Deep Space Guardian: Season II-Episode 21

[Republican_Man]

--Assembly Room, Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, Earth--
Both Kyle Katran and Thomas Kenobi�two best friends from their days at the Academy�sat in the Assembly Room of Starfleet Headquarters. They had been summoned, along with 100 other Starfleet officers, for a special job. That is, membership in an all-new organization that no one knew about.
Katran shook his head, ending his thoughts, as the lights dimmed and an image was projected onto the screen.
�Isn�t that the Red Squad image?� Kenobi remarked to the other man sitting next to him.
Kyle nodded back at his friend. �Yes it is��
And, in fact, it was it�only without the words present.

Above the logo it said, �Starfleet,� and below it, �Special Operations.�
Kyle was intrigued. Special Operations? Huh�

Suddenly an Admiral walked onto the �stage� in the front of the room. It was a female Admiral. Katran looked closer and then realized who it was. It was�Admiral Janeway?
�Good afternoon,� the female Admiral said. �As you all know, I am Admiral Kathryn Janeway of Starfleet Command.� She took a breath. �You are all here today for a very important task. Due to the sudden declaration of war by the Nautolian Empire, the Federation, in conjunction with Starfleet, has decided that a new organization is to be created. Federation Special Operations, or Special Forces�Special Ops in short�is a new organization created by the Federation, along with Starfleet, to carry out special operations and reconnaissance missions required by Starfleet.�
She paused and walked towards the viewscreen displaying the Special Operations logo. �Each of you has been asked to come here to join this organization. It will be led by a man with a non-Starfleet position, one with the title-rank of �General,� and each of you will be given a commanding officer and an assignment, whether it be to a station or a starship in Starfleet or a starship dedicated to Special Ops.� She waited for a second and then said, �It is my honor to introduce General Maximillian Rieekan, formerly a Starfleet Security commodore, now the leader of this new organization.� The Admiral brought her hands up and began to clap them together. The Starfleet officers in the audience did the same as General Rieekan walked onto the stage.�
�Hello,� Rieekan began. �I�m General Rieekan. I have been placed in command of Starfleet Special Operations and have, as per request of the Federation Council, been given a post on Starfleet Command, though I will rarely participate in Command activities.� He then pushed a button next to the viewscreen and the display changed to display Rieekan himself in a uniform of an orange jumpsuit and black pants with black boots on the left side and a ranking scale, with pips, on the right (from the perspective of the viewers). The "General" wore this uniform and had the pips of the General rank.
�To the left,� Maximillian spoke, �is to be your new uniform, should you accept this task. It is standard for Special Forces members, as well as required.�

�To the right is a list of Special Ops ranks and their Starfleet equivalents, as well as their appropriate rank pips, which will go on the right collar, as per Starfleet standard.�
The ranks listed as follows, with the appropriate pips to their right side:
General (equivalent to Fleet Admiral; 1)
Major General (equivalent to Admiral, 2)
Commandant (equivalent to Captain)
Major (equivalent to Commander)
Corporal (equivalent to Lt. Commander)
1st Lieutenent (equivalent to Lt.)
Second Lieutenent (equivalent to Lt. Jr. Grade)
Officer (equivalent to Ensign)
�If you have an equivalent rank, then you will take on that rank. If you are a Commodore, the highest rank of any original Starfleet officer to join, then you will be promoted and receive the rank of Major General. You will be receiving assignments tomorrow at 0800 hours and are required to arrive at those assignments on the following day.�
Both Katran and Kenobi listened intently. Katran was rather excited about this, He had no doubt that he would take upon the position.
He looked around at the 75 other men and women around him. There were few commodores. Good news.

