Independence Day

[ADM. Reshmar]

Ruisto System two weeks after the battle of Balmorra...

The old cruiser dropped out of hyperspace venerable and proud as it returned home tot he yard where it had been built so many centuries ago. The last of its class, the Tempestuous had survived so many wars. It had survived drydock for nearly four hundred years, Recommissioning and again more war. Now her final days would pass here in the very slip she had been built. The last of the Grey Damsel-class would be scrapped for parts. Salvaged for anything useful left in her ageing hull. Serviced and deconstructed by technicians who would study every part of her for any lost tech the Mon Calamari may find.

Reshmar accompanied the ship personally. Her service and the honor of laying her to rest demanded his presence. Here at the dry dock facility, many such ships lay waiting for their day to be released from service and their name and registry recycled for a new vessel. Many such vessels sit quietly like ghosts watching time pass them by. Some are recalled to service, some lay wasting and falling apart from the centuries of neglect and time. MCS could not afford to keep every ship in the reserve drydock in shape. They simply had too many old ships for every single one to be kept in usable condition. Many of the ship sin the reserve had been recalled to build cheap starships for the governments of the galaxy. Some studied, some scrapped like Tempestuous. But to Reshmar they all deserved respect.

"We're docking now Admiral" said one of Reshmar's aids. Reshmar nodded and looked out the window at the lines of ships sitting still and dormant. thousands upon thousands of them awaiting their day to be free.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

"Very well commander" said Reshmar to the man standing next to him. The human commander had server Reshmarbefore on other ships. He was a solid officer and Reshmar knew this was his last trip also. He was to retire after this ship was decommissioned. Reshmar thought the man too young to retire but he assumed the man was just moving on to other things. He hated to see such a competent commander leave but he respected the man's wishes and hoped he found what he was looking for after he left.

The ship locked itself into place in a slip on the main orbital yard and powered down her engines for the last time. A hushed somber feeling washed over the command deck as the crew silently considered the end of their assignments and life aboard the old ship. The Officer of the deck blew a whistle and the end of watch chime sounded as the men and women of the crew saluted the ship then were set to at east by Reshmar. Slowly the crew shuffled out of the bridge and the ship moving on to their new assignments and lives out among the other commissioned ships docked over the world.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

Reshmar stood looking out at the ships in the distance. Line after line of starship sat awaiting their day. So many good ships were there in the distance. So many solid useful ships that had just been sent there because of their age. Needing updating and recommissioning, many of the ship would one day see service again. Planetary defense forces and corporate escort fleets would buy them or one of the many smaller governments of the galaxy would come looking for a ship. Most of the dry docked ships would be used again, some would never see service. Reshmar looked out at the ships and at the one ship in the distance he knew would never be recommissioned.

It was not because the ship was in bad shape. It had been kept in good repair and readiness if the day came when it was needed. It was the massive size of the vessel which made it's stay in the dry dock permanent. The upkeep and crew requirements for a ship that size turned even the largest of governments away. Reshmar knew some of the more powerful organizations may have a need for a battlecruiser but not one that was almost a thousand years old.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

Independence had been one of three Mon Calamari Command Cruiser used during the first galactic cival war. Home One, the second of the Independence-class, served as the flag ship of Admiral Ackbar at Hoth when the second of the world destroying Death Stars was destroyed. Independence herself served as the backup flagship on occasion but was normally assigned to defending the world of Mon Cala.

Her sister Dauntless, was delegated to more offensive missions and served as the flagship of many attack fleets during the ancient war.All three had survived the cataclysmic war, all being used for decades afterwards then as newer smaller ships became more common and the few larger ships used became even larger than the Independence-class it fell out of favor with the galactic alliance of the time and all were sent to Mon Cala for use as its defense force. Even then they were large and costly to operate and modernizing them at the time was not cost effective. The wars of the galaxy were fought with smaller ships while the massive dreadnaught classes were held as command ships away from fighting. Eventually, all three were decommissioned and stored in the dry dock fleet yards.

