Tajir was sitting on the bridge, which had been quiet since the away team had beamed down to the planet. Odan was busy working at his station keeping a sensor lock on the away team while also keeping a sensor sweep of the system. “I wonder what it looks like down there?” Odan spoke up breaking the silence that seemed to be a constant norm in situations like this.

Deza looked back, “That has also crossed my mind though I am sure we will probably hear all about it once the away team returns.” She replied as Odan nodded in response, “I suppose you’re right, though it has my curiosity peaked.” Odan replied as Deza nodded, “indeed.” She said before turning back around looking out the view screen at the planet below which seemed to be just as beautiful.

Things had got quiet again until Odan spoke up, “sir we are getting an incoming transmission from Fleet Captain Dex from Devron Fleet Yards.” Odan said looking up from his console, Tajir stood up and nodded “transfer it to the Captain’s ready room.” Tajir said as he walked into the ready room, after walking around the Captain’s desk he turned on the computer to see an older Trill woman sitting at her desk with a raised eyebrow as he was not Captain Adams.

“You’re not Captain Adams,” Azras said looking at the fellow Trill officer who nodded in response and a smile. “She is actually down on the planet with the away team sir,” Tajir replied as he looked at her apologetically. 

Azras nodded as to understand why he took the call instead of the Captain, “I am going to send you a file that I would like you to get to the Captain as soon as possible,” Azras said with urgency in her voice as she tapped a few buttons on her console, “it is for the Captain’s eyes only, Commander.” Dex said to make sure that he didn’t try opening it before passing it to Adams.

Tajir nodded in agreement which seems to be happening more and more as of late, “understood I will transfer it directly to her padd.” Tajir reassured Dex that he wouldn’t open it and made sure Adams received it. “Good,” Azras replied as the communication ended as the file was received.

****

The sun was shining brightly, it seemed to be what they would call mid-morning and the temperature wasn’t at its peak yet which was only a few hours away. Adams looked around as they walked up the path of the mountain that would lead them to the entrance of the cave. One could see in the distance a beautiful rainforest, with trees of different sizes as well as flora that no one has seen before. Beyond the forest were what seemed like villages though many miles from the mountain that they were currently located. 

“The view is beautiful,” came the reply of Jeesa as she looked out onto the horizon. “It is,” Jheria said in reply as she was amazed at how beautiful it was and to think that this was once a Tkon world long abandoned. Adams tended to agree but was distracted at the frantic call of the young Ensign Morgan. “There is something moving in the forest, I think it’s heading this way.” He called out as Jeesa stopped and turned towards where the Ensign saw the movement and scanned.

Jeesa couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle, “at ease Ensign, it was just an animal moving through the forest.” Jeesa replied as she was looking at the readings. “It seems to be an animal similar to Earth’s Deer,” Jeesa added as Adams nodded as they began to move up the mountain once again. Ensign Morgan seemed embarrassed, he was nervous on his first away team that he didn’t even think about using his tricorder. 

As they walked her commbadge went off, “Tajir to Captain Adams.” Came the reply of the Executive Officer that was on board the ship. Tapping her commbadge that lay hidden below her blouse, “Adams here, Commander what do you have?” She asked looking around as they continued to ascend up the mountain.

“I am transferring a file to your padd, Fleet Captain Dex contacted the ship asking for you, I informed her that you were with the away team so she wanted me to pass this file onto you.” Tajir replied as he made the transfer, “got it, Commander,” Adams said as she ended the comm channel and began to read what was sent.

After reading the file she raised an eyebrow, “well things have just gotten more interesting.” Adams said which caused Jeesa and Jheria to look at the Captain. “What’s up?” Jeesa asked now curious as to what was sent to her.

“Well, when we get to where we’re going we will need to look for a sort of beacon.” Adams began before continuing, “once we find it, we need to repair it and make sure it connects to whatever it connects to.” She said only revealing half of the information as she couldn’t reveal the rest, the vanishing point, and what those beacons are really for.

“So we won’t be beaming any technology back to the ship?” Jheria asked looking at the Captain who just shook her head, “no it is there for a reason, and we believe that it has come under disrepair after so many thousands of years that we need to fix it.” Adams said as they continued their climb.

“That will be a challenge but I am up for it,” Jheria replied with some excitement in learning about Tkon technology and the challenge that would come with it. “With Jeesa’s and Damir’s help, we might be able to understand their technology to be able to.” Jheria added, “good.” Came the reply from Adams as Jeesa and Damir nodded, though Damir had been quiet since they arrived. He had just been taking in the sights as they moved up the mountain, they had about another good hour to go before they reached the opening. “One thing if there is a beacon in there, there might be some automated Tkon defenses protecting the area so we need to be on guard.” Damir finally spoke up as Dazra looked back at that statement.

“Let’s hope those might be malfunctioning as well,” Dazra said as Damir looked at her. “One can only hope, but if there is I might be able to get past them,” Damir replied as he had a lot of time to study what they did have on the Tkon. “Let’s hope so, I’d rather make it out of this mission unscathed,” Dazra said before turning back around and continuing. The group fell silent as they continued to climb, though Adams continued to study the padd with the recent information on the vanishing point and what the beacons are actually for.

With the ship just sitting in orbit, nothing was really happening on the bridge other than just sitting there looking at the planet below through the viewscreen. Deza looked around the bridge, Tajir was sitting in the command chair looking over some padds he had in his hand. She guessed it was duty rosters and reports and other such things trying to keep busy while they all waited for any word from the away team. 

Odan was just standing there glancing around though he would look at the console every few seconds to see if there was anything going on in the system or even the planet below that would constitute a call to the Captain. Things seemed to stay quiet where there was nothing to report. 

Chon’al seemed to be reading reports of some kind, though she wasn’t sure what. She sighed as she stood up from her chair and looked at those on the bridge, “I am going to the mess hall for lunch if anyone cares to join me.” Deza said as everyone looked at her, “count me in.” Odan replied as another officer came to relieve him and then Chon’al decided to join them as well. 

Tajir just shook his head with a smile, “I am good thank you for asking.” Tajir replied holding up his padd to signify that he had a lot of work he had been neglecting over the past few weeks that needed to get done. Nodding the three walked off the bridge and headed down to the mess hall.

Once they had arrived they all walked over to the replicator, ordered what they wanted, and headed for the empty table near the corner before they all sat down. “The last few weeks have been crazy don’t you think?” Deza said looking at them, “I am hoping things go back to normal soon.” Odan replied looking at the three who just nodded in agreement to that statement. 

