JJLexi

The viewport offered little solace to JJ as he stared out into the blackness. He didn't sleep much, at least not as much since he left Brythtia. Being away from his people was a very empty feeling. The Song, he was learning, was something that many Brythtons take for granted. Sure, it was worshipped and respected, but he had quickly realized how much a part of his life it really was once he was separated from it. He had made do with the low hum of non-Brythtons, but he still missed the resounding harmonies provided by the Brythtons themselves. It was an adjustment period that he wasn't sure he'd ever get used to. The observation deck was empty, save for him. He had been standing there ever since he had eaten supper, thinking and meditating. Not hardly two days ago, he had been staring certain death in the face in the form of Romulan disruptors. Now, he stood back on board the Reaent, which was now under the protection of a Starfleet Task Force, hurtling through space towards the Federation/Romulan border. He had spent the past few days looking at the faces of his fellow crew-members, wondering how they were dealing with the brash reminder of their mortality. Today, it was his turn. He closed his eyes, suddenly taken back to his last day spent in the Sovereignty, it was the day of his de-harmonization ceremony, the ritual all Brythtons went through if they were assigned to a solo duty. The look in his father's eyes was etched into his memory. "You look as if you believe this is the last you will ever see of me, father." "There is always that possibility, my son. As a soldier, I acknowledge that." his father replied. "You must come to that realization as well. The path to Heaven will be closed to you out there, by yourself. You must accept the fact that you may never see those you love ever again, in this life or the next." Today, he was coming to that realization. But he refused to accept it. Not now, not today. "The god of the death is a coward" he thought to himself. "one who preys on the weak, the ill, and the elderly. He wouldn't dare approach me. Even if, I would stare him straight and the eyes until he cowered away in fear and shame. 'Find a soul less worthy!' I would tell him! 'For mine is too strong to succumb to your cravenly ways!'" Yet despite his brazen decrees and his prideful defiance. The words still echoed. . . You must accept the fact that you may never see those you love ever again, in this life or the next. . . Never. . . Never was such a powerful word. There were few words that carried as much finality. Never. . .in this life or the next. . . It was a haunting thought, one he couldn't bring himself to imagine. For if he were to die out here away from the protection of the Song, his soul would be lost. Any chance of being reunited with his family would be washed away in an instant, leaving him to be nothing but a passing memory to be forgotten with the passage of time. Memory. . . A thousand memories of his family began to dance through his mind, as clear as the night sky. His father, his mother, his brother, his sister. Their faces, as well as hundreds of others he knew from back home, appeared as real to him as if they were standing right in front him. All these faces, these -people-, he was a matter of seconds away of being torn away from them forever. He felt himself collapse to his knees, overcome with a wave of emotion, yet the memories kept coming, each of them more powerful and more vivid than the next. Each one seemingly taunting him, reminding him of how far from home he was, and how vulnerable his soul remained. He how close he really was to never seeing any of them again. Never. . .in this life or the next. . . His breathing became harder, and he could feel his muscles tense up and sweat begin to form. He gritted his teeth and clinched is fists until, mercifully, the memories stopped. "You must accept the fact that you may never see those you love ever again, in this life or the next." His father's voice echoed in his head as he finally opened his eyes. He was out of breath, sweat covered the back of his next and his brow. As he came to, he realized had fallen into a full crouch on his hands and knees. He brought himself to his knees, and looked up at the time display which hung over the viewport. It read 0400. Two hours. . .He had spent the past two hours like this. He ran his fingers through his corded hair, and began to wipe the sweat from his brow. "Oh goddess of the night" he murmured "Why have you been unkind?" He brought himself to he feet, the pang of exhaustion creeping up on him. He had 4 hours until his shift started. Slowly, he made his way out of the observation deck and down to his quarters. He laid himself down on the bed, trying desperately to forget what he had just gone through. He refused to close his eyes, fearing another episode. After a few minutes, however, he finally allowed himself to succumb to his exhaustion. His eyes drifted shut, and his consciousness started to fade into the blackness of sleep. Never. . .

