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  1. ((USS Apollo-A, Holodeck)) ::On a low, white couch in a large, brightly-lit room, all clean lines and sophisticated sparseness, no windows, no doors to be seen, Ren Rennyn sat, one leg crossed ankle to knee over the other, his right arm draped casually on the back of the couch, his left holding a glass of scotch, good, decent scotch, by the standards of replicated synthehol, anyway.:: ::He tried not to giggle and failed.:: ::Ren was in a holo-program called "Max Alpha," currently set for Chapter Three. Introduced to the game by his brother-in-law Maren, he'd finished the first two chapters already, and, after nearly a year of anticipation, had at last returned to it. In character, ready and primed, he waited until the chapter's opening narration, his favorite part of the program, began. The computerized narrator's brassy-toned, nasally voice boomed out somewhere above him.:: Narrator: Deep space. Region of mystery, of duplicity and danger, and, known only to a handful of the very best sort of people, home to Max Alpha: The Galaxy's Greatest Secret Agent! ::Ren s[...]ed, trying to keep a serious face as Max Alpha.:: Narrator: Having defeated the duplicitous denizens of Dnarko, and crushed the criminal capers of the cruel Comet King, Max Alpha sits serenely, soaking silently in serious speculation. ::He couldn't take it -- Ren laughed out loud, but quickly tried to stifle his impulse.:: Rennyn: Sorry. Serious speculation. Narrator: Soon the universe will face another incredible danger. Its only hope -- Max Alpha: The Galaxy's Greatest Secret Agent! ::Just then, a door, which had been invisible when closed, opened in the wall behind him. In came a being about a meter in height. It had three stubby legs on a long torso, two very large yellow eyes in a bulbous head, and skin a color that resembled old pea soup. :: Narrator: ...and his assistant, 86. Rennyn: Good afternoon, 86. 86: Yoik! ::It was a strange interjection the meaning of which Ren hadn't deciphered in the first two chapters. 86 scrambled around the couch, his breath ragged from running.:: 86: We've got ...incoming, sir! Control wants you... straight away! Rennyn: Well, put her on the screen. 86: Yes, sir... hold on, and I'll just... I'll just get my breath back... Maybe have a bit of a rest... Rennyn: 86! Control is waiting. 86: Oh, yes, sir! ::86 scrambled about again, and the viewscreen, invisible when inactive, was projected in front of them, seeming to float in the air. On it was a very old woman, a Terran, white hair elaborately piled high. She was tiny, shriveled and age-spotted, yet looked as though she might instantly snap the neck of any person who crossed her.:: Control: Good afternoon, Alpha. Rennyn: Hello, Control. How's the weather where you are? ::She was his only contact at i3, the interplanetary agency Max Alpha worked for, but they had never met in person, and though he had his guesses, he had never learned Control's whereabouts.:: Control: You'll never know. As a deep space agent, Alpha, you'll never meet me or any of your superiors face to face. You are assigned missions by me and expected to carry them out without question. Rennyn: I've never failed you. ::In two chapters, he hadn't.:: Control: You are our top agent. That's why I'm contacting you now - your next mission is of vital importance, and we couldn't assign it to anyone else. Have you heard of the Hammer of Bajor? ::Ren was surprised. As a matter of fact, he had.:: Rennyn: As a matter of fact, I have. A supposed archaeological relic that was rumored to be lost some ages ago. It was said to have great power-- Control: Enough to destroy a small planet, perhaps. Before its disappearance, it was closely guarded by the Vedek Assembly, who believed that in the wrong hands, it could cause widespread panic and destruction. And now it has been recovered. 86: Oh, well that's alright then, isn't it. Good job it was recovered, before it fell in the wrong hands. ::Ren's bemused look at 86's mistake was withered by Control's typical annoyance at the interruption.:: Control: No, 86. It was recovered BY the wrong hands. 86: No! You don't mean...? Control: Yes... ::All three said it together.:: "Commandant X!" Rennyn: But if Commandant X has the Hammer of Bajor... Control: He controls a vast power. He can ransom entire planets, one after another, and there's nothing we can do to stop him. Rennyn: Oh, yes there is! We're going to get the Hammer back before the Commandant can use it. ::86 blinked.:: 86: Uhm... "We"? Control: Good luck to you, Alpha. i3 are counting on you. Rennyn: We'll do our best, Control. 86: "WE"?? Control: Control out. ::The screen blinked off, again fading to blend in with the wall. Ren jumped to his feet, opening the invisible door, ready to dash out of the room. Max Alpha was ready for action.:: Rennyn: Come on, 86. We've got work to do! 86: Uhm, yes, coming, sir. Only, we're going to have to talk about your use of pronouns, I feel... SOON: ::Despite his less desirable qualities - cowardice, cowering, codependence - 86 was more than extremely useful. He hailed from Tlbx, a world where technological know-how is taught from birth; on a planet full of outrageously brilliant technologists, 86 was considered one of the best and brightest.:: ::At age 15, 86 -- a code name, as his own name was too technical to be pronounced -- invented a new transporter so advanced, the Federation's highest ranking personages deemed its existence too dangerous to be known to the universe at large. He'd sold the patent to i3 in exchange for a permanent job for life. On a planet full of outrageously brilliant technologists, job security was next to godliness.:: ::The transporter pad in Max Alpha and 86's Secret Deep Space Headquarters was one of a kind, the only model ever built from 86's original schematic, drawn on the back of his algebra notebook during 7th grade study hall. The pad was outwardly indistinguishable from any standard Federation equipment, but its inner workings had a key difference. It allowed instant transportation to any location in the universe, no matter the distance.:: Rennyn: oO Too bad real transporters can't be like this. Would sure save on travel time. Maybe they'd let me commute to work from Arnmere. Oo ::The souped up transporter in the Max Alpha game was an important plot device, but of course could never exist in the real world. You'd never know what Borg or something would suddenly appear standing behind you. Horrifying thought.:: ::86 interrupted his thoughts from the control panel.:: 86: Uhm, the coordinates are set, sir. We'll beam directly into Commandant X's top secret headquarters! Rennyn: But how do you know where it is? 86: Luckily I invented a Secret Headquarters Of Villainous Evildoers Locator. Rennyn: That ought to dig something up. 86: It has! Commandant X is hiding out on the dark side of a moon of Raidok, called Dishpan by the locals. Rennyn: I've been to Dishpan City. Turns out their main industry is laundry. 86: That's funny. Rennyn: Well, it was the lighter side of the moon. 86: Uhm, sir, you do realize that every side is the light side at some point? Rennyn: Yes, well, I don't think the Raidokians realized that. They mix their darks and their lights. ::Ren stepped onto the transporter pad and 86 scrambled on next to him.:: Rennyn: Ready, 86? 86: Ready, sir! Rennyn: Then beam us out. ::At a tap of one of 86's singularly long digits, the amazing transporter hummed into action, whisking their molecules away with uncommon magic.:: THEN, IN THE SECRET HEADQUARTERS OF COMMANDANT X: 86: I've beamed us in it! ::They were in a sort of warehouse, all full of packing crates, and a row of nine Tellarites in ninja costume stood menacingly before them. Ren smiled.:: Rennyn: Looks like we've come to the right place. Who but Commandant X would think of something as dastardly as ninja Tellarites? 86: I'll tell ya right! ::86 was always trying to quip with the big leagues.:: Rennyn: That will be quite enough, 86. 86: Sorry, sir. Rennyn: Okay, boys! Come and get it! ::The nine ninja Tellarites reacted to Ren's call, and, slowly at first, began to close in threateningly.:: ::This was the physical workout portion of the game, and Ren had programmed his settings on the lower side for strength and fighting skill. Not that he didn't want the physical challenge, necessarily, but he'd tried a harder setting on the first chapter to ill effect. Max Alpha was supposed to be a master of martial arts, and Ren learned quickly he would have to build up his skills. He was already out of practice on his kaigut. This time through was more of a fun run.:: ::Two Tellarites advanced on him at once, and he sidestepped, cracking their heads together. A third came at him and gracefully obliged as Ren flipped him on his back.:: Rennyn: Maybe I set it too easy, these guys are pushovers. Whoa--! ::He ducked as two metal stars went whizzing past his head.:: Rennyn: 86! They're armed! 86: Got that memo!! Yoik! ::The little guy went clattering past, chased by a ninja with two swords. The way his three stubby legs worked furiously under his long torso, his tiny arms flailing helplessly toward the sky, 86 resembled a large, frightened celery stalk. Rennyn: Keep running, 86! I have an idea! 86: No problem, sir! Not stopping!! ::The fleeing genius shrieked, scrambling around a stack of crates, three ninjas now in pursuit.:: ::Ren came about as another ninja tried to attack, only to find itself slammed headfirst into a wall in a signature Max Alpha move. A whirling kick knocked another to the floor.:: ::Quickly, Ren scaled the nearest crates, his goal in sight. Above him was a catwalk that ran around the entire room. If only he could reach it, the plan would come together. He jumped from one stack to the next. Below him, 86 continued to outrun his pursuers.:: 86: Doing fine, sir! ::While 86 continued to panic, only one more stack of crates needed climbing, and Ren was near the railing. It was just close enough to grip the edge at a jump. He did and, dangling from the side, swung himself up to the platform.:: ::In the back of his mind, Ren did a quick ninja count. He'd put five on the floor, and could see three chasing 86. But wasn't there a ninth ninj--:: Rennyn: --Aaaa! ::A flying kick caught him square in the back. He fell forward to the catwalk deck then instantly flipped himself over, catching his attacker's second pass with his feet, launching him aside before leaping to the ready.:: ::The ninja, recovered, faced him off squarely, the two gauging each other before their next attack. This ninja was different to the others, taller, with a hood that covered all but his hard eyes, ice blue. Then Ren noticed - this one's hands had five fingers each, and under that hood, there was no room for a snout. Rennyn: You're not a Tellarite! ::A deep and resonant laugh answered him, sending a chill through Ren's body.:: Ninja: You are correct, Max Alpha, I am not one of the porcine brood. Behold, it is I... Commandant X! ::The Commandant threw back his hood dramatically, revealing a face so horrifyingly horrible, so terrifically terrifying, so blindingly blood-curdling... Rennyn: oO Oh, actually. He's sort of handsome. Oo ::Ren was caught off-guard. Commandant X had pulled all the evil strings in the first two chapters, but Ren hadn't seen his face until now, Terran-looking, dark hair, nice features, about Ren's age.:: Rennyn: You know you're really sort of dreamy. ::Just a little crazy in those crisp, cold eyes.:: Commandant X: You are dreaming to think you can stop me, Max Alpha! Ninjas -- to me! ::At the Commandant's call, two of the Tellarites, appearing suddenly behind Ren, pulled the hero into their grip. Ren struggled, but couldn't break free.:: Commandant X: What now, Max Alpha? ::The Commandant's voice was deep, highly cultured, and accented with a certain lack of sanity.:: Commandant X: How do you like the taste of defeat? Rennyn: I prefer the rinds, thanks. Commandant X: Shut him up! ::The ninjas obediently grabbed Ren's head and held his jaw closed. The Commandant's hand emerged from a pocket in his black ninja garb to reveal a round slice of metal that reminded Ren of an ugly paperweight. But even from a short two meters away, Ren could hear the object humming with energy.:: Commandant X: You will never escape me, Max Alpha. I wield the Hammer of Bajor, a power mightier than planets. With this device in my control, I will become the supreme ruler of this galaxy. All worlds will bow to ME!! Rennyn: Mourm mnmrambl. Commandant X: What? ::At a flick of Commandant X's hand, the ninjas released Ren's mouth.:: Rennyn: You're unstable. Commandant X: How dare you... ::The Commandant glowered. He took several steps toward Ren, coming very close, until his face was only inches from Ren's own. Each syllable crackled with contempt.:: Commandant X: Max Alpha. What are you to so insult the great Commandant X!? ::Ren spoke softly, cajolingly, smiling a gentle smile.:: Rennyn: Oh, now, don't take offense, handsome. I didn't mean you, exactly. I meant your catwalk. You see, when I climbed up here, I rigged the platform we're standing on to break apart at my assistant's command. Marvelous inventor, he is, and it's a wonder what can be done with magnetic nanotechnology. If you don't release me, or if you try to move from this section of the deck, you'll have an awfully long fall to the ground. Commandant X: As will you, Galaxy's Greatest Gobhead. Rennyn: Ah. But you see, I happen to have antigravity shoes in my favor. Isn't that right, 86? ::Commandant X, Ren, and the two Tellarites who held him looked down to the ground, where 86 perched proudly on a pile of passed-out porkers. He waved his control mechanism above his head.:: 86: Ready when you are, sir! Rennyn: What will it be, Commandant? Will you keep the Hammer and drive your head into the floor below? Or will you tap out? ::The Commandant fumed.:: Commandant X: I will never give in. I will never--!! Rennyn: 86! Now! ::At the press of a button on 86's control mechanism, the deck beneath Ren and the Commandant began to tremble. The Tellarite ninjas released Ren, jumping away to safety with unnecessary backflips. Commandant X yelled after them in a fury.:: Commandant X: You fools! Attend me! Rennyn: Sorry to hog all the attention, but I really must fly. ::At the last word, Ren rose into the air on his antigrav shoes as the floor caved underneath Commandant X, sections of deck crashing toward the ground below. The Commandant clung desperately to a bit of railing that remained attached to the wall. Ren came alongside him, hovering in midair.:: Rennyn: Be a good Commandant and give me the Hammer. Commandant X: Never! Rennyn: Pretty please? I promise to rescue you if you do. Commandant X: I should rather plummet to my death! Rennyn: And waste that pretty face? I don't think so. ::Floating lower, he grabbed the Commandant by the ankles, tore him from the wall, and took him toward the floor, where 86 stood waiting. He dangled the Commandant above his little pal, shaking the evildoer a little.:: Rennyn: Take it from him! ::86 jumped, trying for the Hammer, which Commandant X clutched to his chest.:: Commandant X: No! Get away, you meddling mechanic! Rennyn: Hurry it up, 86! He's kind of heavy. 