Just Before

[Cmdr Ba'alyo 0]

The following log takes place in the period before the crew woke up disoriented and suffering from amnesia. As the crew begins to recover, some of these events may be remembered...

The starship Challenger loomed beside the subdued Orion ship. It had been several hours since they'd overtaken the pirates. Surprised by Challenger's trap, the Orions had broken off their attack on the Efrosian freighter and tried to escape. Although they had fled toward the asteroid remains of a burned-out dwarf system, their speed and shielding were no match for the arsenal of an Excelsior-class starship. Battered down, their engines overheated, they'd been tractored to a stop and boarded by the Marines. After a brief firefight, they had finally surrendered. It had seemed almost anticlimactic.

 

But it was satisfying, Seiben admitted. These pirates had managed to best them previously by avoiding a straight-out fight. In their first encounter, the Orions had escaped by delaying them to save the crew of the USS Taurus. Later, they had forced Challenger to break off pursuit by threatening the civilians they'd captured.

 

Once Major Johnson had confirmed the ship was secure, she'd left her Marines in charge and returned to process the first group of Orion prisoners. Commander Ba'alyo had gone over to the captured ship with security and engineering teams to prepare the prize ship for a return trip to Starbase 15. Over protest, Kimiko had stayed behind to follow Dr. Juno's order to report to sickbay for observation of a minor head injury. Both ships - Teykier's Bounty and Challenger - held position over the next few hours, while material and personnel transported between them. Overseen by Lieutenant Savros, the stolen dilithium went into cargo holds. The liberated hostages were given guest quarters on Deck 3. The captured Orions were processed and brought aboard in small groups, destined for incarceration or eventual repatriation.

 

Captain Seiben stood up from the center seat, finally feeling the fatigue set in. Now that the adrenaline of the chase had worn off, his body felt the hours he'd been on the bridge. The alpha shift had pulled double duty, waiting to spring the trap. During the lull, the night shift had finally relieved them. Poldara, Reed, and M'Guire were already off duty, no doubt in leisure pursuits. Relief officers sat at most of the bridge positions. Even now, Lessard was relinquishing her seat at communications, heading aft to the conference room to compose an after-action report.

 

Now it was his turn. Seiben offered a data slate to the duty officer. Silent and efficient, Mr. Leslie nodded, waiting for the captain to step aside before taking the center seat. Now, he mused, he only had to contend with the Magna Roman "ambassador" who shared his quarters.

 

* * * * *

 

It was a testament to its designers that, after centuries of silent waiting, the gravitic mines still worked. Sentinal signposts of the ancient war that had cleansed this system, the neighboring units had been awakened by the subspace disturbance of objects penetrating their protective zone. Attracted by the EM fields and masses of two ships, they stealthily closed from different directions.

 

Designed to disable enemy ships for capture, the first drew itself within 200 meters of the disc-like portion of the larger intruder. It detonated as programmed, unleashing explosive shrapnel and its primary weapon: the bio-transducer pulse. Asynchronous bio-electric waves blossomed out in an arc toward the target, disabling computers and biological systems alike, weakening them for later acquisition. The pulse jolted those in the saucer section, jarring them into unconsciousness as it wiped their short-term memory.

 

* * * * *

 

Alerts went off in the control center of Teykier's Bounty.

 

Imagining dangers like failing systems or Orion booby-traps, Ba'alyo whirled toward the Andorian beside him. "What's going on, Idrani?"

 

The Marine sergeant looked at the unfamiliar displays, taking time to adjust. "Some kind of explosion, sir," she replied. "I've lost our signal from the ship, and the tractor beam has cut out."

 

"Can we raise Challenger?" the exec demanded.

 

The Andorian shook her head. "No response."

 

"Secure any prisoners we still have aboard, then see if we can get these sensors to tell us what happened," the Efrosian ordered, bolting toward the corridor. "I'll get down to the transporter room and beam over with security."

 

* * * * *

 

The second mine reached them moments later, exploding between the Orion and Federation ships. It peppered the underside of the saucer and the connecting neck as its pulse knocked out systems and any of those remaining conscious.

 

Drifting, their crews disabled, both ships lay waiting to be seized by forces that would no longer be coming. But the minefield didn't know that. It knew only its mission to protect the long-dead system within by keeping intruders here, dazed and trapped in amber - forever, if necessary. A mission other mines lay waiting to assume.