star trek in between days

Jul

2014

Review – In Memory of Kelsey Haber

Memory matters.

Background

For a monthly prompt about remembering, I decided to go with the story of the death of a crewman who nobody really remembered that clearly. After all, this could very well be a common occurrence on a large ship. It’s much like a large school or a large company. There is no way you can possibly know everyone. As a result, some people are just “that guy”.

Plot

Chris Hemsworth as Kelsey Haber

It’s the post-Fortune time period, on acting Captain Malcolm Reed‘s ship, the Zefram Cochrane. Chip comes over to Deb and tells her that Kelsey killed himself. Shocked, Deb and Chip realize that she knew Kelsey better than anyone, even the man’s new boss, Aidan. As Malcolm confers with Dr. Morgan about Haber’s death (he swallowed a tricoulamine capsule, same as the future Melissa Madden), Deb recalls an incident with Kelsey, where he ended up revealing something rather private to her.

Story Postings

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

I have no reason to believe that suicide will go away in the future; instead, people will just find different ways to do the deed. Further, I’ve always been troubled by Star Trek not giving below decks characters their due. While I understand the constraints of a one-hour-long television format, it still feels wrong for seven or so characters to be the only people who anyone really knows. This was touched upon a bit in the Star Trek: Enterprise canon episode, The Forgotten. I just wanted to be sure that no one would forget Kelsey, either.

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Jun

2014

Review – Voice of the Common Man

Can you hear the voice of the common man?

Background

The Star Trek fanfiction prompt was about politics. Rather than write about some Klingon cabal or big-time Federation politics, I went with what Tip O’Neill said, “All politics is local.”

I also wanted to tie up a small loose end in my overall story arc in In Between Days. In Reversal, the Calafan people are ruled by a High Priestess (Yipran) and her consort, the First Minister (Chawev). However, I didn’t want their government to be a monarchy, and I certainly didn’t want for it to be a dictatorship. It would, though, be a somewhat different style of government. It would be a constitutional monarchy with a religious basis. The religious end of it is covered in Legends.

Voice of the Common Man explores an election to the office of First Minister.

Plot

In Between Days

Doug and Lili are new residents of Lafa II, and Joss is still an infant. This is before the arrangement starts and it’s even before Marie Patrice is conceived. It’s Election Day!

There are a ton of candidates (this is not a two-party system), and it’s all rather confusing. The Becketts have studied the candidates and the issues, but it’s still a bit unclear.

Complicating matters is the fact that Doug has only recently left a universe where the government is a military dictatorship. He literally doesn’t understand why anybody votes, and can’t conceive that his opinion would matter to anyone. Not quite assured, he agrees to go and vote, as it is more or less mandatory.

The voting happens somewhat oddly, as might befit an alien culture. After a quick discussion of the issues, the voters express their support for certain positions on well-defined issues.

That is, the first round of voting isn’t really for any candidates; it’s for positions on issues. If a voter matches all of the positions with a candidate, then that voter matches with that candidate, votes for him or her (there is still an opportunity to back out), and that’s it for the day. This is rather similar to an approval ballot.

Lili finishes early, and votes for Ubvelwev, the candidate who is eventually the winner. Doug, however, much like any other undecided voter, is torn. He simply cannot decide. He holds out until the bitter end, and leaves without a decision at the end. While his vote matters, he hasn’t really cast a ballot for any of the candidates.

Story Postings

Rating

The story is Rated K.

Upshot

The voting system is somewhat confusing, and that has been one issue for readers. I was mainly trying to address problems that I have always seen in elections. This is where some people just can’t decide until the bitter end. And that has always struck me as a bit odd. I could have better explained the voting system. This would have meant probably more details and more world-building phraseology. This story could use an overhaul, although its heart and soul are in the right place.

Jun

2014

Portrait of a Character – Dratha

Dratha is a force of nature.

Origins

As Take Back the Night unfolded, I wanted a character who would be an assertive woman.

Barking up the Muse Tree | jespah | Janet Gershen-Siegel | Dratha

Dratha, one of the Daranaeans (legendary Prime Wife)

So many of the Daranaean women I had been writing were utterly passive, accepting of their fates and not questioning. But Dratha wasn’t going to be like that at all.

She would be glamorous and sassy, the Daranaean version of a legendary beauty.

Portrayal

As with all Daranaean characters, there is no actress chosen to play Dratha.

Instead, I suggest her as looking quite a bit like a greyhound, although I do see her as darker than this image. But she is regal and beautiful, a model of sleek perfection.

