~\\_               
          \\\\_             
          `\\\\\            -----------------------------------------
           |\\\\\           Starfleet Command, Eighth Fleet (OOC)    
            \\\\\|__.-~~\   
         _--~         ~~/   Defenders Task Group 85.3, "Whitestone"  
       /~         _-~~~'    Embarked on U.S.S. Coronado, NCC-97901   
      ('-//////-//          Rear Admiral Tebrun Lora Kor, Commanding 
       ////// }}-)          -----------------------------------------
     /////~                 Simulation Report                        
  _///~                     Stardate 240210.28                       
 `                          
 _______________________________________________________________________ 
/ Simulation Teaser                                                     |
/ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ 

 "Your best guess will do, Mr. Dyson," Commander William Daren said,
 leaning over the Science Officer's console on Coronado's Bridge.

 "My best guess, sir?" Isamu said, looking up.  "I'd hate to
 speculate..."  He looked uncomfortable.

 "Try me," the Tactical Officer said.  In the absence of Captain
 Drexler and with Commander Dejat off the ship (and possibly himself
 a casualty of the spreading disappearances), Commander Daren had
 been left in charge of Coro's Bridge.  Drexler was closeted with a
 number of Defender senior officers at present, no doubt trying to
 convince them that his recent thoughts on what was happening were
 real... and not the El Aurian's imagination.

 Coro herself rushed "west," toward the Longshot system and the Jjaro
 artifact known as "Xanadu."  Drexler believed that whatever was
 happening, Xanadu was somehow connected to it.  However, even at
 slipstream, Xanadu was more than six hours from Reor.  As Coro raced
 west, the ansible was practically shrieking with more unexplained
 disappearances, more people lost in the strange rippling of
 spacetime.  Coronado herself had lost more than half her crew. 
 Planets themselves seemed unaffected, but anything or anyone on them
 or above them could suddenly vanish without a trace.

 "Well, Commander, as best I can tell, the effect occurred along this
 path," Isamu said.  On the Science board over his head, a small
 hologram appeared with the Allied systems highlighted.  Sweeping
 along them, a long curving arc shape appeared.  Almost flat enough
 to be a wall, the arc moved along Allied space, touching systems
 from "south" to "north": first Gateway and the surrounding systems,
 then Reor, then Tarndare.  The effect moved incredibly fast.  Daren
 pointed this out aloud, and Isamu nodded.

 "More than 900,000 times the speed of light, Commander," he said. 
 "As far as I can tell, it's some sort of broad spectrum chronometric
 disruption -- a disruption in the 'fabric' of space-time, as it
 were."   He backed the display out until it showed a very wide swath
 of M64.  "That isn't even the worst of it," he said.  "As far as I
 can tell, the effect is happening in three waves.  We've only been
 hit by the first.   The second will almost certainly disrupt
 subspace in a wide radius.  It might kill ansible communications,
 and will definitely kill warp and slipstream travel."

 Daren blinked.  "How long until the second wave reaches us?" he
 asked, trying to remain calm.

 "8.3 hours," Dyson said, nearly causing Daren to choke.

 "What caused this?  Where is it coming from?" the Tactical Officer
 asked when he had recovered somewhat.

 "I can only answer the second question, Commander," he said, "and
 that only with the roughest sort of guess."  Again, he caused the
 display to fall back outward, until much of M64 was visible.  "The
 effect is travelling 900,000 C in an expanding sphere... we were
 touched by one arc of that sphere.  If I contract the sphere, I get
 this..."  On the display, the expanding wall suddenly contracted,
 racing back "south" until the effect left M64 entirely.  Travelling
 through intergalactic space, the sphere continued shrinking until
 its other side became visible.  Still, the sphere shrank, and
 suddenly, another galaxy sprang into view.  This galaxy, like M64,
 was a standard spiral galaxy.  The sphere contracted, enveloping
 this new galaxy, then contracting within it until it encompassed a
 relatively small area -- maybe 20 or 30 light-years across.

 "I can't be any more precise than that, I'm afraid," Isamu said,
 indicating the display, "but the effect originated in that area,
 some 24 years ago, 2378 on our calendar.  It has been expanding from
 there at a constant speed since then."  The Science officer then
 hesitated, looking apologetic.  "I'm afraid that the effect's third
 wave probably extinguished all life at its origin point, and almost
 certainly continues to do so as it expands."  He then paused again,
 gulping, then continued.  "We can't see that wave yet, but if my
 calculations are accurate, that wave will reach us in two or three
 days."

 Daren slowly went pale as the implications of that statement became
 clear.  When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse.  "And where did
 you say the effect originated?  What galaxy is that?" he asked.

 Isamu blinked.  "Oh!  I'm sorry, Commander... I thought you knew,"
 he said, then gulped again.  "I'm afraid that's the Milky Way...
 specifically somewhere along the border between Breen space and the
 Federation."

\_______________________________________________________________________ 
\ End Simulation Teaser                                                 |
 ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ 

 Defenders Task Group 85.3, "Whitestone" Staff:
    Commanding, TG 85.3:       RADM Tebrun Lora Kor      (Jester)
    S-1, Group Adjutant:       Cmdr. Sieven Drexler      (Brad)
    S-2, Group Intelligence:   LCdr. Kariasa Ma'Aru      (Kari)
    S-3, Group Logistics:      Cmdr. Savant              (Savant)

 U.S.S. Coronado Crew Roster:
    Commanding Officer:        Capt. William Daren       (Daren)
    Executive Officer:         Cmdr. Darek Smith         (Aggie)
    Marine Commandant:         Col. Jeremy Ironside      (Fraser)
    Raptors Squadron Leader:   Lt. Colonel Thomas Wayne  (Masters)
    Chief Tactical Officer:    LCdr. Kyle Marcy          (Marcy)
    Assistant Tactical:        Ens. Tamarith             (Tamarith)
    Chief Flight Operations:   Ens. Maiko D'Rall         (Farrell)
    Chief Science Officer:     LCdr. Isamu Dyson         (Isamu)
    Assistant Science:         Ens. Veyla Anari          (Vaath)
    Company Commander:         Maj. Jacob Prescot        (Shadow-FjP)
    Chief Engineer:            Cmdr. Zunite Oswald       (Sonya)
    Assistant Engineer:        LCdr. Jack C. Farley      (CCC)
    Assistant Engineer:        Lt. Aramis Skylooker      (LewisSharp)
    Chief Medical Officer:     Lt. (JG) Jason Vogel      (Thompson)
    Assistant Medical:         Lt. Lauren Dyson          (Natty)
    Civilian Liaison:          S'buuth                   (rev)

 On Extended Leave of Absence:
    None!

 Positions Available:
    Flight Leader:                                       (---)

------
Jester

Rear Admiral Tebrun Lora Kor
Commanding, Defenders Task Group 85.3, "Whitestone"
embarked on U.S.S. Coronado, NCC-97901
http://www.jestertrek.com/coro2400/