Star Trek: Fortitude
Season Two-Episode Nine: “Natural Disturbance”
By Jack D. Elmlinger
PROLOGUE
Two years had passed by. Two years since she had been stolen.
No, that wasn’t fair. After all, they didn’t have any idea that her shuttle had been caught in their energy-collection efforts. It had only been after they reached the planet that they called home that they bothered to check their intake manifolds, such as they were. Within the giant chasm, her shuttle had rested and inside of it, she had rested. She had been knocked unconscious, completely unaware as the shock of the experience had shut down her central nervous system. But there she was in her shuttle, nevertheless.
It had been an incredible twist of fate.
They had been searching for a doctor, a doctor beyond their basic understanding of biology. For all of the technological advances of the Eastleans, for all of the majesty and wonder of their space fleet, the gaps in their grasp of biology and medicine were about as large as their star cruisers themselves. Upon awakening aboard her shuttle, crowded by a gaggle of curious faces, she practically had to heal herself using the medical tricorder and emergency hyposprays that she kept close by. While technology wasn’t exactly her forte… Well, that was an understatement. While her powerful technophobia still reigned supreme in her character, even she had to applaud the Universal Translator built into her combadge.
With it, she had learned quickly that the Eastleans were suffering from a crippling illness. A horrible plague had swept into their system by a passing storm. A total accident, some curious young astronaut, servicing one of their space stations, had collected a sample from the storm, and well, the rest was so much Eastlean history.
But they had found her. Accident or not, they had a doctor.
Two years ago…
ACT ONE
Captain’s Log, Stardate 50418.5;
We are approaching the Eastlea system which has been unexplored by Starfleet and is teeming with life. A gigantic spaceport on one of the core worlds, Eastlea III, appears to be a major galactic trading hub for this entire sector. Sensors indicate over twenty-five distinct alien species using the Eastlea III facilities, which means that we’ve got our work cut out for us as representatives of the Federation. Before we can even begin our study of this species and their culture, I have the honor of making First Contact with the Eastlean authorities.
“Those ships are… my goodness…”
Lieutenant Arden Vuro could barely complete his sentence, instead of letting his voice drift away into the background hum of the USS Fortitude’s Bridge. Seated behind him, both Captain Llewellyn and Commander Archer shared his amazement. They thought that Starfleet built nice starships but this was something else.
The viewscreen was dominated by two large vessels. They were resting peacefully in orbit of Eastlea III, the swirling blue atmosphere reflecting from their glistening silver hulls. Sensors recorded their size at over one thousand standard meters in length and almost six hundred meters wide. Beside them, the Intrepid-class visitor must have looked like a playful puppy, nipping at the heels of two elephants. Countless viewports swept along with their blunted forwards sections, bulging midway to provide support for the graceful pair of wings that each of them proudly displayed. The engines were distinguished by their cavernous, hollow intake manifolds which were stunning to behold.
“They have to be the biggest ships that we’ve ever encountered,” Ewan breathed, hardly a starship buff but he was still held in awe. “Don’t go crazy on those scans, Jason. We haven’t introduced ourselves yet. We don’t want to be rude.”
“Aye, Captain,” Ensign Armstrong nodded from Ops.
“This is the easy way to make First Contact,” Valerie piped up, shooting a sideways glance at Ewan. “Tons of new races with all of them in one place. You’re going to have to delegate, sir, if you want us to ever get going again.”
“You didn’t have plans, did you, Commander?,” Ewan teased her. “You know, this is why we’re out here. We could meet more new people, make more friends here than we could ever hope to by just flying out into the unknown. Think of Eastlea III as one giant reception. Make yourselves comfortable and mingle.”
“I have the Eastlean Commissioner hailing from the surface,” Armstrong reported, interrupting the conversation between the captain and the first officer. Standing from his seat, Llewellyn straightened his collar and smoothed down the front of his uniform before he turned back towards the operations console and gave a short, sharp nod. Jason complied, opening the channel right away. “Putting him through…”
A warm smile greeted the Bridge.
The Eastleans were a humanoid race with pink skin that was more brightly toned than the Humans serving aboard Fortitude and slight ridges surrounding their eyes. There was a total lack of anything even close to a nose and it was unsettling to Ewan, at first. Getting past his initial reaction, the Welshman stood tall and returned the smile.
“Greetings!,” exclaimed the Commissioner. “I am Adarak, leader of the Eastlean people and commander of the Eastlean Space Force. May I welcome you to our starport and wish you a very happy stay!”
