Jo Marshall

Post your questions, comments, and other discussion here!

@Lephi I love all of Lephi's internal thoughts going on. It's really brought home that division between officers and this has been so good to explore together. Keep it up. Definitely getting a beer over shore leave after this 😄 -- ((Deck 8, USS Gorkon)) Lephi stood gritting her teeth and staring down the newest arrival to their little team. Her mouth opened to speak a cutting retort, but she was cut off by a crackle and then noise so dense it took her a moment to realize there was a voice underneath it. Peek: =/\= Commander Kerȯ̶̗̀ and team. Do you read? =/\= Kero: =/\= We've got heavy interference, Crewman. Can you repeat? =/\= Peek: =/\= Wȩ̴͈͆ ha̵̙̦̽ve po̶̜̖͆wer rec̵̻̈́͋onnecṫ̸͚ed, sir. Not en̵̰͋tī̴̠̱rely but̸̗̑ͅ enough ̶̟͐to ĝ̸̥̝et powe̷̠̫͛ṙ̷͓̃ to your section of ̴̫͊̍the ̵̞̆d̷̘͒͊eck. I̷͎͆s ̶̦̯̅it safe tô̸̮ do so? =/\= Her EARS implants came in handy, artificially cleaning the noise and filtering the voice of the crewman through them; feeding her a slightly less garbled transmission. Kero: =/\= I'm not sure, Crewman. ::He looked over to their Ferengi officer with a quirked dark eyebrow through the faceplate.:: Can Engineering restore power to this section? At least I think that's what he's asking. =/\= Was it safe to do so? Was anything out here really safe? A pensive look settled on the chief engineer's face. The question felt ceremonial more than anything else. The officers gathered with her had demonstrated time and again that they had no real interest in her expertise. She reasoned she could probably tell them that restoring the power would lead to everyone's immediate and painful death, and the Commander would still do it. When she finally answered the question, she was polite but her words were pointed. Lephi: =/\= It should be safe, if that's what you mean. =/\= Peek: =/\= L̸i̶f̸e̴ ̷s̵u̶p̶p̸o̶r̷t̴ ̵i̴s̶ ̴o̶p̴e̷r̵a̷t̸i̷o̶n̸a̷l̷ ̵o̵n̵c̷e̴ ̷m̵o̸r̵e̵.̸ ̵Y̴o̷u̶ ̵s̷h̴o̴u̷l̸d̷ ̸b̸e̶ ̷a̷b̶l̴e̷ ̶t̷o̶ ̴s̸c̷a̸n̷ ̷u̶s̷i̴n̶g̷ ̴t̸h̴e̵ ̴t̷r̵i̸c̸o̶r̵d̴e̸r̷.̷ ̸ ::The interference started to clean up, bit by bit, only allowing the Crewman's pause to come through.:: O̷n̸e̸ ̸m̷o̷r̴e̷ ̸t̵h̵i̵n̶g̵,̵ ̴s̶i̵r̴.̸ ̸H̶o̷w̵ ̶d̴o̵ ̶y̴o̵u̵ ̸k̵n̵o̴w̴ ̵t̴h̷a̷t̴ ̷a̸l̴l̷ ̶y̵o̶u̴r̵ ̶m̵e̶m̸o̶r̷i̶e̸s̸ ̷a̷r̷e̴ ̸t̶r̵u̴e̴?̵ =/\= Kero: =/\= I errr… Does anyone want to take a stab at that? =/\= Tahna: =/\= You don’t. ::She paused before elaborating, realizing that while truthful, it wasn’t the most helpful answer.:: Memory is a reconstructive process, event recall is rarely pure and is influenced by what we’ve learned about the world. But generally, I don’t think there are many reasons for you to possess a false memory that seems real. =/\= Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Memories can be fallible, shaped by emotions and perceptions. If by false memory you mean a pure recall of a past event, then please know that perfect recall does not exist. Additionally, memories can be subject to external manipulation. The answer in a nutshell is essentially – Lieutenant Tahna is right, you don’t really know how “true” they are. =/\= Lephi remained silent, observing the others' answers to the question instead. An ancient Earth proverb floated through her thoughts. It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt. The woman was an engineering genius, but she was never very good at things that weren't machines. Peek/Kero: =/\= Response =/\= Tahna: =/\= If you’re concerned about your memory, might I suggest talking to a counselor? Corliss is a certified miracle worker, I believe. =/\= Peek/Kero: =/\= Response =/\= ((OOC: Also happy to expand upon this if we’d like to!)) Tahna: =/\= So with power restored, what new options do we have for retrieval? =/\= She considered the question carefully. Power restoration did open several new proverbial doors for them, and she breathed out some of the tension she'd been subconsciously holding onto. Lephi: =/\= Depending on the reliability of the power, we could keep transporters online long enough to get potential survivors out. =/\= Kero: =/\= Response =/\= Tagren-Quinn: =/\= With power restored, scanners would be more reliable... =/\= Kero/Tahna: =/\= Response =/\= Tagren-Quinn: =/\= We can get a more accurate reading on those life-signs, and any more that might be stranded on this deck. While we sort out the logistics of what equipment can be at our disposal, we can develop an extraction strategy in tandem. =/\= Just like that, the weight of the situation returned like a crocohippus resting on her chest. She wasn't opposed to saving the people, she just didn't see the point in wasting their time and resources at the risk of none of them getting out. Lephi: =/\= If the scanners are more reliable now, we'd better take whatever information they give us at face value. Resource allocation has been seriously overlooked in favour of emotions so far. =/\= Kero/Tahna: =/\= Response =/\= Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Even if we weren’t looking at the void of space and worried about the timing of power failure or structural integrity failure, we are still looking at possible injuries. Every moment we use takes away vital time from them. The sooner we can get to them, well, the better overall chances for successful health outcomes. =/\= At the rate they were going, only Lephi's commitment to staying out of the brig was preventing their doctor from needing a doctor of his own. How could he stand there and say injuries suffered by crew that might be long since dead is more important than saving the crew they know to be living and breathing. Lephi: oO You're a Starfleet officer. Act like it. Oo ::breathes out slowly:: =/\= With all due respect, Doctor, how are you going to save them if you're dead? We can't ignore the situation. This isn't the Academy. =/\= Kero/Tahna: =/\= Response =/\= Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Response =/\= She ignored their comments at this point. They were ignoring her words of wisdom, dismissing it as a callous disregard for the sanctity of life; despite the fact she was trying to save lives. She cleared her throat and attempted to focus on the situation unfolding. Lephi: =/\= What do the scans say? Kero/Tahna/Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Response =/\= Lephi: =/\= If I can get to an access panel that hasn't been compromised, I should be able to boost the strength of the transporter signal to compensate for the debris on the other side. =/\= Kero/Tahna/Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Response =/\= She set off down the corridor, passing several terminals that had been destroyed in the chaos. oO Great, add them to the growing list of repairs. My poor boat Oo. A short way down the corridor in the opposite direction, she located what she was after and quickly accessed the necessary systems. Lephi: =/\= I found a terminal. I suggest we be quick about this. =/\= Kero/Tahna/Tagren-Quinn: =/\= Response =/\= ============================== Lieutenant Lephi Chief Engineering Officer USS Gorkon NCC-82293 Community History Team Member Chat Team Member Wiki Team Member A239706L10 ==============================

