Athena Mission 2.5: Endless Nights

[D'Vid]

[Athena- Bridge]

The ship was moving at full impulse and Constance, internally, breathed a little sigh of relief. Maybe that would help? Who knew- it made her feel better to be putting some distance between it and them however.

"Make it so Ms. Tavana. It may get caught in another time loop if it occurs again but at least in some other timeline we'll have rescue. With any luck- that will benefit us, though I'm not sure if that tracks if we can't get out of this... assuming this occurs again." She reported in her droll, flat,almost monotone.

Constance moved like a tiny bulldog despite her diminutive stature to look over Ms. Venator's shoulder as she reported.

"Interesting. However there is that small dead zone in the sweep. That's generally a sign of a solid body." She said pointing to a large planetary chunk. These were common in supernovae but she was grasping at straws. It was weird that large chunk would break off, most were much smaller this far from the core of it.

"And thank you Ms. Venator I... feel it too. It feels like that time skip didn't roll back our biological clocks. I am going to assign the second shift to see if they can get some R&R. There is no use having all hands on deck if we can't use them all. It'll just raise stress levels even more."

Then, turning to Katheryn
"Ms. Carter. Is there any chance that this is an internal matter? We did just install experimental sensors- could this be intentional sabotage? While it's not my first working theory- it is a variable I can't just ignore. Please look into it."

"Mr. D'vid. I understand you have a keen sense of personal time. Pardon me for further imposing upon you but could you maintain some kind of subjective measure of time? If the loop continues, the ship's systems will not be able to accurately gauge it. This will help us stay on schedules- feeding, taking medicine, and sleeping will be important if this becomes a long-term thing. People's bodies may not Á¢â,¬Ëœfeel' the same schedule but they will need to keep on them."

Finally she gave James a nod, "Susan's right. I'll make the announcement." she said dryly and walked to her chair but didn't sit in it- just pressed the button to activate the internal ship wide comms.

"Lafayette to all crew. We've have a time loop occur. All departments are working on a solution to this situation but it appears we may be in for a protracted mission. I am relieving all second shift personnel and ordering them to get some R&R while the first shift works on the problem. Get some food, get some rest, and take your minds off the problem. Many great ideas in history occurred when the individual let their mind wander. In four subjective hours, ship's time, you will be called back on duty. We're going to be played the long game here so let's not burn ourselves out at the start. That is all."

She tugged at her uniform, straightening it. "How was that Mr. Carter? Did you think they got the eureka reference? Because that's what we are going to need to get out this if my memory of past ships affected by chronological distortions are correct..." She said, rather seriously.

Somewhere on the long range sensors the cargo ship was detected.

D'Vid and his team had found the time was six minutes from the sensors. It was not the right answer what the Captain had requested. The Petty Officer told Grog and Jones they had done excellent work. Excusing himself from his station the El-Aurian had walked to the center of Engineering much as he could. He got down on his knees. Reached down in his uniform shirt to pull out an El-Aurian purple stone from the Ma'Ur Mountains. A stone which was his anchor to his spiritual meditations. He laid it front of him, placed his thumbs next to each other his palms over the stone as he closed his eyes and chanted in his own ancient language his grandfather had taught him.

The time around supposed to slow down and he supposed to feel it about him. However, he was it was not complying to him. It was cotton candy and fog as one. Focusing on anything would be helpful to the El-Aurian. They would not had this problem if Q would not had wanted to play time with the El-Auria's who needed some time essence in their life. That what was one of the cause of El-Aurian's were sensitive cause Q had to play test his lab rats for his entertainment.

Then he believed he had as the sick feeling rose from his stomach forcing him to bend over to the right to throw up. It had hit him hard. The taste was not good either. The off balance was worse then it was before. Things were off balance but they had no real time of how much.

=^=Captain, I am not all sure. What I know is we got a six minute frame from reading the scanners. But I on the other hand feels its more then six...six hours...I can pin it down more if we go in another loop... =^= The feeling of sleep was heavy. =^=Is there anything else I can do? Something we Engineers can do which you working on?=^= he had to asked.

Jones was good enough to quick get the med clean up from the small emergency station. It was not his job, but Jones knew when to act. He was determined to go up and be someone in Starfleet. Anyways, Jones took Combat Medical training when he was academy as a secondary path. He knew that was a very useful path to be. He had hoped Jones would run his own ship. Lord knows that the kid had wanted it.

