Mission Log 7 - Ended Stardate 21509.15 "The Last Hurrah"
Mission Logs for Avenger, “The Last Hurrah"
Mission Summary
Mission dates: 21504.15 through 21509.15
Avenger
During shore leave on Starbase Delta, the USS Avenger was hijacked by a group of original Avenger crewmembers from the other universe. The senior crew of the Avenger gave chase utilizing the USS Voltaire, the USS Avenger's auxiliary craft. After an unusual encounter with a young member of the Q race, the Voltaire accidentally stumbled upon the Avenger hiding in a nebula -- the Avenger had attempted to utilize a decoy while turning off their beacon.
The Voltaire crew was able to retake the Avenger, but not before the Gettysburg arrived on the scene on First Fleet orders to destroy the Avenger. The Avenger and its filled escape pods were destroyed by the Gettysburg, despite attempts to persuade the Gettysburg to stand down. The Gettysburg was taken over by the team that originally recaptured the Avenger in the seconds that proceeded the Avenger's destruction.
Logs
Captain's Logs
Captain Tyra Crawford
21502.20
Commanding Officer's Personal Log
Stardate 21502.20
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
I died.
My heart literally stopped beating for 1 minute and 24 seconds.
I'm alive thanks to the doctors but the knowledge that I came so utterly close to losing everything I've strived for, everything I want, everything I love... it's humbling in the worst sense of the word.
I agreed to take the position as Avenger's CO because it was suppose to be safer, I hate having Thomas worry about me while I'm gone. I can't stop him but I can, at least, try to give him every assurance possible that I'm not doing anything to endanger our future together.
And it entirely backfired.
I have never seen Thomas so consumed with worry and I hate it; I hate that I caused that feeling, that this stripped away any sense of security we had. In the days since I woke up, he's been... not himself, not really. He's so protective and it's just consuming him. This last year has been hard on him... on us, and this is just the last straw.
Well, not the last straw, though it's certainly tied into this disaster.
I don't have concrete memories of the days leading up to my... to the incident that caused these horrified injuries, though I can remember the incident itself. I did remember one thing though, and in some ways, I wish I didn't.
I was... I thought... I thought I was... I thought I was pregnant. That's the first time I've managed to get that out... out loud, at least.
I read my logs, hoping I was wrong but I wasn't. I really did think I was pregnant, though I didn't want to confirm it until after the mission. It's a painfully moot point now.
I told Thomas...I couldn't not tell him, not with how we are connected. Even after sharing that pain, it hurts; it's a throbbing ache deep in my chest. We've always wanted to start a family, but the timing has never been in our favor, especially with the Krynar war spanning most of our relationship. We've never been willing to jump with so many unknowns. Then, it's taken out of our hands, only to be ripped away before it can be fully realized... it's not fair...
We'll rebound, we don't have a choice. And we'll try again... soon but first, I have to put myself back together again... or at least, try.
End Log.
21503.20
Commanding Officer's Personal Log
Stardate 21503.20
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
The last month has been challenging... I underestimated just how difficult recovering from such grave injuries can be, both physically and emotionally.
I have, at least, one physical therapy session a day... more if I'm feeling particularly restless. I was only just able to run for the first time a few days ago, but I've regained all of my basic motorskills. I no longer have to rely on the support staff to assist with basic tasks, which keeps my dignity marginally intact but it's still a very frustrating process. I know what my body is capable of, but I'm just not there yet...
In addition to PT, I have two to three counseling sessions a week. Initially, I had every intention of bluffing my way through the sessions but the psychologist I was assigned, Doctor Little, has an unfortunately accurate bull**** radar. She also seems to have a knack for finding insecurities and opened wounds and just dig into them with all the intensity of a hungry bear.
I grudgingly admit that I need the push from time to time. We've resolved more baggage in a month than I've managed to shuffle through in a decade and a half of trying on my own. However, the process has been both frustrating and painful. Often times, I'm left with more questions than answers after sessions, but I don't feel like I'm falling apart. I may not know where I'm going professionally and may feel adrift, at times, personally, but I don't think it's permanent, just an unfortunate state.
