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Description
Continuation from ISS Audacity 5

"Someone interrupted my beauty sleep," Monica complains, at the entrance of Temporal Engineering.
"You don't need it," I observe, smiling at my wife. "Help your sister."
"There's a chronon trail masked," Tara observes. "I need your help isolating it from the interference."
"I should be by the tempdim* for that," Monica says. "And Captain, I need coffee."
"I'll get you a cup - "
"Make it two."
"Right, I'll join you down there." A thought occurs to me as my comely wife walks away, a thought unrelated to that sashaying - "XO, you still on duty?"
"Of course," Nadia replies, a bit indignantly. "Where else would I be?"

"That's like a day and a half..."
"I can sleep when I'm dead, Captain. What do you need?"
"A... feeling. Something's not right. Stay vigilant. I want all crew stations manned."
"General Quarters?"

"Do it."
"GENERAL QUARTERS!" Nadia barks over the shipwide, as the alarm klaxon sounds. "All hands to battle stations. This is not a drill! Repeat, General Quarters - "
I tune Nadia out, knowing she'll get the ship ready.
"Captain," I hear over the shipwide. "My coffee..."
"Belay that, Commander," the XO says with crisp efficiency."
"Nad..." Monica complains.
"Putting you on report," the Romanian says.
"I'll take care of my wife," I tell Nadia. "You get this boat ready."
"She still is being entered into a disciplinary report."
"I insist," I smile, knowing Monica will hate that.
"Nat..." my wife complains.
"Focus on your duties," the XO barks. "Or I will tan your hide!"
As I make my way to the tempdim, I listen to all stations reporting in. Dru as the wizzo** reports combat readiness. Meg in engineering reports all systems nominal. Tara reports flight and astrogation are go. Nyssa advises that the shuttle and TARA*** are fueled and ready for deployment and damage control is ready. Monica reports that electromagnetic and psionic sensor arrays are active.
"Heroic Natalie is nominal, awaiting your orders," Nadia reports.
"Heroic Natalie?" I ask.
"The crew renamed the ship during your last off shift," the XO says, and I can see her shit-eating grin from here. "The chief engineer and I repainted the ship during that time. Necessary for morale. You don't get a say in the matter, Nat. Begging the Captain's pardon."
"If that's what the crew wants... " I start, entering the tempdim. My wife still looks tired and she is stretching...

"Cold Brew, three shots of espresso and salted caramel?" as she finishes programming Tara's search parameters.
"Do you see a Starbucks logo on this mug?" I scoff. "Black, two sugars."
"It'll do," she says, reaching out for the mug. Then stops. Distracted or -

"I'm sensing something - "
"Nadia?!" I bark. "You picking up anything?"
"Massive spike in chronon radiation!" Tara reports.

"Ship materializing off the port bow," Nadia advises. "It's Empyrean One!"
"Tara! Get us out of here!" I order. Empyrean One is her flagship. Superdreadnought class. Massive throw weight. Heroic Natalie is a puny corvette by comparison. More like Run away Natalie! "Anywhere you - ""
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The ship rocks under a concussive blast.

"Damage Report!" I yell. "Tara, get us out of here!"
"She is here," Monica reports. "She's trying to take con - "

"Fight it, Monny!" I say, lending my strength to hers. Or trying to. A massive psi blast, slams into me.
And spilling Monica's coffee.

"Engines offline," Megan reports. "Life support as well."
"Light cruiser, astern," Nadia reports. "Fire at will, WSO." Our laser banks hum and fire and Dru reports, "Got the motherfucker."|

"Meg!" I bark. "I need this ship to move."
"No can do, Captain."
"This is the Empress-General," we hear and see on all of our displays. "Stand down and prepare to be boarded."
"Orders, Captain?" the XO asks.

* temporal-dimensional manipulative control matrix. the heart of time travel
** weapons system officer
*** combat ground vehicle, stands for Tactical Assault Reconnaissance Adaptive. I'm proud of an acronym I created that also identifies with Tara the character.