[Susan Venator]

[Athena- Bridge]

The ship was moving at full impulse and Constance, internally, breathed a little sigh of relief. Maybe that would help? Who knew- it made her feel better to be putting some distance between it and them however.

"Make it so Ms. Tavana. It may get caught in another time loop if it occurs again but at least in some other timeline we'll have rescue. With any luck- that will benefit us, though I'm not sure if that tracks if we can't get out of this... assuming this occurs again." She reported in her droll, flat,almost monotone.

Constance moved like a tiny bulldog despite her diminutive stature to look over Ms. Venator's shoulder as she reported.

"Interesting. However there is that small dead zone in the sweep. That's generally a sign of a solid body." She said pointing to a large planetary chunk. These were common in supernovae but she was grasping at straws. It was weird that large chunk would break off, most were much smaller this far from the core of it.

"And thank you Ms. Venator I... feel it too. It feels like that time skip didn't roll back our biological clocks. I am going to assign the second shift to see if they can get some R&R. There is no use having all hands on deck if we can't use them all. It'll just raise stress levels even more."

Then, turning to Katheryn
"Ms. Carter. Is there any chance that this is an internal matter? We did just install experimental sensors- could this be intentional sabotage? While it's not my first working theory- it is a variable I can't just ignore. Please look into it."

"Mr. D'vid. I understand you have a keen sense of personal time. Pardon me for further imposing upon you but could you maintain some kind of subjective measure of time? If the loop continues, the ship's systems will not be able to accurately gauge it. This will help us stay on schedules- feeding, taking medicine, and sleeping will be important if this becomes a long-term thing. People's bodies may not Á¢â,¬Ëœfeel' the same schedule but they will need to keep on them."

Finally she gave James a nod, "Susan's right. I'll make the announcement." she said dryly and walked to her chair but didn't sit in it- just pressed the button to activate the internal ship wide comms.

"Lafayette to all crew. We've have a time loop occur. All departments are working on a solution to this situation but it appears we may be in for a protracted mission. I am relieving all second shift personnel and ordering them to get some R&R while the first shift works on the problem. Get some food, get some rest, and take your minds off the problem. Many great ideas in history occurred when the individual let their mind wander. In four subjective hours, ship's time, you will be called back on duty. We're going to be played the long game here so let's not burn ourselves out at the start. That is all."

She tugged at her uniform, straightening it. "How was that Mr. Carter? Did you think they got the eureka reference? Because that's what we are going to need to get out this if my memory of past ships affected by chronological distortions are correct..." She said, rather seriously.

Somewhere on the long range sensors the cargo ship was detected.

Bridge

Suzie was still doing a full sensor sweep when ship picked up the cargo ship.

"Captain. I'm picking up the cargo ship, the readings are a little distorted but it appears to be the same vessel that we saw previously." She reported.

[Catrin Maddux]

[ Medical Bay- Catrin's Office ]

"I was thinking to maybe use this opportunity with the time loop to study the long term effects it could have," Caleb began. "What it does to the body and how much stress it can have. There are unknowns of course, but studying it could help. I do not know how many loops have occurred, but if they do we can have documentation on its effects Just think of what we could accomplish with it! However, I am trying to find a way we can do it and keep the information. Seeing as time itself loops, what can make it stick? If I write it down, won't it just go away because when time is reversed, so would what i wrote down? In the next loop I probably won't have this idea."

Caleb had hoped he articulated his idea correctly. He had hoped they could quickly find a solution before things were reset again. He foggily remembered the last loop, but were they even memories? How many loops had already happened? This was plaguing his mind, but peaking his interest. He worried about Kayla and Buddy. He worried about Ash, James, Ethan, and Catnip. How long would this last? Knowing the crew of the Athena was more than capable, he still had reason to worry. He was pushing against it with everything he had.

[CMO Office]

Cat tapped her chin thoughtfully. It was a complicated idea. How could one send information back in time?

"We seem to be remembering everything that occured prior to time shifting in reverse. Also I am much more tired than I was previously. It's possible that our physical selves are still moving forward in time. I propose we make a change on ourselves, like a small incision or pen marks on the arm, in case of another occurrence. Then we will have physical proof, one way or the other."

