"Yessir. Communications reports several hails on Starfleet frequencies identifying themselves as the crew of the USS Genser NCC-4404. Preparing to receive them. Security and medical will conduct their in-routines. Prepare for priority transport, sir," replies Collette.

The four Starfleet officers, along with Kang and Ozakin, disappear in a swirling pattern of Transporter energy and arrive in Transporter room #1. CPO Wolff says, "Welcome back, sirs."

Moments later, the doors slide open and Smith enters, followed by Cdr Bowman. Smith looks as impassive as ever, while Bowman looks flustered. "Sir," he reports to Thelev, "The phenomenon was identical to that observed on stardate 3087.6. Back then, it was galaxy-wide and caused by an interdimensional rift. It's been dubbed the Lazarus Effect, after a dimensional traveller and his döppelganger from an antimatter universe!"

Smith, on the other hand, approaches Capt MacCay, "Captain Alistair MacCay, serial number QR-192-457, commanding officer USS Genser, I presume?"

MacCay eyes the civilian curiously. "You have me at a disadvantage, mister...?"

"Smith," says the android, "Dr. John Smith, Daystrom Labs. I've been reviewing your record, sir."

"John... Smith. Of course you are. And why would you be looking me up?"

"I'm afraid that's a very long story. If you, the Captain and the XO would accompany the Commodore and myself to the flag ready room, I'll explain," says Smith.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:06, Tue 26 Jan 2021.

In reply to Commander Collette DesMarais (msg # 67):

Turning to Collette, "Commander, please find accommodations for our newest guest and insure they are proceeded, they are all likely MIA. So it would be convenient for everyone that the ship can treat them as visiting Star Fleet personnel."

"Bowman, where is the subspace anomaly, is it still open, has anything exited from the anomaly, if so where is it headed." Thelev asks "I will be in the flag ready room, keep me posted."

"Captain MacCay, this way to the flag ready room." Thelev says.

Narda nods to Kang and asks, "Captain Kang, I can beam you over to the K'Tanko if you wish."

Kang thanks her and remains on the pad while the rest step off. He disappears in a swirl of energy.

"Prefect Ozakin, would you like to check on the remaining members of your crew in sickbay?" asks a crewman. Ozakin nods, taking the suggestion and leaving with him.

The group takes the turbolift to Deck One. Exiting the Bridge turbolift, they turn right and take the adjacent door, marked Flag Ready Room. A door to the left is marked Captain's Ready Room. inside is an an entryway curving around the aft portion of the Bridge to a smallish room containing a desk, a sofa and a pair of comfortable chairs.

A small off-white card sits in the precise centre of McCurrvey's desk. It is a piece of crisp cardstock 89mm x 51mm. It is mostly featureless, with the embossed name Dworkin Black Esq. and the title Investigator at Large. Scrawled on the card in purple ink is the message "Call me! -D." There is no other evidence of anyone having entered the room and the door is locked. Nobody could have entered without setting off an alarm, except for a select few. These include Thelev, Mercer, Brad's personal yeoman (Lt. Xanthe), Collette and Kyra. The computer indicates that none of these individuals have entered in the past twelve hours.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:15, Wed 27 Jan 2021.

McCurrvey strides around to his chair.  He ignores the card and reaches for the intercom.  “Science officer and tactical officer to my Ready Room”. He gestures to the chairs.  “Gentlemen, have a seat”.  McCurrvey calls up the ship’s tactical display and displays it on the large screen.  OCC I’m assuming there’s some way of displaying information in the room (unlike Picard’s Ready Room).

[OOC: Bowman and Khendron are already with you, so I think you're covered as far as science officers go...]

Moments after being summoned (he was, after all, on the Bridge) Rodriguez enters. That makes for six people in the ready room, so it's cozy. Since this is McCurrvey's Flag Ready Room, it was outfitted to his specifications, so there is a 2-metre wide holographic wall screen. The tactical display appears and Ramirez steps up.

He begins, "We are in a small bubble universe with a radius of only three hundred fifty light years. Most of the stars are dwarf stars within a stellar nebula which seems to fill the entire space. As the XO deduced, the bubble universe appears to be in a state of collapse, and the recent ripples in the subspace continuum seem to have triggered an abrupt acceleration of that collapse. The dwarf stars at the periphery have begun imploding—simply folding in upon themselves and winking out. The current rate of collapse is approximately one light year per hour. We are currently holding station at 1000km from the... museum. There are approximately 60 ships scattered around, all within transporter range. [Standard transporter range is 40,000km.] All are at about our level of technology, give or take a century, but a few appear to spelljammers like we observed in Lord Dhark's realm."

