John Randall

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11604.25) John was taken to Dr. McCoy's office for more detailed scans of his body on the doctor's biobed. Joanna herself was not there; one of the nurses told John she was in the administrator's office in a staff meeting, but the meeting should be wrapping up shortly. Victoria, John's sister and the nurse in charge of his case, was there, and was supervising the scans. She nodded each time a nurse pointed out a result to her, and she smiled at her brother several times during the scans. John took that to mean everything was going well, and relaxed on the bed. The scans wrapped up around a half hour later, and Victoria told John he could go back to his room. She walked with him as the orderlies escorted him down the hallways. Just as they got to John's room, however, a female in a Starfleet uniform could be seen knocking on Randall's door. As they came upon the figure, John recognized her; it was the executive officer of the Challenger, Commander Erica Rinax. The chief engineer said, "Commander," and Rinax turned, a little startled, but recovered rapidly. "Hello, Lieutenant," she said. "I've come to get an update on your condition." John nodded and turned to his sister. "Vicki, this is the first officer of the Challenger, Commander Erica Rinax. Commander, this is my sister, Victoria. She's the nurse in charge of my case." Rinax nodded to Victoria. "How do you do," she said. "John talks about his family with great affection. It's nice to meet you." Victoria nodded back to Rinax, but John had noticed his sister move very close to him, had taken him by the arm, and her grip was not gentle. "Commander," she said, and Randall knew her tone was cold. He looked at his sister, and her green eyes were riveted on the Challenger's executive officer. "Nice to meet you as well," she continued. "Johnny, let's get you in the room and seated." John looked at her again, and realized Victoria was as angry as he had ever seen her. He knew she blamed Rinax, as well as the other officers aboard the Challenger, for what had happened to him. He merely nodded and allowed Victoria to escort him to the chair in the room, which he sat down in. Rinax followed them into the room and stood in front of Randall's chair. "I would like an update on John's condition, Ms. Randall." Victoria nodded and filled the commander in on the latest. Rinax nodded in the appropriate places during the update, and when Victoria finished, she thanked her and turned back to John. "Lieutenant, we need you back aboard the ship," she said. "The refits and updates have been completed, but I would like you and your team to examine them personally. Can you be ready to go in about 4 hours?" John looked at her and said, "That will depend whether my doctor says I can leave or not, Commander." Rinax clearly did not like that reply. "Then I need to see your doctor," she said, and turned to Victoria. "Can we have his doctor paged or something, Ms. Randall?" she asked. "I'm on a tight schedule here." Victoria nodded and said, "I'll see what I can do," and left the room after glancing at her brother. John knew he was to stay seated, and did so. As Victoria left, Rinax moved closer to him. "Do you have to sit in the chair, John?" she asked deadpan, but her eyes danced for an instant. Randall smiled and moved over to sit on the edge of the bed. "Have a seat, Commander," he invited, but the executive officer shook her head as Victoria returned with Dr. Joanna McCoy in tow. The doctor smiled at John, then turned to Rinax. "And who might you be?" she asked, and the first officer introduced herself. "I've come to get our chief engineer, Doctor," Rinax continued. "How soon can he leave?" McCoy shook her head. "I'm afraid Lieutenant Randall will be with us a little while longer," she replied, and the executive officer became visibly agitated at the reply. "Why?" she asked sharply. "His sister just told me he was doing very well." McCoy nodded. "Indeed he is, Commander," she said calmly, which only seemed to infuriate Rinax further. "However, I'm still concerned about John's endurance; he still tires easily after an hour's workout. I am not inclined to release him in this condition." "Doctor, I have orders from Starfleet Command that the Challenger is due to leave spacedock in 4 hours," Rinax replied coldly. "We need our chief engineer now." McCoy wasn't fazed in the least by the executive officer's tone. "The lieutenant has visitors on their way to see him," she shot back. "Two Starfleet admirals; Leonard McCoy, my father, and Jason Baldwin. They very much want to talk to the lieutenant about what happened aboard your ship." Rinax had blinked at the mention of Admiral Leonard McCoy, but she stared coldly at Joanna again. "Doctor, I have my orders, in spite of certain....people...and....admirals," she finished. McCoy smiled. "Then I suggest you contact Starfleet Command for a clarification of those orders," she said. "The lieutenant stays put, and I can make that a medical order if you prefer." Rinax stared at McCoy for a few seconds, then turned to John. "Lieutenant, the ship breaks orbit in 4 hours," she said. "I sincerely hope you make it." John nodded. "Thanks for checking on me, Commander," he replied, and Rinax nodded. She stared at McCoy for another few seconds, then turned and left the room. Joanna turned to John. "She was in an awfully big hurry to get you back aboard Challenger, John. Is she always like that?" Randall nodded resignedly. "She's a very competent officer, Doctor," he said. "She just tends to be a little too much of a stickler for procedures and orders." McCoy smiled at him. "I guess you're used to it by now," she said, and John laughed. "Yep, pretty much," he said, and they all laughed. Joanna's PADD beeped, and she took it from her pocket, scanning the text. "Oh, my father and Admiral Baldwin just landed," she said. "I'll have to go greet them and bring them here. You stay put, Lieutenant, I'll be back shortly. And John, don't you worry about getting to the Challenger within the commander's time frame. My father's personal yacht, which is the only ship he will ride in unless he's forced by Starfleet to do otherwise, can do warp 9.9. You'll make it in time." John smiled. "Thanks, Doc," he said, and Joanna smiled, leaving the room. Victoria came over to sit by her brother. "I don't like that woman, Johnny," she said, and Randall immediately clasped her in a hug. "You worry too much, sister mine," he replied, and Victoria returned his embrace tightly. Around 10 minutes later, the door opened, and in walked Joanna along with Jason Baldwin, whom John recognized instantly, and then his eyes widened as Admiral Leonard McCoy walked into the room. The Starfleet legend was beginning to show signs of his age, his face more wrinkled that John had seen on the holos of the former chief surgeon of the Enterprise, but the blue eyes were still active and alert as he smiled at the Challenger's chief engineer. "Don't get up, son," he drawled, holding up a weatherbeaten hand. "You just stay there for a moment. Joanna here tells me that your first officer came here to collect you, but she wasn't comfortable releasing you just yet." "That's correct, sir," replied Randall, and McCoy rolled his eyes. "Drop the 'sir' stuff, son, I get enough of that at Command," he said. "They want to bow and scrape to me like I'm some sort of important person or something." "Daddy!" exclaimed Joanna, shocked. "You ARE an important person whether you like it or not!" McCoy quickly kissed her on the forehead. "That's enough out of you, squirt," he said fondly, and Joanna gasped, slapping him on the shoulder. McCoy grinned at John. "Lieutenant, I'll make a deal with you. If you promise to stick to a schedule that I will make for you, and you execute it in your ship's gym, I will release you, and Admiral Baldwin and I will have a meeting with you as we take you to the Utopia Planetia shipyards. Deal?" John nodded quickly. "Deal, sir," he said, and McCoy nodded, turning to his daughter. "Get his release arranged, sweetie," he said, and Joanna nodded. McCoy then said, "We'll go on to the shuttle, Lieutenant, and give you and your folks a little time together." "Thank you, sir," John said, and the admirals and Joanna exited the room. John turned to Victoria, who already had tears in her eyes. "I guess this is goodbye, sweetie," he said softly, and Victoria hugged him fiercely, sobbing into his shoulder. Randall dropped his face into the nape of his sister's neck, fighting back tears himself. He knew it would probably be a long while before he saw his sister again, and it was killing him to leave her. Victoria looked up at him with tear-stained eyes a few minutes later, and a pain shot through John's heart as he saw her eyes. "You promised me you'd be more careful," she whispered. "I'm holding you to that, John Marcus Randall. I don't ever want to see you again in the condition you were when you arrived here." John nodded. "I promise, Vicki," he replied just as softly, and she hugged him again. "I will miss you, brother dear," she sobbed into his shoulder, and John squeezed her, not trusting himself to speak. A few moments later, a nurse arrived with orders for his release, and Victoria walked with her brother to the front desk of the hospital. John was officially released, and Victoria accompanied her brother to the spaceport where John's mother and brother, Denise and Rick, were waiting. The family shared a long group hug, then John detached himself and walked toward a craft where McCoy and Baldwin were standing in front of. He turned for one final wave to his family, then the Starfleet officers boarded the craft, and John's family watched them lift off from the spaceport, going to warp a few seconds later. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11604.18) The orderlies from the medical gym came to get John for his physical therapy session. They walked him down the hallway to the gym, and watched the chief engineer of the Challenger go through a slightly more rigorous workout than his previous one, and added fifteen minutes to it. John was feeling good at the end of the session; his body was beginning to regain its endurance, and for the first time since his admittance to the hospital, he felt confident that he would be back aboard the ship very soon. He was toweling the sweat off his body when the door of the gym slid open, and in walked Dr. Joanna McCoy. She looked around for a second, then saw John, and made a beeline for him, walking very briskly. She came up to him and smiled. "Hi, Lieutenant," she said. "How's it going?" John smiled at her as he rubbed the towel into his sweat-soaked hair. "Pretty good, Doc," he answered. "I feel better after this workout than I did the other one. Hardly any soreness at all." McCoy nodded. "John, I have news," she replied. "My father has been looking into the incident aboard your ship, and he's coming here to talk to you about it." Randall stared at her. "Your father?" he said. "Who--", then it hit him, and he stared slightly slack-jawed at Joanna. "Are you saying Admiral Leonard McCoy is coming here?" The female physician smiled at him, knowing she'd dropped a bombshell on him. "That's right," she beamed. "My father is extremely interested in your case, and also he wants to check the results of the new plasti-skin he helped invent that we used on you. "But, he's not coming alone," she continued. "Admiral Jason Baldwin of Starfleet Intelligence is accompanying him," and John, whose eyes had strayed away from hers, suddenly riveted his gaze on her, and Joanna knew he recognized Baldwin's name. "Do you know Admiral Baldwin, Lieutenant?" she asked gently. John slowly nodded, his eyes turning a deeper shade of blue, and Joanna was struck by the sharpened intensity of his gaze. "I am acquainted with Admiral Baldwin," he said slowly in a low voice, and Joanna instantly thought to herself, 'The admiral is not one of his favorite people.' She said lightly, "Well, it will be ten hours or so before they get here, so let's get you back to your room, and update your stats, so to speak." John nodded, his eyes returning to normal, and the orderlies escorted him back to his room, Joanna tagging along. He was placed in his bed, and the nurses immediately began scanning him with their medical tricorders. This went on for a few minutes, the nurses showing the results to the female doctor, who nodded approvingly, and John felt himself begin to relax. The door of his room slid open, and in walked his sister, Victoria, the head nurse in charge of his case. John's sister smiled and gave him a little wave as she was shown the results of the scans. She nodded to the nurses, then Joanna said she had some computer work to do, exiting the room, and Victoria went over to her brother, kissing him on the cheek. "Hi, Johnny," she said. "How are you feeling?" Randall smiled at her. "Stronger by the minute, sister mine," he said, and Victoria beamed at him. "The workout went good and felt good. I have hardly any soreness, and I think my endurance is starting to come back." His sister smiled happily. "I'm glad to hear you say that, brother dear," she said, then her PADD beeped, and she looked at it, her eyebrows rising. "Johnny, these readings are....amazing," she breathed. "I cannot believe how far you've come in so short a time. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled beyond words at this," she finished, and kissed his cheek again. "You have been working out on the ship, haven't you?" John nodded. "Every chance I get, sweetie," he said. "You have to maintain a certain degree of fitness to be a Starfleet officer. That's pretty much what I strive for, and those levels aren't that low, either, I assure you." Victoria nodded. "Well, you've been keeping your end of the bargain, so to speak," she answered. "It's definitely aiding you in your recovery, and I couldn't be happier, Johnny. I'm so proud of you," and she hugged him tightly for a few seconds. John returned the hug, then the siblings stared at each other. "Thanks, Vicki," he said. "I sure am glad you're here taking care of me, too. That's took a lot off my mind, knowing I have someone here who gives a flip about me. I love you, sister mine," he finished, and Victoria immediately hugged him again, then John heard muffled sobs coming from her, and held her to him. He hadn't meant to make her cry, but Vicki could get emotional at times, and, to be fair about it, he was pretty sure she had been worried sick about him when he first arrived here. She broke the embrace a few moments later, and smiled through her tears at him. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to get so mushy around you," she said, and John wiped her cheeks, smiling gently at her. "As Surak said, the cause was sufficient," he said in his best Vulcan voice, and she giggled. "Oh, Johnny, you could always make me laugh," she said. "You could always pull me out of one of my moods. I love you for that," and kissed his cheek again. John smiled, then a memory of his father popped into his head; his father soothing Vicki after one of her emotional outbursts when they were kids, and an expression of sadness came over his face. Victoria saw it, and was instantly concerned. "Johnny, what is it?" she asked gently, taking him by the shoulders. Randall shook his head. "Just an image of Dad comforting you after something happened," he said, then his throat tightened, and he couldn't go on, hanging his head. Victoria immediately hugged him to her, knowing this time, she was the protector, and she could be fierce when it came to her older brother, whom she loved dearly. "Oh, Johnny, don't do this," she said softly, and John laid his head on her shoulder, fighting back tears. Victoria's heart ached for her brother; she knew how much John still missed their father. He was the only biological child of Marcus Randall, but she, Rick, and Jimmy had never been treated like the adopted children they were. John loved each and every one of them, and to him, they were blood. Marcus and Denise had drilled into their adopted children's heads that they were family, the adoption stuff was gone. They were Randalls in every sense, and the parents had treated them accordingly. Victoria still missed her adopted father as well, but she knew John had idolized Marcus, and had taken his father's death extremely hard. Then, she had found out, along with certain other people, that her father had been murdered, and John had avenged him. She loved her brother doubly for that, while being angry at him at the same time for putting his own life on the line. If he had been killed, and she hastily abandoned that line of thought, holding her brother to her, trying to give him strength. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11604.12) John awoke from his nap about 3 hours later, and sat up on the side of the bed. The nurses had scheduled some therapy sessions for him, and he was actually looking forward to them. Victoria came into the room, and smiled as she saw him sitting on the bed. "How are you feeling, brother dear?" she asked as she came over to him, kissing him on the cheek. John smiled back at her. "A little better every minute, sister mine. I'm ready for a little more walking, and I would like to try going a little farther this time." Victoria smiled happily, raising her eyebrows. "You're sounding more like your old self, Johnny; I'm very pleased." John stood up, and offered his arm to her. "Ready when you are, sister mine," he said, and Victoria smiled, but she was blinking her eyes rapidly; that last statement was so like her brother it was all she could do not to burst into tears. He sounded so strong and so confident, and inwardly she was shouting, she was so happy to see him recovering as rapidly as he seemed to be now. Victoria took her brother's arm, and they left the room, walking down the hallway. Acceding to John's wishes, they walked a farther distance this time before turning and heading back to the room. She kept a sharp eye on him as they traveled, but to her secret delight, Johnny wasn't showing any pain, and he didn't seem to be trying to hide any. She was so proud of him, and she secretly marveled at her brother's recuperative powers. They arrived back at the room, and John walked over to the chair sitting beside the bed. He sat down, and smiled up at her. "Vicki, I have a request," he said, and his sister came over to him. "What is it, Johnny?" she inquired, and Randall said, "I would like you to get permission from the doctor for me to go work out in the exercise room, gym, or whatever they have here. I'm feeling pretty strong today." Victoria raised her eyebrows, and a look of apprehension came over her face. "Johnny, are you sure you're ready, darling?" she asked a little fearfully. "You're doing so well, we don't want to rush this." John looked at her, and nodded. "I'm ready, Vicki," he said, and there was a note of determination in his voice. "The Challenger's undergoing repairs, I'm sure, and I want to be there when she's spaceworthy again. I really want to do this, sweetie. Nothing too rigorous, I want to start light, and build up. I really would like for you to make this happen, sister mine. Come here." He stood up, Victoria went to him, and they shared a hug. They released each other, and Victoria looked up at him. "You really want to do this, don't you?" she asked softly, and John kissed her on the forehead. "I'm ready, sweetie," he repeated, and Victoria nodded, smiling. "All right, then," she replied. "I'll go talk to Dr. McCoy. You sit back down, and I'll be right back." She kissed him on the cheek, and left the room. A few minutes later, Victoria returned with Dr. Joanna McCoy. The female physician walked over to John and smiled at him. "So, Vicki tells me you're ready to try lifting some weights," she said, and John grinned. "Among other things, yes," he replied, and Joanna grinned back at him. She took a PADD from her coat pocket and studied it a few seconds. "Well, your voice sounds strong," she said, "and I'm seeing some good readings here. Let me scan you real quick," and she took a medical tricorder from her other pocket. She adjusted some settings, then scanned John with the probe. She looked down at the results, and nodded. "Readings are good here, too," she remarked, and looked at him. "All right, Lieutenant, I think you could handle a supervised light workout," she continued, and John smiled. "Nothing over a half hour, mind you," she cautioned, and Randall nodded. "After your workout, we'll re-evaluate you. Sound good?" John smiled. "It sure does, Doc," he said, and both women grinned. Joanna said, "All right, I'll send one of the exercise boys to get you, and you do EXACTLY what they say. Are we clear on that, Lieutenant?" John nodded again, knowing a medical order when he heard one. "As a bell, Doc," he replied, and McCoy nodded. "You wait here, then, and one of the boys will be along shortly. Vicki, come with me, we need to talk." The women left the room, and John settled back into the chair, awaiting the summons to go to the gym. A few minutes later, a man came into the room and said he was part of the physical therapy team, and he had orders to take John to the gym. Randall nodded, and the two men left the room, going down the hallway, taking a left turn at an intersection, and walking a little distance more until they came to a room. The man led John inside, and it was a fairly big room with exercise equipment everywhere you looked. The man led John over to a machine, and the workout commenced. 25 minutes later, the workout came to an end, and the man escorted John back to his room. Randall climbed back into the bed, but elevated the head so he would technically be in a sitting position. He was a little tired and a little sore, but he was very pleased at the way the workout had gone. A couple of nurses came in a few moments later, and they took turns scanning him with their tricorders. They entered their results into their PADDs, then left the room. A few moments after that, Victoria and Joanna came back into the room, and John knew instantly something was wrong. Victoria's eyes were very bright, and Dr. McCoy had a grim look on her face. His sister came over to the bed, and smiled at him, but to John, it seemed to be forced somewhat. "How did it go, honey?" she asked, but her voice was strained. John smiled. "It went fine," he answered, then cocked his head at her. "What's up with you? You have a look in your eyes that I don't like." Victoria sighed softly, then sat on the side of the bed. "You know me too well, brother dear," she said, then looked at McCoy, who nodded to her. "Johnny, Dr. McCoy has been able to find out some information about what happened on the Challenger. Her father told her that it sounded to him, when it was described to him, that the explosion was deliberately triggered." John stared at her in shock, then looked over at Joanna. "What?!" he said. "What are you talking about?!" Victoria quickly took his hand and squeezed it; John looked back at her, and tears were forming in his sister's eyes. He let out a big sigh, and relaxed, patting his sister's hand. McCoy said, "John, my father was the chief surgeon of the Enterprise for a good many years. There was a similar situation aboard her some years ago, and the chief engineer, Montgomery Scott, told him an explosion like that doesn't just happen. It almost always is triggered in some fashion." John knew of the reputation of Captain Montgomery Scott, a wizard when it came to the field of engineering. If he had said that to the equally legendary Dr. Leonard McCoy, then you could pretty well take it to the bank. He stared at Joanna, not quite believing what he was hearing. Victoria then moved to sit right beside him, and John could feel her trembling as she looked at him. "Johnny, I think someone aboard your ship doesn't like you," she said in a small voice, then a sob escaped her, and Randall immediately embraced his sister, who began sobbing into his shoulder. Joanna turned and quietly left the room as John continued to hold his sister. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. His mind raced as he tried to ask himself who aboard the Challenger could hate him so much that they would try to kill him. It just didn't make any sense. He continued to hold Victoria as his sister cried into his chest. She was frightened, and John, for now, had no answers for her. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11604.04) After John came out of the coma, the nurses at the hospital wasted no time in getting his physical therapy started. They began by exercising his arm and leg muscles as he lay in his bed, then having him sit up. After a day or so of treatment, the nurses got him to stand. Another day passed of this treatment, and the next day, Victoria began assisting John on taking steps around his room. The therapy was going well, and Victoria was secretly thrilled at the way her brother was responding to the treatment. After the first trip around the room for herself and John, she left the room, went to the nurses' lounge, and cried tears of joy at the way her brother was bouncing back. On the third day, Victoria suggested that they try walking down the hallway a little distance and back so John could begin working on his endurance. The engineer agreed, and Victoria kept a sharp eye on her brother as they left the room and walked down the hallway. They reached the end of the passage and turned to go back. Victoria said, "How are you doing, Johnny?" Randall replied he was all right and they could continue. Secretly, though, he was beginning to feel some pain in his legs, but he maintained a poker face for his sister. Unbeknownst to him, though, Victoria had noticed her brother's eyes were narrowing more than usual, and she knew he was lying to her. She allowed him to continue his facade, however, and they walked back to his room. Victoria assisted John back into his bed, and asked again how he was. Randall decided, this time, he would be honest with his sister. "My legs are hurting a bit, sis," he admitted, and she smiled. "I kinda thought they were," she answered. "It's all right, though, you were being a tough guy for me, and I appreciate it. But don't do it again," and she shook a finger at him in mock anger. John smiled. "Yes, ma'am," he replied meekly, and Victoria smiled happily, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Johnny, it's so wonderful to see you back on your feet," she said in a low voice, and Randall looked up to see tears running down her face. He was sitting up in the bed, and immediately held out his arms to his sister, who sat on the side of the bed, and hugged him fiercely. "I'm glad you're here, Vicki," he whispered to her, and that statement made her cry harder, sobbing into his shoulder. The door opened, and Dr. Joanna McCoy came into the room; her eyebrows rose as she saw the embrace and heard Victoria's muffled sobs. John made a face at her, and Joanna understood immediately. She stood silently as Victoria cried for a few more moments, then John's sister kissed him on the cheek, and released him. Dr. McCoy cleared her throat, and Victoria instantly stood, drying her eyes. "I'm sorry, Doctor, I didn't hear you come in," she said, and Joanna smiled. 'You were otherwise engaged, Vicki," she said with a smile, and John laughed. "No need to apologize, my dear, the cause looked to be sufficient," the doctor continued, and both John and Victoria smiled. "Vicki, I need to talk to you for a minute," Joanna said, and Victoria nodded. "John, excuse us, please, your sister will be right back," McCoy continued, and Randall nodded. The two women stepped out into the hallway, and Joanna faced Victoria. "Vicki, I wanted to tell you that I believe we are very close to getting some answers about what happened aboard the Challenger," the doctor said. "My father was recently promoted to Admiral, and he's having a meeting as we speak with some of the Starfleet brass. "He's promised to keep me informed, and he's going to ask point-blank about the Challenger," she continued. "If I know my father, we'll have some answers very soon." Victoria nodded. "Thank you for everything you've done, Doctor," she said. "We really appreciate it." Joanna smiled and nodded, then asked her how the therapy was going. Victoria gave her a progress report, and McCoy told her she was satisfied and to stick to the schedule. Victoria nodded, and Joanna left. Victoria went back into the room, and John smiled at her. His sister began checking the computer panel for updates on his vital signs when the door opened again, and in stepped a blonde in a Starfleet uniform. John recognized her instantly, and grinned at her. "Amanda! Come on in!" he exclaimed, and Amanda Richards, security chief of the USS Avenger, smiled and came to his bedside. John turned to Victoria, who was watching the proceedings with a bemused expression on her face. "Vicki, this is Amanda Richards, a good friend of mine," said John. "Amanda, this is my sister Victoria, she's my chief nurse." The two women nodded to each other, then Victoria mumbled she had to go check some figures, and left the room. Amanda smiled at John. "Well, you look far better than the last time I saw you, Lieutenant," she said, and John smiled. "That wouldn't be hard, I dare say," he answered, and Amanda laughed, then quickly grew serious. "I have been so worried about you," she said in a low voice, and John cocked his head at her. "The last time I saw you, I didn't know if you were gonna make it," she continued, and her lower lip was quivering. John smiled at her. "Well, here I am," he said, and she smiled bravely at him, then sat on the side of the bed, and reached to take his hand in both of hers. "Despite my efforts not to do so," she said, not looking at him, "I have grown quite fond of you. I've never met anyone like you, Lieutenant John Randall, and I would really like it if you were to stick around for a while." John reached out his other hand, and tipped her chin up so their eyes could make full contact. "I plan on being around a while, my dear," he said, and Amanda's eyes brightened. "I'll be out of here before you know it," he went on, and Amanda nodded. "See that you are," she said in mock anger, then grinned at him as he chuckled. "I shall redouble my efforts," he said in a solemn Vulcan voice, and Amanda laughed. "Get well soon, Lieutenant," she said huskily, then leaned forward and kissed him soundly on the lips. She then arose from the bed and left the room, not looking back. John stared after her a moment, then leaned back against the bed. A few moments later, Victoria came back into the room, and stood there staring at him. "What's wrong?" John asked, and she shook her head. "So who exactly was that?" she asked a little acidly, and John smiled. "She's a friend of mine, I told you that," he replied, and Victoria shook her head. "She was crying when she left, Johnny," she answered. "That's a little more than a friend in my book." Randall sighed. "Okay, we're really good friends," he said. "I met her aboard the Avenger on one of my covert missions. She's the security chief, and she was assigned to our team. We got to know each other during the mission. That's all there is to it, Vicki." His sister shook her head. "I have a feeling there's more to it than that, but I'll accept that. You probably couldn't tell me any more if you wanted to, you and your dammed Starfleet regulations, but it's all right. You two are obviously friends, and that's good enough for me. Now, it's time for you to rest, brother dear. I'll be back later to check on you." John nodded, and Victoria stepped over to kiss his forehead. "I love you," she said, and John responded in kind. She smiled and left the room, and he lay back, staring at the ceiling for a bit before dropping into sleep. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11603.28) The next three days went by with the medical staff continuing to treat and analyze John's injuries and burns. The burns themselves were now healing quite nicely, as Dr. McCoy had stripped away the old plasti-skin covering John's burned areas, and had replaced it with a new and updated version that had recently been developed by a team headed by her famous father, Dr. Leonard McCoy. Joanna's father had told her it was the closest thing to actual human skin he had ever seen, and gave his daughter permission to try it on the Challenger's chief engineer. He asked to be kept informed, which Joanna promised to do, and her medical team installed (for want of a better term) the new version onto John's burned areas. That had been three days ago, and Dr. McCoy was very pleased at the way the new skin had been accepted by John's body. The burned areas were rapidly disappearing, and John's sister Victoria actually burst into tears when Joanna brought her in a couple of days later to show her the progress that had been made. Victoria had seen the burns on her brother's body when they had first brought John into the hospital, and when Dr. McCoy eased back the sheet covering him, that was when Victoria had put a hand to her mouth and had burst into tears at the remarkable results. The angry deep red skin that had covered John's entire left side was now gone. There was still healing taking place, but for the most part, the engineer's left side was whole again. The medical team had performed a follow-up procedure on John's skull fracture as well, and the X-rays were showing that the fracture was knitting together nicely. John's vital signs had normalized for the most part during the three days, and on the morning of the fourth, after consulting with a couple of the specialists she had brought in, Dr. McCoy informed John's family that she thought he was ready to be brought out of the coma that had been induced upon him on the Challenger. Denise was a little apprehensive about it all, but Joanna talked with her in reassuring tones for a few minutes, and John's mother at last nodded in agreement. Victoria was very excited; her brother was about to come back to them. The medical team gathered around the glass cylinder housing John's body. Victoria positioned herself at the head of the tube, awaiting the command from Dr. McCoy to slide it back. Joanna told her that she, Victoria, would be responsible for communication with her brother; John should be reassured at seeing a family member when he regained consciousness, Dr. McCoy explained, and Victoria nodded eagerly. Joanna patted her on the shoulder, then nodded at the head nurse to begin the procedure. The nurse entered a code into the computer panel at the end of the tube, and the team waited. Only a few moments passed before John's vital signs went on the increase, and Victoria kept a sharp watch on her brother. A few minutes later, John's eyelids began to flutter, and Victoria put a hand to her mouth, silently cheering her brother on as he fought to regain consciousness. Another few minutes later, Victoria gasped as John's eyes opened for the first time in weeks. She noticed the puzzlement in his eyes as he looked at the ceiling, then he slowly turned his head to the right, and his eyes made contact with hers. They widened fractionally as he saw her, then he visibly relaxed, and Victoria knew he recognized her. She smiled bravely at him, fighting back tears, and looked over to Dr. McCoy. Joanna nodded to her with a gentle smile, and Victoria immediately pushed the button retracting the glass tube from John's body. She bent over his head and took her brother's hand in hers. "Hi, Johnny," she whispered, nearly overcome with emotion. "It's me, Vicki," she continued, and John's eyes closed briefly, then riveted on hers. "You're on Centaurus in the university hospital, honey," Victoria went on. "You've been in a medically induced coma for a couple of weeks. Johnny, I don't want you to try to speak, or to do anything. You need to focus on regaining your strength. "The first thing I want you to do is squeeze my hand," she continued, and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. A second later, she was thrilled beyond words as John gave her hand a firm squeeze in return. She looked up at Dr. McCoy, who had come around to the other side of the bed, and Joanna smiled and nodded at her. "That's great, honey," she said, smiling at him. John's eyes never left hers. "Now, I need to ask you some questions," Victoria continued. "I want you to answer by blinking your eyes once for yes, and twice for no. Do you understand?" John blinked once, and she smiled again, mainly in relief that her brother was fully aware of what was going on. "All right, then," she said. "Do you remember what happened to you?" John blinked once. "Did it happen aboard the Challenger?" Again Randall blinked once. "Was what happened to you an accident?" she asked, and to her horror, her brother blinked his eyes twice. She instantly looked over to Dr. McCoy, who was just as startled as she was, and Joanna moved closer to the bed. "Johnny, are you saying what happened aboard the Challenger was not an accident?" Victoria asked again, a little fearfully, and again John blinked his eyes once. She again looked over at Dr. McCoy in horror, and Joanna quickly inserted herself into the conversation. "Lieutenant Randall, can you hear me?" she asked, and John slowly turned his head, making eye contact with her, then blinked once. Victoria held tightly to her brother's hand, now frightened at John's revelation. "I'm Dr. Joanna McCoy, and I'm in charge of your case," the doctor continued. "I need to ask you a question, Lieutenant. Are we starting to venture into Starfleet classified territory here?" John blinked once at her, and she nodded. "I thought so," she said. "All right, this is a good start. I want you to rest now, and we will get back with you later on." John blinked once, then turned his head back to Victoria, who smiled bravely at him. She squeezed his hand, and he returned it. She then bent over to kiss him on the cheek. "I won't be far, Johnny, I promise," she whispered, and kissed him again. "It's so wonderful to have you back with us," and her voice quavered a little. John squeezed her hand again, and she smiled at him. She then released his hand, and he closed his eyes. The women stepped away from the bed, and went into a corner of the room. Victoria was frightened, and Dr. McCoy knew it instantly. "Dr. McCoy, Johnny is saying it wasn't an accident!" she said, horror in her voice. "What is going on? What happened to him? What did they do to my brother?!" Joanna quickly took her by the shoulder. "Vicki, you need to calm down," she said. "Right now, I need you to be strong for your brother. He's not out of the woods by a long shot, and I need you to concentrate on him. Leave all this other stuff to me. You focus on your brother. You were a very stabilizing force on him right then, and I need you to maintain that. Can you do that for me?" Victoria stared at her for a moment, then took a deep breath, and nodded. "All right, Doctor," she said. "I trust you. I will look after Johnny. But, I want some answers, too," she concluded, and Joanna could see the determination in her eyes. "I will do what I can, Vicki," she said. "Frankly, I'd like to get some more information myself. And don't forget, I have a little pull at Starfleet should I need it." Victoria actually smiled at that. "Yes, you do, don't you?" she said, and both women laughed softly. "I've never been more grateful than now that you are who you are, Dr. McCoy. From the stories I've heard, your father wasn't one for being jerked around, and I believe you're a lot like him in that regard." Joanna nodded. "Sometimes too much for my own good," she said ruefully, and Victoria giggled. "But, I think this is one time where I can put that asset to good use. I will find out something one way or the other, Vicki, you have my word on that." Victoria nodded and gave Joanna a brief hug. "Thank you for everything you did for Johnny," she said. "We are in your debt." Dr. McCoy waved it aside. "Your brother did a lot of it, Vicki," she countered. "He's a strong man, and a strong-willed man. I know a couple of men like him, and they served on the same ship as my father. Now, you look after him, and leave the rest of it to me." Victoria nodded and went back to her brother's side, kissing him gently on the forehead as he lay there sleeping. Joanna watched them for a moment, and made a mental vow to herself: she genuinely liked this family, and she was going to find out what had happened to Lieutenant Randall aboard the Challenger. She was not without her ways of getting information, even at the classified level, for she had help there, and she was confident she could convince her father to help her. She also planned on talking to Lieutenant Randall again as soon as he got stronger. She squared her shoulders and left the room, heading for her office. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11603.21) The starbase medical staff continued to treat and check on John. His bandages were reapplied daily, and a physical therapist came in twice a day to keep his limbs from going stiff. John's vital signs remained steady for the most part as the staff kept him in the medically induced coma. One morning, a nurse was looking over his signs and body when in walked Amanda Richards, the security chief of the USS Avenger, Admiral Jason Baldwin's ship. Amanda told the nurse she had permission from the starbase CMO to visit John, and gave her a PADD with the authorization. The nurse nodded, finished her visit, and left. Amanda went over to the glass cylinder housing John's body. She walked to the head of the tube and stood there looking at him. Tears filled her eyes as she thought back to the image of the man before her when he was on his feet, and healthier than he was now. Her eyes took in the bandages and plasti-skin covering the entire left side of his body. She also stared in silence at the bandage wrapped around his head. Amanda had garnered some information from her CO, Baldwin, and knew John had been injured in an accident aboard his home ship, the Challenger. But that was all she knew, and she now stood there staring down at her friend. She bent down close to the glass tube, and spoke softly. "Oh John, what happened to you?" she whispered. "How did you end up like this?" Tears stung her eyes, and she closed them for a moment. She opened them, and a fierce look of determination crossed her face. "I'm not leaving here, John," she whispered. "I will be right here when you wake up." She looked around and spotted a chair in a corner. She retrieved it and placed it by the head of the tube. She sat down and crossed her legs, readying herself for a long vigil. ************************************************************************************************ After three days, John remained in the medically induced coma. Amanda had been recalled to the Avenger for duty, and Randall was once again alone in his room. Various engineering personnel had come by to see him as their duties allowed. On the fourth morning, the CMO of the Challenger was aboard the starbase in the base's CMO office. He normally went there every day for updates on John's condition, as well as other medical matters as they pertained to the ship. As he sat at a desk, a message beep sounded, and he glanced at his monitor. What he saw there, however, made him sit upright in his chair. After reading the message, he reached over and tabbed the comm button. "Challenger CMO to Captain Ja'Lale, come in, please," he said, and the captain answered a few seconds later. "Captain, I need to see you ASAP," the doctor said, and Ja'Lale responded that he/it was on the way. The captain arrived a few moments later, and the doctor waved him/it to a chair. "Captain, I have just received an unusual request from the family of Lieutenant Randall," he said, and Ja'Lale was immediately all attention. "They are requesting that his body be transported to his home planet of Centaurus," the doctor continued. "They feel the university hospital there would be better equipped to continue his care, and frankly, I agree with them." The captain nodded. "Have you discussed this with the starbase doctor and staff?" he/it asked, and the Challenger CMO nodded. "They agree that the university hospital would definitely have more resources and medical personnel to draw from," he said. "But, Captain, there was a name attached to the message, and that was what garnered my attention more than anything else. The name of the physician who would be in charge of the lieutenant's case is a very prominent one, indeed. The name was Dr. Joanna McCoy." Ja'Lale's facial features expressed surprise at that as well. "Ah, that McCoy," he/it said, referring to one of Starfleet's more legendary physicians, Dr. Leonard McCoy. "I didn't even know he had kids," the captain continued. "But, if you think this is what should be done, then by all means, make it happen, Doctor." The CMO nodded, then his eyebrows lifted as the captain's communicator beeped. Ja'Lale excused himself, and flipped open his communicator. "Well, Doctor, we've just received new orders from Starfleet," he/it said. "I would suggest you begin packing to go back onboard the ship." The CMO nodded. "I would suggest you inform the crew that if any of them wish to see Lieutenant Randall before he or we leave, now would be the time to do so," he said, and Ja'Lale nodded. "Anything else, Doctor?" he inquired, and the CMO shook his head. "Thank you for coming, Captain," he said. The captain nodded and left. The CMO sat back down at the terminal and sent a subspace message to Centaurus, authorizing them to come claim the body of Lieutenant Randall. The answer came a few moments later, and the CMO raised his eyebrows when he saw who the pilot would be of the Centauran ship; John's own brother, Richard Randall. ************************************************************************************************ The ship from Centaurus arrived 12 hours later. Richard jumped from the pilot's chair and made his way to the medical team that would be in charge of his brother's body. The team made their way into the starbase and went directly to John's room. The starbase medical team were waiting for them, and the transfer of equipment went very smoothly between the two teams. Richard was able to view his brother as the transfer was completed, and tears came to his eyes as he saw the condition of John's body. He watched in silence as the teams performed their duties, but anger was welling up inside him as well. What had happened to his brother, he thought as he watched the teams work. He was going to get some answers, one way or the other, he vowed to himself. The ship's medical team began transporting John to the Centauran ship. Richard walked a little distance behind them, and so he was able to see that a few of the crew of the Challenger were lined up next to the airlock leading to the ship. As the anti-grav cart containing John's body came abreast of them, they came to attention and snapped the Starfleet salute. Richard nodded at them as he walked by, appreciating the gesture, though still angry at the lack of information surrounding what had happened to his brother. The team loaded John aboard the vessel, and Richard took his place in the pilot's chair. He went through the preflight checks, then checked with the starbase for the actual liftoff. He received permission to launch a few moments later, and the Centauran ship took off from the launch bay, going to warp a few seconds later. The trip was without incident, and 12 hours later, the ship set down on the floor of the Centauran spacedock. John's body was transferred to a shuttlecraft, and Richard got permission to ride along to the hospital, where he knew his mother and sister would be waiting. His sister Victoria was in the Starfleet Medical Corps, and was an LPN now. Dr. McCoy had learned of this from other personnel in the hospital, and had invited John's sister to be part of her team. The family was very grateful to Dr. McCoy for the invitation. The shuttlecraft arrived at the hospital, and Dr. McCoy's team were waiting at the pad. John's body was offloaded, and the hospital team transported him inside the facility. He was taken to an observation room, and Richard joined his mother as they watched John taken inside the room. Dr. McCoy came over to them. "He's in good hands now," she said, smiling at each of them. "I will keep you updated on his condition at regular intervals. Don't worry, he's going to be fine. I have called in some specialists, with the help of my father. He will be receiving the best care possible. Just let us do our jobs." Denise, John's mother, nodded gratefully to Joanna. "I'm glad you're here, Dr. McCoy," she said. "I feel better knowing my son is in your capable hands. Everyone has told me you are a lot like your father, and I don't think there's anyone who doesn't know him or of him. Thank you for being here." Joanna nodded, smiling. "I will do my very best, Mrs. Randall," she said. She smiled again and went into the room. Victoria passed by the window in the door and waved at them. Denise turned to Richard, and her son took his mother in his arms. "Oh Rick, what happened to him?" she cried. "He was always so careful." "I don't know, Mom," answered her son. "But I'm gonna get some answers. One way or another, I'll find out." There was an undercurrent of steel in his voice, and Denise realized her son was angry. She held him a little tighter, scared for her son John, and now worried about Rick. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11603.08) The Challenger ran on full impulse power toward Starbase 179, the Einstein cruising along beside her. A little while later, however, the long range sensors indicated four starships zeroing in on their coordinates. The Challenger came to a halt, and communications were exchanged between the ships. The four starships then connected tractor beams to the Challenger, and were able to tow her at warp speed to the starbase. The Challenger eased itself into the docking bay, and the starbase repair teams wasted no time reporting for duty. Work began on the crippled ship, and Captain Ja'Lale informed the crew they would be able to take shore leave while the ship was being repaired. In the sickbay of the Challenger, preparations were made to beam the body of Lieutenant Randall to the starbase hospital. The medical team then gently placed John on a medical anti-grav cart, and took it over to the medical transporter. Just before the beamout, Commander Erica Rinax, the executive officer of the Challenger, burst through the sickbay door. She quickly spotted the CMO, and strode over to him. "Doctor, I have been cleared by the captain to accompany the lieutenant to the starbase hospital," she said. The CMO nodded. "You may beam over after we send the body," he replied, and Rinax nodded. Coordinates were exchanged, and the anti-grav cart containing Randall's body shimmered out of existence, Rinax following a few seconds later. The cart materialized in the transporter room of the starbase hospital, and the medical team present quickly descended the dais with it. They went out the door of the room just as Rinax materialized on the pad. She was hurriedly out the door, joining the med team as they took John's body down the corridor. They went into the designated room for John, and the med team quickly began assembling their instruments, devices, and probes they would be using. Another doctor came into the room, and began issuing orders. Rinax stood by for a moment, then the doctor spotted her. "And who are you?" he asked. "I'm Commander Erica Rinax, first officer of the Challenger," she replied, and the doctor nodded. "What is your business here, Commander?" he asked, and Rinax replied, "I wish to receive hourly updates on the condition of our chief engineer." The doctor rolled his eyes and said, "We will provide updates when we get them, Commander. You could help me more by telling me what happened to this officer." "I'm afraid that's classified, doctor," she said, and the doctor gave her an exasperated look. "For pete's sake, Commander, I don't have time for this bureaucratic nonsense!" he snapped at her. "All I need to know is very generally what happened to him. No more than what I would get from a press release. Now help your engineer out!" Rinax regarded him a moment, then gave the barest details of what had happened to John. The doctor nodded when she finished. "Thank you, Commander," he said. "That gives me a better idea of what we're up against here. Now, if you wish to see him, you have five minutes before we clear the room." He then abruptly left her and went over to his medical team. Rinax walked over to the long, clear tube that housed Randall's body. He was clothed only in a white sheet, and there were bandages over the entire left side of his body. She looked at him a moment, then glanced around the room, but the medical personnel were on the other side of the room, giving her privacy. She bent down close over the tube. "Lieutenant," she began in a whisper, then angrily shook her head. "John," she began again, "if you can hear me, get well quickly. The whole ship is pulling for you, so don't let us down. We need you back." She straightened, and angrily brushed tears from her eyes. She looked at him a moment longer, then the doctor announced that all non-medical personnel should leave the room. She turned and left. The doctor stared after her a moment, then turned back to his team, and they began to work on Randall. A half hour later, however, an alarm sounded, and John's vital signs dropped. The team worked feverishly to boost his vitals, and after a tense fifteen minutes, John's vitals returned to the levels they had been at. The team glanced at one another, sighed in relief, and continued their work. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11602.18) The med team and the anti-grav cart carrying John's body materialized on the transporter dais in sickbay. The team hurriedly descended the dais and took Randall's body to a nearby bio-bed. The medical computer analyzed John's injuries, and the CMO shook his head as he saw the results displayed on the monitor. "This officer is in bad shape," he announced to his team. He then began issuing orders on what treatments John was to receive. The team worked on Randall's body for the next half hour; the entire left side of the chief engineer's body was a mass of burns. The team took great care in applying salve and other chemicals to the burned areas. A regeneration tube was then brought over to the body, and John's left side was encased in the tube. The CMO then ordered his team to take a break and rest, it would take a while for the tube to work its magic. 2 hours later, the doctor checked on the results from the regen unit, and nodded to himself; the tube had done all it could do for now. The next phase of the treatment could begin; John's head would require surgery, and it was going to be a tricky and challenging operation. John's body was prepped for the surgery, and he was taken into the operating room. A total of 105 minutes were required for the procedure, and the CMO was drained when the operation was finished. He ordered Randall's body be moved to the recovery room, then went to his office to rest a bit. After catching his breath, the doctor knew he had to let the captain know what was going on with his chief engineer. He summoned the captain to sickbay, and a few minutes later, Ja'Lale came through the doors. The doctor was summoned by a nurse, and he came out into the room. "Captain, thank you for coming," he said. "I have an update on Lieutenant Randall." The doctor led the captain into the recovery room, and Ja'Lale regarded Randall's body with some dismay. "Captain," the doctor continued, "Lieutenant Randall is in bad shape. He was caught in the blast from the cloaking device when it exploded. He has extensive burns all on his left side from his neck to his ankles. His uniform was burnt away, as you could probably tell. He also was hit in the head by a piece of the device, which knocked him through a doorway, and he collided with the wall of the corridor beyond. "As a result of that, the left side of his skull was fractured just above his ear. It's the same place where it had been fractured around 4 years ago by a Klingon whom Randall vanquished in one-on-one combat, or so I read in his medical file. An operation was performed to repair the fracture, and it was successful. That is why his head is bound the way it is." The captain absorbed the information from the doctor, his eyes never leaving Randall's body. After a few seconds, he turned and looked at the CMO. "What is the prognosis?" he asked in a rough voice. The doctor shook his head. "At this time, sir, it's too early to tell," he replied. "The next 12 hours will be crucial for the lieutenant. His vital signs are very low and fluctuating. In my opinion, Captain, Lieutenant Randall is very lucky to be alive." Ja'Lale nodded, and looked at John again, then returned his attention to the doctor. "Well, the lieutenant is a tough man," he said. "I've actually seen him in worse shape than this. He's a fighter, Doctor, that has to be one thing in his favor." The CMO nodded. "It will help, Captain," he agreed. "The lieutenant needs all the help he can get right now. One other thing, Captain. When he recovers, and I sincerely hope he does, it will be months, I'm afraid, before Lieutenant Randall will be able to return to duty. He has some major healing to do, and I am not going to rush it. You will have to do without the services of your chief engineer for a good while." The captain nodded. "Anything else, Doctor?" he asked, and the CMO shook his head. "I will, of course, keep you updated on his condition," he said. Ja'Lale nodded. "Thank you, Doctor. Take care of him." The captain turned and regarded Randall's body once more, then he whirled and strode out of sickbay. The CMO watched the captain leave, then regarded John himself. "Godspeed to you, Lieutenant," he whispered, knowing the chief engineer had a battle in front of him. Unknown to the doctor, ensign Susan Maloney had slipped into sickbay behind the captain, and had overheard the conversation. She had left before the captain, and had made her way down the corridor to the turbolift, weeping the entire way. She rode the lift to deck six, where an engineering team led by Jeff Michaels was still trying to extract the fighter craft of Lieutenant Dyan Sylvanis from a corridor wall. Maloney made her way to Michaels, and haltingly, through her tears, repeated the conversation between the doctor and the captain to him. Michaels stood in stunned disbelief at the news, then closed his eyes and bowed his head. The team, watching him, temporarily stopped their work, knowing something was wrong. Michaels raised his head and found everyone staring at him. He relayed the news given him by Maloney, and identical expressions of stunned disbelief swept the entire team. A few seconds later, Michaels ordered the team back to work, saying, "Let's get this done for the chief!" The team roared approval, and went to work with renewed vigor. Michaels watched them a moment, then pulled out his communicator, and informed Lieutenant Steve Davis of John's condition. A few moments of silence told Michaels Davis was just as stunned as he had been. He told Davis he would contact him with an update as soon as he found out anything new, and signed off. He raised his hand to his eyes, and let out a long, shuddering breath. He was now worried sick about his friend, and was afraid John might never be the same after this. He then went to give his team a helping hand, trying to take his mind off his friend. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11602.06) John arrived with his team on the upper floor of engineering. They were there to assess and evaluate the damage sustained by the cloaking device. John still wasn't sure what had happened to the ship; it had all at once began shuddering badly, so much so that anyone who was standing was thrown off their feet. Minor bumps and bruises so far, but there had been reports of heavy damage in the middle decks of the Challenger; Jeff Michaels had taken a team with him to inspect the damage and begin repairs. John's other friend, Lieutenant Steve Davis, had checked in and was with a team at the warp core, trying to repair the damaged warp engines; the impulse engines were running, but sounded very rough, Davis had reported to John via communicator. John directed his team to various points around the cloaking device, and they began assessing the damage. A few minutes into the investigation, John got a beep on his communicator, and whipped it out, flipping it open. "Randall here," he said, and the voice of Jeff Michaels came to him. "Chief, we've got a hell of a situation on deck six," he said. "We got a massive hull breach here, and it apparently was caused by one of the fighter squadron crashing into and through the ship. The craft itself is embedded in a corridor wall, and we think the pilot is still inside. We are endeavoring to try to get to the pilot. It's a royal mess up here, John." Randall said, "Is the force field in place, Jeff?" "That's affirmative, Chief," Michaels replied. "There's no power where we are, but I have a team on that, including our new arrival Ensign Chaz. He's an Andorian, sir." "He should be able to provide some help," said John. "I read the file on him, he's well touted by the Academy, so use him, Jeff." "Acknowledged, Chief," came the reply. "We're starting to try to get into the craft now. Will keep you posted. Michaels out." John replaced his communicator on his belt, and stood there thinking. What had happened that would cause a fighter craft to actually crash into the ship? There was more going on here than anyone knew, apparently, and he didn't like it. He took out his tricorder and scanned the device from the angle he had. The scans began showing readings that, frankly, didn't make any sense. The team worked for a while, John receiving updates from Michaels and Davis periodically. The damage had apparently been somewhat localized to the middle decks of the Challenger; six, seven and eight were the most heavily damaged, but it was mostly structural and power outages. Challenger would definitely have to report back to the starbase for some of the repairs, however; the ship just didn't carry the materials required to repair the more heavily damaged structural areas. Power was slowly being restored, but it was a hit-and-miss undertaking at best; there was simply too much damage in some areas to get to the junctions and relays. Michaels reported to Randall that they were doing the best they could, but it was just too big a mess to get to everything. John told his friend to stop worrying about what he couldn't do, and repair what he could. The team had been working for about an hour on the cloaking device when suddenly a very ominous sound came from it. John's head snapped up from his tricorder, and gave an order for silence. After listening for fifteen seconds, he gave another order. "EVERYONE OUT OF HERE STAT!!!" he roared, and the team scrambled immediately for the door of the generator room. They made their way to the glass lift, and rode it down in groups of three, which was unsafe, but this was no time to adhere to regulations. John kept urging his crew out, until finally he saw he would indeed be the last one out. He began to exit the room when suddenly the cloaking device gave a shrill, loud whistle, then exploded. John was caught in the blast and his body was hurled through the doorway, slamming into the corridor wall. As he began to crumple, a piece of the device caught him on the left side of his head. His head ricocheted off the wall, and he was unconscious before he hit the floor. He was found a few moments later by ensign Susan Maloney, who screamed when she saw him, then whipped out her communicator and called for a med team. She went over to John, and saw the ugly wound on the side of his head, and it was bleeding profusely. She quickly took a rag she had hanging from her belt, and wrapped his head as best she could, lightly pressing her hand against the wound to try to slow down the bleeding. She was crying as she held his head; she had come to like and respect Lieutenant Randall, as he had been such a big help to her ever since she had come aboard the Challenger. The med team arrived a few minutes later, and they took over the job of caring for the chief engineer. A fresh bandage was wrapped around John's head, and the team placed him gently on an anti-grav cart. They took his body to the glass lift and rode it down. They then took him over to the intra-ship transporter dais and they shimmered out of sight. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11602.01) John was awakened by the computer nearly 9 hours later; to the chief engineer, it seemed only five minutes ago. He stretched his arms above his head, then got out of bed. He went into the head and proceeded to take a 20 minute relatively hot shower. He stepped out, toweled himself dry, and went back into the bedroom to put on a fresh uniform. He came back out into the living area and went over to the computer terminal. He got an update on the mission, and seeing nothing much was happening, decided to eat some breakfast. John exited his cabin and walked along the corridor to the officers' mess. He went up to the replicator and ordered breakfast. He then took his tray and sat down at a nearby table to eat. He finished his meal, dumped the remains of his tray into the recycler, and exited the mess. He walked along the corridor to the turbolift shaft and waited for a car. It arrived moments later and he stepped in. "Deck 12," he said, and the lift sped off. It arrived moments later, and he exited, going along the corridor until he reached engineering. The doors swished open at his approach, and he made his way inside. As he entered, he was immediately hailed by Lieutenant Jeff Michaels, who greeted him with obvious relief. "Boy, am I glad to see you, pal," he said. "Take a look at this," and he directed John to a monitor which showed the status of the warp field that the engines generated. It was slightly deformed, and after a few seconds of deliberation, John thought he knew why, having seen the same thing happen on the Altair. "What speed was the ship doing, Jeff?" he asked, and Michaels replied, "Warp 8." Randall nodded. "The same thing happened aboard the Altair," he replied. "We'll have to reconfigure the warp field to interact with the cloak generated by the device. Here's what we need to do," and he gave Michaels instructions on how to fix the problem. John punched the comm as Michaels and the assembled team began work on the configurement of the warp field. He sent a hail to the bridge, but got no immediate answer. Shaking his head, he nudged his friend. "If the captain ever answers, tell him what we're doing. I'll be in the generator room." Michaels nodded, and John left the main console, heading for his office. He retrieved his toolkit and left the office, heading for the warp core. He walked to the glass elevator that connected the two floors of engineering, and rode the lift to the top floor. He exited and went down the narrow corridor to the generator room. He entered and made for the starboard generator first. He began inputting equations that he had stored and saved on his PADD from the Altair into the panel. He finished and went over to the port generator, repeating the process. He finished and pulled out his communicator. "Randall to Michaels," he said, and his friend answered immediately. "That should do it," he continued. "Contact the bridge and tell them they can try warp 8 again." "Acknowledged, boss," replied Michaels. "Michaels out." John stood watching the readouts on the panels, and after a few moments, satisfied himself that the adjustments had worked. He contacted Michaels again and informed his friend that he was returning to engineering. He holstered his communicator and left the generator room. He walked down the corridor to the lift, and rode it to the ground floor of engineering. He then made his way to the office after nodding at Michaels, who gave him a thumbs-up at the main console. John went into the office and sat down at the desk. It was his desk now, apparently, and he wondered briefly what had caused the prior chief of engineering, Lieutenant Commander Ed Freeman, to leave Starfleet. That was the word he had been able to divine from overheard conversations aboard the ship. He had also heard that the navigator of the Challenger, Lieutenant H.G. Reed, had taken an extended leave of absence from duty, and he sent out a silent prayer that all was well with his friends. He then sighed at the PADDs that had accumlated on his desk, and set to work logging the contents into the computer. He finished about an hour later, and sat back in the chair. The e-mail indicator was flashing as he returned the computer to the home screen, and he clicked on it, revealing a message from Amanda Richards, the security chief of the Avenger, whom John had met and befriended on his most recent covert mission. He accessed the e-mail and smiled as he read it, then typed out a response, and sent it over subspace to the Avenger. The comm suddenly beeped, and the voice of Captain Ja'Lale came over the speaker. "Ja'Lale to Randall," it said, and John answered. "Lieutenant, be ready to re-engage the cloak as soon as the fighter squadron leaves the ship." A little puzzled, Randall replied, "Aye, Captain, we are standing by down here. All systems green across the board. Randall out." He got up from behind the desk and went back out into engineering, walking over to the main console. Michaels saw him coming and beckoned to him. "Chief, I was just about to contact you," he said. "The captain wanted the cloak dropped so a fighter squadron could leave the ship." John nodded, a wry smile appearing on his face. "Yes, so I was just notified by the captain," he said, and chuckled as a slightly shocked expression appeared on Michaels' face. John gave his friend a friendly swat on the shoulder. "Don't sweat it, dude," he said. "It was virtually a dead heat between you and the captain. Show me what's going on." Michaels nodded and filled Randall in on the happenings of the past hour or so. John then said, "Let's double check everything so we don't get caught with our pants down." Michaels grinned and nodded, and the two men sat down at the console. John directed the team at the console on the procedures, and they began work. The next 12 hours went by, and the alpha shift was showing signs of fatigue. John watched his crew carefully, waiting for the delta shift to report for duty. Then suddenly, the ship began to shake badly; personnel and loose objects hit the floor all over engineering. Randall was shaken out of his chair, along with others at the console. He grabbed the chair and struggled up from the floor, barking, "Report!" Michaels' voice came to him. "Chief, we're receiving damage reports from all over the ship. Apparently, the cloaking device was reactivated, and something's gone wrong. The warp engines are offline, and the impulse drive has been damaged." John nodded, having regained his seat in the chair. He accessed the damage reports himself, and frowned heavily at the sheer volume of the reports. 'What the hell happened,' he thought, then, as the ship finally subsided, got to his feet, and began issuing orders, as well as assigning teams. His friend Steve Davis, who now commanded the night shift, reported in, and John immediately assigned him and a team to repair the engines. He told Michaels to assemble a team and head for the more heavily damaged areas. He then assembled a team of his own, and they made their way to the generator room to check on the cloaking device. END LOG

Thank you, Commander. I will be waiting for the 1/31 log to be posted.

