Derelict Pt 2

Posted on Sat Oct 31st, 2026 @ 12:52pm by Lieutenant Viviana Del Rio & Commander Jonathan Grayson & Lieutenant Commander Imik S'Niohun & Lieutenant Commander Callie Raven-Grayson & Lieutenant James Phoenix
Edited on on Sat Oct 31st, 2026 @ 1:15pm

2,408 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Creatures of the Night
Location: Derelict Ship

The away team entered the sickbay of the ship. Everything was quiet, dead quiet, and things remained eerie in nature. Footfalls and the breathing of everyone, that was all that could be heard at the moment. Viviana was quite conscious of this reality, and it only added to the apprehension she was feeling. The dust in the sickbay was not as extreme as that on the bridge, but it existed. It indicated that environmental systems had terminated in sickbay later than on other locations. She moved to the body, or what was left of it and began scans.

Jon looked around sickbay and then asked. "I know these bodies we've so far found have been drained of blood and other body fluids but how were they drained? I don't see any bloody medical equipment, no blood on the decks. So how was it done?"

"Vampires?" James quipped, half joking and half serious given he had seen a ghost only a few minutes ago.

"I have no answer for you that makes medical sense" Viviana noted as she looked up from the body she was scanning. "I know he wasn't serious, but Lt Phoenix may be correct. I have seen a specter, and that isn't supposed to exist beyond stories around a campfire, so vampires could certainly be a plausible answer. As Lt Imik noted on the bridge, Kirk once encountered a creature from a dying species that could camouflage itself and would absorb all the salt from a body. The stories about vampires would suggest that they do something similar with blood."

“It makes a chill run down your spine just thinking about it” Callie added. “Vampires are considered a thing of myth, but there very well could be similar creatures, or races out there that consume blood. Which leads to a whole new thought, vampires of myth can’t be seen in mirrors, maybe the real version can hide from empath senses? They would be predators of sorts after all.”

"Lore would dictate they are telepathic and have the ability to shapeshift in a limited fashion. They have a romantic quality to them, while being absolutely horrifying" Viviana added. She walked to the computer terminal, "I am going to see if I can bring up the medical logs. They may tell us something."

Callie nodded. “Telepathic…that may explain the voice I heard.” She looked around, it didn’t help there wasn’t much heat as the chill definitely added to the whole creepy feeling of the place.

"Are you picking up anything now Callie?" Jon asked.

Imik turned to look at her fellow away team members, "My memory of vampire lore makes me settle on one type of these creatures, Empusa from an ancient Earth civilization. A shape-shifting female being said to possess a single leg of copper, whose precise nature is obscure. In Late Antiquity, the empousa have been described as a category of phantoms or specters, equated with the lamia and mormolykeia, thought to seduce and feed on young men." Sweeping her hand across the room she continued, "From what I see here, who or what ever did this appears to fit that category."

Jon just stood silently as Imik imparted the latest information about vampires. When she had finished, he stood open mouth and said "What?"

"Hate to break your theory lieutenant, but this fellow here, likely the doctor, isn't male. I know the body is all but ruined, but if you look at the pelvic area you can see the birthing hips. What I fear though, is that this poor departed soul was in fact pregnant at or around the time of death" Viviana noted. "I'm not a fan of this type of lore but weren't empousa more in line with succubi than vampires?" she questioned.

She accessed the medical files, "Eureka! I'm into the medical files Commander. I can't give any certainty just yet, but I think we should hold off before we start speculating any further about the origin of whatever killed these people. I can tell you this ship had a crew of 48, most of it made up of engineers and ordinary functionaries, cargo handlers and the like." She offered a huff as she read some information that seemed to cause dismay to come over her face. "This can't be right. According to this file, the captain was one Davy Jones, his XO Bernard Fokke, and our deceased doctor here was one Dr. Karen Jensen, who was a trained commercial space medical doctor with a specialty in hematology. They had a full load of cargo as well as 12 passengers they were ferrying here. The medical files seem to provide a full physical breakdown on all the passengers except one named Lestat de Lioncourt. It says he is from Aveyron, France and that he booked passage from New Orleans. Apparently, he was jovial but solitary and remained in his cabin most of the trip."

"The Captain sounds eerily similar to a fictional character I once knew" That last part made Phoenix think. "Aren't Vampires supposed to be solitary?"

"I don't think vampires are exclusively solitary. I believe they do form groups but I could be mistaken." Jon replied, still thinking on the information Viviana had given them.

“If I know my horror movies, and trust me I do..” Callie smiled. “Vampires can live in nests, they aren’t exclusively solitary. The main solitary Vampire is usually the master, the one who creates all the others, and the most powerful.” She shrugged her shoulders. “By killing the master you free any recently bitten person whose turning provided they haven’t fed yet.” She gave Jon a smile. “I swear I watch too many horror movies.”

Jon looked at his wife, "You'll get no argument from me sweetie. I'm totally convinced. You just keep providing information for us."

"My dad liked to tell us ghost stories and stories about vampires and other such things when I was a kid. I never watched much of the films from that era, but I read a lot of the books from then. Correct me if I am wrong, but Davy Jones was related to stories of ships lost at sea and he made some sort of deal with the goddess Calypso. And that name Lestat, something about it is familiar" Viviana replied, continuing to look through the medical files.

"You aren't wrong. Davy Jones was according to the mythology of sailors, is the fiend that presides over all the evil spirits of the deep, and is seen in various shapes, perching among the rigging on the eve of hurricanes, shipwrecks, and other disasters, to which a seafaring life is exposed; warning the devoted wretch of death and woe." Jon answered before going on. "As for Lestat that name is familiar. I'm trying to remember where and in what context."

