Amphibians Ascendant

[oi]

Stardate 2278.  Lt. Alytes cabin, 2254 hours.  It is stating the obvious that a galaxy is an assembly of multitudes of stars.  Surprisingly, most stars have planets.  Aurora's mission is to seek out those planets that have reasonable surfaces subject to exploitation by interplanetary freighters.  Stars with fairly cool planets are given names, for example, the recently investigated Brahe system.  Right now, Aurora has just put the jeweled nebula of Dendrobates on the rear view screen as she heads for home.  In between the Brahe system and the nebula, Alytes found nearly 100 stars with orbiting planets.  All were strikingly similar, each with a single large gas giant planet orbiting close to its parent sun.  Unfortunately for the space economy of Amphibia, all were too hot (and with too much gravity) to exploit.  Not all planets were the same, however.  Alytes punched up on his computer screen the planet numbered Amp 32457.  Aurora had passed fairly close to Amp 32457 yesterday, and he was able to pick up good data on this system using the long-range scanners.  It's planet was fairly small, just slightly larger than that of Sol-1.  At one time, it was likely a blue watery planet, placed in orbit about its parent star somewhere in the habitable zone midway between being frozen or cooked.  But now, it had been moved to an unusual orbit, one with an astonishing degree of eccentricity.  Although Alytes did not know the cause, this elongated orbit was clearly the signature of a major perturbation event to this system.  Currently, the planet had been pushed much closer to its parent star.  According to orbital calculations, every 150 days the planet would dive like a screaming comet to within 4 million km of the parent star's surface.  As it did so, the temperature of the atmosphere on the sun-facing side would rise by an impressive 850 degrees is less that six hours.  Alytes had been fortunate enough to witness and record just such a passage.  As he replayed the event on his screen, he saw that the initial response resembled an explosion of steaming atmosphere colliding with glowing photons.  As the atmosphere heated up, it generated spectacular winds in the range of 300-400 km per hour, winds that raced from the day side towards the night side.  The planet's rotation then created the buildup of monster sized storms that raged across the planet's surface.  Yet as quickly as the hellish event was created, the planet completed its turn about the sun, and its speedy orbital motion zipped it back into cooler space.  Even within the short period of Aurora's passing, Alytes had observed the storms begin to fade.  He put in an asterisk next to the name Amp 32457.  Someday, if given the opportunity, he would like to investigate this system further.            

[oi]

Stardate 2279.  Bridge, 1347 hours.  Aurora has arrived safely back at Space dock-1, completing her third mission.  It's amazingly quiet, as one's timpani are gradually adjusting to the absence of the warp drives's steady thrum.  Most of the crew are already gone, yet bright lights are everywhere, as the ship is currently being swarmed by numerous hard-working technicians.  Lt. Commander Babina has OOD duty.  The Captain has a date with Admiral Ansonia, likely to discuss past and future voyages.  Babina briefly notes the train of missile carts stretching back into the corridor.  Aurora is scheduled for a full re-load of all 20 missiles.  What has really caught his attention is the implacement of a new defensive weapons system.  From the schematic, he can see that hundreds of connections are being installed in between the inner and outer hulls as part what is termed a "laser screen".  Apparently, it is designed to be effective at either absorbing or deflecting a variety of energy weapons.  This could be wonderful, as Aurora's metallic hull is ineffective at stopping bolts.  Currently, amphibians and machines stand only a lottery ticket's chance of survival in the face of a bolt.  To his trained eye, however, the one drawback is immediately apparent - the system draws heavily upon the starship's single main nuclear generator.  Clearly, Aurora is going to be the test guinea pig for this laser screen, and Babina decides that he will study the power requirements closely, particularly since pulling on the generator's power could significantly delay the ship's ability to power up its main drive.
    The other big news of the day (other than Aurora's arrival) was that Amphibia founded a colony on Eridani-III!  Somehow, an amazing 25% of Sol-1's population accepted the government's incentive program and agreed to start their lives over on a new planet.  Instead of a quiet species of pond-lovers, Amphibia has overnight become a nation of space pioneers.  Babina could not imagine even a small portion of the implications stemming from this daring venture, but he understood that the destiny of Amphibia was now tied more than ever on its tiny navy.  Babina flipped to the financial section.  Current naval cash reserves stood at $499.  Clearly, Amphibia had paid dearly (in advance) for its bright new colony, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that it would be awhile before the navy would be expanding.  Babina flipped another page and read that on Sol-1, a new freighter was under construction for the Halley system.  "Here is the bright side of space exploration," he thought.  "Thanks to Aurora, the number of freighters continue to grow."  Every additional freighter route pumped life-blood in the form of cash directly into the naval budget.  As the Eridani system was 5 ly due east of Sol-1, he also realized that soon a whole new set of short-legged freighters would be operating out of that colony as well.  As he thought back over the last voyage, it suddenly came to him that he could recall only one system, Virgo, that was even close to Eridani-III.  "I'll bet that Aurora will soon be heading east on its next mission," he concluded.  Reaching for his cup of stim-caf, a tired Babina stretched his stiff neck.  "Only two more hours and I'll be off duty," he noted.  "Welcome home."               

[oi]

Stardate 2280.  Alpha City, 1750 hours.  The victorious Engineering team and the Science team are seated together in a booth at Lt. Alyte's favorite resturant.  While Kaloula is taking a sip of chilled phytophthora, at the invitation of Lt. Alytes, Pipa is wondering why crewman Truebella is a no show.  His thoughts went somewhat along the lines of, "I'll bet that Lt. Alytes assigned him duty tonight simply to avoid having to feed that physical specimen.  Probably he would have cleaned out most of the menu."  Lt. Alytes is talking with Lt. Chaunus, "Did you notice how empty the city is?"  "Yes, it's amazing, isn't it?"  "Somehow, I always held a slightly selfish vision that the city would be better off if there were fewer amphibians in it," continued Alytes.  "It would be easier to get front row seats at the big game, or to find a quiet spot on the beach, but nothing like this."  "What you are describing can be modeled by propagation crack theory," noted Chaunus.  "For a while, there is apparently no effect, then suddenly boom, a broken pipe.  Before we left, the streets were full, and now boom, it's like a national holiday and everyone stayed home."  "I think that what will happen is that the city will gradually contract in size, with amphibians on the outskirts moving back into the center city," commented Alytes.  "Probably when we return from our next voyage, the crowds will be back and it will seem as if they had never left."  "Based on the number of empty shops that we passed on our way here, there is plenty of room now for someone to move back into."  During this exchange, their waiter had arrived, and Kaloula, Pipa, and Awa were all sending subtle signals to the senior officers that it was time to order.  "You're the guests, go ahead and order," said Alytes.  Chaunus pointed a claw at the menu, "I'll have the steamed prawns."  "Excellent choice, sir.  I often eat them," said the waiter.  "Scallops on a bed of spirulina," said Pipa.  "Tube worms," said Awa.  "A stick of Lacrymaria olor," said Kaloula, with a Chaetoceros elmorei salad and blue cheese dressing.  "And I also will have the tube worms," said Alytes.  As the waiter took their menus, Kaloula asked, "I wonder why we haven't encountered more civilizations?  Even the legendary Victorious had encountered pirates.  And, as everyone knows, pirate ships are manned by polyglot crews.  And just what happed to the Kerack's anyway?"  No one offered an immediate answer, as it was clear that as the size of the Amphibian footprint in space grew larger following the founding of their first colony, the rest of known space remained quiet and empty.  "Perhaps there is a mysterious cloud of deadly dark energy sweeping through the galaxy, and our corner is all that is left," offered Awa ominously.  "It wiped out all those who built the planetary sentries, and it's heading our way."  "A more likely answer is that the galaxy is a pretty big place, and that there is plenty of room for a variety of civilizations to co-exist without being aware of each other," offered Alytes.  "I for one, am glad that we haven't run into a Kerack battle cruiser," said Kaloula.  "What chance would our tiny scout have?"  "Slim if we run, and none if we don't," offered Chaunus.  "Ah, here are our dinners."  "I raise my glass to the victors," offered Alytes.  "To the victors," all spoke in unison with the clink of glasses.               

