At times, Starfleet’s design aesthetic had a tendency to lean towards antiseptic and stately.  The brightly lit walkways of Starbase Bravo’s promenades represented this austerity in their minimalist lines.  Metallic surfaces everywhere served as a reminder that the starbase was artificial, a construct.

On this day, that uniformity of the promenade was shattered by scientific exhibits and art installations blooming out of nearly every storefront.  Visual representations of exploration lined each bulkhead and additional kiosks had been installed down the middle of the aisle to allow even more platforms for inventors, researchers and artists to share their creations.

Visitors and residents alike crowded this promenade, like all the others; it looked like the visitors represented nearly every world across the Federation.  Some were strolling the wide walkway, others were stopping to stare at spinning whirligigs that caught their eyes, and more still were stepping into large exhibition-sized rooms to discover what wonders were awaiting them inside.  Captain Holmgren couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Starbase Bravo’s promenade filled with such palpable vitality and wonderment.  

Holmgren could hardly decide where to look first.  A flickering caught his eye, so he looked up.

This promenade was several decks high and the open space between the walkways was filled by the holographic wireframe of a fantastical starship.  The layout of the starship roughly retained the nacelles and chevron section of Starfleet design, but the arrangement was unlike any existing starship Holmgren had ever seen.  Like a banner across the underside of the starship were the words: STARFLEET EXPLORATION COLLOQUIUM — 25TH CENTURY!

Walking the promenade by his side, Holmgren caught his daughter, Grace, looking up too.  He asked her, “Think you’ll ever fly one of those?  They probably won’t even begin construction on that class of starship until you’re old enough to get your pilot’s licence.”

When he looked to her for her response, he noticed Grace wasn’t looking up at the starship.

She was looking up at him.

“Where’s your exhibit?” Grace emphatically asked.  “That’s the one I want to see.”

Holmgren winced, and he cleared his throat, while he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Ah well, you know my research has always been more in the realm of archaeology,” Holmgren said sheepishly.  “The Starfleet Bureau of Information selected the preservation and innovation of exploration as their theme for this colloquium.  All of these exhibits are about futurism.  …I’m more comfortable in the past most days.”

Grace retorted, “But it’s ‘mportant.  You said it was important.”

“I guess you could say I’m between ambitions right now,” Holmgren said.  “But maybe we’ll find yours?”

Night-time on the promenade of Starbase Bravo was noted primarily in a slight dimming of lights and a just as slight easing in the foot traffic. Not that there still wasn’t plenty of it mind you, but conversations were a bit more muted, people moved a bit slower and children of families in transit were encouraged less to run around and cause chaos and more mind themselves and stay close.

But a starbase this big was quiet literally a city that didn’t sleep. There was work to be done at all hours and so some people worked slightly out of phase with the ‘day shift’ while others were in complete opposition. Breakfast at dinner, dinner at breakfast – all contributing factors to the station’s constant hum of activity somewhere across its enormous mass. And then there was the transiting population as well either bidding time before departure or indulging in the station amenities after arriving.

But ‘night-time’ was the best time to pull off this plan. There were fewer people about and most would be less inclined to ask questions of someone moving with a purpose while pushing a grav trolley. Security was usually a bit more relaxed or focused primarily on the known trouble spots or the arrivals and departures, not the half-asleep promenade at this hour.

And not, hopefully, on a lone cadet.

The stereotype and all the bad holonovels said she had to be whistling as she went, giving off an air of ‘nothing to see here’ as she went. But whistling would have just drawn attention. No, it was just better to keep moving, craning her head around the object on the trolley to make sure she wasn’t likely to run over someone’s poor kid who had been allowed to run loose like an errant torpedo.

Oh, she’d never been that kid. Never never.

And so Cadet Katlyn Mianaai tried to give the best acting performance of her life – which honestly wasn’t that far from the truth. She looked tired, doing about nine things too many with her time. Exams and study were a constant demand on her time. And so had this project, this one-woman unofficial exhibit she’d concocted, planned and executed all by herself ever since she’d heard about the exhibition.

“Excuse me, coming through,” she said out loud to a couple in her way. Not rudely and not when they were in any danger, but more to let them know she was behind them and she was approaching. An accident wouldn’t do any good at all.

“Oh sorry,” the taller of the two said as they directed their partner to the side a little. “Good to see the youth getting involved in the exhibit,” they said to Katlyn’s back as she passed.

“She’s a cadet, dear,” the shorter commented. “She’s likely under orders.”

“Just glad to be helping,” Katlyn answered back, trying to give the exhausted cadet routine, which was more and more the reality of things.

The grav trolley she was pushing hovered just barely off the floor. Its u-shaped prongs went around the base of the object she was transporting and the field between the prongs had lifted it with the trolley. But of course, all of that did nothing for the mass of the object, which meant getting up to speed was a monumental effort, as was slowing, hence the nice and slow, careful journey she’d been on for over an hour now. Freight lifts and service corridors had dictated her path, the cloth-covered four-metre-high object making quite the impression with the few people who saw her, but most just shrugged and went about their way. Others meanwhile watched, hoping for a disaster until she was far enough away for them to lose interest.

But too much time had been sunk into this pop-up exhibit, this rogue display, for too much speed to bring it to a halt. Better to get caught and have to explain herself, than have things be destroyed by toppling while she moved.

Eventually she arrived where she wanted to be – one of the thoroughfares that led away from the promenade proper and into the depths of Starbase Bravo. Large turbolift banks were nearby, one of the arrival lounges for transit exited out within sight and a number of popular eateries were nearby, at least for cadets and junior officers.

A display declaring the exhibit was already up, with helpful arrows directing people interested in this, that or another thing. Even a large circular map of this promenade was set up, colour-coded for easy reference by visitors. Wanted to see the section on the wonders of the anti-coreward frontiers, just head for the yellow area. The culinary explorations of a thousand different worlds? Try the colour purple.

A show was made of consulting a padd she had with her, checking her surroundings, then shrugging. The ‘this is where they want this?’ routine complete she took her time moving the trolley around, getting it in the right spot, checking it was facing the right away. Anyone walking out onto the promenade from the station’s living spaces would be confronted with it in the morning a few short hours away.

Eventually she was happy enough to lower the trolley to the floor, the pedestal in its grip coming to rest as well on the ground. Katlyn stopped, smiling to herself, mischievously mind you. And then she innocently tugged at the cover, then a bit more, eventually resorting to a decent pull because of the weight of the fabric and needing to pull it over the top. But eventually, it budged and revealed the statue underneath.

It had taken a lot of effort to first design the statue, getting it just right, then sneak elements of it into industrial replicator queues, collecting the parts and moving them around late at night. Assembly had taken place in a currently disused cargo bay.

But it had been completed and not wanting to risk discovery where it was, she’d moved it onto display this very night.

A metre-tall granite pedestal formed the base of the statue, a silver plaque on one side with a gold lettering set for viewers to easily read. The rest of the height was taken up a by three-metre tall, significantly larger-than-life rendition of a currently serving Starfleet captain, who was standing in a mildly heroic pose with an upward tilt to her head.

With a single nod, the statue in its place, Katlyn bundled the cover up as best she could, set it on the trolley and then started back the way she came, this time with a little bit more haste. She wasn’t risking anything this time and at the start she just wanted to open the distance. But then the rest of the trip it was adrenaline at actually pulling it off that fueled her escape.

She’d been there, at Deneb, when the Dominion attacked. Safely held back, but she and her fellow cadets had done preparation work beforehand. She’d been listening to whatever comms she could as the battles raged. And it had been difficult to ignore the flares fired by the reinforcements – those special torpedoes meant to grab everyone’s attention. And then the wave upon wave of decloaking Klingon and Romulan ships as orchestral music had blared over every non-critical subspace channel.

And when it was all said and done, the final transmission before the USS Atlantis had joined the fray with her fellows was now manifested physically in the plaque on the pedestal under the statue of the woman who had issued them.

          May humanity after Victory be the predominant feature of the Fourth Fleet.

                    – Captain Tikva Theodoras, USS Atlantis

The night had went by quickly and Sonja had struggled to sleep. It was a constant fight if tossing and turning with little to no rest in between. She laid there with her eyes wide open watching as the time ticked by. She sighed and finally forced herself to sleep. Only a few hours passed before her alarm rang indicating she needed to awaken for her day. 

Sonja groaned and dejectedly got out of bed. She took a shower hoping it would wake her up to no avail she put on her uniform and strolled out of her quarters looking like a zombie from an old movie from the data banks. She had done most of the hard work yesterday so today should be fairly simple or so she had hoped. She made her way to the Promenade security office seeing the throngs of people in the station for the exhibits that had been put into place. It had taken many hours of meetings and planning for this event to go off as it had. 

She got to her office and sat down lying her head against the desk trying to find comfort for the pounding headache she had currently ‘I hope nothing crazy happens this morning.’ she thought as she started preparing for the day. She saw multiple reports already on her desk of matters that she needed to attend too. She knew some of it she could have people in her patrol look into then the others she knew was her responsibility. The paperwork didn’t bother her it was not knowing what was happening that was unknown. 

She was about to start a report when her commbadge chirped “This is Lieutenant Thompson.” was the solitary reply that came. The response however was not what she was expecting. “Lieutenant, this is Ensign Martin…you need to come see this Ma’am.” 

Sonja stopped trying to figure out why the Ensign sounded so perplexed. “What is going on, Ensign? Where are you?”

“I am on the Promenade near the food exhibit and your not going to believe what’s here. Come to the main hall near the food exhibits area” Sonja sighed it seemed her peaceful morning was not going to be so peaceful after all. “Alright, Ensign I am on my way there now.”

“No rush, Lieutenant. This isn’t going to be going anywhere anytime soon. Grab yourself a coffee if you need it. Trust me you might need it.”

Sonja was perplexed trying to understand what had made her officer feel so shocked about. She got up and started heading towards the Ensign, as she rounded the corner into the Promenade she saw just how many people were around and the exhibits that were there. She saw just how many people were present and the amount of exhibits that were there. She had seen the food exhibits signs and wondered just what it might entail. She decided to stop and grab a cup of coffee first, being stopped by people who had questions about how to get somewhere fast. Sonja had learned how to traverse the station fairly quickly and gave them the advice they needed. 

With the cup of coffee in hand Sonia rounded the corner to where the Ensign had said to meet him. She was taking a sip of her coffee when she realized what was in front of her. A statue a fairly big one just in the middle of the hallways. She shook her head because as she looked at it she didn’t have a clue as to who it was. She arrived to the Ensign and shook her head.

“I see it but I’m not sure I believe this. This is not what I expected to see this morning. What the hecking heckety heck is this?”

The Ensign shrugged for a moment “I have no idea, Lieutenant. That’s why I asked you to come see this. I don’t even know who this Captain is… Captain Tikva Theodoras does that name even sound familiar to you?” he asked confused. 

Sonja stopped for a moment and thought “No I do not but I am sure the Captain is real. I don’t think someone would take the time to make a statue if it didn’t mean something.” She looked at the statue it was masterfully built and definitely brought its point across of being seen by anyone entering or exiting the Promenade here. It was a strategic spot and whoever had done this was no dummy. “Whoever did this was clever there’s no doubt about that.”

Ensign Martin nodded “I agree, but could this be grounds for discipline? Putting a statue up in the Promenade without prior authority or approval?”

Sonja thought for a moment. The truth was she could report this if she truly wanted too. She could cause issues for whoever put this on the Promenade, but in all honesty it wasn’t hurting anything and it added more to the stations Promenade. Whoever this Captain was the individual believed they deserved the recognition and went through the trouble of making it so obvious. 

She looked back at Martin “No we won’t be pressing any charges. It’s not like this is causing issues or slowing anyone down from reaching their destination. This was made for someone who obviously means something to someone. Plus if they did something to merit this importance than maybe we need respect this Captain as well. Make sure the area is marked off safely and a report is written and on my desk tomorrow. That will end the matter.”

The Ensign nodded as Sonja walked away obviously through with the matter. Martin could respect her decision and it was why he felt honored to serve with her. She took a different approach to things. She saw it and believed it therefore she did what she felt was right. 

Sonja looked back at the statue one more time ‘I don’t know who you are, but this was brilliant.’ she thought to herself as she turned and walked away heading back to her desk feeling more energized than she had when she woke up maybe this was all she needed to get through the rest of the day. 

Cassandra Montgomery was working a shift in one of the emergency wards on Starbase Bravo when a dull klaxon rang through the department, and the Chief Resident at the main desk read out the report, “We’ve had an explosion in Holodeck 13.  They’re unable to transport them out.”  He glanced at Cass in her role as Deputy Director of General Medicine, and she moved quickly.

“Assemble a triage team to be here when we get them stabilized and can transport.  You three, with me.”  The three medics didn’t question the commander.  She marched them to the unit transporter, inputting the arrival location.  “Be ready to move,” was her only warning as they vanished into the bright lights.

The scene was chaos, and she ordered two of her hastily arranged team to follow her while the other pulled security in to secure the scene quickly.  Smoke was pouring out of the arch.  Two security officers threw themselves out and onto the floor, coughing and groaning.  “Marsten, triage and transport.  Jasa, let’s go.”  The Vulcan followed her into the maw of the holodeck.

If the scene outside had been chaos, this was hell.  The program was still running, and harmless phaser fire bounced off, around, and into them as they tried to see through the fire and smoke.  “Jasa, see if you can shut it down.”  She already had her medical tricorder out and moved to the nearest wounded.

Sonja had been on patrol when she heard the explosion. She went into a full sprint, heading for the area the sound originated from. She wasn’t sure what had happened, but on her way she picked up to of her security personnel. They finally arrived at the scene, where she could see medical had done their best to contain the scene. 

Sonja noticed the person giving orders and walked up to them. “Hi Commander, I’m Lieutenant Thompson, the Patrol Shift Lead. What happened here, and why didn’t anyone call us?”

Montgomery glanced up as more medical personnel arrived.  She ignored Thompson as she turned back to stabilizing the patient.  She stopped the blood loss and ordered an arriving triage crew to transport them.  Cass stood and narrowed her eyes at the Patrol Shift Leader, “Something went boom, Lieutenant.”  She accepted a PADD from one of her running orderlies, who dashed off into the still online simulation.  “And it looks like twenty security officers got caught in the boom – triage teams are evaluating those we’ve managed to stabilize. So far, no casualties, thank goodness.”  She handed the PADD to Thompson, “As for why nobody called you – I don’t know.”

The doctor’s demeanor was expected, given the current stress of the situation. Sonja ignored it and began looking over the information on the PADD. It was good that no casualties had come from the results of the explosion. The issue was that an explosion had occurred. She was about to speak to the doctor when a voice interrupted.

“Doc Montgomery!”  The urgent voice of the orderly pulled her away. 

Cass replied to the lieutenant, “If you can find a way to shut down this simulation, we’d be mighty appreciative.”  She took off, heading further into the simulation.

Sonja nodded and looked at the two officers that were with her “Let’s see what power grid the holodeck is on and get the power cut for this area. The biggest thing we need is to protect the people who are here.” The officers nodded and ran into two different directions while Sonja braved getting closer to the scene of the explosion. As she got closer the smell of the area permeated in her nose. The truth was this wasn’t a normal occurrence and the possibility of sabotage to the system was high. She was looking at the hole when the comm badge chirped, “Lieutenant, I have isolated the grid and can shut the holodeck down.” 

“Ensign Thomas, will this affect the main area grid?” she asked the other officer. 

“It will not cause any issue to the main grid.” She acknowledged the message and confirmed to shut down the holodeck. Moments later, the power was visibly off, and the holodeck had lost all power. She looked for the doctor but could not see her. She headed for the explosion spot, reaching it at the same time as her two officers.

Cass looked up from the injured officer as the security team, led by Thompson, arrived.  She called for her two orderlies, and they began to work on the patient.  The burns were extensive, and the young man was in extreme pain.  His screams lessened as they applied pain management.  Montgomery stood, “Whatever happened, it involved Ensign Macarthy.  We’re going to transport him to the emergency department.  We’ll keep the chain of custody on his clothes, and whatever we clean off him – we’ll do the same with the rest of the victims.”  She pulled her bad off her belt, tapping quickly, “I’m turning the scene over to you, Lieutenant.   Come find me when you’re ready for the next part of…whatever the hell this was.”

Sonja nodded at the doctor and turned looking at the detail with her. “Let’s get this site locked down. No unauthorized access. Once we have the evidence we will look into the needed opening of an investigation. I’ll be going to see the doctor shortly to see what else we can find out. Great work on getting things done quick and efficiently.”

The detail acknowledged and went to finishing the task their superior had tasked them with.

The Betazoid Counselor entered the bar and wiped his brow as he took a seat. “Well, this bar seems excellent and just what I need after a long day. Barkeep, do you have the good stuff?” he asked. He noticed a few others in the bar but nobody he really knew very well.

Sitting at one of the bar tables. Elias was just having a good time at the Golden Apple with his friends. Elias saw one of his newly made friends, Korey. “I’ll be back, guys,” said Elias to his friends. He went to Korey and sat down beside him and asked the young Betazoid, “How are you doing?”.

Samuels looked up to Elias and smiled in recognition. “Ah hey buddy, yeah, doing good, just here for a quick pick-me-up drink after a long shift. What are you drinking?” he asked.

Smiling at the young or rather old Betazoid, Elias said, “Oh, uh, I’m drinking a cocktail.” Taking a sip, Elias turned to the barkeep and said, “What is this again?” having forgotten the exact name of the drink.

Korey listened intently. “Oooh, I’m thinking of getting a Saurian Apple Brandy myself, a specialty my brother used to make me.”

“Hmm, that sounds like an interesting drink that your brother has made.” Turning to the barkeep Elias said, “I’ll have one of those as well”. “So how are you liking Starbase Bravo so far?” asked Elias.

He looked around the room and finally saw a menu card, grabbing it to browse the wares. “Oh, it’s a lot of fun so far. Very different to a ship”

When Elias was going to talk, he was suddenly interrupted by his combadge beeping, “Lieutenant Comescu here.”

“Lieutenant you are needed in the laboratory.”

“Aye sir, will be there in 5 minutes. Oh well, Korey, it seems like I have to go. It was nice talking to you.” replied Elias.

Walking through the corridors of Starbase Bravo, Elias just ended his shift at the lab and went to the Golden Apple located at the Promenade when he bumped into Arwa. “Hey Arwa! What’s up?” he asked.

Having a glass of some rum in her hand, Arwa looked over her shoulder in the direction of whom was calling her. A soft smile appeared on her face “Elias, pleased evening to you. Done with your shift?”

“Yeah! I just finished my shift. I got to say those lab works are not fun at all. Anyways, enough about me. How are you?” asked Elias.

Looking back at her glass “Then you need to redefine what is fun. You always should have a certain degree of fun with your work and you should know that” Arwa smiled taking a sip letting the alcohol do its work “My day was interesting, people with interesting stories and adventures”

“Well, I tell you what. My day was basically filled with paperwork upon stacks of paperwork. Like, who needs that much research on a compound? Anyways, I do see the importance of scientific advancement, so I don’t really mind it. Until the fact that I’m stuck at my office till my shift ends.” After saying that, he went to the barkeep and asked for a glass of whiskey. “Hey Barkeep! A glass of whiskey, please.”

“Paperwork is as important as discovering the unknown. I believe that some scientific breakthrough were found through putting paperwork together” Arwa smirked a bit at his direction “but you deserve that glass” she teases

“I guess I do,” said Elias, laughing. “Anyways, how’s the counseling department? I’ve heard that there is still quite a bit of activity, especially after the Borg incident.” Elias said this sadly as he remembered those days as well and raised his glass as a sign of respect to his fallen comrades.

A shrug appeared on Arwa expression “It’s slowly calming down, but we still have a large amount of people that needs processing of what happened to them” Arwa took another sip letting the background music do its thing “luckily we have the convention as a much needed distraction”

“It will surely still leave a scar on everyone’s mind. It all happened all of a sudden. They came out of nowhere,” said Elias, stoicly remembering those days. “A toast to our fallen comrades, Arwa.” Elias raises his glass and says, “To the ones we lost on the way.”

She could admire the gesture and at the same time Arwa mind was already thinking of the future. What next thing would happen? A full fledged Breen invasion? A robotic entity that replicates itself over and over? Or the Ferengi trying to buy the Federation. She raised her glass “To the unknown, whatever it might bring to our doorstep”

“I apologize for making this very gloomy, my friend. Some scars do need time to heal, but they never go away,” said Elias gloomyly. “Back on a happy note, did you hear about the exhibition that’s going to take place here?”

“I did just mention it”. She smiled and laughed a bit “Thought I am contemplating if I will be going to it”. Arwa concluded a bit “You? Will you go to it?”

“Yeah! I’ll go when my shifts are over. I can’t wait to see what the stalls have in store for us!” exclaimed Elias. “See you there?”

Giving a nod “there are some interesting things, something about a statue made out of butter” that made Arwa blink a bit “I will see you there”

“A statue made of butter? Huh, won’t that melt almost instantly unless there’s a cooling system in place?” said Elias, confused and blinking owlishly. “See you around, Arwa! Byee! Duty calls, I’m afraid.”

‘We are excited for… ah, he says, “open horizons”, sir, which I’m sure means “opportunities” -’

‘Does it? I couldn’t have guessed that for myself.’ Lieutenant Wyke’s voice was cool as he stared at the young linguist, Lieutenant JG Vellan, who accompanied the party as they walked the corridors of the USS Chatham towards the transporter room.

Vellan winced, cowed by the chiding from a superior officer. Wyke knew he shouldn’t be too hard on the young man; he was the wunderkind who had managed to crack the language of the Torvallians, one of Starfleet’s newest contacts whose tongue still eluded the universal translator. The Torvallians were at least partly telepathic, communicating with a mixture of verbal and psychic syntax, and only by the first contact’s team’s accidental encounter with some psychic artifact had communication been capable.

Most of that team was with the Starfleet diplomatic envoy at the Torvallian homeworld, building bridges with the apparently kind, enthusiastic, and curious people. Vellan, however, had been sent to act as interpreter for the small group of Torvallian envoys headed for Starbase Bravo. Envoys Wyke had to babysit. Maybe someone thought his Betazoid abilities would smooth over communication. Maybe it was just because he was catching a ride to his new assignment on the Chatham too. Maybe Command hated him.

If the Torvallian head delegate, Jo’niske, picked up on any tension between them, he did not show it. His people bore deep forehead ridges looming over the eyes to give them a look of a perpetual frown, which seemed very at odds with their apparently genial and open nature. He babbled something in his own language which made Vellan stop and listen, and the linguist eventually smiled.

