| Captain Archer Nov 17 2003, 02:39 PM  |
Ambassador Michael Larkin - Starbase 001 Michael again chimed the door. No answer. "Computer locate Admiral Garrison." The computer chirped, "Admiral Garrison is in Captain Major's Office." Michael walked further down to the end of the hall. He looked out the glass window that surrounded the offices to see the Operations Center. Things looked rather busy. He came up to Major's door and hit the door chime. "Come!" Major didn't sound in the mood for a visitor, and when the door opened he noticed why. There stood Garrison, Counselor Rasin and another gentleman. "Excuse me, Captain, but I need to speak to Admiral Garrison. This probably concerns you as well, Captain." Major took a deep breath. "Well, what is it?" Michael came across the room to Garrison and Major. "Sirs, I think we may have a serious security issue." Tom almost laughed. "Tell us something we don't know." "Okay, I was just payed a visit from Gul Telle." "Telle? I've heard that name before," Major stated. "He was the man who," Michael looked over to Rasin, "incarcerated me on Cardassia." Tom stood. "Well, what did he want?" Michael searched for the right wording. "He wanted me to give a message to my superiors. He says that the Cardassian Central Command knows what we're doing. Something about time traveling experiments. And he warned me that if we continue with our tests that the Alliance will be forced to attack us to defend themselves. I had no idea what he was talking about but he said that you would." Garrison looked at Major. "Then it looks like we have no choice but to confront Starfleet about this Temporal War that they seem intent on waging." Garrison looked over at Michael. "We'll need you to come with us and tell them what you told us." Michael nodded then asked. "Would you please fill me in on what this is all about?" Major then sat back down, as did Garrison. "Have a seat Ambassador. This may take a while to explain." |
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| Mozg Nov 17 2003, 08:01 PM  |
Lattrel Ottel – Pe’re Lachaise, Paris,
France The infantile rain freshened Ottel up. He was already inside the cemetery, moving around through the haphazardly placed gravestones. The ground was just beginning to turn wet, as the rainfall kept escalating slowly. Ottel covered his head with the hood of his long brown coat. He didn’t want to draw too much attention. With the corner of his eye, he noticed a grave with strange writings all around it. Right above it stood a picture of a dark, messy haired and dazed eyed human. The grave read,
On the actual gravestone and the ones surrounding it, Ottel read thank you notes and praises to this Morrison person. Humans, he thought and walked past. Someone was heard sobbing in a distance. For a brief second, Ottel once again questioned his courage. Was he ready to face this? The words spoken by his uncle kept ringing in his head again and again, “There will always be a time for tears.” Now was the time for tears. He reassured himself and moved on. Approaching a tiny hilltop, Ottel stopped to take a look around. It was supposed to be somewhere near, in the section containing the relatively new graves and memorial plaques. Ottel took out a flat panel from under his coat and looked at it again, to make sure about the location. Looking up from the panel, he confirmed the location and moved towards it. There it was, the large wall commemorating all Paris born Starfleet officers. He walked alongside the wall, scanning the names with his eyes. Slowing his pace as he reached the letter C, Ottel finally stopped at the plaque reading, “Cuvier, Marie and Latrell Ossa.” On the lower right corner there was a small engraved picture of the couple, just like in the picture he had. Ottel stood there for what seemed like eternity. The rain kept falling faster and faster, but he didn’t care. Behind the plaque, hidden not two feet away from him, stood the cremated remains of his parents. Ottel extended his hand and touched the engraved picture, slowly caressing his mother’s unreal hair. His breathing became harder and harder. His head began to shiver and the shiver suddenly spread throughout his whole body. It was as if through that small touch he felt the forgotten love of the parents he hardly knew. The wet grass splashed as Ottel crashed down on his knees. His head slowly came down until it touched the wall, and for the first time in his life, Ottel started to sob. Sob like he had never had. He was mourning for what could have been, what should have been and what never was. He cried for his uncle, for his grandfather and, above all, for his mother and father. There will always be a time for tears. Now was the time for tears... |
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| RMrulz Nov 17 2003, 10:11 PM  |