[oi]

Stardate 2280, Admiral's quarters, Space dock-1, 0847 hours.  Rana glances about the room while the Admiral is taking a call.  On one wall is a large screen, showing the known galaxy.  One large blue ball is Sol-1, and another is the new colony Eridani III.  An additional 13 planetary systems are also plotted.  Sol-1 has the appearance of the central opening of an ant colony, with tiny white worker dots plying to and fro either heading out towards the planets or heading back to home.  These dots are clearly freighters, and Rana wonders if they are being plotted in real time or if it is only an approximation.  Just to the left of Sol-1 is a green dot, which must be Aurora, sitting in space dock.  It is an impressive display of a peaceful expanding world; one that occupies nearly ten percent of the northern quadrant of the galaxy.  Admiral Ansonia puts down the com-line.  "As I was saying, we have recently upgraded the freighters to level-3, which gives them longer legs.  So, your next mission has several objectives.  First, it is most important that you test out the newly installed laser screen.  If it meets expectations, and performs well, we will install a couple to protect the cities of Eridani-III."  "It does seem that we encounter sentries on nearly every planet," replied Rana.  "Many of the sentries utilize energy bolts and beams."  "Just be sure that you have a backup plan in case the system fails," warned Ansonia.  The admiral pointed to the screen on the wall.  "Our long-range goal is to have you explore more to the east of Eridani, so that we can utilize the new colony as a center for additional freighter routes.  Just look at these numbers."  Ansonia clicked a control button and charts appeared on the lower right of the screen, showing that Amphibia's current cash on hand stood at $556, with only a $26/year income.  "The new colony has cost us dearly, but we are beginning to recover.  If we can add a few more freighter routes, our cash flow will improve considerably.  That is why we will be sending you back to Brahe, to clear the last of the sentries in that system.  You should have little trouble completing the survey and mapping.  Then, we will have you take a look at nearby Hyginus."  Ansonia turned off the screen.  "I'm telling you, in confidence, that the science team is currently working on a new weapons system.  It is based upon the idea of a group of small manned jets capable of being launched from either a world or mother ship and flying to the site of combat.  The jets will be fast, maneuverable, carry quite an offensive punch, and be flown by experienced pilots."  Rana immediately recognized the driving force being the idea - he would no longer have to risk his ship when investigating sentries.  "Developing weapons is expensive, but we don't want to be caught with out pants down if you run into something unexpected."  The Admiral abruptly changed the subject, "Rana, you have done good work out there.  I see from your report that Aurora has achieved 34% combat experience.  It takes a lot of skill to juggle a scientific mission, overcome sentries, and to keep up the morale of your crew in deep space.  You must realize that plans are being drawn up for the design and construction of a larger warship capable of defending our home world and colony.  Of course we are talking about the future here, and it is still some time down the road, but I would like you to consider the possibility of taking command of this new ship.  There is a promotion in it for you, and certainly we would permit you to hand pick your crew."  Under this bombardment of unexpected information, Rana was at a loss for words.  His immediate emotion was a strong attachment to Aurora.  "Sir, I do not know what to say."  "Don't say anything.  I simply want to plant the seed.  There will be a lot of bugs to chew on between now and then.  Dismissed."  Rana hardly heard the door hiss shut behind him.  Events were happening very fast for both him and most of Amphibia.                 

[oi]

Stardate 2281.  Sol-1, Alpha City, 0920 hours.  Ensign Awa hands over a few credits, and passes through the portal for the Alpha City Aquarium.  An usher smiles at him and indicates that he is to go down a short slightly darkened narrow corridor.  Like the proverbial light at the end of a tunnel, the passage open up into a spectacular massive chamber, tinted a soft blue by the cathedral-like glass ceiling.  An octagon shaped tank forms the centerpiece of the room.  In spite of its size, the room is quiet and at least temporarily empty.  Awa strides closer to the central tank, and notes that it has a mostly sandy bottom, with a few widely spaced algal plants.  A patch of symmetrical purple blobs are the only other objects visible.  Awa takes the trouble to read the small plaque, "One of the earliest living objects known on Sol-1, Glaeceria is a photosynthetic cell."  He kneels down to take a close look at the creature.  It consisted of nothing other than raw protoplasm, undulating ever so slightly, as if breathing.  A furrow traced in the sand suggested that it likely moved by rolling.  Even as Awa watched, the position of the sun shifts ever so slightly, and a shadow falls over the closest of the Glaecerids.  As if powered by an unseen motor, the purple ball rolls the six inches or so to once again bask in the brightest portion of a reflected sunbeam.  Standing again, Awa glances at a nearby poster, which showed a colony of Glaeceria.  He continued his reading, "It is believed that Glaeceria is one of the photosynthetic organisms that induced an atmospheric climate change on Sol-1, decreasing the proportion of carbon dioxide in the air to its current level."  "It looks as if it would be so easy to scoop up and eat.  I wonder how it protects itself from predators?"  After a few moments of thought, he came up with a plausible answer, "Probably it must taste terrible.  After all, it has had eons of time to come up with a pretty potent chemical defense."  Once past the Glaeseria exhibit, Awa was faced with two choices.  Either go left into the seawater section, or right into the freshwater section.  He chose to go right, and entered a large semi-circular hallway lined with tanks, glass panels, and inscriptions.  In between each of the exhibits there were rivulets of water, some pouring down, some running over intricate rocks.  At floor level, they formed a meandering stream that briefly widened in front of each exhibit, allowing the viewer to step into the flowing water and become part of the exhibit.  "I'll bet that its fresh water here and seawater on the opposite side," speculated Awa.  Shoes in hand, he accepted the invitation, and there in front of him was beautiful Tridacna, with its fluorescent blue trim lines, and a few steps further along, fierce Liceida, a clam on steroids with painfully sharp teeth.  Awa stopped to admire the masterpiece that was Euvola.  Radiating out from a central core were waves of propeller-like webs efficiently trapping tiny water insects.  After all, Sol-1 was a planet of insects.  Looking at the endless variety of shapes made Awa reflect on how much polymerized sugar seemed to be the main ingredient of life.  Yet, he was composed of bones and cartilage.  Moreover, the Keracks were based on a similar chemistry as himself.  For a brief moment, he wondered if calcium and phosphate somehow made him superior to other life forms.  But then he caught himself with the realization that in the eyes (or whatever they had) of Glaeseria, both his species and the Keracks were insignificant flashes.  For all he knew, on Aurora's next voyage they could encounter a species that would laugh at the thought of the dim-witted collections of carbon that flew about space in metal ships.  The thought of Aurora made Awa glance at his chrono.  It was time to cut his visit short, for he had to make the evening shuttle if he was going to finish those reports for Lieutenant Alytes by tonight.                      

