Sandy Browne, Mon August 15th 2011 6:37pm
USS Stardust: when the legend is home and alive
In January 2387, all Federation media reported Starfleet's long witheld decision to declare the legendary USS Stardust an official casualty of the Cold War with the Romulan Empire. In a striking turn of events, the USS Avalon finally brought home the survivors of the lost starship.
The USS Stardust, the last Challenger-class starship to leave shipyards, was reported missing in action with all hands on January 12, 2361. After enjoying the Federation New Year celebrations on Argelius, the crew was just back on patrolling duty along the Romulan Neutral Zone when it disappeared. In 2386, ongoing diplomatic talks with the Empire yielded strong evidence to a similar incident occuring on the same stardate on the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone. The final announcement taking place 26 years to the day after the Stardust went missing meant to bring final closure to the affected families.
Just a few months later, the USS Avalon was standing down from weeks of exacting relief duty at the forefront of the Hobus shockwave when new evidence gathered by modern technology led Sixth Fleet Command to restart investigations. As it turned out, the survivors of the USS Stardust settled a barely hospitable L class planet located 70 light years from starbase 173. They were not alone. Among them were the few Romulans to escape the destruction of their own ship, the RNS Sienov. Isolated, with no means to reach out, the combined crews joined forces to face the challenges of their new life.
Commodore Paula Chapman Stark, CO of the USS Avalon, insists that the survivors engineered their own rescue. "They built a sensing array from the debris of their escape pods," she explains. "In 2364 they detected a functional pod abroad in the system. It was remotely programmed to journey until it reached open space, where it broadcast a distress signal. In 2375, the USS Fort Boyard science ship detected a faint signature. We picked up that trail and followed it to the planet."
This leaves a number of questions unanswered. The L class planet, baptized New Risa in derision was hidden at the core of a largely undetectable dark nebula, itself located in unexplored territory beyond the Romulan Empire, almost 200 light years from the last known position of the USS Stardust. One may wonder at the coincidence that had the USS Swiftsure disappear from a nearby sector of space 3 years ago to be found again in Outer Perseus; the vessel was under command of Commodore Chapman Stark. Serving on the USS Avalon is young genius physicist Dr Podkayne March of Outer Perseus Translift fame. Dr March declined to comment.
Questioned on the circumstances that brought the Stardust and Sienov to this common fate, the spokesman for the Federation Council stated, "Twenty six years have passed. A lot of the crew didn't live to see this day, the rest have had in mind the daily necessities of bare survival. There will be no further investigations. Considering the tragic consequences of the Hobus event, let us savour the day's victory. A crew that was lost has come home, aboard a starship that helped saving hundreds of Romulan lives. Among the Stardust people are numerous children and young adults, some of which are of mixed Romulan lineage. This is the symbol that we want to keep in mind in years to come."
Captain Jules Cormack, formerly commanding officer of the USS Stardust, is slated to open a Starfleet Outpost in the Farlong Reefs sector by the end of the year. The outpost will be set on the same colony world where many a former crewmember and their New Risan families have chosen to relocate. Prompted to explain how he could be ready to leave again so soon, Captain Cormack declared "Starfleet is not done with me, nor am I done with Starfleet. We have a lot of catching up to do." The USS Avalon is the flagship of the Farlong Reefs sector's taskforce.
- FNN Newsroom
The USS Stardust, the last Challenger-class starship to leave shipyards, was reported missing in action with all hands on January 12, 2361. After enjoying the Federation New Year celebrations on Argelius, the crew was just back on patrolling duty along the Romulan Neutral Zone when it disappeared. In 2386, ongoing diplomatic talks with the Empire yielded strong evidence to a similar incident occuring on the same stardate on the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone. The final announcement taking place 26 years to the day after the Stardust went missing meant to bring final closure to the affected families.
Just a few months later, the USS Avalon was standing down from weeks of exacting relief duty at the forefront of the Hobus shockwave when new evidence gathered by modern technology led Sixth Fleet Command to restart investigations. As it turned out, the survivors of the USS Stardust settled a barely hospitable L class planet located 70 light years from starbase 173. They were not alone. Among them were the few Romulans to escape the destruction of their own ship, the RNS Sienov. Isolated, with no means to reach out, the combined crews joined forces to face the challenges of their new life.
Commodore Paula Chapman Stark, CO of the USS Avalon, insists that the survivors engineered their own rescue. "They built a sensing array from the debris of their escape pods," she explains. "In 2364 they detected a functional pod abroad in the system. It was remotely programmed to journey until it reached open space, where it broadcast a distress signal. In 2375, the USS Fort Boyard science ship detected a faint signature. We picked up that trail and followed it to the planet."
This leaves a number of questions unanswered. The L class planet, baptized New Risa in derision was hidden at the core of a largely undetectable dark nebula, itself located in unexplored territory beyond the Romulan Empire, almost 200 light years from the last known position of the USS Stardust. One may wonder at the coincidence that had the USS Swiftsure disappear from a nearby sector of space 3 years ago to be found again in Outer Perseus; the vessel was under command of Commodore Chapman Stark. Serving on the USS Avalon is young genius physicist Dr Podkayne March of Outer Perseus Translift fame. Dr March declined to comment.
Questioned on the circumstances that brought the Stardust and Sienov to this common fate, the spokesman for the Federation Council stated, "Twenty six years have passed. A lot of the crew didn't live to see this day, the rest have had in mind the daily necessities of bare survival. There will be no further investigations. Considering the tragic consequences of the Hobus event, let us savour the day's victory. A crew that was lost has come home, aboard a starship that helped saving hundreds of Romulan lives. Among the Stardust people are numerous children and young adults, some of which are of mixed Romulan lineage. This is the symbol that we want to keep in mind in years to come."
Captain Jules Cormack, formerly commanding officer of the USS Stardust, is slated to open a Starfleet Outpost in the Farlong Reefs sector by the end of the year. The outpost will be set on the same colony world where many a former crewmember and their New Risan families have chosen to relocate. Prompted to explain how he could be ready to leave again so soon, Captain Cormack declared "Starfleet is not done with me, nor am I done with Starfleet. We have a lot of catching up to do." The USS Avalon is the flagship of the Farlong Reefs sector's taskforce.
- FNN Newsroom