Admiral Tom Garrison – Starfleet Medical Tom limply tapped his commbadge, "Garrison to Rasin. Please respond." After a second, a voice came over the air and it wasn't Rasin's. But at least it was somebody responding to the pair's cry into the night... "Rasin here." "Ugh, what...?" said Garrison, confused at the new voice "It's a long story, sir. I just got back to 001. I had some help from a friend of mine. I need to go talk to the Captain, brief him on what I know. Do you want to meet me there?" “I’ll be in touch. Garrison out.” Tom looked at Tanik. Tanik looked at Tom. Neither said a word. The look in each of their eyes said it all. Tanik was still carrying Sabinus. He slowly lowered her to the floor. Once he had set her down, he remained slumped over with his head buried in his hands. Blood dripped from his broken nose. Tom felt dizzy. The room was beginning to spin. The dizziness was becoming so intense, his vision started to blur. He stumbled out of the cell and back out into the hallway, which now was empty except for the dead bodies from the firefight only moments earlier. Suddenly he felt nauseous, and with almost no warning he leaned over and vomited. He straightened up and was immediately hit by the return of the headache he had been feeling since he was first shot. He put his hands to his head and immediately winced in pain. He had forgotten about the phaser blast he took to the face, from the feel of the blisters the entire right side of his face was seared by the blast. It was still oozing blood and he realized with a start that the top of his right ear was missing. The phaser blast must have cut it completely off. He slumped against a wall, staring numbly at the scene before him. He couldn’t even bring his mind to grasp the fact that all that carnage had been for nothing. That Rasin was already out. Suddenly, the turbolift door at the end of the hallway opened. Tom barely flinched, not even bothering to reach for his phaser. He slowly looked up to find one man standing there, Admiral Miasha Jenco. He looked at the scene before him. He looked at the condition Tom was in, all the while his eyes betraying nothing of his true emotions. He took a step forward, the doors closing behind him. “Well? Why the hell are you still here? You got what you came for. Our sensors show Rasin’s not here.” Tom looked at him and said nothing. “Tom. Dammit, Tom. Answer me.” Tom stared at him for a long minute. Tanik quietly stepped out of Rasin’s cell, holding his phaser. He was behind Jenco who didn’t see him, but Tom shook his head no. There had been enough shooting for one day. Finally, he spoke. “We didn’t get what we came for. He was already gone.” “What?” Jenco said in surprise. “What are you talking about?” “I’m not really sure. Apparently, he escaped himself before we got here.” “That’s not possible!” “Yes, it is. I just spoke to him a moment ago. He’s back on 001. I don’t know how, yet.” Jenco thought about this for a minute, wondering how Rasin had managed to escape. He looked back up at Tom. “Well, was it worth it? You finally got to stick it to me by betraying everything that uniform you wear stands for.” Tom erupted. “I betrayed?! I am NOT the one who is planning to rewrite history. To go against everything the temporal prime directive, hell, everything the damn Federation believes in! Don’t lecture ME about betrayal!” “Look around you, Tom. I didn’t kill these people. You did. My god, look in a mirror. I barely recognize you, your face is so badly burned.” Tom let his words sink in for a long minute, then responded quietly, almost in a whisper, “It was all for the Federation. All for the damn Federation.” “No, Tom,” Jenco replied, almost as quietly. “It was for you. You couldn’t accept inaction any longer, so you took matters into your own hands. And look what happened,” he said while gesturing to the scene before them. Jenco pulled out a phaser. “Now, if you’ll come with me, you’re under arrest.” Tanik took a step forward, but before he could do anything a voice sounded. “Team D to Garrison. The inhibitor field has been disabled.” Tom replied, quickly, before Jenco could do anything. “Lock on to all the life signs of the teams, plus Sabinus and beam us to the shuttle immediately.” And with that, he disappeared right before Jenco’s eyes. “Damn,” Jenco muttered. He looked around at the mess before him once again and felt ill. U.S.S. Gambit - Sickbay An hour later, Drayson paused in the corridor, about to enter Sickbay. He thought about what he had to do now. As an intelligence officer, it was part of his job to lie. It was necessary. Lies often did more good than the truth. So he had lied to Garrison about Rasin. Of course he knew Rasin had already escaped. But he had to find out how far Tom was willing to go, so he let him believe he was still in captivity. He had his answer and Tom could never know the truth. He drew a deep breath and entered Sickbay. The room was quiet and dark. The only people that had come back from the rescue were Garrison, Tanik, Sabinus and Team D. None of Team D had been