Chief of Security's Log [II]

Stardate: 53993.2.

The events of the last 24 hours have been mentally, physically and emotionally fatiguing. Well into the Neutral Zone the Spector's sensors detected a Romulan D'Deridex class Warbird derelict and displaying no life signs on redundant scans, but with all shipboard systems functioning normally. After conferring with Captain Robau, Shano & I assembled multiple away teams. One, Able Team, including a medical team under T'kela and Lt. Cmmdr. Sakkath (who was deferring to Shano and myself for reasons as yet not entirely clear) transported to the bridge of the [ship we would later learn to be named] IRW Sha’arik, while a second, Bravo Team, under the command of Lt. Fletcher with security command delegated to Lt. Tor transported to the engineering section. What we encountered proved nothing less than a shocking and a deplorable example of the lengths to which the elite of the Romulan Star Empire (particularly the Tal'Shiar) are prepared to go, exploiting their own loyal citizenry, in pursuit of their ambitions.

The bridge and to a lesser extent the engineering section of the Sha'arik were found to be laden in corpses, the first view of what would later be found to be the entire crew compliment of the Romulan vessel victim to an engineered virus. Beginning our investigation, Lt. Fletcher and Bravo Team began to dissect the Romulan engineering section while those of us with Able team worked to determine the location of the Warbird's sickbay (an endeavor which may have won Starfleet intelligence the subtle victory of access to the layout and schematics of the D'Deridex class) and to decrypt any ships logs that may have been of use in determining the cause of the Romulans' deaths. (Notably Lt. Sakkath proved invaluable in translation of the Romulan text, displaying an even greater familiarity with the language than myself, but this is an aside to return to later.) After locating their sick bay I formed Charlie team out of myself and Crewman Washington to escort Doctors T'kela and Corwin to sickbay and leaving Lt. Vincenz in charge of Able Team. Between the research by the Medical teams and the information relayed to me by Shano after his team managed to gain access to the logs of Palar, Commander of the Sha'arik, all data seemed to indicate that the ship had been intentionally infected by agents of the Tal'Shiar with the engineered virus and left to be found in Federation space. Effectively the Tal'Shiar had destroyed one of their own ships, commanded by a man who evinced respectable traits of honor and duty, to become a weapon of propaganda and/or biological decimation against the Federation. This treachery went so far as to install a device of sabotage on the bridge operations station of the Sha'arik that disabled it's cloaking device after a set time when they predicted the entire crew would have succumbed to the virus.

As our investigation continued I had the good fortune to be unaffected by the virus. I wish I could say the same for all my colleagues. Within a matter of hours all members of the away teams of Human and Vulcan (and Romulan?) decent were suffering symptoms of the virus. I am thankful that Shano had the foresight to order the Ops officers he brought with us to travel in EVA suits or we may have suffered worse than we did. While T'Kela and our medical staff worked with Lt. Aban and the science officers to try and find an effective treatment for the aggressive virus, matters became complicated when another D'Deridex, the D’vairin, de-cloaked, having arrived in response to Palar's distress signal, sending their own boarding parties onto the Sha'arik (N.B. all boarding parties consisted of ten members). I must diverge here a moment to consider my own actions at the moment that Captain Robau informed us of the the D’vairin's arrival. My first response was to carve my old "signature" from the Iota-Eridani VI War into a prominent location and to prepare weapons that would have been otherwise concealed for use in battle. Had I not engaged in the latter action I would have still been armed after we were taken prisoner should our situation not improved and martial action proven necessary. This is a lesson in forethought that I should remember for future encounters regardless of the opponent.

