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[Bridge]

Kinley came up to the bridge to hear the captain order the ship to max warp She wasn't exactly sure what was up, but took up her normal place by the science station to take a look at the scanners.  "œMorning, sirs. What are we looking at today? she asked, definitely curious at the situation. Orders from Command? You didn't see that everyday.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

Nevir looked up at his Science Officer stepping onto the bridge, and nodded to her.  "I hope we are just looking at visiting a friend and hearing that there was a miscommunication.  Starfleet has priority orders to find the USS Titan. There is apparently a wanted person on the ship and it was involved in an incident with the USS Intrepid earlier. And Starfleet is making it a top priority." he said, waiting for the ship to arrive. However, the quiet of the bridge was slightly disrupted...

MD01
Engineering Office

She snorted.
"Please. You seem to have missed the memo. I spent ten years outrunning the Cardassians. If you think for one second that you scare me with your empty threats, you're mistaken." She stood up. "However, it IS the end of my break, and the Romulan already has me on a short leash. Something about being rash, or something." She shrugged. From her pocket, she extracted a shiny object and tossed it at him.

"Here. Some GPL," she said. "Ferengi way, right?" She sailed out of the office, laughing as she did so. Someone had his tighty-whites in a knot. Didn't he know the best way to make friends and influence people was to, like...not be like THAT?! Of course, her personality wasn't much to write home about, but she wasn't like that. She found her way back to the Ops office.
Vila simply shrugged as she passed. One of these days, the entire Engineering department would find themselves locked into the deepfreeze or their computers frozen. Which ever was closest when she finally snapped.

"Good! If you see him, tell him I could use some Rakatjino. Also, might want to alert Medical that your boss is about to have a heart attack," she said, the laughter still in her voice. She entered the office and turned back on her Comms.

==/\==Commander tr'LHoell, I have returned. Someone may want to send medical to the Engineering office. I think that Commander Big Ears is having a canary," she said, not at all hiding the mirth. ==/\==Orders?==/\==

The Captain did a double take as he looked at Rayek.  "Did... did she just say what I think she just said?"

[[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge]]

Cmdr. Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge] (enroute to the wormhole)

The Bridge was quiet as the crew worked at their tasks efficiently yet without interaction.  It was a very different dynamic than what Rayek was familiar with as XO on Katra.  There, the Operations Control Centre, had been lively with the comms of incoming ships, discussions on topics ranging from politics to science, and on-the-side personal conversations amongst the crew - most notably by one Lieutenant Hrafn Falleg-Tekin.

Rayek found it a bit amusing to note how different in personality the Captain and his wife was.  She was bubbly and an incessant conversationalist... whereas the Captain seemed almost the opposite.   In the two and a half months that Rayek had worked alongside the Bajoran (including their time on the Valdore), Rayek couldn't recall a single casual conversation that the two had.  Everything was ship related.   Rayek wondered if that was just how Tekin was all the time, or if this was because of his history with Tekin's wife..

The Romulan hoped that this lack of 'social connectedness' wasn't what was keeping the others on the Bridge in silence, but he suspected that it may.   With nothing to converse about, Rayek was a little antsy.  He didn't like keeping still.  He considered walking 'the ring of the bridge' to oversee things, but had been told, ever so gently by Tess, that others viewed that as rather invasive of their personal space.  So Rayek remained in his seat and tried to focus on reading what logs he could access on Captain Shaw and his ship.

He'd barely skimmed the first page when an alert sounded at his and the Captain's chair simultaneously along with the consoles at Helm, and Security.   It was a system automated alert noting a signal contact with the USS Titan-A.  A moment later, orders from Starfleet Command arrived with instructions to divert to a specified set of coordinates and intercept the Titan.

Rayek looked up from reading the orders, his expression one of surprise.  He looked to the Captain a moment before turning towards the Helm and Ops consoles.

"Mr. Graham. I believe you have your new heading.  Lay in a course and increase speed to Warp 8"

Warp 8 being standard cruising speed.   Discovery could of course go faster but that was the prerogative of the Captain.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

It was the sensor reading he hoped he wouldn't have received.  There was no reason he expected to receive it.  Out here in the Gamma Quadrant.  And yet, the sensor notification went off anyways.  The ship was connecting to the USS Titan-A.  Shaw's ship.  Almost immediately they received updated orders, and Rayek gave instructions to alter course.  Typical intercept.

"Correction, Helm... maximum warp." he ordered, turning to Rayek.  "We're still faster than the Neo-Cons.  And I'm hoping I can talk some sense into Shaw.  If he's running, there has to be a reason.  He is so by the book his quarters match the image under the definition of personal quarters..." he said with a sigh, shaking his head.

He felt the dampeners compensate for the change in acceleration and direction and then hit the comm on his chair.

"Bridge to Engineering.  Lek, I need you to study up on Constitution 3s.  We may need to disable it."

