Entry#8: Flintlock

What is this? An infinite abyss?

No, no not quite. Something breaks the darkness, a dazzyling light.

The light shines brightly. It is nearby. It is not alone.

Several more. No, hundreds more. Thousands...  perhaps millions?

Some all faint, some small, some large.

I desire to see them all. To know them all. To embrace them all.

Entry#8.1

Space Elevator Anchor, Vestige Orbit, System FN-2011

 

     About five minutes after Delia finished her drink she had also finished work on the EPS lines. In most situations, this would have been an impossible feat. As it turned out, the anchor had a redundant subsystem that had lines that were all in the right place. Delia wasn't sure what the subsystem was for, but she co-opted its EPS lines to construct a direct power line connecting the main operations console to the elevator cable. As she admired her handiwork, a curious question suddenly formed in her mind and she had a burning desire to find answers to it. Therefore, she established a comm link to Zoe through her comm-badge and then began her inquiry.

"Hey Zoe,"
"Yes Delia?"
"Have you ever noticed that people seem to focus on bad AIs? What ever happened to the good ones?"
"Maybe they go unnoticed."
"Let's see if I can name some of them. Let's see... "

Zoe patiently waited just outside one of the anchor's portholes. Charlemagne was busy doing a physical inspection of the orbital anchor's cable in the background.

As Delia was working out her thoughts she typed in a software diagnostic routine into the main console and then activated the routine to test the connection between the console and the elevator cable. Then she had an answer for Zoe...

"Data counts. He's an android, which is an artificial construct that is intelligent ergo an artificial intelligence,..."
"Go on."
"There's also that EMH program. Can't quite remember his name, but I know he was the doctor for Voyager..."
"What about exocomps?"
The console beeped, indicating that the diagnostic routine had completed. Delia was immediately sidetracked from her previous train of thought.
"Oh, the diagnostic results are ready. Let's see..."
"Are you changing the subject?" Said Zoe, who somehow was looking irritated in spite of her largely inanimate form. 
"Results are looking good. Looks like we are ready to try this thing out." Said Delia as she excitedly reviewed the readouts on the monitor.
"She did not answer my question." Zoe said rather forlornly compared to her usual tone.
"Are you talking to yourself Zoe?" Delia was looking right at Zoe through the porthole.
The exocomp bobbed in alarm before replying with "No."
"Okay, good, keep an eye on the power readouts for our makeshift reactor. If it goes we can't build another one."

Neither of them seemed to notice the increasing intensity of Vestige's auroral activity.

Zoe was able to remotely monitor systems and therefore did not need to be inside the anchor viewing a monitor to do so.

"Very well, but we are not done."
"Done with what?"
"You know what I'm talking about."

Delia did not know what Zoe was talking about. Delia was already preparing her first message for the makeshift transceiver assembly. She briefly considered that further testing of the system was warranted before use, but then considered her present circumstances and was all too willing to cut a few corners if it meant that rescue could arrive sooner. Besides, there's no better way of testing this thing, she thought to herself. She was aware that sometimes cutting corners to hurry a project along could backfire, but she was also confident that there wasn't much to go wrong with a transceiver. Especially when she has two exocomps around that could quickly fix any problems that arose.

"I think we are ready to go. Are you ready Zoe?"
"Ready" said Zoe.
"Delia to Charlemagne, are you ready?"
"Structural integrity is within acceptable parameters." In spite of the combined efforts of Zoe and Delia, Charlemagne's voice remained robotic, yet distinctly masculine. Enough to surmise that the exocomp may prefer to be referred to as a 'he.'
"Alright, let's bring it online" said Delia as she slowly increased power to the subsystem.

As the system approached full power the piercing sound of audio feedback was suddenly heard. That meant that the transceiver was up and running, and it also meant that there were additional questions in the making. Delia quickly isolated the transceiver channel and muted it.

"Okaaaaay, I think there may be a few bugs to work out." Delia said as she rubbed her ears."Do you two have any ideas on what's wrong with our new toy."
"I do not believe there is anything wrong with our transceiver." replied Zoe "My sensors are reading an exponential power build-up coming from Vestige."
"Power build-up?" asked Delia.

It was then that Delia noticed that something wasn't quite right with her surroundings. Everything seemed a little too blue. Suddenly, the orbital anchor was engulfed by a familiar blue energy wave.

Entry#8.2

Vestige Surface, System FN-2011

Concurrent with Entry 8.1

     The midnight air carried the sounds of mountain winds, chirping night-birds, trickling streams, and two Starfleet officers running for their lives. Their panicked voices echoing throughout landscape.

The beetle, having been provoked for unclear reasons, was chasing Syn and Blathma up the mountainside. The officers briefly tried running downhill but quickly discovered that was a mistake. The beetle could roll itself into a ball. Running uphill appeared to negate that advantage. It also slowed the massive beetle enough to give the engineers a fighting chance at survival. Tax was trying to attack the creature with its phaser drill but nothing seems to be working against the pursuer's thick armor. The beetle continued to ignore the exocomp, apparently having no interest in the artificial lifeform.

None of the actors of this perilous chase cared to notice that the sky was changing. Blueish auroras outlining a magnetic field were now visible, and the display helped illuminate the mountainside. The auroras were also increasing in intensity.

After the chase continued for four minutes or so, Syn and Blathma scrambled on top of a large boulder. Blathma just barely getting his boots up and over the edge before the beetle's mandibles could reach him. The beetle remained on the ground making noises born out of annoyance. It didn't appear to have wings, and it seemed it couldn't scramble on top of the boulder. Either that, or it didn't want to. To any outside observer, Syn and Blathma were trapped. Nevertheless, both Starfleet Officers took the opportunity to catch their breaths, with Syn feeling especially tired by this point. Tax flew up on top of the boulder with them.


"- .... .. ... / .--. .... .- ... . .-. / -.. .-. .. .-.. .-.. / .. ... / ..- ... . .-.. . ... ... -.-.-- / .-- .... -.-- / -.. --- . ... / - .... . / .- ..- - .... --- .-. / .-- .- -. - / - --- / -- .- -.- . / - .... .. -. --. ... / ... --- / .... .- .-. -.. / --- -. / ..- ... ..--.." said the patently annoyed exocomp.
"I hope the next world we go to won't have these things." said Syn between gulps of air.
"You'll get no argument from me." said Blathma who was equally winded. The two officers were just about to relax when something curious happened.

The beetle suddenly dug into the ground and vanished from sight. As Blathma and Syn began to wonder what this could mean, a blue energy wave consumed them.

Entry#8.3
U.S.S. Strider, System FN-2011, Celes Sector

 

     The bridge was bustling with the activity of a ship that was anticipating anything. It was only one energy pulse before, but just now a second one was detected. It seemed there was more to this anomaly than an interference field.

"Have we reached the Vestige System?" asked Draken as he monitored his ship's main system statuses on his arm rest's screen, which admittedly might have been a little small for such detailed readouts. Doctor Ty'Phoon didn't like it when he strained his eyes in such a manner.

"Yes sir." replied Lt. Berkut.

"Helm, full stop. I want a complete analysis of this interference field and a solution for our sensors before we proceed any further. Inform Starfleet-"

The captain was interrupted at the sound of a sensor alert.

"Captain, I'm picking up a vessel on an intercept course." reported Lt. Chengdu.

Draken suddenly had a bad feeling.

"Yellow alert! What kind of vessel is it?" he asked.

"Unknown. It doesn't match any known design in our database." replied Lt. Rap'tor. "Metallic readings indicates that it is made up of Starfleet alloys."

"What? Can you confirm?"

"The LT is right," confirmed Berkut, "...sensors indicate that this vessel was constructed from alloys unique to Starfleet ships. However, the drive signature is all wrong. I've only seen this profile with singularity drives."

"Were they hiding within the interference field?" asked Draken.

"No sir, they are behind us at..." Lt. Rap'tor double checked his plotter before continuing his report, "Two thousand-five hundred meters. They probably had a cloaking device."