In any event, outgunned and without cover to balance matters tactically Able, Bravo and Charlie teams were all forced to surrender. While we attempted to stall any action by our captors with talk (my praises to Captain Robau for whatever simultaneous diplomatic battle he engaged the Romulan ship's Captain in) and to convince them of the danger they had exposed themselves to things became progressively worse. Exacerbating the situation was the indoctrination to which the personnel of the Romulan fleet are subjected was very apparent in their attitude towards the Federation, their initial insistence that the virus was deployed by us and their willingness to disregard basic logic in defense of the purity and honor of the Star Empire. We lost Dr. Corwin first. While I was prepared to be patient for the virus to disable our captors to a sufficient degree that our lower numbers would be balanced the losses would have been too devastating. I watched my trusted Ensigns Vazquez and Vincenz both die to the disease. How many times had they enthusiastically joined me in the Spanish Civil War scenario campaign in the holo-suite? They both always performed exceptionally in the Barcelona scenario. Crewman Mantegna, one of the most devoted men I have ever met with regard to the ideals of the United Federation of Planets, was lost to us as well as many other good men and women outside of my department. Lt. Cmmdr. Sakkath very nearly died (will come back to this), and Lt. Fletcher and T'Kela did not fare much better. I cradled her head as she was lost in delirium, in and out of consciousness as I engaged the leader of our Romulan captors, Sub-Commander Galtus, in a gambit of words. Eventually the evidence of the Tal-Shiar timer and Palar's logs convinced Galtus and his superiors that we were telling the truth. We were released and Galtus and I oversaw the make-shift triage unit that the cargo bay we had previously been confined was converted to. Thanks to the co-operation of Dr. Elbrun and the Romulan medical personnel and the excellent computer modelling skills of Lt. Aban the work begun by T'Kela could be completed and a cure deployed before we lost any more people than could be helped.

Based on his physical fortitude, his calm under pressure and his display of good judgment in a tense situation I requested that Crewman Washington receive a field promotion to the rank of Ensign to replace and have requested the same of Crewman Said, who was with Bravo team, at the suggestion of Lt. Tor.

Ultimately I was impressed with both the late Commander Palar and Sub-Commander Galtus as men of integrity, honor and good faith. It disgusts me that they should be subjected to such manipulation and exploitation by those who they serve with virtue. It is both a testament to the potential of the Romulan people to be great and noble and an indictment of the depravity, avarice and duplicity of the Star Empire in which they live. It is my hope that Palar's own people will give him the honors he is worthy of. I have already asked of Captain Robau that we should pay him his due respect. As for Galtus I would be pleased to encounter him again on the same positive terms we parted ways. I am confidant that if we were to meet again in an antagonistic encounter neither of us would hesitate to see our duty through, and while I respect him for this, it is unfortunate. The examples of these men are contrary to so much of what I experienced of the Romulan Star Empire in my final years on Iota-Eridani VI and this bears reflection.

