The Purge

Posted on Nov 14, 2016 @ 9:07pm by Captain Michael Turlogh Kane

Mission: Aftermath

"THE PURGE"

(Continued from "The Words Are Not Important")

*****************************
*****************************

Captain's personal log - it has been two days since the Battle of Earth ended in victory for Starfleet, but if we thought the work was done, we were wrong. I've never seen such an outpouring of emotion as there has been all across this planet in the past couple of days - a collective purging of grief and fear. There is still uncertainty as to who is in charge, and how the old systems of government will be reconstituted, but as it happens, that is one of the reasons why I arranged this meeting in Starfleet Command this morning...

*******************************

Location: San Francisco, Starfleet Command building
Stardate: [2.16]1114.1620
Scene: Waiting room
Time Index: Right now


Michael Turlogh Kane was waiting. That was what a waiting room was for, but it still silently grated on him to have to wait for anything. There was a saying in Starfleet that captains were like children, always wanting things their way right now, and it was true. Here he was, fresh new uniform, rank pips gleaming, here to meet someone from the new administration that was slowly taking control of the bureaucracy on Earth, and they were keeping him waiting.

The future was not set. Kane knew that President Sardak was on Earth, here in San Francisco somewhere. The President had been anxious to be seen, and as soon as planetary communications had been ready, he'd sent out a special proclamation, announcing the reconstitution of the United Federation of Planets under its existing lawful government, in exile no longer. What would happen next was still unclear, but the rumour mill had it that the former Council and Assembly were going to be reformed. What would happen to Sardak himself was still uncertain, but now that the victory had been won, there seemed to be a general feeling that he would step down from his role.

There were other developments. Thoris P'Trell and Ronald Heydrich had been transferred to the bowels of this very building to await a future trial date for their treason. The Phoenix's dead had been disembarked and were on their way home to their families. And Cindy Rochemonte had also been arrested for the murder of Richard Edgerton.

It had been a long few days. Several hours after the battle had ended, the Phoenix had recovered enough to re-establish standard orbit around Earth, joining a holding pattern with over one hundred starships. He remembered what happened next, remembered it all too well.

***************************************

Location: USS Phoenix
Scene: Deck 3, drive section - battle bridge
Time Index: Two days ago, shortly after the battle


Kane waited at the bulkhead for depressurisation to complete. The Phoenix had berthed and shut down in Spacedock, and several teams of engineers were standing by to get to work on her battle damage. The work was scheduled to take several weeks, and in the meantime, Kane and the rest of the Phoenix crew would be on leave, pending reassignment, presumably to new duty stations.

The buzzer sounded, the green light flashed, and the bulkhead rolled open with a heavy grating noise. Standing beyond it was an old man who Kane did not immediately recognise. He was tall and thin, somewhere in his seventies, with cotton candy white hair and an angular, commanding face. He was also wearing the uniform and rank pips of a Starfleet Admiral.

Kane stood to attention. Saluting was outmoded in Starfleet, but you stil had to show due deference to senior officers, whoever this one was.

The older man nodded a greeting. "Captain Kane, I am Nathan Halloway. Permission to come aboard?"

"Permission granted," said Kane formally, remembering the name. Nathan Halloway had been the admiral in charge of Project Phoenix, overseeing the construction of the dreadnought for the past decade. Two years ago, Marie-Claire Martine had visited Nathan Halloway on his behalf, asking for his help. In answer, Nathan Halloway had activated the Phoenix and given it Kane and his rag-tag crew. Now, it seemed, he had regained his former rank. "We haven't met, Admiral, but I know your name."

Halloway stepped aboard the Phoenix, and behind them both, the exodus began. Eight hundred men and woman, cooped up on the Phoenix for the past year, began to disembark in their droves, and beyond them again, all those engineers and repair teams began to swarm into the ship, like ants around a tasty morsel of food. "And we all know yours, Captain Kane. You and your crew have been the names on everyone's lips for the past two years." The older man paused. "I was sorry to hear about Admiral Marxx. Our paths crossed about twenty years ago, back when I was head of Starfleet Engineering. He was a good man."

"Admiral Marxx is a great loss," said Kane. "Have you regained your old position?"

