The Federation Tribune - November 2004
Rob Versteegt
chiefeditor at frontierfleet.com
Sun Nov 14 16:30:00 CET 2004
==== The Federation Tribune ====
==== November 2004 ====
Got a question? Visit the Newspaper FAQ!
(http://www.frontierfleet.net/lcars/page/226)
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Chief Editor's note:
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And once again: a whole new issue of the Federation Tribune, brought to you
by ST Frontier Fleet! In this edition, you'll see the usual status reports,
the posting stats of October, and of course Ben's follow-up story. However,
in addition to that, the Tribune also has another Frontier Fleet song, and a
Trek Trivia! Have a pleasant time reading the Tribune! Comments, questions,
new articles etc. can all be sent to chiefeditor at frontierfleet.com.
Oh yeah... don't forget to check out
http://www.frontierfleet.com/lcars/page/824. Here, you'll find all the IRC
quotes which have been collected over the last month(s). Enjoy!
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USS Calhoun Status Report October 2004, by Adrian Rodd
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EPISODE: #20
"Changing Times"
STARDATE:
Base of operations: 2534. Numerous other dates as the crew are scattered
through history and the rescue teams visit various points in time.
SUMMARY:
The crews of the Calhoun and of the starship Freedom from the future
continue their search and rescue operations to find their stranded
crewmates.
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USS Odyssey Status Report October 2004, by Dennis Church
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Stardate 2391.04.26
The aliens-known as the Nuhmarhi-have come to warn to try to protect the
Odyssey. According to them, the crew of the Odyssey may have been infected
by the “Tarr”-a disease that, if not treated, kills its victims in an
unpleasant fashion. Initial scans, on Bennek, Denebris, and Sellser (who is
privately dealing with another medical condition, unbeknownst to most of the
crew) confirm its presence in them, and for the moment, steps are being
taken to determine its presence in the rest of the crew.
Meanwhile, the crew wonders whether they can trust the aliens or not-it’s a
big leap of faith to accept this truth so quickly. Why are these aliens
really here? Are they really here to help? Do they have other reasons?
Will I ever stop asking these questions? Find out next month!
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USS Valkyrie Status Report October 2004, by Brandon Allard
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(] Current Situation [)
Stardate: 2391.04.26-28
Fighting amongst the crew happens. Whether it comes to physical conflict or
not is another thing entirely. When it becomes a ship-wide event, well
that's the stuff of status reports. It remains unclear what prompted the
altercation, but apparently it managed to polarize a good deal of the crew
behind their favorite. Not to mention split support between the two
represented departments. (A ridiculous situation, since it's already common
knowledge which department is superior.) While it is good to see the crew
coming together for a common cause, uniting over such a barbaric display
brings with it concerns that more fights are to come. On top of which, there
was no clearly decided victor, which may lead to further deciding matches.
Not to mention increasing the subtle animosity between the two departments.
One can only hope that the entry into the nearing nebula will bring with it
enough work to halt the spread of further conflicts.
-FO Giellun Maiek
(] Other Comments [)
This is the highest posting month for the Valk that I can remember. So
clearly fights are a good thing. Woohoo violence! Not to mention that for
once (even if not on all duty stations) Bobby finally has some competition!
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Pandora Station Status Report October 2004 by Rob Versteegt
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(]Current situation[)
Mission 8 - Twinkle, Twinkle, Little War
Stardate 2391.05.02,
The Solstice investigates the high solar activity, and finds an object in
the star's orbit. When they come back to Pandora, an Alien race (The
Venoghrians) arrived, explaining that this object is one of their probes,
designed to seek out habitable planets. The Venoghrians and the crew of the
Solstice once again go to the star, to deactivate that probe.
(]Mission Summary[)
By Rob Versteegt
Stardate 2391.05.02
When the Solar Storm, caused by the Pandora Star, really starts interfering
with the normal sensor efficiency, it is decided that the Solstice will go
towards the sun, and check out what causes this abnormal long solar
storm.When the Solstice, under command of Commander Jalando, finally got
close enough to even run a scan, the crew discovered that some sort of
asteroid is in orbit around the sun. That object didn't seem to be affected
by the Solar Storm...
Puzzled, and unable to scan any further, the Solstice returned to the
Station. There, a Delta Flyer was being modified with metaphasic shielding,
to be able to further enter the star's corona, and thus able to learn more
about this object.
However, when the Solstice returned, a small fleet of alien ships arrived
near Pandora Station. Their lead ship requested permission to dock. Captain
Kane granted the request, and, together with Commander Jalando and Lt.
