Omega Force: Rebellion (OF11), стр. 78
"Is that really something you need to be concentrating on right now?" Twingo asked.
"I'm not doing shit," Jason said. "I'm giving them a ride to S'Tora and turning them loose with money, some property, and a local guide."
"Unbelievable," Twingo muttered.
The ship pulled smoothly away from the moon, accelerating towards their mesh-out point, while the mismatched fleet of warships sat in a loose formation above the mining base. Jason hadn't flown a standard helm ship in some time, but it all came back to him as he maneuvered the nimble corvette among the other ships. The bridge was enormous compared to that of the Phoenix and the amenities were certainly much nicer. There was even a separate galley on the command deck right off the bridge as well as the main galley down below.
Each of them now had their own spacious quarters rather than the cramped berthing aboard the gunship and there was enough room that they weren't on top of each other. Jason hoped that this would lead to less fights on the long trip back across the quadrant to S'Tora. Their home was out near the Delphine Expanse, far from the Core Worlds, and even further from Eshquaria. By the time the ship had hopped smoothly into slip-space, Jason was trying to figure out a way to not give the ship back to Mok once they were done with it.
“So, what do we call her?" Twingo asked.
"It's not our ship. I don't think we get to name it," Kage said.
"It's bad luck to be on a ship without a name," Twingo insisted.
This kicked off a four-hour argument that included one physical altercation and names being suggested like the Stupid Asshole Mobile and Drunken Idiots Barge. For a group that claimed not to care whether it was even named or not, they suddenly all had strong opinions their name be picked. In the end, Jason exerted his veto power and officially named the ship the Devil's Fortune. It didn't really mean anything, he just liked how it sounded like a pirate ship name.
"Why do you get to just pick the name?"
"I'm the captain, I get final say so," Jason said. "Now shut up and get back to work."
Epilogue
"Admiral, it's good to see you."
"This isn't a social call, Captain Webb." Admiral Sandor strode into Webb's office and slammed the door behind him. Once he activated the anti-eavesdropping measures, he turned back the captain. "How much do you know about what happened in the Miressa System?"
"Our media monitoring station on Pinnacle forwarded the reports that the Eshquarians showed up and wiped out the HDF fleet," Webb said. "Not much after that until our sources start submitting their field reports."
"I've been on the com with a high-placed friend in the Cooperative," Sandor said. "What you saw was only half of it. After the HDF got its ass kicked, the 405th Battlefleet arrived."
"The 405th as in the ConFed's attack dog fleet?" Webb asked.
"The same. The Eshquarian remnants would have likely been wiped out, but Admiral Colleran intervened with her taskforce. Long story short, the Eshquarians and the Cridal ships put a hurting on the ConFed fleet. We're hearing that their one and only dreadnaught may have been taken out, and they lost two battleships." Sandor leaned back, gripping the arm rests of the seat, and then shifted again to lean forward. The nervous energy the man was radiating was making Webb anxious.
"If Taskforce Starfire got involved then—"
"That's right…the ten Victory-class cruisers we put on detached duty were right in the fucking mix," Sandor spat. "That imbecile, Edgars, took down one of the battleships with his squadron."
"Oh, Christ…"
"Ah! But it gets better. Not content with possibly dragging Earth into a hot war between a superpower and a rogue fleet, Edgars took his ship and has apparently linked up with the insurgents in the Eshquarian fleet."
"What?!" Webb's head was starting to spin.
"The nine other cruisers came home, called ahead to warn us what was happening. We diverted them to Olympus and ordered them to remain on lockdown. I'm on my way out to debrief the captains of those ships as soon as I leave here."
"And you need me because—?"
"Don't be so obtuse, man," Sandor snapped. "I need you to find Edgars and drag his stupid ass back here! Send one of your Scout Fleet teams looking for him."
"I don't have the manpower to support something like that right now," Webb said carefully. "Scout Team Obsidian is the only unit available, and they're stood down while we try to work out some command issues."
"Obsidian? Is that Mosler's team?"
"Yeah, but he—"
"Don't give a shit. Send them, now. That's an order." Sandor stood up and straightened his uniform. "Keep this quiet, but do whatever the hell it takes to find my missing cruiser."
Admiral Sandor blew out of the office as quickly as he came in, leaving before Webb could explain that Obsidian wasn't in any shape to be put on-mission just yet. Sandor's reputation preceded him and Webb knew he wouldn't care about the details. He'd dismissively tell him to "just get it done" despite the fact Scout Team Obsidian sat on an alien planet right now with a stolen ship, no equipment, no support staff, and a green Marine lieutenant calling the shots.
"Bennett!" he bellowed.
"You realize there's an intercom button on your desk, don't you, sir?" his aide said a moment later when he stuck his head in the door.
"Shut up and get in here. Close the damn door. We need to figure out a way to get an emergency equipment drop out to Obsidian ASAP."
"Obsidian?"
"I know, I know." Webb waved him off. "Brown's expecting to be recalled to Terranovus so the teams can be reorganized. Unfortunately, I've been overruled, and we have a mission tasking that can't wait for personnel issues to