Halloway nodded. "Yes, at least temporarily. Richard Edgerton never discovered my link to Project Phoenix. To him I was always just an old retired engineer, no threat to his position."

"I see. My congratulations to you."

"No need to be gracious, Captain Kane. They didn't know who to turn to, and I guess I got lucky. I hear the President is calling on every former flag officer to come out of retirement to lend a hand."

Kane nodded. He threw a thumb over his shoulder. "When can I expect to relaunch?"

Halloway's white eyebrow raised in surprise. "Come again?"

Kane frowned. "Is there something you're not telling me, Admiral?"

Halloway chuckled. "Captain, I don't think you're aware of the intergalactic ramifications of this ship's launch. The Romulans are up in arms about it, have been ever since you launched. There's nothing else like her in the galaxy." He paused. "That's why your crew are going to be broken up. You need to be aware that it is unlikely that this ship is ever going to be launched again. She's just too dangerous."

Kane looked around at all the engineers piling in past them. "If that's true," he said, "then why are you bothering to repair it?"

Halloway had no answer.

*********************************************

Location: San Francisco, the Presidio outside Starfleet Headquarters
Scene: Shuttle landing pad


The sunshine was blazing down from the blue sky, no golden web of the Aegis tachyon field to pollute the view, as the Red October, carrying the conquerors of Richard Edgerton, touched down on the landing pad. Kane was there, watching from a distance, but he was not alone. A three-man Starfleet Security detail was present, led by a nervous young Human female officer, and a pair of enlisted men with an anti-grav unit stood at the rear. The anti-grav unit was for the corpse of Richard Edgerton, but the Security detail was for another reason entirely.

Kane eyeballed the officer. She was a junior grade lieutenant, ebony skin soaking up the sunlight like matte paint. "What's your name, mister?"

She snapped to attention. "Lees, sir."

Kane gestured to the phasers at the hips of Lees and her two men. "Keep those things holstered, Lieutenant, you won't need them." He lowered his voice. "Give me a moment with my crew before you do your duty."

"Yes, sir," she said, understanding what he meant.

In the shadow of the great Starflet Headquarters building, Kane jogged across the landing pad to the shuttle as its doors opened. He waited there, alone, as the bedraggled group was disgorged onto the pad. He hadn't seen them all, didn't know them all personally, but Aerdan's report from the Red October shortly after victory had appriased him of the situation and given third-party introductions to people he didn't know. There had been a moment of fear when the aquashuttle had become caught on something just as the underwater base was about to go up in flames, but a quick cutting phaser had solved that problem and the Red October had gotten clear.

They were all there, a Gang of Eleven - Jake Crichton, Selyara, the bounty hunter named Raxl Drayton, James Barton, Aerdan Jos, Eve Dalziel, Harry Bellecotte, Lynette Ryan, Cindy Rochemonte, Thomas Varn, and Kassandra Thytos.

"Captain on deck!" snapped Kass, but it was only a formality, and Kane waved at them to remain at ease.

There were no words that would suffice at a moment like this. Kane took a moment to look at each of them in the eye, sharing a moment with each of these brave people. He stepped to one side, sticking his head in the doorway of the shuttle to see the corpse of Richard Edgerton, lying akimbo in the rear of the small vessel.

Good riddance, he thought to himself. We're all better off with you dead, you son of a bitch.

Kane glanced uneasily at the Security detail waiting in the background. He looked around at them all. "We don't have much time together," he said. "The Phoenix has been stood down and all of you are, as of this moment, either on leave or have been reassigned. If you have any personal items aboard the ship, go get them." He wished he put it into words how he felt at this group's momentous achievement, but it was not meet that he should. Not for the first time, Michael Turlogh Kane felt conscious of the distance between him and the crew.

He looked at Raxl Drayton. "Thank you for your assistance, Mister Drayton. If you give your details to Starfleet, someone will be in touch with you."

The bounty hunter shrugged. "I'm owed, but this was a job that needed doing."

Kane eyeballed Barton. "Well done."

Barton eyeballed Kane. "Thanks."

Kane stood in front of Kass and Bellecotte. "Captain Thytos, every day you and your people give me new appreciation for the Starfleet Marine Corps."

The lights of Kass' sensor nets twinkled. "Thanks, Cap'n. Appreciate it."