“Your hospitality is most welcomed, Commissioner Adarak,” Llewellyn replied.
“Please, just Adarak, Captain…?”
“Llewellyn, Ewan Llewellyn. My vessel is the starship Fortitude and we represent the United Federation of Planets.”
Commissioner Adarak stopped smiling. His pink complexion faded, his eyes instantly transforming from open and welcoming to something resembling disappointment. His mouth opened slowly as if to speak, before closing again. Obviously, the mention of the Federation had bothered him but as to why, Ewan had no idea.
“Is something the matter?”
“No… no, not at all, Captain… but we should meet immediately.”
“Would you care to beam aboard?”
“Again, no. You should come here. I stand ready to receive you.”
The connection was terminated at the source. As the viewscreen returned to the appearance of the impressive star cruisers of the Eastlean Space Force, Valerie joined Ewan at the center of the Bridge, fixing him with a puzzled expression.
“What was that about?”
“I intend to find out, Commander. You have the Bridge.”
* * * *
Adarak’s office was a regal affair. Materializing in the corridor outside, Captain Llewellyn had chosen to take Ensign Jim Morgan with him, in case of any possible dangers that the odd invitation would reveal. Together, they walked slowly forward, finding that the only door available to them was slightly ajar. Pushing it aside, they found the Commissioner inside alone, the flickering orange flames that lined his office creating an almost eerie old horror feel to their surroundings. It reminded Jim of one of his boyfriend’s old B-movie holodeck programs: the sinister villain’s lair. Only Adarak’s expression diffused the mood, moving forward to greet the two Starfleet officers.
“Forgive the theatrics, Captain,” he said, seeming brighter already. “I was just caught slightly off-guard by your arrival. As for my surroundings… well, they’re the downside of keeping our culture intact. My ancestors obviously favored the dramatic.”
“Please, Adarak,” Llewellyn continued,” why the urgency when you heard that we were representing the Federation?”
“Do follow me,” the Commissioner motioned, shuffling away.
Ewan and Jim did as they were asked, moving through the old office and into a much modern chamber. It was lined with large monitor screens, vast displays that could have displayed an entire shuttlecraft full scale if so ordered. Upwards of thirty Eastleans manned the various consoles. Headsets were clamped down over their pink faces and it quickly became apparent that this was starport traffic control. The Eastleans, putting their leader so close to their organizational trading structure, were clearly driven by their hospitality and their role as a galactic hub for friendly races.
“As you can see, Captain, I am a busy man,” Adarak revealed. “We have little time for special cases as much as I would love to cater to your every whim. Our race was once ravaged by a deadly plague, a disease that threatened to eradicate us from existence, and since overcoming it, we’ve vowed to do as much as possible for the Galaxy. What’s ours is yours, so to speak.”
“Fascinating,” Jim interjected,” but that still doesn’t answer the captain’s question, sir.”
“I’m getting to that. We’ve only recently built all of this, gentlemen. Over the past standard Earth year, as we’ve increasingly become stronger as more and more of our people defeated the plague…”
“Hold on,” Ewan broke in, frowning. “A standard Earth year?”
“Yes, Captain. You are not the First Human to set foot on Eastlea III.”
“What? Then who is?”
Footsteps approached from behind the small group, echoing above the background chatter of the starport traffic control computers. Turning around, both Llewellyn and Morgan fixed their gazes on the source. She must have been somewhere between forty and fifty years of age. She was of medium height and sporting curled blonde hair of a medium length. Her attire was of the most interest. It was an old Starfleet uniform with black shoulders giving way to the blue of her department color. Her combadge featured rounded edges rather than the modern squared angles and the three pips on her collar indicated her rank was Commander.
“I am, Captain,” she answered with a smile, her hand outstretched towards him. “Doctor Katherine Pulaski. Pleased to meet you.”
ACT TWO
“Her genetic profile is confirmed,” Lynn Boswell nodded.
The away team adjourned to Sickbay aboard Fortitude, leaving Commissioner Adarak behind on the planet’s surface at the insistence of Katherine Pulaski. The leader had seemed reluctant to let her leave but he caved in the face of her reassurance that she would return soon. Ewan found this all rather strange, the frown never once lifting from his expression. Now, here aboard his ship, the woman’s identity was established as genuine.
“You’re still not entirely convinced,” Pulaski noted.
