Josh Herrick
| USS Octavia E Butler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Josh Herrick | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pronunciation | j-AH-sh h-EH-r-ih-k | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Intel & Second Officer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | Lieutenant Commander | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Species | Human | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gender | Male | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pronouns | He/him | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DOB | 237308.01 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Age | 28 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birthplace | San Francisco, Earth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Writer ID | O240005JH3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lieutenant Commander Josh Tobias Herrick is a human officer currently serving as the Intelligence Officer and Second Officer aboard the Federation Starfleet vessel USS Octavia E Butler. Expand the full record or explore by selecting individual section headers. |
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Personal Details
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Born in 2373 on Earth, in the city of San Francisco, near Starfleet Academy.
Grew up with an interest in engineering, influenced by his father's career, and developed a passion for holodeck adventures, often creating his own immersive scenarios based on popular novels and historical events
At age:
- 12, he joined a junior Starfleet club, where he learned basic skills and protocols. Although introverted, Josh began forming friendships with other teens aspiring to be Starfleet cadets.
- 16, Josh began seriously considering a career in Starfleet, inspired by his father's work and his experiences in the junior Starfleet club. He started focusing on the necessary subjects and developing his skills.
- 18, helped retrofit an existing starship in spacedock for several months, under a project led by his father.
- While the ship never left the Sol system, he gained valuable practical experience of day-to-day engineering operations and routine problems engineers face in the field.
- 20, enrolled in Starfleet Academy with average academic performance, majoring in engineering like his father and also taking the command track.
- 26, graduated Starfleet Academy with average marks in his engineering and command courses, but with strong recommendations from his instructors for his dedication and attention to detail. Specializations in: Replicators, Warp Systems, Holodeck Simulations, System Design and Programming. Posted to the USS Oumuamua.
- 27, while serving aboard the USS Octavia E Butler, made permanent Chief Engineer.
- 28, appointed as USS Octavia E Butler's Second Officer.
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Personal:
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Details to Follow (Broke with MediaWiki update)
Service Record
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- For award descriptions, see: Awards and Service Ribbons
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2402
The USS Octavia E Butler has been ordered to the Koreli system, a nonaligned, binary star system in the Kissoben Reach nearest to the United Dominion of Planets sphere of influence. Starfleet received an invitation to Koreli IV, but not from the Danni. Instead, the invitation came from a Zet, Ma’det’ain’ths’ng’in’Grend, warlord and monarch of the subjugated world.
Lieutenant Richards is joined by Lieutenants Herrick, Maxwell, and Salo, tasked with making contact with the residents of a small mining town. The group materialise in a wet basement cellar. On the roof, they see an automatic hatch with a keypad that Richards prepares to shoot in hopes of opening the hatch. Herrick agrees it would work but is concerned it won’t send a peaceful message. He asks if he’s sure it’s locked. At that point, the officers begin grabbing crates and stacking them to reach the hatch to try and open it. Salo manages to do so and gets up to the main floor of a house. Richards suggests she finds something to help them up there.
After climbing to the second level, she discovers it’s dark and empty. Utilising the little light from below, she finds a cable, attaches it to a staircase and throws the rest down to help the others up. Maxwell then heads to the window to assess the situation and sees several Danni. Taking point, he steps out, but the natives barely look at them. Using her tricorder, Nesre notes that the ground is overly saturated, there is evidence of recent floods. However, Richards can't understand how that could have happened with their level of technology.
As the group think about finding local government, two men begin a heated argument, which turns physical. Maxwell intervenes before it can get too severe and the man he’s detained, who goes by the name of Kilik. Salo and Richards ask how they’ve struggled and admit needing mine plating. The counsellor says they’ll help if the Danni will show them what they need, and both Kilik and Tano do so. As they walk along, they see how downtrodden the residents are, and Richards comments that he hadn’t realised how bad it was. He then asks what the King has to do with it all. When Kilik tries to share, Tano tries to shush him, but Kilik complains about disasters and people dying, and yet quotas never change. When Herrick points out they seem to be less technologically advanced than initially, Kilik tells him to read the Danni-Zet contract to find the answers he seeks, particularly around the clauses around mining, quotas and consequences.
The group moves on and comes to a place where the dead lie on the ground. Together, the officers cover them with blankets to regain their dignity, one being Kilik’s daughter, Alena. Richards tells the Danni to take them to the person in charge. They take the officers to a gated facility, but it’s locked with electrically charged fences. Herrick decides to transport, but reckons they must try another way when the OEB is incommunicado. Then, one of the Danni suggested they become ‘bait’. As the group attempts to work on their plan, some soldiers approach and order the officers to return to their ship. Herrick tries to bluff saying they are there on business, but the soldiers don’t believe them and the next thing everyone knows, they open fire. Soon, everyone but Salo is stunned, and they are all taken into custody. The Zet captors carry the men and lead Salo into the compound. Once there, they force her to change and put new suits on the others before leaving. Although they took her tricorder, they considered the medkit harmless and left it. Upon awakening, Herrick rises and walks around the room, spurring displays to light up with advertisements praising the new king. They don’t know why they were brought to what looks to be a nice, if sparsely furnished room, nor what they wish to do with them. Little did they know, Chairman Ualara, a Danni put into power by the Zet, has plans to send them to the king, but not before she interrogates them over diamond dust cocktails. Studying the badges, a call comes in from Kessler, and she responds, informing him that by the order of the Supreme Director, any Starfleet officer will be labeled as Foreign Agent and detained no matter the infraction. She then heads down to meet those currently in her custody.
Richards also awakens after a disturbing dream involving the Zet and begins to verbally posture confidence in their ability to escape the room. Herrick wonders if they want something more from them to use as a bargaining chip, and after asking for thoughts from the others, suggests they could hack the local software and see if they’d overlooked putting it on an insulated network and hopes they aren’t being monitored. He then inspects the monitor, but they hear someone unlocking the door before they can make any real progress.
Chairman Ualara enters and states she wishes to talk. Maxwell suggests they move somewhere with more room, and she allows them to do so, leading them down to a conference room. Salo mentions that the Federation like to talk because they feel it’s better to handle conflict peacefully when possible. Still, Ualara insists they lack the understanding of the necessary processes to apply to give aid. She proceeds to explain the ‘process’. Richards asks if the colleague she mentioned having a weapon is being held in that location. Still, Ualara told him no, it happened at the Royal Headquarters, and she’s either being held, put to work in the mines, or being used as a negotiating hostage with the Federation.
Ualara declares they have no idea what they’ve stepped into and need to be educated. She insists the Danni aren’t being exploited. Still, they willingly signed contracts with the Zet and the flooding is a result of sabotage performed by other Zet families, and lets slip that though they contain a material essential to the Zet rehusking process, the mines are poisonous to the Zet, but not to the Danni. Herrick suggests that unionizing could benefit the Zet, and Salo agrees. However, she also notes that Ualara wanted something for them, otherwise she would have sent them to the king already, and Maxwell echoes the sentiment that she’s playing for time. Ualara admits she is concerned about enforcing the contracts without the promised carry through. She doesn’t want the King and Zet to rip up the contracts yet continue exploiting her people for their benefit. She admits the Danni were promised the technology to transcend death and that doing so will make them a more prominent figure in the galactic community. She also points out that the Zet had not only come to help them immediately rather than waiting through the long drawn out process of acceptance into the Federation, but with Federation tech in hand, which meant they had beaten Starfleet before. She wants assurances that the crown will carry out its promise and that the resistances will be convinced to play along for the greater good.
