Captain Log

"At last the Briar patch war has been resolved. The Mullurians have seceded to the Federation and now we have a large area of space beyond the Briar patch to explore. Estimates on how long it will take to map and survey the area have ranged from five to ten years."

"Whether the Federation will assign just one vessel or a small fleet I am unsure, but the Leviathan would be an obvious choice and I would be putting the ship and crew forward but for one small fact. Somewhere out there is a mirror version of the Leviathan, crewed by aliens intent on invading and enslaving the Alpha quadrant. Before we can return to exploring the galaxy, we must first destroy this threat to not only the Federation, but the whole galaxy."

"At least with the end of the Briar patch war we can finally get back to the search. Although the Federation hasn't been actively searching for the mirror vessel, any unusual reports have been logged and analysed. There are a couple of hopeful leads, one is the report of a number of sightings of small Federation vessels in areas of the Alpha quadrant where the Orion syndicate is strong and many vessels are ambushed by pirates. The second is an increase in Ferengi vessels exploring just beyond Federation borders. They appear to be performing a systematic search of a number of planets and asteroids, but what they are looking for no-one knows. The final lead is reports from the Klingon border of activate around Sigma twelve. Sigma twelve was a forward supply base and repair facility used during the Klingon-Earth war. When the Khitomer peace accords were signed in 2293 it slowly fell into disuse. The records show that although it hasn't been used in over fifty years, none of the equipment was salvaged. In my opinion I think this last report is the most promising, Sigma twelve would indeed make a fine base to make repair, out of the way, all the equipment to make extensive repairs. We already know that the ISS Leviathan crew had managed to acquire a large amount of materials and since the USS Leviathan had been in spacedock for over a month undergoing repairs, the ISS Leviathan would probably need the same length of time."

"One of the good things to come out of our enforced leave from the search is that it has given the crew time to re-adjust to being a crew again. The new crew have had time to settle in and the old crew have had time to evaluate and learn about their new crewmates."
"On a personal note, it is good to be working with probably my two closest friends. Having Ka'Leth as the leader of the Talon fighter wing is more than I could have hoped for. He's a fine pilot and a good officer, he should do well with the squadron. The other friend I have known since I was seven, Lieutenant Commander Barker is one of the best science officers I have known. Although we've kept in touch over the years, it's been hard maintaining the friendship across the light-years of space. Now we have an opportunity to re-new our relationship, something that I really want to do."

"As for the rest of the crew, they seem more than competent, Admiral Devore built up a fine crew. Major Phanan is a tough Marine, coming from the old school of work them hard to make them hard. I read all the reports and I'm sure no man could suffer the losses under their command without it having an effect. First he lost his entire Marine squadron aboard the USS Utopia, then he lost almost fifty men fighting the Z'Terul brood, before losing another eighty when the two Leviathan's clashed. God knows how many men he's seen die before that."

"Lieutenant Taline, our chief engineer is performing two jobs, keeping both the entire ship running smoothly and working as the slipstream specialist. Starfleet still hasn't provided us with a new expert, but with the help of Ensign ASHER and Lieutenant Commander Barker, the three of them are coping well keeping the quantum slipstream drive operational."

"Ensign ASHER, now there is a strange officer. Being a hologram he should be the ultimate officer. And for the most part he has been, but lately he's been acting a little odd, staying away from briefings, remaining off the Bridge. ASHER says that the slipstream drive has been his priority, but from what Taline and Barker have told me, he's been tinkering more than actually developing the drive, almost as if he was avoiding the Bridge crew."

"Ensign Julia Oakenshield is another fine officer. A beautiful young woman, the only blemish the scar she carries on her face. Lieutenant Dukal, the Cardassian, at first I was worried about him. But I have found him to be the most dedicated security officer I have met in a long time. Cadet McCaffee, the youngest member of the crew is working hard both in his studies and his duties. The adopted son of Admiral McCaffee and the natural son to the Leviathan's former Captain and counsellor, he seems to have coped well with the departure of his birth parents, especially as he had only spent a few months getting knowing them."

"The final member of the crew is Commander Rashad. Half Romulan, Half Bajorian she is a bear in wolfs clothing. A strong first officer there are so many things I just don't know about her. She appears to have been extremely loyal to Admiral Devore, but I get the feeling that she doesn't trust me one hundred percent. Without that loyalty and trust things will be hard for both of us. I've tried to talk to the crew about her, but most have given me little to go on."

"Finally we come to our guests. Ambassador Maul and Advisor Loris the two Nuan aboard have both proved invaluable. The relationship that exists between Cadet McCaffee and Loris would in my opinion be the major factor in easing the absence of his parents, how wonderful it is to be in love so young. Then we have the two visitors from the mirror universe, t'Rashad and Dukal who have both provided information about the mirror vessel that ultimately we must face. Their assistance will probably be the key to whether we win or lose the battle. Hopefully now that we have been released from our support role, we can put that information into practise."

"Although we are still awaiting official orders, I am confident that we will be leaving Deep Space 4 within the next few days to resume the search and Sigma twelve will be my first area of investigation."

End Log