USS HORIZON NCC-61883
SD 10.0518 to 10.0801
"Against All Odds"
Senior Staff
CO: Captain Asa Garn
FO: Lieutenant Tergin
OPS/2O: Lieutenant Jason Munro
CEO: Lieutenant JG Cyrix Brakos
CSO: Lieutenant JG Banor T'Orell
CSciO: Lieutenant JG Theophrastus Hamelin
CMO: Ensign Zachary Comstock
Orders
To: Captain Asa Garn, CO, USS Horizon & LtCommander Firestorm, CO, USS Gryphon
From: Commander Morris Bright, assistant to Fleet XO, Cocoon Fleet
SD: 10.0518
Captain Garn, Commander Firestorm,
The USS Horizon is to lead a task force consisting of 12 ships in a pre-emptive strike against the Klingon Fleet.
The USS Horizon and the USS Gryphon will each be fitted with the new verteron torpedo modules whilst the following ships will offer support: USS Munich, USS Garrett, USS Fulcrum, USS Hydra, USS Stonewall, USS Mongal, USS Polack, USS Crusader, USS Kipling and the USS Springer.
The USS Horizon and USS Gryphon are to fire their load of verteron torpedos into the Klingon fleet. Hopefully, with the other ten ships, it should be possible to disable or destroy a significant amount of the Klingon vessels.
The task force is facing impossible odds, but the mission is vital as the Cocoon awaits re-inforcements from the Federation.
Good luck,
Commander Morris Bright
Assistant to Cocoon Fleet Executive Officer
Summary
The Horizon, recently returned in pieces from a mission involving the Holack, is put straight to work after repairs. The Fleet XO transmits orders which are every captain's worse night mare: to lead a task force into battle.
The force was quickly assembled out of the ships that were in the current Cocoon Fleet, dubbed Task Force Horizon.
The USS Horizon along with a small fleet of eleven other ships including the newly designed ship the USS Gryphon made its way to the Portal, from where the task force would begin to launch a pre-emptive strike against the possible Klingon invasion fleet which was rumored at 600 plus ships strong.
The USS Gryphon's command crew was mostly transferred over from the USS Roanoke, hoping to give the Gryphon the best chance in succeeding in its nearly impossible mission.
Having successfully passed through the portal, the USS Gryphon, USS Horizon, and other ships in the small task force, laid in course for Klingon space, with the intention of gauging the Klingon's strength, and initiating a pre-emptive strike.
In an ingenious method devised by the chief science officer, the USS Horizon detects a fleet of about two hundred ships heading towards the Cocoon. But the task force soon finds that this isn't the entire fleet, only part.
A tactical plan is quickly devised, in which the Task Force Horizon will drop its verteron torpedoes into the force of about four hundred ships, and then along with the Gryphon head toward the second fleet of ships, where they would drop their torpedoes and then return to the main attack fleet.
Captain Friiu of the Kipling was given command of Task Force Horizon until the return of Captain Garn from dropping off the rest of the verteron torpedoes into the second wave of Klingon ships.
The verteron torpedoes were dropped according to plan, and caused major damage to the Klingon fleets, bringing them out of warp for at least a few hours. After the effects of the V-torpedoes could no longer effect the Starfleet vessels, they slowed to impulse and began using everything in their arsenal to cause as much damage as they could to the Klingon ships before having to fall back.
In the process the Kipling along with her captain made a suicide run, taking out as many Klingon ships as she could before going down.
Some of the larger Negh'var class ships were recovering faster then was expected causing losses to the Starfleet vessels as well, but not in time to save at least a hundred unshielded ships to go down in the first pass by the Starfleet vessels.
Having caused major losses to the Klingon fleet, only six of the original thirteen ships survived the battle. The order to fall back was given and the ships warped away, losing two in the process.
The arrival of ships from the Tenth Fleet's early warning task force caused uplifted spirits as the Horizon and remainder of her task force were towed to where the final showdown would occur at the Portal.
The Horizon, along with the rest of the task force, was repaired as best they could be and given new mission pods which carried a phaser cannon. The Horizon and the task force participated in the war for the portal, doing her part valiantly to save the Cocoon from the Klingon fleet, but in the end was damaged beyond repair. Garn gave the order to abandon ship, and they then piloted the ship into the heart of the Klingon force with the self destruct set. The Horizon went up in one blaze of glory, her crew watched with heavy hearts as the ship they had called home went up in a fireball.
The crew then took some well needed if somewhat saddened shore leave on Omega, while awaiting reassignment.
Promotions
Lieutenant Tergin: promoted to Lieutenant-Commander
Ensign Zachary Comstock: promoted to Lieutenant JG
Awards received
Outstanding Unit Citation
Distinguished Service Medal: Lieutenant Jason Munro
Noonian Soong Medal: Lieutenant JG Theophrastus Hamelin
Shield of Alexander: Captain Asa Garn