Captain Addison MacKenzie - Off With Them

[Addison MacKenzie]

 

(( Bridge – Deck 1, USS Artemis-A ))

 

Per usual, the crew had performed above and beyond what she could have expected, especially considering that they’d been betrayed by, well, themselves. Despite the subterfuge and the injuries, they’d managed to come up with a solution to put the genie back in the bottle and send the Desdemona and its remaining surviving crewmembers back to the universe from which they came.

 

MacKenzie: Jovenan, are modifications to the deflector dish ready?

Jovenan checked the necessary indicators on her console before responding affirmatively.

Jovenan: All systems operational and within acceptable parameters, Captain.

MacKenzie: Lieutenant Silveira, can you confirm that all living members of the Desdemona crew have been returned to their ship?

 

Silveira: Confirmed Captain.

 

She took a deep breath in through her nose, held it for a moment at the top, then released it slowly through her mouth.

 

MacKenzie: Alright, then. Mr. Kader, move us into position. Prepare to engage the deflector and use the tractor beam to move the Desdemona through the singularity.

Silveira: Let’s make this work.

MacKenzie: ::nodding, to no one in particular:: It’s time to send them back where they came from. When you’re ready, Lieutenant…

Her eyes were fixated on the viewscreen as she heard the play-by-play updates from Jovenan.

Jovenan: Deflector firing… Reaching critical energy level… Singularity forming… Singularity formed.

Kader: Response

With the Artemis in position, the deflector engaged to open the singularity to the alternate reality from which the Desdemona came. It was a beautiful sight, powered by prismic energy, though from a place they did not, could not understand. Despite its beauty, the only reason for its existence in this moment was for a particular purpose.

Using the tractor beam, they ushered the shoddy ship into the singularity, and after it had fully passed through, the tractor beam disengaged, and the singularity closed behind them.

And then, they were gone.

Silveira: Good riddance.

MacKenzie: Terminate the deflector dish.

Jovenan: Terminating the deflector beam… The singularity has collapsed. No lingering effects or other unexpected events detected.

Vitor, looking haggard and worn down, stood, straightened his uniform, and turned to face her.

Silveira: Captain, permission to be relieved.

MacKenzie: ::nodding:: Granted. Disengage the tractor beam.

Kader: Response

As Silveira made his way toward the turbolift, an eerie silence fell over the command center when the doors swished closed behind him, whisking him away to process whatever it was he’d been through. … what they’d all been through. Collective trauma and shared grief would be something they’d all be responsible for processing in their own ways over the coming days, weeks, and months.

 

Being betrayed was hard.

 

Being betrayed by yourself was harder.

 

For now, they’d all earned a moment to exhale and let their adrenaline levels come down.

 

[End Mission for MacKenzie]

 

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Captain Addison MacKenzie, M.D., Ph.D., FASFS
Commanding Officer
USS Artemis-A

Captains Council Magistrate

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