“Doctor,” Llewellyn began, explaining his position,” official records indicate that you disappeared without a trace while aboard a shuttlecraft transferring from Starbase 27 on Stardate 47439. I find it hard to believe that you made it all the way out here into the unexplored depths of the Beta Quadrant all on your own.”
At that explanation, Pulaski turned back to Doctor Boswell. “Would you care to run those scans again?”
“Why don’t you just tell us what happened to you?,” the captain asked, fuming while he found the newcomer’s attitude to be abrasive.
“As you’re no doubt noticed,” Pulaski said, complying with his request,” the Eastleans have an impressive space fleet. Those starships of theirs use something called a Galactic Scoop to power their engines. Gigantic open filters that absorb background radiation and stellar dust, turning it into a fuel supply for their advanced warp drives. It’s a concept that I hardly understand. I can tell you that warp theory is beyond me.”
“Like a basking shark,” Ewan mused.
“Excuse me?”
“Basking sharks swim the oceans with their mouths constantly open,” he explained to both doctors as he remembered an uncle who had been obsessed with marine biology, telling him about all of these strange fish when he was a boy. “They filter out the plankton and minerals that they feed on as they go, never eating anything larger.”
“That sounds about right,” Pulaski agreed with him. “Tell me, Captain, has a basking shark ever accidentally swallowed a person? I only ask because that’s what happened to me. The passing Eastlean ship didn’t detect my shuttle. I was pulled into their engines and when I awoke, I was out here, back at their homeworld.”
“And you decided to stay?”
“They were suffering from a crippling disease. I couldn’t leave them.”
The pieces were beginning to fit together. While he hardly trusted the story on its face value, it was difficult to imagine anybody making up such an incredible tale. He had seen the Eastlean Space Force assembled, seen the technology being discussed, and realized that it wasn’t completely outside the realms of possibility. With such starships, the Eastleans could cover much more ground than Starfleet ever could.
Folding his arms, Llewellyn sighed, tilting his head towards Pulaski. “So you decided to remain, waiting for the day that Kansas would return to Dorothy.”
“Federation medical advances are far beyond anything they’ve ever seen here,” she replied, letting the colorful analogy pass without any comment. “Even the emergency medkit aboard my shuttle was capable of diagnosing symptoms that they never noticed. It wasn’t long before I realized that I could help them.”
“No wonder Adarak was wary of us. You’re the local heroine and he thinks that we’re here to take you home.”
“It’s not just that, Captain,” Pulaski warned him. “My work is almost complete. In one week, I will have finished everything, eradicating every single microbe of the virus from their entire species forever. I always said that I would be leaving one day to find a way home so you’re couldn’t be any better from my perspective. It could, however, be from theirs. I don’t think they’re going to let me leave.”
“Oh, joy…”
* * * *
“... and you believe her, don’t you?”
As usual, Llewellyn turned to his First Officer for advice. They were seated together in his Ready Room, the bond between them growing stronger with each of these soul-searching conversations, one often able to finish the other’s sentences by this stage. Valerie Archer was completely relaxed in the presence of her commanding officer. It was a rare thing so early on in a working relationship but today was not the time to psychoanalyze such things.
“At first, I didn’t,” Ewan answered honestly. “We’ve been out here long enough to know that if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. A missing Starfleet officer turning up on an alien world, just about to cure a deadly plague and ready to return with us? I don’t think that I’m the only person aboard who would react negatively. But then you look at her, Valerie, and you see those two years etched into her eyes. You see the work that she’s put in, the struggle that she’s had… All the while, disgraced from her home and removed from her people. Yes, I think she’s telling the truth.”
“Well, we have no reason to distrust the Eastleans, either,” Valerie noted with a degree of truth. “Adarak seems like a decent guy. His people are warm and open about their past.”
“I can empathize there, too. Coming out of what could have been the end of their entire existence… well, you’ve heard the stories of born-again religious experiences. Why couldn’t it happen to an entire race?”
Archer got to her feet, returning her empty coffee cup to the replicator and watching as it disappeared into the recycling buffer. It was much like the same way that the infamous Katherine Pulaski had disappeared, two years ago from Federation space, she pondered. She had gone without a trace, scooped up from the stars… indeed, by a Galactic Scoop, a giant component of a vast Eastlean Space Force cruiser. That was all above board, all of it a little fantastic, yet still plausible by modern standards. If Ewan believed it, she believed as that was the nature of their trust. The only part of this entire tale that she was now apprehensive about was the final warning from Doctor Pulaski.
