Christopher Adams The Enigma Factor

Mission: The Enigma Factor

Day: 1 - Stardate: 2407.01.27

(USS Paladin - Deck 51, Main Engineering - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1346)

Ensign Christopher Adams walked around the lower deck of the cavernous engineering deck of the USS Paladin. His face looking down at a PADD while engineering techs walked around him. Periodically he would glance up to check a readout verifying what he was seeing on the PADD. Lieutenant Matrix was on duty on the bridge, leaving Adams to watch over engineering.

Suddenly, Captain Straton's voice came over the comm system. =^=Bridge to Engineering.=^=

Adams tapped his comm badge, "Engineering here."

=^=We have picked up a distress call and are going to investigate and lend what ever aide we can,=^= explained the captain. =^=We will need all available power.=^=

"Aye, captain," responded Adams. "Engineering out."

Looking up at one of engineering techs on the catwalk at warp core 3, Adams yelled out, "You heard the captain! Bring Warp Core 3 online!" He then walked over to the main engineering table and tapped in the status of the warp core so that Ensign O'Connor and Lieutenant Matrix would be informed up on the bridge.

Ensign Christopher Adams stood at the main engineering table typing the status of the engines into the operations panel so that the bridge crew could monitor the power output from the third warp core since he had ordered it activated. Suddenly the two other warp cores started to pulse at a faster rate. ~We must have entered warp,~ thought Adams. Looking down at the engineering panel his speculation was confirmed. A green panel flashed on the engineering display and Adams touched it revealing a message from the first officer.

---

Ensign JG Adams-

You have been selected for possible away team duty in Away Team 1. Assemble necessary equipment and report to Transporter Room 1 in three and a half hours, if you are notified.

-Lieutenant Commander Capps

---

~Wow. My first away mission,~ thought Adams. He walked over to the equipment locker and pulled out an engineering case. Opening it up, he removed the tricorder and attached it to his belt. He closed the case and set it on the engineering table.

(USS Paladin - Deck 51, Main Engineering - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1740)

Ensign Christopher Adams walked around the engineering deck checking the various readings. The engines suddenly stopped their pulsing and Adams walked back to the engineering table to check the read outs. The ship had come out of warp and sensors were reporting a subspace rift in front of the ship.

=^=Away team 1 report to transporter 1,=^= Commander Capps's voice commanded over the ensign's comm badge.

Adams walked over to Ensign Tristen who was monitoring the subspace rift's effects on the power systems. "Tristen, I've been asked to join an away mission. That leaves you in charge down here. I will notify Lieutenant Matrix on the bridge." Adams then walked over to the engineering table where he typed a few commands into the table, picked up the engineering case, and headed to the turbolift.

(USS Paladin - Deck 4, Transporter Room 1 - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1743)

Ensign Christopher Adams walked into Transporter Room One where he met up with a very striking young female Trill with long blonde hair. "Hello," he said extending his large hand while a half grin appeared on his face. "I'm Ensign Adams. Pleased to meet 'ya."

Olesia took his hand, and shook it. "A pleasure, ensign. Nervous?"

"Sorry," Adams responded wiping his hand on his uniform pants. "I'm a little nervous this being my first away mission and all."

"You'll be fine."

Also in the room was a Klingon as well as other people dressed in security uniforms. Suddenly a phaser came flying towards Adams making him drop his engineering case in order to catch it.

"You won't get very far without that, Ensign," warned the transporter chief.

"Th...thanks," replied Adams attaching the phaser to his belt and picking his case back up. A whoosh came from behind him and he turned around to see Commander Capps and Ensign O'Connor enter the transporter room.

"Ensign Trei," said Capps looking towards the Klingon security officer. "You will be beaming with us, but I want your security team to beam immediately after us."

"We are ready for transport sir" Detron said to Commander Capps. “Team act on my signal. Until then, stand alert."

~This will be exciting. My first away security mission to lead. Lets Rock and Roll.~

The commander then looked towards Adams and Belden. "Ensign Adams, Ensign Belden," he said nodding in their direction.

The doors to the transporter room opened once again and a woman with long auburn hair walked through dressed in a blue uniform and carrying a medical case.

"Let's go," commanded Capps as he walked up to the transporter pad.

Ensign Adams followed the rest of the away team and walked up onto one of the transporter pads.

(Unknown Vessel - Control Center - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1751)

The dark room became illuminated from the transporter beam as the away team from the USS Paladin appeared. Ensign Christopher Adams's knees buckled as the gravity of the unknown ship took effect. He reached into his case and pulled out a palm beacon which he strapped to his left hand. They appeared to be in the control center of the ship, perhaps the bridge. There were several bodies around the bridge.

Commander Capps instructed the away team to start searching various areas of the ship. "Ensign O'Connor and Ensign Adams, let's see if we can get power back on, and internal sensors."

Adams nodded and followed O'Connor over to the nearest wall where an access panel appeared to be. O'Connor knelt down in front of the panel, "Adams, help me get this cover off." Adams knelt down with a grunt next to the Ops officer. "If the gravity is still working," continued O'Connor. "Then that means that at the bare minimum, the aux power systems are working. If we can find what ever passes for an EPS port we can try and set up a cross link between the environmental controls and the rest of the systems, hopefully bring back online the internal sensors and the computer system, then maybe we can get some answers. That is, assuming they use anything we can recognize for a power distribution system. If not, we will just have to wing it, I want a look at the computer system as soon as we can bring it back online."

Both grasping the panel the two officers were able to pull it off. Pulling his tricorder off of his belt, Ensign Adams scanned the circuitry behind the panel. "Hmmm. You are correct. The auxiliary power is still operational and these systems don't seem that far off from our technology. I have some optical cable in my case which I can use to re-route the power from the environment system to the computer systems. There isn't enough power in order to do much more than that…"

"Ensign Adams, help me move this body," asked Ensign Belden from a couple of meters away.

"Just a second, Belden," responded Adams. "I should be finished over here in a second."

Looking back at O'Connor, "There isn't enough power to drive more than the computers. You are going to have to check the power distribution and see if you can re-route power once the computers come online."

Ensign Adams picked up his case and pulled out a meter worth of optical cable. Reaching inside the panel he found the EPS taps and used his hyperspanner to connect the cabling from the auxiliary power to the computer systems. He picked up his tricorder and did one last check.

"Try it now," said Adams.

Ensign Adams grasped the wall and with a grunt rose up to his feet once again. The heavier gravity was starting to make the young ensign a little winded. He lumbered over to Ensign Belden as she pulled on the body which was slumped over one of the command consoles.

"You push, I'll pull," instructed Adams. "One…two…three…" Adams pulled on the arm of the body and it tumbled to the ground.

Ensign Adams then walked back over to O'Connor to see if he needed any help re-routing the power to the other systems.

(Unknown Vessel - Control Center - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1828)

Ensign Christopher Adams had spent the last half hour working with Ensign O'Connor getting the engines up and going. In order to get any response at all, they had rerouted around at least a dozen collapsed power conduits, or at least this ship's version of a power conduit.

"Commander," Ensign O'Connor stated getting the attention of Commander Capps. "I'm rerouting emergency power to the engines now, once we get the engines back on line we should be able to restore a semblance of full power to the rest of the systems and move us out of the rift."

"Nice work," responded the commander. "I will contact the Paladin. Let's get out of this rift."

"Aye sir," Michael said. "Engines starting in what looks like…three…two…one…and," Ensign Adams stood beside O'Connor when he touched the last panel which engaged the engine. The whole bridge started to shake sending Adams onto his side with a thud.

"Son of a…," screamed O'Connor, shutting down the engines.

Adams slowly got up the increased gravity still pulling against his large frame. Returning to one of the engineering stations, he started pulling up a diagnostic of the engine.

"Sir," reported O'Connor. "Sensors indicate that the rift just expanded when we turned the engines back on. I've powered them down again, and I don't think we're gonna drive this ship out of the rift. Belden, Adams," started O'Connor looking at the engineering and science officers. "Any possible idea what this rift is?"

Adams continued to look down at the engineering panel and the diagnostic he was running.

"I think I got something," stated Adams to the whole room. "I don't quite understand the science behind why the rift is expanding, but I think I know the cause. It turns out that this ship is similar to Romulan engine technology in that their engine is powered by an artificial quantum singularity. This ship must have come across a subspace tear and when the two came in contact, it caused a cascading power inversion. Pretty much destroying systems all across the ship from the inside out."

