Scopion’s Sting
Bridge of the Fortress Class Dropship Heart of Eden, October 2874
The old warhorse spoke gently, “Speak freely, Captain.”
“Colonel, I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Captain Weitz complained, pacing back and forth in the small officer’s mess.
“You’re not alone, J. Off-book ops tend to be the kind with the highest casualty rate.” The Colonel sighed and looked at his electronic folio for the 10,000th time since the mission brief came through, and shook his head. “Are we in a position to say no?”
Exasperated, the Captain stopped short, his regulation boots making a slight squeak on the metal floor. “You know we’re not…we never are. But any op that promises to buy us out of debt, fill our hold with armor and actuators, and let us take on new Pilots and tonnage is just too good to be true. And really, full salvage outside of any facility? It just screams someone in over their head or lying through their teeth.”
“It’s your ship, Captain, I’ve never pushed you into something you weren’t comfortable with. I hear there are some great garrison duty slots on Holder’s Moon. It may even pay enough to cover your oxygen usage.” The older man chuckled. “But I’ve seen the SIGINT…there’s something there, even if its not what they’re saying. And we’ll place satellites when we get there…if you need to, we can trade the Heart for passage back. You’ll still have a place as a lance commander, at least as long as I’m alive.”
The captain steeled himself and sighed. “Alright…I’ll call them all in…at least the ones crazy enough to say yes…I’m not forcing anyone into this op.”