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Part of Starbase Bravo: The Wreck of Us and Bravo Fleet: We Are the Borg

View Mission

Shadows Keep on Changing

USS Exeter, Crew Lounge
June 2401
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“Whuh– What do you think it is, captain?” asked Lieutenant Aneasa.  The trepidation in her voice was made all the more evident by the way she lurked in the doorway, not quite entering, but not stepping back into the corridor either.

The crew lounge had been otherwise empty, aside from Captain Jeffrey Holmgren and his burdensome thoughts.  The illumination was down to fifty percent, which made the LCARS panel across the compartment look all the brighter.  He could see Aneasa staring at the communication waveform scrolling across the display, as distorted as it was by signal interference.

“You can’t ask me that,” Holmgren replied with the gentlest sardonic twist to his inflection.  He shook his head at her with a repressed smile and then he returned his attention to a PADD in his grasp.  His manipulation of its sensor controls reflected in changes to communication waveform on the display.

Playfully, Holmgren said, “I’m not really here, remember?  This is a training mission.  The cadets are in command of the Exeter.  Not me.”

“Yes, well… technically,” Aneasa said.  The way she emphasised that word came across as reluctance.  “Turn out from cadets has been rather low.  Given crew shortages across the fleet after Frontier Day, many of our cadets and Exeter crew members have been assigned to new ships.  We’ve had to recruit volunteers from all over Starbase Bravo to staff key positions in their absence…”

Shaking his head, Holmgren added, “In any event, they don’t need the starbase’s chief science officer looking over their shoulders.”  –He swept a hand at the Paulson Nebula’s swirling red and purple stellar dust and gasses out the viewports– “I only came for the scenery.”

“I wouldn’t ask in any official capacity,” Aneasa said.  “The thing is… there’s a bet.  We’re taking wagers on the origins of the mysterious sig–“

“A wager?  Isn’t the thrill of mystery enough for you all?” Holmgren asked in mock outrage.  “The entire purpose of this training mission is to study the effect the Paulson Nebula has on comms technology.  We suspect that not only did its stellar mass interfere with the Borg assimilation broadcast from Jupiter, but the nebula’s spatial anomalies may have protected Starbase Bravo from the Borg’s subspace transmissions.  

“If the nebula is interfering with another communication today,” Holmgren excitedly said, “then this is the perfect opportunity for experimentation!”

Aneasa remarked, “I only bring it up because I bet on the signal being Romulan.  Free State specifically.”

“Oh… Oh no,” Holmgren muttered.  He stabbed at his PADD with his index finger.  The waveform on the screen spun in the opposite direction as several of the gaps began to fill in.

“What?  Wait, what?” Aneasa asked.  “Did I lose the bet?”

“I think I recognise it,” Holmgren said at a whisper.  “It looks– it looks like a homing beacon…

“And I think its origin is Borg.”

Comments

  • FrameProfile Photo
    James Neidlinger

    There’s a relaxed banter in this post that makes it feel very normal, yet underneath, there are undertones of something else. The mention to low cadet turnout and the reference to how the Paulson Nebula interferes with communications remind us of the dark events that just recently befell Starfleet, but they’re not overdone. I found this tone really helped stick the landing at the end of the post when the big reveal occurs. It helps that final statement suck all the air out of the room. “I think its origin is Borg” and then a cut straight to black, leaving us nervous for what will follow.

    October 27, 2023
  • FrameProfile Photo
    Sazra Kobahl

    I love the lightness in this post, how Holmgren is letting himself be led by curiosity as every Scientist would have in the given situation. The mystery of the Paulson Nebula is bringing up so many questions also, but the light mention of how the recent events of the Lost Fleet and Frontier Day had influence of the staffing of the Exeter, Awesome intro post!

    October 27, 2023
  • FrameProfile Photo
    Reva Sarrik

    I love the playfulness of Holmgren. Haha. 'I'm not really here.' I'm very interested in the mystery of the nebula and after that awesome final sentence, wondering how much that mystery will play a part. Lovely start!

    October 29, 2023

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