"The only option I see," continued Adams. "Is to get the Paladin to tow us out with a tractor beam. Once we are clear of the rift, we should be able to restart the engines and repair systems enough so that the ship can continue on its own power. Closing the rift, that's a whole different problem."

Ensign Christopher Adams continued to pour over the readouts from the diagnostic he was running on the alien vessel's engineering systems. He pinpointed each collapsed power conduit and looked for ways around it so that he could bring each system up one at a time.

"Any luck on translating any of this? Knowing what 'siurrh ieuyye' would really help," said Adams glancing over to Ensign O'Connor with a smile.

"Commander," shouted Adams trying to get the attention of Commander Capps. "I think I've gotten sensors back up and going and we've got a problem. There's another alien vessel just outside the rift along with the Paladin with a configuration similar to the one we are on. I've pinpointed all the breaches in the power systems. I can start working on them without having an effect on the rift. I could also go down to engineering and see if this ship has an alternate method of propulsion then the quantum singularity which drives the warp core. Which area do you want me to concentrate first?" Ensign Christopher Adams looked at Commander Capps for direction when Ensign O'Connor spoke up, "Commander, I want to take Adams and the Doctor down to what ever qualifies for Engineering on the ship. There may be people injured down there, and if we are going to figure out what's going on or how to get us out, we are going to need access to that section of the ship."

"It seems you and Adams have the same train of thought." Calvin really didn't want to split up the away team. It seemed only the worst could happen from here on out. But he had to believe in his officers opinions. "Agreed. Take the team you want. The rest of us will stay here. We will continue to review sensors, logs, and attempt to contact the Paladin. I also would like to know what that unknown ship is out there."

O'Connor nodded and looked towards the doctor and Adams, "Doctor Whetari, Ensign Adams, you're with me, we're going to head down to engineering. Adams, you think you can convince the turbo lift to take us there without voice commands, or should we find what passes for a Jefferies tube and hoof it?"

"I should be able to convince one of these lifts to take us there," responded Adams. "It may take me a few minutes while I pull up a map of the ship and then hard code the route into the lift."

(Unknown Vessel - Control Center - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1848)

Ensign Christopher Adams used his tricorder to pull a ship schematic from the computer system and walked down a hallway where he found a lift. Pulling a panel from the wall he started to look at the circuitry inside. It was similar in design to a Romulan ship, but with differences here and there. He traced the circuitry back to the lift's control buffer and was able to use the tricorder to decode the command codes. With the command codes in hand, it was just a matter of putting together the right sequence that would get them to what looked like engineering on the schematic. A few more taps on the tricorder and he had fed the commands into the lift's control buffer.

"Okay," said Adams to O'Connor and Whetari. "I think I have it. Ready to go for a ride?"

(Unknown Vessel - Engineering - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1849)

Doctor Whetari and Ensign O'Connor joined Ensign Adams on the lift. Once they were on board, Chris hit a button and the lift doors closed and they were whisked off into the depths of the ship. After a few seconds, the doors reopened on a dark hall. Adams illuminated the passage with his palm beacon and walked towards a large room which had a strange pulsing glow coming from within.

In the middle was a single chamber with half a dozen conduits entering it. Radiating outward from the chamber were several shimmering strings floating in mid air. An intermitted hissing sound could be heard from the strings as air was sucked into them. Sitting in the middle of the chamber was a single glowing ball of energy. Scattered about the floor of the camber were more bodies.

Michael followed ensign Adams out of the turbo lift, Doctor Whetari behind him. It wasn't surprising that they found more unconscious bodies.

Ensign Adams made his way into the chamber first. "It appears that the quantum singularity is still getting power and is causing smaller pockets of subspace tears around it. We should avoid contact."

"All right, first person to loose a limb to the subspace rips buys the rest dinner. Doctor, take a look at the crew, and get back to me with a general opinion on the condition, I'm worried that they are going to be worse of this close to the drive. Also while were down here, you are hereby-designated Temporary science officer, keep an eye on your tricorder for anything unusual. Also, when you're checking the crew keep a look out for the guy with the most decoration on his collar or uniform, he's the one we are going to want to talk to if things go south," Ensign O’Connor said with a wry smile.

“I will look after the crew and check my tricorder regularly, Ensign.” Nissa replied with a nod. “But, regarding the rank insignia – who is to say that this race marks their command with more, rather than less or larger insignia. I will evaluate what insignia I see and report back with my observations.” She explained, making her way over to the first body.

Limbs splayed at a strange angle, the first body that Nissa came across had third-degree burns over most of its head and torso. The young male died from those and other serious injured to the upper half of his body.

Nissa sighed deeply as she moved on to the next body with a sorrowful look.

Michael turned to face Adams. "Ok so we have subspace tears forming inside of a ship inside of a subspace tear, joyous day. We need to find a way to either get us out, or contact the Paladin so she can get us out, let's start by taking a look around and figuring out just what everything is down here, until we get the system translated we aren't going to have a whole lot of luck doing much but rudimentary things. I think our primary concern is reestablishing at least a com link with the Paladin. Any ideas on that other than going back to the basics and flashing the running lights in Morse code?"

"Not sure," responded Adams. "As you suggested, let's poke around and see what we can find."

Ensign Adams started walking counter clockwise around the edge of the room. Standing clear of the subspace tears radiating from the engine core, he scanned each engineering station with his tricorder as he went around. "Internal Sensors. External Sensors. Engine monitoring. Propulsion. Communications." Adams named off the stations as he passed.

"Well we know standard communication channels aren't going to work, because our own comm system can't break through the subspace interference. Hmmm," thought Adams. "We could modify the sensors to transmit a positron burst encoded with a message. It wouldn't allow live communication, but we could send messages back and forth. The burst would be picked up by the Paladin's main deflector dish and processed as part of their sensor data, but there's no guarantee that they would know it's a message. It's kind of like Morse code. Just all in one burst of light," Ensign Adams said after Michael asked for any ideas about communicating with the Paladin.

"It's worth a try, however at the moment we don't really have much to tell them. Lets poke around a little bit more see if we maybe can find a secondary system we can use to get us out. Before we send we'll coordinate with Commander Capps, see if he has anything he wants to send as well." Michael said.

(Reply Adams iyw)

Once he was done with Adams, Michael walked over to where Doctor Whetari was working. "How bad are they, Doc?" Michael asked. "If we can't find a way out ourselves we might need their help., but if it would be kinder to let them sleep, then we'll let them sleep for now."

“Unfortunately,” Nissa huffed as she stood up from her crouch above one of the bodies, “all but two are dead, Ensign.” She motioned to an older female and younger male across the room from them. “They are the only survivors and they have both sustained rather serious injuries. It is not advisable to wake either unless we have to, though I think that we could revive the younger of the two with less pain, as his injuries are slightly less.” She explained with a frown and a slight nod, acknowledging that they may have to wake the aliens even if it would cause them pain.

(Unknown Alien Ship, Engineering - COPS/3O Ensign (sg) Michael Ian O'Connor - 1910)

Michael perked up from his work with the computer systems when he heard his name. Walking over to where Adams was sitting down in front of what he had listed off as a propulsion terminal earlier. "What do we have?"

"Ensign. I've analyzed the commands which control the Propulsion Station. It appears there's only one which won't active the ship's engines and it involves another ship. I'm not exactly sure what will happen if we initiate the command, but I can only presume that one ship will pull another ship. Maybe it's some sort of emergency system? We know there's another alien ship out there. What do you think? Should we try and send this information to the Paladin through the positron burst?"

Ensign Christopher Adams sat on the engineering floor of the alien vessel looking up at the chief operations officer, Ensign Michael O'Connor. Adams had just listed out a few options that they could take and was looking for guidance on what they should do next.

"Compress the sub-routine," commanded O'Connor. "…and, set up the positron burst...and be ready to send it again to the other alien ship if we get the okay from the Paladin…they haven't started firing yet, but we don't know if they're friendly yet. Give them what ever information they'll need so they can set an answer we can interpret. Let me know if you need me to do anything. I'll inform the bridge of what we're going to do, internal communication should be okay, although I'll head as far from those strands as I can. Let me know when you're ready to send and I'll let you know if the bridge has anything to add."

"Aye, sir," responded Adams. "Actually, I could use some help." Adams threw his tricorder over to O'Connor.

(reply O'Connor)

"I've downloaded all the command codes into the tricorder. You just need to author the subroutine which will initiate the subspace link between the two ships. I'll work on compressing the message into the positron burst."

