=/\= Bridge of the USS Saratoga =/\=
A wave of nausea flew over Pete as he saw his father step into view. He
chalked up his father's appearance on Deep Space six to coincidence. It
was all falling into place though. His father had only arrived an hour
or so before. He knew the Saratoga and Crazy Horse had the Monolith,
and were heading to the station. He was also a General, and had
clearance to override most any order given on the station, including
the order to have Marines take over the offloading of the Monolith.
That was Pete's fault. He should have checked the orders instead of
brushing it off. Still, he had no reason to suspect the Marines.
Pete's arms dropped to his side and he continued to stare at his
father. He still couldn't manage to get any words. He was having a hard
time at the moment believing that this man was actually his father. He
was disgusted at the fact he was his son. Pete could hear faint
whispers around the bridge, but his eyes remained forward at the
viewscreen. The only thing that broke his gaze was Viktor approaching
Pete which he saw out of the corner of his eye.
"Captain?" said the First Officer.
Pete finally managed to blink, still looking at his Father. "Why?"
The elder Mitchell folded his hands behind his back and stared directly
into his son's eyes. "Because no one else would."
"How could you do this?" asked Pete. "All those innocent
victims...dead, and why? Because you couldn't live with the fact that
another force had come out on top..."
"It was unacceptable!" yelled out the General. "No way in hell will I
let the Romulan's invade our space and get away with it!"
"That wasn't your decision to make!" Pete yelled back, taking a step
closer to the viewscreen.
"Like hell it wasn't, Captain" said the General. He too took a step
closer to the viewscreen. "Do you know how many Marines I lost under my
command? and for what? We just stopped...and said 'Fine, you've invaded
our space, but we'll allow it. Why? Cause we're the Federation...we
like to play nice with others, and will do so at the cost of our own
lives.' Well Pete.." he paused for a moment, "That's just not good
enough for me."
"And when you were done with the Romulans, who's next? The Klingons?"
asked Pete, his voice leveling out slightly, though still angry.
"You're damn right the Klingons! They're as guilty as the Romulan scum
they made a pact with" snapped the General.
Pete looked to his right at Viktor who was staring at the General, a
look of 'If you were here now, I'd kill you where you stand' look in
his eyes. He then quickly glanced to his mate, who had an equally
fierce look in her eyes, one that said 'I'm gonna pull your entrails
out through your throat and spit on your carcass.'
Pete then glanced back to his father and narrowed his eyes at him. "I'm
only gonna say this once... General. By order of Starfleet, I am
placing you under arrest. Stand down and prepare for you, Colonel
August, and your senior staff to be transported aboard the Saratoga."
John Mitchell just stood there, shaking his head at his son. "You don't
really think I'm going to let you take me, this crew, and the monolith
without a fight do you? You'll have to kill us if you want to stop
us... Captain."
"You have 1 minute to decide your fate, General" Pete turned and
motioned to Wryan to mute the channel.
Wryan nodded and tapped his panel. All was quiet except for the light
humming of the computer consoles on the bridge. No one dared say a word
and this point in time. The Silence was broken though, when Wryan's
console sounded. "Captain, I'm picking up a ship on approach... It's
the Gemini. And she has an escort with her..."
"On Audio" said Pete. Receiving a nod from Wryan, Pete spoke. "Gemini,
this is the Saratoga..."
"Saratoga, this is Commander Carpenter on the Gemini. We've got two
alien ships on our wings, who have an official claim to this Monolith
which I've heard so much about.."
"Commander Carpenter, this is Fleet Captain Mitchell. Take a position
of the Tarawa's port side. Please inform your escorts to stand by and
let us deal with this. We're in the middle of retrieving their
property" said Pete.
"Understood, sir. Gemini out."
About 20 seconds went by when Wryan spoke up. "Captain, the Gemini has
moved into position. Their Alien escorts have fallen back to three
million kilometers, and are awaiting word from the Gemini."
Pete nodded, then turned to the viewscreen. "Re-open the channel to
General Mitchell."
"Channel open, sir."
"Well General... what's it going to be?" asked Pete, still staring his
father in the eyes.
