Star Trek: Season 5 - Boldly

[Jen]

Joint post by Jen and Just X

Alone on the bridge, Sevryll nodded to no one in particular as she listened to the garbled voice of Lieutenant James. "Understood Aurora. If you are certain the crew is clear, begin your escort to the Vuhansular Station." Acrid smoke blanketed the bridge, causing her to cough. Once she managed to draw a breath, she continued, "And Mr. James... would you relay a message to my children... all three of them?"

"I'd love to commander," Aeric said as he glanced to a smiling Aria. She paused her activities to listen to her mother's voice. He couldn't help but see the joy in her face at those simple words of acceptance. "What would you like me to tell them?"

"Tell them... I will show them the Voroth Sea first, followed by Mount Seleya—then the Hall of Voices, the Hall of Ancient Thought, and The Temple of Logic. And Lieutenant? Tell them I am proud of them... and I will see them soon."

"Message recieved commander. I will relay it to them." Aeric said. Aria looked as if she was about to speak, but knew that there would be time for it later.  "Live long and prosper commander. Aurora out"

Aria had already given the rest of her family the injections, but she had yet to wake them because she wanted Sevryll to be there. She had heard her mother's request and wanted to honor it. "Father, I will head to sickbay. I think that the twins should be awake when mother gets to the station. It might also be educational for them to see the steps that dedicated officers take to protect the Federation."

"If you can get them to the cockpit, I will attempt to give them the best seat in the house." Rory said as she adjusted her heading to bring the Tiberius into better view.

[Jen]

Joint post by Jen and Startrekfanatic5

Quinn was almost to the bridge; as he pushed open the side panel he could smell the singed wiring and smoke in the air. Through the haze he could see Sevryll gazing at the viewscreen. He climbed out of the jefferies tube and stepped onto the deck.  As he approached his first officer, he called out to the ship, "Computer are there any lifesigns aboard this vessel?"  A chirp sounded in response, followed by, "two lifeforms are located on the bridge, Captain Quinn and Commander Sevryll.." He glanced to the vulcan officer , "Are you ready?" he asked.

Sevryll nodded and Nathan presented her with a half-hearted smile and returned the gesture. Reflected in his green eyes was grief; an emotion that she shared, no thanks to the virus that had assailed her tenuous emotional control.

It had to be a dream—an awful nightmare. A product of fever brought on by disease. The Tiberius had been her home for almost a year, and its people had become an extended family that soon would be separated and scattered like particles of dust carried away by the searing winds of Vulcan.

"Computer, this is Captain Nathaniel Jacob Quinn. Initiate Auto-Destruct, authorization Quinn five alpha seven...." Sevryll's eyes focused on his expression as he rattled off the code, yet her mind was on the vessel that carried her children to safety. The Aurora, also ferried several command officers and their families. All other crewmen had, either on their own power or with help from the medical staff, escaped in lifeboats or shuttlecraft. An escape pod would also be the Captain and First Officer's mode of escape.

To Nathan Quinn, the scene that played out before him was like so many ancient Old West films he had seen as a boy. His trusty stead had sustained a fatal injury ...and now he was left with the unpleasant task of putting his faithful friend down, to ease her suffering. That was what Tiberius was to Nathan—a trusted and loyal friend— a noble stead. He was thankful for the opportunity to command such a splendid vessel and was relieved that his horse had no eyes to avoid as he ended its short life. When silence from his number one followed his command code, Nathan glanced up at her. She looked distant— her mind was wandering again.

"Sevryll?" he called gently. Hearing her name spoken aloud, summoned her from her reverie.

"I'm sorry Captain," she said wistfully.

"Don't be. I'm finding this difficult as well."

She nodded. A diminutive, dismal, smile crossed her lips for an instant and was gone. "Computer, this is Commander Sevryll. Confirm Auto-Destruct sequence, authorization Sevryll..." What was the rest of the code?

"Sevryll..." The vulcan cast a quick glance at Nathan who wore a look of deep concern. She closed her eyes in an effort to visualize the remainder of the confidential code.

"Sevryll... thirty... no ...thirty three..."