(reply O'Connor)

Michael nodded and turned, "Doctor, if you have any information you want passed onto the Paladin, or any questions, let Ensign Adams know, he might have a way to pass and receive information." Michael yelled across the room to the Doctor as he moved to the far side of the room to contact the Commander.

(Reply Whetari iyw)

Adams got off the floor with a loud grunt. Sweat had started to pour down from his brow and he was really breathing hard due to the increased gravity.

Ensign Christopher Adams looked over in the direction of Doctor Nissa Whetari. "Doctor? Is there anything you can give me to help me catch my breath? I'm having trouble in this increased gravity."

"I have something that I think should help," said the doctor making her way over to Adams. "Just sit and rest of a moment," the doctor warned pressing the hypospray against Adam's neck. Making a few adjustments, she injected herself as well. "You should start to breathe easier in a moment and any feeling of fatigue or heaviness should subside in the next few minutes."

"Thanks, doctor," responded Adams. "But, I have to get this message ready to send. Each moment that we sit here with another alien vessel outside, we are in that much more danger.

"I heard you tell Ensign O'Connor that you wanted to put a casualty report into the message," Adams replied as he began to breathe easier. "What did you want me to put into the message?"

“Please let the Paladin know that we have at least five wounded here and have found at least 15 dead.” Nissa said, reloading the Hypospray and looking around for Ensign O’Connor. She noticed that Ensign Adams seemed mildly frustrated. ~He must be having trouble with the systems, since we’ve lost contact with the Universal Translator.~

“Its too bad you this ship doesn’t have a Universal Translator that we can access, but you are doing a great job.” After giving her words of encouragement, Nissa moved towards O’Connor, leaving Adams to work in peace.

Not wanting to waste any time, Adams lumbered over to the External Sensors console and started looking over the display with the alien pictographs. ~Damn,~ thought Adams. ~Completely unreadable. Can't we all just use the same language?~ Adams opened up his engineering case and pulled out another tricorder and started analyzing the different control schemes. After a couple of minutes he was able to figure out how to use the ship's particle emitters and started authoring the message he was going to send to the Paladin.

Adams lumbered over to the External Sensors console and started looking over the display with the alien pictographs. ~Damn,~ thought Adams. ~Completely unreadable. Can't we all just use the same language?~ Adams opened up his engineering case and pulled out another tricorder and started analyzing the different control schemes. After a couple of minutes he was able to figure out how to use the ship's particle emitters and started authoring the message he was going to send to the Paladin.

Tapping his comm badge three times he engaged a local transmission.

(Unknown Vessel - Bridge - FO Lt Cmdr Calvin Capps - 1911)

Calvin was sitting in a loose chair that he had found lying on its side. He sat across from the unknown alien. In the past 30 minutes the First Officer and the alien attempted to talk to each other. Back and forth the two talked. Not knowing what the other was saying but to Calvin it seemed that the alien knew why they continued to communicate any ways. Calvin believed that the alien he was talking to knew that they were trying to get enough dialog between the two for the translator.

So far it seemed that the aliens name was Huor. The translator was no where near perfect but Huor had said 'name', 'my', and 'Huor' enough times that the translator was able to pronounce those words back in English so Calvin could understand what Huor was saying. Lt Cmdr Capps assumed that the translator was also able to speak back to Huor what his name was.

Huor was no longer a dangerious threat. Trei went back to working on the sensors and Belden continued to work the translator and hitting commands here and there.

"Huor, we need your help. Can you understand me?" Calvin asked the same question about 10 times now.

(reply Huor)

It sounded like Huor responded with the same response as he did the last 9 times. Except this last time more words were translated to English. A small dictionary was being assembled in the translator, but at the current rate of translation it would take longer than the away team had.

Calvin was then interrupted by a communicator. "Belden, continue talking with Huor."

=^=Ensign O'Connor to Commander Capps, Ensign Adams might have a way to transmit information to the Paladin. If you have anything you want to send, let me know and I'll make sure it's in the burst transmission. Be aware we are going to rig the sensor to emit a coded positron burst aimed at Paladin. =^=

(Unknown Alien Ship, Engineering - COPS/3O Ensign (sg) Michael Ian O'Connor - 1914)

=^=Ensign O'Connor I will assume that you will not be doing anything that may get us into more danger than we already are. Having said that. Send to the Paladin our status in general. Tell them that we are unable to get out of the rift using our own engines. Also tell them that we have one awaken alien that we have limited communication with using a even more limited translator. =^=

"No sir, nothing that will endanger the ship, the Paladin, or us." Michael said. "I'll add that to the message, Adams is constructing."

=^=And to give you an update about our situation up here Ensign. Our translator is beginning to work. I believe this alien known to me as Huor may help us use the systems on the ship. =^=

"Sounds good, sir, are you making any further progress on your end?" Michael asked.

=^=We are getting no where up here, and we only have one Huor. We will be moving to your location. If this ship is anything like ours we will have the same systems in engineering. =^=

"We do seem to have access to most systems down here that I saw up on the bridge. But be aware sir, the core is still partially active and there are more subspace tears occurring near it down here, it could be very dangerous."

=^=We will take that chance. Send that burst out as soon as possible. See you soon Ensign. =^=

"Aye Sir, O'Connor out," Michael said and then moved back to Adams.

Ensign Christopher Adams bent over the External Sensors station working on getting the ship to emit a positron burst encoded with a message, when Ensign Michael O'Connor approached him tossing Adam's tricorder back at him. "We have a report from the bridge to add to the message before you send it out. Send it out as soon as you can, and be prepared for a response, the Captain and the rest of engineering will make sure we know they heard us."

"Understood," Adams replied looking down at the tricorder that O'Connor had tossed to him. He started up a standard Away Team Report and filled in all the information known.

---

Away Team Report

Situational

• Stuck in rift and cannot engage engines
• One awake alien with limited communication

Medical

• Discovered 5 wounded
• Discovered 15 dead
• Total compliment unknown

Engineering

• Engine similar in Romulan design: artificial quantum singularity
  • Seems to be related to rift
  • Engaging the engine caused rift to expand
  • Smaller versions of subspace tear emanating from engine core
• Have discovered possible way out of rift
  • A system which would send message to the other alien vessel
  • Other alien vessel pull this ship
  • Doesn't engage engines on this ship
  • Details of what this would do: unknown

---

After the message was done, Ensign Adams compressed it using a Starfleet standard encryption protocol and fed it to the alien's External Sensor console. "Alright. Here goes nothing," Adams said looking over at O'Connor. He pressed a button on the console and looked down at his tricorder.

Ensign Adams looked back at Ensign O'Connor with a look of excitement in his eyes. "Message Away. Now we just hope that they find it in the sensor data and know it's a message."

(USS Paladin - Bridge - Ensign Elizabeth Knightley - 1925)

Elizabeth was as comfortable as she could be in her chair. She continuously kept her wits about her while waiting for anything coming from away teams alpha or beta. So far the only thing interesting that came in was when away team beta reported in. Other than that it was a waiting drill.

As much as the Paladin's crew could be proactive in the away missions Elizabeth had set up the sensors to monitor the two alien vessels. They were set up to alert her if anything changed in any way. There were a few false alarms already and the former Chief of Ops was getting really annoyed by it. As she was about to put a more stringent sensor setting on the the monitoring another red dot began to blink in the middle of the screen.

She expected another false alarm, but as she investigated it more it turned out to be something more. With out taking her head off of her panel she spoke to Commander Sarouk. "Commander I am sending you a sensor reading from away team alphas vessels."

"The vessel hasn't produced anything like it since we arrived and began running sensors on it. It must be from the away team."

"To me sir it is a communication burst using the sensor network. I may be able to translate it through the computer to see if it finds a common links.

"Aye sir." Elizabeth expecting the go ahead so she had already placed the sensor reading on a separate track on her panel. She then cut out unnecessary parts of the sensor reading that was background noise. She placed the reading into a program that was similar to a communication translator.

"Sir there is no doubt that this unusual sensor reading was from away team alpha. The computer has already found a common link between the sensor reading and our codes. It is decoding the message now. I am sending it to your panel."

After Elizabeth finished reading the full report she turned to Sarouk when he began talking to her.

"I believe I can sir. I could send it back to them the same way they sent it to us. I would hope that they would think we would attempt to send a signal back to them the same way they did us. What would you like for me to report sir?"