Keening, went down to the Lower Docking Bay.
When the lizard-like, greyskinned aliens came out of their ships, their
leader, Rhan M'ell, explained the situation to the 3 officers. It seemed as
if this race, the Venoghrians, had send out a probe, to find suitable,
unpopulated planets to colonise. When this probe had detected a suitable
world, (Pandora II), it send out a pulse into the star, causing a solar
storm, which attracted the attention of the Venoghrians. This was only
supposed to last for one week... but the probe seemed to have malfunctioned,
and it had already been active for more than 2 weeks!
Apparently, the Venoghrians, who already seemed to know the Federation, had
another species living on the same planet as they were. The Dholari seemed
to have had certain conflicts with the Venoghrians, claiming one of the
Venoghrian's probes as theirs. So there was a chance that the Dholari fleet
would show up..
The shutting-down signal for the probe didn't work, unfortunately, so it was
decided that the Solstice would go out again, towards the star. This time
though, the modified Flyer would be with them, which would let them get
close to the probe, even in the star's corona.
So... the Solstice left towards the star, and, when she arrived there, the
Delta Flyer, with the Rhan, his Science officer, Commander Jalando, Ltjg
Keening and Ensign Morabulu on board, exited the Solstice's shuttlebay,
ready to shut down the probe. They did, of course, know that the Dholari
fleet could approach Pandora Station any moment, which would make the return
trip, with the probe probably, a bit more difficult...
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USS Atlantis Status Report October 2004, by Ben Versteegt
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Stardate 2391.04.19.
Still under control of the three crewmen in Engineering, the Atlantis hurls
towards its destination: the three crewmen's home planet called Ogawachi
Prime. There, the three crewmen reveal the mission they want the Atlantis
crew to undertake: save their Creators on that planet from a deadly virus.
If the crew won't comply, the three crewmen will begin to shut down life
support to the crew's quarters, effectively killing innocent crewmembers.
They grant the Atlantis crew control over the sensors and other scientific
functions, but they retain their control over the engines and the rest of
the ship's systems.
The crew has no choice but to accept. When they scan the planet, however, it
turns out that there are no lifesigns, except for single celled organisms.
In other words, there is nothing left on the planet but the virus. A shuttle
mission sent to gather more information about the planet goes horribly
wrong, when Ensign Shakaar looses control of the shuttle due to a medical
condition. The two other crewmen aboard the craft try to stabilise the
shuttle's trajectory, but to no avail: the shuttle plummets down towards the
planet and crash-lands. There are no survivors.
A second away team is sent down in another shuttlecraft to find out what
went wrong with the first away team, and to finish what the others have
started. From the air, they see a giant fault line, possibly from an
earthquake, and, once landed, decide to split up to investigate both the
shuttle crash and the fault line.
Meanwhile, on the ship, the three crewmen receive the same sensor readings
as the crew does. They, however, don't want to accept the fact that their
Creators are gone. Thinking this is a ploy from Commander Torn, intended to
trick them, crewman Zhora in Engineering instructs Ambassador von
Klinkerhoffen to tell the Commander to give them accurate sensor data.
Did the virus destroy the Creators, as it appears? If so, will the crew of
the Atlantis be able to convince their captors in Engineering that the
sensor data isn't tampered with? If they can't, how will Zhora punish them?
And what will the away team find on Ogawachi Prime? Find out in November, on
the USS Atlantis!
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Starfleet Academy Status Report October 2004, by Rob Versteegt.
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(]SF Academy Status Report, October 2004[)
==================
Instructors: (9)
Chief Instructor Sedaq, played by Adrian Rodd
Instructor Joran Moore, played by David Susman.
Instructor Vivienne Creenan, played by Rob Versteegt
Instructor Randy Orsolo, played by Dennis Church
Instructor Miranda Winter, played by Ben Versteegt
Instructor T'Pott, played by Bram Peeters.
Instructor Sophie Jaune, played by Rob Verlinden
Instructor Liz Bronson, played by Laura Elliot
Welcome on board Laura!
==================
Cadets lost: (4)
Cadet Callum Robinson, played by Callum Robinson.
Cadet Peter Franken, played by Peter Franken
Cadet Jonas Banks, played by Joshua Willerton
Cadet Zim Tannan, played by Mike Tipy.
==================
New Signups: 18 (14 useless, leaves 4)
==================
List Cadets: (7) (List instructors: Rob and Bram)
Cadet Alexandra Davis, played by Abby Leib.
