Alliance Central Access Network
Presents: Arrhythmia
The Story Of One of the Finest Ship in The Ghost Fleet
ACAN v 1.0
ARRHYTHMIAIn Production throughout the year 2001.
Chapter 1
“Before we read
the verdict, we demand that there be no emotional outbursts of any kind.
If there is an emotional outburst, those who commit the outburst will be
fined for contempt of the court. Would the defendant, Lieutenant Junior
Grade Grace Catherine de Pax, please rise,” The head of the military
tribunal ordered as Grace de Pax and her lawyer rose to meet the gaze of
the three judges.
“Before we read
the verdict, we wanted to comment on the difficulty we had when
determining what verdict to hand out,” the judge to the right of the
head of the tribunal began to say, “The events surrounding the death of
your co-pilot Lieutenant Junior Grade Helen Ulidos will forever continue
to puzzle this court. It is clear that a complete disregard for the normal
protocols of the Segan Royal Armed Forces wasn’t properly adhered to in
the events of the further puzzling rescue operation. It is clear to the
court that if it weren’t for Lieutenant Junior Grade Helen Ulidos and
yourself, however, that if you hadn’t been present and hadn’t chosen
to break with normal protocols, innocent Segan lives would have been
lost.”
“What will
continue to pre-occupy this court, and indeed this entire government is
how these events could have happened the way they did. Lieutenant Junior
Grade Ulidos is dead, and we must accordingly act upon the laws written in
our books and administer the punishments which is required upon us by the
Crown,” The judge to the left added, “We sincerely hope, that this
trial will not serve as a precedent to trials in the future involving the
same difficult and puzzling circumstances.”
“Therefore, on
the charges of involuntary manslaughter, the court finds you,” The head
judge paused, “Not guilty.”
The courtroom’s
audience sighed in relief as the judge to the right began to speak, “On
the charges of voluntary violation of the protocols of the Segan Royal
Armed Forces, the court finds you guilty.”
“On the charges
of illegal violation of a direct order coming from a superior officer,”
The judge to the left concluded, “The court finds you not guilty.”
“For your crime
of voluntary violation of the protocols of the Segan Royal Armed
Forces,” The head judge grabbed his gavel; “The court sentences you to
a one grade demotion to Ensign. The records of this court’s findings
will be kept in your permanent record. This court’s business is
concluded, you are all dismissed.”
The trial had occurred almost seven years ago, but even if it had
occurred seven years ago, Grace could still hear the three hard and heavy
slams of the gavel onto its wooden hold. At the time, she was
twenty-three, a victim of Segan hubris, who with her friend Helen Ulidos,
had decided it was better for them to become heroes than to wait for
reinforcements. Helen paid this mistake dearly with her life; Grace could
remember the phaser blast hitting Helen’s chest dead on, her body thrown
back as it hit the wall, with blue blood gushing out of the center of her
chest. Grace would remember hearing Helen’s screams, and then muffled
breathing as one of her lungs collapsed on itself. Even though Grace had
fought off the enemy, Helen’s blood was spurting out much too fast. She
could press all she want, Helen died within twenty minutes of
transportation within an advanced medical shuttle. The only consolation
she could find in the entire mishap was that twenty-five children kept in
slavery had been freed, all for the life of her best friend.
Eventually, Grace regained her rank even though Helen never grew
older. Helen never knew what it was to mature, to become more aware of the
universe around her. Grace, has she had existed, died the moment Helen
died. She remained bitter about the entire event, and had promised to
herself that no matter what she would do, she would do it by the book.
Helen and her had always tried to cut corners, to bend the rules so that
they could make the universe fit around their needs. Grace watching her
friend died made her realize just how costly such bending of the rules
could be. She had gone through a depression, as her perceptions of the
lives of her heroes all the sudden came crashing down. At twenty-three,
she still looked upon her imagination has her only limit, her dreams were
all attainable, there was nothing holding her back. Helen’s death
changed all of that.
Following the rules, those outlined by the book, had proven to be
an effective tool for Grace. As she moved on, distraught but able to
suppress her overwhelming emotions of grief relatively well, she became
more accustomed to a life that followed the regulations. She wore
regulation uniforms, and had her hair trimmed to regulation length, even
the traditions listed in the book that were not regularly followed by the
chain of command were traditions that became a rule to Grace. She would
not engage in romantic affairs with her co-workers, and she would
certainly not allow herself to even be attracted to anyone. The only thing
she remained alive for was the job, the only thing that connected her to
her best friend. They had made it through the Royal Academy together, they
had made it through the years as Ensigns, and they had just gotten their
Lieutenant Junior Grade promotion when their lives were ripped apart from
one another. Why had the Quadaz been so particularly cruel to her? She
hadn’t deserved it all.