Home one had been recommissioned nearly four hundred years ago and records of her had been lost over time. Dauntless had been damaged when a ship moored near her exploded and had been found too structurally damaged to maintain. Her hulk still lay out in the yards rotting away stripped of any useful component and systems to use in other ships. only Independence was left, kept in serviceable repair for the day she may be needed once again.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

"Commander, Schedule a visit to the INdependance later today. I would like to assess it for possible recommissioning." said Reshmar as he walked out of the command deck and into the long corridor to the lift which went down tot he hanger. He thought about the old ship he was not leaving for the last time. Soon it would be scrapped and used for new components and in making various newer technologies the engineers at MCS had developed.

The lift down to the hanger was a short ride and Reshmar spent it considering the future of the massive command ship. It was old and by modern standards very poorly armed. It had started its life as a deep space exploration vessel as had the other two of her sisters. When the Mon Calamari were pulled into the galactic civil war they modified many of their civil vessels and the INdependance was one of the first. Like her sisters, she was modified to be a command carrier and act as the flagships of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. Each had at least once served as the flagship under the command of the hero Admiral Ackbar, and each had served with distinction and proven Mon Cala engineering to be formidable and second to none in the galaxy.

Now the once great ship sat silent, waiting for the next chapter of her life. It was not that Reshmar would explore the options for the old girl and give her purpose once again.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

The small shuttle moved into the hanger of the massive command cruiser and sat down on her deck. The minimal lighting lit only the center of the hanger and the command room where more power could be initiated aboard the ship. It had been nearly two hundred years since Independence had been boarded by someone other than the yard crew for upkeep. Now the sleeping giant would be awoken once again. Her reactor primed and her systems inspected.

The ramp opened and lowered down to the hanger deck. It hit with a thud and light from the inside of the shuttle helped to light the path out of the shuttle and towards the lower hangar control room. From here they could power up the lifts and move up to the engineering deck and the command room where the power to the entire ship. Then once they had power, they could begin the chore of resetting all of the systems and testing the ship to see how she had fared over the centuries of dormancy.

"Commander, let,s go to command first and see what systems are still operational on standby. Then we will ignite the reactor cores and get the girl warm again" said Reshmar as he and the aid walked into the lower hanger control room.The man nodded and said "Yes Sir."

The two power up the lift and stood awaiting it to cycle and the doors to close. Reshmar looked out into the darkened hanger thinking about video and photos he had studied of the old ship in its hay day. Once her and her sisters had been the most powerful ships to face the Darkness. Once they had been the giants which stood against the New Order and the Imperial might it commanded. Reshmar hoped she would again see those days, once again fight the darkness.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

Reshmar walked out onto the command deck of the massive vessel and looked out the forward viewport at the old girl stretched out over two kilometers before him. The raised pods of the old ships were vessels in their own right. both the fore and aft command pods were escape vehicles for the command crew in case the vessel was damaged to a point it needed to be abandon or scuttled. Neither had ever been used nor had the escape yachts been used on the other two vessels of the class as far as Reshmar knew. He considered how making every new line of vessel come equipped with the pods would increase command survivability. It was a thought and one which Reshmar would consider, for now he just needed to see the old ship would power up and what shape she was in.

"Commander, I believe that console there houses the primary power control access. See if you can turn the lights on." said Reshmar pointing at a station to the left of the command chair. Reshmar walked to a second station and powered it up. the systems icon came online and the main processor switched from standby to on. A second later the computer of the ship awoke and the boot process began. The lights came on in the command deck after the commander seemed to have found the access. he let out a low whoop in celebration as the massive INdependance awoke for the first time in centuries.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

slowly the ship awoke as system after system came online. First the primary power came on initializing the reactor to be primed, then life support came online fully followed by operations and control systems. The old ship had slumbered for so long it was inevitable that some issues would be had. For now, nothing seemed to be a problem but until a full crew could board her and run diagnostics, Reshmar could not be certain.

"Commander, contact the yard foreman and have him dispatch a full maintenance crew to Independence. I am bringing the hanger power online now" said Reshmar as he found the relay junction control for the power on the hangers deck and began it booting. soon full power would be on through out the massive vessel and her decks would once again be filled with crew.

