Pathstone

Posted on Tue Jan 5th, 2021 @ 3:30pm by Captain Abigail Laurens & Commander Ichiko Gail & Lieutenant JG Alistair Fletcher

Mission: Enforced Intermission
Location: ICS Tantamount

The trip through warp aboard the ICS Tantamount had been swift and smooth, the crew ever the symbol of courtesy and welcoming. The Astraea crew had been through the worst, and the Ts'usugi of the Tantamount were there to help them get back on their feet. To do that, though, they needed to bring the crew home. Home to Earth.

Earth was not in the Delta Quadrant, but it seemed that didn't bother the Shipmaster of the Tantamount one bit. The course had been laid, the destination clear, but it made no sense simply on announcement: Pathstone. Was it a planet? A staging ground? A shipyard? Whatever it was, it better be dynamite. It was a long swim back to the Alpha Quadrant.

There was a shipwide announcement of the arrival at their destination. Thirty ticks to normal space. Destination, Pathstone. Twenty ticks. Ten ticks. Upon emergence back into normal space, the viewports were opened again, allowing a glance out into space. Into the stars. Or more specifically, at one star in general. A massive yellow star, shining bright and beautiful, warm and inviting. Every viewport tinted to filter out the high intensity of the star, allowing her to be seen for all her splendor.

A welcome sight. To some, a familiar sight. Yellow was the color of Earth's star after all. Though this star had a crowded neighborhood. Ships of the entire spectrum of the Ts'usugi fleet were stationed here, as we other, sleeker designs that potentially belonged to the Ts'usugi's allies the Dalacari. Shuttles, and ships too small to be shuttles, buzzed around to patrol the region, to scan incoming ships, and to escort them to something of a queue. A queue among the star. A queue among a space station. There, orbiting the star, was a station. No, it was too big to be a simple station.

It was a megastructure.

Abigail remained in the small space that the Ts'usugi had set aside for her to use while they were in transit. With the window coverings open again, she was afforded a view of the space around them, a view that made her eyes widen with surprise. The station was unlike anything she had ever seen before. It was most definitely an impressive sight to behold.

A compartment away, Alistair also was watching out the window as the coverings opened. His mind tried to come up with a potential volume of space that the station took up, but his brain went into terminal overload as he tried to use objects he could see to get a comparative size. He shook his head and looked away, a sour feeling in his stomach. This section of compartments had been put aside for the senior officer group of the Astraea and he didn't feel he belonged. But as the senior remaining engineer, he'd gotten that word from a sullen Petty Officer a few hours before, it was apparently his place. He looked back out again in wonder.

A massive series of rings, held in place by a colossal station. The size of the project dwarfed even the largest ships that were here in the queue. Massive enough to have it's own detachment as a security escort as it hung in space ten million kilometers over the surface of a star. The Tantamount took its place in line, and then hung in place as micro-adjustments were made to the posture and facing. Then, over the ship's intercom, a new voice came to life, confirming in the first few words where she was located...

"This is Pathstone. Two hundred ticks to aperture opening. "

There was a build up of excitement on the Tantamount. Whatever was going to happen, was going to happen soon, and everyone here was ready for it. Those off duty went to the lounge, where the larger viewports would offer a better view.

"This is Pathstone." the friendly voice came back on the comm. "One hundred ticks to aperture opening. All ships in queue, follow Pathstone procedure."

Those that had a good view, those that had any kind of view, would see the megastructure flare to life. The immense ring structure would start to spin, like a series of massive golden wheels. Fifty ticks... A point of light, slightly more intense than the star the station orbited, would appear for a moment before being seemingly pulled backward, opening a tear in the fabric of the universe. For a moment, the chaotic energies threatened to be unleashed, though in the next moment the view of chaos and disharmony was replaced with a stable window to another location. Another starfield, another place. Twenty five ticks...

"This is Pathstone. Aperture stable, standby for station control." and with that, the ships in queue began to move, a stable and controlled pace. Each one crossed through the image of the starfield and vanished from sight. One by one, the craft went through until at last it was the Tantamount that shuffled through. The view of the universe was replaced with that not unlike the wormhole seen at Deep Space Nine. Is that what this was?