injured, so they were sent on their way. Sabinus and Tanik were peacefully sleeping on biobeds, each one given a curtain for privacy. A third curtained-off area was in the corner but a light was on. He could see the silhouette of Tom behind the curtain, sitting upright in his bed. Drayson walked over to the curtain and around it. He found Tom sitting in his bed, staring off into space. His face looked horrible, despite the best 28th century medicine had to offer he would have a permanent scar. And part of his right ear was missing. “Tom,” he said gently. “Huh?” Tom said, shaking himself out of his reverie. He found Drayson standing before him. He stared at him for a long minute. “Did you know he wasn’t there?” Without the slightest hesitation, he shook his head. “No.” Tom appeared satisfied. “Tom. It’s time you were told this. Some of us have been investigating the support a possible overthrow of Command would have among the Fleet,” he trailed off, letting Tom process this. There was no response. Only a blank stare, so he continued. “If it was led by the right person, almost the entire fleet would support it. We think that person is you.” Tom heard his words. He let them turn over and over in his mind. He wasn’t completely surprised to hear Drayson suggest this, yet it still felt so strange to actually hear them. If things had gone differently at Starfleet Medical, he might have been inclined to agree. But not anymore. He shook his head no, immediately regretting it a second later as he was reminded of his headache. “No. There’s been enough fighting out of me. No.” “Tom, Starfleet, hell, the entire Federation, needs a leader. You’re a natural leader. It’s how you became the Fleet Admiral. We all need you.” Tom looked up at Hardgrove, anger flashing in his eyes. “Maybe you didn’t hear me. I said, no. I don’t think you get it. I was just responsible for a few dozen deaths down there. All those people dead... because of me. I won’t be a part of any of this anymore. Not Starfleet, not the Federation, not a rebellion, not the fight against the Alliance. None of it. I’m done!” “So, what, you’re just going to walk away? Go live out the rest of your life in some remote corner, living in guilt for the rest of your life?” “What the hell is it to you?” Tom snapped. “This is your chance to atone for those deaths. To make sure they didn’t die for nothing! Fight for what the Federation believes in and those men didn’t die in vain. Go hide and sulk, and their deaths were meaningless.” “I’m sorry,” Tom muttered. “I’m done.” Drayson turned and left sickbay. He had realized this was a possible outcome and the plan he didn’t really want to have to carry out now needed to be set in motion. Starbase 001, Captain Major’s Office "Sir, I know that it is hard for you to understand, to accept, but I can show you," said Othoniel definitively, twenty minutes later. Othoniel got up from where he was sitting and went slightly to the left of the Captain's desk. He then took a deep breath, closed his eyes and, suddenly, right in front of Captain Major's eyes, what looked like a spirit appeared. It was directly on top of what now looked like Othoniel's body, it then went to the left of Othoniel and then took a solid form, in the shape of Eric again. Stunned Captain Major did not know what to say. Just then, the computer alerted them that someone was on the other side of the door. It was Garrison. He hit a button, opening the doors and Garrison walked in. Major stood up, shocked at the sight before him. Garrison was a wreck. He looked horrible. He began speaking as soon as he entered the office. “I’ll keep this short. I’m resigning my commission, effective immediately. I just wanted to let you know. We’ve been through a lot over the years. I wanted you to hear it from me.” He turned to leave, but before he could take more than one step towards the door the chime sounded. “Come,” Major called out. He didn't sound in the mood for a visitor and when the door opened he noticed why. There stood Garrison, who looked like he had just come from a war zone, Counselor Rasin and another gentleman. "Excuse me, Captain, but I need to speak to Admiral Garrison, this probably concerns you as well Captain. Sirs, I think we may have a serious security issue." Tom almost laughed. "Tell me something we don't know." "Okay, I was just paid a visit from Gul Telle." "Telle, I've heard that name before," Major stated. "He was the man who," Michael looked over to Rasin, "incarcerated me on Cardassia.” "Well, what did he want?" Major asked. Michael searched for the right wording. "He wanted me to give a message to my superiors. He says that the Cardassian Central Command knows what we're doing. Something about time traveling experiments. And he warned me that if we continue with our tests, that the Alliance will be forced to attack us to defend themselves. I had no idea what he was talking about, but he said that you would." Major looked at Garrison. "Then it looks like we have no choice but to confront Starfleet about this Temporal War that they seem intent on waging." He looked at Michael. "We'll need you to come with us and tell them what you told us." Michael nodded then asked, "Would you please fill me in on what this is all about?" Tom took this moment to finish the conversation he had started with Major. “A few corrections. YOU will have to confront Starfleet, and YOU will need Larkin to come with YOU. I’m done with all this crap.” And with that he walked out of the office, leaving the two of them standing there in bewilderment. |
