Thursday, July 23, 2015

Saying Hello

Literary Challenge 21 - Saying Hello


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The multicolored lights were bright while cacophonous music roared throughout the room. Several patrons from varying races were dancing on the floor in the center of the room. Those not dancing were either sitting at tables enjoying the view or drinking. Club 47 was where officers came to let off war-weary, stress-filled steam or to relax.

In an adjacent observation lounge, passive lighting created calming moods and thick doors subdued the high energy emanating from the dance floor as a stark juxtaposition. Only a few tables were occupied and Kathryn sat overlooking the cavernous interior of Earth Space Dock. The synthetic Kanar in her hand was a close substitute to the real thing. Taking a sip, she swirled the liquid around her tongue before swallowing it.

With a PADD in hand, she smiled at the words on the slate and could almost recite them from the screen. All of Kathryn’s senior staff and over 70% of the crew from Galatea would follow her to the next assignment floating inside Space Dock. That was atypical, yet somehow Kathryn had overcome the odds. She would have to thank Admiral Felczer for considering and fulfilling her request to transfer most, if not all, of Galatea’s crew. They were family and she wanted them to stay together as much as possible.

Looking up through the large wall-sized window, she could see several ships in various stages of docking or repair. The gigantic doors of the station were slowly closing as an Armitage-class ship cleared the threshold. Her eyes settled on one ship in particular. It was an older design, first introduced in the 22nd century and had sharp corners compared to the current design-style. The ship’s saucer-shaped primary hull was a hall-mark of the Federation and sported the longest nacelles of any starship (relative to the rest of the ship). Primarily used for diplomatic purposes within the past century, its numbers have dwindled due to attrition. But the one capturing Kathryn’s attention was the last of its class constructed in the 24th century.

“She’s beautiful, wouldn’t you agree?”

Startled from her reverie, Kathryn turned to the voice and looked up to a human male. He held a half-full glass of clear liquid as he stared out the window.

“Pardon me?”

The man wore Captain’s bars on his collar with red piping on the jacket. Casually pointing, he explained, “the Excelsior out there. It’s the only one of its kind birthed here and certainly special.”

Kathryn looked out the window and nodded. Regarding the Captain, he stroked a well-manicured moustache to the tip of his goatee, and was clearly focused on the ship. “Um, yes, I suppose so.” She waved to a chair and invited, “care to join me, Captain –“

“Ricol. Hassid Ricol.” He looked down and smiled. “You must be Kathryn Beringer.”

Surprised he knew her by name; Kathryn noticed he had not taken a seat. “I didn’t know I was famous.”

“You’re not, except to me.” Hassid’s smile disappeared. “Tell me, Captain, do you really think you’ve earned the right to Solaris?

Kathryn sat back into her chair, stunned. “Excuse me?”

Hassid rested his glass down on the table with more force than expected. “How long have you been wearing those rank bars anyway? Months, maybe a year or two?” Placing both hands on the table, he leaned in closer and hissed, “I was promised Solaris. I’ve earned the honor to be her Captain.”

Kathryn willfully paused for a few seconds as she absorbed the moment. Feeling pushed into a corner, she decided to push back. Standing, she grabbed the PADD off the table and became resolute against Hassid’s threatening posture. Placing a hand on a hip and shifting her weight to one leg, Kathryn smirked and raised the PADD. “Not according to this,” she parried.

The Captain straightened and rolled his tongue in his jaw as if to keep from saying something or to calm himself down.

Suddenly, another officer arrived and almost stood between Kathryn and Hassid. “Excuse the interruption, but I could tell the conversation was about to get exciting. Let’s have a seat to relax.”

The other Captains glared at the officer. Also wearing Captain pips on the collar, his jacket was filled by muscles on his chest and arms. A square jaw framed sharp facial features under a bald head. His toothy smile was soft, sultry and inviting.

Hassid scoffed, “Captain Daikar. Saving a damsel in distress again?”

Kathryn could feel her restraint waning. “Now look here-“.

Captains, Daikar interrupted. He looked over his shoulders as if to remind the others they were not alone in the room and to lower voices. With a more calm tone, he asked, “should we keep this civil or take it outside?”

Kathryn ignored Daikar’s attempt to resolve the situation. “I shouldn’t have to remind you, Captain Ricol, that no one owns any ship. I earned my rank and that’s all. If you have a problem with my posting on Solaris, then the answer is simple: too bad.”

Eyes flashed with anger, Hassid lunged toward Kathryn. Daikar stepped up and used Hassid’s momentum to spin him away and toward another table. As he crashed into the furniture, the commotion captured attention from the other patrons in the room. Kathryn watched one officer tap his badge.