‘He says he is particularly interested to know about any musical exhibits at the Colloquium, sir.’

‘Musical?’

‘Music is hugely important to Torvallian culture.’

‘Let me guess – they also value good food, community, and hospitality?’

‘I mean, sir, it’s also important to them scientifically. Both in how the mathematical principles of sound help them understand the universe, and in how they engage qualitatively with all their research.’

Wyke made a face. ‘You mean they really care about how they feel about their astrophysics?’ He shook his head. ‘Tell him we’ll find him a cultural exhibit with music.’ And if there isn’t one, I’ll find him an ensign with a violin.

Jo’niske beamed at the news, and the gaggle of Torvallian scientists and diplomats with him descended into an enthusiastic babble. At least they were good at entertaining themselves, Wyke reflected – the briefing package said they were unfailingly curious, which was why bringing a delegation to Starbase Bravo’s Colloquium was considered such a key step in forging this fledgling relationship with the Federation. Aboard the station they could see not only what the Federation had to offer, but the wider galaxy. All while Wyke held their hands.

With this much traffic around Starbase Bravo, the Chatham had to beam them aboard, and Wyke led them into the transporter room. ‘Tell them to assemble on the pad,’ he told Vellan, and looked to the operator. ‘You have their biosignatures properly scanned for transport?’

The young operator gave a nod. They looked nervous. ‘Ready, sir.’

Wyke bounced onto the pad alongside Vellan, Jo’niske, and the rest of the Torvallian delegates. ‘Energise.’ The bulkheads of the USS Chatham faded, and within seconds were replaced with the near-identical walls of a much-larger transporter room on Starbase Bravo, where a group of diplomatic officials and ranking officers waited for him.

Wyke gave a crisp, tight smile to the leading figure of Captain Reyes, station XO – then frowned as he saw the captain’s stare, felt the confusion radiate from him. And when he turned, stood next to him on the pad was only Lieutenant Vellan and Jo’niske.

Captain Reyes took a step forward. ‘Lieutenant, the rest of the delegation are coming, yes…?’

Wyke’s heart lunged into his throat, and he smashed his communicator. ‘Wyke to Chatham. We’re missing people here – it’s only us two and one of the delegates…’ Beside him, Jo’niske was addressing Vellan in a rather anxious tone.

‘Stand by, Lieutenant,’ came the reply from the Chatham. A moment later, the captain’s voice came over. ‘They were dematerialised here and successfully transporter.’

‘They’re not here!’

Reyes, brow furrowing with growing apprehension, raised a hand to forestall Wyke’s frustration. ‘Are they in the buffers, Captain?’

‘We’re running a full check now.’ The Chatham’s skipper did, at least, sound appropriately panicked for having lost a slew of delegates. Wyke tried to ignore Jo’niske’s increasingly urgent tones as Vellan tried to keep him calm. Then came more from the ship. ‘We confirm they were transported, sir, but… it seems something about their physiology confused our systems. Specifically about their destination.’

‘Tell me,’ said Wyke in a strained voice, ‘you didn’t just beam the Federation’s newest friends into space.’

‘Safety systems would stop that from happening. It looks like they’re aboard Starbase Bravo. They’re just not with you.’

Captain Reyes’s eyebrows hit his hairline. ‘You’re saying we’ve got a delegation of scientists and diplomats from a brand-new contact who don’t speak Standard and the universal translator doesn’t work on, who’ve been scattered across our station?’

‘That, uh… that’s correct, sir.’

As Vellan explained to Jo’niske, the Torvallian looked to relax and significantly brighten. He said something enthusiastic to Vellan, who looked rather apprehensive.

‘What did he say?’ Wyke snapped at the linguist.

‘Just that… uh…’ Vellan ran a hand through his hair. ‘He’s delighted. He says his people are going to love the chance to see the exhibits, because sometimes diplomatic handlers keep them away from the, uh… the fun stuff.’

Wyke turned to Reyes, gaze flat. ‘They’re not just lost, sir. They’re lost, and they might not be fully cooperative in being found.’

Captain Reyes paused. Clicked his tongue. And said, ‘Then I guess you better get them found, Lieutenant. Soon.’ 

To: All Staff

From: Captain Javier Reyes, XO

A transporter accident has scattered a delegation across the station. The Torvallians are a new contact of the Federation’s; they do not speak Standard, and the universal translator has not yet cracked their language. Their biology is sufficiently new to us that we cannot yet isolate their signatures on our sensors.

The Torvallians are known to be friendly and curious and are reportedly excited to experience the Colloquium, but they are lost and alone on our station. They must be found before there are any accidents. Teams are being dispatched to find them, but all hands should be vigilant. Images of the delegates and information about them and their culture are attached. If you find them, please escort them to the security office or inform Lieutenant Wyke, Strategic Operations.

These are future friends. Let’s take care of them.

In Play:

This is a loose plotline for any members of SBB to participate in. Characters could be officially looking for the Torvallians or encounter them about the station. These aliens are pleasant, scientifically curious, and delighted to experience the Colloquium – they may not be fully willing to leave an exhibition if they’re having a good time. They do not speak Standard and universal translators do not yet know their language, and there is not enough data on their biology to isolate their location with sensors. Overcoming these problems could also be written about (just don’t immediately write a post where you figure out how to find them on sensors!).

This is not a station-wide emergency. It does, however, provide a little colour and some possible stakes to how your characters experience the Colloquium. What exciting exhibition will draw the curiosity of these lost delegates?

You can of course write these experiences in a solo or joint post, and the on-screen involvement of Captain Reyes or Lieutenant Wyke is not required. 

A small hall was reserved for a seminar to be held. There were arranged chairs and a small podium up on the front. People were getting their seats, mumbling with each other about the set theme. The Department of Counseling was holding this seminar, and the set subject is close to anyone’s heart, the Borg. Lots of cross-talking in the hall was heard as a junior ranking officer clapped his hands and looked at everyone. “Attention, attention, please! We are about to start. I would like to welcome Lieutenant Arwa el-Imam, the Deputy of Starbase Bravo Department of Counseling.” Everyone started to clap as no one took the stage or joined the junior officer. They started to look around as the officer shrugged awkwardly, “Uhmmm.” he didn’t know how to tackle this problem and looked at his side, seeing his fellow officers shrugging, not knowing where Arwa was. 

“Breath, Ensign, I am here,” Arwa’s voice echoed as the officer looked around. Arwa slowly stood up from a seat in the crowd. “I am right here.” She winked at him after seeing him shrug a bit and leave the stage. Arwa took a deep breath and walked towards the podium. “Our perspective of life is a challenging one for officers and enlisted personnel that serve in the stars. We face the unknown on almost a daily basis, well, almost everyone. The Admirals are sitting in their offices, and politicians are bickering with each other.” Hearing a laugh among the crowd. 

Arwa turned around when she stepped onto the stage and clapped her hands together, looking around. “I have been asked to give this seminar about a recent event, crisis, or happening. Everyone classifies or categorizes it differently. But down the pipeline, it is what it is, something devastating that has happened to us all. The Borg.” A silence went as a wave through the crowd. “It has not quite been our time to be fair,” she continued. 

“First the Blood Dilithium crisis, then the Lost Fleet that came knocking with their Breen friends, and now the Borg. This took a hefty toll on our mental health.” Arwa walked a bit from one side to the other but didn’t break her look on the crowd. “We have seen our friends, family, and co-workers getting wounded, killed, or worse, added to the collective”. Taking a deep breath, “It does, to a certain degree, matter what species you are; your brains are differently wired, which is not bad. But the best example is that a Vulcan can process and withhold emotions better than anyone in this room. Does it mean they don’t need help? Discover if they are affected by whatever has happened. In my opinion, they do need help.” 

Arwa raised three fingers. “I will do this seminar a few times, where I speak over different perspectives of behavior acts that everyone does. Freeze, fight, or flight” lowering one finger at the mention of each word. “Research has given us a view into these behaviors, and it has been conducted a few times. When a person is faced with the act of the moment, life, and death situation. They fall back on these three reaction elements within a fraction of a second.” She lowered her hands and placed them behind her back.

“The Borg signal that was activated and influenced many of our people has left a deep scar on many layers of mental health. Sedatephobia is the fear of not hearing anything in your head any more; you feel uncomfortable in quiet rooms, and sleep is difficult. This fear results from the mind being connected to the collective for the brief moment it was.” Arwa let it sink in for a moment and continues. “Oneirophobia is the fear of experiencing a nightmare or night terrors that are the result of a traumatic event in a person’s life.” 

She stood still for a second and shrugged a bit. “But the one thing that was the most common among all the patients I had seen was Autophobia, a fear of being alone” A bit of mumbling went through the crowd. “It is a fear that is seen with xBs as well. They are pulled from a collective mind that feels comfortable, warm, and unified. It is treatable, but it all takes time.” 

“Back to the main topic at hand that I wanted to address. People act as a new element is presented within the situation. Survival. Early research concluded that this sympathetic nervous system response is related to stress response. I believe it is a step further than that. It is an act of survival.” Arwa took a second to think before she continued. “We fight the moment your brain detects and the core beliefs that it is in danger, and you can overpower that threat. Your body starts to receive signals from your brain to act in a fight situation.” 

“ Grinding your teeth, urge to punch something, feeling the intense anger building up in you, and off you go in full attack mode.” Arwa looked at everyone for a brief moment. “Flight is a moment where your brain believes that you cannot overcome the danger, and it’s best to get the hell out. Your body is getting excessively exercising, feeling tense, trapped, and restless. Your pupils are dilated as your eyes dart through the area to find a way out”. 

Walking to the middle of the podium, “And freeze, a stress response that causes you to feel glued to the spot you are standing. Unable to remove as your brain thinks, you can’t fight or flight this. You become pale skin, feeling stiff and heavy; you will hear a loud pounding of your heart in your ears. You accepted the fate of what is coming….” 

Arwa smiled at the crowd. “My next seminar will be in a few hours, but my co-worker will resume this one with the effects of the treatment and what we found during such. Thank you, and enjoy.” She lowered her head in grace as people clapped. She left the stage, letting her co-worker take over. 

Elias walked into the golden apple for probably the third time this week. He was feeling a bit tired from all the lab work he was doing, so he came here to relax and probably get a few drinks. Walking up to the barkeep, he asked the barkeep for something moderately strong, took it, and sat at the table alone for a while. “Could this day get any worse? Anyways, my shift is over already.”

“The answer is, yes it can” Arwa placed herself in the seat and looked at Elias “You seem to have a thing for getting here a lot, everything okay?”  Arwa smiled softly in his direction.

“I don’t know actually. I mean, work is a bit stressful but manageable, I guess? I usually come here to get a cup of coffee and work upstairs, but from time to time I like to come down and get some drinks. Also, did you hear about that, there is a fair of some kind going on. I might go a little bit later though,” said Elias. “Wait! Isn’t that Cam? Huh?!” Elias started to wave to Cam to come over.

Stepping into the Golden Apple marked a pleasant departure from Cam’s usual spot, ‘Downtime.’ As he entered, his attention was immediately drawn to Elias, the Science Officer he had recently encountered, seated with an unfamiliar woman. Approaching their table with a smile, Cam greeted Elias warmly before extending his hand to the woman, introducing himself, “Hey, I’m Cam. It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

Looking from Elias to Cam, for a brief second Arwa didn’t say anything and then smiled grabbing his hand gently “Arwa, get a seat” She lets go of his hand and looked back at Elias “We already spoke about the fair that is going on. You have not listen to any of my counseling tips to take it easy have you…” Arwa looked a bit annoyed at Elias.

Seated comfortably, Cam opted for his usual Raktajino. As he settled into his seat, he noticed an irritated look from Arwa. Deciding to defuse the tension, he casually asked, “So, Miss Arwa, are you into Science stuff too?”

“Heh,” Elias grinned slightly at what Arwa said. “I’ll take a break, okay? Maybe this fair will give me the sufficient break I need,” said Elias. Turning to Cam, he introduced him to Arwa. “Cam met Lieutenant Arwa el-Imam, deputy director of counseling. Arwa met Lieutenant Junior Grade Cam Solari, a starfighter pilot for Bravo.”

“Right, got to see it before believing it” Arwa pointed it out looking back at Cam “Pleasure to meet you, if you need someone to talk to you can always send me a message” She smiled “But fair warning, don’t ignore my advice or you end up like Elias here, burnout like a candle on its final stretch”

Cam chuckled at Arwa’s clever comment, a mischievous glint in their eyes. With a playful tone, he quipped, “Watch out Elias, I have a feeling she is going to expose you at the exhibit on the promenade.”

“I might as well be her test subject by now.” rolling his eyes, Elias chuckled a little bit. “Anyways, how are the both of you doing? How’s life being a starfighter for Bravo, Cam?” asked Elias.

She placed her hands over each other and leans forward looking at Elias “Exposing is the least of his problems if he doesn’t follow my advice of tuning his workload down” Arwa looked back at Cam for his answer that Elias asked him.

“It’s a whirlwind of speed and excitement,” Cam chuckled, then added, “Definitely more thrilling than my stint in Flight Ops. But the best part is getting to soar through the skies and having a cool Callsign,”

Turning the conversation, he inquired, “How about you? Anything exciting on your end?

“Hmm, I mean, I’m working on a new project? I might with the slightest chance of possibilities present during the colloquium fair!! Maybe that’s why I’m working myself on edge? I don’t know, but the project is definitely interesting and it focuses on Borg artifacts and such. Now now I can’t spoil the surprise if ever,” said Elias, laughing a little bit.

“Aren’t you exhausted with the Borg artifacts by now?” Cam remarked, casually sipping from his Raktajino. “But on a serious note, I genuinely hope you get your chance at the fair,”

“If he was, he would have enough sleep and didn’t show any form of fatigue” Arwa took a sip of her drink “But hey who am I to judge”

Raising her drink “I actually did participate already in the fair, with sort of lecture about behavior in the face of danger”

“Hey, they’re actually interesting, you know! While I may hate paperwork, research is my passion,” said Elias while chuckling.

“Starbase Bravo Flight Control, this is White Bomber Ypsilon-Six-Bravo, requesting communication,” Cam’s voice crackled over the intercom. 

“Flight Control here. What’s up, Sunshine?” responded a calm voice on the other end. 

“My aft thrusters are acting up. I’m heading back to base. Can you dispatch a maintenance crew to meet me?” Cam reported, a hint of concern in his tone. 

“Understood, Lieutenant Solari!” came the prompt assurance from Flight Control.

Cam closed the communication channel and gently manipulated the control panel. The Apsara-class bomber altered its course, pointing towards the massive Spacedock-class Starbase. Despite the malfunctioning thrusters, Cam skillfully approached, Cam could never help but marvel at the intricate details of the station visible through his viewport. The pulsating lights and bustling activity within the colossal structure contrasted with the silence of space. 

Emily stared at the PADD, waiting for her latest maintenance report to upload. It was only her third shift after being assigned to the maintenance crew in the hangers and so far she felt things were going well, even if most of her work had involved routine maintenance checks on some of the older craft.

A notification appeared on the display beside Emily. She glanced across, swiping on the display to read the notification – a new work order for an incoming craft.

“Good timing” she thought to herself as the report finished uploading.

A few minutes later, the bomber glided smoothly into its assigned docking bay. The hum of the engines gradually diminished as they powered down, leaving only the subtle hum of life within the station.

Emily hurried across the hanger bay to the newly arrived craft, skimming through the PADD as she approached, dodging other members of the maintenance teams.

The starbase was a far cry from the frontier colony she had grown up on. Back on Ladian I, pretty much everybody knew everybody and visitors were a rarity. Emily was still adjusting to the hive of activity that was the starbase.

“Lieutenant Solari?”, Emily asked as she looked to the green-eyed officer before her.

“I got a report the aft thrusters are acting up?”

Amid the bustling hangar, Cam’s eyes were drawn to the Engineer in front of him. The light played through her chestnut waves, and her emerald eyes flickered like uncut gems. The clang of machinery and distant conversations formed a chaotic symphony around them.

A subtle recognition lingered in Cam’s mind, prompting a smile to play on his lips. He took a step closer, allowing the sounds of the hangar to fade into the background.

“Hey,” he began, a hint of warmth in his voice, “there’s something about you that feels familiar. Have we crossed paths before?”

Emily cocked her head, her eyes narrowing as she examined the office before her. There was a flash of recognition in his eyes, but the same could not be said for Emily.

“I don’t think so, i’ve only been here a short while Lieutenant” she paused for a moment, a smile flittering across her lips “I do have an average face, one that blends into a crowd, maybe that’s it?” 

With a few taps on the PADD screen Emily brought up the last maintenance report and skimmed over it before returning her attention to Cam.

“Last report shows no issue with the thrusters, could you describe what happened?”

“Well, they seemed to glitch on my during the burner phase,” as Cam recounted the technical hiccup, his words hung in the air like a momentary, his gaze, however, betrayed a subtle distraction, still caught in the puzzle of familiarity with the Engineer before him. 

A fleeting second passed, then, with a shake of his head, Cam refocused. 

“I was on the verge of accelerating towards Mellstoxx IV,” he continued, his tone resuming its previous cadence, “when the engines, they just… glitched, lost their peak power and they stuttered as if dancing to an erratic rhythm.”

Emily’s eyes narrowed, her brow furrowing, as she listened to Cam’s report, her mind already sifting through the potential causes of the malfunction. She noticed a glint of recognition in his eyes as he spoke, although Emily was not familiar with the dark-haired pilot.

“Let’s get your ship hooked up to the diagnostic systems. I’ll run a full check on the thrusters. Sometimes these glitches are just gremlins in the system, but better safe than sorry.”

As they walked towards the bomber, Emily glanced at Cam. His mention of familiarity intrigued her. She was new to the starbase and the idea of already having made an impression, however mistaken, was both amusing and flattering. 

“So, Lieutenant, you’ve been at Starbase Bravo long?” she asked, her tone friendly but professional.

“Me?” Cam’s lips curled into a smirk. “I’ve only set foot here a couple of months ago, a direct journey from the Campus in San Francisco,” he casually mentioned.

Emily nodded, “Ah, maybe our paths crossed in some hallway, or at the Academy grounds. Maybe that is why you recognise me?”

Emily chuckled softly, “The Academy’s a small universe of its own, isn’t it? Easy to cross paths without really meeting.” She glanced at the ship. 

“Let’s see if we can unravel the mystery of your thrusters, Lieutenant. Maybe that will jog your memory.”

As they approached the ship, Emily’s mind was already racing with potential causes for the glitch. Could it be a simple software hiccup or something more intricate, like a power fluctuation in the engine’s core components? She was eager to dive into the problem, her curiosity piqued both by the technical challenge and the pilot’s familiar demeanor.

Lieutenant Soren Liara stepped off the small gantry way of the transport shuttle she’d arranged passage aboard from her former home on Starbase 74, luggage mainly in hand or rather slung over one shoulder. Her small pack was stuffed with artifact replicas that she’d discovered during her last tour, things that had caught her fancy or were attached to fond memories shared with her former comrades. It was also, in some small way, a reflection of the lifestyle she’d lived growing up on Bajor just after the Dominion War had ended. While her family wasn’t in dire straits by any stretch of the imagination, they still held to their old habits that had wormed their way into her parents and grandparents lives during the Occupation. Excess had always been seen as something of a taboo among the older generations in her family, and though she knew now that such extreme beliefs didn’t apply, the habits from her youth had found their way into her heart anyway, leading the young scientist to carry only the things she simply couldn’t afford to lose.

Lt. Soren paused just a few steps away from the shuttle and took in the sight of the landing platform she’d been deposited onto. Though a part of her wanted to dismiss the sight as being ‘just another starbase docking area’, another part couldn’t help but marvel at the feat of engineering and the culmination of literal ages that had to come before the current one to allow for such a sight to even be possible. While it wasn’t nearly as awe inspiring to the woman as seeing the Celestial Temple had been for her as a little girl peering out of one of the windows scattered along the Promenade on Deep Space Nine, it was still something worth taking a moment to admire.

Liara sucked in a breath and huffed it out quickly, nodding to herself in silent acknowledgement that she’d spent the requisite span of time gawking and could now safely and confidently enter the station proper without looking too much like an awestruck cadet. She picked her way through the throng of people exiting various craft of variable sizes, finally finding herself at the causeway that housed rows upon rows of turbolift shafts, each of them able to carry a passenger anywhere on the massive station. And as luck would have it, there was also an office not far from it that contained what Lt. Soren could only assume to be some manner of logistics officers, who would likely be able to help her get settled in, or at the very least find her bearings. 

Entering the office with a look of curiosity mixed with confusion, Liara quickly found herself being approached by one of the many junior officers milling about the space.

“Can I help you, Lieutenant?” the man asked with a friendly smile.

“I would appreciate it, Ensign,” Liara said as she pulled the pack off her shoulder to fish around for a small PaDD she’d squirreled away, “I’m just arriving to assume a position in the science department and I was hoping you could help me get my bearings and perhaps even point me toward my quarters if that isn’t too much to ask for.”

“Not at all, ma’am,” the younger man remarked with a smile as he took the PaDD she offered him. He stepped behind a nearby console and compared what he was seeing on her documentation to the station’s records, nodding a few times to himself before returning to his original position, “I found everything you need and I’ve uploaded it onto your PaDD. If you like, I can give you a brief explanation.”

“Oh yes, please. I didn’t take anyone up on that offer when I transferred to Starbase 74 and I was lost for four whole hours,” Soren chuckled at the memory, “With a station this gargantuan, being lost for days doesn’t seem all that unrealistic.”

“I’ve never heard anyone get lost for days,” the man smiled wryly, “But this is a much larger station than most, so I can understand the concern. We’re currently in Section Lima-Violet… all of the major sections of the station are alphabetically coded followed by a different color by the way.”

“How interesting. I’ve never heard of such a naming convention before,” the Bajoran remarked with a smirk.

“This is my first assignment so I can’t say how common it might actually be,” the Ensign said with a shrug before continuing with his short presentation, “Your quarters are located in Section Kilo-Indigo, and more specifically on deck 464. The science module you’ve been assigned to is in Section Hotel-Turquoise, which covers decks 360 through 390. Unfortunately I couldn’t find an exact lab you’ve been attached to, so you’ll probably have to speak to your department head to get further information about the details of your tenure aboard with them.”

“And are the recreation facilities easy enough to find?” Soren inquired.

The man nodded, “They are. I’ve highlighted some of the more popular establishments in the packet I sent to your PaDD, so you can browse them at your leisure.”