I'm doing well enough that Thomas feels comfortable going to a short conference on Earth. He wants me to come with him and I want to go, but I know if I leave, I'll use it as an escape to avoid issues that I need to deal with. It'll just prolong this state of limbo that I'm in. I don't particularly want to be alone at the moment, but that's another step I need to take. I don't think he's particularly happy with my decision but I've explained enough that he seems to respect it.
There are some things I want to work through while he's gone, and hopefully, when Thomas returns, we can discuss some decisions that we've been putting off... I'm still holding out hope that something good can come from this nightmare.
End Log
21504.22=
Commanding Officer's Personal Log
Stardate 21504.22
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
The Avenger is gone... just stolen out of space dock like we were hosting an open house or had left the keys in the ignition.
It seems like an inside job. The hijackers pounced on a situation that required the Avenger to be moved from the shipyard to space dock and were able to swipe it right from under our noses. They also knew enough to take out the transwarp conduit, leaving it difficult for us to scramble up any reinforcements that aren't already present at Delta.
Whether it was luck or just very patient planning, there are few ships available to hunt the Avenger down. Dauntless has been locked down by Intel, which leaves the Voltaire and an additional escort for pursuit. We'll be making a more detailed plan once the Voltaire is cleared to launch, which should be imminent.
Adding to the issue is that Thomas and the Nova still haven't returned from his 'week' long conference, which has stretched well beyond a month at this point. On one hand, that deprives us of a ship more than capable of taking on the Avenger, but it also gives us a chance to take care of this situation before Thomas hears about it and absolutely blows a gasket over it.
I don't know what exactly has been going on in that man's head but he just hasn't been himself. Nick seems to be concerned about how he will react as well, which has lead us to decide to delay telling him. There's a chance we can deal with this situation before he has to know, though our luck hardly seems to support that hope.
In our favor, the Avenger is not running at 100% or anywhere near. Systems are offline, including full warp drive, which gives us hope to catch them. They also shouldn't have a full crew compliment, making mistakes all the more likely.
There's hope, though it's going to take some talent, luck and skill wrapped into one. The Voltaire and my crew are up to it, it's whether I am.
Personal Log, Supplement
That ship is cursed and I have half a mind to just tell the hijackers to keep it. After all, it'll find a way to blow up in their face before too long -- it certainly had managed it with me, spectacularly.
Two things stop me though. The Avenger, even at partially functionality, is a substantial security risk. I have my suspicions about who is responsible for the hijacking but if I'm wrong, that ship could easily be used against other Starfleet holdings or even civilian populations. It's not acceptable, and it can't be allowed to happen.
Hell, even if I'm right, I'm not entirely convinced that members of the original crew wouldn't use it against a government that has hardly been fair to them. I can't say I'd blame them if I was in their shoes.
Secondly, this will be a huge blemish for Thomas, Nick and myself. I'm so tired of watching Thomas get blamed for things left and right, things that he had nothing to do with. I can't let this ship, a ship I'm responsible for and that I've fought for, become yet another thing used against him. He doesn't deserve that and neither does Nick.
This ship is my problem and mine to fix. Or more accurately, it's my curse and my curse to bear.
I'll stop it one way or another.
End Log
21505.08
Commanding Officer's Personal Log
Stardate 21505.08
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
It seems my gut was correct, though it's hardly a bragging point right this moment.
The Avenger's hijacking was most certainly an inside job, and all indications point towards it being perpetrated by, at least, some of the Avenger's original crew. As of now, there are some 71 members of that portion of the crew who are just missing. If my math is right, that's not quite half of the originals, but it throws suspicion onto the group as a whole. I have five on the Voltaire right this moment... can I actually trust them?
I can't entirely blame them. They haven't been dealt the fairest of hands by the brass, despite Derrick and I's efforts. I know a number of them still are bitter about my appointment as CO in the wake of Derrick's removal and despite his endorsement, I'm not deaf to the rumors that I only received the position due to my marriage. It would be hard on the ego if I took those things too seriously, but even with such thick skin, it wears on you...