Pushing away a chair as he stood, Hassid wiped his short-cut hair. Breathing heavy, he pointed to Daikar. “You’ll pay for that.”

Daikar chuckled. “Bill me.”

Hassid huffed away from the pair and through the doors.

Turning to Kathryn, Daikar extended a hand. “I’m sorry you had to experience that.”

“It’s no bother, I’ve been through worse. Listen, you shouldn’t have done that, Security is sure to be on their way. What was his problem anyway?”

Daikar waved to dismiss the comments and smiled. “I can handle them. Ricol is a brute and a bully. He's has had it coming to him. For what it’s worth, he’s in it for the glory, not the duty.”

Kathryn nodded. “It seems you two have some history?”

“Yes. Would you want to hear about it?” He pulled a seat and began to sit.

Blushing a little, Kathryn acknowledged an urging to sit down. Pride caused Kathryn to resist the invitation; she could have handled Hassid Ricol herself. She looked around the room for an excuse to justify not staying any longer. Finding a holographic chronometer on the wall, she sighed with a little relief. Still, Daikar was surprisingly attractive and she questioned whether it was due to his gallantry or good looks.

“I … can’t, maybe another time.” Kathryn turned on her heels and started walking out the door.

“Wait! I didn’t get your name?”

Kathryn stopped and looked back. Again, she caught herself wanting to sit next to Daikar. “Kathryn Beringer. If you will excuse me Captain, I have a new ship to inspect.”

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Daikar - Billy Zane
Hassid Ricol - Matt Nable

Friday, July 17, 2015

Gloaming of Light

Unofficial Literary Challenge 13 - The Arrival

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“Stop!”  Kathryn skidded to a halt.  The sand at her feet coughed up a cloud as she raised pistols pulled from holsters on her hips.  Wearing a brown cloak, it wrapped around her legs and brushed away any sand that would have risen further.   A high collar protected her head up to her ears from local weather and under the cloak she wore civilian pants and shirt that was a collection from different sources, yet still within the local style. 

She noticed another turn ahead of her mark only a few meters away.  Getting tired and impatient, Kathryn decided more force was needed in order to subdue the Orion.  For his part, the large male kept running and twisted at the waist to blindly shoot at Kathryn.  The pursuit had taken them from the open streets of Paradise City on Nimbus III to the closed and claustrophobic back alleyways used by darker elements of scum and villainy.   

As the green disruptor beam raced above her head, Kathryn ducked instinctively, and then squeezed the trigger to both pistols.  Orange beams lanced to either side of the Orion, blasting holes in the walls flanking the lawbreaker and creating a ferrocrete shower.   Covering his head slowed his run, even stumbling on the blocks that fell from the walls Kathryn shot.   

This was her chance.  Kathryn sprinted into the alleyway.  With only a few steps between them, she launched into a high kick that caught the Orion in shoulder.  Bone cracked and both fell to the ground.  Kathryn recovered and pointed a phaser to the Orion’s head as he groaned from pain.  Holding his left arm, he rolled onto his back.  His grungy brown vest was tattered at the sleeves, exposing a long scar that ran down his right arm. 

Kathryn bristled at the sight of the scar and willed herself to stay calm.  “You are under arrest by the authority of the United Federation of Planets.” 

“Hmph.  Bested by the Scarlet Scorpion,” the Orion growled. 

Kathryn grinned, took a step back and raised her other pistol.  “This is your chance to talk.”

“Or what, you’ll kill me?”

Lowering the power setting on one pistol, Kathryn fired a beam onto the Orion’s left leg.  He yelped from the attack and the alley quickly filled with the acrid smell of burnt clothing and flesh.

“Seriously, now is not the time to be tough with me.  Tell me where the shipment is.”

Breathing in through clenched teeth, the Orion was defiant.  “If you plan on rescuing them, then you’re too late.”  He put his good arm down and started to push himself up.

Kathryn stomped onto his hand, shattering bones.  She quickly raised the other leg and placed a knee to his head which snapped back.  He fell flat to the ground.  Kneeling, she kept her foot on his hand, grinding more bones.  Seeing the Orion groan, revealed she was running out of time: he was on the edge of either unconsciousness from shock or staying awake from pain.

She placed one phaser emitter to his head, the other to his groin.  “Listen, Rastu.  Disintegration is only a trigger-pull away.  Just tell me where the girls are and I’ll be happy to turn a cheek to your … indiscretions.”

Rastu rolled his eyes and coughed as he spoke.  “Ten <kaff> kilometers east, Highhold Pass, shuttles <kaff> expected to pick up <kaff, kaff> the shipment.”

