Best and Brightest

Literary Challenge 7
---

The officers filed into the room and sat in their usual chairs. Each person held a PADD in their hands and quietly placed them on the table and patiently waited. Several seconds later, Captain Kathryn Beringer entered the room and sat at the head of the table. She looked to each of the command staff assembled, then said, "Let's get started".

The Andorian officer to the Captain's left stood. First Officer Anthi Ythysi tapped her PADD on the table and the viewscreen at the other end of the room activated. The staff turned their heads to see the data pull-up on the screen.

"Bur'ar. Klingon. Terran age, 34. Homeworld, Ahza IV in the Aldaberan Sector. Security track."

Anthi walked toward the video display with her PADD in hand. "While Solaris was docked at ESD he was assigned to Lieutenant Commander Karl Melango. Both were to oversee the Gorn prisoner transfer to Starfleet Security Corps. During the walk from the brig, one of the prisoners became agitated -",

Anthi tapped the PADD and the personnel data changed to a video presentation showing two large Gorn shackled and walking in file. In front of the pair was a human Starfleet officer with a Klingon at the rear. The rear Gorn turn his head, and the Klingon stopped then pointed forward. The Gorn turned and launched himself at the Klingon, alerting the other two. A swirling melee ensues with all four participants. After several seconds the Klingon is subduing the attacking Gorn, then relieves the human of his combatant with a few strikes.

Turning to the assembled officers, Anthi could see they were impressed. "Cadet Bur'ar showed restraint and applied appropriate ... pressure, to subdue the prisoners. Collateral damage was extremely minimal and Karl, obviously, has recovered from any wounds." The officers looked at Karl who still had a slight bruise above his right eye. He blushed at the attention. Anthi continued, "He maintains accurate reports and performs routine duties with exemplary attention to detail." Anthi closed the presentation and sat back down.

Chief Engineer Thel Ythysi stood and mimicked his sister's actions to prepare for his presentation. He smiled briefly as he turned to his fellow officers. Kathryn's eyebrows raised from surprise and thought that was the first time he had seen Thel smile.

"S'Rel. Vulcan. Terran age, 30. Homeworld, Vulcan in the Vulcan Sector. Technical fabrication track.

As we were completing a refit of the Aegis Hyper-Impulse Engines, S'Rel was assigned diagnostic duty. She noticed a fracture in the Export D-52C coupling to the active tachyon grid overhead manifold at junction K-44J." As Thel spoke, he raised a schematic of the Excelsior-class ship. At each word the image enlarged, rotated and moved with various sections highlighted to show the audience where he meant to direct their attention. For Kathryn, she was privately thankful for the visual images.

"After running a level two diagnostic, S'Rel correctly determined a tritanium duraplast patch would be sufficient to prevent further damage. This was standard functional procedure. This was also the most efficient path in terms of repair time and resources." He turned from the screen and paused for effect.

"However, S'Rel notified her site superior, Lieutenant Ian McKinnon of an alternative." He returned to the image and it moved several 'meters' by the schematic legend. "Coincidentally, S'Rel's father was one of the engineers that developed the prototype Aegis engines. She has a intimate knowledge of the entire project from its inception. She used the prototype schematics to justify her suggestion." Looking back to the officers, Thel said sternly, "the prototype set, as we should all know, was superior to the mass production version. Utopia Planetia, in their prudence, developed various shortcuts which, ultimately, caused the fracture to the coupling." He turned back to the schematic, "S'Rel's alternative involved fabricating a trianium-infused polycarbon lattice to the junction network here ... here ... and here. The structural integrity of the affected coupling doubled to better-than-prototype specification."

Thel turned to Kathryn. "Based on this event, not only was our stay at ESD shortened five days, I also submitted a proposal to Starfleet Corps of Engineers to modify existing Aegis Engine components back to prototype standards. S'Rel's cadet record should be noted that the proposal was based on her work." Thel closed his presentation and sat into his chair, a slight smirk tugged at one corner of his lips.

After a few seconds of silence, Captain Beringer spoke. "Well done. So, based on these report,s shall I presume you are recommending a transfer to Solaris?

Both siblings looked to each other and nodded.

"Consider it done. Unless there is anything further to add, then return to your duty stations. Our next stop is Nukara Prime."

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Karl Melango - Jeremy Renner
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Bur'ar - David Ramsey
Ian McKinnon - named but not seen

Not named in story but present in the scene:
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
Christa Harrington - Emily Bett Rickards

 

Not THAT Guy ...

Literary Challenge 6 - Not THAT Guy ...

---

"I'm telling you man, she was amazing!"

The Vulcan listener rolled his eyes as he looked out the viewport. "I have no doubt your tryst on Risa was ... enlightening."

"Oh, boy was it! The way she moved was unlike anything I have experienced. I fell in love, then got left at the alter."

"Please remind me, Randolph, what was her name again?"

Randolph sighed. "I ... I don't remember." He rubbed his chin. "Cassandra? Kaitlin? Kathy? Maybe not. Baylyn ... or maybe Tala?"

The Vulcan turned to his friend with an eyebrow raised. "That's a wide range of options. I think it is best you let it go. The odds of meeting the same woman within your lifetime with only memories of her physical features and ... abilities ... is statistically against your favor. Possible, but not probable, if I may be so bold."

Randolph was undaunted and he waged a finger. "I disagree, Tevos. Humans believe in serendipity and fate. Chance is best at the Dabo tables, not love."

Tevos returned to looking out the window. The Excelsior-class ship was in view as the shuttle banked away from the transport vessel. "But wasn't it random chance to have met this woman in the first place?"

A finger was poked at the Vulcan's ear. "Nope. Fate brought us to Risa. We were meant to be together."

"Yet, you don't recall her name and she has not made contact with you since you left Risa two weeks ago, correct?"

"Pfft, she's probably looking for me as we speak." Randolph crossed his arms and had a smug look on his face.  He looked at the white cruiser out the viewport as the shuttle slowed its speed to approach the ship's aft hull. The shuttle bay doors began to open. "Who knows, maybe she's on this ship!"

"Again, possible, but highly improbable."

---

The shuttle's doors opened slowly, exposing the interior to the grand innards of Solaris' docking bay. To the side was an Aenar with Ensign pips on her uniform. She raised a whistle box and blew the attention tune. Several officers stepped forward, the tallest being the Captain of the ship, Kathryn Beringer. Her long dark red hair pulled back into a thick bun with side strands resting against her jaw. Wearing the standard-issue uniform, white-colored shoulders stood apart from the rest of the other officers. The new members of her crew started to exit the shuttle, twenty total of various races. They lined up at attention and Kathryn looked at the row before starting a close-up inspection when someone gasped nearby.

Kathryn turned to see her ship's counselor face go pale. Concerned she whispered loudly, "Is something wrong?"

Christa Harrington shook her head slightly, her dirty blonde hair quivering. "Not that guy. Of all the ships in the galaxy."

Kathryn looked at the row of duty officers. One man's eyes were darting back and forth. He was of average height and build with curly black hair. His thick lips, high cheekbones, rounded edged nose and sunken eyes made him handsome by Kathryn's standards. She could see he muttered something and a Vulcan to his side quickly looked toward the ship's officer line.

She grinned. "Well, Christa, it seems like you'll be doing the talking later because I'm ready to listen." Kathryn could see from her peripheral vision that the counselor's shoulders slumped a little.

