" Return "
(Previous Post was Serena's "Command Contemplations")
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Stardate: 60343.2145
To say that the journey to SURIAL III had been long and difficult one would have been a grave understatement… one that had been made even more obvious when compared to the trip back across the Cardassian / Federation border. As tranquil and uneventful as the voyage home had been though, it had seemed to be an eternity to the young woman in command of the ANUBIS who had been painfully aware of each agonising second as they passed and failed to see her life-mate wake from her state.
There had been times when the redheaded woman would have liked nothing more than to reach out and shake the sleeping woman out of her slumber, but Sabrina's experience as both a CMO and Cns had taught her that the action would have served no purpose other than maybe openly venting her frustration. So instead of abandoning herself to her emotional despair the young woman sought the comfort of whatever solitude she could find… something that she strangely enough knew Enaii would have understood. The ILO had never been one to externalise her feelings… unless the two of them had been alone and away from any prying eyes, and even then she was reserved. Now the ANUBIS' CO could only hope that these would be more than simple memories and that once they would arrive at NEW ALEXANDRIA someone in the medical department there would be able to do something… anything.
=/\= Bridge to Captain Rikar… we are here, =/\= the voice of the CSciO
and acting ExO was heard saying, pulling the young woman out of her
thoughts and onto her feet in a flash. The long journey had finally ended… or at least so she hoped.
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The young woman emerged from her office and made her way to the central chair under the watchful eyes of the senior staff as the ANUBIS dropped out of warp speed allowing the GIZA nebula to be displayed in all of its splendour on the main view screen. This meant that their journey had ended and that they were home once again.
"Status report." Rikar demanded as she eased into her chair taking only
a brief moment to glance in the direction of 1st Lt. Pravat as if to
remind the Marine CO that as the acting Chief of Security and Tactical
Officer, and in the absence of the ship's Avatar, it had been his duty to insure that the arrival of the ANUBIS and of the HATHOR remained undetected by anyone who might be in the vicinity.
"Ablative armour and sensor dampening fields are active and working. We will be in range of the tracking beckons in less than 5 minutes. All departments have reported in and are ready for final approach and docking." The Enaran announced as he glanced towards the CSciO as if to ask if he had done everything right. Although this had not been the first time Pravat had
faced this unique approach it had been the first time that he had witnessed it from such a position of influence. Docking to a space station had never been an easy task for a ship the size of the ANUBIS, but hiding that station inside a moving asteroid amongst a field of planetoid-size rocks on the edge of a nebula that made sensors inoperative had been an entirely different story. Despite the condition of the ship the CO seemed confident that the vessel and its crew would survive the final leg of their journey home… after all that they had endured to get this far they would certainly not allow the natural defences of their home base get in the way.
"Helm… take us in." Sabrina ordered before falling into an absolute
silence as the ship ever so slowly made its way deeper into the outer edge of
the asteroid field.
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"Receiving the ANUBIS' transponder signal… they are starting final approach." One of the officers sitting in front of what appeared to be a very complex control panel reported, triggering a well rehearsed sequence of events practice countless of times before.
"Confirm with tactical that no other vessels are in the region, then activate navigational beckons and long-range dampening field generators… update asteroid movement projections and synchronize base and ship computers. Have Viper Squadron 1 and 2 on launch stand-by… and tell docking station 2 to prepare to receive the ANUBIS… in the meantime I'll inform the Admiral." The officer in command offered without as much as hinting that this had been something out of the ordinary, or something that anyone should be concerned about.
=/\= Engineering team 2... Stand-by for return of USS ANUBIS. Base is now on *Yellow Alert*, all personnel report to your stations. =/\= The voice of 1 of the other offices echoed throughout the base with such force that it had been almost impossible to believe that anyone had not heard the announcement… including the Admiral himself.
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"Receiving NEW ALEXANDRIA navigational beckon signals." Maya announced
from the CSciO's station, following protocol to the letter… all that had
been left to do had been to wait for the CO's final order.
Sabrina sighed as she looked over her shoulder to make sure her ExO had
taken her position and that everything had been in order. With a nod of
her head the Shillian confirmed that the ANUBIS' computer had been
synchronized with that of the their base of operations and that updated charts had been received in regards to the location and movements of the countless
asteroid that formed the belt around the GIZA nebula.
"Ahead quarter impulse… and keep an eye on those asteroids… just in case. Tactical, defensive measure and keep a watch on the status of the armour… and on the HATHOR." The redheaded woman offered in an overly serious tone. The ANUBIS, as well as the other ships of the same class had been equipped with the most up-to-date ablative armour for many reasons… deflecting the smaller asteroids present in the protective belt having likely been the first and most important reason.