Personality

Tough and assertive, Dratha is the most expensive Daranaean woman – ever – at the time of her life. When she’s questioned under oath, she’s asked what her price was. After evading the question, and insisting on revealing her name before her purchase price, she finally reveals the shockingly high figure. Arnis, the Alpha of Daranaea, clearly desires her, as do all Daranaean men.

But she’s also kind. In Some Assembly Required, she comforts and cares for Seppa, even though the little girl is not her own. By the time of Flight of the Bluebird, she’s elderly and is slowing down.

Relationships

Arnis

The Alpha of Daranaea, like all of the men of their world, has the hots for Dratha. But she’s a Prime Wife, so she can (and often does) refuse relations. They have at least one son together, Vidam, so she has fulfilled her marital obligations to him. After the arrest of Arnis, it is unclear whether Dratha takes up with anyone else, but she probably doesn’t. She may be a trendsetter, but she’s not a revolutionary, like Mistra quietly is.

Mirror Universe

The existence of Daranaeans in the mirror seems a certainty.

Dratha, the Daranaean Diva

Such a beautiful female would still be quite the object of desire but, like a human woman, she might suffer even more oppression. I see her as vainer, as someone who enjoys her luxuries because she’s got nothing else. In the mirror, even more so than in our universe, I see the Daranaean women as being without rights, almost stateless.

Quote

“You couldn’t afford me, anyway. I was purchased for four thousand, eight hundred and twenty-three Stonds.”

Upshot

This tough old gal has a lot of life left in her. She’ll be back.

Jun

2014

Review – Saturn Rise

Saturn Rise – this was, I feel, a necessary story to write.

Saturn Rise Background

For my own Star Trek fanfiction prompt about forgiveness, I went with a story about Malcolm, Lili, Joss, Marie Patrice, Declan, and Malcolm’s parents. This one dovetailed with a far more serious story about Pamela, Treve, and her family. It is all about offenses, hurts, slights, and pain. Some is fairly small. Some of it is devastating.

Plot

Two stories run through the piece.

Saturn System

In the first, Pamela and Treve are getting serious, and she agrees to see her sister, Lisa, who she hasn’t seen in years. She takes Treve along, in order to introduce him. It’s a major commitment for her. She wants it to be right.

In the second, Lili and Malcolm are going to see his parents. She will meet them for the first time, and they will see Declan, too, for the first time.

Undercurrents

Both scenarios sound promising. But there’s more going on there. Lisa, thinking it will be a pleasant surprise, brings her family along, and her and Pamela’s mother. Lisa is innocent and thinks it’ll be fun. What she learns is that their family was rather different from what she believed. And that Pamela, as a child, suffered abuse by their father. With a mother who seemingly didn’t do anything about it, Pamela unleashes her fury on their mother, as their father is long dead.

Pamela, or, Virtue Rewarded (1742). Mr B reads…

On Malcolm and Lili’s side of things, Stuart and Mary Reed express their concerns that the commitment between Lili and Malcolm is an illusory one, as Lili is married and her relationship with Malcolm is a part of her open marriage with Doug.

In addition, while they love Declan immediately, it takes them longer to warm up to the other two children, who they single out. Even though Mary had already given Marie Patrice a gift of handmade yellow knitted gloves (as was seen in Fortune), the two elder Reeds still hold back. An important part of the piece is Malcolm standing up to his parents, informing them that Joss and Marie Patrice are “our children”, meaning his, Lili’s, Doug’s and, by extension, also Melissa and Norri‘s.

As I often do, I twisted the conclusion a bit. Not everyone is forgiven, and maybe not everyone should be.

Story Postings

Rating

The story is Rated T.

Upshot

I was happy to showcase more of Pamela and Treve’s relationship, and not in the context of their first sexual encounter. These characters love each other, and I hadn’t really shown that before. As for Lili and Malcolm, their love was already in several stories. However, to be able to extend that to his love for her other children, the chance to do that in story form was irresistible. I think the story turned out well, and particularly like how Malcolm stood up to his parents and Pamela stood up to her mother.

Jun

2014

Review – Finnan Haddie

Finnan haddie?

Background

Finnan Haddie

The Star Trek fanfiction prompt was about family. This led me straight to the below song, which I had wanted at my own wedding, but the DJ forgot to bring it (true story)!

Plot

It’s a wedding, on Lafa II. Joss is marrying his longtime sweetheart, Jia Sulu. The family is there, but a few people are missing. It’s time for finals at Oxford, so Declan can’t make it. Doug has died, and Lili has married Malcolm. Marie Patrice has finagled a business trip, and is present with Ken Masterson, the child of Chip and Deb. Tommy has leave. Neil is there with his two women, Yinora (Yimar‘s daughter) and Ines Ramirez, daughter of Jenny and Frank. Melissa and Leonora are also there, as is Jia’s sole family on the planet, her mother, Mai.