Return of the Traveler

Literary Challenge 49
---

Thel Ythysi stepped from the turbolift and pulled on his uniform jacket. His antennae twitched toward the various sounds of the main engineering room with the steady hum from the Warp Core dominating all others. He stopped a few steps away from the railing surrounding the core and looked around the familiar room, taking note of the personnel dutifully working on various projects or maintenance. Thel noticed two Ensigns at the Matter/Anti-matter balancer console and decided to check on their progress.

One Ensign was a Bolian male, a little shorter than Thel, but the Chief Engineer was tall for Andorians, which made him taller than most of the staff in the room, if not the ship. The other was a Bajoran female, with long black hair pulled into a pony-tail style revealing the signature earring hoops. He approached the console and looked at the display. Both Ensigns stopped their work, looked up and smiled.

The Bolian said, "good morning, Commander. How may we assist you?"

Thel looked away from the console with raised eyebrows. "Good morning. I'm curious about the technical readout you are working on, would you mind catching me up on the project?"

The Bolian smiled waned slightly. "Of course, Commander." He pointed to the screen, "as you know the Aegis upgrades we received six months ago have been a wonderful addition to the ship, and-"

"Excuse me, but the upgrades were completed eight months ago," interrupted the Bajoran.

Thel stepped in, "Ensign Tamara is correct. Clearly an oversight. As you know, I'm a stickler for detail."

"Yes. Yes, of course, pardon me. As I was saying, Ensign Tamara was running a diagnostic on the outer starboard impulse engine because it was running two percent less efficient over the previous week. I was just passing by when I noticed her progress and was showing her a subroutine that would make the diagnostic perform faster and with greater precision toward results."

Thel looked to Tamara. "What do you think?"

Tamara blushed a little. "Well, sir. He is correct. The subroutine was not a part of my training and I'm seeing it is a better process to use going forward."

Thel nodded and let the silence hang for a few seconds as he looked to both Ensigns. "Well, I will not interfere with good progress. Carry on." As he turned away he tapped his badge and spoke into the air. "Anthi, I just remembered we had a meeting to attend, can we meet on Deck 19?"

There was a pause before the response. "Of course, I'm F-A-B."

Within seconds, Anthi Ythysi materialized next to Thel with a phaser pistol in her hand. The Engineering crew in the room heard the familiar sound of a transporter being used and saw Anthi coalesce, ready for combat. Thel pointed to the Bolian, "him".

Anthi raised her phaser. "Before bad choices are made, you have a moment to explain yourself."

Tamara was surprised and raised her hands, looking from Anthi to the Bolian. The Ensign stood still as if expecting what happened, raised his hands and said, "I mean you no harm, but I must speak with your Captain."
---

"I'm curious, how did you know I was an intruder?'

Thel crossed his arms. "No one refers to me by my rank."

The Bolian smirked, "of course, and this class of ship doesn't have nineteen decks either I suppose?"

Thel shook his head. The doors to the room whispered open and Kathryn Beringer strode into the brig. Noticing her officers, she walked up to the cell shielding and looked at the Ensign. "I'm Captain Kathryn Beringer. You wanted to see me?"

The Bolian responded, "Yes, yet I was hoping to avoid this conversation. You have a very astute crew."  He looked to Thel.  "One in particular."

"I see, and you are ..."

"Forgive me, I am known as The Traveler."

Kathryn nodded. "I've heard of you. You're famous."

The Traveler nodded serenely. "I apologize for the impertinence, but I was trying not to interfere."

"I applaud your effort, but masquerading as a crew member is interfering. The Federation may be at war, but you are known to us. If you need - or want - something you could have been more obvious."

"Thank you, Captain." He looked around the room then back to Kathryn.

She looked to the security officer and nodded. The shielding flicked and was gone. "I hope you can appreciate the precautions."

"I am not offended, but I do have a request."

"Let's discuss the matter as we walk." Kathryn lead the way out of the Brig.

Once in the hallway, Kathryn slowed to pace with The Traveler as the Andorian siblings walked behind them. She looked at the Bolian and wondered why he maintained his false appearance.

"Because it is easier to mingle with the crew," he said as he looked up to Kathryn. She turned away a little embarrassed.

"Traveler, why are you here?"

He looked back toward Thel before responding. "Ensign Jazik Tamara is a remarkable person. In fact, her qualities are beyond her current perception. I would like to help her become more than she is and take her with me."

Kathryn stopped in her tracks and turned to the false Ensign. "Excuse me?"

The Bolian looked at the three officers in turn. "I know that was abrupt, but I decided to be blunt. Captain, my people have waited for beings of her potential to manifest their abilities naturally. The risk is that they do so under extreme duress. For Tamara, we wish to guide her progression before further risk happens to her."

Anthi took a step forward, "Isn't that interfering with some natural order?"

The Traveler nodded. "We recognize that, but we can sense her potential before she manifests. Such latency reveals she will be a powerful force within the galaxy. We have decided to nurture her so that she will be a force of good. Tamara would be the first we select in this manner."

Kathryn nodded as she was thinking. "You can't take her."

"I understand your point of view, but she needs the proper guidance. In your war, she may never get the chance to be more than she is!"

"That may be true, but is it our place to decide someone else's fate?"

"Technically, as Captain of a starship, you do that on a daily basis."

"This is different. You are talking about telling Tamara she has a ... power ... and that you will take her somewhere far away as a student in an effort to make sure she uses such power for good."  Kathryn shook her head.  "She needs to be in charge of her own destiny."

Thel's baritone voice responded. "Forgive me Captain, but if Tamara knows about her potential, and refuses to leave, won't that affect her choices until her powers manifest?"

Kathryn looked to The Traveler and raised an eyebrow. "This is getting complicated. From where I'm standing, the fact that I know Tamara is special will alter how I deal with her as a member of this crew. No offense Traveler, but you are forcing me to transfer her off the Solaris to avoid favoritism because she is ... special. I'm not too keen on what's happening here."

The Traveler smiled and closed his eyes as he responded. "I appreciate your thoughts on the matter. Wesley Crusher has taught my people a great many things about your race. In time, I can only hope Jazik Tamara does the same ..."


The hallway slowly filled with light and the three Starfleet officers shielded their eyes from the intense brightness.

---

Thel Ythysi stepped from the turbolift and pulled on his uniform jacket. His antennae twitched toward the various sounds of the main engineering room with the steady hum from the Warp Core dominating all others. He stopped a few steps away from the railing surrounding the core and looked around the familiar room, taking note of the personnel dutifully working on various projects or maintenance. Thel noticed Ensign Tamara at the Matter/Anti-matter balancer console and decided to check on her progress.

 ---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
The Traveler - Eric Menyuk
Jazik Tamara - Rachel Weisz

The Brig

Literary Challenge 51
---

Lieutenant Vivian Warshawski sat on the bed in the small room feeling remorseful. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back, over her shoulders and almost covering her face.

"That was stupid, just stupid, " she said aloud to herself.

"Yes, it was."

She looked up and saw the Chief Engineer of the ship staring at her from the other side of the shield barrier. He was stern looking. Thel Ythysi rarely smiled anyway but his frown was very obvious. His Andorian antennae twitched slightly from either anger or disappointment. Maybe both.

Vivian stood quickly and saluted. "Sir, I -"

"Quiet!" Thel's interruption startled the security crew at their stations and had Vivian sit back down with lips trembling.

Thel crossed his arms, unfazed by his own outburst. Using a firm tone of voice, he said, "You do realize the unintended consequences of your actions." It was not a question.

