[From Jonathon, ?An Alternative Trill?] E'thexx:{INTERCOM} LoDell, prepare to forward a priority subspace communication to the Federation Council...and to Captain Zena Quetan of the USS Gagarin. [From Mel, ?Homeward Bound?] As they travelled Zena stared into space she couldn't deny that she was looking forward to seeing her husband again but the circumstances were more than worrying.... [From Lela, ?The Future Looks???] She then headed to the bridge? [From Mark, ?Futures Glimpse?] It was just another typical day for The Star Eagle and her crew. A blast from her photon cannons and a pirate ship was destroyed, followed by a 'woohoooo' that echoed throughout the belly of the ship as she flew straight through the explosion and wreckage. [From Steven, ?Time, Gentlemen, Please?] "The Vanguard." he confirmed, turning back from the image. It had been five years at least since he'd been aboard. A long, hard five years, at that. "Care to put a time-frame on that?" The Admiral queried, bringing him out of his reverie before he could sink too far into it. "Well, sir, there's no increased superstructure forward, the nacelles show no sign of the chroniton accretion modules... I'd have to say it was at least ten years ago, before the first major refit." he said, after a few moments study. [From Chris, ??Twas the Night Before?] Challis ushered him into a shuttle pod and soon they were off. It was a long standing tradition for Captains to inspect their ships before their maiden voyages. Soman felt his heartbeat quicken as the pod approached his ship. As Challis brought them up over the sauser, Soman read off the ship?s markings: NX 82000, U.S.S. Marathon, and United Federation of Planets. For Soman, tomorrow couldn?t come soon enough. Admiral Dominic Cesar Santos USS Vanguard NCV-80221-A Fifteen years in the future "Status?" Yeoman Waters looked up from her board. "All systems are five-by-five." Commander Aral said nothing right away. He calmly turned to his right, showing the black half of his face. Some humanoids found the white half more unnerving. Aral simply didn't care. The Vanguard's executive officer wanted to quash Waters? habit before it became ingrained. "Yeoman," he began. "Yes, sir?" "I know it is fashionable to use terminology, such as 'five-by-five' for ?all is well,?? Aral began, ?but please refrain from doing so on duty, especially when we are discussing the Admiral?s well-being." She nodded. "Aye aye." He nodded back and offered one of his rare smiles. It was not every day he encountered a young officer who could withstand his rebukes. Aral silently approved of her and made a note to research her background and find a more challenging assignment. He turned back toward the transporter. "Now. Report." "Sir, all systems ready. Admiral Santos standing by." "Good. Engage." In a spiral of energy ribbons, Admiral Dominic Santos, along with three Temporal Away Team members, reappeared on the platform. Santos looked momentarily disoriented. Temporal transport could do that. Santos and the officers?Mulwray, Ta?bril, and Lavigne?were dressed as buccaneers. Santos grinned when he saw Aral. He strolled up to him and clasped him on the shoulders. ?Argh, me matey! Shiver me timbers and batton down the hatches!? Aral tried not to inhale the musky odors from the admiral?s clothing. He cleared his throat. ?If I am to understand your?outdated naval metaphors, allow me to say the ?timbers? have beenbattenedy shaken, and the ?hatches? are all battoned down. As for being your...'matey,' I am pleased, and would be honored, if I could consider you my 'matey' as well." Santos considered his executive with a wry grin. He noticed Yeoman Waters trying to hide her smile. Although Aral's homeplanet, Cheron, was decimated by war between castes during Captain James T. Kirk's era, Aral was born to a colony of pacifist dissidents who escaped the turmoil before it escalated into annihilation for his culture. His race survived. Aral's sense of humor, however, did not. Santos considered it a casualty of his colony's exodus from their homeworld. If he had lived on Earth about 700 years ago, Aral and his people would have been considered "Puritans." "How was your mission, Admiral?" Aral asked. Santos said, "The British again defeated the Spanish Armada at the Battle of Gravelines. We have once more saved history as we know it. I'm hungry." Santos turned to the away team. "Lady and gentlemen, get some rest. And be sure to see Dr. McIntyre. You all did a fine job." The trio walked out of the transporter room, heading in the general direction of the crew quarters. Santos and Aral left the transporter room after the away team. "Would you like to know how the Vanguard fared in your absence?" "She's in one piece. What more do I need to know?" "Lieutenant Maguire has been recalibrating the cloaking device. She believes she has accounted for the phase variance during 'temporal cloaking' maneuvers. Mister Faucet has mapped a new trinary-star system and insists on studying it first-hand..." "Terry may get his wish. What else?" "Ti'Ora has finished the