Offloading The Darwin 47

The Enterprise has arrived at Deep Space 1, and we have begun offloading our 47 prisoners from Darwin Research Station, as well as their illegal genetic engineering equipment. The prisoners will be held in confined quarters aboard the station until a transport vessel can arrive to take them (and their equipment) back to Earth. After that, they will stand trial for their crimes in a Federation court. The law will determine their fate.

As of right now, I have not been informed of any new orders for the Enterprise. It is possible that we might resume our earlier mapping mission, but we could also be sent somewhere else. We will likely know within a day to two. For now, we will continue offloading our cargo.

Unlike our last visit to DS1, we do not have leave. We are here on business. Individual visits, with stated intentions, are, however, possible, if cleared with Commander Riker.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 30, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Beauty From Below

I was looking through some of the photos taken earlier this week, and came across this one. It’s a beautiful view we don’t see very often – a ventral view (from underneath). Proof that the Enterprise is a stunning ship, from any angle.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 28, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

The Darwin 47: Apprehended

Good news! Our Marines have apprehended the remaining three fugitive scientists from Darwin Research Station. They escaped into the tunnels below the facility, and were captured down in the canyon. Two of the individuals were apprehended at a choke point coming out of the caves and tunnels, while the third – a woman – was taken into custody after she fell 55 feet onto a ledge. The Marines repelled down the cliff to her location, and she was pulled from the ledge in a coordinated shuttle rescue.

All 47 personnel from Darwin Research Station are now in custody aboard the Enterprise. In addition, the last pieces of evidence and machinery related to the genetic experiments have been brought aboard the Enterprise, and we are scheduled to depart within a few hours.

A number of individuals from our crew have been transferred to Darwin Station, to await the arrival of another Starfleet ship that will resume control of the station, and prepare it for other uses. A platoon of 30 Marines have been reassigned to the station as well, and will remain on Gagarin IV when we leave.

Our mission to Gagarin IV was a success. We have obtained what we were ordered to acquire, and now we are headed back to Deep Space 1 to offload everything for transport to Earth. It is my hope that the Federation justice system deals swiftly with our prisoners, and that we do not have to play a part in any future arrests of this nature.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 26, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Fugitives, Marines and Genetically-Engineered Children

It has been two days now since we arrived at Gagarin IV, with arrest orders for the 47 personnel stationed at Darwin Research Station. Seven of those individuals escaped the initial Marine raid; four of them were captured today in the tunnels beneath the station. Three individuals remain unaccounted for, and may have made their way down into the deep canyon near the facility. Our Marines continue to track those three fugitives, and are likely to catch them sometime tomorrow.

The most troublesome arrested personnel are being held in both the Security and Marine brigs on deck 8, while all others are being held, under guard, in secure quarters elsewhere on that deck (since the brigs aren’t large enough to hold 47 people).

The genetically-enhanced children have been evaluated by our counseling staff, and are doing well. They are, however, understandably shaken, and are being cared for by our medical staff. Since we do not know the full extent of their abilities, they too are under guard – for their protection, and that of our crew.

Away teams from the Enterprise are currently down in the Darwin Station facilities, cataloging evidence, machinery, and personal items for transport up to the Enterprise. These items are being stored in secure locations throughout the ship, until they can be offloaded at DS1 for transport back to Earth. A platoon of Marines is ensuring that the station facilities remain secure, while others continue tracking down the three individuals still on the run.

Marine Captain Dolim has requested that a contingent of Marines be left behind on the station, when we leave – along with the already assigned ship personnel – to ensure the security of the station and personnel until another ship can arrive. Captain Picard has approved his request.

