"Semper Paratus: Tales of the USS Bluefin"

[TheLoneRedshirt]

Wow! Thanks for all the kind words - it has been fun! I will begin the next installment in the next few days.

The little ship and crew have been zipping around in my head for over a year. I decided it was time to let them out and play. You've been introduced to most of the main characters now: Akinola, Strauss, T'Ser, Gralt and Dr. Baxter. Recurring characters, such as Chief Solly Brin and Lt. Nigel Bane will probably get more play time next go 'round. Admiral Morgan Bateson will play more prominently in a future story.

The next installment will pick up shortly after this first episode. We will also meet a new, important character who transfers aboard the Bluefin and creates some friction with one of the lead characters.

Will the Romulans be back? Of course.
Will we find out what the Roms want in the Badlands? Perhaps.
Will Captain Akinola run out of cherry vanilla ice cream? Never!

Thanks for reading! Semper Paratus!

 

[BrotherBenny]

Great Stuff!!

I can't really say more than what everyone else has, so I'll just leave it with "Whoo Hoo!!!"

 

[hellsgate]

TheLoneRedshirt said:
Hellsgate - You make some excellent points regarding the Loknar class. I do agree, it has several advantages from a tactical standpoint. And when I was first developing this story line, I considered using a Defiant class ship.

I decided for a more traditional ship for several reasons. The Bluefin is a multi-mission cutter. Search and Rescue, servicing sub-space relay stations, and interdiction are all part of the job. They need a large hangar bay for SAR operations (there are numerous shuttles on board) and to handle evacuees from damaged ships. They also required a geneous sick-bay for large numbers of casualties and a large brig for captured pirates, etc.

If you check out the U.S. Coast Guard's cutters (some great web-sites on line) you'll find several types - deep water ships, fast-response ships, ice-breakers, etc. I visualize the Border Service vessels pretty much the same. I do think the Loknar variant would be a great Fast Response Cutter (and I'm already thinking of incorporating such a ship in a future tale! )

I would be VERY interested in suggestions for the Everest class asteroid breaker/ deep space tug. I envision slow and ugly with impulse engines that could pull a small moon. The late, lamented USS Kilimanjaro had a crew compliment of 75, but that could certainly go up or down.

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Your wish is my command. I tripped over this one & saved it to my file manager a long time ago.
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or, if you're looking for something a touch snazzier.....found this one at the "Star Trek: Europe" forums. "Nova-Class Refit" U.S.S. Geofront Image by FoxGirlJade of TrekMeshes.Ch Forums.

 

[Gibraltar]

^Cool pics, hellsgate. That certainly seems to fit the bill, at least from my perspective, though TheLoneRedshirt's opinion is the one that counts here.

 

[TheLoneRedshirt]

Hellsgate -

Yes! The first ship fits the bill for an asteroid breaker / deep space tug nicely! It's somewhat homely, but has a robust look to it. And you even have a shot of it towing a ship! :thumbsup: I think you've found the perfect ship for the Everest class!

While I like the second design, it's a bit too sleek and modern looking for a "working" ship.

Thanks for posting these!

 

[hellsgate]

No problem, just remember the Everest-Class vessel's "Acting Captain" is 32 year old Jason Kim Scott Hauck, a field-promoted S.C.E. Officer on temporary skeleton-crew assignment due to lack of more seasoned Veteran officers immediately after the Dominion War, from Olde Vancouver on Earth.

Yes, it's based on me in r/t. My real name, too.

http://www.geocities.com/trekfan1975/index.html

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sbavenger_669

 

[TheLoneRedshirt]

You got it, Cap'n Hauck! :thumbsup:

 

[hellsgate]

Thank You.

 

[hellsgate]

What chapter are you going to make Captain Hauck & his Cadet Cruise of up-&-coming Engineers show-up in? (Just curious.)

 

[TheLoneRedshirt]

I'm still completing "Through a Glass, Darkly," then I will be going back to tell the story that surrounds Commander McBride's death.

