SD241906.26 || Joint Log || "Berserker's Guardian"

Posted on 26 Jun 2019 @ 11:53am by Captain Mallory Thorne & Commander Joanna "Ripper" Jackson

1,027 words; about a 5 minute read

=/\= Begin Log =/\=

Joanna had dozed off and was peacefully asleep. I know where you are, Ripper! You are dead and so are your crews. You betrayed us! the voice echoed in her head.

"Nooooooo! Get out of my mind!" Joanna yelled. Sitting up in bed, she was once again covered in a cold sweat and shaking uncontrollably. Only this time, it was stronger than before. Almost falling to the floor as she got out of the bed from the dizziness that followed the contact, Ripper opened her computer.

"Captain, I need to see you now. I am sorry, but it is terribly important," she said urgently.

Mallory had also been asleep...until the computer chirped obnoxiously and the voice of her CAG came over the channel. It woke her in a moment and she stared at the ceiling, as if the officer were talking to her from there. "Meet me in my quarters," she said, tossing back the covers and sitting up groggily.

She grabbed her robe from the end of the bed and tied it on as she stood, making her way to the replicator for a cup of coffee. She just had a feeling that this was going to need it.

Hurrying to Thorne's quarters, Joanna hit the chime and waited.

"Enter," Mallory called, already seated in one the chairs in her "living room" area.

After she entered, "Captain, I am sorry but this can't wait. It happened again, only stronger, like he was here on the ship."

Mal's brows rose slightly. "Take a breath and have a seat, Commander," she said evenly. "Start at the beginning and refresh me on what you mean."

"Well, I guess I should start at the beginning then," Joanna said, taking a breath, and began. "The Arlington was tasked with a mission by SFI and not many of us knew what the orders were, but I was one of six who were told. Apparently, the Syndicate joined up with a rogue faction comprised of Ullians to infiltrate Starfleet's Ambassadorial Convention on SB 512. It was the Arlington's job to provide security both on the station and in the air while the convention was going on.

"There were three Ullian agents: Jocktul, Mordu, and the main man Rugnar. Rugnar was, like, the most powerful in mind rape and was also a Tam Elbran type. He could talk telepathically over great distances," she said. "Before the fight with the Romulan incident here, when Lt. Kerr was here, I woke up in a cold sweat as my mind was touched by Rugnar. I heard him and felt his presence. He was not on this ship, but he was near. I'm certain of it. Now again he entered my mind and this time, he spoke to me. Rugnar is very close, Captain, and he has made a threat to this ship, myself, and my pilots," Joanna finished, a bit shaky.

Mal had been right. She needed the coffee.

She took a long drink of the slightly-too-hot liquid and tried to sort through everything that she had just been told, since it was a lot to take in. "Why do you think this man would be after you now?" she asked, trying to gain as much information and understanding as she could.

"It was the the same voice as before. Before he links with me, he always allows me to feel, or sense his mind's presence," Joanna said. "It is a vendetta against me and my pilots. He doesn't care about the pilots or the ship I am on... He wants to torture me before he kills me. How he does this mind invasion gives me the proverbial creeps. It scares the hell out of me! Rugnar is like the Klingons when he takes a blood oath. He will go to the ends of time to fulfill his vendetta or die trying.

"Jocktul and Mordu were captured and both were executed, but Rugnar managed to escape being caught. I had no idea that Jocktul was his brother. I didn't learn about that until after the executions," Joanna finished, looking at her feet and trying to hide her fear. It was not like her to show fear and she didn't want the captain to see it.

"I see," Mallory said thoughtfully, still processing. "You believe that...Rugnar blames you for the capture and death of the other two?"

"Yes, Captain. After all, it was my group of fighters that shot up his raiders and brought about the capture of those two. What blew me away was when I was told Jocktul was his brother. I am more than sure, Captain, he means to do harm, I am certain of it!" Joanna said. Getting up again, she walked to the view-port. "I don't think I could live with myself if any harm came to my pilots or this ship. Oh, I wish I hadn't even joined the Odin or even stayed in Starfleet," Joanna said, crying softly.

Mal wasn't the counselor sort of captain so she tried to gauge the best reaction here. "Commander," she said kindly, getting to her feet and walking to stand beside the other woman. "There are always evil men out there. To run away is to let them win, and then let them choose someone else. By being here, in Starfleet and on the Odin, we have the chance to stop them before they hurt anyone."

"I just want this to end, Captain. I want Rugnar caught and put away for good. Just knowing he is out here and knowing what his mind can do... It is unnerving," Joanna said softly, looking at the captain. "What can we do? How can we do anything to prevent him from doing it again?"

"First of all, I need to know everything that you know. After we're done here, I want you to write down everything you know about Rugnar. We will start by developing strategies to keep him out of your head, and be more on the lookout for anything strange around us that he might be on. We build out from there."

=/\= End Log =/\=

Captain Mallory Thorne & Commander Joanna 'Ripper' Jackson

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