Mission 3: The Other Side

***OOC Start of Mission 3

Engineering was quiet. As much as she longed for a major issue to come up to keep her occupied, Lindsey was aware of the fact that she should enjoy the serenity while it lasted. When Engineering was this quiet, its easy to know exactly what was going on everywhere, so when someone enters who isn't part of her team, she was instantly aware. Such was the case when Commander Mena entered.

"Lieutenant Davis?" Said the Bajoran.

"What brings you down to Engineering, Commander?"

"Captain Drexel has asked me to collect the senior staff not on the bridge, he wants you to take the Engineering post on the bridge for some exercises he would like to run"

"And he physically sent you down here to tell me this?" Lindsey said smiling.

"Apparently, i didn't do to well on my physical, I'm sure the Captain is just promoting good health" Felix said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Alright then, I will head up there"

"If you don't mind, could you stop by the Security Office and collect Lieutenant Stone, I need to go track down Aschenbrenner"

"Sure thing Commander, see you on the Bridge" Lindsey turned to Jameson, "Keep an eye on things down here for me" and with that she exited her Engine room, on her way to find Stone.

By now the bridge was bustling with activity. Xander monitored his console to ensure the ship was maintaining its current course and speed.

“We are cruising comfortably at warp factor 9.6 Captain. The ship is holding up extremely well considering this is her maiden voyage and we have her running at max warp speed” Xander explained turning to look at Drexel.

“Excellent work Xander, as you were” replied the Captain.

Xander turned back to his console where he felt his mind wondering a little. He turned over to glance at Ixarys. She was busy working away at her terminal. He was sure that he felt something real with her. Did she kiss him back? Was he too forward about his feelings?

<What was I thinking kissing her?> Xander thought to himself just as Ixarys turned to see him staring at her. She gave him a small short lived smile. Xander smiled right back at her before quickly turning back around to focus on his console.

Suddenly Xander’s attention was focused back at the pain in his feet. He leaned over to scratch his right foot. It was irritating the shit out of him. He leaned back up to focus on his console when he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. He reached his left hand around to his right shoulder and began rubbing it. He could feel a couple sharp bumps on the top of his shoulder. He could feel them growing in size.

<What is happening to me?> Xander thought to himself.

“Captain Drexel, permission to….. return to my quar…ters” asked Xander who was having a hard time getting his words out.

“I'm getting ready to meet with all the officers Xander. Can your recess wait?” asked the Captain.

“Of course sir” Xander said turning to sit down back at his post. Something was happening to him, something real and he needed to tell someone about it, someone that he could trust…..

Mayne noticed Xander seemed to be fidgeting in his chair, rubbing his feet together, and itching his shoulder.

"Hey, Xander man, you okay?" David asked sitting next to him in the opperations chair. "You uh, dont look yourself"

<Stupid comment, of course he isn't himself, he is some crazy emotional Vulcan since the attack>

Xander hadnt replied to David. David leaned closer, "Commander, can I help with anything?" David again asked the Vulcan

"Thank you for inquiring Mayne, but I'm fine. Just a little nervous about heading back out to where we were hit with the RF blast. That and I ate some pork chops earlier. I may be having some kind of reaction to them" Xander said leaning over closer to Mayne.

"Seriously Xander, you don't look well. I think you should report to sick bay" replied Mayne.

<He seems to be genuinely concerned, how peculiar> Xander thought to himself.

"Your right Mayne. As soon as we have met with Captain I will go see Dr. Bixby. Thank you for your concern" the Vulcan said turning to look back at his console.

Ixarys' let her eyes and ears follow the brief passing between Xander and Mayne. He definitely did not look well. Not like he had just an hour or two ago when she had been in his quar....Stop it. she berated herself. There's no need following that line of thinking, not now.

But...

NO.

Fine.

Mayne had moved back to his console by the time Ixarys was done arguing with herself. She mentally shook herself and finished the last manipulations to the phaser arc pattern she had created. Running a small sequence video of the pattern, it looked as fail-proof as well... as shooting in all directions at once could be. While she looked forward to actually using the sequence, she reminded herself of WHY she would have to use it, and shuddered. What if we lose more of the crew? It may be their maiden voyage, but she wasn't sure how long she'd last in StarFleet if her ship returned to Earth after only being absent a week tops, and running a sudden skeleton crew. If you're even one that makes it a snide voice resounded in her head. She looked up from her console and surveyed the crew assembled on the Bridge. What if one of them, what if Xander.... she thought as her eyes rested upon him once more. Not quite realizing that she was doing it, she opened herself up to his mind.

....another kiss...

As soon as the word hit her, Ixarys closed her mind, blushing slightly. She hadn't meant to listen in, but truly her telepathic powers at times still overcame her. Ixarys had only needed to learn to suppress her own mind within the past four years of being at the Academy. There was no need to allot people their personal boundaries beforehand nor had she known it was often thought quite rude.

Xander seemed to be getting worse, she noticed, her concern growing. This meeting needs to hurry...

There was a chime at the door and Commander Mena entered the lab. "Lt. Aschenbrenner," he greeted solemnly.