“Perfect! Thank you so much for your help, Ensign. I really appreciate it,” Liara said with a genial smile before turning about and heading off toward the turbolift clusters. Once she’d boarded the carriage and instructed it as to the deck she needed to head toward, Liara began scanning through the information packet she’d been provided. The whir of the turbolift carriage passing swiftly through the station slowly faded into the background her her mind as Soren scrolled through the various guides that had been provided. Establishments of every form and variety were listed, from shopping to dinning to recreational facilities that didn’t rely on holographic equipment to operate. The amenities alone could keep a person completely occupied for an entire tour without having to revisit a single one if they so chose.

When the lift suddenly stopped and the door swished open, it took Liara a few seconds to realize it, so enthralled she was in reading what the station had to offer. Thankfully, no one was trying to board the lift at the moment, so she didn’t have to excuse or explain herself to anyone, which might have looked bad depending on who it actually was that might have caught her unawares. She thanked the Prophets silently as she stepped into the corridor that she hadn’t been guided to be a security officer with her focus so easily usurped by things she found fascinating, it would have caused her no end of personal and professional embarrassment. 

The walk along the cavernous corridors was a swift one, Liara found her quarters not even a minute’s walk away from where the turbolift had dropped her off. Even on Starbase 74, she’d had to walk a good two minutes from her quarters to the nearest lifts no matter which direction she chose to go from where she’d been living. She felt once again blessed as she stepped into her new abode, only to drop not just her jaw but her pack as well upon seeing the size of the room she’d been given. At first she thought she’d walked into the wrong space, moving outside to check the door’s information panel against the PaDD’s information. When the two values coincided identically, Soren had little choice but to return to the interior to continue to marvel at the volume of it.

Once fully inside, Liara bent down and scooped up her accidentally discarded bag, walking it over to the spacious table that sat near the exit to her quarter. Next to it sat an array of shelving units and a mirror just long enough for her to see the majority of her torso and head. That, at least, was a welcome change from her old quarters since she’d had to install one herself. While she wasn’t overly fussy about her appearance, she’d always made it a point to ensure that, among other things, her d’ja pagh didn’t look tangled or sloppy. As she looked at herself looking at herself in the mirror’s surface, smirking at herself as she mused silently about her situation. Even looking at the space being reflected in the surface of the mirror, she found it hard to believe the image it was showing her was real.

After struggling to accept reality for what it is for a few moments, Soren shrugged at herself and returned to her pack and pulled out the trinkets and artifacts that had been stuffed inside. Necklaces, bracelets, carvings, and rolls of parchment slowly appeared from the confines of her bag, finding a home on the shelves by her door. Several of the items needed stands that she hadn’t brought with her, but a quick jaunt over to her replicator and back remedied that situation. With little under half an hour of effort, the shelf contained all of her prized possessions, and had not a single scrap of real estate left for anything else. Liara stepped back and admired her handiwork before turning around and letting out a troubled sigh.

“I’m not sure what I’m meant to do with all this space…” Soren grumbled, fulling aware that it was a rather benign problem to have. She even went so far as the shake her head in exasperation at herself, muttering that she probably shouldn’t bemoan fortune where ever she might find it. It was at that moment she’d remembered she didn’t actually know where she was meant to report to for duty, and sent a request for a meeting with her department head to figure that part out. She was certain the person in charge of an entire station’s science efforts would be busy enough that she could stand to go explore a bit before the day was out without feeling too bad about it. With that thought flitting through her mind, Lt. Soren gave her quarters one finally look before stepping back outside to find a bit of adventure before the day came to a close.

Log tugged at the collar of his undershirt, pulling the sodden fabric away from his neck in a vain attempt to ventilate the skin trapped beneath, as the tall Cardassian visitor paraded through their temporary accommodations, long black linen cuffs rippling behind her in the minute breeze of warm air produced by the atmospheric re-cyclers. The visiting artist had arrived with a list of requirements in her manicured hand, making demands before she had even stepped off the transporter pad; it had taken the diplomatic team almost an hour to convince her she didn’t need a whole deck of rooms to herself. 

“Well, I suppose it will be sufficient.” Iska cast another eye across the room, comparatively expansive and luxurious as only quarters aboard a major Starbase could be. “It’s a shame it isn’t warmer…”

“… warmer?” Log hadn’t managed to catch the word before it had tumbled from his parched lips. The visitor caught it with a sideways look. 

“Yes. Warmer.” She looked the young man up and down, taking in his long limbs as they hung at his side, barely restrained from fanning himself with the padd he still held in his hand. “I always thought Tellar Prime was quite warm, I thought Tellarite’s enjoyed the warmth. I remember when I was painting Frox Thivan for his award portrait…” She paused, eyeing the Ensign, “Another two degrees I think.” she instructed cooly before returning to her story, her long fingers jangling with beads and rings as she spoke. “He’s such a lovely, dear Frox. Do you know of him?”

‘Of course I do, he’s only the creator of New Wave Tellar Rock.’ Log thought to himself, entering a string of commands to increase both the room’s temperature and his own discomfort. “I think I’ve heard one or two of his songs Ma’am.”

As the hum of the wall heaters increased in pitch, the woman stretched like a cat having found a particularly warm patch of sunlight, flexing her long feline arms behind her back at an inexplicable angle as she rubbed her opposite shoulders. “Well Frox booked out the entire Telltan Mud baths and we just lounged for the whole day.” She smiled taking pleasure in the warmth of the memory as much as the growing sweatbox of her temporary quarters. 

Log waited for the next instruction, wondering whether it would be rude to recuse himself from the arid air that was beginning to bother his nose. As he licked his lips, preparing to make his polite excuses the woman walked briskly past him toward the in-built replicator, seemingly satisfied that she had stretched all the necessary muscles. 

“Tell me…” she glanced to his neck, where a single gold pip was awash with sweat “…Ensign. Has there been much interest in my showing do you know?” She pressed a sequence of buttons, causing the replicator to produce a tall glass of milky brown liquid filled with clinking ice-cubes. “I expect even down amongst the junior officers there must be some discussions about the upcoming exhibitions.”

“There has been some talk, yes Ma’am.” the young Tellerite’s mind raced, in truth most of the discussion in the mess last night had been about the Betazoid University’s general boycott of Cardassian displays; a political comment on the Union’s involvement on the war, during which Betazed had suffered terribly. In their pain they refused to validate Cardassia’s involvement in the exploration of the future, they were unwelcome as far as the staff of Enaran University were concerned. He scrabbled through his morning briefing, trying to recollect any information about the woman’s so called showing. He could feel her eyes boring into him from across the room as she sipped her cold drink, daring him to make a comment, daring him to risk the insult. Beneath her gaze, what had simply been a hot room was beginning to feel like the surface of the sun. 

“Don’t keep me in suspense Ensign. Do people like it?”

He could see the paragraph on the morning notes, his eyes still heavy with sleep as the operations team had been given their assignments. Something about dirt paintings, or possibly dirt portraits? “Sand Portraits!” he exclaimed, the words racing from his lips as he found a nugget of information. 

“No just any sand young man.” Iska reached into a long tan bag that had been placed on the table in the centre of the room. “Cardassian sand.” she whispered reverentially as she drew a wooden box from the bag, its dark oak like exterior etched with characters and symbols Log did not understand. “I mix it with the sand of my sitter’s home world before I draw their portrait. A singular instant where my home is mixed with theirs.”

“That sounds very poetic.” Log could feel it becoming easier to breathe in the dry air as his body became acclimatised, or perhaps it was easier to breathe without the woman’s overwhelming aloofness. “Is the sand from your home?”

“It is all that is left of it.”

“I don’t understand.” Log furrowed his  brows in confusion. “Cardassia is…”

“…changed.” Her hand hovered over the dark wooden box reverentially. “I was raised in a town amongst the Kelden mountains, miners mostly, we produced a variety of alloys for use throughout the Union.” Her eyes remained transfixed on the box, as though it held a great relic. “When the Dominion bombed Cardassia Prime in retaliation for Central Command’s perceived treachery, they erased my home from the surface of the planet.”

A long breath of silence hovered between the two of them, the artist lost in her memories. Eventually Log took a gasp for air. “They destroyed it all?”

She nodded slowly. “The bombs burned so fiercely the whole valley turned to glass.”

“So that is?” Log nodded to the box, “That’s everything that’s left?”

“I was off-world when the final battle happened. My mother had given me the box as a keep sake. Silly and sentimental.” she looked back to young Ensign, her eyes somewhere between regret and sorrow. “Still, it is all that remains of my home and all that it ever was.”

“Then why use it in your paintings?” Log crossed the gap between them, sitting at the seat next to her; if she deemed it presumptive she didn’t acknowledge it to him. “Why use it up like that? Why, give it away?”

“Because it is important to remember our past as we take the next step forward, without the lessons of the past we will inevitably repeat out mistakes in the future.” She sat back in the chair, taking a sip from the icy drink, a ring of condensation left on the table that rapidly dried in the warm room. “I’m not saying the Cardassians are blameless. But neither are the Klingons, the Romulans, the Tholians, the Gorn or even your blesséd Federation.” 

Log sat in contemplative silence, his mind reaching back to his own childhood on Tellar Prime; warm evenings sat at his father’s knee listening to him practice rhetoric whilst his mother whistled over the dinner pot. How would they be remembered? “How much do you have left?”

“This will be my last piece, after that it will all be gone.” she sighed. “Then I shall have to find another media to work with. And at my age too.” Golding the glass to eye level she tugged at the imaginary wrinkles in her reflection.

“Who will you paint with it?”

“I do not know yet Ensign.” She eyed Log with a mischievous grin. “Maybe I’ll paint you. The future of Starfleet?”

“I don’t think I’d be that interesting to look at.”

“Don’t be so sure. You’ve got a long career ahead of you, we may yet be hanging your portraits amongst the greats in the halls of Starfleet Command.” Her grin grew even wider as she leaned into the young man, the musky scent of wood and dirt, of earthy comfort reaching out on through the dry air. “Somewhere between Kirk and Picard possibly?”

Log felt his face blush. “I doubt I’ll ever be hanging up there.”

“Well if you do, I shall be glad to paint you, in sand or otherwise Ensign.” she stood from the table, causing Log to follow suit out of habit. “I think I can sort the room on my own now . You may tell your superiors it is sufficient.”

With a nod Log turned and left, the cool air of the nearby corridor calling to his body. As the doors swung shut behind him, securing the hot box from dilution by the bases Human centric ambient temperature he intended to turn right, to take the turbolift and return to his quarters, his assigned list of jobs thankfully finished for the day. Instead he found himself walking left, towards the complex where several of the Betazoid University representatives were staying, he had a review for them to hear.

Elias saw three more officers walking into the golden apple. He was curious to see who they were; since they were still quite far away, he couldn’t distinguish or make sense of their faces.

Cam, oblivious to his surroundings, engaged in a fierce struggle with his Raktajino. This being his second cup, he tackled it as if in a time-sensitive contest, scalding his palate. Despite accidentally spilling the drink on his lap, he maintained composure, concealing the intense pain coursing through his legs.

Lieutenant Soren had just reported aboard Starbase Bravo, having completed the journey from her previous command just the other day. Being an anthropologist, the Bajoran enjoyed exploring places full of new people and different experiences, making the lounge the perfect place for one of her first stops on a tour around the station. With a quiet smile tugging at her lips, the woman moved through the space to see who she might encounter.

Seeing the awkward quiet coming to their conversation “come on boys you can relax around a counselor like myself”. Arwa smiled in both Elias and Cam. She noticed Soren and she waved her hand “Hey there lieutenant you look like your in need of a social recharge” she winked at her direction.

Sonja had been busy today especially with new intake paperwork. she had been tasked with providing access to the new officers and it was a nightmare to navigate. The shift had been longer than anticipated and though she loved her job she knew she needed a moment to relax. She remembered counselor Awra suggested the golden apple so she decided to go back. She walked in and saw the counselor with a group of people she did not recognize. She walked in that direction with a smile on her face. “Counselor looks like your making new friends.” she said and looked at the two people beside her. “Greetings I am Lieutenant Sonja Thompson.”

“It comes with the job to expand my circles”. She winked at Sonja “Sonja has been given the advice from a very kind and professional person to come more often to the prestigious Golden Apple to socialize and make friends” Arwa smiled taking a sip of her drink in a victorious accomplishment

Sonja smirked “Oh is that what you call it. If that’s the case I need to shrink some of my circles.” She laughed jokingly. as a security officer the circle of people she knew was bigger than most people understood.

Cam glanced up from his own troubles, relieved that his beverage stunt had gone unnoticed. As he observed Arwa’s banter with the newcomer, he then made eye contact with Sonja and quipped, “Looks like you’ll have to wait to shrink your circle, Lieutenant. I’m Lieutenant Camden Solari, but you can call me Cam.”

Sonja looked over and nodded “My circle will never shrink, but I can make the joke.” She smirked “Nice to meet you Cam.”

“There is a difference between social and professional circles Sonja” She raised her glass at her “welcome to the social one”

Unbeknownst to Cam, Elias saw everything that happened and laughed slightly at what happened. Standing up to the newcomer, Elias introduced himself to Sonja. “Pleased to make your aquinatance, Lieutenant Thompson.”

Cam lifted his drink in response to Arwa’s remark, nearly spilling it once more. The dread of another burn was evident in his eyes, yet he mustered a smile as he uttered, “Cheers to that!”

Soren nodded to the woman who had called out to her, weaving her way through the throng of bodies between her and the other Lieutenant clad in teal. When she finally made it to the area around the group, she gave them all a nod of greeting.

“It’s nice to meet everyone,” the Bajoran said with a breezy smile affixed to her lips, “Having just made it aboard, I wasn’t sure how quickly I’d find myself in such a large and diverse group like this. I’m rather excited to see it happen so quickly.”

Bowing his head half-way as a sign of greeting, Elias stood up and greeted the lieutenant. “Greetings! This friend group is surely getting bigger and bigger by the minutes passing by,” said Elias, chuckling a bit.

“It would seem so, yes,” Soren responded, glancing at all of the people who had gathered around, “Quite the diverse group. I’m just hoping I’m not the only Science officer here, I would hate to think I’m the only one who appreciates this from an anthropological standpoint.”

“I think though we may not be in Science we can still appreciate the work that science does.” Sonja commented thinking back to a class she had learned when she was younger. “If not for science we would not be here where we are now.”

“Technically I fall under medical science?” Arwa points out with a shrug “so you are not alone, but I can’t say science talk is my strong point here.” She taps on her head “i’m more an expert on the mind”

“Well,” Liara couldn’t help but laugh a bit before continuing, “I was going to comment that this is exactly how civilizations get started, with small groups coming together to form larger ones.”

While still smirking, Lt. Soren turned toward Arwa, “Psychology does play a big part in what I do as an anthropologist… at least a little. But we mostly just guess at what drives people to form communities and plot their progression over huge swaths of time, so it’s not exactly the same… but still close enough I’m sure you’d have some good insights to share. If I ever get brought in to an archeological dig while I’m here, I’d love to get your take on our findings from a more clinical point of view.”

Butting into the conversation and answering Soren’s question, Elias replied. “Hmm, I guess I would technically fall under Space Sciences? I took Astrophysics as a major in the Academy.” Thinking for another moment, Elias then replied. “But now, I work with Fleet Research? I practically sleep in the laboratories already.”

“Some of us can confirm the sleeping part”. Arwa smirks at Elias and then nodded in Soren direction “Science is a diverse division, maybe even the best”

“Speaking of science, have any of you gone to the colloquium yet? If not, I think we can all come together if that’s no bother. We’ll come up with something as our duty times might conflict, so yeah,” said Elias while muttering the last few words. “Who’s up for it?”

Cam looked at Elias, a death serious look on his face while he said, “I haven’t received the schedule for when the Deputy Director’s special project is exhibited; then I’ll certainly go,” all while subtly winking at Arwa.

“I just got here, so I need to check in with my department before I get too wrapped up in something like that. I have a tendency to get a bit absorbed in things and lose track of time. I’ll end up late to duty if I wander around any exhibits…” Soren remarked with a surprising amount of restraint, “But once I take care of the formal stuff, I will be floating around taking everything in.”

Arwa shrugged a bit looking at Cam “I didn’t know you were interested in the humanoid behavior when they are pushed into a corner when danger is closing in” She takes a sip of the drink “But the fair has quite some interesting exhibits that we all could explore together”

Lieutenant Soren gave herself one last look in the mirror of her quarters, adjusting the d’ja pagh that hung from her right ear. With a nod of satisfaction, the Bajoran straightened herself upright and turned toward the door of her new quarters that she’d been assigned only a day earlier. Given the gargantuan nature of the station, it wasn’t all that surprising to the woman that she’d been assigned her own room without the need to share it with another officer, what had come as a surprise to her was the size. Even on her last starbase, the room she’d been allocated had been almost half the size, and felt luxurious to her even at those dimensions. The thought of having twice that much real estate devoted to her felt just shy of excessive, as she had a feeling she would struggle to fill the space she’d been given with anything but artifacts she hoped to be apart of uncovering during her tour in and around the station.

As she stepped out into the corridor just beyond her door, the size of the station was put on display yet again. What she could only call cavernous walkways stretched out to either side of her, the gently curving walls looking almost perfectly straight to her as she turned toward a cluster of turbolift shafts that resided not more than a minute’s walk from where she would reside for the foreseeable future. Despite the walkway she traversed being somewhat busy, at no point did she have to move over to one side of the corridor or another, the distance between all comers extensive enough to prevent such a shuffling from occurring. 

Once she was safely inside one of the dozens of turbolifts, and her destination set, Liara allowed her mind to drift to the future. Having served on a starbase before, the actual exercise of living on a fixed platform wasn’t anything novel or strange to her. If anything, if she ignored the sheer volume of the station itself, it wasn’t any different from being on Starbase 74. What she was more interested in was the facilities that the station had to offer. While SB 74 was by no means antiquated in terms of facilities, it also wasn’t on what could be considered the bleeding edge of things either. The fact that her new home was far more receptive to being upgraded thanks to the module system that had been incorporated around the facility’s main trunk, it was entirely possible for the station to receive with some regularity, rapid upgrades to spaces that would otherwise take months or even years to renovate on a more conventional station.

Her musing carried her all the way to her final destination, Sector Hotel-Turquoise, and stepping out into the module that likely housed her new place of work. The thought of diving straight into research activities flitted through her mind momentarily before the pragmatist voice in her head warned her that such a selfish move on her part would likely not go down well. A smirk tugged at the corners of her lips as she silently surrendered to the sensible path of reporting in first, and delving into research once the mundane formalities were firmly behind her.

While the station was different in a great many regards, the general layout of science facilities tended to follow a general scheme, making it easy to find the office that housed the resident Chief of Science. The woman had, in a burst of pragmatism the day prior, made an appointment to visit the Captain she’d be reporting to somewhat vicariously through others in practice, so her arrival should be routine rather than unexpected and tense. At least, that was the hope as Lt. Soren crossed the threshold separating the corridor from the interior of the small reception area.

The doors to Captain Holmgren’s office parted, signaling the arrival of the Chief Science Officer himself.  The compartment was nearly as spacious as the main living area in Soren’s quarters, although they appeared far more lived-in.  One entire curved bulkhead was obscured by a gallery of holograms, recording snapshots of Holmgren with his family.  On his desk, a couple of archaeological finds and a model of an Olympic-class starship was visible.  

However, Soren was only granted a quick peek into this space.  Holmgren quickly filled the doorway as he sauntered into the reception area.  The doors closed behind him as he approached Soren at a quickstep. 

“Lieutenant Soren, you’re here,” Holmgren said excitedly.  He grinned at her as if they were old friends and he swept a hand back the way Soren had come.  “That means we can go!”

“Oh…” Liara half-squeaked the word out in confusion before finding herself getting pulled along with the man’s momentum, “Where are we going?”

Striding ahead of Soren, Holmgren charged into the corridor.  He shrugged helplessly.  Without looking back over his shoulder, he echoed her words in a lilt of absolute bafflement.

“Where are we going?  Where are we going?” Holmgren asked.  Only when he reached the nearest turbolift and tapped at the call button did he turn to meet Soren’s eyeline.  “We’re off to the Colloquium, of course.  I can’t stand to sit in an office knowing the future of Starfleet exploration is waiting just below my feet.”

“Oh! I read about that when I first came aboard,” Liara remarked excitedly, “I was tempted to visit some of the exhibitions, but I knew if I did I wouldn’t make it for our appointment.” The Bajoran paused for a moment before sucking in a bit of air as her eyes widened, “Do you think I could exhibit some of my findings from our last dig on Tarsus II?! I didn’t get a chance to finish the paper I was writing on their unique pre-industrial metallurgical development of composite metals before they developed blast furnace technologies, this would be the perfect venue for that!” 

Holmgren’s lips pursed and his eyes went for a bit of a wander.  He studied the overhead meticulously in that way Humans often did when they were searching for the right words.  The turbolift arrived before he found the words and the doors parted for them.  Holmgren led the way in and he requested a destination on the promenade.

“Your exhibition might need a bit of a twist,” Holmgren suggested.  “The theme for this year’s colloquium is the future of exploration.  Each exhibit is envisioning what exploration will look like a century from now.  Were there any new excavation techniques you trialed on Tarsus two?”

Soren frowned as she considered the question, “No… most of it was done using the tried and true method of shoveling by hand.” The Bajoran folded her arms and dropped her head a bit as she chewed on the new information. She’d been more focused on the exhibitions she’d read about rather than their actual intent, as was generally her modus operandi went encountering anything that triggered her curiosity. She started thumbing through her mental Rolodex, looking for anything that might fit the bill as the turbolift hummed, filling the otherwise silent cabin.

“Wait…” Soren muttered before looking back up, “We were experimenting with using wide area holographic projectors as a method to recreate sites as we were excavating them. We’d put together an algorithm that could predict general layouts and design quirks as we were scanning in artifacts. That might be something I could showcase…”

Nodding enthusiastically, Holmgren said, “Yes, that has promise.  I’ll put you in touch with my contact at the Starfleet Bureau of Information.  The colloquium will be here for weeks; we still have openings for seminars later in the schedule.”

As he finished speaking, the turbolift halted its vertical movement.  The double doors parted, once the turbolift cab deposited them on the promenade.  At this curve of the wide open passageway, small groupings of people were passing by.  There weren’t large masses of people to wade through, and it wasn’t so loud that they would need to raise their voices to continue their conversation.