Racial Profile Brythton Sovereignty of Consociational Planets Overview The Brythton Sovereignty of Consociational Planets is a small group of colonies located just on the far-side Breen controlled territory. The Sovereignty consists of 13 planetary colonies spread across 10 closely bunched star systems with a current population of nearly 100 billion. Their current technology level is nearly comparable to nearly comparable to that of current Federation standards. Origins Not much is known about ancient Brythtonic culture, even by the Brythtons themselves. Their calendar currently reads the year 3919. Taking into account the rotational differences in between Earth and Brythtia, that places the beginning of the Brythtonic calendar around 800 BCE. Year 0 on the Brythtonic Calendar is roughly translated into "The Coming". Brythtonic religious texts claim that the gods brought the chosen tribe out of Hell across the Heavens to Brythtia, where a pure society was to be cultivated. There is no known documented history prior to "The Coming", but Brythtonic religion acknowledges that the race did exist prior to that date "in the darkness". Physical/Psychological Attributes The Brythtons are a species physically similar to many other humanoids. There is a hint of blue tint in their skin as opposed to the pink/red in humans. Eye colors all carry a heavy gray shading, but can vary much like humans from blue, to green, to brown. Facial structure is similar to that of Romulans, with a hint of a small ridge in the forehead, but not nearly as prominent. Their hair is naturally corded, much like Earth-based Komondor, or Puli variations of canines. Their average height, weight, and strength is roughly the same to that of humans. Brythtia, and a majority of their other colonies are considered cold by human standards, with summer highs averaging around 12 C and winter lows averaging around -18 C. It is not uncommon to see snow late into the spring months around the planet. Brythtons will often dress in extremely light clothing when visiting foreign controlled planets and stations, as they are often considered too warm by Brythton standards They possess no active telepathic abilities, but contain a latent ability for empathy and emotive telepathy towards beings that are also telepathically inclined, particularly Vulcans, where their lack emotion is a direct clash with the gregarious nature of the Brythtons. Their latent empathic abilities also create an almost hive-live awareness amongst each other. While exact thoughts and emotions cannot be discerned, an individual Brythton can feel the essence of the minds of other Brythtons, and to a degree, other empaths around them. The Brythtons refer to this essence as "The Song". The more Brythtons there are, the wider the reach of The Song. On Brythtia and a few other colonies within the Sovereignty, The Song is known to cover the entire planet. Government Brythtonic culture is based on system of peerage similar to that of the Middle Ages on Earth. They the government is overseen by a Kryndke, or Grand Duke. They are followed by order of importance by Achdkei (Archdukes), Dkei (Dukes), Kntei (Counts), Brynei (Barons), and Nghthei (Knights). The Grand Duke, as mentioned before, is the head of state, an Archduke oversees a planetary colony, a Duke oversees a province, a Count oversees a prefect, and a Baron oversees a district. Knights are not actively involved in government. There are families of title, from Baron to Archduke, that do not oversee a portion of government. These families are considered "in-waiting". The governmental system is based on a form of government known as Sortition, or Allotment, meaning the heads of state are chosen at random from a list of eligible individuals. The Grand Duke is chosen from the counsel of Archdukes, Archdukes are chosen from the counsel of Dukes, Dukes from Counts, Counts from Barons, and Barons from Knights. Knighthood is bestowed upon an individual (and by proxy, his/her family), for an "honorable deed which exemplifies the greatness of the Sovereignty". Such actions could be militaristic in nature, or could even be granted due to charitable deeds, or excellent service in whatever civilian field of work they choose. Appointments are for life, and with the exception of the title of Grand Duke, are passed down from generation. Titles can only be taken away from a family through dishonorable acts, the lack of a suitable heir (which is determined via civil testing), or the marriage of all suitable heirs into a family of higher status. Consequently, turnover in the peerage system is not an overly frequent occurrence, but is not uncommon. Families that are considered "in-waiting" are eligible to participate in the process of sortition at their current level of peerage. Despite the peerage system in place, there is no clear division among class lines. People of all titles freely co-mingle and even marry amongst each other. In