86: He IS the heavy, sir. Rennyn: Keep trying on the puns, buddy. Okay, now who's had enough? ::Ren dropped Commandant X to the floor as 86 skittered out of the way. The Commandant got to his feet, but before he could run, Ren threw a right hook that sent him to the ground faster than a Tellarite ninja fleeing an evil hideout. The Commandant was out cold.:: 86: Well done, sir! ::Ren knelt over the villain, prying the Hammer of Bajor carefully from the fallen fiend's hand.:: Rennyn: Cheer up, handsome. Better luck next time. ::He turned from the comatose criminal to 86, tossing the powerful Hammer casually in the air, then coolly catching it again.:: Rennyn: Let's go home. BACK AT THE SECRET DEEP SPACE HEADQUARTERS OF 86 AND MAX ALPHA: ::Control loomed over them on the viewscreen, her lips curled ever so slightly in the beginnings of a smile.:: Control: Congratulations, Alpha, you've done it again. With Commandant X and his ninjas in the custody of Dishpan's authorities, we're all safe again. Rennyn: Yes, I thought he'd be secure in Dishpan hands. Control: Let's hope he doesn't slip away. ::86 looked confused.:: 86: My only question is... Why Tellarite ninjas? I mean of all the henchmen the Commandant could have hired. ::Ren thought about it carefully.:: Rennyn: I suppose he wanted to find a way to really put the ham in Hammer. ::86 laughed a sound like a squeaking balloon.:: 86: Oh yes, I see. That hits it rather on the head. Rennyn: Yes, well, I thought I'd take my best swing at it. 86: You've really driven it home, sir. ::Control interrupted with an uncharacteristic smirk.:: Control: Now, gentlemen, no need to keep pounding away at it. ::86 leaped up exuberantly.:: 86: Nailed it, ma'am! ::Ren smiled proudly. 86 was finally improving on his puns.:: ::Control's face turned serious again. Time for her signature sendoff, Ren knew, which officially ended each chapter.:: Control: You've saved the universe again, Max Alpha. Rest well -- your next adventure is coming soon. Control out! ::The screen blinked away and Ren turned to 86. Rennyn: Well done today, 86. You're making progress. 86: Thank you, sir. Shall I fix us a drink, sir? Rennyn: Please. ::Ren watched 86 go out the invisible door, and supposed it was time to call up an invisible door of his own. He'd had fun, but it was almost time to get back to work.:: Rennyn: Computer, arch. ::That familiar sound of the door to reality greeted him. With one last glance at Max Alpha's hideaway, Ren walked out to rejoin the Apollo, an enormous grin on his face as he looked forward to his next exciting adventure.:: LtCmdr Ren Rennyn Ops Officer USS Apollo-A, NCC-71669 A239102RR0
  2. ((Arboretum, USS Apollo)) ::There were moments when the bright lights caught a plant just right, and Ren could believe he was back home in Arnmere. Those moments came in flashes only, not strong enough to break through the knowledge that deckplates were under his feet, or that the air he breathed was typically bland and unnoticeable recycled starship atmosphere. The air back home was full of imperfections - mud and fertilizer and underrot from the forest line, drifting towards his nose on an unpredictable breeze.:: ::He was alone in the arboretum for the moment. Even with so many people aboard Apollo, it felt empty at the moment. So many had gone down to Earth, or on short trips to nearby places. He understood Antero and Mirra had taken a shuttle away. Ren had considered going down to Earth himself. It had been home for four years, at the Academy. Parts of it were so similar to his own world. But it wasn't Trill. It couldn't replace the home he keenly missed.:: ::Instead, he stood in the arboretum, considering a jonja tree. Dirin and Dee had lines of them planted around the moba fields. Two Bajoran plants, thriving in distant Arnmere. Ren had thought he could thrive far from home, too. Sometimes he had to wonder if he'd made the right choices in life. If he'd leaped off the right cliffs.:: ::As he inspected his fellow expatriate, the jonja tree, Ren remembered a day long ago when the trees had not been in bloom, but the decisions that shaped his own life were beginning to form.:: ((Flashback - Arnmere, Trill - 15 years ago)) ::Ren's sister Vye was known as "the responsible one." It was generally accepted that she was going places, and every time their parents said so, it was a gentle reminder to the other eight Rennyn siblings that they appeared to be going nowhere. Not that they were supposed to physically go anywhere. Each was expected to take their place in the business, and stay in Arnmere forever. Each was further expected to play a functional role in expanding the success of Tro'Arn Farms and to contribute significantly to continuing operations. The expectations were high, though the success rate was so far low, though to be fair, at least half of them were still in school.:: ::It didn't matter where Vye was concerned. Her high school successes had been nothing short of aggravating to Ren, only a year ahead of her, yet always in her shadow. The younger ones would be compared to Vye by their teachers for years to come.:: ::At least away at university, there was a chance to get out of the shadow a little. Ren's studies in systems operations at Ledaro offered him a chance to carve his own path away from Vye, who was far on the other side of the globe, studying at a genius school with a lot of jealous geniuses.:: ::Today, they were home for the holidays. The two of them had lately been the resident outsiders, the two who were away at college, their four older siblings having already come back home to start taking up their places. Even they couldn't live up to Vye yet. Their parents were anxious to have her come back. They were a little afraid she wouldn't, and it showed. It made her want to get away all the more.:: Vye: I don't know if I can do it. ::She ambled thoughtfully down Arnmere's main street, her arm laced through her tall brother's, her red mitten laying casually across Ren's mustard coat sleeve.:: ::A few weeks at home over winter break called for a lot of long, slow walks in the cold.:: Rennyn: Come back to live in Arnmere? ::He inhaled the freezing air deeply, looking around at the little village he knew in every detail.:: I don't know. Maybe I'm okay with it. ::Vye shook her head, and her raven hair tousled stiffly in the cold.:: Vye: No. It's the opposite, Ren. I don't know if I can leave. ::She broke away, moving ahead by a few quick steps, until she reached a low wall at the corner of Eosh Lucaf's little restaurant, where they'd sat outside many summer nights in their lives, enjoying a meal. Eosh's elderly mother used to come out and yell at them when they were kids, for climbing the little wall. They'd thought she was a witch, maybe, and they'd climbed and climbed, to see if they could provoke her to reveal any powers.:: ::Now, Vye hopped up to sit on the little retaining wall, and her feet dangled to a few inches from the ground.:: Vye: Everything about my life tells me to go. There's amazing opportunities out there for me. I don't want to be the one who stayed when going could have led me to something wonderful. But then I come back here, for a few days, a week, and it's hard to imagine leaving again. I don't know how to be away from Arnmere. ::Ren had been through the same feelings. He loved his town. His home. But what could he accomplish there? He would never fly they way he wanted to fly. He would never see all the wonders he wanted to see.:: Rennyn: You've been farther around the world than any of us. You know best what's out there. Vye: I know there's a lot of shuttle and transporters, and I can be back here in hours or less. From the other side of the globe. But it's not the same. It's never the same. ::She stroked the wall with one gloved hand, remembering some time when she'd fallen from it, or thinking of that old lady, or remembering how she felt the starlit summer night when she kissed Eosh Lucaf's son the first time, sitting right where she was now. He hadn't come home on a break since freshman year. Would it ever be the same?:: ::Ren watched his sister grow more pensive. If he sat on the little wall, his feet would touch easily. Instead, he leaned against it awkwardly and put a comforting arm around her, uncaring that it wasn't a comfortable way for him to stand, as long as she got caught up in the hug she needed.:: ::Ren was only a semester from university graduation, and Vye was a year behind. They had their lives ahead of them, but at times, in those stressful, uncertain years, it seemed there was no knowing if what was ahead would be any better than the times they'd already lived. It was all about letting go, of childhood, of home, of the life they'd known, of the habits they'd formed. Letting go of old friends as they all moved toward their onrushing futures. The path wasn't clear, yet it was unavoidable. There was nothing for it but to step again and again off the precipice, not knowing which foot they would land on, aware of the possibilities, but blind to the path.:: ::Once they'd made so many leaps - farewell to schoolmates and childhood friends, leaving home, tearful goodbyes, choosing their education, making new friends - the reckless process of moving forward in the maze of life started to become easier. But so many choices made and chances taken in so few short years took their toll. It would be easy to go back home and forget about all that. At the same time, it was so hard to consider turning away from all those hard won little victories and to stop moving forward.:: ::Was it possible to call a permanent move back home to Arnmere a step forward? Ren considered that it might be. He could make the choice to return here, to his family and the land he loved, and take his place in their community. It wasn't remotely the same as giving up, as part of him wanted to believe. It wasn't a step back, as that part of him which had become so accustomed to taking chances, to leaping, whispered in his ear.:: ::Vye leaned in closer to Ren's embrace.:: Vye: Sorry I'm whining. All these decisions to make. It's like standing on a cliff. ::Ren kissed the top of his sister's head. Their thinking had always been so alike.:: Ren: And we used to think this wall was high. ::He shifted position, hopping up to sit next to her. His feet touched the ground, but he pulled them up, bending his knees until his toes were even with hers. Their futures were uncertain, but filled with possibility. As the thrilling air of the gathering winter evening crept coldly in around them, they sat together on the precipice, deciding how far to leap.:: ((End Flashback - Arboretum, Apollo)) ::It hadn't taken Vye long to find her place, traveling around the globe making distribution deals for the farm, making a greater success of the family business than any other Rennyn before her. She had the best of both worlds, a place at home, and a place in the global community. She'd found her path.:: ::Ren spent another decade dithering around Arnmere before he'd made his leap to Starfleet. It wasn't a path he could have predicted. The way was still not clear.:: ::It was a long way from Trill. Always too far. He wished he could hug his sister now. Any of his sisters. His brothers, his parents, his nieces and nephews. He was out here to make them proud, but sometimes he was sick with missing them. It would still be so easy to go back home.:: ::Moving forward wasn't easy. He'd had doors shut in his face, opportunities handed to him then taken away. Starfleet didn't make him feel safe and in control, the way he'd felt back in Arnmere, in his own domain. It wasn't easy. It was sometimes very hard. He was always standing on a precipice, not sure where he would land.:: ::He considered the jonja tree. It had lived in Arnmere, far from its origins on Bajor. It lived here on Apollo too, in excellent bloom. If the jonja could go where it pleased, then so could Ren. To the corners of the universe, or maybe, someday, right back home where he started.:: ::In between, all he had to do was keep on leaping.:: LtCmdr Ren Rennyn Ops Officer USS Apollo-A, NCC-71669 A239102RR0
