TCS Vesuvius

TCS Vesuvius (CV-70)
Type	Vesuvius-Class Heavy Carrier
Manufacturer
Primary user	Terran Confederation

The TCS Vesuvius (CV-70) was the first Vesuvius-Class Heavy Carrier commissioned by the Terran Confederation.

Construction

The Vesuvius was to be one of the largest and most advanced fleet carriers ever to be fielded by the Terran Confederation at the time of its inception. With a crew capacity of 7,800 and a grand total of 400 starfighters, it would have been one of the major workhorses of the Confederation Space Navy. It was constructed in orbit above Mars at Orion Station, where its sister ship, the TCS Mount St. Helens, was also being constructed. Admiral Geoffrey Tolwyn personally oversaw her construction, assured of the vessel's superiority in combat. The vessel, with its massive starfighter complement and numerous defensive systems, was designed to be self-sufficient on the battlefield, not unlike the famed Bengal-Class Strike Carrier of the Terran-Kilrathi War.

By 2673, the TCS Vesuvius was in its final stages of construction. By this point, the Border Worlds Conflict was in full swing along the Terran frontier, and with war between the Terran Confederation and the Union of Border Worlds becoming a reality, the Vesuvius was well in place to participate in the new conflict.

Black Lance Service

Less than two weeks prior to the vote on war in the Confederation Senate, the TCS Vesuvius was activated and christened by Senator James Taggart, and the vessel became the personal flagship of Admiral Tolwyn. Unknown to most Terran citizens, Tolwyn was the man instigating the crisis, having created a secret faction known as the Black Lance, which was instigating the upcoming war. Tolwyn crewed his mighty vessel with Black Lance operatives, thus it became the flagship of the new Black Lance fleet.

The Vesuvius arrived in the Axius System shortly after its activation, with a full complement of starfighters comprised of Dragon Heavy Fighters. It pulled into close proximity with the Axius Starbase, the secret headquarters of the Black Lance. Prior to its arrival, Colonel Christopher Blair had infiltrated the starbase and witnessed Tolwyn's speech before his men, learning everything Tolwyn intended to do once he secured the war declaration. Blair fled the facility and back to the BWS Intrepid, while Tolwyn transferred to the Vesuvius, intending to reach Earth before Blair and his allies could intervene.

The Intrepid tracked down the Vesuvius and eventually caught up with it by passing through the Ella System, arriving in the Talos System just as Tolwyn was preparing to jump to Sol. Having had enough with the Colonel, Tolwyn ordered the Vesuvius to cancel the jump and attack the Intrepid. Blair fought off several of the vessel's squadrons in order to buy the Intrepid time to escape. Unfortunately, the Vesuvius, being far more advanced than the aging Intrepid, eventually caught up with the Intrepid and hammered at it with its turbolasers. Suddenly, the TCS Mount St. Helens, which had been hijacked by Captain William Eisen and his allies, jumped into Talos and attacked the Vesuvius, giving the Intrepid time to reach the jump point to Sol. Tolwyn fought the Mount St. Helens while the three vessels sped towards Sol.

Destruction

The Intrepid and the Mount St. Helens chased the Vesuvius to Sol, inflicting extensive damage on the carrier prior to their arrival. Unfortunately, the Mount St. Helens was severely damaged during the melee and was forced to break off the attack, as the vessel was not fully completed prior to its hijacking. Tolwyn continued onward in his damaged flagship, so Colonel Blair personally led the assault against the Vesuvius. After fighting off the enemy fighter squadrons, Colonel Blair attacked the Vesuvius itself. Unfortunately for Tolwyn, Blair carried with him a Flash-Pak, an incendiary device that superheated the interior of any ship, leaving only a burning hulk. The Vesuvius was equipped with an alloy that was too strong to enable an external attack, so Blair flew through the massive hangar bay of the Vesuvius, where the vessel was not nearly as well-protected.

The attack was a success and the Vesuvius was destroyed when the Flash-Pak ignited the oxygen withing the vessel, killing its entire Black Lance crew. All that remained of the Vesuvius was its burnt hulk floating in space. Unfortunately, Tolwyn fled to Earth on a shuttle prior to the attack. Fortunately, Blair managed to stop the war declaration, ending the Admiral's tyranny.

The destruction of the TCS Vesuvius marred the activation of the new carrier class as a whole. In spite of this massive loss, the Vesuvius-Class Heavy Carriers went on to serve humanity with distinction.