One year of data to collect

Posted on Fri Nov 23rd, 2018 @ 12:06pm by Chief Petty Officer Leslie Calhoun
Edited on on Fri Nov 23rd, 2018 @ 12:16pm

1,538 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Episode 5 - It Would Be Their Pleasure
Location: Data Analyst Room
Timeline: MD009 0630 hrs

Elloma walked into the small and cramped office of Senior Chief Petty Officer Leslie Cahoun. "Good Morning Senior Chief, sorry to call you in so early. To be honest, I hate being at work this early. However, it appears that the new first officer, wants us to prepare the data dump on ship performances and he wants that completed by 0800" We barely have an hour and half to get that data transferred to a padd. He is looking into the past years information." Said Elloma, wondering why Quinn wanted that information. Most of the crew if not all of them, report they were not even on the USS Pioneer, during that time. Most of them were caught in their own alternate universe.

When Elloma walked in even though it was his office protocol dictated that the old man snap to. So he did Calhoun jumped up from his seat behind his desk and came to attention. "Ma'am welcome Ma'am. I have prepared the data dump and most of the information is rather interesting Ma'am." She was a superior officer and his old drill instructor from way back when, Instructor Ermy would be rather angry if Calhoun did not bestow her the respect of rank that is until she said otherwise.

"At Ease Senior Chief, we are working together, you do not work for me. So sit down. What have you discovered so far, the first officer wants to meet with us later. I am not sure why, he wants this data, but I am confident he has his reasons." She said, as she looked to Leslie.

He visibly relaxed although his language would stay the same. Billy indicated a seat for Elloma to take a load off on. One of the benefits of being a data analyst was that he had a large computer screen mounted to the wall of his small office. "Here have a look. First off the ship. About eighty percent of the ship's systems were damaged in the initial explosion. This included life support, weapons, and defensive systems. Major hull breaches all over the ship. However, for reasons still unknown the ship's sensor suite remained intact. So they did what they did best and recorded everything. It seems that our girl hung lifeless in space for a year. Her transponder pinging away. But no one could hear it as she was stuck in a temporal vortex. It wasn't until Lieutenants Lamberti and Quinn from Empok Nor and Gunnery Sergeant Wilson and her team found the ship, and executed their plan. That the Pioneer reemerged. No member of the crew died as a result of the explosion, which I find exceptionally interesting. However, some members have not been found and are deemed lost in time." Calhoun indicated the appropriate data on the screen as he spoke.

"Have you been able to determine, why the ship did not go power conservation mode and just drifted?" Asked Elloma. The USS Pioneer, should have powered down all systems to conserve energy. This was a program that should have enacted after the crew vanished. But something kept the sensor suite online, and prevented the Pioneer to going into power conservation mode. Elloma was a little curious as well.

"Excellent question and I asked Petty Officer Rial down in Engineering about that. Together we discovered that the power did not go into save mode because the ship itself experienced an alternate reality." He tapped a key on his computer and the screen changed. "It seems that the Pioneer like all Intrepids run on bio neural gel packs. Those gel packs experience another AU. See here they sent their experiences to the databanks. Now this is interesting... It seems that the ship experienced the same AU as myself and Lieutenant Zano. I wonder if we never left the ship." Billy said as he saw that data for the first time.

"If that's true, why were you three selected to stay, while the rest of us vanished?" Asked Elloma openly, not really expecting an answer from Leslie. She hated reading over his shoulder, but this office was small. Really only designed for one person comfortably, two was a little crowded.

"I do not think that Zano and I were selected. I think it was our species that caused it. We are both El Aurians and as such we have a time sense. We know when there are changes in the timeline. When our experience began we both knew that it was not right but we were not sure what that was. The other was that everything that happened there seemed like it was too real. As to the ship, that I am not sure about. Have look see what you can come up with." Billy spoke with a normal tone in his voice, but his face was filled with amazement.

"I am not so sure, there is no evidence yet that points to that conclusion. Are you going to bring any of this up to Commander Ó Flannagáin, when you meet with him, in a few?" Asked Elloma, she knew that this was all speculation and not fact, but the Commander's request, was a little unusual. Starfleet had already given the USS Pioneer, a clean bill of health.

"I will be telling the Commander of the data as it is pertinent to what he is looking for. I have also taken the liberty of collecting and collating the data from elsewhere in galaxy as to what happened in the past year. If you skim through you can see a roiling pot and the Pioneer is the linchpin in a group of events that lead to war." Billy said as he switched the screen to show her the data.

"That is impressive, you managed to do all of that, in a little bit of time, or have you been working on this since we returned from our alternate realities?" Asked Elloma, being impressed by his talent to find things.

"I actually have been working on this since I got back. It started as a curiosity just my way of catching up. But when the Commander issued the order it became work, albeit a labor of love. It is interesting how we all are some sort of temporal anchor. If you look while we were gone the New Maquis won battle after battle forcing both Starfleet and Cardassia into retreat. Cardassia for it's part has been suffering through some severe challenges from within. You can expect that we will be sent there shortly. However, since our return things seems to have settled at least for the moment." Billy indicated the information in the raw data as he was spoke.

"Hard to believe on Starfleet and her crews disappearance can drastically alter the course of history." Suggested Elloma, but then she remembered reading something about an early 23rd century starship, disappearing for ten months, the Federation was about to surrender, but that crew found a way to end the war with the Klingons. Even though it was hard to believe, there was some logic to it.

"If I have learned anything in all of my years it is to never underestimate the effect that one person can have on the course of history." Billy responded. "The alternate universe that I found myself in showed that without question. One member of our crew had never existed, and because of that the Cardassians had taken over the Dominion, and the Federation."

"Who was that crewman?" Elloma asked, allowing her curiosity to get the best of her. She hated her alternate reality. Being a metamorph was a horrible job, but the thing she had not told anyone was, that she was not feeling right since her return. She felt a part of her was now missing. For the moment, she was sucking it up.

"Well it's not classified so I don't see the harm in telling you. It was Warrant Officer Thal. When I was he had never lived, and as such was not able to play the key role he did during the Dominion War reconnaissance. This allowed the Cardassians to get the upper hand and win it all. This ship was even commanded by a Cardassian Gul. What interests me the most is that he did not make it back." Billy puffed on his unlit pipe as he spoke.

"I think that's my cue to go. I will need time to process this data." Said Elloma, not really fond of anyone lighting up or showing off a pipe around her. It was an old barbaric gesture, that she learned about thanks to cadets at the academy. She knew it was time for her to go. "I will check in with you, after I have something. Good Day Senior Chief Calhoun." Said Elloma, as she tried to escape before he lit the pipe, the last thing she wanted was to choke on the smoke.

A Joint Post By

Lieutenant Junior Grade Elloma Essu
Assistant Chief Security/Tactical Officer, USS Pioneer

Senior Chief Petty Officer Leslie Calhoun
Data Systems Analyst, USS Pioneer

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