  3. ::The day had been a long one, Merrick was a newly minted Lt JG the pips on his collar not even a few hours older yet. He considered calling his parents, but immediately rejected the idea.:: ::Standing Merrick slipped off his uniform and put on something to wear to bed, something comfortable as his mind continued to churn over what to do, who to talk to, the whole thing creating a strange sense of . . . .oO Being alone Oo. . . . restlessness. :: ::As Merrick slid into bed the fans in the room came on stirring his sheets slightly and his thoughts went back to a name he had not thought of in years: Sinadra.:: ((Dream/Flashback)) :: The night was well along and cooler breezes were blowing off Mount Seleya and in through the open bedroom windows.:: ::The bedcovers under which Merrick slept also folded back and then in the middle of the room was filled with shifting shadows and the slightest sound of fabric moving along skin. ::However none of it had anything to do with the breezes.:: R’Ven: Sindrana? ::Merrick had awakened and spoke without even turning.:: Tovek: ::soft contralto.:: Yes Merrick. :: Now Merrick rolled over in bed to look at her, her long dark hair, her slender figure, the elegant way that she moved, as always made his heart beat a little faster as watched her move in the dimness.:: ::Although his black on black gave little aid in seeing in the dark, Merrick seemed content to watch her, her form illuminated by Delta Vega's moonlike glow on an otherwise dark Vulcan night.:: R’Ven: What are you doing? ::There was a slight quaver in Merrick voice as he asked the question.:: Tovek: You already know Merrick, we talked about this already. ::Yes, Merrick knew already, but the question was in itself a stall, a pause to stave off the inevitable recognition of what was coming, even if for a few more seconds. Even his silence was an effort to try and extend it for a few more precious moments as he sat there looking at her.:: Tovek: Lights! ::Merrick blinked under the assault of sudden light but his mind was already telling him what was happening.:: .oO She is leaving Oo. ::The light revealed Sindrana’s single piece jumpsuit, simple belt and boots. The light also revealed the hints of her Vulcan and Romulan heritage. He always found it to be a perfect blending. With the proper make up or hair style she pass for either or both.:: R’Ven: ::flat voice:: You are leaving. Tovek: ::equally flat tones:: You knew that I would be. We have discussed this before. ::Merrick sat up in bed to face Sinadra:: R’Ven: Yes we did. .oO But I did not expect it to be so soon. Oo. ::Sinadra turned to look at Merrick, her upswept eyebrows dropping slightly and her lips, as if holding back something she couldn’t bring her self to say, flexed before she pulled them under sharp control.:: Tovek: Do not make this any harder than it has to be. ::slight pause:: You know that I must go. ::Merrick nodded:: R’Ven: Your family needs you? ::It was what She had told him, but he was never sure if he believed it.:: ::Sinadra’s face became like a glacier, cold and remote, yet Merrick could see a note of sadness when he looked.:: R’Ven: ::he spoke with crispness:: Your family is on Romulus? ::Sinadra just looked at Merrick, her silence ringing loudly in his ears. He knew that there was something that she was not telling him. Should he push it? He was afraid to.:: R’Ven: I will go with . . . . Tovek: NO!! ::slight pause:: No. We have been through this before. You are not trained. Romulus . . . I must go . . . ::Merrick had not intended to say that, it had just came out, but her answer spoke volumes.:: R’Ven: ::reluctant nod:: . . . and do what you have been trained to do. ::Sinadra stared at Merrick for a long moment, her eyes dark and probing, but then finally she nodded:: R’Ven: Do you know when you will be back? Tovek: No. ::Merrick rose to his feet and walked over to Sinadra, looking into her eyes as he took her hands in his.:: R’Ven: Then you must go. ::There was a cold finality to Merrick’s words, and there was a tightness in his chest as he spoke them.:: ::Sinadra’s dark almond shaped eyes were moist and yet still held a steely firmness as they looked into Merrick’s coal black ones.:: Tovek: I . . . ::Merrick kissed her, one last physical act to cover who knows how many years that would stand between them.:: ::It was warm, passionate, lingering, and it was filled with all the emotion that they were trained to never show in public. It spoke words they couldn’t find and fears that that they couldn’t say.:: ::But as all moments do, they finally end, and there was Sinadra standing at the door.:: Tovek: ::holding her hands in the traditional Vulcan salute:: Live long and prosper Merrick R’Ven R’Ven: ::Holding his hand in a mirroring salute::. Peace and long life Sinadra of the house of Tovek ::Like a wave, sadness broke over Sinadra’s Vulcanian features and then faded leaving behind only a cold countenance, the one that she always seemed to present to everyone.:: ::Everyone but Merrick.:: Tovek: I am afr. . . I do not believe I will have either. ::The last words seemed to be torn out of her. She closed her eyes, turned strode out of the door without looking back.:: ::Merrick watched her leave and standing, his hand finally dropping to his side like some forgotten thing there long moments after the door slide shut, his own sadness written openly on his face.:: R’Ven: Lights! ::With that simple word the illumination in the room vanished, even the dim lightthat had been streaming into the room had faded vanished. Lifelessly Merrick crawled back into bed.:: ::He had been on Vulcan for almost a decade and now he was alone again, probably for a very long time to come. Perhaps Sinadra would come back . . . or not, but Vulcan would teach him more than just academia, and achievement it could teach him about coping and loss and he would embrace it. And maybe, just maybe, if Sinadra didn’t return he would venture out and away from Vulcan and find her himself.:: ::It took him some time but Merrick finally found sleep:: ((END FLASHBACK)) ::And Merrick finally found relaxation and sleep tonight as well.:: ((NO TAGS/END)) -------------------------------------------------------------- Ensign Merrick R'Ven Science Officer USS Apollo - A ID: A239210MR0
  4. ((Starbase 118, Promanade)) :: As the two left Bassel’s office and headed back towards the exit, Theo found himself holding Baylen’s hand again and shouting over the thumping bass coming from… somewhere.:: Whittaker: “He’s…. unique!” Anders: Yeah he is different that is for sure, but he does what he says. You ready for dinner, I have a table waiting on us at Cabo Breeze. I asked for a private outdoor dining room on the beach. :: Touched at the effort that Baylen had gone to, Theo merely smiled in return and squeezed his hand. : Anders: That is if that is ok, if there is something that you would rather do, please tell, I want you to enjoy the night. ::Smiling:: :: Emerging out of the club and the fresh evening air, Theo shook his head :: Whittaker: “I’m genuinely touched by the effort that you’ve gone to Baylen.” :: beat :: “No one has ever done this for me before.” Anders: ::Looking at the First Officer in the eyes.:: Anything worth doing it worth doing right, so any effort put in was in enjoyment. I will admit. :: I got a slight crush on you the first time I saw you on the Bridge of the Albion. I thought you were glowing. ::Deeply blushing as he admitted his crush.:: So I am very happy you allowed me to take you out to night. It means a lot to me. Whittaker: :: dubiously :: “I was glowing?” :: Theo let his companion lead the way to this Cabo Breeze. He had seen it in the station directory but he had no idea where it was. Evidently, local. :: Anders: No turns out that you were just standing in front of a lighted post on the bridge. But boy it makes for a great memory. ::Smiling.:: Whittaker: “I do believe you are flirting with me again Mr. Anders.” :: grinning. :: Anders: Again? Have I ever stopped. ::Giving a slight puppy eyes look as the two walked down the hill side road to the beach.:: If I flirt it is because you make me feel happy. I have some slight empathic abilities and some people just really make me feel happy. You are the strongest I have ever met. Whittaker: “Strongest what? I don’t follow.” ::The two rounded the bottom of the hill and walked out past the replica of the golden gate bridge, that was often used for venders to sell things, but tonight there was a concert on the bridge. Baylen pointed over to the far side at Cobo Breeze:: Anders: There it is… ::Baylen thought for a moment.:: it's hard to explain, I guess it's like a chemical reaction in the body. It is something that happens to Risian Men, it's how they generally find their mates. ::Baylen and Theo walked up to the Tiki Hunt that had a white ribbon and bow tied around the entry. The hunt had steps that lead up to a small bridge that lead to the floating hut that sat about fifteen feet out into the water. They could hear the band on the Bridge playing, Baylen took the ribbon down and walked and pulled out Theo’s seat and then walked over took a seat of his own. He picked up the glass of the iced water on the table and took a sip.:: Whittaker: “My my!” :: beat :: “You really are pulling out all the stops.” :: he looked around :: “This is lovely.” Anders: ::Smiling:: I love this place, it reminds me of home. I have not been back in 11 years. So this is a home away from home for me. I will go get us some drinks. Would you like another Cosmo or something different? I want a Risian Sun Rise. Whittaker: :: smiling :: A cosmopolitan would be lovely. ::Baylen hated to walk away but he had forgotten in his excitement to let anyone know that he was there, so he walked up to the bar and to order the drinks. He was so happy and so excited that he walked with an extra bounce in his step. He barely could feel his injury now. Walking up to the bar he nodded at the Tender and ordered a few drinks and let them know that him and Theo were there. He walked back to his beautiful date with the drinks.:: Anders: Here you are Theo, ::Pausing:: is that ok? Off duty and alone? I would never call you that on duty or in front of another officer. Whittaker: I genuinely don’t mind if you were to call me Theo on duty. Sal does, after all :: he smiled :: Anders: It is one thing that I know well, from serving with some many Admirals and Ambassadors, there is a way to act on Duty in front of the crew, there is on Duty and in Private and then there is Off duty then Off duty and alone. I would never want to do anything to embarrass you. ::Baylen turned when he heard the music on the bridge change. He smiled at the slow melody that was playing and the drifting the notes that flowed down to the beach side. Baylen suddenly smiled a Theo and took a big sip of his drink and stood up.:: Anders: Care to dance. ::Smiling and holding his hand out.:: It's not everyday that you have a private beach front under the stars and a great band from above. :: Theo suddenly felt self conscious. Dancing was not his strong suit and he didn’t want people watching him make a fool of himself- especially so soon after his promotion. He looked unsure as he replied :: Whittaker: “I.. um, can’t dance and I don't want to embarrass myself :: Anders: I don’t think anyone would see. ::Smiling:: And I am not the best of dancer either but I don't exactly have two left feet. Whittaker: :: smiling :: “I guess I don’t have a choice.” ::As Theo stood up to dance, Baylen took him into his arms and the two started to move to the music. The feeling of Theo in Baylen’s arms felt wonderful. He also smelt wonderful too. As the two danced Baylen felt like he was worth all the latinum on Ferenginar. To top it off Fireworks started bursting in the air above them, they had been shot off from the bridge from the concert. Baylen looked up and smiled at the fireworks and then back down at Theo. He really wanted to kiss him now more than ever. Theo stopped and looked up at the fireworks before meeting Baylen’s stare. He might not have been telepathic but he could sense what was about to happen. He smiled, giving silent permission. Baylen felt very hot in side and holding a very warm Theo, he was very happy. He leaned down and kissed Theo softly on the lips. He held him close as they dances and smiled back at him. As the song ended. Baylen pulled off his shoes and rolled his pants legs up. Picking up his drink and walk over and taking a seat on the beach with his feet in the water.:: Anders: Well Theo I guess 92 is out and 93 is in… Happy new years. ::Smiling:: To Be Continued... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wishing you Fair Winds and following Seas... Lt. Commander Baylen M. Anders Second Officer and Mission Specialist Fleet Operations 118th Fleet Star Base 118 http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php/Anders,_Baylen ID: R238606GH0 ~The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.~ and Lieutenant Commander Theo Whittaker Executive Officer Starbase 118/ USS AlbionC239203TW0