"There's a massive power build-up coming from the unidentified vessel. I believe it is a weapon." said Lt. Berkut from his tactical station.

"Red alert! Charge phasers and begin evasive maneuvers. Ready Alpha wing for combat. Attack pattern Alpha. Lieutenant Chengdu, open hailing frequencies. We need try talking to them first."

"Opening hailing frequencies now Captain."

Entry#8.4
Hugin, System FN-2011, Celes Sector

Concurrent with entry 8.3

 

"Target in range. USS Strider confirmed." said Maya from her science-slash-comm station.

Viviane stared intently at the viewscreen looking for anything that could be amiss.
"Is the area clear for operations?" She asked. There had to be no witnesses before they could attack a Starfleet vessel. They only had one shot.

"Nothing on our scanners save for Strider." replied Maya after rechecking the plotter for what seemed like the hundredth time. The only thing that was new was the second energy discharge from Vestige. Hugin had not received a cease-operations order from Odin as a result of the second event.

"Very good. Dr. Yeka, are we sure this new weapon will work?" It was not the first time Viviane had asked the question.

"According to one thousand simulations and five lab tests, the mechanism is proven. I fully expect that this field test will also be successful." His brimming overconfidence irritated Viviane on more than one occasion. Unfortunately, he had the track record to back it up. There will be a day when your luck runs out. I hope that's not today, but if it is I will die laughing. Viviane wanted to say that, but chose a more tactful question.
"Would you stake your reputation on that?"
"I do. As I have done on every project of mine. I have yet to fail."
Viviane's face twitched ever so subtly. She decided to just focus on the task at hand. "Very well. Jutta, drop cloak and begin transferring power to the Flintlock capacitor."

"Aye captain, dropping cloak. Transferring EPS power flow from nonessential systems to Flintlock capacitor. Capacitor at one percent capacity." reported Jutta from her tactical station.

"USS Strider has engaged active sensors." said Maya.

"That was quick." Viviane said. She could feel a knot slowing forming in her gut, and she tried to ignore that feeling. It was no use indulging in emotions at such a critical moment.

"Flintlock at fifteen percent capacity." reported Jutta.

"We are being scanned." Maya said.

Now they had no choice but to destroy the Starfleet vessel. If Strider was able to send their scan data back to their superiors, Starfleet would know exactly who they were dealing with and the operation would be in jeopardy. Hugin would need to destroy the Strider with one shot.

"Flintlock at fifty-two percent." reported Jutta.

Viviane could feel her heartbeat getting faster, and her mouth starting to dry up. She never expected that this assignment would have her up against a Starfleet vessel this soon. She was certain the rest of the crew, all 50 of them, felt the same way. Except for Yeka, who seemed completely oblivious to the danger they were in. No doubt he was blinded by his own sense of invincibility.

"USS Strider is raising their shields." reported Maya.

If the specs on the Flintlock were correct, and the simulations were accurate, then the shields should be no problem. A bead of sweat formed on Viviane's head. She really hoped those simulations were trustworthy.

"Flintlock at seventy-eight percent." reported Jutta.

"Flintlock at one-hundred percent capacity. Disengaging EPS flow, hammer is in position and the shell is loaded. System is ready for tetryon-kinetic conversion. All systems are green. The weapon is live. We are ready to fire." Jutta almost ran out of breath giving that report.

This is it, Viviane thought as she prepared to give the order...
"Take aim..."

"Massive energy spike coming from the Strider's impulse engines. They're locking phasers on us. They're also hailing us."

It was now or never. If they don't fire now, the Starfleet vessel will assume that Hugin was hostile and then things would get supremely rough for the scout ship. Hugin was never designed as a warship meant to challenge the Iconians. Alita class starships like Strider were designed to challenge Iconians. With her heart pounding, Viviane drew a deep breath before giving the order...

"...FIRE!"

Hugin recoiled under the sudden simultaneous burst of combined tetryon and kinetic energy from the Flintlock. The 200 centimeter shell screamed across space at close to the speed of light, a tetryon bolt leading it. The tetryon bolt hit Strider's port side shield arc, weakening it to the point that the kinetic bolt could pass through. The bolt itself was coated with a thin ablative layer to give any remaining shield strength something to absorb, and it did its job as the bolt passed through the weakened shield. Strider was split in half following impact. A bright flash later, and a furious ball of expanding plasma replaced the ruined combat ship as the warp core lost anti-matter containment. Strider and its crew of 200 were no more.

Despite overloading several EPS junctions connected to peripheral sub-systems, as well as straining the structural integrity of Hugin, Flintlock had worked perfectly. Hugin's crew cheered the success of their experimental weapon. It would be a few hours before it could be used again.

"Well done everyone! Maya, inform Odin Base that the target has been neutralized." said Viviane, and she could feel her tension melt away. The one downside of today was that Dr. Yeka would continue to be an arrogant ass.

- END OF ENTRY - 

 

 

 

 

Entry#7: Instinct Over Logic

Entry#7.1

Stella Apartments, San Francisco, Earth, Sol System

    Nahuel didn't like paper work. No, it wasn't that he didn't like paperwork, he hated it. Endless, redundant, and oftentimes confusing waves of text were a fact of life for any officer in the 25th century Starfleet. Especially if one happens to be working in the one division that deals with vast quantities of unorganized information, Starfleet Intelligence. It wasn't just the text, it was also all the blank lines where one had to input redundant information ad nauseam. Nahuel supposed there were reasons for paperwork's existence, like keeping permanent records so that the organization remained accountable in some way unlike a certain organization that was unaccountable to the 31st degree. That understanding did nothing to dispel his emotional response to the matter. Besides, he's not sure if we wanted to stop hating paperwork. Perhaps it is a human flaw to want to continue hating something even if there was no reason to. Anyway, back to filling out forms.

Suddenly, the door chimed. I'll take any break I can get, Nahuel thought to himself.
"Come in."
Ensign Pix entered, and Nahuel noted that his face seemed troubled.

"Pix, what brings you to my home?"
Pix seemed perturbed, and seemingly not by the brewing rain cloud outside. It wasn't going to be a bad storm, Earth's weather modification system saw to that. That same system could do nothing about the situation the visitor was about to present.
"Well, uh, Lieutenant Nahuel, um...    Facility 0444 has gone silent."

That didn't sound good, and the name seemed familiar. A faint, brief rumble could be heard through the walls of the apartment.

"Silent?" asked Nahuel.
"They appear to have been attacked."
"Attacked? When?"
"Several hours ago."
"Why did it take us so long to find out?"
"It seemed that whoever attacked the facility made sure to do it during one of the ion storms that regularly occur in the area. That storm dissipated three hours ago. It was then that our new asset sent to keep an eye on that facility had noticed and sent us the report."
"Who is this new asset?"
"Atalanta."
"A freelancer?"
"She volunteered to be our eyes on the facility. Besides, she has helped us in the past during the War."
"Understood. Are there any survivors?"
"We're still determining that now. Initial scans indicated that all but two of the facility's runabouts were destroyed."

And then it occurred to Nahuel. At that same moment the muffled sound of thunder was heard.

"Where is Lieutenant Commander Vinu?"
"According to this," Pix examined his PADD, "he is not longer at the facility."

Nahuel suddenly felt that there will be more to the Vestige assignment than he first thought.

"First the energy surge, and now the very facility Vinu was detained at has been attacked" Nahuel wondered aloud. The ensign wasn't done, "One more thing, is that tribble supposed to be eating your crackers?"
"Ozymandias! No!"

Entry#7.2

Surface of Vestige, System TF-2011, Celes Sector

 

     Beetles are not supposed to be that big, thought Blathma. Despite his stance on the matter reality plainly disagreed. The distressed officers saw the giant beetle in all its glowing glory. It was a dull red glow that seemed to increase in intensity as the creature breathed. The visage was aided by a starry night sky and the light of the planet's half-moon.

Syn, Blathma, and even Tax stood very still as they waited for the beetle to become bored and move on. For the moment, it appeared to be scrutinizing them closely. Syn was really hoping that the saliva slowly dripping down the beetle's mandibles was only in his imagination.