data mining on the computer equipment we salvaged from the Nausicaan colony ship." "Good. That may give us the strategic advantage we need." "Our tempestuous pilot, Ernestine Allende, has led her team to victory in the first annual Vanguard Cup. Grem has a new recipe he's insisting that you try." The Admiral and his first officer arrived at sickbay. "It all sounds very interesting. Do you think you can have a complete report prepared in one hour?" "Certainly.? As the doors to sickbay closed behind Santos, the Admiral added: ?Oh, and Aral? I?m just kidding about that report.? Dominic Santos only had to tolerate a short medical exam. The Vanguard?s commander had not contracted any infectious illnesses on his last mission, and even if he had, the bio-filters would have detected and destroyed them before reconstructing Dominic Santos. As Dr. Nicole McIntyre signed off on her report, the Admiral used the sickbay?s facilities so he could wash before returning to his quarters. ?Cori came by to see me,? the Vanguard?s Chief Medical Officer shouted through the door into the refresher. Santos deactivated the sonic-stream and studied his face in the mirror. ?Is she feeling all right?? Santos asked McIntyre. McIntyre laughed. ?She?s fine. Actually, she?s interested in building a large aquarium on the Science deck, and she wanted to know who to ask.? Santos slipped into a sickbay robe and opened the door to the refresher. He ran his hand through his beard and decided to cut it back before applying the cream. He noticed, with both regret and amusement, that he had more gray in his beard than the last time he had grown it out. That was during?when? The mission to the Borg homeworld? Maybe, and maybe not. ?Cori should ask me,? Santos said to McIntyre. ?Actually, if she follows procedure on this vessel, she should ask Ti?Ora. Ti?Ora is the Chief Science Officer.? McIntyre chuckled. ?I think she wanted to ask you, Nick, and she didn?t know how. And maybe, just maybe, she?s nervous about that offer from the Atlantis Project.? Santos applied the beard cream to his face. ?We?re not quite halfway through our current seven-year mission, Doctor. I have no intention of retiring yet, or of taking the offer from Atlantis.? ?But don?t deny you?re interested, Nick. Word is you?re going to accept as soon as we?re done with this seven-year stretch.? Santos laughed and poked his head out of the refresher. ?Where did you hear that?? ?Don?t tell me you don?t think the entire crew knows?? ?Oh, I knew that. I was just wondering who your source was.? McIntyre remained quiet and merely grinned. Santos emerged from the refresher in a fresh uniform, wiping his face with a towel. ?Niki, so long as I?m here, my mind and heart are with the Vanguard. She?s the only lady I?m devoted to. Is that clear?? Dr. McIntyre gave a cheeky salute. ?Oh yes, sir, Admiral sir!? Santos laughed and tossed the towel into the sickbay laundry. ?Now, if you?ll excuse me, the other lady in my life requires my attention.? McIntyre cocked an eyebrow and returned to work. Santos stood outside his quarters and breathed out loudly. He had faced the Vorgon, the Borg, the so-called ?Mirror Universe,? the death of Kristen Stark, the trial of Cynan Mandrake, the Nexus, and the ?ghost-ship? Tomonaga?so why did he find facing Cori so difficult? Dominic Santos entered his quarters. ?Cori?? he called out quietly. ?I?m home.? No reply. ?Cori?? Then: ?In here.? Santos walked toward the sound of her voice, in the bedroom suite. She sat on the bed, reading a magazine, wearing athletic shorts and a top that Santos thought was too small. No shoes, no socks. At Santos?s entrance, she didn?t look up from the magazine. ?Hello,? Santos said, smiling. ?Hello.? A beat. ?Can I get a kiss?? Santos asked. Cori rolled her eyes then offered a cheek. Santos pecked her on the cheek. Cori scratched the top of one foot with the toes of the other and went back to her magazine. ?Don?t you even want to know about my mission?? Santos asked. ?Not really,? she replied. ?You?re here, I?m here, so I guess I can assume everything went okay, right?? Santos sat in the chair situated in the corner of the room and studied her. He remembered the times they had shared: long walks by moonlight during beach holidays, the meals they shared and the films they watched, how excited she had been to move to the Vanguard. All that seemed like a distant memory. ?I thought we could have dinner tonight,? Santos told Cori, by way of an invitation. ?Grem prepared a new dish.? ?Jack Chee stopped by to see you,? she said, altogether ignoring the invitation to Event Horizon Lounge. ?Oh?? ?I don?t know what he wanted. He said just to tell you he stopped by to say hello.? ?The counselor never stops by for nothing. I?ll meet with him.? ?We talked for a while.? Santos paused and scratched his forehead. ?You know, Cori, you don?t need to take your issues with me to Jack. If you want to talk about anything, we can talk.? She threw the magazine aside, her eyes ablaze. How can I both hate and love that characteristic in this girl? thought Santos. ?Why