Rieekan proceeded to discuss, in detail, the organizational structure of the organization, how things would operate, and the like. Finally he discussed the new starship created specifically for Special Operations (or so that�s what it was being reproduced for).
When the image came onto the screen Kyle smiled. He had used the ship. As a matter of fact, he was the man who led the prototype missions for it. It was no starship. It was a starcraft�the Hawk-class Starship. He was especially excited when his name was said, and when he discovered, during the meeting, that he would be allowed to continue using the original prototype. After explaining the properties of the starcraft, the Commodore-turned-General moved on to his final subject. Promotions.
�The following officers are hereby promoted to the rank of Major General,� Rieekan began. �They are Commodore Mike Schmit, Commodore Mathew McDoogle, and Commodore Jonathon Nolte. Should these men accept the position, they will be top leaders in our organization.�
The general then turned to Commandants. �Should these man accept the position and promotional rank of Commandant, they will receive their own Starfleet starships to command on Special Operations assignments. They are�� Kyle crossed his fingers, hoping that he would be one of them. Goodness, a promotion. Wouldn�t that be great?
But he didn�t hear his name. �Michael McDermont. Phil Ewing. James Arnold. And finally, Thomas Kenobi.� As the audience clapped Rieekan said, �They will join Captains T�Sur and Tylone as Commandants.�
Kyle turned to his right and looked at his friend. �Congratulations, my friend!� he said, happily and somewhat loudly, yet still quietly.
Tom turned to his friend and the two shook hands. �I�m sorry you didn�t get the position,� he said. �You would of mode a great captain, Kyle.�
�Thanks, my friend, but at least you deserve it�� But Katran had to stop there.
�I would like to note that there are two officers that were on the list for promotions, but due to reasons that we will not disclose��the General could see their expressions and interjected, smiling, ��good reasons, though�I cannot say why. But I will say their names. Jack McCoy and Kyle Katran.�
Kyle turned and looked at his friend. �God, that was close,� he said.
�Yeah, but clearly it means something that you were almost promoted,� Tom remarked. Kyle could only smile before Rieekan spoke up again.
�These two will be stationed as First Officers at two critical locations: Mr. McCoy at one of Starfleet�s most critical secret location and Mr. Katran at Deep Space Guardian.�
Katran looked up. Deep Space Guardian? DSG. The most famous location right now, next to Earth, due to the war. Why there?
There was then an explanation about the other soon-to-be majors. That is, how they would lead Special Operations divisions on scattered ships and stations of importance that already have First Officers. Those who would be Corporals would, too, lead branches of other specially designated starships or be second-in-command of other groups, while the others would usually serve in different branches throughout the fleets.
*Pause reading*
�Deep Space Guardian�� Kyle Katran, now a Major in Starfleet Special Operations, whispered to himself. �Deep Space Guardian��

[Founder]

-DSG, Marine HQ-

Ian's combadge chirped loudly.

"Jones to Xavier," He said, "Admiral Smith is contacting you sir. He wishes to speak with you immediatly."

Ian sighed and tapped his combadge.

"I'm on my way." He said.

He looked over at Archer.

"Make sure you come to the meeting Jon." He said.

Ian turned and walked towards a corridor. He entered a battered turbolift and called for OPS. The lift raced upwards towards it's destination. Once the doors swooshed open, Ian stepped out. He immediatly walked towards his office.

"In my office." He ordered Jones, without even looking at him.

Ian walked into his office, not really wanting to talk to Smith. He sat down in his seat and looked into the viewscreen. Smith looked up at Ian.

"You look horrible Xavier." He said.

The captain gave a fake smile.

"Thank you sir," He said, "And how are you?"

Smith leaned back in his seat.

"I have some good news for you Xavier," He said, "Starfleet is choosing your next first officer for you."

Ian reacted in surprise.

"What?" He asked, "It is my right to choose my first officer."

Smith shook his head.

"We also have the right to pick one FOR you," He said, "Especially after your last choice...."

He was implying Ian's poor choice of Fito.

"That wasn't my fau-" He said, but was interrptud.

Smith held his hand up.

"Spare me," He said, "We're sending him as soon as possible."

Ian had prefered that Blake taken up the spot, but the officer had rejected the offer.

"Who is it?" Ian asked.

Smith smiled and leaned forward.

"Kyle Katran," He replied, "Hes part of a...unique division of Starfleet. You'll be briefed on more when he arrives. Smith out."

The screen went black and Ian leaned back in his seat. An exasperated sigh escaped his throat.

"A pleasure," He muttered, "As always..."