Herrick asks how they would know if the promise wouldn’t just send them straight to the afterlife? She then shows him the bodies of Danni, who volunteered in their attempt to try and ‘rehusk’, but no one can tell whether or not they are alive or dead. Richards and Salo offer assistance, but Salo also asks Ualara to visit her people to let them know what she is doing for them. They agree, and go with her, Maxwell remaining vigilant. As they come to a lift, Richards asks his companions if this seems like a bad idea. The entourage gets on the lift, and when it stops and the doors open, they find themselves near the town. Herrick asks where Kilik and Tano, the Danni they were assisting, are, and Salo reminds her it was Kilik’s daughter who was killed in the floods.
The group approached the town, but the Danni there aren’t happy to see them. Maxwell warns Herrick to watch a couple of Zet that approach carefully. Ualara begins a broadcast and asks the Danni people if the Zet have kept their promises even as the Zet aim their guns at Ualara, but it doesn’t stop the Danni people from raising their voices in protest. Then, Tano and Kilik appear, evidently released, and the crowd grows bigger. Richards takes the badges that Ualara didn’t hand out and asks if they should bring Ualara with them.
Ualara is dragged by the Danni and the Zet open fire, but are overwhelmed by the crowd. Searching, Herrick spies the chairwoman, but she disappears again. Richard and Maxwell attempt to contact the Butler. Ualara is overwhelmed and wonders if, perhaps, she deserves her fate. Upon finding her again, Nesre dives into the crowd.
Herrick, Maxwell, and Salo remain in Maiton but have lost Ualara. Taking refuge in a home, she manages to broadcast a message and they find out she’s in a mine with the last currently mined cache of the mineral the Zet want and is ready to blow it up. Salo finds out there are more mines with more materials, but states they need to find a way to end it once and for all. Herrick suggests they permeate the atmosphere with material and radiation, making it impossible for the zet to land on the planet.
Expressing concerns about the impact such an idea might have on the ecosystem, they continue to brainstorm, when Salo, having learned that Grend is on the ship, wonders if there are inheritance laws in the Zet society. Ualara states there are, but it depends on how the contracts were written out, and reminds them there is also Toal’Dius to contend with. Richards, still angry, insults Ualara who gets upset. Eventually, they calmed her down, and she told them to meet her at the mine.
As they go, Salo connects with Promontory and updates him with her idea of using the inheritance as a bargaining chip with Grend. When she finds out that Toal’Dius is also there, she wonders if it would work on him too.
As they walk, Herrick’s tricorder picks up life signs and they hear the sound of weapons fire. With the Zet still looking for them, they wonder if there’s a more secretive way to get to the mine, such as a tunnel. They quickly and secretly make their way forward, hiding when necessary. Suddenly, Richards hears something, and a Danni named Fandin appears, offering to help and insisting that Ualara’s safety is essential to him. The group follow and he leads them to a hatch. They manage to get it open and get inside. Ualara remains where she is and is discovered by Kilik, who blames her for everything. She points out eight others and asks if he’ll hunt them down, too. She states she was doing what she thought was right for her people. She notes that if he’s going to do it, simply do it because she’s the closest thing to the Zet she’ll ever get. The officers show up and as Kilik starts to attack Ualara, Maxwell puts himself between the two, Danni and takes a knife meant for the chairwoman. Turning to Ualara, Herrick asks for the detonator, indicating she still has an audience demanding an encore. She gives it up, and asks Kilik to cause no more bloodshed. Richards suggests they report back. Suddenly, an earthquake hits. Seeing his chance, Kilik lunges at Ualara, but Fandin blocks him. Racing away, Kilik heads for the exit, but Fandin follows and catches up to him. As the other officers make their own way out, they see the two Danni in a fight, and as the two come together and fall to the ground, rolling over, Kilik seems to prevail. But suddenly, Kilik falls over and goes still, and Fandin remains gasping on the ground, metal deeply embedded in his flesh.
Ualara doesn’t know how to improve things, but Fandin believes in her before he dies. She asks Starfleet what to do next. The entire group beams to the Butler.
2401
The Butler had gone through a one-way wormhole 800 years into the future and in the Beta Quadrant. Lieutenant Herrick, Ensign Lahl, and Caras conduct what repairs they can.
Herrick checks on the damage in Engineer and asks Caras and Lahl for updates on their status. With no dilithium crystals, the ship is in dire need. Lahl struggles with the idea that she might be the last Lahl host, and after reporting that secondary backups are running all right, she notices Lahl’s expression and asks if she’s all right. He suggests music as they work, and though they can’t do much until supplies arrive, he asks where they should begin with what they can do. Herrick votes for opera music, then suggests they start with the EPS distribution and note what decks they can go ahead and turn life support off to have the energy for other things, then they head to Deck 9.
On Deck 9, they see more of the ship has suffered severe damage. Caras asks the computer to continue the music and wonders about paradoxes. As one of the ensigns goes to open a hatch, Herrick warns them to scan it first. They do, and when they open it, the engineers see a reflection of themselves, and suddenly an EPS conduit began to flame up. Herrick closes the door just in time to block an explosion, one too big to be contained to a tiny area. When Caras scans, everything is down, including life support on deck 9. After checking in with Promontory to find out they need extra dilithium, they decide to evacuate the deck and agree to scavenging what they can from the smaller vessels in the hangar
After coming along some other officers, they guide them to safety. Suddenly, there’s an alarming beep from Lahl’s tricorder. Caras realises it’s a reading from the previous explosion that they didn’t receive until just then, indicating the chronitons are still in effect. One of the people they have found in the corridor, a botanist, ignores Herrick’s warning and opens a hatch. They see another vision of Herrick in a nearby tube and brace for another explosion. Still, nothing happens, though Lahl reads the beginnings of a blast on her tricorder, which only supports the idea that time is still functioning oddly. Herrick notes they have other people find it, and internal coms aren’t working on that particular deck. As the botanist uses the hatch to head to hydroponics, Caras wonders if he has the authority as an ensign to say something about the botanist’s behaviour. The person returns with plants that emit a bright light, allowing them to see better.
The group heads to the hanger to try and salvage dilithium from the vessels there, but Herrick admits it will offer limited use. Lahl puts what she gets into a carrier and afterward, they head to the Maintenance support center. Caras notices some panels have been removed and computer parts exposed there, and he wonders if they’ve been sabotaged. They discover it has not been, but someone accessed the computer database. If anything, Lahl intends to see what has been put into the system. Herrick says they can secure it from Main Engineering and update Promontory as they return.
Avander received a red directive to steal a time crystal from a local less-than-reputable party host to return their time.
Herrick, Arlill, Forsyth, and Nis remain on the bridge to oversee the other teams and keep the ship behind a moon to help hide it and make a quick getaway when necessary. Herrick asks if the passive scans reveal anything. Thus far, it’s quiet, and teams should be in position. A minute later, the scan shows something that has settled into geosynchronous orbit with the moon, which looks like some sort of surveillance satellite, and it isn’t sure whether or not it will have detected them. Nis expresses some nervousness but is reassured by her fellow officers. Suddenly, the computer tells them the satellite produces unexpectedly high levels of neutrinos. Forsyth notes that such technology is old compared to their time. Concerned about the presence, Arlill suggests they keep their distance. He also finds it odd that it’s not orbiting the planet and the temporal signature seems familiar, something he’s seen in recent logs. Forsyth brings up using an EMP pulse to turn off the satellite.
Herrick agrees with the idea as Nilsen breaks the comms silence, but the message is garbled. Suddenly, the satellite changes direction and seems to aim toward the Butler. Nis notices the shape of the image on her tricorder is more organic, like a squid rather than technology. Arlill reroutes power to weapons and shields, and they decide to utilise Forsyth’s EMP idea, while the Ops chief puts them on yellow alert and tries to hail the Satellite, asking its intentions. It asks for the Butler’s instead and he tells them they registered explosions and were investigating salvage options. Suddenly, the computer acts strangely, processing at a triple speed. Herrick decides to come out of hiding and face the object. Herrick gives the order to release the pulse, then puts them at red alert. Some systems are affected, turning off and on, as if something was testing their systems.
