Literary Challenge 13 - The Void
Kathryn put her fingers to her lips as she vaguely recalled her Academy days. She slowly nodded and whispered to herself, "I've heard of this before." Then recollection hit her like lightening and she snapped her fingers. Looking from the blank viewscreen to her Science Chief, Omazei, the Trill knew the look from Kathryn.
"Red Alert, raise shields." The crew moved as if on instinct. Omazei's fingers flew across her console. When she finished, Kathryn's command chair beeped. She sat into it and pulled up the data Omazei sent. After scanning the report, Kathryn said, "Helm, evasive maneuvers, flight pattern Thunder Two." Ian acknowledged and the ship lurched to port.
Blue-hued beams shot at the space Solaris emptied.
Kathryn continued the orders. "Thel, get an emergency shield up around the Deuterium tanks and modulate through the spectrum. That's for precaution." The Chief Engineer replied as Solaris changed vector and more beams raced past the ship.
"Omazei, open a channel, all frequencies." A beep was lost in the rumble of the ship's engines as they pushed the massive cruiser into twists directed by Ian McKinnon's controls. "Attacking vessel, this is the Federation warshipSolaris. We are on a diplomatic mission and was pulled into The Void. Cease fire or we will be forced to retaliate." The bridge crew turned to Kathryn as she spoke, surprised by her choice of words.
Thel spoke after a few seconds of silence as the attack seemed to stall. "Captain. A warship?"
Kathryn nodded and spoke quickly. "I'm hoping the bluff will work. Can you get your teams to work on a polaron modulator? That's how Voyager got out and we'll need to as well; history will be our guide in the dark. S'Rel, are there any records of vessels disappearing near our previous coordinates? We may need to go on a rescue mission before we save ourselves. Omazei, find a way out."
The ship shook from multiple strikes and the crew grabbed onto anything nearby to keep their balance. Thel reported, "shields down to 65%, the Deuterium tanks are still at nominal levels."
Kathryn growled, "Strong guns. Anthi, return fire at will, go for crippling shots for now." The Andorian First officer affirmed the order and several banks fired into the void, out of view from the main screen.
Anthi raised a fist and pumped it slightly near her chest. "Target shields down to 20% and engines offline."
"Good shooting. Aim for weapon points next."
A blue beam landed onto Solaris' shields, illuminating the invisible barrier briefly. The answering volley shredded the enemy ship, sending debris in all directions. The hull stayed intact but it was obvious power within the ship was shut down.
Kathryn smiled. "Well done, everyone." She walked over to S'Rel's Operations console and asked, "any luck?"
The Vulcan shook her head. "Nothing has been reported within the last six months. Based on this, I perceive our attackers have been here for at least that long. I'd recommend we find a way out of The Void with celerity."
"Agreed. Anthi, beam aboard any survivors and put them in the brig for piracy. I'll need to ask some questions from them anyway."
---
The Devore stood as Kathryn and Anthi stepped forward. "I am Captain Enaos. It's ironic, you placing me and my crew in the brig. You've just made living in this dark hole in the universe better for us as our own supplies were running low." He smiled. "You, like us, are trapped now. Consider the Void your own prison.
Kathryn placed her hands on her hips. "Interesting way to start a conversation. I'm Kathryn Beringer and welcome aboard, for what it's worth. You may not know this, but the Federation has entered and left The Void before. You only had to ask for help; we would have assisted without prejudice or reciprocity."
The pompous smile evacuated Enaos' face. Kathryn continued, "we will wait for another funnel to allow us to leave once our astrometrics team finds one nearby. As for your fate, I'm sure the Devore Imperium will be interested to learn how you have spent your time here."
Enaos seemed to bristle at the concealed threat. "We had to do what we could to survive or die."
Kathryn ignored the defense. "How many more ships are in The Void?"
"Does it matter?"
"No. I suppose not. Well then, Captain ... enjoy your stay on Solaris." She looked around the sparse brig and grinned. "Unlike you, I do not plan on staying any longer than necessary."
Kathryn turned and started walking away from the cell. Looking to Anthi, she said loud enough to be heard by Enaos, "Commander, please destroy Captain Enaos' ship to star dust and take you time doing so. Just in case anyone watching decides we are easy prey." Kathryn turned on her heels and looked back at Enaos sternly. "Starfleet doesn't take kindly to surprise attacks."
The doors to the brig closed.