Captain's Log, Stardate 78253.8

The Discovery is on its way back from Katra Station.  More than likely a punishment for our diversion from the plan against the New Dominion, we were sent here to the far reaches of Federation space for repairs and to receive repaired upgrades to the ship's systems. After having the hull fixed, we are en route toward the wormhole to make the trip back to Earth.  It is nearly the day of celebration... a culmination of two hundred and fifty years marked by unprecedented deviations from standard Starfleet protocol. There has been a sense of discomfort from many other captains in recent decisions, but all of these have been coming from the brass, so of course we can't really find a reason not to follow them.  But its the little things here and there that just leave a sense of concern.  Aside from my first officer, I have done my best to keep this from the crew.

The upgrade team has stated that most of the network systems are online, and we are now 'communicating' with the rest of the fleet.  This is supposed to help us find each other as the ships will start talking to each other.  Theoretically, a message from one ship can travel through subspace on different ships and reach Earth.  Its the type of thing that I know Ian would hate, and I'm sure Lek isn't too comfortable with either.  Just another thing to add to the list of concerns, but surprisingly not at the top of the list now.

Starfleet has put an alert bulletin of an incident that occurred between two ships, leaving one of them damaged and the other on the run.  We have standing orders to keep aware and apprehend the wayward vessel.  I can only hope that the reports are inaccurate... Shaw isn't the type of Captain to go awol.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

Nevir looked down at his console to see the ship schematics. They were cruising at Warp 6 headed for the wormhole after going through a shakedown to test their new systems.  He looked up at the bridge... he could swear the lightning of the bridge and the ships in general were getting darker.  He remember the first time he was on Discovery... its bright white interior matching her sister ship was now a thing of the past.

Less than ten minutes ago their fleet techs confirmed Discovery was now able to reach out and communicate with other ships remotely, giving a current and clear deployment map of the fleet.  Not that it meant much in this distance; a good majority of the fleet was already at Earth.  Some ships like Challenger were spared the celebratory assignment.  Discovery was not so lucky.

"Sometimes it pays to have an old ship..." he stated quietly, looking up at the viewscreen.  It was still quiet and they had some time before they would reach the wormhole.

[[USS Discovery - Deck Three - XO Quarters]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck Three - XO Quarters]

A week of mourning didn't seem long enough but it was all that he was allotted by his commission contract, unless he wanted to claim medical stress leave.  However, if he did that the higher ups in Starfleet might question his suitability as Executive Officer.  No, he needed to return to work.  The ship and crew needed it's full Command Team more than ever; even Tess pointed that out to him when he'd broached the idea of him taking additional time off if she needed him there with her.

So, in imitation of a normal day, Rayek had gotten up early, showered, dressed and made breakfast for the three of them.  After breakfast, he gathered his comm badge and PADD.  A quick glance at his inbox showed he had over 153 messages to respond to.  He tucked his PADD away for later and bid Fvienn and Tess goodbye with hugs and kisses.  Despite his desire and intent to return to share a meal at his lunch break, Rayek didn't promise to do so, in the likely chance that he would be too busy when the time came.  He hoped Tess understood.

[USS Discovery - Deck Two - XO's office]
In his office while attempting to sort through the 153 messages, for a moment, Rayek missed the organizational skills of the Vulcan aide, Sorik, who had been assigned to him briefly while aboard the RFS Valdore.

After addressing the most critical messages and signing off on several transfer requests and new assignments, Rayek finally got around to his own after-action report.  Given the risks involved with the mission, the Romulan recommended commendations for the entire team - despite individual reckless actions.... those he would address separately.

Also amid the XO's messages were a number of promotion notifications that the Captain must have sought approval for during Rayek's week long bereavement leave.  Some, he felt were wholly deserved - others he had his doubts about; but as the decision had already been made there was little point to questioning the reasons why afterwards.  He would hand out the promotions later that afternoon if he could get through the bulk of his messages.

Sherem's request to meet with him and the Captain, came at an opportune time, since he needed to speak with her anyways in regards to a couple of things.

He found a time in his and the Captain's schedule and booked her in for later that afternoon.

[USS Discovery - Deck One - Captain's Ready Room]

Rather than sit for this meeting, Rayek had opted to remain standing At Ease to the side of the Captain's desk.  He had his hands clasped behind him.  He look much like a stoic guard.

The Lieutenant's appearance, with her red-rimmed eyes from crying, though understandable in light of her own familial loss, reflected poorly on the officer he felt.  Not that Rayek had fared any better at refraining from tears throughout his time of mourning.  No.  He merely had used eye drops earlier to keep his eyes clean and clear for moments like now.

The announcement of her resignation, caught him off guard.  The Romulan First Officer listened as she listed all the reasons why this was the best decision for her.  He had learned that morning about the tragic passing of her mother, but nothing in the file at all had mentioned the premature birth of a sibling.

When she slid over the PADD, Rayek reached out to look it over to be sure this wasn't some sort of prank.  After a moment to check that the resignation form was indeed valid Rayek, handed it to the Captain.   "It appears to be in order, sir."