the case of inter-caste marriages, the person with the lower title, male or female, assumes the name and title of the higher title and relinquishes their status as an heir of their birth family's title. With intra-caste marriages, the bride assumes the name of their groom and relinquishes her status as an heir. There is no stigma amongst inter-caste marriages, whether it between a Count and a Duke, or the Grand Duke and a commoner. Marriage is considered the most sacred act in Brythtonic culture which supersedes all else in society and is explained later. Religion Brythtonic religion is poly-theistic. There are 5 principle gods, the god of the earth, Bryt, the god of the ocean, Rtyw, the god of hell, Mynymdnap, YNyt, the goddess of The Song, and the god of stars, Jylt. Jylt is considered the most important of the Brythtonic gods, as it is widely accepted that was her who brought the Brythtons out of hell to Brythtia. Aside from the 5 principle gods, there are hundreds of demi-gods whom are in charge other aspects of life, both physical and mental. Each family has a "patron" demi-god which is meant to most exemplify the personality or role of that family in Brythtonic society. Heavy importance is placed on "The Song", the mental essence from which the Brythtons can sense the presence of another Brythton. The Song is a source of spiritual power and considered to also be the path to heaven. A Brythton by himself or herself is considered "out of harmony" with the song. Being out of harmony is a very solemn occurrence. It is either doled out as punishment, or as an extremely honorable duty only assigned to the most worthy of Brythton citizens. The ceremony in which Brythtons are sent out of harmony honorably is called "deharmonization". If a death occurs while Brythton is out of harmony, the soul is considered lost forever. Meditation is of heavy importance in Brythton religion and time is supposed to be devoted to it at least once a day. During this time of meditation, known at Gy, one is supposed to focus on The Song as a source of energy and rejuvenation. Brythtons out of harmony are instructed to pray at least twice a day for the return of The Song, so their soul may find the way to heaven. Marriage, as mentioned before, is a highly sacred act. Marriages are normally carried out by the Baron or Baroness of the female's home district, but can be carried out by any other person of title. Marriage and start of a family represent the growth of The Song. As a result, the focus is on the multiplicity created by marriage, as opposed to the unity of marriage as it is celebrated in many other humanoid cultures.. The traditional Brythton vows are stated as such "What was one is now two. What is two will be more." Again, this focuses on the growth in numbers, which in turn strengthens The Song. The Brythton version of a honeymoon consists of the newly married couple retreating to a place of solitude away from the influence of the minds of other Brythtons, where the newlyweds can spend days meditating with each other, focusing on The Song which is created between the two of them. Funerals are of almost equal importance to marriages.. They are usually a grandiose ceremony conducted en masse once each month throughout each prefecture for all who have died during that span. Usually presided over by a Count or Countess, Brythton funerals are heavily steeped in meditation and hymns, ensuring that the souls of the deceased find their way to heaven via The Song. The bodies of the deceased are placed on a pyre and burned. Funerals for those holding counsel seats and those considered heroes can be singular in nature, usually presided over by someone of high peerage and attended by thousands of onlookers. Culture Family and community predictably play a huge role in Brythton society. It is rare to see a solitary Brythton. Most everything is done in groups or, at the very minimum, pairs. Families are usually close-knit and extremely large in number, with the average Brythton couple bearing 7 children, although numbers can fluctuate from as low as 2 (the minimum number of offspring allowed) or as high as 15 (the maximum number allowed). Multi-family gatherings are not uncommon, as Brythtons subscribe to the theory of "the more the merrier". Music is also very important to Brythonic culture. Songs are sung at weddings, marriages, graduations, holidays, military ceremonies, as well as most any other event. As with most other aspects of Brythtonic society, songs are sung in groups. There are no solo songs. It is in fact forbidden to sing alone. Brythton singing contains a mixture of lyrics and sounds. Brythton songs and operas are some of the most complex in the galaxy, containing multiple simultaneous verses and tonal patterns. To many humanoid ears, including Humans, Klingons, Ferengi, Andorians, Bajorans, and Cardassians, the Brythton songs sound like a cacophony of random voices.. There are some races