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"Yes sir." The pilot responded.
"I thought the war effort was being co-ordinated from Earth."
"Yes Sir, I believe it is."
"Then why am I here? I was supposed to be taken to Earth."
"Sir, our orders were to bring you to Utopia Planetia, presumably there is a vessel here that will take you to Earth."
"Presumably, hail them, tell them we've arrived."
"Aye Sir." The pilot tapped at his console and before long said, "Utopia Planetia Operations, this is Shuttlecraft 18 returning with our passenger, requesting further orders."
"Shuttlecraft 18, please dock in bay 12 and report to Ops. All of you."
"Yes Sir, docking bay 12, all report to Ops." The comms cut out and the Pilot quickly maneuvered the shuttle into the docking bay. Carnis had the sudden thought that the young Lt. would make a fine starship pilot someday.
"A nice landing Lieutenant."
"Thank you Sir, but it was just routine."
"Routine maybe, but I've had a LOT worse in my time, you'll make a fine pilot someday."
"If you say so Sir."
"I do say so, but come, we must report to Operations. I wonder what all this is about . . ."
When they exited the shuttle, they found two members of security holding the turbolift for them, to the annoyance of several civilians and some other Starfleet Officers. When they entered, the security men stepped in with them before Carnis could say Operations.
After a few moments, the turbolift stopped and they exited onto the bridge. There he saw someone he hadn't expected. "Admiral Ark'Vor! It's been too long Sir."
"That it has James, that it has. Still, we must waste no time, I have your new orders."
"New orders Sir? I thought I was supposed to be on my way to Earth."
"A ploy Carnis, in case anyone has been intercepting any of our transmissions. These are your actual orders."
"Why all the secrecy then? Surely they can't be anything dangerous."
"You have no idea Carnis, but I shall enlighten you soon, clear the deck please, transfer to the Auxiliary Operations room, I shall call you back when I'm done."
The room rapidly emptied, and shortly after the systems powered down as control was transferred to the auxiliary room. "Here is the situation Captain, we're losing ships, and we're losing crew. We're losing systems, we're losing spies, we're losing the war. The Romulans must have been planning this for some time."
He paused for a moment, tapping commands into the Library computer console, "As such, we have been constructing another prototype vessel of the Prometheus class."
"I'm not familiar with that class."
"No, you have no reason to have been told of it. The first prototype was the U.S.S. Voyager, under the command of Captain Janeway. It was lost with all hands during a mission, it is not believed to have been any fault of the vessels. Until now, however, the admiralty didn't let us construct another. That situation has changed, and we have been given leave to create another prototype Prometheus class vessel. If it proves to be a valuable addition to the fleet, it will be but the first. You have been chosen to command the vessel known as the U.S.S. Pandora."
"Admiral, it is an honour, but surely there are better candidates out there for this."
"Not so Captain, this vessel has a unique aspect to it. I believe you are familiar with the Galaxy class?"
"Yes sir, I have served on them."
"Then you will know about the saucer separation capability. That was mainly to be used as a safety mechanism for protecting part of the ship and crew, though it proved itself in battle on numerous occasions. The Prometheus class was designed to take advantage of the tactical benefits of ship separation." He tapped more commands into the computer and several schematic images of the Prometheus class came up on the viewscreen.
"You will notice the four nacelles, something that we have on some of our ship classes. The hull of the ship can split into three sections, the upper section comprises of the majority of the saucer, and has nacelles built into the hull to power it at warp. The lower section comprises of the bottom of the saucer and the lower two nacelles, whilst the middle is the rest of the saucer and the upper pylons. Each section has its own battle bridge, power supply, warp capacity, and facilities to act as a starship in its own right. We call the idea Multi-Vectored Assault Mode, MVAM for short, it is designed to give the ship an edge in combat. The ability to split and effectively become three ships is the reason it has been approved for retesting, it would be an invaluable asset for sending to system distress calls, able to take on a Warbird easily, or to fight several birds of prey, whatever the Romulans throw at it, it should be able to cope with."
There was another pause before the Admiral turned from surveying the viewscreen, "This is why you were chosen, commanding a single crew over three separate vessels is a task that few are cut out for, to be able to use those three vessels in co-ordination with each other in a tactical situation. That is what you were chosen for, we believe you are the best Captain for this vessel, prove us right."
"Yes sir!" James took a step forward, taking a closer look at the pictures of the class, it looked magnificent, he ran an eye down the specifications list and noticed it was armed with the newest weapons in Starfleet's arsenal. "What about a crew?"