Sarouk looked over the report they had just received from Away Team Alpha in a position burst, one brow rising only slightly. ~Ingenious.~

"Prepare a return position burst acknowledging that we received their report include a brief report on our current situation and that we will forward their report to Captain Straton on board the Aiglos. Then hail Captain Straton," Sarouk ordered Ensign Knightly, his eyes still looking over the report from the Away Team.

Sarouk waited while his orders where carried out and for Knightly to hail Captain Straton. A few seconds later, Straton's voice sounded over the Bridge speakers.

=^=Straton here. Report.=^=

"Captain," Sarouk said, "We have received a report from Away Team Alpha. They sent it via a positron burst through the alien ships sensor network. I am having it forwarded to your PADD now." He looked and nodded at Ensign Knightly. "We have replied in kind informing them of our current situation. Awaiting your orders Captain."

=^=Standby,=^= Straton replied, then closed the connection. Sarouk leaned back in his chair his face a mask. ~Now we wait.~

(Reply Knightly, Any on Bridge, Any)

(Unknown Vessel - Engineering - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1931)

Ensign Christopher Adams heard hollow footsteps coming down the hall and his hand reached down to his phaser. Commander Capps and the rest of the away team appeared out of the shadows. Adams couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Ensign Belden guiding one of the aliens with them. Commander Capps turned towards O'Connor and Adams, "Were we able to send the transmission?"

"Aye, sir," replied Adams. "Sent about fifteen minutes ago and no reply as of yet. It may take some time for them to discover that it's actually a message from us. Then again, they might not discover it at all, but it's better than nothing." Adams handed the commander the tricorder containing the message he had sent.

Calvin took the tricorder from the Ensign. He raised it up so he would be able to see the screen. After touching it and it lit up he quickly read the material. "Lets hope they find a way to contact us soon. What else do you have?"

"The subspace tears emanating from the warp core are troubling. The engine isn't completely shutdown and it's the only thing feeding power to key systems like life support. But, I suggest shutting it down completely before a rescue attempt is made or we may end up just ripping the subspace tear across the sector." Ensign Adams pointed at the alien. "We could really use his help. Everything we do down here is just little shots in the dark. We are being as cautious as we can, but it would really help if someone could translate some of the systems down here."

"I would agree with you, however the translator we have isn't giving us a lot of options right now. You are free to attempt to talk with him." Calvin watched as Ensign Adams walked over to the Huor.

"Ensign Trei." Calvin motioned the man over. "Huor so far is cooperating but he still seems to be cautious. Don't jump to any conclusion, but I just want you to watch him closely. Engineering is a big department and I don't want him attempting to do anything we don't want him to do," Calvin said in a whisper.

"Position one of your men at the entrance, and have the other one running his tricorder around here. We don't want to get caught in a subspace rip."

"Aye Sir. Ames guard the door. Brei sweep the deck for subspace rips with your Tricorder and keep constant update to where they are." Ames and Brei acknowledged the order and took their positions. Detron waited for Brei to start scanning to turn his attention on Huor. Detron resumed talking to Huor just to compile more for the translator. He waved at Ames to signal carry on with the order and nodded to CMDR Capps to acknowledge his orders.

Huor was confused as to what was going on. He had no idea who the people were on his ship, but he believed that they were trying to help. So far the aliens on his ship hadn't tried to hurt him. It seemed they were even trying to get his help. Huor was getting tired of listening to the aliens. It seemed like he had been talking for hours. As he was in mid sentence with the alien another one approached him.

Ensign Christopher Adams looked directly at the alien and pointed at the warp core as he talked slowly hoping the Universal Translator was making sense of what he was saying, "Can…you…help…us…shut…this…down?" He looked down at his tricorder and walked over to the Propulsion station. ~Maybe he can tell us about this unknown system I found in my scans,~ thought Chris. Looking down at the panel he read off the system he was interested in, "What…does…'Indaere…Khaelfa…Mnakhao'…do?"

Huor was really annoyed now. He had no idea what the alien was trying to say. He stepped away from the one alien which he believed her name was Nissa, and walked to the other one which attempted to speak his language. Huor walked slowly over. He noticed the security men with what could only be interpreted at weapons. He carefully walked over to the panel.

Ensign Christopher Adams looked into the eyes of the alien trying to get a hint of understanding between them. There were visible signs of frustration on the alien's brow as he approached Adams. "Mei, Mei," the alien said shaking his head. Adams backed away a couple of steps, a little scared even though the alien was half his size. ~What does he mean?~ thought Adams. ~A head shake could mean 'yes' in his culture.~ Adams held up his hands and gave a sideways glance in Lieutenant Commander Capps's direction as he spoke to the alien, "I don't know what you mean." The alien then pointed over towards the Communication station and all eyes followed his finger. Adams took a few steps back and opened his arms allowing the alien walk over to the engineering station. The alien bent down and removed one of the access doors below the station and pointed at a small clear box. "Communications," said Adams slowly to the alien shaking his head. "No. We aren't going to allow you to talk to your friends in the other ship." "Tegalm," responded the alien. "Tegalm." Adams approached the open access door with tricorder scanning the small clear box. The box was a complex device made up of various circuits that Adams didn't recognize. There was no way he was going to be able to figure out what it was without a circuit comparison analysis and the only thing powerful enough to do that type of research would be the computers back on the Paladin. Ensign Adams shook his head and looked up at Lieutenant Commander Capps. "Commander. That's the Communication station, but I have no idea what the clear box he's pointing to is. The only thing I can think of is that it controls ship to ship communication. Maybe he wants to contact the other alien ship?" Adam's attention was diverted once he noticed the alien was pointing at the hyperspanner in his other hand. "Tegalm," reiterated the alien. "Fix?" asked Adams. "You want me to fix the small box?" Adams looked back at Capps. "He wants me to fix what ever it is. What do you think? From my scan, I see where the power circuits are fried. It shouldn't be too hard to fix." All eyes were on Lieutenant Commander Capps while the alien was pointing at an unknown component to one of the engineering stations and kept repeating a word foreign to the away team. Also looking across the room was Assistant Chief Engineer Ensign Christopher Adams, on his first away mission. He had scanned the device and knew he could fix it, but wanted to get confirmation from his CO before proceeding.

"Do it," commanded Capps, his voice echoing in the cavernous engineering room.

"Aye, sir," responded Adams, bending down and sticking his head into the open compartment below the communication station.

(QHL Sunda - Engineering - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 2010)

Sweat poured off of Ensign Adams forehead and ran down into hear beard as the heat poured off the electrical system inside the communication station. It had taken him some time, but all the of blown power circuits in the tiny clear box had been repaired or bypassed. He scanned it one last time to make sure all of them were done and then rose back up to his feet with a grunt.

Ensign Adams looked around the room and found Commander Capps and walked over to his position. "Repairs complete."

Turning to look at the alien, Adams pointed back at the communication station, "Tegalm."

Out of the corner of his eye Ensign Christopher Adams saw a light flashing on the external sensors board. Turning, he walked over to the station. After sending the message to the Paladin he had set it up so that the station would notify him if the Paladin attempted to send a message back using the same method. It turns out they had. The external sensors had picked up a positron burst from the Paladin. ~The message, I've been waiting for,~ thought Adams. He read the message and then looked at the time code on the message and the current time on his tricorder. "Oh no," said Adams under his breath.

"Sir," Adams said aloud to the whole room. "We have a problem. We received a message from the Paladin twenty minutes ago, but I was too busy fixing the communication systems to notice. Apparently the Paladin and the other alien ship are going to pull us out of the rift any second. The problem is the warp core. If the warp core is on in any way while we are being pulled, it's just going to drag the rift along with it. We need to get the warp core shut down immediately."

"I can we all help?" Calvin said hurriedly. He walked over to the core with Adams ready lend a hand in any way.

Adams grabbed his engineering kit and ran over to the center console sitting in the middle of the room. ~Shouldn't be too hard to completely shut down an engine, right?~ thought Adams to himself. He pulled the access panel from the bottom of the console and looked around inside and scanned it with his tricorder. He pulled out a sonic driver from his tool kit and proceeded to cut into one of the main leads. Sparks flew from the top of the station accompanied by a cacophony of popping sounds. The entire ship was plunged into darkness.

As Christopher worked on one of the panels Calvin stood above him and monitored the screen. Seconds later sparks flew from it and the First Officer quickly stepped back. Popping noises filled the air, and then the room went dark. Calvin reached for his light, turned it on. "Here do you need this?"

