Cold Call - [Sibby-verse 1]

5

While Aligned with Cyface, I'm aware of everyone aboard who's connected and likewise. I'm especially aware of the navboard, who're all nervous as expected. The boards with Alignment can transmit general feelings or vibes of the crew and to a greater extent the navboard which is both a distraction and blessing.

I activate the light-cycle sequence to communicate with everyone onboard our intentions of impending push-off that's blue-blue-blue that dictates you got about five to ten real minutes to get locked down and secure. The light-cycle sequence will flash overhead and on the decks, so everyone can see them with one short klaxon burst.

I approve of the route my Second pilot Trippy, a star4 kisser has drawn up to get us to Endeavors. My navboard, although civs, are generally aware these ops we're running aren't entirely on the level. Thus far, they've kept their mouths shut with the commonsense not to ask any questions.

Again, I think about Sauce's warning and sigh.

I pop on the concave viewscreen at the bridge's front to display our region of space. We don't need that to navigate, it's for the bridge crew's benefit. The scene shows Blinded Nova's lights winking on, gins flaring up and moving slowly against that backdrop of distant stars and nebulas. Cyface handles the view for us even better, directly off the ship's scopes, sensors and scanners providing a direct and intimate view.

               "Blinded Nova going slide-run in five, slide in seven, burn imminent." Trippy announces.
               "Firm." I nod and pulse our own gins to start our slow, incremental move behind Blinded Nova as the navboard run the num's through a final double check, making sure all boards are green to go. I hit the all-ship comm, "Slide-run in five, slide in ten, burn imminent, take hold!" and I switch my light-cycle sequence to blue-red-blue. I pulse the gins again to warm them up and for a little bit more speed.

Course in – Trippy
Got it – me

I sound the short attention-getting klaxon burst while hitting all-ship comm, "Take hold!" My light-cycle switches to red-red-red, I start the ignition burn, waking up all the gins on this Observer class ship.

We had to recalc' for the lack of cargo, but we'll be able to move faster.

While waiting the regulated five minutes for everyone or anyone not locked down to take hold and settle – which they should've already done that by now – we watch the Blinded Nova do her slide-run, e-particle bombardment of their selected region of space to open a wormhole to see the sight that never gets old – a ship entering a thing of wonder, a wormhole, to disappear from this region of space in a moment of brilliance! Remarkable. They don't call what we do starkissing for nothing!

All clear on longrange with Blinded Nova's transition – Trippy
Good. Let's rock! – me
Navboard agrees
The faster the better – Carl
Sure be nice to know what's up on shift-change – Leeps
Yup – Stick
And y'all took this op clips-blind too – I remind
If we're running head first into trouble we've a right to know – Trippy
Exactly – Leeps, Carl
Look, I get it but clips limited and can't disclose – me
Navboard disappointment

Switch my light-cycle sequence to red-red-blue for slide in ten minutes and warm up the Core and cycle it. It turned on with the burn ignition and with my cycling it, The Capitalist acquires fine tremors throughout her bulkheads from the jumpcore's tremendous power stores on this ship's belly – it's going to warp space to entice open a wormhole for us with ease so we can arrive at Endeavors in six starhours.

The slide-run allows time to calculate your required trajectory, build up the bombardment field to open the gate and gain speed. Five minutes into our run, the e-particle generator's hot and ready for angling and I double check the antimatter containment which fuels the particle dump so I can open this gate to slide through to the other side. At the seven-minute mark I will on the trajectory array, start bombardment and switch our light-cycle back to red-red-red for imminent slide and as always, three minutes later that glorious wormhole opens in my preselected region of space, and we slide right through.