The officer in the Brig nodded contritely. Thel scowled at the gesture, "then kindly remind me so I am confident you fully understand your actions and the reactions. And stand at attention, there is no room for pity anymore."

Vivian stood and mustered her courage while organizing her thoughts. She has to be succinct to survive this encounter and took a deep breath. "I ran a level three diagnostic of the starboard bussard collector. This was done erroneously to save time. Thus, a microburst of dekyon particles was not detected, which a level two diagnostic would have discovered. The build-up of over-charged dekyon particles ultimately caused the nacelle to drain more power from the Warp Core than expected. In turn this burned out the receptor coils leading to the nacelle." Vivian breathed in deeply through her nose as her breath expired on the last few words.

Thel's scowl deepened. "Which is why we are limping to Starbase Sierra-39. We are in the middle of Tal Shiar raided space and your action is endangering this ship and crew."

"I'm really sorry, sir."

"You knew your duty. A simple diagnostic run is all it would take to avoid all of this. A level 2 was scheduled. Scheduled! But you wanted to save ... time. Now we have a lot more of it. Or not depending on the enemy. Did you really think this would not go unnoticed?"

Vivian blurted with tears swelling in her eyes, "it will never happen again!"

Thel spoke as he turned away, "and that's why you are here."

---

Cast:
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Vivian Warshawski - Megan Hilty

 

The Long Road

Stardate 88546.72 - Earth Space Dock

The doors hiss open to reveal a small dimly-lit room where the lighting is reserved for the long table at the other end of the room. On a table are several small boxes, all are sealed but the contents are well-known.

I know what must be done ... and I don't want to do it. The condolences were already sent from my ready-room shortly after it all happened. That was standard procedure, but this part of the process is being altered at my request. Of the four hundred crew the Galatea started with, only 373 returned. From the missing, five received the venerable Federation Star Cluster posthumously. I guess, after six months, that is within the margin of acceptable loss.

One step forward.

'Acceptable Loss' runs counter to the idea of the preciousness of life. As a member of Starfleet, one assumes a certain level of risk. In the face of war, the risk goes up. Starfleet Academy is not low on recruits. That must be a good thing. The Academy works very hard to train for every contingency, to teach as much as possible for extreme proficiency and to model the discipline required for space-travel. And yet ... sometimes it's just not enough ...

One step forward.

My dress-uniform coat rests just above the knees. The dark-grey of the tunic is contrasted with white-colored piping. The shoulder pads reveal the deep blue of the Sciences department. My long scarlet hair is rolled into a bun, typical for human females of my rank. And it is my rank that allowed me to request a change in protocol. I was glad it was approved because the Galatea was my first true command. I earned the privilege to be her Captain. I earned the right to lead the crew and to make tough decisions. I thought it was a tough decision to perform this part of my duty in this way, when really it was a poor one. Admiral Quinn, in his wisdom, must have known what it would do to me and decided it would be a good lesson. One they do not teach you in the Academy.

One step forward.

It was the longest mission for Galatea: assist colonization efforts with the Paradans. We were returning home for rest and resupply when we were ambushed by Klingons. I ... we ... had no chance. Twenty-two lost in as many minutes, five more lost trying to save the ship ... the crew. Those five will get these awards resting on the table. I asked to personally deliver them to their families out of a sense of duty ... honor ... and ...

Guilt.

One step forward.

And that's the lesson: I can not assume their sacrifice is mine to own. Starfleet will take care of the families - all twenty-seven. I did my part by drafting personalized letters to them. What I'm doing now is not needed. But I felt I needed to do it.

One step forward.

Now I realize I really don't need to be here. I shouldn't be here because I'm going to lose more along the way. That's the assumption of risk everyone in Starfleet accepts.

One step forward.

I pick up a box. This one belongs to Rhonda Kealing. I remember her: always laughing and always playing practical jokes with the Engineering crew. Thel couldn't appreciate all the humor, but I let it ride nonetheless because she did boost morale. I could tell she was missed when I was in Engineering to help with repairs after the battle.

The other boxes are soon stacked in my hands and I turn toward the door. Only six steps away ... but they will be the first on the long road ahead of me.

 

There Are 47

Literary Challenge 47 - There Are 47!

---

"The are forty-seven!" The gruff Andorian responded to the demand. Kathryn looked forward to face the Nausicaan but looked unfazed by the revelation.

"My, my. I'm honored you have brought an armada against my lone cruiser. You'll forgive me if I don't tremble in fear."

The Nausicaan Leaderman bristled at Kathryn's grainy image on his main viewscreen, "Captain Beringer, your presence in our sector is at an end. The fact you are also harboring a traitor will make our victory renown within the Klingon Empire."

Kathryn smirked, "So, do you want to find me in the asteroid field or should I try to break out?"

"By all means my dear Captain, I challenge you to attempt an escape." Now Leaderman smiled as wide as his carapace would allow. He signaled his communications officer to break the link and the image altered to one showing the asteroid field his fleet had surrounded. Although his forty-seven ships were the smaller Destroyer Escorts, his numerical advantage was more than enough to defeat a single Federation vessel.

Leaderman sat into his command chair. "Tacticalman, I want to know when and where that witch appears. Our guns will deliver the killing blow."

---

“Senior Officers to the ready room,” Kathryn said calmly toward her badge but briskly walked toward the room. Other officers on the bridge followed suit. Once they settled in their usual seating, Kathryn looked to each of them and stopped at her chief engineer. The Andorian handed his PADD to her.

She reviewed the information quickly. “Thel, this is not good.”

The bulky Andorian nodded gravely. “We need to reach Starbase 39-Sierra for replacement parts. Until then, our Aegis shielding is inoperative. We have internal shields and can polarize the hull as a defense, but that’s simply not enough compared to the firepower out there.”

“Well then, I talked a lot of smack to someone who has the back-up to make me eat my words. Let’s make a miracle or conjure up some magic. I’m open to ludicrous ideas, frankly.”

There was a moment of silence before Karl Melango spoke up. “What about the asteroids?”

Romas Verthir's response came quickly, almost talking over Karl’s suggestion. “We could wait the Nausicaans out, but they’ll come to us eventually.”

Karl persisted, “I mean, why not take the offensive?”

The newest member of the senior staff, a Vulcan named S’Rel, sat back into her chair. “My apologies Romas, but I agree with you that a sit-and-wait posture does not improve our chances out of this situation.”

Karl lowered his head as he decided to wait for others to finish. The Betazoid Science  Officer calmly responded to S’Rel, he baritone voice filling the space between the two Officers. “It may not be the most logical option, but I think it has value to state the most obvious available to us.”

“Indeed,” S’Rel nodded.

Kathryn noted Karl's comments and leaned forward. “Karl, what were your thoughts?”

He looked up and tapped some commands onto the table, activating the wall display, then he stood and pointed to a schematic of the Solaris. “What if we were to manipulate the asteroids around us to become our shielding?”

Chief Engineer Thel Ytheysi placed a hand on his chin, “Are you suggesting using the Tractor Beams to hold a wall of asteroids around us as we attempt a break out? The stress on the beam emitters would be intense. Our dorsal and ventral flanks would still be exposed.”

Karl shook his head then looked to Omazei. “Asteroids tend to be solid and large enough to have their own magnetic fields, correct?”

The Trill Science Chief nodded, then her eyes widened as she made a connection. “Do you mean to control their movement via their magnetic fields?”

He smiled and introduced the ships artificial field lines over the schematic. “I’m not really sure this will work, honestly. It just came to mind.”

