DuJa'Q (Part 3 of 4)

Posted on 27 Feb 2017 @ 7:50pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Commander Aren Ban & Commander Allyndra illm Warraquim & Lieutenant Amaranai Franklin & Lieutenant JG Stephanie Fraiser (KIA) & Commander Marisa Wyatt & Ensign Miraj Derani & Ensign Mimi & Senior Chief Petty Officer Martin Caine (KIA) & Chief Petty Officer Torgeir Naes & Ambassador Soral Varro & Sub-commander S'anara Valdran
Edited on on 27 Feb 2017 @ 7:54pm

3,506 words; about a 18 minute read

Mission: Episode 14 - Statecraft
Location: IKS DuJa'Q - Main Bridge
Timeline: MD 01 - 1520 hrs

Previously, on DuJa'Q (Part 2)...

A pair of creased, calculating green eyes stared across the Klingon bridge towards the Galileo crew and the first officer. The Orion flexed her fingers, letting the sound of the creaking leather echo softly throughout the bridge. She gave a nod to her first officer for his service, then slowly rose from her seat. "Thank you, Commander Chorag," she acknowledged before addressing the Federation cadre. "I am General Saalm and this is my vessel. I welcome you aboard DuJa'Q."

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

Miraj's jaw dropped in utter disbelief. What? How!? The Admiral had been on the bridge. The bridge and most of the ship had been blown to smithereens. She would have been space dust. She would have explosively decompressed, or frozen in the sub zero temperatures of the nebula, or suffocated at the very least.

And yet here she was, large as life and twice as ugly, as her father would have said, except she wasn't ugly. There was nothing on the Orion's features to suggest she'd been spaced, or even shredded by the flying shrapnel in the bridge before the evacuation, like so many others had been. The only thing to suggest that anything wrong had happened was that the pronounced bump of her pregnancy was gone. Miraj felt a stab of sympathy. It must have been devastating.

"Lirha?" Mimi said startled at the sight before her, it was strange, it looked like Lirha and smelt like her but something wasn't right then she noticed the lack of a bulge at her belly.

Aren had been one of the last to arrive on the bridge and as such had missed the Generals introduction. He had waited until the majority of the crew had arrived aboard and were headed to there designated positions. Upon stepping on the bridge he could tell that something drastically had changed in the atmosphere. He quickly looked to Starfleet screw members and saw the looks on there faces, confusion and shock seemed to the two most prevalent displays of facial features. Aren turned his attention to the Orion women sitting in the command chair, recognition dawning. He pulled up his pad and typed a command, bring up Lirha's Starfleet record, and something more important, her profile picture. The Orion women who was sitting in the chair, did look very similar the Galileo's old captain, though something wasn't quite the same. Aren approached the command chair, moving past the shocked and stunned crew members. "I am Commander Ban, acting Commanding Officer for the crew of the Galileo. Seeing as you are in the command chair, and that previous discussions with the leader of the Colony said this would be a Starfleet crew, mission, and command of this vessel. You bear a striking resemblance to the former Commanding Officer of the Galileo, which brings me to my question, are you the former Commanding Officer of the Galileo?" He asked, with genuine interest and respect, but also something that may have been disappointment.

Martin was shocked as he had heard from the crew the previous commanding officer had died, though he hadn't worked under her so he wasn't completely speechless. Though as he was about to say something Commander Ban reacted first.

The Orion's eyes surveyed the group in front of her, including both the familiar and unfamiliar faces. Derani's bright pink hair contrasted with Mimi's dull black locks -- both of them were pleasant sights to see. The others were new to her, however, and she took in both Ban and Caine's appearances before slowly rising from her chair. A mid-sized adolescent targ growled and came around from in behind the seat to make itself visible. "Hush, Snuffles," Lirha said to the animal while reaching down to scratch in between its ears.

Standing up to full height, Lirha slowly stepped forward towards the Starfleet officer who'd addressed her. The spots lining the sides of his forehead betrayed his species, and his youthful appearance was accented by a head of blonde hair and a set of blue eyes. "I am," she answered simply. "You may address me as 'General Saalm.' I command this vessel and will take you on your mission to Qo'noS."