On the other side of this is the USS Spector's own Lt. Cmmdr. Sakkath. Sakkath has presented himself as being born from one Human parent and one Vulcan parent and alleges to favor Human custom. Unfortunately, I have found numerous evidences since assuming my duties on the Spector that lead me to find this claim suspect. From the first his demeanor, gregarious rather than reserved. gave me reason for pause. While I do not deny that it is possible this may simply be the way he behaves, my studies at the academy indicated that Vulcans are far enough removed from Romulans culturally and [at this point] physiologically that their emotions can be far more volatile and intense than those of other humanoids if they do not adhere to their tenets of logic and comport themselves in a stoic or, at least, reserved fashion. This is alleged to be the case even with Vulcan-Human hybrids (in fact I seem to recall reading explicit reference to it in the memoir of the late Dr. Leonard McCoy, who served on the original USS Enterprise and the USS Enterprise-A with the venerated Ambassador Spock of Vulcan perhaps the most famed of such hybrids). I believe I will try to find a moment to speak with T'Kela privately and verify how much veracity there is to this belief about the Vulcan/half-Vulcan temperament. Beyond this most of my has been primarily speculation but I believe the incident we have just endured may have generated more evidence, circumstantial as it yet is, to indicate that my hypothesis that Sakkath is not a Human-Vulcan but in reality a Human-Romulan may be correct. Most glaring of these points are his extensive familiarity with the Romulan language and technology we encountered on the Sha'arik, talents of which he has never made any prior mention or display. There was also the speed with which the Tal'Shiar engineered virus attacked him. While he survived where some of our human comrades with weaker constitutions did not he seemed to be effected at a much faster rate and with more severity than the more robust humans to be infected (Washington for example), and faster than any of the Vulcans. T'kela is by no means the most physically resilient Vulcan I have ever met having been a Starfleet Security for over a decade including direct combat service during the Dominion War, but she spent more time in closer proximity to potential infection sources than Sakkath did and was one of the last of the infected to lose consciousness. Then there was the boarding party serving under Galtus the members of which began to show signs of infection as quickly if not more so, than any of our human casualties. What does all this mean? The evidence remains circumstantial and I as yet have no genuine proof that Sakkath is actually of Romulan and not Vulcan ancestry. If this is the case however what then? It would be my hope that this is nothing more than a repeat of the Simon Tarses Affair; that Lt. Cmmdr. Sakkath misrepresented his heritage when applying to Starfleet academy out of fear of discrimination for being descended of a people [with a government] historically antagonistic to the Federation. The more sinister possibility is that he is in fact an agent in deep cover for the Star Empire, perhaps the Tal'Shiar. I would prefer that such a complication not trouble us, but if I learn this possibility to be the truth I will do whatever is necessary to see that truth brought to light and dealt with as necessary.

Chief of Security's Log [I]

The ongoing situation with the Neural Parasites [originally encountered by the Federation and Starfleet C.A. 2364] provides a particularly challenging ethical dilemma.

We are faced with a species that perceives itself as superior to humanoid life in all capacities. The actions of the Neural Parasites (to be referred to hereafter in my records as NPs for the sake of expediency, until such time as a proper species name is designated) to date indicate, however, that they require, or at least desire, the use of supposedly inferior humanoid forms in order to utilize the technologies and increased size of these species. A host organism does not seem to be required for sustenance of the NPs, as they have exhibited the behavior [per records composed by Captain J.L. Picard, Commander Dr. B. Crusher, Commander W. Riker and Lt. Commander Data of the USS Enterprise-E] of ingesting worms or insectoid larvae of uncertain origin by means of nutrient consumption typical of the host organism. I speculate that they would be capable of ingesting and metabolizing this food source without the aid of a host organism if necessary. Observation of three NP controlled crewmen detained on the Spector [Lt. Commander Sakkath, Lt. Aliok & Ens. Jaina] indicated that the NPs can also sustain themselves by gradually extracting nutrients from a host life form as well. The physical strength and resiliency of the host organism seems to be increased as a result of this attachment. This enhancement of athletic capacity is a benefit of the relationship between host organism and NP that might lead me to characterize the NPs as symbiotic were it not for the fact that they dominate the brain functions and dictate the actions of the hosting organism. This control is such that the host is not aware of their body's actions while inhabited and retains no memory of actions undertaken while under the domination of the NPs after the NP is separated from the host. Likewise the NP controlling a host body generally displays a vague awareness of the persona of it's host and their role in society, but does not have access to the stored personal memories of that person. Of the five NPs identified on the Spector following an effective scan by the ship's sensors (N.B. suggest to Captain Robau that commendations be issued to T'Kela, Glas and Fletcher for this critical technical breakthrough) one inhabited a Vulcan host & another a Vulcan-human hybrid at the time of their identification and capture. A third had briefly inhabited T'Kela, a Vulcan, a few hours earlier. All four NPs abandoned their hosts when the hosts were intentionally incapacitated (the fifth NP was not in possession of a host at the time of its identification and capture) with anesthizine gas.

