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‘Ok everybody, ten minutes to fly-past, report please on the Noctilucent, now please Genevieve!’ the captain’s usually cool and calm nature was beginning to be overwhelmed, though it was hard to tell if he was distressed or thrilled by the prospect of action.

            ‘She’s maintaining her speed of seven and a half kilo-c, that’s pretty much her top speed captain, we can get up to 5 kilo-c, François might be able to promise us a bit more if it comes to it’

            ‘Good, Mosa what are the other federation ships doing?’

            ‘None are closer than us, though two are at an immediately useful distance, they will arrive here if need be in twenty-two minutes, they are both Merlin classed, but they can intercept the plotted trajectory of the Noctilucent at points after its flyby of us. In the long term we have all the military support we need.’

            ‘Right, on our own for the moment, our drones all go?’

            ‘Yes sir’ François replied, he had just stepped into the bridge, he called up displays on his rarely used station.

            ‘Time now nine minutes, speed same’ Genevieve called out

            The tension in the bridge was immense, this particular moment was probably going to be the most important moment in the Edge-rider’s history. Every system in the ship was positively ringing under the strain, engines were ready to sprint to top speed, its generated spatial curvature balanced precariously like a failing gyroscope.

            ‘She’s grav-ing sir! She’s Grav-ing!’ François shouted.

            The smooth propulsion field of Noctilucent started to ripple, these ripples were a form of communication, though a rarely used channel.

            ‘Communications?’

            ‘Yes, we’re getting a load now, basic transmission, but federation coded!’

            ‘Put it through straight away!’

            ‘Time now five minutes!’ Genevieve shouted out, the atmosphere of the bridge had gone beyond calm, quiet, conversation.

            ‘Getting text only, but doing so, she’s saying that she has no comms systems operating, and she is flying nearly blind, sir we are talking to a critically injured craft.’ François said, his hands flying manically over the console, as he tried to balance the task of communications officer while preparing his own craft for high systems stress.

            ‘Can we communicate at all?’

            ‘No, though I am trying on all channels’ François sounding more and more manic ‘she says she is going to have to slip into cloaking, she is carrying vital information, and without being able to communicate it is the safest way to get into the federation space proper, without being shot down, which in her crippled state she may not survive. What do we do sir?’

            ‘Is she aware of us at all?’

            ‘No, we would have had acknowledgement, as far as she knows she is broadcasting to empty space.’

            ‘Two minutes sir!’

            ‘Do we still have the use of the drones François?’

            ‘Yes sir, but she is friendly, we can’t fire on her!’

            ‘We might have to, and I don’t doubt that she isn’t friendly, but she needs support, and right now she does not realize it is available, Mosa can we bring her down without further damage?’

            ‘I am pretty sure of it captain, though if she comes down roughly she might not be able to fly again, but guarantee that no other damage can be inflicted’

            ‘Right target the drones, prepare to bring her down!’

            ‘She’s slipped into cloak sir! But she is still grav-ing’ François called out.

            ‘One minute!’ Genevieve shouted out directly after

            ‘We still have lock Mosa?’

            ‘Yes’

            ‘Bring her down when in range of the drones, prepare to run to assistance.’