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11602.01) John was awakened by the computer nearly 9 hours later; to the chief engineer, it seemed only five minutes ago. He stretched his arms above his head, then got out of bed. He went into the head and proceeded to take a 20 minute relatively hot shower. He stepped out, toweled himself dry, and went back into the bedroom to put on a fresh uniform. He came back out into the living area and went over to the computer terminal. He got an update on the mission, and seeing nothing much was happening, decided to eat some breakfast. John exited his cabin and walked along the corridor to the officers' mess. He went up to the replicator and ordered breakfast. He then took his tray and sat down at a nearby table to eat. He finished his meal, dumped the remains of his tray into the recycler, and exited the mess. He walked along the corridor to the turbolift shaft and waited for a car. It arrived moments later and he stepped in. "Deck 12," he said, and the lift sped off. It arrived moments later, and he exited, going along the corridor until he reached engineering. The doors swished open at his approach, and he made his way inside. As he entered, he was immediately hailed by Lieutenant Jeff Michaels, who greeted him with obvious relief. "Boy, am I glad to see you, pal," he said. "Take a look at this," and he directed John to a monitor which showed the status of the warp field that the engines generated. It was slightly deformed, and after a few seconds of deliberation, John thought he knew why, having seen the same thing happen on the Altair. "What speed was the ship doing, Jeff?" he asked, and Michaels replied, "Warp 8." Randall nodded. "The same thing happened aboard the Altair," he replied. "We'll have to reconfigure the warp field to interact with the cloak generated by the device. Here's what we need to do," and he gave Michaels instructions on how to fix the problem. John punched the comm as Michaels and the assembled team began work on the configurement of the warp field. He sent a hail to the bridge, but got no immediate answer. Shaking his head, he nudged his friend. "If the captain ever answers, tell him what we're doing. I'll be in the generator room." Michaels nodded, and John left the main console, heading for his office. He retrieved his toolkit and left the office, heading for the warp core. He walked to the glass elevator that connected the two floors of engineering, and rode the lift to the top floor. He exited and went down the narrow corridor to the generator room. He entered and made for the starboard generator first. He began inputting equations that he had stored and saved on his PADD from the Altair into the panel. He finished and went over to the port generator, repeating the process. He finished and pulled out his communicator. "Randall to Michaels," he said, and his friend answered immediately. "That should do it," he continued. "Contact the bridge and tell them they can try warp 8 again." "Acknowledged, boss," replied Michaels. "Michaels out." John stood watching the readouts on the panels, and after a few moments, satisfied himself that the adjustments had worked. He contacted Michaels again and informed his friend that he was returning to engineering. He holstered his communicator and left the generator room. He walked down the corridor to the lift, and rode it to the ground floor of engineering. He then made his way to the office after nodding at Michaels, who gave him a thumbs-up at the main console. John went into the office and sat down at the desk. It was his desk now, apparently, and he wondered briefly what had caused the prior chief of engineering, Lieutenant Commander Ed Freeman, to leave Starfleet. That was the word he had been able to divine from overheard conversations aboard the ship. He had also heard that the navigator of the Challenger, Lieutenant H.G. Reed, had taken an extended leave of absence from duty, and he sent out a silent prayer that all was well with his friends. He then sighed at the PADDs that had accumlated on his desk, and set to work logging the contents into the computer. He finished about an hour later, and sat back in the chair. The e-mail indicator was flashing as he returned the computer to the home screen, and he clicked on it, revealing a message from Amanda Richards, the security chief of the Avenger, whom John had met and befriended on his most recent covert mission. He accessed the e-mail and smiled as he read it, then typed out a response, and sent it over subspace to the Avenger. The comm suddenly beeped, and the voice of Captain Ja'Lale came over the speaker. "Ja'Lale to Randall," it said, and John answered. "Lieutenant, be ready to re-engage the cloak as soon as the fighter squadron leaves the ship." A little puzzled, Randall replied, "Aye, Captain, we are standing by down here. All systems green across the board. Randall out." He got up from behind the desk and went back out into engineering, walking over to the main console. Michaels saw him coming and beckoned to him. "Chief, I was just about to contact you," he said. "The captain wanted the cloak dropped so a fighter squadron could leave the ship." John nodded, a wry smile appearing on his face. "Yes, so I was just notified by the captain," he said, and chuckled as a slightly shocked expression appeared on Michaels' face. John gave his friend a friendly swat on the shoulder. "Don't sweat it, dude," he said. "It was virtually a dead heat between you and the captain. Show me what's going on." Michaels nodded and filled Randall in on the happenings of the past hour or so. John then said, "Let's double check everything so we don't get caught with our pants down." Michaels grinned and nodded, and the two men sat down at the console. John directed the team at the console on the procedures, and they began work. The next 12 hours went by, and the alpha shift was showing signs of fatigue. John watched his crew carefully, waiting for the delta shift to report for duty. Then suddenly, the ship began to shake badly; personnel and loose objects hit the floor all over engineering. Randall was shaken out of his chair, along with others at the console. He grabbed the chair and struggled up from the floor, barking, "Report!" Michaels' voice came to him. "Chief, we're receiving damage reports from all over the ship. Apparently, the cloaking device was reactivated, and something's gone wrong. The warp engines are offline, and the impulse drive has been damaged." John nodded, having regained his seat in the chair. He accessed the damage reports himself, and frowned heavily at the sheer volume of the reports. 'What the hell happened,' he thought, then, as the ship finally subsided, got to his feet, and began issuing orders, as well as assigning teams. His friend Steve Davis, who now commanded the night shift, reported in, and John immediately assigned him and a team to repair the engines. He told Michaels to assemble a team and head for the more heavily damaged areas. He then assembled a team of his own, and they made their way to the generator room to check on the cloaking device. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11601.13) John materialized in the transporter room of the Challenger after beaming over from the Avenger. He stepped down from the dais, nodded to the transporter officer, and exited the room. He went out into the corridor and walked to the turbolift. When the car arrived, he stepped in and said, "Deck 3." The lift sped off. The lift arrived, and he stepped out into the corridor. He made his way along it, nodding to various crewmembers along the way until he reached his cabin. He went through the doors and walked over to stand in front of the sofa. He slammed his duffel bag to the floor, and sat down heavily on the sofa. He ran his hands through his hair, and leaned back against the sofa, his hands still on his head. The memories of the first (and final) meeting with the person who had betrayed his father would not leave his mind. He pictured her again giving him a hug, then snatching his phaser from its holster, twisting the setting to "kill", then turning the phaser on herself. John smiled savagely, however, as the firefight with the Romulans ran through his mind. He had enjoyed every bit of the fight, he'd be a fool to not admit that to himself. It had felt good blowing away some of those green skinned bastards, and he wasn't ashamed to admit to himself. His smile softened, then, as the memory of the last meeting with the Avenger's security chief, Lieutenant Amanda Richards, played in his mind. She had wished him well, then, much to his surprise, had actually kissed him. They had set up a code between them so they could share messages anonymously, and promised each other they would stay in touch. Thinking of that, John arose from the sofa, stripped off his clothes, and went into the head to take a shower. 20 minutes later, he stepped out and toweled himself dry. He went into the bedroom and put on a fresh uniform. He came back and headed for the computer terminal. He sat down and composed an e-mail to Amanda, then sent it as the Avenger was still docked at Starbase 179, as the Challenger was. He received a reply not two minutes later, and smiled as he read it. He then thought he should check in with engineering where his friend Lieutenant (j.g.) Jeff Michaels was in command. He was reaching for the comm button when it suddenly crackled into life. "Rinax to Randall," came the voice of the executive officer. John punched the comm. "Randall here," he answered. "Are you aboard the ship somewhere, Lieutenant?" asked the XO, and John smiled briefly. "I am in my cabin just getting ready to report for duty," he said. "I need you on the bridge, Lieutenant," Rinax said, and John raised his eyebrows. "I've been doing a little poking around in engineering and some of the Jefferies tubes, and I'm a little concerned over some procedures undertaken by the starbase repair crews." John moaned mentally, then answered, "Understood, Commander, I'll be right there. Randall out." He closed his eyes tight for a moment and thought, 'Here we go again.' He then punched the comm. "Randall to Michaels," he said, and his friend answered almost immediately. "Michaels here." "Jeff, I need you to hold the fort, I've been summoned to the bridge by the XO," said John. "No sweat, pal, we're green across the board here, and I think we just left the base," replied Michaels. "All right then, I'll be there ASAP," said Randall. "You need to talk after a while, buddy?" asked his friend, and John knew Jeff was concerned about him. "Yeah, we'll get together later," he said. "Randall out." He sat back a moment, then sent an e-mail to the science station on the bridge, asking the chief science officer, and his friend, Lieutenant Anastasia Poldara, if she would be free to talk later. He then arose from the terminal and exited his cabin, heading for the turbolift. He rode the lift to the bridge, and stepped out. He made his way down the ramp and came over to where the captain and commander sat. Rinax nodded to him. "Good to have you back, Lieutenant," she said, and Ja'Lale echoed her sentiment. "Good to be back, Commander, Captain," replied John. He then looked at Rinax. "You wanted to see me?" Rinax nodded, and turned to the captain. "Will you join us, sir?" she asked, and the captain nodded. He gave the conn to Poldara, who came over from her post at the science station. Her eyes met John's briefly, then she sat in the captain's chair. Randall gave a mental shrug and followed the captain and the exec into the conference room just off the bridge. They all sat down, and Rinax told both officers what she had discovered. The captain ordered John to trace and repair whatever seemed to be wrong or out of place, and Rinax handed him a PADD with what all she had found. John said he'd get a team on it, and the meeting broke up. John left the room and walked across the top tier of the bridge to the lift. He stepped in and said, "Deck 12." As the doors began to close, he saw Ana glance over at him as she got up from the captain's chair, but he could read nothing in her dark eyes. The doors slid shut, and the lift whisked him away. He arrived a few moments later and stepped out into the corridor. He walked the short distance to engineering and entered the department. He acknowledged the greetings from his crew, who seemed glad to see him, and made his way to the main console where Michaels was tracking something on his monitor. "Hey, Jeff," John said, and his friend looked up, smiling. "Welcome back, Chief," replied Michaels. Jeff then filled him in on the current situation, and Randall nodded. He then told Michaels of his meeting with the captain and commander, and told him to assemble a repair team. Michaels did so, and John gave them instructions on what needed to be done. He gave Michaels the PADD furnished by Rinax, and the team left engineering. John stayed in engineering and Michaels gave him updates periodically on the team's progress. Nearly 10 hours later, Jeff gave John the final update and announced the team seemed to have finished the job. Randall gave them a 'job well done' and told them to go get some rest. He stayed in engineering himself another three hours until his friend Steve Davis (j.g. LT.) came to relieve him as the night crew came on. John gave Steve a short list of duties to perform, then logged out for the night. He made his way out of engineering to the turbolift, and rode it to the deck containing his cabin. He entered the cabin and went over to the computer terminal. There was no reply from Ana to his e-mail of earlier, so he shrugged and went into the bedroom. He took off his uniform and climbed into bed, giving the computer his wake-up time. The computer acknowledged, and John went to sleep. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11601.08) John and Martha were ushered into a room with glass walls. The Romulan guards then withdrew, and took up positions outside the room. They could see every move that the two Starfleet officers would make, but they could not overhear the conversation about to take place. Braxton walked immediately to the chair in the northwest corner, and sat down heavily. She shook her head as John approached her, and waved him toward the other chair in the room. "Sit down, Johnny," she said. "I know you have questions, maybe even accusations, for me. Let's talk." John pulled the chair over in front of her, and sat down. His eyes were chips of ice as he stared at her. "All right, Martha," he growled, and Braxton's head came up immediately, shocked by the anger in his voice. "I've heard Starfleet's side of the story, now I want you to tell me yours. And, it better be good, lady," he said onimously. Braxton stared at him, tears in her eyes. "My stars, you remind me so much of Marcus," she quavered. "He had the exact same scowl you do. Oh my heavens, where to begin? Johnny, you may hate me for saying this, but your father and I once were more than friends," and Randall sat bolt upright in his chair. "That's a lie!" he shouted. "My father was never unfaithful to my mother! How dare you!" Braxton looked at him steadily, not cowering this time. "It never got that far, my boy," she said quietly. "Marcus wouldn't allow it. We were very good friends, he would confide in me about things which he couldn't tell his wife. It was intimate talk, but that's all it ever was. "Your father loved your mother dearly, Johnny," she went on. "He hated being away from her and you kids. The mission he was killed on was going to be his last. That afternoon, Marcus told me he had found the Romulan guilty of smuggling contraband into the Federation. He was going after him. I couldn't allow that to happen. The Romulan and I were partners," and John's eyes went wide. "What?" he whispered, shocked by the revelation. Braxton nodded. "There was some major money being made, Johnny, and I needed every credit I could get my hands on. I was indebted to some very bad men, and if I didn't get them their money, they were going to kill me. So, I couldn't allow Marcus to find my partner in crime. I panicked, and made the worst decision of my life. I told the Romulan who Marcus really was, and later that evening, he and his partners cornered Marcus outside the Martian spacedocks. The rest you know." John nodded, his eyes chips of ice as he stared at her. "Somehow, Jason, Admiral Baldwin to you," she continued, "found out about our illegal doings. He tracked the Romulan, and I was told he brought you along on the mission that SI undertook to find him, and you killed him." John nodded again. "I knew then my days were numbered, and I sent the Romulans a message via their secret network, or whatever it was they had. They came and got me, but somehow, Jason found out about that as well, and now, here we are." John stared at her for a few seconds, then abruptly shot to his feet, and walked a little distance from her. He took a deep breath, and turned to face her. "Why didn't you just tell Dad what was going on?" he asked bitterly. "He would've helped you, you must have known that!" Braxton nodded, tears coming to her eyes. "As I said, I panicked," she quavered. "I made the worst decision of my life, Johnny, and I'd give my life to reverse it. There's nothing I can say to you, nothing I can do. You want to kill me, I can see it in your eyes. I won't resist you, Johnny, if you want to kill me. Lord knows I deserve it," and tears rolled down her cheeks. "I was responsible for taking your daddy away from you," she sobbed. "Now, I beg of you, end it for me. I'm tired of all this, Johnny, I just want it to end." She buried her face in her hands and sobbed loudly. John could do nothing but stand and stare at her. He had the person responsible for his father's death before him, but he was powerless to do anything about it. Braxton arose from the chair and slowly made her way over to him. She put her arms around his waist and sobbed into his chest. John found himself putting his arms around her in return, and he was shocked that he was doing it. But, a few moments later, he felt a tug on his holster that housed his phaser. Braxton pushed herself away from him, the phaser in her right hand. She hurriedly adjusted the setting, and turned the phaser on herself. Randall watched in horror as Braxton's body disintegrated before his eyes. He knew she had adjusted the phaser setting to "kill". He ran over and grabbed the dropped phaser just as the two Romulan guards burst into the room. John never hesitated, he fired at both guards, and their bodies winked out of existence. Randall burst into the corridor as alarms sounded everywhere in the building. He reset the phaser to stun, and began firing at the Romulans that came pouring out of their rooms. The Starfleet personnel came charging from their rooms as well, and all hell broke loose in the building. The fight was vicious but brief; the Starfleet team fought their way out of the building, scrambling toward the stolen Romulan shuttle. The team made it aboard, and the pilot began warming up the engines. John scrambled aboard, and made his way to the engineering section. He went through the procedures, and a few moments later informed the pilot via comlink that the engines were ready to go. The shuttle lifted off from the base and made its way through the atmosphere of the planet into space. Once they were in space, the pilot activated the warp engine, and the shuttle streaked into hyperspace. The team had lost only five members, four of which were security guards, and one of the technicians had been hit by a disruptor bolt squarely in the back. The tech died shortly after takeoff. John leaned against the wall in the small engineering department, his mind replaying the final moments of Braxton's life. He felt someone sit on the bench beside him, and he opened his eyes to see the green eyes of Amanda Richards watching him. She sighed and laid her head against his shoulder. "I'm so glad you