Sam Archer in the Gamma Quadrant; Liberty Overdue

A few hours ago, I returned from the Gamma Quadrant aboard my civilian runabout, the SS Jackson (hence the recent posting silence). I spent the last eight days as part of a second 5-person Starfleet crew exploring the other side of the Barzan Wormhole. I was the pilot (since my ship was being used for the mission). Our scheduled target was a binary star system near the GQ terminus of the wormhole. Some landed exploration was part of our objective, but we didn’t find any sentient life. There may, however, be mining potential on two of the planets. Starfleet doesn’t maintain any mining operations, so it is likely that civilian companies could send vessels out this way, if they see profit potential.

In other news…

Upon my return to the Enterprise, I was disturbed to discover that our other runabout, the USS Liberty, has not yet returned from their two-week mission. They left the Enterprise on November 2, and were due back on Monday. They are now two days late. There was some flexibility in their mission parameters, so, they could be fine, and might return tomorrow. They could also be in distress – we have no active communication, so we wouldn’t know either way.

Since our second Starfleet runabout is not equipped for extended recon operations (we swapped out the USS Paladin for a rear-access cargo runabout at Qualor III), I’ve been told that my SS Jackson could be called upon to go search for the USS Liberty, if they don’t return by tomorrow evening. I’ve been asked to prep the Jackson, and have it ready to launch again, just in case. Thankfully, I have a team of shuttlebay engineers who help me keep the Jackson maintained; I have assistance. Still, tomorrow could be a very busy day, as I get a new rescue-oriented crew ready for launch.

We have sent a few Type-6 and Type-7 shuttles through the wormhole – some are still conducting sensor missions, but none of them have the kind of distance range native to a runabout. If the Liberty doesn’t return, I’ll be heading out again, to find it.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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November 18, 2365 -- (Original Devron Timeline)