C9. Edges Frayed…

MEANWHILE, IN THE ALPHA UNIVERSE…

“Ensign Marick, set a course for Starbase 80, warp factor five.”

A field of black offset by the pinpoints of bright white suddenly elongated into thin streaks that stretched from there to here, filled the viewscreen of the USS Solvang.

Commander Marcus Thorne, now acting Captain, shifted his posture in the command chair. How does she sit in this? How am I to measure up to her as Acting Captain? He shifted his position in the chair once more. She’s very wise and logical, but not as stiff as other Vulcans I’ve met. I think that’s why the crew respects her so much. Either way, I didn’t see myself taking over so abruptly, but here we are.

Commander Thorne hoisted himself up from the command chair and began to make his way around the bridge. He clasped his hands behind his back, to make his pacing look more natural. Checking in with an ensign here, or a lieutenant there, asking for a summary of the data stream their console provided. Anything to avoid sitting in that chair. It didn’t feel like his chair. Not yet, anyway.

It has to be some sort of cosmic joke – the chair that everyone wants to sit in…no one wants to sit in. First, we need to figure out what to do about the Captain’s Displacement.

“Commander K’rell, join me in the Ready Room. Commander Valerius, you have the conn.”

The doors whisked open, and the room enveloped him. It was far from spartan in its decoration. Some of the captain’s collection of ancient Earth firearms lined one section of the far wall behind her desk, secured behind a case made of transparent aluminum. I still don’t understand her fascination with that material. She mentioned something about a strange occurrence of it popping up in the twenty-first century in San Francisco, but I have no idea why that’s relevant. She has such a strong connection to history that I’ll never understand. Come to think of it, every scientist on this ship has a connection to something – whether it be linguistics, cybernetics, archaeology, astrometrics. I admire their passion, their zeal, but it just isn’t who I am.

Acting Captain Thorne eased himself into the chair behind Captain O’va’s desk. The plush cushions replied with the familiar creaking of supple leather as they complied with his seating request.

Lieutenant Commander K’Rell followed suit, taking a seat across the desk from him.

“Please tell me you have a lead, K’Rell.”

“Her quarters were her last known location. There was a very faint trace of a quantum resonance, very close in frequency to our own.”

“How close are we talking here?”

“Thousandths of a percent deviation in frequency from our own. Any other scientist would have missed it or dismissed it.”

“So what does that mean for us? Please, speak freely K’Rell.”

“Based on what we have seen with cross-dimensional incursions in the past, there are theories pertaining to quantum resonant frequency, and the variation from our own. They are merely theories, not tested yet. But based on the occurrences happening all across the galaxy, I contacted other scientists, and they seemed to agree that there is data showing correlation. That correlation is rather strong between the data and the anecdotal experience of those who have ventured into other realities, however, it is difficult to quantify something so subjective as how different is this reality from ours?”

“And that means? Work with me here. I’m not a scientist.”

“The reality Captain O’va may be in – it might not be very different from ours at all, prior to these Displacements.”

“Might leaves some room for alternatives, but that’s a start. Based on what you’re telling me, how confident are you in your interpretation of that data?”

“I will not jump to a conclusion unless I have tested it myself, sir.” she replied flatly.

“Then we will continue our present course to Starbase 80. If she is in a similar reality, she should be able to make her way back. I’m not sure it’s wise to risk the lives of over four hundred people based upon a hunch. I think Captain O’va would arrive at the same conclusion. Thank you. Dismissed.”