By Richard Woodcock
Miles Llewellyn looked up from his data Padd and rubbed the top of his nose and reflected on his glasses catching. He sighed.
“If there is one constant of the universe its that Starfleet Loves paperwork” Miles stated ruefully.
“Aye Sir, and why is it when you go up in rank it gets longer and longer, and you can’t delegate it?” Teshla answered looking up from her own Padd.
Miles and Teshla where reviewing crew logs and technical reports about the newly Christen USS Fortitude-E.
She was only a day into her shake down and Miles felt the ship under traveling at low warp.
“I would say number one that’s why I have you!” Miles replied with a grin.
“Why thank you Sir, remind me to call in sick tomorrow!” Teshla retorted with her own grin.
Teshla was loyal to Miles and had served for many years under him. She had been offered a commission of her own ship twice now and she had been tempted but she just felt it was the wrong time.
Miles had spoken in great length to Teshla about this making sure she understood if she wanted to persue her own command she had his blessing. It was not fear of flying solo without a safety net but some crisis or another had always delayed her moving to her own ship.
Miles did not want to hurt her career and had taken his own quest to get her ready to take her own command. He would miss her and so would the crew but things must change to help things grown.
Once the Fortitude had finished her shake down, the Fortitude was going to join a new fleet. Miles knew a few of the ship coming out of dry dock where in need for a new Captain and Miles was going to make sure Teshla pursued one of those new commands coming up.
Miles reached over to coffee pod and picked up the half empty pot.
“More coffee?” Miles asked motioning to Teshla’s empty mug.
“Please Miles, what was this coffee again its lovely?” Teshla asked.
“It’s a chocolate blended with coffee, more cream?” Miles answered.
“Oh yes, you’re not doing much for my waist line?” Teshla replied.
“Don’t worry we can do some fencing later?” Miles answered with a half grin.
That was when Suddenly everything changed.
The universe just stopped for seemed like an eternity.
Miles felt time, space everything just freeze, it was pain, joy even fear wrapped into one but even that did not do justice to what he felt and did not fear.
Suddenly Miles what thrown into his desk and Teshla was thrown into the bulkhead.
The Fortitude sounded like she was in great pain her engines suddenly cried out in into the dark void of space.
Miles knew something was dragging her violently out of warp, the inertia dampers where barely coping.
The Red Alert Klaxon Was starting to sound; it was in slow motion and then started to speed up.
What had happened?
The light changed to the emergency lights as the ship went to alert.
Miles held his stomach from the pain and manged to swing round his desk when he felt the Fortitude spin. Something was very wrong.
[All hands stand by for emergency stop!] Its was Fox white, he had the conn.
Now Miles could hear a console near him pop and go fizzle and he started to smell burning.
Miles put all his will power into high gear, the ship was in trouble, the crew where in trouble. Memories of the Last Fortitude flooded his mind, but he willed them away for now. He had to stay in the moment.
Miles grabbed Teshla arm and investigated the bruised left side of her face. She was going to have a massive black eye for an andorian.
“OK, I am ok. Bridge lets go” Teshla answered shock in her voice my years of training and experience kicking in like Miles.
The ship lurched and Miles felt the drop from warp speed to sub light.
They both manged to make it out of the bridge and stumbled onto the bridge, a couple of consoles had overloaded, a fire detail was on it. He could see some people were hurt.
Miles looked over to the Helm and saw Fox Whites fingers flying over his console, he was doing his own battle to save the ship he done it they were still alive.
“OK everyone where out of warp now at dead stop, Jesus what the hell happened, science report?” Fox ordered. looking over his shoulder and see Miles and Teshla on the bridge.
“Captain, number one sorry I don’t know what happened it was like. I don’t know like the universe just blinked!” Fox reported still catching his breath, he had clearly just saved the new Fortitude and her crew.
Miles threw up his hand.
“No need to apologies Cmdr, damn good flying I can see the Asclepius is going to get a fine Captain after whatever just happened come to the conclusion.” Miles gave a quick response.
Miles Staggered to his Captain’s Chair and hit the all hands communications button, the familiar boatswain whistle came over the ship.
“All hands maintain Red Alert, damage control please report to first office. Where alive and out of warp, stand by for follow up information.” Miles ordered and closed off the channel.
“Fox where is here right now?” Miles asked.
“Two seconds Captain, navigation control it still calibrating. Where in the Agrama Sector Umm, this is not right.” Fox answered confused.
“What do you mean Cmdr?” Miles asked.
“Where just outside a star system, but its not on any charts Sir, I thought we might be in the Agrama system but where opposite that star system.” Fox answered even more confused.
“Captain, message from Starfleet, general alert status code factor two all Starfleet personnel, ships, stations and member worlds.” Rose Harrington reported from operations wiping blood from her forehead.
“How far did this… this go?” Teshla asked.
“From what I can peace together Cmdr I think this cosmic wink… was all over the galaxy.” Neku reported. The Chief Science officer reported.
“What?” Miles answered a little shocked himself. “The whole universe felt this?”
Neku’s console beeped and chimed as if reconfiguring itself.
“I think so, sorry Captain the ships computer is still processing what happened and astrogation seems to be reconfiguring herself. Cmdr White is correct where at the otter edge of a star system that should not existed, somehow Cmdr White managed to hold us together when we entered the star systems gravity well” came Neku’s response.
“Talking of which how bad are we hurt?” Miles asked looking over the his number one. Nothing making sense.
“Damage reports still coming in, Penny is cursing every known deity in existence and so far no fatalities yet we have lost long range sensors and the warp drive is down, port side warp coils got fried but looks like there not cracked, we certainly tested the Fortitudes new systems. Teshla reported.
“Captain picking up some type of repeating distress call, can’t tell from where exactly its sounds like a repeating automated beacon. I think?” Rose reported.
Miles looked over to Teshla.
“What the hell is going on?” Miles asked out aloud.
NRPG:
I have left a clue in the story of something I have always wanted Star Trek to revisit story wise. More to follow in episode 3.