USS Musashi (NCC-97009)

The **USS Musashi (NCC-97009)** was a *Yorktown*-class Federation starship which was built and operated by Starfleet in 25th century. The USS *Musashi* was one of three newly built *Yorktown*-classes, along with the USS *Cabot* and the USS *Patchouli* which were launched in late 2412. The *Yorktown*-class itself was based on the *Odyssey*-class which proved to be a reliable backbone for Starfleet's deep-space exploratory, diplomatic, and tactical objectives in the three decades prior to the 2410s. It was classified by the Khitomer Alliance as a dreadnought cruiser, heavy explorer and flagship. Although the classification of the vessel is a flagship, admirals generally preferred to raise their flag aboard Starbases. So, while the *Musashi* did have the capability to support a flag officer and their staff it was not customary to have one aboard at all times.

## Service history and disposition

### Construction

* 2408:
	+ August: Starfleet Command ordered three new *Odyssey*-class vessels to be constructed due to the increasing losses as a result of the Federation-Klingon War of 2405-2410. Construction of the frame of the *Musashi* begins quickly after.
	+ November: Skeletal structure of the *Musashi* nears completion. Crews begin to install electrical systems, hull plating, bulkheads, floor plating, and artificial gravity.
	+ December: Deck 10 of the chevron section is complete, providing engineering crews with habitable space aboard the starship itself.
* 2409:
	+ February: The hull of the *Musashi* nears 50% completion. While crews remain constructing the remaining parts of the hull, others being installing other systems.
	+ April: The hull is complete, basic system, such as life support, EPS grid, replicators, are installed. The Sentient Artificial Intelligence Apparatus (SAIA) is installed in the primary computer core and it spreads throughout the mainframe of the ship.
	+ May: Cascade failures with SAIA delay the installation of tactical, propulsion, and other complex systems. However, the Daystrom Institute is certain that the problems will be solved within the next two months.
	+ July: Daystrom Institute released version 0.75 into SAIA and it fixes the cascade failures. Engineering and tactical systems begin to be installed.
	+ September: After 13 months of construction, the USS *Musashi* is cleared to begin tests of it's warp core and weapons systems. Ablative armor is applied to the hull, after which a paint job is applied to the hull.
	+ November: The USS *Scorpio* begins construction with the intention to serve as the *Aquarius*-class auxiliary of the *Musashi*. Futhermore, the USS *Everett* begins construction to serve as the *Summit*-class.
* 2410:
	+ March: USS *Scorpio* and USS *Everett* finish construction and are installed into the USS *Musashi*.
	+ April: The Iconian War begins and the *Musashi* project is put on the backburner until the war's completion.
	+ August: With the Iconian War over, Starfleet Command orders the existing ship to be refit to meet the *Yorktown*-class variant.
	+ October: The refit is complete. Starfleet orders the *Musashi* to undergo comprehensive field tests in the Sol system prior to greenlighting the vessel for shakedown cruises.
	+ December: Starfleet Command commissions the USS *Musashi* in a brief ceremony. The dedication plaque is installed and reads "'You must understand that there is more than one path to the top of the mountain' - Miyamoto Musashi".

### Active duty

* 2412: The USS Musashi launches under the command of Captain Kira Nerys.

## Command and control systems

### Main bridge

While the bridge of the *Odyssey*-class was very cavernous, the bridge of the USS *Musashi* was much more similar to the *Sovereign*-class.

At the rear of the main bridge was a large console and data readout screens. In the center of that area was the Master Systems Display (MSD), and this was where the support staff on the bridge worked. On both sides of the MSD were doors which granted access to the observation lounge, decontamination showers, escape pods, emergency airlocks, a head, and the bridge security station.

The bridge security station, differed slightly from the tactical/security station on the bridge. It allowed security officers to screen personnel entering the bridge and re-direct turbolifts when required. It also provided a defendable area and held a small armory for hand-held weapons.

In front of the MSD was a free standing holographic tactical display table which served as Mission Ops. The mission ops console was usually operated by the executive officer, the captain's yeoman, or a member of the mission operations section. This station could be used to co-ordinate the activities of the *Musashi*'s complement of *Valkyrie*-class fighters or the activities of away teams on a planet's surface.