So far, this entire operation has gone smoothly, with our Marines doing a fine job securing the station, and tracking down the remaining fugitives. I’m glad there haven’t been any unexpected challenges, however, I do feel uneasy playing police to an entire station of scientists – scientists who chose to experiment with human genetics, in secret, and contrary to one of the Federation’s most important laws. They will have their day in court, and for that I am grateful. Still, the sooner we get them off our ship, the better.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 24, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Darwin Research Station

A little over a month ago, Starfleet Command received some deeply disturbing information. A scientist working at Darwin Research Station, a Federation research center on Gagarin IV, managed to smuggle out evidence – aboard the Starfleet ship, USS Lantree -- that the facility had been conducting illegal genetic engineering on Human subjects. In fact, these experiments had been taking place, in secret, for the past 13 years.

Genetic engineering is illegal throughout the Federation, and has been so since the founding of the Federation in 2161. It has been illegal on Earth since the end of World War III and the Eugenics Wars. This ban exists to remove all possibility that someone creates another “enhanced” individual like Khan Noonian Singh, or his fellow Augments, and it restricts parents from genetically engineering their children in order to give them an advantage in normal society.

No planet within the Federation is permitted to experiment with genetic engineering on sentient individuals. The ban does allow limited medical treatment considerations, and it does allow selective breeding of certain animals, but the law is 100% clear in all cases of eugenics. It is illegal, and will not be tolerated by the Federation.

Unfortunately, it appears as though Dr. Sandra Kingsley, the lead researcher at Darwin Research Station, has been knowingly ignoring this law. Gagarin IV is on the outer edges of the Federation, and, until now, was registered as an ecological research facility. The 35-year-old Dr. Kingsley has, apparently, presided over the genetic engineering of a few dozen children on Gagarin IV. The Enterprise was assigned – via our Priority One order – to investigate, and ultimately apprehend Dr. Kingsley and her staff for prosecution.

With those orders, the Enterprise arrived at Gagarin IV earlier today, a Marine raid on the facility did confirm the existence of Human genetically-engineered children, and we are currently rounding up and executing arrest warrants for all 47 personnel working at Darwin Research Station. The arrested personnel will be transported to Deep Space 1, where they, and all evidence, documents, and illegal equipment will be transferred to a ship bound for Earth. They will then be tried for their crimes under Federation law. The children held under experimentation at Darwin Research Station will be treated at local hospitals on Earth.

Science personnel from the Enterprise will likely remain on Gagarin IV until other Federation vessels can arrive to clean up the research station, and appropriate it for other uses.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 22, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

A Priority One Mission

We have a new mission from Starfleet Command. In fact, this is a mission of extreme importance, and one that has been rated "Priority One". These new orders arrived by commship this morning, having been routed through Deep Space 1, and sent from Earth about two weeks ago.

It is rare for any ship to receive a "Priority One" mission this far outside Federation space, but, we now have one, and it takes priority over all other operations.

I have read the mission orders, and they are, indeed, very serious. I am, however, under orders not to share details at this time (command-level need-to-know only). I can say, though, that, right now, the Enterprise is at high warp, bound for our ordered destination. When we arrive, and our mission commences, I'll be able to share more. For now, let's just hope this goes smoothly. Starfleet Command has put a lot of trust in the Enterprise to execute these orders.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 20, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

A Pirate Mystery

The Enterprise has returned to its scheduled mapping and survey mission. There wasn't much that we could do at the debris site, so we left a buoy to memorialize the incident, and resumed our exploratory mission. Perhaps, someday, a ship with a crew who knew those who were lost, will come across our buoy, and can properly process the site.

For now, we did what we could. We responded to a distress call, but we arrived too late. Two ships were lost, and we have no idea who was aboard either vessel. The debris holds no definitive clues, and we don't know who to report the incident to. In space, not everything is tied up in a neat little bow. Some mysteries, with always remain mysteries.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 15, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

A Pirate Encounter

Well, that was interesting. We just destroyed a pirate ship.

About thirty minutes ago, we picked up a distress call from an unidentified, non-Federation science vessel. The call was broadcast in multiple languages, including Federation English, and claimed that their vessel was under attack by a heavily-armed starship. The message didn’t name any species we recognized, but was, most definitely, a plea for assistance.

