back and left the office, intent on grabbing a meal from the Officer's Mess.

[TieFighterPilot181st]

Assault Frigate Stormhawk
1st Division, New Republic 12th Fleet
Outskirts Sumitra Sector


The New Republic Assault Frigate Stormhawk, cruised silently through space accompanied by two Warrior Gunships. On the bridge, the commander of the 12th Fleet stood in his black jumpsuit, his helmet tucked under his arm. Colonel Yamagi was quite eager to inspect for himself this newest design of New Republic warship.

"We're at the outskrits of the shipyards sir." a young ensign at the communications officer informed the Colonel.

"Very good, send a message to Captain Devaneaux, and ask him for permission to come over to his new ship via my fighter to inspect the starfighter facilities of this new ship." Tie ordered.

"Yes, sir." the ensign reported.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Republic-class Star Destroyer Republic
Currently in moorings
REC Freedom Shipyard

Kieran Devaneaux inspected the final operations from the bridge of the new N.R.V. Republic when one of his aides from the Skyrider brought him two messages. One was a reply from the Lord Admiral....Kieran looked it over and nodded in satisfaction. The other came from the commander of the 12th Fleet, Colonel Yamagi, from the assault frigate Stormhawk, requesting permission to inspect Republic's starfighter facilities. Kieran smiled....one less thing for us to do here, he thought. "Send a reply to Colonel Yamagi: 'Permission granted. I will meet you in the hangar bay.' Send it discreetly." Kieran laughed silently. "Can't blame the command if they're a little enthusiastic."

"Yes, sir." The aide chuckled as he went off to send the message. Kieran stepped into the turbolift and set it to the hangar bay....

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Transmission from the Republic sir." the communications ensign reported. "Captain Devaneaux grants permission and states that he will greet you in the hangar bay when you arrive sir."

"Very well." Tie acknowledged. "Captain Keyes, you're in command."

With that, Tie left the bridge putting on his old Imperial helmet. Before long, he was at the hangar where his personal upgraded TIE Interceptor sat awaiting him. After a few words with the crew chief to make sure that it was in working order, Tie clambered in and sealed the hatch.

"Black Dragon Leader to Control requesting permission to launch." Tie called out over the comm as he powered up the fighter.

"Control to Black Dragon Lead, permission granted. Have a good flight sir." the controller replied.

Taxiing his Interceptor along the marked pathway, Tie brought his fighter into line with the opening of the hangar bay, opened the throttle and shot out into the darkness of space.

After clearing the Assault Frigate and its two escorts, Tie brought his fighter around towards the cluster of lights that constituted the shipyards in the distance. It was not a long flight, and within moments he was in the shipyards itself. Switching on the comm, he said. "Black Dragon Lead to Republic Control, request landing clearance in the main hangar bay."

[Kieran Devaneaux]

"Black Dragon Lead, this is Republic Control. Permission to land granted. Captain Devaneaux is waiting for you in the hangar bay."

As the Controller spoke, the Jedi captain stepped from the turbolift, and was surprised to see the clutter - parts boxes scattered across the hangar. "You!" Kieran shouted, pointing at the crew foreman. "Is the maintenance of this hangar your responsibility, Lieutenant?"

"Yeah, what if it is?" the lieutenant said rudely, not noticing who it was until he glanced at the speaker. "Uh, sir!"

"Get those damned boxes in order! The commander of the 12th Fleet is on his way for inspection! Do it before he gets here, and I may consider not demoting you to an NCO. Now MOVE IT!"

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Thank you Control." Tie ackowledged. Accordingly as he approached the looming shape of the new battleship, Tie cut power. While cruising towards the opening of the hangar bay, Tie surveyed the ship. It was an interesting design, a Star Destroyer that integrated Mon Calimari technology in its weapons blisters and such. Before long Tie couled see the lights of the hangar, and angled in his fighter.

The hangar was quite large with yellow landing circles evenly spaced out. There weren't many fighters in the bay yet, just a few A-Wings, since the ship was still in the testing phase. Tie smiled to himself as he noticed a good amount of techs looking up in surprise at the TIE Interceptor with markings of the 181st moving through their hangar bay. On the far side Tie could make out a man in a Captain's uniform, and made for the appropriate landing circle. One minute later he was on the deck of the hangar, and clambering out.

Taking off his helmet and tucking it under his arm he greeted the captain with a salute.

"Greetings Captain Devaneaux, its a fine ship you have here."

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Kieran returned the salute. "Welcome aboard the Republic, Colonel." Kieran looked over the TIE Interceptor and its insignia markings. He was somewhat puzzled. "That's the insignia of the 181st, yes? It's not every day you see a pilot of the old Empire's most elite fighter division flying for the Republic...." He grinned. He was about to show the Colonel around when the bay controller spoke over the comm: "Captain Devaneaux, the fighter squadrons assigned here have arrived and are waiting for docking."

Kieran looked around the fighter bay, then at his wristchron. They were early....but no matter. "Let them dock. We shall show our guest firsthand how our facilities work."

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Yes, to make a long story short, i did formerly serve the Empire however after an incident on Corellia after my family was killed I jumped ship with my fighter." Tie replied as the first fighters started coming through the magcon field.

One by one they came through and were directed by the controller to the yellow landing circles smoothly and efficiently. The hangar itself was large yet not wasteful of space. Soon enough the starfighters were parked on their hardstands in their rows, with their pilots clambering out.