Truth told, she wasn't too keen on the idea of cutting herself. There was a reason she went into counseling and not surgery. But if it would help figure out their current situation, she was willing to try anything. And knowing Caleb, he was just as eager start finding a resolution to the Athena's current state of temporal flux.

[Constance Lafayette]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Very good Ms. Carter. Scan for chronoton particles within the ship- that could give us an idea if we are generating them." She said with a nodd.

"Just keep an eye on it D'Vid. We will need to know what's going on- you are our most important instrument to figure this out right now."

The reports on the cargo ship piqued her interest- she looked at the readings Suzie had pulled up.

"So it is a loop... hmm. And we are not the only things caught in it. That also means the time loop is about to occur again- it's reaching about the coordinates it was at when we last looped. This is the moment of tru-"

[Athena- Bridge]

Constance nodded to Leo as the ship dropped out of warp at the edge of the system.

"Acceptable Mr. Carter." Was her flat, but not unkind, reply as the XO arrived on the bridge, "We're on schedule. We need to get our new sensor package-.." She said, though her tone was worried and her voice trailed off, ending prematurely.

Constance's face set in a cold, annoyed, stare.
"It does indeed seem like the distance of the ship from the event will not help us." She admitted.
"We can check that off the list." She said dryly, "Ms. Carter- what do you think about boarding the cargo vessel this time? If we set a course for it we can probably send someone too it to investigate before we hit the time loop again. Could you assemble a team in time?"

Then it hit her- a wave of tiredness that would have floored an all star athlete. She swooned for a moment, caught herself, and fell back into her chair softly.

"I... it seems each time we jump a good deal of time passes for us physically... I feel... I feel like I haven't slept in a few days." Constance admitted, shaking her head hard to stay awake.

"Doctor- can you synthesize a stop-gap measure to help us deal with this sleep deprivation? It seems that the time loop advances our biological clocks by a while... the effects are... unpleasant..."

[Susan Venator]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Very good Ms. Carter. Scan for chronoton particles within the ship- that could give us an idea if we are generating them." She said with a nodd.

"Just keep an eye on it D'Vid. We will need to know what's going on- you are our most important instrument to figure this out right now."

The reports on the cargo ship piqued her interest- she looked at the readings Suzie had pulled up.

"So it is a loop... hmm. And we are not the only things caught in it. That also means the time loop is about to occur again- it's reaching about the coordinates it was at when we last looped. This is the moment of tru-"

[Athena- Bridge]

Constance nodded to Leo as the ship dropped out of warp at the edge of the system.

"Acceptable Mr. Carter." Was her flat, but not unkind, reply as the XO arrived on the bridge, "We're on schedule. We need to get our new sensor package-.." She said, though her tone was worried and her voice trailed off, ending prematurely.

Constance's face set in a cold, annoyed, stare.
"It does indeed seem like the distance of the ship from the event will not help us." She admitted.
"We can check that off the list." She said dryly, "Ms. Carter- what do you think about boarding the cargo vessel this time? If we set a course for it we can probably send someone too it to investigate before we hit the time loop again. Could you assemble a team in time?"

Then it hit her- a wave of tiredness that would have floored an all star athlete. She swooned for a moment, caught herself, and fell back into her chair softly.

"I... it seems each time we jump a good deal of time passes for us physically... I feel... I feel like I haven't slept in a few days." Constance admitted, shaking her head hard to stay awake.

"Doctor- can you synthesize a stop-gap measure to help us deal with this sleep deprivation? It seems that the time loop advances our biological clocks by a while... the effects are... unpleasant..."

Bridge

Suzie found herself still standing at Ops running an initial sweep. She immediately realised the loop had re-set and shook her head a couple of times to clear it.

Instead of reporting - again, she listened as the Captain asked the Doctor to help with sleep deprivation. Suzie felt like she had just pulled a double shift, something she had done a few times as an engineering officer before transferring to Ops. Taking a few deep breaths she tried to fight the hunger that was gnawing at her as well as the tide of emotions given out by the crew.

She took a few seconds to centre herself before deciding to bring up the subject of eating.

"Excuse me Captain, but I think we should all eat and drink something. I feel as is I have just come off a double shift and I'm feeling as if I have not eaten since yesterday. It's clear that time is passing, at least for us, and we need to ensure we stay as healthy as possible so we can get out of whatever this is." She said, her voice edged with tiredness.

