>>5835960Not all Qyngurs are bloodthirsty insects. At least not this one. No, your quarry is worse, you can tell. Calculated. Efficient. Audaciously lucky. Even glory hounds would baulk at the impressive barrage of 12" slugs carefully calculated to force chasing vessels off course. And yet this one frigate is still doggedly pursuing your vessels, taking every little gain he can get. Perhaps you should avoid these trade lanes in the future. But before future comes you must get out of this system first.
The Armitage seems to be faring much better in its retreat. Its lighter but more numerous railguns can cover a much wider arc, and the nimble engines can even occasionally reverse course for a feint on any overconfident pursuer. So far two of their numbers have run afoul of this trap, and the rest are now warily opening their distance. As you contemplate a similar surprise, over the intercom the beginning of an excited yell was abruptly cut off. Not again. Elysium re-opens the channel, "U-hh, I'm sorry Commander. It won't happen again." It better not. "My report... Oh yes, we scored a direct hit on Nightingale-1. It is now breaking off." Finally.
You were allowed to retreat the rest of the way unmolested. Before you power up the jump drive, a final message arrives from the Armitage, "Good work Commander Thornton. Rendezvous with me in the L-5 point of Beta Coriolanus 8 days from now for transfer of package. Over and out." Command better pays well for this nav-computer, since you are actually worse off from this whole encounter. The meager loot from the Banshee is definitely not enough to cover just the ammo expended alone, much less all the damage you have taken. The only bright side is that the men no longer salute you out of mere formality. Some of the younger lads even look up to you with a mixture of awe and dread.
Silas privately offers you some offensively bland beer soon after disengagement. "Shouldn't have kept my private cellar so close to the engines. Thought the hot dry air would be good for the wine." Johnson laughs, "Consider it your little libation to the void. A spacer would do well to not forget what a drunken whore she can be." That's the first time you have heard him curse. Seems like not just the rank and file trust you more.
Once the victory haze passed, you now wake up to a mountain of clean-up. The Vanilla has taken considerable damage, and 8 days would only be enough for some quick patches.
<span class="mu-s">You can choose more than 1 option, but remember that prioritising everything is the same as prioritising nothing.</span>
>Get the engine back up to almost full working order>Replace the broken autoloader in Turret-1>Improvise additional Point Defense weaponry>Fabricate some extra mines and missiles, just in case>Write-in 