She pressed the phaser to his groin deeper.  “When?”

The Orion opened his mouth and then passed out.

“Damn”.  She stood and looked around the alley.  Not spotting anyone.  She holstered her pistols and reached for her communicator tucked to the inside of the cloak’s collar.  Solaris, this is the Captain.  Have a medical team available in the transporter room.  Two to beam up.”

“Acknowledged.”

+++

On the transporter pad, Kathryn stepped over the body of the battered Orion as two nurses entered the room.  First Officer Anythi Ythysi arrived as Kathryn pulled off her cloak.

The Andorian’s words were terse.  “Welcome Captain.  Word of Iconian invasion has reached us.”

Everyone in the room looked to Kathryn.  After a few seconds, she looked to the crew in the room and responded, “as you were.”  She looked sternly to Anthi and nodded toward the door.  Once in the hallway, she turned to head to the main shuttle bay.  Anthi anticipated her Captain’s action and didn’t miss a step to walk alongside Kathryn.

“Commander, unless Admiral Quinn himself has ordered me to deal with this, then we are going back down to Nimbus to get those slaves.”

“I understand, Captain.  I think it’s best if you review the message.”


Cast:

Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols

Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Rastu - Jacob Novak

Monday, July 13, 2015

Saying Goodbye

Literary Challenge 20 - Saying Goodbye

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Work Bees flittered about the cruiser. Some were boosting away, with their manipulator arms carrying various bits of the ship. Others were slowly arriving to conduct assigned work on the hull. All of them had one goal: to dissemble the USS Galatea.

Kathryn looked out the viewport of the shuttle as another Bee flew past the window and met with two other Worker Bees shuttles. Her gloomy mood made sadder as she watched their laser cutters activate in succession and cut into the hull plating near the impulse engine assembly. She touched the rank pips on her collar absentmindedly and then pulled at the dress uniform jacket. Kathryn was filled with emotion, from concern for her crew to sadness at having to say goodbye to her first true command post.

Her shuttle had exited the main shuttle bay at a lazy 1.5 knots a few minutes ago. The pilot was gracious toward Kathryn’s wish to survey her ship for the last time. It was not uncommon for Captain’s to make such a request and was certainly not against Regulations. At the same time, Galatea’s slow destruction was also not the safest place for a transport shuttle. Work Bees and Pods tried to keep the space around the ship free from debris, yet flotsam and jetsam were inevitable.

After the battle, the ship literally hobbled back toward Federation space. Thel and the Engineering team toiled to keep the warp core together. It almost seemed like faith and prayer kept the ship from falling apart on the journey. The entire team would be officially commended for their actions. Kathryn would see to that. Omazei and the science crew would receive their fair share of accolades for navigating through contested territory safely. Anthi and the security teams worked to keep morale up along the two week trip. No one rested. Kathryn could not recall reading about any other crew to work so hard to save a ship like hers. She hoped against hope it would be repaired, yet the damage was too extensive. SFCE decided it was better to scrap the ship and use whatever was salvageable, than to resurrect it.

The shuttle had finished arcing around the bridge and was on a path toward the bottom half of the primary hull. From the looks of it, Galatea received damage evenly everywhere. The ship was surrounded and no matter where she moved, disruptor beams found a target. Every defense pattern was used in the book to get away. The planet’s ring served them well to deflect more attacks. After more cat-and-mouse with the four Vor'cha battlecruisers, the helmsman pointed the Federation cruiser perpendicular to the rings and punched full impulse speed to egress the game. Two seconds later they hit warp speed to exit the system. Why the Klingons decided not to follow the debris trail for the kill surprised Kathryn at the time.

Kathryn watched as the deflector dish’s vibrant blue emission faded to grey. Lights within the ship darkened. The shuttle was heading away from the docking cage and she saw the Warp Core slowly pulled from the hull. Her eyes filled with enough water to blur vision, but not enough to slide down her cheeks. She sniffed a little which caught the pilot’s attention. They looked at each other for a few seconds. The pilot gave a sympathetic smile, and then turned to face forward. Kathryn internally thanked him for not adding to the somber moment.

There was just enough window space left to see the port nacelle detach from the pylon before the shuttle’s path was focused toward Space Dock. She put a finger to one eye to catch the tear. Flicking the water away, she looked up as if to pour more tears back into her head and sighed heavily. Looking down, she opened her left hand to look at the only memento of Galatea: a piece of carpet from the hallway to the main shuttlebay.

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Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Katheryn Winnick
Mentioned but not seen:
Anthi Ythysi - Monique Ganderton
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
Shuttle Pilot: Random male extra