[oi]

Stardate 2283.  Space dock-1, 1930 hours.  Captain Rana turns a corner in the passageway and sees the portal opening leading to Aurora.  No matter what time of day or night, here at the dockyard there is always the ever present lingering smell of coolant.  A few strides later, he steps over a pair of cables lying on the deck, and then he is on the gangplank.  Rana absently hears the familiar tones acknowledging his arrival, and returns the salute of Ensign Awa, the OOD.  In contrast to the bright dockyard, Aurora's bridge is already darkened, as the ship has returned to observing the day and night rhythm.  Tomorrow Aurora will depart.  This time, it is back to the Brahe system, 6 ly distant on the edge of known space.  The last planet, Brahe III, and its whirlwind greeting committee, awaits.  The sound of the turbolift is surprisingly loud in comparison to the quiet background.  It is always a bit strange to be on board in the absence of the steady and familiar thrum of the warp drive.  As the passageway open to the mess deck, Rana gives a nod of recognition to Lt.Commander Babina sitting alone nursing a drink.  Once inside his cabin, he pulls off his shoes, and gives himself a couple of squirts from the mister.  Thinking to himself, he notes, "I'm not sure about everyone else, but this was a good and needed break." Rana taps his viewscreen and sees that he has one new message from, "Why am I not surprised," Admiral Ansonia.  To his relief, the message comments that there will be no changes in his crew as a result of this stopover, attached is a short list of last minute supplies, and that the Admiral wishes him well.  Rana leans back in his chair, puts his flippers up on his desk, and closes his eyes.  There was once a time, now long ago, in the spring of both his life and in the season on Sol-1, when life was slower-paced and he could sit on a warm flat rock, and . . . rest.                 

[oi]

Stardate 2284.  Engineering, 1520 hours.  It only takes a watch or two for the crew of Aurora to leave memories of their recent visit to Sol-1 as far behind as their home planet itself.  The thrum from engineering, the slightly sleepless feeling to the eyes, and the need for vigilance to tend to their instruments are as constant as the recycled air they breathe.  Pipa has the watch, with Kaloula and Lt. Chaunus nearby.  Pipa glances at his chrono.  In 4 minutes it will be time for another set of readings.  Kaloula glances at him, and Pipa watches as Kaloula slowly blinks one eye.  "Now what was that all about," he wonders.  "Maybe he picked up a speck of dust, but if so, why blink only one eye and why so slowly?"  Kaloula turned his back to Pipa and engaged in conversation with Lt. Chaunus.  Pipa is about to dismiss the entire thought from his mind when a tiny alarm bell goes off.  "He's trying to warn me.  I'll bet it's a drill."  Suddenly wide awake, Pipa intently scans the main control panel.  Everything seems normal.  Unlike many starships, Aurora is built for speed and has dual drives.  Every light and number has a port and starboard partner.  Pipa wracks his brain for clues as to the what they could have done.  "It seems unlikely that they would do anything to the warp drives, since they are on line," he reasoned.  "That only leaves everything from the ion drives to the still."  Clipboard in hand, Pipa pretends to take a casual stroll past the port ion drive.  All the lights indicate that the drive is in standby mode.  He glances as the many indicators and notes that all seem to be within normal range.  Pipa punches in some numbers, and then heads for the starboard drive.  Lights normal, guages normal, wait a minute.  The argon curtain gas was low.  "How could that be?"  Pipa tapped the guage with a claw.  If anything it only made the needle sink lower.  "Gaak! If there is no curtain gas, then room air will be sucked into the drive and I'll be spending my off time for the next week disassembling and sandpapering blackened ions off of the impeller."  Quickly he tapped into the controls and dialed in an increased flow rate.  Nothing happened.  Even as he watched, the sinking needle matched his sinking feeling.  "They must have shut the gas off at the tank."  Dropping everything, he ran for the gas compartment.  Flinging open the door, he fully expected to see the main valve flipped to the off position, but to his surprise, everything looked perfectly normal.  He was down to his last option.  Opening the local control panel, he took the current argon bottle off-line and replaced it with a backup.  As soon as he knew that the new bottle was connected, he ran back to the ion-drive's control panel.  It now read that there was an over-pressure to the curtain gas.  "Of course, that was from me trying to increase the flow."  Heartbeat starting to slow, he backed off on the flow until it read a normal 0.4 liters a minute.  "How could we have run out of argon?" he wondered.  "Every bottle was changed out at space dock.  Half the time, no one even looks at the argon flow readings unless the drive is operating."  Then, knowing his friend Kaloula well, the answer dawned.  "They must have kept an empty bottle just for this drill."  For a few moments, Pipa stood directly under a blower to speed up the drying of some nervous sweat.  As he saw a smiling Kaloula and Lt. Chaunus approaching, his only thought was, "Nothing like a little stress to feel right at home."              