Cadet Ben Moore, played by Jeremy Shaffer
Cadet Ritarin, played by Kall. Shakespear.
Cadet Tom Collard, played by Gareth Davies.
Cadet Benjamin Garvey, played by Benjamin Dover
Cadet Straden Kile, played by Shawn Prince.
Cadet Emile Schofield, played by Ruben Hilbers.
(]Mission Summary:[)
Stardate 2389.03.08
Instructor T'Pott has been transported to an alien world, by simply scanning
a device which the USS Tempest has found somewhere, and which now stands in
Science Lab One, on the Academy. When the instructor had disappeared,
Instructor Creenan and Cadets Kile, Moore, Schofield and Collard scanned the
device too, but also got transported. It seemed that they had been
transported to the planet Ingavi... and towards the past, where Cardassians
invade the planet.
The Instructor and Cadets were trapped in a cave, by the Cardassian attack
on the Ingavi. However, they were lead away from the battle, through an
underground cave, towards a settlement known as Ni'java. There, sudden beep
was heard, and Cadet Moore simply... vanished.
Only to reappear back at Starfleet Academy, in the science lab. There,
AcadCM Robert Baine and Cadet Garvey were examining the alien device. When
it got subjected to the internal scans, it brought back the Cadet...
Now, in the science lab, are cadets Davis, Garvey and Moore, together with
Academy Commandant Baine. They were thinking about how to get the others
back. Luckily, they found a way: by subjecting the device to very sensivite
scans. Only a few moments later, Instructor Creenan, Cadets Kile, Schofield
and Collard, with Instructor T'Pott, appeared in the science lab!
(]New Crew:[)
Cadet Garvey, Played by Ben Dover
Cadet Ritarin, Played by Kall Shakespear
Cadet Davis, Played by Abby Leib
Cadet Schofield, Played by Ruben Hilbers.
(]Posting stats:[)
Gareth Davies: 14 Posts
Kall. Shakespear: 1 Post (1 still needs to be revised. ;-) )
Bram Peeters: 1 Post
Ben Dover: 4 Posts
Jeremy Shaffer: 6 Posts
Ruben Hilbers: 13 Posts
Shawn Price: 1 Post
Rob Versteegt: 13 Posts
Abby Leib: 1 Post
Total posts: 54 Posts.
==================
Individual Cadets: (3)
Cadet Andrei Brovchin, played by Andrei Brovchin (David)
Cadet Blake Dorsey, played by Jason Frick (Rob007)
Cadet Lichfield, played by Mike Hutton (Adrian)
==================
Graduates: (1)
Cadet Charles Fitzgerald => ACMO Ensign Charles Fitzgerald, on the USS
Atlantis.
==================
AcadCM's note:
I think I'll have some more cadets to graduate soon... but then again, I
said that last month as well, didn't I?
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Public Relations Status Report October 2004, by Rob Versteegt
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It's interesting to see that we get a lot of double signups: people who have
been rejected once or twice (or 3 times!) still sign up again. After 3 times
I tell them to wait a while before signing up again...
Because of these double or triple signups, the number of signups is kinda
high: we've had 18 signups. However, that only brought us 4 new cadets. (One
of them is an Ensign already.) Then we also had a signup which, after
rejected, tried again. Another signup tried again and again and again,
resulting in 4 of the same signups. And yet another one tried to more times,
giving us 3 signups which were the same.
So we might have received 18 signups, but only from 11 people... Here is
where they found us:
4: Searching on the net, looking for either Star Trek, or RPG.
3: Google searchengine
3: A link on an advertising page.
1: Through a friend.
Well... that's it actually. Not that much. If anyone has any suggestions
about how we can attract more people, mail them to pr at frontierfleet.com, and
maybe you'll get mentioned in a status report as well! Who wouldn't want
that? ;-)
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Fleetwide Posting Stats, October 2004, by Rob Versteegt
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ST Frontier Fleet Posting Statistics October 2004:
Note: I did say that I would count all the Academy posts as posts which
would add to the total of posts of the player, but I didn't do that now.
Maybe next time... maybe not. ;-) I put the Acad posts between *'s so that
you know how much the player has posted there.. I didn't add them to the
total score.
Oh, and I've added something new: how many percent of the total posts
(excluding the Academyposts,) someone has posted. What do you think, should
we continue doing that? ;-)
Well.. there we go: what's the top 10 of Posters in October?