It’s a slightly bittersweet day, as Lili misses Doug, and Declan is absent.

Plus, sadly, Kevin Madden-Beckett’s grave, next to Doug’s, is an all-too painful reminder of a child who never had a chance. For Jia, it’s harder for her to be there without her father, Geming, who is also gone.

Lili and Joss are going to engage in a ritual mother-son dance, even though the dance floor is the outside area under the carport. Lili offers to not bother, if it will upset Jia. But it’s Jia who insists on it.

Jia approaches Malcolm and asks if she can call him father. Bowled over, he looks to Lili and Mai for their approval. When their blessings are given, he consents, and he and Jia dance to the below tune.

Music

Story Postings

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

So I wanted a quick, sweet love story where what could have been a dark and difficult day turns into a triumph. But at the same time, I wanted to address Malcolm who, in the canon E² episode, dies without a family. Here, he gets one.

May

2014

Review – The Continuing Adventures of Porthos – The Future Cat

Future cat?

Background

Tarisian Dreams suggested that I somehow find a way for Spot and Porthos to meet. The only methods were, I felt, either time travel or a holodeck simulation. I chose the former.

Plot

It’s during the Xindi War, and Lili has only recently been hired. While starting dinner, she brings Porthos to the galley. He sits, hoping that’s she’ll drop something tasty. Will comes in and scolds Lili, as this is a Health Code violation.

Review – The Continuing Adventures of Porthos – The Future Cat

English: This is an orange/yellow tabby cat.

He insists that she return the beagle to Captain Archer‘s quarters. Lili does so, and departs as the ship is hit by a spatial anomaly. This creates a hull breach on B Deck. But this anomaly is temporal as well as spatial, and so it also results in Porthos being whisked away. And it’s over a century into the future, to the Enterprise-D, where Data, Spot, Geordi, Wesley Crusher, and Captain Picard all are.

On the NX-01, they fear Porthos is deAD. On the Enterprise-D, they try to get him home.

Plus I tell the whole thing from the perspective of Porthos, including his conversations with Spot.

Does Porthos get back to the right time period? Who helps him? And what happens to him and Spot, before he departs?

I guess you’ll have to read in order to find out.

Story Postings

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

I love writing animals’ points of view, and Porthos is always great fun. Spot was much more of a challenge, but readers have told me that I got cat POV correct. That was rather satisfying to read. Will they return? Absolutely, although I have no idea as to how to (if ever) get them back together again.

May

2014

Portrait of a Character – Phlox

Phlox is a great character.

Origins

This Star Trek: Enterprise canon character is one of two alien members of the NX-01‘s crew (the other is the Vulcan, T’Pol). The Denobulan species is a creation specifically for ENT.

Portrayal

As in canon, Phlox is played by John Billingsley.

The actor is well-cast and it’s hard to think of anyone else in the role. Much like Leonard Nimoy and Vulcans, Billingsley essential defines what it means to be a Denobulan.

Personality

Personable, cheerful, and kind, Phlox is also, at times, a bit baffled by humans. For starters, at the beginning of the series, he can’t quite figure out the idea behind pets.

Relationships

Feezal

Feezal

This canon relationship is with his second wife, of three. There are no canon names for other two. I’ve never written her except in the context of Phlox missing her after the Enterprise goes back in time, during E².

Amanda Cole

Also canon, in the E² episode, Phlox and Amanda get together, a scene that I show in both Entanglements and Everybody Knows This is Nowhere.

Mirror Universe

This character exists in canon.

Mirror Phlox

At the end of the pair of canon ENT Mirror Universe episodes, his fate is unknown. But I figure his days are numbered. Hence, in Throwing Rocks at Looking Glass Houses, I have Empress Hoshi order his death. When Beth Cutler is given two syringes, one with the proven fast nerve toxin, tricoulamine, and the other with replicated orange juice, the Science technician knows that both shots will kill whoever receives them. But she hesitates until Hoshi tells her that she’ll be next if she takes any longer. The choice is to inject either Phlox, or Ian Reed, Malcolm‘s counterpart. With a small sympathy to her fellow Terran, Beth gives Ian the proven fast killing agent. Therefore Phlox, unfortunately, suffers at the end.

Quote

“Your mating rituals do fascinate me. Always a complicated minuet of sorts. Mind if I observe?”

Upshot

I don’t write Phlox that much, except in the context of E² stories and Intolerance. Part of that is to pave the way for other physician characters, such as Blair Claymore, Pamela Hudson, and Cyril Morgan. It’s also because, until Reflections Down a Corridor, I wasn’t really all that comfortable writing him. He’s absent from a lot of my main timeline, and nearly all of my Mirror Universe timeline. Will he return? Yes, although many storylines shut him out completely.

