“Captain’s Log: Stardate 80423.7.
With the help of Captain Edward Armitage and the crew of the U.S.S. Britannia, the Surveyor has been returned to the prime universe, albeit a lot later than we left. The date is now June 4th 2403, and it seems that the event that sent us into the nightmarish hell we’ve all been living in for the past few days was some sort of temporal anomaly that affected multiple universes, including our own.
The surveyor was just one of many ships that seemingly disappeared from our normal reality.
In the interests of restoring things to their natural state of order, our doctors have revived the Romulan infiltrators and sedated them. Those that were undergoing assimilation have undergone a therapy designed to halt the progress of the nanoprobes taking over their bodies. They will be returned to their own reality as soon as the treatment is complete, hopefully with no knowledge of what just happened.
There is one crewmember, however, whose recovery may take some significant time.”
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Devron Fleet yards – Drydock NAR-6368: U.S.S. Surveyor
The scars of their engagement with the Borg were still evident along the hull of the Surveyor as she sat patiently within the enclosure of the dockyard. The warm floodlighting flattened the topography of her hull from above, while the cool blue glow of the planet below bathed her lower decks in a calming light.
Worker bees swarmed around her spaceframe, carrying welding tools and replacement parts, as it was all hands on deck to repair the damage and return her to service.
Onboard, the corridors bustled with activity as full-time crew members and engineers from the dockards alike worked around the clock to effect repairs and slip in a few upgrades here and there. Such was the scale of the activity that it was difficult to walk the corridors without having to step aside at least once and give way to a team of technicians carrying something heavy.
Naomi found this out first-hand, as she navigated a forest of specialists in just the short distance between the turbolift and sickbay. No less than thrice was she forced to step aside.
Stepping inside the room, she took a sigh of relief as she finally had room to breathe and stretch her arms, should the mood take her fancy. Aside from a couple of new arrivals receiving their physical, there was just one patient in the isolation alcove.
“How is he?” Naomi asked the saurian physician, updating medical records.
With a rattle of clicks preceding the translator, Dr Thre’xil explained his patient’s condition. “I managed to remove most of the Borg implants, but the assimilation process was essentially completed. There were some modules I couldn’t remove without long-term damage.”
“Is he conscious?” Naomi asked.
“I haven’t woken him just yet; I’m concerned about the mental trauma he sustained. Even for a Vulcan, there’s no telling what sort of damage we’re dealing with here,” the Saurian explained, his eyes flickering as the secondary eyelid refreshed the glassy surface of his eyes.
“I want to speak to him.”
“That would not be advisable,” Thre’xil cautioned, beckoning his captain to the nearby display. “When the Surveyor left the alternate reality, his link to the collective in that universe was severed. His brain has suffered an immense amount of trauma; waking him now, before he’s had time to heal, could cause irreversible damage. I’m sorry, Captain. I can’t wake him; maybe in a few days.”
Naomi nodded in agreement. “When Commander Rourke told me he was still alive, I couldn’t believe it. I’d spent every moment since we left him behind second-guessing my decisions. I guess I just wanted to speak to him and be sure he didn’t blame me for what happened to him.” She sobbed in a moment of weakness.
Thre’xil placed his hand on the captain’s shoulder as a mark of support. “I know Sarik very well, and I’m sure he holds no blame towards you… You kept the crew going, and I happen to know more than a few of the crew are recommending Surveyor to their buddies on other starships as a possible transfer opportunity.”
Naomi smiled; it was a kind sentiment and one she desperately needed. “Thank you… Will you inform me when you’re ready to wake him?”
“You’ll be my first call.” The Saurian bowed his head.
Naomi about-turned and wandered back out into the busy corridor, and for the first time, she began to see the faces of her crew. Each and everyone of them cracked a smile and a nodding salute to her as she walked past. She hadn’t noticed it before, probably because every time she wandered the halls she kept her head low or buried in a data PADD. She had never stopped to appreciate the admiration her crewmembers had for her.
It was at that moment she realised she was exactly where she belonged. Her imposter syndrome suddenly began to fade, and she felt settled in her command. The relief of the burden she had been carrying in the form of her own overzealous self-evaluation made room for new horizons in her psyche. She could afford to smile and wonder about the adventures they had yet to embark upon.