Kane put a hand on Jake Crichton's shoulder. "Well done, Commander," he said.

Jake nodded. "Sir."

The resurrected winged mutant using Thomas Varn's name was next. He was standing there laconically, like he was bemused by the whole thing. "Thank you for your assistance, Mister Varn," Kane said carefully. Nobody knew what to make of the mutant. "Without you we would never have penetrated the Aegis tachyon grid. The Federation owes you a debt."

"That's correct." Varn didn't say it triumphantly. It was more like he agreed with a scientific progression of thought.

Kane passed him by and looked at Eve Dalziel. She seemed to have something on her mind, and Kane could guess what it was. He had a meeting scheduled later with Captain Erik Morningstar that was going to be interesting, and it had recoloured his perception of this person calling herself Eve Dalziel.

He avoided saying her name, concentrating on her rank. "Well done, Lieutenant."

"Thank you, Captain."

Aerdan Jos was next, the diminutive cerebral Andorian looking no worse for wear for his experience. Aerdan was a fine officer, and had slipped admirably into the ExO position when the Phoenix launched. Kane wondered what the future held in store for him. "Congratulations, Commander. You've led your away team well."

"Thank you, Captain." Aerdan's antennae were standing erect like they did whenever he was excited. "These people are some of the finest in Starfleet, and it has been an honour to serve with them."

Kane's heart was swelling with pride, not that he could show it in front of the troops. "I agree with you, Commander."

Last was Selyara. Kane looked into her eyes, but didn't say anything. There was no need to. He let his fingers lightly brush hers, feeling the soft, butterfly touch of her mind flitting through his. I trust you, Selyara.

The corners of her lips turned upward into a smile. Kane smiled back.

Cindy Romchemonte stood at the rear of the group. Kane approached her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Well done, Lieutenant Rochemonte. Whatever else happened down there, you were brave and you won a great victory for both the peoples of the Federation." He lowered his voice. "And you avenged the dead of Paris. You have to answer for Edgerton's death, but you have many friends. Remember that."

Cindy nodded slowly. The turmoil in her eyes said it all for her.

Finally, Kane approached the painfully-young Cadet who had been mentioned so highly in Aerdan's report from the Red October. Lynette Ryan was still clutching the box that held her pet cat - through the bars of the carrier the creature was watching him intently.

"Cadey Ryan," said Kane. "Commander Jos informs me that you were instrumental in the overthrow of Richard Edgerton, and that you lost someone close to you in the process."

If Lynette seemed upset, she didn't show it. "Yes, Captain Kane."

Kane tried to break it to her gently. "You have questions to answer about your membership in the Neo-Essentialist movement, Cadet, but I'm confident that you'll be treated leniently given your bravery during the battle. Try to stay strong."

He turned around and beckoned Lieutenant Lees and her men forward. They crossed the square to the landing pad and approached Cindy and Lynette. Lees took out a PADD and read directly from it. "Lieutenant Cindy Rochemonte, you are under arrest for the murder of Richard Edgerton. Cadet Lynette Ryan, you are under arrest for being a member of a proscribed organisation. Please, follow us."

Obediently, Lynette and Cindy followed Lees away from the group. As one, Kane and the Phoenix crew watched them go.

"She was very brave," said Aerdan, referring to Lynette. "I hope they go easy on her. And I hope they give Lieutenant Rochemonte the help she needs."

"They will." Kane turned and made eye contact with James Barton again as the group began to move across the square. The tension was there, and Kane knew that Barton knew what he was thinking. By prior arrangement, their time working in alliance together was over - Barton was now wanted for the bombing of a school on Vulcan sixteen years ago. That atrocity had taken the lives of forty-two schoolchildren, including Barton's own father and adopted son. Barton was no longer Starfleet - he had reverted to being a criminal.

He let it go for now. Barton had been through hell in the past few weeks - his space-jump had been nothing short of extraordinary, and Kane was forced to weigh all that he done in the present against what he had done in the past. Besides, there was still something conflicted in Barton that made him think that the man was well aware of all this, and pushing against him might result in some pushback.

"What's next for us, Cap'n?" asked Kass.