Tax had replicated a phaser drill for this occasion. The drill was the next best thing to a weapon as Tax, like other Materials Prospecting exocomps, was not allowed to replicate a weapons grade phaser. The rule had something to do with workplace safety as well as the reducing the risk of some kind of uprising. In this moment though, Tax was considering overwriting that directive. Rules do not account for every situation since they are often written by individuals whose breadth of experience cannot possibly hope to cover every eventuality in life. Hence, the case for the exercising of informed, professional judgement and the need to establish principles, yet even those have limits depending on the individual in question.

At least the beetle didn't seem to be hostile. It was just sitting there, salivating away.

"I thought this planet didn't have wildlife." said Syn quietly to Blathma.
"Didn't you hear the birds yesterday?" Blathma hissed back.
Syn merely shrugged in response, and the present standoff continued amid the song of night birds. Behind them, the loose space elevator anchor rose unnoticed over the horizon as it began yet another journey across the sky.

Entry#7.3

Space Elevator Orbital Anchor, System TF-2011, Celes Sector

     Things were less tense in orbit. Delia had made herself a cup of raktajino in preparation for the work ahead to convert the exceedingly long strand of cable into a transceiver array. She stood in front of one of the anchor's portholes and was absently viewing Vestige's faint auroral display. Rather than appreciating the beauty of the sight, her mind was on other matters.

Zoe and Charlemagne were already doing the necessary extravehicular work to make sure the cable was connected to some point in the interior of the anchor. Delia's task would be to redirect the internal circuitry and EPS feeds from the default transceiver to the far larger alternative. It was going to take a lot of work considering the elevator cables and the default transceiver were on opposite sides of the anchor. On top of that, the computer software would need to be reconfigured to make sense of the new arrangement. Additionally, the entire task would need to be done with the resources on hand, and that means at least one subsystem would need to be cannibalized. Delia just didn't know which one it would be. She desperately hoped that the plan works and contact with Starfleet can be established through the subspace interference field with help following soon after.

Delia's mind was already working on figuring out just what kind of Frankenstein's monster she was going to command if everything worked out like they were supposed to. A mobile space elevator anchor towing along what was probably going to be the largest slap-dash transceiver assembly in Starfleet. In other words, not an anchor anymore. It'll need a fitting name, Delia thought as she took another sip her hot beverage. Of course, the name won't mean anything if the plan didn't work.

Speaking of the plan, did Starfleet notice what was happening? It seemed likely. The blue flash and interference field had to have been detected by somebody. If that was the case, then perhaps help is already on the way. Delia, however, was not going to put all her eggs in that basket. It was entirely possible that Starfleet had not noticed a thing. Delia took another sip of raktajino as she watched Vestige's moon descend under the planet's horizon as the anchor completed yet another orbit.

Entry#7.4

Runabout Auditor, Celes Sector

 

     A lone runabout was speeding through the void between star systems. The auditor was one of the Danube workhorses, but it was sufficient for Vinu's purposes. Familiarity with the vessel's systems had allowed Vinu to reconfigure the engines so that the warp trail would be scattered. Additionally, the ship was running on only the bare necessities. The lower energy signature should make it difficult for anyone to track him. He was well aware that if the project used Raven's Eye that he would be discovered. It seemed, however, that the project felt no need to use it just yet. They knew Vinu was heading for Vestige and undoubtedly have laid a trap for him there. Besides, the Raven's Eye had a flaw: the scanning beam was so powerful that anyone in the sector would notice that they were being actively scanned, and that would include any Starfleet asset in the area. Needless to say, the project never used it at anything near full power.

Luckily for Vinu, what he was doing now did not require such a powerful device. All he needed was a specially modulated receiver. He had finally built one built using what was available in the runabout. Now all it needed was some adjusting in order to acquire the desired frequency.

"Check frequency one four eight six."
"Working... no match found."
"Check frequency one seven zero one."
"Working... no match found."

Vinu had  accounted for many variables across all his simulations of the detonation of the Enkindler Device, and that included the range of subspace frequencies Vestige would transmit on. That was his secret, he knew there was more to the planet than dead plant and animal matter. It was home to a massive organism that spanned Vestige's entire globe. While its size was impressive, it wasn't the thing that caught Vinu's interest. What had caught his interest was that the sprawling web of organic matter was capable of interacting with subspace.

Vinu first noticed this strange property when a root sample reacted unexpectedly to the active transmission of one of his routine subspace reports to Starfleet. When the project offered him a way to bring the planet back to life he had accepted the offer. Vinu did not, however, trust his unexpected yet surprisingly well equipped benefactors. He had only meant to use their aid to further his curiosity, and would have severed ties once his curiosity was satisfied. The project would have their Gaia world, and Starfleet would have no choice but to look elsewhere for resources to mine. Unfortunately, his was apprehended by Starfleet Security before his plans could be completed. Now, he was a rogue element.

"Check frequency two zero zero zero."
"Working... anomaly found."
Vinu focused all of his attention to the monitor.
"Begin analysis."

After a minute of two of performing analytics on the anomalous reading on this subspace frequency he was certain he found what he was looking for. The heartbeat of the world he helped restore. However, it was exhibiting characteristics that he had not anticipated. Sometimes, one's subconscious instincts held more insight than one's conscious logical mind. Only one Vulcan understood that very well, and Vinu was pleased that he was just beginning to understand too.

  Entry#7.5

Odin Base

      The mood in the control room had cooled at the unexpected data that the drones were now transmitting. It was as if everyone had forgotten about the incoming Starfleet vessel. The monitor on the far side of the darkened room displayed time-lapse data of Vestige's magnetic field. The field was reorienting itself rapidly, and it appeared to be aligning itself to the planet's moon. It was also increasing in strength. This was not a mere magnetic pole reversal.

"Sir, are you seeing this?"
Said Neva standing to Adrar's right.
"I am" replied Adrar.
"What does it mean?"
"I think we are in for a surprise."
"So is the Starfleet vessel." Neva pointed to the incoming sensor data from Hugin, "Strider has slowed down which gives Hugin more time to prepare. No doubt they now have detected the interference field and are trying to understand weather it is dangerous before entering the system."
"What's the revised ETA?"
"Five minutes."
"Hm. I wonder which will happen first..." Adrar said amusingly.

- END OF ENTRY -

Entry#6: Named After Planes

Entry#6.1

Surface of Vestige, System FN-2011, Celes Sector

    Syn had never fully appreciated how full of life Vestige was until now. Part of that was because Vestige didn't have life until some hours ago, the other part was that Syn had never seen this place at night before. He could not sleep so entranced he was at the sight all around him.

All of the flora was bio-luminescent to varying degrees. The trunks of trees glowed faintly while the leaves were relatively brilliant. The glow was not only present but alive. The light pulsed as if it followed the beating of a hidden heart. The grass was glowing as well, and it rippled and shimmered like the surface of a lake. In daylight none of these visuals were apparent save for the glowing roots, which looked like frozen lightning. Even the clouds had color and life to them, only in a kind of faint glitter. While it was all pretty to look at, it was not helping him to fall asleep.

It wasn't just the sight that was distracting, Syn had slowly become aware of a vibration, a sound, almost like a quiet chorus. It was almost imperceptible, but it was there. It was as if the planet was playing music. Or was it singing? Whatever it was it seemed to be synchronized to the visual spectacle in some way. It even seemed to affect the very air with a certain... static-like sensation that could be felt on the skin at times. Syn wondered if it had anything to do with that subspace heartbeat that could be heard over comms. They had some discussion about it, but they were unable to make sense of the phenomena.

Something was missing from the scenery though. As far as he could tell, there was no sign of fauna. No bug life either. The only animal Syn had seen was that eight legged creature he and Tax saw back in the cave, and it vanished before he could get close to it. This made no sense, an ecology depended on the symbiotic interactions of flora and fauna for continued survival. But now, besides Syn and Blathma, the only creature moving was Tax, currently executing the role of the night watch. The bright light of a replicated flashlight clashed with the colorful scenery.

