(Vessel: Pullman-Class Transport, Aurora)
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I want you all to know first and foremost that I am glad that everyone made it back safely. This was definitely an interesting experience, not just for myself, but from the Counseling reports, everyone had an “experience” they will never forget.
My trip started off just like everyone else’s, the crew of the Aurora only wanted to enjoy some R&R and it turned into a “fight” to return home. I had asked David Whalen to join me on a camping trip on this beautiful planet originally.
When the Aurora was descending down into the atmosphere, the status alarm go to red alert, as the pilot relays to the crew that something has gone wrong. The other shuttles were disappearing and we could not figure it before our transport disappeared as well.
We emerged, from whatever caused us to vanish, still in the atmosphere. The primary thing that had changed was that the landing area was overgrown all of a sudden with trees, to me that was a serious red flag. I ordered the pilot to find a safe area to land.
After we were able to collect ourselves and figure out that it was safe to leave the shuttle, we set up a make shift camping site. All 35 of us were not going to comfortably be able to sleep on the Aurora. I put together Scouting/Security teams to scout for water and food sources and then protect us for “just in case”. I also told the pilot to send out a distress call every 16 hours with the emergency beacon, just in case the Enterprise some how came looking for us.
~Personal Side Note
(Which even I did not think was possible, because it was clear to me at that point that it was not a matter of where we were, WHEN we were. And here I though the Temporal Mechanics course at the Academy would never come in handy in the field. I was was terrified that we would never make it home and that motivated me to make sure I kept the crew safe, and that under no certain circumstances were we to EVER GIVE UP trying to find some impossible way to get back home!)
We realized that after a day or two, that we were suddenly not alone. Not that far from our camping site, there started to appear these “Giants” out of thin air. They started slow at first, and then they started coming out in waves. They were roughly 8-10 feet in height, and primitive by our standards. They were what looked like, from our safe vantage point, “creating” a village community of sorts. I ordered the group to steer clear of them. We did attempt to use the UT to decipher their language, but the syntax was unable to be deciphered. We did get some scans though of them, but not sure how much that will help out. The Giants were armed with better bows & spears than our crude make shift weapons. I was not willing to use the limited number of hand phasers we had at our disposal. I also reaffirmed to the Aurora crew of Starfleet Regulation 157, Section 3 (Paragraph 18): “Starfleet officers shall take all necessary precautions to minimize any participation in historical events.”
I also encouraged the Civilians to abide by this rule as well, for their own safety. Which did not seem to be an issue.
I also ordered our camp to move locations, since the Giant's village was growing and I was not about to have them discover us, and it cause a problem. I did leave the emergency beacon in the trunk of a tree at our landing area to continue to send out its call for help.
The new camp site had all of the essentials for survival and cover. We were far enough away from the Giants that they posed no danger to us. This was during our 4th day on the planet. (I personally dubbed the planet Avalon, after the Pagan island of which King Arthur of legend is said to sleep until he is needed again.)
On the 5th day we encountered something unique and interesting. A being in a white suit appeared and, of course I took action to protect the crew. I do the standard procedure during an Away Team mission, but this Human Male does not pose a threat as he inform me and the security team I have with me. He tells me that his name is Ceraquel and that we do not belong in this time and that he can also return us to the Enterprise & our time.
When I inferred to where/when he was sent, he just replied, “I have been sent from the Most High & that we passed through a particle barrier that transported us back in time to this worlds past. He also informed me that he was able to send us home to our time and back to the Enterprise.” In all my years and training as a person who can read people for a living, my gut was telling me I could trust this being.
So I went with my gut. I informed the Aurora crew of what was going to happen and we set to work. We packed up the camp site, and we get ready to renter orbit. Ceraquel vanishes after he wishes us good luck on our return trip. The Aurora enters the atmosphere and transcends into orbit, upon achieving orbit the Enterprise, Ambassador and Arcane appear in front of us. We are retrieved, and the rest of this unique quest unfolds normally. We are put into Medical Quarantine and checked out to make sure we are okay.
Thankfully we all made it safely. This was a very trying and reaffirming experience for myself. This proves that I have what it takes to be in Starfleet.
I want to also congratulate and recommend that Ensigns T’Lenn & th’Vhytrik, Crewman Whalen and Mr. Brian Harris, receive accommodations for their bravery and aid during this “mission”. We would have not -- I would have not -- made it safely without their help!
Lieutenant Nicholas Hopkins
Counseling Department
USS Enterprise-D
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March 4, 2365 -- (Original Devron Timeline)