He paused a moment looking towards the Captain seeking the Bajoran's go-ahead before he turned back to address the Cardassian officer.

"I can't speak to your inner turmoil of belonging - though I understand it well enough - but from Starfleet's perspective, despite your various infractions, you are viewed to be a worthy officer.  Before this resignation can be accepted, your form needs to be updated with your correct rank, Lieutenant Sherem."

As he spoke, stressing her promoted rank, Rayek brought forward from behind his back, the small pip box containing a solid gold pin.  He motioned her to rise and once she was standing, he stepped forward to remove the black center pip and replaced it with the solid pip that noted her thereafter as a Lieutenant.

"Starfleet thanks you for your service; and in regards to your resignation, wishes you well along your chosen path."

[Lieutenant JG Jael Sherem | Ready Room | Deck One | USS Discovery NCC-78393-B]

Now it was Jael's turn to be taken aback. A promotion? At this time? She was flabbergasted as she stood and had pips changed, but she weighed her options. As a Lieutenant, she'd have a little more prominence...

"I'm...I'm flattered by the promotion, sirs," said Jael. "But leaving so soon just after I've been promoted...I'm a little surprised...maybe my resignation won't be necessary, maybe a transfer to an embassy. Maybe the Cardassian embassy on Earth. A little easier to raise a baby that way...and he still needs care; he may have been born early, but he'll need to fully develop into an infant before going into an incubator..."

She shut up, realizing she was on the verge of rambling. Then she added, "thank you for the promotion."

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Captain's Ready Room]

The Captain sat silently listening to the two of them.  It wasn't something he enjoyed doing, expecially when he took the PADD from Rayek and confirmed the word "RESIGNATION".  Jael had already been a recent conversation, and this threw a wrench in their discussion.  He debated whether he was going to go through with their agreed plan... he felt Rayek waiting for his go ahead.

Nevir looked at Jael, down to the PADD, and then looked up at Rayek.  No word, just a single nod.  And Rayek told her of their decision and promoted her.  He waited for her to finish, and then finally opened his mouth.

"Perhaps, a transfer is just what you need.  Embassy yes, a station, something more stable than a ship.  I hate to see you go, but your after-action report told me the entire story.  How about I relieve you of duty here on Discovery, and you can disembark either on DS9 or whichever spacedock we are instructed to go afterwards. Give yourself that time to think hard on what you want to do.  Believe me when I say, as a family man myself I understand the dilemma you have. Not to mention handling other... family arrangements." he said, trying not to reopen the wound of loss.

The Captain finally stood up, and held out his hand.  "It has been a pleasure to have you aboard Lieutenant.  I'm sorry to see you go." he said, reaching down and grabbing the PADD.

"Oh, and for this... let's just say for now, resignation denied.  I relieve you from duty effective immediately, with full recommendation for transfer."

[[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Bridge]]

[Main Engineering - USS Challenger]

Lek had been waiting for the order from the Captain and replied immediately.

"Engineering here Captain. Best I can give you is warp 6, but we are ready whenever you are. Discovery may not be at her best, but she knows what she has to do and will get us where we need to go. Lek out."

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Bridge]

At the suggestion of a new song, Lahr paused his work to find the one referenced and played it.   The Andorian laughed so hard his antenna were writhing.

"Am so gonna have to sneak that into the Captain's playlist." Lahr wheezed out between laughs.  Sure, it would me more hull scrubbing but it would be so worth it.

As he wiped tears from his eyes, he noted her holding something out towards him - a water bottle.  He gave the Ensign an appreciative up-nod before taking a long swallow.   Afterwards he handed it back.

"Thanks!  But you don't gotta worry about me.  I figure I'm near indestructible."

He pats his legs.  "Had these near blown right off..  yet the docs managed to regrow them.  You'd never have known right?"

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

"I wouldn't trust her in better hands, Lek.  Going to warp 5.5. Bridge out."

The captain had signaled Challenger before activating a course plot, and as Discovery finally went to warp, he heard the laughter behind him.

"Laughter on the bridge... a nice change from the silence of space earlier." he called out, turning towards the Challenger crew working on the bridge.

"Status update?"

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

Captain's Log, Supplemental

My theory on the experimental weapon used on Discovery seems to be accurate based on analysis of the weapon.  In a typical adversarial cycle, it seemed our ability to render their deadly power weapon during the War only inspired them to do the same on our own countermeasures. I have since transmitted sensor logs and analysis to Starfleet for them to assess and make recommendations.  I wish I could say we figured it out for them, but in this case it was nothing short of the Prophet's will that we survive.

The damage to Discovery is extensive, but with the resilience of both my crew, and of the Challenger, we are able to get vital systems back up and running.  Warp power has been restored, and the main power distribution systems have been reset.

Nevir was not in his normal position.  He didn't yet know the status of his helm officers like Alex, so while he let them recover, he was the one at the controls.  It was certainly a change, but a Captain was no captain if he didn't know how to work his own ship.