The Enterprise immediately stopped our system survey scans, and went into response mode. We jumped to warp 9 for a few seconds, and arrived at the source of the call about 2 billion kilometers away. Because communication cannot travel faster than warp 1, however, the distress call we received had been sent about an hour and half before we received it.

When we dropped out of warp, the distressed vessel was already in poor shape, having been through a serious fight. The armed vessel appeared to be damaged as well, and was cutting open the distressed vessel with some sort of laser. We likely startled them, because they immediately shut down their laser, and fired upon the Enterprise. Our response hails went unanswered, so Lieutenant Commander Mallaidh (the Beta Shift commander) returned fire, damaging the pirate vessel even further. The hostile ship then turned, fired upon the science vessel, destroyed it, and then attempted to escape. Another phaser volley from the Enterprise intended to disable their engines, but the blast must have been too much for the pirate vessel, and it too exploded.

Now, for the last twenty minutes, the Enterprise has been scanning the debris of both vessels. We haven’t found any sign of survivors, nor anything among the debris that the attacking vessel may have been trying to obtain. Both crews are dead, and we know nothing else about the incident.

Deep space is full of unexpected moments like these. It also goes to show just how lawless the unclaimed space outside the Federation can be. Who were those scientists in distress, and what was the pirate vessel, tearing them apart with a laser, looking for?

Sadly, we may never know.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 14, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Starfleet Ship Time

Here's a little bit of trivia for you: Earth is separated into nearly 40 time zones. Since Earth hosts the headquarters of Starfleet, the passage of time aboard Starfleet ships, space stations, and starbases matches the passage of time on Earth.

Many people think that Starfleet ships follow the same time zone as is used in San Francisco, California -- where Starfleet HQ is located, but this isn't actually true. Back in the late 2130s -- over 200 years ago -- there was a conflict between the newly-formed Starfleet on the west coast of the United States, and the United Earth capital in New York City, on the east coast of the United States, over which timezone should apply to Earth starships in space. Time aboard a starship isn't bound by planetary rotations, but it is still a valid management concept nonetheless.

After much debate, Starfleet and the United Earth government finally agreed to define time aboard Starfleet ships in accordance with the CDT time zone located within the middle of the country. As a result, for the past 225+ years, all Starfleet ships operate on the Central USA CDT timezone (i.e., the same time zone in use within Chicago, USA).

Twenty-five years later, the new Federation Council, at the petitioning of Captain Jonathan Archer -- the former captain of the Enterprise NX-01, signer of the Federation Charter, and my own direct ancestor -- passed legislation to adopt Starfleet time (USA CDT) as the new Federation standard. It was quickly signed into law by Thomas Vanderbilt, the first Federation President, and from that point onward, all time aboard Federation starships has followed Earth CDT time.

Other Federation member planets do still maintain ship chronology that matches their own planetary rotations, however, when dealing with the Federation, all ship time is in Earth CDT.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 12, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

To Seek Out New Life, And New Civilizations

The Enterprise has moved on from the Omega Segitta star system, and is now conducting scans of a binary star system nearby. None of the planets in this system are habitable.

Most people seem to think that the universe is full of home worlds for thousands of unique species. But, the truth is, less than 0.1% of the planets the Federation has come across over the last two centuries can support life. Over 99% of all planets in the known galaxy (and likely the entire universe) appear to be uninhabited, and have toxic atmospheres.

Interestingly enough, most sentient species the Federation has discovered, are humanoid, and live on some type of class-M planet (i.e., temperate, tropical, desert, or arctic environments). There are a few exceptions, sure, but only a handful at best. If I were a betting man, I'd say it almost seems like the universe was designed for oxygen-breathing humanoid species.

In fact, there are even some scientists who theorize that all of the sentient species we do come across, were once ancient Humans who chose to leave Earth -- via a gateway similar to the mythical "Iconian Gateway" -- thousands of years ago. Any genetic differences in their DNA were, as they theorize, changed by the God who designed the universe, and chose to separate them from the Humanity they chose to give up.