"Commander, hello. I just have a few more items to add to my report about these "white hole"-like objects."

"That's great, Lieutenant, but there is a few things I have to say. First, the captain would like all the senior officers on bridge in five minutes."

"Wow," Aedan looked up, "Maybe I'll have to finish my report on the way, then." He began to gather his things and close the active terminal down.

"I think we can be a little late. The second item I wanted to bring up...well, I was almost here when I got a message from Lt. Davis and Lt. Stone about a holographic recording that was recently found. I'm afraid it isn't the best quality, but you should pull something out of it." Mena pulled out a data stick and inserted it into a holographic projector in the room. "Lt. Stone will show it to the captain and crew at this coming meeting, but I feel, since she is your sister, you should see it first, and, perhaps, this will give you and Lt. Lem a head start in its analysis."

A chill ran down Aedan's spine. Again, this would probably bring out all those mixed emotions from when they were attacked and Aedan found out that his sister went missing.

In the holoprojection, Arwen just left her room, concealing a strange, cylindrical device, much like a stylus or pen, but Aedan could definitely tell that it wasn't such a common tool. She glanced down the hall, both left and right, and opened the doors to her quarters again, this time, she felt the ship quake and stumbled. Wide, eyed, she scrambled back to her feet and raised the device to her mouth, uttered something, and...

Poof. She was gone. Nothing remained behind and the doors closed. She had just vanished--one second she was there, the next...nothing. This was definitely not like any teleportation devices Aedan had ever seen.

"Let me guess. You want us to analyze this, see if we can figure how she was taken away."

"Right," Mena said. "Security is trying to figure out what she said, and determinating whether she was the one who caused this all."

Aedan stared back in disbelief. "You think she is the one that brought on the attack? You know, with someone like Lt. Stone leading this investigation, she's already committed treason!"

"Don't jump to rash conclusions based on your prejudices. Lt. Stone is a fine officer, a bit blunt at times, but a respecting and an honorable man."

Aedan remained silent for a moment. "Let's get to the bridge, then, and not keep everyone else waiting."

Ryan was sitting at his post looking over his newly found evidence in Aedens sisters disapearance. Ryan couldnt make sense of it watching it over and over again. All he could do is just sit there and stare loosing track of time. =/\= This doesnt make sense=/\= ryan said aloud to himself or so he thought.

=/\= What doesnt make sense.=/\=

Ryan looked up from his desk and noticed a young looking women standing in his door way.

=/\= This hologram, it just doesnt make sense. She just disapears like in a magic show.=/\=

=/\= Can i see?=/\=

=/\= Umm sure come here=/\= Lindsey made her way over to the Ryans desk.

=/\= Here take my seat, youll be able to see it better=/\=

=/\= Ok thanks=/\= Lindsey took Ryans seat and started to watch the hologram.Ryan moved his hand to the top of his chair leaning over from behind her.

=/\=See she talks into something that looks like pen or whatever and poof just disappears. I dont get it. =/\= Lindsey turns the chair around now facing Ryan.

=/\= Your right it is a mystery alright. I guess thats why they pay you the big bucks though right=/\= Lindsey cracked a smile looking up at Stone.

=/\= Not enough it seems. So what brings you buy. Its kind of out of the way from engineering isnt it.=/\=

=/\= You know i work in engineering=/\= Ryan shrugged his shoulders =/\= Its my job to know were everyone works=/\=

=/\= There is a meeting on the bridge. The captain wants his senior staff to the bridge. probably a good time to show him you mystery hologram =/\=

=/\= Well i guess we should go then=/\=

Ryan stepped back letting Lt. Davis pass around his desk.

=/\= So does this mean i have to come to engineering when there is another meeting=/\=

Lindsey started to laugh =/\= you never know=/\=

Lt. Ryan Stone
USS Discovery
Security Post

The senior officers were now situated at their bridge posts. The mood seemed edgy. There was no denying that most if not all were nervous about heading back to the Sataran expanse so soon. The bridge was quiet, and all eyes were on Drexel.

"Thank you all for coming" Arron noted, and then cleared his throat. "I believe I have uncovered part of the mystery surrounding this area of space, and in the process I believe we have inadvertently stumbled across a grave threat to the Federation" Arron paused, seeing the concern register on the faces of his officers as he looked around the Bridge.

"Slet'katesh Vylln" Arron said, "Is not a Vulcan phrase originally. Come to find out, it is actually Iconian"

"Iconian?" said Stone, not recognizing the name. "I’m not familiar with them"

"Curious" stated Xander.

"The Iconian Empire disappeared around 200,000 years ago. They controlled a massive territory that occupied much of present day Federation and Romulan space, and according to some scientists, were responsible for seeding the galaxy with much of the present day civilizations that exist" said Lieutenant Aschenbrenner."