"Bridge to Engineering.  I have helm controls at the ready, standing by on your order.  Kinley, Dem, what's your status?"

["Anything you need Captain, it's yours. As for the point of impact shieldin', the genius that invented them is aboard your ship. I suggest you kick him in his orange arse and get him ta work. We've been singin' the merits of the system ta Command for a couple years now, perhaps with a couple admirals havin' seen them in action, perhaps the hundred kilo heads will get in their dense skulls ta do summat for a change."]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian watched the Breen station explode and Melek Nor implode, which resulted in the remaining Dominion ships fleeing, he exhaled in relief. He was glad to see the immediate threat to the Alpha Quadrant was over. He was beyond pleased that Challenger had not sustained any meaningful damage. The only sobering remnant of the battle was when he looked at Discovery and saw her hull scored and pitted from heavy damage. It was at that moment that T'Kel informed him that he had an incoming message.

"Anything you need Captain, it's yours. As for the point of impact shieldin', the genius that invented them is aboard your ship. I suggest you kick him in his orange arse and get him ta work. We've been singin' the merits of the system ta Command for a couple years now, perhaps with a couple admirals havin' seen them in action, perhaps the hundred kilo heads will get in their dense skulls ta do summat for a change."

Ian gave Tekin a big pilot's lopsided grin.

"And seein' as how you gave us a lift here, I'm more than prepared ta give you a tow ta Deep Space Nine should you require it. Galloway out."

Ian then began issuing orders.

"Science, I want full active scans on all bands. I'll nae have anyone sneakin' up on us. Helm, keep us at station keepin' until Discovery signals she's ready ta move. Ops stand down from yellow alert, be prepared ta tractor the Discovery if'n she cannae get herself underway."

Nevir laughed.  "Oh, no, not that one.. the one that Command has been absolutely giddy about.  The one we talked about earlier.  They feel like you don't like them anymore." he said with a grin, before letting the channel close.  With that done, he returned to the status reports.

"Bridge to Engineering, power is being restored up here as we speak.  How are we on propulsion?"

["Anything you need Captain, it's yours. As for the point of impact shieldin', the genius that invented them is aboard your ship. I suggest you kick him in his orange arse and get him ta work. We've been singin' the merits of the system ta Command for a couple years now, perhaps with a couple admirals havin' seen them in action, perhaps the hundred kilo heads will get in their dense skulls ta do summat for a change."]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian watched the Breen station explode and Melek Nor implode, which resulted in the remaining Dominion ships fleeing, he exhaled in relief. He was glad to see the immediate threat to the Alpha Quadrant was over. He was beyond pleased that Challenger had not sustained any meaningful damage. The only sobering remnant of the battle was when he looked at Discovery and saw her hull scored and pitted from heavy damage. It was at that moment that T'Kel informed him that he had an incoming message.

"Anything you need Captain, it's yours. As for the point of impact shieldin', the genius that invented them is aboard your ship. I suggest you kick him in his orange arse and get him ta work. We've been singin' the merits of the system ta Command for a couple years now, perhaps with a couple admirals havin' seen them in action, perhaps the hundred kilo heads will get in their dense skulls ta do summat for a change."

Ian gave Tekin a big pilot's lopsided grin.

"And seein' as how you gave us a lift here, I'm more than prepared ta give you a tow ta Deep Space Nine should you require it. Galloway out."

Nevir laughed.  "Oh, no, not that one.. the one that Command has been absolutely giddy about.  The one we talked about earlier.  They feel like you don't like them anymore." he said with a grin, before letting the channel close.  With that done, he returned to the status reports.

"Bridge to Engineering, power is being restored up here as we speak.  How are we on propulsion?"

Comm for Captain Galloway:

"Ian, thanks for sending people over.  They want us to start making our way back once warp engines are online and the hull breaches are secured.  I am not looking forward to hearing it from Gillespie. Heard I missed a hell of a fight. Oh.. and Command wants me to ask when will you stop delaying getting their hands on Challenger's system."

[USS Discovery - Deck 9 - Chief Medical Officer's Office]

There was still blood on his face despite the wound healed, and he looked a bit disheveled, but Nevir was standing at attention in front of the view screen in the CMO's office while the Challenger repair crews helped restore the primary Bridge. To say the brass was unhappy was an understatement, and they really let him have it.

"That ship just left its berth, Captain, and it already has to go back in. And let's not forget that this was a result of you taking her in a diverted direction from the original mission plan."

"You received my report on the new weapon?"

"I did, Captain.  The strength of Discovery lies in her tactical abilities.  Without the ability to shunt power or even have available power, she loses her ability to control torpedoes, charge fires, and most especially utilize her MVA mode.  This is the main issue you should have taken into consideration.  If you cannot equalize a tactical response, it was your obligation to get your ship and crew out of the situation and retreat to reinforcement.  That you got out of that situation was pure luck. And as a result, we are going to have to move up Discovery's timeline to get her refit into the fleet standards.  We didn't even get to test her new systems."

