Return To Duty 2

[John Randall 0]

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