Excelsior Class
Refit 2380, one week out of stardock

[hider=USS Illustrious]

+Name: Noelle Tatham Poole
+Job: Acting captain, commander
+Description: Enthusiastic, smart and proactive, Tate was the up-and-coming officer recently assigned to the USS Illustrious as first officer under the late senior captain Pearson. Slim framed and in her mid-twenties, Noelle looks somewhat out of place as commander, and especially so as captain. Indeed, although she is well read and has good “street smarts,” the acting captain is fairly inexperienced for a person of her position. Nonetheless, she is quite the capable officer. Equipped with a disarming smile, a keen judicial compass, and natural-born leadership skills, she has the eyes and ears of her crew despite some of her odd social quirks and hobbies.

+Name: Lee Amagasaki
+Job: Lt. Commander, chief engineering officer
+Description: Lee is an older man in his mid to late thirties. He is well built but of average height. Unlike his captain, he has a more reserved, cautious personality, often erring on the side of safety, especially when it comes to the safety of his ship. He is prone to voicing a lot of his thoughts aloud, which occasionally becomes tiresome but can be helpful to an extent. Quite experienced, he has served on a number of missions and expeditions, including surviving the destruction of his ship in the Dominion War. As the second highest ranking officer aboard, he is now the de facto first officer.

+Name: Yuri Khamitov
+Job: Lieutenant, medical officer
+Description: Smart but arrogant and often condescending, Khamitov graduated Starfleet academy in the same class as Noelle. Close friends since the academy, he has saved her neck more than a couple times. He is somewhat bitter that his Starfleet counterpart was promoted much further up the chain than he was, and often makes jabs at her for this reason. Yuri doesn’t really go out often and he is rather scrawny. He’s a bit of a smartass and generally unpleasant like the EMH Mk I, but his crewmates know he is nice at heart. Kind of. Unfortunately (or not?) Yuri is the best medical officer the Illustrious has.

+Name: Nephenee Harper
+Job: Lieutenant junior grade; communications, operations, and science officer
+Description: Intelligent and well informed, Nephenee is the youngest and most junior member of the Illustrious bridge crew. Thrust into a set of new responsibilities after the death of their science officer, Nephenee shares the role of three positions. A person with a keen interest in history and science, Harper is more than helpful in giving any advice she can. She has a bit of a bookish, diplomatic personality.

“Captain Pearson, we’ve detected a large energy distortion bearing 051. It is very likely at our current heading we will intercept this anomaly. The USS Magicienne is also en route to investigate.”

The atmosphere on the bridge of the USS Illustrious was very relaxed. They had just come out of space dock fresh on a new mission with a new crew and recently refit vessel.
“Very well,” said the captain. “All stop. Since we’re here first, let’s prepare a probe and continue on our former heading, lieutenant.”

“Yes sir, all stop,” replied the lieutenant manning the helm. Moving his hand across the LCARS interface, he maneuvered the starship into stopped position a little way from the detected distortion.

“Launch a class-1 probe,“ started captain Pearson, addressing his first officer, commander Poole. “Contact Starfleet, perhaps they can send out a science vess-“

“Captain! The USS Magicienne just dropped out of warp,” interrupted the science officer. “Wait, they’re too close, they’re being pulled in by the gravity of the distortion!”

The atmosphere in the room tensed immediately. Raising an eyebrow, Pearson looked ahead of him.

“Onscreen, lieutenant.”

The gray-haired audibly cursed as he saw the Sovereign Class vessel tumbling towards the massive white rift laid out before them.

“Captain, I recommend closing to tractor beam range and tractor them out,” said the science officer.

Pearson bit his lip. “..Alright, helmsman, get on it. One third impulse and close to tractor beam range. Harper, the tractor beam on my mark.”

“One third impulse-“ began the helmsman. But before he could finish his sentence, the USS Illustrious was rocked by a massive jolt as it too was caught by the energy distortion and began to tumble toward it…