Part of Aren wanted to snap back at her. She was a Starfleet officer, not some freelance mercenary. She had taken oaths, and was supposed to uphold them. Though he suspected that something deeper must be going on, it still bothered him none the less. He tamped down on those feelings, the inner conflict only touching his eyes for the briefest of moment. "As you say sir." He pulled out a PADD, and typed a few commands before handing it to her. "What I have listed are the remaining crew members of the Galileo, as well as some new personal that came aboard from the Colony, and duty assignments for them." He scanned the bridge for a moment, before returning his attention back to Lirha. "What are your current orders sir?" Aren asked, ready to execute them at her command.

She took the PADD from him and began to flip through its contents in silence. Snuffles didn't seem too interested by such affairs and decided that the strange humanoid standing in front of his master was more interesting. The targ trotted forward past Lirha's feet then began to sniff at Ban's boots. The sniffing quickly gave way to more exploration, and within seconds the targ was starting to chew and drool on his pant leg. With a firm grip on the fabric with a pair of sharp teeth, he began to shake his head back and forth while his tusks inadvertently punctured and tore through the piece of clothing.

"You speak Klingon, commander? And can translate it?" Lirha asked after a long moment, then handed the PADD back to him with approval. She seemed oblivious to her pet's current attire assault.

Aren could feel the targ chewing his pant leg. Part of him wanted to prevent the creature from doing so, but with practiced bearing that would have made the Queens Guard pleased, Aren ignored the targ. He nodded at her question. "Yes, I know enough that I can speak it fairly well, and as long as one isn't asking me to translate a medical journal, I should be able to read what you give me. I had a lot of time on Kreanus for refresher." He said matter of factually, he had a feeling he knew what she was going to say next. He wasn't quite sure how to react to the new situation at all, and he figured it was best to let her control the conversation. He hopped that they would both have time later to discuss some very important issues, though the bridge was not the place to do so.

"Excellent. Then you can help the crew with console translations," Lirha said. "For most of them, it will be their first time aboard a Klingon vessel...their computer interfaces are much different than those of Starfleet." Not only the Klingon symbology would need translating, but also the basic hierarchical structures of the software. As well as the location of various important command inputs. "I can assist here on the bridge, but I will need you to help the lower deck personnel."

Aren nodded. "I will help them get started. Thought when you have time, I believe we have somethings to discuss, especially in regards to the crew." He said turning to look at the crew of the Galileo, before returning his attention back to the newly minted General.

"In time, commander," she replied with a nod. Snuffles continued his assault on the Trill's pants and was now starting to shred the fabric around his calves. "I believe he wants your attention...he is friendly. A scratch between his ears would calm him."

Aren reached down and scratched the targ between the ears as suggested. He looked back up to Lirha and nodded thankfully. He knew his pant leg was ruined and he would most certainly have to change into his new uniform but there could be worse things. It would be good to set the tone and example for the crew if the leadership changed first. "Very well sir." He said as he stepped away from the general. He knew that the rest of the crew was growing restless and that wanted to speak with her. Normally Aren would have told them to maintain there bearing and to take there posts, but he felt that it would be better to dispense with traditional Starfleet regulations for a moment.

"How‽" Miraj couldn't hold back, and nearly shouted her interruption. Shock was passing, and she didn't have the patience that came with experience that Ban had either. Her stomach was churning with confusion and anger. She felt tricked. They had grieved for her, and endured the hardships of Kreanus. The woman standing before them didn't look like she'd endured anything more uncomfortable than Klingon fashion design. "How did you survive‽ How are you standing here when so many others are dead‽"

The Orion regarded the Boslic hybrid with stoicism. As much as she wanted to give Miraj a hug and explain the details of her survival, she didn't feel this was the appropriate time or place. Nevertheless, the ensign deserved an answer. She'd earned at least that much through her trials and tribulations on the colony. "I survived by the grace of the spirits, I suppose," she began to answer. "Apparently it was not my time to perish and the fates intervened. The Kreanans who attacked us -- the general's men -- transported me from Galileo seconds before the self-destruct charges detonated."

Derani looked at Lirrah, and the anger boiled again. That was it? That was what she was going with? Today was not a good day to die? The general's men had saved her. And not stuffed her in a stinking brig, or had her tortured whilst asking pointless questions or been made to scrape ice and scrub baked lubricant and rust off spare parts or eat that hideous pink goop. She hadn't been beaten bloody, or ended up with a nasty infection or been publicly humiliated. And where had she been? Why hadn't she come to join them? Why was she turning up now all lah-di-dah with her blase excuse? She wanted to scream that it wasn't fair, but bit her tongue, not wanting to show a divided front in front of the Klingons. "Yes, Ma'am." She kept her voice neutral, but was choking on her real feelings.

