Starfleet Adventures: Dragons of the Deep

[WolfofWords]

(I had this idea as part of the backstory for my Star Trek character for a pulp series of Starfleet Adventures. The idea is that a somewhat underground publisher would take advantage of hunger for adventure stories and would create fictional accounts of Starfleet ships sort of like pulp novels or cheaply made procedural shows)

Captain L'ara, sat in her ready room and looked out over the vastness of space and she was bored. Space was mostly boring. As a Federation Captain, it was her job to find the interesting parts. The exciting parts. The crew of the USS Forrestal had just been through a harrowing adventure against a Tholian threat but L'ara was already itching for more. She knew that she was not alone in that. She picked up and started to brush her fur absent-mindedly. She sipped her coffee and felt the sip buzz through her and her tail swished from side to side. She hit a button on her desk.

"Captain's Log, Stardate 2270," L'ara said. "The Tholians are definitely not as tough as advertised. After some repairs, the Forrestal is back on mission. Starfleet contacted us to check in on the Adora IV colony in the Atrea sector. Apparently, they have failed to respond to any communication for days. We're the closest ship fit to check on them. Rumor is that they had some difficulty with Klingons a while back. I anticipate a fight. I'm ready. We're ready."

There was a beeping noise from the ship's internal communication system and L'ara quickly stopped the recording. She would get back to posterity later.

"Bridge to Captain L'ara," Lieutenant Yolen said over the comm system. Yolen was a rather dispassionate Denobulan but was a good pilot and he was cool in the face of certain danger. There was nobody else that L'ara could want flying her ship.

"L'ara here," she responded. "How can I help you, Lieutenant?" She sipped more of her coffee. She had a hunch she knew why she was being contacted but it was more fun to ask.

"We are approaching the colony," the Lieutenant said. "We will be entering orbit of the planet soon."

"Acknowledged," L'ara said, barely keeping the purr out of her voice. Something was happening and the boredom was over. "I'm on my way to the bridge."

A few moments later, L'ara walked on to the bridge. Everybody stood up when she entered and that still gave her a thrill. She waited a bit before she let them sit down again. She looked around the bridge and noted that Commander Sakazaki was not present. That was a bit strange as L'ara had left him in charge of the bridge before heading off to her ready room. He was supposed to be there and in charge in her absence but he was not there. She guessed that was why Yolen had contacted her.

"Ensign Statlander," L'ara said, glancing at the young and beautiful Yutan communications officer. "Hail the colony."

There was a pause as Statlander attempted communication, pressing buttons and speaking into her headset.

"No response, Captain," Statlander said. "I'm not reading any broadcasts on any frequencies at all."

"They should be transmitting a navigation beacon, right?" L'ara asked. She knew she was right but, once again, it was more fun to ask.

"You're right, Captain," Statlander said. "There is no reason that the beacon should be off."

At that point, Sakazaki walked onto the bridge. "Sorry I'm late, Captain," he said. "I had a lingering injury that needed tending to in Sick Bay."

"More like a nurse that needed tending to," L'ara said with a smirk. "You're my second, Commander. You're supposed to be here when I'm not." L'ara knew for a fact that Sakazaki had his eye on Nurse Cassidy. Everybody on the ship probably knew it.

The easygoing Sakazaki suddenly looked nervous. "I can only apologize, Captain," he said. "It won't happen again." Sakazaki was a lot like L'ara. He was always up for fun and adventure. Still, Sakazaki was a Starfleet officer and his Captain was bearing down on him.

L'ara laughed. "I'm just teasing, Commander," she said. "You're just in time. Grab a phaser, we're going down to see who we need to shoot to get this colony back on its feet."

"It's been a while since I mixed it up with Klingons," Sakazaki said with excitement. "I'm ready."