Den of Wolves: Grand Admiral Prawn
The following is a guest post from Blake Howell, who played the Admiral of the fleet during the 8/19/2023 running of Den of Wolves by Dallas Megagames. Thank you for contribution, Blake!
Admiral's Log
Admiral Blake “Prawn” Howell
The Lighthouse is no longer safe. Admiral Thomas, my predecessor, did a notable job of getting us here, unfortunately, this place just is not safe. Not anymore. The Wolves are at the gates and it is time for us to leave.
During our stay here I have spent time researching possible next steps for the fleet. I believe I have found it. Years ago, an automated shipyard named the Prometheus was sent out ahead of our colony fleet. Through carefully vetted sources I believe I have discovered the location of it now. It is several jumps away having traveled for quite some time, but all I have to do is lead us there. We can then rearm, reinforce, and repair.
Time to get to work.
Step one is to ensure the fleet can make the journey and that means fuel. We know the Icebreaker and Refinery do not have a shuttle of their own, and after discussing with my top officers, the Aegis will take on the burden of the fuel supply chain. We will get ore to the refinery, and fuel to the rest of the fleet. We had full confidence in those ships to do the actual producing, we just knew they would need help with delivery. I tasked our XO with retrieving the captain of the Icebreaker and I would speak with the Refinery ship first thing before setting out from the Lighthouse. Both captains readily agreed to our plan and we all got to work.
Next, my comms officer and I needed to come up with a way to share with the captains of the fleet our jump destinations on our way to the Prometheus. We decided the most secure method was for the coords to not be distributed until just before our jump. I had no doubt there were wolves amongst the fleet. But, we had different problems to start our journey with.
The Cult of the Useless Nonsense.
During our stay at the Lighthouse religious nonsense had taken hold of many folks within the fleet. This nonsense, which is what this cult hullabaloo was, had started dividing the fleet between those that were weakminded and supported the cult and those of us that knew we had more important things to worry about. I had little doubt this nonsense was going to become a problem for the fleet, and by extension, me, sooner than later.
Knowing we were heading to the Prometheus where we could reinforce and repair the fleet, I decided to declare a rationing on the use of Materials throughout the fleet. I spent time negotiating with the captain of the Icebreaker and instead of securing it all on the Aegis we agreed to allow half on the Icebreaker and half on the Aegis. While this meant I would need to be involved in more decisions regarding Material usage, I also believed it would secure us more quickly upon reaching our destination.
The first of those to approach regarding an exception to the rationing was the Vulcan. They had a plan for building and deploying salvage drones from their ship. After discussing with my XO and Logistic officer, we decided to allow this plan and provided a majority of our current Material stash to the Vulcan to build these drones.
Then, the first Wolf scout party attacked.
Here is where my crew and our old girl Aegis came to focus. When the Aegis shoots left, there is no more left. There are now only three rights. The Aegis guns are mighty, only made more so by the expert command of our XO. Our Fighter Command Officer has the philosophy of Accuracy By Volume. The rest of the fleet and the fighers they contributed were greatly appreciated and it made defeating this, and all subsequent Wolf attacks, much easier.
After the Vulcan performed their first salvage operation, to very unsatisfactory results, I called for our first jump. The second part of our jump plan now came to fruition. The Aegis would be the last ship to jump, each and every time. After the rest of the ships jumped, we would look for outgoing comm signals to attempt to determine if there were any enemy agents hiding amongst those ships. Our first ping of trouble came from the Rosal ships.
There was already suspicion in the fleet for the crew of the Endeavor, and that seemed the most likely place for trouble to be from. So, after discussing it amongst the crew we decided that the Captain of the Endeavor needed to be interrogated and tried by the council. I approached the President and requested permission to arrest the Captain of the Endeavor and bring him up on charges. While the arrest went smoothly, it also proved useless. The Council were completely ineffective in resolving the situation.
I, however, suddenly had much bigger problems to deal with.
The Cult of the Useless Nonsense was showing how much of a distraction they could truly be. First, they were kidnapping and indoctrinating children. That alone would be enough to warrant an investigation. Then, the Captain of the Icebreaker brought to me some truly troubling accusations regarding the Cult. He revealed that genetic experimentation and enhancements were being used as both an incentive to join the cult and as a way to secure their power within the fleet. The Icebreaker Captain said he had a solution but would like some marines to help ensure that collateral damage was kept to a minimum. Peacekeeping is one of our mandates and so I tasked my XO with maintaining order at this gathering of the religion that would prove to be far more catastrophic than advertised.
The First Officer of the Icebreaker, one of the three elders of the Cult of the Useless Nonsense, declared the other two elders to be a danger or some such to the rest of the religion and ordered their execution. They were subsequently spaced and our marines were smack in the middle. They did their job, let that be known, they kept the peace and ensured casualties stayed at a minimum. After the explosion of the Salvador, I decided then and now that this was a problem for the council, the Aegis would no longer insert itself into the squabbles of those susceptible to the cult.
