Two days after Malone had hit the Chernov, the Chernov was ready to leave. The USS Constitution had been helpful. The cross-crew engineering teams – one led by Mr Batario and Mr Kax – and one led by Mr Zóbel de Ayala and Ms Lovejoy – finished all the tasks ahead of schedule. The Chernov was now in a good-enough shape. Luckily, the engineers and scientists hadn’t disclosed the Romulan cloaking tech to the visiting engineers, but it was entirely possible that they had understood what the Chernov was carrying. Even so, the Chernov had not tried or tested the tech. As such, no one knew if it would be working or not.

Still, the Chernov had its orders, and the crew needed to follow them. The staff of the Constitution were leaving the Chernov to return to their own ship. Good-byes were said. This friendship would not be forgotten.

On the Bridge, First Officer Kastarak had returned to service. He had been cleared fit for service, and outwardly it looked like nothing had happened to him. Inside, however, he was still shaken by it – a near brush with death – his second one. The first one had been when escaping the destruction of the planet Vulcan. So, what had happened now, was existential, and activated the traumatic memories from before. He had in his coma also sensed the proximity of Pawl, and sensed how helpful and meaningful that would be. Would there be a way for them to be with one another again? He didn’t know, but he longed to have an answer, an answer not rooted in logic but one in fact.

The Bridge was empty, save for some junior officers prepping the equipment and Kastarak himself, of course. Departure soon. He sounded the intercom.

“All department heads, report to Bridge. All department heads, report to Bridge.”

He sent an intercom to the captain too, letting the captain know the ship was ready. Lack of expertise in applying the bionic arm made the captain one-armed for now. Would he be able to serve? Or could Sickbay and Engineering, now when the emergencies were over, collaborate in sticking the bionic arm back? Either way, the captain was the captain of the ship. He needed to be informed of everything going on. And whether he had two arms or one arm, he was at least fit to serve – for now.

Finally, Kastarak sent an intercom to Ms Lovejoy, “Bridge to Lt Lovejoy, report to Bridge. Lt Lovejoy, report to bridge.”

Kastarak, Lt Cdr
First Officer and Navigations Officer