In Enemies, Find Allies

Literary Challenge 43 - In Enemies, Find Allies

---

The two officers walked the length of the corridor on Deck 8. Being on the saucer section of Solaris, the main corridor was a circle that surrounded the main computer core. Several other hallways branched into and away from the main path and each time the couple came to an intersection, only one would look to see if anyone was coming or going.  Deck 8 tended to be free from foot traffic regardless of shift, and this was why the two officers chose this place to have their walks.

The Andorian First Officer looked to her Captain. "Sugihara wouldn't say more?"

Kathryn Beringer did not look up from the floor and shook her head. "I'm sure he doesn't know about my past and, if I were in his shoes, neither would I care. We are Starfleet, it is my duty, right?"

Anthi smirked, "Yes, sir."

The Captain looked up and sighed. "I guess it is safe to say, that if Sugihara gave the green-light to this diplomatic situation, then who am I to question that?"

"Forgive me for stating the obvious, but you are Captain of a Starfleet vessel. That gives you the right."

Kathryn nodded and smiled. "Thank you, Anthi. You are a great friend, but a better XO? There is no one else." She stopped and looked to Anthi. "Tomorrow the Alcubierre will meet us and our 'guest' will officially join our crew. Besides, she might be as resourceful as Sugihara promised."
+++

Standing in the transporter room, Kathryn gave herself the once-over. Her ambassador jacket was bright white with blue trim. The rank and Starfleet badges crisply reflected the lighting of the room. Beside her stood the three highest-ranking officers of Solaris: First Officer Anthi Ythysi. Beside her stood her barrel-chested brother, Chief Engineer Thel Ythysi. To his side was the diminutive Trill, Science Chief Omazei. Each of them wore their dress uniform appropriate to receive the special guest. All of them seemed relaxed, and each of them knew what was about to happen, but none could tell what would happen after that.

The Ensign at the transporter pad broke the silence. "They are ready for transport, sir."

Kathryn nodded and within seconds the transporter pad activated, then the shimmering curtain faded. Anthi briefly looked to Kathryn to see a response, but could not tell in the second she looked away from their guest.

Standing on the pad, the female looked into the darkened room. Her dark brown armor clanked and leather creaked as she shifted her weight onto one leg. Raising a hand to her hip she looked directly to Kathryn. Deep blue eyes sparkled as she smiled. Her dark green hair framed her smooth green skin.

"Captain Beringer, I presume?"

Kathryn breathed in quickly then stepped forward and extended her hand. "Staza Murai, welcome aboard the Solaris.

The Orion stepped off the pad and accepted the gesture. "Allow me to be blunt Captain, we need to talk."

"Of course, I expected that actually. Do you wish privacy?" Kathryn waved to the doors.

Staza stepped away then looked over her shoulder and smiled, "bring who you wish. The more the merrier."
+++

"I'm surprised Sugihara didn't say more." Staza Murai sat back into her chair as if relieved.

"None more than me," Kathryn said. "I'm curious why you specifically requested to be aboard Solaris?"

"Because, Captain, you are very well-known in the Orion Syndicate"

The four Starfleet officers looked to one another. Anthi spoke first. "That doesn't make sense"

Staza smiled at the Andorian. "It shouldn't, but it's the simple truth."

Kathryn could feel her frustration rising. She looked at Anthi before responding, "You have me at a disadvantage."

Crossing her legs, Staza spoke slowly. "Captain, you've been interfering with Syndicate affairs for several months. In their circles you are called 'Ous noum hid'. Roughly translated as-"

"'Scarlet Scorpion'", Kathryn interrupted.

"Nodding, Staza smiled. Are you aware of the attention you are gathering?"

Kathryn shook her head. "Frankly, I don't give a damn."

Staza smile widened. "That's why I am here. My brother was a third in the Ceasc Suel Cartel and was falsely accused of selling secrets to a rival group within the Syndicate: that's a death sentence." Her stare hardened. "Orions are nothing if not loyal to family."

After a few seconds, Kathryn sat back in her chair. "That interesting. Orions are loyal at the cost of their own lives.  Revenge can transend time.  So, your brother was accused of a crime he did not commit and you're out to punish his accusers.  Yet, your here on a Starfleet vessel wanting to join my crew at the behest of the highest ranking Diplomat in the Federation." She leaned forward and clasped her hands together. "Why are you really here?"

The Orion smiled slowly. "I have offered my intimate knowledge of the inner workings of the Syndicate to Starfleet, on the condition I serve aboard your ship."

---

Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Thel Ythysi - Kevin Sorbo
Omazei - Gemma Arterton
Staza Murai - Sarah Lind

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 ...

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"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