Welcome to Stonewall Fleet's first creative writing contest.

Reading some of the amazing stories posted already in the Holodeck, it is obvious that a lot of our members are very talented writers. So we are starting a monthly creative writing contest to encourage you all to write more and maybe get a few members who have not tried to post a story yet to give it a try.

The rules are simple. Stories should be suitable for all members to read, so PG13. Stories can be as long or short as you wish, we don't believe a word count makes for good stories. Stories will be judged on merit not on spelling. Only stories posted in this thread or with links posted in this thread will be entered. Most importantly, to make each story easier to compare when it comes to choosing a winner, the story must start with the following sentance:

The rain was noticable as I materialized, but it helped me realize I was alive, I had managed to escape the...

The rest of the story is up to you. The closing date for this contest is Saturday 20th of March. The winning story will be featured in the March edition of the Stonewall Times.

Good luck to you all!

Added mine as well - second fleeter in the Tampa area :)

Solek entered the mess hall alone and made his way over to the replicator. After perusing the menu, Solek decided on a human dish he knew Edgar favored and his typical Vulcan Spice tea. Looking around he approached a Trill sitting by himself at a table, looking over a P.A.D.D. while he eats. “Greetings, Lt. Commander, do you mind if I join you?”

War’en looked up, recognized Solek and motioned to the empty seat opposite him “Oh, of course. Please sit.”

Solek took the seat and glanced at the Trill. “I hope you don't mind the conversation...You are the first officer on board, are you not?”

“Conversation would be great, Lieutenant. And yes, I am the First Officer.” He glanced at the P.A.D.D. before moving it away “...and Chief Engineer. War'en Lok, but please, call me War.”

“I am Solek. I was the First Officer and the Chief Science Officer as well. I believe you have met our chief of engineering, have you not?”

War’en nodded, “Yes, Aron. He's been pretty busy down there with the New Orleans' flight recorder.”

“I hear that he is like your captain - an Enhasan. It must be interesting to have one as a commanding officer.”

War’en frowned and chose his words carefully before responding, “Yes, it is...Solek, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?”

“Not at all; is something wrong?

“Possibly. How would you comment on Captain Calvin's interaction with his crew?” War asked, feeling slightly nervous.

“Eddie...Lieutenant Calvin, is a complicated subject in that regard. He is usually better dealing with computers than people, but Admiral Quinn's actions, putting him in charge of an entire ship, has forced him to change his methodology. I'm still growing accustomed to that myself. He has become more focused on crew cohesion and motivation than power output levels this past month. I believe he has viewed his command as an extended shakedown and training cruise.”

“That's good. I've heard from Red that he's been spending a lot of time in sick bay.” War’en nodded.

“Indeed. He feels a great deal of remorse for losing the ship. I can only attribute the intense guilt to his intense emotional state. Most likely from not being more prepared to deal with the threat we faced.”

“I’m sorry, Lieutenant but, ‘intense emotional state?’”

“Eddie is a half-Romulan Human hybrid. Romulans like their Vulcan cousins share the equally intense emotions. Because his cultures embrace a slightly restrained and channeled reaction opposed to suppression and mental control, he still feels them completely, unlike Vulcans. It makes him a very...passionate... ...individual, and he is suffering a tremendous loss.”

War’en raised an eyebrow at Solek’s word choice, but chose not say anything regarding the comment. “Actually... we also have a half-Romulan among our senior staff, Lt. Roberts. She's in a similar state right now...not that I blame her.”

/comforts Altaro...

Where are you in continental Europe?

oh, and I added to the map a bit ago. NYC in da house! :)

new york city!!! holla!! lol, added to the map :)

Added to the map.

Michigan, Ypsilanti.

U.K
Bristol
Map done :-)

psych2l wrote:

Yay, found another person in boston hehe.

Yes, your marker in RIGHT ON TOP of mine...I'm in Somerville (Davis Sq).

Added me, so lonely here in Australia :(

Edgar Calvin stood in the medical bay of the Pandora speaking with various people from his ship. He had just finished speaking with Summer and she was now returning to her quarters. Dr. Redwing glanced over at him a few times while treating his patients, watching him to see if he would be disruptive. “Lieutenant, is there nothing else you can do right now? No one’s in a critical condition.”

“Doctor, I’ve already finished my reports and given my senior staff standing orders; I have nothing else to do aside from sulking in the mess hall. I would rather spend my time making sure others are recovering instead of pouting in a corner.” Edgar started but was interrupted by a woman’s sobs in a corner. The sob was distracting enough for Redwing to glance over and look onward in concern. Edgar noted the pointed ears and grief pattern. “Who did she lose?”

Redwing felt a knot in his throat trying to voice the comment, “Her husband.”

Edgar felt his stomach churn as he sympathized with the young woman, thinking how he’d feel if he lost Solek. He moved over to her to offer his condolences. “Excuse me, lieutenant?”

Talona looked up at him and turned away after making eye contact. Edgar felt he had intruded and began to walk away saying only a single sentence in Romulan, “{I’m sorry.}”

As Edgar turned to move away Talona made a grab for Edgar’s hand. “Thank you.”

Edgar nodded back to her, but the exchange was cut short by Redwing’s raised voice at another patient in Navajo before returning to a common language. “Stop that! What are you doing?”

“I’m a medical professional, doctor I know what I’m doing. Don’t interrupt me.” Turek dismissed while using an osteogenic stimulator on his ankle. Redwing looks fairly irritated as Edgar approached the two doctors.

“Doctors, what seems to be the problem here?” Edgar pressed, attempting to enforce mediation with his fading authority. Turek looked at Edgar with a slight malice and irritation, but Redwing looked at him with the expectation the lieutenant would side with him.

