Summary of Events Stardate 0209.18

Summary of Events
Stardate 0209.18

TNG Era:

Captain Reggie Farrell, Commanding Officer of the USS Exeter, currently assigned to diplomatic escort duty in the Delta Quadrant, reports receiving a communique from the Talaxian trader who had agreed to convey a conference request and protein resequencer from Ambassador Endara Khan and First Maje Jabin of the Kazon-Ogla to the Kazon-Oglamar. The Talaxian pilot reported that a Kazon-Oglamar representative had agreed to escort him to the First Maje. Further word was expected 'sooner rather than later' according to Captain Farrell.

Captain Mike Murphy of the USS Guadalcanal reports that the Romulan Warbird, tentatively identified as the RIS Decius, has recloaked after receiving moderate damage in battle over Oshionian Six. He is remaining on station and conducting an extensive scan of the area in an effort to reacquire the ship.

The Achilles Class USS Archer has arrived in the Archanis Sector to join the Galaxy Class USS Arizona on patrol duty. Archanis has been the location of several attacks on Federation convoys by apparently rogue Klingon forces.

Contact with the Galaxy Class USS Yorktown was lost. The Yorktown was assigned to emergency relief operations in the Coramond system.

TOS Era:

Communications has been reestablished with the Federation outpost on Archer Four. Captain Lionidas reports that nearby Klingon forces had built an outpost that was jamming all sensors and communications in the area. He has yet to investigate the status of the MZ-5 outpost which falls within Archer Four's area of control.

USS Coramonde vanished on a stellar mapping mission exploring uncharted territory beyond the Izar sector.

ENT Era:

On it's mission to chart the far borders of Romulan space, Challenger NX-07 left the most distant Earth outpost, codenamed Xanadu. Sensor data and telemetry are still being transmitted to Starfleet Command.

The prototype Explorer Class EX-01 Roddenberry was reported missing three days after charting an unknown system on a mission towards the center of the galaxy.

Command College

"What Are Your Orders, Captain?"

(Ent Era) "The Enemy of My Enemy" Resolution

The Challenger NX-07, patrolling what they believe is unclaimed space, drops out of warp in an uncharted system. They are immediately faced with an unusual sight. Two Klingon Birds of Prey are locked in a pitched battle with a ship of unknown configuration. The alien ship is twice the size of the Klingon ships (as well as the Challenger), and is overwhelming the Klingons with a combination of laser weapons, antimatter warheads, and chemical-propelled missiles. Captain Carpenter can see that the Klingons are in danger of being destroyed in minutes, but also recognizes the inherent danger in intervening in Klingon matters, no matter his good intentions. On the other hand, he doesn't want to stand by while anyone is being attacked. Knowing that all three ships will have noted his arrival in the area, he has to make a quick decision. He must:

A: Come to the aid of the Klingons. Willingness to join them in battle might impress the Klingons, but would endanger the Challenger and make an enemy of the unknown ship. He should also consider that Klingons rarely appreciate aliens coming to their aid. Or...

B: He could warp out of the area, hoping that both sides are too busy with each other to care about Challenger. This seems the safer alternative, but both sides could take offense at the lack of assistance.

Captain Carpenter chose a slightly modified version of the first option. Rather than joining the Klingons for the full duration of the battle, Carpenter ordered a detailed scan of the alien. It was revealed to be a Kzinti battlecruiser. The Kzinti, first encountered by the Enterprise NX-01 in 2155, have not been heard from since that encounter. The scan of the Kzinti vessel showed a vulnerable area in the aft shields covering the ship's fire-control component. Coming in at full impulse, the Challenger fired photonic torpedoes and phase cannons at the aft shield, then continued past the fighting ships and went to warp once it was outside of weapons range. This tactic aided the Klingons in a meaningful way without becoming bogged down in the fighting or giving the Klingons the opportunity to turn and attack them.

Members who chose this solution:
Kapact
Kate

(Ent Era) "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished"

Captain Carpenter's gambit paid off initially. After Challenger warped out of the system, the Klingons took advantage of the disabled Kzinti and concentrated their attack on the exposed fire-control component. Robbed of the ability to fight back, the Kzinti was attempting to limp away when the two Birds of Prey launched a barrage of photonic torpedoes, destroying the larger ship. But his assessment of the risk posed by the Klingons was correct. As soon as the combat was concluded, the Klingons detected Challenger's warp trail and took off in pursuit.

They caught up with Challenger in unexplored space, and immediately opened fire. Carpenter's attempts to hail the Klingons went unanswered, and he was forced to retreat to a dense asteroid field. That gave the Starfleet crew a bit of breathing room, but it added another dimension to their challenge. As it turned out, the asteroid field concealed a Kzinti mining operation and weapons facilty. Carpenter has to make a quick, simple choice. He must either:

A: Move deeper into the field, possibly provoking the Kzinti, but probably escaping from the Klingons, or:

B: He can turn and attack the Klingons, using the element of surprise and the hazardous terrain of the asteroid field to overcome or elude his pursuers.

Choose A or B, or a third course of action, and write a brief explanation

(Moderator's Note: There are no predetermined right or  wrong answers. The most popular solution will give the players who chose it a "Command College Point". Ten of those equal an experience point.)


Captain's Log

(From last week)
"...break the laws of physics..."

Class O Pelagic
Age: 3-10 billion years
Diameter: 10,000-15,000 km
Location: Ecosphere
Surface: Liquid water covers 80% or more of surface area
Atmosphere: Nitrogen, oxygen, trace elements
Life forms: Aquatic vegetation, animal life, humanoids
Example: Argo

11) You meet a society that causes you to question whether or not to interfere with their development.

(TNG era)

USS Ulysses S Grant , Nebula Class Command Cruiser

Our survey of an uncharted Class O water world caused me to seriously question blanket application of the prime directive. The inhabitants of this world are approaching the point in technological development where they will be colonizing their solar system within a generation. And while they seem to have avoided the wars and destruction that Earth went through to get there, they also seemed to be behind even the modest attempts at environmental protection that followed the oil riots of the mid 21st century. What mankind did by shifting to renewable energy, the inhabitants of this world are doing through genetically engineered biotechnology. And while that has worked for them so far, a deep scan (while safely obscured by the planet's unusually strong magnetic field and nearly opaque rings) revealed that the mass of underwater biotechnology is very slowly beginning to consume the natural nutrients in the water that sustain the inhabitants. Once these people reach other worlds, this will probably not be an issue, since there are several other planets with similar biospheres, and in fact nearby star systems with suitable planets. Will their environment sustain them for long enough to allow them to reach these worlds? Computer projections put it at an exact 50/50 chance.

There's a lot I could do with this ship. I could fix their problems and give them a future free of environmental concerns. Indeed, their remarkably peaceful nature would make them natural candidates for Federation membership. I might even find a way to break the laws of physics for them. But my hands are tied by a wise and time-tested moral imperative forbidding interference with the natural development of this pre-warp, if possibly doomed culture.



For Next Week:

(Expand the following into a log entry of at least 100 words. Members post answers to the yahoogroup or the 'comment' feature on the blogsite. Lurkers feel free to leave comments on the blogsite)

"...last ship to bear the name..."




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