After that, Captain Hauck and the engineering cadets on the USS Everest can make their grand entrance in chapter 6. That should make for an interesting story. Hmmm, *scribbling notes*

 

[hellsgate]

U.S.S. Everest

Acting C.O. - Jason Kim Scott Hauck (Human)

First Officer that doubles as Science Officer - Lt. (jg) Tshanik (Vulcan) from "Star Trek: TNG"

Chief Engineer - ?????

Chief Medical Officer - ?????

Helmsman - ??????

 

[hellsgate]

To answer your personal message....

I'm thinking the crew of the U.S.S. Everest are all a minimum of late 20's in age. A rag-tag temporary crew that were randomly pulled from other starships at the tug's home port-of-call. Mainly as a result of the chaotic nature of the post-Dominion War reconstruction period. As soon as someone's patched-up medically, screened psychologically & deemed "fit for duty" they're ordered shipped back out into the field or offered the option of early retirement as they're too screwed-up from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Properly trained Senior Officers are few-&-far-between at this point, so the up-&-coming talents being shoved through the Academy (believed to hold some potential) were hand-picked, shuffled together, & delegated to low-to-moderate risk assignments that required as little direct supervision/correction as possible.

The better officers such as Jean-Luc Picard, Martin Madden, Worf, & Elias Vaughn were sent to Romulus & other higher-profile, career-making assignments, whereas Acting-Captain Hauck & the other "kids" were sent to deal with the most unpleasant portfolio of assignments obviously no-one else would eagerly volunteer to do...such as tagging & bagging the recently deceased & towing burnt-out hulks to surplus depots for strip-down, refit & recertification.

They're neither "screw-up's" nor "mary sue's" per se, but they're at the point where they're expected to pay some dues, attempt to see things from a variety of perspectives in the meantime & develop character befitting the new golden age of Starfleet exploration.

I saw this Vulcan character while I was in the Ex-Astris-Scientia wiki doing research for another story (a character named Tshanik from TNG) & thought she needed to be brought back from obscurity. On any Starfleet ship I'd personally serve on, I'd want a mix of Humans, Vulcans, Tellarites & other "Classic Trek" TOS/TAS-era Federation races in the post-Voyager age of exploration & adventure. But that's just me.

Jason Hauck, as a Captain is more or less a farm-boy but people follow his orders. (Mostly because he hides how scared he is better than everyone else aboard.) Think of a white version of Ensign Harry Kim meets Tom Welling's version of "Smallville's" Clark Kent. He kind-of wanted a command of his own "someday down the road" but Captain Kirk (as part of the decision-making committee involved,) decided to teach the kid a lesson about making differences, being ambiguous about things in life & fulfilling his potential, by throwing him in the deep end of the pool.

Kirk shows up at Hauck's quarters very suddenly one day, & more or less tells Mr. Hauck "Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it." Then bruskly shoves a PADD with Mr. Hauck's orders from Starfleet Command into his hand, with one word - "Congratulations."

I'm leaving it up to you to chose the rest of the Everest's crew but this was my idea of a rough draft.

 

[hellsgate]

U.S.S. Everest Crew Suggestions:

Position: First Officer
Chief Petty Officer Bremmen Tella
Species: Edosian.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arex
http://alltheweb.com/search?cat=img&cs=utf8&q=Fleet+Admiral+Ankh&rys=0&itag=crv
http://ph.groups.yahoo.com/group/starbase-cw-archive/photos/view/4d99?b=1

Background in Engineering & Tactical/Security. Spent the last 35 years in Starfleet. Served on Excelsior-Class & Soyuz-Class starships. Was among (several) teams of M.A.C.O. Heavy Weapons Specialists working on bringing the U.S.S. Defiant's pulse phaser systems off the drawing board & into mass production at Utopia Planetia. Has three children. One daughter who's deceased as a result of Wolf 359, one married & living on the Edosian Homeworld & the last one M.I.A. with all his shipmates. His son was aboard a Norway-Class vessel that lost contact with DS9 near the Badlands in early 2373. Neither he nor his crew-mates have been seen or heard from since.