Episode 87. Warp Escape
Context
- Coordinated Universal Time
- Sunday, August 11, 2024 - 03:06
- Location
-
- Space
- Lunar Orbit
- Periphery of the NATO Starbase
- USS Enterprise
- Bridge
- Timeline
- Schak'Irra Timeline
- Previously
-
Under Angie Chen's acting command, USS Enterprise answered Admiral Michaux's distress call. In lunar orbit, the ship discovered the NATO starbase besieged by an armada of Tholian vessels. Despite Tarsi and T'Met's warnings, Angie Chen engaged the enemy. The Tholians overwhelmed the fleet. Michaux ordered the retreat before the base exploded, taking thousands of lives with it. Refusing to flee, Angie kept fighting until the turbolift doors suddenly opened.
Characters
| Name | Affiliation / Branch | Title / Rank | Species | Timeline of Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agnes V. Rodriguez | NATO / Special Fleet | Captain | Human | Schak'Irra Timeline |
| Angie Chen | NATO / Special Fleet | Commander Acting Captain |
Human | Schak'Irra Timeline |
| Vexoriana-Lyss'ra Tarsi | Starfleet / Temporal Division | Commander | Andorian | Prime Timeline |
| T'Met | Starfleet / Temporal Division | Captain | Vulcan | Prime Timeline |
| Eric Corda | NATO / Special Fleet | Lieutenant Commander | Human | Schak'Irra Timeline |
| Emilie Flores | NATO / Special Fleet | Ensign | Human | Schak'Irra Timeline |
| Charlene Savea | NATO / Special Fleet | Lieutenant | Human | Schak'Irra Timeline |
| Q | Q Continuum | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Manifest
| USS Enterprise | |
|---|---|
| Affiliation | NATO |
| Location | Lunar Orbit |
| Captain | Angie Chen (Acting) |
| First Officer | N/A |
| Pilot | Eric Corda |
| Communications | Emilie Flores |
| Operations | Charlene Savea |
| Tactical | Vexoriana-Lyss'ra Tarsi (Unofficial) |
| Science | T'Met (Unofficial) |
| Advanced Weapons | Eros Vitos |
| Sickbay | Victor S. Calpel |
| Counselor/Consultant | Manu |
| Custodian | Manu |
| Passengers |
Robert Gomard and his squad 4 Vulcan survivors from Schak'Irra Emmanuel Macron Lingua (Packed in a box) |
| Detainees | Vladimir Joseph Putin and his bodyguards |
TL;DR
Out of her coma, Agnes Rodriguez immediately takes control and orders a warp escape. Before the commands are even executed, an invisible force born from her own gesture propels Enterprise to a speed it has never reached before. The ship tears through space at an insane pace, skimming the edge of disintegration. Q appears briefly, congratulates Agnes on her feat, then vanishes. Thanks to T'Met, the warp field is cut in extremis: Enterprise drifts far from Earth and the destroyed base. When the captain returns to the bridge, weakened but lucid, she finds a stunned crew, a damaged ship... and a sky of stars that no longer resembles Earth's. The escape has projected Enterprise into an unknown region.
Story
At the heart of the swarm formed by the Tholians, Enterprise is overwhelmed on every side. On the bridge, the officers begin questioning Captain Chen's irrational decisions. At that moment, the turbolift doors open and I step out unsteadily, taking in the disorder reigning around me.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
Mr. Corda, engage warp and get us out of here immediately!
Lt. Cmdr. Eric Corda (Pilot)
Aye, Captain Rodriguez.
Before the pilot can even carry out my order, I thrust my hands forward and, as if by magic, Enterprise jumps to warp speed. The force generated is so powerful that it throws me backward into the turbolift, whose doors immediately close again.
Q
My dear Agnes, it seems you are finally out of your coma.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
What the hell are you doing here, Q? Don't tell me I'm still inside my subconscious!