Kane looked around at them all, more proud of them than ever. He could no longer help himself - his face split into a wide grin. "Whatever you want. You're all on leave. Go and do whatever makes you happy. You've all earned it."

**************************************

Location: USS Phoenix, in Spacedock
Scene: Deck 2, saucer section - Thomas Varn's quarters
Time Index: A few hours later


Cade Foster paused outside Thomas Varn's quarters and took a quick look around. He kind of felt like he was taking his life in his hands just by doing this - ever since his supposed resurrection, Thomas was not exactly the most stable of people. He was prone to violence (or, at least, the threat of it) and some wild emotional states. Cade supposed that it was something to do with how the Promethan Device worked - reassembling and cloning somethign like an amoeba was a relatively simple affair, but the mind boggled when he tried to think how the process might successfully replicate a higher, complex life-form like a Human being. Perhaps the process could not replicate humanity, which was Thomas' problem. Maybe his humanity had died with him.

The corridors of the ship were empty. Almost all the ship's crew had disembarked now, bound for their new lives. The only people he passed were Spacedock engineers trying to plan how best to begin repairs on the ship. There was no security or danger here on Spacedock, and it was an easy matter to get on board the ship.

But to be honest, Cade couldn't wait to get *off* the ship. He had never really fit in here, and although there were people he could tolerate, he found it difficult to spend time with stuffed shirts like Kane or the other half-wits who made up the rest of the command crew. Still, he'd always gotten on well with Thomas Varn, and he owed it to his patient to have a check-up before he disembarked himself.

He pressed the buzzer, hearing Thomas' immediate reply. The door opened, and Cade stepped inside, straightaway seeing Thomas standing by his bed, packing some clothes into a bag. His overcoat was draped over his shoulders, concealing his most obvious mutations.

Cade put his hands in his pockets and assumed a nochalant air. "Hello, wingboy."

Thomas glanced up at him. "I didn't send for a doctor."

Cade shrugged, and strolled to Thomas' side. "No. Just wanted to wish you well before you set out into the big, bad galaxy."

"That's nice of you," murmured Thomas.

"I expect you'll be trying to arrange a meeting with Sylvia as soon as possible," said Cade.

That made him stop. Thomas didn't look up. "I expect so," he said thoughtfully.

While the mutant was distracted, Cade withdrew his left hand from his pocket, and pushed the hypo into the back of Thomas' neck. Thomas sagged immediately, and Cade stepped well back while the sedative did its work.

Thomas collapsed to his knees, knocking the bag onto the floor. He looked up at Cade with a mixture of confusion and fury. "What...?"

Cade casually tossed the hypo into the air and caught it again. "Relax, wingboy. A double dose of anesthezine to make you sleep. You have an appointment at Starfleet Medical."

Groggily, Thomas slumped on to the floor. "No! Won't be a... lab.. experi..."

Cade knelt by his side and smoothed Thomas' hair paternally. When he spoke, it was in a gentle voice that nobody ever got to hear. "It won't be like that, I promise you. All those other assholes think I don't care, but how many times have I saved your mutie butt? You're just too dangerous to *not* undergo a full medical and psych examination. You need help. Please understand that."

Thomas' eyes rolled back into his skull and he fell asleep. Cade sighed and touched his communicator, calling the medtechs from Starfleet Medical who were waiting back at the turbolift.

***************************************

Scene: Deck 39, drive section - Marine Barracks
Time Index: At the same time as Cade and Thomas' meeting


Kassandra Thytos had taken off her armour and put it back in her locker. She'd removed the magazine from her pulse rifle and activated the safety, and put that into the armoury too. There was nobody else here - the other marines were already disembarked, and Harry Bellecotte had beaten her to get off the ship by a couple of hours.

It was all over, she mused as she typed the command code into the armoury keypad. Edgerton was dead. The Neo-Essentialists were defeated and broken up. It was a job well done, even if the short-term future was uncertain. There was still work to be done, but it wasn't her problem - she was looking forward to taking a nice long break. Meet up with Asta and Lysander and Buttercup, maybe, take a sunshine holiday somewhere. There were a couple of beaches on Elandipole that looked nice. Maybe that would -

She heard a noise behind her, loud in the empty barracks. Standing at the doorway were three Starfleet Security people, two Human women flanking a thin male Vulcan junior grade lieutenant.

"Y'all lost or somethin'?" she asked suspiciously.

The young Vulcan man stepped forward. "Captain Kassandra Thytos, you are under arrest for being a member of a proscribed organisation. Please come with us."

Kass' jaw dropped. "What?" she exclaimed in disbelief. "Now look here, y'all have gone an' made some kinda goddam screw-up! That asshole Edgerton was manipulatin' me back at the start, that's why Ah was followin' Stonn, an' fuck it all, that shit on the Discovery all occurred over two years ago! Ain't I done right by y'all since? Ain't I been good enough?"

Her words fell to the floor uselessly, and silence surged backward in their wake.

The young Vulcan stepped forward. "I am sorry, Captain Thytos, but I have my orders. Please come with us."

Kass shook her head in amazement. There was nothing for it. Flanked on three sides by the Security people, she was led away from the marine barracks.

******************************************

Location: Starfleet Command
Scene: Waiting Room
Time Index: Now


Kane shifted his position to stop his butt from going to sleep. He was still waiting on seeing someone, and with every minute that passed his frustration was growing. When he had first heard of the arrests of several of his senior officers, he had reacted with anger at the presumption of whatever bureaucrat who had ordered this. Whatever had happened in the past, their two years of service to the Federation had wiped the slate clean of any former Neo-Essentialists in the crew. They had been outlaws for a year, hunted and threatened with death if they were caught, and it had not been until the tense meeting between the two fleets at Elandipole that Kane had ever felt that hope was still a thing to cling to.

On the other hand, he could understand, while not condone, the fact that Starfleet needed to bring in all the former Neo-Essentialists on the Phoenix. The events of the past few years had been unprecedented in the history of both the Federation and Starfleet, and if there was ever to be a rebuilding of both the machinery of government and the fleet, then it needed to be made clear that all former Neo-Essentialists needed to re-prove themselves, rededicate themselves to their original oaths of service. He could understand that pioint of view, even if he didn't like it.

Which was why he was here, and not leaving until he made some sort of an impact on whoever was running the show down here now. He wasn't sure what the future held for his career - if Nathan Halloway was right, he might conceivably be asked to quietly retire - but before he went, he wanted to put the good word in for his people. If he had any influence left, then it was time to use it.

Until he could use it, all he could do was wait, and reflect on the past few days.

**************************************************

Location: Chen residence, Alameda de las Pulgas, Bellemonte, San Francisco
Scene: Living room
Time Index: Yesterday morning


Selyara relaxed into the couch and closed her eyes, lost in childhood dreams. It had been years since she had spent any time with her adopted father in the house she grew up in, and she was making the most of that now. The years were slowly catching up with Erik Chen, and each time she saw him his face was a little more lined, his eyes a little more deep within his head.

With her eyes closed, she heard him tinkering in the kitchen, the clinking of crockery as he prepared some tea. It was over, and she was finally free. Edgerton was dead, the Neo-Essentialists were crippled, and there was nobody who could threaten her or anyone she loved in any way. So she had come home, to the neighbourhood she used to terrorise, the the man who loved her like she was his own flesh and blood.

The clinking of crockery stopped. She head Erik's voice. "Selyara, there are three Starfleet Security people in the back garden."

Her eyes flashed open, and through the living room's bay window, she saw that there were three more in the front garden. Then one of them politely knocked on the front door.

Her mind whirling, Selyara stood up, wondering what was going on. "I'll get it, Da." She approached the front door and opened it. A terrified-looking young Terran Starfleet officer, a junior grade lieutenant, was standing there - by the look of him, he knew exactly who she was. Worriedly, she noted that all the Security people were wearing gloves that concealed their hands - the only bare skin they were exposing was their heads. "Who are you, and what do you want?"

"Selyara Chen," said the lieutenant haltingly, while his companions warily kept their hands on the phaser at their hips, "you are under arrest for absconding from the stockade on Jaros Two, for the theft of classified Starfleet information, and for acts of violence against your fellow prisoners and citizens of the United Federation of Planets. Please come with me."

A wellspring of rage erupted in Selyara's heart. So all the help she had given to the Federation was worthless. So be it. There were six of them, but that meant nothing. All she needed to do was grasp this boy's face and she could thinkstrike his mind into mush. The rest of them might get her, but she'd be damned if she'd let them pen her up again. She'd kill them all before that -

- but her father was there, in the kitchen doorway, with a tray holding cups and a pot full of steaming tea. His eyes were full of love for her.

"Not here," he said to her gently. "Not in this house."

"I'll see you soon, Da," she promised, turning and stepping outside to the enormous relief of the young lieutenant. She looked backward as thery led her away towards a waiting shuttle - she didn't know where they were taking her, or what they wanted her for, but she couldn't help but wonder if she was ever going to see this house again.

********************************************

Location: USS Phoenix, in Spacedock
Scene: Deck 2, saucer section - James Barton's quarters
Time Index: Yesterday morning


Kane approached the door to Barton's quarters determined that this was going to go by the book. He was flanked by a trio of Starfleet Security people, here to arrest James Barton for the bombing on Vulcan sixteen years ago. It was time to pay the piper - Barton had embarked the ship a couple of hours ago and gone to his quarters, probably to pack up, but now his destination was going to be somewhere markedly different to where he thought he was going to end up. It was a shame, really - just when he and Barton had just begun to build up a rapport, it fell to Kane to take him in for the mistakes of his past.

He signalled the Security people to be ready. "Computer, override the lock on this door and open."

The door control chimed, and it hissed open obediently. Kane and the Starfleet Security team swept into the room -

- to find it empty.

There was nobody there. The table and shelves were bare, the wardrobe was empty, there were no personal effects anywhere that he could see.

Kane looked around in confusion as the Security team checked the other rooms. "Computer, locate James Barton."

[[There is no James Barton aboard the Phoenix,]] came the calm female voice in reply.

"When did he leave?"

[[There is no record of a James Barton ever being aboard the Phoenix,]] came the pleasant reply again.

"It's a local program," said one of the Starfleet Security people, running a tricorder over the nearest computer access point. "He's deleted all records of himself from the main computer and installed a masking program to stop us tracking him." The man sounded disappointed. "He's gone, Captain Kane."

Kane moved to the bedroom and saw Barton's oversized Starfleet uniform lying on it, black with a gold band across the neck and shoulders. His rank pips were still on the collar.

The Security man was right. Barton was gone. He had probably seen the look in Kane's eyes on the Presidio shuttle landing pad and decided to pre-empt what was coming. So he had taken what he could, deleted himself from the computer while security was at its weakest, and disappeared. He'd probably beamed off the ship, but Kane doubted that Barton had been lax enough to leave behind a transporter record. He could be anywhere by now - on Earth, or on a civilian ship half-way back to the Triangle - but wherever it was, it wasn't here. He was on his own journey now.

Kane picked up the oversized uniform and rank his thumb along the rank pips. "Good luck, Jim," he murmured to himself, before turning to leave with the Security team.

*****************************************

Scene: Deck 6, saucer section - Transporter Room 1
Time Index: Yesterday, at noon


Yesterday was a day for goodbyes. Kane and Jake Crichton were parting now - Jake was beaming down to the Bonviva villa in Italy to pick up the last of his personal effects, and to say goodbye to Benito and Dahlia who had gone on ahead.

"Bolarus got hit hard by the Romulans," Kane was saying. "They pulled back across the Neutral Zone over a year ago, but Starfleet hasn't been able to launch any sort of rebuilding effort because of the Neo-Essentialists. It might be pretty bad there. Law and order might have broken down."

"I've got to try to find her," Jake said. He looked strange out of uniform - now he was wearing a traveller's coat and boots, his commbadge pinned to his inside lapel and a hand phaser tucked into his waistband. "I owe Xana that much."

"I understand," said Kane, and he really did. Xana Bonviva had forsaken her family and put her own life on the line to try to help her people. If she had lost her life in the rubble of Bolarus, then she had given it up to help others, and that was something noble. And Jake would not be much of a husband if he never went looking for her. "Take care of yourself, Mister Crichton. I want to see you again, and soon."

Jake stepped up onto the transporter pad. "I'll do my best."

"You always do, Commander," said Kane meaningfully. He touched the control the activate the transporter, and Jake Crichton disappeared in a hazy pillar of white light, bound for whatever fate awaited him.

