Celestial Temple - Pt 1

Posted on Mon Sep 6th, 2021 @ 1:54am by Captain Rhenora Kaylen

Mission: Gamma Quadrant
Location: Bridge
Timeline: In the wormhole

The Sunfire slid into the wormhole as effortlessly as a hot knife guides through butter. Their previous rough journey fresh enough in everyone's memory to make the nerves a little jangly. Still the Akira class starship this time provided a smooth ride as the gaping maw of the celestial temple opened to admit them into its bossom.

The colours of blue, silver, grey and white swirled into tendrils of few colour, reaching like fingers towards them but just out of touch.

Rhenora could almost feel the Prophets nearby, this was their home, their temple. They were gracious to allow starships to use it for travel, and generous enough to reduce the time between quadrants significantly. It was truly a blessing to both the Federation and to Bajor itself.

The Captain closed her eyes for a moment, the bridge replaced with the dark cave of Orias III, the hands of Gul Maccet around her throat, attempting to squeeze the life from her body. The bleak colours of that world dimmed with her closing eyes, her body yielding to the formidable pressure on her windpipe, only to be replaced by a large room, hundreds of Cardassians lining the gallery. Several high ranking Cardassians sat at an elevated bench, casting a disapproving gaze over the proceedings. This must be the upcoming trial, Cardassians V Federation. Friend vs foe. War vs peace.

The room quietened at the strike of the gavel, the presiding Cardassians rising and with him the assembled audience.

"Today we gather to determine the fate of those who murdered a Cardassians citizen. Not only a citizen, a decorated Gul with decades of service. Before us are those responsible, and today we shall pass judgement over their crimes"

Angry murmurs filled the courtroom, the volume rising until it was hushed by the judge. The jury of course was also all Cardassians who seemed to glare at the Starfleet officers with an expression of contempt. This was not going to be won without a damned hard fight. The odd were stacked against them.

The room dissipated with the lingering scent of flat bread being cooked over an open fire. A dark night and flickering flame replacing the angry faces. Rudimentary bread of ground root flour mixed with the milk of a grazing animal plus a few other bits n pieces to make it more palatable. Good times, good times but hard times as they struggled to feed themselves as well as fight the Cardassians. Life was simpler then. You knew who the enemy was. Sleep, fight, eat if you're lucky, repeat. The Prophets were good, the Cardassians were bad. Fight for freedom, try to survive and do it all again tomorrow. When had life gotten so complicated?

tbc