Sunday, January 5, 2014

STO Literary Challenge #55, post #21

 http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=14138051&postcount=21



 Starfleet Personal Log:
Cpt. Gjehjallahte Gronzern

Admiral Nine had graciously accepted my promotion to captain, my proposal to Starfleet regarding experimentation, and exploration in correlation with the newly discovered Iconian satellite gateway system, as well as my suggestion that I command an experimental H-Class Novae vessel for my debut mission.
My first mission as captain was to pilot the ship I had been co-commanding with its Captain, Merle Dox, off to a very important Starfleet Debriefing regarding the Mirror Universe in sector 001. Captain Dox had helped me formulate certain postulates in my proposal, and consulted me in certain ways that I feel were systemic to my success. I was one of four Commanding officers aboard the F-Class Aulanerk Saanich, a vessel that had six lieutenant-commanders as well. It is a larger vessel, yet merely galaxy class.
We are to visit Ferasan to make adjustments to the Nova-Dreadnaught H – Class Bastet Ferasan, a much larger ship of which I will be one of three Captains. Four commanders from the Aulanerk Saanich will be joining us. Luckily, it is known to the Federation how to use the Iconian satellite Gateways, so our trip was actually shortened considerably. We were to transfer and meet Admiral Nine aboard, she is the supreme commander of the vessel Bastet Ferasan. As it would so happen, the Bastet Ferasan is the most readily available ship of its class for this mission. My hope is that after the mission I will be able to research our mission conclusions on a Ferasan research station on-planet, I would be happy to help training on-planet and to rejoin the Bastet Farasan afterwards, as it were, I had not had extended leave in four years. I would request one year at Farasan Research Facility A, with the option for extension should my research be for some reason incomplete in one Ferasan year.
Aboard Bastet Ferasan I was formally announced as the tactical Captain of the Bridge, one of my co-horts from the Aulanerk Saanich commanders became the Captain of Engineering, his Lieutenant Commander being made full Commander of Engineering, one of six that the Bastet Ferasan now contains. One Commander was also a tactical commander and was made my #1, and our Science Lieutenant Commander was made Commander for this mission also. We were informed of battlefield promotions aboard the Aulanerk Saanich, which included the Engineering Commander, the Ferengi named Navi, who was made acting captain. The ship was roughly forty percent Caitain, and we were grossly understaffed, at about one quarter capacity, or roughly two thousand personnel.
Transport and storage are not the main concerns of the voyage, although Starfleet intelligence considers the likelihood that asylum seekers and other diplomatic cohorts are likely to come aboard, there is more room for biological samples, shuttles, and of course the two larger attack frigates. H-Class Caitian variations on the Vigilant and Sao Paulo tactical escorts, have been proven for combative and diplomatic consideration. The tactical escorts for this mission are named Ferasan Fury, and Fist of Ferasan or Sraalla. [This is roughly translated from Caitian mythology, the former being from a form of philosophic construct, similar to human pride or geist to that of a bezerk, and the later being a variation on the traditional name for the Ferasan war goddess.]It had seemed that I would be more likely to command the Fist of Ferasan, or Sraalla, in case of extraneous circumstances, Admiral Nine has a complicated personnel chart she would systematically refer to in order to determine the command chain based on any plausible situation. Although I am happy for the design, I only wanted to know what the circumstances might be, and percentage wise I found it more likely that I would command the Bastet Ferasan, or the Fist of Ferasan, or Sraala.
Meanwhile teams from the Aulanerk Saanich were working with Ferasan technicians in order to ready all systems aboard the Bastet Ferasan. I was responsible for coordinating the various timelines, and personnel, although There were two commanders and three lieutenant commanders with several lieutenants working in my sub-command chain. The Engineering and Medical/Science groups were served similar compositions, although there was complicated cross over between the disciplines.