10. Richard Clogston: 19 (Valk 19) PC: 19
9. Gael Imaddedine: 22 (Panda 22) PC: 9
8. Matt Brown: 22 (Valk 22) PC: 22
7. Sussie Andersson: 29 (Ody 4, Panda 25) PC: 11
6. Bram Peeters: 36 (Ody 4, Valk 4, Panda 21, Atly 7, *Acad 1*) PC: 8
5. David Susman: 37 (Ody 5, Valk 4, Panda 8, Atly 20) PC: 9
4. Werner Knoesen: 41 (Cal 41) PC: 39
3. Kelley MacKinnon: 47 (Cal 47) PC: 9
2. Adrian Rodd: 54 (Cal 41, Panda 13) PC: 24
AND THE NR. 1 POSTER IN NOVEMBER IS:
1. Rob Versteegt: 110 (Cal 14, Ody 9, Valk 13, Panda 51, Atly 23, *Acad 13*)
PC: 11
1. Rob Versteegt: 110 (Cal 14, Ody 9, Valk 13, Panda 51, Atly 23, *Acad 13*)
PC: 11 (18.03% of total posts.)
2. Adrian Rodd: 54 (Cal 41, Panda 13) PC: 24 (8.85 % of total posts.)
3. Kelley MacKinnon: 47 (Cal 47) PC: 9 (7.05% of total posts.)
4. Werner Knoesen: 41 (Cal 41) PC: 39 (6.72 % of total posts.)
5. David Susman: 37 (Ody 5, Valk 4, Panda 8, Atly 20) PC: 9 (6.07% of total
posts.)
6. Bram Peeters: 36 (Ody 4, Valk 4, Panda 21, Atly 7, *Acad 1*) PC: 8 (5.90%
of total posts.)
7. Sussie Andersson: 29 (Ody 4, Panda 25) PC: 11 (4.75% of total posts.)
8. Matt Brown: 22 (Valk 22) PC: 22 (3.61% of total posts.)
9. Gael Imaddedine: 22 (Panda 22) PC: 9 (3.61% of total posts.)
10. Richard Clogston: 19 (Valk 19) PC: 19 (3.11% of total posts.)
11. Jake Hanlon: 18 (Cal 18) PC: 17 (2.95% of total posts.)
12. Laura Elliot: 18 (Cal 18) PC: 12 (2.95% of total posts.)
13. Ben Versteegt: 17 (Ody 11, Panda 6) PC: 3 (2.79% of total posts.)
14. Aaron Langston: 16 (Panda 13, Atly 3) PC: 8 (2.62% of total posts.)
15. Martin Miller: 14 (Atly 14) PC: 5 (2.30% of total posts.)
16. Gareth Davies: 14 (*Acad 14*) PC: 14 (No posts on the dutystations,
except the Acad.)
17. Ruben Hilbers: 13 (*Acad 13*) PC: 13 (No posts on the dutystations,
except the Acad.)
18. Dennis Church: 12 (Ody 7, Panda 5) PC: 7 (1.97% of total posts.)
19. Jeremy Beeler: 11 (Cal 11) PC: 6 (1.80% of total posts)
20. Alonzo Soban: 10 (Atly 10) PC: 8 (1.64% of total posts)
21. Aaron DeLay: 8 (Cal 8) PC: 8 (1.31% of total posts)
22. Michael Smith: 8 (Panda 8) PC: 8 (1.31% of total posts)
23. Angelic Noble: 7 (Cal 7) PC: 7 (1.45% of total posts)
24. Chantal Marie Sellers: 7 (Ody 4, Atly 3) PC: 3 (1.45% of total posts)
25. Rob Verlinden: 6 (Ody 6) PC: 6 (0.98% of total posts)
26. Jeremy Shaffer: 6 (*Acad 6*) PC: 6 (No posts on dutystations, except the
Acad)
27. Dawn Johnson: 5 (Ody 5) PC: 5 (0.82% of total posts)
28. Jed Cohen: 5 (Valk 5) PC: 5 (0.82% of total posts)
29. Jonathan Hardy: 4 (Ody 2, Panda 2) PC: 1 (0.66% of total posts)
30. Benjamin Dover: 4 (*Acad 4*) PC: 4 (No posts on the dutystations, except
the Acad)
31. Patrick Buidin: 3 (Cal 2, Atly 1) PC: 2 (0.49% of total posts)
32. Brandon Allard: 3 (Valk 3) PC: 2 (0.49% of total posts)
33. Clare Bradley: 3 (Valk 3) PC: 3 (0.49% of total posts)
34. Chris Jopnes: 3 (Valk 3) PC: 3 (0.49% of total posts)
35. Guido Dorssers: 3 (Valk 3) PC: 3 (0.49% of total posts)
36. Reed Aiken: 3 (Panda 3) PC: 3 (0.49% of total posts)
37. Richard Bowes: 3 (Atly 3) PC: 3 (0.49% of total posts)
38. Cody Ferro: 2 (Cal 2) PC: 2 (0.33% of total posts)
39. Ann Montague: 2 (Valk 2) PC: 2 (0.33% of total posts)