"I understand, sir.  I take full responsibility."

"As you should, Captain.  Return to the rest of Gillespie's fleet.  I'm sure he has a few choice words for you too.  Oh.. and while you are with Challenger, ask Galloway when he's going to turn in that old girl for a sorely needed refit.  Command out."

With that, the channel closed, leaving the Captain of his ship staring at a blank screen in someone else's office.  The doors opened and he turned to see Dr. Thane standing in the doorway, arms crossed.

"Told you to clean yourself up before you faced the music.  Repairs crews are up to Deck 2 to restore shields.  You'll be able to see the Bridge soon.  If you'll excuse me, now that things are settling down I need my office."

Nevir sighed and nodded.  "Of course, doctor. Thank you." he said, turning and leaving, and was almost immediately hit with PADDs in his face with ship statuses.  He started to make his way to the turbolift and entered, still reading but this time by himself.

"Computer, Bridge- wait... Status on bridge?"

Emergency forefields are in place and holding.  Bridge is currently being repressurized.  Emergency hull plating work to begin shortly.  Life support is on standby.  Power is on stand-by.  Gravimetric plating is below minimum levels.

"Alright, take me to the bridge.  Voiceprint security override."

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge/Captain's Ready Room]

He had to manually get the doors open and nearly missed his step as he went from the Standard G to what felt like standing on one of the many moons of the Federation (even if the standard was Earth's moon).  He had to be careful and took slow purposeful steps.  Luckily for him, he wasn't the only one on the bridge.. the repair crews had taken the Jefferies tube since it was safest than the turbolift. He made his way to his ready room and forced the door open, ignoring the blackness of space above him in the deck plating breach that caused them to evacuate the bridge.  No main viewscreen yet either, so he left the bridge.

Entering the ready room, he pulled himself into his chair and restored power to his room.  First, he sent requests for status updates on Engineering and repairs teams. Then brought up the computer console and hailed Challenger.

"Ian, thanks for sending people over.  They want us to start making our way back once warp engines are online and the hull breaches are secured.  I am not looking forward to hearing it from Gillespie.  Oh.. and Command wants me to ask when will you stop delaying getting their hands on Challenger's system."

[Engineering | USS Discovery]

As soon as Kinley confirmed the hit, Dem breathed a sigh of relief. Moderate damage to the starboard flank- that would have to do. Dem wasted no time in setting in a new course and engaging at maximum warp. Considering the amount of damage they had been delt, according to Dem's readout maximum speed was a little over warp five. They were not out of the woods yet. Dem was feeling anxious, and his knees were starting to feel limp from the constant rollercoaster of danger he bore witness to. He didn't join Starfleet for the danger. In fact, he didn't join to pilot a starship away from a Breen attack cruiser either. He planned to join for a few years to get some qualifications to build a humble medical practice. That's worked out pretty well. Dem's thought spiral was cut short when he heard a communication from a Romulan Warbird. Tekin quickly ordered Dem to drop out of warp, and he gladly complied, punching in a few sequences to take them out of warp. The starboard guidance computer suddenly went offline a few moments before dropping out of warp. However, the few seconds before the backups kicked in was all Discovery needed to roll uncontrollably. Dem brought the pitch controls into manual and tried to physically correct the overshoot as they started to turn. His fingers were getting sweaty and tired from just hitting that many commands to bring the ship around. Considering the amount of training he had gotten for piloting Starships, this was well above his paygrade.

[Main Engineering]
The ping of her PADD alerted Kinley that someone had heard them and was calling back.
Turning on the hailing frequencies, she was both surprised and relieved to see the bridge of a Romulan warbird on screen.  They weren't out of the woods yet, but now they had better odds. At the request of Captain Tekin, Kinley immediately began bringing in all of the research she had done before they had left the bridge on this ship.
Got it, sir. Sending all the files we have on this Breen ship now."
She said as she got in contact with the officer on the Romulan ship. Discovery to Tekohk, We've done a significant amount of damage to their starboard flanks, so try aiming there.

[USS Discovery - Deck 11 - Lower Main Engineering]

This was going to be a rough final battle, not because of the challenge, but because of the ship's weakened systems.  Inertial dampeners were at minimum survivable levels, and here was the Bridge crew working from Engineering, without the Chief Engineer.  But they had hope, and that was enough.

He looked up as Lek suddenly returned back to Engineering and almost unceremoniously shoved Dem away. They were too busy for him to say anything, and it gave someone the ability to man another system.  Nevir shook his head until he was addressed personally by his Chief.

"We're not in the habit of leaving our troubles at the feet of another.  They came to help us, not face an unknown new ship on their own.  Besides, the battle is now on our side." he stated.  And it was true, the Breen weren't firing very much at them at all, and with the warp power back on their shields were stronger.