---
Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Ian McKinnon - Ben Browder
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Enaos - Bryan Cranston
Kathryn put her fingers to her lips as she vaguely recalled her Academy days. She slowly nodded and whispered to herself, "I've heard of this before." Then recollection hit her like lightening and she snapped her fingers. Looking from the blank viewscreen to her Science Chief, Omazei, the Trill knew the look from Kathryn.
"Red Alert, raise shields." The crew moved as if on instinct. Omazei's fingers flew across her console. When she finished, Kathryn's command chair beeped. She sat into it and pulled up the data Omazei sent. After scanning the report, Kathryn said, "Helm, evasive maneuvers, flight pattern Thunder Two." Ian acknowledged and the ship lurched to port.
Blue-hued beams shot at the space Solaris emptied.
Kathryn continued the orders. "Thel, get an emergency shield up around the Deuterium tanks and modulate through the spectrum. That's for precaution." The Chief Engineer replied as Solaris changed vector and more beams raced past the ship.
"Omazei, open a channel, all frequencies." A beep was lost in the rumble of the ship's engines as they pushed the massive cruiser into twists directed by Ian McKinnon's controls. "Attacking vessel, this is the Federation warshipSolaris. We are on a diplomatic mission and was pulled into The Void. Cease fire or we will be forced to retaliate." The bridge crew turned to Kathryn as she spoke, surprised by her choice of words.
Thel spoke after a few seconds of silence as the attack seemed to stall. "Captain. A warship?"
Kathryn nodded and spoke quickly. "I'm hoping the bluff will work. Can you get your teams to work on a polaron modulator? That's how Voyager got out and we'll need to as well; history will be our guide in the dark. S'Rel, are there any records of vessels disappearing near our previous coordinates? We may need to go on a rescue mission before we save ourselves. Omazei, find a way out."
The ship shook from multiple strikes and the crew grabbed onto anything nearby to keep their balance. Thel reported, "shields down to 65%, the Deuterium tanks are still at nominal levels."
Kathryn growled, "Strong guns. Anthi, return fire at will, go for crippling shots for now." The Andorian First officer affirmed the order and several banks fired into the void, out of view from the main screen.
Anthi raised a fist and pumped it slightly near her chest. "Target shields down to 20% and engines offline."
"Good shooting. Aim for weapon points next."
A blue beam landed onto Solaris' shields, illuminating the invisible barrier briefly. The answering volley shredded the enemy ship, sending debris in all directions. The hull stayed intact but it was obvious power within the ship was shut down.
Kathryn smiled. "Well done, everyone." She walked over to S'Rel's Operations console and asked, "any luck?"
The Vulcan shook her head. "Nothing has been reported within the last six months. Based on this, I perceive our attackers have been here for at least that long. I'd recommend we find a way out of The Void with celerity."
"Agreed. Anthi, beam aboard any survivors and put them in the brig for piracy. I'll need to ask some questions from them anyway."
---
The Devore stood as Kathryn and Anthi stepped forward. "I am Captain Enaos. It's ironic, you placing me and my crew in the brig. You've just made living in this dark hole in the universe better for us as our own supplies were running low." He smiled. "You, like us, are trapped now. Consider the Void your own prison.
Kathryn placed her hands on her hips. "Interesting way to start a conversation. I'm Kathryn Beringer and welcome aboard, for what it's worth. You may not know this, but the Federation has entered and left The Void before. You only had to ask for help; we would have assisted without prejudice or reciprocity."
The pompous smile evacuated Enaos' face. Kathryn continued, "we will wait for another funnel to allow us to leave once our astrometrics team finds one nearby. As for your fate, I'm sure the Devore Imperium will be interested to learn how you have spent your time here."
Enaos seemed to bristle at the concealed threat. "We had to do what we could to survive or die."
Kathryn ignored the defense. "How many more ships are in The Void?"
"Does it matter?"
"No. I suppose not. Well then, Captain ... enjoy your stay on Solaris." She looked around the sparse brig and grinned. "Unlike you, I do not plan on staying any longer than necessary."
Kathryn turned and started walking away from the cell. Looking to Anthi, she said loud enough to be heard by Enaos, "Commander, please destroy Captain Enaos' ship to star dust and take you time doing so. Just in case anyone watching decides we are easy prey." Kathryn turned on her heels and looked back at Enaos sternly. "Starfleet doesn't take kindly to surprise attacks."
The doors to the brig closed.
---
Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Ian McKinnon - Ben Browder
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Enaos - Bryan Cranston
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