didn?t you tell me about Atlantis?? she demanded. ?What was there to say?? Santos asked. ?I didn?t accept their offer. I hear out offers all the time.? ?Everyone knows you want it. Why am I the last one to know? Don?t you think this might affect me, too?? ?Cori?? ?Don?t ?Cori? me! Look, I?m going to the holodeck.? ?What are you going to do there?? ?Just work off some steam.? Cori got up and stomped toward the door. Santos knew it was useless to stop her, even though what she wore wasn?t quite suited for walking around the ship. ?You know,? she said as a parting shot, ?it?s not easy being your daughter.? [From Steven, ?Time, Gentlemen, Please?] [Darkwater?s orders:] ?I see your observational skills are as sharp as ever, Captain. Unfortunately, this is the one clear image we've managed to get from a neutrino build-up near one of our starbases - yesterday morning. Under the circumstances, I'd like you to go out there and see what you can make of it." [End snip.] Dinner was a solitary affair in his quarters. Santos was catching up on personal correspondence when the communicator chimed. ?This is Santos. Go ahead.? ?Sir, there is a Priority Bravo communication from Temporal Division.? Santos took a moment to compose himself. ?Put it through to my quarters.? Santos walked toward the wall computer. ?Computer, recognize Santos, five-seven-xray-zodiac.? ?Identity confirmed. Incoming message.? It was a text-only message from a name he had only run across a number of times after the sender?s departure from Vanguard years ago. Kieran Darkwater, now Temp Division?s rising star and chief investigator. A ?Troubleshooter,? doing for TID [Temporal Investigation Division] what he and the entire crew of the Vanguard did. Rumors of wetworks abounded. The text message was still the easiest to encrypt and the toughest to break. Just like Darkwater, Santos thought, although he couldn?t tell if he meant the man or the message. As he scanned each line, Santos?s heart raced a little faster until he began to feel the stirring in his chest, what he knew as the battle-fire. That old feeling didn?t flare as much as it used to, and it didn?t burn as brightly as it used to, but he could tell when it was there. ?Santos to bridge.? ?Allende here,? said the helm officer. ?Ensign, set course for the Merlin system, maximum warp. And open a channel to Captain Soman Drath of the USS Marathon.? Santos knew it was his imagination, but he knew the Vanguard, and he could almost feel her turn and accelerate to warp, wrapping space-time in a pinprick of light. ?Yes, sir, but that may take a moment. USS Marathon is under a heavy communications blanket.? ?Keep trying. I?m on my way to the bridge now.? Santos exited his quarters. [From Chris, ?Flip Flop?] Challis: ? Incoming message. It?s from Admiral Santos. Soman: Wanting to give us a send off. Put it through. [End snip.] [Snip from 10/13/99, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/astoria_ds10/message/25] Capt. Vanier K. Lee USS Astoria Four years in the past Lee turned to Soman Drath, looking annoyed. "Mr. Soman, hail Deep Space Ten." "Frequencies open, sir," Soman replied quietly. =/\= "Captain...Quetan," Lee said. "We thank you for your hospitality and look forward to meeting you and your crew." =/\= "Acknowledged, Captain," came Capt. Quetan's reply. "Is there a problem? We expected you over 60 minutes ago." =/\= "Just, ah, some damage from the wormhole. We are exacting repairs and should be arriving at your coordinates shortly." =/\= "Very well. Quetan out." =/\= "Lee out." Lee turned to address the crew. "All right. I know that we are all on edge. This isn't an easy situation. For any of us. And I know that the only way to find a way home is perhaps to work with Deep Space Ten. "We might be curious about them, but in the meantime, we are not going to make any moves that might be interpreted as overtly hostile. And that includes stealing computer data." "And if it comes down to a firefight? Or retreat? Don't you want all the information we can get our hands on?" Halloran looked at Lee. "If it comes to that, yes. But why don't we make every attempt to work with them? We have been invited to their station. We are their guests. If you need anything, ASK. Is that clear?" (To be continued?) [OoC: All right, from this point on, those of you who were with us at the time can re-create your roles from that period. Those of you who were not can choose to play along with Mel?s group on Deep Space Ten or play along with the Astoria. I?m very open-minded about this. We can choose to rewrite that whole period, if we like. Not that I didn?t like that mission?I loved it. But that?s the nature of time travel, that we may possibly disrupt our own timelines. Those of you who need to take a refresher on that mission, please go to our new web site at http://ncv80221.netfirms.com/default.htm, click on Mission Archives then click on the first link listed under ?Good Fences, Good Neighbors.?] __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. 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