Omazei smiled wide then she turned to Kathryn. “Actually Captain, the idea has merit. The Transwarp Engine creates a very large magnetic field. We can adjust its size, wave pattern and even rotation to act like a … an … arm.”

Kathryn raised an eyebrow. “An arm?”

Thel spoke up. “I think I see what Omazei means. From Solaris the … arm … would reach out and grab the arm of a nearby asteroid. Both would then move together, the ship being ‘big brother’ holding ‘little brother’ to pull, spin around, or even push.”

“Exactly!” Karl was excited. “But could we do this with more than one asteroid? If we could have a ring of asteroids surround the ship … maybe even rotate it to accommodate various attack trajectories?”

First Officer Anthi Ythysi spoke up finally. “S'Rel, can the main computer handle this type of operation?”

The Operations Officer responded quickly. “Easily enough on the condition that tertiary systems be shut down. I will also need a team from Beta shift to regulate the power flow from the warp core to the main computer conduits on deck seven.”

"Ask for a miracle, and it will happen.” Kathryn smiled at her officers. “Well done team. The Nausicaan ‘traitor’ needs to get to Federation space and we aim to get him there.”

---

A couple of hours passed and the asteroids just floated in place, slowly spinning or bumping into each other without excitement. The bridge crew silently worked at their stations while the ship itself hummed quietly. Leaderman was anxious and he considered ordering the fleet into the field.

Suddenly, the tactical officer became more animated. "Leaderman, the Pishkar is under attack. Twenty-three point five kelicams on route two-two-seven mark two!"

Leaderman became alert. "Good. Helmsman, plot a course, full impulse speed. Commsman, alert the fleet and have them vector towards the Pishkar!" The ship's engines thrummed to life and the image on the screen showed the asteroid field zoom away as the ship turned. The Helmsman piloted the ship to fly in a parabolic arc to avoid the field.

Within several seconds the ship was within visual range of the battle. Many Escorts were involved and a few were burning wrecks. Leaderman expected that: Federation vessels were rarely easy to destroy.

The white-hulled ship was gracefully circling one Escort and beams of light were exchanged. But while the Starfleet weapons stuck the Nausicaan ship, the Nausicaan's beam struck an asteroid. Several asteroids of various sizes were orbiting the Federation ship, spinning in a ring that rotated to intercept incoming beam attacks. As the ship passed other asteroid, it was pulled into the ring to replace the ones that were destroyed. A few Nausicaan beams passed the defense ring and struck directly onto the hull, plating debris trailing the ship.

---

The ship rocked from the attacks that passed the defense ring. "Damage report!" Kathryn's knuckles were white on the arm rests as she watched the battle unfold. The asteroid ring was working beautifully and she was impressed. Omazei told everyone to expect some attacks would be deflected or absorbed, but it still mattered to Kathryn that her ship was taking damage.

"Structural integrity at eighty-two percent." Thel's report was better than it felt as the ship calmed from the latest attack.

Karl barked a warning, "One enemy ship closing proximity!"

Kathryn frowned, "Omazei, is the magnetic coupling strong enough to hold asteroids in place if we fly into the path of the enemy?"

"Yes, Captain, I believe so."

"Helm, fly into their path if we can. Anthi, how are the Spiral Wave arrays?"

Anthi grinned, "for their first use in anger, they are working wonders."

---

The escort ship came too close to Solaris. The ring of rocks battered the hull until it was breached. Explosions erupted and ripped the ship to pieces as asteroids completed the destruction from the outside. The Federation vessel was like a saw cutting into the Nausicaan ships as they arrived. The scene was utterly against what Leaderman was expecting.

"How are they able to do that?!"

The Scienceman did not look away from his console but looked closer at the readouts, "Leaderman, their magnetic field is being used to push and pull nearby asteroid, using the asteroids as their shields."

Leaderman spun on his heels, "I can see that, fool! Weaponsman, fire at will!"

The battle raged. The lone cruiser effortlessly weaved through the chaos of space combat. Each minute saw more damage to the Nausicaan fleet than they gave to the Starfleet ship, the ring of asteroids being an effective defense. With each Nausicaan ship destroyed, Leaderman's anger and frustration grew. The cruiser was battered and it's bright orange beams lashed out with less frequency, but it did not flee.

---

"That's forty-one down." Karl wiped sweat from his brow. He pulled the extinguisher from a side panel and sprayed against the fire nearby. He placed the canister back into the panel, then brushed off debris from his console.

Kathryn turned to the communications officer. "Any word from the Nausicaans?"

"No, sir." The blonde human's uniform was tattered from the fall she took earlier in the battle. Bruising was evident at her shoulders.

"Thel, What about the ship?"

"Structural Integrity down to thirty-five percent. I'll need a couple of hours to bring warp power online because there is a theta radiation leak on the port nacelle. I'm venting it out but this fight needs to end soon."

"S'Rel, how's the ring holding up?"

She tapped a few controls on his console. "The Warp Core is stable and so is the field."

Kathryn nodded. "Okay. Let's see if they have had enough. Open a channel." She waited for a signal. "This is Captain Beringer of the USS Solaris. Enough is enough. Surrender now before it's get worse."

---

Leaderman did not reply. He sat in disbelief and counted the remaining ships of his fleet: five plus his own. He looked around the bridge.  Every console in disarray with three wounded, two dead, and himself unscathed.  Switching to the live feed, he looked at the cruiser. Its white hull dimmed with several scars, fires burning within some sores. One nacelle coughing a green-colored cloud but one thing seemed unchanged ... that damned swirling ring of rocks. All ships were motionless and surrounded by the debris of the destroyed Escorts.

Leaderman was breathing heavily. The Nausicaan traitor must not get to Federation space, but the way this battle was fought so far, Leaderman was desperate. He stabbed a button on his command chair, "All ships, attack!" Releasing the button, he stood and pushed the dying Helmsman away from the console. Sitting, he paused above the controls and watched the last of his fleet slowly die. His plan was less exciting, but more glorious. It was all that was left.

A second Escort was thrown against another asteroid and exploded. Leaderman activated the engines, full impulse, straight toward the cruiser. He watched as another Escort was cut in two by a bright orange beam. Each half detonated, showering the local space with burning flotsam. Halfway to the cruiser, a third Escort spun away from the fight as one of its engines went dark, the warp core was ejected as it exploded, tearing the ship apart.

---

Kathryn expected the final move. "Ian -"

"Already on it, sir!"

---

A few kelicams away and the cruiser slowly banked away from Leaderman's ramming Escort. He smiled at the thought that Captain Beringer was indeed a coward, then he saw the asteroids used as a protective ring fly away in every direction. One boulder heading straight for his ship.

At the speed his ship was traveling, he couldn't steer away fast enough.

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0629697/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1]Rachel Nichols[/url]
Anthi Ythysi - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0935395/?ref_=sr_1]Katheryn Winnick[/url]
Thel Ythysi - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1]Kevin Sorbo[/url]
Omazei - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2605345/?ref_=tt_cl_t2]Gemma Arterton[/url]
S'Rel - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1072555/?ref_=sr_1]Morena Baccarin[/url]
Romas Verthir- [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0252961/?ref_=sr_1]Idris Elba[/url]
Karl Melango - [url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0719637/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1]Jeremy Renner[/url]
Leaderman - sidewalk extra 1
Tacticalman - sidewalk extra 2
Helmsman - sidewalk extra 3
Commsman - sidewalk extra 4
Weaponsman - sidewalk extra 5
Scienceman - sidewalk extra 6

Shards of the Mirror

Literary Challenge 5 - Shards of the Mirror

+++

The sword crashed against the rifle barrel. Sparks flew in all directions and both participants winced as they struggled to overpower the other. The man holding the rifle twisted to the right, forcing the sword-wielder off-balance. This was the opening he needed to raise a foot and connected to the enemy's torso. She turned with the kick, reducing its effectiveness, but didn't stop the attack entirely. He stood quickly and hefted the rifle like a bat then swung at the female's head. She completed her spin and raised the sword to shield her head and deflect the strike against her.