40. Merijn Donders: 2 (Atly 2) PC: 2 (0.33% of total posts)
41. Craig Dannenberg: 2 (Atly 2) PC: 2 (0.33% of total posts)
42. Treassa Cumpston: 1 (Cal 1) PC: 1 (0.16% of total posts)
43. Alessio Arleo: 1 (Valk 1) PC: 1 (0.16% of total posts)
44. Linea Jones: 1 (Valk 1) PC: 1 (0.16% of total posts)
45. Tom Shilakes: 1 (Valk 1) PC: 1 (0.16% of total posts)
46. Kall Shakespear: 1 (*Acad 1*) PC: 1
47. Shawn Prince: 1 (*Acad 1*) PC: 1
48. Abby Leib: 1 (*Acad 1*) PC: 1
Top 3 Posters USS Calhoun:
3. Jake Hanlon / Laura Elliot: 18 Posts.
2. Adrian Rodd / Werner Knoesen: 41 Posts
1. Kelley MacKinnon: 47 Posts
Top 3 Posters USS Odyssey:
3. Dennis Church: 7 Posts
2. Rob Versteegt: 9 Posts
1. Ben Versteegt: 11 Posts.
Top 3 Posters USS Valkyrie:
3. Rob Versteegt: 13 Posts.
2. Richard Clogston: 19 Posts.
1. Matt Brown: 22 Posts.
Top 3 Posters Pandora Station:
3. Gael Imaddedine: 22 Posts.
2. Sussie Andersson: 25 Posts.
1. Rob Versteegt: 51 Posts.
Top 3 Posters USS Atlantis:
3. Martin Miller: 14 Posts.
2. David Susman: 20 Posts.
1. Rob Versteegt: 23 Posts.
Top 3 Posters SF Academy:
3. Jeremy Shaffer: 6 Posts.
2. Ruben Hilbers / Rob Versteegt: 13 Posts.
1. Gareth Davies: 14 Posts.
Total posts per dutystation:
1. Total USS Calhoun: 205 Posts
2. Total Pandora Station: 176 Posts
3. Total USS Atlantis: 88 Posts.
4. Total USS Valkyrie: 84 Posts
5. Total USS Odyssey: 57 Posts
*6. Total SF Academy: 54 Posts.*
Total posts in Frontierfleet:
Without the Academy: 610 Posts.
*With the Academy: 664*
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Promotions in October 2004, by Rob Versteegt
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Promotions October 2004:
>From Cadet to Ensign:
Cadet Charles Fitzgerald, played by Richard Bowes => ACMO Ensign Charles
Fitzgerald, USS Atlantis
Well.. that's it actually.. ;-) Congrats, Richard!
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The Alpha Centauri Mystery - part 17 - Reunions, Part I, by Ben Versteegt
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Summary: the Starfleet Prometheus class that crippled the Aquinas, the USS
Iapetus, has been crippled herself by a Romulan Warbird. Independently,
Romulans and Ayer and his team beamed down to the ship to find the crystal
samples, which the Romulans had originally tried to steal from a planet in
the Alpha Centauri system. These crystals prove to be a source of great
power, able to tip the balance of power in the quadrant in favour of the
party who uses the crystals. Captain Donovan of the Iapetus has them now,
but the Romulans and Ayer are on the move. Having captured Ensign Sandra
Burke when they stole the samples, Donovan and his crew attempt to get the
information they want out of Sandra, whom they are holding in Sickbay. But
they hadn't considered Zaag, the Ferengi who apparently escaped falling
victim to a stun grenade, as the rest of Ayer's team appeared to have. He
jumps into Sickbay and threatens to kill Captain Donovan. However, Hall, the
Iapetus' STC, threatens to kill Sandra if he does...
And now the continuation:
"Well?" Hall asked, his phaser trained on Sandra. "It's up to you, Ferengi."