The whole ship then started to shake. The sounds of crumpling metal could be heard from all directions. Adams grabbed the palm beacon from his case and turned it on so that there was some light. The tiny rift fragments that were emanating from the warp core started to slowly move across the room and then passed through the hull of the ship. Suddenly, a jolt hit the ship and the sound of twisting metal stopped. After a couple of minutes all sounds stopped once again complete silence fell on the away team. The silence was broken by the double beep of Commander Capps's comm badge.

=^=Commander, =^= came the voice of Captain Straton. =^=I expect you and your team, as well as all senior officers, in the Conference Room in 15 minuets for a Senior Officer's briefing. I'll also expect your full report then. Standby for transport. =^=

"Aye sir!"

Ensign Adams sat on the engineering floor and breathed a sigh of relief. ~We're safe,~ he thought. He stood up and walked over to join the rest of the crew and got ready to transport back to the ship.

(USS Paladin - Deck 4, Transporter Room 1 - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 2021)

Adams squinted as the lights from the Paladin's transporter room came into focus. Looking around Adams was relieved to be back on board his ship. He walked down the hall to the conference room and took a seat at one of the chairs waiting for the captain to arrive.

(USS Paladin - Deck 4, General Conference Room - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 2027)

Ensign Christopher Adams sat at the conference room table tapping his report of what happened on the alien ship into a PADD as other crew members entered and took their seats. Eventually his commanding officer, Lieutenant Steven Matrix, entered the room and sat down at the table. Putting the final touches into his report, Chris got up and approached his CO.

Matrix had been reviewing status reports when he noticed Ensign Adams approaching. Almost as a second thought, Matrix looked up from his PADD, smiled at the Ensign as he reached for the Ensign's PADD.

"Here's my report on what happened on the alien vessel," Adams said offering the PADD to Matrix.

"Thank you Ensign. Glad you're back aboard the Paladin." said Matrix

The Ensign took the next seat as Matrix reviewed his report. A few moments passed and Matrix leaned over in the direction of the Ensign.

Ensign Christopher Adams sat next to his CO in the conference room while the senior staff and the members of the away team waited for the captain to arrive. Matrix looked over the ensign's report on the recent away mission and leaned close to comment, "Ensign, good report. I'll review it in detail later, but I have to say I wish I was over there with you. From the sounds of things...from the rumor mill it was exciting." Matrix smiled.

"Exciting only scratches the surface," Adams replied. "When we engaged the engines and the rift grew bigger, I thought we were done for…but Ensign O'Connor allied a few of us and we explored down in engineering. That's what fascinated me the most. There I was standing in a bridge of a completely alien race. I couldn't read any of the panels because most of the crew was dead. It was a lot of hard work just to figure out what did what and I would say most of it was just blind luck. However, my dad always said, 'the better you are the luckier you are.'"

"Be sure to include anything you feel pertinent to the mission no matter how small or insignificant you might find it," Matrix said leaning back in his chair. "Encounters like this are a learning opportunity and often potentially dangerous to crew and the ship."

"Understood, sir," responded Adams. He looked back towards the door awaiting the arrival of Captain Straton.

(USS Paladin, Conference Room, CO Captain Eva Straton, 2030)

Calvin was running late for the meeting in the conference room. It was not like the First Officer to be late, but there were those days when it happened. On his way to the conference room, from the transporters he stopped by a public bath. He attempted to wash out what ever it was that had gotten in his eye. After many attempts in 10 minutes he still had not gotten it out. So he quit and headed to the conference room.

Lt Cmdr Capps entered the room rubbing his eye. It now had to be bright red from irritation. He sat down in his usual seat in the room. Promptly a minute later Captain Straton began.

Eva walked into the room right at 2030, and headed straight to the head of the table. She placed her PADD down on the table and then looked at her assembled officers without sitting down.

"Before I start," She said, her voice all business. "Let hear what the Away Team encountered on board the Sunda. Commander Capps?" Eva sat as she looked toward the Commander and nodding that the floor was his.

Calvin spoke immediately after the Captain stopped. "Once we arrived on the Sunda most of the power was off. We found bodies laying around the bridge. Some were still alive, others were not. We began by getting power up, but we made a mistake in starting the engines which had a negative effect. It moved the ship further into the rift. We shut the engines down. At this time we were too far in the rift to have communications."

Calvin paused to rub his eye. "I apologize. A few of the crew moved to the engineering system of the ship. We then met Huor. One of the aliens awoke, and we attempted to speak with him. We were unable to because the translation matrix was inoperable. I moved the team back together in Engineering. There we were able to send out a single message to the Paladin."

Calvin's eye stung with a little pain. His eye lid twitched. "Huor then instructed us with difficulty to fix a small clear box. Which Ensign Adams was able to do. That was when Ensign Adams also saw the message that had came back from the Paladin. The ship went black and then began to move. We were then beamed over to the Paladin.

Calvin was then sure that the rest of the away team had more specific reports to give for their respected departments.

Giving Commander Capps a chance to speak, Detron followed with his report.

"It was a very interesting experience Captain. The stronger gravity proved to be a small problem. I personally found the gravity to slow me down and drain energy fast. Some had more difficulty. My team and I encountered little trouble with the aliens aboard the Sundra. The language gap proved to be quite cumbersome. Other than that Captain we worked very well together. I refer to Whetari for her report."

~Wow. My first real debriefing conference. I expected some kind of evaluation of our performance. Maybe that will be later.~

Ensign Christopher Adams watched the captain's reactions as Commander Capps recited his overall report. When he finished, Adams continued, "Everything happed very fast at the end. I was so busy fixing the equipment that Huor had pointed out, we didn't notice that the Paladin had relayed a message back to us. However, we were able to shut down their engine before we were pulled out of the rift.

"The adverse effects on the rift when we fully engaged the engines and the presence of rift fragments near the engine core, gave me a clue that the engine's quantum singularity drive had something to do with the cause of the rift," continued Adams. "I remember a class back at the Academy where we studied singularities and their effects on sub-space, but I've never heard of a rift of this type opening up. I know they can stop a warp field from forming if a Federation ship were to engage their engines, but I have no experience with quantum singularity drives. I wonder if the Romulans have any experience in this type of event since their ships also implore this type of engine."

"Speaking of the Romulans," Adams interjected. "Internally, the ship reminded me of a Romulan ship. The layout of the bridge and engineering were octagon in shape. There was a single piece of equipment in the middle of each room and stations around the outer edges. Do we know anything about these people? Where they come from? Everything sounds very suspicious."

As Commander Capps gave his report, Nissa noticed that he seemed to be favoring one of his eyes. The muscles around his eye were tensed up and he stopped to rub the eye as he spoke. She made a mental note to speak with him after the meeting about it. Once he was finished reporting to the Captain, Nissa waited for Ensign Adams to speak, listening to his suspicions regarding the Romulans. ~He is certainly correct about the layout,~ she thought to herself, making another note to examine the genetic makeup of each of the patients currently in Sickbay. After some of the other officers discussed his thoughts, Nissa gave her report.

“When we arrived on the alien vessel, we found at six survivors on the Bridge. They were all in at least serious condition, with two being in critical condition. Upon evaluation and initial treatment, several of these patients were transported over to the Paladin for follow-up. We discovered two more survivors in Engineering, both with extensive injuries. Between their Bridge and Engineering, we discovered over 18 dead. With any new encounter or first contact, it is standard procedure for the CMO to make a report regarding all traits, physical, genetic or otherwise, based upon whatever we have discovered or exchanged during the mission. Regarding Ensign Adams concerns, it would be useful and wise for me to evaluate the genetic makeup of our patients in Sickbay, if for no other reason than to ensure that I am coming up with the best treatments.” Nissa explained, not wanted to seem too conspiratorial. “Honestly, though, if nothing else, it is always beneficial to learn as much as we can during these events. I will also speak to the patients, as best I can, and see if they have made contact with the Romulans.”

Michael waited until the doctor was finished before he gave his report. "Without their computer operations and without a commline open to our computer deciphering their systems was slow going and basically a no go for anything outside of ships systems. When we go back we should be able to get more answers as to what they were up to prior to this rift opening," Michael said looking over his PADD.

"However, Sir, I have an issue with this rift opening. There are two possibilities, either they managed to cross the exact location of a proto-rift, or somehow their drives malfunctioned in a way which basically burrowed itself into sub-space, causing a rift to form. I find the first option highly unlikely, and would highly recommend we not let the Science ship go to warp before their systems have been given a complete look through, if they tried to warp out of here with the rift still open, I can't say what would happen, but I highly doubt it would be pretty." Michael said sitting back. He would include his recommendations that the Doctor and Ensign Adams get commendations in his written report.