The rifle hit hard and she was pushed to one knee to prevent from falling. As he lifted the rifle for another blow, she swept her leg around and knocked the attacker onto his back. She jumped onto him and held the sword up to point the tip of the blade to his throat. She paused as the fight coordinator shouted, "Enough!"

Looking up at the woman straddling his waist, Ricol said, "This isn't over."

Kathryn Beringer smirked as she lowered her sword. "Oh, I think it is. Try this again and nothing will stop you from choking on my blade." She leaned down and kissed him. She forced as much passion as she could and it became easier with each swirl of her tongue. Ricol did not fight against her this time and welcomed her surprise attack. When Kathryn pulled away she immediately slapped Ricol across the face with as much might as she could muster. His head struck the arena floor with a crack and the crowd roared into applause and laughter. She stood and activated the Tholain weapon, the blade shimmered as it vibrated at frequencies too fast to be seen. She raised the weapon high and the laughter disappeared into the applause.

The fight coordinator stood slowly due to his corpulence and he profuse sweat in the outdoor heat almost drenched his uniform. He raised his hands to quiet the crowd in the arena and they complied within seconds. "The Trial of Grievance is over. Captain Kathryn Beringer is victorious over Captain Hassid Ricol. By the laws of the Empire, the ISS Abyssal is hers to command."

---

On board Abyssal ...

The Orion stretched with arms and legs fully extended. When she exhaled both arms swung in a wide arc to encompass the width of the bed. "I could get used to this." Her yellow-tinted dress flowed across the sheets and one leg was raised to reveal her smooth shiny skin.

Kathryn stepped from another room, two cups filled with Romulan Ale. She wore a nightgown that was translucent and bright red, revealing it was the only item of clothing draped over her shoulders. Smirking at the comment, she sighed, "I've worked very hard to get us here. Now I can make war as it should be: with brute force. Ricol was weak and he wasted this ship's potential to crush the Alliance." Her olive-skinned partner purred when she received the drinking glass.

"I'm curious: why this ship above the rest in the fleet?" The Orion licked her lips after a long sip and placed the drink on the stand next to the bed.

Raising an eyebrow, Kathryn sipped from her cup. "To be honest, Staza, I love her lines. It's a classic look, but underneath her beauty is a dangerous animal. That is appealing to me."

Staza Murai pushed herself up and leaned in toward Kathryn. "Well said, my love." They kissed and Kathryn snapped her fingers, turning out the lights.

+++


Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Staza Murai - Sarah Lind
Hassid Ricol - Matt Nable
Fight Coordinator - Street extra 1

Passing Grades

Literary Challenge 4 - Passing Grades

+++

The alarms shut off and the pair of female cadets took a step back from the console.  A male voice boomed into the room.  "Cadets, the ship has been destroyed.  Test will resume in five minutes."  The Andorian wearing a red striped Cadet uniform pounded the table with both fists and growled in frustration.  Looking up at the woman with a blue-striped uniform in front of her, she regretted the outburst.  "I'm sorry, I'm not seeing a way out of this mess."

Kathryn grinned.  "It's okay, that's a part of the test, remember?  We are standing in Engineering because that's not our specialty."

Looking down at the schematics on the table , the Andorian female sighed to relax.  "Fine.  Let's review the situation again."  She pulled the tie out of her hair and wrapped it back into a ponytail.  

"Anthi, did I ever tell you that you are a beautiful when you concentrate?"

The look on Anthi's face told Kathryn that brevity was not allowed and she quickly looked to concentrate on the diagram as well.  "The schematics for the FWF-1 warp engines of the Miranda-class should be re-classified as ancient.  I hope my first deployment is not on one of these."

The Andorian smirked, "Now you said it, so you can bet on it."

They were finishing their analysis of the previous trial when the diagram reset to prearranged parameters.  Signals on the console started flashing and sliding within various fields.  Alarms started blaring and a hose expelled a white vapor to simulate damage from somewhere else.  The room shook violently and both cadets gripped the table to prevent falling to the ground.

Kathryn reviewed a panel.  "Damage to the port nacelle.  Inverted plasma coupling destabilizing."

"Re-routing power to aft auxiliary conduits."  Anthi furiously tapped onto a side panel.

"What about fore conduits?"

"That would transfer warp power through the ionic grid network.  The stress would tear the nacelle off the hull."

Kathryn nodded then started tapping commands furiously on the shared keypad to her right.  "Shutting off plasma valve to port nacelle."

The warning claxon stopped abruptly and expectantly.  After a few seconds, Anthi furrowed her eyebrows as she focused onto a part of the ship schematic.  Pointing to an image toward the rear of the ship, she asked, "what's that magnetic interface disturbance?"

Looking at the signal on the table, Kathryn tried to recall her training and instantly knew the test had deviated from the three previous incarnations.  "I don't ... that's different from last time."   The feeling of the simulation faded as she became absorbed trying to solve the problem.  "Isn't that near the thermal protective manifold?"

"Checking."  Anthi's fingers darted across the keypad to her left as she also became absorbed into the simulation.  "Yes, running internal scan."  After a few moments, information scrolled on the screen.  " The disturbance is magnetic in nature but it’s also emitting tetryon radiation."

Kathryn smiled at the revelation.  "Let's see, ordering the manifold be removed would expose the interior to deadly artificial tetyrons.  Leaving the problem would cause the magnetic field of the disturbance to effectively melt the thermal shielding over time.  Damned if you do."

"That's the sum of it, so what can we do from here?"  Anthi wrung her hands together.

Kathryn looked at the blinking anomaly and bit her lower lip.  "Open the access hatch, here."  She pointed at a nearby location.  "That will freeze the manifold, minimize the magnetic disturbance and vacuum out the radiation.  We can order an evacuation of any nearby crew."

Anthi stood straight and placed a hand on her chin as she thought.  "What if the disturbance is immobile?  Sucking the radiation particles is a quick clean-up but doesn't remove the problem."

The science cadet looked around the room as if the answer would appear from somewhere, then she looked up at the tactical cadet.  "What if it does remove the problem?  Otherwise - " she looked down at the schematic, "we activate hazard shielding here, here, here ... and here below those decks to contain the source until we get a crew in Hazard Suits to inspect from outside the ship."

"I'm not so sure."

Kathryn's eyebrows came together.  "I am.  I have half a mind to release the hull plates exposing the location to the void of space for the rest of the journey."  She paused for effect.  "Open the access hatch."

Anthi's face became serious.  After a few seconds, she tapped a command on the console.  The signal faded.

Both released their breath loudly and relaxed their shoulders.

---

"That was an interesting move, Cadet."  The instructor was scrutinizing Kathryn's test results as he sat behind his desk.  He smoothed his mustache with one hand as was his habit.  "Not particularly innovative, but direct."

Kathryn stood at attention and did not look away from the spot on the wall above the instructor.  "Thank you, sir."

The instructor placed the PADD on the desk.  "At ease.  What was the motivation for the choice you made?"

Cadet Beringer relaxed visibly.  Of the options available, it was the least invasive to the ship, sir."

