[SMoDIN] What Remains

Just outside of the Fortuna system, a small wing of five DD4 Destroyers and a single Shaika Assault Carrier exited hyperspace in near perfect unison. The markings along the hull of each Nepleslian warship signified them as not only a small part of the 1st Assault Fleet naval battalion, but specifically the lead and guard of the Fleet Flagship: the NSS Corhal, NSS Massarabi, NSS Awe of She, NSS Passionwind, NSS Los Bata, led by the NSS Vanderhuge.

Upon leaving the hyperspace fold, the titular admiral of the 1st Assault Fleet and captain of the NSS Vanderhuge, Flint Vanderhuge, stood up from his chair and idly brought his large hands to the front of his body, tightly working and stretching at the joints in his wrists and fingers. It was a sign of tension, which was quite imposing to the bridge crew as their twelve-foot tall ID-SOL Grand Admiral seemed visibly uncomfortable. Given the state of things, his worry seemed understandable.

The senate was, for all accounts at that moment, non-existent. Funky City was quickly falling into the dark ages, an apparent attack by an unknown enemy having crippled Nepleslia. The mangle was momentary, of course; the apparent loss of most of the senators, including the Sky Marshall, meant that the shifting of power would be falling to a very few select peoples. The most important one being the reason why Flint had pulled his prized flagship and its steadfast escort from border guard in the southwestern systems; the only senator confirmed to have survived the attack on the senate was reported to be here, on Fortuna... his entire reason for not being present at the fated meeting of Senators being that he himself was being targeted by another set of terrorists. This senator, Delsaurian Senator Laj Vinross Yu, was the single reason why Grand Admiral Flint Vanderhuge, a Nepleslian legend by most standards, had gone out of his way to the fledgling colonial system. Senator Vinross Yu survived the single most devastating terrorist attacks since Nepleslia's declaration of freedom by having the bad timing to be present at another terrorist attack. It was unclear at the time whether or not the two events were related, but what was clear was that Laj Vinross Yu needed to be retrieved. It was quite clear to Flint.

And it would appear that he was not alone in that regard, as four more warhips broke away from hyperspace fold a relatively close distance behind Flint's group as it began sublight-speed descent closer to Fortuna. Their signals began to hail them as 1st Defense Fleet vessels; the NSS Camilla Gardenia DD4 destroyer and its small entourage of DD4-C vessels. Flint's communications officer spoke up suddenly. "Grand Admiral, there is a transmission coming through from the NSS Camilla Gardenia. It's Fleet Admiral De Luca." Flint attempted to recall back to a time when he had met De Luca... but the ID-SOL was never good with remember faces without first associating them with merit. The 1st Defense Fleet and its admiral were relatively new to the Nepleslian Navy, after all, and Flint was a very busy man. Never the less, he gave his communication officer a short gesture, which was followed by the large volumetric screen at the head of the elaborate bridge.

A Nepleslian woman, stern in look and pristine in appearance gazed at Grand Admiral Flint Vanderhuge. The female Fleet Admiral Violetta De Luca seemed to be slightly shaken as well, but none the less determined in her resolve. "Grand Admiral Vanderhuge, sir," Violetta said with a solid salute, her speech and respect seemingly perfect in all manner and form. Flint was not so frugal with salutes between admirals that he would call the accomplished woman out on missing it, but he respected her steadfast adherence to the protocol; Flint instantly took a liking to this new Fleet Admiral. "Are you aware, sir, that the Drei at the capital is recalling all idle fleets to the Nepleslia Core systems?"

"Yes, I am aware Admiral," Flint spoke, his accent thick and his tone aloof, almost casual. "But unfortunately for the Drei, I am a Grand Admiral of the Nepleslian Navy. I do not take orders from it, nor is my fleet idle. I am here to secure and retrieve Senator Vinross Yu," Grand Admiral Vanderhuge finished, Violetta De Luca's own flagship and fleet having caught up with Flint's as they began to approach acceptable range to transfer to shuttlecraft for descent onto Fortuna's surface. "And what is your excuse, Fleet Admiral De Luca?" The woman behind to screen remained composed, despite her superiors casual tone. Violetta found it somewhat insulting, even, that someone of his rank would make light of the situation and speak in such an aloof way, but kept her comments to herself as she gave her reply. "I am inclined to agree, sir, that securing Senator Vinross Yu is our top priority. I am here to assist you while the rest of my fleet secures our eastern borders around the core systems."

"Are you implying, De Luca, that I am incapable of accomplishing this task by my lonesome?" Flint asked suddenly, his eyes flashing in a challenging fashion as he aimed for a rise from the notably composed noblewoman.

"No sir, only that this matter is of utmost importance and, with the deliberate attack on the senate, it is very possible the terrorists might be after the senator as well," another well-spoken answer from the lady, who gave Flint not so much as a flustered eyelid or dash of red across her cheek.

There was silence for a moment as Flint analyzed and evaluated Violetta's image. After coming to a few silent decisions of his own, the massive ID-SOL nodded and gave his helmsman the order to decelerate their ships current speed. "Very well, Fleet Admiral. We shall take my personal shuttle to retrieve the senator. It is, ah... more befitting of my stature and position."