However these species came to be where we find them, it sure does make our mandate to "seek out new life and new civilizations" all the more exciting. If less than 0.1% of all planets in the galaxy can support life (almost all of these being Class-M), then the goal of our mandate becomes very much like a search for lost treasure. Therefore, if you think about it, as Starfleet personnel, we aren't just deep space explorers, we're treasure hunters as well -- treasure hunters looking for surprisingly similar sentient life, in a galaxy where such life is extremely rare.

I don't know about you, but that certainly puts a whole new perspective on what we do, and why we are out here doing it!

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 9, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Observing the Omega Segitta System

The Enterprise is currently running scans of the Omega Segitta system. We are, however, keeping our distance from both inhabited Class-M planets, since they are independent, and controlled by the Coalition of Medina. We have no jurisdiction here.

Both planets, Atlec and Straleb, were settled by Humans roughly a century ago. Despite an offer by the Federation to aid in their settlement, the colonists preferred independence, and have since established a political union within this system. They also maintain a treaty of non-interference with the nearby Ferengi.

It is also worth noting that the inhabitants of these two planets, while space-capable, still travel their star system aboard fusion-powered vessels that use laser weaponry. Cargo ships frequently travel between the two twin planets, and the coalition, as a whole, maintains a moderately-sized sub-light defense fleet. It isn’t known why these Humans use such antiquated technology, but it does seem to serve them sufficiently well out here on the Federation frontier.

The Enterprise is on the outer edges of this system merely to observe and collect data. We are not scheduled to interact with any ships, satellites or political officials.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 7, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

A Shuttle Naming Contest

Commander Riker recently suggested that the Enterprise crew be given the opportunity to rename three of our Type-6 personnel shuttles -- both as a community-building exercise, and as a way to add more personality to our auxiliary vessel manifest. Captain Picard approved the suggestion earlier today, and Commander Riker has begun accepting name submissions.

As a courtesy to the Public Affairs Office, and those who follow our PAO page, Captain Picard has included all of you in the process as well. Names that you suggest will be considered among the those that the senior staff will choose from.

The three Type-6 shuttles that will be renamed are Curie, Jackson and Yeager.

You can see the manifest of all auxiliary vessels assigned to the Enterprise on our Enterprise Auxiliary Vessels page.

So, what names do YOU think a Type-6 shuttlecraft aboard the USS Enterprise-D should have?

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 5, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Destination: Pelos Cluster

The Enterprise is currently traveling to our next assignment. We left Deep Space 1, at 2300 hours last night, and are heading toward a region of space known as the Pelos Cluster. There are a number of uncharted star systems located there that Starfleet would like us to study. We’ll run a few scans, gather information, and then send it off to Starfleet Cartography to analyze. It should be a relatively uneventful mission, and one that centers mostly around our science crew.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 4, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

An Enterprise Swim Match

The Enterprise is preparing to leave Deep Space 1 within a few hours, however, that didn’t stop one last event from taking place aboard the Starbase. Our own counselor, Lieutenant Nicholas Hopkins, had challenged our newest Adamoi crewmember, Evelee, to a swim match in the DS1 pool. Today was the date of the meet.

A few dozen spectators were in attendance, enough to fill the bleachers. My staff and I were present as well. Somehow, Lieutenant Hopkins even managed to have the event broadcast live in the lounges of both DS1 and the Enterprise. I hear there were quite a few people watching aboard the Enterprise, including Captain Picard.

In the end, it was a thrilling race, with Lieutenant Hopkins edging out Evelee by 0.07 seconds for the win. Both swimmers enjoyed the attention, and those watching seemed to be heavily invested as well. A reception and “after-party” were held in Ten Forward (here aboard the Enterprise), with Evelee playfully declaring that she could easily defeat Nicholas in a rematch. She claims to have been holding back in her performance, and would love to swim again at her full skill level. I wouldn’t be surprised if medal-winning swimmer, Lieutenant Hopkins, schedules a rematch as soon as another pool becomes available.