however, like the El-Aurians, Betazeds, Risans, Vulcans and Trill, who can more easily discern the differences in tune, consider Brythton songs and operas to be some of the most beautiful in the galaxy. The Sovereign Choir is currently performing through out the Federation on a goodwill tour. Military Military service is compulsory. In fact, all schools and universities are run by the military, gearing each child for service. At the age of 5, children begin their schooling and the Sovereign Children's Military academy, which has a campus in every district. Military training is broken into 4 separate parts. The first portion of training, from ages 5 to 8, the children are taught the basics of service along with general education and religion. Highlights from this portion of their education include memorizing the ranks, and learning the traditional Brythton March. The age of 8 marks their first milestone test, known as the Separation Test. This is where the children are given a basic intelligence test. The top quarter are placed on the track of "Honored Officers" where they begin training to become officers one of the three branches of military: Marines, Navy, or Guard. The other three quarters are placed on the track of the "Honored Enlisted". From the ages of 8 until 14, both tracks are given more advanced military training in addition to continuing general education courses. Officers begin taking more command based class as well as classes in military strategy. Such immersion at a young age, has earned the Sovereignty a reputation as brilliant military strategists. During this portion of their training, at the age of 12, the children are given the "Civil Test of Worthiness". This test of Brythton culture, government, and religion is given to determine which children are worthy of their title. The test is the same for all levels of peerage, and is not taken by commoners. A test failure results in a denial of heir status, but not a strip of title. Brythtons that have failed may not participate in sortition and are considered "of no-one". The child of a failed tester may regain the status of "in-waiting" upon passing the test. Now would be a good time to note that military advancement and peerage have no bearing of each other. It is not unheard of for commoners to hold the highest ranks Upon the age of 14, children must choose which of the three branches of service they wish to serve under. The Sovereign Navy is much like the Federation Navy, although less emphasis is put on capital ships and more on single and double occupant fighters and scouts which are deployed in multiple squadrons or wings at a time. The Sovereign Marines serve the same purpose as the Federation Marines; an attack/occupation focused fighting force. The Guard is the largest of the three branches. It is a defense oriented ground and aerial unit focused on the protection of the Sovereignty, serving also as the general police force. Upon choosing a branch to serve, children are then placed in focused training based on the branch of service they have chosen. This continues until 18, where the enlistees begin their military service and the officers are sent to their branch University, to gain vocational training. At the Sovereign Naval Academy , all officers are trained to become pilots, even if that is not their desired vocational path. Likewise, all Marines and Guardsmen are given weapons training, even if they are not training to make members of the general infantry. The military as a whole is considered one of the toughest and most formidable in the Alpha Quadrant, having fought off a numerous of Breen invasion attempts, and fending off a number of Dominion intrusions. Recent History/Federation Dealings The Brythtons discovered FTL travel a few years after humans in the Earth year 2066. It was not until nearly 40 years and 5 colonies later, in 2101, that they made first contact with their first other FTL species, the Talarians. Not long after that, the Brythtons made contact with the Tholians, Tzenkethi, Ferengi, El-Aurians, Orion, Bajorans, Cardassians, and Pakleds among a few other species between the years of 2105 and 2125. All relations with these races have been either friendly or neutral, as the non-aggressive nature of Brythton expansion was not seen as a threat. However, of all races, it was the Breen who have had the largest effect on the Brythtons. First contact in 2130 brought upon the seemingly pointless destruction of 2 Brythton scouts at the hands of the Breen. After several more months of unprovoked attacks, the Sovereignty went into a stage of massive and aggressive arms buildup, building thousands upon thousands of fighters, and a number of capital ships. In 2132, the Breen-Brythton conflict broke out with an attempted invasion of one of the Sovereignty's outer colonies, Dluga, by a relatively small Breen task force. Although technologically superior to the Brythtons, the Breen were far too outnumbered