Wing Commander IV: Pasqual System

Tolwyn: Your presence for the christening of the Vesuvius will be a great inspiration to her crew, Senator.

Paladin: Ah, she’s a bonney ship. Tell me, is there news? Have there been more skirmishes in the Border Worlds?

Tolwyn: News of the worst kind, I’m afraid: betrayal. It appears that our great hero of the Kilrathi War has defected to the Union of Border Worlds.

Paladin: Blair? Defected? I find that hard to believe. He was always a hot head, but… what on earth induced him to– what the devil is going on out there?

Tolwyn: The intelligence I’ve collected is erratic, unreliable. “Things fall apart. The centre cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world. The best lack all conviction…”

Paladin: “Whilst the worst possess a passionate intensity” – Yeats. And you have no idea who is behind all this?

Tolwyn: Well, one thing is clear, Senator: the Border Worlds militia grows increasingly aggressive. A grave mistake.

Paladin: I never knew Blair to be rash.

Tolwyn: Betrayal is always a mystery.

Paladin: Well, we are running out of time, Admiral. A declaration of war against the Border Worlds has been laid before the Assembly. The vote will be in seven days. The outcome of that vote will largely be determined by your report.

Tolwyn: Well, let’s hope that war is not our only option.

Maverick: Is it what you wanted?

Sosa: Well, I didn’t have time to cross-scan it while downloading.

Eisen: A lot of the pieces have fallen into place, but nothing that links Confed to any specific incident.

Sosa: I mean, there is some unusual movement in Confed resources and coded transmissions, but they’re going to take me a little time to decrypt.

Eisen: Then there’s the normal Confed traffic.

Maverick: So it could look like business as usual.

Eisen: Well, we don’t have time to second guess. If the Assembly votes for war…

Maverick: …then a lot more pilots like Vagabond are gonna die.

Maverick: They learn how to make a decent cup of coffee on this tub yet?

Maniac: It was just a few hands. The aces just kept coming my way. You know, he was dealing most of the time.

Maverick: Maniac… you’re an idiot.

Maniac: I know. Maybe if I hadn’t gloated so much. You know, shoved it in his face like that.

Maverick: That’s not what I’m saying. You think that Vagabond lost the will to live because you beat him at cards?

Maniac: I never beat him before.

Maverick: Look, uh, I am sorry.

Eisen: No. You did what you had to do, Colonel.

Maverick: Yeah, well, I tried to blow the two of you out of the sky. Vagabond too.

Maniac: We lost Vagabond.

Eisen: Well, that’s behind us. You’re here now.

Maniac: Yeah, I’ll get over it. Maybe.

Eisen: I suppose some sort of explanation is in order.

Maverick: No, sir. I have turned my back on Confed.

Eisen: My hope is… we can stop a full-blown war. You’re not the only one that was bothered by the mission assignments and sketchy info that Confed was feeding us.

Maverick: So you started to play detective.

Eisen: Before defecting and since. I’ve been collecting mission data, coded transmissions, and tracking fleet movements.

Maverick: But you don’t know what it all means?

Eisen: I’m still missing some very important pieces of the puzzle, but I do know that these clashes between the Border Worlds and Confed are being provoked by certain elements within Confed. Exactly who they are remains unclear.

Maverick: But, why didn’t you tell me before you defected?

Eisen: Well, I’m sorry, Colonel, perhaps I should have. But the only thing I was certain of was that… my defection had a very good chance of being a suicide run. I couldn’t ask you to take that position. You had to decide for yourself.

Maverick: I’ve made my decision, sir. And I have no regrets.

Eisen: I’m glad. Because if Confed gets the Assembly’s approval of warfare on the Border Worlds…

Maverick: …it’ll be bloodier than the war with the Kilrathi.

Pliers: That’ll work fine. Well, if it ain’t the new Confed fly-boy. Fightin’ on our side, huh?

Maverick: Yeah. The name’s Blair.

Pliers: Well, hooo-ray. Suppose that means we’re gonna win this thing after all, right? <laughs> Welcome aboard, kid. Chief Tech Robert Sykes, but you can call me Pliers.

Maverick: Thanks, Pliers.

Pliers: Haven’t seen one of those birds in quite a while. Not up close anyway.

Maverick: Yeah, bet you worked on plenty of ’em.

