A Shot In The Dark

[DrDMatthews 0]

Debbie Matthews leaned back in her chair and smiled. She'd called her senior staff together for a quick "mission briefing." They crowded around her desk anxiously awaiting the news on where Reaent was heading....and why. She decided not to keep them waiting any longer.

 

"We're going to.....Organia," she announced calmly, looking at each of them, one by one.

 

Their response was pretty much what she expected. She could tell from the blank expressions on their faces, most of them had never heard of the place. But of course, they had. Everyone of them graduated from the Academy...some longer ago than others. The Organian Peace Treaty was discussed in at least two of the mandated history courses every cadet was required to take. Unfortunately, her senior staff simply didn't remember. As head of the department, it was her responsibility to refresh their memories or, at the very least, order them to do a little research.

 

"Where's that?" asked someone quietly.

"Who knows."

"That name is familiar but I don't know from where."

"I know...it is familiar. I think it may be someplace important."

 

"Is this a joke?" asked Lieutenant Grace Allen, somewhat alarmed.

 

The CMO focused on her chief nurse, standing in the back row with her hands on her hips. It appeared at least one of her staff recognized the name of their current destination...and was none too pleased about it. Deb shook her head slightly. "No, it isn't a joke," she replied placidly. "We should arrive in a day or so."

 

"To do what?" demanded the Lieutenant. "More importantly....were we invited?"

 

Now everyone was looking at Gracie. "No," answered Deb. "We weren't invited."

 

"Those folks don't like people dropping in unannounced," asserted Gracie, shaking her head. "This ship just underwent a major overhaul. Now they're sending us off to deal with a race of beings more powerful than the "Q." ...powerful enough to squash us like miserable insects. Who's hair brained idea was this anyway?"

 

"Not necessarily more powerful," replied Deb, leaning forward and resting her elbows on the desk. She cradled her chin in her palms and smiled at Gracie. "There are many who believe the Organians were a faction of the "Q." They enjoyed a ......genuine corporeal existence.....living day to day by the sweat of their brow....whereas most of their brethren did not. Yet, in spite of their modest appearance, the Organians retained all of their....supernatural powers."

 

By now, the others had figured it out. "Organia?" As in the Organian Peace Treaty?" queried Dr. Miles Linkowitz, one of Reaent's long time surgeons.

 

"The same!" snapped Grace Allen before Deb had a chance to reply. The room went very quiet as many of the faces around her paled. You would have thought they'd been handed a death sentence.

 

"What ever happened to them anyway?" asked Merina, more curious than anxious. The Caitian's tail swished back and forth slightly as one ear twitched. "I don't recall hearing anything about them in.....years."

 

"Very good Merina! That, my friends, is why we're going to Organia," exclaimed Deb. She pushed away from the desk and stood up. "The planet has been off limits since 2267. The Organians maintained contact with the Federation until 2307 and the Klingons continued to hear from them until 2312. After that, nobody heard anything. About twenty years ago, several civilian ships tried to illegally enter the system. They had to turn back due to atmospheric distortations and other assorted complications. It was generally believed these unexplained phenomena were simply the Organians asserting their desire for continued privacy."

 

She glanced around the room as she walked out from behind her desk. "One would think the Organians would have shown themselves when the second Klingon-Federation war began. But they didn't. Then came the Dominion War. Again, no sign of the Organians." Deb stepped to the front of the desk and leaned against it. "Come to find out, the Ferengi actually sent a delegation to Organia during the Dominion War."

 

She paused and raised a brow. "Not only were they able to safely enter the system, once there, they claim they couldn't find anyone."

 

"Can we believe them?" asked Rocco Studly, MD.

 

The CMO shrugged her shoulders. "That's our mission. To find out what happened to the Organians. If we arrive and are unable to enter the system, we'll know they're still alive and well....and the Ferengi lied. But if we can access the planet and if Organia really is deserted, then our large eared friends were telling the truth. In that case, the question is ....where did the Organians go?"

 

"They're very powerful," remarked Dr. Russ Eckerd, another of the Reaent's talented surgeons. "Maybe they're still on the planet but have assumed a different corporeal form, one we don't know to look for."

 

"That's a possibility," replied Deb with a nod. "Or they may have simply packed it in. They got tired of the corporeal life and returned to their natural state. One way or the other, we have to be prepared for anything."

 

"Like being tossed halfway across the galaxy," cracked Gracie. "Without warning."

 

"That too," chuckled Deb. "But I was thinking more about preparing ourselves and our equipment to search for these beings. They're energy based entities. If they are still on the planet, we might be able to detect them if we re-calibrate our medical tricorders to look for their energy signals. I know the ship's sensors can do that as well, but those sensors may not be able to get close enough to the target. The Organians are extremely sophisticated. They could easily block our scans without us even knowing it, especially from a distance."

 

She picked up a tricorder from her desk and held it in front of her. "But, if we're on the surface, running close range scans with our re-calibrated tricorders, maybe...just maybe...we'll be able to find a clue or two."

 

Pushing away from the desk, she handed the tricorder to Merina, who happened to be standing right next to her. "So, your assignment is to research everything we know about the Organians. Pay close attention to any data on the energy wave lengths displayed when the Organians stopped hiding behind flesh and bones. And don't assume they're "Q." That's pure speculation. The truth is....we don't know what they are."

 

As she finished the briefing, Deb started walking back around the desk. Halfway there, she looked up to find everyone still standing where they had been throughout the meeting. "Listen folks," she said, nodding toward the door. " We need this information before we arrive. You only have a day or so to complete the research and re-calibrate the tricorders. So....get going!"

 

Deb returned to her seat as the senior staff filed out of her office. Merina was the last to leave. Debbie called to her as the Caitian was about to walk through the door. "There's not much going on in Sickbay right now," she said as Merina turned around to face her. "So get everyone involved in this research....the more the better...even if seems redundant You never know, somebody might pick up on something another person overlooked. And by all means, keep me posted on how things are going."

 

"Sure thing, Deb," replied Merina who then quickly made her exit. As the door swished closed, Deb leaned back in her chair, looked up at the ceiling and shook her head all the while wondering if they would get tossed halfway across the galaxy.....with no warning. "Talk about a shot in the dark...."

Edited February 6, 2008 by DrDMatthews