NAZGUL: Answers and Decisions

Posted on Sat Mar 1st, 2025 @ 10:08pm by Commander Sean Loewen {Meji} & Lieutenant Commander Sheyla {MD} & Lieutenant JG Ken Kudo & Lieutenant JG T'Pri

Mission: THE LAST CRY FOR HELP
Location: USS NAZGUL
Timeline: Current

ON:

T'Pri, piggy-backing the Delta's sensors through her own station, began to receive data on what it was out there. "Captain, I believe I know the answers you seek."

Once more, Loewen half turned his chair to look over. "Talk to me, T'Pri." Sheyla had been regular reports on the Delta's progress for setting up to be an engine for Nazgul. She was listening from her own station, but also paying attention to the small craft operations.

"If the sensors are correct, what that metallic object is is a ship. However, the data suggests something unusual about the vessel."

"Unusual, how?"

T'Pri half turned her chair to look at him. "It is an NX class starship, Captain. They appear to have no warp power, and they are caught in some kind of energy barrier from around the planetoid. Their auxiliary power is holding at full power but they appear to be stuck in that barrier."

With that information coming forth, Sheyla got up when Loewen did, moving over to SCI as a team. Sheyla had a question of import. "An NX class, Captain? If that's true then we may have found something we don't dare muck with."

"How so, Number One?" Loewen was curious as to why this was an issue.

"If that ship is listed as missing, and is from its own era, we will be messing with the temporal flow of things. I don't need Temporal Investigations crawling up my butt about how, and why, we mucked with time."

Sean gave her a comical expression. "I don't think it will be that bad, Sheyla. First off, it's a Starfleet vessel and has warp power. Not an issue for the Prime Directive."

T'Pri popped in another point as he took a breath. "The Prime Directive did not exist at the time that class of ship was built."

Loewen nodded at her for that, but kept talking to Sheyla. "Plus, Sheyla, if it is a missing vessel then we are completely within our rights and regulations to aid them. Period. Nothing wrong with bringing light to a mystery that has been left unsolved." He noted that T'Pri was listening but was also tapping keys and reading more data. "If that is even the case. We need to investigate as Starfleet officers."

Sheyla had listened and began to see the Captain's reasoning to it all. Still, getting questioned for days on end by Temporal Investigations was not high on her priorities. "Understood, Captain. Damned if we do, damned if we don't."

"Precisely," offered Loewen. "Also, think on this. Would you rather the Temporal folks, or having to explain yourself to Commodore Sureth as to why you were opposed to aiding a Starfleet vessel in need? We can't just abandon them, no matter what our current condition is. I will stand firm on this, Number One."

"Yes, Sir." Sheyla squared her shoulders to show she was back on board with his way of thinking. "Let's see what we have first."

"T'Pri?" Loewen asked.

"Captain," said T'Pri, even as she read from another monitor. "There is an enormous amount of metrion radiation around that planetoid. If they used active scans while too close it would have caused a quantum surge that would have disabled their engines. That energy barrier around the planetoid must be what they were trying to figure out. If we get closer, Sir, I advise going back to passive scans. At short range they are much better at providing data."

"Fair enough. Helm, tie in with Lieutenant Kudo and tell him to standby for impulse power." Loewen gave the orders and they were acknowledged.

Kudo's voice came over the speakers. "Ready when you are, Captain."

"Good man. Give us an eighth impulse to start with, Mister Kudo." Sean sat back down in his chair. He could usually tell when Nazgul was moving by the stars outside, but without them to judge movement he had no idea if they were maneuvering at all. "Are we good, Kudo."

"Aye, Sir." Kudo responded. "Plowing forward at one-eighth impulse. You folks need to steer, though. Maneuvering thrusters are on you, Captain."

"Thank you," Sean said to Kudo, then directed his voice to Helm. "Set course for that planetoid, Helm. Maintain speed." He then went back to talking to Ken. "Kudo, will it strain the magnetics on your landing struts to pick up speed?"

"Not at all, Captain. We're all weightless out here. However, half impulse for Nazgul is full impulse for the Delta. I haven't had time to have engineering work on 'em and increase that." Kudo explained.

"All good, Mister Kudo." Loewen was happy to be moving. "Maintain half impulse for Nazgul, then. It will be a while before we get close to the planetoid. Bridge, out."