and eventually overwhelmed by the Brythton fighter armada. Thus began a sporadic yet violent ongoing conflict lasting almost 90 years, claiming the lives of over 6 million Brythtons and 5 million Breen. In 2221, a tenuous truce was struck. Over the next 150 years, the Brythton and Breen kept exceedingly close tabs on each other.. The Breen often conducted weapons testing and war-maneuvers near Sovereign space, presumably as a show of force, while the Brythton, kept building and improving their arsenal of fighters, often conducting aggressive flybys of Breen convoys. Such posturing continued until the arrival of a new threat to the Alpha Quadrant, the Dominion. The Sovereignty found itself in a dangerous position upon the arrival of the Dominion. with the nearby Cardassians aligning with them, and the Breen following suit, the Sovereignty seemed ripe for the taking. Changeling spies on numerous occasions tried to infiltrate the government at various levels with no success. This was due to the Brythton latent emotive telepathy, to which the Changelings could not adapt to and were therefore easily snuffed out. Despite their position near Dominion controlled space in the Alpha Quadrant, the Dominion never made more then a few minor incursions into Brythton space. This was probably due to Breen influence, having explained to the Dominion the difficulty that may come in engaging the Brythtons while engaging the rest of the Alpha Quadrant powers. The Sovereignty as a whole remained quiet and neutral throughout the entire Dominion conflict, focusing its attention on defense rather than aggression. First official contact with the Federation came a few months after the conclusion of the Dominion War in 2375. Brythtons had known of and observed the Federation during the war, but refused to make official contact, as they feared that they would be dragged into the conflict unwillingly. First contact occurred with 2 wings of Brythton heavy attack fighters and the USS Lake Mead near Talarian space. Despite seemingly threatening show of numbers, the meeting went of amicably and peacefully. By the middle of 2377, the Brythtons had established an embassy on Earth, with the Federation doing the same on Brythtia. The relationship has been peaceful, productive, and cordial, although Brythtons have been reluctant to share its fighter technology in exchange for some of the Federation's superior capital ship technology, and have likewise deflected attempts by many Federation politicians to coax a petition for membership out of the Sovereignty. However, both sides have agreed to a limited military personnel exchange program. Where junior officers from both sides are placed in the service of other's military. The current program is starting out with one officer each, it will expand to 3 officers after the first 5 years and 10 officers after the first 10 years. At current, the Brythton government is planning for the Sovereignty's first expansion in nearly 100 years. The current plan is colonize 3 strategically located planets. The first of which is located about 10 light years away from Breen space and 50 from Cardassian held space. The second and third planets are located on the "frontier" side of the Sovereignty. The location of these planets, which are outside the tightly bunched mini-cluster which holds the Sovereignty's current 13 colonies, would nearly double the size of the Sovereignty in terms of area. Several defense oriented starbases are also planned at various points across the Sovereignty. Discussions have also opened between the Federation and the Sovereignty regarding a possible jointly controlled station located just outside the system of one of the newly proposed colonies. This proposed base would serve as a joint base of operations for further exploration of the Alpha Quadrant. Other Relevant Information The Brythtons, although generally friendly, are exceedingly cautious in their dealings with outsiders. They are distrustful of the Cardassians, and Breen, due to their past involvement with the Dominion. In fact, one of the main stumbling point in Federation/Brythton relations in the Federation involvement in Cardassian reconstruction, which the Brythtons believe will come back to haunt the Federation one day. The Sovereignty is one of the few societies in the quadrant that have not encountered the Borg. However, they are aware of their presence and their danger to the galaxy, as there is a small community of El-Aurian refugees who live amongst the Brythtons as "honored guests". Final Assessment The Brythtons are not a threat to the Federation, in spite of their current reluctance to apply for membership. Despite their cultural views on the military, they are not a war-mongering race, and care more for the protection of their citizens as opposed to the acts of war. Their dealings with the Federation have been honest and fair. They are and will continue to be a strong ally of the Federation.