Slowly… the ANUBIS began to make its way into the asteroid field, the view on the main view screen of the varying size rocks dancing about to the
backdrop of the GIZA nebula had truly been an enchanting sight… and hopefully it would remain just that… a sight.
After a few minor course correction, the view screen showed a gargantuan asteroid… one that their CSciO would have described as a Planetoid because of its sheer size had she been at her post on the bridge. The difference this time as compared to the others had been that the ship had made no effort to avoid it… instead heading directly for it.
"2000 meters and closing." The FCO announced as she kept a very close watch at the distance separating the large rock and the camouflaged hull of the ship.
"Synchronizing ship's lateral rotation… holding speed at 1 quarter
impulse." The Shillian who had monitored the approach added in a way that made it clear that she had been slightly nervous.
"1700 meters." The FCO reported with great calmness offsetting the nervousness of the CSciO, something that many of the bridge's crew seemed to be sharing in some way, shape or form.
"I have no idea how Serenna manages to get through this part without flinching…" the ExO quietly admitted as she watched the features of the asteroid fill the entire view screen.
The young woman remained quiet as the thoughts of what was to come
filled her head… if she could she would go back in time and change whatever
had needed to be changed to not have to deal with what her responsibilities
to the ship demanded of her.
"Steady as she goes..." The CO calmly offered with.
"900 meters and closing." Pravat interjected, his focus having been on
his instruments and not the image being displayed on the main view screen.
"Lateral rotation has been matched… adjusting drift… we are currently
3.35 meters off optimal approach vector." The Shillian CSciO announced,
still sounding a little nervous about the manoeuvre that they were in the
middle of.
"700 meters," the FCO updated only a few seconds later.
"Remind me what the margin of error is for the approach vector?" The
MCO inquired of the CSciO in a concerned voice.
"10 meters." The Shillian replied almost immediately without giving any indication as to whether or not that number had been large or small. As far as the CSciO had been concerned the margin of error had been more than sufficient, but for the Enaran who had never experienced this sort of approach first hand before, the distance seemed to be small… far too small.
"400 meters." The FCO announced forcing the thoughts of the everyone on
the bridge back onto the situation at hand.
"Starting final approach… we are currently 4.12 centimetres off optimal
approach vector." Maya added, her voice trembling with a slight
increase in nervousness.
"200 meters to asteroid's surface." Pravat announced just as the rocky texture visible on the view screen split into two parts, drifting away from each other at a rate of speed that perfectly matched the ANUBIS' movement forward.
As the ship made its way into the inside of the asteroid, the entire
bridge bathed in complete silence, the image on the main view screen having
changed from the rocky terrain to the amazing sight of countless decks and
windows set within the rock face.
"We have cleared the doors." The CSciO announced, her voice almost
cracking with both joy and an immeasurable amount of releif.
"Dock the ship and secure all stations…" Rikar ordered as she stood
from her chair and made her way back to the turbolift… obviously the young woman had somewhere important to be… and everyone on the Bridge knew exactly
where that place had been.
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The scene had almost been a scary one… an Intel Operative being rushed to the nearest Infirmary by no less than three medical officers and the starship captain. Those who had not known of the situation had not dared to stick around to ask any questions and those who had been made aware of the ILO's predicament had long ago decided to not be in the way. Even Admiral Koniki, who had never been known to be an overly considerate man, had decided to forgo with the standard debriefing session allowing for the young woman to spend some time with her mate as the base's medical personal tried their best to bring Enaii back from whatever realm she had become prisoner of.
The young woman watched uneasily as the limp form of the ILO was transferred from the mobile bed to one of the sophisticated biobed of the secret base. As soon as the body of the unconscious operative had been placed on the bed every officer from the ANUBIS was escorted out of the Infirmary without as much as an explanation.
"I guess they no longer need us," Doctor Summers offered as several
inquisitive glances were shared while the four women stood outside in
the corridor following their forced exit.
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"We are Grey, we stand between the Candle and the Star, between the
Darkness and the Light" 2006 post #141
Setting: USS ANUBIS, CO's Ready Room
Stardate: 60343.2155
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Bridge
Stardate: 60343.2200
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Section A, Level 1, C&C
Stardate: 60343.2205
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Bridge
Stardate: 60343.2215
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Section C-2, Level 1, Infirmary
Sabrina Jones {sabrina_sweet@hotmail.com}
Captain Sabrina Rikar
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
-Entilza Delenn, Babylon 5
