Star Trek: Primitive Passenger
Season 1, Episode 9: "The Expanse"
The Havok materialized at the edge of a vast, swirling nebula. Tendrils of purple and green gas writhed against the backdrop of space, obscuring the view of what lay within. Nolan Mercer leaned forward in his command chair, eyes fixed on the viewscreen.
"Elara, full sensor sweep please," his fingers dancing across the holographic controls. "Let's see what we're dealing with."
"Scanning," Elara responded. After a moment, she continued, "I'm detecting a large mass of debris approximately 80,000 kilometers into the nebula. Composition matches Borg technology. It appears to be the remains of a sphere, Nolan."
Nolan's breath caught in his throat. "Any signs of active Borg technology?"
"Negative," Elara replied. "The sphere appears to be completely inactive. However, the nebula's radiation is interfering with detailed scans. We'll need to get closer for a more accurate assessment."
"Alright," Nolan said, rising from his chair. "Prep the Maldor for launch. I want to get a closer look at this wreckage myself. We'll let both ships coast in on momentum."
As the Maldor cruiser and the Havok entered the nebula, Nolan felt a familiar mix of anticipation and dread. The cruiser's viewscreen filled with swirling gases, occasionally parting to reveal twisted fragments of Borg technology. The Massive black hull of the Dreadship his deliberate shadow.
Finally, the remains of the sphere came into view. The once-imposing vessel was now a shattered husk, great chunks of its hull torn away to reveal a maze of corridors and chambers within.
"I'm not detecting any life signs or power signatures," Elara's voice came through the comm. "The sphere appears to be completely dead."
Nolan maneuvered the Maldor closer, searching for an entry point. "Any sign of the data module?"
"Affirmative," Elara responded. "I'm detecting a resonate battery signature near the sphere's central hub. It could be the data module, but I can't be certain without closer examination."
Nolan guided the Maldor into a gaping hole in the sphere's hull, finally putting that bright light on the roof into action. The deftly maneuverable little brick tilting and spinning as it cut its best and only way through what turned out to be a chasm in the split orb. He set it down in a vast open bay. As he donned his pressure suit, he couldn't shake the eerie feeling of being watched.
"Keep the engines hot, Elara," he said, checking his equipment one last time. "If anything so much as twitches, I want to know about it."
Nolan stepped out onto the deck of the hangar bay, his boots clanking against the metal floor. The silence was oppressive, broken only by the sound of his own breathing inside his helmet.
"I've got working grav-plating for now – no atmo though." He made his way deeper into the sphere, following Elara's directions toward the central hub.
As he worked his way through the corridors, Nolan couldn't help but notice the destruction around him. Walls were buckled and torn, with exposed circuitry scorched black in the darkened corridors. The bodies of drones littered the passageways, their cybernetic implants dark and lifeless.
Nolan thought about the survivors who had given him these coordinates. Who knows how many of these drones could have survived given the opportunity.
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Finally, he reached the central hub. The massive chamber was a wreck, with consoles smashed and debris in big heaps on one side of the room – evidence of a dramatic change in motion – without the help of inertial stabilizers. In the center, a large cylindrical object caught his eye – the data module.
"I've found it, Elara," Nolan reported, moving closer to examine the device. "It looks intact, but it's still connected to the sphere's systems. This might take some time to extract safely."
As Nolan began the delicate work of disconnecting the data module, Elara's voice came through his comm. "Nolan, I've been analyzing the wreckage. While most of the sphere's major systems are beyond repair, I've detected an anomaly. There's a weapons array on the outer hull that appears to be largely intact, including its power source, which is further inside the ship."
Nolan paused in his work, considering the implications. "What kind of weapon are we talking about, Elara?"
"It appears to be a high-yield particle beam emitter," Elara replied. "Its power output is... significant. As you often say, Leaving such technology here for others to potentially salvage could be dangerous."
Nolan nodded to himself, resuming his work on the data module. "Agreed. Once we've secured this module, we'll take a look at that weapon. Better it's in our hands than someone else's."
"Can you get some tenders started on it?" he voiced his second thought.
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Nolan's fingers, clumsy in the thick gloves of his pressure suit, fumbled with the intricate connections of the data module. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he carefully disconnected one cable after another, acutely aware that one wrong move could destroy the very information he sought.
He rarely let himself think about Earth. It wasn't just far away physically, it felt almost as unreal as the rest of his memories. They were all just beyond reach.
"Nolan," Elara's voice came through the comm, her tone level. "I need your assistance with the weapon extraction. There's a power coupling that requires manual override."
Nolan hesitated, his hands hovering over the three-quarters-disconnected data module. "Can it wait? I'm in the middle of… this."
"Sorry," Elara replied. "The coupling is becoming unstable. We need to address it now to prevent any unforeseen complications."
With a sigh, Nolan carefully set down his tools. "Alright, I'm on my way. But this better be quick."