There's only two reasons I can think that they'd want the Avenger -- they want to go home or they want to use it as a weapon of revenge for all their mistreatment. My bet is the former -- it makes more sense with the given facts and what I know of that part of the crew. Braggins has suggested that I go speak to Harkness about some research he was considering in regards to returning the Avenger to their universe.
I can't honestly see Harkness being a knowing participant in this whole debacle but engineers and scientists have a tendency to be short sighted when considering the impact of their projects. I could easily see him becoming excited and letting his research slip... with the right motivation, accessing his data probably wouldn't be an impossible task once someone knew it existed.
More interesting, is the fact that, according to Braggins, Harkness proposed the research to Jack Ristone. Maybe it's because of my friendship with Nick, but I've always thought highly of Jack, even when I was skeptical of everyone to begin with. He's a spectacle doctor and a good friend... but is that enough to overlook his obvious connection to the hijackers, plus his possible knowledge of pertinent research? I don't want to consider it, but I worry that not considering it will get people killed...
Even more concerning is the idea that the five originals aboard might be pawns without even realizing it... how do you even account for that without throwing people in the brig for the Hell of it?
Regardless, I need to get to the bottom of this Harkness business first and go from there... we can only hope this is all a bunch of paranoid suspicions and nothing concrete.
End Log.
21505.20
Commanding Officer's Personal Log
Stardate 21505.20
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
This is such a train wreck...
Plus, I feel like a runaway train...
I spoke to Harkness about his research; he confirmed that he had broached the subject of researching how to return the Avenger with Jack. However, he swears that Jack turned his offer down and he, then, felt unmotivated to pursue the research any further without support from the original crew. I have to admit that I think he's being truthful -- he's not exactly quiet about the research he is excited -- but Jack's rejection of the idea struck me as odd.
Of course, that set my targeting system on Jack, for better or worse. I was half to the medical bay when Murphy notified me that the Ethan Grant and Ryan Cooper had been tentatively identified as the ring leaders after discovered bodies with their communicators attached to them.
I think I lost it a little for a few moments. My entire career has revolved around protecting people and I failed to protect some of my own from our own crewmates -- they were killed by people they should have trusted, right under our noses.
I'm really not entirely sure what exactly I said to Jack as I stormed into the med bay in a fury but it was hardly friendly or complimentary. Given my background, I think I'm allowed to be suspicious of obvious associates of the hijackers but I shouldn't have handled it like that. Jack didn't deserve to be berated and yelled at without being given a chance to explain or defend himself, not if I consider him to be a friend, which I do.
Once I calmed down, Jack was able to offer an explanation for why he, and the other crew members, were excluded from this little hijacking party. The trained security officer in me admits that it would make sense to exclude the members least likely to join, as well as those with the most loyalty to the new crew. It was no secret that Jack is my personal doctor, which, while that makes him valuable, it also makes him a liability. However, I have a hard time believing that well over 50 people could keep such a complicated plan a secret unless they utilized a fractured method where no one person has the entire plan.
I want to believe Jack and I want to be able to handle the rest of the crew without worrying about their loyalties but frankly between this and being blown up in my own ready room, I'm not sure I want anything to do with this ship or crew when this is over -- that might not be an issue if Thomas decides to stick me at a desk for this insane stunt.
As it stands, Jack is still working in the med bay. I have the security office keeping an eye on all important areas of the ship in case we do have a sleeper agent but I have refrained from having security actively watching any of the five primes aboard the Voltaire. We have more than enough probable cause to lock all five of them up for crew safety, but this crew is small as it is, we can't afford the lose of manpower, though I worry I will regret that later...
If I think dealing with five people is bad, when we get back to base, I will have to have this same dilemma with well over fifty people... maybe, I need to retire as soon as we dock, save everyone a lot of headaches.
End Log.