“I don’t think I can take much more of the constant secrecy that has been coming from the Captain. Though I understand that things can be classified, this has been a bit much.” Chon’al chimed in before taking a bit of his food, he tended to eat more human food than what you would see a Klingon normally eat, though he did still eat some Klingon delicacies he usually did that in his own quarters alone.

“I think I need a vacation after this,” Deza said just as she took a bite. “Ditto to that,” Odan said as the doors to the mess hall opened, and in walked Teila. Odan smiled and waved her over after she got her plate from the replicator. Deza looked at Odan, “what we don’t need to be rude to our new Doctor.” Odan said as Chon’al agreed with him, she nodded as Teila came over with her huge smile.

“Hope I am not intruding?” Telia said as everyone shook their head, “the more the merrier.” Deza said though she really not sure about her yet, she had a bit more bubbly personality than what she was used to comparing to what Kriia was, though as she thought about it Kriia didn’t have much of a personality. She was always serious and rarely had lunch or anything outside of work. Teila smiled and sat down in the empty chair.

“So Commander, how are you settling in?” Odan asked her as he was generally curious how she was adjusting to being on a ship like this in the middle of a strange crisis that no one really knew exactly what was going on but basically went along anyway. “Great, though I have never served on such a large ship before, I mostly have served on smaller ships with less crew but I am adjusting just fine. Thank you for asking,” Teila said with a smile as they continued to chat while they ate until Teila saw a familiar face and excused herself to go join him.

“Mind if I join you?” Teila asked looking at James who looked up to see Teila standing there and smiled, “of course you may.” James replied motioning for the empty chair beside him. “Looks like your making friends,” James observed. “I not sure if we would call ourselves that yet, but it is something I am working on,” Teila said as she was still new and it would take time for the crew to warm up to her. He nodded, “though lately I been sensing a lot of tensions going on with the crew, which I am sure are due to this unusual crisis that is at hand.” Teila noted as James agreed, though he wasn’t Betazoid or anything he could just tell by their body language.

“How’re things going with you?” Teila asked him as he just shrugged, “hasn’t been very busy as no one really wants to visit the counselor on their own accord. Though I am sure I will be requesting that they see me after this mission is over and the crisis or whatever it is, is over.” James said taking a bit of his food as Teila nodded in response as they continued to chat.

Deza got up and placed her dishes back into the replicator and walked out of the mess hall followed by Chon’al who wanted to ask for advice. “Deza do you got a moment?” Chon’al looked at her while they walked down the corridor toward the turbo lift. She was heading to the gym to work out, which she usually did around this time.

“What is on your mind?” She asked as they walked, “I don’t normally talk about this or ask advice.” He began to speak though you could tell there was some nervousness in his voice which caused her to stop and look at him. “I am interested in the Captain but not sure how I should approach that if I were to have a chance with her or not.” He finally said which caused Deza to smile as he looked like a little puppy that was in love.

They began to walk again, “I know she likes flowers mostly white roses, I would also do a nice romantic dinner. She also mentioned that she likes watching movies? Though I am not sure what that is, just heard her speak of it before in a conversation.” Deza replied looking at him, “I would just ask her out and see where it goes.” 

Deza added, “I am not that good with giving advice like that but I am sure if you be yourself,” she began but paused thinking of a better word. “Just be honest with her, tell her how you feel.” Airje replied as they reached the turbolift, he nodded as he thought about it.

“Thank you, I’ll do that,” Chon’al replied before they went their separate ways, Deza couldn’t help but smile as she entered the turbo lift and headed to the gym to begin her workout. Odan went to meet with Katie in the holodeck to get some time together doing something she liked to do which was rock climbing, though he hated heights he got over it as it was something she enjoyed doing and he wanted to be supportive. Teila and James continued to talk in the mess hall losing all track of time before realizing they each had appointments and were fashionably late.

After a couple of hours of hiking up the mountain trail, they finally reached the entrance to the cave. They took a few moments to catch their breathe and relax from the long hike, Damir scanned the entrance and checked the data. “Umm,” came his reply as he didn’t see this on the initial scans which caused Makayla to look up. “What’s the matter, Commander?” She asked as the umm sounded more concerning than what it was probably intended.

“There seem to be defenses in place, as there seems to be a forcefield of some kind at the entrance that wasn’t picked up on the initial scans.” Damir began as he looked around the entrance and noticed a sort of keypad. This caused Adams to raise an eyebrow but with the Tkon at work here, nothing should have surprised her.

“Do you think you can get past it?” She asked as he stood there quietly for a few moments before looking back at the Captain. “I am sure with both Jheria’s and Jeesa’s help I am sure we can bring that field down.” He said as the two walked up to him and started to study the padd on the mountain entrance that was almost covered with vines. 

Time seemed to pass by slowly as they waited, “how is it coming?” Adams asked as she sat on a rock near the wall of the trail. “This is trickier than I’d expected, we have almost made a breakthrough though.” Jheria said before Damir spoke up, “Tkon really has made it near impossible to get past its defenses.”

Nodding she and the others waited, Ensign Morgan just stood there scanning the area to make sure no one had spotted them, though from the looks of things no one has ever visited the mountain as there were no visible tracks. “Got it,” came Jheria’s voice as she pressed a button and the forcefield came down as the group stood up. Dazra scanned the area to make sure there were no other defenses that could attack them as they entered were around.

“All clear,” Dazra replied as they entered the cave, looking around as they slowly walked taking in the sights of the cave which seemed to have a Tkon feel for it. “It seems that we need to travel further down the cave, from what I can tell there are three levels and the beacon seems to be at the bottom level,” Damir said though his readings were not so great, “it seems there are also more of those forcefields at each level, that might get harder to crack then the next,” Damir added as they traveled, being on guard as they made their way towards the area they needed to get to the next level.

“Lovely,” Jheria mumbled out loud looking around getting her bearings of the area. “Wonder why the Tkon had hidden a beacon in a mountain like this, wonder what other treasures we will find,” Jeesa commented as it was not every day you get to go treasure hunting for Tkon relics like this. “Well, they wanted to make sure no one would find it as you can probably guess by the forcefields,” Damir replied back in an almost condescending way but Jeesa just ignored it.