In front of the mission ops station was a section of the bridge which was informally known as the command area. This area comprised of three seats, the captain's chair, and two chairs either side of the captain. The captain's chair was in the middle where the commanding officer would seat and co-ordinate the activities of the ship. It was most often seated by the commanding officer, executive officer, or the second officer. This chair could be seated by any officer (ensign or above) who was the superior officer on the bridge. When facing the view screen, the chair to the right of the captain's chair was where the executive officer usually sat. However, if the executive officer is not seated there it could be seated one of the highest ranking officer aboard the ship, aside from the commanding officer; whether this be a lieutenant commander or an admiral. To the left of the captain's chair was a chair where the captain's yeoman would usually sit, however this chair could also be seated by any officer, so long as their had the correct authorization.

Starboard (i.e. right) of the command area were stations for tactical personnel, which was usually manned by the chief tactical officer and one or two others depending on the situation. It doubled as security stations too, as the chief of security was usually, but not always, the chief tactical officer during the 24th and 25th centuries. It was designed as a kind of alcove, however the chief tactical officer had a complete view of the bridge and the view screen. This alcove included access to various internal systems such as force-field controls, security alerts, internal sensors, among others. It also featured access to external systems such as long and short-range sensor arrays, sensor probes, message buoys, tractor beams, phasers, torpedoes, and shields.

On the port side (i.e. left) of the command area was an nearly identical alcove dedicated for engineering personnel. This alcove provided secondary access to a wide range of engineering related systems including propulsion control, power systems, life support, and other systems. While the chief engineering officer was far better served in main engineering, in situations where the chief engineer's presence was needed on the bridge, this alcove provided them with the ability to oversee the functions of engineering from the bridge.

Forward of the tactical and engineering alcoves where two turbolifts, one on the port and starboard sides.

Directly forward of the the command area were the flight control station on the starboard side and operations station on the port side. From the flight control station, the flight control officer, usually the chief flight control officer, served as the both helmsman and navigator of the starship. Despite many of the functions being heavily automated, the critical nature of the functions demanded an officer to oversee this station at all times. During spaceflight the flight control officer was responsible for putting in the heading of the vessel, adjusting the vessel's speed, and monitoring the inertial dampeners. During warp, the flight control officer also monitored the subspace field geometry parallel to the engineering department.

The operations station presented the operations officer, usually the chief operations officer, with a continually updated list of current ship-board activities and requests. This list permitted operations to set priorities and allocate resources among the current operations undertaken by the vessel. The operations department usually handled logistics and ensured that the various starship equipment was functioning properly along with the engineering department.

To the starboard side of the flight control and operations stations was another alcove dedicated for the sciences. This alcove was usually manned by the chief science officer, however it could be manned by any science officer in their absence. From the alcove, the science officer on duty could access data from the numerous science laboratories aboard the *Musashi*, as well as the deflector and sensor arrays.

On the port side of operations was an alcove dedicated for the intelligence department of the *Musashi*. This section, like the other sections, was usually manned by the chief intelligence officer, however it could be manned by any intelligence officer with a level 5 security access code.

### Battle bridge

Based on deck 13 of the secondary hull, the USS *Musashi* has one battle bridge. This bridge is smaller than the main bridge and is designed to operate independently as required.

### Computer systems and positronic brain core

The computers systems on board the *Yorktown*-class was a mixture of isolinear and bioneural based processing. Computer systems were concentrated in a computer core, which was accessible through a maintenance room. Each *Yorktown*-class carried a total of four independent computer cores; two in each hull sections. The top level of the primary computer core provided the space for the hardware of the vessel's AI.

The computer systems aboard the *Musashi* ran on LCARS v8.4+. The computers had a storage capacity of 3.16 petaquads and a processing speed of 1 yottaflops otherwise known as 1 septillion floating point operations per second.

#### AYA AI overview

After the USS *Voyager* returned to the Alpha Quadrant in 2378, and the EMH Mk-1 became renowned for its development from a mere emergency hologram to a sentient individual, another — classified — old project of Starfleet earned a lot of new interest.

The concept of incorporating a positronic brain into the main computer core of a starship was given its proper chance of implementation along with the evolving Prometheus project that was about to be finalized. Moreover, the Emergency Command Hologram (ECH) was an extension of the USS *Voyager*'s EMH and proved essential in the development process.

It was decided that the USS *Musashi*, along with the Cabot and Patchouli, would receive their own version of the ship AI model. The Daystrom Institute installed the AI's primary matrix in the positronic brain within the computer core of the *Musashi* itself. Without propulsion or tactical systems yet installed, the embryo that was the AI's program could branch out and connect to every corner of the *Musashi*'s mainframe. In the beginning, there were a large amounts of cascade failures — often occurring when a "learning" program was corrupted either by repeated application to a task it was ill-suited to perform or by external influence such as inferior hardware to implement it. In a neural-net system, essentially a positronic brain in which most or all sub-programs interacted. This led to a corruption of surrounding algorithims and routines as they attempted to use data ganerated by the faulty application to perform a task of their own.