[James Carter]

[Bridge]

As the second loop closed and the third opened Carter began to pace. After a small pause the XO glanced down to the watch strapped to his left wrist. "Is it time based? Does the loop trigger at a specific time, or is it random. If it is time based we can track that fairly easily. At the very least we can eliminate an option." James offered moving over the the Captain's side.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Very good Ms. Carter. Scan for chronoton particles within the ship- that could give us an idea if we are generating them." She said with a nodd.

"Just keep an eye on it D'Vid. We will need to know what's going on- you are our most important instrument to figure this out right now."

The reports on the cargo ship piqued her interest- she looked at the readings Suzie had pulled up.

"So it is a loop... hmm. And we are not the only things caught in it. That also means the time loop is about to occur again- it's reaching about the coordinates it was at when we last looped. This is the moment of tru-"

[Athena- Bridge]

Constance nodded to Leo as the ship dropped out of warp at the edge of the system.

"Acceptable Mr. Carter." Was her flat, but not unkind, reply as the XO arrived on the bridge, "We're on schedule. We need to get our new sensor package-.." She said, though her tone was worried and her voice trailed off, ending prematurely.

Constance's face set in a cold, annoyed, stare.
"It does indeed seem like the distance of the ship from the event will not help us." She admitted.
"We can check that off the list." She said dryly, "Ms. Carter- what do you think about boarding the cargo vessel this time? If we set a course for it we can probably send someone too it to investigate before we hit the time loop again. Could you assemble a team in time?"

Then it hit her- a wave of tiredness that would have floored an all star athlete. She swooned for a moment, caught herself, and fell back into her chair softly.

"I... it seems each time we jump a good deal of time passes for us physically... I feel... I feel like I haven't slept in a few days." Constance admitted, shaking her head hard to stay awake.

"Doctor- can you synthesize a stop-gap measure to help us deal with this sleep deprivation? It seems that the time loop advances our biological clocks by a while... the effects are... unpleasant..."

[Bridge]

Katheryn found herself staring at the readouts on her console as if she was in the middle of doing something then slowly it started coming back to her. She remembered agreeing with the Captain to investigate the possibility of internal sabotage and the Captain then asking her to check for chronitons  when ....... she paused for a moment as her brain caught up with the realisation that they had looped again.

Through the fuzziness and extreme tiredness she now felt, she heard the Captain asking for her opinion regarding sending a team over to the cargo ship and if she could assemble it in time. Katheryn thought about it and vaguely remembered the other ship appearing before each loop and decided that it was worth a try.

Before she answered she smiled when the Captain spoke to Caleb and despite all that had happened she couldn't help but think of him and their kitten Buddy and worried about how they were coping with all of this and what she wouldn't give to actually be able to see him as she didn't know how much time had passed since they had last been together in the same room. However she needed to focus and as the XO spoke then Susan, she agreed with what was said and her stomach grumbled slightly but she ignored it for now as she spoke up.

" I think its worth a try Captain, if it works then we can investigate and see what's happening over there and yes I should be able to assemble a team in time perhaps it might be an idea to have them on standby now then we can be ready to go" she said although she knew anything could happen before then she was determined to give it a go.

[D'Vid]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Very good Ms. Carter. Scan for chronoton particles within the ship- that could give us an idea if we are generating them." She said with a nodd.

"Just keep an eye on it D'Vid. We will need to know what's going on- you are our most important instrument to figure this out right now."

The reports on the cargo ship piqued her interest- she looked at the readings Suzie had pulled up.

"So it is a loop... hmm. And we are not the only things caught in it. That also means the time loop is about to occur again- it's reaching about the coordinates it was at when we last looped. This is the moment of tru-"

[Athena- Bridge]

Constance nodded to Leo as the ship dropped out of warp at the edge of the system.

"Acceptable Mr. Carter." Was her flat, but not unkind, reply as the XO arrived on the bridge, "We're on schedule. We need to get our new sensor package-.." She said, though her tone was worried and her voice trailed off, ending prematurely.

Constance's face set in a cold, annoyed, stare.
"It does indeed seem like the distance of the ship from the event will not help us." She admitted.
"We can check that off the list." She said dryly, "Ms. Carter- what do you think about boarding the cargo vessel this time? If we set a course for it we can probably send someone too it to investigate before we hit the time loop again. Could you assemble a team in time?"

Then it hit her- a wave of tiredness that would have floored an all star athlete. She swooned for a moment, caught herself, and fell back into her chair softly.