21507.25
Commanding Officer's Log
Stardate 21507.25
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
This trainwreck just turned into a two train pile-up...
On the bright side, we now know how the Avenger jumped so far ahead of us, even though I think reporting it will probably get me a one-way trip to a psych eval.
Only an hour or so into our chase, the bridge began receiving reports of a 'haunting' from engineering shortly after I returned after my chat with Jack. It sounded ludicrous but Ensign Aldren -- yes, the same Aldren that was the Avenger's COS at one point before abandoning ship -- requested that I attend to the situation.
Jenny chased me down and caught me right before I entered the Engine Room. She was in a panic because the "ghost" looked like me -- I argue that 95% of the quadrant probably thinks that about all redhead. I'm not exactly sure what she thought was haunting the ship, a younger me or a family member or maybe, my... well, a kid that could have been? I suspect the last is closest to the truth... Jenny isn't stupid and she's certainly looked at me with enough pity to have guessed that side effect of my injuries. That's an issue for another time.
While Jenny and I talked, the Engine Room sealed itself, though only a few moments later we both found ourselves transported into the Engine Room.
Jenny wasn't kidding either -- that little girl looked just like me minus about 30 years. She was standing in the middle of the Engine Room demanding that my officers play with her like some petulantly spoiled brat. But she was more than a spoiled brat of the standard variety; she was able to move the ship, move through walls and make people disappear at a whim.
The last was the biggest issue as she made Schwartz disappear and then, demanded we find her within three minutes in order to get him back. Of course, she offered an additional incentive: find her and we would be moved to a position of our choosing. I didn't believe she'd hold her end of the deal then, but we needed to get Schwartz back regardless.
On the other hand, Suzy Q stated that she moved the Avenger, explaining how they jumped so far ahead of us. This was suppose to be a short trip -- we should have caught up to the crippled Avenger within six hours and have been able to deal with it while it was crippled. If I'd known it would have turned into a circus, I would have chosen differently...
She did hold up her end of the bargain... kind of. After we found her in a torpedo tube and dragged her back to the transporter room, she sent us to an unknown location, a playground of sorts. If we hadn't been chasing our own ship, it would have been worth exploring because it's been a while since I got to explore anywhere without it trying to kill me.
By this point, I think we all suspected what the little girl was or had a very, very strong suspicion that she was anything but a normal child of any race. She possessed strong telepathic energy and abilities that no child should ever have access to. It's like watching one of those crazy old Terran movies where the teenage girl goes crazy with newly found telepathic abilities -- it's not nearly as fun to experience it first hand.
It's even less fun when you find out that your new playmate is a child Q with a less than attentive parental team. Shortly after Suzy Q moved us, her mother appeared, admonishing her for playing outside her sector. I guess we made the mistake of wandering through the wrong area of space. She did confirm that they were both Q, something I would have found difficult to believe if I hadn't seen her daughter's theatrics for myself.
Fortunately, Suzy Q's mother didn't want to screw with us like the brat had. She is sending us to coordinates not far from the Avenger's transponder -- we should have some time to assess the situation and decide on our next step before diving into any fights
End Log.
21509.10
Commanding Officer's Log
Stardate 21509.10
Captain Tyra Crawford recording:
Gawd... I don't think I even have words for what has happened to day. If we thought earlier was a train wreck, well, we've run straight into cluster **** territory without any brakes to stop the train...
As proposed, Suzy Q's mother sent us to the coordinates we provided for a nearby gas cloud. The plan truly was to just get a covert grasp of the situation before deciding if it was something we could handle or something we needed to monitor until bigger guns could arrive.
What's the quote? "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry"? Well, we found that out firsthand, again, as the Avenger was not where her transponder indicated she should be. It looks like her transponder was attached to a shuttle that as left afloat while the Avenger sought cover... conveniently, in the same gas cloud we were in.
Not just in the gas cloud but 97 meters away from the Voltaire's hull. A significant amount of their systems, including comms, were down. The engineers thought they might be recharging or trying to finish some of the repairs that hadn't been finished, particularly to the engine. They couldn't run and they couldn't very well fight, which meant this was our chance if we were going to take her back.