Yet, in the end, the Daystrom Institute and hundreds of civilian programmers managed it all with version 7.5. Their continued efforts with the stabilized version gained great results, increasing overall efficiency, but also helping the AI to develop more of a personality. The result was an AI who identified as female and went by the name "Sashi".

## Propulsion systems

When in standard operating mode, the *Musashi* achieved warp flight through two nacelles, which were made up of multiple pairs of warp coils. They were in turn were powered by a warp core, which at the center provided energy through matter-antimatter reaction. The assembly for such was housed in main engineering.

The main impulse engines on the *Musashi* were located on the aft of the primary hull. Each of the pylons leading to the warp nacelles held auxiliary impulse engines. The *Musashi* was also equipped with auxiliary impulse reactors.

### Main engineering

Main engineering aboard the *Musashi* was split between two decks, 24 and 25. The room was constructed around a warp drive with tricyclic input manifold. The core provided a maximum output of four thousand teradynes per second. The warp drive was designed to operate for up to seven years before refueling. The reaction chamber was equipped with a compositor, which allowed recrystallization of dilithium. The warp drive allowed the ship a top sustainable cruise velocity of warp 9.8.

The main engineering room featured two levels. In front of the warp core was a large monitoring area on the lower engineering level. Also located on this level was the chief engineer's office, engineering laboratory, and an industrial replicator.

### Auxiliary engineering

The *Musashi* had chevron separation functionality, so it was decided to create an auxiliary engineering section in the primary hull if this was to occur. It did not have a warp core, but it did provide a location to organize and monitor engineering related tasks in the event the primary and secondary hulls were separated.

### Warp core ejection

In the event of a warp core breach, the *Musashi* could eject the warp core. This procedure required the authorization codes of the chief engineer or a member of the senior staff. The core was ejected through the ejection port on the hull. Magnetic rails inside the channel accelerated the core once disengaged from the vessel and fired it away from the ship. Under normal circumstances, the vessel then moved away from the core as fast as possible under impulse power.

Should the core not go critical, the vessel could recover it with tractor beams and reintegrate it with careful manipulation.

## Scientific systems

The *Musashi* housed many scientific research labs which covered a wide variety of science disciplines including physical sciences, biological sciences, and social sciences. Most of these labs shared the same architectural design and only differed in equipment.

## Tactical systems

### Phaser arrays

The *Musashi* utilized a ship-mounted phaser array system. With some modifications it allowed the phasers to emit a continuous beam, like the *Galaxy*-class, or short bursts similar to the phaser cannons, like the *Defiant*-class. This allowed the *Musashi* to have greater customizability when it came to using it's phasers.

### Torpedo launchers

Torpedo launchers or torpedo banks were a common term for systems that deployed projectiles such as torpedoes and probes. A torpedo tube was part of a torpedo launcher. Torpedo launchers could usually be accessed by personnel from a torpedo bay. The *Musashi* was equipped with forward and aft-facing torpedo launchers and held over 200 photon and 300 quantum torpedoes.

## Medical facilities

Considered to be more-or-less equal to Starbase medical facilities, the medical facilities on board the *Musashi* were equipped to deal with a wide variety of medical situations.

### Sickbay

Sickbay is an old navy term for "ship's hospital," which continued even to the 25th century. There are various parts to the sickbay aboard the *Musashi.*

#### Recovery ward

The recovery ward is where individuals would go if their illness or injury was not too life-threatening but the doctor on duty required them to stay in sickbay for treatment and/or observation. Also, this was where non-critical patients were placed after surgery. It included sixteen (16) biobeds, sanitized pillows and sheets for each bed, one replicator, and a supply storage cabinet close by.

#### Primary care unit (PCU)

The primary care unit was where individuals were treated for bumps, bruises, common diseases, and anything else that didn't look to be particularly life-threatening. It included sixteen (16) scanning biobeds.

#### Intensive care unit (ICU)

The intensive care unit was where individuals were taken if medical professionals were unsure about their survival and there was little more medical professionals could do but watch and wait. Each biobed was rigged for constant 3-dimensional scanning and monitoring of the patient. It included computer link-up to an adjustable "code blue" alarm system that sounded the instant a patient's life-signs fell out of the acceptable parameters. It also included one replicator, additional life support hardware for each bed, back-up battery power on a separate power grid from the ship, atmospheric isolation systems, and a supply storage closet nearby.

