[CLASSIFIED]
The following are pertinent mission logs recovered from the U.S.S. Dan Daly. Forwarded to Starfleet Intelligence for analysis.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89323.7
I was called to Commodore Ashworth's office today as I was making final preparations to my training simulation. We've been tasked with investigating unusal activity near an asteroid field commonly referred to as the Iron Halo. The high concentrations of heavy metals in the asteroids makes long-range scans unreliable at best. Training has been cancelled for now and the Dan Daly is to make best speed to the area. Her newly upgraded stealth systems and integrated cloaking device make her ideal for the mission.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89353.7
We've been stalking the Iron Halo for over a week with no luck. Mines block every safe route through the interior of the field and patrols through the area are frequent. With the field's natural interference, it would take a full scan to accurately plot the minefield, compromising our stealth.
Commander Molla says she and Lieutenant Commander Jolla have a plan to get us through and are working on getting the proper modifications in place.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89356.1
Commander Molla's plan is working. Lieutenant Commander Jolla was able to make adjustments to the hull plating allowing us to follow in the engine wake of a Klingon transport navigating the asteroid field. So far it's working perfectly but I'm making sure the crew stays vigilant. All it takes is a small error to leave us exposed.
First Officer's Log, Stardate 89367.9
Day 4 following the transport. Minor incident today. The transport's navigator got sloppy and they had a near miss with one of the mines. They over-corrected and ended up scraping their port side along the side of one of the asteroids. We were buffeted by a small cloud of debris from the asteroid but suffered no damage. The transport's commander ejected the navigator out of their starboard airlock. A stroke of bad luck for us left the navigator impacting directly against the forward deflector array. Crewman Torres was manning the science station and tells me forward sensor resolution will be down 18% until we can make repairs.
First Officer's Log, Stardate 89374.2
We've broken through the inner edge of the field into a large open area. Ensign Yakashi has detected thirty-seven ships so far of mixed configuration. We've also observed a fully stocked shipyard with exterior berths as well as a full dry-dock facility. There appears to also be a regiment-sized barracks and training facility adjacent to the shipyard. Scans are coming up with odd readings though. More on that to come.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89374.3
There's more to this facility than we originally thought. Of the ships we've observed in the area it seems to be divided nearly evenly into thirds. Klingon, Orion, and, most disturbingly, Romulan. We don't know why the Romulans are here or why there's such a heavy Orion presence and we dare not get close enough for detailed scans. Romulans understand cloaking technology far better than we do and we can't risk exposure here. We're going to do one more pass and then make our way home. I don't know what exactly is going on out here, but Starfleet Intelligence needs to see this.
[FILE CORRUPTED]
Captain's Log, Stardate [CORRUPTED]
W.......ken heavy.....mage from debris wh......ing to leave the......gon installation. An ast......llision must've creat....ust storm. .....wman Talea tri....warn us. Damage Cont....nsole expl....her face. She didn't mak...... Cloak is down. Mai....stems fluctuating. We've made it aw............e area but a.........rsued by......
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Chief Engineer's Log, Stardate 89380.7
Main systems have been repaired. We still haven't been able to get the cloak back online. We just don't know enough about the technology to really dig in. It's taking a lot longer to get out of here than it did getting in. Avoiding mines and patrols is making us go backwards more often than forwards.
Chief Engineer's Log, Stardate 89395.5
We lost Grelich and Chek today. We had to fight off a small patrol and lost containment in the warp core. Lieutenant Grelich was on duty at the time. She cleared out engineering and stayed behind to try and fix the damage. Ensign Chek refused to leave her side, even after a plasma conduit ruptured. They saved the ship, I just wish we could've saved them.