[oi]

Stardate 2285.  Bridge 2321 hours.  Lt. Alytes punches the "scan" button for another countless time.  It's an effective instrument, fully capable of comparing thousands of stars at any given moment.  The screen blinks twice in rapid succession, and any object that has moved since the last scan stands out as a bright glow, while those that have remained unchanged have their current image and their stored image cancelled out.  The scanner is sensitive enough to detect star variability, and if it is severe enough, wobble in the motion of the stars due to orbiting large planets.  He actually does not have to manually push the button, as the computer would quickly display anything anomalous for a detailed examination, but Alytes enjoys the process of real-time viewing and discovery.  As Aurora retraces its course southward towards Brahe (arrival time tomorrow morning), this part of the galaxy has become increasingly familiar.  West of Aurora's position lies the previously explored Halley system, while nearly equidistant to the East lies the unexplored Hyginus system.  On a large scale, what has caught his attention is the apparent lack of stars to the south of Brahe.  Even the amount of dust is minimal.  To the eyes of Alytes, it is as if he is peering down into a clear pool of water, but without being able to see to the bottom.  Along the border of this vast open region of apparently empty space, a few aberrant stars can be found.  Plotting their course within the galaxy, he finds it notable that they all share in common a rather high orbital velocity, which (tracing backwards in time) has carried them to the edge of the void from a point of starbirth well inside the star-rich regions near Brahe.  Whatever their current course, all appear to have originated far from their current positions.  Alytes reaches for his cup and takes a sip of stim-caf.  He speculates that, "Most likely, these were once companion stars to supernovas, now accelerated by the force of the explosion out of their parent cloud of hydrogen.  Being blasted in random directions, some have ended up blazing a trail into the void."  He cannot help but wonder if the void ahead is hiding something important.  "For a galaxy full of planetary sentries, where are all the supposed lifeforms?" he wonders.  A quick glance at his chrono shows that Ensign Awa will soon be up to relieve him.  His mind filled with thoughts, Alytes pushes the scan button one more time.        

[oi]

Stardate 2286.  Bridge, 0750 hours.  Aurora has returned to the Brahe system.  Other than the relative orbital position of the three planets around their sun, it appears that little has changed in the weeks since the starship's last visit.  The navigator plots in a course that jumps Aurora over a small belt of asteroids, and the ship heads for the small third planet.  "Captain on the bridge," barks out Chief Otophryne.  Stepping out of his ready room, Rana makes a motion for everyone to remain as they were.  He then stands behind his command seat.  "Achieving standard orbit," announces the helm.  "Maintain orbit.  Chief, I need a report from the scanners," ordered Rana.  "I have three whirlwinds at quadrant 034-45.  Dead ahead," responded the chief.  Actually, the last comment was unnecessary, as the three storms were clearly visible on the forward screen.  Already, they had detected Aurora's arrival and were swirling in to investigate.  It struck Lt.Commander Babina that the storms were far more alert to the threat posed by Aurora than they had been on their previous encounter.  Their tactics were also different, as they first darted towards the starship, then spun away into a defensive formation, seemingly well aware of the potent threat of Aurora's missiles.  "Sir, if change course to 180+45 and they duplicate their last maneuver, I can get in a shot on the storm on the left," reported Otophryne.  "Very well, set course to 180+45.  What is the risk of being whirled?" asked Rana.  "Really high if I miss.  No problem if the missiles hit," replied Otophryne, with a slight smile.  "I trust that you will not miss," said Rana, smiling back.  All the same, the captain sat down in the command chair and passed the word to prepare for an assault on a whirlwind.  "Helm, maintain course.  Chief, fire when in position."  Again, the trio of storms feinted and jabbed, opening a tiny window for the Chief.  "Missile's away."  A glowing dot briefly appeared on the screen before angling off to the left.  "Switching targets," commented Otophryne.  "Timing the first hit, in three, two, one . . ."  Within moments, the storm on the left suddenly veered away from its companions, gradually becoming stationary.  "Target one is dissipating, firing on target two," continued the Chief.  At that moment, the remaining two whirlwinds charged at Aurora.  This unexpected movement caused the second missile to miss, and Aurora paid the price by being whirled by the middle storm.  Never a pleasant experience, but the starship and crew were veterans at this game, and as the helm brought the ship momentarily out of the spin, Otophryne got off a shot at the approaching third target.  Again, through sheer bad luck, a piece of debris actually hit the missile, knocking it off course.  As it exploded harmlessly on the planet's surface below.  Aurora was whirled for the second time by its intended victim.  "Chief, we're getting dizzy and tired of this."  Rana's voice was a little louder now, to carry over the noise of the storm, the groaning of the straining hull, and some loose gear bouncing about.  "Rocket's away."  The forward screen was useless as a source of visual evidence, but as the starship nosed up, the force of the wind rapidly faded.  "Hit on target three.  Target two is right on top of us."  For the third time within a ten minute span, Aurora was whirled.  Chief Otophryne calmly waited for the ship to clear the spin, and fired again.  "Direct hit, target two is breaking up."  "As always, nice shooting, Chief," noted Rana.  "For one, I'm glad that I skipped breakfast," added Babina.  "What's our status?" asked Rana.  "We have only minor damage, with optical computer-1 at 90% our new laser screen at 85%, and the nuclear generator at 92%."  Babina added, "Lt. Chaunus reports that he will have all three back up to speed within a couple of hours, provided we stop spinning."  "I expended five rockets, so we have 15 remaining," added Otophryne.  "Lt. Alytes, are you ready to scan this planet?" asked Rana.  "Yes Sir.  This is interesting.  After the battle, an additional two combat maneuvers popped up on tactical," replied Alytes.  "Moreover, we are now at 38% experience.  "All in a morning's work.  I'd like your report on what you find on this planet as soon as possible," ordered Rana.  "Yes Sir.  I'll be launching a class-1 probe in just a few minutes."         

[oi]

