Captain’s log, stardate: 43102.8.
The Resolute is an hour away from the Henod System though all our hails to the outpost there continue to go unanswered. If the reports Starbase 407 received before communications went dead are accurate, then the planet could be in the middle of a full blown uprising by now. This wasn’t exactly the sort of mission I’d have hoped for with such a large number of new officers onboard, but with no other ship in this half of the sector then it falls on us to respond. I just have to stay optimistic that my new crew works out as well as I hope they do.
* * * * *
From Lieutenant Nikolai Adamos’ new seat at operations everything felt different, despite the bridge module being untouched during their six week long refit. All the work had concentrated on the Excelsior-Class ships armament, upgrading every phaser bank, torpedo launcher and shield generators—similar work was being carried out across the fleet following an encounter the U.S.S. Enterprise-D had had with a worrying new threat just three months ago. He knew from testing carried out before they’d relaunched that the improvements had a substantially greater energy drain than what had previously been in place, but nothing the ships warp core couldn’t cope with—the fact that he needed to be aware of that additional power requirement was one of the many things he needed to be on top of as the new ops manager.
He glanced at his former station on his right, now occupied by Ensign Vsshar, and had to supress a shiver as he looked at the shiny green scales of the new Selay flight control officer, he’d never been overly fond of reptiles and having one right next to him made him uncomfortable—especially one almost as large as he was that ate raw meat.
Shaking the slow shiver that crept down his spine (like a snake slithering) he focused on his new station, thankful once again for the new uniform. The previous design had been so tight and uncomfortable that he’d favoured the skant over the jumpsuit, but what had made the old uniform so restrictive had left out of the new attire that had become standard for all officers.
2366 was definitely going to be a year of change, rumour had it that the Federation Council and Cardassian Union were just months away from finally signing a peace treaty putting an end to decades of hostility and open warfare. Unfortunately, not every system was without its problems and Henod had become theirs.
The navigation sensors next to him chirped, a familiar sound that was no longer his to respond too. Vsshar looked at the display then turned back to Captain Rofe.
“We’re approaching the Henod System, sir,” she said, each ‘s’ sound lingering a second longer than he’d have liked.
“Thank you, Ensign. Drop us out of warp and take us in at full impulse.”
“Aye sir,” she hissed and turned back to her controls.
Adamos kept an eye on the readings as the ensign effortlessly took them from warp to impulse, adjusting their heading to the second planet by a fraction of a degree in the process. Despite his discomfort with the Selay, he had to admit his old station was in good hands—despite the sharp claw each of her three digits ended with.
“Initiate full scan,” bellowed Commander Hunter, who stood behind the railing on the Captain’s right, hands planted firmly on his hips.
Over his shoulder he heard the familiar creak of the command chair, telling him Rofe was perched on the edge and leaning forward. “Niko, let’s try short-range communications.”
“Aye Captain,” he responded, already noting that Tenadii and Onahl were making full use of the sensor arrays. He set to work with communications, hoping for something different as any number of phenomena could interfere with subspace signals, but close range was typically more reliable—especially for planet-based facilities.
After a few failed attempts he had to look back at Rofe and shake his head. “I’m still unable to get though, sir.”
The Bolian gave him a fatherly smile. “Not your fault, Niko. Keep trying until we make orbit.”
He gave a nod and kept trying, running through various channels and frequencies. Not only could he not establish contact but he couldn’t pick up anything coming from them either. He noticed that scans of the system had been completed just moments before the science and tactical officers gave their reports.
Lieutenant Commander Anahera Tenadii went first, stroking her tattooed chin as she scrutinised the monitors. “I’m picking up no solar flare activity, background radiation spike, or subspace interference that would prohibit communications, sir. Everything in range is what we’ve come to expect from the system.”
“No ships, cloaked or otherwise, on sensors. No indication of weapons fire or debris either,” Lieutenant (j.g.) Onahl added, their voice almost as emotionless as a Vulcans.
Adamos frowned as he listened to the other bridge officers and looked at the telemetry. There was nothing that would prevent a signal from getting through, which meant the issue was on the surface—either technical glitch or no one was there to send or receive. He knew which of those he’d prefer.
