Team DS9
Posted on Tue Sep 2nd, 2025 @ 6:51pm by Commodore S'thenosis Gorgox & Lieutenant Commander Bonnie "Bon-Bon" Durnell & Commander Dean House & Lieutenant JG Micheal Stevens & Lieutenant JG Thalek zh’Vareth & Ensign Kitiuas Thenis ie-Jia'anKahr & 2nd Lieutenant Connor McQueen & Commander Jennifer Baldric
1,329 words; about a 7 minute read
Mission:
For Bajor!
Location: DS9
The lights in Ops flickered as the Engineers attempted to fix the gravity problem elsewhere. Decades old patched together systems fighting them at every turn. More than once the lights across the entire station winked, causing Commander Baldric, who had met with Dean after his meeting with Kira some concern.
"So what's the deal? And don't say gremlins cos I think Kira could deal with gremlins" Jen smirked.
Dean glanced around a moment and then back to Jen, "I'm not sure. My thought was sabotage."
Baldric's face dropped before she quickly composed herself. "Well then, we best get investigating."
"That's not a bad idea, Jen. We can try that first and see what we can...well, see." Dean said.
Docking Ring
Bonnie had just stepped through the circular docking ring airlock that marked a separation from the Sunfire to the station. The smell of recycled old air struck her nose first, causing her to pause. It was familiar to be back on the station.
Just as she took a step forward to rejoin the queue of people, the power flickered, the lights went out and were replaced with a red glow of emergency lighting. Then slowly, a queasy feeling entered her gut as her feet lifted from the deck. In the blink before gravity rejected her, Bonnie’s arms flailed, her mouth snapped shut in mid-yelp, and then everything went upside-down. Or roof-side-down. The ceiling became her newfound best friend as she crashed headlong into it. Her meticulously bookmarked PADDs, a Khanater gown, and half a suitcase of field notes unfolded around her like confetti.
Someone close, familiar with Bonnie and her 'accidental nature,' looked at her, his face already turning green. "Is this you?" He asked. To which she could only close her eyes and shake her head no, even as she bumped against the ceiling.
Kitiuas shouldered her ditty bag, ensured her dancerknife was in its sheath on her arm, and walked out of the docking ring collar ring. She saw Lieutenant Commander Durnell ahead of her the lighting flickering and going to emergency red, and immediately got the queasy feeling she first got when she did zero-g/micro gravity training. She immediately began to rotate herself to orient herself into a good zero-g stance. Gisjacheh, uktas bo urndo she thought.
Perfect start, Bonnie. Real smug your field trip is going swimmingly. She thought to herself.
Ops
"Engineering report, there's a glitch in the gravitational controls, an interface seems to have seized." One of the officers in the heart of DS9 announced. Kira rolled her eyes in a way that only she could. "Again? They said that last time we lost lighting on the Promenade," she didn't sound convinced and was glad the Sunfire had docked to lend a hand.
"Send the intel you have to Commander's House and Baldric from the Sunfire." Kira ordered before heading back up to her office. Hopefully, the replicator could produce a Raktajino without stuffing it up.
Baldric's PADD dinged a few moments later with the data dump from Ops, as did Dean's. She mused over the information and tried very hard to keep an open mind. From a cursory overview, things looked random, but if Kira reckoned there was more going on, there generally was.
"I think we should split up into teams, maybe have Bonnie look at the computer core with Kit, you and I can look over any relevant surveillance footage, and the security teams can step up patrols." She suggested.
Docking Ring
“Gravity plating off-line… standard station protocol?” Bonnie muttered, voice high-pitched. “No, no, think, this is engineering on steroids, not academia. I don’t even work here!” She declared mostly to herself as she talked through the situation.
With a stretch and some improvised spatial wrestling, she latched onto a hovering toolkit and used it to loop a tether around her waist, creating a makeshift safety harness from impulse alone. It wasn't elegant, but it was functional. She began inching toward the floor, toolkit and PADDs trailing behind her in a chaotic party of half-lift and floating notebooks.
Hands-on-wall, she muttered, “If Starfleet’s ever built a manual to gravity malfunctions… I hope it covers ‘dropped computer nerd.’”
Finally, she reached solid ground with a soft thud. The grav-plating flickered back to life, tugging her upright with a dull pop, knocking her off balance just before she face planted straight into a nearby jumja-stick cart. The clatter, the noise, the whole event had onlookers staring. The vendor helped her up and out of his cart with a disgruntled look that screamed 'my cabbages'. Caramel glaze was dripping down her face in sticky betrayal.
“I, um… I don’t even like caramel…” she lied weakly as the vendor pinned her with a sugar-fueled glare.
The commotion faded into the background as Bonnie scuttled away fast, dusting herself off, straightening her jacket, and collecting her scattered notes. Her internal monologue chimed in again: Risa. Beaches, not ceiling surfing. Field work, not slapstick. Let’s get back to archeology before I rewrite station protocols again.
"Baldric to Lt Commander Durnell, I need you to check out the computer core once the gravity situation has been rectified. I'm sending some detail to your PADD." The voice of the Sunfire's mission specialist echoed through the space.
This stopped Bonnie, and her clutter filled arms, in her tracks mid promenade. That vision of her in a dress on Risa, digging in the dirt, discovery of something ancient and mysterious disappeared from her mind. She maneuvered her clutter so she could tap her badge, "Um, I can do that Commander... just, um, yeah, give me a moment?" She half said, half asked.
"We can Bonnie, I'll get Kit to meet you there' Jen signed off, turning to Dean and raising her eyebrow at him. "You wanna start with the surveillance footage?"
Kit had landed gracefully when the gravity returned. Her mother’s insistence on learning all things Orion, especially female Orion training, had allowed for her to quickly adapt.
Hearing Commander Baldric instructing Lieutenant Commander Durnell, and suppressing a laugh at seeing Lieutenant Commander Durnell in her current state, replied “No need to summon me, Commander, I am extremely close to the illustrious Lieutenant Commander Durnell…”
Here Kit took a quick 3-D snapshot of the lieutenant commander and transmitted it to the ship's computer and main screen on the bridge “...and may I recommend this image be the new screen saver for the ship and her new ‘official’ photograph.” Kit chuckled as she made her way over to the Lieutenant Commander, knowing that Bonnie was going to ’murder’ her for what she just did.
“May I be of some assistance, Commander?” asked Kit barely suppressing her laugh, though the twinkle in her eyes and mirth in her voice betrayed how she found the situation they were in as amusing.
Looking defeated, as she stood and waited for the lift to take her to the Computer Core, caramel still smeared on her face. Bonnie barely acknowledged Kit, "Oh, um, hi Kit." She gave an odd glance back at the Jumja stand and then looked around for a recycler for her messed-up dress and now useless papers. "I, uh, sorry, I must look amiss." She apologized for her appearance. Secretly, she hoped no one she knew had seen that spectacle. Little did she know.
Kit laughed as she helped Bonnie clean herself. "I believe commander we are to report to go to the computer core and last I checked, computer core's do not like Carmel." Reaching into the satchel at her side Kit produced a very stylish, silky dress that shimmered in the light; and shoved it into Bonnie's hands, then guided her over to an empty alcove. "Okay, put that on, it will adjust to your body. I'll stand here and guard the entrance."
TBC
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