Based upon the aforementioned facts I hypothesize that the NPs selection of host was intended to maximize physical capabilities by combining the natural physical enhancement to the host form that results from infestation by the parasite with Vulcan physiology, inherently more physically able relative to that of most other Federation member species, wherever the strategic opportunity presented itself. I would further extrapolate that, despite their attested belief in their racial supremacy, they are not capable of effectively defending themselves or executing their goals without possession of a capable host form. The abandonment of those inhabited bodies that had been disabled is reminiscent of a tactical retreat. In terms of metaphor, the humanoid life of the Federation, perhaps the whole galaxy, is both territory for which the NPs are engaged in an extended battle for control, and tools to be exploited in waging their war of domination. They need not even infest every living entity in the Federation to affect dominance of our civilian and military organizations. Sufficient domination of key personnel of influence within the civilian government of the UFP, Starfleet, and other official and unofficial social and cultural organizations could have granted them victory before anybody capable of mounting a resistance could be alerted to their actions. Based on the engagement of the Spector, Hood and Monitor with the NPs I am optimistic that we have already begun a sufficient resistance to their efforts.

Past encounters have indicated a telepathic, possibly hive-mind like, collective link between the NPs at least those spawned in the same brood. This may extend to all those descended from the same NP Mother Creature regardless of generation. The records of the 2364 NP conflict indicate that when the NP Mother Creature inhabiting the body of Lt. Commander D. Remmick was slain life functions of all the spawn NPs were terminated. This may suggest that the standard NPs are themselves only extensions or tools of the NP Mother Creatures without sentience of their own and cannot exist autonomously of this central intelligence. It also suggests that the standard NPs do not share a telepathic or neurological connection with any NP descended from any other NP Mother Creature (though the possibility of non-collective telepathic communication between NPs from different broods cannot be excluded).

Efforts at interrogation of the NPs dominating Lt. Commander Sakkath, Lt. Aliok and Ens. Jaina while in holding (bearing in mind that all 3 may have been extensions of the same entity) indicated a duplicitous negotiating posture and an unwillingness to seek genuine compromise on the part of the NPs in finding a living situation amenable to both species. To clarify the latter point when it was suggested that the NPs abandon their host life forms and accept assistance in locating a protected world they could inhabit where their needs would be satisfied the offer was dismissed with an attitude that bordered on condescension. In hindsight such a suggestion bears comparison to the internment or forced relocation of a subjugated or repressed people to ghettos or reservations. I use the terms ghetto and reservation rather than suggesting a concentration camp because the intent of such an arrangement would be to provide the NPs a world under Federation protection where they would be essentially left alone to exist without dominating other sentient species while being the beneficiaries of defense from extra-planetary threats it remains one of the less morally repugnant resolutions to this conflict I've conceived so far.

A (less-ethical) and more concentration-camp like solution similar to the previous one would be to forcibly bond the NPs to a largely passive non-sentient species such as the Tribble, but this would only be feasible if a method could be developed to make it impossible for the NP to separate from its host after infestation (N.B. It may be worthwhile to consult T'Kela about the possibility of this type of genetic engineering?).

A more preferable solution would be if there were a willingness on the part of the NPs to allow the host organisms to enjoy a genuine sentient symbiosis like that between the Trill and Symbionts. The benefits to the host would then be enhanced physiological traits and participation in a collective consciousness (these benefits would be particularly useful for Starfleet military intelligence operations). In such a hypothetical scenario hosting an NP would be purely voluntary on the part of the host. Unfortunately it seems unlikely that this is possible. The attitude of the NPs to date has indicated that they do not deem their hosts as worthy of maintaining control or even awareness of their own bodies during infestation. Furthermore, even if the desire to be cooperative on this matter existed or were to develop in time there is no indication that the NPs are physically capable of interacting with a host in this manner.

Negotiation with the NPs to redirect their efforts at another culture, even one in conflict with the Federation, is NOT an acceptable solution. I will not be permit such a fate or abuse to befall another civilization for the dual reasons that to do so would make me implicitly guilty in the enslavement of that society, and there is no guarantee that once their work was complete the NPs would not simply utilize their newly subjugated hosts as weapons in a renewed effort to pursue domination of the Federation.