Welcome to the group, folks!

Ah, beat me to it! I loved this sim!

Well done, guys! Incredible work and well deserved! Every single one was a winning entry, by far! Absolutely amazing 👏 😍 ❤️

Thank you for all your submissions, folks! They're all amazing in their own way, and it's been great to see the effort made by the community to bring some life into this! The judging panel has been called and it is now in their hands. We should be announcing our winners within the next week!

Welcome to the fleet, John!

@Wil Ukinix This opening line made me chuckle hard. You can hear the enthusiasm 😄

Welcome to the fleet, Tolan!

We are proud to present you a brand new... StarBase 118: Graphic Contest! After a long hiatus, we are back on a yearly basis! In this contest, we recognize the amazingly talented artists we have among our membership. Anyone can join, no matter the level of artistry. The theme of this round is: "Home" Home is where the heart is. What does home mean to your character and you? Is it a location, a person, a feeling or an activity? None or all of the above? Show us through your art! We have two submission categories: Digital and Non-Digital. Both categories will have a winner and runner up who will receive a badge. You could participate in any of them, but not in both. Entries will be displayed on the contest gallery page of all entries, with special features of the winners on our DeviantArt social media. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES The theme must be included, it's the challenge. The submitted work has to be done by you and created for this contest (no previous works). You can use stock images and the like and put them together, but the final work must have your stamp on it and should be clearly derivative from the stock used. Any kind of graphic style is allowed. You can paint, use 3D renders, mix different source images, make collages, animations, draw, manipulate photos, make a video, cross stitch etc. as long as the final work is yours and originally created for the contest. If you do a non-digital piece, make sure to photograph/scan it to display it in the forum. Everyone can submit one piece of work. You don’t need to be part of the Image Collective or any other taskforce to participate: everybody is welcome to do so! The image must be recognisably within the Star Trek universe, yet, please do not use canon characters of the Star Trek series. Please add your name (your primary character which we identify you with) in the lower corner as a signature. Image size: At least 1200x630 pixels (either horizontal or vertical, by your choice, but images bigger than this minimum are encouraged) To submit the image, start a new thread in this contest forum with your primary character name, that way we do not have to dig for it and tag it with 'graphics contest 2022' Eager to get started? Your mind full of images that want out? Well then ready, set, GO! Submission deadline is February 28th 2022 If you have any questions, please post them here. Who knows, someone else might have the same!

Gotta say, DS9 Emissary was an explosive start to a new series, and definitely cool. But... Voyager.

Congratulations, Joel! Welcome to the club!

I can feel my chestnuts roasting already.

Well done, all! Welcome to the fleet! 🥳

If you need anything, just shout loud enough!

"Jack the sound barrier. Bring the noise." ― Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash

Lena would, without question, do the same to him

Welcome to the 'Fleet! 🥳

Welcome to the party! Love the avatar! 🥳

One I meant to throw in here a while back; how to open an intriguing spin on the mission in style. Descriptions of the ??? are so evocative and alluring, it's hard to not get sucked in and want to explore it yourself. A fascinating take on it and splash into a great media res opener from @Quinn Reynolds, as always! -- ((???, Darime IV)) Consciousness filtered back with all the reluctance of a Starfleet cadet dragging themselves to class after a night on the town. Ryan’s brain felt too small for his head, pounding and struggling against the confines of his skull, and he breathed out a low groan of pain. The stench of burnt dust bit at the back of his throat, and he coughed, choking on the taste. But he couldn’t lie there forever. Cracking open his eyes, he pushed himself up—and for one horrifying moment, he thought he was blind. There was nothing but thick, impenetrable black, brushing over his skin with fingers of ice. He swallowed, goosebumps shivering across his skin, and then vague shapes took form. Straight edges in the distance he could only see out of the corners of his eyes, and much closer to him, the softer lines and curves of people. Three of them. Vaguely recognisable for spending so much time in each other’s company. Isaacs: Ugh... ::He pressed his hand to the back of his neck, massaging the muscles in an attempt to relieve his headache.:: Is everyone okay? Or at least... you know, alive? Ressan/Gilbert/Ico: Response Talking while he fumbled on the ground around him, Ryan’s hands bumped over what felt like an engineering kit. His fingers were clumsy on the latches in the gloom, and the opening snaps reverberated through the space as though they were in the middle of some vast flight deck, sound waves bouncing off the metallic, cavernous walls. Which didn’t make sense, because he was pretty sure they were on one of the greenest planets he’d ever seen. Granted, as someone from Mars who occasionally visited Earth, that wasn’t saying much, but the point was the same. There were trees and grass. Lots of it. His hand closed around the smooth, orthotopic form of a tricorder. He tugged it free of its housing, blindly thumbing at the controls until he hit the right one to make the device light up. Chirps and beeps echoed, the subdued light of the tricorder casting ghostly shadows across his youthful face. Isaacs: Anyone know what happened? One minute we were... ::he paused, and screwed up his eyes in thought.:: Uh... I’m actually not sure. The last thing I can remember is breakfast. Ressan/Gilbert/Ico: Response He felt it before he heard it. A low, bass rumble that burrowed into his chest before it reached his ears, an electric thrum his engineering training recognised as power rushing through conduits. Maybe they were on a starship, but how— A deep chime sounded, and light blinded him. Ryan’s hand snapped up, shielding himself against the sudden onslaught of brilliance, squinting and blinking until he was able to brace himself against the brightness searing his retina. He scrambled to his feet and his hands dropped to his side, tricorder loose in his fingers and momentarily forgotten. Dumbstruck, the young man stood agape at the sight in front of him. Tall spires erupted from the earth and clung to the rocky ceiling high overhead like stalactites and stalagmites, glistening and glittering in ivory and gold. But they weren’t rock formations, they were buildings, with windows and doors and walkways threading like silver ribbons between them with no obvious means of support. He and his fellow cadets were standing in the centre of a septagon, and around the edges it looked as though it was some kind of... garden? Ferns and mosses in vivid shades of blue and violet, indigo lichen clinging to artfully arranged boulders, and huge geodes with amethyst and sapphire crystals sparkling inside. He spun on the spot, taking it all in. It was incredible, the kind of thing he’d joined Starfleet to see... except he had no idea how they’d got here. Or where “here” even was. He smacked his combadge with his palm, but wasn’t the least bit surprised when the only response was the dismayed burp of a no-contact alert. Isaacs: So... We should probably try to get out of here, or at least get comms working. Any ideas? Ressan/Gilbert/Ico: Response -- Cadet Ryan Isaacs 4th Year Cadet Starfleet Academy simmed by Rear Admiral Quinn Reynolds Commanding Officer USS Gorkon T238401QR0

