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Short Fiction

These short novels are compilations of posts from the Outpost Hope One Posting Group and affiliated duty stations.

The Mneventhia Encounter

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

USS Discovery dropped out of warp speed not far from her destination. The icy blue planet hung in the midst of space, rotating slowly, brilliant white littering the surface. The sight of the giant seemed to sparkle, adding an enormous amount of light to the dark of outer space.

The cold beauty caught the full attention of the first officer. It was times like these when she remembered why she left Earth. There was nothing more stunning than her own ball of rock and gasses, but one could appreciate it so much more when there was a bounty of other types of beauty in the universe. From this distance, Mneventhia looked quiet, peaceful. Before them came a different group of explorers, ones with hope and excitement of discovery in their hearts. What had happened to them?

"I'm detecting no power sources in or near the outpost." Nadacic checked the readings again to be sure. "Their reactor mass is inert. It’s pure silicon. They've managed to burn through their entire fusion mass."

"I’m not reading any life signs at the outpost." Jack frowned.

The captain did not like taking chances. He liked certainty. Perhaps it was his time as Chief of Security that had him focused on the risks and preparing for the inevitable outcome. The scientists below asked for help for a reason and they had their responsibilities.

For a reason she couldn’t explain, a knot had formed in her belly. She expected that they would find disaster below. "We will need to go down to investigate. I’ll lead the team down."

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Patent Medicine

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

Drint looked up and down the corridor and approached the door. It buzzed angrily at him. This was a Starfleet station, they weren't supposed to keep their doors locked on this level.

Station beeped again, watching Drint closely. It was not surprised at this turn of events. The Ferengi had made it quite obvious that he was interested in Hazel and Damon. It was amused by his confusion.

He ran his fingers along the edge. There should have been a button or notch or something.

"Boo," Station said, standing behind the Ferengi with a humanoid ancillary. "What are you doing? Do I need to call security to explain Federation laws regarding breaking and entering Mr Drint?"

"No. This is a simply a misunderstanding." Drint started to scurry down the corridor. "I'll stop by later."

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New Enterprise

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

The Risian Pilot of the Albatross sat at a new station looking into options for the ship's next adventure. Captain Noluk had promised that she would be able to select it on her own. Of course, it had to be reasonable no doubt, so she was leaving no stone unturned in finding just the right job for the struggling old freighter. One thing making her job easier was a search protocol provided by Exemplar Nova which was designed to help independents to vie for individual jobs without the need of porting first. There was so much information here, it was crazy and any ship could conceivably find something and all they had to do was pay a finders fee to the fledgling offshoot of the Setlin Commerce Guild now operating in the area.

She put cost of operations, distance, time necessary, profit, and safety into her equation. She also considered the state of the Albatross including its cargo bay size and engine capacity. In truth, there was a lot to it, if you wanted to make a good choice. Her short list had become shorter and shorter until there were only two options, and now in her mind, there was only one. "Icmod! Come here!"

Icmod went over to where Roquel was. He had been given command of Albatross while Noluk was on the Axel . "What did you find?"

"Look at this!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him over, wrapping her arm around his waist the moment that he was within easy reach.

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Species 329

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

=/\=RED ALERT!=/\=

Now Kal's favourite sound. The bright red lights flashed across the Federation ship and people started to hurry madly out of their quarters, before the decks were locked down. Rushing madly, it seemed, in no obvious direction, but each individual was trying to reach a place of safety, or trying to find family and friends.

A moment later and Kal heard the words he had patiently waited for, for the past 6 months…

=/\=We have engaged the Borg=/\=

Security officers began to appear, transported in groups to offer their resistance, but it was a small science vessel, it stood little to no chance against the Borg. Soon it would be assimilated. Kal smiled in anticipation.

=/\=EVACUATE DECKS 4-6=/\=

The Kazon heard the announcement and a crazed grin manifested on his pale face, his eyes seemed to glow with the madness. The Borg had boarded, they were on decks 4 through 6, and Kal… Kal was on deck 4.

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Across the Threshold

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

Lionin Favor walked the floor of the science department's main lab slowly appraising everything he saw and he was disgusted.

He wasn't disgusted with the layout, which was well organized. This section of the ship was entirely dedicated to the science team and it was quite large for such a small ship. The layout gave a lot of space over to a central table and work area which was designed to provide a collaborative environment for the ships dedicated science team. Around that were several smaller satellite spaces for more small scale projects and more cautious discovery. It was truly brilliant.

He was also not disgusted with the way the ship as a whole had come together. With limited resources the engineers at Sentinel Station had managed to refurbish the old bird into a work of functional art! Of course, the Elaysian lieutenant commander had had no small part in the effort, so perhaps he was a little bit biased.

No, what he was truly disgusted by....flabbergasted by....was that the ship was still HERE docked at Sentinel Station like some poor dog on a leash even when it had a beautifully fenced in back yard to play in! Like that dog, the Daystrom had the ENTIRE SPHERE to investigate, but again like the dog, the powers that be didn't want it to piss in the wrong places for fear of making somebody mad. It was TRULY DISGUSTING.

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DW 179

It is available online and as a paperback-sized PDF document.

The communication video activated. A medical hologram appeared. Eiwan recognized the Engineering uniform.

"Chief Engineer Eiwan. I feel I was unable to answer all the questions you had at the time of my talk." began DW 179. At least she would have to presume it was the same DW 179. They truly all did look alike. "I would like to be assured that you have had your questions answered sufficiently and to your satisfaction."

"I appreciate the opportunity. I believe you are a sentient being." The fact that sentience of photonic beings was debated gave credence to the claim. "I don't know what sort of definitive proof there can be. The nature of evolution is still debated, centuries after the concept was introduced on my world."

"Evolution may be the best argument for being considered alive. Just as the definition of a species changes through time, with new features, and fits and starts, and dead ends, I think we may just be an evolutionary seedling which may or may not thrive in this galaxy at this time. It depends if others will let us grow, or pull us out by the roots." Said DW.

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