New Year, New Opportunities

[Ramke]

---

Time marched on. Behind closed doors numerous discussions were held, what was left of the ship's commanding structure debated the options before them. Doing something with this new-found contact would be silly not to attempt in their situation, but suspicions remained high. After being used to barely scraping by for years, any bit of good news seemed too good to be true - much more so when there was a promise of a new dawn.

Captain Berengar, the main commanding officer of the ship, was the main critic. A rugged man who kept a tight grip on the ship's crew and prevented it from collapsing, he was used to their current situation of raiding for resources and existing as-is. But with Claire's sudden promises of renewed movement and rebirth, the crew were now expecting a change - something that the noble capitalised on in every discussion. It took weeks of convincing Berengar, but eventually even he was swayed to at least meeting the supposed GNI-masquerading royalist detachment - in a neutral location as proposed.

The plan was swung in motion. Claire, withholding some cards, asked the captain to arrange the meeting - much to his dissatisfaction. A location - Lodeve Space Port - was agreed as a neutral ground whose inhabitants wouldn't bat an eye to neither old royalist or naval intelligence ships docking. The biggest obstacle ahead of them was reaching it, no feat that the fuel-starved Belisama could manage. Thus, they improvised. Leveraging contacts with the other remnants of the royalists within Orkney, they arranged to borrow an Aurochs freighter for a 'high value mission'. Days passed before it arrived as the departing crew were getting geared, quietly dreading the upcoming meeting and the many ways it could go wrong - even if this was a time of pulling straws.

As the freighter arrived and docked with the Belisama, the few Lynxes left in the detachment were already deployed and waiting - engines killed to conserve fuel as they waited for the go-ahead. Claire, clad in her most official-looking clothing still left, boarded the Aurochs, followed by, unusually, Berengar, who had made his presence a condition of the meeting - clearly not willing to leave the ship's fate to the noble's whim. As the two sat, they waited for a few heavily armed lieutenants to join them. Before long, sirens blared out as the freighter's entry sealed, and the hangar doors slid open.

The Lynxes sprung back to life, re-activating their IFF as they appeared on close-range radar. Activating cruise engines, they thrust ahead to their first and main obstacle. Battlecruiser Sisteron. There was much debate as to how to approach this roadblock at the edge of the Giant's Causeway. As it was a GNI ship, it was not one full of masquerades, so fooling them would be a much more difficult task even with the help of the royalists from Zurich. The alternative was to risk death and navigate through the asteroid field, and use the planet as cover from its long-range radar. Opting not to risk notifying their plan to the wider Gallia, the most experienced Lynx pilor was instead on the Aurochs, intent on navigating the asteroids as he did for numerous flights.

The freighter was quiet inside, with only the hum of engines, and occasional violent turns and burns for background noise. Neither Claire, the captain, or the guard were willing to discuss it - knowing everything was on the line should something get in the way. Following the smuggler's route they mapped throughout the years, the pilot meticulously followed in the Lynxes' trail. What felt like an eternity passed and tension palpable as they navigated - particularly Claire, who had not left the field since the Belisama entered it. She kept a tight grip, fiddling around with a ring on her finger - one that was gifted by her sibling, Charlotte, and has become, to her mind, a good luck charm. Keeping an eye out to the blue clouds and asteroids outside, she watched them intently, before they turned sparser and sparser, and the clouds dissipated to expose the vast stars beyond.

Navigating through the route, Planet Sanday came into view: not only a pretty sight, but an important blocker for the Gallic Intelligence assets that would no doubt be intercepting them otherwise. The biggest hurdle was past, and the flight remained steady until the jump hole that still led to Languedoc.

"I will say, it is good to see stars again." the noble commented, seemingly in an effort to release some tension. Captain Berengar grunted in response, following her gaze out the thick window. It wasn't long until they reached the jump hole, the passengers gripping onto the chairs as the freighter entered it and shook the contents of the ship violently. The barely-maintained freighter managed to keep itself together as they emerged on the other side, the red haze of the system coming into view.

"Not long left." Berengar commented, still maintaining the usual stoic expression on his face. Tensions remained high as the Lynx squadron and the Aurochs trailing behind neared the den of smugglers, but the journey - following a carefully planned course - went through without issue. "We've arrived, monsieurs and madamoiselles." rang through the ship's intercom, as Claire released a sigh of relief. The ship initiated docking, and moments later the detachment found themselves standing up and looking at the Auroch's bay doors opening to reveal a dinky hangar with a single man in GNI uniform waving at them, a welcoming smile on his face.

"Well, Claire. It's your so embellished year of change. I pray you still have the wit to notice a death trap when you see it. Be ready to bail at a moment's notice." Berengar said, switching his gaze back to the man welcoming them at a distance.

"Oui. We have our work cut out for us. But rest assured, I'm not as dumb as you may think." Claire responded, stepping off the Aurochs with escort in tow.