I ordered Commander Simmons to take two teams over to the Avenger while we had the chance. They had no sooner departed for that endeavor when the Nova hailed us. Apparently, the Nova and its group launched after discovering that the Avenger had been taken and that the Voltaire was in pursuit -- Thomas was less than happy and very adamant about us not engaging the Avenger until the battle group arrived... in over seven hours. For better or worse, the channel cut off due to extensive jamming before I could tell him that waiting that long would probably get us all blown up, and I decided that we had to continue with our plan.
I didn't and don't enjoy disobeying orders. However, waiting seven hours would have meant that we either had to fight the Avenger after its repairs were complete -- it was unlikely to take them that long -- or we would be forced to let them escape. Neither option was acceptable and I'll take whatever punishment comes from ignoring those orders.
As soon as our two teams were over, we began attack runs on the Avenger, trying to divide their attention. It worked effectively until monkey wrench got thrown into the system, again. The Avenger's exterior lights were flashing with a code, Morse code. They were trying to warn us that someone had set the ship to self-destruct in less than 2 minutes...
By that point, our teams were on board the Avenger with no ability to contact them due to the jamming. I couldn't just assume that they'd figure it out or that they'd be able to reach an area capable of undoing the self-destruct. I ordered Jenny to land on the hull, which allowed Schwartz, myself and some security guys to beam to engineering, and then, I ordered Jenny to go after the likely escape shuttle, to not let Grant surrender. I don't know if she got them or not... I'm not sure it matters anymore.
From what I could tell, the Avenger was entirely evacuated -- there was no one in engineering, where I left Schwartz to figure out a way around the self-destruct, and I encountered no one on my way to the battle bridge. It turns out that they'd abandoned ship using the escape pods while we were trying to fix the situation that they had all created... I just love a lack of personal responsibility at a time like this.
It turns out that Harkness' team had made it to the computer core; he shut off power before the self-destruct could hit 0. While he rebooted the computer core, I gained access to the auxiliary bridge with some hope that we could get systems online and designate the Avenger a friendly before the incoming battle groups wiped the floor with her.
The engineers worked hard to get the systems back online with the exception of shields and the warp drive. Once sensors came online, we were able to determine that something wasn't right. The Enterprise and its battle group had joined with the Nova's but the Gettysburg was well ahead, plowing towards us like a runaway train. I tried to call them off, but no answer... well, we could probably consider them blowing up the Avenger's escape pods as a pretty effective message.
I did the first thing I could think of, I contacted Nova. Thomas relayed that the Getty was not answering any calls and it seemed that they were acting on orders to destroy the Avenger and any witnesses. He begged me to get off the Avenger but where were we suppose to go? The Gettysburg was riding the Voltaire's *** and one shot was going to destroy that little ship -- I ordered Braggins to disengage, knowing that it might end up being the order that killed the teams on the Avenger.
It didn't matter; the Voltaire was disabled moments later, though I assume Jenny was going to ignore me anyway. That meant we were on Plan B -- or maybe Plan Omega since it was more than a little suicidal. Maxwell, one of the security officers with me, was able to pull the Gettysburg's shield codes, and we had just enough time to set the computer to use all transporter rooms to beam the three teams to the Gettysburg's bridge and engineering. It was highly suicidal considering we had no way to know if the codes were still active but by the grace of God, it worked.
Well, it partially worked.
We were suppose to be able to save the Avenger in the process, stop them from firing that last shot, but we failed in that... I failed in that. My shot was maybe a half second too late... which seems rather inconsequential when I consider that the entire Gettysburg crew vaporized only moments later. Turns out there was some sort of suicidal, anti-boarding system in place that activated upon a detected transport -- I still haven't determined what allowed the system to differentiate between their lifesigns and the Gettysburg's crew.
