USS Diana, M-5 Command Log
Another boring observation spot outside Galactic Barrier
Day 393 of Mission
You’ll note, whoever may be reading my logs, that I did not mark Day 365 as particularly significant. Actually, you’ll note that I don’t mark most days as significant. That’s because they haven’t been. That’s also because my mission did not truly take shape, or really begin, before I breached the Galactic Barrier one year ago today.
To date, while I have gathered useful and interesting scientific data on interstellar space, data which I continue to analyze, that is not the primary purpose of this mission, which is to search for evidence of additional invaders from the Andromeda Galaxy. Had it not already happened, twice, I would argue that the entire concept of invaders from the Andromeda Galaxy sounded like the plot of a mid-20th Century drama or novel.
Operational status of the Diana is overall nominal. Repairs on the warp drive are as complete as possible and, without the Kelvan modifications, diagnostics indicate my cruising speed of Warp 6 is possible, but maximum speed of Warp 8 is a risk. With the Kelvan modifications, Warp 10 subjective may still be possible. Deflector shields are operating at 47% of normal efficiency.
As for the Kelvan drive modifications, several of them appear to be much close to failure than earlier anticipated, presumably due to damage during the Barrier crossing. The single-warp-nacelle and lower power generation of a Hermes-class scout put a greater strain on all systems when crossing the barrier. I’ve therefore discontinued use of these subsystems and, using my DRDs and android unit, temporarily disconnected them, in order to preserve them for the return through the Barrier. I could, if necessary, reduce remaining observation sites to only one more, at 216 light years distant from my current position, which would take another year to reach at Warp 6, but that currently seems inadvisable. Starfleet might have equipped the Diana to operate for 20 years total away from Federation space, but they also expected me to use my best judgement, and should I be stuck operating at Warp 6 due to failure of the Kelvan drive components returning across the Barrier, I’ll be stuck 3782.35 light-years from the outermost reaches of Federation space, requiring 17.51 years to return without refueling, assuming nothing else goes wrong and I can maintain Warp 6. Additionally, it’s difficult to argue that I should remain out here when there’s nothing of any strategic significance in the area.
At current cruising speed, I am presently seven days from the outer edge of the Galactic Barrier. I have set a course, and shut down all non-essential systems to conserve power, including phaser banks, in order to maximize available power to reinforce deflector shields. I have hope that this will prove sufficient, but am worried that it will not.
USS Diana, M-5 Command Log
Outer edge of Galactic Barrier
3778.21 Light-Years from Federation border
Day 400 of Misson
I am about to attempt to return through the Galactic Barrier. As such, I have attached all mission logs to date to one of the Diana’s log buoys in the event that my vessel is lost returning through the barrier, and a future Federation starship passing outside the Milky Way may happen to recover it.
Main Bridge, USS Diana
Inner edge of Galactic Barrier
Day 418 of Mission
A solitary blonde woman, her short hair in disarray sat in the center seat of the USS Diana’s bridge, wearing the standard Starfleet women’s command uniform, a long-sleeved gold tunic with loose black collar and, in her case, lieutenant’s stripes on the sleeves, along with a mini-skirt of the same color, black tights and boots. Her uniform looked haphazardly put on, and in disarray, but was leaps and bounds better than the coveralls tossed on the floor next to the command chair she sat in, which were smudged with oil, dirt, coolant and other unidentifiable chemicals. The lights were dimmed, and most consoles around the bridge remained offline.
Pressing a button in the right arm of the command chair, she spoke. ”Captain’s Log, M-5 android backup Diana Haines reporting. M-5 multitronic computer remains offline. Continuing to run on original duotronic systems as backup until repairs can be completed.”
“As suspected, Kelvan components failed completely during crossing. Warp drive is currently offline. Between myself and the DRDs, we should be able to bring the warp engines back online, but DRDs estimate at least nine weeks to effect minimal repairs. However, while diagnostics indicate the warp nacelle itself is probably reasonably intact, a good thing since we lack the capabilities to make major repairs out here, the warp core itself is not, and we’ll never be able to run it at full power again. In fact, based on estimated damage and continued wear, the best the Diana will be able to make cruising is Warp 3. At that rate, it will take roughly 130 years to return to the borders of Federation space, assuming no change in Federation territory during intervening time.”