As Liara walked alongside her new department head, she scanned the area they were traversing. As with many stations, most of the corridors looked eerily similar to all the rest, making it a daunting task to truly get one’s bearings. The Bajoran couldn’t help but muse to herself that she’d made the right choice not trying to get lost in the festivities before reporting in.

“What was the catalyst for this event? I was so busy focusing on my transfer here that I didn’t catch even a whisper of it on my trip from Starbase 74. Just from looking at the documentation, I can tell it was a very well put together event but I couldn’t find any information on which entity spearheaded the efforts. Was it one of the Federation’s academic institutions or was this something done in coordination with an outside organization of some sort?”

Holmgren waived a hand faintly at holographic signage outside one of the promenade’s converted storefronts.  The sign proudly identified the exhibit as being sponsored by the Corgal Research Center and it also made reference to the event’s organizers.

“The colloquium is curated by the Starfleet Bureau of Information,” Holmgren said in answer to Soren’s question.  “That makes it one part recruitment effort, one part diplomacy, and reminder to all our science officers that there is life and research to be had outside of Starfleet.”

Liara nodded, “That’s a pretty ambitious set of goals. I’m excited to see what this event has in store.” The Bajoran began to scan the area looking for anything that might catch her fancy. It didn’t take more than a few moments before she laid eyes on a display and her curiosity took over, urging her forward and into the flow of onlookers.

Doctor N’Vea was tired. Exhaustion was to be expected, and a logical outcropping from the extensive hours that she had been working since being assigned to Starbase Bravo. She had been a Chief Medical Officer on her previous posting, but after Fleet Day and being attacked by her medical staff she had sought for something more sedate. While Starbase Bravo was not exactly quiet, it was more like a standard medical practice than on a ship where you went looking for danger on a regular basis.

As a medical professional N’Vea understood the importance of a healthy mental state, even if as a Vulcan she was taciturn and unlikely to share her inner workings. She did not like to admit to her own weaknesses, even if they were something that everyone human, Vulcan, or other might have.

Adjusting the Counselor’s office she tugged at her uniform adjusting it. If she were not Vulcan she might have admitted to feeling slightly nervous as she hit the door chime letting the psychologist know that she was there. 

“Please come in” A voice came from the other side of the door.

When opening the door, the office looked organized, but not personalized. Arwa was sitting in her chair looking at some files as she looked up from her screen at N’Vea and smiled in her direction “Welcome, please take a seat Lieutenant”

Entering N’Vea was careful, selective in her seating. She choose one, because she understood them to be an important part of the nature of these examinations of her mental well being. 

“I am a doctor as well,” N’Vea said. For her that trumped being a Lieutenant, as that part was not the hard part, medical school had been. She inclined her head, “Though you may refer to me as either.”

Giving a slight nod, “Understandable correction, doctor. You have studied hard to earn that degree and should be addressed as such. Would you like something to drink? I got a wide selection of replicator beverages,” Arwa tried to lighten the mood a bit. 

“That sounded defensive, and likely was, I apologize,” the Doctor said, “I meant no offense, I am trying to be more aware of the feelings of non-Vulcan species given that we are quite far from Vulcan. I will take a still water, thank you.”

She had taken courses on what humans called ‘bedside manner’ and could recognize what the councilor was doing, attempting to offer her a drink and make her relax and engage. Though she thought it better to not comment on the technique, N’Vea could at least recognize it and play along as if this was relaxing her.

Standing up and going to the replicator, “Non taken, doctor.” Arwa looked at the replicator. “One water, please.” Arwa knew to be more diplomatic when it came to Vulcan’s. They were trained on emotions and controlling them. The water appeared, and she moved back to the table as she placed the water in front of her.  “So the obvious question is, how are you doing, doctor? A lot has happened and everyone processes it differently” 

N’Vea nodded, “Indeed. I attended medical school and the Academy on Earth, I am well versed in emotion. I recognize that we all have them, even if as Vulcans we deny that to be true. Still it has been, an adjustment to try to slow down and adjust to station life.”

Smiling at her, “Not quite what I was aiming for, doctor; I was asking how you are doing today and the period of ….” she shrugged a bit “…well, chaotic times here at Starbase Bravo. We had many things happening recently that have affected the crew and Starfleet as a whole. That is why the counseling sessions are more obligated and frequent to keep tap on mental health. So how are you?” Arwa asked again. 

Doctor N’Vea nodded, “I am fine. Perhaps a little isolated in the sense of a social life, but I believe that I fulfill my duties competently and am providing value to the Station. I tend to keep to myself, and save more of my socializing energies for my on duty time.”

“So how do you deal with the recent developments?” Arwa bluntly asked, trying to be nice about it, but she noticed that the doctor was avoiding or not noticing it. 

”I am trying to settle in. I find in quiet moments I still dwell upon the events of Fleet Day,” N’Vea confessed, “but work and a regular schedule helps me stay focused.“

Arwa nodded, taking a few notes. “What do you do with the time when you are off duty with these moments to process the events of Frontier Day? Do you meditate? Listen to music or read a book?” Arwa looked curious at N’Vea. 

“I do not dwell on the events of Frontier Day. I do however read, exercise, and meditate as you suggest,” N’Vea said, “I do not do a lot socially, but I work on myself, either improving my knowledge or my self. So I am ready if it happens again.”

It was not logical, she knew. The Borg attack had been a one off, and had never happened, at least in that way, before and as such was unlikely to happen in that way again. And yet the wanted to be prepared for when and if it did occur.

Vulcans were curious beings, shrouded in mystery and master in hiding their emotions. Arwa nods to the answer “I am glad to hear that Frontier Day had no emotional impact on you. But you say you are working on yourself? What are you trying to achieve? Do you wish to be more social?”

”I would not suggest it had no emotional impact on me,” N’Vea said, “Even as much as we deny having emotions, us Vulcans do. We just control them, but yes my ultimate goal would be to form more social bonds with the crew.”

Nodding to her answer “I would like you to achieve this bonding process with your fellow crew members?” Arwa looked curious at her. “I mean there are many ways, but most importantly you should feel safe and comfortable while interacting with them”

”I acknowledge that as a goal, however it is more logical to stay independent at times. My last crew of people I was close to attempted to kill me when they became Borg. I understand it is not their fault, but it is hard to be stabbed by your Chief Nurse and then be okay with it,“ N’Vea said, “So while the goal is a logical one, I am also logically hesitant. Do you understand?”

“Right, that makes quite some sense.” Arwa had figured that there was some connection to the recent Frontier Day happening. She found at least the angle: “Take it step by step. Many of your co-workers are experiencing the same process of what has happened.” Arwa leans back in her chair. “If someone invites you, consider it and be part of it.”

N’Vea nodded, “That is sound advice. Perhaps I have been overly cautious in reaching out to people. Us Vulcans are not quite equipped to lean on other species for such emotional support.”

She spread her hands “And here we are” Arwa smiled in her direction “I think you got the foundation to tackle this problem. Our session has come to an end and if you wish to come back and share more problemtic interaction you might encounter on the topic we discussed. Feel free to hop on by” 

The Doctor stood, “Thank you, that was helpful.”

She nodded her head and exited.

Ensign Justin Brax gave his command red uniform tunic just a slight adjustment as he wandered through the crowds gathered on the promenade as the Starfleet Exploration Colloquium was in full swing. In the wake of the Federation Day disaster, the public relations experts at Starfleet Command apparently felt a massive scientific exposition on Starbase Bravo, far from the graveyard orbiting Earth, would provide the galaxy a positive distraction from the massive loss of personnel and ships which had crippled the fleet, even if only temporarily. 

In the weeks since he was assigned to the 4th Fleet and came aboard the station, Justin had spent the majority of his time wandering the station alone, learning about every shop, office, corridor, service passage, docking port, and person of note on the station. While his official posting was one of dozens of intelligence officers on the station, his superiors at Covert Operations had created a superfluous billet in the station’s manifest with no duties on record, nor an immediate supervisor. On a station crewed by 100,000 Starfleet personnel, it was easy for one officer to hide in plain sight and go unnoticed. 

To support his cover assignment, Justin had been given unassuming quarters on the station appropriate for his rank and billet, and an even more unassuming office- which he had never used- among all the other offices in the station’s intelligence section in Sector Bravo. Instead, Justin worked out of a small, converted cargo bay near the commercial docks in Sector India registered to a fake identity created by Starfleet intelligence. From this ‘office’, Justin could work unimpeded and unsupervised on the tasks assigned to him by his Covert Operations handler, whom he only knew by the codename “Helix”. 

His assignment to the station also provided Starfleet Intelligence the perfect location to operate. A nerve center for both Starfleet operations and civilian trade, Justin had access to an untold number of ships and individuals from across the galaxy. The Colloquium had multiplied that access by a hundred fold as scientists, artists, engineers, and traders flocked to the starbase to show off their latest-and-greatest achievements. 

Which brought him to his current assignment. Among those in attendance was a delegation from the Romulan Free State, which consisted of two dozen of their best scientists who’s exhibits focused largely on showing infrastructure development and social advancements within the Free State. Notably absent from their exhibits was any mention of the Tal Shiar or the Free State’s military. The presence of the Free State at the Colloquium had raised eyebrows, feathers, and scales in suspicion and concern, and it took a special dispensation from Starfleet Command to allow the Romulan delegation aboard the station. While the Free State and Federation were technically at peace, it was an uneasy peace. While Starfleet Security and Intelligence had argued the Free State should be treated with extreme caution, the altruistic heads of Starfleet Medical and Sciences, as well as several prominent members of the Federation Council, had successfully argued that science and art could build bridges between the two interstellar powers in ways force of arms could not. 

Which is fine, Justin thought, in theory. 

Justin knew better. The Free State, more specifically the ruling Tal Shiar, were duplicity made manifest. While some considered the rumored abilities of the infamous Romulan Intelligence Service greatly exaggerated, Justin knew the rumors were far more fact than fiction. Starfleet Intelligence had classified files on a half dozen Romulans that frequently arrived at the Starbase Bravo, posing as independent traders or members of the competing Romulan Republic, who were known to be covert operatives of the Tal Shiar. All six had arrived at the station in the days leading up to the Colloquium and were still on the station. More senior Intelligence agents had been assigned by Starfleet Intelligence, through the station’s chain of command, to monitor their activities to prevent them from interfering with the peaceful exposition. Meanwhile, Justin had been assigned to monitor a member of the Free State’s official delegation- Subcommander Tarrin. 

Intelligence had sent Justin all the information they had on the Subcommander. The daughter of a former Romulan Senator, Tarrin was approximately thirty Earth-years old and raised in a life of privilege as a child. She had been provided the best technical education one could receive in the former Romulan Empire. Both her parents, and most of her extended family, had perished in the Romulan Supernova, but Tarrin had been off world when the Romulan homeworld had been incinerated. Despite her pedigree, Tarrin had shown herself to be mostly apolitical as an adult, and it was believed she chose to work for the Free State, and by extension the Tal Shiar, because they had the funding and facilities necessary for Tarrin to continue developing her technical expertise. While working for the Free State, Tarrin earned rapid promotions through the ranks of the Navy as she helped design and build the next generation of Romulan warbirds.

However, while others had developed advanced propulsion systems and weapons, Tarrin had focused on defensive systems such as shields, deflectors, and sensor countermeasures. These defensive systems could be modified and used by governments who were politically opposed to using Federation technology, or independent civilians who could afford to buy the best. Tarrin had come to the Colloquium to display and advertise these defensive systems to a wider market. 

As he finished his mental review of Tarrin’s file, he came within sight of the Free State’s exhibit on the promenade. Fitting for a galactic power, the Free State’s exhibit filled an entire auditorium that was about one hundred meters square. Holographic displays along the two opposing side walls cycled through larger-than-life animations displaying the various industrial technologies the Free State brought to the Colloquium. At the far end of the auditorium was a large dias, that supported several small tables and replicators to facilitate casual conversations with the Free State delegation. Befitting their Romulan heritage, the entire auditorium was bathed in a soft green light, save for the crimson hologram of the Free State emblem- a raptor with wings outstretched over an inverted triangle. Overall, it was an impressive and unexpectedly welcoming exhibit, if one judged it by the number of individuals walking between the various displays and speaking with the Romulan delegation. 

Also in attendance, Justin noted, were several Starfleet security officers just inside the auditorium. Although the security officers stayed in the shadows along the extreme perimeter of the auditorium, their gold uniforms and holster phasers made their purpose unmistakable. Although the Free State delegation had been given permission to attend to Colloquium, that permission did not give its delegation carte blanche to wander one of Starfleet’s most important starbases. Also, not all those aboard the starbase were happy to have the Romulans on board, and Justin suspected the security officers were instructed to protect the Romulan delegation as much as limit their access to sensitive areas of the station. Part bodyguards, part prison guards. If their presence with the Romulans extended beyond the exhibit, Justin may need to alter his initial plans. 

He scanned the exhibit as he feigned interest in a display showing the latest subspace communications relay. It didn’t take him more than a minute or two to identify Subcommander Tarrin on the Dias at the far end of the auditorium speaking with a tall Takaran wearing a suit of conservative cut but obviously high quality material. Standing dutifully just behind and to the left of the Takaran was an attractive Andorian female in a not-quite conservatively cut outfit holding a PADD. The tabletop between Tarrin and the Takaran showed a miniature hologram of a shield emitter. While Justin couldn’t hear what was being said, their respective body language told him the Takaran was either a government official or business executive, while the Andorian was an aide of some kind, and the Takaran was listening to Tarrin give what was colloquially referred to as a “sales pitch”. 

It looks like she’s convinced him to buy, Justin concluded as the Takaran and Tarrin both reached forward and shook hands. The Takaran then turned to his Andorian aide, gave an approving nod, and walked off the dias. The Andorian aide dutifully followed while entering data into her PADD. 

Good for her, Justin thought. By all accounts, she is a brilliant engineer. And while I’m not an engineer, based on what I know of shield systems, her latest design truly is a great improvement over the last generation of Romulan shield generators. 

But it’s not her shield designs that has Starfleet concerned, Justin reminded himself. If her latest design for a cloaking device is as good as suspected, it would give the Free State military an advantage over every other power in the quadrant. And Starfleet can’t allow that to happen. 

The orders Justin had received from Helix two hours before had been explicitly clear. He was to infiltrate the Romulan delegation and determine the validity of Starlfeet’s suspicions regarding her cloaking device design. If the suspicions proved to be true, and Tarrin’s design represented a significant advancement in cloaking device technology, he was to ‘convince’ Subcommander Tarrin to defect to the Federation. If he failed to sway Tarrin to the Federation, he was to use ‘whatever means necessary’ to ensure she could not finish development of her cloaking device for the Free State Navy. 

Colorful language for a simple assignment, Justin mused. Either Subcommander Tarrin leaves Starbase Bravo as a defector, or she doesn’t leave at all. 

“Sorry, you did what?” Aynesh asked, still chewing on the liquorice stick hanging from the side of her mouth as she pressed the small tool closer to an awkward circuit. It trilled a high pitch squeal, mimicking Aynesh’s own frustrated exclamations towards the obstinate circuit board.  

“I went to speak to the Betazoid delegation.” Log muttered beneath his breath, she had clearly been asking about his following actions but it had taken a not insignificant amount of courage for Log to say it once, he wasn’t sure if he could manage a second time. 

“I got that bit.” She rolled her eyes as the black liquorice rolled across her lips to find a new resting place, nestled in her left cheek. “Did you really say that?” With a clunk the micro spanner was down on the wall panel and her eyes were drilling into the young man’s skull. “You told the Betazoids they were being un-empathetic?” She leant on the wall as she waited for an answer, her interest in the work at hand thoroughly suspended. 

“That’s not what I said.” 

“But you told them they weren’t being very nice.” Log knew she was probing for something juicy as she continued to chew the cudd of her liquorice, there was nothing Aynesh enjoyed more than a story she could gossip about. And, everyone knew it. 

“I told them that I thought it was very unfair to boycott all the Cardassian exhibits. We shouldn’t punish them all for the actions of the Central Command.” The young Tellarite felt his ire beginning to rise again. When he had left Iska’s quarters following her revelation regarding her artistic content he had made the impulsive decision to make a beeline to the quarters of the delegation from the Betazoid managed Enaran University. 

“So you told the Betazoids they were being racist?” Aynesh pushed, catching the scent of something interesting for the rumour mill. Log watched her in the corner of his vision as he continued to calibrate the circuits in his own wall panel. He needed to be careful, he was still new on the station and if rumour got out he was insulting dignitaries it wouldn’t end well, regardless of the truth. 

“No” he said firmly. “I just told them that I thought some of the exhibitions should be given a second chance.”

“You felt the need to tell the people famous, across the known galaxy…” she threw her arms wide to emphasise her point “… for being sensitive to other people’s feelings.” Her eyes narrowed as she searched for the right summary. “That you thought they we’re being mean?” 

“That’s not…” he paused as he finally turned to meet her eyes, narrow slits barely visible beneath the folds of her confused and furrowed brow. “Essentially, yes. I suppose I did.”

The two stood for a long moment in complete silence, their bodies both completely still as Log waited for Aynesh to respond, her whole body stuck on pause as she processed the story. Had any passers by managed to see through the temporary screening they might have mistaken them for statues in a new Colloquium exhibit, ‘Two Confused Ensigns’, Artist: questionable choices. 

After an eternity she reached to her mouth and removed the liquorice twist, pointing it towards him as she channelled her best impression of the mafia boss from her favourite film. “You got guts kid, I’ll say that.” She smiled and jostled Log’s shoulder playfully. “What did they say?” she asked, turning back to her stubborn circuit. 

“Thank you for the message, we aim to respond to all inquiries within 12 hours.”

“Sorry.” She turned again from the wall console. “What?”

“I was in such a fluster about it all, because…” The face of Zaya flashed before Log’s eyes, the spice of her perfume that had always heralded her arrival caught in the back of his throat. He had told no-one on his new posting about her death during the Borg Mission or the fact it had pushed what remained of their friends apart. “… because it’s so frustrating.” He looked back to his own work, partially to hide the embarrassment, partly to hide the tears that were beginning to form in the corner’s of his eyes. “When I got to the reception doors I didn’t realise the receptionist was a hologram.” There was a breath as his colleague processed the information. 

Aynesh laughed for a full 90 seconds. Her cackle carrying echoing into the wide open space of the promenade where they were setting up the newest exhibits, Log could hear imaginary birds scatter from nearby trees at the volume of her joyous laughter. 

“You shouted at the answering machine!” she screeched between gasping breaths, her deep blue skin beginning to turn purple as she continued to snort. “At what point did you realise it was a recording?”

“I was almost back to my quarters.” Log whispered, hoping she hadn’t heard him between her hyena like howls. 

Noticing the young man’s hunched shoulders as he attempted to disappear into the open wall console she scolded herself, attempting to draw the laugh back to a quiet chuckle. “I’m sorry Log. I wasn’t laughing at you.”

“Yes you were.” the already diminutive figure of Log continued to shrink in embarrassment. 

“Well, okay maybe I was.” She took a deep breath, tempering her jovial tone as she put her mentor hat on. “But surely you can see it funny.” Aynesh picked the small beeping tool up once more as she returned to work on the circuitry. “We all make mistakes, we should all be so lucky that they only involve scolding a hologram. One day i’ll tell you about the time I almost killed the Klingon Ambassador’s son with a Bolian Hot-pot.”

Log emerged slightly from his cocoon, raising a large bushy eyebrow. “When did you have reason to meet… ” 

“I wasn’t always an engineer you know.” She batted her eyelashes playfully. The wall console screeched again as her lack of attention caused the panel to become misaligned. “I might not be one now.” She muttered through gritted teeth as she struck the bulkhead in frustration. 

“If I may?” Log offered an open hand for the tool. 

She placed the small device in his hand, stepping aside to allow him access to the truculent relay. “Go for it. It’s being particularly annoying today. I might have to pull the whole…” Before she had finished her sentence, the final words hovering between her lounge and her lips, the panel was once again aglow, purring with a gentle hum of optronic data nodes happily going about their business. She stood slack jawed, staring as the young ensign offered the tool back to her as if hadn’t just solved an hours worth of problems. 

Log shrugged, placing the small silver microspanner into her open palm. “Machines are easy. Its the squishy bits I don’t do very well with.” he sighed, closing his own panel and turning the locking bolts with a quiet click. 

“Stick with me kid.” Aynesh smiled, lifting her own panel back into place. “Stick with me, I’ll teach you everything you need to know about the squishy bits.” She threw an arm around the young Tellerite as she slung the engineering field kit into his arms. 

“I don’t know…”

“There I was in the kitchen of Starbase 29 with an empty hotpot bowel, a particularly green looking Klingon and a vat of over seasoned Plomeek soup.” 

Trauma and Triage was a carefully coordinated chaos as the twenty injured were processed in the various phases of identification, inspection, diagnosis, and treatment.  Arriving last with Ensign Jason Macarthy, Deputy Chief Cassidy Montgomery, followed by the triage team.  They shifted the young officer through the ongoing work to the intensive care area.  Wordlessly, two of the team entered the room and activated the readied systems while Cass and one other continued stabilizing Jason.  They had trained.  They had practiced.  The team in the room motioned they were ready.  Cass rolled the ensign into the room.

“We’ve got all the evidence stored and secured in room 2 with two security officers stationed.”  The chief resident of the unit handed Cass a PADD with his report, “Ensign Macarthy’s burns are going to take more than just a dermal regenerator.  Whatever hit him was hot and explosive.  I’ve scheduled his surgical operations over the next few days.  We’ve dosed for the pain.  I’d recommend keeping him in a coma to ensure his body has a chance to rest and heal.”  Cass thanked him and turned to stare at the young ensign.  She was starting to suspect this wasn’t a what that had done this, but a who.

Sonja had compiled the information needed for the investigation and went to find the Deputy Chief for Medical. She made her way to the med section of the Starbase and asked the aide where Chief Montgomery was; upon getting the information, she made her way to the location. She walked up to the side of Montgomery, “Hello, Chief. Have we found out anything more regarding this incident? The information we have compiled I already sent to your PADD for review to see if anything coincides.”

Cass pulled up the report and began to read it, “Well, Lieutenant Thompson…this confirms a lot of my theories.”  She nodded at the room where Ensign Macarthy lay, “I don’t think it was an accident.  Your team found traces of a minor explosive material.” She held up the PADD, “Your team identified this junction of the power systems as the location of the original explosion…and that’s where he was standing.  What’s interesting is…,” she tapped at the PADD and pulled up the training schedule for that day, “He was scheduled to be in that location at that moment due to the scenario they had chosen for the training in that holodeck.”  She returned to her report, “There’s also the curiosity of the one uninjured person, Ensign Jessica Talbot.  Every single person that came out of that holodeck had something wrong – smoke inhalation, burning eyes…you pick it, they had it. And yet…Ms. Talbot didn’t have a thing to complain about.”