Grace stared at the mirror in front of her as she looked at
herself. Here stood a woman who had lost her friend in a tragic mission
that had gone wrong seven years ago. Her tears were long gone, and staring
in front of her was the face of a seasoned officer of the Segan Monarchy.
As she looked further down her neck, she could see the beginning of the
new uniform she was wearing. The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds now
existed, the Segan Monarchy becoming a province within this major new
influential intergalactic power. Her new uniform was still that of the
Ghost Fleet, even though at the junction of her arms to her shoulders
there stood prominently the emblem of The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds.
It was a newer, more modern version of the emblem of the Segan Monarchy, a
nostalgic look to the past with an aggressive forward outlook to the
future. She would be a part of that future, whether her trust and faith is
misguided is something she would learn later on, but she still could rely
on the book to provide her with the guidance she needed on her next
assignment. She grabbed her rank badge, as she placed it upon her, under
the last gray line of her uniform on the left of her chest. The four
silver stars of the rank badge shone brightly against the light. There
were fifteen gray lines on this uniform, representing the founding
provinces of The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds, and she felt a sense of
pride as she readjusted the rank badge to match perfectly the guidelines
listed under the rulebook.
Her alarm clock chirped, for a few seconds, getting increasingly
louder until finally Grace heard it. She looked at herself in the mirror
one more time as she turned around, tugging slightly on the ends of the
shirt, as she walked over to her bed. She tapped her archaic alarm clock
once, as she looked next to the alarm clock. The padd’s back was
directly pointed at her, as she sat down on the bed, her right leg bended
in a ninety-degree angle, as her left leg pointed straight forward on top
of her right left. She picked up the padd, turned it around, looking over
the text, which she had read at least twice before. It concerned her next
assignment, her tour of duty with the A.G.D. Bastia finished, she needed
to receive new mission orders, and new mission orders she received. On the
A.G.D. Bastia, she had performed relatively well as her Executive Officer,
the Bastia having scored twenty kills during the Styx War, and eighteen in
the Battle of Cardassia Prime. It wasn’t so much on her skill that they
had won, but on the crew’s ability to follow the rulebook, and executing
perfectly the plans listed within them. She had been proud to be for six
months, a Bastian.
“To Commander
Grace Catherine de Pax, former executive officer A.G.D. Bastia,” she
read aloud, pretending to have the voice of the Fleet Captain, “From
A.I.W. Council of Cardassia Prime, Fleet Captain John Nosh, Chief of
Division 1. The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds confirms that your
six-month tour of duty aboard the A.G.D. Bastia has been successfully
completed with exemplary loyalty to the best military traditions of the
province of the Segan Monarchy and The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds.
Based upon the reflections of your Commanding Officer, as well as the
commanding officer of Ghost Fleet Wolf Pack Squadron two-four-five, it can
be ascertained that your work often went above and beyond the call of
duty. Due to your excellence on duty, it is the Council of Cardassia
Prime’s proud duty to inform you that you are to receive a promotion. As
of Stardate 250102.29, your new mission orders will be to assume direct
command of the A.G.D. Arrhythmia whose Captain has just retired. You were
selected out of 4 other candidates, so feel both proud and excited. More
mission orders will arrive on your desk once the Arrhythmia arrives at
your location. Fleet Captain John Nosh, OUT.”
Her heart warmed as she finished reading the mission orders. She
was a commanding officer now, something she still couldn’t believe even
after having read the padd a third time in two days. She thought back to
the trial, how she had been demoted and had felt that the only thing she
had close to Helen had been stripped away from her. Now, she had her own
ship, a ship with which to make Helen proud. She would make the A.G.D.
Arrhythmia the symbol of efficiency to the entire Alliance of Incorporated
Worlds; there would be no ship that could compete to the level of
attention the Arrhythmian crew would pay to the rules of engagement listed
by The Alliance of Incorporated Worlds. As she thought of her plans for
the ship, she began to think more of the Bastia and how they had
successfully molded the rulebook into their every action and every
thought. She wanted that of the Arrhythmia, being her first command she
knew she would have to rely now more than ever on the rulebook, her bible
of sorts without which she would be totally lost.