  5. Welcome to Top Sims Contest of 2015! All announcements for the entire 2015 contest will be posted in this thread. The Top Sims contest allows members of our fleet to be recognized by their peers for superior writing ability. Unlike the Writing Challenges, this contest allows only sims that have been used in a current plot to be considered. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES You can submit ANY sim -- from your ship, or another ship. You can submit your own sims if you wish. All sims are welcome, including staff (Captain, First Officer, etc.) sims.The sim must be written with good spelling, good grammar, and be in the correct format. Poorly structured sims will be disqualified.When a sim is submitted, it must have been created within the current submission period, or the previously lapsed submission period. Put another way: do not sims which are any older than a month.Submitted sims may not have any open dialogue tags. (i.e.: [respond here]) All dialogue in the sim must be filled in. (Just find the responding author's sim and fill in the blanks.)Sims must not include any "canon" characters. (i.e.- no characters who have appeared onscreen.)Please find a balance between nominating too many, or too few sims. Don't submit every good sim -- instead, post every great sim! Encourage your fellow crew-mates to submit at least a few sims a year. If you want your crew-mates to win more, you have to nominate the best sims, and encourage others to write higher quality sims! HOW TO SUBMIT A SIM First: Click the "Start New Topic" button. The format of the topic title should be as follows: "Character - Sim Title" For example: "LtJG Tristan Wolf - Everywhere you go, there you are"Note: Please do not clutter the topic title with an endless list of NPC or PNPC names or "JP" designations. Instead, simply include the primary character's rank and name. If it's a joint post, just include both rank and names -- no need to include the "JP" in there.Second: Choose from the "Topic Prefix" box the correct round number. (To check what round we're currently in, see the contest calendar below.) Third: Copy into the message box the complete sim. You don't need to worry about column width. Check to make sure that the sim is readable. You can click the "Edit" button to fix any issues, but don't delay -- you'll be barred from editing the post after 60 minutes. COMMENTING ON A SIM Everyone is welcome to comment on submitted sims. If you're going to provide constructive criticism, you are required to employ the "hamburger" criticism method: first, mention something you like; second, something you didn't like; third, something else you liked. If you just want to provide praise, no hamburger method required! Commenters who are rude, unfair, or overzealous in their commenting will be barred from future comments in the contest forum, and will have their actions brought to the attention of their CO. CONTEST CALENDAR Set 1, 2015 Round 1, 2015 submissions: Monday, November 3 to Sunday, November 16, 2014Round 2, 2015 submissions: Monday, November 17 to Sunday, November 30, 2014Round 3, 2015 submissions: Monday, December 1 to Sunday, December 14, 2014Round 4, 2015 submissions: Monday, December 15 to Sunday, December 28, 2014Round 5, 2015 submissions: Monday, December 29 to Sunday, January 11, 2015Round 6, 2015 submissions: Monday, January 12 to Sunday, January 25, 2015Run-off Round 1: Monday, February 2nd to Sunday, March 15Set 2Round 7, 2015 submission: Monday, January 27 to Sunday, February 8Round 8, 2015 submission: Monday, February 9 to Sunday, February 22Round 9, 2015 submission: Monday, February 23 to Sunday, March 8Round 10, 2015 submission: Monday, March 9 to Sunday, March 22Round 11, 2015 submission: Monday, March 23 to Sunday, April 5Round 12, 2015 submission: Monday, April 6 to Sunday, April 19Round 13, 2015 submission: Monday, April 20 to Sunday, May 3Run-off Round 2: Monday, May 11 to Sunday, June 28Set 3Round 14, 2015 submission: Monday, May 4 to Sunday, May 17Round 15, 2015 submission: Monday, May 18 to Sunday, May 31Round 16, 2015 submission: Monday, June 1 to Sunday, June 14Round 17, 2015 submission: Monday, June 15 to Sunday, June 28Round 18, 2015 submission: Monday, June 29 to Sunday, July 12Round 19, 2015 submission: Monday, July 13 to Sunday, July 26Round 20, 2015 submission: Monday, July 27 to Sunday, August 9Run-off Round 3: Monday, August 17 to Sunday, September 27Set 4Round 21, 2015 submission: Monday, August 10 to Sunday, August 23Round 22, 2015 submission: Monday, August 24 to Sunday, September 6Round 23, 2015 submission: Monday, September 7 to Sunday, September 20Round 24, 2015 submission: Monday, September 21 to Sunday, October 4Round 25, 2015 submission: Monday, October 5 to Sunday, October 18Round 26, 2015 submission: Monday, October 19 to Sunday, November 1Run-off Round 4: Monday, November 2 to Sunday, December 6FINAL RUN-OFF OF 2015: Monday, December 7 to Sunday, December 27 - this run-off selects the Top Sim of 2015. Set 1, 2016 Contest Round 1, 2016 submissions: Monday, November 2 to Sunday, November 15Round 2, 2016 submissions: Monday, November 16 to Sunday, November 29Round 3, 2016 submissions: Monday, November 30 to Sunday, December 13Round 4, 2016 submissions: Monday, December 14 to Sunday, December 27Round 5, 2016 submissions: Monday, December 28 to Sunday, January 10Round 6, 2016 submissions: Monday, January 11 to Sunday, January 24Run-off Round 1: Monday, January 25 to Sunday, February 21
  6. This is it, the final round of voting for 2015's Top Sim! The winner of this vote will be considered the Top Sim of 2015 -- one of the most highly coveted writing awards in our community. Voting closes automatically at 23:59 Eastern Time on Wednesday, December 30, 2015. Please read all four sims before choosing the one you like the best in the poll above: Set 1 winner: Tracey Townson, "Awaiting Deception"Set 2 winner: Saveron & Alora DeVeau, "Sad Songs Say So Much"Set 3 winner: Maxwell Traenor & Noros (PNPC), "Max"Set 4 winner: Alora DeVeau & Saveron, "Where Vulcan Flowers Grow"These sims were submitted by members of the community. A panel of judges, consisting of one judge from each ship, voted on the best sim from each round. The sims they selected from each round were then voted-on by members of the fleet. You can see those votes here: Run-off round 1Run-off round 2Run-off round 3Run-off round 4The 2015 Hall of Fame archive contains all the sims submitted in 2015. Pinned sims are the winners from each round. FAIRNESS AND VOTING For a vote to win the final round, at least 10% of its votes must come from a ship other than the one the sim was created on. Your vote in this poll is public so that we can ensure that one ship's crew is not "stuffing the ballot box." If we find that any one crew is trying to force someone from their crew to be the winner, that sim will be disqualified and the ship will be ineligible to participate in the contest for all of 2015. Similarly, if anyone is found coercing members of their crew to vote for them, or a sim on their ship, that sim will be disqualified -- before, or after the vote. That does not mean that you can't vote for a sim that was originally simmed on your vessel. You just shouldn't vote for a sim from your ship simply because it's by your crew-mate. Instead, choose the sim that you believe is the best written, most engaging, and embodies the principles of good simming that this community values.
  7. ((USS Constitution-B, Dial's quarters)) ::After moving to the Constitution-B, Dial had noticed that she didn't have quarters for herself only anymore. On the huge Apollo, any officer had had the priviledge to have small but one-person apartment like quarters. On this ship things were a little different. For the duration of the first half year aboard this ship she had never seen the one she shared her quarters with awake. Whenever she woke up he was asleep. When she came home, was not there. And that made "living together" actually quite comfortable. Dial missed the ability to leave the doors open as she was used to from her home planet and the time at the Academy and on the Apollo. But she had come to adopt far more odd habits from Terrans and other species.:: ::All of this perfect room sharing agreement was about to end when Ensign Raomozji was to be promoted to the rank of Lieutenant JG. Not just did he leave get a higher rank, he also got quarters of his own. Therefore Dial would share her quarters from now on with someone else. She doubted that she'd be this lucky again and that the other person would have the night shift, too.:: ::For now Dial didn't care about it. She hadn't received any information on this matter and was only concerned about the party Milsap had announced to her already. She sat down at ther computer console searching information about traditional winter holidays on Earth. She learned that Chanukkah, a Jewish festival was celebrated one day before christmas this year (according to her research the date changed from year to year). On the decembre 23rd according to the Old Terran Calendar. Christmas was starting at the evening of the 24th each year. She also learned that both festivals lasted more than one day. There were also many other festivals rouhgly located in the winter time.:: ::Out of personal interest, she had read quite a lot about Chanukkah, especially since she had been taking part of this festival once without knowing about it back then. Then she had read a little bit about Christmas, since it seemed a little more popular. Afterwards she only skim-read about other festivals ranging from Kwanzaa, set for the week following the decembre 26th, to ʿĪd al-Fitr, a festival which occured on decembre 28th this year. There were far too many stories about the origins of these festivals, too many information in general. The only thing that most of these festivals had in common was that they were celebrated by having a feast. And, at least nowadays, most of them included the tradition of gift-giving.:: ::Only when she leaned back, thinking about her research's result, she recognized some funny coincidence. It was a huge coincidence that this year all of Earth's more or less traditional winter holidays took place roughly around the same time. She had read something about Muslims, Jews, Christians, Hindus and Buddhist celebrating some kind of religious thing in this period. It was a merry coincidence, she had read about many times, for this meant that many of these religious people could celebrate their festivals together.:: ::She somehow liked that thought and how the very same idea was present aboard the Constitution. Of course the situation was a little bit different here. Not even half of the crew was of Terran origin, so their feeling for the right time to be 'winter' might differ a lot. It even varied on Earth where the southern hemisphere was going through summer while the northern one had winter time. And even if people felt winter to be the right time of the year, that didn't mean that they had any festivals planned for this season.:: ::To Dial the concept of holidays had been totally foreign until she started studying on Earth. Paelians did sometimes celebrate birthdays, sometimes had small religious ceremonies, but all 3 Paelian worlds lacked the idea of a holiday season. Festivals of any sort were something very individual to be decided by the individual and sometimes celebrated by close families. It occured that very small settlings decided to have feasts together. In fact, in preindustrial times harvest festivals had been pretty common. Most people, if not unable or unwilling to do so, would help harvesting at those times and afterwards all would share the fruits of this work. But with traffic becoming faster and the supply of food being all but seasonal, traditions like these dropped away more and more.:: ::In the end, Dial was pretty happy to experience this combination of spiritual and material special days. The spiritual elements were rather personal, she had read, depending on whether or not people felt belonging to that religion, while the material celebration was something all of them did together. Gift giving in a society where wealth and poverty were chapters of history books - at least for the people living aboard a Starfleet Starship - was also not purely materialistic anymore. Of course most of the gifts were made from materials. But since anyone could replicate anything, gifts were more thoughtfully chosen than some ages ago. Dial would created things with her own hands but since the lack of time was pressing so hard on her, she considered a different approach. She thought that if she made presents of stuff people wouldn't think of but appreciate, it would be a nice idea, too.:: ::While thinking about the people she had got to know during her one and a half years of service, she also sometimes wondered about those she didn't stay in contact with. Her former CO, the ominous Rear Admiral Jaxx, whom she had met a few times only. Or what had happened to the many people who got transferred. But then she thought about Alex who had first moved away and who was back now. She shamefully realized how much she had avoided him. Hopefully he would be present at the party. She'd like to reapproach him. Perhaps, she'd create certain something-something for him. Some sort of more personal present maybe.:: no TAGs -------------------- OOC:http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php?title=Dial/Personal_Glossary ------------------- Ens. Dial Nurse USS Constitution-B A239103D10