All other alternative measures to address this conflict I have been able to devise thus far share the same despicable resolution: extermination of the NPs under the provision of Starfleet General Order 24. There is little I find more repellent than the concept of genocide and to make such a proposal is in contradiction of virtually all the principles of Starfleet, the Federation and the code of Ushaan I have sworn to uphold and defend as a Starfleet officer and Andorian warrior. That said, the intelligence gathered to date indicates that the intention of the NPs is nothing less than the total subjugation, domination and exploitation of the peoples of Federation Space [and perhaps the galaxy at large], that they are uncompromising in this goal and that they will utilize every means at their disposal to achieve victory. This is a wholly unacceptable outcome. I did not spend nearly two years of my youth in bloody guerrilla conflict on Iota-Eridani VI challenging enslavement, abuse and exploitation by the Romulan Star Empire only to permit a species that extends the methodologies of the Star Empire and Tal Shiar to their most extreme ends to subjugate the whole of the Federation. Given the uncompromising posture of the NPs and the danger they pose to the freedoms of peoples of all worlds in the galaxy it is my belief at present that they constitute an extreme, actively hostile, threat to the Federation and I reluctantly concede that, given these circumstances, the application of General Order 24 to the NPs is the only realistic means by which to address the threat they pose to other sentient life. May God, our ancestors and descendants forgive us such an undertaking.

Let's See How Coherent This Turns Out

As I write this I've been ill and fairly out of it for a few days now. However I promised myself I would write another entry as soon as possible, and since I am having trouble maintaining my focus on studying chemistry during my break at work now seems as good a time as any.

I think I mentioned in my last entry that I had done some more creative writing recently and this seems a good time to talk about that. Basically I left work super-upset a couple of Fridays ago. When I got home my wife and our house-guest weren't really hungry, having eaten a late lunch, so I had a snack and cloistered myself in the bedroom where I began to expand on the gazetteer of the Fantasy setting I have conceived of. I had already come up with two fairly well developed nations: The Vyzalvian Empire, inspired by the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires with some Egyptian, Arabian and pan-Middle eastern flavor in the mix as well. Their rival to the north is the Confederation of the Martine Archipelago, a loose alliance of late-medieval to baroque European style island states that trade freely among themselves and ally for the sake of common defense. I already had short write-ups on these two nations finished, and had written the words, "The Raj of Bactristan," on a new line in my notebook in preparation to write about a different country. For Bactristan I took my inspiration from the pre-colonial Indian sub-continent, with a bit of Persia added to my recipe. A fuedal kingdom with natural fortifications in the form of mountain ranges to the north and densee jungle to the south separating small communities connected by an elaborate network of rivers that serve as highways. I didn't stop there.

About a month earlier I had thought it might be interesting to add country with a pre-colonial African flavor to the mix. This is something that isn't commonly explored in Fantasy literature (not in any sort of respectful way anyhow. The result was the Kingdom of Lumba and the Keewok Protectorate. This country is actually two peoples; the heavily agrarian and hierarchical Lumbana of the plains and the tribal Keewoka who survive by hunting, gathering and subsistence agriculture. The two cultures frequently skirmish with one-another over resources the other is covetous of, but they actually have much in common culturally and unite against aggressive actions by outsiders towards their lands.

After this I just kept going with new ideas. What was East of the Martine Archipelago and north of Bactristan and the Vyzalvian Empire? I found myself writing of a vast wilderness dotted with small Duchies and Principalities of limited power, ranging tremendously in terms of technological and social development. Forests frequented by highwaymen. Nomadic Herding peoples and raiders. And at the end of it all , far to the east where scrub land gives way to the fields of glass, the city of Shi He Sai. Traders from all other countries travel to Shi He Sai to exchange their wares for exotic goods and artifacts of unknown origin. Many suspect that Shi He Sai is the gateway city to a fantastic isolated empire, but none who have attempted to explore beyond the city have ever returned. I wrote a pretty extensive explanation of the truth, but why should I give everything away here?