[Republican_Man]

--Assembly Room, Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, Earth--
The meeting ended very few minutes afterward, and as the recruits filed out Tom and Kyle chatted. It looked like they weren't going to be working together afterall--an expectation they had had before the meeting, and as it began.
"Well, I hope you enjoy your new command, Tom," Kyle said to his friend. "You'll do well there. I wonder what kind of ship you'll be getting. Clearly it's not a Hawk like mine. My guess is it'll be an escort ship, you know?"
Tom smiled in response. "I don't know, and I don't really care. I'm just happy to know that this time tomorrow you'll be having to call me 'Sir,' old man," Tom joked, smiling friendly and chuckling.
Kyle gave him a light hit on the shoulder, smiling in response. "Well, my friend. I'll see you...whenever..." Katran said, ready to leave in another direction. "Tell the family I said hi."
Thomas Kenobi, now a Commandant, raised his hand to his friend. "Of course I will. But stay. Come on; we don't have to leave yet. Let's go to the local bar and chat for a bit more. If we won't be seeing each other for a while..."
Kyle thought for a second, and before he could respond General Rieekan walked up to them. He reached out his hand to Tom, saying, "Congratulations, Commandant," and then moved the hand, after the other had shaken it, to Kyle, who shook the hand in response. "And you too, Major. There are only two people with your rank that have positions of first officer, and believe me, if this wasn't such a good position--XO on DSG--you would have a Commandant position."
"Thank you, sir," Katran responded.
"You'll do alright," the younger man, the general, said. Yes, there was a starch age difference, but that came with the timing. He was in his, what, was it mid-50s now?, and his most superior officer was in his early- to mid-40s. Rather embarrassing, but Kyle had learned to live through it by then.
"I'm sure I will, sir," Katran said.
The leader then turned to the other man. "You'll be receiving your specific assignment tomorrow morning, Commandant." His head turned back to Katran. "You'll receive your ship once again--the Hawk--at 0800 hours Wednesday (it was Monday). There'll be 6 subordinate officers there as members of your Special Ops team, and they'll be your command crew for the starcraft and officers when you need them. You can decide just how you want your Corporal to operate and what have you. It's all up to you." He paused. "In your ship you'll find a couple compartments with some special forces suits. Use them when you need 'em. Take the Hawk to the station and keep it there." He turned his head, noticing Admiral Janeway standing behind him.
"Ah, Admiral Janeway," he said. "Please exuse me," he said finally to the two friends. He then proceeded to talk with the Admiral.
"So, about that 'hang out,' as humans used to say," Katran said, leading Kenobi out, smiling rather jokingly...

[Valathous]

~ Deep Space Guardian, Marine Deck, Brig ~

Blake turned to Ian as he ordered Blake to gather the senior staff. Take the fight to Fito? Blake smirked inwardly. Finally, they would be doing something offensive rather than defencive. On top of that it would be against someone who really deserved whatever the Federation could throw at them. Such betrayal would not be regarded lightly by Section 31. Fito would die. Section 31 would have their vengeance.

Blake tapped his comm-badge, "All senior officers report to the observation lounge immediately for a meeting."

Blake watched the Captain leave before Blake had. Apparently Admiral Smith was contacting him. Smith, what a joke to the Federation, Blake thought, I'm surprised he has not been killed yet....

Blake looked at Dicot for a moment then left the brig and boarded the turbolift from the deck and proceeded to the observation lounge. He arrived at the Ops deck a moment later, stepped off the turbolift and crossed into the observation lounge. Blake took his seat and patiently awaited the other members.

~ Deep Space Guardian, Security Office, Brig ~

With the prisoners now safely inside their proper holding cells within the brig Komisarek felt relieved. No catastrophic event happened along the way other than the small scrap between himself and Malik. It was rather unexpected, an ensign attacking a superior officer. Mike had been worried about the Nautolians finding out a way to bypass the devices on their heads ot prevent them from using their abilities to hard officers and escape.

Mike was in the midst of writing a report on the events that had passed with Ensign Malik. He would more than likely just leave it in his own personal folder rather than giving it to Blake. Though Malik's actions were highly unjustified, Mike could understand why it had happened. The Nautolians had come out of no where and slaughtered hundreds aboard the station ruthlessly and unprovoked. Mike was finding it a hard enough time trying to prevent himself from hauling off and slugging the Nautolians but he knew no good would come from it other than a possible demotion or a black spot on his record.

[Lord Borg]

~DSG, Observation Lounge~

Archer walked in. Blake was already in the room. Unsure where to sit, Archer went over to the large Viewport and looked out. He spoke out to Blake.

"You and your men did some fine work down thier Commander. You and your men kept cool heads, despite the recent situations."

Archer still looked out the window. A part of him didnt expect a reply of the sorts.

~DSG, Security Office, Brig~

Reed walked into the room. He stared at the prisoners for a second. He suddenly shook his head regaining his bearings and went over to the security desk. He handed out a PADD.

"This contains everything from our end you may need for your report."

