Part of USS Constellation: Change the World or Sleep and Bravo Fleet: We Are the Borg

Change – 1

Planet 4 in System D-515, Delta Quadrant
June 2401
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Kellin was halfway through a sentence about shield modulation when his voice trailed off to nothing.  The content of his words had been statements of fact, yet the upward lilt to his inflection made it all sound like a rambling question.  The runabout’s conference compartment became quiet, except for the hiss of the life support systems.

The way Kellin’s gaze had locked onto the row of aft viewports, it looked like his mind had gone blank as soon as he saw the dense thicket outside.  As much as Kellin was tall for a Trill –his build thickset, if muscular– the rainforest beyond was made up of massive trees, those of ancient growth.  Compared to those wide tree trunks, Kellin’s form looked minuscule, little more than a cuddly marsupial in the woods.

The view through the windows was obscured momentarily.  It may have been heat haze from the tropical climate where the runabout Estéron was nestled or a visual distortion from the holographic shell that was camouflaging the Danube-class runabout.  Even when the shimmering passed, the clear view of the rainforest evoked unexpected dread in Ensign Addae Danbo.  

For many centuries before Addae had been born, nothing green had grown in Ffmanni city on Barzan II.  Tall grasses and flowering trees hadn’t factored into his youth.  Aging, industrial city complexes were what felt comforting to him; little wonder he had chosen to study engineering over and over again.  A planet growing wildly to its own design felt unsteady and unsafe.  Unfamiliar.

Addae made an effort to swallow that feeling down.  Forget it.  It wasn’t becoming of a Starfleet officer.

When Kellin finally looked at Addae again, he smiled.  The expression changed his entire face, even wrinkled slightly in the corners beside his blue-grey eyes.  That’s where Addae saw the only reflection of his homeworld.  Despite that genuine smile, there was something tired and vacant behind Kellin’s eyes.  A common expression in Ffmanni city.  The Changeling who had replaced Kellin, early in the year, had even managed to offer warmer smiles than the man standing before him.  For all Kellin’s affable small talk over lunch, the ache of something missing in him was plainly visible.

Hoping to join in on whatever pleasant thought had captured Kellin’s attention, Addae asked, “Would you rather be out there, commander?”

Kellin tightened his jaw and hooked a finger under the high collar of his own shirt.  He tugged at the collar, adjusting his uniform in an apparent search for comfort.

“Wouldn’t we all?” Kellin asked back.  Despite the hardness in his eyes, he sounded more like a defiant child sneaking out of school rather than Constellation’s executive officer.

Addae touched the small discs affixed to the corners of his mouth.  The breather devices provided Addae the Barzan gasses he required to survive in M-class environments like the runabout and the planet where they had landed.  Lowering his hands, Addae could feel the discs move as he offered Kellin a wicked smile.

“I have my breathers on,” Addae remarked.  Looking up at Kellin, Addae tilted his head playfully to ask, “Are you inviting me to jog in the woods with you?”

Kellin winced.

“According to Doctor Nelli’s scouting excursion,” Kellin ruefully said, “this planet’s sentient beings have never even seen mammalian bodies like ours.  They’re a species of mobile sentient plans, like Nelli.”

Reaching a tentative hand to the side of Addae’s face, Kellin tapped one of the breathers with a single index finger.

Kellin said, “They’ve never seen constructed technology.  Never even heard of warp drive.  One look at you could amount to a prime directive violation.”

“Come on,” Addae said, appealing to Kellin’s sense of adventure.  “I’m not suggesting we interfere with their natural evolution as a species, but I can’t imagine we came all the way to the Delta Quadrant to hide on a runabout and overeat Bajoran food.  Anything the size of a civilization would never notice if we took three minutes in the sun.  …They might notice five minutes, but certainly not four.”

Now, Kellin smirked.  Whatever had been hiding behind his eyes looked forgotten.

Kellin said, “I’ve never risked my career for a suntan before.”

Raising a hand to his brow, Addae offered Kellin a sloppy salute.

“I don’t think I can truly call myself a Starfleet officer until I’ve at least bent the prime directive once,” Addae said. “As a little treat.”

Nodding to a viewport, Kellin remarked, “Nelli suspects they’ve evolved in lockstep with their natural environment.  They’ve never needed to manipulate their environment for their betterment or comfort.  There’s no need for constraints like general orders out there.”

“No obligations,” Addae said.

“No bad dreams,” Kellin said.

“No uniforms,” Addae added.

“No Changelings,” Kellin said.  His time as a captive of the rogue Changelings was no secret.  Half the crew was rumbling about how they always suspected something had been off with the Changeling that had posed as Kellin for weeks.

“No Borg programming,” Addae said in turn.  It hadn’t been long since Lieutenant Pagaloa had removed the Borg DNA that Kellin’s Changeling imposter had managed to secretly implant in Addae, and other young officers, every time they used a transporter before Frontier Day.

Soberly, Kellin started to ask, “When I was missing, did you ever–“

A chirrup sounded out from a communications node in the overhead.  Over the comm system, the voice of Ensign Dolan said, “Commander, have I just triangulated the location of the Borg energy signature?