"I... it seems each time we jump a good deal of time passes for us physically... I feel... I feel like I haven't slept in a few days." Constance admitted, shaking her head hard to stay awake.

"Doctor- can you synthesize a stop-gap measure to help us deal with this sleep deprivation? It seems that the time loop advances our biological clocks by a while... the effects are... unpleasant..."

Last thing D'Vid heard was that the Captain had believed he had the answer to this time loop. He was skeptical as he was on the floor with his legs cross.

It felt it was a week of nonstop work. He was right back at the station reading the scans of the new sensors. The difference this time was he gave a loud yawn. His head was heavy. The joints of his body had wanted to call quits. His eye lids were heavy as sand bags that felt as mud now.

The space around him was bugging him. Like a skin crawling up his spine. What we be doing. Oh he remembered now. He remembered what had happened. It was a time loop like a Saturn's ring. You are stuck on one but you stay on it, but on the same track. Like running a lap in a track.

=^=Sir, yawwwwwwwn-yaaaaaaaawwwwwn sorry Captain. Yaaaawwwwn, I believe we are like on a track meet. We are running on the same line, running past finish which is the start. . . When we supposed to finish, we are restarting. Using the same amount energy as we ran one lap. I believe when encounter a second loop. It doubles. And so on and so on.=^=

His fingers danced over the console. The readings had shown something. The mind of his was feeling it was in a dream cause it remembering being on the floor and now here he was.

=^=It's like a grove in a broken record. It plays over and over stuck....snap!=^=

D'Vid snapped his right hand as the idea was running through his mind. Deep down he had to possible break a rule of his but it had to save the ship from this loop and that other ship.

=^=I will need to create a tooth pick.... ah... a old trick to repair tool to fix a record in the old days of ancient earth,=^= he added in excitement.

[Caleb Brighton]

[ Medical Bay ]

Caleb looked around at medical. It seemed like another loop had happened. He vaguely remembered speaking with Catrin about an idea he had, but it seemed like that was foggy. This idea he had he was trying to remember, but it had been like trying to remember a dream after being woken up by an alarm.

"Doctor- can you synthesize a stop-gap measure to help us deal with this sleep deprivation? It seems that the time loop advances our biological clocks by a while... the effects are... unpleasant..."

[ Medical Bay ]
" =/ \= Aye Captain. I know the effects all too well of what it means to get little sleep. Luckily I have one that I've used before. However, it only works short term. I hope we can get this loop thing fixed. I know the effects of sleep deprivation all too well. Just tell me how many doses are needed and I will bring it up. = / \ ="

After Caleb removed his hand from the combadge, he noticed a mark on his hand. It was a single black line. This made him smile. "A message from the past ?"Caleb thought as he waited on a response from the Captain.

[Ethan Hadden]

[Mess Hall]

Ash was half-buried in the storage counter beneath the cabinet, attempting to take inventory for the Captain. She reached towards the back corner, fingers closing around a curious, unmarked package that she didn't recognize - Except I do recognize this... I've done this before haven't I? Her brows drew together, and the fingers of her left hand moved to the chess piece hanging from the chain around her neck. She twirled it around as she looked at the strange container in front of her and did her best to sort out what had happened.

I found this box, but I couldn't find an opening mechanism for it. It's not one of mine, so I wanted to open it. I was... going to try and pry it open with something when Ethan showed up. Then he helped me with lunch. And then the supernova -

Ash was pulled rather abruptly from her thoughts by someone talking. Surprised, her head shot up, only to smack against the underside of the counter. A small squeak escaped her lips as she gripped her head, muttering a brief string of unladylike curses under her breath. She crawled out of the counter, still gripping the package, and turned to Ethan.

"I definitely saw that. And since we both saw that, we can't be going crazy, right? What's going on?" No sooner had the words left her mouth, the Captain's message came through. "A... time loop?" Ash felt her stomach twist a little and swallowed. There was a distinct reason she avoided books about time travel; it was messy to think about and made her head hurt. A time loop was entirely different, of course, but the thought of the fabric of time being off-kilter in any way was kind of upsetting.

[Mess hall]

A time loop!? That definitely wasn't good. Time mixups always made his head hurt , just thinking about it.