 One example of such would be Commander Talnar, his wife, and assistant Lieutenant Talnar-Ventir. Both are specialists and customarily wear the solid black uniform, similar to that of Section 31. Due to their specializations their objectives are classified, and I assigned to them four escorts, two male, and two female, Caitain, assault specialists. The Specialization Team is upgrading tactical, medical, and engineering schematics to match current Section 31 standardizations. It is thought that the Borg will be present in the Mirror Universe when we arrive. That now said, we need every advantage possible, and the Vulcan Talnars are seeing that every advantage is met. Our technical teams have been forewarned that there are possible variables in our upgrading procedures that might not make the cut according to Starfleet Intelligence. There have been minor incidences in every department that rerouting and post-circuitry performance reviews have been necessary, are part of new initialization and installation processes. At least a dozen times Talnar has stopped process in an entire computer section, sometimes scores of technicians at work in these places, waiting for a part, some kind of mechanical augmentation to arrive, and be installed, attempting to reroute a sub-routine, whatever the case, so that regulatory processes could continue. No one is allowed to look at said installations except the senior staff. I witnessed every such installation, usually in the company of Admiral Nine herself, although she was too busy for some of the events. The Talnar encryption processes alone can impede preparations for hours, although all systems need to be redoubtable. We are still talking about the Borg, no redundancy is irrelevant. The Admiral has said.
Captain Merle arrived in Ferasan early, her briefing was short apparently, so she was prepared to command the Aulanerk Saanich, and her assistance in overseeing ship preparations was greatly appreciated by everyone. A fresh set of eyes, ears, and hands can often do twice the work of those who have long been in the trenches. She arrived aboard the starship Daedalus D-class, a ship which easily matches the bulk and velocity of the Bastet Ferasan. Daedalus was commandeered by Admiral Janeway and co-commands with an Admiral Smithson. Smithson’s captains will be co-commanding and taking responsibility for the Delta D-Class Defiant and Sao Paulo tactical assault vessels Icarus and Iapyx.
It is thought that the two larger dreadnaught / pan galactic vessels with assault vessels should be enough to make an assessment on the Borg activity in the Mirror Universe, should the calculations be accurate. Meanwhile the Vulcan specialists have been in communications with their secondary team aboard the Daedalus and both teams are in concert on their extremely urgent need to make computations for newer enigma calculations, which will essentially determine what the telemetry of Borg involvement in the Mirror Universe is, and hopefully define an event horizon for their involvement there, as well as with involvement with the Iconian Gateways.[1]
Commander Talvar’s briefing to the senior staff revealed some major intel considerations regarding the Borg and the Iconians, their relationship to each other historically, and what tactical consignments or manipulations both parties could likely be expected to be defined by in the Mirror Universe.[2] Not exactly a socio-dynamic consideration, among other things, Talvar is fairly convinced, as are other’s in Starfleet that the Iconians, in a political move of desperation created the Borg as a defense mechanism to harvest technological sources throughout the galaxy, after being invaded by outside forces, likely militaristic humanoids from the Andromeda galaxy, over 150,000 years ago. Intel from actual Mirror Universe members are varied and somewhat vague, although it has been suggested that there is a definitive possibility that on that side of the chasm Iconians completely defeated the Borg, realizing they had created another terrible source of competition for themselves, their more base bureaucratic nature is in full consideration there, and they are terribly militaristic and totalitarian, whereas here, some hundred thousand plus years ago, the Iconians in a humanistic, civil manner discovered their folly and created almost infinite models of species within existing DNA structures in primordial microcondria on various primitive stage M-class planets, and terra-formed and created nebula and other anomalies [dark-matter] in such a way as to smoke screen the species’ planets away from the Borg.