The intercom chirps. "Driveon to the Flag Ready Room. Cdr Manyard's concussion suddenly healed while I was monitoring it. If I was a religious man, I'd swear it was a miracle. So did the remaining three Orions in sickbay that we didn't dare beam out, they were so badly injured. They're up and about, and Manyard stormed out of sickbay against my orders. He's on his way up there."

At that moment the door chime sounds. "Commodore, it's the Engineer," says the intercom as the door swishes open.

Manyard strides in, with a security crewman protesting, "Sir, I told him you were in a meeting!"

“That’s okay, crewman.”  McCurrvey stands “Commander, what can we do for you?”  McCurrvey surveys the engineer.  [OOC: Not sure how well I know the engineer but I’m surveying him to see if he’s mad but normal or just plain nuts]

Manyard seems stable but slightly agitated. "Sorry for bargin' in Sir, but something's wrong. Just an engineer's intuition—the Cap'n will know what I mean—but the ship just doesn't feel right! The SIF [Structural Integrity Field] feels... off is the best way I can describe it."

Now that Manyard brings it up, Thelev can feel it too...

Meanwhile, Smith and MacCay have been exchanging information. MacCay perks up, "That's what LCdr Regis said when the orb hit the Genser, too!"

Smith clarifies, "It would seem that it's somehow related to the Silver Ball..." He motions Manyard to take a seat. "As you know, the Quantum Para-Dimensional Transport Device is based on reverse-engineering from radiation traces derived from the hull of the Genser after it reappeared and the plating from the Blackheart in the wake of its disappearance. What I'm about to reveal is classified Seclar 9 - Ultra Secret. That why I requested that we hold this briefing in a SCIF, [Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility] of which the Flag Ready Room is one of four on board. I remind you all of the legal penalties pertaining to misuse of this information. But first, I believe we should include Dr. Marcus in this briefing." He pauses and taps the intercom, "Doctor Marcus, please report to the Flag Ready Room on Deck One."

When Carol Marcus arrives, Smith continues. "Capt MacCay, when the USS Genser was struck by the orb, it was transported to the Lesser Magellanic Cloud where it remained until the year 2384. It was discovered by the crew of the USS Blackheart which carried with it not only its own crew, commanded by Capt James Olivier; but also Starfleet officers from 2384 working in conjunction with the Department of Temporal Investigations. Apparently I was also—or will be—there. Encrypted in the Genser's main computer was a file entitled Cdr Tal's Personal Log." He pauses to allow the implications sink in.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:48, Sat 30 Jan 2021.

In reply to Commander Wendell Manyard (msg # 73):

"Commander I sense it as well.  It's quite possible that whatever is causing the micro universe we are in to collapse, is also affecting the the Silver Ball. Be sure to monitor the SIF and see if it is getting worse.  Need to know if we are going to shake apart before the micro universe collapses." Thelev replies.

"Dr. Smith can you send me the file of this Cdr. Tal, what was he, a member of temporal department, a scientist, an engineer?" Thelev asks.

OOC: when had the Blackheart disappeared again.  I think they were less than a hundred years in their future when our alter egos encountered them. Really just want to know if it has already disappeared at our time.

[OOC: The Genser disappeared in 2279 and was discovered 2 days later dead in space, without its crew. The hull showed evidence of heavy scoring as if it had sat unpowered in space for a century. It was refitted and restored to service. The escort task force it had been leading reported it being chased and merged with a silver sphere in deep space. In 2283, the Blackheart was also pursued by a glowing silver sphere. Only a slab of hull plating and the log buoy were found, with a radiation signature matching that from the Genser. This radiation signature was backwards-engineered by the Daystrom Institute in a project headed up by Dr. John Smith and led to the development of the Quantum Para-Dimensional Transport Device. The Excalibur-A was the first test-bed for the Silver Ball in 2285. The current date is of course 2290.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:18, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

Smith replies, "The metadata from the message notes that Cdr Tal Gesl was—is—will be a Tellarite Starfleet Engineer, Chief Engineer of the DTI H.Beam Piper NCV-1075; born 2350 and aged 34 in 2384. He, along with Capt M'Rel Snefls and Cdr Seth Bern, MD; CO and Science Officer of the Piper were part of a rescue party which went aboard the Blackheart along with our old companion Wesson when it reappeared in Federation space in 2384 after being missing for 101 years." He passes over a data solid and continues, "This is a record of their adventures in the Lesser Magellanic Cloud when the Blackheart suddenly jumped back to the Lesser Magellanic Cloud due to residual Silver Ball radiation in the Blackheart's hull. Wesson (referred to as a lieutenant commander) managed to cobble together a Silver Ball unit before being taken back to the Federation by an Ensign Windsor. The surviving crew of the Blackheart were revived from stasis and..." from this point on Smith gives an abridged account of Tal's logs from the Iconian adventures, including his own future involvement.