"Yeah, we definitely aren't crazy. This is real ."  Suddenly , Ethan felt rather exhausted , not unlike when he took the exam to get into the security forces and did an allnighter.  "Woah. After we get that food of yours off the stove , we should get to the bridge. Maybe they know something we don't .

[Ashlynn Ren Morgaine]

[Mess hall]

A time loop!? That definitely wasn't good. Time mixups always made his head hurt , just thinking about it.

"Yeah, we definitely aren't crazy. This is real ."  Suddenly , Ethan felt rather exhausted , not unlike when he took the exam to get into the security forces and did an allnighter.  "Woah. After we get that food of yours off the stove , we should get to the bridge. Maybe they know something we don't .

[Mess Hall]

"Oh right! The food!" Ash shook her head as if to clear the fog out of it, and started moving towards the kitchen. When did I get so tired? Maybe I need some more tea... She made it to her workspace and started clearing the counter, but as she started removing dishes, her stomach growled. Didn't I just eat? I could have sworn I was full a few minutes ago. Maybe I'm just imagining things...

Muttering to herself under her breath, she pulled a couple plates over and dished out some sustenance for both her and Ethan. "Here, maybe we can eat these as we go," Ash offered as she handed him the plate.

Before they could leave the mess hall, however, Ash found herself back underneath the counter, reaching for the unmarked box again. She wrapped her fingers around it and quickly scooted out, but as she stood, she felt a wave of dizziness sweep over her. She gripped the table as she swayed, then turned to Ethan with wide eyes. "I think I need to rest for a bit... And get something to eat... I don't feel so great..."

[Constance Lafayette]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Capital idea Ms. Venator. I believe that should~" Constance paused to yawn, covering her mouth politely, "~be of first priority."

Man she could go for some hot Tom Kha Gai or something...

"Ms. Morgaine. This time loop seems to have worn everyone out. I want you to have the kitchen staff running food packs to whoever you can get them too. It feels like a 6 hour skip or so every time we loop. That means people are going to be missing meals. I know you'll have to start any preparation over again each time we loop so you'll probably have to use the replicators to get things out to people. This is top priority- people could easily starve."

Constance furrowed her brow at Jame's question, "It seems like it was at the same time index, as far as I can tell." She said, "It's reasonable to assume that it's time based... or at least linked to something happening." She explained after D'Vid's message had reached her.

"Interesting Mr. D'Vid. Any idea what could trigger something like this?"=/\= She asked as she checked the distance of the cargo ship.

"Excellent Ms. Carter. Let's ready the team- take a shuttle as soon as possible. Take Mr. Hadden- the younger they are the more energy they should still have. Helm, let's get us to the Cargo ship ahead of time. Set in an intercept course at full impulse." She commanded, "James- I want you to go with them. I seem to recall that you have a propensity for boarding ships... even if they were wooden ones." She added, her tired eyes giving him a little "smile".

"Fine then Doctor, let's have the medical staff distribute the stimulants. Please start with the security team that is going to board the cargo ship. We need them particularly alert. No slip-ups."=/\= She said, her voice tenser than she wanted it to appear.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[Athena- Bridge]

"Capital idea Ms. Venator. I believe that should~" Constance paused to yawn, covering her mouth politely, "~be of first priority."

Man she could go for some hot Tom Kha Gai or something...

"Ms. Morgaine. This time loop seems to have worn everyone out. I want you to have the kitchen staff running food packs to whoever you can get them too. It feels like a 6 hour skip or so every time we loop. That means people are going to be missing meals. I know you'll have to start any preparation over again each time we loop so you'll probably have to use the replicators to get things out to people. This is top priority- people could easily starve."

Constance furrowed her brow at Jame's question, "It seems like it was at the same time index, as far as I can tell." She said, "It's reasonable to assume that it's time based... or at least linked to something happening." She explained after D'Vid's message had reached her.

"Interesting Mr. D'Vid. Any idea what could trigger something like this?"=/\= She asked as she checked the distance of the cargo ship.

"Excellent Ms. Carter. Let's ready the team- take a shuttle as soon as possible. Take Mr. Hadden- the younger they are the more energy they should still have. Helm, let's get us to the Cargo ship ahead of time. Set in an intercept course at full impulse." She commanded, "James- I want you to go with them. I seem to recall that you have a propensity for boarding ships... even if they were wooden ones." She added, her tired eyes giving him a little "smile".

