USS Canopus
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- "Let me not then die ingloriously and without a struggle, but let me first do some great thing that shall be told among men hereafter."
- —Homer, The Iliad
USS Canopus (NCC-84001) is an Odyssey-class Federation starship currently assigned as the flagship of the Canopus Exploratory Squadron and is under the command of Commodore Tikva Theodoras. Commissioned in early 2399 after a three-year building programme, Canopus served primarily within internal fleet units before being transferred to the Fourth Fleet in 2402 after the Nightfall incident and assigned as flagship of the then Atlantis Exploratory Squadron, taking over squadron flagship duties.
Ordered as an addition to the roster of large fleet assets, and to serve as the backbone of formations and to provide a credible deterrant to external threats to the Federation, Canopus' design harks back to an era of hopeful exploration. With a renaissance of such thinking following in the wake of the Coppellius Revelations, Canopus has been freed to embark once more on the purpose for which her class of starships were originally designed.
Design and Configuration
Ordered in 2395, the keel of the ship that would eventually bear the name Canopus was laid down at the Copernicus Ship Yards in early 2396, with construction not starting in earnest until March of that year. Construction of the vessel wasn't completed until 2399, delayed twice by system integration issues that necessitated extensive rework of major components, including the ship's computer systems and the primary propulsion systems.
Launched in June of 2399, final fitment was completed at the San Francisco Fleet Yards before space trials commenced. Commissioning was further delayed when Canopus was returned to the builders for further work to the impulse drive systems, delaying commissioning into the fleet until November of 2399. It was noted that of all her system and integration issues, her weapons systems performed exactly as outlined during her first live-fire exercises.
With the fallout of the Nightfall incursions, Canopus was liberated from core system duties for frontier duties. Since joining the fleet in 2399, she was plagued by a series of minor on-and-off again systems issues that had earned her a reputation as a 'dockyard queen'. It was initially feared that her deployment with Fourth Fleet would continue the trend, but surprisingly, the vessel seems to have come right, with maintenance issues dramatically decreasing and no major system faults since deploying to the Thomar Expanse.
Bridge
The bridge of the starship Canopus is modelled in the same style as the preceding Sovereign-class. This smaller style of bridge, compared to some of the other Odyssey-class ships of the fleet, has allowed for more facilities to be retained on deck one for use by the crew on duty.
Featuring an extended aft operations bay, this area of the bridge is usually maintained for flight operations of the ship's extensive auxiliary craft and for fleet coordination when the squadron is operating as a single unit. Primarily manned and commanded by members of the ship's flight direction team, during an alert state it isn't uncommon for a senior officer, or even the executive officer, to take command, acting as a filter between the bridge and other fleet assets taking direction from Canopus.
Ready Room
With formal and informal seating accommodations to suit the context of any meeting, the room hosts two sets of large seating arrangements. A conference table with built-in holographic projectors is available, dominating one side of the office. With ready access to the ship's main computer, briefings can readily be held with senior staff as required. Projectors can also be used for communication with other ships, providing a 'face-to-face' option for remote colleagues if available.
The other side of the room consists of a coffee table and couches for relaxed discussions with visitors and crew alike. Memorabilia and knick-knacks, like many officers, litter this area as reminders of past events. Of particular note is a make-shift spear of crude, but sturdy manufacture, sitting above the large shelf.[1] A collection of patches, from ships across the squadron, litter the wall behind the couch, all anchored around the Canopus Exploratory Squadron patch, with others added from the ships Canopus has encountered, if agreeable.
Communal spaces - The Stoa, Colonnade & Arcade
As with many of the Odyssey-class starships, Canopus features extensive public spaces for use by the crew, their families and visiting dignitaries. Featured on Deck 12, the connected public spaces aboard the ship serve as the anchor for the ship's community. Unlike other ships of the class, the communal spaces do not occupy the entire outer perimeter of Deck 12. Running roughly two-thirds the length of the chevron section, starting from the impulse engines and reaching forward, on the port and starboard respectively, is the Stoa and the Colonnade, connected across the breadth of the ship at the mid-point by the Arcade.
While the Stoa is more of an urbanised social space, playing host to a variety of lounges, restaurants and other accommodations that a crew of nearly two thousand needs, the Colonnade is anchored around the ship's arboretum, extending it to form a large green space for the crew when claustrophobia from long-duration deployments begins to settle in. Large open spaces, featuring holographic skies, work to complete the illusion. With Canopus playing host to families aboard ship, a school for children was required, and space adjacent to the Colonnade was set aside to allow for outdoor experiences and sports.
The Arcade would be considered the most utilitarian of the social spaces, though not without its own charms. A triple-width corridor across the saucer, the Arcade features a slightly vaulted roof that normally displays what dorsal-mounted hull cameras would see, intended to give the impression of being at the top of the ship's hull. Access to the ship's public pools and multi-environment gyms can be found off the Arcade, as well as the large-scale holodecks for use by the entire crew. A few lounges can be found here, preferring the tucked-away nature that the Arcade can provide.