"Of course I have no personal memories of any of this as it is nearly a century in my future as well. It seems that some time in the near future I myself will be experimenting with Silver Ball technology which by the way appears to be somehow connected to the legendary Iconians; and will also be transported to the Lesser Magellanic Cloud where my body will be discovered and revived by this Tal and his companions."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:26, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

“Dr Smith, I’m assuming you’ve reviewed the files.  I think I’m correct in saying that there’s a time sensitive component to this situation.  Do we each need to review this file or can you play the pertinent excerpts here or provide us an overview?”


This message was last edited by the GM at 02:30, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

Smith's summary of the Piper command crew's adventures terminates at the point when they leave the Genser. As they were aware from history, the Genser returned to 2279, Tal's log was encrypted and marked Seclar 9, Attn DTI. The file has been redacted by DTI, mostly details about the Iconians but the basics are all there. Of course it doesn't include anything about the confrontation at the black hole and subsequent events, since none of that had happened yet. There are many references that do not make sense, like references to M'Rel's gender and Tal's relationship with KeH'loS, while everything regarding Seth's Borg implants are completely deleted. references to the Iconians have been severely redacted. All the details about the Genser gibe with MacCay's memories of the ship.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:02, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

"What is important is if any of the modifications they did to the silver ball will help us.  Did they come up with a way on targeting where they wanted to go without know where they were." as Thelev reviews the files using his engineering and knowledge of the Silver Ball.

"Bowman, Mercer, also see if the future Dr. Smith and Wesson or this Cdr Tal were here and got back." he says.

"We have Star Fleets brightest minds on the Silver Ball here, lets find a way to use it." Thelev closes with.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:28, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

[OOC: As noted in message #77, "Everything regarding Seth's Borg implants are completely deleted". While Starfleet and DTI are aware that the Borg exist from Cochrane's and Lily Sloane's notes as well as the episode ENT:Regeneration, that information is strictly restricted and does not become common knowledge until after 2266 when the Borg attack Wolf 359. There are confusing references to M'Rel's gender and to Tal's relationship to KeH'loS, but nothing to Seth's implants or how he works his way with computers.

"No sir, there are no answers to be had here," interjects Smith. "It seems that they knew the Genser would return to 2279, based on the fact that it was recovered, repaired and returned to service, but we have no knowledge of the fate of Capt M'Rel, her crew, or the Blackheart itself. There is no indication if they, or indeed I survive the conflict with the Iconians in the Lesser Magellanic Cloud or return to the Federation."

"And," says Dr. Marcus, "The Temporal Prime Directive prevents any Federation nationals and most specifically Starfleet from bringing knowledge of the future back in time to interfere with the natural passage of time. Jim Kirk and Mr. Spock were advisors to the Federation Council when that Directive was written in 2270 and the DTI was founded."
This message was last edited by the player at 07:05, Sun 31 Jan 2021.

In reply to Dr. John Smith (msg # 80):

"Well," says Khendron wryly. "Kudos to this Cdr Tal for leaving us a log that is both informative and unhelpful at the same time.

"However," he continues. "We do have a working silver ball. It got us here. Can it get us back again? And, can we—should we—share this technology to help the other crews that are stranded here?

"If the rate of collapse remains unchanged, we have about 6 days until this universe is gone completely."

“Given our current power output, how many ships could we jump with?  Could we make multiple jumps?”

Smith replies, "The main factor is time. Remember, we require thirty-three minutes to recharge and recalibrate our trajectory through hyperspace. The Quantum Para-Dimensional Transport Field transports everything within a spherical energy field with a radius of 662.5 metres centred on the ship's centre of mass. Ships within that radius can be very tightly packed and held in place with regard to each other by a web of tractor beams."

“So opinions:  60 ships, 4 to 5 ships per jump, 2 jumps per trip (there and back), call it 2 hours per trip.  The math says we can do it in plenty of time.”

