[Phase 2]: Rising Action

Starfleet activities in the Velorum Sector are well-underway. Whether a starship is defending a world against imperial or warlord aggressions, helping people get back on their feet, or supporting a system’s bid for self-determination, the Fourth Fleet is committed.

In the three-act structure, the second act is sometimes called the ‘Confrontation,’ or the ‘Rising Action.’ It is traditionally where attempts to resolve problems introduced in the first act go awry, only for the situation to turn worse. Usually this is because the protagonists lack the skills to resolve the crisis – these may be physical skills, a lack of understanding of the challenges before them, or a lack of understanding of themselves.

Write about the ‘Rising Action’ of your ship’s adventures in the Velorum Sector. This is a deliberately broad briefing – it might be when the characters realise not all is as it seems, or when an effort to make things right fails. Characters realise how little they know, or are confronted by their own limitations or failures. Fundamentally, this is a point where things change or are made ready to change.

Your story might address one or several of the following questions:

– What secrets or unexpected developments arise to challenge your crew?

– Are there people in the Velorum Sector committed to see your ship fail? How do they successfully set Starfleet efforts back?

– What is the twist or change or discovery that makes your ship’s mission more difficult in Operation: Sundered Wings?

Criteria

• Your story should be between 2,000 and 3,000 words in length (Google Docs, not BFMS, will be used to determine word count)
• The entry should be written in your Command’s Mission attached to the Sundered Wings Fleet-Wide Mission, and linked to in the submission. While we allow and encourage you to choose a Story from your ongoing Fleet Action fiction, only the single submitted Story will be graded and judged.
• Stories from Starbase Bravo are not eligible for this competition.
• Submitted Stories must have a single author.
• Stories will be graded in accordance with the Bravo Fleet Fiction Rubric, which marks on the following criteria: Language, Style, & Mechanics; Adherence to Canon; Perspective; Characterization; Originality; Use of the Prompt.