Course to Oblivion
Posted on Thu Apr 29th, 2021 @ 11:56pm by Captain Rhenora Kaylen & Lieutenant Bonnie "Bon-Bon" Durnell
Mission:
Trapped in Time
Location: 'Alla'
“ You mean to say, you want me to fly into the Celestial Temple itself, just so you can see the Prophets? It’s madness!” Salaya protested “ I won’t do it!” She crossed her hands over her chest and refused to move. There was a line she knew she was about to cross but she didn’t care. The Prophets revealed themselves to those who were worthy, you couldn’t just go and invite yourself into their home.
The man crouched until he was eye to eye with this squirrely pilot, a cockeyed grin upon his face. “We were like you once. And then our eyes were opened. The scientific advancements sweeping our people have shown us distant stars and have allowed us to travel beyond the reaches of our system. Yet, there has always been this pull, like a thread upon the fabric of our people.”
He mimicked pulling a thread off his cloak, the attention of the crew fully upon him. The only eyes he didn’t have were those of little Naprem. “Our faith has looked to the stars much longer than your science. We have seen the temple open and now we have pinpointed an exact location. Tell me you are not at least a little curious?” He gave a grand gesture to everyone on the ship. “We would be the first Bajorans to not only see the face of our Prophets,” he opened his arms to show empathy and passion. “But to touch them as well.”
His speech was one of sincerity and everything may have been hunky dory if not for his partner brandishing a phase pistol, holding everyone’s attention at gunpoint. “Now child, engines full ahead. We must put our best faces on when meeting our Gods. Show them who we are at heart, no fears, not now.”
Naprem ignored the adults and their conversation and continued to read her poetry book filled with tales of three-eyed monsters and the bony skeletons of the Wraith army. Her momma didn’t really like when she read the Tales of the Brothers Dimm, but she liked how it stirred her imagination.
Salaya listened, her traditional closed mind warring with the impassioned words of this person who yearned to know more than the scraps of information and detail the Prophets usually offered. She could respect them for wanting to know more.
Casting an eye toward the Major for final clarification she renegaded the engines towards the coordinates they had provided, her gut still warring with her mind as to whether they were doing the right thing or not.
Doge was sympathetic to Salayas concerns as they were in what appeared to be a terrorist hijacking situation. Nerve wracking in the best of situations he knew if that pistol were to discharge in the wrong location they would all be lost to the vacuum of space. His worries were met and amplified when he caught the Majors next words.
"Doge I need you to give me more on those engines." He was still standing, facing the passengers and their pistols, his hands squared up behind his back. The Commander, obstructed slightly, just behind him.
Doge looked from one to the other trying to guess at what they were on about. "Sir if I give her any more…"
"I suggest you do as the Major orders." The ever silent Commander spoke up. This made the situation more dire than it needed to be. He knew pushing the engine harder before they were ready would throw everything and everyone out of balance, but the act alone could also damage the engine core.
Doge eyed the Commander, then Salaya before giving a quick glance at the passengers and in particular Naprem who seemed unphased by everything around her, lost in her book of poetry. He turned back to his station, "Aye Major. Full power to engines in 3… 2… 1… "
Alla had long since left the atmosphere, now closer to one of Bajors smaller moons, she was already pushing what modern starships call full impulse. At Doge’s touch the ship lurched, her lack of stabilizers causing the ship to buck like an unbroken wild pony. The jolt was so sudden, even Naprem let out a little squeal.
The terrorist God seekers were thrown off balance, the man falling to the floor. Major took advantage of this expected change in dynamic, pulling his own weapon from behind his back. While at the same time, the Commander raised his weapon and made his stance known. “I don’t appreciate hijackers on my ship.” The Major commanded. “Now if you would be so kind as to hand over your weapons.”
The tension was thick, as Alla whined, her engines pushed to their limits. Doge and Salaya focused on their duties while the Major and Commander had their stand-off with the terrorists. Doge was sweating heavily, his hands working to contain the power flow and in general keep the ship together. Somewhere in the back Naprem began to cry as she sensed the mounting situation.
They approached the coordinates where the Celestial Temple would be, so far nothing other than the blackness of space greeted them. “Are you sure this is the right place?” Salaya started before the muzzle of a pistol silenced her.
“This is the location. If we are worthy they will open the gates and let us in. Just move forward slowly and pray for your sins.”
“I got it… just fly… don’t talk” She grumbled, turning her attention back to the control panel and saying a silent prayer to the Prophets to be merciful in their deaths.
Doge had no time for prayers as he struggled to contain the potential plasma flow leak, he was muttering curses under his breath in a fluid stream. They were loud enough for Salaya to hear, but not enough for Naprem, a talent he had learned to control less he be hit by his faithful sister.
Just as Salaya was about to make a smartass comment that their coordinates could be wrong, the celestial temple blossomed into life before them, the swirling blues and white vortex unlike anything she had ever seen in space.
“ Oh my….” Her voice drifted off as the helm went dark at her fingertips. “Ahh.. problem, I’ve lost navigational control”
“Um… bigger problem, the engine core is leaking plasma. I’m showing hull fractures at multiple points throughout the ship.”
The Commander was silent as he stared into the eye of the vortex, it’s blinding light against the background of the enveloping darkness of space. The Major, ignoring the hijackers, turned and sat back down. His mission was to regain some semblance of control over this situation. Together as a crew, they were now on a path to oblivion, one way or another.