Manyard says glumly, "Assuming the dilithium crystals stand up. Even with the new recrystallisation procedures, we do know from the original Enterprise experience with the Lazarus Effect, it tended to delaminate the crystals. We do have redundant crystals in supply, but we'll have to keep a real close eye on them. I can rig up a secondary crystal articulation frame and have it ready to swap it out, but if they delaminate while we're jumping—" he looks at Smith, "—what then?"

Thelev doesn't need to wait for Smith's answer. The jump is irrelevant to the question. If a M/AM reaction is ongoing when delamination occurs—bye-bye Odyssey!

Smith says, "If, when we go to Blue Alert, we immediately scram the reaction, that does preclude that problem. We could immediately swap articulation frames and reenergise the system. If the old crystals are still OK, we could use them—if not we'd have to recrystallise them. How many spare crystal sets do we have?"

Manyard's face gets even more gloomy. "Three at most. Can we cram more ships into the bubble?"

Carol Marcus asks, "I'm no Warp specialist, but could we use dilithium from other ships? Do the other ships even use dilithium? I know the Klingons do, but—"
This message was last edited by the player at 21:11, Tue 02 Feb 2021.

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 84):

"Before we should worry about how many trips, we need to make sure we can do one trip." Thelev says to everyone in the room.

Calling up the info on the jump that got them here, the micro universe they are in, the information he knows and is available on the silver ball Thelev starts trying to come up with a solution.  Using is computer simulation/modeling, propulsion engineering both 4(6) skills and anything else he has.

"Dr. Smith, my thought is our best option is likely trying to reverse the jump that got us here since we really don't know where here is in relationship to our time and space. Thoughts? " he asks, "Since the other option is a blind jump and who knows where or when we will end up."

Turning to everyone "Unless someone knows another way to establish the two points, I can try to model every possibility but with out know where we are it will be tough."

“We have a couple of options: evacuate people to a small number of ships or crowd in more ships.  We have to consider if we try to jump and people are being left behind, they may make their displeasure known...forcibly.”  McCurrvey stands.  “My suggestion is to establish a single point to jump to.  That way we’re not trying to get people back to 60 different homes.  We find a nice out of the way system and bring the 60 over in multiple jumps.”  “We do this as safely as possible, but the goal is to get every single soul out of this universe before it collapses”.  He turns to Mercer “XO, I’d like someone to peruse the laws of the land that Purple was going to send over.  We don’t have time to get into a snit over something stupid.”

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 87):

"Are we going to attempt to take everybody back to the universes they came from?" asks Khendron. "Or just get them back to our universe and sort out their final destinations later?

"Also, how classified are we treating the technology of the silver ball? The other captains are going to have a lot of questions."

Smith clears his throat (clearly an affected behaviour for an android), "Ahem, I would suggest that our best bet would be to use the Bridgetown Anomaly as a target. We have a full day's worth of intensive scans to refine our targeting. I remind you all that we have the de facto Powers-That-Be here on the Odyssey so there would be no question of legality. I suggest we read Cdr Harris and Sam Lowry in on this, if you choose to go that route."

Manyard chips in, "If we're prepared to abandon some of the actual ships, I have a suggestion. We have two Executive Shuttles aboard in the lower hangar bay. Each of them has seating for a hundred persons."

"Further, we have an evacuation limit of 1500 persons on the ship, including the shuttles. The IKS K'Tanko has a similar evac limit, albeit in somewhat less, ah, luxurious accommodations. That means we can, all together, accommodate 3,000 persons on just the two ships. We'll be cheek-by-jowl, but it'd only be for a few hours. If we only take a few of the largest ships, it seems to me we can crowd a lot of people in the smallest number of ships and decrease the number of jumps. It'll mean stretching our life support to its limits, but the ship's only a month out of refit and we have a full load-out of supplies."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:10, Thu 04 Feb 2021.

In reply to Dr. John Smith (msg # 89):

"The other captains," says Khendron, "are not going to like any plan that leaves their ships behind. Flavia and Raven, especially, are going to be incensed by a plan that was made behind closed doors without their input. We should reconvene the Council of Captains as soon as possible, or invite them all here."

Before we bring this to the council, I’d like to make sure we’ve considered all aspects.  We need to have a solid plan with the risks worked out.  I agree that abandoning ships will not sit well with people.  We will also have to consider who we might have to leave behind on the first jump and how that will sit with them.  We may need to jump initially with the biggest and most powerful to minimize resistance.  I agree with Capt Mercer that we should use a staging area to bring everyone to initially.  From there we can take them home.  The staging area should have a habitable world and resources that might be required for an extended stay.