"Quite impressive Captain. The hangar layout does allow for easy entrance." Tie praised.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

"That's the way we built her. We don't want traffic jams." Kieran chuckled. "Damned nuisance when you're trying to get fighters into combat and they can't maneuver...."

[TieFighterPilot181st]

(OOC I'm about to make a suggestion just to make it more realistic, but if you think its too harsh i'll amend it.)

"I couldn't agree with you more. Thats always why i hated the old Imperial Star Destroyers with the racks for the fighters. The close proximity always dictated against rapid launching." Tie responded.

"I couldn't help but noticing however that some of your ground crews are not as coordinated as they could be Captain. Perhaps a new training regimen could be instituted?" Tie suggested.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Kieran glanced at the crew foreman, who scampered away in terror. "What did you have in mind, Colonel?"

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"It seems as if the crewmen have fallen into a routine here. While that is often beneficial as it allows individuals to remember their tasks and often perform them quite well, in this case it has gone too far. With this not being a warzone, the crew have become too relaxed from what i see, and their routine seems a bit lethargic. My suggestion would be randomized drills to be conducted at any hours of they day, covering any situation possible." Tie offered.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Kieran nodded. "I have noticed the same thing. I will get on it at once..." Walking over to the intercom, he input his personal code and pulled the microphone out. "Attention, this is Captain Kieran Devaneaux speaking. As of late, I have begun to notice that you are all becoming too relaxed - in fact, it's borderline lethargy I see here. This may not be a warzone, but you are all still soldiers and we are at war, no matter that we are not right in the middle of it. Starting RIGHT NOW, we will conduct drills at random intervals to keep you people on your toes. Anyone who's too lazy to do his duty can be sent off to the front lines as an army trooper, if you prefer. And anyone who thinks I'm joking will be shot out of one of the ship's missile bays when we test the weapons systems again. Thank you."

Kieran grinned as he put the mike back in its slot and said conspiratorially to his guest, "You and I know I would not do that. But do they?"

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Of course they don't. Fear is a useful motivational tool when used properly as you have demonstrated. Pardon me for asking but would it be possible for me to view a layout of the ship's weapon systems, i am rather intrigued by the grafting of Mon Cal technology onto a Star Destroyer hull."

[Kieran Devaneaux]

"It was somewhat difficult, actually......there are some changes made to the standard configuration. Primarily with the bridge superstructure and the engines, but other than that, not a whole lot has changed."

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Interesting to know. Will you be staging any drills in the near future captain? It would be quite interesting to watch this ship in action."

[Kieran Devaneaux]

"We can take her out, as a matter of fact....we need to test her engines. Come with me to the bridge, we'll get started." Kieran strode towards the turbolift to take him back to the bridge....

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Thank you captain." Tie thanked, following the officer towards the turbolift.

Before he left the hangar he turned to the crew chief near his Interceptor.

"Don't even think about touching my ship." Tie called out to the mechanics who were running their hands curiously over the surface of Tie's fighter near where the red stripes of the 181st had been painted.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

Kieran glared as the mechanics were thinking of fondling the modified Interceptor. "Back to work," he snapped. "Get back to work!" Kieran set the controls to the bridge, and the door shut after Tie entered the turbolift.

Once they arrived on the bridge, the captain inquired of the engineer, "Are the engines primed and ready for departure?"

"Engines are ready, Captain. We can test them on your command."

Kieran nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Let's test them the right way. Navigation, all engines ahead one-third. Nice and slow until we're clear of the boxdock."

"Aye, Captain!"

[TieFighterPilot181st]

The bridge was a large yet not wasteful. Banks of consoles with crewmen manning them lined the area. Then, Tie felt the virbration through the decks as the engines slowly powered up and the ship began to move forward.

"Out of curiosity, are the primary shield generators still located on the top of the bridge tower?" Tie asked turning to Captain Devaneaux.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

"No; the shield generators are internal now, I believe. It was a damned annoyance when the generators were mounted on the tower; it was easy for them to get knocked offline. We fixed that problem quite nicely."

"Captain, Skyrider confirms we are clear of boxdock," reported Republic's navigation officer.

"All ahead full! Let's see what this baby can do."

[TieFighterPilot181st]

"Yes, it was a great time for us starfighter pilots making runs on the generator domes. It is good to see that no one will be able to do that to us now." Tie replied.

Looking around Tie saw the stars slowly slipping by as the Republic left her moorings and was now manuevering through the dockyard.

"May I inquire your plan for this test voyage?"

[Kieran Devaneaux]

((OOC: This will coincide with the Sith attempt to take the Republic, and they make off with Skyrider instead.))

"Skyrider will escort us to the fleet rendezvous point. I will handle the operations from the Skyrider, leaving the head engineer in command of Republic until we reach the rendezvous."

[TieFighterPilot181st]

OOC: Sounds like a plan, are they bringing in ships because then i will transfer back to my ships as i have stated in the post below so that i can fight, otherwise just tell me so i can adjust the post.

"Excellent. I will comm my group and have them meet us at the rendezvous point. Perhaps after we could hold a little exercise, and maybe even a little wager?" Tie suggested in good humor.

[Kieran Devaneaux]

((From the looks of it, the Sovereignty is sending their aid to the Sith attackers.))

Kieran grinned. "You're on, Colonel. I could outrun or outfight most ships in this fleet with the Devaneaux's Fury if I wanted." He chuckled. "No, seriously....we'll try it."