Sword of Damocles

Captain’s log, SD 230307.269

Returning to Galileo, Ops detected an unusual energy signature. We dropped out of warp to investigate. Science Chief, Nila Sh’Varess, scanned the aberrant energy field and determined it was an undocumented form of Dark Energy condensate. We went into a 200,000km orbit to scan the anomaly. A Galaxy Class Federation starship dropped out of warp in our path. The ship’s computer handshake identified it as the USS Feynman. Our scans registered an identical biomass and spectrographic signature to our own. We were then hailed by my doppelganger, calling herself Captain Alia Soulstar. 

Through mutual cross examination we established that we share the same memories and that our ships were the same ship but shifted temporally by three hours. The future Feynman had just orbited the anomaly and returned to find us about to start the orbit. Its captain advised us not to orbit the dark energy to avoid making a second copy of ourselves.

This situation left us with a difficult dilemma. Through some trick of gravitational time dilation the Universe now held two versions of my ship and its crew in the same version of spacetime. If both returned to Galileo Station then there would be two individuals claiming each life, multiplied by over a thousand crew members. 

That, of course, would create a raft of difficulties. I convened a meeting with senior crew members to find a solution to this dilemma (as did the other Captain Soulstar). 

Should one of our ships simply fly off into an endless exploration of unexplored space, its crew never seeing their homes and loved ones again? If so, which ship? Should we try to live with our doubles and share families? There was no solution to this debate, although a consensus was reached that we should accompany the other Feynman back to base and continue deliberations there.

Intel Chief Dagger made an intriguing observation regarding the temporal nature of this dilemma which led to a eureka moment for me. The existence of our doppelganger was reliant on us copying their actions from 3 hours earlier. By not orbiting the anomaly, we would change the course of events that led to that future, obliterating that ship.

I contacted Captain Soulstar who had reached an identical conclusion. She gracefully accepted it was the right thing to do. We set a new course for the Galileo and the other Feynman vanished as though it had never existed. We left warning buoys at the dark energy field and began the journey home.

Captain’s log, supplemental

I have been left shaken by this encounter with myself. That version of me, just three hours older, was tested with the question “am I prepared to sacrifice my life, and the lives of a thousand crew women and men on a principle?” It turns out that I am. But was it the right decision? The older me owed her crew protection of their lives and she did not protect them. Am I fit to be Captain?

Had I chosen the other course, continuing our orbital investigation, we would have met a younger version of our ship and crew at the same nexus and that captain would have had the same problem to solve, setting up an eternal loop of replications until one of the Soulstars made the decision that I made. From this perspective I know my decision was the right one, but I failed to protect my crew. I will tender my resignation to the Admiral on return to Sarlea Base.

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