Kellin blinked several times and then said, “Ensign, I’m confused.  Are you asking me or are you telling me?”

Oh wait, what did I say?” Dolan replied.

Addae sighed.  “Okay, maybe there’s some Borg out there.  Just a little.”

Comments

  • Been a while since I caught up with these guys! Great to see Dolan and Rayco having a grand old time out and about in the galaxy. They've still got all the charm I remember from back on the Dvorak and Sarek. Love the cheeky little moments here that lend the characters so much chemistry e.g. the bending of the Prime Directive required by any self respecting Starfleet officer. I'm curious about what Kellin was going for before he got cut off by Dolan's (oh so insufferable) update on the Borg - awesome way of introducing the hook into the wider plot!

    October 27, 2023
  • It is lovely to read the interaction between Kellin and Addae about their experience and the excitement of looking forward to 'bent' the prime directive. I saw the light humor as a contribution to the overall post that made it better to read and understanding how they felt. Until the Borg might be there ....looking forward what it actually means!

    October 27, 2023
  • I deeply enjoyed this chapter getting a deeper look at the real Kellin and how he comes off as being awkward after a Changeling hand impersonated him for so long. Addae seems to begin things by thinking of Barzan and his journey as an engineer. However, what has me curious is what they are doing on a runabout on a planet that seems to be primitive in a way. This totally has to break the Prime Directive written all over it. However, this only has made me even more curious to see what is up ahead for them. I found it funny how Dolan said 'have I' instead of I am guessing 'I have' which confuses Kellin. Great start can't wait to read more!

    October 27, 2023
  • Oh, I do like your turn of phrase. My favourite description is now ‘cuddly marsupial’. I liked this start. You throw us right into the action and let us figure out where we are, which is fun. Then you give us a delightful little encounter between Addae and Kellin. I love the way you’ve dropped in hints to the backstory with Kellin and the changelings, and that question at the end that then gets overlooked! Perfect! Once again, I am hooked and need MORE!

    October 27, 2023
  • Oh poor Kellin! It can't be easy to have to return to life, and a crew, that's questioning their relationships with him. And our favourite cuddly marsupial (excellent imagary by the way) is questioning himself too and this chapter is a lovely glimpse into a more personal moment for them. I liked Addae's moments of reflection about Barzan and it's nice that you've captured a level of practical & mental 'alienness' for him compared to the other characters. I am a big fan of our Constellation boys, I look forward to reading more of their adventure!

    October 27, 2023
  • Yes I have to agree, referring to one of the senior staff as a ‘cuddly marsupial’ is a rather novel approach, though I dare say no one would ever say that to Kellin's face! With an indication that something connected to the Borg is near by; will they get the change to bend the 'Prime Directive' and get a tan or are there more storm clouds on the horizon? Can't wait to find out what's in store for the crew of the Constellation.

    October 27, 2023
  • Your descriptions and scene setting as always inspire me! A true craftsman of the art that evokes the senses and puts things into perspective as you go. Placing an idea of Kellin's size in mind and then using that to reference the outside world the runabout found itself in truly helped give this world a sense of scale. And then the description of the people outside, to whom they are hiding - I love that Nelli is the one who is providing the information. Nelli is the expert whose information they're working on. Does this mean we're going to see Nelli going flora-a-mano with the Borg?

    October 28, 2023
  • OMG Brendan - you are doing something I've dreamed of seeing for a long time. A planet filled with entire plant-based lifeforms that the Borg are/were not interested in, and I am so cheering on for a Nelli-centred plot here. I am so glad to see Kellin back in the action but struggling with it at the same time. Are you hinting at something more going on here between him and Addae? Also, breaking the PD for a suntan? What would Taes say?

    October 28, 2023
  • What a captivating journey into the Delta Quadrant with Commander Kellin and Ensign Addae Danbo! I LOVED the vivid descriptions of the lush, alien rainforest and the characters' contrasting reactions to it provide a fascinating contrast between their backgrounds and experiences. The reference to Kellin's smile as the reflection of his homeworld added a depth of emotion to the character, making me feel a personal connection to the story. But I LOVED something even more - the banter between Addae and Kellin! Especially their playful debate about bending the prime directive for a "suntan." It's moments like these that remind us of the camaraderie and sense of adventure that Starfleet officers share. This story keeps me eagerly anticipating the next chapter, and I can't wait to see where it leads these characters and the crew of the Constellation!

    October 30, 2023
  • This story starts like a record scratch but without the cheesy narration overlay. Interrupting a character's thought process to zoom in on the minutia and slowly pan out really does create a sense of scale, as McGig said. Addae is new to me, and I appreciate the immediate parallels between himself and Kellin (who wouldn't want to be out there, indeed?), and hell, between himself and the Borg (neither of whom are 'comfortable' with a planet growing wild and untouched by technology). And Dolan! Did I imprint on Dolan because he was the first character of yours I encountered in a story? I don't know, but I love every little thing he does.

    November 2, 2023