Stepping onto the bridge, Amaranai realized that she was suddenly coming into the end of a conversation. She stopped and kept quiet, listening and looking. She suddenly caught a glance at the person that was the focus of the questions. It was the admiral. But what was she doing on a Klingon vessel? She wished that she had been here at the beginning, but she hoped that there would be answers at some point.

The metallic doors slid open and S'anara walked onto the bridge, she made her way towards the command chair, approaching Lirha. "Report General Saalm."

Franklin's arrival on the bridge was unexpected. Lirha had expected to see the new Deltan officer, Rayze, but then quickly remembered his sudden departure mere hours before Galileo had entered the nebula. In his place, however, she was happy to see yet another survivor and now-acting senior officer. As she began to speak to the woman, she was rudely interrupted by a familiar voice.

"S'anara," the Orion acknowledged her presence. "Despite what Medara has told you, I do not answer to you. Only her," she stated with a clenched jaw and piercing green eyes. "You will report to me aboard my starship. Unless...you wish to dispute the matter with Chorag?" A quick flick of her eyes towards the Klingon first officer caused him to place his hand on the disruptor on his hip.

S'anara pressed her lips together and bowed her head, "I apologize." She replied and then stepped aside getting out of the way.

"Commanders Ban and Chorag...please help our new arrivals get acquainted with their stations," Lirha instructed. It was almost time to depart and the less time was wasted with formalities, the quicker she and the rest of the Galileans could get underway. "All stations, report in when ready."

Aren moved to the tactical console. He looked at the display, and showed Lieutenant Franklin some of the file structure for Klingon tactical operations. "Much of the system structure, at least from a tactical standpoint is much the same as our Federation systems." He explained as he pointed out several symbols and there meanings. Making sure to point out shields and the cloaking field. "It will be important to monitor these screens here," he pointed and directed her attention to a screen showing several graphs and and plots, "these will help you regulate cloaking and shields. Do you have any questions?" He asked, he was typing up a few notes and a cheat sheet for Franklin.

Lirha walked around the side of the bridge and to one of the foremost stations. The Klingon helm officer raised himself from his station to give way to Derani, then headed toward the turbolift.

Miraj almost ran to the helm. The panel was compact compared to the spacious arc of the Nova class. But it was still a helm. She brushed her fingers along it lovingly. And then kicked it, hard. "pongwIj 'oH Miraj," she told it, her Klingon badly formed. "qay''a' HInob je vaj tlhe' SoH vIneH veQ Duj!"* Her klingon exhausted with that dire warning, and a sore foot to go wth it, she sat down and pulled the chair up to the panel.

Leaning over her shoulder, Lirha began to point at different sections of the console. "These are the thruster controls -- lateral here, ventral here, and dorsal here. But they are inverted, unlike Starfleet consoles," she explained. It was a rather important piece of information to ensure the starship didn't go in the opposite direction it was intended.

Her green finger moved to point at a different section of the console. "These are the impulse controls, and here is the external inertial damper selector. Navigational sensors are over there with range selectors and frequency adjusters along the bottom of the display. All warp functions and course plotting are at the top of the display, here and here."

Miraj gave the admiral a look that bordered on insubordinate, slightly insulted that the Admiral had assumed she didn't already know. She might not have flown a real one, but she'd had simulations of most of the famous ship classes outside the Federation. She shut her eyes and then recited back all the controls, her fingers landing perfectly on each one, without hesitation. Then she opened her eyes, looking as smug as any cat. "The only hiccup is I dont read Klingon. Any chance the displays can be translated into human?"

Lirha gave it a short moment's thought. Translating an operating system into a different language would ideally be an easy operation...if it were a Starfleet vessel. But she was pretty sure Klingon vessels had no such architecture in place for any sort of translation. Their vessels were designed and operated almost exclusively by Klingons, and those who weren't of the same species were expected to know the language.

"I can speak to Ensign Mimi, or one of the Klingon Operations personnel," she offered. "But it might take time to integrate a translation matrix. For now, you will have to make due."

Miraj nodded. It would slow things down, but she could cope. "Anyone who can speak Klingon will do." If they had to do things in an emergency, she'd be going on feelings and sensation of the ship rather than anything the panel said, and if it wasn't an emergency they had time to wait for someone to translate for her.

