Captain Sterling stirred in his cryopod. Slowly at first, he opened his eyes for the first time in several years. The cool frost on his skin melted quickly as his body and its immediate environment raised in temperature.
He strained against years of disuse and far below freezing temperatures. Distant memories of The Emperor returned to him.
“This is more important than a simple rescue mission. This is for the whole galaxy, Harry, and you’re the right man for the job.”
To Strive
Harold Sterling gasped in pain as feeling returned to his frozen extremities. Awake, at last.
“You’ll have the ship you need for the job. I can’t promise you that you’ll like it, or even understand what it means, but you’ll have it.”
To Seek
Two years of superwarp, if everything went according to plan, and several more years than that of cryo as the ship was commissioned and built, and still Sterling had the strength to raise his hands to his face. He wiped the frost and moisture from his brow and tried to focus his eyes.
“You’ll be so far beyond the boundaries of what is known that everything you know will be called into question. We need a man who can use his gut, his instincts, and you and I both know that you have that in spades, Harry, and precious few others have it at all.”
To Find
Harry focused his eyes at last. The cryogenic suite computer registered his wakefulness, and began its report in an overly friendly and soothing voice, one phrase at a time.
“Good morning Captain Sterling. You have been in cryogenic stasis for 5 years. Congratulations!”
“In the environmental habitat, it is a comfortable 75 degrees, partly sunny, and surf conditions are fair.”
“Breakfast today will be scrambled eggs with hot sauce. Lunch is a light buffet, and dinner will be exotic fried poultry with smoky sauce.”
“Superwarp stage separation will commence in 15 minutes.”
“On board your vessel, you will find: Fire on decks 18, 19, 20, 21, 22. Hull breach on deck 35, and on deck 36. Central computer offline. Main weapons offline. Shields offline. Torpedoes offline. Warp engines offline. Sub-light engines offline. Main power failure. Auxilliary power is at 1% and falling. Prisoner escape in Brig block 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Casualties detected by biometric telemetry on deck 45 aft. Intruders in main bridge.“
“Have a nice day.”
And not to yield.
Moderator: Rusty