didn't get hit," she whispered. "And I you," he replied. She snorted and showed him her right arm, which was heavily bandaged. "Hate to disappoint you, but," she grinned, and John was instantly concerned. "How bad is it?" he whispered, and she shook her head. "Nothing a few hours in a regen tube won't fix," she answered. "I'm sorry," he replied, and she swatted him with her good hand. "Now you hush," she said, and smiled warmly at him. "That was the most fun I've had in ages. It was my own fault I got hit, got careless for a second, and some idiot actually got me. So don't you be apologizing to me, hear?" John smiled. "Yes, ma'am," he said, and she smiled at him again. "Will you be going back to Challenger when we get back?" she asked, and he nodded. "This is my last covert mission," he said. "I'm officially retiring after this one." Amanda nodded, biting her lip. "So I'll probably never see you again," she whispered, and John turned to look at her. "We could find a way to stay in touch, I think," he replied, and her eyes brightened. "You mean that?" she asked, and he nodded. "I'd like that, John, I really would," she continued. "I don't have many friends, and I definitely don't have any like you. Let's work out a code or something where we can send each other messages." John nodded. "I'd like that, Amanda," he said, and they talked the rest of the way to Federation space. The shuttle arrived at the Avenger a few hours later, and the team exited the shuttle. They made their way to the conference room to be debriefed, then they all reported to their cabins, or to sickbay, depending on their injuries. They all got some sleep as the Avenger made its way back to Starbase 179. Baldwin called John into his ready room before the Avenger docked. "Well, John, it was good to have you along for the ride again," he said. The Challenger engineer nodded. "This is the last time though, Admiral," he said. "I'm done here. My place is on Challenger. I do want to thank you, though, for helping me finally put this episode of my life behind me. My father is now truly avenged, and it's time for me to move on." Baldwin nodded. "I'm sorry to see you go, John. You are a natural at this. But I understand you want to carve your own path. I will do everything I can to not call upon you anymore." He stood up and extended his hand across the table to John. "Good luck to you, Lieutenant Randall. Maybe our paths will cross again on more peaceful terms." John nodded. "I'd like that, sir," he replied. "I've learned a lot from you. Safe travels to you." Baldwin nodded. "Dismissed," he said, and John left the room, making his way back to his cabin. The Avenger docked a few hours later, and John was strolling down the corridor toward the transporter room when Amanda Richards caught up to him. "Hey, sailor, hold up a sec," she called, and Randall laughed. She linked her arm through his. "You didn't think I was just going to let you go without saying goodbye, did you?" she said. John smiled. "The thought never crossed my mind," he said. "I was just wondering where the goodbye would take place." Amanda looked around as they neared the door of the transporter room. They were alone in the corridor for the moment, so she quickly threw both arms around his neck, and kissed him soundly on the lips. "You watch yourself, Lieutenant John Randall," she whispered fiercely into his ear. "You'll be hearing from me." She kissed him again, then strode swiftly away, not looking back. John watched her go, then entered the transporter room. As he ascended the dais, he told the operator to beam him directly to the Challenger. The operator nodded, and seconds later, Randall shimmered out of existence. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11601.01) The negotiations resumed the next day with not a whole lot of ground being gained. Each side took firm stands and would not give an inch to the other. A break was called for after 4 hours of bargaining and arguing, and the teams adjourned to a nearby antechamber for some refreshments. John grabbed a glass of sparkling water and sat down on a nearby sofa. He sipped his drink, his eyes constantly roving around the chamber. The Romulans had not missed his demeanor at the negotiations; many glances had been cast at the Challenger engineer, and many whispers had been uttered, all of which Randall had ignored for the most part. But there was one exception; a very pretty Romulan female had begun watching him as of late, and she gave the appearance of being extremely interested in the Starfleet officer. She saw him sit down on the sofa, and detached herself from a group of Romulans, slowly walking toward him. John saw her coming, but pretended not to notice until she was standing directly in front of him. He looked up and met her dark eyes. "You are an aide to the Starfleet admiral, yes?" she said into her translator, and John nodded. She smiled briefly at him, and he raised his eyebrows. "Is there something I can help you with?" John asked, and she smiled again. "I was wondering if we could talk for a moment, is that the right phrase?" she replied, and John nodded. "Please sit down," he said, and she sat next to him on the sofa. "I am T'Mira," she said, and looked at him inquiringly. "I am John," he replied, and she smiled. "I am pleased to know you," she said. "And I you," he said. "What did you want to talk about?" She was about to reply when a shadow came over John, and he looked up into the face of an irate Amanda Richards. "Lieutenant, you are required to report to Admiral Baldwin at once," she gritted, and John nodded. He turned back to the Romulan female. "Duty calls, I'm afraid," he said, and she smiled, nodding at him. "Nice to meet you," he went on, and she said, "It was nice to meet you as well. Perhaps we can talk later." "Perhaps," echoed Randall. "Excuse me." He arose from the sofa, and was quickly taken by the elbow by the angry security chief. "What the hell was that about?" she whispered angrily as she led him away. John shrugged. "I don't know, you showed up as I was asking her exactly that," he replied. Amanda shook her head angrily. "I don't want you associating with any of those....people," she gritted. "I don't see how you can even stand to be around them, from what you've told me." John actually smiled at her. "I probably would have found out if you had showed up a little later," he said, and was rewarded with a swat to his chest. She glared up at him. "You better not be taking this lightly, John Randall," she said. "There's a lot at stake here." John suddenly stopped walking, which caught her off guard. When she turned to look at him, she was shocked by his expression, which now matched hers in anger. His eyes were chips of ice as he stared at her. "No one knows better than I what's at stake here, Lieutenant," he growled, and Amanda's eyes widened at the steel tone of his voice. "I don't take anything lightly about these green-skinned bastards," he continued. "It's all I can do to keep myself from drawing my phaser and blasting the whole lot of them straight to hell. So don't worry, my priorities are perfectly clear and in place. Now, if you'll excuse me," and jerked his arm free of her grasp. He stared at her for a second, then stalked toward a door which slid open at his approach. He went through the door, and it slid shut behind him. Amanda watched him go, and suddenly her eyes were brimming with tears. The John Randall she had gotten to know had disappeared in those last few seconds, and she had no doubt she had just caught a glimpse of his dark side. She made her way back to her security team, now more worried than ever about her new friend. She was very apprehensive about him; she didn't know how much longer John could hold back his feelings of vengeance, and she was scared of what might happen if those feelings were ever unleashed. ************************************************************************************************ The negotiations resumed 2 hours later, and it was a repeat of the morning's proceedings. Suddenly, one of the Romulan aides got to his feet, and asked to have the floor for a few moments. The request was granted, and he began to speak. He concluded by suggesting that the team from the Federation should actually lay eyes on the prize they were bartering for, and both sides agreed. The Romulan chief negotiator spoke into a communicator, and a door at the far end of the west hall opened. Two Romulan guards and what appeared to be a human female walked through the door and made their way toward the meeting room. They walked into view, and everyone stared at the trio. The human female stared straight ahead as everyone looked at her. Admiral Baldwin regarded her with mixed feelings; relief she was still alive, anger at her betrayal of the Federation. He looked over toward where John was sitting, and his eyes widened in alarm at the look on Randall's face. John was staring at the female in shock and anger. He knew this was the woman who had betrayed his father. The shock was: he knew her. The name Martha Braxton had meant nothing to him; he knew this woman as Martha Turner, a friend of the Randall family on Centaurus. His uncle Cole had once courted this woman, only to lose out to James Braxton, an officer aboard the USS Tobias, a Starfleet border patrol vessel. John stared at Martha, and wondered if the older woman would recognize him. If she did, the mission might be in jeopardy. He was sure the Romulans knew full well who he was, but apparently the ones here hadn't recognized him yet. A moment later, his worst fears were realized; she had been looking at the people gathered, then her eyes met his, and widened with recognition. "My god, it can't be," she croaked, and all eyes in the room were upon her. She took several unsteady steps toward John, who knew there was nothing he could do but watch her approach. She stood in front of him, and raised a weatherbeaten, wrinkled hand to his face. "Johnny?" she queried in a small voice, and they were the center of attention now. "Oh, Johnny, is it really you?" she went on, and Randall couldn't answer her. "What are you doing here? Why are you in a Starfleet uniform? The last time I saw you, you were still in grade school." Then her eyes widened in shock and dismay, and she withdrew her hand. "Oh my god, you've come for me," she quavered, and the Romulans instantly came to their feet. "M-Marcus was your father, wasn't he?" she whispered, and tears began to roll down her cheeks. "I-I always thought Cole was your father," she cried through her tears. "Oh my god, what have I done?" she sobbed, and the Romulans were staring suspiciously at the two. "Who is this officer that you know?" roared the senior Romulan aide, and John cast a desperate glance at Baldwin. The admiral knew the cat was out of the bag now, and tried to intervene. "We were hoping it wouldn't come to this," he began. "The human female and this Starfleet officer are family. We were not going to use this as a bargaining chip, please believe that, but I guess it's out in the open now." The Romulan glared for a moment, then his expression softened a bit, and he nodded. "I see," he said. He walked over to Braxton, and took her by the arm. "What is this man to you?" he asked her not unkindly, and she stared at John, tears still flowing down her cheeks. "He is my----my nephew," she sobbed, and the Romulans stared at Randall. The senior aide said, "Nephew?" and looked at John. "She means she is my mother's sister," he explained, and the Romulan nodded. "Ah yes, the extensions of the human family can be as complicated as our own," he said. Braxton then stepped forward and put her arms around John's neck, sobbing into his shoulder. It was all Randall could do not to recoil from her embrace, knowing he had to play out the charade now, and he slowly forced himself to put his arms around her. The Romulan said, "I think we should adjourn the proceedings for the day, and let these two talk to each other; it has obviously been a while since they have had contact. We will resume in the morning." Baldwin nodded. "As you wish," he said, and the teams rose from their chairs. The Romulan then turned to John. "We will allow you to converse with your family member, but it will be supervised. However, we will not monitor your conversation, the supervision will be visual only." John nodded. "Thank you," he said. "I have much to discuss with my aunt." Braxton looked up at him at that remark, then buried her head in his shoulder again. The Romulan nodded. "I'm sure you do," he said. He turned and rapped out an order to the guards, who stepped forward. They motioned for Braxton and Randall to accompany them, and the four made their way back down the corridor, the door opening, then sliding shut behind them. Amanda quickly made her way over to Baldwin. "Admiral, is it true?" she inquired anxiously. The admiral shrugged. "I don't know," he said in all honesty. "It's evident they know each other; for all I know, she really is his aunt." Amanda shook her head, her eyes filled with worry. "This is bad," she said, and Baldwin nodded. "I couldn't agree more, Lieutenant," he said, and meant every word of it. This threw a giant monkey wrench into the whole mission, and he was sure John was just as much aware of it as he was. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.28) The stolen Romulan shuttle carrying the mission team came out of warp and settled into an orbit around a cloud-covered world. The pilot and navigator confirmed their landing coordinates, and the shuttle plunged into the cloud cover. A few moments later, the shuttle emerged from the clouds and flew toward a base with a wide landing port area. The shuttle touched down and came to rest. The team emerged from the craft, and a humanoid figure was spotted hurrying toward them. It came to a stop, and the figure, who had been wearing a hood over its head, threw it back. It was a Romulan, or so the team thought until the figure spoke. "Hurry, we don't have much time," it said urgently in Federation Standard. "We have to get you into the hangar." Admiral Baldwin turned toward the group. "It's all right, folks," he said. "This is Quentin D'Artiguan, one of our best operatives. He's been undercover here for quite a while. Show us the way," he finished, and the disguised operative nodded. He led them quickly to the hangar and deposited them in a nearby room. "I'll be right back with your identities and clearances," he said, and the door slid shut as he exited the room. John stood toward the back of the room, his eyes constantly roving. He was completely on guard and all his senses on full alert. He hated being here, he hated being in Romulan space. The full thrust of his disdain and anger for the Romulans was evident in his demeanor; some of the other team members were picking up on his vibes, and there were many sidelong glances cast at him. Amanda was with her security team, checking with each of them to make sure they knew their assignments. She finished and turned to scan the team, her eyes coming to rest on John, and she frowned as she saw his posture and his facial expression. He was very angry now, and she mused that something had happened to him concerning the Romulans; then her eyes widened as she remembered what John had told her about the last covert mission he had been on, and she closed her eyes for a second. 'No wonder he's acting like he is,' she thought, and watched him with concern. The operative returned about ten minutes later, and he handed each team member badges and papers. "Clip your badges to your uniforms, and adopt a haughty, slightly disdainful attitude," he said. "You are all aides and staff to Admiral Baldwin. He is ostensibly here to start negotiations for the release of commodore Braxton. Don't expect anything quick, the Romulans will be wary and cunning; this will take time. Expect to be here a few days. I will now take you to the check-in center, and you will be given quarters. The first round of the negotiations will begin in about 2 hours. "The Romulans have been told that your ship has stayed on the Fed side of the Neutral Zone, and a shuttle was dispatched to bring you here. They are satisfied with those arrangements for the time being. Follow me now." He went through the doors, and the team followed him to a bustling antechamber. There were beings everywhere, and it was fairly well-packed. The group made their way to a huge desk where a Romulan team attended to them. John received his cabin coordinates and a PADD from one of the Romulans, who was clearly uncomfortable with the icy glare from the Starfleet officer. The Romulan was just about to make a comment to Randall when Amanda appeared at his side. "Don't mind him, he hates to travel," she said in a low voice to the official. "He's like this every time he leaves Fed space." The Romulan nodded, never taking his eyes from John as he handed Amanda her cabin coordinates and PADD. "He should learn to loosen up some," the official said via translator, and John's eyes became even frostier at the remark. Amanda laughed nervously as she took Randall by the arm. "Believe me, we're trying," she smiled at the Romulan as she steered John away from the desk. As they walked toward a nearby corridor, her grip tightened on his arm. "John, I know it's hard, but you've got to calm down," she gritted to him. "You're going to get them suspicious, and they're paranoid enough already." "They should be," growled Randall, and Amanda was shocked by the venom in his voice, her eyes widening. "I'd like to kill every one of those green-skinned----" Amanda quickly cut him off. "All right, all right," she whispered urgently. "Let's get you to your quarters." They walked farther down the corridor until John paused in front of a door. "This is it," he said, and Amanda nodded. Her grip had never loosened as they had been walking, and she maintained it as they went into the cabin. She then released him, and stepped away, letting out a huge sigh. "You are really wound up," she said, regarding him with concern. John looked at her, and the ice was slowly melting from his eyes. "Thanks for the escort," he said mildly, and Amanda was so relieved she smiled widely at him. "Just doing my job, Lieutenant," she said breezily, and Randall actually chuckled, a welcome sound to the security chief's ears. She had been worried about him as they had made the trip to his cabin, and was now relaxing as he seemed to be trying to improve his own mood. John walked into the small kitchen area and paused in front of what looked to be a replicator. "Join me for a drink, Lieutenant?" he said, and Amanda raised her eyebrows. Randall quickly held up his hands. "Water only, chief," he clarified, and she grinned at him. "Sounds good," she said, and John nodded, giving the order. He came up to her with two glasses in his hands, and gave one to her. They clinked the glasses together, and both took a sip. John walked over to the nearby sofa and sat down, blowing out a huge sigh himself. "Man, I wish I wasn't here," he said, then looked at Amanda. "Present company excluded, of course," he said, and she smiled at him. "I would hope so," she replied, and he gave a short laugh. "I would love to be home right now," he continued, and she went to sit on the other end of the small sofa. "Tell me about your home, John," she said, and Randall launched into the tale. She watched him as he talked, and his eyes became completely clear and animated as he told her about his family. "Ok, enough of me," he finished. "Now it's your turn." Amanda quickly dropped her eyes. "I don't think---" she began, and John put his hand under her chin, lifting her face to look at him. "I told you some about me, now you return the favor," he said gently, but his eyes were very intent on hers. She nodded reluctantly, and took a deep breath. She hesitantly told her story, and John's eyes grew steadily wider as she talked. When she finished, she put her face in her hands for a few seconds, then whirled to face him. "I swear on my brother's grave, if you repeat any of this, I'll----" and she couldn't finish, her bottom lip quivering. John looked at her kindly, then touched her face briefly. "What you just told me stays between us," he said in a low voice. Amanda regarded him for a few seconds, then leaned forward and kissed him quickly on the lips. "I'm gonna hold you to that, Lieutenant," she said with steel in her voice, and John nodded. "Thanks for having a drink with me," he said. "If you need to go, go ahead. I'll be fine." Amanda looked at him and nodded. "I'll see you in a bit, then," she replied, and got up from the sofa. She walked to the doors, which swooshed open at her approach. She paused and looked behind her at him for a heartbeat, then exited the cabin rapidly. John downed the rest of his water, and thought about what she had told him. He shook his head at the thought of someone being treated the way she had been. 