Sean then looked over at SCI. "Miss T'Pri, when you feel it's needed, return to passive scans but maintain using the Delta's sensor arrays to conserve power."

"Aye, Sir."

Time went by, with everyone antsy to get to the planetoid and figure this mystery out. Loewen sat wondering if this planetoid was the reason for this subspace node tearing a seam into the fabric of real space, thus causing Nazgul to stumble and fall into a subspace bubble.

T'Pri spoke up from her station. "I have reduced scans to passive, Captain. We're close enough that active scans could prove disastrous."

"Excellent," Loewen said as he adjusted in his chair to sit up a little straighter. "I want a complete scan of that barrier. Everyone, look at the data and offer insights." The Bridge responded and they went to work.

Sheyla, surprisingly, spoke up first. "The barrier appears to be an exogenic field generated by unstable elements in the planetoid's core." Sean took that in as he waited to see if more information would be forthcoming.

"Captain," T'Pri said. "There is no way for the Nazgul to penetrate the barrier. The energy is composed of subspace metrion radiation...if we get anywhere near it, the dilithium matrix in our warp core will collapse and we will be pulled in along with the other ship."

That was not what Loewen wanted to her. "Options?"

Another officer asked," can we beam through it?"

Sheyla answered that. "We cannot get close enough to the barrier to initiate transport."

Sean's brain was on overdrive. "Do we have any craft without antimatter?"

The secondary officer spoke up again. "It is unlikely a shuttle could withstand the gravimetric stresses within the barrier."

"As to your earlier query, Captain." T'Pri said. "With the advent of Deltas we no longer have shuttlepods aboard. But, we do have the workbees. Impulse drives, no antimatter, and built for astro-construction. They are quite the hardy craft."

Loewen stood up like a shot. "That's it then!" He said this as he just stood in front of his chair, his face showing he was thinking on something, and that whatever he was thinking, he had come to a decision. "Sheyla, take command as acting captain."

"Sir?"

"You heard me!" Loewen left his chair and went over near to the starboard lift. Sheyla cut him off before he got through the door to enter it.

"Wait a moment, Captain! You can't just hop into a workbee and..."

"The hell I can't." Sean looked away from Sheyla to the officer at Tactical. "Contact Kudo. Tell him to meet me in the shuttlebay. Tell him to hurry." The officer acknowledged the order and did as ordered.

"Sean, listen to me. I know you want to help that ship but this is stepping too far." Sheyla pleaded. Deep inside herself she was afraid. She had already lost Tore Bjorgo. Losing Sean Loewen would open a huge hole in the center of her being. "Please, reconsider. I...I can't lose you, too."

Loewen had a sharp retort ready but as he took in what she said it became all too clear why she was being so demanding. She was afraid of losing another friend, another person she cared about, and it caused him to immediately change tactics. Reaching out he took hold of her upper arms, not harsh, but in the loving way a good friend would. "Sheyla, it's what we do. You said it yourself a few hours ago. I know workbees, know how they function, and I can aid that ship just stuck there. I promise you with all I am that I will be fine, and that I will return. But, that means I need your strength here on the Bridge, for everyone else. Can you do that?"

"Yes, but...dammit! You know I hate you, right?" Sheyla's face broke into a half-hearted grin. She was trying to be flippant to assuage her fears, and was only able to bring it halfway back. "You do this you owe me one punch."

"One punch?" Loewen quirked his face.

"You risk yourself, I get to give you a puck in the gob. Otherwise, as acting captain, I will have you arrested and placed in the brig." Sheyla's stance went to saucy, knowing that the internal sensors had already recorded him handing her command.

Loewen gave a heavy sigh of pseudo-frustration. "Fine. One punch. Keep in mind, you break anything you'll have to answer to Doctor Holbrook."

Sheyla gave a smile. "Oh, I think she'd understand why I broke something. Go ahead, then." She sidestepped to allow him access to the lift, even though he would be using the ladders to get below.

"Thanks," Sean said, and as he passed he gave her a peck on the cheek. "You're a good friend." Then he began to disappear down the ladderwell.

Looking around, feeling a bit ashamed of her performance in front of others, Sheyla snapped out. "Stations! Don't gawk at me."

Everyone turned their faces back to their consoles, hiding their grins as they knew she was not really mad at them but herself for her actions.

OFF: