The Beginning
- December 4th, 2155 -
The void of space is an incredible sight, a giant black canvas dotted with stars streaking across the porthole only to disappear into the oblivion as fast as it had first appeared. It was a magnificent view, one that no one could truly ever get used to. Captain John Clayton continued to stare at the window for a few more seconds, before finally shifting his eyes back down to the monitor displaying the ship's daily report. Same old junk. He thought to himself, nothing unusual again. The ship is running smoothly as expected, and the only "exciting" thing they have run into the past week was a pulsar that's now more than six light-years behind them. He could have never pictured it as being this way. I'm 38 years old and all I do is run around the galaxy scanning pulsars. When Starfleet Command offered him the Atlantis, he thought he had lucked out. Now six months since their launch, they've yet to encounter anything that's even worth writing up about. Of course, that can be a good thing. But the mission was getting too relaxing. Clayton liked to keep himself alert and sharp... this is a far cry from his expectations.
The last words of the report trickled from the screen and into his brain, giving himself a few seconds to process and digest what he just read. Well, that's the last of that for today. His eyes shifted once more, this time from the screen to the chronometer off in the corner of his desk. It was surprisingly late. Clayton stretched his arms, and pushed himself out of the chair. I suppose its time for me to turn in. He started towards his bunk, but he stopped dead when a though slipped into this mind. Better check up on the bridge first. Clayton moved to the intercom and just as he was about the push the call button, a familiar beep emitted from the intercom's speakers. Instinctively his hand pushed the answer button before he even realized he was being called. A familiar voice crackled from the intercom.
"Captain, sorry to disturb you at this hour." Clayton allowed himself a quiet sigh.
"That's alright Pete, what is it?" Clayton replied into the intercom.
"It's probably nothing sir, but we're getting some strange fluctuations on the sensors."
"Did you check the equipment?" Even though Starfleet crew are thoroughly trained, sometimes even the best of them forget that the correct answer is usually the simplest one.
"Of course sir, first thing I did. Nothing wrong with the sensors, I'm running a diagnostic on the computers just in case... but nothing's turned up so far." Clayton stood there as he thought for a moment. Chances are, the kid was right, might be a small glitch or sensor ghost. But they're very far out from charted space, it's probably best to play it safe.
"Okay Pete keep it running, I'm on my way up." Clayton received an acknowledgement as he headed out the door. There goes my quiet night.
The Atlantis, registry NX-04 continued to cut through space at a brisk pace of Warp 3. The ship is only six months old, launched from dry-dock orbiting Earth. As the fourth ship of its class, she was nothing special. Other ships in the fleet, such as the Enterprise became quite renowned for its accomplishments against the Xindi two years ago. Hopefully, in time the Atlantis will develop its own reputation, something Clayton has dreamed of in the last few months.
The lift doors parted, revealing the Atlantis' bridge. It was in excellent condition, the light reflected brightly off the surfaces of the console. One can tell that she hasn't seen too much action.
"Report." Clayton ordered as he strolled towards the navigation console situated at the very front of the bridge, directly forward of the captain's chair.
"Those fluctuations are getting worst sir... but sensors have pinned it as an outside source… just a few thousand meters off the Atlantis' bow." Clayton lifted an eyebrow, indicating that his interest has definitely been perked.
"Outside? Can you locate the source?"
"Sorry I'm trying to sir, but that's just the best I can do in warp... but it's definitely from around there outside the ship." Pete said without taking his eye away from his console for a single second. Clayton turned back to his chair, and switched on the bridge's intercom.
"Bridge to Engine room." The response came exactly three seconds later.
"Engine room, Lieutenant Stevens here." Lieutenant Sarah Stevens is the deputy-chief Engineer.
"Sarah, its Captain Clayton. We're picking up some fluctuations from outside the ship, just checking to see if there's anything wrong with the engines."
"Not a thing far as I know. According to the computer, the system's working like clock work. Do you want me to do a diagnostic?" Clayton again lapsed into concentration.
"Just do a check; we'll see how things turn out first."
"Acknowledged sir, I'll report in when we're done." A click indicated that the line has been cut.
"Sir, I think we can get a better reading if we dropped out of warp. I think the warp drive is interfering with our sensors. And we'll only need to stop for a few minutes." Pete said, this time lifting his head from his console for a few seconds. It's probably nothing. Clayton reminded himself. But yet, it's better safe then sorry. Clayton nodded, giving the approval.
"Do it."
The Atlantis dropped out of warp. Almost immediately, the many streaks of light created by the surrounding stars changed back into brightly-lit dots. Inside the bridge, Pete frowned.
"Captain, you're not going to believe this... but sensors are picking up two separate sources of fluctuations from outside the ship." This completely caught Clayton's attention as he moved forward again to Pete's console. What would happen next would catch him completely off guard.
"Sir! Those fluctuations are spiking massively!" Before anyone could respond two green vessels rippled into existence besides the Atlantis, one on each flank. It only took a split-second for Clayton to recall the images he saw in a Starfleet report.
"Damn, Romulans!" He muttered before he could control himself. He quickly turned to his communications officer, but he lost the race, getting cut off before he could say anything.
"Captain, we are receiving a transmission from the Romulan ships." Without waiting for an order, he flipped a switch, activating the numerous speakers sewn throughout the bridge. Immediately, a brooding voice thundered in the small room.
"Human vessel, you have trespassed into the sovereign space of the Romulan Star Empire. Power down your vessel immediately and prepare to be boarded. You will be given no further warnings." Damn! How the hell did we ever stray into Romulan territory? By this point, Clayton's brain was firing on all cylinders; he had to defuse this situation quickly. The Romulans are not known for their hospitality.
"Jake, send a message to the Romulans... tell them we didn't know that we were transp..." But before he could finish the sentence, the entire ship rocked violently, throwing Clayton into his chair.
"Sir, the Romulans have opened fire!" Pete yelled.
"Damn! They didn't even wait... battle stations! Polarize the hull!" Clayton ordered quickly as the ship buckled under a second volley. Outside, the two Romulan cruisers attacked relentlessly. One shot struck the Atlantis' primary power relay, igniting a large explosion and ripping a hole in the dorsal portion of the hull. In response, the bridge's lights dimmed for two seconds before the emergency power systems kicked in.
"Captain, we've lost primary power... we can't polarize the hull plating!" Pete reported desperately, Clayton could see fear creeping into the young officer's eyes. The ship rocked again.
"Bridge! What the hell is going on?" Sarah's voice blasted over the intercom speakers.
"A little trouble with the Romulans..." Clayton started. Another hit, another explosion. Thick, arid-smoke began to fill the bridge. Clayton let out a cough.
"That last hit just knocked out our warp drive!" Sarah's voice continued to blare over the intercom. "We can't keep this up!" She continued as the ship shook violently yet again. This time Clayton could hear a large explosion ring out from the intercom.
"Sarah? Respond... Bridge to Engineering?" Clayton shouted into the intercom.
"Engineering section's been hit! I'm reading hull breaches on multiple decks!" Jake screamed, but his voice was barely audible.
"Damn these bastards to hell! If we can't run, we'll fight!" Clayton turned to the weapons console, which was unmanned. Where the hell is Robert? Without hesitation, Clayton jumped over the console and began pushing buttons.
"Pete! Move us into a better firing position!" Clayton yelled. The Atlantis struggled and limped forward as she unleashed two of her phase cannons on the nearest Romulan cruiser. Two thick beams of fiery orange struck out from the Atlantis and hit her target.
"They have shields!" Pete yelled back. The Romulan cruiser moved past the Atlantis, putting some distance between the two so she can prepare for another attack run. The Atlantis at the same time launched a pair of photonic torpedoes, hitting the Romulan ship squarely in the back. In retaliation the cruiser splat several bolts of green energy, hitting the Atlantis' starboard nacelle. The result was a spectacular explosion that threw the Atlantis into a spin while leaving behind a debris trail composed of the nacelle's remains.
"We just lost one of our nacelles, secondary power failure! Casualties reporting in from all decks!" Clayton heard Jake yell as he picked himself up from the floor of the bridge. He felt a sting on his left arm and saw a small stream of blood flowing from his hand.
"Jake... send a distress signal to Starfleet..." Clayton wasn't even sure if Jake had heard his order as another blast knocked him back to the floor. He could barely keep his eyes open or even breathe as the room continued to be overwhelmed with smoke. He struggled to get back on his feet, but his arms simply refused to work. He thought he heard Pete screaming as another hit rocked the Atlantis, this time turning out the lights on the bridge for good. This was not how it was supposed to turn out...
The Atlantis floats dead in space. Superheated plasma vented out of hundreds of holes in her hull like dark, red, blood. There is nothing left of her starboard nacelle, just a damaged and charred pylon which serves as a testament of what once stood there. The two Romulan cruisers pulled away then circled around for a final run. They were not scavengers, waiting for its prey to die. Instead, they preferred to quickly put their victims out of their misery. As the two ships returned into firing range, they pounded the Atlantis' battered hulk with a barrage of green death. Finally, unable to take the pounding any longer, the Atlantis gave way. The explosion was a symphony of colour, a bright display of fireworks that only lasted mere seconds as the vacuum of space choked the fire out of existence. The two Romulan ships then altered their course as if nothing had happened. And then like ghosts, faded into the blackness of the void.