The Cost of Forever (USS Thor)

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First Season, Episode 4: Stardate 239801.05 - Present

Teaser

While the USS Thor prepares to leave New Bajor/the Gamma Quadrant, it receives a faint distress call on an unusual frequency at the edge of its range. Traveling to the source of the distress call, the crew discovers an unusual solar system enveloped within a highly charged nebula... and a failing primitive spacecraft trapped at the nebula boundary.


Mission Summary

Prologue

After six years of arduous journey to the Edge, the crew of the Endless Golden Penetrator found that the goal for which the starship was built had failed. [1] Owner & Guildmaster Extraordinary, First Eternal, President for Life of the Saldanian Corporate Hegemony, Beloved & Benevolent, Everlasting & Magnificent Sal’Lat’Ut’Kel’Tras Anroc, disappointed with the loss of his assets and the damage to his reputation that such a fiasco represented on his home planet, left his body behind on the vessel, thus leaving more than 1300 crew members at the mercy of the space singularity. [2] Left to their fate, the Ephemerals Nenni Nokzu and Saulan Ket'han resolve to try one last option: launching a desperate distress call against the Edge to make it bounce back to the home planet, whilst they try to take the fatally wounded vessel to a nearby planetoid. None suspect the signal will be recieved by someone unexpected...


Act One

As the Thor wrapped up shoreleave on (New) New Bajor, a distress signal spurred the crew back into space to answer the call. Ensign Katsim Peri, Lieutenant Sirok, and Captain Wes Greaves were called together as a team in order to analyse the signal. Sent via radio waves, distortion had warped it so it was difficult to decipher, but Sirok managed to restore enough of it to get a summary of what was going on. Meanwhile, Ensign Katsim used the gravitons from the signal to pinpoint the direction and location of the source. Lead to a nebula from the remnants of a supernova, the group find that their destination is not without perils, subspace waves and other anomalies making any sort of rescue mission risky.

Meanwhile, Commander Geoffrey Teller summoned Lieutenant Alieth & Ensign Jehe Saja to the intel centre to study the available data on the area and the possible threats they might encounter. However, it soon became clear that they were entering unknown and rarely explored territory that should not be inhabited at all. With the prospect of contact with an unknown species, they coordinated with the other teams for the possibility of First Contact, perhaps with a pre-warp civilization or a very limited warp.

At the same time Lt. Commander Alexander Brodie, Lieutenant Quen Deena & Ensign Dar Elandra planned for a possible mass rescue of the shipwreck from both a medical and a security perspective. Finally, on the bridge, Lieutenant Udro Nepra, Lt. Commander Ben Garcia, Lieutenant Lorian Lovar & Ensign Tara Wilkins studied the hazards and physical conditions of the nebula and the potential challenges of the rescue.

Called upon by the Captain to act as first contact, Commander Teller, Lieutenant Alieth, and Ensign Jehe transported over to the other ship. Upon arrival, they met with what seemed to be an abandoned control room. A moment later, two alien life forms were found hiding, and as the translator caught on to their language, they began to understand the strange beings who beamed aboard their vessel. With the location deemed as safe, Captain Kells indicated to Lieutenant Sirok, Captain Greaves, and Ensign Katsim they would be on standby as a second away team. A few hours later, the small group congregated in the transporter room. Captain Greaves, decked out in an EV suit, suggested the others follow suit. They beamed to the shipwrecked ship, then known as the "Endless Golden Penetrator" and joined the first away team on the bridge.

Captain Kells, Captain Greaves, and Ensign Katsim remained on the bridge trying to understand the mysterious Zet, who seemed adamant about saving the ship even at the risk of their own lives. After a tense discussion, Captain Kells and Captain Greaves managed to convince the shipmaster and his assistant to evacuate the crew, in exchange of doing everything possible to save the Penetrator. In the meantime, Ensign Katsim monitored the ship's hull microfractures to ensure the stability of the hull and studied how the approaching wave could be forded to save both the Zet and the Thor.