Talvar used the Viking example, Iceland, seems like a name inhospitable to life, Greenland, seems a quite pleasant namesake… Of course I recognized the desert continent Green Island, Pangaea-like continent Death Island variation from the Caitian translation on my hand held viewing com. Caitians have long ago abandoned such misleading nefarious means of matriculation. Studying Terran history in Starfleet, I was surprised to see the Viking example in such a way, when I realized the humans were at least as good at exploration and navigation, it was a very humbling experience for me. Like many young Caitians, I assumed they were merely simian to all circumstances. Much like humans being stunned to see bipedal felines I once had to suppose, it takes time to convince humans that we have little relationship to our quadruped ancestors from their planet, and our past. Did the Borg or the Iconians plant DNA in these locations? Could there have been another factor? Iconians in the past have taken claim to such events, still, they could consider the work of the Borg to be their own. Talvar created many intriguing complexities, and frankly I was happy to have Saurian brandy with the Admirals and joint senior staff after the briefing.
               Smithson said to Janeway, with his Captain Argensen also in said social grouping, “I see Captain Gronzern has had enough Cloud Atlas theory for the afternoon.” I had seen the movie in academy in San Francisco, although I was on the accelerated course at the time, having studied on Ferasan, I chuckled without regard to being polite as it was actually kind of a scary moment of rationalization. It came out a little like a growl from a hyena, is what I have been told in the past by Terrans.
               “Admiral, I’m sure we will run out of Saurian Brandy today, its fine, there’s a fixed amount in this location, we are expected as senior officers to perform at our best.” That was Janeway’s rebuttal.
               Luckily my guttural accent isn’t debilitating, so I was able to share my thoughts with my colleagues. Commander and Lieutenant Talvar thought my insights were exactly excelsior to the design philosophy of the motive of consternation, honestly, I know both Vulcans have extra special abilities in continuum, quantum and astral theory, so I was simply happy to stay on my feet with my brain in concert with this particular zeitgeist. They were particularly gratified, to also Nine and Janeway, who apparently liken advanced theory in the field more than Smithson, who dislikes analogous anomalies of this nature. Captain Argensen, who has known Smithson longer translated.
               “Not his idea of a good mystery, really, we just want the answers here, nothing more.” Captain Argensen has a natural way of expressing disconcertion to an alleviating affectation. Smithson seemed more pleased with Argensen’s explanation.
               “In an earlier century we would have thought this all nonsense, now perhaps the galaxies on both parallels are in jeopardy…”
               Talvar had explained that in the Mirror Universe the galaxy had been divided by ancient militaristic factions, lesser factions, such as those in our own local stellar neighborhood were to fight one another, to build strength from within enough to defend all else without. His personal view was that as much of the galaxy that is ruled by the Borg here in our galaxy was now in paradox lead by the Iconian autocracy, all other authority in the Mirror-side purely oligarchic in nature. The Iconian autocracy will believe by right of paradox that the Borg control of our own galaxy will be by divine right, their own doing. That, in a nutshell, is what was disturbing Smithson, Janeway, Nine and he would be furthering their conceptual alignment on the subject.
“We all share the same concerns here. We are anon, we are not Borg, remember what the Klingons have in the past said, They are the Borg; Deassimilate them!” Admiral Nine shares the distinction of being a relatively young, attractive and deadly intelligent Admiral with a bone to pick and a cross to bear, to use a human analogy. Her grits are rough and ready, her smite is sharp and wicked. “Both pan-galactic vessels are outfitted to keep thousands of Borg in stasis and hundreds in various pseudo stasis. The scientific data from this mission alone could in fact be enough to turn over rule in this galaxy to the Federation / Galactic alliance. There is a real chance that we can use the Borg to discourage further Mirror-Universe incursion on this paradox, as well as find reasonable diplomacy and knowledge from that paradox also. Live today so that our enemies will die tomorrow-Take prisoners and remind the enemy the extent of our intent against them.” Nine used late 23rd century Klingon rhetoric as a device to create passion and mission unity. I felt, although a devout Caitian and Federation member, that that particular passion resonated with me fully in my being and that my comrades were of the same mind. Later I recommended that she use this mode of speech with both crews of the mission fleet. She would think on it.


[1] http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=13760831&postcount=12 , I establish motive for the Iconian gateway’s universality and Borg considerations thereof, the Mirror Universe is also a consideration to this effect.
[2] Ibid.
 



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