Q
No, you are quite awake. I only came to congratulate you.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
For what?
Q
I underestimated your control, and I never would have believed you capable of pushing this nutshell beyond its limits.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
My pilot knows what he has to do! Move aside, I have to get back to the bridge! Can't you see the ship is shaking itself apart?
Q
Tsk, tsk, tsk. Don't be in such a hurry. Let your little lackeys have their fun.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
Leave me alone and disappear!
Q
Ah, humans. No gratitude at all. See you soon, my dear.
Q snaps his fingers and slips away in a white glow. For several minutes now, Enterprise has been launched into a mad race through unknown space, shaken by unimaginable forces. The jolts are so violent that everyone is thrown from one end of the bridge to the other. Alarms blare without pause, screens explode, and the hull begins to come apart. The situation is chaotic and critical.
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
Someone take control of the pilot station!
Lt. Cmdr. Eric Corda (Pilot)
I can't, I'm too far away, Captain.
Capt. T'Met
Our speed is warp 4.8 and increasing, Captain.
Lt. Cmdr. Eric Corda (Pilot)
Impossible! Our maximum speed is not supposed to exceed warp 3.5!
Capt. T'Met
Lieutenant Commander, I am merely reading the instrument data. We are now at warp 4.9.
Cmdr. Vexoriana-Lyss'ra Tarsi
You can hold a lecture later! We need to stop this ship at all costs! Enterprise will not withstand the gravitational forces much longer.
T'Met, shaken as well, clings to the consoles and struggles toward the pilot station. She knows that cutting warp is the only option left to avoid a major catastrophe. Every second counts, and she throws everything she has into reaching it despite the violence of the jolts. With one last desperate effort, she manages to reach the console, bringing the ship's mad race to an end. Enterprise stops abruptly, drifting far from the Tholians and from the tragedy of the starbase.
The turbolift doors open again and I step onto the bridge. Just as I am about to collapse, Charlene and Emilie rush over and help me into a seat.
Ens. Emilie Flores (Communications)
Captain Rodriguez, are you all right?
Lt. Charlene Savea (Operations)
We thought you were in a coma in sickbay. What happened?
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
Whoa, not so fast...
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
Flores and Savea. Back to your stations! Mr. Corda, what is our position?
Lt. Cmdr. Eric Corda (Pilot)
Captain Chen, I am unable to answer that. All I can tell you is that we are beyond the solar system.
Lt. Charlene Savea (Operations)
Judging by the position of the stars, I confirm Eric's assessment, Captain Chen.
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
T'Met, Tarsi, you know space better than we do. Where are we?
Cmdr. Vexoriana-Lyss'ra Tarsi
Uh, me? I can get lost on my own planet even with a map.
Capt. T'Met
With a probability of 72.1%, we are in the Alpha Quadrant.
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
The what?
Capt. T'Met
The Milky Way is divided into 4 quadrants: there is the Beta Quadrant, where Earth is located, then the Alpha, Delta, and Gamma Quadrants.
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
Be more precise. The galaxy is vast!
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
STOP! Our priority is to make sure the crew is all right and Enterprise is operational. We will solve the problem of our location afterward!
Cmdr. Angie Chen (Acting Capt.)
Agnes, you are too weak to make decisions. As happy as I am to see you standing, I am going to have you escorted back to sickbay.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
Eric, launch probes. I am putting you in charge of monitoring. Charlene, Emilie, and Manu, assess our condition. You over there, the woman with the pointed ears, who are you and what are you doing on my bridge?
Cmdr. Vexoriana-Lyss'ra Tarsi
Agnes, this is Captain T'Met of VSS Schak'Irra. She is the one you freed from Putin's clutches in Moscow.
Capt. T'Met
Indeed. I believe human tradition requires me to offer you thanks for your actions.
Capt. Agnes V. Rodriguez
Okay. Captain T'Met, Tarsi, and Angie, meet me in my office...