Adams just shook her head “alright you two, Jeesa was just trying to make conversation, there was no need for that rudeness.” Adams replied as they reached the second forcefield, Damir shrugged and began to study this one. Jheria finally found the console that was more hidden than the last one. 

“This one is going to be a bit more tricky, I am sure I can crack it but it’s going to take longer as it seems that one wrong move can activate those defenses,” Jheria replied pointing to what seemed like phasers embedded into the cave above the forcefield.

Everyone looked up and Dazra took a deep breath looking around, “I suggest that we move over here out of firing range until they can bring it down without setting them off.” Dazra suggested as everyone but Jheria and Damir moved away from the area. Dazra was looking at the defenses above to see if it might have a weak point to disable them if they got triggered while the two worked on bringing the field down.

This was definitely taking longer than the last one until they finally were able to get the algorithm right and the forcefield lowered without activating the defenses. Adams let out a sigh of relief as they left where they were at and headed through the arch onto the next level and next forcefield.

Jeesa could sense a lot of tension between everyone, which was probably because they were clueless about what they might find at each stop. She could only imagine that each one will be more defensive than the last until they reached their destination. 

Dazra went back to the entrance to check in with Ensign Morgan who she could tell was a nervous wreck. “I am going to stay back at the entrance with the Ensign, I’ll keep on the lookout here Captain.” Dazra said over the comm channel, “understood Lieutenant.” Adams replied back as she made a mental note not to bring Ensign Morgan on an away mission again.

They were beginning to see more evidence of Tkon technology as they walked, Damir scanned them and noticed they were malfunctioning. “We might have to come back and fix these as I am not sure if they are connected to the beacon yet or not.” Damir made the statement as they began to press on.

Jheria looked back at the Captain, “I might need to bring an engineer or two down here once we can figure things out. I have two trusted ones that can hopefully help me repair these systems.” She said as the Captain thought for a moment, “set up the pattern enhancers here so they don’t have to make that climb up the mountain.” Adams replied as Jeesa began to set them up, “they’re set up and ready sir.” Jeesa replied as they moved forward until finally reaching the second to last one. “Umm,” Jheria said as Damir was scanning the area.

“This one looks to have the same defenses and again will take more time to get the algorithm correct without setting them off. It also seems that these ones can aim in all directions whereas the first ones were just set to straight ahead.” Jheria replied as she took a deep breath. 

The others moved back to a safe distance while the two began to work. Things were becoming tricker, but she was being careful not to set them off as she held her breath for what seemed like an eternity. Jeesa could tell she was nervous and anxious as she worked until the forcefield finally came down before she let out a huge breath and a sigh of relief washed over her. “I am dreading what the last one will be…” Jheria said as her voice cracked.

Adams and Jeesa joined them as she placed a hand on Jheria’s shoulder, “it will be ok you got this.” Jeesa said with a smile trying to be helpful and reassuring in this stressful time. Jheria looked at her and smiled, “thanks” she replied before they continued onto the last forcefield before they reached their destination.

They noted more malfunctioning consoles as they walked, “I hate to see what the last one entails.” Jheria commented as Damir looked back, “I probably would be prepared it could be way worse than the last few.” Damir said without a sweat, Jeesa shook her head at his bluntness, though it didn’t really bother Jheria as she was used to being blunt herself with her engineers at times though not always as there was always a time and place for it.

Adams made a note that she would have a conversation with Damir once they finished this mission and was back on board the Vesta. Having had enough of Damir’s attitude towards her crew, now was not the time or place to address it.

After walking a bit more they finally came to the last one, they could see the beacon in the middle of the room looked like it was powered off from what they could see. “Oh boy,” Jeesa said as she noticed it before the others who just looked at her as the oh boy didn’t sound very good.

They then looked at what she saw and froze, it seemed to be a small portal of some kind similar to what the USS Enterprise encountered but on a smaller scale. “Things have just gotten more interesting,” Adams replied as they all stood there as Damir scanned the area. 

“This one might be a challenge, there is no console like the rest, I think that portal has some kind of control over it, it seems to be in a sleep state,” Damir said walking back to the group to figure out what to do next.

With things just getting interesting she knew what she had to do, only she would be the one to speak with this portal in hopes she can get it to drop the field. “I need all of you to go back to the entrance,” Adams said as Jeesa was about to pipe up before being cut off with the Captain putting her hand in the air to stop her. “I will call you to return, I need to be the only one to speak with this portal.” She added as Jheria raised an eyebrow at her statement.

“Do you really think that is a good idea? What if it is hostile?” Jheria asked as Adams looked at her with a soft smile trying to be as reassuring as she possibly could under these conditions, “I understand your concerns Commander, I believe it is the best solution if I were the only one here at the moment. If it were to wake and see all of us it could trigger defenses thinking it was under attack, and I don’t want that.” Adams replied back looking at the three of them.

“I might be able to convince it to lower the forcefield and allow us to fix the beacon, but I need to do this alone to minimize anyone else getting hurt.” Adams said as they reluctantly nodded, “I’ll call you once I am done.” Adams said as they all started to walk back to the entrance before Adams called out to Jheria. 

“Oh, Jheria if you could get the two engineering officers down here we are prepared, and make sure Dazra doesn’t do anything stupid and come down here.” Adams ordered as Jheria gave that nod of understanding, “also give her a gentle reminder that if she does it will be the last insubordination she ever does.” She said as they left Adams alone, she took a long deep breath to compose herself before she walked up to the portal.

Once she got close enough the portal seemed to come online, “Stop right there and identify yourself, trespasser.” Came the deep mechanical voice of the portal, “I mean you no harm.” Adams began as she had both hands in the air a sign that she comes in peace and means no harm as she stood where she was not daring to move any further. 

“I am Captain Makayla Adams of the USS Vesta, and with the United Federation of Planets, I come to you to speak about a situation that is at hand and hoping you can help us with.” She began as it seemed to peak the interest of the portal.

“Go on,” came the reply as she began to explain the whole situation that has been going on before she paused for a moment to catch her breath. “So you see, it seems that the beacon beyond that forcefield is malfunctioning as well as most of your consoles we found on the way here.” She said as she paused, “we are here to help restore those systems as well as restore the beacon to the vanishing point in hopes of restoring everything to the way it was and ending this crisis.” She finished as the portal remained quiet for some time as it seemed it was thinking.

