USS Pathway:- Rescue Mission Elysium Part 2

Posted on Fri Apr 7th, 2023 @ 1:06am by Lieutenant Commander Aurelia Taylor
Edited on on Fri Apr 7th, 2023 @ 1:15am

Mission: MISSION 0 - History Speaks
Location: Star Base 82 and surrounding Star Systems
Timeline: Present
1516 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure

ON

Miranda Andrews had returned to the Pathway after her meeting with Captains Bahlsan and Simpson, all had not gone well. For some strange reason Simpson seemed to think Andrews unfit to lead the mission, and had said so in no uncertain terms. Bahlsan on the other hand didn't seem all that concerned who lead the mission, as long as they found and recovered the Elysium. Things had gotten out of hand and words said which lead Miranda to warn Simpson officially, the result was one unhappy Captain.

Back on board the Pathway, Chris Simpson the XO was on watch. Walter Chant stood at the ops station, listening for any hint of radio traffic from Elysium or any vessel who found her. Andrews now entered the bridge, "Number one! My ready room now!" Simpson looked at Chant, "You have the bridge Lieutenant." Chant nodded and carried on with his duty, Chris followed what was one angry Captain into her ready room. Now behind her desk, Miranda Andrews let fly at her XO. "Your brother is now on report, if he contacts you and asks you to intervene. You are to refuse to do so, do you understand? Further to this, if you attempt to intervene. I will place you in the brig, for mutinous actions do you understand this also?" Some what confused, Simpson took a deep breath before he answered. "I understand I'm being made a target for something I haven't done, and as such resent the implication Captain. I respectfully suggest you rethink your last statement." Andrews looked shocked, "I see the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree, so I take it from your response you feel your brother has the right to insult a senior Officer?" Chris shook his head, "No I don't, but I also don't think you have the right to punish me for his disrespect." Miranda now stopped and thought about what her XO had said, he was right of course and both she and he knew it.

Sitting down Miranda glanced down, "Sorry Chris, but that brother of yours is a pain in the butt I don't need right now." Simpson simply smiled, "Oh you've found that out have you? I've had to live with that pain in the butt all my life, welcome to my world." Standing back up Andrews headed for the bridge, "We need to work out a search area, but I'm thinking of splitting it into three. One ship per area, that way we should come up with something. What do you think Chris?" Moving down to his seat next to Miranda, Simpson turned to face his Captain. "I'm not so sure about that course of action, I'd be inclined to keep the ships together. Just incase what happened to the Elysium, happens again. With respect of course." Miranda listened and found herself agreeing with the logic of her 1st Officer, "You could be right there, ok work out a sweep of our search area and send the details to the other two."

Chris nodded and went to work out the search sweep, "No doubt the Anne Bolyne will react with complete disregard to these orders, but I'll send them anyway." Miranda moved over to Chris, "Just why is that brother of yours such an ass?" Her XO just smiled and shook his head, "It's just the way he's always been, he's right and the universe is wrong. Simple really." "Oh I see, one of those people, ok when you're finished doing that. Make ready to shove off to the search area, and tell both ships to form up on the Pathway." Chris nodded, "Aye aye Captain, it'll take about another couple of minuets to work out our sweep pattern."

Andrews left Simpson to work out the kinks, she now sat down to think. *Just what had happened out there to Elysium?* She pondered the question, hoping inspiration would strike. *How would she handle a sudden emergency, how did Commodore Lalor think?* Still nothing seemed to come to her, she became aware of someone standing next to her. "Captain, we're ready to begin the search. I've sent all details to the other vessels, and the Pathway is standing by." It was Chris, her XO. There he stood waiting for his Captain to get her act together, and not one word as to why she was so spaced out. "Ok Chris, take us out. Lets go find something, or better yet find the Elysium."

The three vessels now moved out to the assigned area is space, the Romulan neutral zone wasn't far away so caution would have to be exercised. *Did the Romulans now have the Elysium? They had history, the Command crew had been captured once before* The thought swirled around Miranda's mind, the difficulty would be finding evidence of it. She turned to watch her own bridge crew operate the ship, basically a raw crew trying to be expert at something they weren't even good at. As the ships sped along, sensors searched out for anything which could or would point to what happened.

On board the Nevada, Captain Bahlson paced his own bridge. Lost in his own thoughts, he had someone on the Elysium. No one important, just a crewman. But he was going to marry Eric's daughter, so this little jaunt had to produce results. George Simpson throwing a tantrum about seniority had riled him, it was a stupid argument to be having right now with over 2000 people missing. "Sensors, you picking anything up?" A young Ensign who had just joined looked up, "No sir, but I think these readings point to......" He broke off, and glanced down at his consol. "Point to what? Do you have an idea as to what happened?" Eric moved over to the Ensign, "Look, Manston isn't it? If you have a theory about the Elysium, then tell me." Manston glanced at his Captain, "Quantum Filament sir, I studied them at the Academy. From what I'm reading at this distance, I'd say the Elysium was hit by a Quantum Filament." Bahlson turned and looked at the viewscreen, "And what would happen if that were so?" Eric knew the answer before he asked, but he needed to hear it. Manston swallowed and then slowly spoke, "If it got to the warp core, they wouldn't have stood a chance sir." Bahlson looked back at his Ensign, "Inform Pathway of your findings, let Captain Andrews make the final choice on wither we continue searching." Manston nodded, "Aye Captain."

Chris was on the bridge when the message from Nevada came in, he glanced at it then grimly walked to Miranda's ready room. Pressing the chime, he waited with the latest news. "Enter", filtered through and Chris moved forwards. "Just got this from the Nevada, but your not going to like it Captain." Andrews took the PaDD and read slowly, then she re-read it again and placed the PaDD on her desk. "Do our own sensor readings confirm this?" Chris nodded, "One hundred per cent, but did the Filament reach the core is my question?" Miranda sat and thought for a bit then replied, "Straws Chris, your clutching at straws. We both know how fast these Filaments can travel, and there's no way any Star Ship would be able to outrun one. All we've found are fragments of hull and bodies, we'll finish collecting the dead and run a final scan. Then we go home, I guess we've lost the Elysium." Simpson nodded slowly, "Yes Ma'am, I'll set course and relay to Nevada and Anne Bolyne."

The three Star Ships now fanned out sensors working on recovery of the dead, the news about a Filament put all the crews on high alert. Each and everyone knew if one of those things appeared, trouble was set to follow. Andrews contacted the two Captains and explained her reasoning for ending the search, both Eric Bahlson and George Simpson agreed and set about their grim and final task with little relish. Chris Simpson set his sensors on full, and rotated his op's crew once an hour instead of the normal watch times. Any hint of a Quantum Filament, and warp nine would be ordered. Then hope and luck would enter play, he wondered how the crew of the Elysium had faced their final minuets.

After another two hours of recovery, all three vessels headed back towards Star Base 82. Miranda Andrews would report that the findings of the search team had uncovered traces of a Quantum Filament, the conclusion had been reached that this Filament had breached the warp core of the Elysium resulting in the loss of both ship and crew. One more ship lost to the wonders of space, how ironic that a science vessel fell to a scientific phenomenon. Looking round at her own ship, Miranda hoped for a long and eventful career for her and Pathway. God forbid they ended their days as Elysium had, blown to pieces by a Filament.

Captain Miranda Andrews
NCC 77703 USS Pathway
Officer in Charge of Rescue Operations

Commander Lia Taylor
Chief Security Officer
USS Elysium