"They are being assembled as we speak, they are being told that they're being reassigned to a newly constructed vessel, but nothing more."
James nodded, "When are we due to ship out for the shakedown?"
"Within the week, we're running the usual shakedown, followed by a debrief before you get sent out on the real thing."
"And these two?" He asked, gesturing to the other two Officers in the room.
"Section 31 Operatives, they will be accompanying the ship for security reasons, and in case you need them for any reason. To the rest of your crew, they are to be advisors in your testing of this prototype ship."
"Section 31? I don't like this."
"Nor does anyone who works with them, but they get the job done. The importance of this vessel is vast, we cannot allow the Romulans to get hold of any information about it."
"I understand, they shall be accommodated. Though I can't guarantee any more than that."
"We're used to it Captain, and let me tell you, we dislike working with those outside of our Section just as much as you dislike working with us."
"That makes me feel even better." Carnis replied sarcastically. "When can we expect the first of the crew to arrive Admiral?"
"We have a reasonable number here already, but they have been kept in the dark until you have seen the ship yourself, then we shall introduce the crewmembers to it. The relevant files for the ship and crew have been added to your security clearance, feel free to access them whenever you like."
"Thank you Admiral, until we meet again."
"Indeed. Live long and prosper Carnis." The Vulcan said, dismissing them.
"Live long and prosper Admiral." He said before striding back into the turbolift.
Returning to the shuttle they had arrived on, the men from Section 31 sat up in the cockpit again, whilst Carnis stood behind them, waiting for the first view of his new ship. It didn't take long, in the distance he saw a separate drydock, surrounded by several lights, among the lights were other vessels. He couldn't make out the classes from this distance, but he realised that those lights were probably turrets. Such defences for a new ship? They must be pouring everything into this effort, such cost, surely there could be no risk here, at the Fleet's main shipyards?
"What haven't they told me?" He asked the Section 31 Operatives, he didn't expect an answer, but maybe they would leave a hint.
"Sir?"
"Why is there such protection around the Pandora? Do they fear an attack?"
"Surely not sir. The Romulans couldn't be in striking distance."
"Too programmed Lieutenant, you know something."
"Need to know Captain, our hands are tied."
"How long have they been stationed here? Surely you can tell me that."
"A few days, we shipped in with them."
"And the ship has been under construction for just over a year. Why now? Why at the completion if there were no risk."
"Captain Carnis, do not think too hard on it, if you need to know, we will tell you, if you don't, concentrate on getting this ship working and in the field. Starfleet needs it to work, too much has been put at stake."
"I know my job Lieutenant, maybe you should stick to yours. If I think I need to know, I will find out."
"I have no doubt Captain, when we let you know."
"I'd heard about you lot, do not interfere with the running of my ship and I will tolerate your presence on it, you may even find yourselves becoming useful. Offer advice if you think it worthy, but don't waste my time, particularly not at inopportune moments. You guys aren't used to the way ships run I hear."
"We know our orders." Came a venomous reply from the one who was clearly in charge of the mission.
"Whatever." They were getting close now and Carnis wanted to pay close attention to the ship. It was a work of beauty, even more so than a Galaxy class, and to think that it had so much power hidden inside. He wondered what his crew would be like.
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This didn't help Kouji's nervousness. "Umm, could you please keap it down? Screaming and complaining won't help..."
"I don't friggin' give a crap!" Ingus snapped back. "I'm a professional pilot! All I'm saying is that if the ship we were assigned to is a complete piece of shit, I'm demanding to be out of this black hole!"
Kouji was appalled by this man's words. "De-demand?? You can't just drop out of direct orders--"
"Ha!" Ingus huffed. "Like I care! Listen, to get what you want in this galaxy, you got to force them to hand it over! Gotta be forceful! That's the only way we're gonna win this war is aggressiveness!"
The Ensign couldn't argue there. Aggressiveness was the only reason the Romulans even pushed starfleet had been pushed so far as to use prototype weapons and ships. "Look, we just need to follow captains orders, everything will be fine!"
Ingus scoffed. "Ha! Right. Whatever you say." The rest of the flight over was basically silent, when the ship finally arrived. Utopia Planetia. Both men were somewhat surprised, as the ship lowered to the surface. They were taken by carts to a secret location. And it was here, where both officers stared in gawk and amazement as they finally got to see their new post. The USS Pandora. Starfleet's latest model next to the Voyager.