“How can we be sure you’re not here to destroy us?” it questioned, which caused Adams to smile slightly as the portal asked a very valid question. “Well let’s think about this from a logical perspective.” She began taking a short pause before continuing, “If we wanted to destroy you, we would do so from orbit by just firing our weapons at the mountain that we are currently standing in causing it to crumble and I wouldn’t be standing here having this conversation with you right now.” She continued which had gotten the portal listening intently to what she was saying. 

“So, if we destroy you we would also be condemning everyone in this galaxy,” she said as the portal answered, “you do have a point” came the reply.

“That is not who we are, or what we stand for. We are explorers, not warriors looking to cause havoc, so we are here to help repair your systems and bring stability to the galaxy. You have my word that we will repair your systems, get everything working again, and then we will leave once we are sure everything is working properly again,” Adams said as the portal began to ponder whether it should trust her or not though Adams had made a compelling argument.

After what seemed like hours, though in reality, it was only a few minutes before the portal spoke up again. “Very well, I’ll let you pass so you can repair our systems. Once it is done you will leave,” the portal replied as it lowered the forcefield. “Agreed, I am going to call my most trusted officers to help me repair your systems,” Adams said as the portal acknowledged.

She tapped her commbadge, “alright you may return.” Adams said as she entered the area and looked around, breathing a sigh of relief as that could have gone one of two ways bad or very bad. A few moments later Jheria, Jeesa, Damir, and the two other engineers returned to find Adams inside the area where the forcefield was that was once blocking and the portal seemed to have gone back into a sleep state.

Jheria walked over to Adams who was looking at the beacon that sat in the middle, looking up seemed to be a medium-sized opening above them at the top of the mountain that was open with light shining through. “I take it you were able to get the forcefield down,” Jheria stated the obvious as Adams just nodded in return. “It took some time convincing the portal of our intentions but in the end, they are allowing us to assist as long as we leave once it’s repaired,” Adams said looking at the Commander.

“Right,” Jheria replied as they started to scan the beacon and the many consoles nearby. 

“I need you two to scan the consoles on the two levels as we came down here, see if they can be repaired, and bring me back your report,” Jheria replied as the two walked off.  Damir scanned the beacon while Jheria was working on studying the consoles that were fluctuating power. It would take some time studying the technology before they could begin to repair it. 

“It’s going to be a few hours before we can even begin to start repairs, one wrong move or part can cause a chain reaction we do not want.” Jheria said as Adams nodded, “do you think we would be able to replicate any parts or calibrate our own to work with their technology?” Adams asked looking at Jheria who just shrugged, “it’s too soon to tell, I’ll let you know once we get a full analysis.” Jheria replied as Adams nodded as she looked at the beacon once more, looking at the detail, and was blown away by it. 

“I am going to go check in with Tajir, we are late with our check-in and I don’t want him to worry,” Adams said with a slight chuckle as she headed to the entrance of the cave while the others continued their work of figuring out the technology.

Damir was standing near the beacon, paying close attention to the details as well as the symbols that he noticed. The structure stood about three meters and was about 1 meter in diameter. The top of the beacon was in the shape of a triangle while looking down the sides pilar around liked almost like a hexagon that sat on a concrete base on the floor of the cave. There didn’t seem to be any console of any kind on it, he began to wonder if one of these consoles if not all were intertwined with the beacon.

“Dammnit,” Jeesa said in frustration out loud which had caused the other two to look at her. Damir just raised an eyebrow and went back to what he was doing. Jheria looked up from the panel that she had open under one of the many consoles to see what the inter-workings of it looked like, “what is wrong?” Jheria asked while she paused what she was doing.

“Just frustrated, it is kind of hard to figure what any of this means to even begin to understand how this beacon works or get it operational again without the power going out constantly,” Jeesa said with frustration filling her voice. Jheria nodded in acknowledgment “I am sorry that is happening, though it doesn’t surprise me as who knows who long this has been in disrepair.” Jheria replied looking at her, “I am trying to see if any of our technology would be compatible or if I can replicate something and modify it to work.” Jheria replied as Jeesa nodded in understanding, she was just excited enough to start work not really thinking about the engineering part of it.

“I think the studying part will have to wait until I can at least get these consoles operational and that could take a while,” Jheria said as Jeesa sighed nodding in understanding she then looked over at Damir who was intently staring at the beacon. “How’s it going over there, Commander?” Jeesa asked as she walked over to where he was, “fine” he replied not even looking at her.

“Have you been able to understand any of those symbols yet?” She asked out of curiosity as he has been standing there for the past thirty minutes. “Almost, and there doesn’t seem to be any kind of console so my guess is that it is connected to those consoles somehow,” Damir replied while looking at each of the symbols going down each side there were four per side going down in a straight row with a good space in between them.

Jeesa began to explore the area, while Jheria was scanning the different consoles and taking in the whole picture. Things were not going to be easy, though she didn’t expect to be otherwise, this could take a day or more to get operational, so they can figure out how to get the beacon connected to the vanishing point. The two engineers came walking back in and handed their report to Jheria, taking it and looking it over which caused her to let out a huge sigh as she nodded to them. They walked off into another room to explore the area see if they could find anything else they might have missed on their way down. They also knew to give her space when she was working.

“Lovely,” Jheria said with a sigh Jeesa was about to speak up when Adams walked back in. “What is lovely Commander?” Makayla asked as Jheria looked up at her, “it looks like those consoles we saw as we were coming down here, seem to be short-circuited and they also do seem to connect to that beacon as do all these consoles in some way.” Jheria began which caused Adams to have a very concerned look on her face. “I am pretty sure we can replicate some parts and calibrate it to work with Tkon technology,” she continued as Adams could tell there was a but in there. 

“It’s going to take a while and I mean could be a day, maybe longer to just get these consoles operational so we can figure out how to get the beacon connected and working again. I am hoping we can get it done quicker, Tkon technology seems to be very tricky and we don’t really know much about it.” Jheria replied as Adams stood there in thought.

“Understood, return to the ship to get what you need. I am sure we will be staying here overnight.” She said as she looked at them, Jheria nodded and left with the two engineers to head back to the ship. “Do you think we can re-activate the entrance forcefield so we don’t get any surprises while we’re sleeping?” Adams asked Jeesa and Damir. “That should be easy enough there seems to be a console on the inside of the main entrance so I should be able to reactivate that one.” Jeesa replied, “wonderful,” she said as she started to look at the beacon with Damir.

