Initial Report to Vulcan High Command Regarding the Activities of the NX-05 Atlantis
Posted on Fri Feb 7th, 2020 @ 7:16am by Lieutenant Sovar
Initial Report to Vulcan High Command Regarding the Activities of the NX-05 Atlantis
Lieutenant Sovar, NX-05 Atlantis
File Status: ENCRYPTED
Classification: LEVEL 3 - CONFIDENTIAL
To date the mission of the NX-05 Atlantis has been an unmitigated disaster. It corroborates the concerns in some circles at High Command regarding the suitability of United Earth forces to conduct large-scale interstellar exploration operations.
As you are aware, the ship was tasked with a post-conflict diplomatic mission to the Xindi. To that end, the ship took aboard specialized personnel suitable for the mission, notably Lieutenant Commander Bethsabée Leroux. Though the mission may have been greatly enhanced by the presence of Vulcan or even Tellarite advisors, it was nevertheless left in the hands of Earth presumably as a political concession over the lives lost during the Xindi superweapon attack.
My initial impression was that the crew was capable of carrying out their mission parameters. However, this impression quickly changed.
The first questionable decision was that of Captain Morgan to take the most direct route to the Xindi homeworld, which passed through a radiation storm. The established plan was to navigate using data provided by the NX-01 Enterprise. As Terran vessels are not sufficiently shielded against this form of radiation, the crew was forced to abandon their stations for radiation shelters established at three points across the ship. The unpredictable nature of these spatial phenomena makes travel hazardous and inadvisable; doing so without manned stations exponentially increases the danger posed to the ship and crew.
The decision to take the ship through the radiation turned out to be one with fatal consequences. As came to light later, the engineering crew had failed to investigate a potential sealant leak in the Warp Five engine, which at this point should be treated as experimental technology for humanity. Overlooking warning signs related to the engine and not conducting proper maintenance resulted in a catastrophic failure during transit through the radioactive phenomenon.
Valiantly, Captain Morgan sacrificed herself for the needs of the many by securing the engine and preventing a cascading overload from occurring. Ultimately, her sacrifice could have been avoided by more diligence on the part of the ship's engineers or plotting a course around the radioactive phenomenon. Indeed, making a logical decision - one divorced from humanity's obsession with immediate gratification - to plot a course around the phenomenon would likely have saved the captain's life and prevented our current predicament altogether.
Following the captain's death, I observed palpable tension between the senior crew suggesting that their command structure was degenerating into petty arguments regarding the order of precedence and succession. Commander Leroux is the acting commanding officer by policy; however, I believe that Commander Sloan may have privately challenged that position given his temperament and experience. My interactions with him have been limited to this point, so the matter bears further investigation before drawing a definitive conclusion.
At present the concerns about command have either been resolved or set aside to address our predicament. For unknown reasons, the ship has experienced a spatial displacement event somewhere in transit through the radiation phenomenon. After determining our relative position - nine-thousand, five-hundred light years from the nearest known facility - the command staff have made the decision to delay investigation into the event in favor of securing basic necessities as the ship's water supplies and food storage were both irradiated during transit.
The NX class does not have the facilities, capability, or specialists for purification. Improvements to the ship's sensors pointed to a nearby L-class planet, which the ship now orbits while crew members prepare to conduct ground operations for resupply. The sensor readings indicate there are abundant freshwater and protein signatures on the planet's surface.
The morale of the crew remains tenuous; however, altercations have been surprisingly few, and they have demonstrated more discipline than I anticipated. I believe some of this may be attributed to the survival instincts associated with satisfying their basic needs. Once food and water have been secured, the implication of our position and the likelihood of returning to Terran-controlled space may spark a crisis. As it stands, I am one of the only crew members who has any hope of living long enough to return home. That will be a sobering realization for a crew that was anticipating a simple diplomatic mission.
At present, our situation is manageable. I have confidence in Commander Leroux's abilities to navigate the irrationality the crew can be expected to demonstrate. And I believe the command staff have developed a sound plan for resupplying the ship.
However, there are broader implications for the mismanagement of the mission as a whole. At a time when technology and starship construction facilities are in their infancy, the loss of a warp 5 capable NX-class ship is a serious blow to the force projection capabilities of the United Earth Starfleet. The loss of resources alone may set back the development of their exploration programs by several years. Security implications regarding the Vulcan-Romulan border and other active concerns are better suited to command's military analysts, though the loss of this vessel will no doubt have an impact on response plans there.
Despite our location, I will continue to carry out my duties aboard the ship and document our journey as it progresses.
In service to Vulcan,
Sovar
