<USS Avalon> "Temporal Opps"

"Temporal Opps"




After leaving the bridge the Commander headed towards transporter room one, 
flanked by to security officers. She couldn't help but wonder about the person 
she was about to meet and why said person was trying to blow up the wormhole, 
and more importantly why they hadn't thought of doing that from their end. If 
they had then they wouldn't be caught in the damn thing, they wouldn't be faced 
with sailing into a past time line, and she wouldn't be pushing at the fear 
that she wouldn't be seeing her mothers or sisters again.

As she turned the corner, the Commander reached out trying to pick up on the 
person she was about to meet, but all she got was, well, nothing. It was all 
just so.. white. Pausing outside the transporter room, she took a deep breath, 
tugged on her jacket, and then walked in. She was more then a little surprised 
to see a thin, sickly looking young man who didn't look to be any older then 
her sister's oldest daughter. Shaking off the thought, the Commander stepped 
forward. "Welcome aboard the Banshee," She paused to look at his collar, 
"Lieutenant. I'm Commander Aeriannah Kaelyre."

Josh shifted from one foot to the other, staring silently at the transporter 
pad beneath his feet. Bad enough he'd been captured, inevitably corrupting a 
timeline. Unnecessary responses would undoubtedly increase the contamination, 
he believed. Sometimes silence really was the better option.
Seeing that she wasn't going to get a responded, Aeriannah smiled softly at the 
young Lieutenant. "I'd at least like to know to whom I'm speaking." Turning to 
look at the young officer behind the controls she ordered softly, "Run a 
bio-signature scan and cross it with all Star Fleet profiles from the last 
fifty years." 

The young officer looked at the Commander wide eyed and search band, but then 
nodded before doing what he'd been asked. 

"I wouldn't worry about the time line." Aeriannah replied, once again looking 
at the new comer. "It was altered the moment you entered and set up your 
charges. So your being here is simply icing on the temporal cake." 

"Commander," The transporter tech responded. "I have that ID for you. 
Lieutenant Joshua Garrity, Chief Engineer, USS Avalon. Reported MIA on 
Startdate 230508.7." 

"Except for the year that would be today's date." Aeriannah replied aloud as a 
sudden thought pasted her mind. J.D.'s never going to believe this. Smiling a 
soft bright smile that matched her Asarrah's, Aeriannah offered hand to Josh. 
"Well Mister Garrity, as I've said welcome aboard."

Josh hesitated before deciding not to be rude and taking her hand for the 
briefest moment, but still made neither eye contact nor sound nor any move to  
step off the pad. 

Aeriannah tried not to laugh. She'd heard stories about Josh Garrity, but she'd 
thought everyone had been stretching it when they talked about his shyness. 
"You know I believe you knew my mother."

Josh glanced up for a moment, surprise and curiousity both reflecting clearly 
in his pale blue eyes before he silently averted them again to the floor.

Aeriannah smiled at getting a reaction. "Well, one of them anyway. Hmm. Lets 
see.. Back then she would have been the   Commandant of the Academy. A 
commodore I think."

He looked at her blankly. There'd been alot of commodores at the academy.

JD must have gotten his social skills from his mother. "Sara Kaelyre." 
Aeriannah finally told him. "She meantioned you when.." JD joined. Careful 
Annie, don't go and tell him stuff like that. "she use to go on and on about 
her time there." 

He frowned as he puzzled it out. Sara Kaelyre? He shook his head slightly. He 
didn't remember a Kaelyre. He glanced at her again, shaking his head and 
shrugging apologetically. 

The look on his face made her laugh. "Oh of course when you were there she must 
have still gone by Crusher."

"Commander?"

"Yes Chief?" Aeriannah replied as she looked over at her crewman. 

"Just got word from the bridge. They were able to get the shuttle into the bay. 
It's a little worse for wear, so Lt. McEntire has sent Lt. Ga.." He paused, 
looked down at his screen, up at the man on the padd, blinked and then looked 
at the Commander. "He's sent someone down to look at it. Also, the Avalon's 
under attack so we'll be keeping Lt. Garrity until all is secure." 