Sonja rose her eyebrow because that sure didn’t seem like a coincidence. The fact that Macarthy was set to be in that spot at that time showed Sonja there was something more to this story. And it looked like Macarthy was the target for a reason. Sonja hadn’t interacted much with Ensign Talbot, as she had just arrived back to the station after a “family emergency” she looked at the Chief “It seems like this is more than just a surface accident. Ensign Talbot just returned from what is in the logs as a family emergency, but I am beginning to think there is more to it than that. Has Macarthy shown any signs of waking so we can get his point of view on the incident?”

Cass checked the status report, “He’s in a medically induced coma for both pain and healing.”  She tapped at her PADD, “There’s got to be a connection between Talbot and Macarthy.  We can’t wake him to find out until he’s been through his procedures.  That’ll take two days.”  She turned to the Patrol Leader, “It’s been a bit since my security training…but I would think asking folks who work and serve around the two might give us something.  I’m going to request some additional security in the ward, including overnight.  Whatever was aimed at that kid…they didn’t want him to survive.”

Sonja nodded “I think it is time to go and start interviewing some of the Security staff who worked with both of them. Once any new information has come to light I will reach out. Thank you for your help in this matter.” She smiled and proceeded out of the medbay heading for her office to prepare some interviews.

“Last time we talked about home.  That conversation seemed to help.”  The woman, Charity Holmes, was one of the many counselors on Starbase Bravo.  She had been seeing Ensign Matthew Phillips as a patient since the start of the year with varying levels of success. He sat a little taller this time, she noticed.  It had been a year since the ensign had left the USS Erigone for the station.

“It did.  Today’s conversation…wasn’t easy to prepare for, Ms. Holmes.”  He held up his PADD, “I journaled…a lot.”

Charity gave him a slight nod of understanding.  His journey from the Erigone to Bravo had yet to be without bumps.  When his former CO, Ambrose Harris, died, it gave the young operations ensign pause.  Further news about his old crew had been a sticking point.  They spent a good portion of two sessions exploring his feelings about them and their life in the last year.  “Reflection is the most important part of this process, Matthew.  What about the future did you want to talk about?”

He tapped at his PADD, “I guess my place in it.”  He leaned forward, glancing from his PADD to her again as he spoke, “When I left the Erigone, I thought that was it for my time on ships.  Everything that could go wrong or be wrong…was.  But now…with a year away from it all…I’m starting to question my decision.”

“Do you think your future is decided?”  She asked it gently, wanting to slow the conversation.

He sat in the question, nervously tapping his PADD.  He replied, “I think I used to think my future was set…that my decision to come to Bravo put me on the path to being an operations officer here, or on some other station eventually…and that would be my future.”

Holmes sat back, making notes as she spoke, “And now?”

Phillips shook his head listlessly, “I don’t know.  Commander Ambrose used to talk about how he couldn’t help himself but fly into space…that his heart had to spend as much time as he had out there.”  He demurred with a quiet smile, “I think I said something like, ‘I could never get lost out here for too long’ or something like that.”  He sighed and looked her in the eye, “I’ve been reading about the idea of growing up and out…I’ve caught myself staring out windows into space a lot more.  I think my future is in space, Ms. Holmes.”

She let the confession hold in the air before she asked, “Is that the first time you’ve said it out loud?”  He nodded, his face blooming red with feeling.  “That’s good.”

Matthew shook his head, “I don’t know about good…but it’s something.”  He played with his rank pip, “I’m thinking of applying for a ship.” He let out another sigh, “I know, that sounds…well, crazy isn’t the word, but it’s all I got.”

Charity asked, “Why is it crazy?”

“You run away from serving on ships and tell yourself you’re never going to leave the station life…and then you start thinking that maybe serving on a starship is the way to go.  Not to mention working with people.”

“You’ve come a long way with working with people.  The last three months of reviews from your superior officer have been incredible.  You’ve hit every marker we’ve set together.  That’s another positive from all this.”

He mused, “Who woulda thought Matthew Phillips would have made it this far.”  He shrugged, “I didn’t.  I thought I would wash out and go back to farming.”

“Would you?” she asked.

“I thought about it.  My grandfather was the reason I was there.  He was the reason I left.  There’s plenty of demand and interest in having a former Starfleet Operations officer work in the industry.  We have a certain skill that works well in keeping things in order.”  He tapped at his PADD, “In the end…It’d be hard to return after I’ve been out here for the last year.  You think you’re not used to having space and the station around you…that’d be easy to go back to Earth or some colony somewhere.”  He scoffed, “You’d be wrong.  So wrong.”  He groaned, “I will have to apply for a ship, right?”

Holmes chuckled.  Phillips did this often after they’d made a certain discovery or he’d revealed something that required action.  He knew what was coming.  “That is up to you, Matthew.  I will not rush you into anything…or push you to do something wrong for you.  Part of this process is talking through what’s on your heart and mind…and getting them to agree on a direction forward.”

“It’s been a bit, Phillips.”  Lieutenant Jordan Reid was on the screen of Phillips communications console in his quarters.

“That it has, Dr. Reid.”  He wasn’t sure how to begin the conversation.  “I…I wanted to apologize for leaving when I did.”

She frowned, “For leaving the Erigone?  That was a year ago, Matt.  You had your reasons.”  Reid sipped at a dark liquid and leaned toward the camera, “Why are you calling me Phillips?  The real reason this time.”

He groaned, “I’ve been thinking about applying for a ship lately.  The only other person I served with is Prentice…and we…haven’t talked since I left.”

Jordan intoned, “And?  Neither have we.”

“We didn’t get along well on the Erigone.” He pushed forward, “My counselor told me I needed to ask people in my life about my future and where they saw me when it came to that…word.”  He gestured to her, “You’re one of the people in my life.”

She gave him a long look and scoffed, “Still not great at making friends?”

He muttered, “It’s a big station.”

“I didn’t know you for long, Matt.  You always seemed nervous about being on the Erigone…you were more worried about what would happen than what could happen.”  She downed the rest of her drink on screen, “You said you made progress in the year you’ve been on Bravo.  Why not stay?  Your future would be secure there for a long time – lots of things to do.  Pretty safe future there, I think.”

He listened to her and instinctively reacted to her use of the word ‘safe.’  “I think that’s my problem, Jordan.  I think I’ve been stuck being safe for so long…that I’m getting tired of it.”

She raised her eyebrows, “I’m not going to argue that.  The pattern fits.”  She sat up in her chair and adjusted the camera, “Look, Phillips, your future is your choice.  What you do with it and where you go with it – that’s in your hands.  People join Starfleet for all kinds of reasons, some dumb and misguided.  You’ve found something every day over there to wake up and work for – maybe that’s what your future needed – a chance to sit down and spend time thinking about what choices are ahead of you.”

He chuckled, “So I’m not dumb and misguided?”

She rolled her eyes, “No.  You just didn’t know what you wanted for your future.  We all work through it when we’re young – knowing your heart and mind takes time.  Some figure it out faster than others.  You are getting that process started.”

Phillips was thankful for Reid, “Anyone ever tell you you’d make a hell of a counselor?”

She groaned, “You and everybody else, Matt.  I’m happy stitching up actual bodies, not the metaphorical bodies and brains.”  She gave him a nod, “I wish you all the luck in the universe, Phillips.  Decide for yourself what the future holds…don’t let one person make that final call for you.”  The channel closed, and Phillips sat back in his chair.

He felt the pieces of his future falling slowly into place.

Now, he just needed to make a call.

Preston sat there in the audience, surrounded by his fellow Cadets. This was the crowning accomplishment that topped the last four years. Four years of work, worry, studying, and testing designed to mold them into the best that Starfleet could offer. Starfleet Academy had been specially formulated to help break each Cadet down and then rebuild them into the future of the Federation.

From his chair, Preston watched as the Commencement Speaker spoke about duty, honor, and the bonds forged here at the academy. The reality of the speech was that it was a thirty-minute recruitment speech for the younger siblings in the crowd. Preston didn’t care, though; he was glad this was over. It hadn’t been easy. It had been hell. His only saving grace was the friends that he had made.

However, amongst all the celebrations, there was a hint of sadness, as every graduating Cadet knew what would happen next. After this assembly, they would earn their commission as an Ensign and then receive their first assignment. Those friendships made over the last four years would end, and from here, they would each go their separate ways. Sure, everyone promises to stay in touch; they will send letters and communications, but the reality is that after some time, those too will end.

As if the speaker knew what Preston was thinking, the man leaned into the mic and stated, “Life moves on.” Preston knew he would get his assignment, say goodbyes, and make a new family. Preston looked up at the stage as the Commandant of the Academy stood. His speech was much shorter, more of a pep talk. Then he uttered the words that ended it all, “Congratulations, Ensigns.” There was no turning back.

With all the pomp and circumstance that Starfleet could muster, their academy life ended in a glorious event. From here, they were filtered into a line, congratulated, and given a padd containing the information on their first official assignment.

Preston just stood there looking at the padd; his mouth gaped open. He was in a state of shock, out of all the possibilities he was assigned to, he hadn’t finished his internal discussion when he was interrupted by someone looking over his shoulder.

“Starbase Bravo,” the voice commented, “congrats Ensign, the pride of the fourth fleet. It is an impressive assignment.”

“Thank you, Commander,” Preston replied, almost frozen, “my sister is stationed there.” Before Preston could say anything else, he was grabbed from behind as several of his fellow Cadets seemed overly excited.“Did you get Bravo, Pretzel?” one of them shouted. 

The collective excitement seemed to drown out the moment. It was a small group, but Preston took comfort in the fact that a few of his fellow Cadets, now Ensigns, were getting assigned to the station. He wouldn’t be alone. Preston felt a surge of emotions as he realized that his first assignment would be at Starbase Bravo, where his sister was stationed. It was a mix of relief, excitement, and a tinge of nervousness. 

He was looking forward to seeing his sister again, but he also knew that this would be a significant step; he hadn’t seen her in several years. He would be serving in the fourth fleet, which came with its responsibilities and challenges. But was he ready for it? He had been trained for this moment and was determined to make the most of it. Ready or not, their future started today. Now was time for them to shed the mantle of the Cadet and grow into the rank pip that would soon be on full display for all to see. It was a big step, but one that Starfleet had dumped a lot of training and preparation into. 

Preston looked up as his friends started to run off, “come on,” one of them shouted, “let’s go pack up our stuff.”  

Preston smiled with a laugh like they had much to pack.  “Let’s go, Pretzel,” one of the group shouted back. “Our shuttle leaves in a few hours; we don’t have much time.”

Preston shook off the internal monologue as he ran to catch up with his friends. He couldn’t help but feel a mix of emotions. While excited about his first assignment and the following opportunities, he also felt apprehensive about seeing Kay again.  Would she be happy about this placement there? The weight of the entire situation was visible, but he knew that one way or another, he had to be ready for whatever happened. The journey ahead was full of promise and adventure.

Computer record personnel log, stardate 240106.25 

It has been several days since I finished an investigation about a strange occurrence that concerns two of the ship's enlisted personnel. Well, I wouldn’t technically call it strange, but... ok, I should call it quite strange. I mean, just reviewing the case logs, the details are also quite murky. My boss, the chief investigations officer, just told me to continue solving the case even though most details were missing. When I say missing, the details are really, really missing, like you will literally see a hole in both of their stories. No one, and I really mean no one, can figure out what happened in between. The strangest part was that there appeared to be no witnesses. I mean, we are practically in a starship where everyone is busy doing their work, but surely someone would have seen something happen, right? 

Moving forward several days, with the help of some of my officers in the investigations department, We finally “solved” the case, per say. All details are already included in the case file, so I don’t want to repeat them here. Basically, all “charges” or “wrong doings” have been unanimously dropped with the approval of the chief investigations officers permission. That's the strangest case till far I've ever encountered or solved in a sense. 

Anyway, I have been told by my superiors that I've apparently been reassigned to Starbase Bravo. I am currently en route to the Starbase, and I can't wait for this new opportunity that I have right here. I've been told that Starbase Bravo is, like, really big. I mean, compared to a starship, of course, it would be big. Also, I've heard from some of my friends that there's a new bar that opened. Uhh, I think it's called the golden apple or something. I will most definitely check it out when I do get the chance after I check in with my new superior. 

New people and new places to discover. New alliances to be made. New friendships most importantly. New investigations to solve. New cases to be solved. There are a lot of things to yet be discovered. I have only been in service with Starfleet for approximately three years or so. A long journey ahead for me. A future yet to be discovered.

Computer, end personnel log.

Taking out a scroll onto the promenade after a day of working and doing some podium talks on the progression of counseling and how to proceed further in the future did wear Arwa a bit down. However, everything was going as planned; her career looked great, and she had performed remarkably as best as she could. Miwela, a Bolian who worked closely in her department, joined her. She could almost consider her assistant, but nothing was official on paper. 

“So finally taking a breather" Miwela stated cheerfully, it was her first time in weeks that she could relax a bit. She loved working in counseling as much as Arwa did, and Miwela saw her as an inspiration source. “Or are you going to plan yourself to do more work?” 

Waving her hand, “No, no, I have taught that lesson well enough at Eos…overworking is going to backfire like a Ferengi counter deal," Arwa stated, shaking her head slightly. “Don't worry so much; I took time to breathe. The last thing I want is to be out of commission for long.” Arwa tried to calm Miwela's concerns but knew she was doing too much.

A smile formed on Miwela's face as she looked into the Promenade. “Alright, let's get something to eat; I want to try that Trill joint. It had fried food that is to die for.” She is trying her new selling tactics. 

Nodding to her friend, “Alright, let's check it out; I am convinced that you are not going to try to poison with your weird taste of food just yet.” She pointed out some of the weird kinks she noticed in Miwela and saw her look at her in shock. “Oh please, worms? That Klingon place was too much for me.” Arwa felt her stomach protest at that idea. 

“I would never try to poison you; I have a fine taste of cuisine, you know….” Miwela placed her hand on her chest, offended by the mere idea that she had a peculiar taste in food, but laughed slightly. “Well, I have to admit that worms for food is a bit stretching the extent…..thought that soy sauce on it was not bad.”

Giving a bump to Miwela's shoulder, “Please stop. I can still feel them move in my mouth.” Arwa smiled as they walked towards the restaurant. “Just don't pick out any weird stuff for me?” 

Walking into the restaurant, “I don't think there is unusual stuff if you don't try them first,” Miwela tries to rub off her culinary wisdom onto Arwa. “ One has to try everything to consider whether they like it or don't. So if you don't like it, you have at least tried it and have the legitimate right to refuse something or even complain about it.” Smiling at Arwa, she saw her roll her eyes while waiting in line.

“Right, I will consume this all-knowing knowledge of the foodie.” Arwa bowed slightly and grinned in her direction as she looked around. “We are not going to enter the restaurant?” 

She nodded and said, “Nah, it is reserved only. We're going for a quick bite.” The Bolian smiled in excitement at what was awaiting them. “The meat is to die for….really, it melts like butter on your tongue, and I still have no clue what it is,” Miwela thinks for a second. “Some kind of cow…or whatever they call it?” 

“I am out…” Arwa started, turning around and getting held back by Miwela as she held her shoulder. “If you don't even know what it is, I do not trust it…” 

“Oh, come on….Arwa, please, for me…it is great.” Miwela looked with puppy eyes at Arwa.

Arwa narrowed her eyes in her friend's direction and wanted to answer her, but a voice interrupted them.

“Arwa?” 

Miwela saw her friend freeze up, and her expression changed to cold. An expression whenever thought she would see on Arwa. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a Bajoran man standing there. The uniform indicates he is in engineering, as her eye glared to the neck, seeing the pips of Lieutenant Commander. She let go of Arwa's shoulder and stepped at her side. “Commander….what can we do for you?” She tried to smile but gave a side eye to Arwa, who stood there still with her back turned around. 

The Bajoran eyes were locked on Arwa's back and finally broke off to look at Miwela. “I…. am sorry to interrupt so rudely. I am Lieutenant Commander Yiful Juss, the Chief Engineering Officer of a wonderful classic Sovereign class. We just got docked and thought enjoying the event here would be a great idea.” He smiled at her. “I just…didn't expect to meet Miss el-Imam here.” 

“Is that so….how do you two know each other?” Miwela tried to keep the conversation going, giving Arwa time to collect herself as she saw Arwa in distress, but she didn't show it to Yiful.

Yiful smiled slightly and paused for a moment. “We know each other from the Academy time; we met in the third year, and things have happened. But…she transferred to another location before I knew it.” He shrugged a bit. “It was quite sudden, and it was after a small incident.” 

The head of Arwa finally moved up when hearing those words and turned slowly around, facing Yisuf finally. She felt a chill going down her spine when she saw those eyes looking at him and averted her look. She took a moment to let the rollercoaster of emotions go through her. “I….I have to go, I lost my appetite,” Arwa stated, and without a moment for anyone to respond, she moved away in a rush. 

Blinking a few times, “I …am sorry, Commander, please excuse me.” Miwela gave a slight nod and followed Arwa. She had never seen a woman such as Arwa, who was always happy and cheerful, in such a distressing stage. What happened to her? What happened between this commander and her?  Miwela was entering an unknown area.

A breath left Yisuf, seeing the two leave. “She is still holding onto it after all those years..” 

“Who was the pretty lady Chief?” A man punched Yisuf on his shoulder. “Another lover of another station?” 

Seeing Arwa leave his eyesight, he turned to his coworker. “Someone I knew from a past that is unresolved.” He turned around and walked towards the conference. “Let's go, less snooping in my private life, Lieutenant,” Yisuf said with a harsh tone, but his mind was somewhere else. 

She just saw the last person she wanted to see, a person who had ruined her past and is a stain on her loved and dearest memories. She rubbed her template on both sides of her head and leaned on a railing overlooking the busy promenade. “What happened in the past is the past. What happened in that time is to remain in that time,” Arwa muttered to herself and shrugged. She didn’t expect Yisuf to appear on the starbase and was neither mentally prepared for it. She takes a deep breath and lets the food vendors’ smells get into her nostrils as she breathes.

“Lieutenant, are you alright?” A voice came from behind her.

Arwa looked over her shoulder and saw a young Lieutenant standing there; it took her a brief second to realize who she had standing there. “Lieutenant Wilky, I am fine. It has been a … active day.” Arwa turned around to face the young woman. “What can I do for you? Or were you passing by?”

“I was just passing by actually, been exploring the event and having quite the time of my life, I have to admit,” Wilky responded with a soft smile. “I have to ask, sir; I was there with your talk about the future of counseling and how the return of the Borg and the Dominion had impacted the work. It was quite fascinating, but do you have any progression of what you want to do within Starfleet?” 

It is a valid question that has some weight in itself. People had their life planned out for what had to come or what they wanted to achieve. The future had a lot of paths to choose from, and Arwa had not stood a moment still to think about how it would affect her path. Crossing her arms, she thought momentarily, “It is a loaded question, Lieutenant.”

Wilky nodded in her direction. “I know, sir. If you do not have an answer, it is quite fine. But seeing you stand there on that stage and tell with passion and fire about the counseling findings and conclusion. I could almost not see you in something higher or more rewarding.” 

Nodding to her response, Arwa thought, “It is what we want to make from it. I am a mere human and far from being perfect. I have things I have unresolved, things that I still want to do, and I have a future in sight that I want to reach for.” Looking over the railing and smiling, seeing all the people, “I guess I would not have a specific goal in mind. I want to help people get through their difficult path of events that have happened to them.” 

Looking back at Wilky, “I never really saw myself as a woman to settle down on one spot. I take the challenge within my work field and where I can flourish in helping those who need it. I shine when people are feeling calm, helped, and heard.” 

“That sounds quite inspiring, sir.” Wilky was standing before her with glittering eyes. “I hope to become a valuable asset within medical, and I hope to get your guidance as long as you are here.” Wilky smiled softly. “Thought I do wonder if you are not more fit to carry out the position of being director of the counseling department if I might be so daring to propose such an idea.” 

Arwa blinked for a second at mentioning being a director of the whole department. It was already difficult to do her job as the department’s deputy. She tapped her chin for a second, thinking, “The idea never really crossed my mind, honestly, Lieutenant. But it is an interesting idea to go for. Dream big and catch it before it is gone, as they would say.” She smiled, looking at her.

“Yes! That would be a great motivation, sir. I think you could do so much more as a department director.” Wilky recollected the words she had just blurted out and quickly tried to recover herself, “I mean…not that you’re not doing anything less as you are now. But as a director, you have control over more tasks and your vision of how you would like to see things run. Maybe projects that could contribute to bigger things and research projects.” 

Smiling at Wilky, she raised her hands with a movement for her to calm down. “Breath, Lieutenant, I get what you are trying to say.” Arwa lowered her hands.” What the future will bring is uncertain; the path of becoming a director sounds quite appealing. I will not lie about that,” Arwa pointed out. “But I do hope to see more of the universe, and I have served on a starship, a frontier outpost, and now this base for quite some time. Maybe my next adventure will also be at a colony that is in the beginning stadium or bigger colonies. Who knows, I do dare to dream big.” 

“That is quite some big dreaming indeed. I wouldn’t know how to settle down on a colony,” Wilky thought aloud, crossing her arms and thinking about the possibilities. “It would be interesting to serve in a hospital and get a different perspective on dealing with people needing medical care.” 

Nodding at Wilky, “Indeed, but for now, I would settle on that first step. Potentially, becoming a director of counseling will be the required step for me to move on and gain a different set of skills. It would be interesting to move in that direction, and I could contribute more time to projects to understand society and how people think.” She pushes herself off the railing that she is leaning on. “You got me something to think about, my future, and I appreciate the timing as it was something I needed.” 

The young Lieutenant nodded in her direction. “Thank you, ma’am. I hope you will find calm in your mind about whatever is troubling you. May the prophets look over you.” The young Bajoran bows as she leaves Arwa behind. 

Take a moment to breathe and let it sink in. It did let her divert the troubling memories to something else. Something that she needed to think about also. Her future. Arwa turned around to look down at the people who were interacting with the vendors and such. “I have to face my past to move forward; I got to deal with this somehow.” 

“LIEUTENANT” Miwela rushes to her side seeing Arwa turn around to her “There you are….I have been looking everywhere for you…where were you?”