After each member of the Away Team had given their report and all questions answered, Eva stood again and looked at everyone once more before speaking.

"We will be assisting teams from the Aiglos in investigating what went wrong on the Sunda and how best to proceed on closing the subspace rift," She said, watching everyone's response. "We have more experience with subspace rifts than they do, so we will lend what ever aid we can. Ensign Adams, you will lead the Engineering teams on board the Sunda. You will be working with the Aiglos engineers in determining what went wrong with the drive system and try to determine a cause for the rift. Ensign O'Connor, you will over see the Operations teams to see if there is any clues within the Sunda computer on what happened leading up to the accident. Ensign K'ran, you will head the Security teams investigating any potential foul play or sabotage. Ensign Trei, you will lead the Security teams responsible for the safety of our crew on board the Sunda and to make sure everyone minds their manners. The Commander of the Aiglos is extremely xenophobic and is afraid we will attempt to steal technology. I have assured him that my crew are NOT thieves. You and your teams presence will serve as a reminder to everyone keep their work professional and confidential. Lt. Brownlee, I want you to head the science teams working with the engineering teams on the rift and how best to close it. You will all need to liaison with the other teams as needed and will all report directly to Commander Capps. Lt. Kotal, as our resident expert on xeno-Psychology and given the Kirim's apparent xeno-phobic leanings, I'd like you and your staff to help smoothing over any ruffled feathers and helping build a better understanding between them and us. Lt. Matrix, I'd like you to look at the Sunda's structural integrity and make sure she is still space worthy. Work with the engineers from the Aiglos, but I think your expertise would prove helpful, if there is anything we could do to assist in repairs let Commander Capps know. Any questions so far?"

Matrix intently listened to the Captain's instructions and chimed in where appropriate.

"Aye Captain." Matrix looked directly at the Captain, "I and my team have already processed the majority of the initial scan data and are working on prioritizing energy reserves and structural plans. I'll keep the Commander informed."

Day: 2 – Stardate: 2407.01.28

(USS Paladin - Sickbay - Subspace Specialist Huor Mahtanion Inglorion - 07:32)

Huor woke up on a bed in what seemed to be the alien ship's medical ward. After their encounter yesterday, Huor wasn't sure what to expect, but it seemed to him that things were more or less business as usual. However, there was one change that he noticed. The meaningless chatter they had used to communicate with each other seemed to make sense now. ~It seems,~ he thought, ~that they have some sort of device that can translate for them into any language.~ He called out to nobody in particular, but did attract the attention of one woman in a uniform with a blue collar.

T’Rihn was efficiently performing her duties, treating the sort of minor injuries and medical complaints that were so common on a ship the size of the Paladin. It never ceased to amaze her how irrational humans could be when they were even the slightest bit ill, but she calmly went about her work. As she passed one of the biobeds that an alien was occupying, he caught her attention.

“Yes?” She responded, wondering if he was in pain or having some sort of adverse reaction. He appeared well, at least according to the biobed sensors.

"Excuse me," he said, "but where am I? And what is the situation on my ship?"

“You are on the USS Paladin, a Federation starship. More precisely, you are in the Paladin’s medical facility, popularly known as Sickbay. Your ship is safe, but it is currently under repairs and you were brought aboard for medical treatment.” T’Rihn answered, wondering why the alien seemed more concerned with his ship than his own injuries. While they were not substantial, it would seem that they should be his first priority. “Are you experiencing any pain or discomfort in your shoulder, as it was injured while your ship was in the rift?”

The alien moved his shoulder and touched it lightly. "Yes it is feeling better. Tell, me, where is the one they call Adams? Can I see him?"

~Adams?~ T’Rihn thought, not entirely familiar with the named crewperson. “Just a moment, I will contact him and determine if he is available and if it is advisable for you to receive a visitor.” She explained, giving the alien male a sharp nod before heading over to another part of Sickbay. Doing a bit of research, she found the Adams in question; an officer in Engineering.

(USS Paladin - Deck 55, Personal Quarters Ensign JG Adams - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 0734)

Ensign Christopher Adams was finishing off his breakfast and getting ready for his first shift on the Sunda. He had organized his engineering crew and met with the Aiglos's engineers to set up a plan of attack. He was looking forward to the challenge.

There was a beep from his badge and the unemotional voice of a Vulcan female was heard over the comm system. =^=Nurse T'Rihn to Ensign Adams. =^=

Adams set down his fork and touched his comm badge. "Adams here."

=^=Good morning, Ensign Adams, =^= stated T'Rihn. =^=One of the aliens, a male, has regained consciousness in Sickbay and is asking for you. Would you like to come down to speak with him? =^=

(USS Paladin – Sickbay – Medical Technician Nurse T’Rihn - 0736)

T’Rihn waited as there was a short pause from Ensign Adams. =^=Huor? Is his name Huor? =^=, he replied after a moment.

It had not occurred to T’Rihn to ask the alien patient his name, though it was certainly a logical question for Ensign Adams to ask. “Just a moment, Ensign.” T’Rihn said as she tapped her combadge and quickly walked back to where the male alien lay. “What is your name? It would be prudent to have in our records should we have to communicate with your people regarding your status.”

Giving a short nod to the alien, T’Rihn walked a short distance away and tapped her combadge again.

(USS Paladin - Deck 55, Personal Quarters Ensign JG Adams - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 0737)

Ensign Christopher Adams was eating breakfast when a Vulcan Nurse contacted him about one of the aliens wanting to talk to him.

=^=Nurse T’Rihn to Ensign Adams, =^= came the calm Vulcan voice over the comm system. =^=I can now confirm that the alien’s name is Huor. Will you be coming down here to visit him? =^=

"Yes. Absolutely," exclaimed the ensign. "I will be down there shortly. Adams out." Ensign Adams touched his comm badge closing the transmission. He then stuffed a few heaps of his eggs into his mouth and headed out the door, the fork clanking against the replicated china.

(USS Paladin - Deck 13, Primary Sickbay - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 0747)

The doors parted as Ensign Adams approached revealing the Paladin's main Sickbay. There was the usual hustle and bustle that always happens on a ship this size. Looking around, Adams finally spotted his Kirian friend Huor.

Huor heard the Sickbay doors slide open, and looked up. He wasn't expecting it to be someone he would recognize, but this time it was. He smiled as he saw Adams walk through the door and over to him.

"It is good to see you well, Huor," stated Adams sideling up to his bedside. "It's also nice that we can actually communicate. Without your help, I don't think we would have ever been able to figure out what each of us was talking about."

"Very good indeed. However, you seemed to catch on to what I was saying pretty quickly, and I appreciate that. Tell me, what is the status of the Sunda?"

"The repairs are starting," informed Adams. "I just had my first meeting with the engineers from the Aiglos last night. We put a plan of action together and now it's just a matter of executing. I've formed my team and I meet them in engineering in just over an hour. We are going to be working on figuring out how the Sunda's engines formed the rift and making repairs."

Ensign Christopher Adams stood at the bed side of his Kirian friend Huor, giving him an update on all that was going on between his two people's ships while he was recovering in the Paladin's Sickbay.

"I'm glad," stated Huor after Adams was finished. "And what of any other survivors? And the prince? He must have been very angry to find you in our territory when he came."

"We found over eighteen dead," responded Adams, his brow furrowed as he told his friend the bad news. "We've opened an joint investigation with security from the Aiglos to try and figure out what caused the rift to open. No leads yet.

"From what I've heard," Adams continued. "Your prince was pretty angry about us boarding your ship. He wasn't used to other races helping each other out. The captain calmed him down and insisted on the joint operation. I think he's been impressed and I hope this opens up talks between the Kingdom of Kiria and the Federation."

Day: 3 - Stardate: 2407.01.29

(USS Paladin - Deck 55, Personal Quarters Ensign JG Adams - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 1721)

Ensign Christopher Adams collapsed on his bed and kicked off his boots. Arms outstretched he breathed a big sigh. "Computer," he said to the empty room looking up at the ceiling. "Glass of root beer with ice."

The replicator in his quarters whirred to life produce a fizzing glass of carbonated liquid. With a grunt, the ensign rolled off the side of his bed and lumbered over to the replicator to retrieve his drink.

"Ahhhh," sighed Adams after taking a couple of big drinks. He set the drink down on his desk and once again addressed the computer. "Computer. Start recording personal log."