****

Jheria had made it back on board and made a beeline for engineering and headed for the area where she could work on creating the parts she needed. “I do not want to be disturbed, if there is a problem bring that up with the Assistant,” she said walking past her assistant and the engineers.

They looked at each other noticing she was on a mission and shrugged and got back to work. Jheria stood at the large replicator that was made for replicating larger items, she put in the parameters she needed and began to replicate what she needed. Though after that she would need to adjust and modify them to work with the technology which was going to be the trickiest part of it all.

Teila walked into engineering after she had seen Jheria basically run past her in the corridor, “where can I find the Chief?” Teila asked one of the engineers who looked at her apologetically, “she doesn’t want to be disturbed, she’s really busy.” The Ensign replied looking up from the console that he was working on. “Oh I see,” Telia said while she was looking around and thought she spotted her.

She began to walk in that direction, “Commander, she asked to not be disturbed, she is extremely busy.” The Ensign said again, this time moving to block her which caused the Lieutenant that is currently in charge to look up from the console to see the Doctor trying to get by the Ensign to see the Chief. “She really is busy, she needs to get things replicated to be able to repair the Tkon tech down there.” The Lieutenant replied walking up to her dismissing the Ensign who looked relieved that he took over. “She needs concentration to get things alined correctly so our technology can work with theirs.” He finished before she sighed and nodded, “alright.” Teila replied as she turned back around and headed out of engineering.

Looking at the Ensign and nodded at the effort before getting back to her work, Jheria would spend the next few hours replicating and adjusting the parts, the final adjustments would need to happen down on the cave once installation takes place. She hoped that this would work, if not then they had a much bigger problem on their hands if that were to come to pass.

Several hours had passed by, Jheria had already made it back with everything she needed. While she was at it she also brought back supplies which were just about anything they might need as they spent the night in the cave. Jeesa had already gotten the forcefield up at the entrance hours earlier as now it was starting to get dark. 

The night temperatures were starting to drop drastically from the hot weather they had during the day. Though they had shelter so it kept them warmer than what it would have been outside the cave. 

There wasn’t much they could do at the moment in terms of figuring out the Tkon language to be able to get the beacon operational, at least not until Jheria and her engineering team got the consoles up and running. “Might as well set up camp here,” Adams said as she laid out her sleeping bag while Dazra set up a small little heating rock to keep them warm during the night. 

“How did you get the portal to lower the forcefield?” Jeesa asked out of curiosity as she ate her dinner which was a bit better than the field rations they normally would have on away missions. Makayla looked up at her, “I just explained the situation and that it would be in the best interest of everyone around if it would allow us to help them fix their equipment.” She said though she didn’t lie she just didn’t tell the whole story.

Jeesa felt she was hiding something, though she could say that everything about these past few missions has had some secret to them. She decided to take her at face value and not press further, she just nodded in response to the explanation. 

“Well, I am glad that it didn’t end up as bad as it could have,” Jeesa replied as it was just the five of them, Jheria and the two engineers were busy working on getting the new hardware installed and working properly.

Damir was sitting farther away from the group as he tended to keep to himself whenever possible. He was not exactly a people person and would rather work alone. Though he knew that would be impossible at times, especially when he is needed for missions like this where there would be other people involved. 

Before he left the lower chamber where the beacon was located, he had taken pictures of the symbols on each side of the beacon to try to figure out what they meant. 

“How’s it going over there?” Jeesa asked as she looked at him, looking up from the tablet he had in his hand, he just shrugged and went back to studying the symbols which had caused Jeesa to raise an eyebrow before turning back to the others. Dazra just shrugged as she got up from the floor, “I am going to go see how Jheria is doing and bring her this coffee.” She said as she walked off, she was also curious as to what the beacon looked like as she spent most of the day sitting at the entrance.

Makayla looked off where Dazra had gone and sighed now lost in thought about what has transpired the last few weeks. Laying down in her sleeping bag she was soon asleep, not realizing how exhausted she really was and how little sleep she had gotten. The others would soon join her except Damir who continued what he was doing, he wanted to figure out what these symbols mean even if it meant staying up all night.

Meanwhile, Jheria was under one of the consoles installing the new hardware to intertwine with the existing hardware that seemed to still be in good shape from what she could tell. Things were turning out to be a lot more complicated than she had hoped it would go, it seemed like at each turn she found resistance and she would have to start over. 

“How’s it going, Commander?” Dazra asked as she walked in to notice that she was laying under the console, this had startled Jheria. “Dammnit Dazra, don’t you know it’s not wise to sneak up on an engineer who is working?” She cursed as she rubbed her head after hitting it on the top of the console. “Sorry Commander,” Dazra said as she held a glass of coffee in her hand. “Just thought you might like some coffee,” Dazra said with an apologetic smile on her face.

Getting up from where she was laying and taking the tall stainless steel mug from her, “thanks.” Jheria said she was going to need a boost of energy if she was going to finish things tonight, though with how things were currently going she wasn’t as optimistic about it. Taking a sip of the drink, “things are not going so well, I keep hitting roadblocks at every junction.” Jheria replied to her earlier question.

“I am sorry that you are having problems, I hope things will turn around for you Commander,” Dazra said as she couldn’t help but admire the beacon as well as the other Tkon technology that she had seen as she walked down there. Jheria nodded, “I am sure I will, though I just haven’t found the right frequency yet on the alignment for our hardware to be compatible with their equipment.” She replied back taking another drink before setting it down on the console.

“Thank you again for the drink, I would love to chat more but I really need to get back to work if I am to have this done by tomorrow,” Jheria said as Dazra nodded in response and headed back to where the others were located. Jheria sighed for a brief moment before got back on the cold ground, crawling back under the console.

A few hours had passed by, Jheria finally was able to finish installing the new hardware on one of the consoles. Getting up she looked at the console which had powered on she was able to see Tkon symbols come to life on the screen. Letting out a sigh of relief as it would seem the integration took hold, she scanned the console to make sure and, once she was satisfied that it was holding she moved on to the next one.

Back at the campsite, Damir was still wide awake studying the padd in front of him. Adams began to stir in her sleep until she wake up for a moment to notice that Damir was still up. “Why don’t you get some sleep, we have a busy day ahead of us.” Makayla said as she sat up looking at Damir who shrugged, “I can’t sleep.” He admitted looking at her, she could clearly see that he was tired with his eyes almost bloodshot red. 

