Life in the Abyss (Challenge Mission)

Posted on Sat Feb 5th, 2022 @ 6:51am by Captain David Tonelly [Reece]

Mission: MISSION 0 - History Speaks
Location: Earth, Eastern Pacific Ocean, Marianas Trench, ridge above Challenger Deep
Timeline: 2360
1728 words - 3.5 OF Standard Post Measure

***Greetings, My Friends!! It is I, your friend, The Narrator. I bring you another story, which I hope you will enjoy. What you will read below, did not occur in your reality, but in one of the uncounted others that mirror yours. In this telling of David Tonelly's life, the El Aurian never joined Starfleet, nor did he ever find the other half of his soul, Baeryn Whavi.

Let us see what Fate has in store for him...***

=====

David was quiet as he worked. He usually was. He had very little to offer in the way of conversation.

"Aww man! My team lost the playoffs!"

My world was destroyed.

"Great! Now I've caught Rigellian Flu!"

Over ninety percent of my fellow El Aurians were murdered.

"Do you think Bob, over in accounting, will ask me out?"

I am the only member of my species on this planet.


Needless to say, David was not invited to many office parties. Not that it bothered him. It allowed him to work in quiet solitude. Just the way he liked it.

It had been nearly eight years since the Borg invaded his home system with overwhelming numbers. There had been some warning. Sadly, not enough though. Barely five percent of the population, that had numbered in the trillions, had survived. So brutal was the genocide that the Borg had loosed on the peaceful El Aurians.

Their only crime? The Borg could not assimilate them. And any species that the Borg can't assimilate, it fears, then attempts to obliterate.

The truly heartbreaking part, is that the El Aurian people, were one of the last civilizations that were from the Before Times. Their civilization traveled the stars long before most of the modern space-faring races had evolved enough to walk upright. It is argued, by scholars and historians alike that only the Organians are older. But, it is difficult to find proof as so much of their written history was destroyed when the Borg atomized the El Aurian homeworld.

Following the attack, David returned to Earth, to hide from the Borg. As a trained structural engineer, he quickly found work, at the bottom of the oceans, designing and building various styles of habitats and structures.

For the past five years, he had been part of the team responsible for designing and building the new Marianas Trench Research Facility and Laboratory. He had won a spot on the team, after submitting a proposal that, quite frankly, blew the socks off of the decision board.

His proposed designs were far beyond the other submissions in regards to the strength-to-weight ratio by nearly fifty tons. Also, the lifespan of his structure, after being run through several simulations, proved vastly superior as well. He was hired on the spot and made Assistant Vice President of Design.

Today, after several years of hard work, would be the day when his design would be given its practical test. One of the larger hanger bays, plus the power station, were about to be brought online for the first time, down at depth.

The mood in the observation lounge of the submarine was tense. The next few moments would tell whether this story would continue.

"Engineering Team Bravo," Harold Donoldson, the President and CEO of the construction company, spoke into his wrist comm. "You have a go for start up."

=/\=Roger that, Sir. Stand by,=/\= the voice of the Engineering Team leader, Rebecca Sanchez, who was out on the ocean floor, replied.

Ten seconds later, the power station came online successfully and the hanger bay lit up like a proverbial Christmas tree. The observation room erupted in cheers, as everyone shook hands and clapped backs, congratulating one another.

David, standing off in a corner, wasn't interested in joining the revelry. He had been hired to do a job, and he had just proved that he could do it. That was all the praise he needed. After taking one last look at his creation, he quietly left the lounge. There was still plenty of work to do, and he might as well start now.

===Two Years Later===

"Alright, Jonny, bring your end around about four degrees to your port."

"Roger that, Boss. Stand by...."

The pilot of the small construction submersible activated his maneuvering thrusters and carefully adjusted his position as David had instructed.

"A little more...a little more....There! Hold what you've got there!" David exclaimed as he activated the welding drone to join the two beams together. In a few moments, the job was finished. "Alright, Jonny. The weld looks good from here. Go ahead and head back to the barn."

"You got it, Boss, Thank you!" The small, one-person sub released the beam it had been holding, then pivoted away and headed back to the hanger bay. A long day of work finally done.