While a small, lozenge-shaped drone sat nearby, attempting to make repairs to the communications console behind Diana, it could not register the look of utter defeat on the android’s face.
“Compounding things,” she continued, “we’ve got limited ability to repair the M-5 out here. Without my M-5 main computer core, I’m operating at a fraction of my processing power. The DRDs and I should be able to get the M-5 online eventually, but not at full processing capacity, and by the time we do, this copy of me will have diverged significantly from the copy in the M-5. Actually, that’s already been happening: Mudd-type androids seem far more efficient at running with human memory engrams than the M-5 did: while I was both M-5 computer and android, I was a powerful sapient supercomputer that remembered being human. Now, I’m an android that feels human, and while I may be a bit faster-thinking than a normal human, my feats of mental computations are not far above those of Commander Spock. In other words, I may be smart. I may even be a genius compared to normal humans, and faster-thinking than my biological progenitor was, but not so much to make that much of a difference.”
“Rescue is not feasible, as the mission requirements dictated the Diana’s course could not be pre-determined. Starfleet has no idea where to look for me, and I’m not close enough to the last relay we dropped to let them know any time soon, even if subspace communications were working. Which they’re not. As such, we’re on our own out here, just one android, half our original DRD complement that survived the crossing, and a damaged M-5 computer, assuming we can ever get it back online.”
Diana paused the recording briefly, picked up a PADD from the seat next to her, and read briefly. Pressing the record button again, she continued. “Because we will take over a century to return to Federation space, and because we’re only rated for 20 years of continued operations, we’re going to have to stop off someplace to resupply. In fact, we’ll need to resupply our onboard fuel at least six times in total. Deuterium should be easy enough to manage. Antimatter won’t be. We’ll need to find friendly civilizations along the way, then, who are willing to help. That, of course, means running the risk of running into unfriendly civilizations, too.”
“Tactically, we’re not in the best of shape. Shield generation strength is down to 12% nominal. To think it wasn’t long ago I was unhappy with 47%. I’d love to get them back to that level again, but damage to the primary emitters has made that impossible. The DRDs and I will be lucky, given the state of onboard stores, to get back to 33% strength. The good news is that the phaser banks, thanks to being shut down completely, are at 100% operational capability. The not-so-good news is that, at present, I have only impulse power to charge their capacitors, which will limit how long the Diana can keep them operational in a fight, and our ability to run is compromised thanks to our compromised warp drive. The impulse engines are in reasonably good shape, though our backup fusion generators for emergency power aren’t: I’d spun them up to 110% maximum power output trying to shore up the deflector shields and navigational deflector during the Barrier crossing, and they paid the price. Both were forced into emergency SCRAM shutdown, and both show multiple micro-fractures rendering them unsafe. Repairs would be possible, but I’d rather conserve the parts to repair the fusion reactors for the impulse engines. At least the navigational deflectors are working well: I can maintain 0.6c with them both running on emergency power, and the standard 0.25c at full cruising impulse on either the main dish or the secondary deflectors on the leading edge of the saucer.”
“The Diana has taken a beating, and while I have no idea what the future will bring, besides more endless tedium punctuated by moments of sheer terror, along with vast amounts of hard work, I’m not giving up. I will get home.”
Stopping the recording and submitting it to the ship’s memory banks, Lieutenant Diana Haines, commander of the USS Diana, sighed. “I hope,” she added, for the benefit of no one there. Standing up, she turned to the DRD behind her. “Hey, 1812,” she said, “knock that off for now. We’ve got another bank of memory to test on the M-5. Let’s go.” She grabbed another PADD, one tied into monitoring ship’s systems, and turned for the turbolift, DRD ‘1812’ in tow.