Pliers: Oh, yeah. Used to pull Kilrathi whiskers out of the intakes fer kids like you. Yeah, I could do a few things with that baby. Hey, don’t let these grey hairs fool you, kid. I can still perform miracles with nothing more than a socket-driver and a pile of junk parts.

Maverick: Looks to me that you kinda have to.

Pliers: Yeah. Plus, I can tweak those birds way beyond the specs those egg-head engineers come up with.

Maverick: Well, great! I can use all the help I can get out there.

Pliers: Just wait ’n’ see what I can do, kid. Trust me.

Maverick: I don’t know… specs are specs, Chief. Those engineers must have their reasons.

Pliers: Hey, there’s gonna come a time when yer gonna need that extra juice of mine, kid. Trust me.

Sosa: Pull up a chair.

Maverick: I think I already have, Lieutenant Sosa.

Sosa: Oh, sorry, sir.

Maverick: Whatcha got there?

Sosa: Ah, well, look at me, I’m… I’m stuck in the Stone Age. So much of our equipment is down I’ve got to resort to prehistoric tools in order to decrypt this info Captain Eisen brought with him.

Maverick: So, you have a talent for decoding.

Sosa: Well, um… yeah, sir, I mean, I– I don’t mean to brag, but I’m definitely one of the best.

Maverick: Well… anything there?

Sosa: Plenty. It’s just gonna take me some time. One thing’s for sure: Confed definitely has a lot of skeletons in its lockers.

Maniac: Bridge used to be up there. Berths were further up.

Maverick: <sigh> Poor bastards.

Maniac: Never knew what hit ’em. At least when I go, I’ll be in a cockpit.

Maverick: Come on, cheer up! I still say it’ll be friendly fire that gets you.

Maniac: I don’t know. The side we picked to be on… has a long, hard road ahead.

Maverick: Will you look on the bright side? At least now you won’t have to deal with that Confed promotion that finally came through.

Maniac: My promotion came? My promotion! <claps> Confed – that’s not… right.

Eisen: We’ve got an SOS, Colonel, from a convoy broadcasting to any Border Worlds craft in the vicinity. Now, I don’t know what you’re going to run into when you get out there, so stay alert! Now, the convoy appears to be moving around, probably trying to get away from whatever is causing it grief. But they were last sighted here, at these co-ordinates. Bring that convoy back to our location, Colonel.

Maverick: Yes, sir.

Maniac: Guess these are the bogies we’ve been looking for.

Melek: We are in your hands, Colonel.

Sosa: Nice work, Colonel. Captain Eisen has already spoken to the Kilrathi Shintahr. He – or it – plans on coming aboard. You have clearance. (Success)

Eisen: Ah, Colonel! I suspect there’s little need for an introduction.

Melek: Greetings, Colonel. Never did I expect our paths to cross again.

Maverick: Small universe.

Melek: My only regret is the circumstances that now bring us together. Since my personal surrender to you, Colonel, we Kilrathi have tried to co-exist peacefully with Terrans.

Eisen: Melek and his convoy are seeking safe passage back to their new homeland in Pasqual.

Melek: We have been harassed by unknown forces for the past 48 hours.

Sosa: He brought us a copy of his ship’s DR log, sir.

Maverick: That must be the weapon that was used back in Hellespont.

Eisen: My thoughts exactly, now…

Maverick: I’ve seen that before.

Hawk: So have I. When I first signed on with Confed, there was a rookie pilot on my ship. He’s the only man I ever met who could do that trick.

Eisen: What was his name?

Hawk: He was transferred out really quickly. Disappeared into Confed Intelligence Ops. I can’t remember his name, but he flew under the callsign of Seether.

Sosa: I could do a look-up in Confed registry.

Eisen: That wouldn’t do any good, Lieutenant: when Confed Intel wants you blanked, you’re gone for ever.

Hawk: I heard some weird talk about a… ‘GE’ program, but never found out what it was.

Maverick: I’d just love to get that bastard in my sights.

Hawk: No offence, Colonel, but you wouldn’t want to tangle with that guy. If he was that good then–

Eisen: Melek, I’d like to keep this recording. Uh, this, combined with the information that we’ve collected and decoded, will have to be enough. We’ve got less than a week before the Assembly votes. Colonel, I want you to meet me back here in ten. It’s time we made our move.

Panther: I never would’ve believed it: all those years… all those missions. I devoted my life to knocking Kilrathi out of the sky.