Drexel nodded, "of course, that probably can never be proven. Anyway, The Sataran expanse was an area formerly controlled by the Iconians greatest rivals, the Katesh. This was a race that preyed on other species for a food source. The Iconians supposedly came up with a way for the Katesh to survive without consuming other species, and presented it to the Katesh. The Katesh refused to renounce their ways, and invaded the Iconian Empire, at which point it is rumored that the Iconians somehow banished the entire Katesh civilization to another dimension, where they could not harm anyone. I theorize that the Katesh have finally found a way to return to their natural space, and have quietly been gathering Intel. The reports of pirates, or lost ships, random anomalies, the RF Pulse...it’s all the Katesh. Further more, I believe that transwarp conduit we traveled through to get her so quickly, is of Katesh design. And finally, I submit that the Katesh are on the verge of launching a surprise invasion of the Federation in an effort to wipeout the remaining military power in this quadrant. We have come back here, to find a way into the Katesh realm, and acquire evidence of the fact to present to Star Fleet Command and head off a possible invasion that would cripple the Federation."

"My God" said Lindsey.

"Lt. Aschenbrenner, your team has spent the most time studying the RF pulse; I would like you to work with Lieutenant Davis to see if we can replicate the signal somehow. I would like to see what would happen should we transmit that signal. It may be possible this is how the ships are moving between dimensions, or perhaps it’s a signature of their technology, that if we replicated we could pass ourselves off as Katesh, and capture a vessel that comes to investigate. Lieutenant Ixarys has modified our shields to a point where we feel we can prevent the loss of more life like last time. Also, I understand that you have created a firing program to target ships that we can not see?"

"Yes Captain, it has worked in simulations, but we won’t know its full effectiveness until we use it in battle"

"Understood Lieutenant, So, we have a few options, and I wanted to see which you all thought would be most practical. Do we try and find a way into Katesh space, and obtain sensor readings and data to send to Star Fleet Command, or should we try and capture a Katesh vessel, or some of its crew in the hopes to learn invaluable intelligence on this threat? If you have any other options, I am open to hearing them...”

Captain Arron Drexel
Commanding Officer
USS Discovery
Bridge

“If I may Captain” asked Xander

“Yes, of course Xander. The floor is yours” replied Drexel.

“I can remember hearing stories about the Katesh from my mentor Spock at a very young age. Spock told me that the Iconians were a peaceful species. At the time their technology was far superior to that of any other species in the galaxy. I’ve heard the same legend you have Captain. The Iconians used displacement wave technology to banish the Katesh to another time dimension. It seems logical that after all this time the Katesh could have developed the technology required to travel back to our current time, but the Katesh are not an advanced race. The Katesh are hunters, they are a savage species that only survives through the death of other living things. If the Katesh have found a way into our dimension then my mentor Spock’s greatest fears have been realized” Xander slowly sat back down in his chair.

“What are your trying to imply Commander?” asked Drexel.

“What I’m saying sir is that I believe you were correct in your theory that the Katesh may already be here” replied Xander. “It’s the only logical explanation for the deaths Captain. They could have used the RF pulse as a distraction, one that would allow them to enter our dimension. They could have even used that distraction to transport someone on our ship. Think about it Captain, who were the only 2 people that had information regarding the Slet'katesh Vylln?”

“Phoenix and Nesbit!” chimed in Ixarys.

“And what happened to Phoenix and Nesbit?” asked Xander.

“They were both killed” said Stone.

“Captain, I think it’s possible the Katesh used the RF pulse, along with the inexplicable death of Novak to distract us long enough to infiltrate the Discovery and kill Phoenix. They must have known about Nesbit and got to him before we were able to talk to him” explained Xander.

“If what you’re saying is true Xander, then it’s possible they could have done something to you when the RF pulse hit the ship? You’ve been acting very unusual since that night” said Mayne.

“I haven’t ruled that out” replied Xander.

“Ruled what out?” asked Drexel.

“There’s a chance that I have information regarding the Katesh that was imbedded into my memory from Spock, and that this information could very useful or absolutely devastating to the Katesh. When the RF pulse hit the ship it’s possible they could have put me in a trance, or infected me with something that has caused me to lose my ability to suppress my emotions. It would be a lot easier to interrogate me if they could use my emotions against me right? Of course this is one of many possibilities Captain, but this seems logical to me” explained Xander.

The bridge went quiet for several seconds. Xander turned to look at Ixarys, she stared back at him with the saddest eyes he had ever seen. He didn’t know if they were out of genuine concern or pity. Xander didn’t seem to mind the stare either way.

Aedan decided to pipe up. "Are you suggesting that for a time, perhaps, the whole ship was under some sort of trance? Or possibly altered our temporal state for a bit, that is froze or dilated time, while they were on this ship?" The idea was creepy enough.

Xander stared back, taking it in. "Yes, those are logical possibilities. Or we could have forgot..."

"It may be the explanation to the hologram recording that Lt. Stone found..."

"Right," Lt. Stone pulled out a stick with the data on it. "We have a recording of Lt. Llewellyn's disappearance." He placed it in a nearby interface and it played out the scene. "You noticed how she just disappeared like that? Nothing like what I've seen. I hear Lt. Aschenbrenner has some of his officers working on how she was teleported that way?"

