trans_9 | After action [open]

Thrawn had gathered and reviewed every scrap of information Stacy had about the disastrous battle with the Ohm--every after-action report, every camera angle. Now, in the Sensorium, he was watching the skirmish unfold in three unsettling dimensions. It was a reconstruction, only as good as the crews' accounts and his own tactical skill. The latter, at least, was formidable.

Parts of the battlefield were empty, grayed-out in a literal "fog of war," where Thrawn had too little information to fill them in. They shifted and flowed as the fight progressed, crewmembers and Ohm disappearing into them and then popping back into existence where the records picked up again.

Gradually, however, the blank spaces were disappearing, as Thrawn ran various scenarios and decided on the most likely. Combat would pause, reverse itself, and then resume with tiny differences, again and again, as bit by bit, with infinite patience, the Grand Admiral recreated the battle to his satisfaction.

If he had any say in the matter, no confrontation with the Ohm would go so poorly again.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I doubt it's much interested in your home universe at this stage." Thrawn wasn't ruling out the possibility that Stacy would become an enemy at some point in the future.

"Apparently, they die when taken captive. Possibly suicide, possibly collapse from being severed from the controller. One can hope it's the latter." Thrawn spoke calmly, his voice as measured and unemotional as though he were discussing the weather, and his glowing red eyes were fixed on the battle simulation, which continued to tick away even as he spoke with John.

"Even if it isn't I'd prefer to keep my secrets. People trust that thing too easily, and I can't afford to. There's too much at stake." Just the entire human race. It didn't matter if the Ohm had already wiped it out in his universe. He'd still have to go back to his war in the end, and he was going to make damn sure there that no information got back to Skynet that could alter the outcome of it.

John was fine with unemotional. It was almost comfortable actually. In fact despite the blue skin, and strange eyes which reminded him a bit too much of a Terminator's this man made the most sense of anyone he'd met on board so far. "One can hope. Do we know if their communication is technological or biological?"

Very few were comfortable with those red eyes. "Almost certainly biological." That conclusion drew a bit of steel out of Thrawn. Unlike John, his implacable enemy was one that used only living technology, and even echoes of the Vong were unwelcome.

He figured that was the case, but it was still worth asking. Made disrupting their battle lines a lot more difficult. However it also meant they wouldn't have the response times, or precision of machines. They might be able to out maneuver them in that case. The Ohm had numbers, but they had the brains. Whole thing was starting to feel really familiar now. "Good, I wouldn't want one of those grunts getting it in its head to take the initiative."

"I would prefer individualism. Individuals can be reasoned with, or demoralized and subverted, if it comes to that. A hive mind is fundamentally alien and implacable, and fighting the drones, especially reactively, the way this happened"--Thrawn gestured at the battle--"does little but drain one's own resources." He sounded grim.

"They can also think, and adapt. You're right though, we can't fight them like this. We need to turn the tables. They need to be reacting to us." If the Ohm's goal was wiping out world after world it meant they were optimized for large scale assaults. Admittedly on a massive scale, but that only made them more unwieldy as a force. It was something they could exploit. "I doubt they're used to fighting defensively."

John had the feeling the man had already come to that conclusion long ago, but it was worth saying. As versed in warfare as he was he was still having a hard time keeping up with the extrapolations that Thrawn had pulled out of the data. It was impressive.

"We don't currently have an objective. 'Stop the Ohm' is all well and good, but without more intelligence, it's simply a forlorn wish." Around them, the battle continued, the Ohm only stopping when they hit the end of the time loop Thrawn had them running.

He folded his arms and scowled into the simulation. "The Daligig aren't providing information and Cargn is being evasive. Fighting blind is just going to get crew killed, without any gains to show for it."

"We're in agreement again. Can't fight an enemy you can't find." It was pissing him off. He didn't even have an idea of where the front line was in this war. "I'd say we should hack into the AI here, and get that information, but most of the crew would probably frown on that."

Mention of the Daligig, and Cargn made John's eyes narrow. "I don't trust either of them. Withholding information like that means there's something worth hiding. Usually something not very flattering to the people covering it up."

"They may well prove to be enemies, but for the time being, better to hide that suspicion--when you're talking to them, at least," Thrawn said with a hint of black humor.

"The trouble with...hacking, did you call it? the ship's computer is that it could strand us. Most of the vessel seems to be under centralized control." He looked at the nearest Ohm, and then at John, the irony not lost on him. "Kill the brain and you kill the body."

"I've learned that the hard way sadly. You would think the crew would be a bit more suspicious of people that kidnapped them." Why any of them hadn't done what he had was still a mystery to him.

"It's a possibility. I'd like to at least know how dependent the sub-systems are on the AI. If we could obtain control of a few like navigation it would hamstring us a little less. As it is we can't properly engage in any sort of strategy with someone else determining the missions. Someone who's proven they can't fight this war." Exploiting others because they were too incompetent. If John ever met these Daligig he'd have some choice words with them. Possibly at the business end of a weapon.

After action [open]

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