Adams got up from her sleeping back and walked over to him sitting down beside him for a moment, “how come, your eyes say otherwise,” she said as she was concerned for his health, she really didn’t even like the fact that Jheria and the two engineers were still awake. Damir shrugged looking at the Captain, “I just got a lot on my mind, and have been trying to cipher these symbols on the beacon has been nothing but a challenge.” He replied setting the tablet down for a moment. 

Though she understood why he was still awake, in the end, he needed the sleep. “All the more reason to try to get some rest, then just maybe in the morning things will become more clear.” Makayla said placing her hand on his shoulder, “you will then have a clear mind that you might see something that you missed.” She added which caused Damir to think there for a moment before he nodded in agreement, he knew she was right and got up from where he was, heading over to join the others where it was a lot warmer than it was where he was currently at. Laying out his sleeping bag, he laid down and soon was sound asleep. Adams smiled a bit before she too fell back to sleep while the engineers continued their work.

Jheria rubbed her eyes as she continued to work on getting all the consoles working, though she has had some setbacks along the way on some of the consoles. The morning had come faster than she hoped as the others were already up, “how are things coming along?” Adams asked as she walked in looking at the Commander. Looking up at the Captain where she could clearly see her bloodshot tired eyes. 

“I am just about done, though I could have gotten done sooner if it wasn’t for these minor setbacks that came up along the way.” Jheria began as she stood up to stretch her tired body and from laying on the hard cave floor, she noticed that the Captain was holding a cup of coffee that she handed her.

“Thanks,” Jheria said as Makayla just nodded while smiling in return as Jheria took a sip of the much-needed coffee. “I should be done within the hour,” Jheria said as she took another drink before she set it down on the console where she was working. 

Makayla was concerned about her engineer, but she knew Jheria pretty well since she arrived aboard the Vesta a few months prior. She knew that she wouldn’t stop until she was finished even if she were to order her to, she just nodded. 

“Very well,  though after that, I need you to get some sleep.” Adams ordered looking at her before she continued, “I am sure we can handle the rest.” Adams finished as she look at her, Jheria was about to open her mouth and protest but paused and thought better of it, “very well Captain.” Jheria replied back in almost defeat, though she knew the Captain was right, she did need to get to sleep.

Jheria was about to get back under the console again to finish up her work when Adams spoke up, “I promise if something drastic were to happen we will come and get you.” Makayla responded as Jheria nodded and finally got back to work as Adams stood there for a moment more watching her before she to walked off to join the others.

Jheria continued to work on the last console for an hour before she had finally finished it, after testing and making sure this one held she began to put all her tools away. Once she was satisfied she walked out of the room and walked to where the others were located, looking at both Jeesa and Damir. “It’s all yours,” Jheria replied as they both looked up and nodded.

Adams looked at her as Jheria had gotten her sleeping bag from where the supplies were delivered and laid it out on the ground. Jheria could have easily gone to the ship to sleep in her own bed, in her own quarters she thought it would be better if she stayed here just in case she was needed quickly. Shortly after laying down, she closed her eyes and was soon fast asleep not realizing how exhausted she truly was. 

Adams smiled as she walked off leaving her to sleep in peace, she went and joined the others in the room where the beacon was located, “now this is better.” Jeesa said as she began to study the consoles as Damir continued to study the beacon symbols which he almost got. Adams was correct when she said that he would probably understand them better with a clear mind.

Damir walked around to each console, he noticed a similar symbol on each console that lined up with what was on the beacon and things started to click. “I got it,” Damir almost yelled in excitement which caused both Adams and Atur to look at him before looking at each other. “What is it, Commander?” Adams asked as she knew he had found something of importance.

He smiled as he began to talk, “it seems that each of these consoles does play a part in the operation of the beacon,” he began as he looked at them almost in sheer excitement, which they had never even seen him smile before. “If you look at this symbol here,” he continued pointing to a symbol on the console and then matching it up to the symbol on the pictures he took of the beacon. 

“They each have a different symbol which matches up with the corresponding one on the beacon,” Damir said as he couldn’t stop smiling as he just finally understood what the symbols stood for. “I believe things are going to be tricky now, now we need to figure out which order it goes to activate the beacon again.” Damir finished looking at the two.

“Though, we might want to be careful before attempting, because we do the wrong one at any point in the process it could reset everything. Then we would have to start all over again. So, I suggest we study this more before we attempt to start the process.” Damir suggested as he wasn’t sure what would happen.

Jeesa nodded, “probably for the best would hate to have to wake Jheria up because we messed something up.” Jeesa chuckled as Makayla just shook her head, “how long do you think this would take?” She asked looking at the two who thought for a moment, “hopefully be the end of the day, we should be able to start activation by tomorrow morning.” Damir replied looking at the Captain, he knew they needed things done as soon as possible but he wanted to play it safe as one wrong move could cause them to start all over from scratch. Which would then cause them to take even longer than necessary.

She nodded, “I’ll leave you to it then. Let me know if you need any assistance,” Adams replied as she felt there wasn’t much she could do at the moment and would just be in their way. They then started to work together to figure out which order they went to get the bacon activated and connected to the network.

Damir and Jeesa had spent a couple of hours trying to figure out which order the consoles went in order to bring the beacon back online. They weren’t getting anywhere fast as they had no real way to really test it without doing it live. That in itself had its own set of risks which they were not willing to take. Jeesa sighed, “we are getting nowhere without actually activating the consoles.” She said out of frustration and exhaustion, “I wish there was a way we could test it without screwing things up.” Jeesa said as Damir nodded in agreement as he sat there for a moment then a thought popped in his head.

“I have an idea that might just work, what if we gather all the information and recreate everything on the holodeck, we should be able to input everything there and test it without the added worry.” Damir said as Jeesa looked at him for a moment thinking, “that is actually a brilliant idea, so if we hit the wrong sequence it would just reset on the holodeck and we just start over until we get the right sequence.” Jeesa said with a smile as they both decided to head to where the Captain was and tell her of their idea.

As they walked in, Adams looked up from the padd she was reading, “making any progress?” Adams asked looking at the two. “Yes and no,” Damir replied as Adams raised an eyebrow. “That’s why we are here, we are not getting anywhere as we have no way to actually test it without causing issues.” Jeesa began as she then looked at Damir, “Damir here actually had a brilliant idea that would help us in getting this figured out a lot faster than we are right now.” Jeesa replied almost excitedly from the frustration she felt earlier.