From their approach vector, it took the Resolute less than twenty minutes to approach the second planet, the only M-Class body in the system. Henod II was home to the Dinaar, a species that was seeking Federation membership, something Starfleet was all in favour of (given the fact the system was just fifteen light-years away from Tzenkethi space), as such a field office had been established on the planet to assess their suitability. It was expected that the petition would be fast-tracked as much as possible, given their strategic location, though they still had to go through the motions. In the xenological profile of the Dinaar he’d read, during the forty-nine hours it had taken them to reach the system, there hadn’t been anything about political instability.
Commander Hunter stepped around the railing and approached the conn. “Establish high orbit over the capitol.”
“High orbit, aye.”
As Adamos glanced at the sensors once more he found it odd that there were no ships in orbit, but given the Dinaar had yet to develop transporter technology their spaceports were located on the surface—sharing of such technology would be one of their benefits from joining the UFP. As soon as they entered orbit, a blinking indicator on his companel immediately caught his attention.
“Captain, we’re receiving a point-to-point laser link from the outpost. Getting an audio signal now.”
He glanced back to see Rofe smile as he stood. “On speakers, Niko.”
“Repeat, this is Henod Outpost to any Federation ship in orbit. Please respond on this frequency, our primary communications array is out of commission.”
“Open a channel.”
“Open sir.”
“Henod Outpost, this is Captain Jinad Rofe of the U.S.S. Resolute. We’ve been sent to assess your current situation and provide whatever assistance is required. Please respond.”
There was a moment as Adamos watched the communications system. Laser links were a crude system, one that was considerably outdated but every Starfleet ship, station and outpost was provided with the means to make use of it, for the rare times an antiquated solution was required. It took a few moments before he saw that the channel went from a repeated message to an open comlink.
“Resolute, this is Commander Amelia Tighe. Are we glad to hear from you, we were beginning to wonder when Starfleet would dispatch a ship here.”
“Commander, you’ve got every admiral for three sectors worried that the Tzenkethi are about to strike again. What’s going on down there?”
“It’s a little too complex to explain over a comlink, but the short version is that the Dinaar believe it’s some sort of second coming. There have been instances of civil unrest across the planet because of it, including a fanatic that sabotaged our communications array. If things continue at this pace, the Envoy and I both agree that we’ll need a full scale evacuation of all Federation personnel.”
For a moment, no one on the bridge spoke as they all looked at one another in various states of confusion, surprise or disbelief—even the stern faced Hunter looked perplexed.
“Understood, Commander. If you could establish an uplink and begin transferring your mission logs, my crew can get up to speed. I’ll be beaming down momentarily for a full briefing.”
“Acknowledged. Henod Outpost out.”
As soon as the channel closed Hunter turned to Rofe. “Captain, under Section Twelve, Paragraph Four of Starfleet Regulations—”
“Commander,” the Bolian began, cutting the younger man off, “I know the rules about captain’s beaming into potential dangerous locations, but there is a situation down that that endangers hundreds of Federation citizens, not to mention some sort of huge cultural revolution that threatens not only the development of that planet, but potentially Starfleet security in this region. I think those circumstances would be deemed ‘extenuating’ and allow a little wiggle room.”
Not waiting for Hunter to respond, Rofe looked at Adamos. “Niko, have Lieutenant Cela and Counsellor Dhas meet us is transporter room two.”
“Aye sir,” he replied eagerly, this would be his first away mission as ops manager after all.
“Commander, report in to Starbase 407 and let them know what’s happening here. Start analysing the outposts mission reports and continue scans across the planet and the surrounding area, we might be able to spot this ‘second coming’ before it arrives.”
Almost through clenched teeth the new first officer confirmed his orders with a grudging, “Aye Captain.”
Adamos surrendered his station to Ensign Patton and trotted after the Captain, excited for his first mission in his new role, relieved that the outpost and its crew were intact, and bewildered at the idea of some sort of religious incident had been the cause of this whole mess in the first place.