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The Q watched as the ship arrived at Utopia Planetia. She raised an eyebrow, not having expected this, but said nothing as the ship made its landing. Finding it better to make friends later than before she knew who could be trusted, she decided it best not to speak, even as others around her talked excitedly in wonder of what was going to happen next. It was then they arrived to their destination, and saw their new assignment. The USS Pandora, as beautiful as one could imagine. Third couldn't help but smile at the sight.
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Andrus sits down at the console to double check everything making sure the ship is at peek efficiency. Remembering his errors as an ensign on the USS Simplicite, double check everything before the captain arrives. Working for the last 20 hours, his was getting hard to keep his eyes open as he stares at the console. Though he knew he couldn't sleep, plus the excitement of being a Chief Engineer on a beautiful ship like the Pandora will keep him running.
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This was his first mission outside the academy so he wanted to make sure he was doing anything and everything he did right. So he double checked everything he did. Absolutely everything. And this annoyed more or less, the people around him a lot. But he couldn't help it. That's just what he did.
---
Ingus walked into the bridge. There were already people there, walking around tending to their work. This was the center of it all. The control room for the USS Pandora. Ingus thought that they had pulled him out of his previous station as punishment. But now it was apparent to him. This was his dream! Here he was, now about to test out Starfleets newest, and most advanced ship.
Ingus sauntered over to the helm. He ran his fingers over the console. He could almost feel the surge of energy from the engines through these computers. He was real excited. He took his seat, anxiously waiting to receive orders for takeoff.
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"Attention! Captain on the deck!" The group snapped to attention, James surveyed the man calling the orders, noticing the Commander's rank on his dress uniform.
"Clearly I didn't dress for the occasion Commander, you should have sent me a warning."
"Sorry Sir, we didn't know we were to expect you today. Otherwise I would have asked the Admiral to warn you."
"Oh well, thank you all for the welcome, I hope my time as Captain here is beneficial to us all. Dismissed." The group snapped a smart salute and filed out. Once they were out of earshot, Carnis said to the Commander, "As for you, Commander, I don't like unnecessary ceremony, consider yourself warned." He cracked a smile, "But I think I'm going to like you. What's your name?"
"Commander Steven DeLant, Sir."
"Well then Commander, I guess it's time for the grand tour."
"Yes sir, though might I ask who the officers accompanying you are?"
"Ah, yes, this is Lieutenant Mallinson," he gestured to the one who had been most talkative, "and Lieutenant Nerb. They have been assigned to us as advisors for the time being."
"Advisors? That's a new one, though I guess this is an exceptional situation." He gestured for them to follow, then turned to lead the way. "I am one of the longest serving Officers on this ship, as if that can count for anything! I was brought in at the start, after they had picked a Captain, but long before you were even contacted. The ship had been under construction for a month when they brought me in, but having been around so long I have a good knowledge of the layout of the ship. This is the shuttlebay obviously, we've been outfitted with 2 Starfleet fighters, as a precaution, as well as 4 trained pilots, doubling up in other departments. We also have the standard loadout of shuttles. We'll head to Engineering next, I believe the Chief Engineer has already checked in, so you'll get the chance to meet him."
"Good, oh and schedule a meal with the Chiefs for tomorrow night, informal, I want a chance to get to know them informally."
"Already booked Captain, you're not the first new Captain I've had."
"Efficient, though I'd like you to invite our helm officer as well."
"Very well, I shall send an invitation when I get a chance."
During the talk, they had taken a turbolift to Engineering and they now walked into the main bay. It was bustling with activity, engineers hurrying around, checking and double-checking systems. There was one that stood out, sat at a station, seemingly puzzled over something. They made their way over to the main station where the Chief was overseeing the proceedings.
"Chief, report." Carnis stated, he had found in the past that most people responded better to duty rather than informal introductions when faced with unfamiliar circumstances.
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This had been Tumek's first trip home since he had run away that he had been greeted warmly by his father, who on other visits had scorned the young Starfleet Lieutenant. This time, Tumek was able to convince his father that joining Starfleet had been the only option to experience true space travel.
"The Klingon fleet is shattered, father! It barely even exists anymore!" He had yelled furiously at his father in a message he had sent home after being informed of his promotion.
Finally, his father had given in and decided to truly respect his son's choice and had presented Tumek with the phaser that he had used as the captain of the warship, the Tumek (after which he had named his son).