In the grand scheme of things, that is rather minor question. I really want to know why someone felt the Avenger and any witnesses needed to be destroyed and under what justification? That's not what Starfleet does... I could understand stopping the Avenger at all costs, including destroying it, but the witnesses? It's just wrong... everything feels wrong right now...
End Log.
Crew Logs
Commander Jason Simmons
21505.24
First Officer's log
Stardate 21505.24
Commander Jason Simmons recording
I wish I could say I was a little more thrilled about my first official log as a First Officer. Unfortunately, my first assignment as such has been extremely erratic. I will say, my assignment started out well enough, as I proctored Command Courses for two of the ship's Department Heads, Lieutenant Jennifer Braggins, CTO, and Lieutenant Pheral Ohmsford, CMO. They both did exceedingly well, and I have forwarded my recommendation up the chain.
And that's pretty much where everything went downhill. The Avenger was stolen from Starbase, and essential crew, which included myself, were recalled to the Voltaire, the Avenger's auxiliary craft. We're currently attempting to locate the stolen Cruiser.
However, strange things appear to be happening aboard the Voltaire.
End log
21509.15
First Officer's Log
Stardate 21509.15
Commander Jason Simmons recording.
It's the Ticonderoga all over again. I've just watched a ship that I was hoping to call home shatter before my eyes. Now what? What will become of the crew? All of the same questions that swathed my brain not that long ago have come back. This time, I wasn't on board. I watched the horror from the Bridge of the Gettysburg.
It was odd. When they fired on the Avenger, it appears that the crew on board the Gettysburg appeared to have been disintegrated. Now, the Away Team is in control of the Getty. But for how long? They're apparently going to be moving us to the Nova until such time as they can decide what they want to do. I have no idea what the future will hold. Again, I'm left empty. I need to see or talk to Addi. Make sure she's alright. I don't know if that option will be available to me at this point in time.
I feel lost. Not sure what to tell the crew. Hopefully we'll get more news and updates soon.
End log.
21510.14
First Officer's Log
Stardate 21510.14
Commander Jason Simmons recording.
As of this recording, we are currently at Starbase Delta. I managed to see Addi, and see she was safe, as she had found a way to Delta. I have no idea what the next step is. Aside from the Grayson Initiative being activated, which has essentially cut off ties with the rest of Star Fleet, we're grasping at straws.
Right now, I've been put in charge of throwing together a post-mission "party". Give the crew time to relax, have a little fun, as well as take care of some awards and promotions that are due. Wel see how everything plays out.
I'm worried about what the future will hold for us. I'm not sure where we'll be heading, or what we'll be doing at this point. I can only wait for answers.
End log.
Lieutenant Jennifer Braggins
21508.08
Chief Tactical Officer's Log
Stardate 21508.18
Lieutenant Jennifer Braggins recording
As I compose this log, Captain Crawford likely goes to her death. The Avenger has been stolen by members of her original crew led by Captain Grant's son Ethan, and after a brief firefight I have landed the Voltaire on the Avenger's hull to allow our Marines and Security personnel to board the ship and reclaim it. As we landed, we deciphered a message sent in code from the Avenger by way of the ship's running lights - the ship had been rigged to explode. Tyra has taken Jake along to try and stop the self-destruct sequence, but they have less than two minutes before the countdown ends...
I can only hope this was meant as some kind of bluff...
With Tyra and Commander Simmons gone, I am second-most senior member of the crew after Commander Tucker.
Tyra, however, has given me specific orders - Ethan Grant is not to leave the area alive. She has not told Tucker of these orders, and I can only assume that she means to protect our Science chief from the likely court-martial if I succeed. On the other hand, perhaps she expects Tucker to try and stop me? Ethan Grant has stolen a Star Fleet vessel, murdered fellow members of his own crew, and abandoned his comrades to die in an attempt to save his own worthless arse... I fully believe he deserves everything that is coming to him.
We are now undocking from the Avenger. Whatever happens next, whether the Avenger is saved or not, I will likely make my next log entry with yet more blood on my hands...but in this case, I don't think I will lose any sleep over it...
End Log.