Seeing the stress in Herrick, Arlill quietly offers help and encouragement. He registers the explosion on the surface and suggests they might have company soon since their actions won’t go unnoticed. Nis checks scans of the away teams and notes that Nis is giving off strange electric signals and is con She also notices scans indicate tachyon fields swirling all around the away teams inside the palace. Forsyth asks if they can transport them out of there, and unfortunately, the EMP isn’t usable for another hour. She then wonders if the satellite has access codes they can use, but Herrick doesn’t think they have time to hack in. Instead, they decide to get closer to the moon and mask their signature by trying to appear like a common phenomenon.
Fearful that the Loom Cult might be after Promontory and Emond, he asks if there’s any sight of them. Arlill begins to receive suggestions from the computer to assist, and then discovers they’re receiving a garbled message from the injured team. Forsyth readies the phasers, but the EMP will take another 30 minutes to allow another pulse. Somehow, the computer can crack into the satellite and begin showing images from the planet. The computer can get a lock on their officers and Nis tries to contact Promontory’s team. As Nis reviews the photos, she sees that guards are massing together. Nilsen comes through and asks them to prepare a landing pad for their return, warning that they have been injured. Herrick asks about Stendhal’s team and notices the feed Nis has. Unable to ascertain whether or not they have been discovered, Herrick asks about Katsim’s team. Nilsen finds that he, too, has feeds and can’t explain them, but he notes that they are invaluable.
With the computer’s unexplained assistance, the EMP can recharge faster and is usable far sooner than expected. The ship begins to shudder, and Nis realises there’s a problem with the warp plasma conduits, which will tear the whole boat apart if not dealt with. Herrick advises how to do so and they await the arrival of the away teams. Suddenly, a man appears on the viewscreen, a Loom cultist who states they will remain in a fixed time bubble thanks to some ‘presents’ that are causing the problems with the vessel. The ship warns about transports detected, then begins a countdown to destruction even as Herrick tells Forsyth to fire at will. Arlill tries desperately to gain control of the ship, but as he passes out, he hears Henri's voice while Nis sees the appearance of a former host. Forsyth initiates the EMP and then passes it out.
Members of the OEB find themselves thrust into different points of time, and each group must try to find their way home.
Herrick awakens in a cargo bay with Nijal, Richards, and Yinn. An announcement over the speaker tells the crew to take their positions in preparation for the 2401 Frontier Day celebrations. Richards notes they only have twenty minutes. Nijal reminds them it’s probably best to avoid interacting with anyone. As they exit, they find themselves on Deck 33 of the Sequoia. They have no idea how they got there and try to remember what happened to the ship during Frontier day. If the ship survived, they could wait a few months and then return to their old lives in the Gamma Quadrant. Scanning, Herrick sees only four of them from the Butler and some scattered temporal readings, two of which are moving, the stationary one in the solid waste reclamation reprocessing center. When Richards suggests he go after the moving ones, Herrick cautions it would be better to stay together.
Yinn, struggling with the sudden separation of her mind from Loq’s, requests a minute to gather herself together. Richards tries to encourage her and reminds her that Starfleet doctors are the best among the best and are likely working on the situation with Loq right now, and the best they can do is get back to the OEB.
Using the limited library on her tricorder, Nijal discovers the Sequoia survived the attack on Frontier day, but can not determine anything else. The group gets into a turbolift to seek out the other time signatures and discuss what cover they should use to explain their presence. Herrick asks if anyone has any weapons, and Yinn reminds them of the personal transporter she stole 800 years ago, then suggests they raid the armoury.
Unfortunately, Richards indicates the armoury would not be accessible considering they expected to have a lot of guests on board, and their conditions might not work thinking they're supposed to be in a different quadrant. The group decide to be prepared for action, and get on a turbo lift only to have it stop and open up for a captain who wishes to use it. The team makes up answers to allay suspicions and the turbolift stops again to reveal a Vulcan. Although intending to take the next one, the captain says they can all squeeze in.
The group finally reached deck 12 and headed to an observation lounge. On the way, Herrick thinks he spies someone who looks like his father, but since his father made no mention of Frontier Day, he elects to dismiss it. He also spies two people who look like they're looking for something. Yinn approaches to act like a genuine visitor to the ship. After a brief back and forth, they continue searching for something. Herrick points out they have the same temporal signature as the other Butler officers and wonders if it got swept up in the temporal distortion.
Nijal asked some more directly, and the visitors indicate they took advantage of the situation created by the time paradox in the hopes of seeing a Loom. As the other hooded figure withdraws a device from a store compartment, Herrick asks if anyone knows what it is. Yinn states it looks like a technologically advanced quantum scanner, and doesn’t believe they are just there to watch. Taking out her phaser, Nijal orders the figures to put the scanner down or she’ll destroy it. The figures admit they don’t just watch; they predict and tell them that the Starfleet officers brought the Loom there.
Using the personal transporter, Yinn appears behind one of the figures and grabs them, asking for assistance. Nijal manages to trip the other figure and fall into the one Yinn is grappling with, which causes the device to tumble. After scooping it up, Herrick tells them to run, but a forcefield appears and captures them. As hope seems to fade, Promontory’s message comes through, telling his officers to find the time crystals so they can return to their times. Remembering the stationary reading from earlier, Herrick asks Yinn if the personal transporter can take all of them to Deck 2.
They managed to use it to get out and to Deck 4, and Nijal asks what the crystals look like, just as the doors open and three members of the Sequoia walk in, state ‘resistance is futile’. Richards grabs an ornament and throws it at one, smashing it on the ground at their feet, then rushes toward a Borg aiming for Herrick to push them away. The group runs and finds a set of stairs, then heads up. After another struggle, Yinn uses the personal transporter to get to the cultist’s quantum temporal device, which somehow cloaks them and causes the borgified officers to lose interest. As Yinn manipulates the device, she finds a way to open it and drops the time crystal shard out. Suddenly, everyone finds themselves back on the Butler in their own time.
All of the crew, except Herrick, made it through, with him needing to relive the events of Frontier Day and the subsequent six months.
Lieutenant Josh Herrick is joined by Lieutenant JG Toz, First Lieutenant Arturo Maxwell, and Second Lieutenant Jacen Xaivis take the runabout, Talents, to Port Coray to covertly seek out information by inquiring about Star Trek technology for sale or anyone unhappy with Starfleet.. The group prepares to head to Port Coray, ensuring they blend in with other residents rather than announce their presence by wearing their uniforms. Herrick reminds them they will likely see slave markets, but they must focus on the mission. As they draw close, Maxwell requests permission to dock, which is granted.
Xaivas wonders if they can take weapons onto the station, but since they weren’t told they couldn’t, they decide to go in armed, and Toz thinks there may have been a traitor on the Unity Dow. As the group steps out, a station representative approaches them, introduces himself as Bartholomew Quintius Coray, and asks what he can do for them. Toz asks where they can get some food and he directs them to the Port Coray Saloon and Diner. Xaivis agrees it’s a good place to start. Once there, the group is greeted by Reginald Augustus Coray the Third. The group orders food, and Maxwell points out some Ferengi he’s not sure he would trust asking. He wonders if simply observing and listening might be their best option, and Toz suggests they do just that.
Xaivis notices among the Gamma Quadrant species, there are several Alpha and Beta Quadrant species. He also mentions staying away from unpleasant types and R.A. Coray warns them they will find themselves on the other side of an airlock if they start anything. Herrick tells Coray they’re scoping for new talent for hire using a fists-first approach to weed out the weak, and repairs and asks for Fed-tech. Xaivis notes species usually associated with the Federation are present, but Coray assures them their ‘hot metal’ (or stolen goods) and they are safe.
