The Front

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SWF episode
"The Front"
Season:	One
Episode no.	Two
Prod. code:	SWF 04
Writer(s):	Jrofeta
Original post date:	2001-04-16
Year:	2374
episode chronology
Previous episode:	"Deployment"
Next episode:	"Regression"

The Front is the second episode of the first season of Star Trek: Swiftfire.

The USS Swiftfire-A joins the Fifth fleet on the front defending Sector 432. The crew of the Swiftfire soon see action against the Jem'Hadar which results in a crucial repair yards been put out of action. Now under constant Dominion attack the fleet finds itself struggling to hold back the enemy.

Contents 1 Summary 2 Memorable quotes 3 Background information 4 References 5 External link

[edit] Summary

Captain Jonathan Masters, Commander Susan Core and Lieutenant Commander Nikki Whitechapel are taking part in a holodeck simulation flying F-22 Raptors and are sortied to intercept four aircraft approaching United States airspace. Core identifies the targets as Tupolev Tu-95s, which they then identify as belonging to the Eastern Coalition. Masters warns them off their current heading and is promptly fired upon and orders his wingmates to open fire. Two of the bombers are quickly shot down.

Masters then notices four approaching fighters, which turn out to be hostile MiG-42s. The F-22s and MiGs get into a dogfight. Despite been outnumbered and caught off guard by the MiGs Masters' flight turn the tables leaving one MiG versus two F-22s. Fancy flying by the remaining MiG evens the odds leaving just Masters to battle on but the other pilot proves to be too good and shoots Masters down, ending the simulation.

Core opens Masters simulator and helps him out. They are joined by Whitechapel who laments the fact she did not score one kill during the game. They are joined by their four opponents led by Wing Commander Maxine Benton who won the game as she was the last player still alive. They arrange to meet for another round when Masters is called to the bridge - Dominion forces are incoming.

Masters, Core and Whitechapel arrive on the bridge and take their stations. The USS Swiftfire-A has been at Sector 432 for five days and has yet to engage the enemy in a war that is over a week old. Masters receives a situation report as the ship takes its position in the second defensive line as they wait for the imminent arrival of the enemy. Several damaged ships from the 198th Tactical Wing arrive in system followed by two dozen Jem'Hadar attack ships. Against a full fleet the Jem'Hadar stand no chance but five managed to make it past the first line. The Swiftfire makes its first kill of the war when it destroys an attack ship.

As the fleet disbands from its defensive positions a second Dominion attack group arrives, a much larger one of eighty-three warships. Catching the first line off guard a large group of attack ships penetrate the line. The second line having a bit more warning is able to reform to engage the enemy, which has little interest in fighting the starships. Masters realises that their target is not the Fifth Fleet but the Sector 432 repair yards deeper in the system. Masters seeks permission to pursue and is granted it.

The Swiftfire's attack fighter wing is launched to aid in stopping the Jem'Hadar. Benton leads her squadrons and they manage to destroy several attack ships, however they are unable to prevent severe damage to the repair yards, which is rammed by the last of the Jem'Hadar vessels. With their objective complete the surviving Dominion vessels retreat.

Three hours later the fourth Dominion attack group retreats giving the Swiftfire and the rest of the fleet a respite from the battle. Benton makes a wobbly landing back on the Swiftfire. Her fighter is damaged and she is injured. She is beamed to sickbay for treatment. Doctor Carol Murphy attends to Benton's injuries, which require quick surgery. With Benton stable and on the mend Murphy moves on to deal with the other casualties the ship has suffered.

Soon time later Masters visits sickbay to check up on Benton. Benton is pleased by the visit due to her attraction to Masters. Murphy notices this and suggests that she should go talk to Commander Core as she is Masters closest friend on the Swiftfire. She also points out that this was the captain's third visit to check up on Benton, suggesting that Benton's attraction is reciprocated. Benton takes Murphy's advice and pays Core a visit.

Meanwhile the Swiftfire has been reassigned to help with the repairs of the repair yards. The Dominion continues its attacks against the fleet slowly but surely wearing it down. Things are starting to look grim for the fleet and the mood is replicated on the Swiftfire. Ensign Frank Cole is especially downbeat has he and Lieutenants Terri Letac and Karak relax in one of the ship's lounges. Letac attempts to put a positive spin on the situation but Karak's cold logical appraisal of the situation hamper her efforts. The bad news keeps coming with additional reports of Dominion advances elsewhere along the front. The situation is soon made untenable when reports arrive that an entire Dominion division is heading to dislodge the fleet. Admiral Victor Harvey orders the evacuation of the system before the Dominion division reaches them.

With the evacuation of the starbase and repair yards complete the fleet start warping out of the system. The Swiftfire is about to leave when they realise that they are missing Lt. Commander Pavlo Celcho, their chief engineer. Celcho had been assigned to the repair yards to help with the repairs but never returned. They manage to find the last person who had contact with him and discover that due to a malfunction with his EV suit's oxygen unit Celcho is still sitting in an isolated part of the repair yards unaware of the retreat. Colonel David Tiki takes out one of the Normandy-class dropships to retrieve Celcho. They find him but he has not been able to repair his suit and the only way he can get back to the dropship is by a short spacewalk. With no time to repair the suit or get him a new one they seal Celcho in his oxygen-less suit and make the journey back. Despite a minor hold up with a malfunctioning airlock they get Celcho back to the dropship alive.

With Celcho back on board the Swiftfire is one of the last ships to abandon Sector 432. The battered fleet makes its retreat to the Guyra system, their new base and Masters vows to the crew that they might be on the run but they are far from beaten.

[edit] Memorable quotes

"Remember you should always listen to your Doctor."

— Doctor Carol Murphy

"But for some reason it doesn’t work like that. No matter how big the universe is there will always be someone who will want to take what you have away from you."

— Colonel David Tiki to Lieutenant Commander Pavlo Celcho.

"I get the point. Look Frank, we stopped the Borg, twice. Defeated the Romulans and Klingons in separate wars. Stopped the Cardassians and we have won numerous wars and conflicts. We’ll stop the Dominion. We can’t lose, we’re the good guys."

— Lieutenant Terri Letac trying to cheer up Ensign Frank Cole.

[edit] Background information

• Main character Carol Murphy makes her first appearance in the series.

[edit] References

198th Tactical Wing; 268th Tactical Wing; adjutant; Akira-class; Andor; B'rel-class; Cardassian; Battle of Sector 432; Brand, Cameron; Defiant-class; division; Dominion; Eastern Coalition; EV suit; Excelsior-class; F-22 Raptor; Fifth fleet; Galaxy-class; Galor-class; Harvey, Victor; Hideki-class; holodeck; Jem'Hadar Thirteenth Division; Jem'Hadar attack ship; Jem'Hadar battle cruiser; listening post; MiG-42; Miranda-class; Munro; Nebula-class; Normandy-class; Norway-class; Peregrine-class; repair docks; Sabre-class; Second Fleet; Sector 432; Sector 432 repair yards; Springfield-class; Starfleet Academy Commandant; Starfleet Marine; starbase; Stevens, Rachel; Tupolev Tu-95; Twenty-Third Order; United States of America; wing; Wood, Bernard

[edit] External link

"The Front" in PDF format at Star Trek Swiftfire