'No wonder she's so guarded,' he thought to himself. 'I would be, too, going through what she did.' He knew it had cost her a lot to confide in him, and that warmed him inside. He knew now he had a friend on this mission. Then his little voice spoke up, and he closed his eyes as another memory of Sara Edwards appeared in his mind. 'It's not the same,' he insisted to himself. 'She can take care of herself. It's not the same.' But the little voice was persistent, and he finally told it to shut up. He took the PADD that had been given him by the Romulan official, and he scanned the contents. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.25) The computer woke John at 0630 hours ship's time. He climbed out of bed, stretched, then went to the head to take a shower. 20 minutes later, he stepped out and toweled himself dry. He made his way back to the bedroom and put on his uniform. He then left his cabin and made his way to the turbolift, riding it to the third deck. He exited the lift and walked along the corridor to the mess hall. He went in and went over to the replicator. He ordered breakfast and sat at a nearby table to eat. 15 minutes later, he wiped his mouth for the final time with his napkin, and took his tray to the recycler. He had just finished when his communicator chirped. He reached behind his back, pulled it from its holster, and flipped it open. "Randall here," he said, and the voice of Admiral Baldwin came over the speaker. "Lieutenant, report to the bridge," it said, and John responded, "On my way, sir." He reholstered the communicator and strode out of the mess hall to the turbolift. "Bridge," he said as he stepped into the car, and the lift whisked him away. A few moments later, it came to a stop, and John stepped out onto the bridge. It was designed much as the way the Challenger's was, so he had no trouble navigating as he made his way down the ramp, having spotted Baldwin sitting in the captain's chair. "Ah, Lieutenant," the admiral said as he saw Randall walk up to stand beside the chair. "We are arriving at our destination. What you see before you now is the Neutral Zone," and he gestured toward the viewscreen as he finished speaking. John looked at the viewscreen a moment, then turned back to Baldwin. "We expect to make contact with one of our operatives in a moment or two," the admiral continued just as a ship came into visual range on the screen. The communications officer turned in her chair. "We're being hailed, Admiral," she said, and Baldwin nodded. "On screen." he ordered, and John turned back to the viewscreen as a heavily masked face appeared. "This is Admiral Jason Baldwin of the starship Avenger," the admiral began, but before he could continue, the masked face on the screen spoke in a hurried, slightly muffled voice. "I don't have much time, sir, there's a ship after me," it said. "We have located the package. It is on a planet designated Chrollax III by the Romulans. It's a class-M planet with a breathable atmosphere. The package is being held in a stockade on the large continent in the northern hemisphere. It's pretty well guarded, yet it is vulnerable to a well-planned attack. "The planet is not that far from here, here are the coordinates," it continued, and a few seconds later, the officer at the navigational console turned and nodded to Baldwin. The admiral acknowledged the nod, then asked the masked face on the screen, "Is there anything else you can tell us?" The masked face shook its head. "Good luck, sir, I have to go," it said, and cut the transmission. The view switched back to space, and the ship turned left, going into warp a few seconds later. Baldwin looked at John. "Let's get our team into the briefing room, shall we?" he said, and Randall nodded. The admiral punched his comm button on his chair, and gave an allcall to the team selected for the mission. He then nodded to John, and the two men left the bridge, exiting into the briefing room. A few minutes later, personnel began arriving and taking seats around the huge table in the room. John watched them as they came in, then raised his eyebrows as the chief of security herself, Amanda Richards, came into the room. She spotted John and made her way over to him, sitting in a chair next to him. She smiled at him as she sat down. "Hello again, Lieutenant," she said in a low voice, and Randall responded in kind. "I'm a little surprised to see you here, Lieutenant," he said, and Richards smiled again. "You didn't think I was gonna miss an opportunity like this?" she answered, and John had to turn away, hiding his expression. It was turning into the same series of events that had brought he and Sara together, and her memory was still too fresh on his mind. Amanda's eyebrows came together as he turned away from her, and she quickly laid a hand on his arm. "What's wrong, was it something I said?" she asked quickly, and John shook his head. "I'll explain later," he said, and gave her hand a quick pat. Then Baldwin walked to the podium and began the briefing. ******************************************************************************************** After the briefing, all in the room were told to report to the shuttlebay. The group filed out of the room, and began taking the turbolifts to the shuttlebay. While they were waiting for a car, Amanda came up beside John. "John, did I offend you or something?" she asked in a concerned tone. "I'm sorry if I did." Randall shook his head. "It's not you, Amanda, it's me," he answered. "I was recently on a mission like this, and I got to know a female officer much like yourself, only she was a navigator, and it was her first mission of this type. It turned out to be her last," and he bowed his head, his voice cracking a bit on the last word. Amanda gave a small gasp, and gently took his arm. "Was she killed?" she asked in a very small voice, and all John could do was nod. The security chief squeezed his arm. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry," she whispered. "You cared for her, didn't you?" Randall nodded again. "I'm so sorry," she said again, and John turned to look at her. Amanda looked up at him, and saw the sadness in his eyes. "Are you going to be all right?" she asked, and he nodded. She gave a little smile. "I've been assigned to your team, so I got your back," she said, and there was an undercurrent of steel in her voice. John smiled at her. "I look forward to talking with you when this is over," he said, and she smiled at him. "That makes two of us, Lieutenant," she answered, and squeezed his arm again as they boarded the turbolift. They rode the lift to the shuttlebay, then Amanda became all business as she took charge of the security guards for the team. The team made their way to a strange looking vessel. John recognized it as a warp-capable Romulan shuttle, and wondered how it had been stolen and put aboard the Federation ship. It looked very much like the one the Challenger had encountered on an earlier mission, and Randall was hoping the engineering compartment would resemble the other. To his relief, when they boarded the shuttle, the controls and switches looked very familiar, and John quickly reacquainted himself with them. A few moments later, the team leader asked him if he could run the engines, and John answered in the affirmative. He gave the pilot the startup sequence of the engines, and they burst into life. The pilot requested clearance to leave the Avenger, received it, and the shuttle moved toward the hangar doors. John kept his eyes on the readouts (which were all in Romulan) as the shuttle left the bay, zooming out into space. The pilot asked if he could go to warp, and John, after one last check, gave him the green light. The shuttle's warp engines came to life, and the craft blasted into hyperspace. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.24) John went to the cabin that been assigned to him by the quartermaster of the Avenger. He deposited his duffel bag on the sofa in the living area, then sat down himself. He ran his hands through his hair, and let out a huge sigh. He felt drained after all the emotion he had expunged recently, and decided to heed Admiral Baldwin's advice about getting a meal and some rest. He stripped off his uniform and went to the head to take a shower. 20 minutes later, he stepped out and toweled himself dry. The sonics had cleaned and refreshed his uniform, but he took some civilian clothes from his bag and put those on. He then left his cabin and went down the corridor to the turbolift. "Deck 3," he said as he stepped into the car, and the lift whisked him away. A few moments later, he arrived at his destination, and exited the lift. He went along the corridor to the mess hall, and the doors slid open at his approach. He went in and went up to the replicator on the east wall. He ordered fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a peach cobbler for dessert. He sat down at a nearby table and proceeded to devour his meal, not realizing how hungry he actually was. John finished his meal and was wiping his mouth with a napkin when he became aware of someone standing at his table. He looked up and found himself staring at a very pretty blonde who smiled as his eyes met hers. "Hi," she said breezily. "You're new on this ship, aren't you?" John nodded. "My name is Amanda Richards," the blonde continued. "I'm the security chief of the Avenger. My rank is the same as yours, I see. And you are?" "I am Lieutenant John Randall, chief engineer of the starship Challenger," he replied, and Amanda's eyes widened slightly. "The Challenger," she repeated. "I've heard some tales about that ship. You must be very proud to be aboard her." John nodded again. "That I am, Lieutenant," he said, then waved towards a chair. "Please join me." Amanda beamed at him and sat down. "So you're the chief of security here," Randall continued. "I feel safer already." Amanda gave a musical laugh. "Compliment acknowledged, Lieutenant Randall, but you strike me as a man who could take care of himself in a fight." "Well, I like to think so," grinned John. "But I'm not in your league, I'm sure. I only know the bare basics of unarmed combat, being an engineer. You would wipe the deck with me were I ever stupid enough to challenge you." She grinned again. "I don't know about that," she answered, her eyes roving over the man seated before her. She would put him at about 6 feet 2, around 230 pounds, and he definitely took care of himself. She admitted privately to herself she liked what she saw. And those intense blue eyes.....She suddenly gave herself a mental shake, and assumed a businesslike air. "So to what do we owe the privilege of having the chief engineer of the Challenger aboard the Avenger?" she asked. John sobered at that request, and Amanda was a little taken aback at the change in the demeanor of the man before her. "I'm afraid I can't say anything about that, Lieutenant," he said. "I'm here under orders from Admiral Baldwin." Amanda nodded. "You're part of the mission we're about to embark on, then," she said, nodding. "Fair enough. I've been charged with providing security for a team that's about to be assembled, and I have every reason to believe you will be part of that team, Lieutenant. I have some pretty good men and women on my staff, if I do say so myself. We will look after you, Lieutenant, that's a promise." John smiled. "As I said before, I feel safer already," and they shared a laugh. "It's nice to meet you, Lieutenant, but if you don't mind, it's been a long day for me, and I'm suddenly feeling very fatigued. If you will excuse me, I'm going to call it a day." Amanda nodded, thinking to herself that he did indeed seem to be tired, probably even weary. "Please call me Amanda when we're not on duty," she said, smiling at him. John returned it, saying, "Very well, and I am John. Pleased to meet you," and he extended his hand which she took and briefly shook. "I hope you rest well and deeply, John," she said. "If you don't object to me being brutally honest for a second, you look like you're about to drop where you stand." John nodded. "No offense taken, Amanda, and that's a fair assessment. As I said, it's been a long day." Amanda nodded. "Then off to bed with you, Lieutenant. Permit me to escort you to your quarters, so I can catch you if you drop." John laughed. "Who am I to turn down an offer from the security chief," he replied, and Amanda gave that musical laugh again. The two officers left the mess hall and took the turbolift to deck five, where John's quarters were. They exited the car and made their way down the corridor. They arrived at John's cabin, and he smiled at the chief of security. "Thank you for the escort, Lieutenant," he said, and she nodded. "My pleasure, Lieutenant," she answered. "Pleasant dreams to you." "Thank you," he replied, and went inside. She remained at the door a few seconds after he entered, her mind filled with the after-image of the man she had just met. No one else had made such an impact on her after a first meeting, and she was actually annoyed with herself for feeling this way. She went along the corridor to her own cabin, and entered, sitting down on the nearby sofa. She kept telling herself that John Randall was no different than any other man she had met, but her inner voice was telling her something different, and she was not sure she liked it. In his cabin, John sat on his sofa, his head thrown back against the back. 'Please, please, don't let this turn into another Sara Edwards,' he thought desperately to himself. He could not go through that again. Then, thoughts of Anastasia entered his mind, and he closed his eyes. He was finding he already missed her, and he had been gone only a couple of hours. Then he mentally kicked himself. 'Yeah, and if she saw you acting like this, she'd kick your butt,' he thought, and gave a rueful smile. He got up from the sofa and went into the bedroom, undressed, and climbed into the bed. He told the computer what time to awaken him, and was almost instantly asleep. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.22) John shimmered into existence aboard the Avenger. He stepped off the dais and exited the transporter room. He went along the corridor to the turbolift and stepped into the car. "Bridge," he growled, and the lift whisked him away. A few moments later, the lift came to a stop, and the doors opened. John stepped out onto the bridge, and was met with curious stares. He looked toward the captain's chair, and saw Admiral Chuck Hastings stand up and turn to face him. "Hello, Lieutenant, welcome aboard," he said, and John gave a curt nod. Hastings studied him for a few seconds, then waved toward a set of doors to the left of the bridge. John made his way down the ramp and went through the doors. He stopped in front of a desk and waited. Hastings came in the room a few seconds later, and sat down behind the desk. He pushed a button on a panel embedded in his desk. "Admiral Baldwin to the ready room," he said, and leaned back in the chair, studying John. "You look angry about something, Lieutenant," he said, and Randall nailed him with an icy glare. "Don't play with me, Admiral," he growled, and Hastings' eyes widened. "Hey, take it easy," the admiral said, and John replied in a low voice, "I'm not in the mood to take it easy, sir," and Hastings was surprised a bit by the raw animalism in Randall's voice. He knew then the man standing in front of him was not only angry, he was furious. "Lieutenant, I would advise you to be very careful here," he said, and John didn't bat an eyelash. "Noted, sir," he growled, and Hastings' eyes widened again. Baldwin chose that moment to appear, and he walked into the room to find John staring at Hastings, and the engineer was as angry as Baldwin had ever seen him. He walked over to the nearby sofa, and sat down. "John, would you please have a seat?" he said, and Randall turned to look at him; it was the admiral's turn to get the full force of the ice-blue glare of the Challenger engineer. "I know you're upset and confused right now, John," Baldwin continued. "Sit down and we'll fill you in." John stared at him a second more, then sat in a nearby chair. Hastings looked over at Baldwin. "Jason, this man looked like he wanted to kill me," the admiral said. "He was on the verge of insubordination." "Oh, Chuck, get off your dammed high horse," snapped Baldwin. "This boy has every right to feel the way he does. Have you forgotten he just came off a mission where every member of his team got killed? It shouldn't be any secret that we're not his favorite people right now. I also understand he was pretty close with one of them," he finished, looking over to John, who was staring straight ahead. Hastings was clearly mollified by that statement. "Oh," he said. "I didn't realize. I'm sorry, Lieutenant, you have my apologies and my condolences." John looked at the admiral, and his eyes softened somewhat. "Thank you, Admiral," he said. "Now can we get down to it?" Hastings looked at Baldwin, who immediately assumed control of the meeting. "John, what you are about to hear is classified at the highest level," he began, and Randall nodded. "Very well," continued Baldwin. "I trust your captain filled you in on the bare basics?" John nodded. "Yes, sir," he said. "It all sounded incredible to me. Then the captain got to the part about my father, and I've been angry ever since. I would like any further details shared with me now if you have them." "John, we are as certain as we possibly can be that Commodore Braxton was the person who tipped off the Romulan Tal'Shier that your father was a Starfleet operative," said Baldwin. "Marcus was posing as an arms dealer from Rigel X trying to sell phaser Mark IIs to the Romulan buyers." John's eyes widened. "Mark IIs?" he queried. "Those are----" Baldwin quickly nodded. "Illegal in the Federation, yes, but Romulans don't think twice about buying them. These particular Romulans, we learned later, had been personally appointed by the Praetor to acquire illegal weapons to use against Klingon marauders, then were going to blame the Federation for selling the guns to them in the first place." John shook his head. "That's their MO, all right," he growled, and both admirals nodded. "As you know, when the Romulans were tipped off about your dad, they tracked him to the Phobos moon of Mars, and the fight ensued that killed Marcus. The Romulans were disguised as Vulcan traders, and since the races are similar, had no trouble getting into Federation space," continued Baldwin. "The clearance came from the terminal of Commodore Braxton, who of course denied it heatedly, but through a lot of investigative work, she was found to be guilty of the charge. Before our operatives could arrest her, she escaped in a small warp-capable craft to the Neutral Zone. The craft was later found abandoned, but an ion trail was discovered leading into Romulan space from a Romulan vessel, and we are sure that Braxton was picked up by Romulans. She is currently being held on a planet close to the Neutral Zone. "It is our intention to take a craft to the Neutral Zone, park it on our side, then use a cloaked shuttlecraft to enter Romulan space. We'll have to move fast once we get there; if we're discovered, well, you of all people know what will happen," finished the admiral, and John nodded, giving a wry smile. "So this one is just that cut and dried, then," he said, and Baldwin grinned. "Pretty much," he said. "I knew you would want to be there because of your dad. You'll finally get the chance to face the person responsible for your father's death." John looked at Baldwin. "And I appreciate that more than you know, sir," he said in a somber tone, and the admirals shared a glance. "I'm ready to put this behind me and move on," said John, and Baldwin nodded. "We will endeavor to help you with that, John," he said. "The team is aboard, and we're ready to go. It'll take a few hours, so if you want to get some rest, now would be a good time. Did you eat anything at the starbase?" John shook his head, and Baldwin continued, "Well, grab something in the mess hall if you want, then get some rest. You'll hear the announcement when we arrive. Any other questions or thoughts, Lieutenant?" John shook his head, and Baldwin said, "You are dismissed, then, and we'll see you later." "Aye, sir," answered Randall, and he arose from the chair, came briefly to attention, then left the room. Hastings watched the doors shut, then looked at Baldwin. "That man is a powder keg waiting to explode, Jason. You really think it was a good idea to involve him in this?" "If I hadn't, and he found that out, he would've killed both of us, Chuck," replied Baldwin. "John idolized his father. That man's emotions run deep when it comes to his family, and he won't let anyone, or anything, get in his way. I'm looking forward to when he meets up with Braxton; it should be very interesting." Hastings shook his head. "You're a cold-blooded bastard, Jason," he said, then got up and left the room. Baldwin just smiled, but the smile faded as Hastings left the room. He had his own reasons for bringing Randall along on the mission. He had been personally offended by Braxton's treason, and was going to make sure, one way or the other, the former commodore paid for what she had done. He sighed as he remembered when he and Braxton had come close to signing a marriage contract before she committed her treachery, and his eyes were shooting sparks themselves as he gazed out a nearby port at the stars. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.21) *Note: If anyone posts a log continuing the dinner at SB 179, this log will take place during and afterwards. The Challenger docked at starbase 179 after the exercise with the cloaking device. The ship promptly received a hail from the captain of the starbase, a person named Miller. The captain invited the crew of the Challenger to beam aboard the base for a dinner that had been prepared in the ship's honor. Captain Ja'Lale, via communications officer Dvokr chim Hok, informed the crew about the dinner. John, overseeing the crew in engineering, heard the announcement over the ship's comm. He was sitting at the main console awaiting the maintenance team from the starbase to help make repairs in engineering. Jeff Michaels, one of John's best friends, came up to him. "Hey pal, you gonna escort the lady lieutenant to the dinner?" He smiled impishly at Randall, making reference to the fact that the chief science officer, Anastasia Poldara, had been in engineering earlier in the day, and she and John had had a conversation. John tilted his head, and scowled at his friend. "Oh, man, don't start that again," he said in mock anger, and Michaels laughed, dodging a punch from his friend. "Just kidding, pal," he said, and John grinned at him. Michaels went to the other side of the console, then raised his eyebrows as he saw Randall punch the comm. "Randall to Ja'Lale," said the chief engineer. "Engines are at station keeping, sir; warp engines have been shut down, and are awaiting maintenance from the starbase team." "Acknowledged, Lieutenant," came back the voice of the Challenger's captain. "Inform your crew that a dinner has been prepared for us aboard the starbase. Casual dress is acceptable." "Aye, sir," replied John. "I will inform them." "That goes for you, too, Lieutenant," said Ja'Lale, and Randall half smiled, half frowned. "Understood, sir," he said. "Randall out." What John didn't know was that, a little earlier, Admiral Jason Baldwin of Starfleet Intelligence had contacted the Challenger. Calling Captain Ja'Lale and Commander Rinax, the first officer of the ship, into the captain's ready room, Baldwin informed them that a mole had been found in Starfleet who had been feeding secret (not to mention classified) information to the Romulans that appeared to go back over two decades. Baldwin also told the officers that an operation had been set up to apprehend the individual responsible by Starfleet Intelligence.The individual had fled into Romulan space, and SI was going after them. He then informed them that a retired commodore, Martha Braxton, was responsible for the criminal act. Ja'Lale had heard of Braxton, and told the admiral so. Baldwin then informed them that Braxton had probably been responsible for blowing the cover of Marcus Randall, one of SI's top operatives. Randall had been killed by the Romulans in a firefight close to the Martian spacedocks. He was also the father of chief engineer John Randall. Baldwin told Ja'Lale he had made a promise to John concerning his father, and intended to keep it. He wanted John to accompany the SI operation. Ja'Lale reluctantly agreed, since the admiral would probably pull rank on him/it if he/it didn't agree, and Baldwin simply smiled. He told Ja'Lale to inform John ASAP, and he would be waiting. Baldwin signed off, and the captain and commander looked at each other, Rinax immediately voicing her concerns over the admiral's information. The two officers then beamed aboard the starbase for the dinner, deciding to inform Randall afterwards. John, unaware of any of this, sat at the main console in engineering. Michaels came by, and happened to glance over toward him. "Hey pal, don't tell me you're not going," he said, and Randall shrugged. "I have to stay here until the maintenance team gets here, you know that," the chief engineer replied, and his friend nodded. "See you there, then," said Michaels, and John waved to him. The crew all filed out, and a man wearing a uniform with the insignia of the starbase entered. "I'm looking for Chief John Randall," he said, and the engineer responded immediately. "I've been sent to relieve you, sir," said the man, and John's eyes narrowed. "Who sent you?" he asked, and the man handed him a PADD. "Here are the names, sir," he said, and John took the PADD, his eyes scanning a list of names. Then, he saw one that brought him up out of his chair: Admiral Jason Baldwin. 'What the hell is he doing here?' thought Randall, and handed the PADD back to the man. "Very well, you have the conn," he stated, and stalked off toward the doors of engineering. He went through them, and then took the turbolift to his cabin. He entered and went straight to the computer terminal, activating the comm. "This is Challenger chief engineer John Randall calling for Admiral Jason Baldwin," he said in a transmission to the starbase, and a reply came back almost immediately. "This is Starbase 179 communications," it said. "Admiral Baldwin is not available at this time. You are required to report to your commanding officer aboard the base. Starbase 179 out." Randall scowled at the transmission, then got up and changed uniforms. He then left his cabin and rode the turbolift to the transporter room. He ascended the dais and nodded to the transport chief. "Energize," he snapped, and he shimmered out of existence. ********************************************************* John materialized in the transporter room of the starbase, and stepped down from the dais. He left the room and paused in the corridor, acclimating himself to the base. His intention was locating Baldwin, he had absolutely no interest in the dinner. After a half hour of searching, however, he came to the conclusion that the admiral was not on the base. John began to get into a foul mood, and he made his way to the room which had been readied for the dinner for the Challenger crew. Most of the crew were already there, and others were still arriving. John went straight to the bar and ordered himself a drink. He kept it light as he only ordered water, which drew raised eyebrows from the bartender, who then hurriedly complied with John's request when he saw the face of the chief engineer. John stood at the bar sipping his water. To his right, a table had been set up for the Challenger crew. He was offered a seat several times, but shook his head. He saw the bridge officers all sitting in a clump together, which included Anastasia Poldara, who was nodding her head as Commander Rinax was saying something to her. The dinner was served, and everyone (every being) began to eat. John stood and watched it all, his mood slowly growing uglier. He was not aware of it, but his eyes had turned ice-blue, and his jaw was set in a hard line. During the meal, Anastasia surveyed the room, finally looking toward the bar, and stiffened slightly as she saw John standing there. She could tell immediately something was wrong with her friend, and she watched him from the corner of her eye as she ate. John's communicator suddenly beeped toward the end of the meal, and he flipped it open. "Randall here," he answered, and the voice of Admiral Jason Baldwin came to him. "Lieutenant Randall, good to talk to you again," it said, and John's eyes narrowed. "What the hell are you doing here, sir?" he said in a hard, but respectful, tone of voice. "Lieutenant, your captain will be giving you some news shortly," replied Baldwin. "I will give you a hint; it concerns your father." John's entire body went rigid at that remark, and from her seat, Anastasia's eyes widened in concern. She knew something was very wrong, and now stared openly at Randall. "This better be good, Admiral," growled the chief engineer. Baldwin replied, "I am aboard the Avenger, John. We'll talk shortly. Baldwin out." John flipped the communicator shut, his face now hard with anger. Commander Rinax had happened to notice Anastasia staring at John, and turned her head. Her eyes widened as well, and she gave a nudge to the captain. He/it looked at her, and Rinax tossed her head in the direction of Randall. The captain turned, and saw the posture of his chief engineer. He/it grunted, and arose from the chair. He/it made his/its way over to John, who saw him/it coming, and regarded he/it with ice-blue eyes. "Lieutenant, have you eaten?" inquired the captain calmly, and John just stared at him. "What's wrong?" the captain asked, and Randall gave a savage smile. "I think you have something to tell me, sir," he growled, and Ja'Lale knew instantly who John had been talking to on his communicator. "Let's go find a more private place, Lieutenant," the captain said, and John nodded. The two officers made their way toward the doors, and Anastasia watched in apprehension as they exited the room. The captain led John to a nearby empty room, and turned to face him. "Lieutenant, we were contacted by Admiral Jason Baldwin as we were docking," the captain began. "He informed us that a mole had been found in Starfleet who has been supplying the Romulans with classified information, and it may span over two decades." John's eyes widened, and they temporarily lost their ice-blue cohesion. "That's incredible, sir," he said. "Do they know who it was?" Ja'Lale nodded. "The individual has fled into Romulan space, and Starfleet Intelligence is mounting a mission to retrieve the person," he/it said. John nodded. "Enter Baldwin," he said, and the captain nodded. Then it hit Randall, and his eyes began regaining the ice-blue look. "Captain, Baldwin hinted that this involves my father," he said, and Ja'Lale sighed. "I wish he hadn't told you that, John," the captain said. "But, you're right, it does. Baldwin thinks this individual may have blown your father's cover when he was an operative." John's face went hard with anger, but he struggled to keep his composure out of respect for his captain. "The admiral wants to involve you in the operation," continued Ja'Lale. "You already know how I feel about this, but at the same time, I know there's nothing I can do to prevent you from staying out of it. The admiral was ready to pull rank on me if I had objected, so I didn't bother. I will simply say this: You watch yourself on this mission, and you come back to Challenger in one piece. I have already told the admiral this. You are hereby relieved of duty, Lieutenant, and this is to be kept classified." Ja'Lale then stepped forward, and looked John square in the eyes. "This is becoming a habit that is taking place entirely too often for me," he/it said. "I will be having a discussion with the admiral about this, you can bet on that. I need you aboard my ship, Lieutenant; you are my chief engineer, and I don't like it when you are away. You come back in one piece, and that's an order, Lieutenant." John nodded, his respect for his captain doubling at that moment. "Understood and acknowledged, sir," he said, and Ja'Lale nodded. The captain stared at him a second longer, then abruptly turned and left the room. John stood there for a few seconds, his mind assimilating what he had just been told, then he left the room as well. He made his way back to the dinner area, and went up to Jeff Michaels. He pulled his friend away from the crowd, and spoke to him briefly. Michaels' eyes widened as John talked, then he simply nodded when Randall finished. "Be careful, pal," he said, and the two friends shook hands, then clasped each other in a brief hug. John left Michaels and was making his way toward the doors when he was suddenly taken by the arm. He turned and looked into the concerned gaze of Anastasia Poldara. Her eyes were staring intently up at him as she said, "What's going on? Where are you going? Why are you so angry?" John looked around, then led her into a relatively secluded corner. He made her promise to keep what he told her to herself, she agreed, then he told her about the mission. When he finished, Ana's expression shifted from one of concern to apprehension. "You're actually going to do this," she said. John nodded. "I have to, for my father," he answered. "You have to what, get yourself killed?" Ana struggled to keep her voice down, aware that this was not polite dinner conversation. "Are you sure this is what you want? To risk your own life for revenge?" John met her gaze squarely. "Debts to pay," he said onimously. It was enough for him. As he turned to leave, Ana caught his arm. "I think you're making a mistake," she said. "But, for what it's worth, good luck. I hope that when you come back, you can finally put this behind you, and stick around for a while. Or else we will have problems," and there was definite emphasis on that word. She squeezed his arm--whether as a gesture of comfort or rebuke it was hard to tell--and looked him squarely in the eyes, then turned on her heel and left, not looking back. John watched her go, knowing what that had cost her, then made his way to the doors, and went through them. He made his way to the transporter room, and ascended the dais. He instructed the operator he wanted to be beamed aboard the Avenger. The officer nodded, bent to his console, then straightened and nodded. "Energize," John said, and he shimmered out of existence. END LOG

“One Tiny Lie That Told the Truth” Anastasia Poldara and John Randall ------------------------------------------------- John asked Anastasia how she had been, and her reply was brief, cryptic at first. Then she sighed, grabbed a drink to match his, and elaborated. “I thought divorce would be the solution to … problems. It turns out it’s more of a dodge.” John nodded. “I see. I didn’t know you and your husband had split. I’m sorry. It looks like you’re moving on with your life, though. Kudos to you for that.” He gave her a little smile, then his eyes slid away, his face again settling into somewhat of a crestfallen demeanor. Ana nodded thoughtfully at this. “I can’t help but notice,” she said, changing the subject, “that you seem a little distracted. Of course, you’re the one who asked me to meet--and here I am, rambling about myself.” She leaned forward. “So tell me, Mr. Randall, did you always have such sad eyes, and I just never noticed? Or did you get more than a cloaking device out of this trip of yours?” John again gave her a small smile, not meeting her eyes. “Well, the last mission I was sent on, and please promise me this stays between us, Ana; I could be court-martialed for what I’m about to tell you. But, I feel I need to get this off my chest, or I’m gonna suffocate.” He looked up at her then, and Ana was shocked at the sadness that was intensified in his eyes. “And, somehow, I just felt I could trust you when you came to engineering earlier. So, here goes,” and he talked for the next ten minutes about the covert mission he had been sent on, and what it had cost him. At the first mention of Sara Edwards, John had to stop and gather himself before he could continue. Little alarm bells went off in Ana’s mind: he was looking for sympathy, something she was ill-equipped to give at the best of times. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat but couldn’t see any way out of this. “It’s OK. Take your time.” He nodded, and went on with his story. When he finished, he looked at her, and gave another small smile. “That’s about it, I guess. Thank you for listening, but I may have laid too much on you. I apologize for that. I’ve probably ruined what time you had planned for the rest of the day. I would like to hear your thoughts, or opinions, on what I just told you. Or, if you don’t have any at all, that’s fine, too. I appreciate you meeting me, Ana, and listening to me ramble.” “I think I know what you’re going through--or some of it, at least. A long time ago I was involved in something covert that got someone close to me killed. I felt responsible.” John nodded, sadness coming to his eyes again. “It was her very first covert mission, and her last, as it turned out.” His voice broke, and he bowed his head briefly again. A few seconds later, he looked back up, and met her eyes squarely. “I didn’t know that about you,” he said. “Thank you for sharing that with me. I can tell from the way your posture is, however, that I’m making you uncomfortable, and that was not my intention. I apologize again.” Ana laughed. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just used to dwelling on these thoughts alone instead of talking about them. I was raised to keep my feelings close to my chest. That’s probably not healthy though.” She relaxed and leaned back. “I was happy when you asked me for a chat--not that I was expecting this, of course. But I was genuinely interested in how you were when I visited Engineering. I’m glad you felt you could talk to me.” John nodded. “And I was a little shocked, to tell you the truth, when you showed up in engineering. But, I am honored that you took the time to come see me. I have a lot of respect for you, Ana, and maybe I’ve earned a little from you. If you wouldn’t mind, I would like to do this a little more often. Don’t worry, it’s no strings attached, just two friends chatting. I’ll leave that up to you. Well, I’ve taken up enough of your time. Thank you again for meeting with me; you’ve been a big help, and a good listener. Good evening, Lieutenant.” With that, he smiled at her, arose from the table, and made his way to the mess hall doors, which swooshed open at his approach, and then he was gone. Anastasia watched him leave, then glanced down at her empty mug. “Well,” she said softly to herself, “I guess I’m making friends again.”

