Episode 64: "The Assignment"

Timetravel. Every Starfleet officer knew that it could happen to them. There had been countless examples of Starfleet crews travelling backwards or forwards in time. Still, it is strongly forbidden to actively seek out a way to travel through time, because of the risks involved. What if you suddenly change the past, thus creating a whole different reality?

 

For the crew of the USS Gibraltar, travelling through time once had been enough. They had gone to the past, where aliens were collecting people and objects of all times. The Gibraltar crew had managed to prevent any permanent changes to the timeline, but it'd been an experience they didn't want to go through again.

 

So when Ensign th'Ane at Operations reported that a temporal anomaly was forming nearby, the first thing on Captain McMillan's mind was: "Not again." He quickly ordered Ensign Petrov at the Helm to avoid any contact with the anomaly. . . but unfortunately for them, the anomaly wouldn't take no for an answer. It started following them.

Natural anomalies, as far as the Gibraltar crew knew, wouldn't do such a thing. And several temporal anomalies in a couple of weeks? This couldn't be a coincidence anymore. There had to be an intelligence at work. Still, that kind of speculation was best left to the Bureau of Temporal Investigations, so McMillan ordered evasive manoeuvres, to prevent the Gibraltar from interacting with the anomaly.

It didn't do them any good though. Within minutes, the Gibraltar was engulfed by this anomaly. A bumpy ride later, the Gibraltar crew found themselves. . . in the future, near a spacestation of some sorts. There were no lifeforms coming from that station, but the Gibraltar did receive a message from an unknown source:

"Watersupply is poisoned. Beam down and fix the problem."

This, the Gibraltar crew decided, was some sort of distress call, even though it could have been worded differently. Future or not, temporal anomaly or not, they decided that they'd beam down, and see what they could do...

To be continued...

((mostly because SL was acting up... we'll continue next week! Because who knows what awaits us? Stay tuned...))

Episode 63: "Taken from Time"

Captain's Log, Captain RoBobby McMillan reporting.

Time is a strange thing. We believe it goes in one direction, but it's been proven time and time again - pardon the pun - that past, present and future can collide. The words of the Temporal Investigation department still ring in my ears: "Preserving the timeline is paramount. It's more important than anything else, including the Prime Directive." It's hard not to take those guys seriously, I have to say... I've been in difficult debriefings before, but never something such as this!

Of course, after the two months being trapped in a timebubble with the rest of the Gibraltar crew, I thought I would have had my share of temporal anomalies, timetravel and strange time-missions. But no. When Commander Braveheart and myself were at Starbase, the Gibraltar had done some research on the temporal anomaly we had found. They had detected strange readings and even messages form the past. Once I was back on board, I ordered the crew to head back there, and see if we could discover more.

Well, we did. There were old fashioned radiowaves coming through that anomaly. After some modifications to the communications array, we realised we were listening to advertisements from the past: 1969, to be exact. This anomaly was a wormhole of some sorts, but not just through space, but also through time!

I knew something had to be done. This anomaly had a direct connection with Earth, or rather the moon, of the past. It could change the timeline. We needed to check to see if this was or wasn't the case. It wasn't an easy decision, but I finally called the bridge crew to the transporterroom. It was a voluntary mission, to travel to the past, but not surprisingly, just about everyone agreed to come along.

When we rematerialised, it was clear we weren't actually on Earth's moon at all. There was water here, but more importantly, it seemed we had arrived in a gigantic hole or something. There was also an ancient machine standing here, apparently belonging to 'NASA'. According to Lt.Cmdr. Weatherwax though, it was a 21st century machine. Did we somehow travel to the 21st century?

As we tried to find out where we were exactly, a bright flash delivered another person here. This man was dressed in an ancient spacesuit, with the NASA logo attached to his suit. He seemed quite surprised that we were here, which was understandable. After some questioning, he said that his name was Colonel John Fearguis. He believed the year was 2022. Could this man be an ancestor of Lieutenant Commander Dave Fearguis, former XO of the Gibraltar?

 

This colonel didn't have the patience that my former XO had, though. Since we refused to answer any questions - we couldn't risk altering the timeline any further - he started overloading the nuclear core inside that 21st century device in order to blow us all up. After all, he said that his government had been warned by an unknown source that enemies would come.