The Teahouse
The Teahouse is one of the quietest establishments aboard Canopus. Located at the foremost end of the Stoa, The Teahouse features a dozen small, private rooms for individuals needing to escape the rigours of shipboard life with just a couple of their closest companions. None of the rooms at the Teahouse can accommodate more than four visitors at a time. Each room is decorated in a different style, allowing visitors who book ahead to choose their experience, or a random experience if they drop in. The Teahouse is maintained by simple service holograms, adapting to the environs of each room as required.
Can-can Coffee
Based in the Stoa, Can-can Coffee is the premier coffee establishment aboard Canopus, offering a wide variety of coffee and coffee-adjacent hot drinks from across the Federation. The menu has a few staples that are never in short supply, but other items can slowly disappear from the menu during longer deployments as stocks run low. Since the arrival of Commodore Theodoras aboard ship, Can-can has expanded to include hot chocolate in its menu.
Cheese the Day
Run by the enterprising and gourmand-historian Fredrick "Freddie" Ivo, Cheese the Day makes no apologies for what it is - a pizzeria. Near the main turbolift bank that services the Arcade, Cheese the Day is easily spotted by the 'historically accurate' flickering neon sign outside its double doors. The location and the quality of the handcrafted pizzas and sides has elevated Cheese the Day to far too high a proportion of the ship's diet than the medical staff would appreciate.
Of particular note is Freddie's signature garlic knots, which are made to order and unavailable when Freddie isn't present, as he doesn't trust any of the holographic staff, or the computers that run them, to get the recipe right.
Namesake and Lineage
Canopus is the third Starfleet vessel to bear the name in service. Like her forebearers, she was built as the premier class of starship for her time, exemplfying the ideals and virtures of the Federation while embarking on voyages of exploration.
- USS Canopus (NCC-1729)
- Constitution-class cruiser
- Commissioned 2241
- Decommissioned 2272 after severe damage rendered it uneconomical to repair or refit as part of the Constitution Refit programme.
- USS Canopus (NCC-12115)
- Ambassador-class cruiser
- Commissioned 2358
- Destroyed 2374 in battle against Dominion forces in the Trivas system, buying time for a civilian evacuation convoy to withdraw.
Auxiliary Craft
All of the auxiliary craft assigned to Canopus are of the latest models of their respective series, providing the ship with a robust and highly capable selection of support craft for all situations.
Shuttles & Runabouts
Canopus' runabout inventory is reduced to support an expanded starfighter complement. As such, the vessel maintains a standard shuttle complement, but two-thirds of a normal inventory of runabouts, opting primarily for the Delta-class series of runabouts over other available classes.
Shuttles
- 20 Type-12 personnel shuttle
- 16 Type-14 personnel shuttles
- Shuttle Waihou serves as the captain's primary craft when away from ship.
Runabouts
- 4 Delta-class runabouts
- Stentor
- Demophon
- Äneas
- Sarpedon
- 2 Orion-class runabouts
- 2 Volga-class runabouts
Starfighters - "Carinae Squadron"
The addition of bombers was made in order to provide the squadron with a limited small-craft strike capability in lieu of a dedicated carrier platform, and to increase the total weight of Canopus' own capabilities when operating alone within the more volatile and contested regions of the Thomar Expanse.
The Valkyrie fighters are comprised of a mix of standard A model fighters as well as the A/R attack/recon variants. While the attack variant carries multiple micro-torpedoes aboard in small magazines, the A/R only carries 2, one per launcher. The magazine space is then given over to housing more specialised and sophisticated sensors and ECM hardware. These sensors are incredibly sensitive and capable in a very narrow observational window forward of the craft, allowing for superior long-range reconnaissance of known targets, but are incredibly poor at generalised scouting.
Equally, the ECM hardware, while incredibly capable, has a limited field of effect and was ideally designed to cover only the craft it is fitted on. Skilled or reckless pilots are able to make use of the field to hide a few other fighters in close proximity, but exposure would put an entire flight at risk and is highly discouraged.
The A/R models of White Wing are normally kept in reserve, deployed only when required, with the A variants serving as the primary alert fighters during White Wing duty shifts. Gold Section is only activated when required, with the bombers kept nominally in cold reserve, requiring at least four hours notice before deployment.
- Red Wing
- 6 A variant Valkyrie starfighters
- White Wing
- 3 A/R variant Valkyrie starfighters
- 3 A variant Valkyrie starfighters
- Gold Section
- 2 Aspara-class bombers
History
Notable Crew
Commanding Officers
- ↑ Quinque Contra Tenebris – 18 https://bravofleet.com/story/95269