While the warbird didn't directly answer, it was clear from their attack pattern that Kinley's message was heard.  The bridge crew worked like an oiled machine while trying to act as assistant to the warbird.  The battle turned, as the two ships started to overpower the Breen vessel, to the point that the Breen ship was starting to turn to get out of there.  Nevir was determined, however, and had Kinley target their warp drive.  Soon enough, the ship was disabled.

"Hail the Breen vessel," he ordered, but a power surge from the ship told them that the Breen would rather destroy their own ship than let it fall into enemy hands, and both Discovery and the Tekohk had to back away as the ship exploded.  But... it was over.  Nevir gave a sigh of relief and finally relaxed.

"Good work, all of you.  Set a course for the rendevous point with the fleet, and get a message out to the Admiral of our status and that we have guests coming with us.  Let's get some repair teams working on the power systems as a top priority.  Mr. Broadshire, you have the conn.  Er... we can restore power to one of the battle bridges if you would prefer.  I'll be in Sickbay. And Lek, delegate your work crews and then leave them with your Assistant.  You are coming with me; I know for a fact that you would put the ship above your own health, and I'm not about to send you to the Divine Treasury with just a broken ship to barter with." he stated, giving his thanks to the Romulans before heading up to see the status of the crew.

He expected to see casualties, but still, the amount of injured and what he could only assume were bags of bodies in the morgue were still unsettling.  As soon as he stepped in, everyone froze for a moment before getting back to work, and immediately medical officers started scanning him for his own injuries. He waved them off a bit, but ended up also being escorted to a biobed for treatment.  But.. at least he dragged the Ferengi with him to actually try and recover.

"We just survived an encounter with a new Breen weapon. I think that makes us better than the Defiant back in the war." he stated, trying to inject some humor into his Chief Engineer.

[Engineering | USS Discovery]

As the pair waked through the hallways of the ship, Dem found unusual comfort in the fact that he was walking in the centre of the hull. He felt protected, like the many layers of bulkhead and corridors surrounding him offered a safeguard from incoming fire. Realistically, that was not the case. Dem eventually found his way to engineering and while most of the corridors were deserted, engineering was like a hive of activity with many worker bees running around to keep this ship together. Dem saw where the senior staff were congregated, near the back of engineering. As soon as they arrived, the plan was once again sent into motion. Alex had assumed the temporary weapons station, previously an antimatter flow control station. Dem placed the responsibility of con officer on himself. For some reason, he was drawn to having his hands on the wheel. For once toady, he just wanted to feel in control of something. "œOk. Moving into our first, and last run. 30 seconds until in weapons range. 20 seconds." Dem nervously tapped a buttonless section of his console, waiting out the longest 20 seconds of his life. "œ10 seconds. In firing range." Dem sharply exhaled in anticipation. He heard the distinctive sound of the weapons being fired. Their one shot at hitting the exhaust. Everyone went quiet on the crowded deck. Dem looked up before laying in the course, trying to find out if they had succeeded.

[Engineering]

Kinley braced herself as the ship went on its' strafing run, looking at her communications systems. No response yet from anyone, but from what the few working scanners were showing, it looked like they might have a clear shot. Assuming that it was even working correctly. At least the ship seemed to be working enough to run away and regroup.  A moment passed in tense silence. From what she could see, It looked like it hit the ship. Enough to slow it for the moment at least. "Looks like it hit, Sir! she piped as the ship booked it away from there.

[USS Discovery - Deck 11 - Lower Main Engineering]

Nevir allowed himself a sigh of relief when he felt the ship lurch forward into the warp and the report that their shot hit.  He allowed himself a moment of hope before he allowed reality to take over with his own knowledge and experience.  Standing over the pool table, he adjusted screens and displays so that he can see both in and out of the ship.  The other two bridges were out for the moment since they had taken life-support and power from those areas.  Tactically foolish, but they didn't have the power to separate at the time.

"Don't get too excited... never turn your back on a Breen." he reminded, as he pointed towards the sensor dot with the Breen ship's specifications.  It had entered warp and was trying to catch up.  And they were sitting with a slightly unstable warp bubble from engines that were cold-restarted. They certainly weren't traveling at their most efficient.

"Now we just need to find a way to shake them... bringing them to the fleet is not an option... and for all we know, the Breen chased Challenger back as well.  I wish we had time to fix the conduits, but we'll just have to make do with what we have." he stated, as he started to fall back on his engineering courses.  A good Captain knew his ship, and he was thankfully no exception.

But the Prophets may have finally smiled down on him and his crew, when the sensors noted another ship within range... and it was hailing them.  With a Romulan signature.

"Open a channel." he ordered and almost dropped when he heard the voice.

"Captain Tekin?  This is Commander Pelau of the Romulan Warbird Tekohk.  I heard you are having Breen issues?"

He looked at his officers and smiled.  "Unfortunately so.  They seem to have upgraded their energy weapon since the War.  We had to shut down the warp core and our power relay system is shot.  Even now, I'm not sure how much we can get from the drive now."

"Then perhaps this is a case where our singularity drive is more appropriate.  Drop out of warp, we're nearly on top of you."