“Indeed, I believe I can replicate all this in the holodeck, where I can set the parameters needed for each of the consoles so we can then test it to see which order each console needs to be activated in order for us to bring the beacon back online.” Damir said taking a deep breath before continuing, “that way if we get the wrong order the holodeck will reset and we can start over without the chance of messing anything up here.” Damir finished as Adams looked at them for a brief moment before she nodded.

“If you think that will work then have at it,” Adams replied as they both nodded heading off back towards the beacon to gather the needed information they needed to be able to replicate it on Vesta’s holodeck. 

“Do you really think that will work?” Dazra asked as she looked up at the Captain, “I am not sure as I am not a scientist, if they believe that it will work then have to give it a try, I would really hate to have to wake up Jheria to fix a console that could have been avoided if possible which would take more time than we actually have.” Adams replied back as Dazra nodded, Adams went back to reading her padd while Jheria stirred in her sleep but didn’t wake up. 

Dazra had got up from where she was sitting heading over to where Morgan was keeping watch by the entrance. After she relieved him so he went and got some rest while she took watch. Looking outside it seemed to be a rainy day outside compared to what it was like the day before.

****

After gathering all the information they would need, Damir and Jeesa returned back to the ship, heading straight towards the holodeck not stopping for anyone or anything. “I sure hope this works,” Jeesa replied as they arrived walking in. “So do I,” Damir replied as he began to enter all the information into the computer that was needed. This took more time as they had to get everything matching just right or this would be a fruitless attempt.

“Got it,” Damir said as he punched in the last of the information. “Computer, begin program Damir-Tkon-1, lock holodeck doors, and place in do not disturb mode other than communications from Captain Adams,” Damir said as the computer beeped in acknowledgment. The program then came to life soon after, it seemed like they were back in the cave again. “Well here it goes, all or nothing,” Damir replied as they began to work, “I need you to keep a record of all the attempts, which were correct and which were incorrect until we get the right order,” Damir replied as Jeesa nodded in return.

Damir stood at the beacon for a few moments to figure out which way to begin, he gave instruction on the first console that he needed her to activate. Tapping a few buttons on the console after she had figured out the sequence on how to operate it. She took a deep breath the console seemed to have been the right one as a light lit up the corresponding symbol that was located on the beacon. “That is interesting,” Damir replied not realizing that it would do that. 

“That is interesting, so when we hit the right sequence the corresponding symbol lights up,” Jeesa commented as Damir nodded before he looked at it for a moment before giving the next console to try. Jeesa tapped a few buttons on that one but it seemed to have reset and the light on the symbol that was lit up went out. “Dammnit, that was the wrong one, so it’s back to the first one,” Damir said as Jeesa did so, the light came back on.

“So we know it’s not going straight down,” Damir said as Jeesa made note of it on the padd that she had kept by her. “Now to just to figure out do we go left or do we go right,” Jeesa commented which got Damir thinking which way he wanted to go. They would spend the next several hours going through the different ways it could go each time they thought they had a good streak going, the next one would reset it and they would have to do it all over again.

“How’s it going up there?” Adams came in through the comm channel which caused them to pause for a moment, “we are making progress though, there are so many different combinations that just when we think we got it we hit a wrong one and have to start over again.” Damir replied as they looked at each other for a moment, “we are getting close though, I suspect a few more hours.” He replied back as Adams nodded, though they couldn’t see it. “Understood, keep me informed, it’s starting to get dark again, so we will be camping in the cave once again tonight,” Adams replied as Jheria had already woken up hours ago. “That was a smart idea Damir,” Jheria said over the comm channel as she appreciated that they decided to do that than try it live and give her more work than what was truly needed.

“Thanks, Commander,” Damir replied as the comm channel ended and they went back to their work, working well into the late-night they finally were able to get the correct sequence which in turn caused a panel to appear on the beacon which wasn’t there before. Jeesa raised an eyebrow, “interesting.” She replied as Damir nodded in agreement before he started to study the panel.

“So it seems that once all the consoles are activated it brings the beacon console to life, now we just need to figure this part out.” Damir replied as they nodded, “could be the final control to activate the beacon and the connection to where ever the beacon connects to.” Jeesa said as they were getting almost too excited to see how this would go and how close they were to repairing a system they probably never dreamed they would in their lifetime.

After a couple more hours they attempted a sequence on the console, almost holding their breath as they did. They were half expecting the program to reset, for them to have to start all over again though it would be quicker now since they knew the sequence of the consoles, it didn’t and it seemed to have successfully activated the beacon. Now the connection part would be tricky so they would need to wait until they activate the real one.

After downloading the data and the sequences onto the padd they ended the program and headed out of the holodeck and back towards the transporter room.

****

Once they were back down on the planet they saw most of the away team was already asleep as it was well after midnight. Adams was the only one that was still awake, “We believe we have solved the sequence needed to activate the beacon.” Damir replied as Jeesa couldn’t help but grin as she held up the padd she had in her hand.

“Wonderful,” Adams replied looking at the two with an almost relieved look on her face. “It is getting late though so I suggest we get some sleep and worry about activating the beacon in the morning,” Adams said as the two nodded before realizing they really didn’t have time to eat.

“Well I think first we will get something to eat before we call it a night,” they both replied almost in unison before they laughed. Adams couldn’t help but smile as it seemed that Damir finally had come out of his shell since he first came on board. She could use someone like him on her team, “oh Damir can I have a word with you real quick?” Adams asked looking at him, he looked at her then back at Jeesa who just nodded and walked off to get something to eat before she went to bed.

“What is it, Captain?” Damir asked as he was curious as to what she wanted to talk to him about, “I was thinking how would you like to become a permanent member of the crew?” She asked looking at him as he had an almost stunned look on his face. “Seriously?” he asked as he wasn’t sure if she was being serious or not.

“Yes I am dead serious, I have seen how you and Jeesa work together and could use you on my team,” Adams said with sincerity in her voice as he thought for a moment, he was used to being on his own going from assignment to assignment. Never really having a solid assignment aboard any ship, “Yes I would be honored to serve aboard the Vesta.” He said finally looking at her with a huge smile.

“Once we are back on board I will make it final Commander,” She replied as she made a mental note to promote Jeesa as well. Though she knew that Jeesa would outrank him by position rather than rank she has deserved it as well. “Thank you, Captain,” Damir replied and walked off to get some food as well before calling it a night.