(It should be noted that Syn failed to notice the birds earlier in the day.)

Blathma, meanwhile, was sound asleep on the opposite side of the camp. Perhaps not everyone was so easily enamored by beauty.

They, Oscar 19, appeared to be the greatest mystery in this strange picture. Why had the planet changed so drastically but they and their equipment had not? Maybe one day an answer would appear, but Syn and company would have to survive until then.

Syn rolled onto his back, sighed, and stared into the starry heavens. As he did so he caught a glimpse of what appeared to be several metallic reflections that formed a squiggly line. Those glints appeared to be moving across the sky. It took Syn a moment or two before to realized what he was looking at.
Oh! That must be the space elevator. Guess it's just drifting away now with no one to catch it.

Entry#6.2

Space Elevator Orbital Anchor, Vestige, System FN-2011

 

    I wonder if anything is looking back, Delia wondered as she beheld Vestige through the visor of her EV suit. She hadn't gotten a good look at the night side of it before, so all of its colors and patterns was almost mesmerizing. Maybe she will get used to it. Then again, maybe she won't get used to it. She never could get used to extravehicular activity after all. She turned back to the hull of the anchor to add some finishing touches to one of the anchor's exterior radiators. As she did so she turned her mind's eye inward.

Incredible, and just yesterday it was an unadulterated wasteland Delia thought to herself as she watched colorful patterns dance across the surface of Vestige. Whatever happened, it seemed to have been a wonderful thing. A dead planet was now unmistakably alive to the chagrin of entropy. Of course, this all seemed too good to be true. There was something off about the picture, but she just couldn't figure out what it could be. Something, or someone had to be responsible for the change, but why? Was this someone's attempt to add to the universe? Or was someone planning something terrible? What if the planet was something terrible and she just didn't know it yet? And why was she not affected by the energy surge. Whatever the case may be, she could at least enjoy the view for now.

A glint in the corner of Delia's vision caught her attention, and she instinctively glanced at the almost one-hundred kilometers long cable that followed the anchor in its orbit to oblivion. It was one of several. If only there was something we could do with just one of those cables... and then she got an idea.

A few minutes later she was back in the anchor interior and out of her EV suit. She quickly searched for and found the exocomps, and proceeded to pitch her idea.
"I have an idea on how to break through the interference!"
Charlemagne was working on building an EPS relay, and Zoe was putting the finishing touches on a DIY impulse reactor. Both stopped mid-work to listen to what Delia had to say.
"We use that really big cable!" And she pointed out the visible window down the narrow corridor.

The two exocomps looked down the corridor, and then to each other, and back to Delia.

"Delia, Charlemagne and I were planning on cannibalizing that cable for raw materials."
"Well, could you not cannibalize the cable until we give my plan a try."
"Our plans may be put on hold, yes."
"Thank you. And, um, that exocomp's name is Charlemagne?"
*beep boop*
"What did it say?"
"HE said 'yes, why?'."
"Oh. Zoe, could you give him a vocal processor or something?"
Zoe reconfigured her hyperspanner.
"I will be able to. Note that I am capable of multitasking. You may fill us in on your plan while I work."

With that, Delia began to detail a plan to convert the hundred meter elevator cable into a hundred meter subspace transceiver. The details of which would be far too complicated for this author to write convincingly.

Entry#6.3

U.S.S. Strider, Celes Sector

   Captain Draken had called a meeting with his senior officers to review the facts of their unexpected mission to FN-2011-04, or Vestige as he heard it was called. Today's second senior officer meeting will be a brief question and answer session. Draken could tell that some of his officers had thought that the meeting was rather unnecessary, so some brevity would probably be welcomed.

"Thank you all for coming here. This second meeting won't be long, we have only half an hour before we reach our destination and there are a few questions I want answered before then. Can anybody tell me more about this Materials Prospecting Division?"

Lt. Commander Gripen answered,
"Established in Starfleet's early years, the Materials Prospecting Division's mission was to evaluate and if necessary mine materials in extremely hazardous environments. Historically, MPD teams were deployed to acquire resources Starfleet badly needed, such as Dilithium crystals during the first war with the Klingons. At the time, the Federation's suppliers were routinely targeted by Klingon forces.
The Materials Prospecting maintained this role throughout the life of Starfleet. After the recent conflict with the Iconians, the division's role was expanded in light of the Federation's unprecedented need of raw materials in order to help fuel reconstruction efforts across our corner of the galaxy.
As part of this expanded initiative, Oscar 19 was deployed to TF-2011-04, or "Vestige" as their former team leader Vinu called it. They were to mine its reserves of duranium, tritanium, rubidium, and dentarium."

"What kind of equipment do they use?"
Lt. Commander Rafale consulted his PADD before answering, "Let's see...    hand held mining tools, a mobile mining apparatus, a field refinery, a field smelter, and a space elevator. In short, all that is necessary for a fully functioning mining and refining operation."

"What about their team composition?"
Lieutenant Chengdu was the one to answer, "The teams are often comprised solely of engineers, with larger or more specialized teams including a science officer and even a tactical officer for high risk areas. All teams include an exocomp for each team member."

"What is Oscar 19's personnel composition?"
Commander Tomcat provided the answer, "Syn and Blathma are both engineers as well as their new team leader Lieutenant Delia. Their former leader, Lt. Commander Vinu, was a science officer."

"Get me their biographies at your first opportunity Commander. What do we know about this energy surge?"
Lieutenant Berkut answered with what she knew, "Not much. The surge was detected by Starfleet Intelligence seven hours ago. When they were unable to identify the cause of the anomaly they contacted us. I will be conducting long range scans and analysis in astrometrics as we approach the system. Hopefully I can learn something about what this surge was."

"I see. How long until we reach Vestige?"
Commander Tomcat offered an estimate, "About four hours."

"Understood. Now where is my mocha?"
"Right here." Said an Ensign Eagle who, if Draken hadn't known better, had just appeared next to his chair.
"Excellent."

As Draken enjoyed the icy beverage he suddenly felt that something was about to go wrong.

Entry#6.4
Odin Base, Unknown

 

     The report from Sond and Jeff had produced more questions. It seemed that the interference field had become a permanent feature of FN-2011. The source was the planet, but no one on the team could figure out why this field had formed in the first place.

Beautiful, isn't it?

The words appeared on the screen to the left, along with an image of the world that had replaced the desolate wasteland from before.

"It is quite a sight" said Adrar, "but as beautiful as it is, Vestige's resources are too valuable to leave untapped."
New words appeared on the monitor.

The more beautiful it became, the more useful it has become.

"Is that the way of our reality?"

Generally, yes.

The conversation was suddenly interrupted by a communicator chime. It was from Neva. Adrar answered it.

"What is it?"
"USS Strider is approaching the Vestige system and will arrive within the hour. Hugin is in place and is ready to intercept. They are just awaiting your confirmation order, sir."

It was not an ideal situation. Starfleet was certain to be more interested in the system once they lose one of their vessels. Not destroying the ship, however, meant that the operation could unravel far more quickly. Better to eliminate the problem before it realizes what's happening. At least it wasn't the Enterprise. Adrar got up from his chair, and began to walk towards the control room.

"Tell them to proceed" said Adrar as the door to his office closed behind him and Neva, "Do inform Viviane that she only has one shot at this."

- END OF ENTRY - 

 

Entry#5: Heartbeat

 

Entry#5.1

Space Elevator Orbital Anchor, System TF-2011, Celes Sector

 

     Charlemagne had not been idle while alone in orbit of Vestige. After the energy surge, the exocomp was unable to reactivate the shuttle, the Mischance. The shuttle had suffered physical damage from the rogue elevator anchor. Loose cables and debris had left several scars on the shuttle, one of the scars had cut across several primary EPS conduits. Further damage was done to the interior by a large, loose piece of debris that smashed the consoles as the Mischance spun out of control. Charlemagne had been unable to identify that piece before it abandoned the craft.