As they observe what’s around them, Toz notices someone wearing Starfleet issue boots and suggests they follow them. Maxwell agrees, but only one rather than the group. Another man joins the boot-wearing individual at the table, and a subtle exchange of some tiny objects is made under the table. Maxwell sees it and states they might be on to something. Xaivis wonders if their host can provide a distraction. Herrick elects to split them up. He tells Maxwell and Toz to tail the man while he and Xaivis remain. Before they split, a new engineer, Ensign Kimonzi Lahl, joins them, and Herrick greets her. As she asks for a run down of the situation, the man stands up in preparation to leave.
After they depart, R.A. Coray returns to the table and tells them that he found someone who says they know someone who went to the Omicron system and back but is dead. The person with the information will sell it for 100,000 credits, but they only have 10,000. He then tells them some people, like some Breen, are interested in buying their ship and that they could generally get a couple of million. Still, Herrick asks if they could get a better offer elsewhere, and Xaivas wonders if any other parties, perhaps those off-station, might be interested. Lahl notes they would need transportation, and Coray mentions others would for a price. Herrick says to let them know what people will give and then they’ll make a decision.
As they sit, a Boslic joins them, referring to some ‘Esh-O’ friends, which tells them they know who they are. She indicates she has information about Omicron Victor and is willing to speak for 9,000 credits. Herrick pays her. Nanjjii, the Boslic, tells them that no one has returned from the Omicron Victor, even the Dominion avoided it, and likely their friends are all dead. Xaivis wonders where the stories came from and says that some people have dared to go close and don’t feel like she’s given them any facts. Lahl agrees it’s all theatrics. Nannjji hints that Luriaa has been to the Omicron system. Feeling like they’ve heard enough, the group leaves Nanjjii in the dust, who is miffed they didn’t even offer a thank you.
Upon Herrick’s return to the Butler, Rouiancet heads up a team of Herrick, Nilsen and herself to the bridge of the Unity Dow. Rouiancet uses a science station to try to reconstruct logs. Nilsen takes the Ops console, while Herrick takes Engineer to search for information there, and then suddenly sees a flash of blue. Dismissing it, he asks Nilsen for help reconstructing the fragmented logs. Nilsen expresses concern since Katsim also saw something on the bridge, and he notes that was also how Alpha Brenkelvi II started. Nilsen then checks how the power grid is being used and states it looks like they are trying to pump the power of half their warp core to the shields. Nilsen asks if there’s enough power to pull up a level 10 forcefield around the bridge. Concerned that the crew might have been interphased, she suggests they scan for chronitons.
Herrick gets the field up but notes he had to override the command because the computer didn’t believe it had the power to do so. He also notes a strange residual reading from the ready room. As he opens the door, a stench assaults their noses as a plate of dinner was left on the desk, but he manages to note that the residual readings seem to come from the chair behind the desk.
They find mouldy leftovers of a sandwich, which Rouiancet states they can test to find out how long the crew have been gone, but Nilsen notes most people wouldn’t leave out food, which means whatever happened was sudden. Nilsen notes that he had received an almost telepathic gift back on Alpha Brenkelvi II that he thought would allow him to facilitate communications, but he’s getting nothing. Herrick scans and finds some particles that are close cousins to chronitons, but with some key differences. He also notes they can pull a latent copy of any logs recorded in the ready room.
After opening the viewscreen and manipulating the circuitry, he tells Rouiancet he’ll need the proper command code to authorize playback. They get it to work, but the recording of the captain is unstable and almost incomprehensible. Nilsen thinks there might be a syntax there, so decides to send the information back to the OEB to try and translate it. The group review the logs, but finds nothing unusual at first. Then, Herrick notes some tiny spikes of energy. Rouiancet answers a call from Kessler while Herrick wonders if this was the result of a localised spatial phenomenon or something more nefarious, and notes that at the same time the small spikes of energy registered, the crew’s comm signals went fuzzy and he confirms the strange out of phase situation caused havoc.
When Nielsen mentions that the crew might still be there, and Herrick wonders if they could be shifting through different observable spectrums, just out of phase and imperceptible, Rouiancet wonders if they could get them in phase and it's a power transfer from the butler to the Unity Dow would be useful so they could try and determine whether or not they were still there. Herrick safely deflector would be their best bet, but could cause powerful accelerations and they don't want anything to explode in their faces. Since it would also affect the other team on the Unity Dow, they will have to warn the other team before they try anything. They have to get the deflector dishes facing each other, and Nilsen says so people watch on the power levels to keep it safe. Rouiancet contacts the Butler to let them know what they're doing and to prepare for a power transfer. Rouiancet reports that bridge crew have been having hallucinations and they believe something on the planet is causing them and they’re trying to find a way to mitigate the effects and get the Dow moving, but should leave the system as soon as possible.
Working on a console, Herrick prepares the program, but when he looks up he finds two aliens have replaced his fellow officers and he demands to know who they are. He threatens to open the hatch and invent them all into space if they don't and as he prepares to lower the force field, the being that was Lhandon tackles him and in the struggle, a phaser goes off and strikes the bulkhead. Rouiancet sees a severely injured woman and hears her voices, then aims a shot at Herrick who’s knocked to the ground. When he looks up, his crewmembers have returned to normal.
Herrick apologises to them and Nilsen asks about Herrick’s vision and compares them to others and that it suggests an intelligence behind it. Rouiancet informs the others they’re ready for the flash and when it occurs, Rouiancet sees a dozen bodies on the bridge, but she can’t tell if they are actively out of phase, or simply images from the past. Herrick also sees them but no devices detect life signs.
They receive a call from Caras to eject the warp core in his panic, and Nilsen prepares to do so, but a couple of minutes later, he calls back and explains that something picked him up then dropped him. They decide to go ahead and eject the warp core, just in case.
Herrick traces the drain to the hydroponics lab, but still can’t determine the cause, but his thoughts turn to the 500 officers of the Unity Down now lost. He’s joined by Stendhal and Lahl to investigate. Stendhal notes the UD’s crew have been displaced, and mentally are stuck on the ship, unable to move on and there was a strong psionic field on the station that she struggled with. Lahl asks about her telepathy and Stendhal shares she’s a telepath. Lahl mentions she had success finding devices that were draining the power on the UD and brings over the scanning settings they used when there, but can’t say that the power drain issue is related. A minute later, she pulls one out of a panelled area. After Stendhal suggests they scan for brain wave activity in the gamma band frequency range, which are the frequencies of lucid dreams for most humanoids, she notes she still senses some of the crew, and then hears a cry of some sort. As she looks at her hands, she seems to be disappearing, then suddenly goes back to normal. Herrick notes she started to phase into a subspace fold, tell them to turn off all the scanning equipment and get out of the lab, then puts the power to a minimum. Stendal is able to put a hand through the bulkhead and Herrick motions for her to pull it back while he opens only one tricorder to scan. The counsellor solidifies, and Herrick comments that it’s similar to what Kovacs and Qualunque experienced during a transporter accident.
Herrick asks Lahl if there was a change in the device they found, wonders if it’s a gateway of somesort and asks if the ship sensors detect any other subspace anomalies. Lahl uses a console and finds many more devices while Stendhal notices a haze that she thinks are spectral entities existing out of phase and wonders if they followed them from the alien station. The device Lahl pulled out begins to flash, and suddenly, all three find themselves in a completely different place. Suddenly, Herrick thunks down on his bottom and sees alien script on a wall, and they find themselves in a place similar to the station Arlill and his team were on. Stendhal gets fearful as the situation reminds he of the alien station, but when Lahl suggests they explore, she is encouraging. Suddenly, some lights flash and the group finds themselves at a corridor with a series of doors all made with different materials, and the group goes ‘out of phase’ and Stendhal suggests they choose a door. Herrick chooses one and they find a skeleton hugging itself.