"Yes, but what if it weren't a teleport? What if whatever happened, happened in that instant of time? Or, maybe, if we were not alert during the time, what if the recording was altered, so that scene was completely cut out?" Aedan got blank stares. "Well, it is an idea. Who knows how much these Katesh advanced in their 200 thousand years?"

"Is there a way we could detect this?" Captain Drexel posed.

"All ready working on it. I'm running diagnostics searching for possible temporal anomalies, chronitons, tachyons, as well glitches in the ship's logs and readings over that period of time."

Ixarys tried to take all the information, but often felt as if she were a child again when several scientific terms began to be tossed around. Tuning out a little, she watched Xander slowly and couldn't help but feel her heart tug slightly with sadness. There was still, and would most likely remain for sometime a storm of emotions about the moment they had shared in his quarters, but there were a few things of which she was certain. She couldn't let anything happen to him and didn't want his ability to suppress his emotions to come back.

The sudden silence threw her back to reality and she looked at the Captain.

"Sir?"

"Yes, Lieutenant?" he responded, turning to face her.

"I have a very strong gut feeling that before we truly act on things, or delve deeper into this mystery, I truly feel we need to forward on to StarFleet, or at least someone high up whom we could trust, this information. If we just up and disappear, I think I'd sleep better if SOMEONE knew what we're doing. Leave a trail of...what is that story... the children, leaving a trail of..."

"Bread crumbs?" Drexel suggested, as he knew the story well.

"Yes, that was it. I apologize, Mari stories are much different."

Ryan looked around the room as everyone chimed in there two cents. He didnt know where he fit in this situation. He figured it was time that he assumed the LT. was dead or possibly never coming back and it was time he took control.

"Sorry for interrupting but has anyone thought that there is a reason the Lt. was specifically taken. She was a high ranking security officer. Doesnt that raise an eyebrow at all. She could be giving these people tactical secrets about the ship."

Ryan caught Aiden out of the corner of his eye starting to turn red.

"Calm down Lt. im not accusing anyone of spilling secrets, but its something we might need to plan for. We might need to plan for a fight when we meet with them again."


Ryan Stone
USS Discovery

Arron looked around at his officers. "I appreciate you all giving your thoughts on the subject. Let me address the comments you all have made. Xander, you must remember that a species can change quite a bit, especially in 200,000 years. It was only a couple thousand years ago that the Vulcans were a violent and savage race that made the Klingons look like kittens. It wasn't until you embraced logic and shunned emotion and violence that your species evolved into the most respected one in the quadrant. Surely a race exiled into a dimension of space where they had no contact with anyone would force a change of behavior of some sort."

"There is logic in that Sir" Xander said.

"Ixarys, Star Fleet does know where we are right now, and I wouldn't attempt going into this dimension without first leaving behind a beacon. Don’t worry, Lieutenant, I have no intention of getting us lost."

She nodded, but still seemed like something was on her mind.

Arron tried to give her a reassuring smile, and then focused his attention on Stone, the acting Chief of Security. "Lieutenant, you brought up an excellent point, that hadn’t occurred to me. Our Chief Security has been abducted and that presents a huge security risk. Ixary's I know you recalibrated the shields, but the actual harmonics may not have been reset. We need to change the frequency of the shields, to protect us from the potential security risk. Also, the Phasor emitters will need to be changed also. If they know the setting, they can simply use their shields to absorb the damage. Lindsey, you will need to modify the warp signature of the ship, if that fell into the wrong hands, we would be lit up like a Christmas tree on their sensors."

Both the women nodded, showing they understood. "And don't forget Lieutenant Davis that I would like you assisting Aschenbrenner and his team in discovering how to replicate the RF Pulse. I believe that is the key in how to enter Katesh space."

"Stone, I would not be surprised that at some point we will either be boarded, or attempt to board a Katesh vessel. Please make sure everyone is assigned a personal Phasor they can carry at all times. I don’t want us being caught unawares if we have hostiles on board."

"Aye sir" said Stone, looking grateful for something to do.

"Xander and Mayne, prepare a subspace beacon to launch, that will help us find our way back to normal space, as well as inform other ships to stay clear, and also relay data back to Star Fleet Command. There is a chance we may be coming back with an armada on our ass."

"As for your sister Aedan, I don't think it’s fair to you, or to her to speculate on what’s going on, in regards to that holo-recording. Obviously it is an important key to the puzzle, but I do not think we will understand everything that is going on until we locate her. You all have your orders, dismissed."

Captain Arron Drexel
Commanding Officer
USS Discovery
Bridge

The diagnostics ended and the report appeared on the screen. All sensors were over-saturated or inoperable during the anomalous attack. No readings of any temporal particles. No explanation to any of it. Aedan was once again flabbergasted. He needed a drink, and now was probably not an appropriate time.