  8. (( Bridge, the White Canary )) ::There had been a petty officer tracking them, by all accounts. A reptilian thing, one of the engineers outside the holodeck. However he had been doing it, they'd shaken him off -- he'd lost their trail after one of their turbolift rides and they had made it to their transport vessel unhindered. Already they were a fair distance from the station, but they hadn't escaped. Not yet.:: ::Ch'kehla, Alistair's Klingon companion, was leaning over one of the bridge consoles, and at the sound of a quiet alarm, she straightened to her full and considerable height, looking over at him.:: CH'KEHLA: They're outside the cargo bay. The ones from the holodeck. HASTINGS: Is the captain with them? CH'KEHLA: No. She's at the Cardassian Embassy. ::Alistair flashed a grin at that, chortling away to himself.:: HASTINGS: Oh, she's not going to like what she finds *there*. Not at all. ::He grinned.:: Put the feed on the viewscreen? ::She brushed her fingertips against the console, and the dark cargo bay appeared on the small vessel's screen. Another time, and she applied a filter, a pale green veil over the image that let them see through the blackness. The audio feed was even sensitive enough to pick up the blond Lieutenant Commander's low mutter.:: SKYFIRE: =/\= I got a bad feeling about this =/\= EERIE: =/\= Agreed. =/\= ::The Brikar pulled out a tricorder and attempted a scan. Alistair just grinned, smug and superior at the attempt at something so utterly pointless.:: =/\= Must be a dispersal field in place. Not getting anything but some odd chaff on the tricorder. =/\= ::Alistair watched as the security chief swept the dark cargo bay with his phaser rifle.:: SHAPIRO: =/\= Someone must be inside the cargo bay and waiting for us to surprise us. =/\= ::Ch'kehla snorted at that, and Alistair chuckled to himself again. They had no idea. He watched as the Brikar stepped out into the darkness, the rest of the team following the echoes of his footsteps.:: EERIE: =/\=Lights. =/\= SHARPE: =/\= I am with you there Ensign, I am not liking this one iota. =/\= HASTINGS: He's almost adorable, isn't he? For a talking rock, that is. Ch'kehla, be a dear and active the phaser turrets. ::She muttered something under her breath, probably something about traps and honour, but he paid no mind. Honour was a fool's game, and it was no one's fault but her own if she clung to outdated cultural ideals.:: ::And despite her complaints, she still did as she was asked. Phaser beams lanced out from the turrets strategically placed around the 'bay.:: EERIE: =/\=Get down! =/\= ::Alistair watched as the team scattered, throwing themselves to the side and to the floor, trying to avoid the coordinated fire. Though the turrets missed the man, it did hit the security chief's phaser rifle, disintegrating it in his hands and throwing him to the floor. He had the luck of the devil, that one.:: SHARPE: =/\= You okay Commander? =/\= ::One of the security chief's men checked on the status of their superior. Bless. It was all so sweet and caring. If only Starfleet had tried so hard to save others at Ohmallera.:: SKYFIRE/EERIE/ROSEK/SHAPIRO/LANG: SHARPE: =/\= Okay where is that fire coming from, I need to find me a computer interface. =/\= ::A few of the phaser turrets had been hit by the team's weapons fire, and the barrage was already beginning to slow. Despite this, Alistair continued watching the display with an ever-growing grin on his face.:: EERIE: =/\= Fine except for my weapon and uniform. =/\= ::In the midst of ongoing phaser fire, the human security officer passed his phaser rifle to his chief.:: SHARPE: =/\= Take mine Commander and cover me, I am going to see if I can get us some lights in here. =/\= EERIE: =/\= Good idea. ::Taking the weapon.:: =/\= ::As the firefight continued, the security officer kept frantically tapping at PADD. What a curious individual -- Alistair had not anticipated this tactic.:: SHARPE: =/\= EUREKA! =/\= ::The lights came back on, which was unexpected, and revealed that the Starfleet team's opponents were entirely automated phaser turrets. Still, no matter. There was more to the cargo bay than an ambush.:: SHARPE: =/\= I could only get us the lights Sir. =/\= ::Finally. Alistair leaned over and pressed a button on the arm of his seat, opening a comm channel. A panel in the cargo bay lit up in front of the Starfleet officers, and much like a bridge viewscreen.:: HASTINGS: You survived! Well done. I wasn't sure you'd survive. Disappointed that you *did*, but that's by the by. ::He beamed at them, unabashedly smug. The Starfleet team who had been hunting them down were there, and he was elsewhere. And it looked like their escape might actually work! Hitting Astrofori One had always been a huge risk, what with the station's standing fleet, Peaceforce Five nearby to deal with any troublemakers.:: ::And of course, the Gorkon herself, with some of the biggest guns Starfleet had to offer and a quantum slipstream drive to boot.:: SKYFIRE: =/\= In this case, glad to disappoint. =/\= ::The Gorkon's XO motioned for his team to let him take the lead in the discussion. A pity, really -- Alistair had been hoping to hear some spit and fire from the obviously aggrieved men and women. The Brikar looked as though he'd happily shoot first and worry about the consequences later.:: SHARPE: ::Laying a friendly hand on his shoulder:: It's okay Commander he will get his. ::Sharpe said to Eerie.:: ::All eyes were on Alistair, and he could see fury burning behind so many of them. Good. He hoped how they felt today stayed with them for a long, long time.:: HASTINGS: Well, you're obviously hot on our little tails and that won't do at all. So you have a choice. Us, or your own people. SKYFIRE: =/\= Meaning what, exactly? =/\= HASTINGS: Remember those forty-nine people who are missing? I bet at least one of you does. ::His eyes wandered over to Lang, and he flashed her a wicked grin.:: SKYFIRE: =/\= Meaning? =/\= ::Heavens above, the man was dense. Alistair rolled his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. A little bit melodramatic, but he was having fun now.:: HASTINGS: Do you want them back safe or sound, or not? I mean, without the transporter coordinates, they could be anywhere in a three light-year radius and I'm fairly sure they don't have enough oxygen for you to conduct a proper search... SKYFIRE: =/\= I presume at the cost of letting you go. ::He stared, unblinking for several moments. Alistair rolled his eyes again as he waited.:: Give us the coordinates. =/\= ::*Finally*, he had caught on.:: HASTINGS: Without any guarantees? You must have mistaken me for an idiot. ::In the blink of an eye, the cheer and arrogant charm was gone, and his voice dropped dangerously low.:: I am not an idiot. SKYFIRE: =/\= You have my word. =/\= HASTINGS: That's very good of you, Commander. But your word carries about as much weight as my pet chihuahua. You're neither in command of the Gorkon, or the rest of Astrofori One's fleet. SKYFIRE: =/\= That much is true. I'm here, and they aren't. So my word will have to suffice. :: then whispered to Eerie :: No need to blast a hole in him, Eerie. =/\= EERIE: =/\= Yes, Sir. ::Eerie lowered the weapon to the ready position.:: =/\= HASTINGS: Fine, I will give you some coordinates. At these ones, you'll find a probe. It will give you the coordinates to your people -- once my ship is clear of Astrofori One's space. If I am intercepted at any point, the probe self-destructs. If you tamper with the probe, it self-destructs. Basically, if you try any funny business, the probe explodes. If I *think* you're trying any funny business, the probe explodes. SKYFIRE: =/\= Thank you. =/\= HASTINGS: Who's a good boy. ::He nodded to Ch'kehla. She tapped a button on the console, and a set of coordinates flashed up on the screen.:: Off you go, bye bye now. ::He beamed and gave the sour-looking team a merry wave, and flicked off the screen. He glanced at Ch'kehla, and she glowered back at him. The question was, did he blow up the probe anyway, once they had got away? It would serve them all right, but could make life difficult for his Reborn brothers and sisters in the future. And Ch'kehla would have a fit -- she was already sour and breaking a promise, not to mention the mass murder of the defenceless, might just tip her to breaking point.:: ::Decisions, decisions:: -- Alistair Hastings & Ch'Kehla Terrorists Maquis Reborn simmed by Captain Quinn Reynolds Commanding Officer USS Gorkon
  9. (( Starbase 118 Diplomatic Area)) :: Terran Ambassador Gavin MacLaren straightened up from heaving into the toilet bowl and leaned his head on the wall of the stall as he waited for his quivering stomach to settle. He wiped his sleeve across his brow and took a deep breath before he flushed away the contents of his stomach pointedly avoiding looking at it. This was an all too familiar ritual after he'd eaten Klingon food. In the course of his diplomatic career, he'd mastered eating almost any cuisine; he'd even learned to keep down Klingon food long enough to finish a dinner and then politely excuse himself to walk to the men's room casually exchanging pleasantries with various dignitaries even as he felt his hand's grow clammy and his stomach roil. This time he was a distinctly nasty shade of green by the time he'd run the last few feet, but he'd not had to ingest a squirming dinner for a long time. As he stood taking deep breaths he thought longingly of his appointment to the USS Columbia as UFOP Ambassador traveling with the starship as they encountered new cultures or came to the aid of endangered planets. While it was his skill with languages and his startlingly good record as a peace negotiator that had earned him the position, it was his own request for the position that had secured it. He'd been close to burnout after years of negotiating, and he'd yearned for a permanent posting instead of being a diplomatic nomad. On Columbia, he'd grown close to the crew, served with a captain who was a close personal friend and had the added bonus of being on the same ship as his younger sister to whom he was very close. It had been a dream come true. He was now technically on leave having a much deserved holiday, but he'd been roped into attending a dinner where he'd been asked to ask as a buffer between two rival Klingon families. He was acqainted with both and had been successful in keeping them from each other's throats, but it had meant that he had to sit with them. There was simply no way to avoid eating the same food. Klingon's had no respect for a man who could not down their revolting fair. Gavin wasn't hard to please when it came to food, but he did not want to look at his dinner only to find it was looking back at him. He shuddered at the memory and walked to the sink and washed his face. He was about to return to the banquet room when Secretary Folap Nall of the UFOP entered. He looked at Gavin and shook his head sympathetically as he looked at the young man's pallid face:: Nall: You had me fooled, Gavin. I thought you had finally mastered Klingon food. MacLaren:: shaking his head carefully since it felt as if it was ready to split like an overly ripe melon:: Weel, Eh can keep it down long enough to get through the dinner, but it willna stay down any longer than that. Nall: I'm sorry to have asked you to do this especially when you're on holiday, but you have a certain magic with them. They're actually out there swapping war stories. I don't know how you do it. MacLaren: Eh just try to see each point of view and then help each to do the same. :: He didn't mention that it was easier to understand points of view when one was highly empathic and telepathic. He was one of those rare hybrid Betazoids who had keen abilities despite his brown eyes. Normally a human/Betazoid with eye color had very low empathic readings if any. He'd always been happy to allow people to assume that about him. Most people with whom he dealt simply assumed he was human especially since he spoke with a distinct Scottish accent. His father, a Starfleet doctor, had raised his children in his home village of Aberfoyle, Scotland choosing to use a runabout to commute to his position as a senior professor of medicine at Starfleet medical. His mother, a Betazoid ambassador had done the same. The children had grown up in a ancient family estate on Loch Ard in the Trossachs although Johanna had spent a number of years in school on Vulcan..:: Nall:: smiling:: I hope you're enjoying your holiday, this evening being an exception. It's a grand base. MacLaren: It is. Nall: That was hardly an enthusiastic endorsement. There is no base that can touch this one. MacLaren: Eh ken that; it is a magnificent base. After all, Eh've been here many times. It's just.... Nall:: [...]ing his head with a worried expression:: It's just that you still don't want to go back to your negotiating work. You're so good at it, Gavin. You like people; you genuinely care about them. You're respected in your field because everyone sees that in you, and they know that you are completely honest with them. I'm not sure what the problem is. MacLaren:: knowing that Nall had long ago moved from mentor and superior to friend:: Eh do like people, Folap. I also need them. Eh'm tired of drifting from one place in crisis to another and then leaving just as things get back on track. I'm tired of …. Nall: Tired of essentially being alone. MacLaren: Aye. I liked getting to know a crew and working with the same people over a period of time. Eh liked having friends that Eh that were not light years away. :: Nall sighed:: Nall: There are many in UFOP who think that you are too valuable to assign to a single ship, but I'm not willing to burn out one of my best diplomats. I'll see what I can do, Gavin. There is a push to have more civilian UFOP diplomats on our star ships, and the new slipstreams are encountering more and more new species. We'd like to have diplomatic teams on board instead of single diplomats without the luxury of a colleague. I'll keep you posted. Meanwhile, go home and eat something duly bland like some Scottish oatmeal or something. Gavin:: laughing:: That sounds just about right now. Thank you, Folap. :: looking in the mirror.:: Eh suppose the green has faded enough to go back out there. TBC PNCP Ambassador Gavin MacLaren simmed by LtCmdr. Johanna MacLaren CMO USS Apollo 0238905JMO
