Gallic Royal Navy Transmission Center (iRP) (FO)

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ID: Comte Blaise Mersenne
ENREGISTREMENT: GRN-3305-81-C
ORIGINE: Dijon Station
DESTINATION: Sieges Sociaux, Royaux de Marine
CHIFFRAGE: Securite-B

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This is Comte Blaise Mersenne, submitting an action report for the 17th of Octobre, 733 A.G.S.


My report begins after departing from Dijon Station aboard the Aramis. I had responded to an alert from D'Intelligence Navale concerning the detection of a large mass moving through Dauphine; engine emission patterns and sensor modulations tagged it as a vessel that has been within His Majesty's Territory before, but had yet to be identified visually. The Brothers Archambault were already securing Burgundy, allowing the Aramis enough time to transit into Dauphine.

Once in-system the Aramis performed a sweep through the trade lane network, beginning in proximity to the Burgundy jump gate and moving down towards the Lanquedoc jump gate. Initial scans could not confirm the presence of a large vessel; D'Intelligence Navale confirmed that the unknown had exited into Lanquedoc by the time of my arrivale. Though this opportunity slipped by us, it would soon be apparent that it slipped by the Council as well; as we plotted a return course to Burgundy, Tactical picked up two sensor contacts at long range and in proximity to Gap Station. I immediately hailed them and demanded that they halt for questioning. Naturally, they attempted to flee into Voiron. Luckily, the Aramis was in position to intercept them; Helm engaged full cruise impulse to head off the Council contacts, and Tactical deployed one (1) cruise disruptor round. With their engines disabled, we were able to close within 2.5 klicks for a detailed scan: one MJ-2 "Agama" Heavy Fighter and one BJ-6 "Basilisk" Bomber. The Basilisk proceeded to fly into Voiron, but the Agama remained behind. I hailed it and proceeded with questioning. Submitted below is the black box recording of the proceedings:

By 21:27:54 SMT, the Brothers Archambault had joined my position. With the discussion completed, we immediately returned to Burgundy. Naval High Command had issued the mobilization of a Task Force in response to the unknown intruder; however, as fate would have it, the Council had already prepared their own fleet movements as well. His Majesty's Fleet consisted of the Duquesne, under Comte Blanc's command; the Aramis, under my authority; the Brothers Archambault in a Lynx and a Cougar; His Majesty Prince Joseph DeFrance in a Lynx; and mon Duke Josef Moreau in a Cougar. Truly it was magnificent to see His Majesty's Royal Navy flying her standards high.

Task Force Duquesne proceeded towards sector C7, Burgundy star-chart standard, and held position. Comm chatter between the Council Forces and our own fleet increased dramatically until the point of contact when our sensors picked up the first readings of them. I regret to say that I had not kept the Aramis' flight recorder active for the duration of the battle; I am most certain however that the reports of our fellow Knights will follow-up with details. Suffice it to say, the Aramis' held fast to see the Duquesne demolish a Council Cruiser and inflict tremendous damage on a Council Gunboat. The enemy rallied and managed to breach the hull on the Duquesne, though I am happy to report that Comte Blanc and his crew managed to escape to the lifeboats in time. Subsequently, the Council bombers took to the Aramis; hull breaches and multiple losses of atmosphere on the vessel's decks prompted us to escape to the lifeboats as well; as of this writing, the Aramis is currently in drydock at Dijon until repairs have been completed. Despite the loss of the Duquesne and the Aramis, Task Force Duquesne managed a strong victory over the Council Fleet.

Analysis: This section will be divided into two units: one pertaining to the questioning of the Council Agama, and the second pertaining to the fleet engagement itself.

The unknown vessel in Dauphine had been seen before by second-hand reports and sensor readings from D'Intelligence Navale. In all accounts it was identified as having a large mass and a most unique engine pattern; attempts to match the readings with the database returned negatives. The most interesting situation, though, is that the Council was also aware of this unknown. We do not know for certain if this was their first alert of such a vessel, or if they too were seeking visual confirmation in response to previous alerts. Based on the transcript, it would be safe to say that the Council has not yet made contact with it. There are too many variables pertaining to this unknown vessel, especially one so large as the sensor readings indicate yet has consistently been able to elude us. Whatever it may be, I advise that we get to it first before the Council does. Archived readings indicate that the unknown has entered only into Dauphine at furthest; it would behoove us to station a patrol group in Gap Station for emergency deployment to seal the Lanquedoc jump gate and jump hole. This would force the unknown vessel into an encounter should it attempt escape, or into Burgundy and the hands of His Majesty's Royal Navy.

Pertaining to the fleet battle, the Aramis assumed a close-support role for the Duquesne. Our priorities were anti-bomber/anti-fighter and fire support, as per our weapon loadout limits. We had managed to occupy one bomber, causing it to break from its bombing run to evade. Despite this, we could not inflict damage fast enough to eliminate it from the battle. I believe that a more effective intercept role could be performed from behind the cockpit of a fighter. Further tactical analysis of the situation will be detailed by follow-up reports.

To the best of my abilities, I claim the contents to be truthful and accurate.

By my hand and eye,

Comte Blaise Mersenne


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Maybe some day, they'll see a hero is just a man who knows he's free.