May

2014

Review – The Best Things Come in Pairs

Pairs? Yes.

Background

They can refer to playing cards and couples, and this little story touches on both as a play on words and for a little bit of humor. In response to a Star Trek fan fiction prompt about losing, I wanted to write a story about a losing poker hand that, instead, ends up being a winner. Hence the plot.

Plot

It is maybe a year after the end of Fortune, and Treve takes Pamela home after a date. They have been going out for a good year. She has been a bit pushy about getting physical, but he has been pulling back. As of the time of Saturn Rise, they have exchanged ‘I love yous’.

This is the first time that Treve has actually gone into Pamela’s new apartment on Lafa II. She has immigrated there, partly to be near her elderly uncle, Doctor Cyril Morgan, and partly to be near Treve.

So they are a little drunk, and there are playing cards on the table. Hence Pamela suggests a game of strip poker. Since Treve has no real idea of how to play, she feigns losing and, as a result, gets her man. Treve certainly does not object to this!

Story Postings

Rating

The story has a K rating.

Upshot

So this little short story is meant to be a little silly, maybe, and a little amusing. Plus it segues rather neatly into Complications. A touch of happy ending mixed with some humor? Then sign me up.

May

2014

Portrait of a Character – Yipran I

Yipran I now has a fate which differs from my original idea.

Origins

As I wrote Reversal, I needed a character who would, in our universe, be someone who the natives would mimic with Lili. In the Mirror Universe, she would be mimicked by Jennifer. She would be mother to Treve, Yimar, and Chelben. Enter Yipran.

Portrayal

I like Susan Sarandon for Yipran.

Susan Sarandon as Yipran I (image is for educational purposes only)

The actress is tough and smart, and is an Oscar winner.

She can play all manner of characters. Hence I feel she would easily be able to show a Yipran who is not yet healed. Yet she would also be one who is, in dreams, the spiritual leader of her people.

Personality

Susan Sarandon as Yipran I (image is for educational purposes only)

Intelligent but damaged, High Priestess Yipran never fully recovers from what Chawev, Baden, and Polloria do to her. Essentially, by poisoning her with an excessive amount of potassium, they have cut off her dreams and eventually she becomes comatose.

In Bribery, Yimar and Treve express the desire to visit her in the main hospital, but are thwarted, as Chawev wants to bring in Polloria as their new stepmother – despite the fact that Yipran is far from dead.

By the time of Friday Visit, Yipran is slowly recovering, but her damage remains. In Fortune, she can speak clearly in dreams, but not during waking life.

Relationships

Chawev

In both universes, Yipran is the victim of her husband. He attempts to do her in, in order to pave the way for the ambitious vixen, Polloria. Treve, their eldest son, reveals in Together that Chawev and Yipran really can’t divorce, as no one wants to believe that the First Minister and the High Priestess would ever not have a perfect marriage.

Mirror Universe

Susan Sarandon as MU Yipran I (image is for educational purposes)

Just as in the prime universe, Yipran is the High Priestess of the Calafan people. As such, she is their spiritual leader, although her husband is their political leader.

In the mirror, Yipran’s life ends near the end of Reversal, as Polloria and Polloria’s cronies kill her. Hence her daughter, Yimar, succeeds her.

Quote

“Yes, and my time will be up soon anyway. But you will continue on, as planets form and die and break apart and become new things, you will watch. And as lives begin and end, you will bear witness. {And} when the last atom has been blown apart in the remnants of the Big Bang, as the last of the energy converts to dark matter, and the universe hits absolute zero, you will be there. And you will watch it, and go with it, as it turns onto itself, and again renews, in an endless cycle. For when it is all dark matter, and it has all recompressed, as it passes through another septum, one that does not yet exist, and it goes to another place, crossing another pond, there will be another Big Bang. As there have been countless ones before, there will be countless ones after.”

Upshot

Yipran spends a lot of time as a victim. However, that’s one of the main drivers of the plot in Reversal. At some point, I might write more of an origin story for her. Yet right now that is very much on the back burner.

May

2014

Review – In Memory of Kelsey Haber

Background

Plot

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Review – Voice of the Common Man

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Portrait of a Character – Dratha

Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Arnis

Mirror Universe

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Review – Saturn Rise

Saturn Rise Background

Plot

Undercurrents

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Review – Finnan Haddie

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Plot

Music

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Review – The Continuing Adventures of Porthos – The Future Cat

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Portrait of a Character – Phlox

Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Feezal

Amanda Cole

Mirror Universe

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Review – The Best Things Come in Pairs

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Portrait of a Character – Yipran I

Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Chawev

Mirror Universe