  10. (( Main Engineering, USS Gorkon )) :: Chythar hadn’t time to read up on the specs, and he was still getting to know this fine ship. What better way than by a tour of the facilities? Since he’d asked during the party about what was under the hood and they were rudely interrupted with the death of the Cardassian envoy, it made sense to revisit the matter during shore leave. He entered the engine room and glanced around, having a vague understanding of what was here from his engineering courses; but that didn’t make him any more knowledgeable. It took him a few moments to locate their chief engineer, Lt. Cory Stoyer. Once he did, he caught the man’s attention by calling out to him. :: Skyfire: Cory! :: Cory was standing on the main floor of Main Engineering. He had just completed his first walk around of the day. You could look at the monitors and get an overview of what was going on, but unless you walked around and looked you would miss things. His Department Master Chief went to check on some crewmen that were not working to his efficiency. Cory smiled at the thought. :: oO I almost feel sorry for them. Almost. Oo :: Cory heard someone call his first name. :: oO What? Oo Stoyer: :: Turning and smiling. :: Hey XO. Welcome to Main Engineering. What can we do for you, sir? Skyfire: Let’s dispense with the formalities, first off. Second, you can answer my earlier question I attempted to ask at the party. Show me what’s under the hood. Stoyer: OK, Chythar. :: sweeping an arm around the main floor. :: Here is the main floor of Main Engineering. In front of us, the big glowy thing is the Warp Core. It is a class nine Warp Core and it powers everything onboard. The main consoles around this area are for monitoring the flow of matter and anti-matter into the warp core. :: As Cory explained, most of the engineering seminar came back to CD’s mind. Granted, the schematics of a Sovereign were buried in the bottom of what he’d learned, so it took him a few moments of staying quiet before he recollected anything. :: Skyfire: Like internal temperatures of the EPS conduits and such? Stoyer: Yes, everything about the warp core and transferring of power is monitored here. Other stations cover the Impulse engines, shields, weapons and damage control. There are several back up stations in secondary control, just in case. Shall we take a walk? :: Chythar grinned slightly and made a sweeping motion with his hand. :: Skyfire: After you, chief. :: Cory led Chythar over to the main display table on the middle of Main Engineering. CD followed close behind, but far enough back to give the man his space. For being a Terran, the XO suspected a hint of Italian blood as the man was very expressive with his hands. :: Stoyer: Here is the main display of Engineering. You can see anything that is going on. From the power usage to what damage control lockers are being inventoried. There are repeater console on the bridge, in my office and in my quarters. :: Looking to Chythar. :: Do you want us to install one for you in your quarters or office? It is a good way to get an overview of what is going on. :: The offer did have its merits, though realistically...what use would he he have for installed engineering consoles in his quarters or office? It probably would be a good idea, at any rate. There may be the possibility some of his buried knowledge might come in handy later, he realized. So, CD nodded. :: Skyfire: I’d like that. No rush, though. :: Cory smiled at Chythar and looked over his shoulder and got the attention of one of his Chief Petty Officers.. Cory Motioned him over. :: Stoyer: Chief, the XO would like a repeater display installed in his office for now and maybe one in his quarters. Can you get that done at your earliest convenience? Chief Stenton: Yes sir, it will take a day or two, but we will get it done. :: The Chief nodded to the Xo and walked back to his station. :: Stoyer: There you go Chythar, in a day or two. :: The XO nodded again to both men, and glanced around at the other stations briefly before returning his attention to Cory. :: Skyfire: Anything else you wanted to show me? Stoyer: My time is yours. We can go for a walk on the upper level. There is where we keep an eye on the Impulse Engines and auxiliary system. If you have more time, we can take a walk to a damage control locker and you can look it over to get an idea of what is inside. Knowing what we have could help you in the future. :: Truth be told, CD was actually enjoying being away from the desk. Away from the paperwork. Away from the horrid choices that had to be made outside this room. He was having fun, and felt the bond of friendship with Cory grow stronger as they continued. :: Skyfire: Please, lead on. Stoyer: OK, come on. :: Cory lead Chythar to the small elevator that would take them to the upper level. After making room for the XO and closing the gate, Cory hit the button to raise the platform. As they rose, Cory turned to Chythar. :: Stoyer: One thing I had my Department Master Chief do is work with the Officers in charge of the shifts to let more junior crew to man the supervisory positions to let them get experience and learn the person’s position above them in case of casualties. :: At the top, Cory opened the gate and let Chythar exit first. :: Skyfire: :: nodding :: A good thought. Never was the case when I was CMO, though. I remember the paperwork… :: shuddered at the thought. More he’d have on his desk when he got back. :: Did I mention I hate paperwork? Stoyer:I think you did several times. I agree. Someone important said that an army doesn’t march on it’s stomach, but slides on its paperwork. :: Cory chuckled at his own humor. They walked over the the Impulse Engine management area. The crew men and women were busy at work, or just looking busy. Cory suspected that his Master Chief come through and ensured that everyone was alert before he got there. :: Stoyer: :: looking at Chythar. :: Here is the Impulse management area. The crew here keep an eye on the engines and are ready to engage them as needed when we drop out of warp. Skyfire: Always good to have someone ready to do so. Stoyer: Yes, indeed. Most of the time, the day is routine down here. The crew completes preventive maintenance on all of the systems. Most of the time there are no problems, but occasionally we find something that needs to be replaced or repaired. They try and catch things before it gets bad. Of course there are he requests for maintenance that come from the different departments. The officer in charge of the shift will prioritize them as needed. :: Cory continued to walk and talk around the upper level of Engineering. :: Skyfire: :: nodding :: Saves wear and tear on the user later, and prevents exploding things. :: CD shuddered again after he finished speaking, as this one triggered the memory of his first hours on the Gorkon and having to save Carter from shrapnel. :: Stoyer: Yes, exploding is bad. You are correct, if we can find problems before they get back, we can fix them quicker. :: Cory remembered the shuttle fire and explosions in the hangar bay of the Shiloh. What he really remember is the white sheets covering his friends. :: Stoyer: So, what else would you like to see on your tour? I mean I still owe you a rematch. :: CD chuckled slightly. Ah yes, the pool game. That too would be a thing which needed to happen. :: Skyfire: You said before the chief would slap you upside the back of the head with rules? Or used to? I don’t know if I had the same professor as you. Is there a rulebook? :: Cory recalled Senior Chief Bill Johns, his Senior Chief on the Shiloh. :: Stoyer: No, it was not a professor, it was my Senior Chief onboard the Shiloh. Bill Johns. He had these rules. If you broke one, he’d smack the back of your head. A good way to remember. :: Ah, that was very reminiscent of the holovid series NCIS, and John’s 21st century probable alter-ego and inspiration, Leroy Jethro Gibbs. A technique that seemed like it worked for some people. He might have to learn these rules and employ them. :: Skyfire: I’d like to see these rules sometime. Think you could arrange that? Stoyer: I actually wrote most of them down. I will have to go through my stuff in my quarters to find it. It shouldn’t take long….. :: Cory remembered that Petra had gotten a hold of his quarters in preparation of moving in together after the wedding. :: oO Well, I don’t know where it is. Oo Stoyer: I will get back with you on that. Skyfire: I could probably scribble them while you’re taking your shot. Stoyer: OK. That sounds like a plan. I will find them and bring it to our rematch. So would you like to see a Damage Control Locker? Skyfire: :: nodded :: Sure. Show me what damage control lockers look like. :: Each new thing that was shown to Chythar in engineering made him realize he loved the department that much more. A shame he only took a few classes to fill out his transcript at the academy, but perhaps there would be time for further study later. :: Stoyer: Follow me. :: Cory led Chythar to Damage Control Locker 5. This locker was responsible for Main Engineering. The locker was neat and well organized. Cory showed some of the equipment that was used. He was grateful for an efficient Damage Control Assistant. He turned back to Chythar. :: Skyfire: Keep it up, Cory. Looks like a well-oiled machine down here. Stoyer: Thank you Chythar. I will pass on your praise to the Department. So meet up after work for that rematch? Skyfire: Sure. Hope you can find those rules for me. Stoyer: After my shift I will go and look. === Lieutenant Cory Stoyer Chief Engineer U.S.S. Gorkon C239111CS0 & Lieutenant Commander Chythar Skyfire First Officer USS Gorkon NCC-82293 History Team Co-Facilitator Medical Duty Post Facilitator Dear Doc Columnist Podcast Promotions Reporter O239002CS0
  11. (( USS Conny - Security Chief's Office )) :: Rustyy had been called to Sinda’s office, the chief of security.... It had similar feelings of being called to the principles officer. Someone had done something wrong. And it was, of course, his shining star Penny Hopper. She had gotten into a fight with a part time civilian slash part time security officer. Just great. :: oO Could’a been worse..Oo ::Blank stare.:: oO Hoooooow? Oo ::His mind gumbled at him.:: oO It could’ve’a been somethin’ you did.. Oo ::Lightbulb.:: oO That’n be true. Oo :: Sinda had passed along some advice, good advice at that. Though it probably meant that Penny would be mad at him for a while. Having an angry little gnome, who was usually frisky and foaming at the mouth, actual angry with him didn’t sound pleasant. But he liked her. :: :: But changing positions couldn’t be all that would help. There had to be something that would work long term. What if Rustyy or Penny was transferred? Then she would face the same dilemma. And he wasn’t about to get blamed for anything that happen with her new supers. :: Hael: I’s’a gots a question fer ya… You talk to someone ‘bout things? Sinda: Well, I appreciate your bluntness, Hael. It has a certain refreshing tone. And, yeah, I've talked about it. :: Rustyy’s face was blank. Was he being blunt? He thought he was just asking a question. But so long as whatever he did, didn’t receive a butt whooping…. :: Hael: Reckon it help ya any? Sinda: Turns out if you keep all that stuff inside, it burns you up. I found out the hard way. And let's just say Danzia is very good at her job. Hael: ::nodding.:: Reckon I’ll’a pass that’a’long Sinda: Good. Now, what about you, Hael? No offense or anything, but you look like targ dung. How're you holding up down there? :: The understatement of the day! Still no shirt, no bath, no clean non-itchy pants. But he had eaten and slept a little. So it wasn’t all bad. He half hearted threw up his hands and shrugged.:: Hael: Reckons I’s’a beens worse. Sinda: I've got a whole host of tactical guys with nothing to do - if you want extra hands, they're yours. I keep them trim by making them scrape the carbon scoring off the phaser emitters, so they know how to handle menial tasks. Hael: You’d be makin’ more than a few folks happy I tell’ya wha’. If’n you can spare’em… I’ll’a take’em. Sinda: Done then. Hael: Just send’em on down to engineerin’ and tell’em they be workin’ fer me. :: He smirked… Bet those mostly up-tight officers would *love* to find out they were going to report to the illiterate engineer.:: Sinda: I don't like having complacent staff. Gamma shift will be on their way just as soon as I press this button. Hael: Wish’n I had that magical like power. ::chuckled.:: Sinda: I'd lend you a few security officers, too, but they're currently roaming the halls until we get internal sensors back to optimum power. Hael: ::nodding.:: Yeah we should be havin’ more things up’n runnin’ soon ‘ere. ::started to stand up.:: Sinda: There was something else. Down there, on Earth, you knew the risks. In the tea room I mean, when you led those police on a merry chase so the rest of us could get away. You knew the mission was more important than your life. :: Still face syndrome.:: :: The mission? He knew his life -in the eyes of those from *his* century- was worth less than their mission. Let’s be honest, he was running to save his own butt. He wanted to live, and pull off almost steampunk style revival on his engines. That was the other big reason. Which to Rustyy’s great pleasure work b-e-a-uuuuuu-tifully. :: :: Okay maybe there was some bit of him that knew that if his group was caught there would be huge consequences. And he didn’t like anyone getting in trouble. Even if he barely knew them. Darn his mama for giving him her heart. It was what made the fix-it Felix tinkerer more delicate than he cared to share. He pulled out his best leisure smirk.:: Hael: Reckon it weren’t no thing. ::holding his hands up.:: We gotta do, what we gotta do. Sinda: I've worked with a lot of officers over the years. I reckon there's only a handful would have done that without hesitation. ::Rustyy’s brain laughed at him and he couldn’t help but smile a little. Like his mama always said, “ Rustyy you ain' got what it takes to be 'fraid of anything”. He did dumb things all the time, though he didn’t know its dumb.:: Hael: The wise ones pause an’ them foolish ones react. Ain’ no thinkin’ involved when I did it. Sinda: I'll let you get back to it, Chief. I've got to meet with Prendar and then track down Foster to sort my face out. If you need me for anything, just shout. Hael: I’s’a purdy good at shoutin’. ::pause.:: I can whistle purdy good too. ::he winked.:: :: Rustyy stood and smirked. Waving to Sinda as he left, Rustyy pondered the ever growing list of repairs. There was some good news though. The arrival of the other ship -providing he could get access to their replicators- meant that things would go smoothly. But something else was nagging at the back of his mind…. The new engine. Just a peek. Then he would get back to work. :: oO Promise! Oo TBC/TAGs ____________________ Lieutenant Rustyy Hael Chief Engineer USS Constitution A239202RH0