"Fine then Doctor, let's have the medical staff distribute the stimulants. Please start with the security team that is going to board the cargo ship. We need them particularly alert. No slip-ups."=/\= She said, her voice tenser than she wanted it to appear.

[Bridge]

The Captain agreeing to Susan's suggestion was a welcome one as her stomach grumbled again and honestly couldn't remember the last time she had ate not that it mattered with the way the time loops kept happening. Listening to what else was said before the Captain asked her to take a shuttle across to the cargo ship and smiled when she mentioned taking Mr Hadden and perhaps they could eat something via the replicator once on board remembering the nutrition packs that Caleb always recommended during an emergency.

Hearing her fiance's voice had been a relief and the fact that she would get to see him before she left meant a lot to her even if it was to get a stimulant from him yet would savour that brief amount of time with him. Her mind then got to work about who else to take alongside herself, Ethan and the XO before responding to the Captain " Yes Captain I'll contact Mr Hadden and the rest of the team immediately then head down to Sickbay before going to the Shuttlebay" she replied then tapped her commbadge.

Lieutenant Carter to Crewman Hadden please meet me in Sickbay immediately

Closing the channel she then sent a message for Ensign Thomas and Petty Officer Sampson from Beta Shift to also join them before handing her console over to Ensign Lewis. She then made her way over to the turbolift and waited for the XO to join her.

[Caleb Brighton]

[Athena- Bridge]
"Fine then Doctor, let's have the medical staff distribute the stimulants. Please start with the security team that is going to board the cargo ship. We need them particularly alert. No slip-ups."=/\= She said, her voice tenser than she wanted it to appear.

=/ \= "Aye Captain. It has already been synthesized and is running through the replicator. My staff will administer the does accordingly" =/ \="

Caleb immediately began sterilizing his hands and prepping to administer the stimulant. Wendy, Ed, and Al were prepping stations at this point to try and get a good system going to administer it to those who needed it. He would try take the ones most squeamish to needles. He found himself alone at that point. When he heard a familiar voice echoing in his head. "You're really using that? Remember what happened last time?" Caleb pretended to shake it off. He needed to focus to get things right. Back then he was different and she knew it. He sighed and continued. He then felt a presence."Please tell me you at least changed the dosage and levels. You don't want another Franc. Rather an army of Francs. Though an army of gigantic flaming schmetterlings would be kind of cool," an all too familiar voice said.

Jenna stood ethereal before Caleb as he moved around to administer a dosage to himself before the away team arrived. "I think you underestimate me. Since my time with Ben, I have perfected this. Plus when I was using it, I had far less sleep. So this should take a better hold,"Caleb said. Jenna, who was sitting on a table nearby swinging her feet raised an eyebrow. " Whatever you say Cal. I may be smarter on some calculations, but your judgement was always better than mine," Jenna said. "Yes, but you are a far better jumper. Taught me a few things on those islands that helped me in the acid jungles," Caleb said as he administered the stimulant to himself. He was no stranger to stabbing himself with a needle. Once the stimulant was administered, it took almost immediate effect. He was much more alert than he was earlier. He grabbed the marker that was used the last loop. He then marked "Stimulant doses taken" and an "I" he advised his staff to do the same. He needed to keep track of everyone who was taking the stimulants. He only knew the effects of a few doses. He didn't want to know the effects of more than a few. "Hey I made you take a leap of faith! You've been a daredevil ever since. Don't think I haven't been watching Steamy," Jenna said with a wink. When she said Katheryn's nickname for him, she said it in a joking tone to make Caleb blush. Before she walked over and kissed Caleb on the cheek like a sister would to a brother. As she walked toward the nearest doorway, she disappeared. Caleb quickly sterilized himself again and ran the freshly made batch to his staff so that they could begin to administer once the away team arrived. 

[James Carter]

[Bridge]

James smiled and placed his watch back on his wrist, this time with the watchface in line with the palm of his hand. "It's not even my birthday and you're already giving me a ship boarding?" The XO joked following the other Carter into the turbolift.

[Turbolift]

Once the doors slid shut, for a moment the smile faded away and exhaustion took it's place. He had tried to keep it from being visible, but for just a small moment he let himself slip. The officer stared at his wrist watching the seconds tick by. Finally he turned over to look at the woman standing in the lift with him immediately trying to regain his normal composure. "One of these days we'll be dispatched and have a proper routine mission that goes completely to plan." James joked trying to seem like he was fine.