Stardate 2287.  Crews quarters, 2230 hours.  Pipa, Kaloula, Ombrana (a mess cook), and Ensign Awa are playing cards at the end of a long day.  Pipa and Kaloula are team-mates, and it is Pipa's turn to deal.  He shuffles the deck rather expertly and stacks the pile in front of Awa to cut.  "Where are we off to now?" he asks Awa.  Few of the second and third deck members ever make it to the bridge, so a friendly novice officer like Awa is an important source of information.  "We are currently heading Northwest, for the Hyginus system," Awa replies.  "We should arrive in a few days."  "Why are we moving in the opposite direction of our new colony? asked Kaloula, "One would think that we should be exploring the nearby space around the colony in preparation for new freighter routes."  Awa answered, "Scannners show very few (if any) star systems with planets to the South, and by moving West, perhaps we can find some stars with planets between the Hyginus and Aquarii systems.  It takes a lot of time to build out a new colony and they will not be building freighters for a while."  Pipa dealt out the cards.  "You may be sure that tonight on watch I will be mapping out much new space to the West," continued Awa.  "Your bid," said Pipa, turning to look at Ombrana.  Ombrana looked twice at his cards and wrinkled his nose.  "Pass."  Not looking up from his hand, Kaloula responded with, "Fifty one".  Three sets of eyes now shifted to Ensign Awa, who determinedly said, "Fifty two".  The ball was now in Pipa's court, and he looked across the table at Kaloula.  "Fifty three."  Taking his cue, Kaloula responded with, "Pass."  The decision now lay between Awa and Pipa.  Awa hung in there with, "Fifty five."  Pipa looked at his hand.  It was not all that powerful.  Probably most of the power cards were split up.  Even if he named trump, there were plenty of other trump cards out there.  Awa seemed to have something, but probably he was hurting for points too, as Ombrana did not seem to have much help for him.  "Fifty six."  At this bid, Pipa simply decided to make it more risky for Awa to continue.  Awa seemed to sense this strategy, for he quickly passed with a, "Name your suit."  "Diamonds," replied Pipa.  Pipa was relieved to see Kaloula lay out fourteen points, giving them a total of thirty, with twenty five to pull.  Having only two aces, he decided to hold this little power for the end game, and lead off with a low trump, which was promptly aced by Ombrana.  "It was going to be close", thought Pipa.  "This will be the last hand for me," commented Ombrana, "I have to prepare mid-rations."  "No problem for me," noted Awa.  "I am already up pretty late."  Ombrana played four aces, collecting points from Awa and non-counters from Pipa and Kaloula, for a total of eight points.  He then led with a low club, which was aced by Kaloula.  This was a good sign for Pipa, as the only suit he could cut was hearts, and unless Kaloula had three heart aces, one of Awa's was going to die.  Very likely, Awa had more than his fair share of hearts.  Kaloula did have two heart aces, leaving the remaining two in Awa's hand.  Kaloula also played five aces (including a total of three clubs), collecting a total of 11 points.  He led into Awa with a low trump, which brought out the third ace from Awa.  Pipa noticed that Ombrana did not put a point onto Awa's ace, which was a sign that Ombrana did not have alot of trump cards.  Awa then led with the ten of hearts, his strong suit, knowing that soon hearts would be cut.  His plan was to hope that both Pipa and Kaloula would cut them, and chew up their trump.  The ten walked around the table for two points.  He followed up with the ace, which Pipa cut with his king, for two points as neither Ombrana nor Kaloula added points to the book.  Nearly all the aces were played, yet there were still plenty of points on the table.  Pipa now was left with only three trump cards, an ace and two tens.  Still out there were eight trump cards, including one last ace and two tens.  Somewhere there was a missing ace of spades also.  He played to find that ace, which of course, was held by Awa.  Awa lead back again to Pipa with a low heart, and Pipa was forced to use one of his tens to cut.  Interestingly, Ombrana also was forced to play a trump, but could not top Pipa's ten.  Book by book, the points with piling up, with both sides getting in their licks, and with Pipa growing more and more uncomfortable at his rapidly dwindling supply of trump.  Already, unless Kaloula held that last trump ace, they were in deep water.  His thoughts went along the following lines, "If Awa has all those hearts, he must be low in another suit.  He kept the ace of spades, so he has at least one more spade.  That leaves clubs.  I'll play a club and see if I can force him to cut it with one of his big cards."  Pipa lead with a club, and to his surprise it was Kaloula who cut it with a ten, followed by Awa who could not top the ten and played a diamond jack.  Suddenly, the gate was open for Team Pipa and Kaloula, as it was Kaloula who held the last ace.  The hand quickly played itself out with Pipa and Kaloula making their bid with points to spare.  As Pipa smiled in relief, the game quickly broke up, and Ombrana and Awa heading out.  "I'm glad that you had that last ace," said Pipa.  "Actually it was hearts that I was most afraid of, so I was glad that you took the bid and named diamonds," replied Kaloula.  "I'm all for some shuteye.  Maybe we can talk them into playing us again tomorrow."             

[oi]

Stardate 2288.  Bridge, 2215 hours.  From Sol-1, Omi-22557 appears as an ordinary magnitude eight star, a little bit beyond the range of visual detection.  In contrast, Lt. Alytes and Aurora are currently 98.4% closer to the now rather bright star, as it slowly drifts by on the port quarter.  Alytes picked out Omi-22557 for tonights observations because of its rapid proper motion in space, a high orbital velocity that parallels some of those "wild card" stars that were slipping into the void region at the galactic center.  His calculations show that in 12060 years, Omi-22557 will also leave the populated region of the galaxy and enter the void.  What his eyes cannot see, but is quite obvious in the scanner, is a huge bow shock of infrared-bright clouds of dust forming in front of the star.  As he plots in the dust densities, it gradually takes on the shape of a thin crescent moon.  The turbo lift door swishes open, and Ensign Awa steps out in his yellow uniform.  "Cup of stim-caf, Sir?" offers Awa.  "Thanks but no thanks.  I'll be done here in a few minutes and could never get to sleep."  "Which star are you looking at?" asked Awa, peering out the small viewport.  "That big bright one now behind us," replied Alytes.  "It looks a bit yellow to me."  "Yes, it is really a dwarf, but this distance exaggerates its size."  "How does Hyginus look?" asked Awa.  "I took a gander at it earlier, but we can't make out anything yet.  We'll be able to pick out some detail tomorrow," said Alytes.  Awa glanced at his chrono and then added, "See you tomorrow.  I'm heading for some sack time."  "Don't forget, you have to take your tensor analysis exam tomorrow at 10:00 hours," reminded Alytes.  Awa jabbed at the turbolift control, "Duh, I've only been preparing for it for three weeks now."  "I'll see you there," said Alytes.       

[oi]

Stardate 2289. Captain's ready room, 2240 hours. It is late and Captain Rana's great blinking eyes are dead tired. There is something about being far from home in cold isolated space that stacks on extra fatigue. Without that adrenaline rush of a new star system (and its attendant sentries), the constand thrum of the starship's engines, its artificial air and lights, grind away mentally and physically on Amphibian flesh. Absentmindedly, Rana tosses a dried insect into Axolotl's tank. It slowly sinks to the bottom, seemingly without stirring any interest from its occupants. Right now, Rana is feeling just about as dry as that insect. He wonders if this is how the early explorers of Sol-1 felt, centuries ago when wind powered the explorers of old. Those captains too, must have felt the weight of decision making in some far away place, where many things can go wrong, and the possibility of rescue or recovery is nil. Tomorrow it will be Hyginus. Alytes reported earlier in the evening, that his long range scanners have picked up multiple planets, so this one should be interesting. Rana takes a sip from his glass. Even his favorite snow capped mountain water tastes flat tonight. Leaning back in his chair, he re-opens the manual on the Laser Screen. "I will be absolutely delighted if this screen can actually deflect bolts," he thought. "Perhaps tomorrow it will be tested." Rana read further into the night. He needed to know everything about the screen, as his life, and those of his crew rested on his knowledge. A small splash from the aquarium told him that the dried insect was no longer there.