Chief of Security's Log, Stardate 89396.9
Deuterium tanks took a hit in that skirmish yesterday. They fixed the leak, but they say that we'll be dead in the water if we don't find a way to restore our stock. The XO has another plan but the Captain doesn't like it. We're going to try to raid a pair of Orion ships we passed by awhile back, steal their supply and anything else we can use. I've got my people running drills with Commander Molla. Let's hope those green bastards aren't expecting a wounded dog to bite back.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89414.6
Commander Molla's mission was successful, but at a high cost. Commander Molla is dead. She was travelling with Lieutenant J'trel's Team Beta and they were caught in a crossfire on the Orion bridge. J'trel himself was badly injured and is in sickbay now. Commander Balil says he should recover but will be out of commission for a few days. Ensign Kela will take command of the team in the meantime.
I didn't know Molla well, but she'd been with most of the crew during the retrofit process. She came with a strong recommendation from Admiral Dralon and Captain Faraday, her former CO. Lieutenant Commander Quinlin will be taking over as executive officer for the remainder of the mission.
Chief Medical Officer's Log, Stardate 89414.6
I worry about the Captain. Despite what he'll tell you, he's still affected by his experience with the Borg, not to mention the rather climactic reminder the Tal Shiar forced on him. We've lost four people in the past week. With a crew complement of only forty-eight, each person strongly feels the loss of even so relatively few people. The loss of Commander Molla hit the crew especially hard, the Captain included. I fear things are going to get far worse before they get better.
Chief Science Officer's Log, Stardate 89415.8
We were able to collect the Deuterium we needed from the Orions, as well as a few other supplies. Repairs are complete and we're underway again. Sensors registered a group of ships heading our way before we left the Orion ships behind. They may have gotten off a distress call before we disabled their communications. Ensign Yakashi is analyzing the signals and trying to identify the ships.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89434.9
Damn Romulans. A warbird found us and nearly had us pinned in. We danced around the asteroids for awhile but I could tell they were just trying to box us in until reinforcements could arrive and finish us off.
I still don't know why the Romulans are working with the Klingons, but it doesn't bode well for us. We still don't even know who these Romulans are, their ships bear no significant markings and they aren't transmitting any IFF codes we're familiar with. Are they Romulan Star Empire remnants? Tal Shiar? Something new perhaps? It's a question that will need to be answered once we get home.
Chief of Security's Log, Stardate 89455.9
My people did me proud today. A squadron caught up to us and managed to beam over boarding parties during the fighting. We managed get away after disabling two of the ships but two more are still trailing us. Lieutenant Zan and Crewman Thompson were on shift watching the bridge at the time and tell me Ensign Whitfield and Lieutenant Perry worked as a great team, flying and shooting in so coordinated a fashion, you'd think they were arms on the same body. Whitfield was hit in the back with a disruptor blast seconds after the boarding parties materialized. He collapsed at his station as we pulled away from the battle. Perry and Thompson both suffered stab wounds from bladed-weapons. Doc says Perry won't make it.
Acting First Officer's Log, Stardate 89494.9
Those two Birds of Prey finally caught up to us. They've been destroyed, but inflicted a good amount us hurt on us for our trouble. Lieutenant Yates was killed evacuating the wounded from sickbay after a hull breach. We're finally near the edge of the Iron Halo, but seven crewmen didn't live to see it.
Captain's Log, Stardate 89506.3
We're clear of the Iron Halo but the enemy hasn't given up pursuit. We're exposed, without cloak, and more than a week from Federation lines even if we could take a straight course, which we can't. The crew's taken more of a beating than I could've imagined from this trip, but they're still holding strong. If we ever end up making it out of this, there won't be a person on this crew that isn't a damn hero. I'm proud of them all. Here's wishing us luck.
Transmission received by by Outpost Argo Communications Relay 327-Alpha, Stardate 89602.9
Mayday! Mayday! This is the U.S.S. Dan Daly requesting assistance in sector 5218, Donatu System. We are under attack by significant hostile forces. We have been boarded, repeat, we have been boarded!
[MESSAGE REPEATS]
((To be continued in the Foundry at a later date.))