A short time later, Violetta De Luca was standing before the imposing Flint Vanderhuge in the NSS Vanderhuge's shuttle bay. Each admiral standing amongst small contingents of their own personal guard, the size difference between the two was quite startling, the 5'4 woman having to strain slightly to meet the eyes of the 12 feet tall ID-SOL. Violetta herself was particularly astounded, but did her best to remain as composed as possible as Flint gave her simple nod to acknowledge her arrival. The two admirals immediately boarded Flint's shuttle, the urgency of the situation bringing their casual chatting to a standstill until they had settled in for the short trip to the undisclosed landing zone.

Violetta, upon taking a seat in the large passenger area near the rear of the shuttle, immediately realized why Flint seemed so intent on using a shuttle from his own flagship. The single long hallway in the center of the shuttle, the doorways and even the seats were noticeably larger than what would have been considered normal in standard Nepleslian design. Given Flint Vanderhuges large stature, it was understandable that normal accomodations weren't to his liking, and he looked quite comfortable taking up a large portion of the single long cushioned bench against the front of the passenger seating area. Flint's guard, two top of the line Aggressor models, along with Violetta's escort of four Hostiles and a single NIGHT armorsuit, had chosen to ignore the vacant seats in favor of secure positions around the shuttle.

"I hope my choice of transportation doesn't offend you, Fleet Admiral," Flint said suddenly as he outstretched his arms, breaking a silence of the moment as the shuttle began sublight descent through the planet's thin ozone. Violetta shook her head side to side carefully, her stolid expression remaining unchanged. She had a small bit of trouble, however, accustoming herself to his size. "I was unsure at first as to the reason, but now I understand why you felt it necessary. My lieutenant has confirmed that Senator Vinross Yu is safe at our arrival zone for the moment-"

"Lots of pork," Flint interrupted Violetta abruptly, leaning forward in his seat closer to her as he spoke in a low, hushed voice. The female admiral simply stared at Flint for a fleeting moment, dumbfounded by the ID-SOLs strange statement. Flint simple nodded and gave her a knowing smirk. "Lots of pork. And beets. Is secret, no tell, yes?" the Grand Admiral placed his hand on the top of his head and raised it slightly, his way of crudely demonstrating vertical growth. Violetta simply nodded her head along with his strange mannerisms, giving him a peculiar look as he apparently read her thoughts from across the room.

Laj Vinross Yu wasn't having a very good day.

He woke up early in the morning just as his personal commercial star cruiser made a hasty landing at the Gold Harbor southeast starport, enjoying a nutritious fruit smoothie while looking over the revenues and business contracts that Vinross Yu-Cranker Materials had gathered during his nights' rest. 'Mishitoka Motorworks and their iron and steel foundry branch gained several numbers overnight... that's strange,' the tall Nepleslian CEO mused over his breakfast before glancing at his white gold wristwatch.

An hour of so after his morning meal, Laj prepared himself for the days agenda. He was happy to be back on Fortuna; he absolutely loved the hundreds of casinos threaded throughout Gold Harbor, and he was always on the look-out for another casino to add to his property list. Laj also wanted to take a look at the new dig site, which the local foremen had dubbed "The Sinkstrip". An enormous natural sinkhole in the badlands, with several mineral and ore veins already exposed, just asking to be reaped for their lucrative benefits. With half of the work already done for them, the Sinkstrip was an incredible investment... and Laj wanted to make sure that things were running smoothly. All of this would have to wait, however, until he was finished with what had brought him to Fortuna in the first place; the Eco-Eco Summit.

The Ecological Economical Summit meeting... an executive meeting between major resourcing companies in Nepleslia and Nepleslia's environmental preservation agency to discuss and explain new methods for safer, 'cleaner' resourcing. Held annually every year, Laj and Marissa volunteered to hold this years Eco-Eco Summit at their own facility on Fortuna. Laj didn't agree to it, however, out of the goodness of his heart; last years meeting was held by Inglo ECP Inc., and the location was absolutely terrible. Hot and humid, both of which are the natural enemy of any man in a pressed business suit. Laj made the measures necessary that he wouldn't have to stomach such conditions again.

Early afternoon, as he was getting ready for the presentation, something that he didn't plan on happened; the Eco-Eco Summit came under attack. From what he could gather as he was being rushed out by his Uniques, the Vinross Yu-Cranker all-female security force, a large group of eco-terrorists had somehow sabotaged the extensive defense systems located around the Sinkstrip facility, allowing their two small cruisers to swoop in unchallenged. It would appear that the eco-terrorists were after the executives of the meeting... a plan that would not have worked were the defenses operational. Luckily, the Uniques were prepared for these kinds of situations, and Laj was brought out to a secluded, private landing pad housing a simple shuttle. With a little patience, Laj and his personal guard were safe far away in the atmosphere as he called in the incident to the local law enforcement.

It was an eventful day, to be certain, and apparently not over just yet.