They skeleton and Herrick asks if it shares minerals withthe planet below to determine whether or not it could be a deceased local. As Stendhal imagines Risa, the scene changes to an area with hot lava flow and skeletal remains scattered on a beach. The device flashes again and as Lahl thinks about the OEB, they find themselves back in the Hydroponics lab. When the device begins to flash again, Lahl smashes it and hopes that prevents them jumping again, but the node just puts itself back together again. It hovers in the air, the room spins, and everyone is moved to the alien station, then quickly back to the lab, back to the station, and it repeats til they feel sick. Suddenly, it stops with them in the lab, but there are two Stendhals.
Herrick wants to prove they are both Stendhal rather than one being an alien, and after trying the ‘guess what number I’m thinking of’ game, he decides to get saliva samples from both and use the lab to determine who is who. Lahl thinks about getting a phaser and both Stendhals state if she has to shoot one, shoot the the other which only spurs her to think about shooting both of them, which angers the Stendhals. The duo slap each other, then hug each other and begin to cry. Lahl starts a computer analysis of the DNA sample from the Stendhals, but it only asks why she submitted the same sample twice.
Herrick thinks they should try to recombine them and Lahl suggests using the transporter, but no one can explain why it is only happening to Stendhal. The group head to the Neuroscience lab and Lieutenant Rivka Brzezinski arrives about the same time and finds out the Stendhals are the same person, just separated. After a suggestion is made, Herrick expresses concern over trying to transport her through a subspace fold, and Brzezinski warns them Stendhal may very well discorporate if they don’t do something soon. Lahl suggests a reverse transcoil transport.
Suddenly, one of the Stendahls roars and then begins to attack the other non-Stendhals. The other Stendhal stands and screams, adding to the chaos. The biting one stops, and the two hug each other, then start spinning aound, screaming like maniacs. When the evil Stendhal releases her twin, she tries to jump on Brzezinski. Herrick tells Lahl to use the transporters on one and beam her into the buffers. A bit battered and bleeding, Brzezinski decides it’s no longer time for experimenting. Herrick feels strange and orders them to release her, but the evil Karen begins to attack the other one and the original Karen asks them to put her back into the buffer. Herrick comes to his senses and they get the evil Karen back in the buffer, and admits he felt like someone had controlled him there for a second. That done, they decide to get checked out at sickbay. Herrick is exhausted, but wants to make sure he has a clean bill of health.
The Octavia E. Butler (OEB) arrives at Cheyd'lang, a quiet area on the far spinward side of the Dominion's former sphere of influence. While the planet is currently not warp capable, their heavy industry made them desirable to the Dominion who gave them warp capabilities until their withdrawal after the end of the war. With a request from the Cheydalanga for assistance, the OEB has been instructed to answer the call.
Wishing to understand more of the UDP's influence in these affairs, and especially what they might have done to the Cheydalanga to make them reach out to Starfleet for assistance, Rouiancet has put out a call to the UDP to send envoys to meet aboard the Octavia E. Butler to explain and, perhaps, lead to a joint meeting with the Cheydalanga, and is joined by Colonel Greaves, Lieutenant Herrick, and Ensign Yinn.
After recording her Captain’s log, Rouiancet paces the floor of the Bridge and wonders why the United Dominion of Planets (UDP) has contacted the Cheydalanga, though Greaves says if he were then, he’d try tie in every single former Dominion member he could. He voices a wish to know more about the Cheydalanga, and Rouiancet wonders if scans can verify a heavy industry present on the planet and whether the UDP could be interested in annexing that industry for themselves while Greaves wonders if they should look to the past for answers. He also asks if their just a ripe target and the UDP is taking advantage of the political and social instability of a possible civil disconnect to swoop in on.
Herrick asks if Starfleet has considered incorporating the UDP into it as he checks out the orbital defence systems and finds they have been stripped of their power systems. He then wonders if they should monitor planetside communications, while Yinn suggests they launch a probe and bring it alongside some of the defunct orbital defences to hide it. As the UDP vessel hails them, Herrick connects the call and Luriaa, a Vorta commander, greets them - and recognises Greaves from security footage. She agrees to come to the OEB and meet them face to face.
Before they leave, Herrick plays a broadcast he discovered that was sent over the entire planet involving a conversation about the Intercessor regarding the ‘true way’ and the King’s Path. Greaves notes it could have been a covert signal to other path members and asks if there were weapons or military grade movements and Rouiancet wonders if this means the group plans a large-scale mobilisation. The commanding officer asks Herrick and Yinn to monitor the situation on the planet. They meet Captain Luriaa and her first, Freya, in a room and she immediately discusses the matter at hand - their reason for their presence. They tell her they’ve been invited by the Cheydalanga and asks about their own reasons. Herrick also inquires as to what significance the Chey’d had during the time of Dominion rule. Luriaa and Fraya mention they are willing to offer friendship to those who wishes, and Luriaa further reminds them that they are native members of the quadrant and understand the needs of residents in the area.
After going back and forth, Rouiancet agrees to disagree and Luriaa expresses willingness to broach the Cheydalanga together with them. Greaves reluctantly backs down a little, but Yinn passes along a written message that they are unable to communicate with the away team. Not wanting to let the UDP know about this, he suggests a joint venture to meet with the King’s Path when Arlill connects through the comms and asks to move the ship into a different orbit to find the away team, alerting the UDP representatives to their predicament. Rouiancet gives permission, then asks if Luriaa would be willing to help find the missing team. She agrees, and they determine to meet in a half hour to head down to the planet.
As they separate, Rouiancet asks her officers for their thoughts on the meeting. Greaves is reluctant and continues to voice suspicions. Yinn, however, wonders if they should take a more moderate route and reminds them that those in the UDP were once under the thumb of the Dominion and perhaps are too hasty to compare the two. Herrick suggests its’ time to find facts, and Rouiancet states she’ll ask for a slight delay as she wishes to connect with Etan and Promontory. Rouiancet, Herrick, Winters and Yinn await for the arrival of Captain Luria and her First, Fraya. After briefly speaking with the bridge, she tells the transporter chief to initiate. The UDP representatives appear, and Luriaa immediately suggests that Fraya assist in finding the lost away team while she and Rouiancet meet with the Intercessor. Rouiancet wants to focus on meeting the King’s path and getting her people out from the mines, and Luriaa decides to go along with it. Before they leave, the receive a message from the King’s Path thanking them for the gifts and asking where they should send the Starfleet share of minerals? Rouiancet isn’t sure what they mean and orders the chief to transport them to the planet.
After beaming down, Luriaa states the ‘gifts’ likely mean their missing crew members. Rouiancet is unhappy with this revelation and admonishes Luriaa for not telling her before they beam down, to which Luriaa indicates she was not giving the opportunity. As they are conversing, Herrick’s tricorder reveals movement and seconds later, two tank-like vehicles appear and a voice, that of Cheydalanga resident, Achi’Trinot, demands to know why they were there without permission. Rouiancet and Luriaa both call out to say they arrived at the invitation of the king’s path. A door in a tank opens and a Cheydalanga appears wearing face paint.
Herrick states that they were the ones who brought the new workers and the Cheydalanga says they will send compensation and if terms are unacceptable, they can be improved. Herrick states the Starfleet workers give more output and they could send more. Rouiancet is perturbed by the reference of her people as property and is unable to determine Luriaa’s decision to speak in such a manner. Herrick catches on and finally so does Rouiancet, and they press forward in the hopes that they’ll have access to the mines. Before they can speak further, however, they are knocked over by an explosion and when they rise, a new Cheydalanga, slimmer and fuzzier with a shorter beak that’s a little more mouthlike, naturally wrinkled faces, and fuzz on their bodies that thickens on their head appears. Luriaa shares with the officers that this is the Mongar, then asks who they are speaking with while Yinn keeps her hand on the trigger of her phaser.