Aeriannah flinched at the near mishap. By the gods she hated temporal missions. 
"Thank you Chief. Well, Lieutenant. Looks like your our guest for a while, care 
to step down now?"

The original direction of the  young man's wording didn't go  unnoticed, nor 
did the rest of his message. He looked at  her and shook his head, heading for 
the transporter controls, fully intending to return to the Avalon. To 
Annabelle. If she was in danger, he needed to be there.

"Lieutenant." Aeriannah said firmly as she moved over to the controls. "Your 
ship's shields will be up. There's no way to transport you until they are able 
to lower them."

Josh shook his head again and moved toward another console, thinking to 
reconfigure her transporter signal to allow him through the Avalon's 
shields...not exactly by the book, but very possible.

"Lieutenant!" She really did hate to yell. Nodding at the two security officers 
with her, she motioned for them to block his access. "Lieutenant, there's a bit 
of a difference between your technology and ours. I mean, in your time line, 
I'm eleven. You have to know that I can't allow you access to our technology."

He flinched when she yelled but didn't stop, pulling up the PADD on his hip and 
setting it to interface, shooting a glance at the security officers which 
clearly dared them to try to stop him, when the voice that came over the comm 
did just that. 

"Garrity to Keaton. You've gotta see this bird! It's not a Mainland Fare, it's 
a Galileo...or at least it used to be. Some of these upgrades are unreal. We'll 
be days just figuring out what how the hell he did all of this..."

Garrity?! He looked at Kaelyre, his expression questioning, momentarily 
distracted from his task.

Aeriannah swore in her Asarah's native language, before looking at J.D's 
father. "I can't." She said simply. 

Josh nodded slightly, understanding her position, as he turned his attention 
back to what he'd been about to do.

"Would you like us to leave the shuttle alone?" She asked as she tried to see 
what he was doing. "We'll return it when we beam you over." She watched him a 
moment, and then it dawned on her if he were like J.D. then... Walking over to 
the console closest to her, Aeriannah locked out the padd interfacing function 
with her security clearance. "I can't let you do that, Lieutenant."

He nodded yet again, inserting a small chip from his pocket into the PADD in 
his hand and continuing without looking up.

Looking over at Keaton, Aeriannah motioned for him to take the Padd. Keaton was 
just about to do so when the doors behind them opened. Aeriannah spun around 
and found herself looking at a young man who looked to be their guests double. 
Again she swore in Delosian. 

JD entered the transporter room, excited and smiling, "Keaton, you've got to 
see this, it's..." he stopped midsentence, eyes wide with surprise as he looked 
at his doppelganger there before him. But for the perhaps three inches height 
the man before him had on him and the visible scar down his cheek, they could 
have been twins. He looked at Kaelyre, clearly stunned.

"Go back to engineering, Mister Garrity." Aeriannah ordered. 

Josh allowed himself a moment to gaze upon the young man who would one day be 
his son before rapidly keying orders to the PADD. The transporter sprang to 
life of its own accord as he stepped quickly back to the pad upon which he'd 
arrived. JD spotted his movement and intercepted, his reflexes as quick as 
Josh's own. Remaining between the transporter and the man who wished make use 
of it until Keaton took his place then heading toward the exit with the intent 
of following his commanders orders.

"This can't be a good thing." Areiannah reached for her comm. badge to alert 
the Captain as to what just happened but appaertantly her Captain has other 
things on her mind. 

"Dareth to Kaelyre. Avalon is secure. You can send back our guest. Then I need 
you to come to my ready room." 

Areiannah sighed. "I'd do that, Ma'am, if things hadn't just get a lot more 
complicated." 

"How so, Commander?" 

"Lieutenant Garrity just walked in." Areiannah replied. 

"So?" 

She sighed again. "Lieutenant Garrity is our guest." 

There was muttered swearing on the other end of the comm.

Other related posts: