Thanks guys, I'm really glad you enjoyed that one. And so we come to the end of this little tale, so let me know what you think of this last chapter, and of the story as a whole.
Chapter Eight
"Keptin!
Keptin!" Fyodor ran out of the dining room into the garden, hot on the heels of Security Chief Vaidya as they searched for their CO.
"Wait here and keep up appearances while I see what Samok wants," Schulte had said to them not five minutes ago, Fyodor remembered.
Well, no-one is worried about appearances after whatever that was, he thought sarcastically as he and Rahul dodged around Catuallans heading outside for a look.
"There she is!" Rahul exclaimed quietly. They both dashed over to her.
"Keptin! What was that flash? Did the reactor explode?" Fyodor asked, swinging about to try and locate a flare of light on the western horizon.
Rahul was looking carefully at his captain, and just knew that something far worse--for them--had just happened.
Katrin had composed herself by now, but the security officer had seen her staring up at the sky with her eyes full of horror and her mouth hanging open. Almost as telling, her communicator--now being hurriedly re-tuned--had been dangling limp from her hands.
"Captain?" he asked tentatively, not wanting to venture anything while there was still a chance.
"Get your communicators out and try to contact the ship. If you cannot get through, try and contact any ships' personnel on-planet."
Her officers looked at her as if they'd been gut-punched, but Fyodor had to ask.
"Keptin, has the ship been destroyed?"
"Belay that kind of talk Mr. Tupelov! We know nothing for sure yet. Get moving."
At the sharp rebuke from his captain, the young Russian took on a hurt look as he worked his own communicator.
If we are the last survivors, why is she lashing out at us? he questioned within his own head. He slapped his communicator in frustration, as nothing he did could get through to anybody.
Rahul was likewise having no success. "Captain, it's no good. There is too much interference on all subspace frequencies."
Katrin knew that it was futile, but she was going through the motions out of a sense of duty. She had not only heard it happen 'live', she had
felt it.
A captain just knows, she thought miserably. "Very well, gentlemen. We--"
"
Captain Schulte! " All three officers turned to see Elder Withoor hurriedly approaching.
Oh, here we go, Katrin thought in anger and grief.
More inane questions, unreasonable demands, and officious nonsense! I don't want to deal with this right now! She couldn't have been more wrong.
Withoor, his customary dour expression completely absent, immediately gave a bow from the waist. Katrin, already off-balance, had her worst fears and gut knowledge confirmed with his first words.
"Oh Captain! We are very sorry for your loss. The entire council has been informed and unanimously offer their own personal and all our people's most sincere condolences. The hearts and minds of our people grieve with you for the loss of your crew and your ship."
"Wha--?" she spluttered as Rahul and Fyodor sagged visibly.
"Our orbital sensor net detected and recorded the explosion that claimed your vessel and simultaneously alerted the whole council of this event," Withoor explained, divining that Schulte was confused at how they knew so quickly.
Pulling herself together--
I'm the Captain,
Goddamn it! --Katrin willed her stomach to stop its sickening lurching and managed a husky-voiced response.
"O-on behalf of my sh--ah." Katrin stumbled, then corrected herself, all the while feeling a deep pain. "On behalf of myself and my officers, I thank you and the Council for your kind regard."
Schulte waited expectantly, but Withoor held silent.
Maybe it's part of their mourning rituals, she thought,
but I need answers now.
"Elder Withoor, do you know
why my ship--exploded?" she managed to ask, the words sour in her mouth and stabbing deep into her gut.
Withoor looked at her as if slightly puzzled, but dismissed it and answered her.
"We do not know what happened, Captain, but we do know how it
didn't happen. Our sensor net detected no other ships or platforms within weapons range, no weapons fire--neither space- nor ground-based, no other orbital objects of any size within 20,000km, or within the orbital track of your vessel. But our sensors cannot tell us of events aboard your ship."
The Elder was saying this as if he was listening to someone and repeating it, but the man had come out alone.
Probably a hidden receiver in his ear, Vaidya supposed.
He did say the orbital sensor net signalled all the Council members. Katrin, trying to work past the death of her ship and crew, asked, "What about the Tothanar reactor? My science officer was telling me that the antimatter containment..."
Katrin faltered there, as it all clicked into place for her. Rahul and Fyodor, who hadn't heard that yet, also had looks of dawning comprehension.
Not so the Catuallan, who noticed the changes on the faces of the three aliens and recognised their significance--if not their cause. Giving them time to regroup, he answered their last question.
"Yes, Senior Scientist Gentra informed us that he was performing an emergency shutdown of the reactor, and we've received confirmation that it was successfully completed."
The Councillor for Offworld Affairs looked puzzled at the grim looks of satisfaction on the faces of the three Federation officers, but Katrin pre-empted him speaking first.
"Elder, I--we--need to address the Council, so we can unravel these horrific events."
Withoor got that 'listening' look again, and after a few seconds he concurred. "Yes, Captain. The Council and your crew need to know what has transpired tonight.
"Follow me."
*****
Local Time: 2130 hours.
Location: Council Chambers, Government Headquarters building, Lienthan City. "...and the orbital sensor satellite shows us the Tothanar reactor completely intact, no escaping radiation, completely evacuated, and all systems powered down except for the antimatter containment system which is operating normally."
"Thank you, Commander Poldar." Seeing Elder Lantrer's request to speak, Toldar added, "I now yield the floor to the Councillor for the Tothanar Province."
"Thank you, Mr. Chairman." Addressing councillors both present and not, but specifically the Starfleet officers, the tall, blonde Elder was noticeably subdued but had a spark to his eyes. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Captain Schulte and officers, I bring news of survivors from your vessel. It seems--"
Katrin and her comrades leaped to their feet, but managed to restrain any outbursts lest they miss the information Lantrer was conveying.
"--that the Federation vessel performed a mass, emergency evacuation of the Tothanar reactor using their teleporting technology, and teleported the 102 Catuallan reactor staff
and twelve Starfleet crewmembers still at the site to the ceremonial parade ground at the centre of Tothanar City.
"The senior member of those crewmembers, a--" he paused to make sure, "--Lieutenant JG Mohd Abdullah, informed me personally of his superior's plan to save the reactor. This, ah, Lieutenant Grunk was attempting to teleport the antimatter fuel still remaining into space so that our planet would not be harmed."
Grunk! You self-important, Goddamned--! Katrin mentally cursed.
You didn't get anyone's permission--no, screw the permission! You never even told anyone onboard before you tried this! You killed my crew and destroyed my ship, you--!Katrin's vocabulary failed her. Never had she felt so much hatred for
anyone! The life of a science officer doesn't prepare you for that level of human emotion, and an equally benign childhood denied her the words she wanted.
"It is due to the heroic actions of this self-sacrificing officer that Catualla remains unharmed by the impetuous actions of her children, and in this child's lowly opinion, Lieutenant Grunk should be awarded Catualla's highest honour and his memory be enshrined forever in our Hall of Heroes!"
Lantrer's speech concluded to wild cheers from most councillors, both present and on their conference screens. Some were more restrained, recognising that almost 70 alien beings had died saving their planet from it's worst ever catastrophe.
Rahul and Fyodor exchanged looks of mute grief and pride at their friends, crewmates, and ship that had saved this planet but perished in their valiant attempt. They fondly remembered Grunk and his typical Tellarite personality--which, once you got past the gruff exterior, hid a solid friend--and his technical genius which had lead to many unexpected discoveries in the
Lor'tana's two survey cruises over the past five years.
Katrin, however, sat in splendid isolation and ground her teeth as hatred gnawed at her soul. Lantrer had become all poetic and patriotic, and Katrin couldn't stand to hear it about the being who had killed everyone on her ship without even telling them, giving them a chance to prepare for the possibility of failure.
I never liked that obnoxious, insubordinate, pompous, arrogant--arshloch!
All those people, dead, 'cause he had to play the hero. Never even told anyone onboard! They died unawares, all of them! All but the bridge crew who got a few seconds' warning, enough to be terrified as they died. Katrin felt the need to vomit as bile clawed its way up her throat, but managed to hold on despite the canonising of her despised chief engineer going on around her. The Councillor for Science speaking brought her back to reality.
"Esteemed fellow Elders, the reason for our problems has at last been revealed. Commander Poldar has returned with more news of the aid our Federation saviours have provided us. I yield the floor to him now."
The man in charge of Catualla's orbital defence network stepped forwards. "Members of the Council of Elders, we have examined the reactor complex in minute detail, and found it to be as expected, undamaged save from circuits burned out during the emergency shutdown, and ready to be re-staffed at any time."
Katrin rose again, ready to protest that folly, but Poldar continued.
"Also found--untouched, within the control room--was the Federation equipment used to detect and monitor the problem. This equipment contains within its memory banks the entire research project and its results as conducted by Science Officer Samok. It reveals the underlying cause for all our antimatter problems! I yield the floor to Scientist Athan, Senior Scientist Gentra's primary assistant, and head of the Theory Team in this project."
Samok! Katrin mentally wailed. As if his name was the key to the floodgates of her memory, she began to see the faces of her officers and crew, friends and comrades, and lastly, Thelin, her XO--and lover. At his image, she got a hold of herself, hearing his soft voice chiding her.
"This is not the way a Captain behaves, liebshien.
You are stronger than this, and there are still duties to perform."Tears stung her eyes, all the more powerful for having to remain unshed--for now.
Always the voice of reason and duty, my warrior. A small smile escaped her, in fond recollection of his strength and gentleness.
So be it. I just wish we had more time together, my love. Tuning back in to the worlds around her, she heard the Catuallan scientist reciting the specifics of the general idea Samok had informed her of, just before--
She clamped down tight on that train of thought and signalled her desire to speak again. The scientist concluded his brief, and Toldar recognised the captain of the
Lor'tana. "Esteemed Elders, I thank the council and the people of Catualla for the kindness they have shown and the support that they have offered to us in this matter, making it known that they share our grief even as they celebrate their own survival. It will not be forgotten."
A smattering of applause began at her words, threatening to become an ovation of sorts, but she waved them to silence so that she could continue.
"I would ask that a message be sent to Starfleet Command at Starbase Fifteen, so that the Federation can send another ship to complete our mission, and take myself and my remaining crew on board."
Chairman Toldar's voice was heavy with compassion as he answered. "Of course, Captain Schulte. The message will be taken care of immediately. You may make the call yourself, if you wish."
"Thank you, Mr. Chairman, but that won't be necessary." Katrin was not looking forwards to the inevitable court martial that awaited her back at the starbase. She wanted to avoid that reality for as long as possible. "I am sure your best efforts will be more than sufficient."
"As you wish."
"Also, my officers and I would like to be taken to where the rest of my crew are, as soon as possible. I wish to speak with them and find out what went wrong on board my ship, if that can be found out at all."
"Of course, Captain," Toldar repeated. It seemed that nothing would be too much trouble for the Catuallans, not when dealing with the saviours of their planet. "A flitter will take myself and your party to where they are being housed, once this Session is over. I want to meet them, and thank them in person also."
Katrin was warmed by Toldar's consideration. "Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That will be most appreciated by my crew."
The head of the council nodded sombrely then gavelled the Session to order.
"Now, is there any more business that needs to be dealt with
immediately? " his voice boomed out.
No new motions or debates or even further information about the current crisis were brought forward. Katrin got the slight impression that even if there was something else, it would be kept until the next Session, so that her wishes could be dealt with first. It was a warming feeling, though completely spoiled by the circumstances that engendered it.
My wishes. Katrin's thoughts were still in turmoil. Hatred for Grunk. Despair for her crew. Anguish for Samok. Bone-deep
hurt for Thelin.
My wishes have nothing
to do with this situation, she thought, bewildered.
"Very well. This Session of the Council of Elders is now closed." The gavel banged again, and the occupants of the room began to disperse.
Many councillors came up to shake the hands of the Starfleet officers and offer condolences, in the Human fashion. It was a tribute that all of them had decided to pay, in respect. Finally, Toldar approached them, the last to do so.
After Katrin had thanked him, Toldar gestured for them all to leave. "Come, let us contact your starbase, then be on our way to reunite you with your crew.
"Your mission with us is over, Captain."
The End
Topic: If Wishes Were Horses (Read 13959 times)