Chaos Doesn’t Exist Here – The Station Enforces Order – Star Trek Fanfiction (Red Directive #28)

It must have been hours before I left Ops last night after the crew left. I knew I shouldn’t have turned around, but something… a force pulled me back in.

I knew what it was before I even turned around.

EOS Prospera knew something about the anomaly that I didn’t and it wanted me to know.

But only me…

Why?

I can’t seem to purge this thought from my mind no matter how hard I try.

It seemed like too much of a coincidence that I was also the only one who witnessed what happened inside the anomaly before Q intervened.

“Oh, I think you already know.”

Those words and his voice that used to send shivers down my spine as they repeated in my mind now left a sense of calm throughout my entire body.

I stopped walking with that last thought. I was in the corridor on my way to the command access junction from my quarters to go to Ops, the low hum of the station’s internal systems steady beneath my feet. I stood there for a second looking out a viewport window into the void of space.

What once felt confusing and wrong now felt right and the only thing that made sense to me on this station.

But how and why?

How can something not feel confusing when you know it really is?

The chirp from my com badge brought me back to reality. It was Commander T’Varen. “Commander T’Varen to Captain.”

I tapped my badge and started heading for the turbolift. “Yes, Commander?”

“It is one nine hundred thirty hours, Captain. You called the crew back to Ops at one nine hundred hours this morning when you dismissed everyone yesterday.”

Thirty minutes, commander? Really?

No doubts anymore, she was getting on my nerves. Apparently I was on hers as well. I sighed and tapped my com badge. “My apologies, Commander. I will be there shortly.”

Radio silence.

I stepped up to the turbolift doors which automatically slid open upon my arrival. I was barely in the turbolift and it already started moving inward in its usual direction towards Ops, the internal guidance system responding before I issued a command. The turbolift ride was also faster than normal.

I guess the station seemed a little aggressive today.

I arrived at Ops seconds later. The entire senior staff was there. Even the EMH and Aura.

I almost face palmed as I saw Aura. I didn’t eat breakfast this morning. My mind was preoccupied with other matters…

I descended the stairs to the lower command level at a fast pace. Everyone was at their designated consoles as usual already researching, their displays active with layered diagnostics and telemetry streams.

Everyone except the EMH and Aura who were standing at the primary command console. My entrance didn’t go unnoticed and they were watching me the entire time as I made my way in their direction.

I cleared my mind to prepare for whatever they had to throw at me when I got close enough to have a conversation. The EMH wasted no time. “I know I’ve only known you for a short period of time, captain, but from what I do know, tardiness is not your forte.”

“It isn’t, doctor. This was a rare occurrence.”

“That’s always reassuring.”

I could hear the normal egotistical sarcasm in his voice. It took a lot in me not to roll my eyes. Instead, I moved on with the conversation. “I see the mobile emitter is working fine.”

Great.

“What can I do for you, doctor?”

“I’m only here to assist, Captain.”

He gestured to Aura and I turned to speak with her only to be startled for the millionth time because she was too close inside my bubble, her proximity sensors apparently non-existent. Her glowing yellow eyes bearing into my soul.

Do androids not know what space is?

I steadied myself before speaking. “Aura. What are you doing? Did we not have a conversation about appropriate distances during conversations like this?”

She gave me the slightest head tilt. “No, we did not, captain. I was unaware my proximity to you when speaking was inappropriate.”

“Yes, Aura. Humans don’t typically stand that close to each other when speaking.”

The EMH had a smirk on his face and was rolling from heel to toe with his hands clasped behind his back.

It made me wonder what he was up to. I watched Aura un-tilt her head and take a small step backwards. Not an ideal distance still, but much better than before. “Is this proximity distance more preferrable, captain?”

“Yes, Aura. Now, what can I do for you?”

She grabbed a PADD that was sitting on the primary command console. “According to my sensors, the primary nutrients needed for your body to properly function are critically low.”

Here it comes.

“According to the station’s logs, you dismissed the crew at zero zero hundred hours and did not return to your quarters till zero two hundred hours.”

Damn, I was in Ops for two hours before I left? I looked around to see if any of the other staff was listening and they all were.

Before I could speak, she continued. “It is my duty to report any crew member or colonist lacking proper nutrition to the station’s Chief Medical Officer.”

I felt like I was in the Brig right now.

The EMH stepped closer with a grin. “As Chief Medical Officer, it is my duty to ensure the captain can operate at all times with full potential to avoid any unfavorable occurrences.”

“I can assure you doctor…”

He cut me off before I could continue. “In that aspect, I outrank you.”

Before I knew it, he jabbed a hypospray into my neck. I heard the normal hissing of the medicine being released into the epidermal layer of my skin. Then the pressure from the EMH holding the hypospray down released when it was complete and he removed his hand.

I rubbed my neck where he did it at. How can an EMH be so powerful?

“My apologies, captain. I wasn’t sure how you were going to react and I felt it was necessary to make sure you had the proper nutrients to get through the day if you were going to keep neglecting yourself.”

I frowned at his statement and behind him, I noticed Commander T’Varen and Lieutenant Darak both shaking their heads.

Immediate red flag.

Had they finally discussed their run ins with the station’s urge to randomly cut out active consoles and monitors to show only me the anomaly?

Commander T’Varen was smart. There’s no way she hadn’t noticed that by now.

The EMH literally snapped me out of my thoughts by snapping his fingers in front of my face. “Captain, you are to report to the Mess Hall for a lunch break at twelve hundred hours and the crew must be dismissed no later than nineteen hundred hours.”

Yes, this is definitely the Brig.

Aura continued with the grilling. “If I do not see you in the Mess Hall during the required timeframes, I will be forced to monitor your replicator. Failure to report for proper nutrition again will result in another visit with the doctor.”