With the shuttle out of commission, Charlemagne went for the next best thing which was the orbital anchor of the space elevator. Upon reaching the anchor, Charlemagne activated several subsystems -including artificial gravity and life-support- and then proceeded to jury-rig a propulsion system. It was in the middle of calculating the necessary components required when Delia and Zoe had arrived.
 
Delia's first priority upon entering the anchor was to find a food replicator. She was delighted to discover that a replicator had been installed as part of the anchor and that - after redirecting an EPS conduit or two from nonessential systems - the replicator was still functional. Unlike the shuttle, everything was locked down in the elevator when the energy wave hit. 

Since life-support had been activated Delia had removed her helmet and proceed to test the replicator in the best ways she knew how, by ordering Hasperat. The device worked like a charm.
"Thank the Prophets!", and Delia began to devour the meal. The sudden exclamation attracted the attention of Zoe despite the sounds of a whirring hyperspanner.

"Do you believe in the Prophets Delia?"
"Well, yes, I suppose so." Delia said as she took another bite of Hasperat.
"But you do not wear the customary jewelery."
"Yeah, um..." Delia touched her ear while finishing a mouthful, "I never found the time to get one."
"I think I understand. Why do you desire a belief in the Prophets? Most humans see them only as wormhole aliens."
Delia finished the hasperat before responding.

"It's a long story" and she looked out one of the platform's portholes, seemingly lost in memory. Zoe patiently waited. For a moment or two her thoughts wandered away from the subject of Bajoran religion.

"Delia?" Zoe's question snapped Delia back to the present reality.

"I'm still here Zoe. Sorry."
"No apology necessary."

Another brief moment while the Lieutenant collected her thoughts,
"I should've tried harder to fight this assignment, Zoe."
"What do you mean?"
Zoe could tell that the subject of the conversation had changed.
"I should've fought this assignment. Demanded a position of my own choosing and stood my ground. To prove I had a strong backbone, but instead I had to give in to...."
"Reason?"
"Yeah, sure. That."
Delia crossed her arms and leaned her back against the nearest bulkhead. She continued,
"I mean, the Commander would have been insistent, right?"
"Possibly, but it is difficult to know for sure what the outcomes are of roads not taken."
"That's not the point!"

The whirring sound of the hyperspanner had ceased. Charlemagne, who had been engaged with re-configuring secondary EPS conduits, had taken a sudden interest in the discussion between Delia and Zoe.

"I do not understand, Delia."
"I served on the Enterprise, Zoe. I was qualified to serve on any other vessel in the fleet! Instead I had an order to join a mining expedition and I accepted it. What kind of Starfleet officer can't stand her ground?"
Zoe considered those words for a moment.
"Delia, Starfleet would not have given you this assignment if they didn't believe you were needed here."
"You're missing the point again. I wanted to travel among the stars, to find new...  possibilites there. I'd rather not spend my Starfleet career digging things out of the dirt." And with that Delia briefly returned to her own thoughts. She broke the ensuing moments of silence,
"But we can't dig for anything now can we?"
"Affirmative. Our objectives are no longer certain."
"Then, as commander of Oscar 19, I will make new objectives."

Entry#5.2

Surface of Vestige, FN-2011-04, Celes Sector

 

     Night was upon the hapless ground crew. The scenery was illuminated by the dull gray/blue light of Vestige's moon and by the glowing multi-colored flora. Syn, Blathma, and Tax continued their long trek up that colorful mountainside amid the sounds of a night life that was alien to them. It was marvelous, if certainly perilous. Fear of the unknown, an innate instinct for many was not entirely present in our adventuring troop of Starfleet Officers. Syn's curiosity, dulled by his present hunger, was growing as he took in the sight about him. Tax merely analyzed the surroundings trying to gather as much data as possible. Blathma could care less about strange new worlds; this one had proven to be a massive inconvenience so far.

At least the suits made usable sleeping mats. Unfortunately they did nothing for the Syn and Blathma's food situation. They were getting close to the base camp, but the temptation to try something local flora was growing. Tax had scanned some plants and found that most would probably be harmless, but the organics of the party were not quite ready to take the risk just yet. As bad as the food situation appeared to be, Syn and Blathma were both even more bothered by the same thing: Vestige is no longer suitable for mining. 

The Material Prospecting Division's charter forbade any mining on a world that is home to native life forms, a rule that was informed by the Prime Directive. Starfleet Command will probably reassign Oscar 19. Unfortunately, this could mean that the materials some colonies had planned on getting from Vestige would never arrive.

Where was Lieutenant Delia? Syn thought suddenly, Surely she should be in system by now. Hopefully she would have some idea on how to salvage this very strange situation. He had tried to make contact with anybody with his combadge, but only heard static every time.
"Blathma, did you get anything on comms? The Lieutenant should be here by now" said Syn.
"Not a peep. We won't get anything with this interference field around, and I don't think its going away any time soon."
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Not this time." Blathma tapped his combadge and didn't speak. He let the sound of static go on for several moment before turning off the device and saying, "The pattern is getting more defined."
Syn blinked in confusion.
"What pattern?"
Blathma blinked in confusion.
"The pattern in the interference. Can't you hear it?"
"No."
"But there is! listen closely."
Syn listened intently, but could not hear what Blathma what talking about. Maybe his colleague was starving too.
Syn shook his head "Nope, I still don't hear anything."

Blathma didn't know if Syn was being genuine, or if he was trying to be intentionally obtuse. Either outcome was annoying. Blathma resisted the temptation to start an argument however much he enjoyed verbal sparring.
"Maybe once we've regained access to our equipment I will have a better way to show you. Maybe."
"I don't know. What about you Tax? Have you noticed a pattern in the interference?"
"-.-- . ... --..-- / ... --- ..- -. -.. ... / .-.. .. -.- . / .- / .... . .- .-. - -... . .- - .-.-.-"
"Sounds like a heartbeat?"
"Sounds like a heartbeat?"
Syn and Blathma had asked the question in unison.

Entry#5.3
Odin Base, Unknown

 

    Sond and Jeff entered Adrar's office both wearing worried faces.
"Sir, our analysis has revealed something troubling."
"What is it?"
"We thought the interference field was a by-product of the energy surge from the Enkindle device and that it would dissipate over time. It hasn't."
"Do you know why?"
"We're trying to figure that out. What we do know is that the field is growing stronger."
"How interesting. I trust you will have more answers when I return. You may return to your duties."
With that, Adrar left the operations center. Sond and Jeff quickly returned to their stations to continue their analysis. They didn't know where or how to start answering the questions they knew would be coming later.

Later, Adrar returned to the operations center. He approached Neva first- to the relief of Sond and Jeff -and asked his first question of the day,"Do we know where Vinu is yet?"
Neva winced ever so imperceptibly, but it had not gone unnoticed.
"Not yet sir. But, we still believe he is heading for the Vestige system. Considering the drive limitations of the craft he took it will be some time before he gets there."
"How long?"
"Three, maybe four hours. Hugin is already in position. All we have to do is wait for Vinu. However..."
"Strider will be in system before then."
"Yes sir."
Neva was always a little concerned of Adrar's strategic awareness. She was beginning to wonder how much he really knew.

Adrar paused for a moment to consider the present situation. He then thought aloud,
"We still haven't apprehended Vinu. Starfleet has noticed our experiment on Vestige and has already sent a ship to investigate. Finally, we have just discovered that our experiment may have unforeseen complications that only Vinu can answer." He glared at Sond and Jeff, and both tried to pretend to not to notice. He turned his attention back to Neva before continuing, "Is all that correct?"
"Haven't missed a thing sir."

- END OF ENTRY - 

 

Entry#4: Intelligence has Noticed

Entry#4.1

Earth, Sol System

      Sammy's Self-Sealing Stem Bolts?
 
One Lieutenant Nahuel Ventura is on an important mission to find the one Lieutenant Commander Kyla VanZyl. He needed to report the energy surge detected in the Vestige system. Officially it was TF-2011, but Vinu's nickname rolled off the tongue better and no one had thought of a better name. It is feared that this surge had jeopardized Starfleet Intelligence's investigation into Vinu's associates. Their assets had not made contact since the event occurred.