Really enjoyed this sim from @Alieth! Her reactions to the presented ideas made me chuckle, and it's a good representation of an MSNPC. Pushing the plot forward, involving her fellow cadets, conveying her personality with every interaction. -- ((Outskirts of an unknown city underground, Darime IV)) The small group of cadets had awakened, headache notwithstanding, in an unknown place, in the pitch black darkness that could only belong to a cave or the emptiness of deep space. Due to the damp, mossy ground beneath their feet, space had been ruled out ipso facto, but they still had no idea where they were, how they had got there, .... or how long it had been since that breakfast that was the last memory they all shared. However, things had gone a little south when, mere minutes after they woke up, a beam of light had appeared and a city of towering spires and vertiginous towers had unfolded before them, prompting a tense debate between the two human cadets with some comic insertions from the Kelpian, which perhaps had only served to fuel their growingly heated tempers. Following a quick and unproductive exchange of words, the young Bajoran mustered enough courage to raise her voice. Ico: GUYS! That doesn’t matter if we don’t get out of here. We are all friends and classmates after all... r-right? Her voice lost strength and volume as she spoke. A flush rose to her cheeks, soon turning them deep crimson. Ryan broke out in a wide grin, and with his hand held close to his gut, gave her a surreptitious thumbs up which only increased the blush on Ico's cheeks. She had always thought Isaacs had a good-looking smile, anyway. Ressan: Yeah. You're right, Ena. We're Starfleet, we can handle this. ::He grinned.:: Or all get turned into puppets. Ena raised her gaze for a brief second to flash a grateful, minute smile to Jack. Not at the allusion to her more-than-unlikely transformation into puppets (though she had read something about such a weapon in the FedNet's "I want to believe" almanac, a publication to which she could only give marginal credibility) but rather for the supportive intent and the attempt to lighten the mood. Everyone could always rely on Jack, even when his ganglia were extended, as they were at that moment, and he was possibly struggling as much (or more) than she was. Isaacs: All right then. ::He dropped his hands to his hips, fingers still curled around the tricorder.:: What do we want to do, and where do we want to start? Gilbert: Response The Bajoran gave a small nod at Solomon's words, breathed in for a second to gather her courage and spoke. This time almost (almost) without hesitation in her voice. Ico: I don't know, but we have to remember our training: determine dangers, get as much information as possible, try to get out of here or look for help. Ressan: That's right. Isaacs was right before, as well; we should try and get a signal going. Even if these walls are messing with our combadge signals, there might be a way once we sit and think for a bit. Gilbert: Response She clutched her pack tighter and glanced down somewhere between the boots of her Kelpian teammate. One, two, three, a hard squeeze to the backpack and tell her mind once more. Ico: Maybe, maybe they are already looking for us actually, we just need to stay safe and don't do anything crazy. Ressan: It's a good survival rule. "Stay put". We don't know how we got here, we don't know where we are. We could be just down the road from our quarters, or we could be on the other side of the galaxy. The Bajoran cringed slightly at that response, considering the comment a criticism of her idea. Her fingers dipped into the torn fabric of the backpack. Well, maybe it wasn't exactly the brightest idea, but... she doubted they were anywhere near the Base. .... Ressan: Could be a The Traveller situation, could be a Q, we could have gone full Voy' and be in the Delta quadrant—could be there's something in the air and we are all tripping the most balls ever as your people say with disturbing regularity. Until we know more, we should examine our immediate surroundings first. As the Kelpian droned on, Ena felt more and more the urge to cry, all those prospects were horrifying, far from home, left to their own fate with no chance of rescue. She squeezed her eyelids shut and bit her lower lip. No, she couldn't think like that, there was always a solution to every problem, or almost always. She just had to focus, learn what means they had and everything they knew about their environment and look for solutions. Her mother's voice, as she planned the next year's crops, echoed in her mind, clear as the day she heard it: "Remember, my child, that all problems seem huge if you look at them from a distance, but if you look at them from up close everything seems more manageable. Don't think of the spring harvest, only of ploughing the field, of sowing the seeds. The small steps. Little by little, step by step a trail becomes a road, Ena." Then, she always told him that the Prophets also cared for Bajor and its people, and that no matter how much trouble they put in her path, there was always a plan in place. That she should trust them. Surely they wouldn't let her get lost forever in a dark and isolated place away from everything she knew, would they? It was a comforting thought, one that allowed her to raise her eyes a little, to her companions' chest height, almost to their shoulders as she turned her attention back to the conversation. Isaacs: Okay. If they aren’t looking for us already, they will be once we miss our scheduled check-in—if we haven’t already. So first things first. Safety checks: ::he held a finger for each item he rattled off,:: are we being exposed to anything dangerous, are there any immediate threats, is there enough water and food to wait out a rescue, you know the drill. Ena nodded quickly, and one of her hands