| abstract
| - "Imagine spending Christmas on New Talax, and being home in time for New Years." Miles O'Brien led a meeting of young engineers in a large meeting room aboard Starbase 40Eridani-A. "Christmas?" a Bolian interrupted. O'Brien smirked, "An old Earth holiday." he explained. "The graviton catapult is going to revolutionize the way we explore space; and you're all going to be a part of it. Each of you has been selected to take part in this ambitious project." The meeting room's door opened, a solitary command-red uniform waded across the sea of gold shirted engineers quietly, leaning alone against a far wall. "Captain Deet," O'Brien turned his attention to the officer, "Thank you for joining us." "My pleasure, Commandant. I just wanted to meet the team." Deet smiled. "Just call me Chief," O'Brien quipped, distancing himself from his titular position as head of the Starfleet Corp of Engineers. "Would you care to address the group?" Aznia stood up straightening her uniform quickly. "I'm sure you've all read the mission outline. Several of you were involved in the initial construction project. To summarize: Starfleet has designed and tested its first graviton catapult in the Beta Stromgren system. In just over an hour's time, a probe was successfully sent over 3,000 light years into uncharted space. At conventional warp, the same trip would take 2-3 years. The time has now come that Starfleet is ready to send someone- to send us through. Our mission is simple: six ships travel through the catapult. We'll be stocked with the tools to build another catapult on the other side. We'll need to locate resources, find an acceptable staging area, and be prepared to encounter the unknown. If all goes well, we'll have a second catapult up and running in a few months and we'll be able to get back home. I'll be taking point of the mission in command of the Federalist. Chief O'Brien will lead Engineering operations from his ship, the DaVinci. We'll be accompanied by the Revere for additional tactical support, the Wozniak and the Shepard are being outfitted specially for fabrication and transportation duties, and the Polaris will serve in a science and medical support role. This is a bold mission, one of the most ambitious large scale projects that Starfleet has ever undergone. We're certainly not going into this without risk; because once we're out there, we're cut off- no fleet support, no stopping in at starbase for repair or reassignment. We make due with what we have until we finish the job. I don't want to order anyone to go on this mission. You've been asked to participate because you're some of the best we have. This is a unique challenge, and if you don't feel up to the assignment, I wouldn't think less of you. We can have you reassigned without reprimand or demerit. You have until 0700 tomorrow to make your decision." "Does that go for me too?" the Chief joked. The room chuckled. Aznia responded, "I know you won't pass up an opportunity to make engineering history, Chief." "At my age, I am engineering history, Captain." Smiling, Aznia addressed the room one final time, "To those of you who are willing, the Shepard will be docked at airlock 4 tomorrow. Gather your belongings, and report there by 1000 tomorrow. Thank you." She turned to O'Brien as she walked toward the door, "And thank you Chief." --- The convoy gathered near Beta Stromgren, the tiny supernova remnant neutron star pulsed and twisted as a far-orbiting structure remained anchored to it by a steady beam- a flow of gravitons tying the ring shaped catapult to its power source. Aznia stood in the Federalist's conference room, staring at the marvel of engineering from the window. "It is... innovative technology." a familiar voice snuck up on the Captain. Aznia turned around to see First of Eight, he chief Engineer standing across the room. "First, I didn't hear you come in." "I did not mean to startle you, Captain." the liberated drone apologized, "I have reviewed the data on the graviton catapult, and I believe the technology is sound." "To be honest, I wish I had the engineering expertise to understand it a bit better myself." Aznia confessed. "The key is the neutron star." the Engineer explained, "The technology was derived from a schematic that the U.S.S. Voyager brought back from the Delta Quadrant several years ago. Until now, we've been unable to create a steady power source capable of generating the gravitons necessary to push a ship into subspace. Recently, the Starfleet Corps of Engineers realized that we could use a natural graviton generator to do that part of the work for us." "So our top priority upon arrival at our landing site will be to locate a neutron star." Aznia acknowledged. "That should be a relatively simple matter." The Borg confidently reported. Aznia smirked, "In a vacuum, absolutely. But we both know that space is hardly a vacuum. We never know what's waiting for us out there." The door to the conference room swooshed open again, Dr. Span and Commander Walesa walked in, taking a seat at the table. Aznia gestured for First of Eight to join them. After a moment Lt. Quallo entered the conference room, and took the last open seat on the near side of the table. Aznia sat across from her senior staff. "I asked you here to talk about some reassignments for this mission. First of Eight, I want you to be my liaison to Chief O'Brien; help to coordinate resources and determine the needs of the engineering teams. Let me know what the Federalist can do to assist their efforts." First of Eight nodded. "Commander Walesa, I'm sure you've heard that Captain Boday has accepted promotion to Admiral, and is stepping down from command of the Revere, effective immediately." "One of the finest commanding officers I've served under," Walesa acknowledged. "I couldn't be happier for him." Aznia smiled, "Since you were Boday's first officer before transferring here, I was thinking that you'd be a prime candidate to assume command of the Revere for the duration of the mission." Walesa was surprised, she straightened her posture and widened her eyes, "Yes, sir. I won't let you down." "And that brings me to the unpleasant part. I hate to split up a family, but Span, I'd like you to report to the Polaris. I want you to coordinate all medical needs for the convoy." Aznia morosely ordered. Walesa looked over to Span for a long moment. He did not immediately react. The Vulcan medical officer finally acknowledged, "That is a logical course of action." he coldly acknowledged. "We're still all in this together. I don't want you to think of this as parting ways. On the contrary, for this mission, we all need