Starfleet Personnel Profile Full Name: Lexi, Jyrd Jyrme Interpreted Pronunciation: Jerrod Jerome (JJ) Lexi. Race: Brythton Age: 25 Hair: Black Eyes: Gray/Green Skin Tone: Light (with blue tint) Height: 5'10" (178.1 cm) Weight: 178 lbs (80.9 kg) Citizenship: Brythton Sovereignty of Consociational Planets Federation Status: Cleared on official government visa Starfleet Clearance Level: Top Secret (special foreign military exemption) Current Rank: Ensign Current Assignment: Operations Manager – USS Reaent Biography Jyrd Jyrme (JJ) Lexi is the first Brythton citizen to serve in Starfleet in the 15 years of Brythton/Federation relations. His nomination and subsequent decision to participate in this military exchange program is viewed as a great honor and sacrifice by his race. Lexi is also of Brythton nobility, holding the title of Count. His father serves as a prefect of a county (prefecture) and holds the equivalent rank of a Brigadier General in the Brythton Corps of Sovereign Marines. JJ had a typical Brythton upbringing. He enrolled in the Sovereign Military Children's Academy at the age of 5, as is customary in Brythton. Performing well enough to be groomed as an officer, he chose the Sovereign Navy as his desired branch of service. Upon entry into the Sovereign Naval University , he began vocational training to serve in Capital ship operations. His performance at the University as well as his marks as a child in the Children's Academy were important factors in his selection to participate in this exchange program. Upon selection for the exchange program, JJ was required to attend Starfleet Academy for an abbreviated period (2 years) as a cadet for a familiarization of Starfleet systems, protocol, and procedures. At the completion of this period, JJ was promoted to the rank of Ensign and given is first assignment on board the USS Reaent. Psychological Profile As part of the internal Brythton nomination criteria, JJ was subjected to numerous batteries of rigorous psychological testing, and for good reason. The Brythton possess a partially developed form of empathy which borders on a hive mind. This phenomenon is known as "The Song" by the Brythtons and is considered a sacred part of their culture and existence. Their devotion towards it borders on mental dependency, and therefore, only the strongest are allowed venture out alone, away from "The Song". JJ was deemed mentally strong enough for this task. During his psychological testing at the Academy in San Francisco , JJ tested as mentally stable. However, recurring themes in his sessions with staff counselors were loneliness and emptiness. When asked to explain these feelings, JJ replied with this answer: "Imagine growing up near a raging river, where there is always the sound of rushing water. It is there when you wake, it is there when you fall asleep. The sound of that river becomes as much a part of your life as anything else. Now imagine being taken away from that river. All of a sudden, there's something missing. Something is not right. There's an emptiness that you've never felt before." Another effect of being away from this empathic phenomenon is on his mood. Brythtons, are known for having exaggerated moods. JJ's moods are not as exaggerated as the average Brythton, leading many xenopsychologists to believe that the 'normal' Brythton moods are highly affected by their empathic nature. Despite the separation from his people, JJ Lexi remains mentally stable. His personality is pleasant even if a bit melancholy. He is psychologically fit for duty. Starfleet Academic Profile As mentioned before, high marks in the Brythton military academy and university were large reasons why JJ was selected for this exchange program. His academy time was spent mostly taking the advanced piloting and operations classes. Within those classes, JJ was consistently within the top 10 percent of the class. As for grasping basic Starfleet procedure and protocol, JJ adjusted nicely. Final Assessment JJ Lexi is fully capable of performing all duties assigned to him. He is fully cleared, and has signed all the necessary non-disclosure agreements. He has officially been deemed cleared for duty.

For the amount of activity going on, Sickbay seemed oddly quiet. The "survivors" were slowly being in-processed by the "deceased". It sounded much like an episode of that late 20th century fictional human horror series named "The Twilight Zone." On his short time on Earth, Jryd had grown to like the odd and generally inexplicable premises of that show. Never did he expect to be caught up in a situation that mirrored the almost absurd nature of one of those episodes. But, there he was, along with Annabelle, Commander Schwansee, the two senior doctors, and a host of others being treated like they were the oddities to come out of this situation. Jryd suppressed a grin, as he was too confused to even feel confused. He could only imagine the conversation that would be going on between the Reaent and the 40 plus Akira-class vessels floating nearby, all of whom most assuredly saw the same thing that he and the rest of the "survivors" saw. His eyes met with those of one of the security guards, a young human female enlistee, probably as new as Jyrd himself was to the Reaent. Aside from the same apprehensive confusion which prevailed amongst most of the "deceased", she stood there at her post with a seemingly nonchalant "business-as-usual" attitude. He stared intently into her eyes for a long second, wondering if this young woman would ever know just how real her death was just 15 minutes ago, if she would ever realize that her continued existence was explicable only through the some merciful act of the gods. Her eyes quickly flashed away, seemingly uncomfortable with Jyrd's silent assessment of her mortality. Turning back to the silent commotion of sickbay proper, Jyrd could see a nurse motion him to a recently vacated bio-bed. The gods had smiled upon the Reaent today, bringing her back from the ashes, as if she was meant to continue to serve some undiscovered purpose. He suddenly recalled his Klingon roommate from San Francisco , Glarok, House of Ko'r. He could hear Glarok's voice in his head, and the words he uttered before the duo entered the simulator to conduct the infamous Kobiyashi Maru scenario. "Today, my brother, is a good day to die!" "Obviously not, Glarok" he thought to himself. "Obviously not."