Nahuel was about to leave when he finally spotted the Lt. Commander, who was apparently talking to someone over subspace. He took the opportunity to get things straight in his mind. When the commander had finished, he approached her to deliver his report.

"Business is good I see. They say stem bolts are an Evergreen business after all."
"Some say they are Seasonal."

The tone of the Lt. Commander's reply told Nahuel that he needed to be quick,

"We have a situation on Vestige."
"Make it quick."

In a lower voice the Lieutenant began,
"We've detected a massive energy surge emanating from the Vestige planet. We've tried contacting our asset in the system but she has yet to respond."
"How long ago was this?"
"About nine hours."
VanZyl took the Lieutenant's offered PADD, and read it quicker than he thought possible. Maybe this could have waited, thought Nahuel as he started to wonder if he was interrupting something important.
"Interesting, what ships are available in the Celes Sector? Anything we can deploy within twenty-four hours?"

If there was any moment that Nahuel was glad that he did his homework, it was now. He wasted no time in answering.

"The Palatine, Imbasa, Foundry, and Strider are currently available."
"Which ship is closest to Vestige?"
"Strider. They are currently resupplying at Starbase 114."
"Okay, inform the Strider that they will be investigating Vestige. Tell them everything you know about the energy pulse."

No Starfleet Captain worth their pips would pass up the opportunity to study an anomaly without a very good reason. The fact this came from a world Starfleet had an interest in would only sweeten the deal.

"Understood."
"And Lieutenant, you'll be responsible for the Vestige operation for the next few days."

The Lieutenant blinked in surprise as he took the offered isolinear chip.

"I won't let you down Lieutenant Commander."
"Good. Now if you don't mind, I really have something important to attend to." With that, VanZyl moved like the wind leaving behind a curious, yet very busy Lieutenant.

Entry#4.2

Surface of Vestige, System TF-2011, Celes Sector

     Two walking figures lead by a floating figure were slowly but surely making their way up the mountainside. Syn and Blathma had only a good guess as to where their base could be since the presence of trees, brooks, and shrubbery had changed the look of the landscape dramatically. That was why they had Tax leaving them as the exocomp still had the base's precise coordinates stored within its memory banks.

As the troop went on, the trees starting to get smaller and more sparse as they continued their ascent. The sky was slowly changing to oranges and reds, the signs of a quickly approaching night. A night of a world they now know nothing of. The figures seemed to be taking little notice of their surroundings, however.

"I said I was sorry."
Syn's apology was genuine, but it seemed that Blathma liked to hold a grudge. Syn persisted,
"Tell him tax."
Tax turned around - now flying backwards- before responding.
".. .----. ...- . / - .-. .. . -.. .-.-.-"
"When?"
".--- ..- ... - / -. --- .--"
"For someone who wanted a way to speak, I would've thought you would have more to say."
".. / -.. --- / -. --- - / - .- .-.. -.- / -- --- .-. . / - .... .- -. / -. . -.-. . ... ... .- .-. -.-- .-.-.- / -... . ... .. -.. . ... --..-- / - .... . ... . / .- .-. . / .- / .-.. --- - / --- ..-. / -... . . .--. ... / .- -. -.. / -... --- --- .--. ... -.-.-- / -.. --- / -.-- --- ..- / .-. . .- .-.. .-.. -.-- / .-- .- -. - / -- . / - --- / -....-"
"I get the picture! Andor's frost help me..."

It was then that Blathma felt compelled to break silence,
"Really? That was your solution? Was there really no other way to give him even a rudimentary vocal processor?"
"Blathma speaks!"

Blathma wasn't amused. After a moment of silence Syn continued,
"I'm still working on it, the dot-dash signals was Tax's idea of a stop-gap measure."
".. / -- .- -.-- / -- .- -.- . / .. - / .--. . .-. -- .- -. . -. - .-.-.- / - .... .. ... / .. ... / ..-. ..- -. -.-.-- / -. --- - / ... ..- .-. . / .. ..-. / - .... . / .- ..- -.. .. . -. -.-. . / .-.. .. -.- . ... / .. - / - .... --- ..- --. ...."
"As I said, it's a stop-gap measure."
 ".- .--" Tax turned around to face forward relative to the group's direction of travel. Syn continued,
"If I had a working tricorder then maybe I could've had a vocal processor ready to go however crude it would've been."
"There should be a working tricorder left at the base. Whatever is left of it. And by the way, on Earth it's called 'Morse code.' I've never liked the sound of it."
Syn's antenna indicated amusement at this admission. His response attempted to conceal that.
"I think it has its uses, but maybe conversation was stretching it a bit."
"If only stretching was all you did to my hammock! It was perfect until a bunch of rocks dragged it across the ground and over the cliff!"
"I said I was sorry! How is this level of grumpiness possible?"
In a huff, the Tellarite continued to travel up the mountain-side.

It was ironic, in the cave Syn had traveled down the mountain not knowing that this was the same mountain they were building the elevator on and that their base of operations was nearby. He might have been better off traveling up-stream where he may already have had access to a food replicator. Not to mention he would never have ruined Blathma's precious hammock.

Speaking of, a hammock would've been a wonderful thing right about now. Dusk was now giving way to night and they had no encampment prepared. Travel through the night was looking like a necessity if Syn, Blathma, and Tax wanted to reach the base sooner rather than later.

". -. -.. / ... -.-. . -. . / ---... -.--.-"

Entry#4.3

Space Elevator Orbital Anchor, System TF-2011, Celes Sector

    *thunk*

Delia and Zoe had reached the space elevator anchor.

"We have arrived at our destination."
"Yeah... thanks Zoe." Delia was slightly winded from impacting the hull of the 200 meter diameter structure with relatively high speed. She took a moment to activate her gravity boots to ensure she wouldn't float away, not that Zoe couldn't catch her if it happened but better to be safe. The EV suit didn't think anything was wrong, but the Lieutenant checked anyway for any damage. Nothing was amiss as far as she could tell. Still, Delia would have preferred a softer landing.

She also took the opportunity to detach the tether to Zoe and to survey her surroundings.

The anchor was disk-shaped with six retractable arms around its edge. These arms allowed for the transportation of raw materials that may be too unstable for transporters to handle. They can also be repurposed remotely, or manually if needed, to allow for transport of personnel between the anchor and station. Delia had landed on the edge of the anchor in order to find and access one of these arms.

"Zoe, think you can find the airlock?"
"One moment please."
The exocomp began a detailed scan of the anchor. She completed an orbit of the structure when she was ready to report.
"The interference is affecting my scanner. Despite this, I have detected a hatch 5 meters in front of you."
And there it was, and not entirely well hidden either.
"So I see" said Delia.

She began walking towards to hatch when Zoe continued,
"I am also detecting power readings emanating from the anchor."
Delia stopped mid stride.
"What do you mean?"
"Several of the anchor's sub systems have activated. Perhaps the energy pulse was the cause."
 "Well, that's not the strangest thing an energy wave has done today." Delia continued walking towards the hatch.
"I am also detecting another object nearby. Dimensions indicate a shuttle."
"A shuttle?"
A shuttle slowly floated past them at a distance of about 500 meters. It looked like it was derelict.
"Oscar 19's?"
"Affirmative. the shuttle's registry matches that of two deployed to Oscar 19."
"Who was piloting it?"

The airlock hatch suddenly opened, and an unusually happy, rust colored exocomp flew out of it.

Entry#4.4

Odin Base

 

     It was a simple office. No windows to be found and the only lights in the room were those that were strictly necessary. In the center was a modest sized desk. Three monitors were attached to it. A simple chair completed the set. There were no plants to be found. The occupant of the room held a utilitarian perspective with regard to creature comforts.

Adrar was looking over the report from Sond on his left-most terminal when Neva suddenly entered his office. He quickly turned off his right-most terminal. There were things which is subordinates were not permitted to know. At least not until he could be sure of their understanding.