Maverick: And now you’re helping them get home.

Catscratch: Don’t take this the wrong way, sir. When I was growing up, I dreamt of nothing but fighting the Kilrathi – now? Do you think Captain Eisen’s making the right call here, sir?

Maverick: Catscratch, what separates a true warrior from a killer is that the warrior only fights when provoked. And what makes a warrior Human is that he helps those in need, regardless of who, or what they are.

Maverick: Eisen hasn’t been wrong yet.

Maverick: We’ll be jumping to Pasqual soon. You should be safe there.

Melek: As you know, Colonel, we Kilrathi dismantled all of our warships under the terms of our treaty with the Confederation. Thus, we have no means of defending ourselves.

Maverick: We’ll get you home, Melek.

Melek: But why is a new war waged upon us? My race no longer presents a threat. What happened to the Terran concept of absolution?

Maverick: It’s still alive… in most of us.

Melek: Forgive me, Colonel. I am railing at the man who I should be thanking. I wish I could properly express my gratitude for your assistance here.

Maverick: Consider it pay-back.

Melek: What is this word… “pay-back”?

Maverick: Well, you may recall that a few years ago you had the chance to kill me, and didn’t.

Melek: It’s a decision I do not regret.

Maverick: Oh, there is one thing that you might be able to help us out on. Those two ships that attacked us? They came at us cloaked.

Melek: Yes…?

Maverick: Well, you Kilrathi always had us beat when it came to cloaking. So if there is anyone with experience in your convoy, I’ve got a chief mechanic that would love some advice.

Melek: You’re suggesting high-tech pay-back? Consider it done.

Maverick: Thanks, Melek.

Maverick: Well, I see you finally took my advice about finding a place to get some rest.

Hawk: Yeah, it’s the Ritz. <sighs> Well, I’m not gonna put myself out too much on this Kilrathi foreign aid, that’s for sure. What a waste. I fought those animals in the war. We’d all be a lot better off if their whole kind was obliterated.

Maverick: Look. Right now the Kilrathi have the same enemy we do. Every time we win a fight for them, it’s another battle won for the Border Worlds.

Hawk: Well, you just tell me where to shoot and I’ll pull the trigger.

Maverick: Thanks, Hawk. I knew I could count on you.

Hawk: Yeah. <sighs>

Maverick: You know, I’d expect that kind of attitude from someone like Catscratch, but from a pilot with your experience? Haven’t you seen enough suffering?

Hawk: Yeah. But not enough of the right kind.

Maniac: Here, just put me on the next mission, just put up Maniac.

Helmsman: Stop it! The Captain’s here.

Eisen: Major.

Sosa: Sir.

Eisen: Thank you. This is it, Colonel: I’m shipping out.

Maverick: Personal delivery?

Eisen: I think it’s best that way. I haven’t been in this man’s navy all these years without developing a few contacts in high places. When the boys at Confed see what I’ve got, they’ll realise they have a few rats in the house.

Maniac: Can you trust them?

Eisen: What choice do I have? They have influence at the Assembly and they’re the only way of us stopping the declaration of war.

Sosa: Captain? Trans comm coming in, sir.

Eisen: Ah, Vice-Admiral Wilford, you know who this is. He’ll be the Intrepid’s acting captain in my absence.

Wilford: How do you do, Colonel? I must say, I’ve always wanted to meet you. Colonel? You all right?

Maverick: Oh yes, I’m fine, Admiral… Wilford? Uh, weren’t you with Confed, sir?

Wilford: Forty years of service. Came out to the Border Worlds to retire, but they convinced me to come back to work.

Maverick: Oh, I know the feeling, sir.

Eisen: You’ll be consulting with Admiral Wilford on mission assignments. He’s constantly on the move. We’re lucky to have him in our system. By the way Admiral, what happened to that squad of marines you were sending us?

Wilford: Sidetracked. Operation in the Lennox System. You know how thin our resources are. They’ll be there within the hour. Looking forward to working with you, Colonel.

Eisen: The Admiral’s not much on goodbyes. Time I said mine.

Maniac: I’ll talk to you later. Who did that?

Maverick: Good luck, sir.

Eisen: Same to you, Colonel. Same to you all.

Maverick: Everybody here? Let’s get to it! I want to start off by saying I’m gonna do my best at running things in Captain Eisen’s absence.