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| Tucker Nov 19 2003, 12:57 AM  |
Captain David Major - The Deck Wandering the corridors that circled the deck, David tried to sort out the events of the last few hours in his mind. Garrison was a wreck. Since he and the admiral had last talked, the man had shut himself up in his quarters, ignoring all communication attempts, even going as far as locking his door with a level 2 clearance, Admirals and up. David had tried to reason with the man before he left the Captain's office, but by the time he made up his mind to follow the admiral, Garrison had disappeared into the hubbub of the station. The sudden weight of Tom's last words suddenly fell like a freight train onto David's back. "YOU will have to confront Starfleet ... YOU will need Larkin to come with YOU." ... "I'm done with this crap." Crossing the platform leading up to the second level, David stopped and looked in the window of the station's school. There, scattered across the carpet, played children of nearly every race the Federation had encountered. Bolians, Ferengi, Bajorans, Risans, Klingons, all engaged together in whatever their imaginations told them. A voice confronted him from behind his back. "Captain? Captain Major? Reluctantly turning around, he looked into the eyes of a young lieutenant. Human. A woman. "Sir, I don't mean to bother you but I was going to give this to you earlier." She offered a PADD. Looking down at it in her hand, he faintly read the title line, Starfleet Medical Casualty Reports. "I was going to give it to Admiral Garrison, but since he..." "Commander Halliwell," David grumbled, turning back towards the school window. "Sir?" "I said, GIVE IT TO COMMANDER HALLIWELL!" David roared, flipping to face the woman. Her eyes flew open wide, as she stammered to give a response. "Ye...ye...yes sir. I, I'm sorry I bothered you." She hurriedly headed in the opposite direction, head down, PADD at her side. Suddenly realizing there was no longer the slight roar of voices that was usually present on the deck, David looked around, only to find every eye looking at him. Glancing back inside the school, all the children had suddenly stopped playing. One of the younger ones began to cry. David quickly closed his eyes and without making eye contact with anyone, stormed out of the corridor. Corridors He was headed to the OCC. At least, that's where he had told himself he was going. However, for the last hour he had been trying to make his way there, only finding himself aimlessly wandering the corridors, real destination unknown. Rounding the corner, a voice sounded from a few meters back. Stopping, slightly annoyed at the interruption, David turned around. "Yes? What can I..." There was no one there. Backtracking, David searched for the voice, only to find an empty hallway. "Computer, is there anyone other than myself in this section?" "Negative," replied the monotone, computer generated voice. 700 years of technology advancements and they still couldn't add a little personality to that thing. David shook his head, heading back, this time, towards the OCC. Entering the turbo lift, David told the computer his destination and leaned against the wall for the 30 second trip across the station. Turning his head, a faint scream surfaced in the background. Whipping his head around, David listened even more intently, as the screams became louder and louder, finally, to a point where they began to hurt his head. Grasping his ears, nearly overcome with the sudden mixture of anger, fear, sadness, and utter dread, David collapsed to the ground. A few seconds later, the noises disappeared and, catching his breath, David fell unconscious. |
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| RMrulz & Nightranger Nov 22 2003, 03:16 AM  |
Fleet Captain Drayson Hardgrove