Aedan tapped his combadge. =/\= Aschenbrenner to Lt. Lem: Have you any results on the holo recording? =/\=

=/\= Yes, sir, but you won't like it. =/\=

=/\= Explain. =/\=

=/\= The recording was tampered with. There is a a definite seam in the data, although it be not in the visual. =/\=

=/\= Well, that's not too bad. =/\=

=/\= I haven't gotten to the bad news yet. I've looked at how the seam was made. The result is that the recording was spliced by someone aboard the ship. =/\=

=/\= So the Katesh were on the ship? =/\=

=/\= I don't know, =/\= replied Lem. =/\= But the fingerprint on the recording says it was done by Lt. Llewellyn herself. And get this, =/\= he added. =/\= The fingerprint says it was created nearly an hour before the attack. =/\=

The familiar old dread filled Aedan again. Could his sister be somehow linked to all of this? =/\= No doubt security will find the same thing. So much for looking at their teleportation technology. Say, let security hand in their report about this and don't worry about ours. If you could, come and relieve me. I'm feeling bone tired. =/\=

=/\=...uh, sure. I'm on my way up. Lem out. =/\=

Aedan got up from his chair to ask to be relieved when sensors all over the bridge began beeping and someone shouted out, "We've detected something! I think it's the Katesh!"

Lindsey left the bridge to make a quick stop in Engineering before heading to the science labs to work with Aeden's team.

She located Samantha Jameson, and approached her. "Ensign, i need you to get the team working on recalibrating the warp signature. We have a possible security leak, so all of our vital ship information could be compromised."

"Wow, absolutely we can have it done in ten minutes."

"See that you do, if you need me I will be in the Science Lab" Lindsey said, turning on her heels. As she left Engineering she slammed into the solid chest of a handsome man. "Oof!" she exclaimed trying to get her barrings. "Lieutenant Stone!' she said smiling awkwardly.

"You okay?" he asked

"Uh, yeah, sorry I was in a rush and wasn't paying attention"

"You should be more careful. I was just coming by to hand out some phasors to your team." Ryan said indicating a large case he carried in his left hand.

"Do you really think we will need those?" Lindsey asked, concerned.

"Its possible, its crazy out here, and the Captain and I would feel better if the crew was protected and on their toes. Here let me get you one." he said stooping down to a knee and releasing the latches on both sides of the handle. The case swung open to reveal several phasors neatly placed in protective foam. He pried one out, and slipped a PADD out from another compartment. He scanned the serial number and handed Lindsey the weapon, then took her hand and guided it over the PADD. Lindsey's face flushed.

"I just need your thumb print here, verifying you got the weapon" he said.

"R-right" she stammered, as she pressed her thumb against the screen.

"Great, now I will make sure the rest of your team is equipped properly."

"Lieutenant Stone...i mean, Ryan. Would you...would you be interested in getting together later...maybe grabbing some food or something?" Lindsey said before she could stop herself.

Xander turned and looked at Mayne

“If you will adjust the settings on the beacon, I will prepare it for launch” explained Xander.

Xander punched in the coordinates for the beacon into his console while Mayne worked on configuring it. While Xander was typing in the coordinates he could feel a sharp pain in his chest. He hunched over just slightly and grabbed his chest.

“You ok buddy?” asked Mayne.

“Fi….fine” replied Xander. “Just having a little chest pain, I’m fine”

Once Xander had the coordinates for the beacon programmed he turned back to Captain Drexel.

“Coordinates for the beacon have been programmed Captain. It will be ready to launch within minutes”

“Excellent work you two” replied Drexel.

Drexel could see that Xander appeared to be in some kind of pain.

“Xander, you don’t look well. When was the last time you checked in with Dr. Bixby?”

“It’s been a few days Captain” replied Xander.

“Report to sick bay. I want Dr. Bixby to clear you before you return to the bridge” ordered Drexel.

“I’m fine Captain really, I’ll be just fine” replied Xander.

“I didn’t ask Xander, I gave you an order. Go see Dr. Bixby immediately” Drexel said as he stared into the young Vulcan’s eyes.

“Yes sir” replied Xander as he got up and left the bridge.

Ixarys couldn’t help but overhear the conversation while she was working at her station. She seemed to be very concerned about Xander.


**********************


Xander made his way into sick bay. Dr. Bixby was waiting for him.

“I know the drill” Xander said smiling as he made his way over to a bed.

“How are you feeling Xander?” asked Bixby.

“Just fine doctor, I’m just a little tired”

Dr. Bixby began scanning Xander with a medical tricorder.

“Your scan looks fine Xander. Why don’t you go ahead and take your shoes and shirt off” asked the doctor.

“Why would you like me to disrobe?” asked Xander.

“You have thick hard lesions on your shoulder. I can see them through your shirt. I would like to take a look at them” replied the doctor.

“I said I was fine, this visit is over doctor” Xander said as he made his way out of sick bay.

Xander made his way back to his cabin. He went into the bathroom and took of his shirt.

<The doctor was right. You can see these lesions right through my shirt> Xander thought to himself. He started to become very concerned. He sat on his bed and took off his shoes. His feet were getting worse. The arches in his feet were now fully formed and there were short yet sharp nails protruding from his toes.

<Oh god, what am I going to do?> Xander thought to himself. He knew that he needed to talk to someone about this, but who? Who could he trust?