Competition is alive and well, here aboard the Enterprise. It’s a sign that our crew is starting to come together as a community. We had a rocky start with the Devron Anomaly, but it’s good to see the crew settling in and life moving on.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 3, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

Undefeated

For those of you unable to attend the Parrises Squares match this afternoon, our Enterprise team crushed the Deep Space 1 team by a score of 64-37. We had four goal drops (two by my own hand), two zingers, and seven zips, while the DS1 team only managed to score two goal drops (one because of a penalty reversal by the refs), one zinger, and six zips. To be honest, I don’t think the DS1 team was fully prepared for how skilled some of us “’Prisers” are at the game.

Injuries were minimal – on both sites, although, I may have slightly sprained my ankle when I was tossed from the pyramid. Bruises will, of course, be plentiful tomorrow, but that’s normal for a lively game of Parrises Squares.

The good news is, we fought hard, and we won. Deep Space 1 will likely think twice before challenging the Enterprise to another match. We’ve only played one ship-to-ship match since the Enterprise was commissioned, but, hey, we’re undefeated! That’s not a bad way to start this ship’s Parrises Squares record.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 1, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)

How To Play Parrises Squares

Parrises Squares is a team sport played on a large, raised, padded playing field, with a 13-step pyramid in the center, and two ramped "end zones" on both ends. Two eight-square defense grids reside at the bottom of each side of the pyramid, separating the pyramid from the end zones. A round vertical hoop extends above each end zone, and teams score points by throwing or placing a handball through the opposing team's hoop.

There are two teams in Parrises Squares, with four players on each team. Each team wears a game uniform featuring a different color. Colors vary according to team preference, however, both teams must wear a contrasting color while in play.

One player on each team is known as the Keeper. He or she defends his/her goal hoop, and must keep the opposing team from putting the ball through that hoop. The Keeper must remain in either the last row of squares on the defense grid, or within the ramped end zone. He/she cannot participate in the offensive strategies taking place in other areas of the playing field. The Keeper is equipped with a padded ion mallet designed to extend his/her reach in the case of thrown balls, or to help fight off opponents that enter his/her defensive area.

The other three players play offense and defense as required. Their task is to keep the opposing team from capturing the ball and crossing the pyramid to score, while simultaneously capturing and passing the ball themselves, and attempting to cross the pyramid to score for their team.

Players score for their team by doing one of two things: they can throw the ball, from anywhere on the field, so that it goes through their goal hoop, or they can fight their way past the opposing Keeper, and place the ball place directly through the hoop. Balls thrown from the top of the pyramid, that go through the goal hoop ("zingers"), score five points. Balls thrown from anywhere else on the field ("zips") score two points. Balls placed directly through the hoop in the end zone ("goal drops") score ten points.

If a ball goes out of play, a replacement is tossed in from the sidelines. The new ball enters play at the same place it left the field, and any player may recover it to continue the game.

In addition to the 12-step pyramid, there is a wall on the non-field sides of the pyramid so that players are forced to go up and over the pyramid. A padded "pit" exists outside both sides of the playing field to minimize injury from players falling off the pyramid. If a player falls into the pit, they must re-enter the playing field by way of the access ramps on their side of the pyramid. Game play continues while a player is returning to the field, so their absence can be a strategic advantage to the opposing team.

Only one offensive player may enter the opponent's defended end zone at any given time. If they leave the end zone, another teammate may jump down onto the zone and attempt to score through that hoop. Only the Keeper may defend within the end zone.

A standard game of Parrises Squares consists of four quarters of fifteen minutes each, with breaks of five minutes in between each quarter. Substitute players may be swapped into play during any of those five minute quarter breaks. If a player is injured and unable to finish the match, a substitute may enter the game. If there are no substitute players on a team, that team must continue the game with with one less player on the field.

The team that scores the most points by the end of the fourth quarter wins. If games are tied after four quarters, successive 15-minute quarters are added until one team finishes with more points.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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September 1, 2364 -- (Original Devron Timeline)