The Gryphon decelerated into the Lunka system. A pilot ship was there to meet them. The Lunka system had some of the densest asteroid fields in the galaxy. The sheer number of them, combined with their unpredictable nature, made any kind of astronavigation difficult. Grif liked it. It meant that the pirates wouldn't be able to just go into hyperspace and escape. It would be difficult to find the pirates, but once they were found, they wouldn't be able to escape.
After a brief hail, the pilot ship began leading the task force through the labyrinth of asteroids.
"We're getting a message from Jabber and Rydia, they want to discuss what happens next," Adelaide said.
"Put them on screen," Grif replied. He was surprised that they hadn't contacted him earlier about the plan. Or had he promised to go over it with them now? Grif shook his head, he was used to working more or less on his own. Having other Moderators look to him for direction was something he wasn't used to. The two other moderators appeared on screen.
"Hello," Grif said.
"Hey Grif," the other two greeted him. "What's the plan?" Rydia asked.
"The plan is to link up with the miners and get a better sense of what we're dealing with. The miners have more detailed information about the attacks, particularly where they are coming from, the composition of those attacks, as well as the time. Using that data, we can come up with a search grid to look for the pirates. I've got a meeting with Admiral Rippa, their chief security officer. Once the Admiral gives me the data, we can use it to plan further."
"Do we need to be there?" Jabber asked nervously. Grif thought about it.
"No. It would be better if you stayed on your ships for the time being. We should assume that we're up against nasty hostiles and that they are seconds away from attack. For all we know, this entire thing is a trap. I'll go down alone and meet with the Admiral. If this turns out to be a trap, then I'll need you to come in and rescue me."
"So, we sit around while you have all the fun?" Jabber asked.
"No, you'll sit around and write character development scenes while I sit through boring meetings with an out of shape armchair admiral, half of the time will consists of them pretending to be more important than they actually are, the other half consists of begging me to help them. Maybe a minute out of an hour meeting will consist of an actual data exchange," Grif said.
"Well, when you put it like that..." Rydia started.
"We'll be at their base in a couple hours. In the meantime, we should start deploying sensor pods, maybe we can pick up a trace of pirate activity. Adelaide will coordinate the sensor deployment. Anything else?" Grif asked. They shook their heads.
"I'll be in touch," Grif said. Grif ended the signal.
"A little grumpy, aren't we?" Adelaide asked. Grif didn't respond.