As Neva stopped in front of his desk she said, "Sir, we have a problem."
Adrar was expressionless as he asked, "You should knock first."
"Sorry sir, but this is important." Social etiquette wasn't one of Neva's strong skills.
"Oh? What is it?"
"We lost Vinu."
This actually surprised Adrar. "Lost? Explain."
Neva took a moment to organize her thoughts before speaking. "Silencing Facility 0444 proved difficult. The Warden and her guards had a contingency plan we were not expecting. In the ensuing mayhem, Vinu made his way to a runabout and left the facility."
"Did you think to have him followed?"
"Yes sir, but he lost us in the nearby gravimetric cluster."
"I see. What are you going to do now?"
"Considering what we know, we think he will make his way to Vestige. How or when we do not know, but we will have Hugin in the area ready to acquire him."
"I'm glad you have a plan to salvage this unfortunate situation, such that it is. You may return to your duties."
With that Neva left Adrar's office.

Later, Adrar returned to the operations center after finishing his conversation a higher intelligence. He beheld Sond and Jeff leaning over a table and checking some numbers. There were also a few plates that once held rich meals, with one exception.

"Can I have that last donut?"
"No."
Jeff frowned at that response, and looked longingly at the one plate that was not yet empty. He returned to his work after a moment. Sond, meanwhile, was unusually involved in his analysis. He had already reported to Adrar about strange patterns in the data, but at the time he couldn't be sure if they were just anomalies in the data. It seemed that such anomalies were not going away. What could that mean?

"Uh oh." The sound was uttered from Neva's station.
"I thought we were more professional than that. What is it?"
"The U.S.S. Strider has left Starbase 114 and is on course for the Vestige system. Munin picked up the movement just now."
Adrar let out a sigh of disappointment. They needed more time to gather more data.
"It seems that we're running out of time. Let's hope Hugin's Flintlock is up to the task."

- END OF ENTRY -

 

 

 

Entry#3: Phase 3

 

Nobody noticed that the text wasn't quite aligned properly until it was too late.

 

Entry#3.1

Location: Facility 0444, Celes Sector

    "I'm here to see my client, Vinu." Adrar greeted the prison's Warden with his usual friendliness, which was greeting with her usual indifference. Nevertheless, Adrar once again submitted himself to a quick security scan by the Warden. The procedure was required for high security facilities such as this. When it did not reveal any dangerous items on his person, and that he was who he claimed to be, Adrar was allowed to enter the prison.

Like Facility 4028, Facility 0444's security was handled by holographic security personnel. The model the holograms here were based on was M'Athen, a deceased Caitian special forces soldier. The facility was lucky to get her consent to share data before her she went on her last fateful mission. This particular incarnation of the late special forces soldier went by the name of M'Lexis.

"Name?" inquired M'Lexis, though she already knew by this point. However, certain formalities needed to be observed to maintain a sense of order. Not that everyone shared that sentiment in the wake of the war.
"Adrar Beau."
M'Lexis made a show of inspecting her notes before proceeding, "Of course. Follow me Mr. Beau."

Today, Adrar was to continue his role as the lawyer for the former commander of Oscar 19, Vinu. Starfleet Command had discovered that Vinu may have been conducting illegal protomatter research and therefore had him arrested until his guilt could be determined. That didn't stop them from assigning a new commander though. Perhaps they have already determined Vinu's guilt and that the trail was itself a formality. An inconvenience to the larger plan to be sure.

Vinu was sent to Facility 0444 partly because of the seriousness of the accusation, but also because it was the closest prison to Vestige.

As Adrar arrived at Vinu's cell he made his request to the Warden,

"If you don't mind, this conversation is to be confidential."
"Of course." M'Lexis didn't particularly like that every conversation the lawyer had with the prisoner was confidential. Perhaps a fly on the wall wouldn't be a bad idea. Unfortunately any evidence collected that way could never be used for any legal action. With nothing to justify acting otherwise, she honored the request every time it was made. Hopefully no-one would regret it later.

Adrar entered the cell where Vinu was waiting.


Cell 519 internal sensor status: offline

     "I have made it clear to the Warden that this conversation will remain confidential between us per the Fourth Guarantee of the Federation's Code of Justice. You and I can speak freely."
Adrar made the announcement many times before, but continued to say it at every meeting. Protocol demanded it, and Adrar was a trained lawyer.

Vinu scanned the room as if to confirm their privacy. He proceeded directly to the matter at hand.

"Status on Phase 2?"
"We're looking over the data now. So far, it appears to be a success."
"And Oscar 19?"
"Just as your simulations predicted. Their lifesigns are stable, and their equipment appears to have remained untouched, relatively speaking. Only the material that was native to that gravity well was altered. It seems your invention is viable."

Vinu raised an eyebrow, and several moments of silence followed. He broke the silence when Adrar became visibly concerned.

"That is a most agreeable outcome. It seems that we should proceed with phase 3. When will you be ready?"
"We will be ready as soon as we can get you out of here. We'll be in need of your expertise going forward. Nobody knows this technology like you." 
"Indeed?"
"Indeed."

Vinu considered those words for a while before speaking again.
"Adrar."
"Yes?"
"It is only a matter of time before Starfleet realizes what has happened to Vestige. Time is of the essence."
"I can assure you that everything is under control."
"Overconfidence can destroy anyone, or anything."

Adrar took a moment to considered the point before taking his leave.

Cell 519 internal sensor status: online

    Outside the cell, the M'Lexis wondered what these conversations were about. The whole arrangement was unusual. Vinu's lawyer ought to have been Starfleet officer, not a civilian. This Adrar fellow knew his way around the law almost too well it seemed. Her thoughts were interrupted as Adrar emerged from the cell.

"Didn't need much time today did you?" M'Lexis asked, to which Adrar only frowned.
"There's only so much to discuss on the eve of the court-martial. I believe my client knows what's expected of him and what will likely happen."
"Is that so?"
"Indeed. Well, my business is done for today."
"Then follow me and we will get you signed out of here."
Adrar followed the Warden.

"You know, we've never had a prisoner with five distinct confidential conversations before. Then again, anyone getting so many visits here is unusual. I wonder, do you care a great deal about your client?"

The question was unexpected. My, she's getting suspicious about why I'm here. She's a clever one. Perhaps this place should be dealt with before business becomes too unpleasant, Adrar mused to himself as he continued the conversation. He did so while carefully making sure not to reveal his real motives.

Entry#3.2

Vestige, System TF-2011

    "I don't know what that was, but that teleportation trick was cool. It's a shame it didn't take us with it, I'm done with this cave." said Syn as he and Tax continued searching for a way out of the cave. They seemed no closer to finding an exit, and Syn was getting hungry. Not ideal for one with a fast metabolism and a lack of calorie reserves. Thirst wasn't an issue since Tax could replicate a water filter. Although there were many clean pools of water to be found, including an underground river. They were following the river downstream as it was their best chance at finding an exit.

As they went Syn began to muse about where he and Tax could be. As far as he could tell he could be on a different planet as Vestige didn't have any lifeforms on the surface. What little research he had read told him that Vestige did have life in the distant past, but that some cataclysmic event wiped out that life and forever changed the composition of the atmosphere to one of toxicity and generally anti-life. What it did not lose was its rich material reserves. Those reserves were why Starfleet Acquisitions was there. A wealth of resources and no ecosystem to ruin, it seemed like the perfect gig. It had become especially enticing in the aftermath of the Iconian War. If Syn was still on that same planet then clearly all that had changed. That seemed unlikely. Being thrown across the universe to another planet seemed equally unlikely, so present circumstances were surreal to say the least.

While thinking over all of this, Syn began to consider about something he never had before...