"Personal Log. Ensign JG Christopher Adams. Stardate 2407.01.29.

"The repairs on the Sunda are complete. Two solid days of working with the Aiglos engineers determining what went wrong with their drive system. It turned out that the clear box that I repaired in their communication circuits was their Universal Translator. With that repaired, it was much easier to work with the other aliens in figuring out what was wrong. I downloaded their linguistic matrix into my tricorder and was able to translate all of their computer's readouts with ease.

"Once we figured out the problem with the engine, it was just a matter of coordinating the repair list between their engineers and the team I brought aboard from the Paladin. I got the tasks assigned and then just followed up while the crews worked together to fix the Sunda. The final system was repaired just thirty minutes ago and I'm ready to hit the rack. I've got to pick up my regular duty shift, in charge of Gamma Shift in Engineering at 0100 hours. No rest for the weary.

Computer. End personal log."

Adams reached over to his glass of root beer and downed the rest of it in a few gulps. The ice clinked at the base once he righted the glass. He placed it back in the replicator and hit the button which returned the glass back to the atoms from where it came.

With a yawn, Adams stripped off his uniform and pull down the covers on his bed. Within a few minutes snores could be heard in the empty room.

Day: 4 - Stardate: 2407.01.30

(USS Paladin - Deck 7, Life Sciences Lab - Petty Officer Julia Williams - 0235)

With the rift finally closed, the sensors were finally freed up for other assignments and Life Sciences Specialist Julia Williams was going to take full advantage of the time. While on patrol on the edges of the Neutral Zone, long range sensors had picked up a pre-industrial society on the sixth planet in the Dessica System. She was running scans on the society when the distress signal diverted the Paladin's attention and all sensors were taken over in order to study the rift. Now that the crisis was over she knew she only had a limited amount of time before the system was out of range.

The double doors to the lab parted when the young scientist approached. The lab was completely dark except for a few lights emanating from the computers in the lab.

"Computer. Lights," said Julia to the empty room. The lab's white lights momentarily blinded her as they blinked on. She walked over to the main sensor table sitting in the center of the room. On the screen she could still see the layout of the village she was scanning four days ago. The society was very interesting. From the layout of the village, she could tell they were very religious. There appeared to be some sort of temple or alter in the middle while houses radiated out from there. From the scans of the village, they were roughly 30,000 humanoids living there and they had discovered how to forge metal and build structures which were resistant to the harsh winter which appeared to be going on there right now. Fascinating.

Julia started pushing a few buttons to bring the long range sensor back online and start scanning the system where the planet was located. The long range sensors weren't much, but during this war you took what you could get. Hopefully this would be all over and we would get back to exploring the galaxy again. Three beeps alerted the petty officer to a problem with the sensors.

"Lateral Sensor Array Offline," read Julia out loud. "What the…" A few more taps on the computer confirmed it. She reached down and touched her comm badge. "Williams to Engineering."

=^=Engineering. Ensign Adams speaking, =^= came the voice on the other end.

"Adams," responded Julia. "This is Julia Williams in the Life Sciences lab. I'm trying to use the long range sensors to scan one of the systems we passed a few days ago, but the computer is saying the Lateral Sensor Array is down. What's going on?"

=^=Upgrade to the power conduits on Deck 35, =^= responded Adams. =^=Power has been cut to almost the entire deck while the work is going on. Sorry, Williams, but we had to get these systems upgraded now before resume our patrol. =^=

"I saw the posting of the outage, but I thought it was supposed to be done by now," said Williams. "The report I read said that it would be done by 0200 hours. I don't have that much time before we move on and the society I'm studying goes out of sensor range."

=^=Sorry, but all the people and equipment needed to do the upgrade were diverted to the Sunda to help them get their ship back in working order, =^= explained the ensign. =^=We're back logged on all of our maintenance here on the Paladin. Sorry, but the maintenance reports must not have been updated with the new completion dates. =^=

"Wonderful," responded Williams sarcastically. "So, when will power be restored to the deck?"

=^=The upgrade is going to take 19 more hours, =^= responded Adams. =^=So it won't be back up until 2100 hours. =^=

"2100 hours!" exclaimed the life sciences tech. "That's outrageous. I hope you all love your little war, while the science by which Starfleet was founded gets pushed aside."

=^=Sorry, ma'am. =^= said Adams apologetically. =^=Not much I can do about it. =^=

"Fine. Williams out." Julia touched her comm badge and cut off the signal and then slammed her fists into the sensor table. "Argh," she shouted in frustration.

After a few seconds of letting herself calm down, she looked up the list of Science Officers who were on call. Maybe one of them could talk some sense into Ensign Adams and get the sensors back up sooner than 19 hours from now.

Julia once again touched her comm badge. "Williams to Belden"

(USS Paladin - Deck 5, Olesia's Quarters - Science Officer Ensign (jg) Olesia Belden - 02:38)

Olesia's hand appeared from under the bedcovers, where she had settled an hour or so earlier. It slowly moved towards the comm panel, and pressed the respond buttion. Groggily, she said, "What is it?" =^=Sorry to call you so early in the morning, sir, =^= Williams came Williams' voice, =^=but, this is urgent. I'm doing long range scans of the Dessica System studying a pre-industrial society on the sixth planet. It's very critical that I get more time on the lateral sensor array before we head off back on our patrol of the Neutral Zone border. However, the array is down. Apparently Engineering is doing some maintenance and power to the deck won't be restored until 2100 hours. Can you believe it? How could a power upgrade take so long? Is there any way you could contact Engineering and talk to Ensign Adams? Get him to speed it up? =^=

(USS Paladin - Deck 7, Life Sciences Lab - Petty Officer Julia Williams - 0235)

Life Sciences Technician Julia Williams had just received news from engineering that the lateral sensor array was down and it wouldn't be ready until 2100 hours. This was going to be way too late for her to continue her study of the pre-industrial society on Dessica VI. She had contacted the Science Officer on call, Ensign Olesia Belden, in order to complain.

=^=Well,=^= came Ensign Belden's groggy voice over the comm system. =^=I believe that the auxiliary array is still operational. Why don't you try that for now?=^=

"Unfortunately, the Dessica System is too far away for anything other than the lateral sensor array," explained Williams. "The auxiliary array doesn't have the power. Besides, it's being used by Stellar Sciences. They are pulling double duty studying the rift and how it formed before we have to leave the area."

(USS Paladin - Deck 51, CEO's Office - Ensign JG Christopher Adams - 0904)

Ensign Christopher Adams stood outside Chief Engineer Matrix's office. His duty shift was done and it was time to review the Activity Report with his CO. PADD in his left hand he reached out and pushed the door chime.

Matrix had been at his desk since 0431. It was going to be a long day. Repairs around the ship were underway. Damage to the Paladin was widespread, but not major. As Matrix studied the condition boards the door chimed.

"Enter." said Matrix.

The young Ensign entered and stood across the desk.

"Ready to review the Activity Report?" asked Adams.

Matrix looked up at the Ensign, almost annoyed at the interruption. " Yes Ensign. Proceed."

"The upgrades to the power conduits on Deck 35 are almost complete. We had to take Transporter Room 5 and the lateral sensor array offline while the conduits were repaired. The Life Sciences Group are pretty stressed because we told them the sensor array would be back online by now. It should be done around 1300 hours.

"There was an incident in the main shuttle bay. One of the transports which was ferrying people between the Paladin and the Sunda pulled in too fast and damaged one of the walls. It ruptured a plasma conduit, but it was contained and repairs have been started.

"Some of the holo-emiters in Holodeck 3 are in need of repair. The luau that went on last night must have been pretty wild. I've added it to the repair list, but haven't started repairs. I've entered a standard warning if someone tries to use the holodeck until repairs are made."

Ensign Christopher Adams sat in a chair in Chief Engineer Matrix's office looking down at a PADD which contained the activity report for Gamma Shift, the shift that Adams commands. Looking up the ensign could tell that Lieutenant Matrix was annoyed at what went on during the early morning hours.

"Very well Ensign," said Matrix. "Have the transport pilot who damaged my wall report to me immediately. Also, let Ensign Cohen know about Holodeck 3, he may have had some experiments running. Also, fine job Ensign. Thank you."

"Yes, sir," replied Adams. "Thank you, sir." He started to get up from his chair.

"Oh, Ensign," interjected Matrix. "I'd like a list of all who personnel who attended the luau too. I'd like to know who's tearing up my Holodeck. Dismissed."