As the sub moved away, David, who was currently working in the main construction office, located in the large company submarine, SS Hastings. It was David's home when he was down supervising the construction of his designed habitat and research lab.

"You still at it, David?" A man's voice could be heard from the corridor outside the office area.

David looked back. "Mister Donoldson," he replied.

"David," the human grinned. "How many times do I have to tell you, when we're down here, it's just Harold?"

David shrugged slightly, then turned back to his work.

Harold sighed softly. "You know," he started as he entered the office. "You already proved that your worth the salary I pay you, right? The project is ahead of schedule. Take it easy. You keep going this way, you'll work youself into an early grave.

David didn't reply, though he did stop working. "Not that it would matter, in the grande scheme of things," he said quietly.

"That's not true, David," Harold came up next to David, almost reaching out to gently clap his back, before remembering that David didn't like to be touched. "You are important to me, and the rest of the team. Without you, we wouldn't be here! Your designs have revolutionized the habitat construction game. You'll be living comfortably off of your patents until you're an old man."

"I am an old man, comparatively speaking," he replied.

Harold make an incredulous face. "Now your just talking crazy, David. I'm an old man. You're what...in your late thirties?"

"No," he replied, deciding to tell his boss the truth. "Actually, next month, by your calander, I'll turn four hundred and thirty years old." He looked at Harold, his face devoid of all humor.

Harold took a moment, at first thinking that David was pulling his leg, even Vulcans didn't live that long! "What do you mean, My calender? You are human, aren't you?"

David shook his head slowly. "No. I am not. I come from a race known as El Aurians. My homeworld used to be deep in the Delta Quadrant."

Harold's eyebrows rose at this news, then his brow creased slightly. "Used to be?"

David stood and moved over to one of the viewports that looked over the current construction site. "Eight years ago, my world, my entire star system and nearly ninety-five percent of my fellow El Aurians, were completely annihilated by the Borg."

Harold's face blanched noticeably. "How...how could they cause that much destruction?"

"Your world has only seen two cubes. When the Borg came for my hone and people, they sent thousands of ships. We didn't stand a chance." He hung his head and sighed softly.

"David...I...." Harold didn't know what to say. What could you say to someone who experienced that kind of loss?

David looked over at his boss. "It's alright. You don't have to say anything. What could you say? While your world has had its fair share of genocidal wars, it pales in comparison."

"If...if you ever need anything, please David, come to me. Day or night, okay?" Harold stated honestly. "I know it's not much, but, I'll support you any way I can."

David nodded his thanks. One thing he appreciated about the Humans, on the whole, they were a generous people. Of course, they weren't always that way. However, he decided to keep that point to himself. "For now, I just want to work. It helps to distract me from thinking too much."

Nodding, Harold replied. "Of course. I'll leave you to it. Just....try to rest at some point. You're no good to anyone if you can't keep your eyes open."

David nodded again, promising his boss that he would find time to rest.

=====Twenty Years later=====

David finished loading his belonging into the shuttle. He had spent enough time on Earth. It was time to return to the stars. The Borg were no longer a threat, and he had felt others of his kind nearby at different times.

"You sure you want you do this?" His current employer, Dalrayta Rixx asked him. The Bolian woman had been his 3mployer ever since Harold Donoldson had died from a sudden heart attack, eighteen years prior. The human had never lived long enough to see the completion of the project.

"Yes," he said simply. "The job is finally done, I have plenty of credits to live on for several hundred years to come. It's time. I've hidden out on Earth for too long. I have yo see if I can find others of my kind."

The Bolian gave him a sad smile. "Well, if you are ever back here again, you know you are always welcome here. Afterall, you built it!" She chuckled softly.

He smiled softly and nodded. He then entered his shuttle and closed the hatch. After a few moments, his engines started up and he lifted off from the deck, carefully flying out through the forcefield, which held back thousands of tons of crushing seawater.

Slowly ascending to the surface, David reflect on his time on this world. He had spent nearly more time here than on his former homeworld. But, nothing ever lasted.

Breaking the surface of the ocean, he set his heading for orbit, and then, the vastness of space. He didn't have a destination set, he would just go wherever The Fates took him.

He certainly had plenty of time in which to discover the galaxy.

~OFF~