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The Battle of Altorus
Post 04

Ready Room, USS Tizona
0850 Hours, MD-01

Staring blankly at a schematic of the Taeveon Sector, Celezar thought about his crew and sat alone in his ready room. He knew some of them disagreed with his decision to discard the distress signal claiming to be Commodore Ocal, but like any good naval crew, they ate their own disagreements and followed orders. He was pulled out of his stupor by his combadge beeping.

=A=Winship to Celezar. You have an incoming communicay from Commodore Iluvar.=A=

He sighed, it was only a matter of time before this happened. He took a second to straighten his uniform, and then tapped his badge. =A=Put it through.=A= He held his breath as the image of Commodore Iluvar appeared on the screen.

=^= Commander Celezar =^= the Commodore said in greeting. =^= Our long range sensors tell us you have not left your patrol of the border to assist in this retrieval operation. Care to explain your decision? =^=

Ordinarily, Iluvar would have been a bit more open minded about the situation, but time was not on his side. Instead, he sounded blunt and to the point. Still, he was genuinely interested in what the commander's reply would be.
 
"Sir," Celezar responded formally, hoping he could convince Iluvar responding to this was a mistake purely with protocol.  "Our intelligence reports show that the Ambassador has been in enemy hands.  Her command codes are to be considered compromised, sir."
 
=^= I am aware of that possibility, commander =^= Iluvar replied =^= Which is why I want every ship available...and that means you.  If this is a trap of some sort, it is being well laid.  The message requested assistance in the Altorus system, which is in unclaimed space.  Hardly place for either of us to get reinforcements quickly. =^=
 
"Which is exactly why, sir, responding to this distress signal is the worst thing we could do right now."  He paused, catching his thoughts.  Losing his cool right now could lose him this battle.  "Even if we were to assume for an instant that this really is Ambassador Ocal, we cannot risk getting in a fight over her.  There are bigger things at stake than a single diplomat.  You are risking dragging the entire quadrant into another war, Commodore!"

Iluvar knew that the man was passionate about his position.  Starship commanders weren't selected because they would blindly follow orders...they were responsible for the lives under their command.  Commander Celezar was doing his job.  But he was right… there were bigger things at stake here.  =^= I'm not sure how much information you've received, commander, so I will be brief, =^= Iluvar began =^= Ambassador Ocal was dispatched to Ocara Prime as a member of a diplomatic team.  She is the sole survivor of a bomb that exploded when her shuttle arrived.  If we don't recover her, then the truth will remain buried and war will come.  If the message is true and this is the Ambassador, we have a chance to prevent a war before it starts. =^=
 
Celezar shook his head, dismayed.  "You have no way of knowing if saving her will positively affect the timeline.  It could just as easily hasten the war, or worse, this whole thing could be a trap, and the war could have started already.  We could lose you and Captain Ocal, and the 8th Fleet could be irreparably maimed before the war begins."  He sighed, leaning back in his chair.  He could see he wasn't making headway, and the only reason he had survived as a freedom fighter on Krios was because he knew when to quit.  "I have, I think, made myself clear.  Give me your orders, Commodore."

=^= I respect your opinions, commander, but right now, I need every ship and every man I can get =^= Iluvar said =^= I'm ordering you to rendezvous with the fleet in the Altorus system.  In the meantime, I will contact Admiral Tavez and see what kinds of reinforcements we can expect. =^=

"Aye, aye," Celezar responded stiffly.  He gave a salute and ended the communication.  Sighing, he rose and looked in the mirror.  He was not yet tired, but he was sure that, by the time this conflict was over, he would be.  Still, it was time to follow orders.  He stepped out onto the bridge, and immediately made for his command chair.  "Ensign, set a course for the Altorus system, maximum warp."

He watched as the helmsman responded, and they turned into the gaseous wasteland of the Taeveon Expanse.  No one said a word, but he could feel the gloom and excitement of upcoming battle descend over his crew.  It was a feeling he had been hoping to avoid, but now it seemed they would fight to stop a war.  For what it was worth, he was ready to join the other captains headed for the Altorus system.

He turned to Rex, who was sitting quietly in the XO's chair beside him.  "We are going to be late for the party…"

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