The Captain turned to Dem and Kinley.  "I'll pull us from warp.  Kinley, transmit all information on the Breen to the Tekohk and coordinate with their tactical officer.  Dem, transfer power from the warp engines to the shields as best as you can and bring us about.  Dropping warp in 3... 2.... 1.... now!"

The Discovery dropped out of subspace and struggled to keep its pitch, but started making its turn.  The Breen ship was close behind and immediately started firing.  Nevir braced, but it turned out he didn't need to.  The Breen weapons hit a barrier way sooner than the reach of Discovery's shields, giving the Breen a moment of confusion when a Valdore-class warbird decloaked and began firing.

"Good.. let's finish this." he stated, as Discovery turned and began to fire on the now outnumbered Breen vessel.

[Engineering - USS Discovery]

Lek was stunned to see just how bad things had gotten while he was out. He'd never lost a bridge before and it stung to know that he couldn't say that any more. It was clear that continuing this fight was pointless. He wasn't a great tactician, but he was a Ferengi and he knew the value of knowing when to run. He bypassed most of the standard procedures of warp core initiation in order to make the process go as quickly as possible. He risked causing a breach, but at the rate they were taking damage, it was even odds as to whether he caused the breach or the Breen did. He connected the last of the relays and looked up to see Giancarlo give him a thumbs up on the dilithium crystals. It was now or it was time to head for the escape pods.

The warp core crackled in a most alarming way and even threw off bolts of ionic discharge as power flowed in faster than the intermix chamber was meant to handle. Lek's hands flew across the pool table as he balanced the mind numbing amount of power radiating from the core. Outside the ship's the nacelles didn't flicker to life, they flared to life and made the ship seem like the core had breached for a moment. But the core did not breach, the warp engine thrummed with only just barely restrained fury.

Lek immediately shunted power to shields, structural integrity, and to movement. There was no need to try and run faster than the limits imposed by the nature of the space in the Badlands, thus, establishing and maintaining warp five only created a small demand of 10% of the overall power. The chief concern was stopping the damage they were taking from the Breen weapons, so Lek even channeled life support into the shields.

"We have two hours of residual heat and an hour before oxygen levels become a problem. We need shields now, so there is a later for air and heat."

The shields then spiked from 22% to 140% as the entire output from the fusion reactors, the impulse drive, and 70% of Discovery's combined warp core surged into the shield emitters. Lek knew there would be hell to pay for pushing that much power into them, but again, survive now, so there could be repairs later. The remaining 20% of the warp core went into reinforcing the structural integrity field to keep the ship from suffering further damage to the hull from the pounding she'd already sustained.

The Discovery was now warp capable and could escape. That was all Lek could do at the moment, as he saw the Captain and a flight officer he didn't know enter Engineering, the surge of adrenaline that had kept him on his feet finally ran out and he slumped to the deck next to the pool table.

"Get us out of here!"

He growled at Tekin as the room began to fade again.

"Aww dammit, not again."

Lek mumbled as the room went dark.

[USS Discovery - Deck 11 - Main Engineering (Lower Level)]

Nevir walked in with Alex and other Bridge crew just as he saw Lek barely up.  Before he could say anything, he watched his Chief Engineer go down again, and he instead rushed over to the pool table as medical immediately stepped in and got him to safety. He rushed over to the table and looked over the systems of the ship currently active.  Deck 1 was flashing red with failures, and he tried to ignore that as he immediately started typing in commands into the drive to prepare the run he was planning.

But he stopped... Lek said to get them out of there, and he was clearly acting desperate with his initial plan.  Now they had warp power again.  And if they could purge the power transfer systems.... they could recover the ship.

Expecting Alex to stand across from him, the Captain of the Discovery began plotting a course, and felt the inertial dampeners weakening as the ship once again started to move under its own power.  With the warp engines back online he could divert some energy to the shields, but not much.  It would have to do.

The Captain looked up to see Dem and Kinley return, and he could only hope that it meant comms were able to be re-established.  "Good... we're altering that strafing run.  One run, hit or miss we are out of here.  Don't even bother with a destination, just get us out of here as soon as we fire.  We can course correct later." he ordered, watching as his crew got to work in Engineering, instead of the bridge.

[Captain's Personal Merit]

I believe I have to finish this...

Well gang, there have been ups and downs, and your Captain has been trying to get back into the groove of posting again.  But the show must go on and I am proud of the team here who has kept up the stories and the fleet in my absence. So first, I want to present everyone here with the following award:

Fleet Service Reward:
The Crew of the USS Discovery

The Fleet Service Reward is granted to players who end up guest-starring in another ship's mission.  And with the joint mission we had (and still having) with the Challenger, that makes all of you eligible as you participated with the other ship.

Next is the Outstanding Commitment Award.  This goes to someone who had gone above and beyond in their posting, always online and always making another post.

