34th Brigade logs - Mission #1-835

[Maik]

Date of creation
24/03/835

MISSION #1-835 - CORONADO PROBE DEPLOYMENT
FOR OFFICIAL USE

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INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION

Once all the data regarding the Ontario system and in particular the planet Sudbury had been established, my orders were to move ships into the Coronado system to set up observation probes that could analyze the data within the system and confirm/refute our theory about the connection between the Coronado and Ontario systems.

That way, if the beam suddenly reached the Coronado system and made a connection to the Nomad gate, which we have known about for a long time, we would be the first to know about it.

Expedition date was set for March 23, 16:00.

OPERATION DETAILS

The overall task list was as follows:

• Implement Odyssey redeployment to the Coronado system.
  
• Place observation probes in orbit of the Nomad gates inside Barrier nebula.
  
• Place spy probes in orbit of the Oraibi planet in the Coronado system.*
  
• Leave one ship as an observation of the activity of the probes located at the gates and of the activity of spy probes located on Oraibi planet.**
  
• Move Odyssey to other locations for research operations.
  

* In case of an unforeseen failure of the observation probes, probes orbiting the planet would still be able to track the very fact that the beam crossed the system.
** The ship and pilot will position themselves on the Barrier Gates to remotely monitor any changes in activity.

The reasoning behind placing the probes in the planet's orbit is that, in case the probes at the Nomad Gate fail, we have a backup that would be able to pick up the incoming beam.

Note: the probes sent to orbit the planet Oraibi were purchased on the black market and do not carry any Order markings, while the data they transmit will go to the Barrier Gate first. This precludes any suspicion of the Order, should these probes be detected by outside organizations (particularly governmental ones like the LSF, Crayter and others).

The path of the group proceeded as follows: Ontario -> California -> Cortez -> Coronado. All participating ships used a network of jump holes to avoid detection. The option of using the hole leading to Inverness to shorten the flight time was rejected due to the high activity of Technocracy and Nomads coming from that system.

Photo material made from "Anubis": "Road to the Coronado system", March 23, 835 A.S.

According to all the objectives of the operation, Brigade force of three ships moved into the Coronado system for further operations. Upon reaching the system, the first stop was the Barrier Gate (Section A), to replenish fuel supplies and clarify further objectives of the operation.

Photo material made from "Anubis": "Odyssey at Barrier Gates", March 23, 835 A.S.

The first point of interest was the Nomad Gate, once used by our alien opponents but now destroyed by the Order. Theoretically, a beam emanating from the planet could restart these gates and put them back in service. Placing observation probes has become the number one task of this operation.

Although it was expected that the gate would have similar structures to those we had seen in Omicron Zeta, this was not the case: it was still abandoned and destroyed and showed no activity. There was a high radioactive background in the vicinity of the gate, which actually made it impossible to set up observation probes in close proximity to it.

Photo material made from "Anubis": "Nomad Gates, Coronado system", March 23, 835 A.S.

The Odyssey crew calculated the correct orbit that would be safe for the probes and would not cause them serious radioactive damage. Although the probes would eventually fail, they would have enough lifetime to maintain stable data transmission for several more months to be replaced by new probes if necessary.

Photo material made from "Anubis": "Odyssey launching observation probes on a stable orbit", March 23, 835 A.S.

- "It is unlikely to be indicated in the attached photo material, but we have also placed several probes on a nearby fragment of the gate structure that does not emit a high radioactive background. Since it is in a stable orbit away from the gate, we have a solid safety net in case the orbital probes fail."

After completing the installation of the observation probes, the expedition advanced to the planet Oraibi to install additional probes in its orbit. According to current data, although the planet has valuable resource deposits, it has harsh surface conditions that make its production unprofitable. The planet's remoteness from the civilized part of the Coronado system made it a suitable candidate for probes.

Upon reaching the planet's orbit, it became clear that the actualized data about its value was true: Brigade ships had not encountered any suspicious individuals. The space body is completely abandoned from external observation and is of no real interest to anyone. Thus, Odyssey took an advantageous position and launched two pairs of observation probes directly into the planet's orbit, then established communication with them and began to receive data on the state of the Nomad gate in the Barrier cloud and data on the edge of the Coronado system.

Photo material made from "Anubis": "Odyssey launching observation probes at Oraibi planet orbit", March 23, 835 A.S.

After completing the installation of the observation probe network, the "Heqet" left the group formation and headed back to the Ontario system, while the Anubis and Odyssey returned to the Barrier Gates. The progress towards the Gates was uneventful and both ships reached the safe zone safely.

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OPERATION RESULTS & FURTHER OPERATIONS

Further operations on Coronado, at this time, are not necessary. After the ships returned to the Gate, the "Monolith" arrived in the Coronado system and became the transmitter of information from the observation probes to the Order's assets in Ontario. Now we have a stable network of probes located in two systems and two sites of our interest:

• Nomad Gate in Coronado system.
  
• The Sudbury planet in Ontario system.
  

The plan is that any changes in Coronado will be our clue as to the purpose of the beam in Ontario. If everything is correct, we will, in fact, have answers to all of our questions about where and why this beam is firing.

However, our research challenges do not end there. My doubts still torment me: is the beam really heading toward the Coronado system and not toward Tau-61? Tau-61 has been a subject of interest to the Order for several years now, and checking this system is no less a priority than checking the Coronado and Ontario systems combined.

Based on the above information, my orders for the Brigade Ontario forces are as follows:

• Carry out the transfer of the OLV-Odyssey ship to the Tau-61 system with a pre-arranged escort. Report arrival in the system and immediately begin exploring it for additional leads.
  
• For "Monolith": Maintain a position on the Barrier Gates in Section A and collect data from observation probes in the Coronado system.
  
• All other Brigade assets that are in the Ontario system to operate in accordance with previous combat/science missions.
  

Departure time: March 25, 15:00. We are slowly getting closer to solving this puzzle, and I have every reason to believe that Tau-61 is as viable a candidate as the Coronado system.

Senior scientist Koji Yasu
ECLIPSE VANGUARD, HADES BRIGADE
24/03/835

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