Arwa smiled softly at Miwela. “I was taking some time to think ….I guess about my future.” She smiled and patted her friend on the shoulder. “Let us go and get some food; I got hungry.” With that said, she moved to the stairs going down and left Miwela, surprised and confused, behind. 

Gazing for a moment at the large holo-display, that was both in front of and above both  him and the pedestal-style circular control console that had been Starfleet standard for decades if not centuries now. The adaptation of the existing fixtures and hardware to accommodate the ever progressive advances, was also impressive. 

The light and space  available was extremely conducive to long hours, critical and sometimes lateral thinking. Through the semi-opaque holo was the massive wall display, at present configured in a grid format, with either live or enhanced sensor images of the varied study specimens. 

These specimens were carefully stored along and in the opposite bulkhead, which unlock the neat display presented a complete miss mash of containment units, the size varied from mere twenty centimeter squared up to one which was a full meter and a half square, then there was the fact some had a solid front, while some an observable plate. The rear of each of them were connected to a reflector fed feeding system, and the vast majority were extractable with only two exceptions. 

Four benches were set aside specifically to hold the extracted contaminant units, they had built in sensor interfaces and the ability to attach a wide choice of testing rigs. 

Something that was purely aesthetic and possibly not entirely practical was they soft carpet that adorned the deckplate. Ginsh found himself wondering not for the first time, if this had been replaced on multiple occasions since the stations commissioning 

 For a moment Ginsh found himself reflecting on the encounter that had given him the first hints that Starfleet was the outlet he had yet to consider he needed.

A scientist’s logic would lean towards the no such thing as fate or luck or whatever one chose to call it. But if that meating with that particular enlisted technician had not happened. It is more than likely that he would be back on Tellar Prime, perhaps trying for his doctorate.

This reflection was brought to halt by another tech, one of the Bravo’s residents. “Ginsh, you young fart. Early bird catches the worm or bug. Is that the specimen the Perseverance brought back from Ardri… Aradr….I give up up, that planetoid on the edges of the Paulson Nebula.” A human female, with teal coloring to her uniform, hailed the Tellarite, with her usual cheery tone, as she approached the display. 

“Always an alarming manner Petty Officer, but yes this is the very one, specimen-443-ah, or Drig Bug.” He shot her a look and a head shake at the smile beginning to form on her features. “Not me. I am not stooping to such tags. Now observations if you will.”  

“Well definitely insect, six legs, and an exo-type. I’m actually just here for my mug.” She commented glancing around the well maintained and tidy lab. 

“Seven, it has seven legs, however one is only seen deployed occasionally. I would like to determine what prompts those occasions.” Ginsh corrected, and allowed himself to expound on his planned study objective, pointing to the object and leaning in to an inquiry. “On the side below the display, you are assigned elsewhere today?” There was a note of disappointment in his voice.

“Aww you tidy up, but not in a mean way. Thanks sweet.” The petty officer slipped into informal mode as she knew she could around certain ones, Ginsh being one of those. “Yep, I got put to assist Lt Feerite. Geology, and we be smashing rocks today.” She ended with a grin, strolling to the side, lifting her mug and making for the door. “Dont work too hard now Ginsh.”

“Petty Officer Diluuca how many times. It is not work if you find enjoyment, and I do find enjoyment.” He advised forcefully but with a hint of good nature, in truth he was a little disappointed not to have an able and dedicated and easy going technician.

Trying to pull his attention back to his specimen, he found his focus was the thought track that had been interrupted, or at least a continuation of that. If university led to a field trip: and a field trip led to starfleet: and starfleet led to starbase bravo, the thought of what Starbase Bravo would lead too was worth considering. His current posting did allow for a great amount of focused and dedicated research to be done, and when all was said and done that was what left Ginsh with the feeling of most satisfaction. But the thoughts of a ship and actually finding the specimens, capturing them live, perhaps for the first time was a thought and a possibility, a ship meant smaller department, it would have to be the right people he thought, or perhaps it wouldn’t and the research and assignment would make them compatible bring out hidden qualities, shake thing up, stimulate things.

That was it, observation would only go so far, he had to affect a change to the ‘Drig Bug’, and since his thoughts were on shaking. He left the console and moved to another section of the lab space where the diagnostic equipment was located. “Rocker plate, do we have a rocker plate?” He said softly to himself just as an Andorian male, teal uniformed and displaying enlisted entered laboratory fourteen. 

Log beat out a rapid tempo against the metallic floor with his boot as he stood waiting at the office doors. He was early, maybe slightly too early but his mother had always told him that 5 minutes early was far too late. He could hear her admonishing tones now from across the quadrant, her course voice echoing in his ears. ‘Straighten your shirt, pull down your sleeves, those boots look like you’ve been trapsing through the mud baths.’ She always meant well, but like any Tellerite mother she had an opinion on all matters and was vocal in expressing them. He rapped his fingers on the back of the padd in his hand, his short nails tapping a speedy rhythm in counterpoint to his boot on the deck. Commander Roberts was possibly the most senior officer he had encountered in his few short weeks aboard Bravo and a decidedly unexpected encounter. His assignment to the tactical preparations team had been out of the blue, but Log had a knack with fiddly sensor arrays and a supervisor that didn’t mind shouting about his team’s skills. He needed to make a good impression, his future on the Starbase might depend on it. 

A cough interrupted his rickety train of thought, causing him to look at the officer behind the desk near the wide set of office doors. With a tilt of the head and raised eyebrows she motioned to the doors that now sat ajar, summoning the young Tellerite into the den of Commander Roberts. 

Kay had been busy preparing for the new implementation of tactical plans that the Director had approved. The truth was Starbase Bravo had been attacked on a few occasion and the current event going on put the base under more stress. The tactical operations was a huge part of knowing how to react if the worst happened. She had been working on the tactical preparations team decided to assign a rather new member to the base an Ensign Log. 

The need for tactical preparations were apparent even in the engineering department. She had been in a meeting and had to delay her meeting with the new Ensign by a few minutes. Once she was ready she signalled for the Ensign to enter. She stood as the Tellerite walked into her office and motioned for the chair in front of the office “Hello Ensign, I am Commander Kaylynn Roberts the Deputy Director of Tactical Ops. I am sure you have some questions and I am happy to answer. Would you like something to drink?”

Log’s eyes widened to dinner plates, in all his practice conversations his mental projection of the Commander had never offered him for a drink. His mind raced, he could use a refreshment, after all he’d been rummaging through the jefferies tubes all morning chasing a particularly obstinate bio-neural gel pack. Then he’d skipped lunch to make sure he got back to his quarters to clean up before the meeting. When was the last time he had a drink? His panicked brain couldn’t remember a single instant of ever having held a drink let alone drinking a beverage. 

“Raktajino. Cold.” He blurted out, suddenly acutely aware the Commander was staring at him. “Please, sir.” The young man couldn’t think of a drink he wanted less but in the moment it seemed appropriate, ‘Cool officer’s drink Raktajino, everyone knows that’ his inner voice whispered, a recent Sisko biopic screaming loudly in the back of his brain. “Thank you sir.” His heart stopped. “Ma’am.” It didn’t restart. “Commander?” he offered nervously.  

Roberts could tell the officer was nervous but she wasn’t going to build off of that. “Are you sure that’s what you want? Seems like your nervous I promise you don’t need to be.” She said as she waited patiently to hear if he wanted something else.

“I’m fine…” he paused, his heart stuttering a beat as he opted for the most neutral deference  “…Commander. Thank you.” He took a step forward offering the slightly grubby padd in his hand. “I’ve finished the upgrades to the targeting telemetric as discussed in yesterday’s meeting. There were a few gel-packs that required a stern talking to but to be honest I explained to them the importance of the base’s efficient defence and they quickly fell in line. I’d already passed my updates to Lt. Markovitz but he suggested I deliver them straight to yourself.” His arm felt awkward, hovering in the gap between them. Worse, he couldn’t stop his mouth from moving. “The secondary telemetric still need some work but at this point the chances of them coming online are slim with the perimeter buoys in operation….”

Roberts held her hand up and grabbed the padd looking at its state knowing that the officer needed to straighten their priorities out and clean up some of what they did as an officer. Log had potential to be a good officer, but they needed some help. “First off great work on the upgrades and I have confidence in your skills for the secondary upgrades. That being said I urge you to maybe try and keep your equipment cleaner and to look more like an officer. It is something a Starfleet officer always tries to do is to be as clean as possible and serve with the best distinction that they can. Does that make sense?”

Log’s heart plummeted, a familiar voice echoing in the back of his mind, a stern Andorian lecturer admonishing him for appearing in his class with a grease smear across his cheek. ‘You are unbecoming of an officer.’ the elderly man had said, his voice dripping with icy judgement. A chill ran up his spine as it froze rigid at the uncomfortable memory. “Apologies Commander. I came straight from the worksite. I forgot to wash up.” His voice was cool, detached, admonished. “I’ll be better in the future.” He missed Theta Squad, it had been a much more relaxed environment, Starbase Bravo was bigger and had bigger expectations. 

Roberts shook her head “I am not saying you aren’t a good officer and by no way are you in trouble, but I am just wanting to help you be the best officer you can be. I recommend making sure to allot the needed time to make sure you are clean before meetings with superiors. I am sure in time you will learn how to keep your uniform clean. I hope this doesn’t deter you from continuing. I know Starbase Bravo is overwhelming, but everything has a learning curve and I have no doubt you will be able to adapt.” 

“Its just a big change Commander. I was aboard Daedalus before this, there was less than 100 people aboard a tiny ship.” His mouth twitched into a barely concealed smile at the memories, drinking Kanar late at night in the crew lounge with Zaya, setting up jump scares in the jefferies tubes for Hermira, leaving doodled notes for Oyvo at the operations console. “It’s taking some adjustment sir. I’ll catch up soon.” He nodded confidently. 

Roberts smiled “I am glad to hear it. I will be here to help as well. You have a promising career and I don’t want to see that wasted. If you can work on these issues I would appreciate it.” She handed him a PADD with tasks that fell under his new task with her. She decided to let him do the task and see his initiative without ordering the specifics of how to see if he followed proper regulations.

Log’s thumbs fumbled with the small object, unsuccessfully attempting to take the PADD and review its contents simultaneously. “Predictive targeting algorithms Commander? I’ve always wanted to get a peek at Bravo’s big brain.” He began scrolling intently, “I hear from another Ensign that she’s pretty smart, one of the biggest quantum cores this side of Sol, she said…” catching himself beginning to waffle enthusiastically he bit his tongue. ‘Unbecoming’ a voice echoed at the edge of hearing. “I’ll report in 48 hours as instructed Sir.” 

A friendly nod was sufficient to dismiss the young man, his boots beginning to drum a more professional tempo on the decking as he departed. 

Sonja had been looking forward to the next week as she had been given some time off from her duties. It was needed and she knew she would be refreshed after taking the time. She didn't have to rush to be anywhere and knew her plans was to go to the culinary wing of the Colloquium event. She got dressed in her hoodie and comfy pants and made her way to the area. She heard her stomach growl as she thought of the good food that could be shown. She walked into the area and was amazed by the amount of detail in the wing, but also the scents of food. 

She walked in looking to see if their was anyone she knew, but it was still early and she knew from the conversations she had with colleagues this wing got busy as the day went on. She stopped trying to decide what she wanted to do first, as she looked at the options. 

”Food, where to find food? I’m so hungry right now, and I most definitely don’t feel like eating whatever the replicator gives today might as well give me a stomach ache," sighed Elias. 

“OOOO! Food convention? I wonder what this could be. I mean, well, judging by the theme this year, I doubt there is going to be any food around here, but why not try? I mean, if there is, it still might be better than what the replicator has to offer.“ Hearing his stomach growl, Elias went into the culinary wing of the exhibition, and there he met Sonja. 

“Hey Sonja! Over here!” Waving his hands frantically.

“Define food; we are at a scientific convention; are you willing to be the test subject of so-called new food? I mean, I am not stopping you?” A voice came from behind Elias as Arwa stood there with a smirk on her face and waved to Sonja.

”Science convention, it may be. Who knows?! Maybe they finally figured out how to make good replicator food?” Hear his stomach grumble again, Elias said. “I think if it is anything related to food at the moment, I might as well be a test subject; do you hear my stomach?! It literally grumbles."

Cam surveyed the lively scene, searching through the multitude of faces. They were meant to be here, amidst the crowd. Suddenly, his eyes locked onto Elias, surrounded by the rest of the group. Without hesitation, Cam made his way over and teased, "You weren't planning on sampling all these treats without me, were you?"

”Of course not! You will be a test subject along with me! At least according to Arwa here.” said Elias, slightly rolling his eyes at her. “It couldn’t do that much harm, am I right?” Silently in his head, Elias really hoped it was good and did no harm.

Sonja shook her head one person turned into three more it seemed like everyone was wanting to explore about food today. She stepped over after finishing where she had been looking. She smiled at the group and waved “Looks like everyone had the same idea as me today, but it looks like you all have a mischievous look. What did I miss?”

“Not much, we are just gathering here to do the same thing as everyone else, get some sightseeing done,” Arwa winked in Sonja's direction with a grin on her face. 

“Sightseeing…riiiight Arwa, I trust that.” She said wink a wink. She looked at the group wondering if anyone else was not accounted for.

”Uhhh, where’s Soren? I think she’s the last one missing,“ asked Elias.

A short scan of the area was enough for the question to be answered without much in the way of investigating. The Bajoran was standing in front of one of many displays, firing off question after question in a tizzy of curiosity fueled frenzy. The owner of the display had a very conflicted look on their face as they fielded the questions being lobbed at them at a break-neck pace. The look was most likely a mixture of pride and exasperation, as Soren's interest in the project being put on display seemed genuine, but her delivery was less than desirable given the hectic nature of it. After what might have been well over her dozenth question, Liara happened to turn just in time to catch sight of some vaguely familiar faces.

“Oh! I remember you,” Soren said with a smile, “The group from the lounge the other day. What brings you here? Are you exploring the exhibits?”

"Since all the replicators on Deck 457 decided to take a break, and I was promised snacks here, it felt like a simple equation," Cam remarked in response to the dry comment.

”Well, I’m here just cause for the food… and science?” said Elias laughing a little bit.

Rolling her eyes “Enough talks about food, you guys are making me hungry” Arwa pointed out “Lets get going already there is much to see, to hear and for the weird kinks among us feel as well”

"Sounds like a plan!" Cam's eyes lit up with excitement as he pivoted his body to face Arwa, a smile spreading across his face. But before another word could leave his lips, a sudden, shrill chirping noise erupted from his chest. The sound pierced through the air, causing heads to turn in curiosity.

As the chirping subsided, a voice in an urgent tone commanded, “Lieutenant Solari, report to Sector Golf-One-Cyan, Shuttlebay Three.”

In an instant, Cam's expression shifted. The sparkle in his eyes dimmed, replaced by both a flicker of disappointment and determination. With a sigh, he turned to his companions, 

"Sorry, everyone," he murmured, as he disappeared in the crowd he added "Duty calls."

Arwa looked a bit confused at the departure of Cam, but some folk were on standby during the event so it was  logical thing. Arwa wanted to react to the rest until her com also chirped “Ah come on….”She pats her badge as the voice of her assistant came over “Lieutenant el-Imam, where are you? I thought we were meeting up" 

She shrugged and was honestly forgotten about it “Shi….” She mutters and yet contained it “I am on my way…Arwa out" She looked at the rest of them and points at the vendors “Check those out first, they have quite delious food and see some of the inventions on display….I will join you when I can” Arwa nods to them and walks off. 

”Huh, seems like everyone’s busy right now. Maybe we’ll meet up next time. Shrugged Elias.

The tension was palpable as the group of newly minted Ensigns sat in the craft, their faces pressed against the glass windows. Excitement had filled their conversations for days leading up to this moment. Still, as the massive space station came into view, their behavior shifted from that of confident officers to wide-eyed children. The shuttle halted in the bay, and the pilot briskly ushered them onto the deck below.

“Whether you’re ready or not, it’s time to disembark, kids,” the pilot announced with a laugh.

Preston rose to his feet, straightening his uniform as he faced the shuttle, “Well, I suppose it’s time to report aboard, explore the promenade, and begin our careers.” He failed to notice the fear etched on their faces.

Turning around, Preston found himself face-to-face with a Commander, her uniform impeccable and her conduct that of the ideal officer. She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, observing silently. Preston couldn’t help but sigh, “What in the hell are you doing here?”

Gasps escaped the Ensigns as they shuffled to explain their friend’s behavior. In their collective opinion, Preston had just torpedoed his career in a matter of seconds.

Kay had been asked to meet the new Ensigns on the station. She had looked at the list and seen someone she hadn’t expected. She made her way to the shuttlebay and as the shuttle landed she stepped aboard to hear the rousing encouragement of one of the Ensigns. 

The next moment was one that would have most ensigns demoted immediately. “Dear brother I’m here because this is where I have been stationed. Did mom not tell you that I was here?” She shook her head as it had been years since she saw her brother last. He looked good but he still wasn’t going to get away with that comment. “Regardless, I expect better decorum from an officer. Your language and tone is not acceptable. Your commanding officer will be getting a report from me.” 

Preston’s heart sank as he sighed, his mind racing with unspoken thoughts. “Yes, Commander,” he replied, joining the line of fellow Ensigns. The last genuine moment he and Kay had shared was when she had announced she needed a break. It was the last time he had truly connected with his sister. There were obligatory family gatherings, of course, but Kay’s focus was always on her career. She was entirely job-oriented, using Starfleet as her escape from the past and the city of Pittsburgh, which she hated. 

Now, standing in line, Preston couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment. He had hoped that Kaylynn’s unexpected visit might have been for personal reasons, but she clearly had something else in mind for them.

Kay could see the disappointment in Preston’s eyes. “Everyone is dismissed except you Ensign Roberts. You can follow me.” She said and motioned for him to follow her. She knew what she was doing, but he had no idea. She let him get in his head as they walked saying nothing to him. She led him to her office and shut the door behind them. Once she knew it was just them she turned and smiled. “Sorry about that Pretzel.” She laughed “It’s good to see you little brother, but I can’t show favoritism even in the case of my brother. I’m sorry I wasn’t at your graduation. I was transferred here and it’s been a busy transition. I am glad to see you though.” She said as she gave him a big hug. It had been years since she had a connection with him. Hopefully, she could rekindle that. 

Preston cringed at the nickname, a small part of him had hoped that god awful trend didn’t follow him here; but alass it had. He embraced his sister, with a wicked smiled. He finally admitted, “Mom says hi,” he laughed. “I must admit I was shocked you met me at the terminal, but it was a nice surprise. Ensign Miller was nervous. I’ll bet he’s finding a clean uniform now.”

Kay laughed. “Well, hopefully, he realizes he will see lots of higher-ranking officers on this station. I had to come see you it’s been too long and I have missed you little brother. I hope Mom is well I admit I haven’t kept in touch like I should.” 

“That was something Professional McCandless actually drilled into us over the last few months,” Preston replied, “keeping in touch and maintaining those bonds after we graduate. Something about a support system, blah blah blah..” he added.

She smirked “Well now you have a constant support system on the same station…Pretzel.”

“We’re going to find a new nickname,” Preston almost demanded, “that one needs to die.”

Kay shook her head, “That nickname will stay between us. I will never say it with others around.”

“I will hold you to that,” he stated, as the comm badge on his chest sounded, “Ensign Roberts, please report to sickbay.”  He sighed, “I guess that means I’m late.”

Kay looked at him “We can talk more later Preston. Go report in and welcome to Starbase Bravo.” she said smiling and giving him one last hug.

Previously on the Shuttle craft.

“New people and new places to discover. New alliances to be made. New friendships most importantly. New investigations to solve. New cases to be solved. There are a lot of things to yet be discovered. I have only been in service with Starfleet for approximately three years or so. A long journey ahead for me. A future yet to be discovered. Computer, end personnel log.“

En route to Starbase Bravo

”Starbase Bravo should prove interesting as my next assignment indeed. Having said that it is a big big place by some of academy friends which I of course still keep in contact with. The more friends you have the merrier it goes they say.“ said Thomas. 

”Life was simple in a starship. It was almost just like the academy. I actually mean that, life on a starship is really just like the academy. I mean maybe it is just me but you know… anyways having took up law as my major strand during my academy days. I mean being an investigations officer does not even change that fact. I still use the law to my best of abilities and try to fix what is wrong.”

”Computer how long until we arrive at Starbase Bravo?”

”We arrive at Starbase Bravo in approximately 30 minutes.” the short and crisp reply of the computer system rebounded throughout the shuttle.

”Huh, 30 minutes. Should not be too bad. I won’t die of boredom just yet. I’m still dying to go to that new bar my friends mentioned during our talks. Golden Apple. Such a fancy name, hope it lives up to its reputation. I can apparently also work there upstairs they said. Grab your PADD and some files them grab a cup or two of coffee or if you prefer one whole jar of coffee and start working. Or you could also get a drink or two at night to wind down after the day.“

30 minutes later.

”You have arrived at Starbase Bravo. Please bring all your belongings with you as you depart.“

”Finally, I have arrived at Starbase Bravo. Headquarters to the Fourth Fleet. My new home.“ muttered Thomas. Grabbing his things that he brought with him from the last assignment he was on, he finally stepped on the shuttle and marveled at the sight in front of him. 

The Starbase was huge. That is the only word that Thomas could use to describe it. Even though he is currently at the Shuttle Bay he could already see how big it is. “If this is just the shuttle bays, how about the rest of the Starbase?”

Lab Fourteen was now host to one of those moments that was likely repeated around the station, as common as someone ordering a hot beverage from the replicator, a first meeting. Ginsh still occupied with finding the specific diagnostic equipment piece, had yet to notice the Andorran who stood first in the doorway and now had advanced a few paces into the room the young crewman, he coughed and then questioned. “Ensign Ginsh, sir?” 

“Correct person.” The Tellarite said as he twisted his head round, the new arrival was only ever going to be of secondary concern, next to the setup, running, and observation of the next experiment. “Currently occupied studying a brand new specimen, whatever you have to say, now is the time.”

“Zylu Zh’Chron Science Crewman, I’ve been assigned to you for the day, sir.” Came the curt and straightforward response. “So if there is something you would like me to retrieve, I can certainly accommodate you.” 

“Ah Ha, Rocker plate!” Ginsh exclaimed on finding the piece, patting the wall housing, and starting to key in his access code, before giving out instructions along with a reminder “ If you could retrieve container number eighteen, and set it on table two that would be agreeable. Remember your standard integrity checks before removing completely from the housing.” 

