The Halcyon Project

[Halcyon]

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7. SUMMARY OF PROGRESS

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The events recorded in this series of updates encompass a time period ranging from January of 835 to April of 835. This recollection of the project has been summarized for parsing by archivists at the Citadel.

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The silence at Secundus had grown deafening in the weeks of early February, with all that the teams could accomplish with the facility's limited capabilities wrapped up. The Judicator's hull had been welded and patched in every way the engineers could manage, even with all the support levied from the Pytheas. Even so, the drydock simply wasn't equipped for the necessary work required.

So the Navarch struck a deal, and the old warbird needed enough life breathed back into its systems to make one more journey.

Prolonged activity was certain to draw attention, and escorts were commissioned for scouting and security. Once they were close enough, a towing lifter would meet them and guide the Halcyon into port for its much needed repairs. The old cruiser lurched forward as five of its six intact thrusters sputtered inconsistently, struggling with what little power the auxiliary generators had to move. As the thrusters settled into a rhythm, the Halcyon's escorts checked in, and the operation was underway. Data recordings attached to this report follow the escorts point of view.

Upon its arrival at Wichter, the Halcyon has fully exhausted all remaining means of propulsion until its repairs can be completed. The remaining thruster assembly had fully burnt out, and the Hercules lifter was the only thing able to provide and control momentum. The lifter steadily guided the Halcyon into the drydock. The Sardonyx, Pytheas and remaining staff on the project trickled in steadily over the next several days as Leviathan briefed the team on what work lay ahead.

Datalog - Flight from Secundus

[07.02.2025 00:09:16] INS-Subjugator: L: Prepared to depart.
[07.02.2025 00:09:20] A/)-Serpentis-3: All systems are go. Ready to depart.
[07.02.2025 00:09:39] A/)-Serpentis-4: All systems are green, we're ready for departure.
[07.02.2025 00:10:37] A/)-Serpentis-3: Approaching sensor dead zone. Switching to VFR.
[07.02.2025 00:11:08] A/)-Serpentis-4: Careful now.
[07.02.2025 00:11:35] A/)-Serpentis-3: Zone cleared.
[07.02.2025 00:11:49] A/)-Serpentis-3: X-509 is clear.
[07.02.2025 00:12:42] A/)-Serpentis-3: Entering Delta.
[07.02.2025 00:13:03] A/)-Serpentis-3: Clear.
[07.02.2025 00:13:12] INS-Subjugator: L: We have a long way to go.
[07.02.2025 00:13:12] A/)-Serpentis-4: Making jump.
[07.02.2025 00:13:30] A/)-Serpentis-4: Subjugator-actual, you are clear through to Delta.
[07.02.2025 00:14:23] INS-Subjugator: L: Kappa is next.
[07.02.2025 00:14:31] A/)-Serpentis-4: Copy. Rerouting.

[07.02.2025 00:15:28] A/)-Serpentis-4: Nauru's orbit is clear, no active patrols in the area.
[07.02.2025 00:15:50] INS-Subjugator: L: We're inbound to Wichter now.
[07.02.2025 00:16:26] A/)-Serpentis-3: Order on scanners.
[07.02.2025 00:16:33] INS-Subjugator: L: Initiating stealth sequence.
[07.02.2025 00:16:54] A/)-Aether: I can send an activation order to one of my units to provide you with a distraction.
[07.02.2025 00:17:08] A/)-Serpentis-3: Target is not pursusing.

[07.02.2025 00:17:14] A/)-Serpentis-4: Confirmed. Kappa-side is clear.
[07.02.2025 00:17:20] A/)-Aether: Wilco.
[07.02.2025 00:17:21] INS-Subjugator: Good work. Stay sharp.
[07.02.2025 00:18:57] Ever.Glory.Monrovia: Cpt.: Hello! *Smiles*
[07.02.2025 00:19:04] A/)-Serpentis-3: Civilian.
[07.02.2025 00:19:10] INS-Subjugator: Stokes: Local.
[07.02.2025 00:19:13] A/)-Serpentis-4: Serpentis-4 to civilian vessel, please keep your distance from our convoy, over.

[07.02.2025 00:19:45] A/)-Serpentis-3: Jumping.
[07.02.2025 00:20:11] A/)-Serpentis-3: Clear.
[07.02.2025 00:23:05] INS-Subjugator: L: We'll take the jumphole.
[07.02.2025 00:23:13] A/)-Serpentis-4: Copy that. Routing now.
[07.02.2025 00:24:32] A/)-Serpentis-3: Jumping now.