He nodded without looking away.  "Hindsight being 20/20, do you have any other solutions?"

Without pause, Kathryn responded, "No, sir."

"That's good.  There were none.  You made the right choice which ultimately lead to your passing the course."

Kathryn beamed a very wide smile.  "Thank you, sir!"

"No need for thanks, you did the work.  Tangentially, how would you rate your partner in the test?"

"She will have an excellent career, sir.  I would be honored to serve under her command."

 +++

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Training Coordinator - Bill Murray

Risian Getaway

Literary Challenge 46 - Risian Getaway

+++

The air is cool and the breeze perfectly flows around me. I close my eyes and slowly lean onto the railing, shifting my weight onto one leg. Even though I enjoy letting my hair down when off duty, somehow on Risa doing so seems more comfortable. The breeze wisps through my red hair and over my cheek, tickling my nose. I can't help but smile at the feeling and from the fragrance. Such beauty from the aroma alone. Breathing it in reminds me of a word: Amaranth. It is a flower, but it’s the word that just comes to mind for no reason I can make a link to. I whisper the word then slowly open my eyes. Before my eyes is just a small part of the Lohlunat Festival - the dance floor. The lights made brighter against the night above the resort.

My room is twelve stories high with another two stories more. From this height I am confident I have enough privacy. Sure, people could look up and see me at the railing to the balcony but all they would see is my silhouette, if even that as the light from my room is dim. My smile widens as the breeze sends a chill up my bare back and ends with goosebumps on my arms. It’s a sensation you rarely feel on board a starship. I've missed being outside. At the Academy there was plenty of opportunity to study and stroll in the outdoor quad. Maybe that was intentional: to give the Cadets a last chance (so to speak) to enjoy such atmosphere as most of us would find our way on board climate-controlled ships or stations. Of course there were planetary postings, both alien and "earth-like" ... but nothing like Earth. Risa is wonderful, but it's not the same. Right now, it doesn't matter. I'm not on Solaris. Not on Earth. And I'm fine with that for now.

I shift my weight onto my other leg and continue looking at the dance floor. The varied species of the galaxy are gyrating on the brightly colored tiles. I think that's a Gorn shaking his ... her? ... posterior to a ... Rigelian? That is a Breen wearing shorts - I shudder slightly and look to my left.  There is a couple kissing passionately three balconies over to my right. I blush a little as I stare at them, then I remember that I'm the one standing naked in the dark. I back away from the railing. Touching the door frame, I reach for my glass of Kanar. The drink is a little thicker than I'm used to, but it is perfect for my mood. The regulated weather has been rejuvenating. Rest has been needed. The glass is emptied and I lick my lips to clean them of remaining flavor.

Turning into my dimly lit room I pause at the threshold of the doorway and let the breeze pull my hair back. After another moment I decide to finish what I started. Sitting at the desk I pick up the PADD and approve the following Duty Officers for transfer to the Solaris: Nurse Jimmie Massie, Hazard System Officer Belwan Fale, Security Officer Craig McClaren, Projectile Officer Beggonge, and Warp Core Engineer Jeff Nayee.

+++

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols

Down the Wormhole

Literary Challenge 44 - Down the Wormhole

+++

The maw of the wormhole gaped open and inviting: the swirling periphery also pulsating in a mesmerizing rhythm. The core of the storm was a very bright white, illuminating the black space around it. The Solaris was washed in the brightness of the opening thirty thousand kilometers away from the celestial event. Inside the bridge, the crew watched the scene through the main viewer. Only the Science Chief, a Trill named Omazei looked toward her console with concentration. Data streamed on screens revealing various telemetry.

"Omazei, anything?" Kathryn did not look away. Several minutes passed since the second probe was launched. Its intent was directed into the center of the wormhole. The first probe was still in a circuit collecting data at the periphery.

Omazei's fingers were in dedicated motion across the console, small beads of sweat dotted her forehead. "There is more than enough information to keep astrometrics busy for days."

Kathryn, not satisfied with the cryptic answer, walked up to the Science station and started staring at the readout. Having a strong background in astrometrics before her Captaincy, Kathryn's review of the data surprised her. She quietly excused Omazei's answer and let the Science Chief do her job.

Minutes passed. Both Kathryn and Omazei silently looking at the data with Kathryn more as an observer. Another minute passed when First Officer Anthi Ythysi walked up and quietly cleared her throat. "Captain, is there anything we should be concerned about?"


Kathryn had to force herself to look away from the screens. "No. Not yet. Maybe not at all." She looked back at Omazei and said, "Is that really what I think it is?"

"I think so Captain."

Anthi crossed her arms, her Andorian temperament under the surface. "What do we think it is?"

Kathryn stood and faced her XO, and then looked to the bridge crew. "Out there is a portal to another universe."

Karl Melango, the ship Security Chief stood and said, "What kind of universe?"

Omazei responded, "As you know, with the revelation of the Mirror Universe, the idea of Multiverses is no longer fiction but fact." She paused and pointed the viewscreen. "This wormhole is leading to a new universe ... an 'anti-verse'. Visually, everything is in negative: space is not black, but white, stars emit black-light. Everything is the same, scientifically speaking ... it just looks different."

"So, is there another Solaris on the other side?" Chief Engineer Thel Ythysi spoke up but didn't look away from the viewscreen.

"Possibly, but not probably," Omazei responded. "More research is needed but the probe does not detect another ship. I can't postulate anything beyond that."

Kathryn stepped toward her command chair. "Omazei, catalogue this location. Send your findings to Starfleet and launch a third probe. Set it to transmit back to us. Karl, set a class two special warning marker. If this wormhole becomes stable then Starfleet needs to send its best. We have a patrol to complete and we are not in the best space to sit and wait. If the wormhole collapses then at least we have something. Mr. McKinnon, set course back onto the patrol route."

"Aye, Captain." Ian tapped some controls on the navigation console.

+++

Cast:
 

The Gauntlet

Literary Challenge 45 - Freestyle

---

Kathryn sat nervously in the chair. She was close to finishing her time in the Academy: only one or two more classes, the exit exams, the dreaded Kobayashi Maru ... and this counseling session. Kathryn had several sessions as a part of the required officer training because, Officer Candidacy in the Academy can be very stressful from physical and mental demands. Her classmates called this part of the Academy curriculum "The Gauntlet" because the Counselor was not Betazoid as one would expect, but a Vulcan. The session consisted of a mind-meld designed to search for the true motivation of the cadet among other personal facts of opportunities. To say that the session is invasive is a misnomer; each cadet agrees to the process as a part of their training for the sake of experience. Regardless, Kathryn has fears about what is going to happen.

Counselor A'Mand could tell. "Remember, you are here to learn. You will learn why you are here. I am not here to judge.  I am only a catalyst to knowledge. Fear is only in your mind, but fear can hurt you like a blade.  It can kill you, but only if you let it overcome who you are. Do not be afraid. You. Are. Safe."

Safe.

The word penetrated Kathryn's thoughts.  Her stress washed away and she lay back onto the couch. A'Mand kneeled at Kathryn's side and placed her hands onto the facial points necessary for a soft transition Mind Meld.

"My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your ... your fears are my ... start ... beginning ..."

... remember ...

I remember now. I remember how it started. I remember doing what they told me ...

A ship.

A cargo ship ... no transport ship.

Colony. Colonization. Hesperus.

A girl. A teenage girl.

Red hair. Ponytails. Me.

Parents. Mom. Dad.