“Adarak isn’t going to let her leave,” she mused. “Does she want to leave?”
“Yes,” the Welshman nodded, joining her at the replicator and disposing of his own coffee cup. “She’s been telling them for two years that, one day, she would either take her shuttle and point it towards Earth or, failing that, hitchhike across the sector and try to find an outpost or a starbase on her way. Now that we’ve arrived…”
“... and given her the perfect chance to get out.”
“Exactly,” Ewan realized. “In one week, she’ll be finished.”
“Do you think it might come to blows?”
With his pacifism securely in place, he turned to her and gave her the weakest smile that he could muster, desperately trying to show her that he wasn’t bothered by what really bothered him.
“I hope not.”
ACT THREE
Captain’s Log, Stardate 50421.3;
It has been six days since we arrived in the Eastlea system. In that time, we have successfully relayed a message to Starfleet Command through Starbase 499 and managed to reactivate Doctor Pulaski’s Starfleet rank and position. Working with our own chief medical officer, she had completed her important work on Eastlea III ahead of schedule and we’re preparing to head for home. I only hope that my fears about Commissioner Adarak are invalid or this situation could turn nasty.
Pulaski smiled at Lynn Boswell. The young woman had surprised her over the past six days, working solidly with a determination, unlike anything that she had ever seen before. It was as if she was trying to prove something to somebody, somewhere. They had been working with such fervor and such dedication to removing the last traces of the horrific Eastlean disease that they hardly had time to engage in friendly conversation. With a few minutes to spare while the last of their work was replicated and transported down from Fortitude, Pulaski handed Boswell a cup of tea and sat down beside her inside her Eastlea III laboratory.
“You’re a little young to be a chief medical officer.”
“It’s a long story,” Lynn replied, her mind instantly filled with images of Romulan spies, injured helmsmen, and rapid promotions. “Let’s just say that I wasn’t given much choice in the matter.”
“Oh?”
“Being assigned to Starbase 499, Fortitude is a long way from the Federation. We have to survive on our own out here. It’s no simple matter of calling home and asking for a new doctor. It can often be stressful but it pulls us all together much more strongly than any other crew that I’ve heard of.”
“It sounds like the perfect balance of challenge and safety,” Pulaski observed.
“Sometimes,” Lynn agreed with her but she still shook her head,” but then again, sometimes not. There have been trying times. Some quite recently, in fact, but still, I wouldn’t have it any other way. That’s for sure.”
“I have no idea where I’ll end up,” Pulaski mused with some trepidation. I’m hoping to find a posting of limited stress. After the two years that I’ve had, I could do with a break. A small job… perhaps a starbase physician in a remote sector…”
“What about Starbase 499?,” Lynn suggested immediately with her youthful eagerness shining through her professional resolve. She had enjoyed working alongside such an experienced mind, learning from one of the all-time greats of Starfleet medical care and the author of so many noted papers. “We might get it pretty rough on Fortitude but it rarely hits the space station. Besides, I think you’d get along nicely with Rear Admiral Blackmore. He can be quite…”
“I’m sorry,” Pulaski interrupted her. “Edward Blackmore?”
“Yes, do you know him?”
“I doubt he’ll remember me,” the older woman smiled with her cheeks flushing. “We were Academy friends. He was a few years ahead of me and…”
“Llewellyn to Pulaski and Boswell,” chirped their combadges, breaking into the reminiscing on Pulaski’s part and the fascination on Boswell’s. “We’ve finished replicating the final batch of supplies. They’re in transport now. Have you made arrangements to leave?”
“This is Pulaski,” the rediscovered physician replied to the communique. “My shuttle is ready to launch at your request, Captain. Boswell here will beam up presently.”
“The transporter would be quicker for both of you, Doctor,” Ewan reminded them once again, eager to get moving.
“I’m sure it would be,” Pulaski countered, reminding him of her technophobia. “My shuttle will do fine, thank you. I have a few goodbyes to make. They’ll only take a few minutes if you don’t mind…”
“The sooner, the better, Doctor. Llewellyn out.”
Damn, he was worried, wasn’t he?
Lynn Boswell beamed up with her equipment, almost immediately. Saying a silent farewell to the laboratory that had been her home for the last two years, Pulaski gave it a small smile before heading for the Commissioner’s office and the starport traffic control center. Hopefully, Adarak wouldn’t make the goodbye too painful. She had grown quite fond of the charming gentleman and considered him to be a good friend.