"Aye sir," said the commander as he broight up the communications systems and walked to the COMM station He opened a channel and passed along the Admirals orders. "Sir, they will be aboard within the hour" replied the commander as he shut down the COMM channel and returned tot he power access station.

Reshmar watched the stations display as system after system ran a bit check and recheck and powered up. The team at the mothball yard had taken good care of the old girl Reshmar thought to himself. She would not be what she once was, modern starships were much more robust and powerful than the old ships of her day. But she had uses and the first would be to return to Mon Cala to be studied for a new class of vessel honoring her and her sister ships. A new command cruiser for the customers of Mon Calamari Shipyards.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

Reshmar and the commander walked down the corridor to the engineering deck nearly an hour later. The yards crew had come aboard and begun the task of testing all of the vessels systems and make any repairs needed. Now as the ship, hungry for power, feed on the reserve it was time to ignite the hyper-matter reactor and get full power to the massive vessel.

The two walked into the engineering control center and turned on the lighting in the room. Before them through a radiation proof clear view window were the four hypermatter reactors the ship used to power her many systems and weapons. Each as powerful as on of the old venator star destroyer's reactor and each powerful enough to run the ship alone. The redundant nature of the vessel and the massive shielding she was equipped with were the reasoning behind her having four reactors.

Reshmar walked to the control station and keyed in his access code to open up the security lock out and the control station came alive. He typed in the Independence's primary power authorization code; every Mon Calamari shipyards vessel had its own code which was used as a last tier of security from theft and sabotage. once the code was accepted the power ignition display came online and Reshmar ignited the primary coils which would begin the acceleration of matter through them. out in the distance, the four massive anti-matter demolishers came alive, the hum of their accelerator coils growing louder and matter and anti-matter began to spin through them. As the displays began to register the effects of the magnetized coils the power in them built up and then a moment later the matter and anti-matter were released igniting a small supernova in each. The reactors of Independence were once again alive and feeding the ship life anew.

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

the following weeks saw the Independence restored to her former glory and made operational once again. It had been nearly three months since Reshmar has powered up the old ship and now he made the return for her departure from Ruisto and would accompany her to Mon Cala where she would studied and analyzed for the New Independence line of command ships.

Reshmar walked onto the command deck and thought about how different it was now with a crew aboard. The dark deck he had come to so many weeks ago seemed like an impossibility now as he stepped up tot he command chair and the fully operation cruiser. her halls now filled with the sound of life where before they were silent and empty. He reactors primed and ready to take her to the stars once again. The men and women now acting as her crew walking those same halls and giving her life and a purpose. She had been silent and still for hundreds of years and now once again she was alive.

"Captain Morita, relases the docking clamp." said Reshmar as he sat in the command chair. The Mon Calamari officer nodded and signaled someone to do as ordered. The hull of the massive ship shuttered as the clamps which had been holding her stationary in the slip released her massive hull. The clamps recoiled into their resting position and Independence was free of the shackles which had held her in place against the gravity of Ruisto for so long.

"Captain, sound general quarters and engage the fusal igniters." ordered Reshmar. A sound emitted from the ship wide comm letting the crew know to prepare for departure. through out the ship men and women manned stations and restrained themselves for any possible mishap that could occur when the massive vessel got under way.

"Igniters primed sir, Ionic regulators are at one hundred percent and steady. She is ready to fire up the engines sir" said the Mon Calamari captain. Reshmar took a moment to look out again at the world of Ruisto and the mothball yards around it. He hoped Independence would once agian come to rest here once her service to the Mon Calamari was done. Her legacy, a new line of command cruiser, would carry her name once again into the stars and represent the power and pride of the Mon Calamari. As the engined came online the massive vessel moved out of her moorings and cleared the slip she had called home for so many centuries. once again she would sped through hyperspace and ply the void of stars she had so long ago called home.

"Captain, set a course for Mon Cala and take us to hyperspace."