[07.02.2025 00:26:23] A/)-Serpentis-3: Weiss ship spotted.
[07.02.2025 00:26:44] A/)-Serpentis-3: 4.7k.
[07.02.2025 00:26:56] INS-Subjugator: Is it approaching, or departing?
[07.02.2025 00:27:20] A/)-Serpentis-3: Stationary.
[07.02.2025 00:27:52] INS-Subjugator: L: Plan B.
[07.02.2025 00:28:00] A/)-Serpentis-4: Civilian vacating area.

[07.02.2025 00:28:10] INS-Subjugator: Stokes: We're opening a rift. We'll see you at Wichter. It might be the last one we can manage.
[07.02.2025 00:28:14] A/)-Serpentis-4: Distance: 17k and increasing.
[07.02.2025 00:28:31] A/)-Serpentis-4: Copy that.
[07.02.2025 00:28:39] A/)-Serpentis-4: We're en-route. Towing vessel is in view.

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Several weeks later…

Diffuse light spread across the hull of the ship as the Halcyon occupied its spot at Wichter's drydock. This retrofit had been repeatedly deferred due to resource allocation changes and shifting operational priorities. Now, the Halcyon’s propulsion module was finally undergoing its much needed repair and restoration. Months of patchwork repairs and hull welds scarred the surface of the old Judicator. Closer inspection revealed a network of maintenance gantries and automated support craft engaged in localized system disassembly along the exposed rear hull, cutting away the scorched and cracked exterior plating. The drones had taken away the majority of the scrap, depositing it into the jaws of a Hercules lifter that carried the material to a nearby recycling bay.

Leviathan monitored activity within the propulsion corridor, his footsteps reverberating across residual heat-scored flooring, intermixed with the fresh replacements and polished sections that had been worked upon over the weeks stuck at Secundus. The primary drive array had been fully deconstructed, revealing corroded insulation, degraded heat exchangers, and ruptured plasma conduits—at least, that's what could be considered recognizable. Even more of the hulking mass was scorched and twisted metal, blown out from the inside after its initial overload. Much of the original configuration stemmed from second-generation Legion templates, and mixed with the remnant knowledge and experience Leviathan had when it comes to old Legion military equipment.

He watched from beyond the glass of his visor. Leviathan's own armor remained partially scorched black from the blast of the engines. It seemed no amount of polish would do away with the newly acquired shades of ashen dust cooked into the metal. He kept a keen watch from the corner of his view on power readouts as reactor lines were pulled into place by a mixture of automated drones and engineering staff in sealed protective spacesuits. Microgravity worked in their favor, with the ability to move the heavier components into place with careful forethought and without much resistance. Multiple internal sections were depressurized, partitions disassembled, and structural integrity reinforced with temporary load-bearing scaffolds. The old fuel pump systems were marked for removal, identified by holographically projected hazard tags.

The Judicator’s previous reactor configuration had been a fairly typical Libertonian generator, but age and lack of maintenance combined with abuse from its criminal masters had driven it to the brink of failure. It would have needed stripped even were it not for the impending overhaul. The new design necessitated gutting the old layout to make space for the power cell and particle accelerator. What was once a multi-room layout now became a single chamber with the particle beam running through the cell at its core, surrounded by plasma jets–a natural progression of the Ionstream’s basic design, but with a catalyst that increased its power dramatically.

Preliminary metrics showed a reduction in drive spin-up time and a hugely increased specific power ratio. The power cell’s output dwarfed the old Libertonian design’s specifications, and performance parameters exceeded engineering expectations even with propellant seeding. The new drive core would completely transform the ship. In the eyes of Leviathan, this performance uplift was categorical. He expected no less. This technology and the remnants he had collected over the years were his to manipulate and control. He was one of the few people left, if not the only one, who sat on the development board for the old cruiser in its heyday—almost two decades ago now.

Despite the complexity of the rotating propulsion arms, they had worked in the ship's favor—in terms of survivability, at least. The compartmentalization of the design had proven to be a boon, as the loss of the primary thruster array hadn't completely immobilized the ship. Systems were strained, but they had worked as intended when the main drive exploded. A long process of clearing debris and cleaning out the cramped interior space ensued, beginning and completing following the duration of stay at Secundus. With the way cleared, engineers had already gotten to work on modernizing and revitalizing the secondary drives the moment the Halcyon had settled into its bay. Draugrs made round trips between Wichter and the Freeport—collecting the needed resources as they were left at Bay 7 over the weeks, and amassing minerals and materials taken from enemy convoys.

Leviathan watched from the central diagnostics chamber as the updated propulsion logic ran its simulative calculations across the display terminal. Variables struck the data readouts as strings of numbers raced across the screen. The chief engineer walked over as Leviathan waved him in, pointing to the second and third stage reports. The chief—a mousy little fellow in a sealed hazmat suit—nodded frantically and hurried off to the other side of the engineering platform. "Drive redundancies are intact. Six injectors for every thruster, firing in mirrored configuration and cross-supported by isolated conduits. Disable one pair, and two more are ready to take over." The chief's voice was garbled through his helmet's radio as he reviewed the tertiary monitor.

