| Date | 2421-04-09 |
| Filed by | Captain Zaliel Sel |
| Recording Location | Captain’s Quarters |
When I sit down and try to think about all the things that happened over the last year, I sometimes feel overwhelmed. Hell, the last five months are enough to guarantee a counselor’s job for at least a decade. Where to start?
There was the near-affair with an admiral. I mean, Marc doesn’t think it counts, but in a way, I feel as though I was at least emotionally unfaithful. It started so innocently, right? One dinner led to another almost each week until—well, until he reminded me that the security I felt in that budding relationship was as unsteady as what I already had with Marc. So many colleagues warned me: don’t marry a civilian. That it’ll only end in heartbreak. We came close, then we came together, and now we’re apart again. But, I’m getting ahead of things.
After leaving Deep Space 13 and all the baggage that went along with being attached to a permanent installation, the Brahe was put in for major refits. Marc and I used this time to reconnect which we needed badly. The refit was a major effort. It was nice to turn Chief Engineer Zolwink loose on the effort and let her just work. She really did inspire me at times and watching her coordinate and manage this refit gave me ample time to reflect on the decades-long hostility between us which began the second I officially took command of the Brahe. I didn’t realize it was the last refit she would be alive to see.
A few months after the refit had been completed, we set out for a deep-space assignment. Shortly after leaving the Federation, we encountered an unusual subspace anomaly. With the USS Shackleton’s assistance, we attempted to rescue a freighter believed to be trapped inside. The Shackleton would go on to complete that mission while the Brahe was pulled into the past by my Chief Engineer. There, Commander Zolwink attempted to kill me in the damaged engineering section of the Brahe from 2409. Instead, she was killed by her past self. When my ship and I returned to 2420, it was without the Chief Engineer. I find myself constantly looking back at what happened and trying, desperately, to find a different path we could have taken. I still don’t have an answer.
Another major repair later and we set out to further investigate the anomaly—to check that the warning beacons were still in position and that no other ships had encountered it. That’s when we were pulled into a strange corridor. When we returned to normal space, we were over a hundred-fifty lightyears from our previous position. Shortly thereafter, we encountered the Kit. Ensign Abrams compiled the initial report. My impressions of the Kit are that they are an intelligent, ritualistic people who only recently discovered warp travel. My hope is that we can continue to enjoy peaceful relations with their society long after the Brahe has departed.
I guess those are the highlights. Until then, I guess it is…oh, god, two in the morning? I’m going to pay for that in four hours. Computer, end log.