=/\= Xander to Ixarys =/\=

=/\= This is Ixarys, what can I do for you Xander? I’m very busy right now =/\=

=/\= I was wondering if you could stop by my cabin for a few minutes. Do you have time? =/\=

=/\= Haven’t you heard? =/\=

=/\= Heard what? =/\=

=/\= We think we may have detected a signal from the Katesh, you better get to the bridge immediately =/\=

Xander pulled his shoes on and headed for his door. The access door to his cabin would not open.

What the hell? Xander said aloud.

=/\= Xander to Lt. Stone =/\=

=/\= This is Stone. What do you need Xander, I’m awfully busy right now =/\=

=/\= Has the Captain announced a lockdown? The door to my cabin won’t open =/\=

=/\= Not to my knowledge he hasn’t, but that sounds like something you should take up with the Captain. Stone out. =/\=

=/\= Xander to Captain Drexel =/\=

=/\= Go ahead Xander, this is Drexel =/\=

=/\= There seems to be a malfunction with my cabin door, as it won’t open =/\=

=/\= That’s correct Xander. You are being quarantined until we have someone look at those lesions on your body =/\=

=/\= Captain, I am needed at the bridge. I feel fine, can’t this wait until later? =/\=

=/\= Dr. Bixby will be there shortly, I suggest you let them perform a thorough examination of you. Once that is done we will talk about you returning to your post. Is that understood? =/\=

=/\= Aye……sir....... =/\=

Xander fell to his knees and slowly layed on the floor of his cabin. He did not understand what was going on with him. He didn’t feel sick at all, but his body had started taking on a new form. He could feel the fear brewing up inside him, and became unable to keep himself from crying aloud.

Ixarys had been in the process of completing the changes in the shield frequencies when Xander’s voice had come across her comm badge. Moments later, she overheard the conversation between Xander and Drexel as both she and the Captain were still on the Bridge. She could hear the barely contained frustration and pain in his voice and something inside her seemed to break. Fueled with a sudden yet mostly inexplicable sense of adrenaline, Ixarys hurriedly pulled aside Ensign P’rak. She briefly went over how to finish the shield frequency changes with the Klingon-human tactician and flew in a rush to the turbolift.

Next she found herself on the level of Xander’s quarters. What the hell are you doing? Let him deal with his problems, you are needed on the Bridge!
Shut up! He needs me, the Bridge can handle a few moments without me. I’ll go back, but I know I’m supposed to be here, I just …

Ixarys mentally slammed into a wall of fear that was not her own and sprinted down the corridor to Xander’s quarters. The doors wouldn’t open, nor would they accept her authorization codes. Feeling slightly defeated she slumped against the panel by his door and could hear his tears.

Calling out softly as not to startle him, she let her mental presence be known to him. Xander?

She felt an acknowledgment, but received no other response.

Xander, I’m here. I can’t get in, but I’m …here.

Ixarys… His voice in her mind sent mixed chills down her spine. It was him, but he sounded so scared, so weak. She felt sick at the thought of him feeling so vulnerable.

I’m here.

Stay… he pleaded.

Only until Bixby is here, I’m still needed on the Bridge.

Stay…he begged once more, and Ixarys felt a small tear escape from her eye.

I can’t…She felt him begin to slip from her mind at her words. But I’m here now. Xander, what’s happening? Stay with me, and tell me what you know. Please….

He was still there, but said nothing. As instinct screamed inside her to keep his mind active, she instantly thought of the kiss they had shared and pressed the images and thoughts upon his mind with all she could muster. I want more of that….but you have to keep talking to me right now, alright? Please, she prayed.

Xander could feel a sense of calm fall over his body as Ixarys spoke to him.

I’m scared Ixarys..... I don’t know what’s going on with me. My mind and body feel like they are transforming and there is nothing I can do to stop it.

What happening to you Xander? Please tell me, I want to help you.

Ixarys tried desperately to look deep into the Vulcan’s mind, but it was no use. He had already started clearing his mind.

Something happened Ixarys..... when that RF pulse hit the ship. I am becoming someone or something else. I don’t know how to stop, I need your help.

What do you want me to do Xander? I’ll do anything.

Listen to my thoughts very carefully, I will tell you everything you need to know.

Ixarys sat quietly in the hall while Xander communicated his thoughts to her.

I’ll see what I can find out Xan-

Ixarys could see Dr. Bixby approaching Xander’s cabin. Without saying a word, she quickly got up off the ground and walked away. Dr. Bixby entered his authorization code and Xander’s door opened. Bixby dropped the medical tricorder and PADDS he had in his hand and reached for his communicator.

=/\= Dr. Bixby to Lt. Stone =/\=

=/\= This is Stone, go ahead doc =/\=

=/\= I need security support in Xander’s cabin immediately =/\=

=/\= Understood doc, I will send a couple security officers right up =/\=

=/\= Hurry Stone =/\=

Mayne was making some programming adjustments to the beacon after Xander had left. Judging by the conversation he had over heard from the comm, Xander had now been confined to quarters. <Craziest Vulcan I have ever known> he thought. <And thats a cool thing> he decided to himself. He hit a button on his console and his sensors lit up. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. His console started to beep. "We've detected something! I think it's the Katesh!" he yelled out. Drexel spun around to face David. "Where? Are you sure"

"Im not detecting anything" called out an Ensign from the Tactical station."

