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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Mission: Prelude</span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Day: 3</span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Stardate: 2446.03.25</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">(USS Illuminar - Deck 11 - Main Engineering - Cadet Wednesday Adams- 1443)</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Wednesday looked around main engineering. It was so rare that there was nobody in this room, but since they were
in orbit around Mars, and there was nothing actually broken on the ship, most of the engineers were out and about doing systems upgrades. For some reason, somebody thought it would be just fine to leave a cadet in charge to monitor stations and ensure the
safety of the ship. Enter Wednesday Adams.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Wednesday had always been a serious girl. Even when she was young. She was the product of a very serious upbringing.
Her father was heavily involved in intergalactic financing, which was an odd occupation for a human since there was little actual economy still on Earth. Her mother was a botanist, who was instrumental in bringing back several species of roses, some of which
she’d seen in the corridors of this ship. Her brother… well let’s leave it to say that he pushed her to be even more serious. But the one thing that gave her the most serious appearance to others was her belief system. Wednesday was a Wiccan.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">When the other cadets in her dorm discovered this fact they continually spread rumors that she was a witch who
practice black magic in her room. Even in today’s “advanced” society, people still believed in garbage like witchcraft and black magic. They did not realize that there was no such thing as “black” magic. There was only magic, and how it was used was up
to the user. </span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Now Wednesday was a Wiccan who believed that magic was available to any who truly believed in what was possible.
However, in today’s world, that magic was called science, or more specifically quantum physics. And she was a proficient practitioner. However, her “belief” was not what it once was, and the “magic” could not come from within her. So she did the best she
could at the science, which often created… a lack of friends.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Being a cadet on the Illuminar changed little about that until she discovered a little secret. That secret led
to meeting the others, and now here she was in main engineering about to do one of the stupidest things she’d ever done, just to be part of the group. It would be worth it.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">She moved over to the warp core interface and looked at the dilithium chamber. She knew that there was no real
danger involved in this, since the ship wasn’t moving, but she couldn’t help remembering an instructor giving the warning, “Never open the chamber that says, do not open this chamber.” And there it was, printed in black letters.
</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400;font-style:italic">Do Not Open This Chamber</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Wednesday reached out and tapped the unlocking key and pulled the access drawer out. She looked at the dilithium
crystals lined up in their sequence. Their pink hue glowed. As she reached for them she could almost feel the tingle of the potential energy within them. She closed her eyes and made the final stretch of her fingers and touched one.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">She was still alive. Suddenly she giggled. What a silly girl. What did she think would have happened? They’re
just crystals. Then she realized that she’d need proof. Taking out her PADD she turned it towards herself and took an image of her with her hand on the crystal. She actually smiled as she took the picture.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">Finally, she closed the containment chamber and forwarded the image to the others, with the message,
</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400;font-style:italic">Let’s see you guys do this.</span></p>
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<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">(reply none)</span></p>
<p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.2;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:#000000;font-weight:400">(posted by Al Muir)</span></p>
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