Warning.

Attack. Fire. Explosion.

Capture.

Darkness.

Chains. Pain. Sadness.

Slave? Death? Fear of ...

Mom?!

Dad?!

Chains. Pain. Sadness.

Orions!

Tribe? Tatoo? Scar? Left Arm.

Sold. Slave.

Angry ...

I feel your pain. What happened next?

... iwasforcedtoworkintheminesiwasforcedtoworkormypare ntswoulddie ...

Are your parents alive?

No.

What happened?

Torture. Accident.

I did what they told me.

But they still died.

Not your fault.

I know.

Do you accept that?

No. Yes. Maybe.

Do you blame your captors?

Yes. No. Maybe.

Why did you join Starfleet?

Why? To make the galaxy safe.

From who?

Syndicate. Slavers. Evil.

Admirable. How will you achieve that goal?

Not revenge. Duty.

Not vendetta. Honor.

Interesting. Why are you really here?

Really? To live a new life.

Is that Starfleet's purpose?

Maybe. No. Yes.

What should Starfleet give to you?

Security. Freedom.

Do you not have freedom?

Freedom for future, but not freedom from past.

What can free you from your past?

To forget. To forgive.

How will you forgive?

Direct action.

---
Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
A'Mand - Lynn Collins

Legacy of Romulus

Literary Challenge 42 - The Legacy of Romulus

---

Kovem sat down heavily onto the stool at the bar.  The creaking sound alerted the Orion bartender and he looked toward Kovem.  The Romulan replied to the look with a small wave and the bartender nodded.  Within moments a familiar clear red drink slid across the bar and stopped under Kovem’s chin.  That caused a brief smile to appear before the contents of the glass were washed down with a loud gulp.  The red liquid burned on the way down and literally splashed into his stomach.  The familiar sensation was reassuring, as if to remind Kovem that he was not in a nightmare he could not wake up from and that he was alive enough to try to change his lot in life.

What do you want?

The last words his father said to him haunted his memories and every other thought he had since then.  It was a simple question, but the answer eluded him for years.  Without an answer, the words taunted him at the same time because how can anyone not … answer … the question.  It was frustrating.

Glory? 

The Romulan Star Empire was a shadow of its former self even before the Hobus Event.  Nowadays it’s even worse, from a certain point of view.  Sela wants to restore the Empire as it was; D’Tan wants to rebuild the Empire into something new.  As long as these two factions exist then nothing will really happen.  So, proud Romulans like him are stuck between two opposing forces.  A choice will need to be made.  Soon.  It won’t matter who is right, as long as a clear path is made.  The Elements can then decide what glory there is for Romulans and Remans in the galaxy.

Kovem swallowed the last drops from his glass and ordered another round.  A new glass slid and stopped like the first.

Fortune?

The galaxy has no place for entrepreneurs.  The Ferengi are fools to try to think money is a compelling factor in anything worthwhile.  Those who follow the Ferengi ways are idiots themselves.  The galaxy is at war and those who seek to monetize from conflict will only find death.  They deserve it, such scum.  No loyalty except to the highest bidder or the greater largess.  Scavengers are even worse!  There is no sympathy to those who eke out some paltry existence from the sorrow or misgiving or others.  But really, the pirates are the bottom-feeders of the universe.  Pillaging, plundering and pilfering from anyone in their path.  Piracy has little regard for law and true honor. 

Kovem snarled into his drink and looked around to see if anyone was watching him.  Seeing none he brooded further in his solitary quest for relief from the question that vexed him.

Revenge?

It’s been years since the colony on New Romulus was attacked by the Tal Shiar.  Little Biel’tan and Al’tioc – their lives cut short because of Sela’s hubris and anger.  The Romulans lost their homeworlds and one person - one half-Romulan! - decided those that did not stand with her were against her.  Kovem’s children weren’t given the chance to choose and that seared at his aging soul.  His wife, Iyasha, was inconsolable.  But she chose a one-way path: she felt her purpose in life - to be a mother - was gone, so her life had no purpose.  He yelled to the dark stars above the ruins of New Romulus … but no one listened.

Kovem’s knuckles were white as he gipped the glass tighter.  He stopped himself from destroying another bar glass.  If the cursed Vulcan’s had one thing right, it was their control of emotions could help keep a bar tab from getting bigger.

Duty?

…

Duty ...

His eyes widened and he sat up straighter. 

One word.

In the many years since his father’s uttering his last breath, Kovem had not considered it.  Was “duty” the legacy his father wanted to bestow upon Kovem?  Why didn’t he just say it?  Why didn’t he try to do something about it?  Duty.  The word solidified in his mind’s eye.  It pushed aside all other thoughts. 

He looked around, hoping to wake up from a dream; hoping to find the inspiration to act; hoping the alcohol would evaporate from his blood so he could run.   

Kovem kept looking around him, seeing the same faces he saw before minding their own business.  He took account of his situation.  After his wife’s death, he jumped on a freighter and fled New Romulus.  He did not take up arms, but instead found a place on the civilian crew of Drozana Station.  The dirty place allowed him to hide from his past but he could not find his future here.  Maybe he lost his future in the throngs of miscreants, merchants, privateers, pirates, scavengers and scum.

Or maybe he just found it.

What do you want?

But there was more than the cold, expressionless idea of “duty”.  There was the warm and renewing feeling of hope.  He marveled how such a simple answer had eluded him all the years past.

Kovem smiled to himself and paid his tab in full, then walked toward the doors to the bar.  He could see himself standing on the transporter pad, his destination to a vessel traveling away from this trash heap in space.  The doors creaked open and the hallway gaped open.  He stopped, unsure where his next step would take him besides one step closer to the transporter room.

---

Cast:
Kovem D'Gorin - David Lyons

Call To Arms

Literary Challenge 41 - Call To Arms

---

2 hours ago

"Captain, their forward shields are down!" Anthi's usually calm demeanor disappeared at the climax of the battle.

Kathryn stood and pointed at the burning starship on the screen. "Weapons, Fire!"

From the lower rear hull, a large missile was ejected. Its bio-neural intelligence quickly scanned the area, locked on the enemy ship, activated thrusters and primed the warhead. The Solaris banked to starboard as the warhead sped toward it's victim three kilometers away. The Orion Brigand Cruiser coughed a torpedo at the missile but was shot down by the massive projectile's point-defense system. The missile penetrated the forward hull like a needle into a puss-filled bruise. Internal atmosphere vented for a half-second before the detonation ripped the ship apart. Chunks of burning hull and thousands of small debris, metal and organic, blossomed from the fireball that consumed the rest of the ship.

On the bridge, Kathryn looked away from the screen to the crew on the bridge. "Good work everyone. Anthi, you and Karl are on the assault team. Omazei, you have the con.  Contact Lieutenant Retarius and Doctor Kramer to meet us in transporter room two. I'm giving this op two hours with reports. At that mark, bring in the M.A.C.O. Team for clean-up and recovery."

The Trill Science Chief nodded gravely and started tapping at her console.

+++

10 minutes later

The Away Team was assembled in the transporter room and all were strapping kits and checking weapons. The click-and-clack merged with the hum of the ships engines.  Kathryn noticed the concentration on the team's faces and decided something needed to be said. "Ok, before we transport, the Orions on the station have lost their way out. That means they'll be fighting from a corner. They'll be more vicious on defense, so we need to keep up the offense. There are two objectives: security of the crew and preservation of research material. Lieutenant Retarius is joining the team for the secondary goal." She looked at each of the team as she spoke. "But there is a tertiary objective: enemy combatants are to be treated with extreme prejudice."