Mayne checked a few more readings and felt his gut churn. "Uh...nevermind sir. Uh, i accidentally activated the simulation I ran earlier when assisting Ixarys with the firing pattern. Im sorry sir" Mayne could feel his face redden at his own stupidity. He snuck a glance at Drexel who was starring at him.

"It wont happen again Sir" Mayne said, emotionally bracing himself for the reprimand that was sure to follow.

“Mister Mayne, mistakes like that are potentially very damaging. I suggest you work very hard to ensure something like that never happens again, or you will not find yourself on my Bridge Staff. Am I making myself clear?”

“Absolutely Captain” Lieutenant Mayne responded.

“Now get back to work on that beacon. It seems you will be without the services of Lieutenant Xander” Arron said, feeling a pang of frustration over the lack dependability several of his officers had shown on their brief stint aboard the Discovery.

Arron turned to see Ixarys enter the turbolift door. He hadn’t even realized she had left earlier. She relieved Ensign P’rak from the Tactical station, but was noticeably shaken. Arron got up from his chair and walked to the back of the Bridge.

“Lieutenant? You seem troubled.” Arron said.

Ixary’s expression changed suddenly. She appeared more confident and had no sign of emotional distress Arron had seen just seconds before. “Oh it’s nothing Sir. Just looking forward to figuring out exactly what the Katesh are up to”

Arron didn’t buy it. “Ixarys” he said softly, “I can’t have any more of my crew members emotionally or physically compromised. I need my senior officers to be honest with me about their feelings and what’s going on that could hinder performance. We are in a strange place with no telling what is to come. If we can’t trust each other, than we are as good as lost.”

“Captain…” she said, looking around hesitantly at the other bridge officers.

Arron understood. “Let’s go into my office” he suggested.

Arron and Ixarys entered the Captains office, where Arron offered the Lieutenant to take a seat.

“Would you like a drink?” Arron said offering the services of his replicator to his tactical officer, to which she declined.

“Alright Ixarys, please tell me what’s going on”

Aedan relaxed as Mayne confessed his mistake. He was in no way ready for another attack right now. "Well, that's great, that we have more time," he muttered irritably. "Captain, I need some rest and recovery, may I retire for this shift?"

Drexel nodded in approval. "Everything all right?"

"Yes, sir, I just need some time to unwind." Lt. Lem entered and Aedan greeted him with a nod as he left the bridge. Minutes later, he found himself finally in his quarters, still everything pretty much untouched, and he yanked his uniform top off and collapsed on the bed.

He found himself on an alien planet, a Romulan disruptor rifle in his hand. The land around him was unusually parched--gray stone layered with a pale yellowish stone, cliffsides jutting out of the ground. There was evidence of plant life, albeit once upon a time--old, weather-worn roots stuck out of the cliff.

For some reason, adrenaline coursed though his veins. Whatever it was was near...he could now remember what it was. An entanglement of spikes and teeth and muscle--the Katesh. He peeked out above the rock he was hiding behind, checking to see if it was there...

Ah, right, one of the shuttles was landed, more or less inoperable. There were several of the beasts roaming in and out of it, tearing pieces of the hull off and throwing it hundreds of meters away. He had to get away, yet the only way to go was up one of the cliffs.

He had no idea how he did it, but he began climbing the cliff via the blackened roots, letting the adrenaline in his body deal with the stress of keeping hold of both the roots and the rifle. He was only a couple meters up when the Katesh saw him. He began pulling himself up more vigorously. Seconds later, there were two of the beasts snarling below him, so he held on to a root and managed to fire the rifle at them. It only stunned the two, and there were others coming, so he continued to climb.

This seemed to go for some time. He'd crawl up a bit more, turn around, and shoot at whatever Katesh were closest behind him. It seemed hours long, but he was nearing the top, his strength began to give out. He hung there a bit, doing his best to shoot the Katesh below, as the seemed to adapt more and more to the potency of the disruptor pulses. Now was the time to put his all into climbing. Finally making it to the top, swinging his leg over the edge, and rolling to the flat ground. He took as much time-out as he felt he could and scrambled to his feet, turning to see that someone was on the top with him.

Arwen. She held a phasor aimed right for him. Before Aedan could assess that she indeed was aiming for him, she fired and he felt a pain like fire burn into his shoulder, as he stumbled back, and ...


His eyes opened wide. He checked for the phaser that Lt. Stone had issued all of the crew. A cold sweat covered his entire body as he sat up on the bed, realizing that it had only been a dream. He checked the time; he had only slept over two hours. He attempted to fall back asleep, but every time he began to, images of several crew members' heads bursting like what happened with the attack filled his mind. He finally gave up trying to sleep, took a sonic shower, and headed to the mess hall and grabbed some coffee.

Mark Jameson was also there, grabbing something to eat. "Hey, Jameson," Aedan called out.

Mark turned and greeted with a nod, grabbed his meal, and headed over. "You don't look so good."