“I am simply taking care of my own medical needs so I can remove myself from sick bay as quick as possible. I have no interest in prolonging my experience here.” Turek stated, still using the osteogenic stimulator.

“Lieutenant, this is a serious breach of protocol. There are other individuals with a greater need for that medicine, and we’re already on short supply!” Redwing said to Turek’s commanding officer, gritting his teeth. There was evidence of disdain from Red regarding Turek’s comment about where he was. Edgar looked between the two men. He was clearly plotting something that unsettled both of them with his facial expressions.

“Ensign, after you’re done repairing your ankle I’d like to have a few words with you in private. Then if the Doctor doesn’t mind an extra pair of hands, I’d like for you to assist him with zero protest.” Edgar said, putting both doctors in a state of great irritation.

“My ankle is fixed now.”

“My office is available and if he behaves he is welcome to stay. Besides, I could use someone to replicate more stimulators.” Edgar nodded and directed Turek to move towards the office of the sick bay.

“I had a chance to read your file before the incident aboard the planet. While it doesn’t excuse you from your insubordinate actions under my command, it does shed new light on your motivations. I am sorry that recent events are too similar to your past experience. I just wanted to inform you that I’ll be granting any request to transfer you back to Starfleet Medical.” Edgar began walking back out of the office. Turek was completely stunned.

“Sir, are you feeling all right?” Turek asked, his Hippocratic Oath taking over his opinions.

“I just lost my ship and half my crew, I’ve barely had command for a month and when I took command the ship had already lost half her crew. There are names and faces that were onboard that I never met and now I never can. Yet still, there are others like myself that have seen a mass of death twice now. No, Turek, I’m not feeling all right.” Edgar said, once again trying to walk out of the office.

“I’m sorry sir. I didn’t know.” Edgar left after a nod.

added my location phoneix az here :)

From Salem, Oregon here.... adding to map.....

So many people from so many places :)

I'm in Daly City, California, just minutes from downtown San Francisco. I've added myself to the map.

PJ: My best friend and his wife now live in Tampa. He's a Star Trek fan, though unfortunately he doesn't play STO (he's not into MMOs, but is a tabletop RPG purist and a high-ranking MtG judge).

Added mine. Will change it when I move. =)

-e

Yay, found another person in boston hehe.

I did the map too. I'm in Houston TX. Montrose to be exact, hence my name :)

I is now on there :D

Did mine. Made my location my fav place to get coffee. :)

-Xak

I'm from outside of Philly, zerofiftysix! Cool!

I added my little town to the map. It is on the location of my favorite Irish Pub downtown... :P

ST: Pandora [[Episode 1.3]
ST: Battlefront [[Episode 1.4]


Lieutenant Edgar Calvin’s Personal Log, Stardate 87730.4: The New Orleans has been destroyed by the Undine using a barrage of heavy plasma torpedoes. The ship had a full crew of two hundred, and I should be grateful that over fifty percent have survived at one hundred and seventeen. However, I view any consolations and optimisms minimize the impact of the lives that were lost and thus an insult to their memories.

The chime at Edgar’s temporary quarters broke the silence. “Enter.”

Aron-Mu walked into the room holding a PADD. “Sir, I’ve retrieved the biographical crew manifest from the flight recorder of the New Orleans. The logs and final events are being decrypted right now.”

Eddie took the PADD and started skimming through the first few names in an alphabetical order. His smile immediately turned into a hard frown. “I don’t recognize any of these people, and half of them are dead.”

“Sir...” Aron said trying to bring his commanding officer back to the current situation. “You can’t blame yourself for this. There was no way we could have been prepared for that kind of fight.”

“Aron, what was your experience on the Kobayashi Maru exam at the Academy?” Edgar asked as he tossed the PADD to the bed. Aron followed it and noticed the wide bed had imprints of two individuals instead of one. He quickly snapped back to attention and looked at Edgar.

“Sir I...failed that test.” Aron confessed. It was not something he liked to admit in the slightest and the embarrassment was completely obvious.

“Everyone does; it’s a test of character, not a puzzle to rescue the ship. Starfleet touts that it’s morally required to judge a cadet’s character in the face of a no-win scenario, to see how they handle overcoming the fear of death.” Edgar scoffed as he paced the room. “What a load of garbage! That test has no merit when you actually face that scenario in reality or on the battlefield.”

Another chime interrupted Edgar’s complaining. The two men exchanged glances. “Enter...”

At the door now was Lt. Matoya. “Captain, do you have a moment? I’d like to discuss some things that have happened during your tour on the New Orleans.”

Edgar grimaced an annoyance as he picked up the PADD he had tossed onto the bed. “Apologies, Lieutenant, but I need to assess the status of my crew right now...excuse me.”

Edgar slipped out of his quarters, dodging Maggie and any line of questioning she had hoped to get through. Maggie turned to Aron and looked fairly annoyed, and Aron deflected the look with one of his own. Maggie faltered slightly that her stare had been so easily deflected, but she quickly brushed it off under the pretense of Aron’s species. Maggie turned to chase after Edgar, but Aron stopped her. “Lieutenant, if I may advise you...”

“And what advice could you have for me, Ensign?” She shot at him, marking rank.

“I advise that you leave him alone until he’s ready to talk to you.” Aron said, making his own exit from Edgar’s quarters. “He can be quite unreasonable if you force the issue.”

Maggie scoffed and made her way to the bridge. Upon entry immediately requested to speak to her captain in his ready room. Once inside and the doors shut, Maggie explained what just happened. “What do you suggest sir, I do not know how long we can allow him to delay this.”

Oren-De thought for a moment then seemed to make a note on his console. “Lieutenant Calvin’s interview is your top priority. All of your other duties are relinquished until you have it. I don’t care how you get the information out of him, just do so quickly.”