"That is why I am here, ensign," replied the Orion with slight confusion. "I am fluent and can assist you, but the Klingon lexicon is far too complex for most to memorize. Perhaps I can help you with select phrases? Things you can quickly remember and recall?" The other option was to simply give the woman a PADD with translations on it.

"Its mostly just numbers, " Miraj admitted. I just don't know what they are."

The Orion general started to point at the small numerical symbols. Each one she pronounced out-loud in Klingon for the ensign while also stating it's Federation Standard equivalent. She then briefly explained the unique sequencing of multiples within the Klingon language to help her understand how to read numbers ranging from ten to ten million. "And these symbols denote units of measurement," she continued, now pointing to the smaller glyphs beneath each numbered sequence. As she had done with the numerical sequence, she pronounced the words for 'meter', 'kilometer', 'sector', 'lightyear', and 'parsec' while showing her their associated symbology. The units of time were easy to explain as well due to their inherent reliance upon numeration.

When she finished, she looked down at the pink-haired woman to see determine how much she'd been able to remember. "Any questions?" she offered.

Miraj looked at all the squiggles flashing on the helm. The only way to tell would be to actually see if she could fly. "Not yet, ma'am."

Mimi slipped behind what passed for the Operations station on the bridge, even though she'd only manned the Ops console on the Galileo's bridge a few times she knew that compared to that the Klingon console looked primitive and very unefficiently layed out. She looked at the controls and screen, her head swaying from side to side as sh tried to make sense of it. "I am going to need some help here." She called out

Lirha moved away from Derani and to the adjacent console where the Nekomi was seated. She gave the yellow-collared ensign a small smile and stood next to her. "Confused?" she asked, looking down at the Ops console which was as unique as the helm in its own right.

"Very." Mimi answered. "And I thought my language is hard."

Nodding in understanding, Lirha put a hand on the woman's shoulder as an indication to take the process slowly. "Show me what confuses you and I will translate."

"Well this looks like a graph showing power levels to different systems but I can't tell which is which or how to transfer power across." Mimi pointed at a section of the console. "And I think this is subspace communications because of this picture but I can't find shipwide or ship to ship."

"Yes, very good," replied Saalm. She reached over Mimi's shoulder and input a series of commands into the terminal in order to display all of the power management systems. As she had done with Derani, Lirha started to point to the different sub-categories while pronouncing their names in Klingon before giving translations. She then proceeded to explain the software's interface and structural hierarchy. "You must select the appropriate subsystem first before selecting the grid interface in order to change distribution levels," she said, then demonstrated for Mimi to see. "On Starfleet vessels, it is the opposite."

"That might take some getting used to." Mimi commented.

Lirha continued to assist and moved on to the communications sub-display. After translating and pointing out the different words and tactile options available in the interface, she then proceeded to the damage control screen which was more visual and intuitive than the previous ones. "Here, this shows you current allocations and damage states. Bulkhead breaches are displayed in red while minor fractures are displayed in yellow. Anything in gray is considered by the system to be inoperable...destroyed." she said.

Mimi watched as Lirha showed her through everything. "Hopefully by the end of this everything will still be green." she said smiling as much as her battered jaw would allow.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

GEN Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
IKS DuJa'Q

CMDR Chorag
First Officer
IKS DuJa'Q
[PNPC Saalm]

Ensign Miraj Derani
Chief Flight Control Officer
IKS DuJa'Q

Ensign Mimi
Operations Officer
IKS DuJa'Q

Lt. JG Amaranai Franklin
Assistant Chief Tactical / Security Officer
IKS DuJa'Q

Cmdr Allyndra illm Warraquim
Chief Medical and Second Officer
IKS Duja'Q

Cmdr Aren Ban
Executive Officer
IKS Duja'Q

SCPO Martin Caine
Chief of the Boat (CoB)
IKS Duja'Q

Lt. JG Eelim Galan
Security Officer
IKS Duja'Q
(PNPC Played by Soral Varro)

Petty Officer Eviess
Medical Officer
IKS Duja'Q
(PNPC Played by Soral Varro)

Ambassador Sorel Varro
Chief Diplomatic Officer
IKS Duja'Q

SCDR S'anara Valdran
Deputy Colony Administrator
Kreanus Colony

And other Galileans

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