There was a pause. For a moment, Pete thought he saw a hint of doubt
appear on his fathers face. Perhaps he realized the position he was
putting his son in. Perhaps he realized the position he was putting his
Marines in, who he so dearly loved. The fact of the matter was, Pete
already knew what the General's decision was going to be, and he also
knew that the men and women under his command were so fiercely loyal to
him, that they wouldn't dare question his orders, and would follow the
General into the pits of hell, which is exactly where he was leading
them.
"You know I can't give up now Captain.." The General's expression
softened slightly. "Don't do this Pete."
Pete shook his head. There was no hope in getting through to him now.
"I have no choice... Father." Pete turned to Wryan. He felt like he had
a hole in his stomach, but he managed to get the words out. "Screen
off. Target the Tarawa with Quantum torpedo's. Signal the Crazy Horse
and Gemini to do the same."
Wryan nodded, noting that the Horse and Gemini acknowledged the order,
and that weapons were locked onto the Tarawa.
Pete moved back to his chair and sat down, Viktor doing the same. Pete
glanced over to K`Zahra who had a look of anger on her face because of
Pete's father, but Pete could make a look of concern on her face as
well, as she remained quiet, standing next to Andrew and continuing to
look at Pete. Pete took a final look at her, and managed to crack a
tiny reassuring smile, but he knew she wouldn't buy it.
Pete then turned to Tactical. "Lieutenant, has the Tarawa lowered her
shields and powered down her weapons?" he asked.
"She has not, sir" replied the Tactical Officer.
"Captain, may I remind you, if we destroy the ship, we will destroy the
monolith, and may have to deal with those alien forces.." said Korol
from the Science station.
"The Captain is well aware of that Lieutenant" barked out Viktor.
"Captain, the Tarawa is firing!"
Phaser fire from the damaged Katana class ship slammed into the Crazy
Horse, with a volley of torpedo's heading towards the Saratoga. With
the Tarawa's damaged system, they could only fire two torpedo's, but it
was enough to send sparks flying on the Bridge of the Saratoga. The
Tarawa began to glide slowly into maneuvering speed, but Pete didn't
give her the chance. It was time to end this now.
"Fire!"
With the open audio channel to both the Crazy Horse and Gemini, all
three ships fired a spread of quantum torpedoes. The Tarawa didn't have
a chance. The torpedoes ripped through the ship like pellets through
paper towel. She was blown into a million pieces.
Pete lowered his head in shame as the last of the destroyed ship
dissipated into space. Pete, though angry and torn inside, was surprised
as hell when he glanced up at the viewscreen to see the Monolith
drifting in space. It survived the explosion of the the Tarawa, and was
drifting slowly towards the boarder of northern Federation space.
"Captain...Commander Carpenter reports that the Alien ships have moved
off to intercept the Monolith..." said Wryan.
Pete stood up. "Let them have it.."
Korol interjected. "But Captain, we should at least study the Monolith
as much as we can. How do we know they've laid a proper claim to this
device?"
Korol had a point, but Pete didn't want to deal with right now.
"Commander Dunross, co-ordinate with the Crazy Horse and Gemin
regarding the Monolith. I'm sure Captain Darvan will be able to come up
with an explanation. When we've made necessary repairs, set a course
back to Deep Space Six. You have the Bridge."
Turning on heel, Pete moved to walk into his ready room. He didn't want
to deal with anything. He just wanted to shut down. He was angry. Angry
at his father for doing this to him, to putting him in this position.
But he was also angry at himself, because his father was right. He was
right about the Federation and he was right about the Romulans and
Klingons.
Out of the corner of his eye, Pete saw K`Zahra move to follow him into
the readyroom. Putting up his mental walls which he had learned to do
so well in the Corps, he spoke to her over his shoulder as he stepped
into his readyroom, "As you were Doctor," the doors closing behind
him...
<<OOC: Wow... long one. Well, this marks pretty much the end of the
plot. I hope you don't think it was ended abruptly cause that wasn't my
intention. I just felt it was time to end it, as this plot has gone on
for 4+ months now. I've left the details of the Monolith drifting into
space to Captain Darvan and his character Ens. Two Coats, who was stuck
in the monolith for some time. I look forward to reading that log. This
was the first Joint plot I've had to co-ordinate, and I think it went
pretty well for the first time. The Crews of the Crazy Horse and
Saratoga did an excellent job with the Monolith and Galveston, while the
USS Gemini played a great part with the unknown Alien species pursuing
the monolith. You've all done a heck of a job. Well done, everyone. >>
A wave of nausea flew over Pete as he saw his father step into view. He
chalked up his father's appearance on Deep Space six to coincidence. It
was all falling into place though. His father had only arrived an hour
or so before. He knew the Saratoga and Crazy Horse had the Monolith,
and were heading to the station. He was also a General, and had
clearance to override most any order given on the station, including
the order to have Marines take over the offloading of the Monolith.
That was Pete's fault. He should have checked the orders instead of
brushing it off. Still, he had no reason to suspect the Marines.
Pete's arms dropped to his side and he continued to stare at his
father. He still couldn't manage to get any words. He was having a hard
time at the moment believing that this man was actually his father. He
was disgusted at the fact he was his son. Pete could hear faint
whispers around the bridge, but his eyes remained forward at the
viewscreen. The only thing that broke his gaze was Viktor approaching
Pete which he saw out of the corner of his eye.
"Captain?" said the First Officer.
Pete finally managed to blink, still looking at his Father. "Why?"
The elder Mitchell folded his hands behind his back and stared directly
into his son's eyes. "Because no one else would."
"How could you do this?" asked Pete. "All those innocent
victims...dead, and why? Because you couldn't live with the fact that
another force had come out on top..."
"It was unacceptable!" yelled out the General. "No way in hell will I
let the Romulan's invade our space and get away with it!"
"That wasn't your decision to make!" Pete yelled back, taking a step
closer to the viewscreen.
"Like hell it wasn't, Captain" said the General. He too took a step
closer to the viewscreen. "Do you know how many Marines I lost under my
command? and for what? We just stopped...and said 'Fine, you've invaded
our space, but we'll allow it. Why? Cause we're the Federation...we
like to play nice with others, and will do so at the cost of our own
lives.' Well Pete.." he paused for a moment, "That's just not good
enough for me."
"And when you were done with the Romulans, who's next? The Klingons?"
asked Pete, his voice leveling out slightly, though still angry.
"You're damn right the Klingons! They're as guilty as the Romulan scum
they made a pact with" snapped the General.
Pete looked to his right at Viktor who was staring at the General, a
look of 'If you were here now, I'd kill you where you stand' look in
his eyes. He then quickly glanced to his mate, who had an equally
fierce look in her eyes, one that said 'I'm gonna pull your entrails
out through your throat and spit on your carcass.'
Pete then glanced back to his father and narrowed his eyes at him. "I'm
only gonna say this once... General. By order of Starfleet, I am
placing you under arrest. Stand down and prepare for you, Colonel
August, and your senior staff to be transported aboard the Saratoga."
John Mitchell just stood there, shaking his head at his son. "You don't
really think I'm going to let you take me, this crew, and the monolith
without a fight do you? You'll have to kill us if you want to stop
us... Captain."
"You have 1 minute to decide your fate, General" Pete turned and
motioned to Wryan to mute the channel.
Wryan nodded and tapped his panel. All was quiet except for the light
humming of the computer consoles on the bridge. No one dared say a word
and this point in time. The Silence was broken though, when Wryan's
console sounded. "Captain, I'm picking up a ship on approach... It's
the Gemini. And she has an escort with her..."
"On Audio" said Pete. Receiving a nod from Wryan, Pete spoke. "Gemini,
this is the Saratoga..."
"Saratoga, this is Commander Carpenter on the Gemini. We've got two
alien ships on our wings, who have an official claim to this Monolith
which I've heard so much about.."
"Commander Carpenter, this is Fleet Captain Mitchell. Take a position
of the Tarawa's port side. Please inform your escorts to stand by and
let us deal with this. We're in the middle of retrieving their
property" said Pete.
"Understood, sir. Gemini out."
About 20 seconds went by when Wryan spoke up. "Captain, the Gemini has
moved into position. Their Alien escorts have fallen back to three
million kilometers, and are awaiting word from the Gemini."
Pete nodded, then turned to the viewscreen. "Re-open the channel to
General Mitchell."
"Channel open, sir."
"Well General... what's it going to be?" asked Pete, still staring his
father in the eyes.
There was a pause. For a moment, Pete thought he saw a hint of doubt
appear on his fathers face. Perhaps he realized the position he was
putting his son in. Perhaps he realized the position he was putting his
Marines in, who he so dearly loved. The fact of the matter was, Pete
already knew what the General's decision was going to be, and he also
knew that the men and women under his command were so fiercely loyal to
him, that they wouldn't dare question his orders, and would follow the
General into the pits of hell, which is exactly where he was leading
them.
"You know I can't give up now Captain.." The General's expression
softened slightly. "Don't do this Pete."
Pete shook his head. There was no hope in getting through to him now.
"I have no choice... Father." Pete turned to Wryan. He felt like he had
a hole in his stomach, but he managed to get the words out. "Screen
off. Target the Tarawa with Quantum torpedo's. Signal the Crazy Horse
and Gemini to do the same."
Wryan nodded, noting that the Horse and Gemini acknowledged the order,
and that weapons were locked onto the Tarawa.
Pete moved back to his chair and sat down, Viktor doing the same. Pete
glanced over to K`Zahra who had a look of anger on her face because of
Pete's father, but Pete could make a look of concern on her face as
well, as she remained quiet, standing next to Andrew and continuing to
look at Pete. Pete took a final look at her, and managed to crack a
tiny reassuring smile, but he knew she wouldn't buy it.
Pete then turned to Tactical. "Lieutenant, has the Tarawa lowered her
shields and powered down her weapons?" he asked.
"She has not, sir" replied the Tactical Officer.
"Captain, may I remind you, if we destroy the ship, we will destroy the
monolith, and may have to deal with those alien forces.." said Korol
from the Science station.
"The Captain is well aware of that Lieutenant" barked out Viktor.
"Captain, the Tarawa is firing!"
Phaser fire from the damaged Katana class ship slammed into the Crazy
Horse, with a volley of torpedo's heading towards the Saratoga. With
the Tarawa's damaged system, they could only fire two torpedo's, but it
was enough to send sparks flying on the Bridge of the Saratoga. The
Tarawa began to glide slowly into maneuvering speed, but Pete didn't
give her the chance. It was time to end this now.
"Fire!"
With the open audio channel to both the Crazy Horse and Gemini, all
three ships fired a spread of quantum torpedoes. The Tarawa didn't have
a chance. The torpedoes ripped through the ship like pellets through
paper towel. She was blown into a million pieces.
Pete lowered his head in shame as the last of the destroyed ship
dissipated into space. Pete, though angry and torn inside, was surprised
as hell when he glanced up at the viewscreen to see the Monolith
drifting in space. It survived the explosion of the the Tarawa, and was
drifting slowly towards the boarder of northern Federation space.
"Captain...Commander Carpenter reports that the Alien ships have moved
off to intercept the Monolith..." said Wryan.
Pete stood up. "Let them have it.."
Korol interjected. "But Captain, we should at least study the Monolith
as much as we can. How do we know they've laid a proper claim to this
device?"
Korol had a point, but Pete didn't want to deal with right now.
"Commander Dunross, co-ordinate with the Crazy Horse and Gemin
regarding the Monolith. I'm sure Captain Darvan will be able to come up
with an explanation. When we've made necessary repairs, set a course
back to Deep Space Six. You have the Bridge."
Turning on heel, Pete moved to walk into his ready room. He didn't want
to deal with anything. He just wanted to shut down. He was angry. Angry
at his father for doing this to him, to putting him in this position.
But he was also angry at himself, because his father was right. He was
right about the Federation and he was right about the Romulans and
Klingons.
Out of the corner of his eye, Pete saw K`Zahra move to follow him into
the readyroom. Putting up his mental walls which he had learned to do
so well in the Corps, he spoke to her over his shoulder as he stepped
into his readyroom, "As you were Doctor," the doors closing behind
him...
<<OOC: Wow... long one. Well, this marks pretty much the end of the
plot. I hope you don't think it was ended abruptly cause that wasn't my
intention. I just felt it was time to end it, as this plot has gone on
for 4+ months now. I've left the details of the Monolith drifting into
space to Captain Darvan and his character Ens. Two Coats, who was stuck
in the monolith for some time. I look forward to reading that log. This
was the first Joint plot I've had to co-ordinate, and I think it went
pretty well for the first time. The Crews of the Crazy Horse and
Saratoga did an excellent job with the Monolith and Galveston, while the
USS Gemini played a great part with the unknown Alien species pursuing
the monolith. You've all done a heck of a job. Well done, everyone. >>