 

Sadly, he wouldn't say anything else. Something needed to be done quickly though: I ordered Lt.Cmdr. Weatherwax to disarm the device, after which I told the Gibraltar to beam Fearguis up to Sickbay. I realise it was a drastic action to take, but it needed to be done: he had to have his memories removed.

Once Weatherwax had disarmed the device, I told Ensign Phantom to take all the readings he could possibly get from this place. Someone was obviously collecting people and devices, and we had to know why. When the scans were complete, I ordered the Gibraltar to beam us up.

 

It wasn't long after that, that we could beam colonel Fearguis down to his own ship again. The timeline, as we know it, hasn't changed, so we got lucky. This time. But at least now we know that someone or something is visiting our past. That needs to be stopped.

Right now though, I'm preparing to receive another delegation of the bureau of Temporal Investigations. I can't say I'm looking forward to it...

Computer, end log.

Episode 62: "The Discovery"

Last time, the Gibraltar was hit by chroniton beams. After a careful inspection of the ship, no residual chronitons were found, so the Gibraltar was sent out again, this time without the Captain and XO, who stayed behind on DS19 to give a report to the dreaded Temporal Investigations department.

The Gibraltar, under command of Lt.Cmdr. Richardjrn Weatherwax, went back to the anomaly from which those beams were fired. When they arrived, they found that there was a large amount of chroniton particles present.

Before they could run a complete scan though, they detected an unusual signal nearby. It seemed to be a probe of some sort, which had come through the anomaly. The crew didn't recognise the alien configuration of the probe, but it was clear that it was sending out a signal. Was it trying to make contact?

If so, it was impossible to know who it was though, but that didn't stop Lt.Cmdr. Weatherwax from wanting to find out what the probe was signalling. He ordered power boosted to the communications array.

The message they finally received, was one single sentence:

"It's one small step for man... one giant leap for mankind."

To be Continued!

Episode 61: "Time for a Wedding"

USS Gibraltar, Captain's log, Captain RoBobby McMillan reporting.

Stardate...

No, a stardate would be meaningless right now. We've been stuck in this timebubble for way too long already. Time passes way too fast in here. For every 12 hours that pass on the Gibraltar, only 1 hour passes outside of this blasted chroniton-based bubble. As a result, two months have gone by, with the crew trying to find a way out of this. So far, nothing.

It's maddening to know that normal space and time are out there, just outside of that graviton field. No matter what we do, we can't break free. After two months of working, thinking and working some more, we're no step closer to finding a solution. It makes me wonder if we'll ever get out of here.

I know I shouldn't think this way, but I am not alone. Most of the crew feel the stress too. I can't say I blame them. One positive note though: our stowaway, Cadet Zilithandria Braveheart, seems to be handling things well. Or as well as can be expected, of course. She picked a helluva time to sneak on board.

If there was only some sort of solution to get out of here. Perhaps I should put all the facts together. We were sent out to get more information about an anomaly detected on the edge of Federation space. Heh, how happy I was back then. . . how great it felt, being out here again, not having to flee from Klingon or Federation ships. Right now though, I'm starting to wonder which is actually better: fleeing all the time, or being stuck here.

Anyway, as we approached the anomaly, a chroniton pulse suddenly shot from it, towards us. There was no way to avoid it! As it hit the shields, we didn't feel a thing. However, time immediately slowed down. And here we are. We still have no idea who did this, or why. And right now, I don't care. I just want to get out of here.

Oh, hold on, someone's ringing the doorchime. Computer, pause log.

Computer, resume log.

 

Something amazing has happened. Having had two months to think about it, Lt.Cmdr. Weatherwax and Lt.jg Johnson decided to get married! And, they wanted the ceremony to take place immediately. They couldn't have chosen a better time. This would improve morale on board, just when we needed it the most. I'm tempted to write down an official commendation for the two of them, just for getting married!

They wanted me to lead the ceremony, which I thought was quite an honour. Of course I accepted. Once everyone was properly dressed in dressuniforms - a welcome change of outfit, I can tell you that - the ceremony began. The couple's vows were just as they should be: sweet, lovely and wonderful. It's amazing to see the love these two officers have for each other. Whoever said holograms didn't have feelings, should have been at this wedding.

 

After I pronounced the two of them husband and wife, tradition required a kiss and the throwing of rice. However, that all happened rather quickly, since all of a sudden, a second, more powerful chronitonburst hit the ship. This time, we *did* feel it. I ordered everyone back to the Bridge, where, to our delight, we discovered the timebubble was gone! We were back in our normal time.