It was already the next morning, everyone was either waking up or already awake. “I will be glad when we don’t have to sleep on this hard cave floor anymore,” Dazra commented as she now had a kink in her back. Jheria nodded in agreement with that statement, getting up she started to walk around to get the stiffness out of her legs. 

Adams looked around noticing that Damir and Jeesa weren’t there, raising an eyebrow. “They must have gotten up early,” She replied as they all walked down to find both of them near the beacon. “Just reviewing everything before we begin,” Jeesa replied with an excited grin on her face.

“Are you confident that this will really work?” Jheria asked looking at both of them as they could tell the hesitation, “we as confident as it will ever be, there is still that slight possibility something could go wrong that we didn’t account for. I am more certain that we have the correct algorithm needed to activate the beacon.” Damir replied looking at both of them, Jheria nodded as she knew that there was always that chance so she decided to put her trust in the two scientists, that they knew what they were doing.

“You may begin whenever you’re ready,” Adams said as the two nodded. “Well this is it, the moment we have all been waiting for,” Jeesa said with a slight chuckle as Damir walked to the beacon while Jeesa went to the first console. “I really hope this works,” Jheria said looking at Adams who nodded in return as they watched on as the pair worked.

Damir would call out the next console as each symbol lit up, Jeesa would then go to that console and began the process of activating it. This happened one by one, Jheria almost stood on pins and needles hoping and praying everything went according to how they did on the holodeck, there was pure silence in the room other than when Damir gave out the next console.

For what seemed like an eternity was only about twenty minutes the two had finished activating all the consoles. Once all the symbols on the beacon were lit up a console appeared that wasn’t there before just as it did on the holodeck. Jeesa returned to where Damir was standing looking at him, “now we activate the beacon and hope it connects.” Jeesa said which caused Jheria to raise an eyebrow.

“What do you mean you hope it connects?” Jheria asked as Damir looked at her, “on the holodeck, it was hard to replicate it connecting to whatever it connects to. We were able to see that it activated.” Damir began to explain before pausing, “it is hard to replicate the actual connection so that we had to wait until we activate it from this beacon.” He finished as Jheria nodded in understanding, something like that would be hard to replicate even under normal circumstances.

Taking a moment to take a deep breath, he tapped a few codes into the console of the beacon it had come to life, Jeesa began to monitor the activation process and the connection. From what she could see everything was connecting and working within normal parameters, Adams looked in amazement at how they were all able to fix and restore the beacon.

“Everything seems to be working and the connection seems to have been made from what we can tell,” Jeesa replied as they all let out sighs of relief that their hard work had paid off. They decided to continue monitoring thins for an hour to make sure things were continuing to hold. “Well, I believe our work here is done.” Jeesa replied as she was satisfied that everything was working, “you go ahead and start packing up I’ll be up there shortly.” Adams said as they both nodded grabbing their belongings and headed out.

Looking at the beacon for a moment more she headed out stopping just at the portal which had come back to life. “We have finished restoring the consoles as well as the beacon, the connection has also been reestablished once again.” Adams said as she stood there, “you may reactivate the forcefield, and as promised we will be leaving.” She finished speaking before the portal spoke up.

“We thank you for your assistance stranger,” the portal responded as the forcefield reactivated. “I will reactivate the rest once you leave,” it replied as Adams nodded before she turned and left to rejoin the others.

“Well, our job here is done, let go home,” Adams replied as the others nodded in agreement, Adams took one last look around before she tapped her combadge. “Captain Adams to USS Vesta, six to beam up.” She ordered as they soon disappeared from the cave along with their equipment only to reappear back on the transporter room padd of the ship.

They each went off in their own direction, “oh Lieutenant Atur could you meet me in my office in an hour.” She said as she called out to Jeesa who had started to walk out of the transporter room. Stopping and turning back towards the Captain, she nodded in response before heading down to her quarters, she needed a good shower and a decent meal than what they had over the last couple of days.

After arriving on the bridge after she had stopped at her quarters also to freshen up, Tajir stood up from the command chair as she approached. “Lieutenant Airje set a course for Devron Fleet Yards, warp eight.” She ordered as Deza nodded before turning around tapping a few controls, “course and speed laid in.” Airje replied as Adams looked at Tajir for a moment with a smile before looking at her.

“Engage,” she replied as she walked into her office to file her report with Command.

Tajir walked in after her, “I take it, it was a success?” Tajir replied as Adams nodded, “it was Commander.” Adams said as she had already walked to the replicator to get a real cup of coffee before she sat down at her desk, taking a sip.

“I am promoting Atur to Lieutenant Commander, I have also asked Commander Jahraus to stay on board as a science officer and archaeologist to which he accepted.” Adams said as Tajir nodded, “I heard that he really came around down there compared to when he first came on board.” Tajir noted as Adams agreed with him, “he just needed to feel like he was useful as well as what he did truly mattered.” Adams said as she took another sip before looking at him.

“I need to make this report to Command, let me know when Atur arrives,” Adams said as Tajir got the hint and walked out of her ready room, she then began to put together a report for Captain Dex. Once she had finished she then sent it off just as the door chime sounded, “enter.” Adams said as the doors opened to reveal Jeesa, waving at her to come in and have a seat.

“Thank you for coming,” she began as Jeesa walked in and took a seat.

“Couple things I wanted to go over with you, Damir will be joining the Vesta.” She began as Jeesa smiled as she enjoyed working with him. “Second, you have worked very hard after being thrown right into being the Chief after Rar left rather quickly,” Adams said pulling something out of the top drawer of her desk before she walked around to stand in front of her.

“If you will stand up Lieutenant,” she began as Jeesa stood back up after having just sat down. “I hereby promote you to the rank of Lieutenant Commander with all the privileges, rights, and responsibilities thereof,” Adams said with a smile as she pinned a single hollow pip to her collar next to what was already there.

Jeesa was stunned not sure what to say, “thank you Captain I sure wasn’t expecting that.” Jeesa said as she took Adams’s extended hand. “You deserve it Commander and congratulations.” Adams replied, “thank you.” Jeesa said as she was then dismissed and headed out.

“Congratulations,” Tajir replied as everyone on the bridge began to congratulate her on her promotion as well. “Thanks, Commander,” she replied as she walked off to her station on the bridge. Things went on as normal as they traveled back to Devron Fleet Yards, in hopes of some much-needed R&R.