Outstanding Commitment Award:
Kinley Garrison

And that takes us to our next reward, the Lizzie Vaughn Outstanding Contribution Award.  This award is a special one that we bestow in honor of a former player of Shadowfleet, who not only was active in her own ship, but active within the site as a whole, helping out wherever she could.  She was a shoe-in to be command, but unfortunately passed away before then.  So we honor her by recognizing those who follow in her footsteps.  This award is special and personal to me as well as many of the oldest members of Shadowfleet.

Lizzie Vaughan Outstanding Contribution Award:
Kinley Garrison

Lastly, I get to present my own award:

Captain's Personal Merit

Like the Executive Officer's merit, this is my personal award given to someone for going above and beyond to help this SIMM and our site.  So I am now proud to present this to:

Dr. (LtJG) Dem Broadshire

As an up-and-coming command officer, it is always good to see someone ready to rush in, and Dem has done so.  Able to jump in after mine or Rayek's absence, he has already shown himself to be good command material.

With that... I officially close this awards ceremony, and remind you all to look forward to the next one in a half-year's time.

Live long and prosper!

[BOOM!]

[Bridge | USS Discovery | Day 3 1630]

"œYeah. That might just work. If we make sure to also target their exhaust ports to disable them, we could fry them like rotisserie chicken. Or at least overload the warp core." Dem paused, ethically debating the question. He did take a hypocritic oath, but he also has a responsibility to the safety of the ship. He looked to Tekin for a nod of approval. "œOk- Alex, prepare the cocktail we are going to throw at them. I'm thinking proton torpedoes to disable the exhaust vents, and a wide beam phaser to cook the ship. Do you think that's good? You are the tactical officer after all" Dem winked, disregarding his professionalism. In times of crisis, he had always found that a lighthearted tone calmed his nerves. "œMoon, bring the ship about and prepare to run at their exhaust ports." The ship started to turn, making the pin pricks of starlight on the viewscreen turn into streaks as it started to pan across. Dem questioned the stakes of his decision. Moving to an aggressive attack posture would put the ship in considerable risk, but he hoped the rewards would be worth it. The ship must turn around at some point. Dem could feel his heartbeat getting faster and his fight or flight response kicked in.

The Breen ship fired 3 shots directly at Discovery, and while the sleek ship attempted to roll, two torpedoes glanced of the hull sending tremors through all decks. Dem winced, fearing the worst, letting a few Bajoran curses slip through his teeth. He hoped the captain didn't hear him. Dem didn't even know if Tekin realised he was not a "œreal" Bajoran. The shaking had subsided, meaning that they had survived it. An uncanny sense of relief filled Dem even though they had yet to achieve anything. The worst was yet to come.

[Bridge]

The ship shook again., sending one of Kinley's consoles dark.   Kinley looked at the damages the ship was reporting. The eps conduits weren't too much lower.  Several confirmed hits and hull breaches. All looked like they were evacuated at this point, thankfully.  12 reported casualties, so far. She tried bringing up the tactical scans. Nothing. It was dead. Probably hit in the last blast. This is fine. She thought.  "œ EPS is stable at the moment. We've got several hull breaches that have been sealed off for now, decks 5, 8, 9, and 16.  At least 12 casualties reported at the moment, but several more wounded. And we lost the primary tactical scanners. She took a breath, taking a moment to smile at the slight humor Dem was trying to keep, before focusing on the matter at hand.  " We're going in blind. Might as well make it count."

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The last hit was one of the worst, and for not the first time in his career, he looked around the bridge, remembering his authorization code for the self destruct, or to prepare to abandon ship.  It would be the worst timing... the ship was recently refitted.  And now it was actually possible that he could lose it.  It was the Discovery-A all over again.

"Divert shield strength to the forward shields.  Use all auxiliary power.  At least we don't have to worry about a warp core breach.  Begin the run- wait!  Brace for impact!" he shouted, as he saw the torpedo sail right at them.  Too late he realized it was aimed up.. not right at them.  Which meant...

BOOM!

The bridge shook and console after console sparked.  He shielded himself the best he could, but the feel of wetness on his forehead told him what he needed to know... debris had hit him.  He was able to ignore the sharp pain at least, and looking around he made sure his officers were still alive.  There were at least one or two who were not moving.

Warning, structural integrity of Deck 1 is failing.  Complete failure in 45 seconds.

This time he gave an audible curse.. in Bajoran no less.

"Alright people, we're evacuating the bridge.  Let's go!" he shouted, standing up and gesturing to get everyone out.  He was not about to lose more crew than was necessary.

"Bridge to Engineering, I'm transferring command access.  We are about to lose the main bridge. Set a run on the Breen ship and get us into manual targeting position... now this is personal.  Tekin out."

"Come on people!  Move! Dem, Kinley, get down to comms and try to find a way to get a message out.  Alex, you and I are going to Main Engineering to kick those Dominion loving wraiths to the Temple."

With that, after making sure he was the last one on the bridge, he stepped into the turbolift just as the warning said structural integrity failed, and the doors closed just as the top of the bridge opened into space.