"Please restate the command code," uttered the stale feminine voice of the computer. Silence followed as the vulcan dredged her mind for the code.

"Sevryll 33... Beta...Echo." A sequence of melodic chirps and chimes followed indicating her code was accepted.

Nathan relaxed slightly and followed up, "this is Captain Nathaniel Jacob Quinn. Destruct sequence Alpha-One. Ten minutes, audible countdown. Enable."

"Destruct sequence completed and engaged," replied the lackluster voice of the computer.

Warnings began sounding as the Captain and his first officer jogged towards the jefferies tubes. As she struggled to match Nathan's pace, only Sevryll's labored breaths accompanied the muffled pounding of their boots. They entered the tube and began their retreat.

"Warning, auto destruct in 7 minutes."

"Do you think you can make the climb to the next deck?" he asked with concern scribed on his face. Her response came as a quick nod.

Nathan paused to glance down at his First Officer; she was barely keeping up. And as she stepped to the next rung, her boot slipped causing her to slide down a few steps. "Sevryll!" he shouted, his voice echoing within the belly of Tiberius. She caught herself with one hand and turned her eyes upward. He slid down to grasp her hand, but she refused his offer—her countenance denoted fear but her stretch to the next rung declared she was determined to continue on her own.

"Warning, auto destruct in 5 minutes." Echoed the computer in the narrow tube. Nathan waited until Sevryll moved closer, before he continued. "We're almost there, Sevryll... " They came to the end of the ladder and the captain climbed into the junction and turned to help the vulcan into the horizontal crawlspace. "There's the entrance to the deck we're looking for." Still in a crouch, he shifted on his feet and pivoted towards the exit, then began to crawl toward the access. Sevryll paused briefly to push her hair out of her face and followed.

The captain stopped to key a sequence into the access pad, only to receive a dull beep for his trouble. He had expected this, Nathan smirked as he removed a tool from the kit he carried and proceeded to override the locking mechanism. Within a few seconds they were rewarded by a hiss as the door opened to the corridor beyond. The captain climbed out and turned to help his ailing friend out of the jefferies tube. Sevryll stood to her full height and began to jog behind Nathan. The pulse of the red lights seemed synchronized with the pounding she felt in her temples that only slowed when they reached the escape pod and she could stop for a second to catch her breath.

"Warning, auto destruct in 3 minutes." Nathan removed the hatch and motioned for Sevryll to enter the pod. It was cramped but contained two comfortable seats. The vulcan strapped herself in as Nathan paused to take one last look at his first ship, his loyal friend. As the seconds ticked away, Quinn couldn't believe that this was how his first command was going to end. That this would be the way his ship would die.

"Warning, auto destruct in 2 minutes." The captain entered the pod and pulled on the safety harness. He glanced to Sevryll and allowed a sad smile to cross his face then he turned his eyes to the controls. "Good bye old friend," he said as he activated the pod ejection.

They were pushed back in their seats violently as the pod launched from it's port. The U.S.S. Tiberius shrank in the small porthole as the expanse between the pod and the Akira class vessel increased. Nathan closed his eyes and moved his lips as he counted down under his breath. The vulcan read them as she turned her eyes once more to her captain. Four, three, two... a flash of light lit the interior of the pod, and washed over the two officers—casting, ghoulish shadows on their faces and receding just as quickly as it had appeared. Soon after, another burst lit the cockpit. Nathan forced himself to open his eyes and Sevryll watched the chaos reflected in them then turned to witness the last remaining fragments of their ship colliding, sparking and exploding in silence outside the pod. A piece of the hull rolled dangerously close to the porthole. The chard letters 'T - I - B - E - R - I - U - S' were clearly discernible as it tumbled past, then smashed into another section and exploded. Drawing a slow, haggard breath Nathan closed his eyes once. His first officer turned her own eyes towards the beauty of Vulcan. They had sacrificed their home to protect her homeworld. The irony was agonizing and at the same time... logical. In the silence that followed, they contemplated their uncertain future and mourned the untimely end of NCC 63642... The U.S.S. Tiberius.