– Starbase 001, Office Drayson stood at his window, staring at Earth rotating below. It was time to make the call. He just wanted to take one last glance at his planet to remind himself why all this had to be done. Not that he really needed the reminder, but it still felt nice. Abruptly, he turned away and walked to his desk, sitting down in the chair. He punched a few buttons on his terminal, setting up a commlink to Mars. It was absolutely untraceable. It used the latest in quantum encryption as well as it worked in quantum cloning to ensure nobody would trace it or listen in. After a few seconds, a male face appeared on the screen. “I’ve been expecting you,” the man said. Drayson didn’t actually know the man’s name, but it was better that way. “Proceed.” The man nodded, and the screen went blank. It’s done, he thought to himself. 20 Minutes Later Drayson sat at his desk in his office. All the lights were off. The only light in the entire room was coming from the holoscreen on the far wall facing the desk. He had the Federation News Network on, as he was watching and waiting. The anchorwoman was currently discussing the implications of the change in the curriculum at the Academy. It had been a slow news day, plus there was rarely anything to talk about at 3am. Suddenly, she stopped in mid-sentence for a moment, then continued in an excited voice. “This just in! We’re going live to Utopia Planetia Shipyards, where reports are coming in of a massive explosion.” The view switched from her face to an aerial shot of the shipyards, probably taken from one of the perimeter satellites. The damage was extensive. It was quite visible even from that height. “That’s the only view we have for you right now. We’ll try and get better ones, shortly. Preliminary reports are just starting to come in to the newsroom. They’re suggesting unbelievable damage. There were 109 ships currently being built there. Most are being declared a lost cause. Also, we just heard that there were 5300 people working there at the time of the explosion. Not one has been heard from yet.” Drayson turned off the holoscreen. He had heard enough. Admiral Tom Garrison – Quarters Two days later, Tom found himself pacing back and forth in his quarters. He had no idea what to do. Suddenly, he stopped. “Computer, begin recording personal log.” I have to talk to somebody about all this, even if it is a damn machine. “I’ve been following this Utopia Planetia investigation quite closely, curious what the outcome would be. I couldn’t do any of it through official channels. Command considers me a fugitive for what happened in Medical a few days ago. I’m surprised they haven’t come to arrest me yet, although I doubt there would be enough people that would support them. I think they’re just hoping I go away quietly. “Anyway, this hasn’t been released to the public yet but they think the Alliance did it. The word I’ve been getting is that they’re all but convinced it was the Alliance. There seems to be enough evidence confirming it. “In the past week, the Alliance has invaded the Betazed homeworld, they have infiltrated Earth itself with one of their own in Gul Telle and now they have destroyed the cornerstone of Starfleet’s shipbuilding capacity. And yet Starfleet Command and the Federation Council do nothing! “I know what they’re thinking, they don’t need to because they’re going back in time soon to change all this. But in the meantime, countless people die. We lose system after system. What happens if their plan fails? Then we’re all condemned to live under the Alliance for the rest of our lives. “And what if it succeeds. Everything this damn Federation is supposed to stand for means nothing. How many people will cease to exist because of their alteration of the timeline? Two days ago, I told Drayson I was done with all the fighting. The last time I fought, people died that didn’t need to. But what other choice do I have? From what I have heard and also from what Drayson told me a few days ago, almost the entire fleet is willing to go against Command and the Council. All they need is somebody to lead. “I never wanted to be a leader. It just happened. And how can I walk away when I am needed more than ever before?” He stopped talking for a minute, staring off at nothing in particular. He realized he had already reached a decision about what he was going to do. “Computer, end recording.” He walked to the door, and out into the corridor. A few minutes later he was standing outside Drayson’s office. He signaled his presence and, a second later, the door opened. Drayson looked up as Tom walked in. “Tom,” he said. He knew what Tom had come for. The Utopia Planetia incident assured this. But he said nothing else. “What we talked about the other day. In sickbay,” he trailed off for a minute and he looked down. There’s no going back on this, he thought to himself. Shaking off those thoughts, he looked back at Drayson. “You were right.” Drayson just took all this in. “We’ll need to set up a blockade of Earth to make sure nobody from Command or the Federation Council leave the planet. I already have ships that can take care of that. All I need is your word.” Tom paused. “Once you do this, Tom, there will be no going back. Be completely sure this is what you want.” Tom looked away for a minute. He walked to the window and stared at Earth. All those people down there. It’s for them. He turned and faced Drayson. “Send the ships.” |