"Aye, sir," responded Adams quickly. He wanted to get out of his CO's office as fast as possible. He could tell Matrix was not in a good mood and he didn't want the chief engineer's wrath to start heading his way.

Adams left Lieutenant Matrix's office, door sliding shut behind him, and he headed over to one of the engineering stations and touched his comm badge. "Ensign Adams to Crewman Frederik."

There was silence then finally someone answered. =^=Yes? =^= came a groggy voice on the other end of the comm signal.

"That's, 'Yes sir?', crewman," corrected Adams.

=^=I'm sorry, sir. Yes, sir, =^= responded Frederik. =^=I was asleep. Rough night, as you know. =^=

"Yes. I know," said Adams. "And now Lieutenant Matrix knows. He wants to see you right away."

=^=Great, =^= Frederik yawned. =^=I already got an ear full from Chief Brant. Now I have the Chief Engineer pissed at me too. Acknowledged. I'll be down there in a couple of minutes. =^=

The comm signal ended and Adams reached down to the engineering station and pulled up the Holodeck 3 status sheet. He forwarded the damage warning to Ensign Cohen so that he would know about the problems. With a sigh he touched his comm badge again. "Ensign Adams to Ensign Trei."

"Hey…uh…yea," stammered Adams. "Hey, Dentron. There was some damage to some of the holo-emiters on Holodeck 3 last night and Lieutenant Matrix is pretty mad. Do you happen to have a list of everyone who attended the luau last night?"

After reporting the damage to Holodeck 3 from the Luau last night to the Chief Engineer, Ensign Christopher Adams had the duty to getting a list participants. He knew Ensign Dentron Trei had organized the party, so he decided to find out if he could get the list from him.

=^=Trei here,=^= responded the young security officer over the comm system. =^=I am having breakfast in my quarters. The list is here with me. Is there a problem?=^=

"About mid-way though Gamma shift," started Adams. "I had my men run a level three diagnostic on all holodeck systems. It's standard procedure because Gamma shift is usually the time when most of the holodecks aren't in use. Anyway, the diagnostic revealed that several of the holo-emitters had been damaged. I reported it to Lieutenant Matrix this morning in my standard Activity Report for Gamma shift and he wanted to find out who attended the meeting. I assume he wants to get down to the reason why his holodecks are getting damaged. You know what, maybe you should contact him directly with the list of people. You probably know more about what happened in the party, since you set it up."

(reply Trei, any)

Ensign Christopher Adams was standing at an engineering station finishing up some last minute tasks before heading off duty while Alpha shift started ramping up for the day. After his duty shift activity report, Chief Engineer Matrix wanted him to contact a few people, one of whom was Ensign Peter Cohen, who was conducting some experiments in the now damaged Holodeck 3.

"Ensign Adams to Ensign Cohen," said Adams after touching his comm badge.

(reply Cohen)

"Not sure if you would get my message, so I thought I would contact you by comm system," explained Adams. "Apparently the luau caused some damage to Holodeck 3 and Lieutenant Matrix wanted me to contact you to make sure you knew about the damage. He said you might be conducting some experiments?"

(reply Cohen)

(USS Paladin - Deck 51, CEO's Office - Crewman 2nd Class Thomas Frederik - 0922)

Crewman Frederik was still trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes when he exited the turbolift on deck 51. He was not looking forward to this. Five hours ago he had accidentally crashed one of the transport shuttles into the side of the main shuttle bay. His CO, Chief Brant, had given him an ear full and had actually pulled him off the flight roster. Now, the Chief Engineer wanted to see him. He stood in front of Lieutenant Matrix's door and straightened out his uniform before pressing the door chime.

Matrix was reviewing his day's work; repairs and his crew contingent when his door chimed. "Enter!" said Matrix

"Crewman Frederik reporting as ordered."

Matrix stood up, "Aye crewman Fredrik, nice of you to stop in. So, tell me, are you responsible for the damage to the main hanger deck?" Matrix sat on the corner of his desk looking intently at the crewman.

"Yes, sir," Frederik responded quietly.

"Well crewman, I'll let your CO deal with your flight prowess. I just wanted to meet the person responsible for tearing up my shuttle bay and causing undo crew hours to repair. I can't imagine what you did to the shuttle craft." Matrix stood up and walked around to his chair and sat down.

"Yes, sir. Chief Brant has already pulled me off duty," explained Frederik. "The shuttle's starboard side struck the wall during the incident almost ripping off the nacelle."

"Did you get the occupants aboard safely crewman?" Matrix asked in a snide tone.

"Yes, sir," responded the pilot. "Your engineering staff is safe. Just a few bumps and bruises. The inertial dampeners absorbed most of the blow."

Matrix smiled, "Excellent. That is the most important thing I guess...but be careful you could have killed yourself and your crewmates. We can repair the ship and equipment."

"Aye, sir. I will, sir," said Frederik still looking towards the wall at attention.

"Very well crewman. Dismissed." replied Matrix.

Crewman Frederik nodded, did an about face and walked out of the chief engineers office. When the doors slid shut behind him, he exhaled a deep breath. He was so nervous his hands were shaking. Then a giant yawn appeared on the crewman's face. He stumbled back to his bunk and fell fast asleep.

(USS Paladin, Ready Room, CO Captain Eva Straton, 1300)

Eva lifted the steaming cup of herbal tea from the replicator and moved over to her desk. Sitting down, she took a small sip of the tea before placing it down on her desk. She lifted the PADD containing all the reports from the Sunda on it and looked it over again before placing it down again. Picking up her tea again she leaned back in her chair and took another sip.

"Computer begin recording," She said. The computer chirped to signal that it was recording.

"Captain's Log: Stardate 2407.01.30. Having received a distress call from a ship of unknown origin while patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone, the Paladin set course to render whatever assistance we could. We arrived to discover an alien craft trapped inside a subspace rift. Unable to establish communication with the craft, I ordered an Away Team to beam aboard to search for survivors and render any medical or technical assistance possible. Several wounded aliens that outwardly resembled Vulcanoids, but internally are vastly different, were beamed to the Paladin's sickbay to treatment. A second alien ship arrived identifying themselves as the QHL Aiglos of the United Kingdom of Kiria. While trying to explain our presence to the commander of the Aiglos, communication was suddenly cut when the ship trapped in the rift suddenly activated their warp drive resulting in the rift expanding and disrupting communications and transporters. At this time we lost contact with our away team as well as our transporter lock on them. Hostilities nearly broke out between the Paladin and the Aiglos, but luckily cooler heads prevailed and I lead a second away team aboard the Aiglos to met directly with their commander and discuss exactly how we could work together to recover the trapped ship, which we learned called the Sunda. The Aiglos used their version of a tractor beam to drag the Sunda out of the rift while the Paladin used her tractor beam to re-enforce the Sunda's structural integrity. Once the Sunda was towed to a safe distance from the rift our Away Team was beamed back on board and a senior officers briefing was called.

"After the briefing the Paladin crew assisted the crew of the Aiglos and the survivors of the Sunda in determining what had caused the rift and how best to seal the rift. After a through investigation over the last two days it was discovered that the Sunda's warp drive, which is a quantum singularity drive similar to what the Romulan's use, was indeed sabotaged by a Romulan spy on board the Sunda. Further investigation into the Sunda's computer system lead to evidence of a number of Romulan spies operating within the Kingdom of Kiria. The Commander of the Aiglos was quite upset to learn of their allies duplicity and has promised to launch a full investigation once he returns to their home world. With the knowledge of exactly how the warp drive was sabotaged our respective science departments were able to work with engineering to seal the rift. The Commander of Aiglos was very impressed with the work and professionalism of the crew and has expressed interest in the possibility of opening formal relations with the Federation and will be forwarded to Fleet Commander for follow up.

"Now with the rift closed and all teams back on board the Paladin, we are preparing to return to our patrol of the Romulan Neutral Zone. Commander Rulestaad has been in contact with the Battle Group through out the current mission and with nothing major to report. We shall be heading out within the hour. End Log."

The computer chirped that it was no longer recording and Eva lifted her cup of tea to her lips for another sip as she reflected silently on the events of the past few days. ~Hope that Romulan spy enjoys his stay in the Aiglos's brig.~

Credits

• (posted by Jason French)
• (Posted by Wes)
• (posted by Calvin)
• (Posted by Edward)
• (Posted by Patrick D.)
• (posted by Spencer)
• (Posted by Sarah Feldman)
• (Posted by Steve)