Zaag found the human's grin disconcerting; how could anyone smile under
these conditions? Even worse, it seemed as if the security chief was
enjoying himself. This was hardly the result Zaag had been hoping to
achieve. He had hoped to get out of here instantly and with Sandra, without
killing someone, seeing someone get killed or getting killed himself.
"He's serious, you know." Donovan almost sounded amused, and his body
posture showed that he was irritated, annoyed, rather than worried or
afraid. Zaag felt the control of the situation -- if he ever had any -- slip
away from him.
"I'd rather not have to shoot," Zaag replied, pressing his phaser even
firmer against Donovan's temple, "but I will if you make me! Now, let her
go, or your Captain dies!"
"Careful now," Donovan said in mock-warning. "My STC is rather
trigger-happy, if you know what I mean. If you offend him even the
slightest, he might get angry and loose control... and then your friend
dies. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
Zaag gritted his teeth, determined not to listen to this treacherous
Captain. "Let Sandra go." He emphasised every word, but was quite sure that
wasn't going to have any effect. It turned out he was right.
"Why not let our Captain go, and then we'll discuss it," Hall countered.
"Better make a decision soon, Ferengi." Hall's loud voice reverberated off
the bulkheads. It seemed he was getting angry -- but not yet entirely so.
Zaag swallowed, and made a mental note never to see this man get really
angry. "If you don't let the Captain go *now*, I'll make sure there's
nothing left of your ladyfriend besides a foul-smelling vapour!"
It was obvious to Zaag that he had totally lost control of the situation
now. With mere moments to go before Hall's patience ran out, the Ferengi had
to decide quickly. Releasing Captain Donovan would mean certain defeat, for
the moment he released his hostage, he would be shot. Killing Donovan had
the same effect. Doing nothing was also not an option, because then Sandra
would die. He appeared to have three options, all of them unacceptable.
So he opted for a different way out. "Enbek!" he shrieked.
The doors opened, and immediately as they did, a green disruptor beam shot
through the opening. Hall, the chief tactical officer, crashed to the ground
before even getting the chance to fire his phaser at the intruder. It took
Donovan a while to get over his initial surprise about the unexpected twist
in the situation: a Cardassian had just stormed into the sickbay and started
to fire randomly at his people. He couldn't allow that to happen. He pushed
Zaag away from him and reached for his phaser. If it was up to him, this
Cardassian, the Ferengi and even Ensign Burke would die.
It took Zaag only a moment to fire his disruptor. But not at the Captain:
no, his target was a wall-mounted console that controlled all functions of
the biobed Sandra was lying on. With the console inoperative, Sandra's
restraints automatically unlocked themselves. Sandra stood up, and ran
towards Zaag -- and towards the exit.
By this time, the security detail Captain Donovan had brought with him to
Sickbay had taken up position and was now firing everything they had at the
invaders. Donovan had sided with one of the security officers behind a
biobed, and was now looking for a chance to shoot down the Ferengi who had
taken him hostage. However, Enbek and Zaag laid down cover fire, long enough
for Sandra to run through the open doors. Without even so much as a second's
pause, Zaag and Enbek ran after her, shooting at Donovan and the security
officers even as they left sickbay. They were gone. The whole fight had
lasted only a few seconds.
"Damn!" shouted Donovan. "Vince, find them. Now!"
Hall didn't reply. His phaser still firmly in his hand, the chief tactical
officer of the Iapetus lay motionless on the floor. He was dead. Killed by
Enbek's weapon.
Donovan saw that Hall wasn't breathing and looked away. "Damn," he said
softly, while biting his lip and forcing himself to get a grip of himself.
"Damn."
****
Sandra had run through the corridors of the ship, her two rescuers right
behind her. There was no sign of pursuit, but just to be sure, they had
taken erratic turns, gone down a couple of decks, then up another two and
hopped in and out of a jefferies tube. They had stopped once or twice to
scan for the location of the samples and for any sign of Ayer, Watters and
Zjavick, but had quickly started to move again, deciding that staying in one
place too long wasn't a good thing to do at that point. Even though there
was no such thing as safety on a hostile ship filled with crew who was
looking to capture or even kill them, they felt relatively safe in the less
than comfortable space of a jefferies tube junction point where they had now
crawled in.
"I think we're safe," Enbek proclaimed in a low voice. "I'm not hearing any
pursuers."
That was all that Sandra needed to know. Now that the danger temporarily
seemed over, she hurled her arms around Zaag and hugged him tightly. "Thank
you for rescuing me," she whispered. As she drew back, her smile
disappeared. "They told me the Aquinas was destroyed. That there were no
survivors."