Description
Continuation from ISS Audacity 5

"Someone interrupted my beauty sleep," Monica complains, at the entrance of Temporal Engineering.
"You don't need it," I observe, smiling at my wife. "Help your sister."
"There's a chronon trail masked," Tara observes. "I need your help isolating it from the interference."
"I should be by the tempdim* for that," Monica says. "And Captain, I need coffee."
"I'll get you a cup - "
"Make it two."
"Right, I'll join you down there." A thought occurs to me as my comely wife walks away, a thought unrelated to that sashaying - "XO, you still on duty?"
"Of course," Nadia replies, a bit indignantly. "Where else would I be?"

"That's like a day and a half..."
"I can sleep when I'm dead, Captain. What do you need?"
"A... feeling. Something's not right. Stay vigilant. I want all crew stations manned."
"General Quarters?"

"Do it."
"GENERAL QUARTERS!" Nadia barks over the shipwide, as the alarm klaxon sounds. "All hands to battle stations. This is not a drill! Repeat, General Quarters - "
I tune Nadia out, knowing she'll get the ship ready.
"Captain," I hear over the shipwide. "My coffee..."
"Belay that, Commander," the XO says with crisp efficiency."
"Nad..." Monica complains.
"Putting you on report," the Romanian says.
"I'll take care of my wife," I tell Nadia. "You get this boat ready."
"She still is being entered into a disciplinary report."
"I insist," I smile, knowing Monica will hate that.
"Nat..." my wife complains.
"Focus on your duties," the XO barks. "Or I will tan your hide!"
As I make my way to the tempdim, I listen to all stations reporting in. Dru as the wizzo** reports combat readiness. Meg in engineering reports all systems nominal. Tara reports flight and astrogation are go. Nyssa advises that the shuttle and TARA*** are fueled and ready for deployment and damage control is ready. Monica reports that electromagnetic and psionic sensor arrays are active.
"Heroic Natalie is nominal, awaiting your orders," Nadia reports.
"Heroic Natalie?" I ask.
"The crew renamed the ship during your last off shift," the XO says, and I can see her shit-eating grin from here. "The chief engineer and I repainted the ship during that time. Necessary for morale. You don't get a say in the matter, Nat. Begging the Captain's pardon."
"If that's what the crew wants... " I start, entering the tempdim. My wife still looks tired and she is stretching...

"Cold Brew, three shots of espresso and salted caramel?" as she finishes programming Tara's search parameters.
"Do you see a Starbucks logo on this mug?" I scoff. "Black, two sugars."
"It'll do," she says, reaching out for the mug. Then stops. Distracted or -

"I'm sensing something - "
"Nadia?!" I bark. "You picking up anything?"
"Massive spike in chronon radiation!" Tara reports.

"Ship materializing off the port bow," Nadia advises. "It's Empyrean One!"
"Tara! Get us out of here!" I order. Empyrean One is her flagship. Superdreadnought class. Massive throw weight. Heroic Natalie is a puny corvette by comparison. More like Run away Natalie! "Anywhere you - ""
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The ship rocks under a concussive blast.

"Damage Report!" I yell. "Tara, get us out of here!"
"She is here," Monica reports. "She's trying to take con - "

"Fight it, Monny!" I say, lending my strength to hers. Or trying to. A massive psi blast, slams into me.
And spilling Monica's coffee.

"Engines offline," Megan reports. "Life support as well."
"Light cruiser, astern," Nadia reports. "Fire at will, WSO." Our laser banks hum and fire and Dru reports, "Got the motherfucker."|

"Meg!" I bark. "I need this ship to move."
"No can do, Captain."
"This is the Empress-General," we hear and see on all of our displays. "Stand down and prepare to be boarded."
"Orders, Captain?" the XO asks.

* temporal-dimensional manipulative control matrix. the heart of time travel
** weapons system officer
*** combat ground vehicle, stands for Tactical Assault Reconnaissance Adaptive. I'm proud of an acronym I created that also identifies with Tara the character.