“Of course.” Came the short response, and a stride over to the specimen wall, a pause and careful look along the rows and layers. “Eighteen, low down as one would expect.” A slight verbal jab, off the back of centuries of rivalry, came out a readily. “Drig Bug,sir?”

Ginsh merely smiled, while using two hands to withdraw the flat plate object from its housing. “Precisely, I am not going to make life more difficult for myself, am I now. Computer add Crewman Zh’Chron to the approved access list, Lab eighteen, twenty-four hours duration.”

Ginsh strolled over to the previously mentioned diagnostic table, setting the equipment piece in the center, a quick glance to his right to check on the Crewmans progress. The container was almost fully out of the wall housing, the appropriate support in place and the checks being carried out, visual had just concluded with Zh’Chron bringing up his tricorder from the belt clip. Ginsh turned his attention back to the table, having stepped around to the control panel, and began the interface process, ensuring the plate would accept commands and their was a consistent numerical and visual data stream. 

The container was carried over with all the care of a most valued and most delicate most precious item, rapid glances between the object and the destination and the path to be taken. Which for a moment surprised Ginsh, but pleasantly so. The container deposited just as gently, and the crewman stood to the side. “Round here please, we are going to conduct a Transient Random Vibration Test. I will need you to operate the testbed. I will observe the recorded results from the pedestal console.”

They moved, Zh’Chron having less distance to travel reached his position first. Ginsh, on arriving at his position, quickly keyed in a control which changed the holo-projection to that of the container on the plate, translucent, with the specimens inside, plural. “Computer note reproduction has already commenced without outside stimuli. Right, recordings channels open. Record baseline data, at rest, hold for ten seconds.” The seconds ticked by, the accurate sensor feed returning the image of a completely unaware and unconcerned insect, with no stimuli it’s instinct was to lie dormant. That was about to change. “Now crewman please set Displacement 1 Micron. Velocity 1 MMS. Acceleration 1M/Sec2. Set for 1 second pulse intervals block duration of ten seconds. We will repeat the process to gather fifty blocks of data for comparison ” Finishing the data capture settings, he said simply. “Begin.”

Walking into the Golden Apple once again, Elias thought to himself, “Hays, I’ve been coming to the Golden Apple far too much this month.“ 

With the science division being busy with the colloquium that is currently going on, Every science officer is busy with their own little projects. Elias himself might even do a project himself. Thinking to himself, “Hmm, I have not finished it yet. Might finish it within the next week or so?”

Preston had finished squaring away his belongings and checked in with Sickbay, and now it was time to take in the local sights. He wasn’t one for large social gatherings, but stepping outside his comfort zone was a goal. Ok, it was his only goal at the moment. Stepping into the Golden Apple, he was impressed with the decor. “I wasn’t expecting this,” he stated. 

“Excuse me, Sir,” he stepped past the Lieutenant.

Looking at his back to see who it is, Elias then saw an Ensign in teal uniform. “Ah, my apologies, Ensign.“

“I need to apologize, Sir,” Preston maintained a formal stance. Having just graduated from the Academy, that life was still ingrained in his behavior. “Just hoping to have a drink and unwind before, well,” he wasn’t sure how to finish the sentence, “all of this happens.”

He paused, offering a hand, “Ensign Preston Roberts.”

”No need to apologize, Ensign. Pleased to meet you, Ensign Roberts! Lieutenant Junior Grade Elias Comescu at your service! You have certainly come to the right place! The Golden Apple is the best place to unwind for the night and socialize and make some new friends.“ said Elias.

“Since I’ve only been on the station a few hours, friends are in short supply.”  He decided to take a chance,  pointing to the bar, “Care to join me, Lieutenant?”

”Sure, I was just planning on getting something myself. Fancy a cocktail, perhaps? Nothing alcoholic, of course.” said Elias, slightly laughing at it.

Preston approached the nearby bar, “Moscow Mule, none alcoholic, please.” Looking over to the Lieutenant, “Sir?”

Looking at the barkeep, Elias said, “Negroni, non-alcoholic, if you would.”

Looking back at the Ensign, Elias said, “Please drop the sir, I’m also a Junior officer like you.”

Preston smiled, “Sorry, Elias,” it was odd, but he understood. “Academy life is hard to give up., I’m sure you remember. For the last four years, everyone was Sir and Ma’am. It’s a hard habit to break.”  Preston picked up his drink, tipping the glass slightly, “Here’s to leaving the Academy behind.”

Raising up his glass, Elias tipped it and also said, “to leaving the Academy days behind.”

”I hope you find yourself home at Starbase Bravo. After shifts, you could go out and explore the whole place. It’s big I’m telling you, really big.” said Elias.

“Starfleet does have a way of making sure big and flashy is the goal,” Preston laughed. Taking another sip, “So how long have you been stationed here,” he asked. Preston was grateful for the group of Ensigns who had traveled here with him, but it felt even better that he was branching out. Perhaps Bravo could be a good home.

“I’ve been at Bravo for like only a few months. I‘ve grown into it, it’s my home now.” said Elias. “Anyways, it’s almost time for my shift. I’ll catch you later?”

Preston nodded, “It’s nice meeting you, Elias; perhaps in time, Bravo will become a home as well.”  He smiled as he thought that a few more chance encounters like this and it would be. As Professor McCandless said, build a support network. He picked up his glass and took a final swallow. 

In view of the time of day, the fact this particular deck, number 323, felt lively and full was perhaps to be expected. Particularly in view of the Colloquium currently ongoing in the promenade areas. Padding across the carpeted floors, behind and with a firm hand on a fully loaded anti grav-sled, Ginsh, a stout Tellarite snorted a little after glancing into a booth with a more artistic leaning, just his luck to be quartered with the ‘creatives’. 

“It’s okay, just wander slower and aimlessly, it’s not like some have equipment to move though this area.” The gruff statement was prompted by frustration and a desire to get his display up and running. Finally sleeping the sled alongside, a display tower in a small booth facing outward, towards the general flow of people. 

Moving quickly around and flicking open both clasps of the container on top of the sled, reaching in carefully, and taking a firm grasp lifted a re-enforced but clear case. lifted it out and up, placing it delicately onto a space on the podium. Lifting the flap on the front for a moment he watched as the bugs scurried around, both on the surface and through their self-made tunnels and chambers, Ginsh was quite proud to have an active insect farm to show off, it being the culmination of weeks of careful planning and preparation. 

His attention now turned to the other aspects of his display, he just hoped and wished the assigned technicians had done their due diligence with the emitters and display setup. He was about to move around the back for one of the control panels, when he looked up, someone was watching. “It’ll be twenty minutes before its ready, you can stand there gawking if you wish but there might be better uses for your time, sir.” He stated briskly before tuning his attention back to the control panel.

Going down the stairs to the ground floor, Elias briskly walked down with moderately paced foot steps, “I didnt quite catch your name, Ensign.”

Looking round from behind the display once more, the Tellarite gave what passes for a smile, as he responded. “It’s hard to catch something that hasn’t been given, Ensign Ginsh, zoologist, science division.“

He looked back to the control panel, keyed in a final set of commands and was rewarded with a holo-display coming to life. That of an enlarged Timelapse of the creature’s life cycle, accurate and well proportioned. 

“The technician’s have done well enough, I am suitably impressed.” Looking back and giving the new officer his full attention. 

“Also I do have the appropriate permissions and clearances to be here. Might i ask your name, Sir?”

”Ahh, Ensign Ginsh. Please please don’t call me sir. I’m not a man of authority or position. Lieutenant Junior Grade Elias Comescu at your service Ensign. Astrophysics subdivision of the science department! Impressive work you have there Ginsh. Might I ask what it’s about?” commented Elias.

“Fair enough, would you be agreeable to first names then?” Ginsh asked directly, now feeling much less defensive getting that bit out of the way before going on to give a run down of his display. 

“This is a sample of the smaller, but no less essential life of our galaxy, the unnoticed workforce.” He paused for a moment. 

“This was styled the ‘Drig Bug’ by the science department of the ship that brought it back. It does have a few unique properties. which i could explain

“Huh, a “drig bug” you say? Well I’ve certainly not heard of it. Well I mean astrophysics, the bunch of us just know the science and math behind almost a lot of things but the essential life? My knowledge only stops till what I’ve learned during high school.“ said Elias.

“Ahh a big picture scientist. But math is as important. I would not have been able to quantify this specimen without it.” Ginsh started honestly, and with genuine recognition.

“Well one interesting observation of this little insect is it nominally has six legs. However, under certain circumstances it will deploy a seventh.” Ginsh enthused about his object of study. “Please come round here, this setup is designed to highlight such, if you would like to see?”

”Hmm, interesting. The seventh leg deployed only under certain circumstances should prove to be interesting indeed.“ said Elias while looking at the time. “Oops, it seems like my time is over, I’m going back to duty. I would love to learn more about it Ginsh! How about we meet at the Golden Apple later on?”

”If you really want to know, sure thing” Ginsh replied, taking a hard look at the man, which probably came across quite cold, electing to believe it was genuine interest set a time based of the man’s likely shift pattern. “About Nineteen hundred then, I will get a table.”

Ashton stood in his new office and looked around. He had recently been promoted to Lieutenant Commander and assigned to Starbase Bravo as the Deputy Director of Promenade Security. He was now waiting on a couple of officers to arrive for a meeting. First, he wanted to introduce himself and then he wanted to get their take on the current security staff and SOPs. One of them was a Patrol Shift Leader and the other was an Investigations Section Leader. He figured if anyone knew what was going on around the base, it would be them. He took a seat behind his desk and retrieved their personnel files. He wanted to give them another read while he waited.

Sonja had prepared to go straight to her office to work on some clearance paperwork for some gust coming during her shift, but she was awoken by a chirp from her PADD. She groggily looked to see a prompt to report to the new Deputy Director. She sprang out of bed and quickly got ready making sure she was prepared before making her way to the office. Usually she would be paying more attention to the Promenade, but she had only one thing on her mind. She made it to the Deputy’s office and activated the chime.

Irric’s footsteps echoed through the metallic corridors as he left his office, bound for the far end of the main security facility on Sector I-Navy. The message summoning him had emanated from the recently appointed Deputy Director of Security, another in a seemingly endless cycle of leadership changes that matched the rapid turnover rate of the station’s CO2 scrubbers.

While navigating the hallways, Ensign Besh once again captured his attention. The chaotic scene of the Promenade outside mirrored Ensign Besh’s disheveled appearance as she leaned against a wall, absorbed in her PADD. Irric couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disapproval, his thoughts forming silently, ‘Unbefitting of a Starfleet officer – I wonder what they teach at the academy these days.’

Passing by her, Irric emitted a gruff sound, his voice breaking the quiet hum of the hallway. 

“Besh, stay sharp and fix that uniform!” His expression carried a subtle grin as he continued on his way, relishing the anticipation of her reaction.

True to his expectations, Besh leaped up like a spooked rabbit, her voice hurriedly assuring, “Yes, Commander Nuni, excuse me. It won’t happen again.”

Turning the corner to reach the office of his new Commanding Officer, Irric spotted another officer waiting by the door. It was Lieutenant Thompson, a familiar face he hadn’t officially met despite her tenure. 

Closing the distance, Irric offered a friendly nod, breaking the silence with a casual greeting, “Lieutenant Thompson.”

Stark was so entranced in the personnel records that he actually jumped a bit when the chime announced that his guests had arrived. He stood and straightened his uniform. Gotta lead by example, he thought. After clearing his throat, he finally called out for them to enter. “Come.”

He quickly gave the two officers a once over as they entered his office. His gazed feel upon Commander Nuni first and once again, Stark found himself wondering why the Bajoran himself hadn’t gotten the Deputy Director position. His record was prestige. He definitely had the in service time. Maybe that would be a conversation for later.

Next, he cast a glance at the young, Lieutenant that held a Patrol Shift leader spot. She actually looked younger than her true age in Ashton’s opinion. But again, her excellent record spoke of her experience. Personally, he was glad to have two such officers on his staff. Hopefully, they could all work well together.

“Commander. Lieutenant. Thank you both for coming on such short notice. My name’s Ashton Stark and I wanted us to get together and get to know one another and go over the daily ins and outs of the base. Get your thoughts and opinions on what’s working for us and what isn’t. See if we need to make any changes. Please. Have a seat.” he said with a gesture. “So. Who wants to go first?”

Irric’s gaze fixed on the young Deputy standing in front of him, registering the urgency in the air. Despite the need for a quick catch-up, Irric felt the timing wasn’t right. His face betrayed no attempt to mask his emotions as he addressed the Commander with blunt honesty. ”Commander, while it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, I’m sure you’ve caught wind of the turmoil brewing outside on the Promenade,” Irric remarked, his voice carrying a hint of frustration. 

A heavy sigh punctuated his next words, as he dove into a vivid critique, “So, if you’re curious about my take on what’s not working, it’s the throngs of people clustered around delicate paintings and sculptures in the most vulnerable section of the station, sir.”

Sonja rose an eyebrow. She had been working on the Promenade and had no idea what turmoil the Commander was referring too. She spoke up “Excuse me, Commander what turmoil are your speaking of? While the people that are now through the Promenade is more than we have seen I haven’t seen any turmoil. There was a statue that’s now in the Promenade but nothing that caused turmoil. So of there’s something I don’t know if appreciate learning what it is especially given my time on the Promenade.”

“Lieutenant, It’s been just over a year since you arrived, hasn’t it?”  

Irric halted briefly before adding, “During incidents like this, the influx of visitors concentrates in a particular section of the station – the bustling marketplace with its neon-lit stalls and vibrant displays. With everyone’s attention on the crowd, other areas, like the dimly lit cargo bays and quieter corridors, become susceptible to malicious activities. Pickpockets and shady dealings thrive in the shadows, taking advantage of the diverted focus. Meanwhile, in general, crowds are akin to a powder keg waiting for a spark, their collective energy and unpredictability making the entire station a delicate balance of order and potential chaos.”

Sonja nodded “I understand that, but I believe it could have been worded differently. The way I took it was that there was an issue that was ongoing that needed taken care of. In preparation for this event my staff were trained to prepare for this event, while we still have security in the less occupied areas during this time. In fact my shift works in rotations to make sure that both areas are secured and we keep the areas safe from those dealings. I may have only been here for a year, but I know my job, Sir.” she concluded feeling like the Commander had hinted she didn’t know her job.

“Oh, apart from Ensign Besh, I have complete confidence in you and the capabilities of our security crew, Lieutenant.” A glint of annoyance flashed in his eyes as he added, “It’s the civilians and the rag-tag crew of that White Bomber Squadron that give me cause for concern.”

The meeting had went about how she had expected, but she had a question for Irric who was now standing beside of her as they were heading down the corridor. “So excuse me if this is to bold, but why are you not the Deputy Director? Seems like you know the job.” 

Irric grinned as he glanced over at the young Lieutenant beside him and remarked “I find it more fulfilling to be out in the field, getting my hands dirty and genuinely making a difference in people’s lives, rather than being a mere pawn in political games,”

He then turned to Sonja and added, “And what about you? Could I be taking orders from you one day?”

Sonja shrugged “The future holds many secrets. I love what I do and sometimes managing people can make for an interesting day. I guess we will see what happens.” 

“Ah Preston! It’s nice to see you again. I just finished my shift, would you care to join me for a stroll?” asked Elias. “By the way, how are you faring? Any noticeable differences here at Starbase Bravo compared to the academy? I surely hope that you are enjoying your time here even with all the work as a nurse.”

“It’s been good,” Preston replied, “I’m new, so the charge nurse has me working all the grunt work.  Your basic charting, transporting patients, stocking and resupplying, and cleaning.” He rolled his eyes, “lots and lots of cleaning.  I suppose it’s the medical department’s way of hazing new people that comes with the job. They aren’t going to let me work on anything serious yet.”

“As far as difference,” the man laughed, “where do I start!”

”Ha, I remember the first time I was assigned to a starship. Being the Lower deckers, well the science Chief made me do all the reports and paperworks. Good old times.” said Elias, laughing slightly. “I mean have you taken the time to roam around? This place is huge.”

“Not really,” Preston replied, “I look at the Promenade, but that place needs more time to take in the sights properly. I think I need to prioritize what places are important and work my way out from there.  What do I need to survive, that sort of thing.”

“Huh, I mean the place is huge. I literally just roam around the whole base when I had my free time. The sights are something very interesting if I do say so myself.“ said Elias. ”I also heard that there‘s a colloquium or an academic conference sort of thing going on currently. Even I have planned something to present though I’m not quite sure if I could finish or complete it before the exhibitions end.”

“Let’s go see this then,” Preston looked interested, “there is always something to see at one of these.  I am not sure I could do an exhibit, talking to all those people, endlessly repeating the same thing over and over again.”  He wrinkled his nose, “that is not something that interests me. But,” he smiled, “visiting one sounds like fun.” 

“Ha, same problem here. I’m might just go do a conference talk or so. Lots of people, i do not really have to repeat myself anymore. Might as well, video it also.“ said Elias, shrugging his shoulders. “Let’s go to the exhibits and have a see shall we?”

Preston gestured down the corridor, “after you.” This wasn’t entirely how he expected his first day on the station to develop but it was interesting. He’d just left the Academy, ready to move on and here he was heading to an academic conference.  He chuckled.  It was definitely not what he had planned.   However as the old saying goes,  when in Rome.  

The vast expanse of Starbase Bravo came into view as Ensign Rarzass Dauul's shuttle neared its destination, a fortress among the stars that beckoned him with promises of adventure and discovery. With his first step onto the starbase his heart thrummed the combination of excitement and nervousness. The bustling corridors were a far cry from the quiet halls of the Academy. 

Taking a deep breath I gathered his courage and approached a passing science officer. "Excuse me," I began, my voice steady despite the butterflies in my stomach. "I'm Ensign Dauul, assigned to engineering. Could you point me in the right direction?"

“Ah engineering huh. There’s sector echo-one-green which is located on decks 210 to 230 then there is also sector echo-two-green which is located on decks 260 to 300. Depends on which subdivision your in actually. There’s impulse engines, engineering support and other bunch of stuff. Might I ask which if your division?” asked Elias. 

”Also I’m Lieutenant Junior Grade Elias Comescu, science officer at the astrophysics division at your service!” extending his hand out as a greeting.

I took the Lieutenant's hand, feeling a mix of gratitude and relief at his welcoming demeanor. "Pleasure to meet you Lieutenant Comescu. I'm assigned to the reactor subdivision within engineering." I replied, my voice tinged with excitement at the thought of working there. The theoretical knowledge from the Academy is one thing but the prospect of applying it hands-on thrills me.

Walking to the panels near him, Elias said, ”Hmm let’s see reactors. Sector foxtrot-one-emerald actually. Apologies, Starbase Bravo is a big place after all, I can’t have everything memorized now can I? By the way it’s through out decks 230-260. You’ll find it eventually, I hope. Oh yeah the main reactors at sector echo-one-green so technically decks 210 to 260 would be the place to go to."

Grateful for Lieutenant Comescu's correction and guidance I nodded understandingly. "No worries Lieutenant. I appreciate the help. Starbase Bravo is indeed vast and I'm sure I'll spend quite some time getting my bearings." I chuckled lightly, trying to ease my own tension and perhaps make a light moment of the situation. "I'll head over to deck 210 and start there. It sounds like I'll be exploring quite a bit of the starbase on my first day."

I paused for a moment realizing the significance of this new beginning. "Thank you again, Lieutenant Comescu. I hope to make the reactor subdivision, and Starbase Bravo, proud." With a final nod I turned towards the direction Elias had indicated, ready to navigate the labyrinthine corridors of the starbase to find my new post.

Looking at the time, Elias saw that it was almost the appointed meetup time with Ensign Ginsh, who he had recently made friends with. While walking to the promenade where the bar was located, Elias thought to himself and muttered, “Huh, life and bugs. I still don’t get it but I’m sure Ginsh will explain it later on. After all, I’m just an astrophysicist. I most definitely don’t have a single clue about zoology and those types of sciences.”

Weaving their way into the large and inviting Golden Apple lounge, while clutching an arm full of PADDs, a still unformed Tellarite glanced around for a place to pass a few hours, potentally in the company of a fellow science officer, Elias Comescu. Given the amount of people and the popularity with Starfleet, the upper level seemed like a good choice particularly with a good view of the entrance. Ginsh waved through the open area, walked sideways through a pair of tables and ascended the stairs, spotting an appropriate table he made straight for it.

”Huh, where could Ginsh be? Assuming that we are here to have some discussions and relax a little i guess. I would have the right assumption to go upstairs to find for him.” said Elias, while ascending the stairs to the next floor. 

“Bugs, life, science. Honestly, what is it with zoology and bugs these past few months? But hey, if it does turn out interesting.” said Elias, shrugging his shoulders.

Setting himself down he flagged a waiter on the way. “Bring an Rigelian Ale to this table, whichever it’s number, also if you could pass on to the bar staff Ginsh is sat here if a human science officer comes in looking for someone, that will be all.” He addressed the hologram in a  blunt but demanding manner.” 

“One Ale for table fifty six, I will pass the message though momentarily.” Came the polite reply and the waiter made for the stairs.

Reaching the top of the stairs the waiter encountered Elias. “You’re looking for someone? an officer by the name of Ginsh perhaps? Table fifty-six just there, would you like to add to the drink order?”

”Ah yes, thank you. I’ll also have a martini and olives if that wouldn’t be a problem. Thanks once again!” said Elias to the friendly waiter that pointed him to Ginsh.

Walking to the table that Ginsh was sat at, which was of course table fifty-six apparently. Elias waved and said to Ginsh, “Hey there! Fancy seeing you once again Ginsh! I hope everythings going well on your end.” said Elias, while taking a seat in front of Ginsh.

“Elias welcome, making yourself comfortable I see.” Ginsh began with a little friendly opening jab, before turning his attention to the question. “Today has gone well enough, which I was surprised by,  plenty of people stopping and taking an interest.” He paused and considered his surroundings before adding. “Some asked more obvious questions, but still, I like being able to give out in some way.”

”Not everyone knows that much about bugs my friend. Like all sciences it is a trade of art after all. Even astrophysics is a trade of art. Zoology even much more! Good to see that people are actually taking an interest.” said Elias. “Anyways, how are you doing? Handling the ‘exhibit’ of sorts that you came up with. Wish I must compliment you as a science officer to science officer, that was pretty fast. Even I couldn’t do an exhibit that fast and have it prepared in no time.”