As Tumek S'dnuoP stared at the USS Pandora, he felt pride in being able to prove his worth as a leader and a warrior.
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Now it was Ingus' turn. He was going to do everything in his power to try and surpass his dad.
His thoughts were interrupted by an officer who came up to him. "Lieutenant?" Ingus turned around and acknowledged this new acquaintance.
"Hm?" He then noticed the badges on his collar and saw that he was a commanding officer. "Oh! Uh, sir!"
The commander simply said, "At ease lieutenant, you name is Forbes, correct?"
"Yes?" Ingus was a bit off-put by this man, who seemed a bit more lax than other commanders that he worked with.
"The captain is calling all senior officers to have a meal with him tomorrow night. Including the helms officer. Informal of course, would you be willing to attend? He wishes to get to know the crew first before anything else."
"Of course. Sure." Ingus replied a bit surprised.
"Good. By the way, I'm commander DeLant."
"Yes sir. Thank you sir." Out of curiosity, Ingus then asked, "When do we take off?"
The commander chuckled. "Not for a little while hot shot. We're still getting all the preparations done. Don't worry, you'll be the first to know when we'll leave."
"Oh, ok, thank you sir." Ingus said, a little sad. Ah well, as long as it was soon and not never.
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"Captain, Sir. " Andrus said, not sure how he should address Carnis. "All systems are online and operational. We've just been having some bugs with a few consoles, and a replicator on deck 8. Besides that we just need to double check everything. Pandora should be ready to go to warp in less than an hour."
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"That's Ensign Masato, sir. " Andrus responded. "He's fresh from the acadamy, probably having trouble with the new system architecture. I'll go check if he needs any help."
Andrus walks over to Masato who was busy working on his console.
"Do you need any assistance ensign?" Andrus gently asked.
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Kouji jumped at the sound, not expecting anyone to be behind him. He turned around suddenly and with a panicked voice, said "I-I-I wasn't slacking! Er, Sir! Just um, just making triply sure I got the systems down!" Kouji had his hand raised in solute. "Th-there were several bugs and kinks in the system, so I quickly resolved the problem! At least, I think I did..." He glanced back at the console. "I wasn't sure if I had gotten rid of the problem completely, so I was just checking the systems a fourth time, to make sure it really was resolved, but then I keep finding other bugs and kinks to fix, and..." Kouji continued to ramble without realizing.
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"My apologizes, I often forget humans and other life forms do not share the bond Vulcans commonly do. Your duties, Ensign, at the moment, are to get settled in. I suggest you proceed with caution, don't make enemies - this could lead to a swift downfall." She nodded to him and went back to examining a large row of needle-less syringes.
Jacob nodded to the Deputy and took off towards his quarters, eager to see the new ship in all its glory.
Piri looked to Dr. Ru, "Once we're done examining these, we'll retire to our quarters for the night, I suggest you do the same. We'll convene in later, when time permits." She moved on to one of the beds, smoothing out the sheet on it. She had to keep busy or she'd slip. Life seemed to be zooming by her quicker than she had thought it would; she was already a Chief Medical Officer. Her hands moved over the lines of bottles, like Klingon soldiers, lining up for battle. The universe seemed infinite to Piri. To her, it wasn't something to be conquered, but rather, something to be cherished and molded - not beaten into shape. Violence wasn't the way to win. That's why she became a doctor, to help save lives so that maybe this war would end, and peace could return to the universe.
She snapped back into reality when Serith walked over to her, looked into her eyes and said, "Be careful. The road you travel on is steeper than you may have first judged."
She nodded and straightened, walking out of the bay, towards her room. She needed to meditate.
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"Your doing a fine job ensign, don't worry too much." Andrus said, trying to calm down Kouji. "I can finish up here if you could go and check the Replicator on deck 8. Reports are coming in that it's not replicating correctly."
Everything in the engineering room is going fine, he had to find someone to go fix that stupid replicator. Ensign Kouji seems to be the right person for the job.
"If you need any help, don't hesitate to ask another engineering officer or myself." he added.
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Kouji went to counseling for this kind of obsessive behavior of course, but the therapy sessions didn't help much at all. So now he was still the obsessive maid he saw himself as since childhood. He reached Deck 8. He felt his anxiousness come back, as people came and went. "Hey uh... where's the broken replicator?" He asked one of the officers. Once he got directions, he went to down the hall, and past the crowd of rushing workers, until he reached the replicator.