#### Medlabs

The medical labs were the primary laboratories for sickbay's use. It included one replicator, material diagnostic stations, a centrifuge, gene analysis terminal, a table for post-mortum examinations, and a stasis field drawers for storage of biological samples, corpses, or patients requiring treatment not available on the ship.

#### Surgical suites

If an individual needed surgery to save their life, correct an illness, fix a serious injury, or just have themselves cosmetically altered, this was they'd go for the surgical procedure. Along with the usual surgical tools, the room included mobile life support equipment, a replicator, atmospheric isolation systems, and scanning/monitoring readout station.

#### Holographic projection grid

Two emergency medical holograms were available, the longer term Mark XVI and the short term Mark XIX. Developed to ask as the chief medical officer as and when required, these programs could also be activated to provide additional assistance to the real chief medical officer.

Unlike previous EMH systems, these new EMH systems had primary emitters inset into the ceiling every 1.5 meters and larger back-up emitters inset into the center of each ceiling over the recovery ward, primary care unit, medlabs, and both operating rooms as well as being fully integrated with sickbay's computer hardware to prevent accidental loss of the EMH at critical moments. The *Musashi* took the EMH one step further, having holo-emitters in virtually every area of the ship, allowing the EMH programs to venture outside sickbay and treat the wounded.

### Battle sickbay

Because of the *Musashi*'s chevron separation mode, the ship had a battle sickbay in the secondary hull. This sickbay was a focused on battle situations.

### Morgue

A morgue facility with storage slots for several bodies was located adjacent to the main sickbay.

## Crew quarters

A substantial amount of quarters on the *Musashi* were located in the ship's chevron section, in order to provide safety for civilian and non-essential personnel during chevron separation. However, the secondary hall also contained crew quarters, generally containing engineering personnel.

There were several types of quarters aboard:

### Captain's quarters & VIP quarters

Considered by far to be the most "luxurious" quarters aboard the *Musashi*, the quarters of the Captain and other VIP guests consisted of four main areas. The main living area included a large sitting area, replicator station, and dining area (see also captain's mess), a bedroom with a 1.8x2m bed, a private study, and a full sized bathroom equipped with a wash basin, mirror, sonic shower, bathtub, and toilet.

### Department head quarters

Comparatively larger than most quarters aboard the ship, the department head's quarters were reserved for senior staff who oversaw a department aboard the *Musashi*, as well as the first officer. These quarters shared similar features to the captain/VIP quarters, in regards to the living area and bath, however did not have a private study and instead a personal workstation was incorporated into their bedroom which also had a 1.6x2m bed.

### Senior officer quarters

These quarters were reserved for Starfleet officers of the lieutenant, lieutenant commander, and commander ranks who did not oversee a department aboard the *Musashi*. These quarters featured a living area, with a sitting area, personal workstation, and a replicator station, a bedroom with a 1.4x2m bed, and a washroom with a wash basin, mirror, sonic shower, and toilet.

### Junior officer quarters

These quarters were reserved for cadets, ensigns, and junior lieutenants, as well as, master chief petty officers and chief warrant officers 1-3. These quarters were smaller than the quarters for more senior officers and did not feature a separate bedroom. Instead the main living area comprised of a sitting area, personal workstation, replicator station, and a 1.2x2m bed. It also had the same type of washroom as the senior officer quarters in that it did not feature a bathtub.

### Non-commissioned officer quarters

Also called NCO quarters, these quarters were reserved for petty officers, chief petty officers, senior chief petty officers, and warrant officers. They featured a shared living space with a sitting area, shared workstation, and replicator station. It also featured two bedrooms which both had 1.2x2m beds, as well as two on-suites without a bathtub. These quarters could be either co-ed or same-sex.

### Enlisted quarters

By far the smallest quarters on board the *Musashi*. The enlisted quarters were reserved for crewmen and featured a shared living area with a shared workstation, replicator, armchair and featured two 1x2m bunkbeds. It also featured a shared washroom. It was the policy for members of the same sex to share a quarters and it was very rare for the policy to not be in place.

## Recreational facilities

### Club Olympus

Located in the primary hull on deck 8, Club Olympus served as the social center of the *Musashi*. It featured holographic projection capability, lighting and atmospheric control, a retractable bar, a storage pantry, and a galley — something often not seen aboard ships in the 25th century. Additionally, there were two holosuites adjacent to the club.