"Efficient," the Navarch mumbled to himself. Days and nights spent, overseeing round-the-clock work from rotating shifts of personnel. While he had primarily brought his own, the added bonus of staff from the ALG had expedited the stripping down of the propulsion wreckage—Leviathan's personal staff handled and worked around the more sensitive materials. The staff at Wichter, and more importantly the drydock it provided, were paramount in the restoration efforts. Field maintenance could only take them only so far. The speed at which they were able to operate here far outpaced the progress they made while stranded at Secundus.

As the days at Wichter stretched, the team steadily gutted away the remaining elements of the Halcyon's old fusion drive and turned over components to their hosts. Things were not progressing as swiftly as Leviathan had hoped, but setbacks were to be expected. The groundwork for the propulsion revamping was completed by the seventh day of work, leaving a skeletal Ionstream frame installed in place of the old cruiser's main drive. The new fuel regulators needed to be adapted to the vessel's rotating arms, and power management was entirely offline. Cables, hoses, and other recent additions lined the decks in every possible direction, all leading toward the various drives managed on the vessel's rebuilt engineering deck. It was messy, and engineers only took the time to organize these hoses and cables when they became too severe a tripping hazard to avoid.

Further inside the engineering deck of the old warbird, Technocrat engineers had isolated the reactor room and kept operations there relatively quiet. The faint, eerie glow of blue and purple lights occasionally seeped out from the blast door's magnetic clamps as staff came and went. In comparison to the propulsion team, these power specialists wore differently colored hazmat suits, and travelled with security personnel each time they left their stations. Their work on the reactor had wrapped up weeks earlier, thanks to the assistance levied by the Pytheas and its mobile workshops. While not yet linked to the rest of the vessel, the modified power cell housed within was active, and staff had spent the weeks inside setting up the new power feed. However, hybridization wasn't without risks, and Leviathan had issued precautionary isolation measures.

Early power-cycle tests caused disruptive resonance in the initial spool-up phase. The reactor’s staff registered anomalies in the artificial gravity field for the first twelve seconds of activation, leaving small areas of the reactor chamber and engineering station in microgravity. Several personnel reported minor cognitive dissonance, headaches and spatial imbalance—reports that were in line with previous hybrid power cell reactors. "Likely as a byproduct of some leftover neural interface in the cell," Leviathan theorized as he reviewed the staff reports. "Where do we sit now, with the overall status?" he asked, turning his gaze to the chief engineer.

"The drive is going through phase testing while team two connects the power feeds," the mousy chief answered, direct in how he addressed his superior. "In a few more days, we can shut off the auxiliary reactors and transfer load to the main reactor. Test readouts are showing promising output, sir." The chief cycled the screens on his datapad.

. . Engine Reconstruction Update I >:: This readout details the current progress made on the reconstruction efforts of the Judicator's propulsion superstructure.

. . Engine Reconstruction Update II >::This readout details the current progress made on the reconstruction efforts of the Judicator's propulsion superstructure.

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The Navarch sighed, his broad shoulders slumping slightly from the motion as his masked face shook slowly. "We're behind schedule."

"Sir, with all due respect, I'd say we're right on time," the chief replied. "Rushing installation here would go against every safety procedure we have in place."

The chief was right, and Leviathan knew this, even if his impatience got the better of him from time to time. The two Technocrats nodded to one another and resumed watching the monitors as the reactor completed its latest round of tests. They offloaded the recorded data from the terminals onto single-purpose datapads in a read-only format for the ALG, as part of their collaborative efforts, which Leviathan would pass on to Giraud when they had a moment to meet.

The Navarch owed Giraud a tour, anyway. Time hadn’t been on their side during this endeavor, and the few windows of opportunity that had presented themselves to collaborate in person fell between sleep shifts.

By April’s end, the new drive was operational. The ship’s engines crackled to life as its new propulsion system took its first breath. The classic orange hue of the Commonwealth’s fusion engines had been replaced by the cool glow and steady hum of an Ionstream. The reactor had been completely replaced, and was performing precisely as Leviathan had anticipated.

Their prolonged stay in the Sigmas was coming to a close. The Technocrats were packing up what leftovers were too dangerous to donate to the locals at Wichter, securing the more hazardous Azurite samples on board the Halcyon. The scaffolding was slowly peeled away as the hours of its final day at Wichter ticked down, and fuel lines were set up to refuel the refurbished vessel and get it ready for its first shakedown run since being restored to working order. The bulk of the work was done, and all that remained was updating the identifier cards to match the Technocracy.

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