Medical Chief Annika Kramer, spoke after several seconds of silence, her voice almost booming even in an attempt to keep it conversational. "Sir, is that necessary?"

"Yes, Doctor.  The research conducted on the station is highly sensitive and therefore valuable to the war effort. For that reason, only the station crew and this team are allowed to walk away from this situation."

Security officer Karl Melango spoke next, "What about the Cordorba?"

Kathryn looked in his direction. "They will be turned around if ... when ... we succeed."

Anthi was next, her Andorian antennae twitched nervously as she spoke. "These are Orions, Sir. Is this a coincidence?"

Everyone looked at Kathryn for a response. They all knew bits of her past but only Anthi knew the full story.  For her part, she looked down, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she looked back to Anthi, her affect was neutral as if she resigned herself to what was said next. "'Duty to Starfleet before duty to self', that is what I said to Admiral Decker when I spoke for this crew as we joined the Dawn Patrol Task Force.  To answer the question, yes.  Thank you for keeping me honest Anthi. Right now, we are alone, so my orders are for the safety of the station crew and protection of the research."

Kathryn felt insincere saying it but her words were true and she hoped the team would believe them. She could tell her First Officer was not convinced. Looking at the others it was hard to tell, yet she knew they would follow her orders.  Kathryn slung the phaser rifle over her shoulder, nodded, and turned to step onto the transporter pad.

+++

1 hour later

She lifted the rifle to her shoulder and squeezed the trigger.  An orange beam raced to her target, burned through the shielding and pierced into the helmet. She raked the beam down into the torso as the body convulsed to death. Releasing the trigger deactivated the beam, the armored soldier collapsed and silence returned to the darkened corridor.  Kathryn peered down the hallway and waited a few seconds. Not hearing more sounds, she exhaled in relief and looked at the team. Everyone's armor was scored in various places but otherwise no one was injured and doing very well. They were facing a corridor with a side path a few meters to the right. The research hub was at the end of the hallway where the concentration of the remaining invaders and station crew were kept.

Kathryn motioned for Annika and Karl to advance down the side path, the other two with her against the final door. As the team split, Margaret set up a phaser turret at the intersection of the hallway, aiming toward the door. Anthi watched the doorway while Kathryn turned to face the path they came from.

Margaret whispered, "Turret is set up and primed."

"And you are sure the suit doesn't conceal anything the user holds?" Kathryn whispered over her shoulder.

The Lieutenant nodded as she made a final adjustment on the remote turret.

"Ok. Anthi, you're up."

The Andorian took a few steps back and lowered her rifle. Anthi removed a folded cloth from her kit and started fitting into the black body suit. She zipped up to her breasts, reached behind the new layer and tugged at her Andorian combat knife before zipping up to her neck. Pulling forward a cowl that covered her head, she tapped a code onto an unseen pad within the suit above her right breast.  Anthi suddenly became invisible excepting for a very faint silhouette seen only barely as she moved toward a Jefferies tube.

The hatch plate moved to the floor by unseen hands, a few seconds passed and was lifted back into place.

Kathryn smiled. "By the way Retarius, next time I tell you to turn over everything to me, do it. This time I'm glad you didn't." She tapped her badge twice.

Her badge vibrated as Karl responded silently. Kathryn tapped three times to send the code designed to let Karl know that Anthi was deployed.

+++

5 minutes later

Kathryn looked at her PADD as it revealed the technical layout of the room beyond the doors. She grinned as the enemy red dots were congregated near a console, while the station crew green dots were huddled in a corner next to a single red dot. Anthi's blue dot slowly moved toward the lone red one. The rest of the Away Team surrounded the room at both entrances. If Kathryn opened her door the turret would have a clear line of sight to the enemy. It would be too easy.

+++

Inside the room

Anthi was three meters away from the Orion guard. He was a hulk of a man and was menacing the crew with a deadly stare. His back was to Anthi as she approached. She quickly unzipped the suit, reached for her knife and charged. One scientist saw the knife appear out of nowhere and became terrified. The Orion spun to look and raised the disruptor pistol as the blade flashed across his neck. Anthi grabbed the pistol and twisted it away with one hand. She spun the knife in her other hand then drove it hilt-deep into an eye socket, splashing her with orange blood.

Outside the room

The blue and red dots touched. This was it. Kathryn braced herself.  That was Margaret's sign to open the door. As the door hissed open the group of Orions spun around , clearly surprised.  They drew weapons just as the automated turret clicked, finding targets it released its charge.  Kathryn pressed her rifle's trigger quickly to fire short bursts.

The group of Orions danced as the barrage of phaser bolts chewed and burned into them.

+++

5 minutes later

"Solaris, this is the Captain. Crew is secured, Team is safe, situation under control. Stand by."

Omazei sounded relieved.  "Understood, Captain. Glad to hear your voice. Standing by."

She looked down the hallway to watch Anthi removing the stealth suit out of sight from everyone else in the room. Annika scanned the station crew with her tricorder and conducting necessary triage. Margaret was talking with the lead researcher at a console, schematics concerning the stealth suit were visible between them.  Karl inspected the Orions for anything valuable to determine the 'why, who and what' of their coming to the station.

Kathryn walked to an Orion body.  She tore an arm sleeve open. Karl watched her and looked at the exposed arm. A dark scar ran down the arm. He recognized the gang symbol and looked to Kathryn.

"Is that -"

"Yes."  Kathryn interrupted but did not look away and pulled out a tricorder, scanning the body.  Karl stood and watched, knowing the Captain owned the situation. Anthi walked up to Karl, surveyed the scene and waited as well. Kathryn finished her scan and stood. "None of these." She stalked to the lone sentry Anthi dispatched and repeated her scan.

Once the scan was complete, the display informed Kathryn there was a match. She opened a smaller PADD strapped to her thigh, keyed in a command and struck through a name from a list. When she returned to Karl and Anthi, she pointed a thumb over her shoulder. "That was one of them."

+++

Now

"... and after all enemy combatants were neutralized, the station was secured. Replacement parts and components are being transferred as we speak."

"Good work Captain Beringer. Are you sure you don't need Codorba to assist? Maybe a joint patrol of the system perhaps?" The male Captain's bald head shined in the light of his Ready Room. He smiled in a way that was inherently charming to Kathryn, but she couldn’t tell if that was a genuine feeling from her or not.

"Thank you Captain Daikar but unfortunately that will not be necessary." Unfortunately?! Kathryn's thought disappeared quickly. "By the time you arrive we'll have handled that and anything else. But if the situation gets worse I'll be sure to contact Starfleet with a special note to you?" She rolled her mind's eyes to herself.

"That would be welcome. I hope to hear from you in the future either way. Daikar out."

The screen went blank and Kathryn sighed in relief and then looked to Anthi sitting on the other side of her desk. The First Officer leaned forward in her chair and rested her arms on the table. "Kathryn, officially speaking, have you told anyone in Starfleet about the details of your past?"

"Do you think my judgment is biased?"

Anthi sat back. "Not really, but I'm not in the mood to start doubting you."

"Good. Let me know when that happens. To answer your question, other than you ... no, and for the record, that is how it will stay."

"So, what happened here was ... coincidence?"

Kathryn nodded and smiled. "Luck more like it."

---
Cast:

Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols

Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick

Omazei - Gemma Arterton

Annika Kramer - Abbie Cornish

Karl Melango - Jeremy Renner

Daikar - Billy Zane