"They might as well have been right," the Cardassian grunted, still scouting
the area around them for possible enemies. "It wouldn't make much of a
difference."
Sandra turned to Enbek and her eyes widened, as if she only now recognised
him. "You..." she managed to spit out, "what are you doing here?"
"Evidently, rescuing you," Enbek replied dryly.
"He's with us," Zaag explained.
Enbek gave him a look. "For now, anyway."
"Okay, hold on," said Sandra, confused. "Could you please tell the whole
story? From the beginning? The last time I met this guy, he attacked me.
Isn't he supposed to be in the brig?"
The Cardassian grunted again as Zaag began to explain, "He is. But when the
Aquinas was attacked, and the Romulans came--"
"Romulans?" Sandra interjected. "Figures that they're looking for the
samples too." She sighed. "Go on. What happened after I was abducted?"
"We ejected the warp core and detonated it in a last attempt to slow our
attackers down," Zaag stated. Sandra was too surprised to react and didn't
respond. The Ferengi continued, "I suspect the blast did more damage to us
than to them. While this ship, the Iapetus, warped away, the Aquinas was
left behind, in pieces. We soon received so-called help from the Romulans,
though. They boarded the Aquinas and forced Captain Ayer to help them locate
the Iapetus. The Captain had no choice but to comply, but when the Romulans
had finally located and crippled the Iapetus, we escaped the Romulan ship
and beamed in here." Zaag nodded to Enbek. "He was in the brig on the
Romulan ship as well. We wouldn't have made it this far if it wasn't for
him."
Sandra looked at Enbek. She still didn't trust him -- she could clearly
remember what he had done, or almost done, to her back in the Alpha Centauri
system. "I guess I owe you an apolo--" she began, but was cut off by Enbek.
"Save it. I'm not interested in your apologies. Now can we finally get the
samples and then get out of here?"
Zaag already prepared to leave the relatively safe confines of the jefferies
tube junction, but Sandra spoke up before he could climb into the tube.
"Where's Uncle Pe-- Where's Captain Ayer?" She swallowed nervously. "Didn't
he make it?"
Zaag sighed. He didn't have the heart to tell it -- but apparently Enbek
did. "Captain Ayer and his two lackeys are in this ship's brig, probably. We
were hiding in some unused quarters, when a stun grenade was thrown in. Only
this Ferengi here and myself managed to hide behind a table from the stun
field the grenade emitted."
"I'm sorry, Sandra," Zaag said, feeling truly sorry about all of this, "but
we had to leave them behind. We were heavily outnumbered, and we couldn't
bring them to safety before the security team started invading the quarters.
We even barely had time to get out."
"And if you hadn't insisted that we rescued her, we might already be leaving
the ship now, *with* the crystals," Enbek said to Zaag. "Although..." he
looked at Sandra again. "She did manage to imprison me, so she must be a
competent tactician." Sandra thought she could see a faint smile on his
face.
"Thanks," Sandra said in response. "And so here we are. I agree that we must
try to get the crystals back; in the wrong hands, it could mean... Well,
something very bad anyway."
"Eloquently put," Enbek remarked and then started to climb the ladder. "Now
come. According to the latest scans I took, the crystals are on the Bridge."
"Are you crazy?" Sandra blurted out. "What do you suggest we do? Take over
the Bridge by force? There must be a dozen officers over there, not even cou
nting the extra security the Captain of this ship will have assigned to the
Bridge. We can't fight them on our own. No way."
"Then what do you suggest we do?"
"We'll free Captain Ayer and the others," replied Sandra. "We may stand a
fighting chance if there are more of us."
Zaag nodded. "I agree. We should free the Captain first."
Enbek obviously didn't agree, and sighed. "It doesn't appear I have much
choice, does it? I can't go face everyone on the Bridge alone..." He paused
for a moment to think. "Very well. I'll come with you. Let's just hope the
Romulans don't get to the samples first, because if they do..."
"We know, Enbek," Zaag told him. "We'll try to hurry, okay?"
Enbek merely grumbled and went down the ladder. It was a long way down to
the deck of their destination, and the entire way, no words were spoken. All
three of them prepared themselves silently for the unavoidable firefight
they were going to get in, and only hoped they would get out of as well --
hopefully with the rest of their team alive and conscious.
To Be Continued...
By Ben Versteegt
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Trek Trivia by Clare Bradley
--------------------------------------------------------------------
It's time for more trivia! Send me your answers each week, and I'll do
continuous rankings that will give you a chance to improve your score each
month! I've tried to vary the difficulty. Let me know if you find them too
easy, too hard, or just right. Please answer the questions as best as you
can, without extensive research. It'll make it more fun for everyone.