* * * * *
The Resolute is an hour away from the Henod System though all our hails to the outpost there continue to go unanswered. If the reports Starbase 407 received before communications went dead are accurate, then the planet could be in the middle of a full blown uprising by now. This wasn’t exactly the sort of mission I’d have hoped for with such a large number of new officers onboard, but with no other ship in this half of the sector then it falls on us to respond. I just have to stay optimistic that my new crew works out as well as I hope they do.
* * * * *
From Lieutenant Nikolai Adamos’ new seat at operations everything felt different, despite the bridge module being untouched during their six week long refit. All the work had concentrated on the Excelsior-Class ships armament, upgrading every phaser bank, torpedo launcher and shield generators—similar work was being carried out across the fleet following an encounter the U.S.S. Enterprise-D had had with a worrying new threat just three months ago. He knew from testing carried out before they’d relaunched that the improvements had a substantially greater energy drain than what had previously been in place, but nothing the ships warp core couldn’t cope with—the fact that he needed to be aware of that additional power requirement was one of the many things he needed to be on top of as the new ops manager.
He glanced at his former station on his right, now occupied by Ensign Vsshar, and had to supress a shiver as he looked at the shiny green scales of the new Selay flight control officer, he’d never been overly fond of reptiles and having one right next to him made him uncomfortable—especially one almost as large as he was that ate raw meat.
Shaking the slow shiver that crept down his spine (like a snake slithering) he focused on his new station, thankful once again for the new uniform. The previous design had been so tight and uncomfortable that he’d favoured the skant over the jumpsuit, but what had made the old uniform so restrictive had left out of the new attire that had become standard for all officers.
2366 was definitely going to be a year of change, rumour had it that the Federation Council and Cardassian Union were just months away from finally signing a peace treaty putting an end to decades of hostility and open warfare. Unfortunately, not every system was without its problems and Henod had become theirs.
The navigation sensors next to him chirped, a familiar sound that was no longer his to respond too. Vsshar looked at the display then turned back to Captain Rofe.
“We’re approaching the Henod System, sir,” she said, each ‘s’ sound lingering a second longer than he’d have liked.
“Thank you, Ensign. Drop us out of warp and take us in at full impulse.”
“Aye sir,” she hissed and turned back to her controls.
Adamos kept an eye on the readings as the ensign effortlessly took them from warp to impulse, adjusting their heading to the second planet by a fraction of a degree in the process. Despite his discomfort with the Selay, he had to admit his old station was in good hands—despite the sharp claw each of her three digits ended with.
“Initiate full scan,” bellowed Commander Hunter, who stood behind the railing on the Captain’s right, hands planted firmly on his hips.
Over his shoulder he heard the familiar creak of the command chair, telling him Rofe was perched on the edge and leaning forward. “Niko, let’s try short-range communications.”
“Aye Captain,” he responded, already noting that Tenadii and Onahl were making full use of the sensor arrays. He set to work with communications, hoping for something different as any number of phenomena could interfere with subspace signals, but close range was typically more reliable—especially for planet-based facilities.
After a few failed attempts he had to look back at Rofe and shake his head. “I’m still unable to get though, sir.”
The Bolian gave him a fatherly smile. “Not your fault, Niko. Keep trying until we make orbit.”
He gave a nod and kept trying, running through various channels and frequencies. Not only could he not establish contact but he couldn’t pick up anything coming from them either. He noticed that scans of the system had been completed just moments before the science and tactical officers gave their reports.
Lieutenant Commander Anahera Tenadii went first, stroking her tattooed chin as she scrutinised the monitors. “I’m picking up no solar flare activity, background radiation spike, or subspace interference that would prohibit communications, sir. Everything in range is what we’ve come to expect from the system.”
“No ships, cloaked or otherwise, on sensors. No indication of weapons fire or debris either,” Lieutenant (j.g.) Onahl added, their voice almost as emotionless as a Vulcans.
Adamos frowned as he listened to the other bridge officers and looked at the telemetry. There was nothing that would prevent a signal from getting through, which meant the issue was on the surface—either technical glitch or no one was there to send or receive. He knew which of those he’d prefer.
