Well lookie here, hershel!
Just as soon as I start wondering if I'm all alone in the galaxy, a survey vessel was reported missing. The coded SOS message burst showed the presence of no less than ONE HUNDRED AND NINETEEN thermal signatures. The scout had no idea they were coming-- but what reports did leak out show the alien weapons seemed to bypass armor and pop critical systems directly...
We've scrambled the fleet, the bulk of which was resting at earth for refits and overhauls after the Draconian campaign of '73. Search and rescue ships have been dispatched in an effort to recover the 81 survivors of the survey ship's destruction. Since the attack was likely small enemy fighters, the fleet commanders are nervous: we've not had to deal with such large numbers of contacts, and many in the command heirarchy wonder if battles will be fought with primarily short-range anti-missile weaponry. Making matters worse, the new sensor ships, with 1000 tons of dedicated fighter active scanner, arent expected to come online for nearly two years.
In any case, the fleet will gate to the Black Reach, and the surveillance ships will camp out in adjacent systems: if a determined carrier group comes through the alien-stabilized wormholes of Eta Leporis to the black reach, they could bomb their way through our tender colonies in short order.
Anti-fighter fighters are already on the drawing boards.