Answers will appear next month, along with new questions.
1. Put these Tkon Ages in their correct order:
A. Cimi, Makto, Bastu, Xora
B. Xora, Bastu, Makto, Cimi
C. Bastu, Cimi, Xora, Makto
D. Makto, Bastu, Cimi, Xora
2. What was the name of Martok's ship?
A. Ty'Gokor
B. Negh'Var
C. Ka'thal
D. Mek'leth
3. What did Kes NOT eat when undergoing Elogium?
A. Paper
B. Dirt
C. Beetles
D. Flowers
4. Which of the following do not belong in this group?
Ullians, Ferengi, Breen, Cairn.
A. Ullians
B. Ferengi
C. Breen
D. Cairn
5. Who did McCoy compare to an Aldebaran shellmouth?
A. Kirk
B. Spock
C. Sulu
D. Scotty
6. Where are the Fire Plains?
A. Vulcan
B. Bajor
C. Betazed
D. Ocampa
7. What is the name of Tuvok's wife?
A. T'Les
B. T'Pring
C. T'Pel
D. T'Penna
8. What is the name of the NX-02?
A. Columbia
B. Intrepid
C. Excelsior
D. Endeavor
9. What does the Ritter scale measure?
A. Civilization development
B. Magnetic fields
C. Ion storms
D. Cosmic rays
10. Name the race of this character: (see
http://www.frontierfleet.com/lcars/page/868)
A. Xyrillian
B. Tosk
C. Gorn
D. Selay
Send your answers to clarerose at yahoo.com by 2004.12.1, with the word
Trivia in the subject line. Thanks!
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Another Frontier Fleet Song, by Rob Versteegt
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Yes... more than a year after the first one, here is another Frontier Fleet
song! Hope you like it.
At the tune of: Go West
Come on, come on, come on, come on
(Computer) I will write with you,
(Computer) That is what we'll do.
(Computer) You and me will write,
(Computer) Write with all our might.
(Computer) We will write some posts,
(Computer) Which we like the most,
(Computer) It's life through and through,
(Computer) This is what we'll do
(Go Post) The Calhoun needs you,
(Go Post) And Pandora too,
(Go Post) On the Odyssey,
(Go Post) Atly, and the Valkryie
(Go Post, This is what we're gonna do, Go Post)
(Frontierfleet) We sure love this game,
(Frontierfleet) All the things we gain
(Frontierfleet) You can find us at
(Frontierfleet) dot com org or net
(A warning:) A post has just come in.
(I'm thinking) That I should begin
(With writing) Another post of mine,
(And I know) That it'll turn out fine
(Go Post) That is what I'll do
(Go Post) I hope you will too.
(Go Post) Oh yeah, you and me,
(Go Post) This is our destiny (Aah)
(Go Post) Nearly everytime
(Go Post) You will do just fine
(Go Post) Frontier Fleet needs you
(Go Post, this is what we're gonna do)
When you have joined, like me,
You'll go (You'll go) to the Academy. (Aah aah aah aah)
When you are finished here, (Aah)
You'll face (You'll face) Our great Frontier:(Aah)
(The ships,) and the station too,
(Their names,) I will tell to you:
(Of each,) we are very proud,
(That's why,) We will sing out loud:
(The Calhoun) Has it's transwarpspeed,
(So it will,) Find the ones in need,
(Odyssey) There and back again,
(Adventures,) for these Starfleet men.
(What we're gonna do is)
(Go Post) There's the Valkyrie
(Go Post) Which will split in three
(Go Post) There's Pandora too
(Go Post) where there's a lot to do
(The Atlantis crew:)
Go Post (Wanted something new,)
Go Post (That is why they are)
Go Post (Away from home this far)
Come on, come on, come on, come on
(Go Post) This is our fleet,
(Go Post) One which you can meet:,
(Go Post) Once we say to you:
(Go Post) This is what we're gonna do
(Come on, come on, come on)
(Go Post)
(Go Post)
(Go, ooh, go, yeah)
(Go Post)
(Go, ooh, go, yeah)
(Go Post)
(Go, ooh, go, yeah)
(Go Post)
(Go, ooh, go, yeah)
(Can you write it?)
(Can you write it?)
(Go Post)
(Can you write it?)
(Can you write it?)
(Go Post)
(Can you write it?)
(Can you write it?)
==========
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