Realising the complexity of the matter ahead of her, Doctor Irlina knew that her work was vital. The wrong move or the wrong calculation would not just make things worse; it could potentially plunge them into a deeper temporal tornado of mess and chaos. After working with her saviours (as she had called them) from the Constellation and Themis, she and her team (all of whom had been treated) worked meticulously as they completed the final repairs to the Paradox Machine. 

After thanking Lieutenant Andar and Doctor Nelli for helping them and risking their own lives, Irlina knew that the two Starfleet crews were intent on restoring the space-time continuum that had been shattered around her colony. Though she had found meeting two plant-based lifeforms fascinating (Nelli and Andar were extremely friendly officers), Irlina had found her interactions with Captains Taes and Cambil the most stimulating. The Paradox Machine had worked; however, it had not been prepared for the number of different timelines it had detected in the galaxy. A majority of them, though, had been based around Starfleet interactions. She had wondered if this was a sign of things to come. How much did this Federation from the other side of the galaxy involve themselves in temporal mechanics? She thought her people’s state was too involved sometimes, but this was different. 

What impressed her the most was how both captains were prepared to restore the damage done. They didn’t have to do that. They could have just turned their ships around and left Irlina and her people to attempt to fix everything. But without their help, she was sure they couldn’t have got this far so soon. She couldn’t express enough gratitude to Captains Taes, Cambil, and their crews for their invaluable support and assistance. 

The Paradox Machine became active as her assistants installed the chroniton integrator’s last part.

“Send a message to the Constellation and the Themis to standby,” Irlina told her team. 

They did as they were told, and Irlina stepped forward, checking the temporal sensors one more time. “I’m scanning the space-time continuum,” she said, Confident that everything was moving in the right direction. “I’m powering up the machine for the last stage,” she smiled. 

She watched the sensors from the machine display how the negative energy that one of the joint away teams had collected was being used to power the device. It was slowly closing the temporal rifts—one at a time.

“It’s working!” She exclaimed.

With the final rift about to be closed, Irlina increased the power of the Paradox Machine. As the last temporal bubble dissipated with a simple beep, she felt a sense of accomplishment. She checked her sensors one last time and confirmed they had successfully completed their mission. 

“Well done everyone!” She shouted at the top of her voice as she started the shutdown sequence for the machine. “Let’s get this thing shut down…” Pausing, Irlina knew her life’s work had to end there. “…for good.” She added. 

It was a bittersweet moment for her, but Irlina knew that her people, even the galaxy, weren’t ready for what she had created. More calculations needed to be made. Time wasn’t something she could mess with so easily. She knew that even more so now. This experience had taught her, and everyone involved the crucial need for caution and meticulousness in temporal mechanics. 

That said, it wouldn’t stop her from trying again. 

She smirked to herself before calling out for someone to get the two Starfleet captains one more time to thank them.