[oi]

Stardate 2290. Bridge, 0815 hours. Aurora is doing a slow spin in approximate polar orbit over a very small rocky planet. It is far too close to the sun to support life, so much so that many of the ancient craters nearer to lower latitudes show signs of slumped walls from the solar blast. If the planet has any mineral value, it would lie in the upper highlands, currently drifting slowly far below the starship. Aurora has her antennae extended, and is currently in the process of receiving signals from a number of types of probes. Everyone on the bridge is relieved to observe that apparently this little piece of hot rock was not worth guarding with sentries. Altogether, there are four planets in the Hyginus system, and on the inbound pass, some of them looked like real plums. Captain Rana is both careful and methodical, and he always begins with the innermost planet and works his way out. "Progress report, Lt. Alytes?" "Sir, we are just about wrapped up here. The planet was too small to hold an atmosphere, but I am picking up some volcanic residues which will give us a peek into its interior." An inset in the forward screen changed its view from one of the planet's surface to that of a small inbound sun grazing comet. "A rather majestic sight, wouldn't you agree, Sir?" asked Babina, as a small fragment of bright glowing material breaks off the parent body, joining the gossamer tail. "I agree. Our brains are designed with a fondness for symmetry, or as we have it here, a balanced form of broken symmetry. The spinning balls of planet and sun, the suspended dancing comet; it is really a three dimensional artwork." Rana continued his musing. "At moments like this, it is easy to see how it is we who overlay a form of mathematics onto our images of the world. These events are random, as is the external world, yet our love for symmetry allows us to use mathematics to predict this viewpoint, and to see it as a piece of art." "We are done here, Sir," interrupted Alytes. Rana quickly snapped back into action mode. "Very well. Helm, set course 0040-0230." "Breaking orbit, locking in the new course," came the response. Aurora's nose lifted, and the starship began to pull away from Hyginus-1.

[oi]

Stardate 2291. Captain's ready room, 0747 hours. Captain Rana is reading the latest reports from Sol-1. He notes with satisfaction that a new type-3 freighter is being built for the Brahe run. This should have a significant impact on space finances, as currently only about $26 per year is pouring into the treasury. Also, the new colony at Eridani is beginning construction on a space dock. Next, he turns to Aurora's damage reports, and is pleased to note that all damage has been repaired. Rana's comm chimes. "Approaching the second planet, Sir." "Acknowledged. I'll be right out." He secures the data pad with the thought, "I don't want things flying about in case we encounter more whirlwinds." After stepping out onto the bridge to the familiar greeting of, Captain on the bridge," he takes a glance at the forward screen. It displays a very small type-2 planet, Hyginus-2, which is rapidly growing in size. "Helm, prepare for standard orbit. Lt. Alytes, what do the scanners show? Chief, give me a report on any possible sentries. "Standard orbit coming up, Sir." "No lifesigns on the surface." "Twin lightning storms at 234-54. Fast approaching." "On screen," commanded Rana. "They look rather similar to those we encountered at Serpens," commented Lt. Commander Babina. "And as I recall, they packed quite a punch." "Well, the Admiral wanted us to test out our laser screen, and today looks like the day," responded Rana. "Chief. How difficult will it be to have the rockets explode inside the storm?" "These rockets were designed to hit something, but I can calculate and control the delay after firing to simulate contact." "Very good. Do so. As Aurora gets in closer, launch when ready." "Opening outer doors now. Standing by. Firing one." The rocket raced away from the starship, but as if sensing the threat, the storm juked to the side and the timed blast from the exploding rocket hit nothing but clear atmosphere. In rapid succession, storm-1 spit out 3 lightning bolts. Everyone on the bridge braced in anticipation of a hit, but instead, the bolts seemed to glance away, instilling only a momentary brilliant glow to the hull. "Laser screen holding with 18% loss of charge," commented Babina. "Shifting to storm-2," reported Otophryne. "Rockets away." All eyes watched as storm-2 seemingly lifted up and let the rocket pass unobstructed. This storm, in turn, also spit out 3 lightning bolts. Aurora is rocked by a hit. "Laser screen at 77%; optical computer-1 at 71%; optical computer-2 at 81%," shouts out Babina. Both storms are circling Aurora furiously. "Helm, we need to get some separation here," ordered Rana. Storm-2 fired another trio of bolts. Two miss, but again Aurora takes a hit. Babina continued with his running commentary, "Optical computer-2 down to 74%. Engineering reports rocket drive-1 at 95%. Apparently the screen did not deflect this bolt, as it currently is at full power." Storm-2 fires another bolt at close range that hits Aurora but is deflected by the screen. "Laser screen at 87%." Storm-1 fires a bolt as Aurora is turning and misses. This proves to be a fatal mistake from the aspect of the storm, as the Chief gets off a good shot and hits storm-1 dead center. There is a huge puff of disorganized clouds, and then nothing but a shower of light mist. With only one target left to concentrate on, it only takes a matter of moments before the Chief gets off another rocket, and storm-2 is history. There is an audible collective exhalation of breath, and the Captain responds with a, "Good job, Chief." "Actually the laser screen performed quite well," noted Rana. "One bolt got through and found some of our sensitive electronics, but several others were stopped cold. Moreover, there is no discernable hull damage. I am starting to like this device."

[oi]

