Star Trek: Dark Remnant CH-4 (Final)

Posted on Tue Jun 11th, 2024 @ 3:39am by Lieutenant JG Kate Kono

Mission: Man & Machine
Location: USS Aphelion
Timeline: Between Episodes (Mini Novel)

The ship groaned, a wounded behemoth crying out as it suffered the unspeakable torment of being rent in two. Ensign Kate Kono's hands danced frantically across the console, her fingers tapping into the cold unfeeling keys with a fury that belied her calm exterior. The command section erupted in a fiery conflagration, blossoming outwards like a deadly flower, its scorching petals sending the stardrive section spiraling into chaos.

"Come on, come on," Kate muttered under her breath, her voice a mere whisper against the cacophony of alarms and the harsh claxons that filled the air. Her analytical mind raced through the steps of the self-destruct sequence, each move calculated with precision amidst the hurricane-like disarray that threatened to crumble the very bones of the USS Aphelion.

"Self-destruct initiated," the computer's voice stated, emotionless and serene against the backdrop of destruction.

"Silent countdown," Kate hissed, her conviction burning bright within her chest as she carefully slinked toward the shuttle bay, every step a battle against the lurching deck beneath her feet.

The shadows of the corridor were alive, twitching with the last throes of the dying ship, when suddenly the darkness coalesced into the formidable form of Captain Eman Braddock.

"Kono!" Braddock's voice was an uproar, his eyes wild with the unraveling of his once ironclad grip on reality.

"Captain," Kate responded, gripping her sidearm tightly. Her loyalty wavered in the face of his unpredictable ferocity. She had seen him protective, but now there was something far more sinister in his stance.

"Traitor!" he roared, launching himself at her with a desperation born of madness.

Their struggle was fierce, a deadly dance filled with desperation as they fought for control of the vessel. Braddock's fists were calloused and unrelenting, while Kate's movements were precise and calculated. They dodged and parried, their bodies moving in perfect synchronization despite the chaos around them.

As they exchanged blows, Kate could see the madness in Braddock's eyes, clouding his once sharp focus. The ship's alarms blared in the background, a constant reminder that this was a fight for survival.

Braddock's ramblings were nothing but a chaotic backdrop to his relentless attacks. He pursued her with unyielding determination, crashing into the shuttle bay just as she attempted to shut the door behind her. With brute force, he tore through the powerless barrier and slammed into the petite Asian girl, sending her hurtling across the room, leaving destruction in their wake. Kate gritted her teeth against the pain and rose to her feet, refusing to back down in the face of insurmountable odds. She would survive this battle, no matter what it took.

Each punch landed with a resounding thud, and Kate could feel the satisfying crunch of bone beneath her knuckles. "I'm sorry, sir," she gasped out with each strike, until finally Braddock's body went limp, his eyes closed in defeat.

With a sense of triumph pulsing through her, Kate let herself catch her breath before dragging Braddock's unconscious form to the ground. She wasted no time scrambling into the shuttlecraft from the USS Washington, her heart racing as she slammed her palm against the control panel to lock the doors behind her. As she initiated the launch sequence with swift movements, her eyes flicked over to the view screen just in time to see Braddock stir awake.

Fear gripped her as his arm lifted, a phaser aimed directly at the shuttlecraft from the bay. With adrenaline coursing through her veins, Kate punched in coordinates for her escape destination and prayed that they would make it out alive. The last thing she saw before she backed out of emergency powered force-field was Braddock's enraged expression and the sound of phaser fire ricocheting off the metal hull.

Kate's breath hitched, but she didn't falter, backing the shuttle out of the bay even as the threat loomed. The shuttle lurched free, leaving the chaos of the Aphelion and the haunted gaze of Captain Braddock behind.

Braddock's twisted silhouette stood defiantly at the edge of the shuttle bay, his phaser still drawn, a monument to the madness that had consumed him. But then, as if sensing the futility of his stand, the universe itself conspired to unleash its final act of terror upon the lone captain.

From the impenetrable void beyond the flickering lights of the dying ship, a shadow began to coalesce. It was a darkness so absolute that it seemed to drink in the surrounding chaos, growing larger, more substantial with every passing second. Shapes swirled within it, forms of unspeakable grotesqueness that defied geometry and reason.

"Commander Kono, you can't escape—!" Braddock's shout shattered into a strangled gasp as he finally sensed the presence looming over him.

Kate's eyes widened momentarily in horror, but she tore her gaze away as she backed further away from the opening of the shuttle bay and turned the shuttle into an escape trajectory, realizing that some truths were too harrowing for the human psyche to endure. She thrust the throttle forward, propelling the shuttle out of the Aphelion's maw with all the force she could muster.

The shuttle's thrusters hummed a low requiem as Kate maneuvered the craft with urgency, her knuckles white against the controls. The cosmos outside the bay doors spun in a dizzying ballet of debris and darkness, a stark backdrop to the unfolding nightmare within.

"Warning: Proximity alert," droned the shuttle's calm automated voice, utterly oblivious to the nightmares unfurling behind them.

"Override," Kate snapped, her voice steel wrapped in velvet, fingers flying over the console as she navigated through the maelstrom of debris.

The Aphelion convulsed one last time in a silent scream as the self-destruct sequence reached its inevitable conclusion. A blinding light erupted, consuming what remained of the vessel, illuminating the fleeing shuttle in its death throes.

"Course laid in for the USS Washington," the shuttle confirmed, its synthetic tone a stark contrast to the cacophony that had just ended.

"Engage," Kate commanded, her heart pounding a staccato rhythm that mirrored the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

As the stars stretched into lines before her, racing towards the relative safety of the Washington, Kate couldn't shake the cold embrace of the cosmic horror she'd left behind. The memory of the abyssal shadow that had claimed Braddock etched itself indelibly into her mind, a dark testimony to the fragility of sanity in the face of the unknowable.

"Report, Commander Kono?" The comm crackled to life, the voice of the Washington hailing her.

"Ensign Kono here," she corrected automatically, even as a shiver ran down her spine. "I have... I have much to report." Her words hung heavy, laden with the weight of the horrors she had witnessed.

"Understood, Ensign. We await your return," came the reply, oblivious to the dread that now accompanied her.

Alone with her thoughts and the stars for company, Kate braced herself for the debriefing that awaited her. She carried not only the burden of survival but also the tale of an encounter with a cosmic horror that would forever haunt the edges of her reality.

THE END

For Continuing Saga's involving Kate Kono as a crew member of the USS Washington, and to see the fine crew that she serves with, visit ID Fleet, a Star Trek Role Playing Group filled with hundreds of fans, just like you!