"Let's see what's wrong here..." He ordered a cup of regular coffee. He got the coffee. Just not the cup. "Hmm...maybe the problem here..." He opened up the hatch on the bottom of the machine, and looked into the machinery, and had assessed what was wrong with it. He picked up his tools and quickly went underway with the repairs.
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Kouji had found himself gaping a bit, but quickly stood up and straightened himself out. "Th-the uh...the mess hall?" He stuttered. "Boy, um...I'm not sure exactly." He looked around, like he'd find it just lying on the ground or something. "Probably deck 7. Or 6...was it 7? No! 6! 6!" He nodded quickly. "Definitely 6!" He then turned around, then did one final thing before closing up the panel on the replicator. "Actually, the replicator here should work just fine now!" He turned to the machine. "At least...I think it should. Maybe... I dunno actually." He kept mumbling to himself in a worried attitude.
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As Kouji was muttering to himself, another officers happens to pass by. "Ensign?" Again, this catches him off guard.
"Ah! Er...I-I mean, Sir! Er...madam! Lady! No...woman? Gah no!" He tripped over his own words as he tried recollecting himself. "M-ma'am! How can I help you??" He said, his hands shaking. This woman may be the Chief Medical Officer, judging from her blue uniform and the number of badges on her collar.
---
[Bridge]
Ingus rubbed his temples. Everything was just so dull right now. There was nothing interesting going on. He was listening to an ensign chastise a civilian for being on the ship, even though he insisted that there was still a job to be done on the ship. Lord almighty, just leave him alone... He thought. No one cares about him, and no one cares about you, you mindless newbie... After a few minutes, Ingus was about to turn around and give him an earful when the captain appeared on deck with his two assistants.
Ingus was surprised. The captain quickly recognized him as a reporter, so the Ensign, if not a little too happily, took out his phaser and proceeded to escort him out to the brigs. Well well... Ingus thought. Things might actually get a little interesting...
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"These Vulcans get stranger by the minute..." Virjok grinned a little to Kouji, "Hmm, maybe it is just her... Calm down, Piri's that stiff to everyone, including her own staff. Talk about reassuring for the patients..." She joked pointing to herself when she said the word 'staff' as she looked at the human a little closer, "Say, I've seen you before... You were on my transport, no? Trying to stop our new helmsman from assaulting the vessel." She smirked holding her hands out for him to shake should he not faint from the shock which, to be honest, would not be all that surprising. "I'm Virjok Ru, by the way."
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"Holmes, you do know he was talking to you?" said the voice of a fellow science officer, who had actually known her for a year or so. He frowned slightly at her, knowing it wouldn't take much for little Vera Holmes to forget everything. Third simply shrugged at this, as anyone could easily understand a being like herself not being able to pay attention to such small fractions of time. When you live forever, many immortals found, past, present and future sort of blend together. However, Third wasn't immortal anymore, at least she didn't think she was. As she stepped into the elevator, declaring her destination, she winked at the poor friend before the doors closed, and the contraption moved.
Her presence was declared by a sorely missed "whoosh" of the elevator doors, and Third stepped unto the bridge, well knowing that she didn't exactly appear like the average science officer. She greeted the Captain as politely as she could, but preferred to get to the point by adding "How may I be of assistance?" with a slightly smug grin.
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Kouji was a bit surprised. "Oh--"
"That will be all, Ensign. You may return to your duties."
And with that, she left. Kouji was a bit put off, but he had to admit, that Vulcan was pretty efficient, if not a social dunce for just randomly shooting the vaccine into people's necks without warning. She continued to do so as she moved through the corridors. What an odd woman...
He then heard the alien in front of him speak up. "These Vulcans get stranger by the minute..." Virjok grinned a little to Kouji, "Hmm, maybe it is just her... Calm down, Piri's that stiff to everyone, including her own staff. Talk about reassuring for the patients..." She then looked at him inquisitively. "Say, I've seen you before... You were on my transport, no? Trying to stop our new helmsman from assaulting the vessel. I'm Virjok Ru, by the way." She held out her right hand, well both right hands, to show she was friendly.
Of course, the fact she had four arms still was freaking Kouji out, never mind the fact he had no idea which hand to shake. So he simply bowed, saying "E-ensign Masato." He stuttered. Kouji cursed himself. He promised himself he'd get that taken care of. "And yes, that w-was officer Forbes. I-I'm not sure if he would have listened to me anyway. I'm not exactly the most...er...charismatic type of person..."
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