"I'd like to check out the crew and passenger quarters. We may find relevant information to what happened here" Viviana noted.

Callie’s attention had drifted again something or someone was trying to get her attention. She was hearing her voice whispered, though it appeared no one else was noticing it. “None of you heard that?” She looked at Jon somewhat perplexed. “Someone is calling my name, I keep hearing it.”

"I don't hear anything Callie." Jon replied as he looked to the others to see if they had heard anything. "Can you tell us anymore?"

Viviana scanned Callie. "I am detecting activity in your paracortex with a rise in your psilosynine levels. You are definitely dealing with some sort of psychic link, though I can't say for certain if it is telepathy in the same manner that most telepathic species do it. But, unless Imik is playing some sort of joke, I would say this is the first tangible evidence that somebody or something is aboard this vessel."

Imik turned to face Viviana, "I am Ojnas, I would not interfere in that way. Ojnas do not make jokes of that kind, but this must be targeted towards the Commander as I hear nor feel anything. I have opened myself more than normal, but perhaps my species is what prevents contact. My blood is similar to that of Vulcans, so I may not appear a worthwhile victim.

"As she is the only one thus far being contacted, perhaps none of us are" Viviana replied. "Then again, I've never known any sort of monster being particular when it comes to who they kill, only who they transmit their curse to. You have to wonder if things like vampirism and lycanthropy are merely diseases that can only be transmitted to certain species. Maybe that is just me thinking that as a doctor."

"If that is true than only the humans would have something to fear as they were the main course or rather the only course back on Earth." Jon remarked.

“Someone, or something is definitely trying to get my attention I just wish I knew what they wanted, it could simply be someone trying to warn us. At least I’m hoping so.” Callie added as she looked at Jon.

Glancing at the away team Imik made a what she considered an important comment, "If we are dealing with Vampire type creatures then looking at this vessel it has been sometime since it or they feasted, it or they would lure a suitable food source first thus allowing it or they to survive. Food would be uppermost in the mind; a Lorelei would persist in enticing one or more victims to its location simply to feed. That would make it particular in its actions, Humans are an Iron based blood type, Ojnas and Vulcans are Copper based and as such may not be compatible as food for this creature."

"Betazoids have an iron-based blood as well, which is why they are able to reproduce with Humans. I would say if the premise is that a vampire needs iron-based blood, then only Imik would be immune to being attacked for the sake of feeding. That doesn't mean she is immune to being killed" Viviana replied. She looked to Imik, "Are you suggesting that this might be a siren rather than a vampire?"

Imik looked at Viviana, " We could have a Lorelei which has a Vampire like feeding habit, simply killing the victim has turned in this case to also feeding off the victim. And your observation that I am not food but simply a victim is also correct, but given the time scale this creature has waited to feed it may attempt it simply to survive." She now turned to Jon, "With due respect Commander, I would recommend we return to the Washington immediately. To remain here is courting fate, and the possible lose of one or more of this away team."

“She could be right Jon” Callie added with some uncertainty. “For all I know I could be being manipulated into convincing you to keep us here.” She looked around the voice was still calling her, and it was getting harder to ignore it. “I’m starting to feel like I need to go and find whatever is calling me.”

"It is a choice. We can continue looking into this vessel and risk harm to one or more of us, which is of course a choice we consciously make with each away mission, or we can take the information we have gathered and return to the ship and torpedo this vessel to ensure its complete destruction and give rest to the poor unfortunate souls that were killed here. My preferred choice is returning to the ship. I have plenty of medical data to look over and discuss with the rest of the medical staff" Viviana said frankly.

"For once Lieutenant we agree on something, the destruction of this vessel would benefit everyone. It would prevent further contamination, and as you say, lay to rest the troublesome souls that inhabit it. If one believes in that, I tend to think of this as being inhabited by a malevolent species which preys on the unwary." Imik glanced at her fellow away team members, "The Human ghosts and spirit legends are not something I enjoyed researching, they seem to revel in senseless violence."

Meanwhile Callie was starting to slowly wander further from her companions the lure of who, or what, was calling was proving a dangerous risk.

"I am going to download the medical files into my tricorder. Will only take a minute Commander" Viviana said to Jon as she walked back to the console.

James listened to his colleague carefully. He had already made his objections to staying known. He was about to say something else, when he noticed the Counselor wandering away. "Commander?" Phoenix asked Jon, indicating to Callie.

Jon nodded to James grateful for his noticing Callie wandering away. He moved quickly to her. "Callie? Stay here with us. No wandering off by yourself remember. Where were you going by the way?"

Imik had also moved to cut Callie off, but as she approached the door a sudden drop in temperature alerted her to something. Her senses were now tingling with alarm signals, she stopped and turned to her companions, "Either we leave now or we face what ever is calling to Commander Raven-Grayson, because my senses are now alerting me to danger which I would assume means the creature is possibly on the move towards us." She looked at Jon, "Commander, do we stay or do we leave?"

“It’s me it’s calling to” Callie added as she looked towards Jon. “Just let me go and see what it wants, it may just need to warn us of something!” She didn’t realize how she was sounding, and just how much of an influence the ghostly visitor was having.

Imik now turned to Callie, "That would be ill advised Commander, anyone here can plainly see you are not your normal self." She again turned to Jon, "Commander, are we to watch this continue or do we return to the safety of the Washington, and destroy this barge of the dead?"

Jon took Callie by the elbow, "Come on Callie, we are leaving this cursed ship." He tapped his comm badge. "Grayson to Washington. Transport the away team back immediately." Only as he felt the familiar tingle of the Washington transporter engulfing him and the rest of the away team did Jon begin to feel safe.

 

RSS Feed