Stardate 2293. Bridge, 0804 hours. The very small type 6 planet Hyginus-3 glows brightly in the perpetual (but artificial) dawn created by Aurora's movement. Chief Otophryne looks up briefly, "A pair of sentry drones at 345+67, closing rapidly." Otophryne's voice betrayed no emotion, but Rana's did, as he ordered, "All stop." Most of the bridge crew experienced a brief flashback of memories to the last time they had encountered sentry drones - on Serpens-1. For a split second, facial images of the five dead crewmen hung like ghosts in front of Rana's eyes before he could blink them away. In the numerous drills since then, all members of the bridge crew had practiced against space drones. Rana had studied them well, and they were formitable indeed, primarily because Aurora lacked sufficient firepower to penetrate their armor. The last encounter had demonstrated that it could take up to four missiles to bring down a drone. It had also made the point that drones were highly mobile, packed a punch, and fired often. In Aurora's many voyages, they had encountered quite an assortment of sentries, some very odd indeed. In his gut, Rana knew that if they had all been space drones, Aurora would likely be a piece of space scrap floating in orbit about some distant planet. "Drones still closing." Otophryne's voice snapped Rana out of his momentary reverie. "Set evasive course Delta-2," he ordered. "Aye aye, Sir." Rana spoke to Babina. "By bearing to port, perhaps in their eagerness to get to us, we can get them to split up and allow us to focus on one at a time. We'll call the portside one "drone-1' for convenience. Chief, as soon as you can get off a good shot, go ahead and fire." "Yes, Sir. The outer doors are open. Fire one." "Execute Delta-2" Both the starship and drone fired near simultaneously, but both executed course changes that caused their respective weapons to miss. Trailing behind, and initially partially hidden by drone-1 was drone-2, now fully exposed by the couse changes. "Firing at drone-2." The range was now rapidly reducing, and drone-2 never responded to the rocket, which hit a glancing blow to its lower decks. "Eight percent damage," reported Babina, looking up from his sensor panel. As Aurora swung around behind drone-2, Otophryne got off another quick shot, but the rocket missed. Drone-2 fired, hitting Aurora forward of the bridge. "No damage, screen at 97%," reported Babina. "Look out for drone-1," noted Alytes. Indeed, this drone had recovered from its evasive maneuver, and was swinging about in Aurora's direction. "Down 60 degrees," ordered Rana. The helm punched in the change, but before he could verbally acknowledge the order, a bolt from drone-1 passed through empty space over Aurora. Unfortunately, the drop maneuver had left Aurora with inadequate operating space between the planet's surface and hard charging drone-1. In order to swing around and gain altitude, Aurora had to turn away from drone-1, which immediately fired two bolts into Aurora's undefended rear end. Aurora bucked, the lights blinked three times in rapid succession, and a whiff of something burning entered the air circulation system. "Laser screen 90%, nuclear generator 61%, optical computer-1 62%, optical computer-2 88%, rocket drive-1 95%, rocket drive-2 95%, weapons 90%." As Babina's voice continued on and on, Rana instantly knew that they were not going to win this battle. The damage to the nuclear generator alone was serious. He looked up at the weapons screen. Eight rockets left. "Break off. Break off. Steer right at drone-2 to use it as a shield against drone-1. Maximum impulse. This will really test the forward laser screen." As Aurora raced towards drone-2 both shpis fired at point blank range. Both shots hit home, forcing Aurora to plow through a patch of debris created in part from both ships. Another shot from the drone exploded a huge chunk of partially molten metal to the starboard side of Aurora, as the spaceship flashed away in retreat. On board Aurora, alarms were everywhere. Someone on the bridge was putting out a small fire, and damage reports were flooding in from throughout the ship. First and foremost, however, was the view of Hyginus-3 and its two drones gradually becoming smaller and smaller on the screen. "Damage reports, Babina" "Yes Sir. Laser screen at 40% and charging. Nuclear generator 22%, optical computer-1 42%, optical computer-2 88%, rocket drive-1 95%, rocket drive-2 70%, weapons 90%," responded Babina. "There are casualties on decks 1 and 3." Otophryne added, "The rocket hit to drone-2 knocked out about 30% of its systems, although the drone is still functioning." Rana responded with, "Babina, you have the bridge. Otophryne see about those casualties. I'm going to take a look at the nuclear generator." Still operating under an enormous surge of adrenaline, and still feeling the effects of one that is lucky to be alive, Rana headed for the turbolift.

[oi]

Stardate 2294. Captain's ready room, 0930 hours. The small ready room is over crowded with ship's officers. Captain Rana is speaking to Lt. Chaunus. "My deepest regrets for the loss of your crewmember. As you know, I was down at the generator shortly after the bolt had hit. There was nothing anyone could do." "Thank you for your kind thoughts, Captain. He was a good amphibian and will be missed by all," responded Chaunus, with a grim face. Speaking louder, Rana addresses the assembly. "Despite the loss of two crewmembers and some serious damage, I have decided against an immediate return to Sol-1." After noting a look of surprise and concern on several faces, Rana continued, "I see that many of you expected that we return home for repairs. However, if we return home now, many of our damaged systems will be completely replaced, necessitating a rather long stay in port. Right now, Aurora is needed for a number of critical missions, and we cannot afford to spend our days tied up in space dock. Our new destination is the Virgo system, located approximately 1 ly south of Eridani-III. The new colony needs freighter routes, and it is up to us to scout out potential resource systems. I specifically picked out this planet because it is far from here and will take us several days to accomplish the journey. During that time, I expect everyone to be busy with repairs. Of course, you will note that Virgo is much closer to home than we are now, so once our business is finished there, we will set course for Sol-1. My plan is that we return home pretty much back to 100% on all systems, and reduce our turn around time in space dock accordingly. Are there any questions? No? Good. You are dismissed. Lt. Alytes, would you stay after a minute." As the room clears, Rana offers his hand to Lt. Alytes. "I deeply regret the loss of your scientist. Apparently, he was operating optical computer-1?" "Yes Sir. The control panel exploded from the passing bolt, and he was badly burned." "Pass the word that we will have a joint ceremony at 12:00 hours sharp. I expect everyone off duty to be present." "I have no doubt that everyone will want to be there. Both amphibians were popular," replied Alytes. "This is the second time you have lost one of your team. How are you holding up?" Alytes thought for a moment, "It was an ugly way to die, I know. For some reason I do not feel much of anything right now. Maybe it is good that we have so much repair work in front of us. Sometime fixing feels a little like healing. Anyway, I know that every reconnected wire means that we are one step closer to home." "You're an honest amphibian, Alytes. I like that," said Rana. "Use your own judgement on how hard to work your team in the coming days. Hopefully we will have much to discover."

[oi]

Stardate 2295. Bridge, 1920 hours. Although he recalled telling the Captain that he would be up to his elbows fixing the wiring of a number of computers, in all actuality, there was very little for the science team to do in the line of repairs. Instead, Lt. Alytes worked on the mystery of the sentries. "Why should the Hyginus system be so well defended?" he thought. Carefully, he superimposed a data screen listing all of the sentries thus far uncovered by Aurora over a map of planetary resources. "Not a match," he murmured, as many seeming completely worthless planets had ended up being well defended. Stumped, and needing a new line of thought, he glanced out the observation port. Aurora was currently in the vicinity of star cluster A13. He recalled that the cluster was visible (and rather pretty) from Sol-1 in a small telescope. Cluster A13 appeared as a tight knot of stars, which betrayed a very young age. Alytes was well aware of the fact that as star clusters age, their stars gradually spread apart from one another. Turning back to his screen, he pulled up a closeup map of Hyginus-III. Why should this tiny type 6 planet be defended by a pair of sentry drones? Looking at the map, he could see that desolate volcanic plains covered most of the surface. Flipping a screen, he observed a well defined magnetic field, suggesting that the planet contained a large outer liquid core. Hyginus-III was rather small for this type of planetary core, but not so far out of line as to be exceptional. His speculations were interrupted with the hiss made by the turbolift doors opening, and Ensign Awa stepped through. "Looking for a little relief, Sir?" "Thanks. I'm just not making any progress here," Alytes replied. "Wow, that's more than the usual amount of stars outside," exclaimed Awa. "Right now we're passing close to the center of star cluster A13," explained Alytes. "You probably remember looking at it as a youth." "I do," said Awa. "At that time, I had a tiny home-made telescope. Using it to look at the night sky made it seem as if I could see things that no-one else could see. The stars were such pure points of light, and alone at night I could zoom off of Sol-1 and feel as if I was discovering something." "Certainly, a close connection with nature often provides rocket fuel for the inspiration and creativity necessary to become a scientist," observed Alytes. "I still can recall those moments rather keenly," said Awa. "At that time, I was never more happy than when mapping stars and looking for the tiniest wisps of fuzzy light."