dropped from her backpack to grab the tricorder. One small step, one at a time. Ryan had made it clear what they had to do, so she was going to work on it. She wasn't a security specialist, but maybe she could answer some of the other questions. Gilbert: Response She took the floor then, her voice still a bit shaky and small. Ico: I have a regular tricorder, not a medical, so I can' t get detailed readings of our organism, but I could try… Maybe I find n- nothing, or… I don’t know, I’m a astronomer, not a doctor. Then she made a brief pause. Her voice had become too hesitant and unsure by the end. She wanted to help the better she can, surely the others knew it. As she thought about it, her gaze looked for the canteen she had passed to the other cadets, and then pulled out the half-sandwich out of her backpack. Ico: As for food, I have this half sandwich... turkey and apple, I think. The water I've found is what's left in the canteen, if there's any. Finding supplies... sa-safe supplies, I mean, is paramount. ...especially water. It was then that Jack spoke. Ressan: I'm just saying. Let's look around before we run off. ::To Gilbert,:: You too. If a Q did this, I promise you can try and seduce them. ::He fought down a wave of nervous laughter.:: Not that you ever needed my permission to try the Solomon Manoeuvre in literally every single possible situation ever. Ena bit her lips at that phrase, still uncomfortable when boys talked about boy stuff. The blush threatened to rise to her cheeks again and she struggled futilely to control it, remembering all too well some of the other girls' comments regarding Solomon's... 'skills'. Gilbert: Response Isaacs: Gil, you’re the guy to check if there’s any immediate threats. Ico, can you figure out if we’re being exposed to anything dangerous: radiation, airborne contaminants, that kind of thing? Ryan paused for a second, and the young Bajoran was quick to nod eagerly. However, the human's mind was elsewhere, on Jack who, in turn, seemed to be absorbed in staring at the buildings that had appeared out of nowhere a moment ago. Somehow the Kelpian's violet eyes seemed to be squinting, giving him really goofy look almost as if he were performing one of his usual tomfooleries. She struggled to refrain a chuckle. Ressan: The walls are reflective in a wide range of bands; a good chunk of the visual spectrum, especially in the ultraviolet—and thermals, too, so... presumably that's what's scrambling our comm frequencies.. We might be able to talk to each other with a bit of rejigging, but we're not getting a signal out here if that material treats comm signals like it does everything else. But that'll take time. Isaacs: If the walls are acting like mirrors higher and lower in the spectrum, they’ll mess with a lot of our scans, too. We’ll have to watch out for sensor echoes and repeats. The Bajoran's urge to laugh vanished quickly, as her companion with heightened senses described the scenario: the environment itself was working against them, rendering even more challenging the task of getting out of there. Isaacs: Can you see if there’s any way for us to get a signal out? Or at least an idea of whether it’s worth trying. Ico: Or a less reflective area, a blind spot that we can use to our advantage? Ressan/Gilbert: Response Isaacs: Okay, so— Before he finished the sentence, a mechanical growl reverberated over and over in the walls of the massive cavern, gravel against stone, the sort of thing that augured an avalanche or other cataclysm. Another rumble and the next thing that rang out was the sound of water. A distant section of a wall retracted up and frothing water crashed through the opening, pouring into what looked like an empty canal.Ico thoughtlessly embraced her backpack once more. Why seemed as if they had stepped into a beast's den just as it was awakening? Isaacs: So, uh... let’s keep an eye on that while we see what we can find out? Ena attempted to find the positive in all that. Ico: At least we won't go thirsty... we might as well check it first. Ressan/Gilbert: Response Ena nodded slightly and slung her rucksack over her back, taking care that the tear did not cause her to lose even more of its meagre contents. With that taken care of, she picked up the tricorder and began configuring it for a medical scan. The device wasn't specialised in it, but a few tweaks here and there could do the trick. Once she had done so, she followed her companions sheepishly, her nose almost immersed in the small screen of her device. Ico: The atmosphere seems to be mostly harmless, there are quite a few spores and some complex hydrogen compounds, methane and other hydrocarbons, but nothing that could pose an immediate danger. Ressan/Gilbert/Isaacs: Response The Bajoran nodded absently, focused on work, which usually changed her attitude a great deal. So intent was she that she stumbled over a rock covered in blue moss and rolled to the ground. Ico: Ich! Ressan/Gilbert/Isaacs: Response The young Bajoran shook her head and patted around for her missing tricorder. She sucked in her breath between clenched teeth before answering. Ico: Yes, yeah, I'm fine, it's just a scratch. Ressan/Gilbert/Isaacs: Response Ena accepted the offered help to get back to an upright position, without letting go of the bruised tricorder. No sooner was she back on her feet than the scanner started beeping rapidly. Ico glanced at the screen and then at the young man who had helped her, a wrinkle of concern growing on her forehead. Ico: Are you feeling alright? The tricorder took some strange readings when it had picked you up in the scanner beam... Ressan/Gilbert/Isaacs: Response -- Cadet Ico Ena 4th Year Cadet Starfleet Academy simmed by Lt. Alieth Chief Science Officer USS Gorkon NCC-82293 E239702A10 Image Collective Facilitator /Art Director

Good to have you, Alex!

Take your achievement!