"Yeah, couldn't sleep. Trying to calm my nerves, and the coffee isn't helping a bit. Wanna get a game of poker going?"

"Sure."

"Invite whoever you want and meet me in Holodeck 1 in fifteen. I'll get things set up."

"Umm yeah sounds great! Let me know when you get a break and we'll grab something."

"Ok will do."

"Sorry i have to run i have to hand out some more of these."

"Thats ok ill see you soon!"

"Ok sounds great."

There was a long pause and an akward silence as they stood there and smiled at each other.

"Ok see you soon." Ryan started packing the phaser back in there case and made his way out of engineering. Hoping that there will be time because things could go wrong quick if the Discovery is borded.


Ryan Stone
USS Discovery
Engineering

Xander looked up at the doctor, he was not happy to see him. Two more Ensign’s walked into the cabin as Dr. Bixby approached him.

“I am going to give you something that will calm you down Xander”

Xander was in no emotional state to argue. He got up and layed down on his bed. He could feel something sharp pressing against his arm.

“I need you to count to 10 for me Xander, can you do that?” asked Bixby.

“Sure doctor. One, two, three, fo….”

“Thanks guys, I’ll take it from here. You can return to your posts” said Bixby turning to address the Ensigns that accompanied him into Xander’s cabin.

When the door closed Bixby immediately got to work. He took of Xander’s shirt so he could more closely examine the lesions on Xander’s shoulders. The lesions were unlike anything he had seen before. He pressed his fingers against the lesions; they were hard and definitely seemed like they had grown through his skin. Bixby took a sample of Xander’s blood and started running tests on it. The results of the tests showed that the sample contained 80% pure Vulcan blood. The type of blood that made up the remaining 20% was unknown.

Bixby pulled out some hypospray and began using it on the lesions that were forming at the top of Xander’s shoulders. He looked closely as the lesions began to decrease in size as the swelling started going away. Within seconds the lesions began forming again.

<What the hell?> Bixby thought to himself.

Bixby switched his focus to Xander’s feet. He removed his shoes. His feet appeared to be deformed. There was a slight arch in the foot which was not a characteristic of a Vulcan's foot. The nails on his feet extended out several cm from his toes and appeared to have sharp curled endings to them. A shot of hypospray on his feet had no effect.

=/\= Bixby to Aschenbrenner =/\=

=/\= Yes doctor, this is Aschenbrenner =/\=

=/\= I am going to send a blood sample down to you that I would like you to check out. I need to know what the origin of the blood is =/\=

=/\= I’m extremely busy right now doctor, I will get to it as soon as I can =/\=

=/\= It’s a sample that I pulled from Xander, its important Aedan =/\=

=/\= Ok, I’ll see what I can do =/\=

Lindsey felt a wave of relief flow over her after Stone accepted her invitation. She still wasn’t quite sure what had made her blurt out the offer of dinner, but seeing as it didn’t cause Ryan to recoil and dismiss her, there was no harm done.

Without realizing it she had subconsciously made her way to the Science Labs. This was where she needed to help Aedan's team work on replicating the RF pulse that the Captain was eager to try.

Upon entering the lab she saw several unfamiliar faces. One looked over in her direction, "Can I help you Lieutenant?"

"I was looking for Lieutenant Aschenbrenner; I'm here to work on the RF Pulse."

"Ah, you must be Lindsey Davis, Chief Engineer. Aschenbrenner is taking a break at the moment, I'm Lieutenant Lem, and I’m taking care of things in his absence"

"Sounds good, where have you gotten?" she asked approaching him at his station.

"Actually I think we have made some major progress. Now, our main problem in replicating the pulse is that this ship doesn’t have anywhere close to the right kind of resonance to create an RF Pulse close to the size we measured previously."

"So you think whatever created this pulse, is pretty immense in mass?"

"It would appear that way, were talking bigger than a Borg Cube here, so...something massive anyway"

"Wow" said Lindsey. "So if we need to generate mass, why not just release some tetratholium gas from the nacelles, than use a low powered Phasor to ignite the tachyon particles, a short thoron burst from the main deflector would then create a balloon effect around the gas-"

"Yes!" Said Lem. "It would be like a giant weather balloon, its size would be in correlation to the amount of gas we release"

"Exactly, with no gravitational forces pulling on it like if it was planet side, theoretically, we could generate a massive balloon"

"Now, how do we get it to transmit the RF pulse?" Lem asked, fingers flying over the console, entering calculations.

"Well" Lindsey started "A communications beacon would need to be planted in the balloon, preferably before we use the Thoron burst, unfortunately I don’t know how to protect it from the gas."

"That’s the easy part" said Lem. "Just put it in a photon torpedo casing. Remove the explosive warhead, replace it with the beacon, and it should be able to sustain the conditions we are putting it into."

"Of course! Those little bastards are well shielded. I think this will work"

"So do I" said Lem, looking at the console screen. "The computer simulations are coming back very positive. I will go let Aedan know, so he can report it to the Captain."

"Alright" said Lindsey, feeling excited about he breakthrough. "I will make some modifications to the Main Deflector so we can begin soon"