Charming, right now, he was not.
She found him inside that awful chamber of his, the one that history demanded remain preserved in a state of sinister foreboding. With the torches alight and the stone walls almost suffocating, Pulasking felt like she was going to the principal’s office to apologize for something she did.
In a way, she was.
As much as her Humanity told her that she didn’t belong with the Eastleans, it was going to be hard to leave them. They wanted her to stay and a small part of her conscience was guilty.
No, she had done her duty and cured their race. Enough was enough.
Adarak turned to face her, his usually jovial expression distorted by regret. “It’s time?”
“Yes, my friend,” Pulaski said with a warm smile. “These last two years have been a wonderful experience for me. Thank you for everything. I wish you and your people all the best in the future.”
“It’s a future that you should share…,” the Commissioner wavered, reaching beneath his desk and producing a small weapon which he pointed at Pulaski. “It’s a future that you will share, Doctor! I cannot allow you to leave!”
Oh, no… this wasn’t how she wanted it to be.
The weapon shook in Adarak’s hand. He was fighting himself to do this.
Cautiously, she stepped forward.
“Now look,” she began to say, her voice sounding as calm as she could manage,” you and I know that you’re not going to pull that trigger. It goes against everything that you stand for! You and your people are peace-loving explorers and hosts, not kidnappers! For all of your exploration, you keep coming back here… to home. That’s because home means more to all of us than we sometimes can comprehend. Coupled with laughter, it’s often the best medicine… and after two years, I’m ready to find my home again.”
Adarak felt tears in his eyes. “But…,” he stammered, his pink face practically glowing. “But… I…”
It was obvious what the end of the sentence would be.
“I know,” Pulaski said, cutting him off, her compassionate eyes meeting his. “I’ve known for quite some time, and I’m sorry that it’s come down to this. I didn’t want this.”
“You’re really leaving, aren’t you?”
“Yes… I am.”
“Will you ever come back to us?”
She didn’t want to lie to this man. He was still holding a weapon at her chest, but she knew that the answer would be one that would crush him. A brief struggle occurred within her. To lie, for what she could justify as therapeutic purposes. Or to tell the truth, as she always promised herself that she would? There was only one option.
Turning slowly, watching the weapon fall away towards the desk in Adarak's Loosening grip, she ignored his hopeful stare and walked away.
If she had been an emotional woman, she would have cried too.
Moments later, Adarak still waited for an answer to his question as he watched Pulaski’s shuttlecraft lift away from Eastlea III’s primary landing bay. He would survive, just as his people would survive… thanks to her.
Two years…
EPILOGUE
“Computer, locate Katherine Pulaski?”
“Katherine Pulaski is in the Mess Hall.”
Upon entering the recreational area decked out with the lavish upgrades that he had ordered, months ago, Captain Llewellyn quietly located his target. She was seated in a contemplative posture with an untouched drink in her hand while she watched the stars of the Beta Quadrant whip past the windows at Warp Seven. Ewan had to remind himself that this was the first time that she had been aboard a starship in almost two years. The uniform that they had replicated for her, updating her fashion in line with new Starfleet regulations, had taken some time to get used to. She had discarded a PADD beside her and upon approaching, he saw that it was a brief history of the last two years. Yes, she had some catching up to do.
“Doctor,” he said quietly.
“Captain, please…,” Pulaski responded, gesturing to another chair.
“No, thank you. I’m not stopping. I just wanted to make sure that you were settled in.”
“Oh, yes. It’s most comfortable, thank you.”
Ewan took a moment to size up her reactions. This wasn’t merely being out of touch with modern history. This was something else. Taking the offered seat for a brief moment, he caught her attention, brushing his dark hair away from his face as he shot her a look that asked, in silence, if she was all right.
“I’m sorry, Captain,” she replied after a moment. “Saying goodbye was difficult.”
“Don’t worry, Doctor. You’re also saying hello to a new job, a new crew, and a new seat of friends. Oh, and before I forget, call me Ewan, won’t you?”
“My… such a young, headstrong captain that you are,” she observed with a wry smile that made Ewan chuckle. “You’re very different from the other commanding officers that I’ve met throughout my career. I can tell you that.”
Llewellyn had to agree with her, as would his entire crew.
“You have no idea, Doctor.”
The End.