Edge of the Unknown

The crew of the USS Starspeed investigate a signal emanating from near the edge of the galaxy and discover more than what they originally expected.

Act One
The ship arrives at a Class D planet around HK243698. As soon as they begin to establish a standard orbit, the ship is captured by a tractor beam, which threatens to pull it to the planet's surface. The crew fights the tractor beam enough to establish orbit, at which point the tractor beam cuts off. Sensors traces the source of the beam to a facility, and an away team wearing bio suits transports down to the surface. Shortly after their arrival, the facility dating back over a hundred million years becomes active and generates a breathable atmosphere. Investigations lead them to a room that seals after walking in, and a message plays from the race who had created the facility long ago warning them of a great danger. At that point, something loud and heavy pounds on the room's door. The facility's computer system detects the threat and begins to self-destruct, forcing the away team to beam back to the ship.

Act Two
The away team discovers they had beamed something back with them, some sort of misty entity which flees into the ship's ventilation system after being detected. Within minutes, the entity finds its way into the main computer and takes over key ship systems, including propulsion, life support, and weapons which it uses to destroy the facility on the planet's surface. It makes itself known through the computer and demands to be taken to another star system, taking the crew hostage in order to get its way.

Act Three
 One of the crew, Lt JG Suren of Betazed, reaches out with her mental abilities and determines the entity wished to propagate itself on other worlds but at the cost of all other life on those worlds. With all other methods to expel the entity from the ship ending in failure and the crew taken hostage by the entity, Admiral Danielson put into action a plan of last resort by plunging the ship into a hard dive toward the planet's surface, forcing the entity to flee before being destroyed by the ship's destruction. Pulling out of the dive in time, the Starspeed sent a message to Starfleet Command to have the star system isolated to prevent further contact with the entity, and departed on course for Starbase 62.

Log Entries

 * "Captain’s Log – stardate 68148.9. The Starspeed has been ordered to look into the source of a series of strange radio signals emanating from beyond the rimward border of the Federation. Long-range sensors have pinpointed the source to a world orbiting HK243698, and we have set course to investigate."