Next up for my creative writing projects: A personal log for the character I play in the pen and paper RPG I participate in every other Saturday. Yes, I am that big a geek.

A Story Idea

I'm feeling pretty worn out from the last couple of days and anxious in anticipation of potential action regarding my proposal to transition into a new part-time role with my present employer next week (not to mention the fact that I may get my financial aid award notice late next week).

In light of that I think I'm going to write about one of my major story ideas instead. This is an idea that I think would be best realized as a stand-alone work of prose fiction, accessible to any reader as young as a mature ten years old or older. It's set in a fantasy world with a semi-baroque flavor to it, and the central characters are a direction-less middle-aged minor nobleman, a stranger from unknown lands across the sea who is desperate to find a way home and the varied entertainers of a traveling circus, including a clown, a strongman, a fortune teller and an animal trainer. The nobleman finds purpose in trying to help the stranger find his way home and they set out in pursuit of the Circus' resident magician who has taken a leave of absence to travel and study arcane secrets in lands to the east, and whom it is believed can help the stranger to find his way home. Thematically, my intent is that the story should focus on feelings of alienation and estrangement, and on overcoming those feelings through acceptance and the establishment of welcoming community. I don't want to show too much of my hand obviously; if I ever decide I'd like to actually write this and attempt to see it published I'd hate to find that somebody else has read this blog and beat me to it! I'll leave things there today.

More discussion of my steps down the invisible road in my next entry.

Diverting My Focus For a Moment to Talk About What IS Really Important: Star Wars

I'll return to the primary subject matter of this blog after this post (probably) but given the timing I think I'd like to stop for a moment and talk about something that has been very important to my life. As the title would blatantly indicate that thing is Star Wars. I haven't made an overly strong effort to point it out yet, but I am very much a geek/nerd. This is something that should be rather evident by the conclusion of this entry.

A couple of years ago, about six weeks before meeting the woman who is now my wife, I took it upon myself to be the Game Master of a table top roleplaying game set in the Star Wars universe. I was heavily inspired by the comic book Star Wars Legacy, set approximately 140 years after the conclusion of the film Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (that's the first one produced back in the 1970s, with Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Obi Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader and all that for any who don't know). I was enjoying the comic which had only been in print for a few months and realized that telling a story like I wanted to tell would be easiest to do in a point in the fictional time line of Star Wars where there wasn't anything published that my very geeky friends who would be playing could complain I was contradicting by the content of the larger tale I was guiding them through.

Tonight I am bringing this epic story to its conclusion. Part of me will miss it because it's been a great creative outlet for me and something that I get to share with people who I enjoy the company of. Part of me will not miss it for that exact same reason; if I'm pouring most of my creative energy into this activity there isn't necessarily a lot left in me to focus on, say, written work that I could maybe publish, or at least share with the people important to me. It isn't like I'm going to lose the socialization either really. There will be other games with these same people, I just may not be the one running the show.

I think of role playing games (those that involve other people, not single player Final Fantasy video games) as a collective creative process. The player's of the game are the protagonists of the story, and the Game Master works with them to establish the framework and plot elements against which their story unfolds. Not everybody feels this way about role playing. Some people, players and game masters both view the entire experience competitively, an experience that is more adversarial than cooperative. The way I game though I view everything as building and seeing through a particular story. I like closure and I want everybody to have fun. There are no losers, only winners in that type of game. If people are not having fun then I'd prefer not to play the game. I'm just not a very competitive person.

Maybe I'll talk more about the actual story of my game some time, lay out the plot, but I think for now I've made my point. It is hard to face the end of my own personal Star Wars trilogy (that's right, I framed it as a trilogy), but it was fun while it lasted and I find closure rewarding. Hopefully my players, my friends, will not find tonight to be anti-climactic and will leave with positive feelings about this experience. i can talk about sheep and working towards pursuing Veterinary medicine next time.