Meanwhile, on the Thor, the bridge crew discovered that the arrival of the Starfleet vessel had caused a wave in the nebula, and that a wave composed of highly dangerous and energetic particles was heading towards them from the opposite direction. With quick thinking, they combined their efforts with the away team to surf the wave. One final group headed for the main sickbay to receive the first refugees.

After convincing the aliens that their intentions were altruistic and coming to their aid, Commander Teller, Lieutenant Alieth, Lieutenant Sirok and Ensign Jehe made their way to the ship's engine room, determined to use the ship's systems to power up the Thor's tractor beam and bring the ship to safety, while beginning to triage and evacuate the Penetrator's crew.

Lieutenant Alieth, and Ensign Jehe performed triage on all the Zet they could find, guided by Vice Associate Director Of Crew Fulfillment & Disposal Shaggee Rod'gurs. Their work was not without frustration and misunderstanding, given the Zet's reluctance to accept a service without an economic exchange, which forced them into creative solutions and corporate discourse. Ensign Jehe was able to beam out of the ship (with the help of a priority beam tag that the Vulcan made sure to pin on her uniform without the Bajoran's knowledge) with the last refugees, but Dr. Alieth remained on the ship until the last minute trying to save as many of the crew as possible.

In a fight against the clock, Commander Teller & Lieutenant Sirok jammed the Penetrator's systems with the Thor's to force a translation of the convoluted Zet script, just in time before the wave that the Thor's arrival had triggered in the Nebula struck. They succeeded at the very last second, and the Thor was able to envelop the massive ship in a warp bubble, saving it from destruction. However, the Penetrator lacked inertial dumpers, resulting in a broken nose and a flying Vulcan when the wave made contact.


Act Two

Two days after the rescue of the Golden Penetrator, the USS Thor managed to tow the ship to the Zet Homeworld. Upon arrival, they received a call from the ship's real owner, Shipmaster Pitorian Sal'Lat'Ut'Kel'Tras Anroc, who invited them to his headquarters, especially interested in the presence of the Chief Engineer, Lieutenant Sirok. He came down to the surface, escorted by Ensign Jehe Saja and Ensign Dar Elandra, with Captain (SFMC) Wes Greaves leading the away team. They were greeted in a lavish area of a massive city, even more so than the Golden Penetrator itself and were soon greeted by the Eternal Anroc.

Meanwhile, a second group, composed of Commander Teller, Lieutenant Alieth, Lieutenant Quen and Ensign Katsim beamed down to a different part of the planet, a decaying, foul-smelling slum suburb where thousands of Zet huddled together. The reason for their presence there was to sort out the relocation of the Penetrator shipwrecks who, for some reason, were being rejected on the surface. Their acquaintance Shaggee Rod'gurs led them into the massive building to deal with the administrative headache of rehousing employees who had supposedly expired.

While on the Thor, Fleet Captain Aron Kells underwent a counseling session with Lt. Commander Alexander Brodie about his reckless approach to save the Penetrator. At the same time, a runabout, piloted by Lt. Commander Ben Garcia with Lt. Commander Lia Rouiancet and Lieutenant Lorian Lovar on board, left the Thor heading around the Penetrator to study the planet from the atmosphere.


Act Three

[TBA]


Officers

MSNPCs

  • Shipmaster Pitorian Sal’Lat’Ut’Kel’Tras Anroc, Owner & Guildmaster Extraordinary, First Eternal, President for Life of the Saldanian Corporate Hegemony, Beloved & Benevolent, Everlasting & Magnificent
  • Nenni Nokzu, Acting Shipmaster
  • Saulan Ket’han, Deputy Director of Daily Operations
  • Shaggee Rod'gurs, Vice Associate Director Of Crew Fulfillment & Disposal


Footnotes

  1. Lieutenant Udro Nepra went LOA at the beginning of Act 1.
  2. Ensign Tara Wilkins went LOA at the beginning of Act 1.


References