When Achi’Trinot realises it’s the Mongar, he tells the visitors not to trust them. Rouiancet realises they are an opposing faction and wonders if they could be made allies, or if not, the confusion might allow them a chance to escape. Winters has similar thoughts but voices them. Dolmeni’Dolce, the leader of the Mongar, takes Achi’Trinot prisoner. Since the Mongar have the upper hand, and they have no treaty yet with either faction, Luriaa suggests he surrenders, but Achi’Trinot is defiant and dares Dolmeni’Dolce to try and kill him. Herrick pulls out his tricorder and explains it’s just a scanning device, but there’s too much interference. He asks if they have a way of cutting through it. In the chaos of the situation, Rouiancet finally suggests that they split up and the Mongar allow them to speak separately. She takes Fraya and Yinn to speak privately with Achi’Trinot while Luriaa is accompanied by Herrick and Winters to speak directly with Dolmeni’Dolce. They inhabit two tents. Luriaa is accompanied by Herrick and Winters to speak directly with Dolmeni’Dolce (Mongar leader). The UDP continues to insist that they are not the Dominion. Dolmeni’Dolce suggests that the crew who were taken to the mines are already dead.
With the revelation of the actions of the King's Path and other groups on Cheyd'lang, Rouiancet orders the return to the ship, Now, the team is at the beginning of what may be a refugee crisis, as slaves are liberated and seek other places to go, especially those who are not Cheydalanga and don't count the world as their home. Lt Commander Promontory takes Lts Stendhal and Herrick to deal with a burgeoning refugee crisis. Stendhal suggests a triage system and making sure they keep everyone calm. With an evacuation capacity of 3,000, Promontory doesn’t want to overload the ship, and Stendhal suggests they distribute refugees between other ships in the area. Herrick notes that while their spacecraft are space worthy, they are not able to achieve interstellar travel and it would take months or years to find a new home. Promontory wonders if they could help with that. Stendhal also suggests they learn more about the nuances of their culture to aid in communication and they carefully coordinate relief efforts to make sure everyone had access to basic needs. Herrick wonders if there might be concerns of aggression and if utilising an already established hierarchy might help in making quicker decisions. Promontory notes the refugees were trying to escape such a situation, but realises it might be helpful, so suggests they organise the refugees and have one representative for every fifty. He also wonders if Port Coray or Port Loray might not be valid destinations.
Stendahl thanks one of the next steps should be to identify colonies or planets that might have a compatible culture that would welcome the refugees. But they mention of using the ports as a transit station of sorts, she also reminds them that they have dealt in slaves which could have a negative impact on the refugees. She also suggests they try to establish support networks with the local governments on the ports to help the refugees after Starfleet withdraws. Concerned about the complicated logistics, Herrick suggests they get operations involved when an argument begins to break out. One of the refugees steps forward and stops them before it escalates, and Herrick notes they may have one of their first representatives. The group goes down to the floor to talk to her and find out her name is Donda. She tells them they could use more showers, as people wish to get clean.
Promontory tells Herrick to requisition all holodeck facilities to speed up the initial intake and processing and Dona notes that fear of what’s going to happen next has everyone uneasy. She also tells them she’s a Teplan, and after the withdrawal of the Dominion, her people went to the stars to explore, but she found herself become a slave on Cheydalanga. Promontory asks if she’d be willing to function as a representative to organise efforts to help the refugees. The group congregates in the Mission Specific Module with her and a Chey’d named Berto’Valliroca along with another former slave named Kzzich to discuss the situation and help organise efforts. Kzzich complains there isn’t enough room and Herrick suggests they offer places like the lounge and arboretum to increase the quality of life while they are there.
When asked about plans, Herrick indicates those who are not from Cheyd’lang will be returned to their home planets, or they’ll need to integrate into a new society. Berto’Valliroca stresses that his people need a place where they can continue mining, as it is part of their culture, tradition, and honour and it is the method they are able to use to attain the afterlife and demands action. Stendhal reassures them and encourages them to be united in the plan to create a future where every individual can thrive. The group takes a break and the officers come together. Herrick is concerned that they can’t take time to pick up groups everywhere, and the situation isn’t as simple as simply dropping people off at ports. Promontory asks Stendhal to reach out to the Intercessor about the people who wish to return to the mines and asks Herrick to touch base with the higher ranked officers. He finds out there’s discussion about who refugees will go with, Starfleet or UDP.
Herrick wonders if some would care to settle down in the Alpha or Beta quadrants. A yellow alert interrupts their conversations and Promontory says they should get their guests secured. Berto’Valliroca complains they are left in the dark as to the reason for the yellow alert, demands to know the cause, accuses them of treating the refugees like prisoners, then demands he and the others are returned to the mines as it is the only semblance of home they have. Through it all, Stendhal remains calm, but Promontory states Berto is welcome to return, and he hopes the Cheydalanga doesn’t get shot out of the sky.
They head the shuttle bay and Promontory tells the refugees they are safe, and the alert is because they are in negotiations with some Cheydalanga factions. He asks Herrick to handle logistics and stresses the importance of Stendhal’s counselling skills in that situation. Kzzich says he and his people will make their own way out and go onboard some of the Cheydalanga ships that have arrived. As time progresses, the Octavia E. Butler has helped the evacuated refugees to safe harbors. Among those are Seytoxal, a resort world where much of the crew has spent time; the Esh-o system, where temporal incursions were thankfully at a minimum; and Port Coray, the independent trading station. The final group of refugees will disembark with the Butler's crew at New Bajor during shore leave.
2400
Josh heads out on the shuttle Nichols for an away mission to Alpha Brenkelvi II accompanied by Toxin Arlill, Arturo Maxwell, and Etan Iljor (1); their purpose to investigate a low-level energy field. Equipped with visual recording devices (VRDs), the team begin to explore the area, noting readings that seemed somewhat typical to the Bajoran orbs. 1. The Mass Optical Orthogonal Monitoring and Oscillating Object (MOOMOO) starts to pick up signs that could be construed as lifeforms, as well as the general direction of the readings towards the ancient ruins that were estimated to be over 65,000 years old. Before the MOOMOO could complete its scans, it overloaded, and an explosion was narrowly avoided thanks to Arlill's skill (2).
After heading into the ruins, the away team saw intricate carvings and geometric patterns etched into the surface of the stone. Scans revealed sprawling tunnels kilometers below the planet's surface. As they pressed further on, they encountered skeletal remains from 50-60 years prior, with no indication on what had led to their demise. Without any immediate danger, they continued deeper into the complex. Josh stepped on a floor plate, a booby trap that when triggered closed the path back (3). Each room they encountered had triggers, either for traps or to reveal doors. After entering one room, the team found an orb that, when the commander waved his arm toward it, a temporal phenomenon occurred with multiple images of the same arm reached out and then syncing up. As chronitons surged in the device, the orb expanded and touched Josh - and he, and the rest of the away team, saw images hooded figures with ridged noses (4), perhaps due to an overload. Given what they'd seen, the team started suspecting a Bajoran influence on the planet, but it was unclear how that would be possible so many eons ago (5).
As they continued, Arlill incidentally triggered a trap, narrowly escaping with his life. This action also revealed another corridor for them to progress through, which led to an opulent room 150 meters in length, containing large intricate carvings of the sun and moon; and various statues and more skeletons - suspected grave robbers (6). Scans of the statues revealed they were over 100,000 years old. After another switch triggered by Arlill, an opening led to a more ornate room. As the away team checked in with the {USS|Oumuamua}, there was difficulty permeating the stone. The ship shared reports of visions, that the ship's captain, Ossa V'Airu was injured, and they were taking a defensive position. With Sherlock in command of the ship, Etan continued to press on to find answers. As they worked to improve comms the chamber took them downward and deeper into the complex (7).