“Trade of art.” Ginsh repeated slowly, and thoughtfully. “I’d not thought of it in that way to be truthful. I thank you for your different viewpoint.” His attention went to the compliment about his display, and if he was honest a little swell of pride came over him as he responded. “I think I was fortunate with timing, I’d not long finished a study of that particular specimen, plus it help being Tellarite when dealing with technicians.” He paused, recognised the questions had been one way so far and attempted to change that. “How about yourself, how was your duty shift? May I ask about your current focus of study?” 

”Ah me. I mean I studied as an astrophysics Major in the academy. Which skills I still of course use but as of the current moment… Im actually just assigned to research. Borg artifacts to be specific. Astrophysics still of course play in important part in my research which is focused on the scientific aspects in which the technologies were utilized by the Borg. Also finding a way to counter them somehow. There adaptability to any situation is scary and I’ve been trying to get past that. After all, the horrors of the Frontier Day are still deeply imbued into some peoples memory already. Doing a small favor.“ said Elias, remembering the sudden horrors of Frontier Day. 

“Anyways, my duty shift earlier was quite uneventful anyways. How about yours?“ asked Elias.

“That is certainly an interesting and likely vital area of study. I’m grateful such research is done, be gone with the detractors and scaremongers, we must know, we must understand only then can we take true precautions and not just react, employ what we don’t fully grasp.” Ginsh stated honestly and firmly, he found himself struggling to keep his voice down, to the point he subconsciously glanced around as he paused. 

It was this moment when the drinks arrived, after accepting it the Tellarite went into his afternoon “I was excused from regular duties to supervise the display, the Division heads seem really keen on this whole thing at the moment.” Pointing to the PADD on the table. “I do have a copy of the display information as well as additional materials if you wanted to take a look?” 

”Sure, let me have a look.” said Elias, while taking the PADD offered to him by Ginsh. The two science officers then chatted away into the night.

The event was quite busy, and the public areas around it were crowded with people who needed to catch some fresh air for everything happening. Grab a snack, a drink, or maybe those cute, overpriced gifts at that Ferengi shop. Everyone was looking for something the science conference couldn’t provide immediately. Leaning on the railing, Arwa looked at the passing ships visible from the outside. “Even in space, it is busy…” She muttered to herself as she slurped from her drink. 

Shenzi strode down in Arwas direction. She might not have looked like she was paying attention, carrying a large box with the image of a green, cyclopian humanoid machine on the front, but she was acutely aware of absolutely everyone around her. She looked up at Arwa, taking a sip from an energy drink, and said “Well, didn’t expect to see you here”

Looking over her shoulder in the direction of the voice, “Ahhh, Lieutenant, it has been quite some time.” Arwa gave a soft smile in her direction and turned around while still having the straw of her drink in her mouth. “How are you doing? don’t tell me you are working on a festival day like this?” 

“Ah, well, since I’m a fighter pilot, technically I’m always working. Doesn’t mean I’m not smart enough to sneak off for a smoke or a quick shopping trip” Shenzi said, motioning to the model she’d bought to work on. “What have you been up to, if you don’t mind my asking?”

Looking at the model for a brief second, Arwa looked back at Shenzi. “Smart, bit of R&R is always good” she took another slurp from her drink and looked at the event “Looking around of the inventions of today and tomorrow so to speak. Plus doing some podium talks about recent discovery. You not interested in it?”

Shenzi looked at the holographic watch on her cybernetic arm. “Well, I could stick around a bit longer, listen to the talks you’re gonna give. What discoveries you going to talk about?” She asked, taking another swig of her drink.

A him came from Arwa “Its about the mental toll that every person in the line of duty has to sacrifice. a known study shows that a person reacts in 3 ways. They either freeze, fight or flee in the moment of high distress. But recent study shows that the Borg changed that factor To either freeze or flee. It’s quite interesting. Your not interested in the other boots?”

“Ehhh, it’s not that I’m not interested in them, it’s more that they can’t hold their drink like I can, so bar hopping with them gets boring after a while. I am interested in how the Borg changed that 3 F’s factor, however.”

A smile appeared on Arwa’s with a firm nod. “Good to hear because you, as a fighter pilot, would need to deal with such a situation also. Well, let’s hope it’s not the Borg that is waiting for you as your enemy” Arwa shrugged a bit. “But this is a conference more focused on science, so it is understandable that not everything is in your area of interest”

“Well, I’m still kinda interested in everything that’s going to be discussed.” Shenzi replied. “Maybe a new interest will be sparked in a subject I hadn’t heard of before.”

Nodding to her, “That is the spirit; learning is what we do in Starfleet. Heck, I would laugh at anyone that would say we are doing anything else. Be it cultural learning or exploring the unknown. We wish to know more, and understanding is a powerful tool,” Arwa said, taking another sip. “Anything you like to know already? Because when i am on stage I kinda have to keep going and get a lot of questions, see it as a VIP treatment” Arwa laughed. 

“Like to know? You mean besides that thing about the Borg?” Shenzi asked, crushing the now empty energy drink, and tossing it at the nearby trash can, and missing. She made an annoyed noise. “Well, maybe someone will talk about that sentient nebula I had to fly my fighter through. The one that was messing with the minds of my wingmen, playing with their fears.” Shenzi said as she went to retrieve the empty can and put it in the receptacle before anyone got on her ass for littering. “Maybe figure out why it didn’t affect me. Couldn’t be from my telepathic abilities since telepaths usually get the worst from these things.”

Looking at Shenzi as she retrieved the can and put it into the trashcan, “No one really prepares you for what the unknown has to offer. No one really understands what makes us….well us” Arwa said with a smile “Every species out there is wired differently, and so are you….what affected your wingman doesn’t mean per se that it will affect you” Arwa thought for a second “So I guess there are a lot of things that the universe still has to answer for in a way to satisfy our curiosity.”

Shenzi smiled at that. “You’re absolutely right. As far as I know, I’m also the only hybrid of Caitian and Kzinti, so I don’t think I’ll be likely to find any other examples of myself to base this off of.” She retrieved her pack of cigarettes, but changed her mind and put them back before opening another energy drink. “Emphasis on wired differently in my case, though. Got enough machinery in me that I also need to get an engineer to look at me as well as a doctor.” She joked.

Nodding softly to that “Well enough chit-chatter lets get some sightseeing done” Arwa grabs her arm and started walking into the direction of the congress “It is quite fun when you get into it” Arwa pointed out and smiled a bit at her “Ready for the dive?” She saw Shenzi nod and smiled “Lets go!” and moving into the crowd of the congress. 

tag

Walking through the congress as it neared its closing, Miwela looked around with much amazement and curiosity. Going from stand to stand, booth to booth, and conversing with many scientists who are experts in their respective fields. But Arwa's mind was somewhere else, distracted somewhat after her encounter with Yisuf. She had her hands on her back, walking calmly behind Miwela as she glared at her being so cheerful. 

But Arwa's glare was broken when she noticed Miwela looking back at her. “Are you okay, Arwa?” She looked concerned about her friends' behavior, “You seem … different from the moment we met that…man. I don't want to prey on your history, but who is he, and why are you so …..shaken up about it?” Miwela and Arwa stood there within the busy path of the congress, looking at each other for a few seconds, forgetting their surrounding.

Arwa finally broke off her stare and looked at her side to the many people interacting at various stands. Her eyes filled with sadness at painful memories that she wanted to forget. Something that she wanted to move on from, but it seemed that history was catching up, and she refused to let go. What would she advise anyone right now in this situation? Arwa shrugged slightly, knowing the answer all too well. Talk…

“You can always talk to me; it is weird, I know. But even counselors need that listening ear,” Miwela said with a soft smile, placing her hand on Arwa's shoulder. She was surprised to see a tear rolling down her friend's cheek. “We can go somewhere else to a more calming area?” 

Moving her head from side to side slowly, “No.” Arwa got out and looked at Miwela. “You're right. I need to get this out of my system and talk. Or who would advise people to talk about their feelings, past, and troubles if I can't do the same?” Arwa took a deep breath. “Let's walk to talk. It is my way to calm down. Having people around me works best to let it go.” That said, she started walking calmly around the congress, but not really paying attention to her surroundings. 

“So….who is this guy, and should I call in security?” Miwela tried to crack the conversation with a joke and looked at Arwa for any reaction to her attempt.

Giving away a soft smile as a reaction, Arwa shook her head. “Let's not get the Commander in trouble on his day off.” But her smile disappeared as fast as fog before the sunlight. Yisuf Juss was a …fellow cadet in the academy. He was always popular and had energetic friends around him. Friends had followed him to the academy after their high school. In many views, he was ahead of the game when entering" 

“Sounds like a good kid back then?” Miwela listened carefully to Arwa. “But what do you mean with ahead?”

“Like I said, you knew no one in the academy when starting, but everyone had a common goal and eyes in the same direction. However, making friends was a talent for one and a burden for another.” Arwa explained, “I was…never really a person to make friends back then. I was a person who was withdrawn and shy, and my handicap didn't make it any better.” 

Miwela blinked. She had never imagined Arwa having difficulty making friends. She was the driving force of the department, and everyone liked her energy, attitude, and friendly vibe. “What…kind of handicap?” 

She pointed at her neck as she pulled her collar, showing a small cut near her ear. “I was born without hearing…” Arwa lowered her hand and looked at her side. “It was a complex situation back then, depending on various criteria. Mainly, it could have been fixed if I had just had the operation, but my fear took over, and I wanted to prove to everyone that I was stronger than that….that I could function without speech.” 

“You….were afraid of the operation?” Miwela carefully spoke.

“Yes…I was terrified.” Arwa looked back forward as they were walking. “I used sign language in the academy and tried to overcome my problems by reaching out and asking everyone to talk to me. For a while, it was good. It seemed like I was making friends and being part of something.” She felt the sadness growing as she relieved the memories, walking around trying to communicate with everyone and reading their lips as best as possible.

Miwela felt that the story would get to a point of painful memories. But she knew she had to ask, “This is where he came in?” 

Slowly nodding, Arwa said, “I figured Yisuf was back then the most popular guy in the class. He had a history of being a Bajoran, trying to prove himself, and thus it might have been best to become first friends with him. So I did, and I thought I was a friend.” Arwa shrugged. But in time, without me knowing, he put up an act. He was friendly and …supportive of me. Only to make fun of me behind my back.” 

A gasp of shock came over Miwela, who looked shocked at her. “That happens?” She had a great academic year at Starfleet Academy, so she couldn't imagine how Arwa endured these terrible experiences.

“Yes, in time, I noticed that …pranks were getting out of control. Friends of his throwing my notes around, poking me, grabbing my stuff without me hearing it. Making me feel like I was part of a group of friends that ….” She paused for a moment, “… that we were not friends in the first place.” Arwa shrugged at her own words. “My first year at the academy was a terrible start, and I endured it for two more years after that. The teachers did pick up the signals and took me aside a few times. I never accepted their help, as I kept defending them, saying they were my friends, and they were teasing me.” 

Taking a deep breath, “Eventually, in the third year, their pranks became so bad that the teacher did intervene, and the irony….Yisuf's friends accused him of being responsible for bullying me for the past three years in the academy. I tried to defend him and tell them it was just a prank, an innocent tease, and they were all friends.” Arwa stopped her walking, feeling her eyes tear up and struggling with the story. “But they looked me dead in the eye and said I was never their friend. I was just a piece of entertainment created by Yisuf.” 

Suddenly, Arwa felt a hug that embraced her from the side, and Miwela hugged her friend. “It is not your fault, Arwa; you did nothing wrong. You tried to become friends with them, with these bullies. You are now surrounded by real friends who care for you." 

Arwa felt the tears rolling over her cheek, trying to hold it back, but the waves of emotions overflowed her. “I know….but somehow I kept believing it was not true, it couldn't be true. Yet when I looked at Yisuf in the eyes, he looked away as if it was nothing. I ….stormed out the class with the teacher following me.” Arwa took another deep breath. “I was relocated to Mellstoxx III to continue my career path within the Fourth Fleet. I … overcame my fear and took the operation to be able to hear.” Arwa looked at Miwela, who was emotional with her. “I had not … considered the fact that I would see him again”

“You don't have to anymore. He is on leave here and will disappear as soon as this congress is over.” Miwela let go and wiped the tears away from Arwa's face. “Until that time, I will fiercely protect you from this man” 

Arwa smiled softly. “Thank you for being there for me….for listening to a troubled story that has stuck with me for all those years.” It was still a painful chapter of her history, but she felt the burden lighter, knowing someone would hear her out. She offered to listen to people in her profession, and she never opened up about her past. 

Nodding to her friend, “Always, now let's get some food; I am starving,” Miwela laughed, taking Arwa's arm and dragging her further on. Arwa lets herself be dragged and only smiles, wiping her tears away. However, this chapter was not yet closed, but her wounds are healing. 

Emily wandered through the bustling promenade of Starbase Bravo, her eyes alight with curiosity and wonder. The Starfleet Exploration Colloquium had transformed the space into a vibrant tapestry of innovation and culture, with exhibits ranging from the latest starship designs to the most intricate examples of alien art. As an engineer, Emily was naturally drawn to the technological showcases, her gaze lingering on a holographic display of a warp core stabilisation technique that promised to revolutionise space travel. The hum of excited conversations and the soft glow of interactive displays provided a backdrop to her exploration, blending the familiar with the promise of the unknown.

Lost in thought, she almost didn’t notice the figure approaching from the opposite direction. It was only when she stepped aside to allow a family to pass that her gaze settled on a familiar face among the crowd. Lieutenant Junior Grade Camden “Cam” Solari, the pilot she had met when his bomber had suffered thruster troubles.

“Cam!” she called out, a smile breaking across her face. “I didn’t expect to see you here,” she continued, stepping forward to close the gap. “Have you seen the warp field exhibit? It’s fascinating.”

Cam’s attention shifted abruptly from the distant sign he had been observing, captivated instead by the warm greeting. Seeing the engineer brought him great joy, and he responded with a broad smile, eagerly replying, “Ensign Robinson! No, I haven’t, but what about you? Have you checked out the new experimental nacelles yet?

Emily’s smile widened at the mention of the experimental nacelles. “I haven’t yet, but I’d love to see them,” she said, her enthusiasm evident. “Shall we check them out together? It could be interesting to compare notes on their design and speculate on the performance improvements they might offer.”

“It’s a date!” Cam’s words burst out without any restraint, a surge of enthusiasm taking over. But the moment the phrase left his lips, his cheeks flushed a vivid shade of red, and he began to stammer, his anxiety revealing itself, “I… I… I meant, I’d love to, and, um, I’m genuinely curious about you… uh, I mean, uh, them too.”Emily couldn’t help but smile at Cam’s sudden flurry of words. 

“It’s a plan, then,” she responded with a gentle laugh, aiming to ease his discomfort. 

“I’m curious about them too, and it’ll be great to have an expert pilot’s perspective.”

As they made their way toward the exhibit, navigating through the throngs of visitors, Emily found herself appreciating the unexpected company. The colloquium, with its myriad of innovations and artistic expressions, felt even more vibrant and engaging with someone to share the experience.

”So, Cam,” Emily began, her curiosity piqued, “I know you’re with the White Squadron, and that’s pretty impressive. But I’d love to hear more about your experiences. What’s been the highlight for you since joining Starfleet?”  

 “Honestly, it’s tough to pinpoint just one moment; so much has unfolded in such a brief span,” Cam admitted, sifting through a myriad of memories before narrowing it down to two standout experiences. 

“I’d have to say it’s a tie between joining the crisis team for Borg DNA extraction after Frontier Day, or the rescue of stranded cadets in the thick atmosphere of Mellstoxx VI.” 

His eyes sparkled with the recollection, and then, curious, he turned the conversation outward, “What about you? How has your Starfleet experience been so far?”

Emily listened intently, her eyes reflecting a mix of admiration and intrigue as Cam shared his experiences.”Both sound incredibly intense and rewarding,” she replied.

After a brief pause, reflecting on her own journey, she smiled. “For me, the transition from working on the frontier colony of Ladian I to Starbase Bravo has been eye-opening. I’ve had the chance to apply my skills on a larger scale, which has been incredibly rewarding. Each day presents new challenges, but that’s what makes it exciting, right?”

Walking alongside Cam, Emily felt a sense of camaraderie blossoming. It was a pleasant surprise, finding common ground with someone she had met under the auspices of a routine maintenance check. The colloquium, with its celebration of innovation and exploration, seemed to amplify their shared interests, making the conversation flow even more smoothly.

As they approached the designated area for the experimental nacelles, the crowd seemed to thicken, a mixture of Starfleet personnel and civilians gathered to catch a glimpse of the future. The exhibit, bathed in the soft glow of ambient lighting, promised a deep dive into the mechanics and theoretical underpinnings of the new technology.”I’ve been looking forward to this exhibit,” Emily admitted, turning to Cam with a smile. “The potential implications for deep-space exploration are just fascinating. What are your thoughts on how this could change space travel?” 

Cam’s eyes sparkled with earnest hope as he spoke, his slightly suppressed grin reflecting his actual sentiment. “You know,” he began, “I can’t help but hope that they’ll make things better for the universe. It’d be incredible to stick around and witness it all for as long as possible.” His words were laced with a mix of optimism and excitement.

Then, with a playful glint in his eye, he added, “Of course, being a pilot, my mind tends to wander to one thing: speed. How fast can I push the limits? That’s what really gets me going.”

Cassidy sat at her desk, appreciating the return to normalcy after the adventures on the Exeter.  It was the first full morning back. The pile of PADDs on her desk were exhibits of why she should have stayed aboard the station.  She had started to work through them when her door slid open, and a nervous-looking Ensign Geraldine Parker stepped through the door.  Parker had an unusual amount of confidence for an ensign, and to see her in this state gave her pause.  “Ensign Parker?”

She handed over a PADD, “We’ve got a situation.  A half hour ago, an engineer presented with what looked like a collapsed lung.  The hospital staff put him through triage and started addressing the lung…”

Montgomery read as she explained and stopped her, “The second lung collapsed?”  She read on.  It didn’t get any better.  “This looks like it’s headed to a full systems failure.”

Parker curtly nodded, “They notified us as a precaution.”

She stood, “Who’s next up on the board?”  She had instituted a system in case of emergency – there was a rotating list of doctors who would work a case with her. Each of the physicians was exposed to serious cases working with Cassidy.

Parker said it with a side of amusement, “Lieutenant N’Vea.”

Cassidy allowed the amusement to slide, “I’ve worked with her on her review back in May.  She’s got what it takes.  Have her meet me in critical care.”

Doctor N’Vea was waiting patiently in critical care when Doctor Cassidy arrived. It was unusual that she was called there; the more important seeming jobs had fallen to other doctors. She had assumed that it was who Doctor Cassidy trusted, as it was only logical to rely on doctors that you were familiar with in a crisis unless a certain specialization was needed. 

The Vulcan nodded as her boss entered, “Doctor Cassidy, how may I assist you?”

Cass motioned her along as she handed over a PADD and described what she knew so far.  It wasn’t much.  “He’s been stabilized, but vitals are showing a cascading of unusual symptoms.”  They arrived at the room where the Chief Shift Resident stood, his eyes full of concern.

“Here’s the latest.  We’re working to stabilize the sudden onset dehydration.”  Montgomery accepted the PADD and listened as the full rundown was given.  The irregular heart rate had just started moments ago.

Doctor N’Vea scanned the document. It was as the other woman had said, a patient clearly suffering from dehydration, but there seemed to be more going on than just that. It looked like a unique case.

The Deputy Director shook her head, “Medical mysteries abound, even in the 25th century.” She slid a phlebotomy cart towards her, “You do a full panel – from top to bottom.  I’ll take the physical and tricorder scans.”

“Have we already drawn the necessary fluids, or should I handle that as well,” Doctor N’Vea asked. She did not mean to suggest that it was beneath her to extract fluids from the patient, however if they were suffering from a lack of fluids the medical team should be judicious in not over drawing from the body. 

Cass held up the rapid IV infuser she was working on, “We’re going to need a fresh panel. Whatever is happening is happening fast.  We’ll keep the good stuff going to prevent issues with what we’re taking out.”  She quickly attached it to the patient and snagged a tricorder.  There was much to be learned in a short amount of time.

Once N’Vea had the needed fluids, she sat down, donned gloves and a face mask, along with an even more protective lab coat, and began her studies. The Vucan used various tools to distribute and study the liquids as she went.

Cass frowned at the tricorder.  The patient’s body temp was slowly climbing, indicating a fever response.  The twin lung collapse wasn’t helping.  She slipped an intubation unit off the exam table with one hand while her other scanned the lungs.  Both were nearing full collapse despite the treatments the staff had given.  “I’m going to have to intubate to keep the lungs inflated and working.”  She gently mounted the unit over the man’s mouth, activating it when it had indicated the correct placement.  It took twenty seconds of waiting, but the oxygen readings returned to acceptable limits, and the lungs held form.  Cass began the careful physical examination.

Though they were being careful and taking appropriate measures in terms of keeping the patient isolated and ensuring he was not likely to infect anyone else N’Vea wondered if more extreme measures should be used, though for now she believed that they were being cautious enough. It was just after seeing her former crew all become Borg via a kind of signal and infection via transporter she was no longer confident in tried and true methods. Quickly things could become serious out here so far from Vulcan.

”I’m running tests do you feel that we should increase his isolation at this point?” she asked, not wanting to push for it considering the idea was likely an illogical one on her behalf.

The Deputy Director of General Medicine had given many responses to that question in her career.  Some had been mistakes in deciding against it, and others had saved an entire colony or ship.  What was happening now was wildly all over the map, and it felt like it might spin further out of control the longer the clock ran.  She decided to try and get the metaphorical ship on some recognizable course.  “Let’s all be Boy Scouts and be prepared.  Lock it down.  Now.”  She moved to the console and tapped in the commands that would engage the isolation protocols within the room.  The patient’s vitals were in the balance…and something had to be done.  She looked at her doctor, “Well, now there’s no getting out.  Let’s run those samples and see what we can find out.”

”I am not familiar with your Boy Scouts, but Vulcan’s are always prepared,” Doctor N’Vea answered evenly. The reading made little sense but they were alarming. Knowing humans found the statement that something that was clearly happening was ‘illogical’ annoying she refrained from making it. As little sense as the readings made it was happening and they would just have to adapt. 

Now in isolation, she knew that the best thing to do was remain calm and look for logical courses of action. 

“I believe our social plans for the evening are canceled,” N’Vea said, attempting something a human might find to be levity. 

Cassidy was amused at the joke, “I do like that you think I have social plans on this station, Lieutenant.   Let’s get those reports and see what we’ve got on our hands.”