### Spearhead lounge

The Spearhead lounge is a popular location to go for a more relaxed atmosphere than Club Olympus.

### Whetstone lounge

The Whetstone lounge serves as the social center for officers and crew when the ship is separated.

### Holodecks

There were seven (7) recreational holodecks aboard the ship. These holodecks were propietary Federation technology and could comfortably support fifteen people at a time. The holodecks used a more efficient implementation of replicator technology to reduce power consumption when operational. This was achieved by using replicator technology to create statis objects which required no additional energy to maintain. Standard holo-emitter technology was used for dynamic objects, This allowed for continued use even when energy supplies were low, differing from those installed on earlier vessels on which holodecks were automatically shut down when ships' energy dropped below safe levels.

### Phaser range

A person stood on a platform in the center of the room, illuminated only by the light which came from above the platform. Colored circular lights, approximately the size of a human hand, whirled across the walls, and the person aimed and fired at selected targets. After completing a round, the number of hits and misses, along with the accuracy percentage, were tallied by the ship's computer. There were at least fifteen levels of difficulty, and the range could be customized for two-player competition.

The phaser range was also used by security officers to train personnel in marksmanship.

### Gymnasium

The gymnasium contained a variety of recreational equipment for a variety of sports. In addition to aerobic studios and martial arts areas, there was a parrises squares area, a squash court, a fencing room, and an anbo-jystu court.

## Systems

### Sensors

The *Vanguard* had four sensor primary arrays (two (2) lateral, one (1) forward, one (1) aft). Each array had an effective range of twenty-six (26) light years. Each sensor array had a backup which had a maximum range of eighteen (18) light-years.

### Navigational deflector

The navigational deflector was utilized to deflect space debris, asteroids, and any objects that may lie in a starship's path. The *Vanguard*'s deflectors were made of a molybdenum and duranium mesh. It was powered by six graviton polarity generators and had a total output of 450 gigawatts. It had a field strength of 750 milicochranes.

### Tractor emitters

The *Vanguard* was equipped with several tractors emitters, although two main tractor emitters were the primary emitters used. The primary emitters were powered by 4-15 gigawatt multi-phase graviton polarity sources. They had a field strength of 490 milicochranes. It had a minimum range of 150 million tons at 2 kilometers and a maximum range of 1 ton at 30,000 kilometers

### Transporters

The *Vanguard* had eight (8) personnel transporter rooms. Each room featured a transporter pad with a typical six "slots" for transporter operations with an additional seventh which could be used in special situations. The transporters had a range of 40,000 kilometers for safe transport, although this could be extended if it was deemed a calculated risk. The personnel transporters were rated to transport 960 kilograms (~2,116 pounds). Each transporter room was capable of 100 operations per hour, meaning in the event of evacuation, rescue, or other situation requiring a mass exodus or mass arrival, the *Vanguard* was able to transport 4,800 persons per hour.

In addition to the personnel transporters, all twelve (12) cargo bays aboard the *Vanguard* featured a cargo transporter. These transporters were capable of transporting 800 tons per cycle. Similarly with the personnel transporters, these cargo transporters were capable of 100 cycles per hour and had a range of 40,000 kilometers.

### Communications systems

The *Vanguard* featured a rather advanced form of sub-space communication technology designed by the Starfleet Communications as a child of their project to contact *Voyager* during its mission in the Delta Quadrant. This new form of communications was featured in addition to the standard communication equipment. Both forms of communications had a transmission capacity of 17.2 kiloquads per second.

The new format of communications was able to penetrate at a deeper level of subspace. This level of subspace was to dense for a ship to enter as the diameter of the galaxy was only 100 light-years long. This meant that Starfleet and the *Vanguard* could have real-time communication even if the vessel was 18,000 kilometers away.

Standard communication equipment had a short range of 2.5 million kilometers and a long range of 18 light-years for real-time transmission. Transmissions traveled at around Warp 9.997.

## Auxiliary craft

The *Vanguard* had three shuttle bays in addition to the fighter assault bay. In total, the *Vanguard* had 36 shuttles, 12 runabouts, and eight workbees. The Starfighter Corps group aboard the *Musashi* had 36 Valkyrie-III fighters along with twelve support craft. Finally, the *Musashi* features both an *Aquarius*-class light escort, the USS *Scorpio*, and a *Summit*-class captain's yacht, USS *Everest*. In total, the *Musashi* has 116 auxiliary craft in addition to the *Scorpio* and *Everest*.