So close to Camelot Station. But not close enough to expect help from them. With no time to react with anything more than horrified shock, Anna automatically noted the presence of magnetons as sensors revealed the wormhole pattern forming in front of the ship. It was so close! Suddenly, JJ felt sick to his stomach. His first day on Alpha Shift and he was faced with this. "Full Reverse!" he heard the Captain yell, the pain obvious in his voice. Quickly and obediently, JJ flung the ship into full reverse, but immediately he knew that something was wrong. The ship didn't have the power to escape the wormhole. He thought about vocalizing his thoughts. But before he could, gravity took over. . . Those next few minutes passed in a blur as they were pulled into the wormhole and found themselves once again in the Beta Quadrant. Right back where they'd started-the Proxima there along with three Romulan ships that wasted no time in yanking back the welcome mat. It was pointless, probably, but she did what she'd wanted to do since she'd first read about Proxima's doomed crew-using the command codes, she accessed and began uploading the ship's archives. The knot in JJ's stomach tightened even more. There he was, the pilot of a half beaten shell of a ship facing down a squadron of some of the most menacing warships in the galaxy. Reality began to slowly set in, no heroic maneuvers, no rescue, and no off button on the simulators. This was a real as it gets, and it wasn't looking good. Reaent was being pounded, and it was all Anna could do to keep from being thrown from her seat. Power failed and backup systems were slow to come back up and then failed anyway, and the entire time, she listened to the damage reports coming in, each one worse than the last. JJ looked around, from Murray to Anna. As the ship was getting pounded, he couldn't help but feel that he had failed everyone. The ship was slowly losing power with each shot until the knock out blow came. . . A massive explosion ripped through the bridge, knocking JJ out of this chair.. . .Disoriented, he began to haul himself back to his feet, the game was over now. The explosion deafened her and the smoke was blinding. She felt the carpeting that covered the Bridge decking under her fingers, and struggled to get up, disorientated and starting to choke as she inhaled the chemicals released from burning conduit and wiring. The screaming. All she could hear as her ears adjusted was the screaming. She'd never heard a sound like it before. Standing up, she grabbed the edge of one of the science consoles and turned to see a sight straight out of a horror holo. The Captain was screaming--his face and upper body horrifically burned. She stumbled and turned towards him, and then saw Brian-lying on his side also burned almost beyond recognition, unconscious. The screaming stopping, she heard the Captain call for them to evacuate; to abandon ship. She went to help Brian, even as she saw Jon reach the Captain and heard JJ call to Wim. A glance through the smoke filled darkness revealed, though mercifully not too clearly, that Wim had also been burned in the explosion. JJ ran over to Wim, hoisting the badly burned man gingerly up and to his feet. As he pulled him up he heard Wim ask "How do you like your new job?". Despite the chaos and bleakness of the situation, JJ had to grin. "I've had better" he told him, and probably meaning it. He led him off the bridge and down towards the nearest escape pod. On the way out, he could just make out the sound of the Captain, activating the self-destruct sequence. Setting Wim down in a pod, he took a glance around to look for any more comers. Through the smoke and destruction, he could see Anna, dragging the seemingly lifeless corpse of somebody, Smith, he thought. "I think we all should hurry!" he yelled towards the oncoming duo, making room for them as they approached. Anna heard JJ call out that they needed to hurry but she would never have made it if Commander Swan hadn't rushed forward to help her pull/push Brian into the escape pod. She fell into the seat next to Brian and reaching over, attempted to secure his harness and that was when she realized he was dead. Numbly, she finished belting him in, since Commander Swan had already sealed the pod and it had been ejected. Within seconds, the debris that used to be Reaent was all around them. She'd heard the Captain order the self-destruct sequence begun and she'd seen Jon at his side as she'd helped Brian from the Bridge. She knew they hadn't made it. There hadn't been time. She leaned back in the seat, listening to Wim somehow joke with JJ in spite of the agony of his terrible burns. It was so Wim and she had to look away and her eyes fell on Commander Swan. Anna was almost sure that Angel hadn't made it. She didn't think any of their chances were too good at this point.