He made his way through the maze of corridors to where the tenders were working on the massive weapon. The sight of it, even partially dismantled, was imposing. Nolan approached the power coupling Elara had indicated, reaching for the manual override.
Suddenly, a loud grinding noise filled the air. One of the tenders', its cutting beams sliced through a critical support structure. Before Nolan could react, an explosion rocked the sphere.
The force of the blast sent Nolan tumbling across the deck. His pressure suit absorbed some of the impact, but he felt the crushing weight as he slammed into a bulkhead and the sphere shuddered ominously around him.
"Nolan!" Elara's voice crackled through the comm, urgency evident in her tone. "The sphere's power grid is destabilizing. We're looking at a cascade failure. You need to evacuate immediately!"
Nolan struggled to his feet, his mind racing. "The data module," he gasped, already in motion. "I'm not leaving it behind!"
Ignoring Elara's protests, Nolan sprinted back towards the central hub. The sphere groaned and buckled around him, debris raining down from the ceiling. He reached the data module just as another explosion rocked the sphere.
With desperate strength, Nolan wrenched the module free, ripping the remaining connections. As he turned to run, a wall of flame erupted before him. He instinctively raised his arms to shield himself, but the intense heat seared through his suit.
Pain lanced through his body, but Nolan pushed through it, clutching the data module to his chest. He ran blindly through the collapsing corridors, each breath blazing heat and the vacuum of space.
Finally, he stumbled into the hangar bay where the Maldor waited. As the sphere's death throes intensified around him, Nolan dragged himself into the ship – it hissed as the door slammed behind Nolan.
He tried to order the ship to "GO!", collapsing onto the deck, his lungs too damaged to speak.
Nolan fought to stay conscious. Through blurred vision, he saw the data module, seemingly intact despite their ordeal. Then, darkness claimed him, the pain of his burns finally overwhelming his senses.
The last thing he heard was Elara's voice, uncharacteristically filled with concern: "Hold on, Nolan. Just hold on."
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As the Maldor blinked into the Havok, Elara wasted no time. The massive Dreadship's engines flared to life, pushing them away from the nebula with increasing urgency.
"Nolan needs immediate medical attention," Elara announced, her voice tight with an emotion that seemed almost human. "I'm initiating emergency protocols and setting course for—"
Her words were cut short as a brilliant light flooded the viewscreen. The remnants of the Borg sphere, now nothing more than a rapidly expanding ball of energy, collided with the swirling gases of the nebula.
For a split second, nothing happened. Then, like a match thrown into a pool of gasoline, the nebula ignited.
It started as a shimmer, a subtle distortion that rippled through the colorful gases. This quickly gave way to a flickering glow that grew in intensity with each passing moment. Suddenly, as if reaching some critical threshold, the entire nebula erupted in a blinding flash of light and energy.
The explosion was unlike anything Elara had ever witnessed or calculated. A shockwave of unimaginable power radiated outward in all directions, turning the serene beauty of the nebula into a maelstrom of destructive force.
Despite Elara's best efforts to outrun the blast, the Havok was caught in its path. The massive Dreadship, the great Strautch from a far away galaxy, might as well have been a leaf in a hurricane.
The first wave hit, and alarms blared throughout the ship as systems overloaded and failed. The Havok spun wildly, tumbling end over end through open space. Inside, loose objects became deadly projectiles, and only the ship's artificial gravity prevented total chaos.
"Warning: multiple system failures detected," Elara reported, her usual calm replaced by rapid-fire updates. "Hull integrity at 79% and falling. Shields offline. Propulsion systems non-responsive."
As the Havok continued its uncontrolled tumble through space, Elara focused all her remaining processing power on two critical tasks: stabilizing the ship's rotation and tending to Nolan's injuries. Emergency forcefields sprang up around the medical bay, protecting the unconscious Nolan from further harm as the ship shuddered and groaned around him.
The viewscreen, still functioning despite the battering the ship had taken, showed a cosmos turned inside out. The once-tranquil nebula was now a roiling inferno, spewing forth tendrils of superheated gas and energy in all directions. And at the center of it all, the Havok tumbled onward, a tiny speck against the backdrop of cosmic destruction.
As the initial shockwave passed and the ship's wild spin began to slow, Elara took stock of their situation. The Havok was damaged, adrift, and she seemed to be unable to access sensors. Nolan was gravely injured. And the data module, the prize they'd risked everything to obtain, lay silent and inscrutable in the chaos of the rattled ship.
The high-yield particle beam and it's power-source? The least important item that caused the cascade failure? Yes, safely in the hold.
The immediate danger had passed, but Elara knew their troubles were far from over. As she began the laborious process of bringing the ship's systems back online, she couldn't help but calculate the astronomical odds against their survival. Yet somehow, against all probability, they had endured. Now, all that remained was to see what challenges this latest catastrophe would bring.
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The vastness of space stretched out before the Havok, silent and indifferent to the ship's plight. The once-mighty Dreadship drifted aimlessly, its slow tumble a testament to the devastating force it had endured. Now and then other debris floated alongside, a grim reminder of their narrow escape.
Inside the ship's cavernous halls, a ballet of repair unfolded. Elara's voice, soft yet clear, filled the medical bay where Nolan lay unconscious.
"The tenders are making progress, Nolan," she reported, her tone gentle. "They've just sealed a hull breach in section 14. It's slow work, but they're methodical. I wish you could see them - it's almost beautiful, in a way."
Her voice continued, a soothing presence in the quiet room. "I'm focusing on restoring our main systems. The code is... a mess, to put it mildly. But I'm piecing it together, bit by bit. We just got life support stabilized in the lower decks. It's a small victory, but I'll take it."
The steady beep of Nolan's biobed punctuated Elara's updates. His chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, angry burns visible on his exposed skin.
"Your vitals are holding steady," Elara murmured, a note of concern in her voice. "I've diverted as much power as I can to the medical systems. The dermal regenerator is working overtime on those burns. They look... well, they look pretty bad, Nolan. But you're tough. You'll pull through this. You have to."
She paused, as if gathering herself. "I'll be honest, my predictive algorithms are struggling with this one. There are too many variables. But I'm monitoring you constantly. Every breath, every heartbeat. I won't miss a thing, I promise."
As the Havok drifted aimlessly through the void, Elara continued her one-sided conversation. "We're making progress, slowly but surely. The repair droids are clearing debris from the main corridor now. And I think I've almost got the long-range sensors back online. It'll be good to see where we are."
Her voice softened further. "I... I miss you, Nolan. It's too quiet without you stomping around the bridge, making questionable decisions." A gentle laugh. "But don't worry. I've got everything under control. You just focus on healing. We've got a lot of work to do when you wake up."
The medical bay fell silent for a moment, save for the steady beep of the monitors. Then Elara's voice returned, determined and reassuring. "I'll keep you updated, Nolan. On everything. You're not alone in this. We'll get through it together, just like we always have."
As the Havok continued its aimless journey through the void, the contrasts within the ship were stark. The methodical work of repair droids, Elara's relentless efforts to restore the ship's systems, and the deathly quiet of the medical bay where Nolan fought for his life – all painting a picture of a vessel balanced on a knife's edge between survival and oblivion.
The data module, the object of their perilous mission, lay secured in a storage compartment. Its secrets, which had cost them so dearly, remained locked away, waiting for the moment when they could be unlocked – if that moment ever came.
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Epilogue:
The soft hum of medical equipment faded into Nolan's consciousness, a stark and overbearing contrast to the silence that had enveloped him for so long. His eyelids fluttered open, adjusting to the dim light of the medbay. The familiar surroundings of the Havok came into focus, yet something was... different.
"Elara?" His voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.
"Welcome back, Nolan." Elara's voice was warm and soft, tinged with relief. "How are you feeling?"
Nolan attempted to sit up, wincing at the stiffness in his muscles, and giving up. "Like I've been asleep for a century – Shit, how long was I out this time?" He painfully forced himself upright.
There was a pause, longer than Nolan had ever experienced from Elara. "It's been 4 years, 10 months, and 13 days since the incident at the Borg sphere."
The weight of those words hit Nolan like a physical blow. "Five years? What the... what happened?"
"There was a catastrophic event," Elara explained, her tone cautious. "The sphere... it triggered a chain reaction in the nebula. The resulting explosion was beyond anything we could have anticipated."
Nolan's mind reeled, trying to grasp the magnitude of what he was hearing. "And where are we now?"
"The explosion was... beyond our calculations," Elara explained. "It created a vast expanse of empty space, devoid of matter or energy. We've been traversing it ever since."
Nolan's mind reeled, trying to grasp the magnitude of what he was hearing. "But where are we?"
"We're just now approaching the edge of the expanse," Elara replied. "I encountered gravitational shear for the first time almost a year ago, and sensors are now finally picking up radiation from stars in the distance – you should just be able to make them out."
Nolan sat in stunned silence for a moment, processing the information. "An expanse that took five years to cross at our speed... the destruction must have been unimaginable."
"Indeed," Elara confirmed. "Preliminary calculations suggest the explosion vaporized everything within several light years in all directions. It's likely this event will have long-lasting effects on this region of space."
"If only for the hundreds of systems flushed away… There's no one to remember them now." His gaze drifting to the viewport. The stars beyond seemed brighter somehow, more vivid after years of absence.
As Nolan began to stand, ready to face this new reality, he couldn't help but wonder what other changes awaited him in this reshaped corner of the galaxy. The Nekrit Expanse, as it would come to be known, was just the beginning of a new chapter in their journey.
"But Elara," he said finally, as if waking from a sleep, "Are you okay?"