Through some ingenuity between Arlill and Herrick, after the descent had completed, they were able to check in with the other away team (Katsim Peri, Avander Promontory, Alexander Brodie) on the planet, 60 kilometers away from them. Their update was brief, that they were continuing to investigate signs reminiscent of ancient Bajoran. As the comms closed, Josh noticed, to his shock, the form of Commander Voss, the man who gave his life to protect Josh as a child (8). The form had pointed to an area on the wall, and a symbol glowed and intensified when anyone got closer to the symbol. The room descended further, and as it reached the next level, Etan saw the form of his grandmother, guiding them to go deeper in the tunnel. As they followed her into the next chamber, which was 5-10x times larger than the opulent one they’d discovered. Countless light panels coated the ceiling and walls, which when combined, created the familiar glow that was in the other caverns. (9).
As they scanned the newly revealed area, it was determined that the location was 250 million years old. Herrick and Arlill bridged off to interface with a terminal. (10). Their first attempt to interface with the device was unsuccessful, resulting in a melted tricorder. A second attempt was more successful, revealing over a goopbyte of data. Most of it was in the ancient and unreadable language, so Josh suggested loading the Universal Translator program from the tricorder to take advantage of the processing power (11). The reaction to this development was Arlill getting possessed by some unknown being; only indicating that the away team's questions were not right. After the being left Toxin's body, after mentioning that the body was imperfect, Arlill's conciousness took over. He mentioned a memory of home, with a strange man also indicating the questions asked were not right. The commander indicated that all signs seemed to be trying to get the team to reach the control room in this cavern, that they were being led somewhere. The team would need to rope climb to reach their destination (12).
After some precarious tightrope walking, the team made it to the other side. The cavern on the other side had large and rosy, pink spires that twisted and curved, they seemed both ancient yet futuristic, an almost timeless quality. At the centre was a massive sphere, but the more Josh tried to look at it, the harder it became — it made his brain hurt. Sensors had detected a void there- because it is and is not inside our universe all at once. As Max accidentally touched one of the walls, he was flung away. Luckily, he was mostly uninjured, and through a new entrance, they found a room of ancient computers and the ghost that Josh had seen earlier, Commander Voss. Screens displayed different images people in the various chambers they'd gone through. (13).
It was discovered that each of the away team saw an image of a close relative, exactly where Josh had seen Commander Voss. Arlill worked to download the data, and from what he could tell, it looked like a historical encounter (14). As Josh hooked in the VRD to the alien computers to see what additional data the VRD picked up, it seemed to somehow be able to pull more than the VRD had been originally programmed to detect. As the download continued, the ghosts directed them to go through another passage and to yet another large, gigantic chamber. There was a crowd before him his folks, his grandparents, his sister, and many other family and friends. As the team scanned these people, they discovered chroniton-based beings. The beings couldn't speak, instead using Federation Sign Language, with Arlill verbally interpreting for them. (15).
Josh pushed the beings for more information, wanting to understand what their purpose was. The beings indicated that they were lonely; that in the past, many civilizations would visit them to see ancestors that had passed on. Almost like a living memorial. Then, the mood shifted in the room. The beings didn't understand the actions of the Oumuamua, an image of the ship telepathically broadcast to the away team - the beings wanted answers on why the ship's deflectors were activated, the (16). It appeared that the ship was gathering chronitons, and that it had been attacked. The beings shared that they were part of the moon, indicating that the damage had come from the moon itself, inhabited by The Scourge that only sought out destruction. The beings that the away team had met on Alpha Brenkelvi II were bound to the planet. If they left, they would cease to exist. Despite Josh's attempts to convince the commander to go back to the ship, they were not in transporter range and kilometers beneath the crust. Answers would need to come first. When Etan asked who created this place, he wasn't able to get a clear answer until a disembodied but melodic voice chimed in(17).
As the being came into existence, an ethereal being and almost reptilian bi-ped creature. The being introduced themselves as Na'Shaala (a Manraloth) and that it had been millions of years since they had corporealized (18). Arlill had begun work on reestablishing communications with the {USS|Oumuamua}, and as he worked, fire fight was exchanged between the moon and the ship above. After Arlill's repairs, the Commander got in contact with the ship and was able to get a status update and telling Sherlock that she'd need to retreat if the battle turned against them (19). The old autmated defense platform of the Scourage proved not enough for the Oumuamua and were dispatched easily and now the away team needed help returning home. They turned to Na'Shaala, asking if they could do anything.
Na'Shaala mentioned that they could, but at the expense of not being able to return to their own realm, and in a moment later despite the initial protests, the team was transported above the surface (20. While they couldn’t raise the other away team, they were able to get a hold of the ship that apprised them of their success and that they'd be ready to welcome them home (21). It was unclear exactly what the future would hold for Na'Shaala, or for the other 'spirits' that resided on Alpha Brenkelvi II, only time would tell.
Shortly after the mission that saved the Esh-o people (1), Herrick, Cabrillo, Rox, and Nilsen, took a short recreational trip to the planet Paradiso (2|3|4) in the modified Talaxian Freighter Foxy Lady that Kel won in a Dabo game on DS9. After avoiding a catastrophic but damaging event in a subspace corridor (5), as they were landing, they discovered man-made structures that had not be present on Rox and Kel's previous visit (6).
Post-landing, the team broke into 2 groups; Rox and Herrick went in search of supplies while TK and Nilsen stayed back to effect repairs - with the comms array down, they would be out of contact until they returned. As Rox and Herrick started to get to know each other better while they walked towards the settlement, they encountered strange tricorder readings and an abandoned dwelling. During their investigation they heard strange screeches but were unable to attribute them to a source (7). The pair decided to head back to the shuttle, and as they made their way back, contact had been reestablished. On their journey back, they, Josh got a view of the lizard-man hybrid monster, which hastened their pace. They were able to make it back to the shuttle, narrowly escaping the clutches of the monster, and returning back to the {USS|Oumuamua} (8).
Following the trip to Paradiso, Herrick attended his second JOPA meeting, where he realized he had yet to pull a prank on one of the senior officers. There was only 1 notable member that had missed the boat in JOPA history, and he didn't want to be the second. During this meeting, each of the JOPA members received custom bowling shirts, with Herrick's reading Ensign and (in almost microscopic font) Chief Explosion Officer. They wished Promontory in his final meeting, having recently been promoted to Lieutenant and parties with rounds of bowling — where Josh discovered this sport was not his forte (9|10|11|12|13).
A few days later, Herrick suffered a panic attack while performing maintenance on the sensor pod. Kovacs had unintentionally run into him, and after assessing the man's appearance, informed him he would either need to visit sickbay or get reported. (14). Upon his visit to the Sickbay, where Josh had not attributed the issue to his claustrophobia, additional tests were run — where it was discovered by Kel that he was radioactive (15). Additional scans revealed that he, along with Kel and potentially Corelli had picked up a photo-activated radionuclide (16). Kel, along with Miash and T'Larn, worked to identify exactly how to remediate it, coming up with a combination of the transporter and several subsequent regeneration sessions. Corelli had joined midway through the procedure, and all three officers had effectively gone through the process. However, when it came time to enter the small chamber, Herrick figuratively shoved Kovacs into the booth. While Kovacs underwent his procedure, he caught up with the chief to try (rather unsuccessfully) to learn more about the Nautilus and its mission until the time it was his turn to undergo cellular regeneration (17|18|19).
Given the medical team's observation on his claustrophobia, Herrick was ordered to report to mandated counselling. At his first session, he met Brzezinski and Salo for the first time (20). Rivka was quick to offer exposure therapy, which caused a negative reaction from both Salo and Herrick and let to her being escorted out of the counseling session. Upon Salo's return, she had a more patient approach to therapy, where Josh revealed the source of his claustrophobia. At the age of 7, a combination of poor maintenance and a ship-wide power loss, led to a turbolift failure that had killed the father of his friend. The man had protected Josh and his sister, Em, during it's crash but it led to his demise. It had taken over an hour for rescue teams to arrive; and during that time, the man's eyes were open and glazed over (21|22). This was the first time that Josh had opened up about this experience to anyone, and Salo recommended weekly counselling sessions following this first productive one (23).