Of course, as far as Starfleet was concerned, we were only gone for about five days. It will be quite a story, we'll have to tell them. I'm afraid that's going to be one where Temporal Investigations will be interested in. Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now, I'm just happy to be back in this normal time.

As for what exactly happened to us, and who fired those chroniton beams... I have no idea. Perhaps, in time, we'll learn...

Computer, end log.

Episode 60: "Promotions"

It was time for promotions on board the Gibraltar. Now that the crew was once again part of Starfleet, and no longer renegades, Captain McMillan and Commander Braveheart could show their gratitude and admiration for their crew, in the proper way: via promotions.

Ensign Debbydo, the Gibraltar's Security and Tactical Chief, was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade.

Ensign Sophie Johnson, the Hazard Team leader, became a Lieutenant Junior Grade too.

 

And even though Ensign Katie Zwilling wasn't here at the moment, she too was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade. Despite her having lost the admiral she was an aide to, she had passed this crisis admirably.

Lieutenant snapper Desade wasn't here either, as he was still recovering from the whole ordeal - and nobody could blame him - but he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander.

 

Finally, Lieutenant Commander Richardjrn Weatherwax was called forward. Both Captain McMillan and Commander Braveheart offered the current Chief Engineer the position of Second Officer: Weatherwax would be in charge of the Gibraltar if McMillan and Braveheart wouldn't be available. After a few moments of pondering about it, Weatherwax accepted.

 

Episode 59: "The Trouble with Time"

USS Gibraltar RP, April 2 2012
Episode 59:  "The Trouble with Time"

= Absent Crew =
CO: Captain RoBobby McMillan
XO: Commander Kieran Braveheart

= Available Crew =
Security Chief: Ensign Debbydo
Helmsman: Lt. Snapper Desade
Chief Engineer: Lt.Cmdr. Richardjrn Weatherwax
Hazard OPS Chief: Ensign Sophie Johnson
Science Officer: Ensign BlackRosePhantom

= Special Guest Star =
DS19 Security Chief: Lt. Flint Convair

Summary:
A few hours after the crew saved Commander Juilesse and her station from destruction - they found themselves back to the usual routine of playing prisoner. Johnson knew that something was happening and she got the feeling that it wasn't good. Around her, the crew began to relax and 'enjoy' the surroundings - they were in Quarks' after all. Lieutenant Desade became nervous and twitchy; this was never a good sign but Johnson felt as though she was the one to calm things down.

Moments later, Commander Juilesse walked through the door with two Security Officers. She made the gesture that then made the Captain and First Officer follow her. She then ordered her Security Chief to remain with the Gibraltar Crew. This made Johnson all the more curious and suspicious - she had to do something but wasn't sure what.

Desade started pacing. "I don't like this....don't like this at all."

The words of a nervous officer slowly seeping through everyone's mind. Johnson sighed and told Desade that she was 'going to do her thing'. He asked her if this thing would get the crew killed, she replied no and continued.

Desade mumbled: "This is wonderful, no Captain, no First Officer and Miss High-Ho Silver is gonna do her thing...this is just great!"

Minutes later, Johnson completed her scan of the Promenade with her omnitool and discovered that lasting damage from the attack had caused the Promenade to depressurize. Johnson determined that the problem was the whole Promenade but only the Crew and Security Officer were on the Promenade at this time. Before long, Johnson took charge.

"Sorry Lieutenant, but I know your the ranking Officer here but your a bag of nerves right now." Sophie said to Desade. Flint suddenly became active and alert - he carefully watched Sophie as she threw orders around. Johnson asked Weatherwax to find an access panel and tap into Engineering Control. This way, she could evaluate the extent of the damage without leaving Quarks. However, Flint had other ideas and stopped Weatherwax.

"Look, we're loosing oxygen and we need to find out stuff. So if you wanna die then keep going on the way you are. If you don't, let us help." Johnson barked at the Security Officer. Taking only a moment to think about it, Flint nodded and did his best to help the crew. Johnson obviously knew what she was doing, having fourteen previous hosts to fall back on is enough experience these days. Weatherwax accessed the Engineering Control and discovered that the whole station was in peril. Johnson rallied up the crew and dished out some assignments.