After yet another jump, we had reason to suspect the Endeavor still, and more importantly, to also suspect the Lucas. It was then I made an executive decision. I want it to be known here and now that my XO was only following my orders, so if charges must be laid, they should be laid with me and me alone. Knowing the complete ineffectiveness of the council, I decided a second arrest of the Endeavor's captain would prove fruitless. Thus, I ordered the XO to report a mechanical failure aboard the shuttle that resulted in the death of the Endeavor's Captain, though in truth the Captain of the Endeavor was summarily executed by my order. I reported both the arrest and "accidental" death to the Council, who seemed to not only see through our ruse, but fully accept it as an explanation. It appears the Council knew what to do, but refused to get their hands dirty in actually finding the man guilty. Politicians through and through.
The CPA councilor then approached me. He asked me to declare myself President and perform a military coup. He told me the current president was ineffective, the council was useless, and something needed to be done. I asked him if the council supported this and he told me not at all, he was approaching me solo. I told him if at least half the council would support a military coup, I would see what I could do about enforcing more commanding leadership over the fleet. The Councilor told me that due to the Cult of the Useless Nonsense it was unlikely for that to happen. I told him that was the only way I would consider it.
I never heard back on that front.
More attacks by the Wolves proved the bravery of not just my crew aboard the Aegis but by the rest of the fleet. It was a third attack, however, that would prove our need to jump away as soon as possible. The entire fleet had taken quite the beating during this attack and I knew we had to get away as soon as possible. Once more I need to sing the praises of one of my crew. Our Fighter Command Officer proved his skill not just in the cockpit but also as a logistics machine. He was able to keep the entire fleet stocked up on fuel, allowing multiple medium, and three long jumps before we finally reached our destination. He deserves recognition for his olympian efforts.
I then received the strangest request from the council. They wanted me to arrest the entire crew of the Endeavor and bring them up on charges. A crew with a newly minted Captain due to the "accident" on our shuttle from earlier, and a chief scientist. Shaking our heads at the incompetence of politicians, I ordered the XO to fulfill the request and make sure both officers arrived at the council intact this time.
After one more long jump I knew we would be within range of reaching the Prometheus. Just one more jump and the fleet would be safe for a time. Just one more jump and I might finally be able to relax. After I received word we were ready for our long jump I gave the order. It was time for the fleet to get ready to go home.
My greatest failure as the Admiral was then put on prime display. I had trusted too much.
My comms officer had been an agent of the enemy all along and with our goal so near in sight he had provided varying coordinates to the rest of the ships in the fleet. The last vestiges of Earth's government were scattered and the situation seemed hopeless. As he bragged about playing the long game and making me the fool, his trial commensed. Being separated from the rest of the fleet, and him being an officer of the Aegis, he had a military tribunal with myself as judge. The trial ended quickly and so did my comms officer. Once again, my XO proving his loyalty and capability of fulfilling his role he airlocked that son-of-a-bitch after putting a bullet in him.
Then it was time to gather the fleet again. I promoted a new, much more trustworthy, comms officer and my crew got to the work of getting the rest of Sol civilization back together. First, we needed to prioritize who to get to us and help. With it just being Icebreaker and the Aegis, the decision was made to get the Refinery first so that we could get fuel to people that were stranded and could not emergency jump to our coordinates. After the Refinery was the Dione, we needed to get the bulk of the population near their protection as soon as possible. From there, we got the Shepherd and Lucas the coords and awaited their arrival via emergency jumps. The Endeavor was able to reach us on their own by "sciencing the hell out of it". After a lot of communication and waiting the Fleet was finally regathered.
My comms officer came running to me wanting to report some intercepted Wolf transmissions. A Dreadnaught, the most powerful ship the Wolves could bring to bear, was on its way to us. We had very limited time to get the fleet away from this location. Now, believe me when I say Aegis is a powerful old girl and I adore her with every bit of my being. A Wolf Dreadnaught, however, outclasses us in every way and we would lose more than one ship in the fleet before we could even respond if it did arrive.
After further heroic efforts from our Fighter Command Officer along with the crews of the Icebreaker and Refinery, the fleet was prepared for one final, long distance jump. I would not make the same mistake twice. I gave our new Comms Officer all but the last piece of the coordinates. One by one, I flew my personal fighter to each ship, slaved their hyperdrives to my computer, input the final coordinate code, and sent them away. Little did I know, I was racing the wolves themselves. It took time, but I got everyone away. Just as the Aegis was spinning up it's FTL drives, the Dreadnaught jumped in. It did not have time to fire before we jumped away ourselves.
The fleet was safe at the Prometheus. Everyone but the Salvador arrived in tact. The Cult of the Useless Nonsense distraction was finally at an end. The wolves were caught and dispersed. Some may disagree with how I did it, but I did my job. I took care of the fleet. I kept them safe.
Regardless of what other accounts come from today I hope this stands above all: the crew of the Aegis, save with one glaring exception, served with honor, skill, talent, and aplomb. Our Logistics officer consistently took care of the crew of the Aegis, keeping our systems running smoothly and defending our ship. Our Fighter Command Officer led the way in his fighter during combat and kept the fleet's ships drinking their fill outside of it. Our XO was an exemplary officer, fulfilling his duties as commander of our marines, the ship's guns, and my hands around the fleet expertly. Perhaps the Wolves are posthumously awarding a medal to my ex-comms officer, being their MVP of day.
With the fleet safely at harbor with the Prometheus, I think it is high time I spend some well earned
R&R on the Dione. I hope they still have those waterslides.