The EMH looked like he was enjoying this. “Yes, captain. If I have to hypospray you again to administer the proper nutrients, I may be forced to relieve you of duty.”

I laughed at the idea. “I promise you doctor, this will not be a problem.”

He scoffed, “From what Aura claims, it sounds like it may be.”

Now I started to get frustrated with them both. I was the captain. Not the other way around. “Both of you dismissed, NOW.”

The EMH scoffed again and Aura didn’t looked phased at all. They turned around together and heading for the turbolifts.

I took a couple deep breaths to calm down. In the process, I noticed Commander Pelia was chuckling while looking in my direction. As were Ensign Jaxa and Chief Ren. Who were once again entirely too close to each other.

Kurn didn’t seem to notice. Probably still rattled by what happened the evening before.

Walking back to the primary command console, I noticed Commander T’Varen and Lieutenant Darak were already looking down back at their consoles deep in work, their displays active with ongoing analysis. I didn’t particularly like the vibe I was feeling generating from both of them.

Being grilled by the EMH and Aura wasn’t helping my stance either.

I decided right then and there I would stop letting the anomaly get the best of me no matter what. The last thing I needed was dealing with a mutiny.

Mutiny…

That seemed a little exaggerated.

That was the vibe I was feeling from them. They were unsure of their captain.

I took some deep breaths to ground myself. I wouldn’t let these thoughts get the best of me. I was assigned this command by Starfleet for a reason and I was going to show them exactly what that reason was.

Determined to find one of the last two cognitive anchors myself, I jumped right into anything I could think of that hadn’t been searched deeply yet, pulling the compiled data set onto the primary console.

I skimmed everyone’s research that had already been collected into one data file. There had to be something that was missed…

Then I saw it.

But I really had to stop and question it because how did this get skipped?

There was a gap in System Stabilization. There was no data listed.

At this point, I didn’t care why. I had found something someone else didn’t see.

I wasn’t going to let the synthetic’s threats get the best of me. I was determined to show Commander T’Varen and Lieutenant Darak I was the perfect captain for this mission.

I sent the file to my PADD and started initializing the data and running diagnostics, isolating the System Stabilization layer. System Stabilization was where the station prevents overload, conflict, or contradiction within itself.

I thought of the most recent times when the station was acting out of standard procedure. Last night was a perfect example. I searched for power fluctuation data during zero zero hundred hours, refining the logs to isolate variance.

One good thing I gained from that grilling the android just gave me.

The instant correction of the power fluctuation without command or service could give me a clue.

I also thought of the strange occurrence with the random unknown synthetic threat not too long before dismissal.

There were conflicting commands there that were practically silently resolved on their own. Kurn swore he didn’t initiate fire on the synthetic.

All the consoles simultaneously powering down right at dismissal last night was also a part of System Stabilization.

I grabbed every log I could find within System Stabilization that correlated to the correct time stamp for each occurrence, layering them for comparison.

I must have looked at the same data over and over again at least 5 times before I noticed something.

Nothing spiraled.

Ever.

Even under stress.

The station was correcting itself, but staying within nominal readings.

That’s not normal. It’s controlled.

Any regular station would have subnormal readings to correct for the threats or fluctuations during those timeframes in the System Stabilization logs.

There was even a Red Alert, yet there was nothing.

My stomach sank as I realized what I had just found.

The station was enforcing order on itself.

Perfect Order.

To control chaos.

I looked up to address the crew and noticed the majority staring at me.

I was losing them. I could feel it. I needed a win.

“Senior staff… with me now.”

Everyone immediately moved from behind their consoles to join me in the center of Ops in front of the main screen.

When everyone had joined me, I sent my research from my PADD to the display. “System Stabilization had yet to be reviewed.”

I noticed Commander Pelia started nonchalantly looking around as this should have been her department. “There were plenty of non-standard station issues last night to cross check in System Stabilization for irregularities.”

The list I had created started scrolling slowly on screen and everyone started to review it. “There should have been system instability during every occurrence when the station had to stabilize.”

I paused to let it sink it.

“There wasn’t.”

Commander Pelia must have felt she needed to speak up for her error. “What a surprise. Maybe that’s why I didn’t check it. We already know the station is sentient and controls everything. Why does this all matter now?”

“If it’s able to correct errors with no detection of stabilization even during high stress environments like the red alert, then everything is controlled.”

Commander Pelia threw her hands in the air. “Like I said captain, we already know the station controls everything!”

I was starting to get frustrated then I noticed Commander T’Varen’s expression changed to realization.

“Emotional variance… is being suppressed.”

I sighed with relief. However, I was the only one. It honestly made me feel a little better, that myself and the Vulcan were the first ones to understand this.

Kurn kept looking between both of us. “Well, what does that even mean? Even though the station is sentient it shouldn’t have emotion in the first place.”

Commander T’Varen looked him dead in the eye as she spoke. “If you look at the data clearly, you will see that the station is controlling its own chaos. The occurrence of last night as Lieutenant Darak had previously stated was a weapon.”

That’s when it started to sink in with everyone. I could tell in the change of their expressions. Commander T’Varen only paused for them to think for a moment, then continued, “It is the Vulcan cognitive anchor. The station is logically deploying its own weapons and stabilizing the threat itself.”

She gestured to Kurn. “Kurn stated he did not initiate his phaser blast. It is only logical to assume the station was able to control Kurn’s emotions to stabilize the threat. That is a trait of Vulcans.”

I was relieved it was I who brought us one step closer to solving this station’s mystery of activity with no colonization until I saw everyone was staring at me again with questionable looks on their faces.

Then it dawned on me, there was only one anchor left to find.

Human.