"Why was the planet called Vestige?" Syn mused aloud, "Isn't that an organ? Vinu came up with the name but I never asked why he chose it."
Tax then displayed a dictionary definition of the word via its holographic emitter.
"You just happened to be programmed with a dictionary. Let's see... 'a trace, mark, or visible sign left by something (such as an ancient city or a condition or practice) vanished or lost.' Huh. What trace could Vinu have possibly been referring to? That life existed here before? But this planet was hardly a unique case."
Tax managed to shrug.
"Well it doesn't help us right now. Maybe later once we find a way out of here, and I've found something to eat."

Syn and Tax continued to follow the river's course, and Syn was very glad that his suit was water resistant. As tired as he now was he pressed on, determined not to make this cave his tomb. After what seemed like an eternity light began to slowly but surely fill the cave. An opening was nearby. His eyes began to hurt after being so accustomed to a lack of starlight, but he pushed forward faster and faster until he stopped at the top of a waterfall. 

It was too tall to jump down, and it only lead into deeper and darker caves. Above was open sky filled in spots by vegetation. Only one of them could reach it.

"Damn, so close. You can go if you want buddy, I'll have to find another way out."

Tax immediately flew towards the sky leaving a surprised Syn behind. Did that thing really just left me here? Syn tried to sit down to think over some things, but he quickly realized that the current was too strong for that. Stand there he would to consider his lot in life. 

Fortunately for him Tax returned. As it did so it flew up to Syn, beeped, and then pointed to the rock wall to his right.
"Thanks for coming back but at some point I will build you a vocal processor, I don't know what you're trying to say about this wall."

The exocomp then lightly tapped the wall, and it was then that Syn understood. He then looked around for anything that would do to bash the wall down. Unfortunately there was little of use to be found in the underground river and Syn didn't have the energy to grind rocks for hours. A phaser would have been just fine, he thought to himself. There was one object that could do the trick, however. It just needed to apply more force than it could produce on its own.

"I hope that replicator can produce a hammer head."
There was a moment of silence, and then Tax replicated the head of a sledge hammer on its nose.
"That'll do. I'll make it up to you if this works."

Syn then got to work hammering the wall with the assistance of the exocomp. Their combined effort would quickly make short work of the wall. They just hoped they didn't collapse the cave in the process.

Entry#3.3

Vestige, System TF-2011-04

     Clear skies, a cool mountain breeze, the muffled sound of a waterfall, and the shade of a nearby tree. Blathma had surely picked the best spot on the planet. Not only was this a peaceful resting place, it was close to their base of operations if the canvas Blathma was using for a hammock was any indication.  The canvas was being held up at the foot by a pole and rope, and by an anchor he attached to the wall at the head. He was even using his suit, which he had removed from his person, as a blanket. The planet wasn't ready to kill anyone outright and could even be considered downright pleasant.

He would be enjoying his time of leisure if it wasn't for that incessant muffled clattering. 

What is all that noise? Thought Blathma as he tried to sleep. The sound was getting louder. Blathma was getting more agitated. When it was clear the noise would not go away he yelled, "Hey, can't a guy get some sleep around here!" At that same moment his hammock began to fill with rocks.

Entry#3.4

System TF-2011

   Delia and Zoe floated silently alongside Vestige's moon. Said moon had a new crater thanks to an unplanned yet enthusiastic landing on the part of Good Samaritan. The two were attached to each other with a safety cord so as to prevent separation. It is worth noting that Zoe had full mobility in the vacuum of space. Delia didn't.

Delia had the sudden urge to break the silence. "So, Zoe, how long until someone responds to the distress signal? It was on long enough for detection."
"The signal will never be received." Zoe's voice was ever calm and composed. A little discordant considering the gravity of the situation.
"What do you mean?"
"There is an interference field present in this system."
"Interference field? What's the source?"
"Unknown. It is interfering with all subspace frequencies. We are unable to contact anyone in or out of system."
"That assumes anyone is still alive" Delia said as she looked at Vestige once more.

The planet had changed. No longer was it the barren wasteland from her reports. Now it looked like a paradise world on the level of Risa. Only one kind of device could effect a transformation on that scale, and as far as she knew there weren't suppose to be any survivors. It was also forbidden research. At least it was until the Lukari demonstrated what responsible usage of the technology looked like but most in Starfleet were still coming to grips with that new reality. That isn't even considering the Federation at large. There was also the matter that Lukari tech shouldn't be available in this part of space yet.

However, that idea doesn't hold up. If it was a protomatter device then why did it not transform herself and Zoe? Or the moon as well? And what was the deal with this interference field? A lot of things just weren't adding up. Little did she know that Zoe was about to complicate matters even more.

"Delia, perhaps it is time I informed you of what our real mission is."
Delia was taken aback by this, "Our real mission? What are talking about?"
"Starfleet didn't just want you to rescue Oscar 19's resource output, it wanted you to investigate them for evidence of forbidden research."
"Protomatter research?"
"Affirmative. Lieutenant Commander Vinu has been accused of engaging in such research unlawfully."
"Vinu? I thought he was awaiting transfer to a new assignment?"
"He is currently awaiting his court-martial at Facility 0444."
"Prison? Why didn't I hear about any of this? Why didn't Commander Cleveland tell me?"
"Operational security. Since the particulars of our assignment has changed I have elected through my own judgement to present to you the official orders."

Zoe produced a holographic image, which Delia examined carefully. It was genuine, and the orders dismayed her.

"Zoe, when were you planning on telling me about this had the 'particulars' been unchanged?"
"When you've gained the trust of Blathma and Syn. After that I would have informed you of your mission parameters. Specifically, you were to determine if Oscar 19 had been involved in its entirety and whether Vinu had left anything dangerous on Vestige."
Delia took another look at the planet while Zoe continued, "It seems that Vinu did leave a device and it has been activated."
"You're telling me."
"Whatever research Vinu was involved in, he had the backing of someone more resourceful than a mining team. Someone is continuing Vinu's research in his absence."
"Yeah, uh, give me a second..."

Delia had to take a few moments to process everything Zoe was telling her. If that was her mission, then it meant that Starfleet knew what her genetic makeup allowed her to do, what she was trying so hard to leave behind on Genome. She could feel the anger welling inside her, and she wanted to scream in frustration, but she quickly realized that doing so would not help her present circumstances. Delia would not lose control now.

"Zoe, I'm glad you told me about this, but it won't do us any good unless we can get out of this."

Just then Delia caught a metallic glimpse in the corner of her vision. Looking in that direction, she didn't see anything at first. However, on a hunch, she activated her helmet's telescopic function and she saw the orbital anchor of a space elevator. It appeared to be orbiting the planet dragging along the remains of the cables that were meant to tie it to the surface. What? Did they try to build it before I got here? What were those guys think-, and then she had an idea.

"Hey Zoe, the orbital anchor of a space elevator can function as its own space station, right?"
"In cases of emergencies."
"Like this one?"
"Yes."
"Can you get us to it then?" and Delia pointed to the floating anchor, "I think we'll have a better chance at surviving in there than trying re-entry on a moon."
"Target acquired, rendezvous coordinates set, hang on and enjoy the ride."

The exocomp took off in the direction of the rogue elevator with Delia in tow.

Entry#3.5

Odin Base

     Adrar re-materialized in the control room's transporter pad. Neva was there to greet him.
"What's the word?"
"Vinu wants us to proceed with Step 3. We will oblige."
"Understood."
"There is something else. I fear the Warden has been too observant for her own good. We will need to decommission facility 0444."

Neva blinked in surprise. She prefers the direct approach but to hear it from Adrar was jarring. Normally he preferred subtlety. She decided to challenge him on the decision.

"Is that necessary sir? We have the specs for the device and the test proves the technology works. Why do we still need Vinu?"
As usual, Adrar had a reason. "I do not believe he has told us everything about this technology, not to mention what he wants to do with it. The more we can learn about this technology the more useful it will be to us. Therefore, Vinu is still valuable to us."
"But at what point do the costs outweigh the returns?"
"For our cause, maybe never."

On the other side of the room Sond was busy pouring over the data from Vestige with his assistant, Jeff. Both seemed unusually perplexed.

▬ END OF ENTRY ▬

"Vestige" definition from Merriam Webster