From their approach vector, it took the Resolute less than twenty minutes to approach the second planet, the only M-Class body in the system. Henod II was home to the Dinaar, a species that was seeking Federation membership, something Starfleet was all in favour of (given the fact the system was just fifteen light-years away from Tzenkethi space), as such a field office had been established on the planet to assess their suitability. It was expected that the petition would be fast-tracked as much as possible, given their strategic location, though they still had to go through the motions. In the xenological profile of the Dinaar he’d read, during the forty-nine hours it had taken them to reach the system, there hadn’t been anything about political instability.
Commander Hunter stepped around the railing and approached the conn. “Establish high orbit over the capitol.”
“High orbit, aye.”
As Adamos glanced at the sensors once more he found it odd that there were no ships in orbit, but given the Dinaar had yet to develop transporter technology their spaceports were located on the surface—sharing of such technology would be one of their benefits from joining the UFP. As soon as they entered orbit, a blinking indicator on his companel immediately caught his attention.
“Captain, we’re receiving a point-to-point laser link from the outpost. Getting an audio signal now.”
He glanced back to see Rofe smile as he stood. “On speakers, Niko.”
“Repeat, this is Henod Outpost to any Federation ship in orbit. Please respond on this frequency, our primary communications array is out of commission.”
“Open a channel.”
“Open sir.”
“Henod Outpost, this is Captain Jinad Rofe of the U.S.S. Resolute. We’ve been sent to assess your current situation and provide whatever assistance is required. Please respond.”
There was a moment as Adamos watched the communications system. Laser links were a crude system, one that was considerably outdated but every Starfleet ship, station and outpost was provided with the means to make use of it, for the rare times an antiquated solution was required. It took a few moments before he saw that the channel went from a repeated message to an open comlink.
“Resolute, this is Commander Amelia Tighe. Are we glad to hear from you, we were beginning to wonder when Starfleet would dispatch a ship here.”
“Commander, you’ve got every admiral for three sectors worried that the Tzenkethi are about to strike again. What’s going on down there?”
“It’s a little too complex to explain over a comlink, but the short version is that the Dinaar believe it’s some sort of second coming. There have been instances of civil unrest across the planet because of it, including a fanatic that sabotaged our communications array. If things continue at this pace, the Envoy and I both agree that we’ll need a full scale evacuation of all Federation personnel.”
For a moment, no one on the bridge spoke as they all looked at one another in various states of confusion, surprise or disbelief—even the stern faced Hunter looked perplexed.
“Understood, Commander. If you could establish an uplink and begin transferring your mission logs, my crew can get up to speed. I’ll be beaming down momentarily for a full briefing.”
“Acknowledged. Henod Outpost out.”
As soon as the channel closed Hunter turned to Rofe. “Captain, under Section Twelve, Paragraph Four of Starfleet Regulations—”
“Commander,” the Bolian began, cutting the younger man off, “I know the rules about captain’s beaming into potential dangerous locations, but there is a situation down that that endangers hundreds of Federation citizens, not to mention some sort of huge cultural revolution that threatens not only the development of that planet, but potentially Starfleet security in this region. I think those circumstances would be deemed ‘extenuating’ and allow a little wiggle room.”
Not waiting for Hunter to respond, Rofe looked at Adamos. “Niko, have Lieutenant Cela and Counsellor Dhas meet us is transporter room two.”
“Aye sir,” he replied eagerly, this would be his first away mission as ops manager after all.
“Commander, report in to Starbase 407 and let them know what’s happening here. Start analysing the outposts mission reports and continue scans across the planet and the surrounding area, we might be able to spot this ‘second coming’ before it arrives.”
Almost through clenched teeth the new first officer confirmed his orders with a grudging, “Aye Captain.”
Adamos surrendered his station to Ensign Patton and trotted after the Captain, excited for his first mission in his new role, relieved that the outpost and its crew were intact, and bewildered at the idea of some sort of religious incident had been the cause of this whole mess in the first place.
* * * * *
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