[Fanfic] The Stars Are Gone (Ad Astra Weekly Challenge)

[spacedogfromspace]

The Stars Are Gone

Ad Astra Weekly Challenge

Sha'Rel is trying to read some reports.

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Fandom(s): Star Trek JEM
Character(s): Sha'Rel, Zac Holloway
Genre/Tags: Genfic, Ficlet, Friendship, Spooky

Rating: General Audiences
Content Warnings: N/A
Word Count: 690
Type: Oneshot, Standalone

Collection: Ad Astra Weekly Challenges

Weekly Writing Challenges on Ad Astra

Prompt #25: Spooky

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Sha'Rel leaned her elbows on the desk, resting her chin on her hands as she read a long block of text off her computer screen. She was alone in the Workroom— a small room with four computers for the crew to use —and while she normally enjoyed the quiet, the silence was starting to grate on her nerves. While she didn't usually play music as she read the reports, she turned some on now, before the pin-drop silence drove her mad.

Turning the volume up as loud as possible without letting the sound escape into the hallway, Sha'Rel leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, soaking in the music for a while. She deserved a little break from reading those dry reports, she decided.

"Isn't it a bit stereotypical of you to like Klingon opera this much?"

Sha'Rel nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of the voice behind her. She slammed her hand down on the keyboard to pause her music before spinning her chair around to face the intruder, baring her teeth and snarling. "Don't do that!" she scolded.

Holloway grinned his infuriating, lopsided grin. "Hey, it's not like I was sneaking up on you. I slammed the door and practically stomped my way up to you." He shrugged teasingly. "Guess you couldn't hear me over that music."

Sha'Rel rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up," she said, turning back to her reports. "And it wouldn't be a stereotype in the first place if no Klingon enjoyed Klingon opera."

Plunking down in a chair at the computer next to hers, Holloway faced her, leaning casually on the desk. "I was only teasing, Cheryl."

"Have I told you that you're the only person to call me 'Cheryl' and live to tell the tale?" Sha'Rel asked.

"All the time," Holloway answered. "So what'cha doing in the trusty ol' workroom?"

"Reading the reports on the epidemic of helm malfunctions in Asimov-type starships," she answered flatly. "Or I was before you interrupted me."

"Well, I think you needed the interruption," Holloway said cheerily. "That sounds horrifically dry. Why are you reading that, anyway?"

Sha'Rel slowly rolled her head towards him, shooting him a tired look. "Because we're the helmsmen of an Asimov-type starship."

Holloway cracked a smile. "Oh, right."

Huffing because she knew Holloway was just messing with her, she turned back to her computer screen. "I really do have to finish reading this, though," she said in her kindest 'leave me alone' voice.

Holloway knew her well enough to catch the hint, and turned away from her to face his own computer and begin tapping away at the keyboard. Thirty seconds later, the screen of Sha'Rel's computer suddenly shut off.

Slamming her hands on the desk in anger, she snapped, "Zac! Seriously, knock it off!"

"That wasn't me," Holloway answered, looking at his own dark computer screen in confusion. The two of them looked around the room. All four computers were dead.

"Huh," Holloway thought aloud. "Vessa must be working on something-"

The workroom was flooded with pitch darkness as the lights cut out. They could tell it wasn't just the workroom lights, since the door had a window. Then, the silence that was bothering Sha'Rel earlier started to feel like a rock concert when the engines cut out, creating a type of silence unknown to her.

"Emergency power should be up in a second," Sha'Rel said. She felt unsettled and nervous but couldn't pinpoint why. Power failures happened all the time. It only took a few seconds for the backup power to boot.

"You scared?"

"Klingons don't get scared."

"You know better than anybody that most of that Klingon stuff is bullshit."

"Why isn't emergency power kicking in?"

Silence.

"Cheryl?" Holloway whispered.

"Yeah?" she whispered back.

"Look out the window."

Sha'Rel's brow furrowed, wondering what he was on about, but she did as he requested. It took her a second before she realized why she had been feeling so unsettled. She took in a sharp, audible intake of breath.

"So you see it too?" Holloway asked. His voice shook.

"Yeah," Sh'Rel answered, breathless. "The stars are gone."

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