to be able to depend on each other more than ever." Aznia turned to the last officer at the table, smiling, "Quallo, old friend. I'd like you to take over as first officer aboard the Federalist. Dewoh can take over full time at Tactical." "It will be an honor, sir." the Ferengi responded. "Good. Quallo, First of Eight, you're dismissed. I'd like a status report by the end of your shift." Both officers stood up, nodding to the captain before leaving the room. As soon as the room vacated, Aznia returned attention to Walesa and Span. "I wanted to speak to you about Calvin. How is he doing?" Walesa spoke first, "He is adjusting slowly. It's a shock for him to be surrounded by so many people. I was hoping he would be able to spend some time on Earth with my family during this mission, but I don't think he's ready to spend time away from us. For most of his life, we're all he's known. "I completely understand." Aznia reassured, "I want you to know that I will do whatever I can to accommodate the situation, but I am going to suggest that Calvin stay with Span aboard the Polaris." Span nodded, "I agree. As a science vessel, the Polaris will be least likely to encounter any immediate danger." Walesa's heart was silently breaking at the prospect of being separated from her son, but she understood her duty. "I knew that when we came back aboard the Federalist with Calvin, there would be some difficulties." She grabbed Span's hand from the table, holding it tightly, "Let's all get to work." --- The personnel transfers all processed, and a final check of all necessities passed. The convoy was ready for its flight. The Federalist, as head of the convoy, was slated to be the first ship to use the catapult. "Coordinates are set," Helmsman En'thaas reported, "This ought to take us about 3,000 light years clear across the former Romulan Empire, into the depths of the Beta quadrant- to whatever new frontier lies beyond." "What intel do we have of the region?" Quallo responded, "Starfleet has collected intelligence from the Romulan Republic, the Flaxian Empire, and old El-Aurien star charts from the region. They've determined our landing area will be a relatively vacant area of the galaxy, given a wide berth between the farthest reaches of Borg controlled El-Aurien space and the beginnings Fen Domar space." "Fen Domar?" Aznia probed. "We have no first hand information on them." Science officer Atom chimed in. "All that we know is that they are technologically advanced, and are reportedly very unwelcoming to new arrivals." "Understood." Aznia shook her head quickly, "Borg on one side, these Fen Domar on the other... Let's hope we've given them a wide enough berth indeed." "The catapult is ready for us, Captain." Atom reported. "Very well. Open a channel to the other ships." "Channel is now open." Dewoh notified from the tactical station. Aznia stood up to make her final address before the historic flight, she winced at the thought of being quoted enigmatically in the face of a new era in interstellar travel, but she tried her best to be inspirational just the same. "At a moment like this, the galaxy becomes a little bit smaller; but the spirit of exploration grows a great deal larger. Like the giants whose shoulders we stand upon, we must now go boldly where none have gone before. Mr. En'thaas, engage." The Federalist flew toward the graviton catapult, which charged to life, aglow with striating energy fields that reached out to envelop the tiny approaching ship. The energy visibly built up more and more as the ship approached the device until all at once a massive pulse of energy whisked the Federalist away into the unknown. The crew of the Revere waited nervously for word of the Federalist's successful flight. It felt like the longest ninety minutes of Commander Walesa's life. The crew all waited in silence until finally the communications officer reported in, "We're getting a subspace communique." "On screen!" Walesa ordered. Aznia smiled on the view screen, the signal crackling from the extreme long range. "3,103 light years in a little less than 90 minutes. I think that's a record." "Are the conditions clear on your end, Captain?" Walesa inquired. Aznia responded, "No ships on sensors, we've already detected three nearby candidates for acceptable staging areas." Walesa breathed a sigh of relief, "Sounds like it couldn't be going more smoothly." "I've got a bottle of Bolian Champaign on ice, let's wait until everyone's here before we open it." Aznia challenged. "Understood. I'm going to send the DaVinci, the Shepard and the Wozniak through next. Then I'll bring the Revere through. We'll send the Polaris through last." Walesa coordinated. "No arguments from me." Aznia offered, "See you on the other side." The communication ended, returning Walesa to the task at hand. "Open a channel to the DaVinci." she ordered. O'Brien appeared on the view screen, "Have we got the green light?" The engineer anxiously inquired. "At your leisure, sir." "Don't call me sir, I work for a living." O'Brien joked. "Good luck, Captain!" One by one, the DaVinci, the Shepard and the Wozniak disappeared into the energy field generated by the catapult. Waiting ninety minutes between trips for the next go ahead. Finally, the Revere and the Polaris were the only ships remaining. "Open a channel to the Polaris." Walesa ordered. On the bridge of the Polaris, Span stood at the first officer's position beside Captain Tala, an Andorian woman who she remembered an old acquaintance of Captain Deet. "Captain Tala, I suppose we're next, eh?" "Indeed, Commander. Good luck!" the Andorian responded. "Elsie." Span interjected, "We will see you in a few hours." he nodded reassuringly. Commander Walesa smiled. She turned to the helmsman, "Take us in, Lieutenant." The Revere approached the building energy field as the catapult spooled up power. Just as the last swirls of energy engulfed the ship, sensors detected something unusual. "Captain, I'm detecting a ship decloaking!" the Tactical officer exclaimed. "What?!" Walesa stood up, "Abort the launch!" "It's too late, we've entered subspace." The conn officer explained. "We have to go back!" Walesa ordered. "We can't reenter normal space at this speed, Captain. It would tear the ship apart! We have to ride this out." Aboard the Polaris, Captain Tala and Doctor Span watched as a Romulan Warbird decloaked, all weapons locked squarely on them. The lone science vessel was no match for the massive Romulan battleship. "They're hailing, Captain." The comm officer reported. Tala stepped up toward the view screen, "On screen."
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