With this shore leave came the notable departures of Kel, Corelli, Perez, Rox and Vomek. Josh had been put in charge of pulling together a farewell video for their departure which highlighted different favourite moments as a farewell message from the {USS|Oumuamua} crew. During the party, he ran into the first officer, Etan (24) where the two briefly caught up before joining a larger group containing Sherlock, Maxwell and Nilsen (25). After some brief small talk, the team chatting about forming a small sports club with the interim name of OASIS (26|27) as a way to blow off steam and get to know each other with each group member exited at the prospects. While Josh didn't have a chance to bid the departing crew farewell, he hoped his going away video had done them justice (28).
As the party progressed, Josh realized that he knew Lhandon somehow. It hadn't been clear exactly how he knew the man, and he was left with more unanswered questions after trying to do preliminary digging. The opening of the new operations centre had provided him an opportunity to ask deeper questions, but Nilsen had not been willing to share much detail — however, a friendship had started to form between the men. He was left wondering if this was the same ensign who had been highly publicized in the FNS (29|30).
A week after the farewell party was the awards ceremony, where Herrick receive a promotion to Lieutenant Junior Grade, as well as the Legion of Merit and Captain's Commendation for his service during the Esh-o mission. The recognition and quick promotion had caught him off guard, but he gratefully accepted and had told the Commodore that he wouldn't let her down. It would be an interesting shift, where a more junior engineer would be leading a whole department, but he was willing to take on the challenge (31)
Before their next mission began, Josh had invited Lhandon Nilsen to have lunch with him; attempting to get to know the man better and ultimately determining how he knew the officer (32). However, things escalated quickly as Herrick mentioned a news article that flashed up on the PADD with Nilsen accusing him of acting on behalf of a gossip reporter (33). After he stormed off, his roommate and new Chief of Ops Toxin Arlill, came to investigate what exactly had happened. The Bolian/Tellerite hybrid explained that Nilsen has a complicated past and not to push so hard, which led Josh to pursue his own investigation rather than trying to extract it out him (34). As he continued on, he wondered, was he hurting the man in the spirit of trying to satisfy his curiosity (35).
With the immediate crisis on board solved, and a quick shower later, Josh was sent with an away team along with Kammus Corelli, Anton Richards, and V'Len Kel to assist with a dire emergency - the nebula was having ill effects on a remote Esh-o mining colony (9]. With TINFOIL hats in addition to the injections from the Doctor, the team was now in a more emotionally stable position. As the shuttle flew towards the colony, warning lights went off several times on the shuttle, seeming faulty at first. As they got closer, they also detected that the nebula had been dissolving the colony and started exploring options like tractor beams to separate the healthy and 'infected' portions of the asteroid the colony sat upon (10|11). Just before landing, the shuttle's fuel lines had reported being compromised and the away team was forced to make an emergency landing (12).
While the shuttle had crashed into an arboretum in the colony, the team had made it through relatively unscathed and Josh had his first encounter with the Esh-o kind (13). The away team and Esh-o leaders explored options, evacuation being unviable, they elected to try splitting the asteroid using mines (14). As power fluctuations rippled through the colony, the team took on the task of investigating them as well (15). When they entered the mines and proceeded to the main core reactor, they encountered a fierce and winged beast. Josh and the away team worked to subdue the beast, trying to calm the Esh-o's plea to kill it, and narrowly escaped with their lives (16|17). After gathering some more volunteers to strategically place mines at points that would break the asteroid apart, the rode the compact mine carts, where the tight quarters caused Josh's claustrophobia to flare up, to reach and place the mines in strategic positions to split the asteroid, but before they could finish, they were held up by shapeshifters and barely escaped (18|19|20|21).
Making it back to the surface, they struggled with options to get the shuttle off the ground, relying on several crew members that had absconded with worker bees to rescue them. While the explosion had worked, it hadn't created enough distance between the two pieces of rock, and they needed to think of options fast (22). When it seemed like all hope was lost, the experimental ship with the designation Nautilus appeared and both the shuttle and worker bees were transported aboard. As the team emerged from their vessels into the large bay, they witnessed a holographic twin of an experiment running aboard another Nautilus from a parallel universe. The 'real' Nautilus that the team was one was tasked with preventing the other ship from causing a cataclysmic explosion that would wipe out life, and the holo-version had encountered difficulties with their holo-safeties, potentially putting the crew at risk. However, the other ship appeared to be unsuccessful in its attempts, and with the crisis passes, the 'real' Nautilus returned the away team back to the USS Oumuamua (23|24).
After successfully passing the final Academy exams, Josh is posted aboard the USS Oumuamua as an Engineering Officer, reporting for duty to Commodore Ossa V'Airu (1|2|3). the Chief Engineer, Kammus Corelli. On his first day, he and the Chief Engineer Kammus Corelli explore a strange reading that the ensign found in 11-Baker-4 (4). As the pair commenced scanning, a power surge erupted plasma from the conduit placing Herrick in Sickbay (5). Under the care of Doctor V'Len Kel and Nurse Rox, he made a successful physical recovery (6|7|8|9|10|11), but it dredged up memories of the past (12).
To aid in bonding with fellow lower deckers, Josh was invited to the JOPA where he met many of the junior officers he'd be working with in the future and was encouraged to pull a prank on one of the senior officers but wasn't quite sure what might be an appropriate one that wouldn't land him in too much hot water (13|14|15|16). After his recovery, there was an attempt by an officer from Humanoid Resources, Lieutenant Commander Klaaf, to put him on report for a Form B-74-Tango following the incident in the jefferies tube, but he was quickly dispatched by Commander Etan Iljor (17|18). He also had a brief run in with the Charles Tyber, a security officer onboard who seemed unable to wake up from a deep slumber, and luckily kept his life (19|20). The crew finished shore leave with an awards ceremony, where there many officers were decorated for the achievements on the mission previous to Josh coming aboard.
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Starfleet Service Record
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Medical Information
 Josh Herrick
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PAST MEDICAL HISTORY
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PAST HOSPITALIZATIONS/SERIOUS ILLNESS
PAST SURGICAL HISTORYNone | ||
PSYCHIATRIC HISTORY
SUBSTANCE USE HISTORY
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FAMILY MEDICAL HISTORY
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SOCIAL HISTORY
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PHYSICIANS' NOTES
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COUNSELORS' NOTES
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Academy
Josh enrolled in the academy in 2393, shortly after his 20th birthday. Like his father, he chose the engineering path, but elected for a 5-year program that included command courses, a future career goal for the young man, followed by a one-year cadet cruise.
After his first semester was completed, he was contacted by an academic counsellor regarding his grades and overall performance. Based on their discussion, a joint decision was made to extend Herrick’s program by an additional year so that he could drop down to four courses a semester; this resulted in a notable improvement in his grades.
While in his second year at the academy, the computer flagged a moment of high emotional distress during a training simulation and auto-referred him to one of the on-site counselors. Through their discussion, it was noted that he suffered from a mild case of claustrophobia and was presented coping techniques — he made it through the rest of the program without incident.
While Josh didn’t necessarily excel at any one area of courseware (no honors), it is noted that he obtained specializations in multiple domains, including: Replicators, Warp Systems, Holodeck Simulations, System Design and Programming. There have been comments noted in his official records that there was a concern with alcohol abuse with the man, however there was no material impact to his interpersonal relationships or academic performance so it was not investigated further.
Linked records available for viewing: Academy Transcript | Diploma
NPC Listing · USS Octavia E Butler Crew Manifest · Crew History
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