*********************************************

Scene: Deck 1, drive section - Spacedock umbilical
Time Index: Late yesterday afternoon


Kane and Aerdan Jos took that final step together, moving from the Phoenix to the Spacedock, leaving their ship behind. They were the last officers to step off - the only people aboard her now were the Spacedock engineers and repair crews.

It was the end of a long, hard road. It was nearly two years since Aerdan had taken command of the USS Armstrong and guided her and her crew back to Earth with foreknowledge of the Neo-Essentialists. That had put him on Edgerton's hit-list alongside the then-crew of the Discovery, making co-operation essential to survival. When the Phoenix had been activated and launched, Aerdan and his surviving people had been aboard her.

They had worked successfully together, there was no denying it. Kane and Aerdan weren't exactly friends, but it was plain that both of them respected the other. Kane appreciated the Andorian's cerebral and distant style because it was one he tried to maintain himself. Aerdan Jos had been a fine First Officer.

"This is where we part," said Kane as they moved into the main corridor of Spacedock. "I'm bound for Starfleet Command on Earth. You?"

"I thought I might look up my brother," said Aerdan. "It's diffcult to wait for orders when you have no idea what they might be."

Kane nodded. "I agree." he paused, and decided to level with Aerdan. "Commander Jos, Admiral Halloway informs me that the Phoenix is unlikely to be launched again. With the intergalactic uncertainty, and the vaccuum in Starfleet Command..." He trailed off.

"I suspected as much," said Aerdan, his antennae curling up and down slowly, like they did when he was in a thoughtful mood. "So this is goodbye. Did you inform the senior staff?"

Kane shook his head. "They all have problems of their own right now."

"Yes. If there's anything I can do..."

"Commander Jos," said Kane with a smile, "I can think of no-one better to call upon. Godo journeys."

They shook hands warmly, two colleagues who had finally completed their work. Then life, as it often does, took Aerdan in one direction, and Kane in another.

********************************************
********************************************

NRPG: We're now in 'Aftermath' territory. All your characters have something to do. Several of you have been 'arrested' by Starfleet Security, but this likely is because they were once Neo-Essentialists, and you can probably imagine how on edge everyone still is. Your characters probably have some questions to answers, but, just to stop anyone veering to Planet Mad Tangent, there is no violence wiating for you, and your characters are in no physical danger. Okey doke? Use this post as a starting point to tell the story of your own character, while reacting to the changes in the game world that take place around you.
Everyone has their own story to write.

LYNETTE RYAN is being debriefed by Starfleet because she was a Neo-Essentialist who directly worked with Richard Edgerton. Mackie will get feline supplements and belly scratches in the meantime (Memory Alpha has an article on feline supplements, I shit you not).

THOMAS VARN has forcibly been taken to Starfleet Medical by Cade Foster to undergo tests to figure out who/what he is. He's the only living clone/product/thing to have emerged from the pmrethean Device - everything else was obliterated in that explosion you all made on Lavenza II.

KASSANDRA THYTOS has been detained because of her role in the mutiny on the Discovery. If you can remember back two years ago, she was manipulated by Edgerton into helping Stonn commandeer the Discovery.

SELYARA has been detained because's probably the Federation's Most Wanted. An escapee from prison, an information broker, and an uncontrollable, untameable touch telepath who can turn your brains into goo.

JAMES BARTON has slunk away from the Phoenix rather than face the consequences for his actions all those years ago, and he never even said goodbye. You might never see him again. Then again, he might be watching you sleep.

JAKE CRICHTON is jetting off to Bolarus to find out if his wife Xana Bonviva is alive or dead. Wish him luck, he'll probably need it.

AERDAN JOS said he was probably going to see his brother (Arjan, who, you might remember, is a neurosurgeon) but he might not. He might decide to go home to Andoria, and he might not. The galaxy is his oyster.

EVE DALZIEL is a world of trouble, although she doesn't know it yet.

What will your story be?

Jerome McKee
the Soul of Captain Michael Turlogh Kane
Former Commanding Officer
USS PHOENIX

"He speaks an infinite deal of nothing!"
- Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice", Act 1, Scene 1.117
**************************************
**************************************