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11512.18) John returned with the rest of the team to engineering after the newly installed conduit had checked out satisfactory to all. They resumed their normal duties, and Randall called the bridge to inform the captain that the device should be ready to go again. Captain Ja'Lale thanked him for the information and gave a "well done" to he and his team. The rest of the trip proved to be relatively uneventful, and after performing some maneuvers in the designated area of space, the Challenger dropped the cloak and set sail for the nearest starbase to inform Starfleet Command of the joint operations. John sat at the main console for a while, observing the crew, then he arose from his chair, walked over to Jeff Michaels, told him he had the conn, and went into the chief engineer's office. He sat down at the computer and sighed when he saw the reports that hadn't been approved and filed yet. He set to work, and a good two hours later, finally pushed himself away from the terminal. John sat in the office chair, and found himself drifting back to the recently completed covert mission he had taken part in. Memories came whirling into his mind, and he sat there until the memory of the death of Sara Edwards appeared, and he gave a silent yell, launching himself out of the chair. The walls of the office now appeared to be closing in on him, and he knew he had to do something. He thought for a moment, then wondered if Anastasia was busy on the bridge. He sat back down, and sent the science officer an e-mail asking if she would be free later to talk. Only a few moments later, a reply came back stating that she was free now. John sent another e-mail to her asking if they could meet in the officers' mess, and Anastasia agreed in the replying e-mail. John left the CE's office and told Michaels to keep the conn; he would be in the officers' mess. Michaels acknowledged the order, and Randall exited engineering, heading for the turbolift. "Deck 3," he snapped as he entered the car, and the lift sped off. A few moments later, the lift arrived; John stepped out of the car, and made his way down the corridor to the mess hall. He walked through the doors as they opened, and he went to the replicator. He ordered an ice water, and sat down at a nearby table. A few moments later, the chief science officer walked through the doors, spotted him, and made her way over to him, sitting down across from him. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate 11511.19) The Challenger had received orders from Starfleet to install a new version of the cloaking device that had been installed on the Altair. A team of starbase engineers and technicians had installed the device in engineering, and had supposedly reinforced the EPS conduits throughout the ship to carry the added demands for power that the device required. John reported for duty in engineering; he was now the de facto acting chief in lieu of the apparent LOA taken by chief engineer Lieutenant Commander Eddie Freeman. He sat down at the main console and pulled up the specs for the new device. As he began to read them, he was mentally surprised (and relieved) that the specs had come almost straight from the device installed on the Altair. After only a few minutes of looking at the diagrams, he knew what modifications would have to made, and he started working on a program to do just that. There were a team of engineers besides him at the console, including John's two best friends Lieutenants Steve Davis and Jeff Michaels. They all were helping Randall make the modifications to the specs of the cloaking device. As they worked, the doors to engineering slid open, and in walked chief science officer Lieutenant Anastasia Poldara. She surveyed the room for a moment, then spotted John sitting at the console. She made her way to him, and paused behind his chair. She cleared her throat and said, "Excuse me, Lieutenant, do you have a minute?" John turned in his chair at the sound of her voice, a little taken aback, but he hid it well. "Of course, Lieutenant, what can I do for you?" he replied. Then, he was surprised even more as Anastasia smiled warmly at him. "I heard you were back, and wanted to come see how you were doing," she said, referring to Randall's recent return from a covert mission involving Starfleet Intelligence. The mission had involved a time jump to 2161 where Randall had joined a team that had been assembled to stop a gang of, terrorists, for want of a better term, from changing the outcome of the Earth-Romulan War. The terrorists' main objective had been to stop the Federation from ever being formed. John's team stopped the terrorists, but the cost was high; every member of the team was killed except Randall; he had been taken prisoner by the Romulans, and tortured for nearly 4 days. A rescue team from the cloaked Altair, led by Captain Wendy Creighton-Ward, rescued John and got him safely aboard the Altair. Randall was taken immediately to the ship's sickbay to treat his injuries inflicted by the Romulans. The Altair jumped back to 2297, and John rejoined the crew of the Challenger after a brief stint in the starbase hospital.* John smiled at the chief science officer. "I'm doing well, thank you for asking, Lieutenant," he said. Ana smiled at him again, then said, "I also wanted your help on how the cloaking device will or might interfere with the sensors and systems," she said. John nodded, and showed her his monitor, pointing out various changes to the specs that were being made to the device. She used her tricorder to record the data; as she was doing so, she leaned down closer to him. "I'm glad you're back," she said in a near-whisper. "What did they have you doing THIS time, can you talk about it?" John was about to answer when he noticed first officer Commander Erica Rinax mildly complaining that no one would show her anything about the device, and that the engineering crew wasn't very friendly. Davis looked over to Randall, an expression of exasperation on his face, and John nodded to him. Davis caught the commander's attention, and began pointing out things to her on his monitor. John said in a low voice, "I'm not supposed to, but if you're free later on, we can get together, and I'll fill you in," he replied. Then he sighed softly, his face adopted a downcast expression, and Ana drew back slightly, startled by the change. "Let's just say for now, it didn't end well," he finished. The science officer laid a hand briefly on his shoulder, gave it a slight rub, then straightened. She clicked off her tricorder and said, "Thank you for your help, Lieutenant, and I just might take you up on what you said." She stared at him intently for a few seconds as John said, "Any time, Lieutenant; the pleasure was mine." Anastasia smiled briefly at him, then pivoted and left engineering, Rinax not far behind her after the first officer looked at Randall before leaving herself. John turned his attention back to his monitor, and worked for a few moments before he felt eyes on him. He looked up to see Davis and Michaels both grinning. They instantly averted their gaze, and John knew what was going on. "What?" he said, and both of his friends looked innocently over at him. "Don't give me those looks," said John in mock anger, and both friends laughed. "I think a certain lady lieutenant is showing feelings of concern toward you, sir," said Michaels, and Davis laughed as John rolled his eyes at the deliberate "sir". "The lieutenant and I go way back," he retorted. "She was onboard the ship when I first came aboard 4 and a half years ago. She has my respect, and I hope I have hers." "I think it's a little more than respect, Lieutenant," answered Davis, and this time Michaels laughed. John waved a hand, and turned back to his monitor. "Whatever," he said resignedly, and both friends laughed again as they went back to work. The work continued for a few hours, then John saw something he didn't like. One of the EPS conduits on deck 17 was showing signs of overheating. The Challenger was on its way to a prearranged destination at warp 7, where the cloaking device was to undergo tests. The ship was already cloaked, and there was clearly something wrong with the conduit. John contacted the bridge, and told the captain the situation. The captain told him to do whatever was necessary to keep the cloak online, and John assembled a team to go fix the conduit. They arrived a few moments later via turbolift, and the team approached the conduit which was approximately halfway down the corridor on the left wall. Access was gained to the conduit, and the team began work. Almost immediately, however, Randall rapped out an order to the team that the conduit had reached the critical stage; it was about to blow. He ordered the computer to erect a level three force field around the area where the conduit was located, and a few moments later, a muffled explosion sounded. John ordered the force field lowered, and the team cleared away the slight debris. His communicator beeped, and the captain demanded a sitrep. John informed the captain of the explosion, advised him to have the ship's speed lowered to warp 5, and told him they would install a new conduit. It would take time, however, and the cloaking device would be inoperable until the new conduit was installed. He flipped shut the communicator, and assigned a team member to get a new conduit from cargo bay 2. The team member returned a few moments later, and the team set to work. John and Davis made the modifications to the new conduit, Randall grumbling about the starbase team not doing their jobs properly, then the new conduit was installed. A series of tests was performed, then John had the computer analyze the new conduit. The analysis came back with approval, and John contacted the bridge that the conduit was installed, and ready to handle the power demands of the cloaking device. He waited for the captain's order to activate the cloak, sticking around with tricorder in hand, ready to take readings. END LOG * - This is a brief summary of John Randall's Covert Mission 3; available in the log section

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate May 26-30, 2161 (approx.) ) As near as John could figure out, he was in his fourth day of captivity aboard the Romulan vessel. The previous three had been sheer hell for the engineer of the Challenger. The Romulans had been brutal in their interrogations, and had not held anything back. But, John hadn't broken, which only seemed to infuriate his captors more, and Randall was taking great pleasure in that. His sole purpose now was trying to find a way out; he constantly looked for anything that he could use, any passage that might lead to freedom. He hadn't found anything yet, but he vowed he would keep trying until he was free, or he was dead. John was not in good shape, but the Romulans, for all their brutality, had stayed away (mostly) from his facial area. The rest of his body was covered in bruises, and now almost every movement was sheer pain for the Starfleet officer. They came for him again, and led him down the corridor to the now-familiar room; they sat him down in the chair, but this time, they did not bind his hands. The Romulans stepped back, and stood at attention. John squinted at the door, which suddenly slid open, and a Romulan with a belt of metal running from his waist over his right shoulder and down his back to his waist walked in and regarded him. He snapped a command in Romulan to the other two, and they saluted and left the room. The Romulan officer drew up another chair, and sat in front of John. "So, my Starfleet friend," he said as the translated words came from the tube hanging around his neck. "How long must we continue this? We bring you here, we question you, and you say nothing. Do you really believe that anyone is looking for you? "Starfleet has abandoned you, my friend," he continued. "If they were going to mount a rescue for you, they surely would have done it by now, hm? Face the facts; they have given you up for dead. Admit it, they are not coming for you." John sat silently staring at the Romulan, who shrugged and arose from his chair. "I have reported to my superiors that there is no use trying to interrogate you any farther. I am awaiting their reply, but I think we both know what it will be, no?" he said, and John's eyes went ice-blue with anger. "Still you say nothing," rasped the Romulan. shaking his head. "Very well, we will take you back to your quarters, and you may contemplate your upcoming fate," he continued, striding to the door. He then turned and looked back at Randall. "I salute your loyalty, my friend, but I fear it is misplaced," he said. "Jalon true, Mr. Randall. I do not think we will meet again." He exited the room, and a few seconds later, the guards came and took John back to his room. Randall walked stiffily to the bed and sat down, leaning his back against the wall. Then, all of a sudden, the room lurched violently to the right, and John was thrown to the floor, crying out in pain. The room lurched again, and John went rolling across the floor, which was now slanted sharply downhill to the left. He crashed into the wall, and let out another scream of pain as he collided. He lay there for a few moments, then the door to his room slid open. Three forms rushed inside, and John saw through a haze they were wearing Starfleet Marine uniforms. Two of them came over to him, and another scanned him with a tricorder. "It's him, sir," the scanning Marine said, and the other nodded. "Let's go!" came the order, and the two Marines helped Randall out of the room and down the corridor. The group made their way to another room, which housed a transporter. The leader walked over to the console, and motioned the rest of the group onto the pad. Then, suddenly, three Romulans burst through the door, disruptors blazing. A vicious firefight ensued, and when it was over, all three Romulans were dead. One of the Marines had taken a hit, and was moaning with pain. The one at the console sent fingers flying across it, then pulled two switches down, and leaped onto the dais. A glow surrounded the group as they de-materialized from the room. *************************************************** The group materialized aboard another ship, and they stepped down from the dais. John was taken to the sickbay of the ship, and, through a haze of pain, recognized it as the Altair. He was laid onto a bed, and medical personnel immediately surrounded him. A hypospray hissed against his shoulder as his uniform was removed, and he immediately lost consciousness. He woke up later, and looked at the ceiling of the room. A nurse came over a few moments later. "Well, you're finally awake," she said breezily, and John turned his head to look at her. "How-How long---?," he began in a whisper, and the nurse shushed him instantly. "No talking, Lieutenant Randall," she said sternly. "You just lie there; the doctor will be here shortly. Would you like some water?" John nodded, and the nurse brought him a flask which he was able to sip from. A man wearing a white coat and a Starfleet blue medical uniform joined them. "Hello there, Mr. Randall," he said. "I'm Lieutenant Commander Evan Hughes, and you are aboard the USS Altair. I am the CMO of this ship, and I might say you are a VIP at the moment. Captain Creighton-Ward is on her way to see you. The Romulans worked you over pretty well, didn't they?" As John nodded, the doctor continued, "Well, you're going to be with us for a little while, Lieutenant. Please do not attempt to speak. You are in a severely weakened state, and your body needs time and complete rest right now." He took a hypospray and held it to Randall's shoulder. "This is a little something to help you stay awake for a bit," he continued. "The captain says it is critical to talk to you, but, after you two are finished, we are going to knock you out again, so to speak. The only reason you are not in pain right now is because we have administered a neural blocker. You need to be coherent when the captain arrives." As he finished speaking, the door of sickbay slid open, and Captain Wendy Creighton-Ward strode to the bed. "How is he, Doctor?" she asked, and Hughes frowned at her. "Under normal circumstances, Captain, he would be in a medically induced coma, and in a stasis chamber," he said. "I'm letting you talk to him against my wishes." "So noted, Doctor," replied the captain coldly. "You will give us privacy now." The doctor nodded resignedly, and left, drawing a curtain around John's bed. Captain Ward smiled down at him. "Welcome back, Lieutenant," she said. "Nice to be back, captain," replied John in a whisper. The captain said, "I know how badly you're hurt, Mr. Randall, so I'll be doing most of the talking. I have a tricorder with me; this will be an official debriefing, all right?" John nodded. "Lieutenant, the first thing you need to know is: the mission was a success. We apprehended the terrorist group, and made sure their ship that had the quantum torpedoes on it was completely destroyed," the captain began. "Now for some not-so-good news: Your team save two Marines were all killed," she continued, and John shut his eyes, instantly thinking of Sara Edwards. "The Columbia was destroyed by the Romulans, and any evidence of the shield technology aboard has apparently been eradicated. However, just as our history states, Earth did win the war. We found out later that the shield specs had been passed on to Starfleet HQ by the chief engineer of the Columbia before it was attacked by the Romulans. All the remaining NX-class ships were outfitted with shields, and that enabled Earth to win the war. "Two months later, Earth, Andoria, Tellar, Rigel, and Vulcan held a conference on Earth, and the Federation was officially founded," she continued. "At present, the Altair is about to make the time-jump back to our own time, and we are cloaked on the other side of the Phobos moon. Lieutenant, to your knowledge, the Romulans got no information from you during your torture?" John shook his head. "I wasn't about to tell those green-skinned bastards anything," he rasped, and Ward smiled. "Well, the admirals will be pleased to hear that," she replied. "Admiral Baldwin in particular has been most anxious about you. He plans on visiting you as soon as the doctor clears you for visitors. I think that's about all, don't you?" John nodded. "Well, I'll leave you to the doctor's care, then," she said. "It has been an honor to serve with you again, Lieutenant John Randall. May you recover rapidly." "Thank you, Captain," he replied. "Safe travels to you." Captain Ward nodded, opened the curtain, and nodded to the doctor, who immediately came over. "All right, Lieutenant, time for you to take an extended nap," he said, and John nodded, closing his eyes in anticipation. A second later, a hypo hissed against his shoulder, and he lost consciousness. Six days later, John awoke from the chemically induced sleep. He was given permission from the doctor to embark on an exercise regimen that lasted three weeks. He was debriefed again by admirals Hastings and Baldwin during the three week span. He also mourned the death of Sara Edwards, and his hatred of the Romulans doubled in intensity. The Altair made the jump back to the late 23rd century, and docked at earth spacedock 1. John was transported to Starfleet General Hospital where he was given a clean bill of health by the doctors there. He was pronounced fit for duty, and Captain Ward said she had orders from Baldwin, who would get in touch with Captain Ja'lale of the Challenger, to take John to his home ship. John was transported back to the Altair, and sat in his cabin awaiting the word to transport to the Challenger. END LOG

OFFICIAL LOG LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL USS CHALLENGER (Personal Log Stardate May 25, 2161) The shield technology had been installed on the Columbia, and John and Shrav had been teaching the nuances of adjusting them to the chief engineer of the Columbia, Lieutenant Commander Jerry Omen. To Randall's pleasant surprise, Omen had picked up the technology faster than John had expected. Omen was actually able to show Captain Sherman a few things that he had picked up. Randall thought to himself, 'The shield technology is in good hands with this man.' A few hours later, after everyone had gotten some sleep, Starfleet sent new orders to the starship; a fleet of Allied ships had encountered some Romulan vessels near Rigel X, and the Columbia was to go to their aid, along with the Excalibur, Constitution, and the Lexington. The captain assembled the crew in the cafeteria and gave them the news. He then put the ship on red alert, and ordered the helmsman to set a course for Rigel X. The starships from Earth arrived at the planet in just a few hours, and short range scans indicated a battle taking place in nearby space. The ships set sail for the battle, and arrived a few moments later. The fighting intensified as the starships joined the fray. Columbia manuvered itself into the point position, and the Romulans received quite a shock as the disruptor beams from their warbirds bounced off the newly installed shields of the starship. Seeing the Earth vessel equipped with shields, three Andorian vessels manuvered themselves closer to the Columbia. Striking a diamond formation, the four shielded ships made it easier for the other vessels to fire upon the warbirds, and suddenly the tide of battle changed. The Romulans began taking heavy damage as their shields absorbed so much punishment that they finally weakened and failed; the Allied ships then stepped up the attack. But then, a single warbird peeled off from the others, and fired a torpedo at the diamond formation. The explosion was massive as the torpedo collided with an Andorian vessel, who instantly lost its shields and suffered a major hull breach on its port side. On board the Columbia, Sherman leaped from his captain's chair, and stared at the viewscreen in shock. "Lieutenant Edwards, what the hell was that?!" he roared. From her navigation station, Sara quickly ran a scan of space where the Andorian vessel was now incapacitated. Her eyes widened as the report came in. "Captain, I don't know where or how they came up with it, but the Romulans used a quantum torpedo," she said, and every eye on the bridge snapped to her. Sherman looked at her in disbelief. "Did you say a quantum torpedo?" he asked softly, and Edwards nodded. "What the hell is that?" said the captain. Edwards said, "It's a new kind of energy that's only recently been discovered by Starfleet scientists, sir. I didn't know, and there was no one who did, that the Romulans knew anything about that." The captain frowned. "Well, we're in for it now," he said, and just then a titantic explosion rocked the Columbia. People went flying across the bridge. The captain was hurled straight backward, and slid across the floor to collide with the console in the rear of the bridge. Sara was snapped straight back in her chair, and her head collided with the wall in back of her. She lay on the deck, unmoving. Sherman struggled to his feet, and slowly made his way back to his chair. "Report," he said weakly, but no one answered. He looked around the bridge, seeing the crew in various states of disarray, then he spotted Edwards. With a sick feeling in his stomach, he made his way to her. He knelt down beside her, and put his fingers to the side of her neck. There was no pulse. The captain bowed his head, and suddenly the turbolift door opened. He looked up to see strange green-colored humanoid beings enter his bridge, and all were armed with weapons of some type. The one who seemed to be the leader spotted him and raised his weapon. He spoke into a silver tube hanging from his neck. "Do not move," he said. "You are our prisoner. Any attempt to resist us will result in your death. Stand up and move here," he indicated by moving his weapon. Sherman scowled at the being, but obeyed. The leader turned to the others with him and said something in a strange language. The other humanoids instantly left the bridge, striding back into the turbolift. The leader again gestured with his weapon, and Sherman moved toward the turbolift as well. He suddenly spun and launched himself at the humanoid. They struggled for a few moments, bouncing off stations all over the bridge, then Sherman was knocked backward against the helm. As he struggled to stand, a green beam erupted from the weapon the Romulan was carrying, and the captain of the Columbia was vaporized on the spot. The leader frowned, mumbled, "Human fool," then spun and walked to the turbolift. He entered the car, and left the bridge. ***************************************************** In engineering, things weren't much better. Crew lay everywhere with various sorts of injuries. John slowly picked himself up from where he had been flung against the wall just in time to the see the door open and a band of Romulans enter the room. They instantly leveled disruptors at him, and he froze on the spot. One came over to him and confiscated his phaser, stepping quickly back. The Romulans kept their weapons trained on him until another one stepped into the room. He surveyed the scene, then looked at John. "Ah, a human that is not so damaged," he said. "Good. What is your name and rank?" John just stared at the Romulan, his eyes turning ice-blue. His captor scowled and delivered a backhand to Randall's face. John rolled with the blow and scowled at the Romulan, who lifted his eyebrows in surprise. "Remarkable," he said. "You are resilient for a human. This is good. You will be our prisoner, and you will tell us about your technology." "And you will tell me about yours," spat Randall, and the Romulan was taken aback. "You are not afraid of me," he said in wonder. "I'm not afraid of any of you green-skinned bastards," John replied with venom in his voice. The Romulan regarded him thoughtfully for a few seconds, then said, "I think you have been among my kind before, hm?" John said nothing, glaring at him. "Well, we shall soon see. I think you will resist us, and that will make it more of a challenge," said the Romulan. "One which I shall enjoy," and he smiled an oily smile, which infuriated the engineer from the Challenger. "Take him to the shuttlepod, I will join you shortly," ordered the Romulan. John was grabbed by two of the others, and taken from engineering. The Romulan walked around the room for a few moments, his eyes taking in everything. He ascended the catwalk and stood staring at the operations console for a few moments. He then nodded and descended from the catwalk, stepping over to the door. He exited engineering and made his way to the shuttlepod. Of the crew of 85 which had been aboard the Columbia, only six survived, and they were all prisoners of the Romulans. John sat staring straight ahead as the Romulan shuttlepod made its way back to its mother ship. He knew what was coming, and prepared his mind for a long battle. No matter what, he could not give up any secrets, especially that he was from the future. His face was grim as the Romulan shuttlepod landed in the bay of the warbird. END LOG