With each flare of the structure, Abigail watched as another ship inched forward into the aperture before disappearing into the beyond. As the first vessel disappeared through, a gasp of surprise escaped the Federation Commanding Officer's lips, each additional ship keeping her enraptured as she watched beyond.

The trip through was smooth, remarkably so, while in every room at least one screen showed a countdown. Three thousand, six hundred ticks. Sixty minutes.... one standard hour. They'd reach their destination in an hour.

The ticks rolled down, closer and closer, until zero. Then, the Tantamount emerged from the other end of the aperture, showing an identical station to the one they just left, orbiting a star very similar to the one they just left. Was nothing accomplished? Did nothing change?

"This is Pathstone. Transit successful. Returning control to normal." and where there were countdowns, there was now a map of the local region.

This was the Alpha Quadrant.

Turning to Ichiko, Abigail raised an eyebrow slightly, surprised by both the speed and ease of the whole event. "That's it?" she asked, unable to keep the surprise from her voice. "One hour?"

Ichiko gave a nod. "Say what you will about them, the Dalacari are brilliant when it comes to getting to new places, and travelling in comfort." she said with a soft smile. "I can't even pretend to know how it works, though I've read the journals. I can recite them, but they're just words on paper."

"It is an impressive feat of technology," Abigail replied, still clearly impressed. "I have no doubt there would be many engineers and resources staff that would love to be able to dissect the technology. It is remarkable." She sighed and shook her head slightly. "Any idea of our ETA now to Earth?"

Ichiko gave a nod. "Their society is amazingly advanced, but sometimes it... it concerns me." she said, her nod slowly turning to a shake of the head before she turned to a wall console. Typing in a course, and an estimation, she got the answer she was looking for. "At maximum depth, not very long." she offered, "You'll be home soon."

Having 'joined' the Captain and the Exec in a larger room Alistair finally had brought himself to the point where he felt he could no longer just be a spectator. The young Scotsman finally summoned up the nerve to approach the two of them, "Captain, Commander." He said in a soft voice, "I would hate to dissect this technology... I don't think I'd understand even half of what they've got going on."

Ichiko offered a nod over toward Alistair. "The Dalacari are curiosity and ingenuity personified. Between their Division of Emergent Technologies and the Emperor's own Imaginary Sciences division, they can really accomplish anything. I couldn't pretend to explain it, but I can certainly assure you it works." she offered with a smirk.

"I'm just..." Alistair shook his head. A lot was on his shoulders, yet nothing was there. An engineer without a ship was just... Nothing, really, "Give me some solid Federation tech any day." He demurred, "When we upgrade, I just hope I'm up to the task."

Ichiko gave a nod, "You're just overwhelmed. Out of your element, perhaps. 'Give me some solid Federation tech', you said. A return to the familiar, perhaps." she tried to sound reassuring. "You'll be home soon."

There was a slight barb in Abigail's soul at Ichiko's words. Home. "Indeed," she echoed quietly, turning her gaze toward the junior officer. "And then the real fun begins."

That gave Alistair a bit of pause, "The real fun, ma'am?" He asked, then blanched as something hit him, "Oh God, they're going to rake us over the coals for losing her, aren't they?"

Abigail offered a small smile toward Alistair. "Rest assured, you won't be asked to answer to anyone," she said quietly. "It's going to be resting on..." before she could finish her sentence, the doors opened silently and a Ts'usugi officer entered, approaching her directly.

"Pardon me, are you Shipmaster Laurens?" a Ts'usugi dressed in a medical uniform approached Abigail. "I hate to be the bearer of such, but there's a member of your crew that we won't be able to save. Their exposure to the radiation of the Astraea's reactor was too intense. All we can do is ease their suffering." he paused, "They're safe for visitation, if you wish to be there."

"Of course," Turning back to Ichiko, Abigail drew a sharp breath. "See to the crew, if I'm not back before we arrive at Earth, please see that they are taken care of. Plans should be already in place for their accommodations." There was no need to wait for a response, Abigail knew that Ichiko would bend heaven and earth to ensure the crew's well being in her absence. As such, with one last nod, Abigail rose quickly to her feet, following the medical officer out into the corridor beyond.