To calm Desade down, she got Ensign Rose and himself to work together on a map of the region. The Ensign shrugged but did as he was told. During the ordering, the doors to Quarks had automatically locked. This caused immediate problems for the crew. Flint alerted Johnson to the problem but she felt obligated to open the door. With the control panel not working on the door, she used her omni-blade (her omnitool which has been adapted with a holo-blade) to break the lock. The door then immediately opened.

Rich managed to determine that the damage was caused by the Clone-Pico that the crew destroyed a few hours earlier. Their warp core had exploded and caused micro-fractures along the station and also managed to damage several critical components - including Environment Control and Life Support. With no alarms going off, Johnson got the crew and Flint together and then rushed to Engineering. She had a feeling that Juilesse and the stations crew in OPS had no idea of what was going on.

What seemed like hours was only minutes when the crew reached Engineering. Walking through the doors sent a shiver down Johnson's spine. "Why isn't anyone on duty down here?" She asked promptly. Rich turned round and pointed to the time-display on a console. It was thirty minutes later since the crew left the Promenade. Johnson and the crew knew this couldn't be right so she ordered Rich to run a diagnostic of the Primary Systems and got Flint and Rose to check the other systems.

Rich reported that the Primary Systems had been tampered with but Johnson saw no actual damage. This was becoming too strange for comfort so she looked at Rich for any other reports. Rich stated that the station had become trapped in a Quantum Inversion Field. Essentially, the station was experiencing different time zones along the same timeline as thieir own. Johnson had Rich run a Quantum Scan of the station; the results showed that the Reactor in Engineering was the focal point of the displacements.

Johnson had Debbydo get a Phase Discriminator and give it to Rich. Weatherwax would then modify the device to emit an inverted chroniton pulse at the Reactor. Johnson hoped that her hosts wouldn't let her down now. This pulse would be deadly to organics so she had Rich remain behind with the device in order to detonate it.

As the crew rushed back to the Promenade, Rich devised a way to remote detonate the device. He ran towards Johnson and entered the turbolift with her. Once they reached the Promenade, Johnson nodded at Rich and he pressed the button. Seconds later, the crew felt the station shake lightly.

Johnson's ears perked up. "I hear Commander Juilesse...we'd better get back in there." As she signaled towards Quarks.

Episode 58: "Homecoming"

The arrival at DS19 went as expected: the station was aiming their weapons at the Gibraltar. After all, Captain McMillan and the Gibraltar crew were still seen as fugitives, thieves and even murderers. But there wasn't time for that: they needed Commander Juliesse of DS19 to trust them. The cloned USS Pico was on its way here, and it would soon destroy the station.

Unfortunately, convincing Commander Juliesse to trust the Gibraltar crew was easier said than done. It took all of the crew's diplomatic skills to even be allowed to beam on board. Once there, Captain McMillan did what he had to do: he stepped in front of the DS19 commander. Unarmed. He knew that if he failed to convince Juliesse, he and his crew would be put in the brig, and they'd die along with all of the DS19 crew once the Pico attacked.

Thankfully, McMillan pulled it off. While Juliesse still didn't completely trust him and the rest of the Gibraltar crew, at least he managed to offer her something that no reasonable commanding officer would reject: proof. If only the Gibraltar crew were allowed to work on DS19's sensor array, in order to adjust it, then the DS19 sensors themselves would be able to spot the clone particles in the cloned ship.

As McMillan, Desade, Johnson, Westland and Weatherwax went outside to adjust the sensor array, Commander Braveheart and Ensign Debbydo stayed at Main OPS, working in tandem with the rest of the crew to alter the sensors. They didn't have much time: the Pico would be here momentarily.

The modifications were completed in the nick of time: the USS Pico had just dropped out of warp. Commander Juliesse ordered the scan, and. . . she found clone particles at the frequency the Gibraltar crew had mentioned. Only now, did she truly believe them.

But accepting the Gibraltar crew back and clearing their name would have to wait: first they needed to dispose of the Pico. Luckily, Commander Juliesse had a surprise ready: with a single command, she contacted the Klingon Ambassador, and explained who *really* destroyed the Klingon outpost: the clones. It didn't take much convincing for three Klingon ships to decloak, and to disable to cloned Pico. The danger was no more.

Sadly, the Creator escaped. . . but with his cloning facilities gone, at least he wouldn't be a threat in the near future. Right now, DS19 was saved, and the Gibraltar crew was home again. No longer fugitives... it'd been a difficult couple of months, but it was well worth it. They were home.