Reed looked back to the prisoners.

"Any word on whats going to happen with them?"

[Founder]

-DSG, Observation Lounge-

Ian walked into the observation lounge. Archer and Blake were already sitting there. No one else had arrived. A part of him had expected Aia to be sitting there. She wasn't there, nor would she be. Grey hadn't arrived yet either. Not surprising. He had so much work ahead of him when it came to repairing the station. Sophia and Merik were no where to be seen as well. After Fito, the crew was left in shambles. Even Dicot and Carter hadn't arrived. Ian took a seat at the head of the table. Some dust was on it after not being cleaned. Ian saw a tear in the soft cushion of his seat. Archer was standing at the viewport, while Blake sat in his usual seat. He didn't say anything at first, but simply stared at the obsidian table. An awkward silence between the three men quickly followed...

[Valathous]

~ Deep Space Guardian, Observation Lounge ~

Blake looked away from the stars that he was gazing at as Archer spoke. Blake had come to gain some respect for the man. He was strong, proud, and firm.

"Thank you, Captain Archer," Blake started, "There was no sense entering expecting to have guns blazing as I had no idea what had been occuring. I'll interview the civilians and Nautolians to get their side to the entire story as well. Not that I don't believe you but more to pick up fragments that may have been forgotten. Charges will be laid."

Just as Blake finished his sentence, Captain Xavier had entered. He noticed that the Captain didn't say anything but simply stared at the table. He didn't seem the same. Not since the attack. Even before then he had seemed slightly distanced for other reasons but now it was obvious. Fito had gotten to him. Blake was glad to see Xavier now had a plan for some retribution and justice.

~ Security Office ~

Komisarek was sitting at his desk in at the security office. The main office room consisted of several desks for various officers. Blake had his own separate office but then his group leaders and such all shared the large room. Rooms such as the armoury, brig, interrogation room, etc all branched off from this room.

Mike looked up to see Lieutenant Commander Reed handing him a padd. The man had been at the incident, he seemed like a decent gent.

"Thank you, sir," Mike replied graciously, "I'll hand it off to Commander Robitaille as soon as I see him."

Mike placed the padd on his desk and looked to the brig before answering Reed's question.

"I'm not quite sure, really, what Robitaille has in mind. Most likely an interrogation of some sort to find out whatever he can. I can't really expect them to say much to be honest, though," he said with a sigh.

[Lord Borg]

~DSG, Observation lounge~

Archer had nodded to Blake in aknowlagement when Ian walked in. Archer saw that he was staring at the table. Still not sure where to sit (He didnt want to take anyones seat after all, every ship or station he had been on, the officers unofficaly had thier own seat) Archer came over and stood next to his friend.

"IT's good to see you up and around again Captain"

Archer thought it best to keep things formal at the moment. Not that anyone would have said anything, even with Blake here,

~DSG, Observation Lounge~

Reed nodded.

"Hmmmp... wont be anything less they they deserve for sure.. but it's not my place to decied"

Reed looked at the prisoners again.

[Founder]

-DSG, Observation Lounge-

The captain's eyes shot up when he was spoken to. The silence had been broken quickly. Ian nodded his head slowly towards Archer.

"Indeed." He replied simply.

He didn't know how to word this exactly. Ian looked up at Archer.

"On stardate 57698.19," Ian explained, "One of our first missions on this station was to talk to the Elerrans, a species that has since...left here.

Ian leaned back in his seat. He stared at a PADD sitting in front of him. It was one he had left on the table before leaving to rescue Archer and Grey.

"We encountered an ancient alien species in subterranean temples," He continued, "Our sensors can not detect them. Their mental abilities are far beyond ours....and Fito's. Well...their "leader's" mental abilities are far beyond Fito's."

Memories of the encounter flashed back to his mind. When he barely even knew Blake and when Tidus was still alive. The Bolian marine had rigged explosives to destroy the entrance to the temple. Something they would have to find a way around.

"The Zalbogians, the alien species, are highly xenophobic," He remembered, "And they blame "outsiders" for "stealing their homeworld". I don't understand it all, but they threatened death to any who would return."

Ian stood up and went to the view port. He looked at Elerra Prime closely. The planet had a dark shadow over it. It was night on this side of the planet. Ian placed his hands behind his back.

"It doesn't matter what they said," Ian said, "We're going down there and getting there help. No matter what..."

-END EPISODE-