Maverick: If any of you ever have any questions or suggestions, I want you to come to me. We’ll talk. Don’t whinge and moan behind my back. Just remember, I have been given the job of making final decisions. Is that understood?

Catscratch: Yes, sir.

Panther: Certainly… Colonel.

Maverick: All right, let’s get to it then. We’ve got to move fast on this one, people. We’ve just entered the Pasqual System, and Melek’s sources report that one of the Kilrathi planets, Pasqual X, is under attack.

Melek: By fighters with Border Worlds insignia.

Maverick: Of course, we all know they are not being flown by Border Worlds pilots. Now my guess is, like everything else we’ve run into, it’s the renegade faction of Confed behind this. Now, the hot spots are in these three nav points. I’ll be taking two wingmen up. We’re going to clear ’em out. Now remember, they’re in ships that look just like ours, so be alert. We don’t want any friendly fire casualties here. Well, that’s it then. Dismissed.

Sosa: Hey! Word is travelling fast, I hear the Kilrathi down on Pasqual X have a new Terran hero, sir. Excellent! You are clear to land. (Success)

Sosa: Oh? You got me veggies! Thanks!

Catscratch: You’re welcome.

Sosa: Colonel!

Catscratch: Oh, Colonel! Have a seat.

Maverick: No, no thanks.

Catscratch: I’ve been thinking about what you said, sir.

Maverick: Well, I’m surprised you found the time.

Catscratch: No, honest. You were right. Helping the Kilrathi is the right thing to do… sir.

Sosa: I– I– I helped straighten him out, too.

Maverick: I’m sure you did.

Sosa: Oh, by the way, Colonel, have you checked out our new house-guests down in the hold?

Maverick: Suppose I’d better check into that. Carry on. (Dekker not yet introduced)

Dekker: You the boss?

Maverick: Yeah. Something like that.

Dekker: Lieutenant Colonel Dekker and company reporting for duty.

Maverick: I’m Colonel Blair.

Dekker: Oh, the cat-killer.

Maverick: Look, you people were supposed to be here hours ago.

Dekker: Well, things got a little hairy in Lennox. Speaking of which, I hear you’re trying to bring home a few cats.

Maverick: You got a problem with that?

Dekker: You’re looking at a veteran of Repleetah, and a man who escaped a Kilrathi POW camp. They took a lot of years out of my life. But that war’s over, ain’t it?

Maverick: Yeah, and it looks like we got another on our hands.

Dekker: Well, as ordered: experts at hand-to-hand combat. They don’t look like much, but they get the job done. Come on, on your feet, let’s go! Get up! Come on! Ready to go to work.

Maverick: Good. Get them prepped for a mission: we’re gonna see some action.

Dekker: All right. Let’s go!

Maverick: We’re approaching Melek’s home which is a Kilrathi starbase.

Panther: What’s their status?

Sosa: My attempts at raising the station have been met with complete silence. No response on any channel, sir.

Maverick: In other words, we don’t know who or what’s down there. Now, our marine contingent has finally arrived, so here’s what we’re going to do. I’m gonna take two wingmen up, sweep the area for hostiles. The starbase is located at the second nav point. As soon as we’ve secured the area, we’ll signal for Lieutenant Colonel Dekker and his men to shuttle out and gain control of the base while we provide cover. They’re prepping right now. Now, Melek is going to follow in one of his own shuttles and, once he’s delivered, we’ll escort the Marines back to the Intrepid which will be at a new location near the jump point leading out of the system. Now, keep in mind, there may be more Border Worlds ships out there piloted by the enemy. Everybody got that? Dismissed. This is where we say goodbye, Melek.

Melek: My hrai will be most interested in this new picture I will offer of “The Heart of the Tiger”.

Wingman: Looks quiet here, Colonel. Shall we call in the shuttles?

Maverick: Not just yet.

Wingman: All’s clear, sir. Shall we call in the shuttles?

Maverick: Yep, let’s do it. You got a clear path, Dekker.

Dekker: We’re coming in with the ‘package’, boss.

Wingman: Where did these guys come from?

Dekker: Cat’s back in his lair, boss. We’re headin’ out.

Melek: You have my eternal gratitude, Heart of the Tiger.

Melek: Oh! What’s th… aaaaarrrrrgh! <static>

Dekker: We tried, boss. We’re getting out of here.