DrOfDemonology

FOREWORD I have served on five ships, man. I have seen stuff! -Mariner, Lower Decks 1 U.S.S. ARTEMIS NCC-61806, OPEN SPACE FEBRUARY 3, 2380 There are many adjectives that one may apply to the warp-capable merchant vessels manufactured and marketed by the Zibalians. A few examples include reliable, robust and trustworthy. Nowhere on that list will you find attractive. Zibalian transports are wholly utilitarian craft, designed to get your freight from Point A to Point B with a minimum of fuss or fanfare. Such a vessel was the Trenkhal, registered out of Zeta Eridani and put into service in the winter of 2340. Its hull plating coloured a drab reddish-orange with a few contrasting panels finished in graphite grey, it was the kind of civilian space vehicle you might see moored at any of a thousand orbital platforms or space facilities across the Federation and beyond... Except that you would most probably overlook it in favour of admiring something a little more photogenic

6 Glasgow, Scotland Leaning against the railing overlooking the main runway of Glasgow Airport, Jim Brandon was making the most of a quiet spell before yet more craziness descended on him from on high. He had been caught up in traffic twenty miles outside the city when the Evil Elements staged their attack the day before. It wasn’t as if he could simply jump out of his car, leap into the sky and zoom to the rescue. Hell, he hadn’t even decided on what design he wanted for a costume... and there was no way he would entertain any of Ginger’s suggestions. Jim looked to his left, to where Hye-Jin and Sam were standing. It was Sam’s first time ever at an airport and she was taking in the sights with interest. For her part, Hye-Jin was looking at the parked airliners with a critical eye. She was almost certainly figuring out aspects of their design from sight alone. There was a faint creaking sound, a sound of metal being squashed. He looked down at where