Concerns and Limitations

Posted on Sat Jul 11th, 2026 @ 9:25am by Captain Mitsu Sato & Lieutenant Vesper Wolfe & Commander Eva Grey & Lieutenant Kev Walker & Lieutenant Jaina Zalla & Commander Wesley Evans

1,034 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Disaster at Morska

The senior officer briefing room was quiet as Mitsu took her seat. Shortly after the Eclipse had warped away from Starbase 24, she had called for a briefing. The rumors about the ship's sudden departure had been circulating throughout the Eclipse for the past hour, and there was no doubt that some people had already noticed the ship's heading. Looking around at the faces of the gathered officers, Mitsu offered a nod before she spoke. "As far as I know, nothing of what I'm about to tell you is restricted information, so please feel free to discuss the details with your departments. We're heading to the Klingon mining colony of Morska to render assistance in response to a distress signal," she said.

Kev frowned but shrugged and leaned back in his seat. "Do we know what kind of assistance the Klingons need?" he asked.

Beside the operations chief, Wesley frowned thoughtfully as he rubbed his chin for a moment. "Captain, I'm concerned," he said. "Of course we can render some assistance, but the Eclipse is far from an ideal ship to send in to the assistance to an entire colony, even if it's a small mining colony. Our resources and capabilities are finite. And as Lieutenant Walker pointed out, we don't even know what kind of assistance the Klingons require."

Jaina shook her head slightly at the thought of Klingons asking for help. It wasn't unheard of, but the underling problem was a concern for her. "If the Klingons are asking for help, it's a problem they can't handle," she said. "I'm also concerned about security arrangements and the possibility that we'll have to evacuate the colony. The ship can't handle too many people at a time."

"Those are valid concerns, but we haven't even touched on the first obstacle we'll be facing," Vesper spoke up, her quiet voice edged with concern that caught everyone's attention. "The Morska system is basically one giant asteroid field orbiting a dim star. Some areas of the asteroid field are sparse, but others are so dense that it would be difficult to fly a shuttlecraft through. We would have to navigate through that just to reach the mining colony."

Eva had remained quiet, mostly to gather her thoughts as the other officers voiced any of their concerns. Now, she was beginning to understand why she had felt uneasy about the mission when Admiral Shaw had first discussed it with her and the captain. "We will have an escort ship that will meet us at the Federation and Klingon border," she said. "The USS Wright will provide any assistance we need during this mission. Her capabilities are possibly as limited as our own, as she's only a Defiant class ship, but they will be able to provide some help."

"That circles us back around to the question that we probably don't have an answer to," Kev said. "What exactly is the problem that we're walking into Klingon territory to help a colony of Klingons with?"

"As of right now, the answer to that question is unknown," Mitsu said. "But we need to be as ready as possible. If it's a medical based situation, then Commander Evans will have to figure out how we'll proceed. I want sickbay ready for anything, but that goes for everyone. Security will have to be extra diligent on guarding our away teams, science will need to coordinate with medical, and operations and engineering might need to provide assistance in case this is a non medical emergency." Glancing towards Lieutenant Wolfe, she offered a small nod. "I understand that piloting the Eclipse through an asteroid field is going to be difficult, but I have complete confidence in your capabilities."

Vesper simply nodded and glanced down at the table. She could do it, providing that there was enough clearance for the ship.

"I still have concerns, Captain," Kev said. "But you know we'll follow your orders, however I must voice my concerns going by the information, and lack of, going into this mission."

"Would you protest if this mission was to respond to a distress signal from a Federation member world?" Jaina asked sharply.

"It isn't about the fact that we're going to help the Klingons, although I do feel that they should provide assistance of their own," Kev replied. "But we're going in completely blind and with limited capacity to begin with. This isn't a ship of the line, we're an exploratory science frigate. That means a small crew with limited capabilities. I can understand if we're being sent in to investigate, then report back. But it sounds like we're going in to deal with the overall situation, a situation that very well might be outside our capabilities to handle."

Jaina started to speak, but instead she leaned back in her seat and nodded. "I agree, but we're in Starfleet and dealing with the unknown is a part of the job description," she said.

"There is always a risk," Eva added gently. "But your concerns are noted, Lieutenant Walker."

Kev nodded.

"Is there any chance the Klingons can provide us with anything?" Wesley asked. "Information on Morska, the mining colony, any possibilities on what we're going in to help with. Anything would help us prepare."

"I'll send the request to Admiral Shaw and see if we can get any assistance from the Klingon government," Mitsu said. "It'll take us a couple of days to get to Morska, so hopefully we can get some information by the time we get there. I appreciate everyone's concerns, and we will proceed with caution. If anyone has any further questions or concerns, please feel free to come speak to me. If that is all, dismissed."

Watching the officers stand and file out of the briefing room, Mitsu sighed and leaned back in her seat. The concerns that Walker had brought up were firmly on her mind. they had been ever since Shaw had first assigned the mission to the Eclipse. But there was no turning back, and the Eclipse and her crew would have to simply do their best. Standing, she turned towards the view port and watched the stars for a few minutes before she stepped towards the door.

 

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