[oi]

Stardate 2296. Science Officer's Cabin, 0228 hours. Lt. Alytes cannot sleep. He rolls to one side. He tries sleeping on his back. Tiny LED lights from his computer annoy him. Frustrated, he gets up and props open a book to block their light. As seemingly a thousand thoughts race through his head, he pushes a button to lower the cabin temperature a few degrees. He has the idea, "Maybe I should just turn on the light and read a bit, perhaps something so dry that I can't help but sleep". The problem with that idea is that he has scheduled a meeting with his staff tomorrow, early. "Well, it already is tomorrow. I've only got a few hours left to rest. Why did another member of my team have to die?" Alytes forces himself to lie down again, as he fluffs his pillow a bit. "How does it work? Keep the flippers warm and the head cold?" Despite his amped up brain, he has trouble concentrating. "Was there an afterlife?" Alytes did not know. All of the lifeforms in the galaxy that had contacted the Amphibians had different opinions on the subject. "It was certainly not impossible that his consciousness could survive death. Perhaps what passed as his conscious life was simply the tip of a much larger iceberg, with the main essence of what he was, invisibly hiding out in another dimension. His life could be analogous to the creation of virtual particles in a vacuum, existing only for a brief time, before disappearing again." "Or in some cases, being ripped out of existence by a bolt," he couldn't help but add. The faint hum of a power core caught his attention, and as it did, it suddenly seemed to grow louder. Again, Alytes pushed off the covers, got up and turned the device off. Now up, he went into the refresher room and sat down. But his body was still shut down for sleep, and it was a waste of time trying to go. On his way back to his bed, he dreaded to even glance at the chronometer, as he knew that every passing minute was one less that he would have when he finally did get to sleep. "Space-time held many dimensions, and thus far, little was known about the others." As a scientist, Alytes was well aware that given a sufficiently resourceful planet, and a few billion years, orgainization of the planet's surface molecules into lifeforms, and subsequently into conscious life was a natural outcome. Already, numerous lifeforms had converged into a conscious existence. "Had I been at that computer station, I would have been experiencing first hand many of the answers to these questions." Alytes tried to concentrate on the thrum thrum of the warp drive. Normally, it was rather hypnotic and sleep inducing. Thrum, Thrum, Thrum, like the slow pulsing beating of the heart of a huge whale. He wedged his flippers down into a crack in the base of his bunk. Thrum, Thrum, "I wonder what would happen if I began to count backwards?" "One hundred, ninety nine, ninety eight . . ." he counted slowly, trying to associate each number with a picture of one of the many planets. "Ninety seven, ninety six," as he chanted each number, its associated planet drifted into view, then popped out of existence. "Ninety five, ninety four, . . ninety three . . . ninety two . . ."

[oi]

Stardate 2297. Engineering, 1437 hours. "Yeeouch!" Pipa grunted, whipping his arm back out of the generator and inadvertantly pulling out a small control line as he did so. "Watch it up there," he called to Kaloula who was trying to melt away some fused ceramics above him. "Sorry. It just fell apart when I hit it with the heat," said Kaoula, looking down apologetically. Pipa stared at his arm until his eyes focused on a small fragment of formerly molten (now recrystallized) solid composite. He binged it off his arm in the general direction of the nearby junk bin. "Even though I have never seen or met one, I am beginning to build up an intense dislike for those sentry drones," commented Pipa, rather bitterly as he fished through a set of control lines, looking for a match to the one he had just ripped out. "Seeing this mess, we're lucky that the generator worked long enough to power up the warp drive," noted Kaloula. "And it is up to us to get this section finished so that the ship can get off of partial power." "Look out below. I'm going to heat up and melt off another ceramic," continued Kaloula. Pipa felt the buzz of his comlink. "Yes?" "Lt. Chaunus here. I'm going to activate the bridge control panel. See if the ready light appears on the display." "Yes, Sir." "Panel activated, anything?" "Nothing down here." "The control lines must be looping and won't let the signal through. I'm shutting it down from up here and will call you again for another try later." "No problem, Sir." Pipa gently tightened the lower end of the replacement control line with a small spanner. "It would be nice to have hot food again. And I am sure that the crew would like the holodeck back," said Kaloula. "Yeah, like we have any time for holodeck programs," muttered Pipa. Kaloula climbed down to Pipa's deck level. "Okay. Help me with the access panel." Both amphibians bent over and picked up the heavy panel, lifting it up waist high to where it was possible to slip on the restraining bolts. The dull grey metal bore a smoothed over bright patch where the bolt had tore through the panel. "Nothing stops those bolts," grunted Pipa under that strain of lifting. "Well, considering that this particular bolt passed through two sections of hull, that angle iron over there, this access panel, and a collection of metal parts inside the generator, you're probably right," commented Kaloula. "Spin the nuts and we've got it," he continued. "Later on, we'll spray on some nanocoat and you'll never know that the panel was patched." "I'll go out and see if I can round up some volunteers for that job," sighed Pipa, knowing that he was the most likely (and probably only) candidate to do the nanocoating. "Break time," noted Kaloula. "Why don't you run for some sandwiches, and I'll stand by in case Lt. Chaunus calls down again." "Now we're talking. What kind do you want?" "Surprise me," said Kaloula, knowing that there were only a few limited choices anyway. "When you get back we'll start in on the nullifier," said Kaloula to no one in particular, as Pipa had already disappeared up the ladder.

[oi]

Stardate 2298. Messdeck 1938, hours. Repairs on the generator have kept the holosuite off line, and as a result, Lt Commander Babina found himself spending more of his down time relaxing in the insectivarium. Right at this moment, the warmth and wetness collecting in the space felt good on his skin. With Zen-like composure, he sat and impassively viewed the tangled vegetation cluttered with the ceaseless hum of insects. The mess cook had asked him to collect two dozen of the golden spotted Thermonectus beetles, and using a small scooping net and a covered container, he had quickly caught his limit. Compared to the complexity of his daily thoughts, this simple task had felt mind clearing, and had ended all too soon. Amphibians have been collecting (and eating) beetles since they first flopped out on land, and he felt connected to the past with this brief exercise in muscle memory. An Oleria fly gently landed on his outstretched arm, and Babina watched it flex its fluorescent wings as the tiny creature rested. Nearby, a buzz beetle cruised with its characteristic sound. A compulsive quick glance at his chrono reminded him that duty was approaching. As he reluctantly moved his arm, the Oleria reacted to the motion and took off. He watched its tiny glow retreat and disappear into the far reaches of the space. "I had better speak to the Chief about tonight's drill," he reminded himself, as he scrambled to his feet. Since the drill involved a transient loss of power to steering, he also wanted to see who was going to be the duty helmsman. Procedure did not call for an immediate drop out of warp unless the ship became unstable. Warships like Aurora were designed to maintain continuity in the face of disruptions. However, he did not want an inexperienced helmsman to panic, knock warp offline, wake the Captain, and interrupt their passage. With a small sigh, he got to his feet and prepared to head to the mess hall with his captured beetles. Four hours of evening watch were calling his name.