  12. (( Bridge, Deck 1, USS Doyle-A )) :: As Selene finished up with the new Engineering officer that she had just been assigned. She noticed the medical ship’s former commanding officer. A woman whose paperwork was on Selene’s desk, with a recommendation for her as First Officer. Selene trusted her brother, but she wasn’t entirely sure if she trusted the woman, so she had set out to avoid the prospect of talking to her for as long as she could. Now the woman was approaching. Did Shel send the woman up, or did she come on her own? That was the question Selene had going through her head, but wasn’t going to be vocalized. :: ::Having done all she could have done in preparation for this moment, Joan stood in idle wait for the captain to take note of her presence on the bridge. She far from enjoyed taking a passive role, but there was only so much that could be done in an active manner. Besides, enough time had passed and there would be no doubt that Faranfey had at least taken note of her transfer orders.:: Faranfey: Commander. I assume we have a conversation to have. Follow me. ::A chill ran down Joan’s spine. She couldn’t read the emotions behind the comment, but the words came off as almost dismissive in tone.:: Hart: As you wish Captain. :: Selene would have to wait to have the conversation with the Intelligence Officer, at least until after this conversation had finished. :: :: It was only a few steps back to the doors of the ready room, and the doors opened automatically when they stepped in front of them. Like the room was anticipating being a host to whatever conversation happened next. :: ::Stepping inside, the human woman took a second to appraise the surroundings, reflexively noting if there was anything within arms reach that she would need if the “friendly conversation” turned sour. Naturally, this was entirely flawed thinking, but human nature with all of its advances, still fell to the whims of their base emotions, illogical as they were.:: Faranfey: :: Turning around, looking at the woman once they were safely behind closed doors. Her arms folded across her chest. :: My Executive Officer stepped down, and Captain Faranster recommended you as the best replacement. Do you know why that is? Hart: oO Well… that was sudden… Oo ::It didn’t take much to throw her mind into defensive turmoil. It had been so long since Joan had reported directly to anyone, and this situation was eerily familiar to when she started on her very first vessel more than a decade ago. Unlike before, however, she had more gumption and experience. She couldn’t allow herself to be intimidated in this manner anymore.:: Hart: ::With her arms folded against her back.:: I can only conjecture why your Executive Officer stepped down sir. My information would be vastly limited compared to your own. ::Though she had heard about the ordeal. Since it appeared to be a personal affair, she didn’t look further into the incident, though now she wished she had.:: Faranfey: Can you at least tell me what would make you a good choice as my next Executive Officer? ::The question she was trying to still find an answer to. Racking her brain day and night, there was no gentle way to convey her opinion.:: Hart: ::Taking a deep breath.:: Captain… permission to speak freely? :: Selene knew how she was coming across, but she needed someone strong, and someone she could trust. Right now she wasn't sure of the officer in front of her, but the fact that she didn't flinch at being asked these questions, least not yet. Was a good sign of her strength. Trust was earned, not given. :: Faranfey: In this situation, it won't help me if you don't, so permission granted. ::Before the words exited her mouth, Joan once more felt the shame that haunted her until this day. Her removal of command from the USS Sacred Heart those years ago. Unfortunately, she could not wallow in these emotions, she never could if she wanted to save those lives....:: Hart: I can give you a detailed rundown of my history. ::She motioned with her hand.:: My flaws, my strengths, and even psychological reports about my state of being. However, I don’t believe that any of those things will change your mind because these items, much like the bytes of data they are encoded on, are unable to convey real information about how two individuals will work together. Given my last mistake, though I would still do it again, you have a limited notion of who I am and what I am capable of. Faranfey: You're right, I have a limited notion of who you are. As you have a limited notion of who I am. My crew is my family, and I take care of them. They trust me to do that. In order to do that, I trust them to have my back. It's a delicate dance, a give and take. Your mistake took one of my crew from me, with little explanation of why. Given the situation, I let it go. ::The woman resisted the urge to raise her eyebrow. Such things could hardly be “let go” at the drop of a bat.:: Hart: A trait that is admirable when applied to the correct context… Faranfey: I fight for my crew, it's what I do. I had a multi-directional battle going on, and you were just as capable of taking care of my officer as my Medical department, so I didn't fight. Doesn't mean I am not irked, doesn't mean I am not suspicious. ::Shaking her head, Joan said nothing. This is what she knew was coming, and she made no effort to change the direction. Completely contrary, she hoped that Faranfey would plow down this path without care of what she may encounter along the way.:: :: Selene knew what was in the files, and the woman said it right, the paper was unable to tell her whether or not she could work with the other woman. The vital information, whether or not the woman would have the best interests of her people at heart. :: Faranfey: What I need to know, if I take you on as my Executive Officer, and I fight for you, if you will do the same for me and my crew. Hart: ::Without missing a beat.:: I will, as long as I receive the same trust in return. Faranfey: I'm listening. ::Joan relaxed her pose slightly, to increase the flow of blood into her arms that had remained still this entire time. She was well experienced in being dressed down, though it never made the experience any easier.:: Hart: I promise to give you my all, but it will come with you trusting my own judgement. I find it insulting when another officer grovels for favours and promotion, as such, I will not play to your emotions since your opinion of me shouldn't matter. I am here to support you in all areas, and I will not pull out any blows if I feel there is a danger to the ship or her crew. :: Selene would have likely thought she was weak if she grovelled. Strength was a quality she needed, the ability to speak up when necessary, regardless of the consequences. Selene had a tendency to get a bit snappy with those who questioned her, so she needed someone who could handle that. But she still had the concern on the trust situation. :: Faranfey: Trust is a two way street, and it's earned. You started with a deficit, but I am willing to give you a shot. You have an opening to earn my trust. :: She paused for a moment. :: Liking me isn't a requirement, taking care of the crew and having my back, is. Respecting each other, is. If I ever forget my duty to the ship or her crew, I -expect- someone to speak up. ::The woman’s face was stoic and calm. What did she have to lose? Her position? Her rank? These things were already taken from her once… The only person she could rely on was herself… or…::: Hart: The offer is a recommendation only… ::She paused.:: Though, don’t get me wrong, I no longer play the political game. Faranfey: That's good, that means you can't be bought for favors and power. ::A compliment, well, maybe not quite. However, it was a fair assessment. Of course it came with a cost…:: Hart: ::Caught off guard.:: I… ::Regaining her cool.:: Would aim to meet the expectations. Faranfey: I do want to know though, do you have any diplomacy skills? ::That was a hard question. The truth? Yes. In practice though… she tended to be more abrasive since it usually landed her better results.:: Hart: I can sir, though I would have to admit it is something of an art that will take some time to be reaquianted with…. oO For obvious reasons. Oo Why do you ask? :: Selene leaned against her desk while she listened. When the other woman asked why, she took a moment to make sure that the woman knew what was at stake. :: Faranfey: There are times when a diplomatic response is not only recommended but necessary. In those instances it would be good to have someone who can take a soft approach. Hart: :: Lowering her voice.:: I see…. Faranfey: It's apparent you have a quick mind, or least quick enough to respond to me. The conversation immediately put you on the defensive, I told you that I don't trust you, I questioned your ability, and you haven't cracked or told me where to shove it. So I can tell you respect the command structure. But, this is the way I am, I can force diplomacy, but I will need you to take out your diplomacy skills, dust them off, and practice them. ::Taking a moment, Joan made the opportunity to phrase her words correctly. Words, were in essence weapons. While a hammer could be applied to many a situation, sometimes a scalpel would provide better results.:: Hart: ::Biting her lower lip.:: I am here to support you after all. :: She turned around enough to grab a PADD off her desk, she was glad for the conversation, it gave her enough reassurance that her brother wasn't trying to saddle her with someone who was going to make her wish she was back in 2414 dealing with the hunger. :: Faranfey: Then, the job is yours, for as long as I can trust you, or until you can no longer deal with my style of running things. :: She extended the PADD to the woman with her new assignment, crew quarters and clearance codes on it. :: ::Clasping the device gently, Joan nodded her head.:: Hart: Both fair and honest points. ::She forced a smile.:: Captain. I will… enjoy the challenge of working with you. ::The words were honest. Certainly more honest than she generally could be. Perhaps this would be her final hurrah before…:: Faranfey: I can say that is probably an adequate way of putting our working together, or at least the beginning of our working relationship. There will be a lot of work, especially your predecessor having stepped down so abruptly. Hart: I will take my leave then to appraise myself of the Doyle and her crew. ::Beat.:: Enjoy the rest of your few days off, and although I wasn’t able to say it before. Congratulations on the promotion. :: Selene pushed herself off her desk so she was fully standing again. When she leaned against the desk, she stood shorter than her new Executive Officer, however when standing, she was a good half a foot taller. :: Faranfey: Thank you, Commander. It was quite a surprise to me. :: She paused. :: We both have work to do, and since yours involves you getting acquainted with the ship before we are sent on our next mission, you should get on it. ::Turning her back, Joan left the Captain’s ready room. Her hands slowly relaxing as soon as she entered the hallway. However, she knew the hardest part was still yet to come…::: Lieutenant Commander Joan Hart Executive Officer USS Doyle-A T238303LF0 & Captain Selene Faranfey Commanding Officer USS Doyle-A, NCC-80221-A Writer ID: A239001SF0
  13. (( VIP Quarters - Deck 2 - USS Doyle-A )) :: Shiarrael's eyes opened groggily and a piercing headache shot through the side of her head. Her mind was muddy and the Romulan had trouble gauging where she was. The cool breeze in the room immediately told her that she did not have a stich of clothing on and the small set of cases in the corner finished up the idea that she was in her room aboard the Doyle. :: :: Sitting up, she placed her aching hand to her forehead and tried to keep from collapsing back on the couch. :: oO Fvadt! What did I do this time? Oo :: Stumbling out of bed, she tripped on some hard and cold. Looking down through bleary eyes she saw four empty bottles of Romulan Ale strewn about and a half full cup on the vanity. :: oO Well, that explains the headache. Oo :: Slowly her memory came back of the night before, the uncomfortable conversation in the corridor and then rummaging through her supplies for the Ale. Blinking and looking in to the mirror to clear her eyesight, the thing that struck her was the second glass of ale and as the light in the back of her mind turned on. She heard a rustle in the bathroom. Grabbing her disruptor out of the vanity, she spun and aimed it at a young human man with dark hair stepping out of the bathroom in a clean uniform. He froze and put his hands up. A blush sat on his cheeks. :: Davidson: Uh...I'm not sure how to take this? Shiarrael: ::Angrily:: How the hell did you get in here? Davidson: :: Umm....you kinda...asked me in for a drink...and well then... :: The extremely hazy memory of the young man spending the night explained the lack of clothing and the bottles everywhere. She lowered the weapon trying to keep an air of control. :: Shiarrael: I...see. Davidson: ::hopeful:: I got you that new uniform replicated with the materials I told you about. :: He gingerly offered the faded gray jumpsuit to her. She snatched it from him and closed the distance. :: Shiarrael: ::Warningly:: I barely have any memory, Mister... Davidson: Brian. Brian Davidson. Shiarrael: ::hissing:: Brian. If you want to keep your happy memories of last night I highly recommend you don't tell ANYONE that you were here. Do I make myself clear? Davidson: Yes, Ma'am. :: He started for the door and stopped, turning scared and somewhat hopeful. :: Davidson: You want to get some coffee? Shiarrael: Get out, Brian. :: He quickly exited and she plopped herself on the floor exhausted holding her sore fist. :: oO [...] that Romulan ale! Oo ~tbc~ PNPC Shiarrael Republic Liaison Officer USS Doyle-A As Simmed By... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Colonel Nugra Marine Commanding Officer USS Doyle-A, NCC-980221-B Deputy Commandant Captain's Council Magistrate V238008N10 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  14. ((Shuttle orbiting Igguden III)) :: The shuttle approached the planet and started to slow down. :: Pilot: We are here Cmdr. Where do you want me to land? Tel-ar: Move into orbit above the largest land mass, above the large inland sea. Pilot: OK. :: He replied slightly confused, then again it kind of made sense. The massive Andorian had made the entire 4 hour flight without saying a single word, which for him was normal. Still it made you wonder why he was here. Not that he was going to be stupid enough to ask the man. He had something of a reputation, one that made you think twice before you asked him a question. As he brought the shuttle to a halt at the indicated location he spoke again. :: Stable orbit achieved Cmdr. :: Tal did not reply, he merely stood up, grabbed his pack and opened it, pulling out an unusual object. It was made of some kind of fabric, a case or bag of some kind with 5 heavily reinforced straps that appeared to buckle together in an unusual manner. Then he closed his bag and walked over to drop it on the transporter pad. :: :: He spent a few moments adjusting the controls and then beamed the bag onto the planet’s surface below him. :: Pilot: Uhhh…. Sir. The colony is on the other side of the planet. Tel-ar: I know Ensign. :: Was all he said as he merely readjusted the controls before he tossed the unusual bag onto the transporter pad and then beamed it into the upper reaches of the planet’s atmosphere. :: :: Then he set the timer before he also stepped onto the pad. As he turned he spoke one final time. :: Tel-ar: That will be all Ensign. :: Just as he finished speaking he was beamed off the shuttle to the same location as his unusual bag. :: :: The Pilot turned to glance back, saw the Andorian vanish in a shimmer and turned back to his controls. :: Pilot: What the @#$%^&*(). :: He exclaimed as he saw the read out on his sensors. The Andorian had beamed himself off of the shuttle into the upper levels of the planet’s atmosphere and was now plummeting towards the planet’s surface at an alarming rate. :: :: He automatically started to reach for the transporter controls off to one side of his flight control panel. Reached them and adjusted the controls to allow him to beam aboard an object falling at high velocity but at the last second he stopped himself. :: :: This was Cmdr. Tel-ar. The same lunatic who had attacked a Borg cube by himself. Yeah sure he had landed in medical, more dead than alive but he had survived. Still beaming yourself into the upper reaches of a planet’s atmosphere was a whole new level of crazy. :: :: Just then the sensors indicated that his decent was slowing. It made no sense but then at least he did not have to return and report that the man had impacted into the planet’s surface. :: :: Shaking his head he turned the shuttle and increased speed, heading back to DS285 as fast as he could. :: ((Above Igguden III)) :: Tal materialized high above the planet’s surface. The air was thin here, thin and very cold. The second the transporter affect had completed the job of transferring his atoms one by one from the shuttle, gravity took over and he started to plummet towards the ground below. :: :: He angled his body so that he was at an angle with his head down and his arms tucked in tight against his body. It allowed him to drop more rapidly. The frigid air battered his face and body, making his eyes water. Normally this would not be a reason to worry but it also made it almost impossible to spot the parachute falling below him. :: :: Tal blinked rapidly then reached up with one hand and wiped his eyes then partially shielded them from the bitter cold air. It took a few moments, even for his excellent vision but he soon spotted the object he needed. He altered his trajectory, shooting through the air. It was an exhilarating feeling, one that lifted his spirits and made him feel more alive than he had in months. :: :: Unfortunately as he dropped rapidly towards the hard unyielding surface of the planet, his parachute vanished with in the fluffy white expanse of a cloud. In seconds he followed it, one second buffeted by the wind yet still able to see and the next blind as a bat as the density of the water vapor instantly soaked him. That added to the temperature made it feel like he had just dove into some foggy winter wonderland. :: :: His inner clock warned that he was quickly reaching that danger point, the one where even with a parachute he would still be traveling to rapidly, that any impact with the ground would result in broken bones. :: :: Just then he emerged from the cloud, his eyes quickly scanning his surrounding followed by his spreading his arms and legs, leveling off to decrease his speed. He had passed the parachute, it was now above him. Added to that was a cross wind, a brutally strong one that snatched the parachute and started to move it away from him. :: :: He had to alter his flight path, angling to follow it while letting it drop closer and closer to him. :: :: He reached out to grab it…. Missed…. :: :: For a moment panic threatened to rear its vile head as Tal spun his body, twisting to follow the chute, then bringing his legs and one arm tightly together as he aimed head down towards the ground. The sudden shirt, the increase in speed was drained off as he leveled off, his free hand reaching, grasping, fingers touching but failing to grasp the straps as it spun away from him. He spread his arms and legs, his wet clothes plastered to his body, breaking for that one split second needed to try again. This time his fingers touched a strap again, failed to grasp it as the wind tore it from him. :: :: He ignored the ground below, strained his body to fight the air, the wind, to maneuver closer, ever closer to the chute. Again he reached, touched, missed…. Then closed his hand over the groin strap that was suddenly whipped past him as the chute flipped end over end. :: :: Tal pulled it in, sliding both legs into the opening in the straps, having to fight the wind the whole time. Then he shoved in first his left arm, then his right and grabbing the buckles secured the straps against his midsection. :: :: Then he hit the release, waited a second as the chute deployed, his entire body slamming into the leg straps and his velocity was cut almost instantly by a half. :: :: Looking down he could see the lake, the dense jungle reaching almost to the edge of its dark blue waters. According to the survey data he had read the massive lake had very steep sides, quickly vanishing into the depths. The survey team had been sure based on the data that a large asteroid had impacted at this site causing the almost round depression that had eventually become a lake. :: :: Tal grabbed the straps that allowed him to control his angle of decent, the large rectangular chute above him spun slightly as he changed direction to take him closer to and over the water. :: :: He continued to fall, but now it was a more relaxing, almost sedate feeling when compared with the start of his fall. :: :: He angled farther from shore, he needed deep water under him as he was still coming down too fast. Not that it would have mattered, there was no clear ground anywhere near by where he could have landed anyway. :: :: When he reached about 100 feet above the water he pulled the release, detaching the chute and suddenly dropped straight towards the water. He braced his legs to take the impact, then slammed into the surface with bone jolting force. :: :: The force of the impact drove him down, down, down even as the density of the water bled off his speed until he slowed to a stop. Instantly Tal started to swim, his long legs and arms propelling him up and towards the shore as fast as he could. Time was now against him, the welcome drag of the water was now a danger, one even more dangerous that the possibility of not catching the chute had been. :: :: He pushed, ignored his bodies warning signs, the indicators that he should surface and surface soon. His lungs screamed for air as he refused to alter his angle, just kept swimming, stroke, kick, stroke, kick, stroke, kick…..:: :: Suddenly the water color started to change, to grow lighter, the warm sunlight filtering down through the water to where he was, He was close, he pushed harder, nothing mattered but the movements, stroke, kick, stroke, kick, stroke, kick…..:: :: Suddenly his arm followed by his head burst through the surface of the lake, he gulped in air, his lungs grateful even as he pushed harder, swimming for the shore, for solid ground, stroke, kick, stroke, kick, stroke, kick…..:: :: Tal took a second to glance up, the shore was close, 50 feet left to go, all he had to do was keep pushing, stroke, kick, stroke, kick, stroke, kick…..:: AAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :: The sound erupted behind him, mingling with a massive explosion of water that crashed down around him. The sound slammed into the jungle in front of him and bounced back. Tal ignored it and kept pushing, stroke, kick, stroke, kick, stroke, kick…..:: AAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :: The sound rolled over him again, an angry bellow of savage rage and blood thirsty need. It was angry, angry and hungry but Tal’s right hand struck bottom and he clawed his way forward, pushing himself, pulling with all his strength. :: :: In moments he had struggled the last few feet, staggering as he left the water. Only then did he look behind him. The creature glared at him, half of its head above water. Its two dark, eyes glaring at him, daring him to come closer. Then it opened its jaws to scream in frustration one last time. :: AAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :: The teeth revealed were the size of daggers and looked to be razor sharp. It glared at him for a few moments more then, the head sunk beneath the water leaving only a few ripples to mark its presence. :: :: For a few minutes Tal merely stood, getting his breath back, enjoying the warm caress of the tropical sun as it slowly dried the clothes that he was wearing. :: :: Then he turned and started to walk along the shore of the lake, searching for his bag that he had beamed down. As he did he allowed a smile to drift across his face. So far this vacation had turned out to be both enjoyable and stimulating. Hopefully the rest of his week would be as well. :: ************************************ Cmdr. Tal Tel-ar Chief Tactical Officer USS Doyle-A, NCC-80221-A darylpea[...]@hotmail.com Daryl.Pea[...]@ontario.ca Tal Tel-ar’s Writer’s ID: T237708TT0
  15. ((Camped near the great lake on Igguden III)) :: Tal woke, stretched and slowly sat up. His antenna scented the air, the clean fresh air mixed with the numerous different scents of plants, flowers, animals, birds, death, decay and rebirth. :: :: The week had gone by so fast. The shuttle should be returning in a few hours to collect him and return him to the ship. Part of him was looking forward to it and part of him was dreading it. This life, this having to rely on his wits and strength alone had certain attractions that spoke to him on a depth that was almost unnerving. :: :: Still he had his duty and he was not one to avoid it, no matter what the problem. After all there were plenty of planets like this where he could visit or maybe even retire to once he had finally left the fleet. It was a pleasant thought, one worth considering for his distant future. :: :: With animal like grace Tal moved from a sitting position to a standing one. It was something that amazed a lot of people, especially due to his size and musculature. Few people expected such speed, such dexterity from one who looked more like a walking advertisement for a life of professional weight training. :: :: As he stood a small object leapt from a nearby branch and landed on his shoulder. In many ways it seemed to resemble a miniature humanoid but one with a very long slender tail and long slim arms and legs that seemed to be a bit out of proportion to the size of the tiny body and small head. It curled its tail around his back and over one arm as it sat there calmly. :: :: For the most part Tal ignored it, it had been his almost constant companion since his arrival on this world. Watching as he built his shelter in the upper reaches of its tree. It had soon realized that it had nothing to fear from him and had been following him since. :: :: Tal stretched again, raising his arms straight up and the creature moved easily out of the way, then scampered up one of his arms to leap to a nearby branch. Tal continued to stretch, twist and move, slowly running through a routine designed to loosen and relax every single muscle group in his body. :: :: Only when he was finished did he finally reach out for his clothes. He took his time dressing, enjoying the view, the sight of two of the large lake creatures fighting a few hundred yards off shore. The way the leaves danced in the cool summer breeze, the delicate flowers bending to the same breeze. :: :: This was a very beautiful world, one well worth returning to, even if it was only for the occasional camping trip. At the thought a smile brightened his features and he decided to leave most of the supplies he had brought with him. There was a natural hollow in which he could secure them, that way they would be here the next time he came. They were all made of high tech composite materials so wind, rain and exposure to the elements would not damage them too much. :: :: Tal packed the tools and equipment into the small hollow, then took down the heavy duty water resistant tarp that had served as a roof and after carefully folding it up packed it in on top of the gear. It took only a few more minutes to firmly secure the tarp in place. It would keep the rest of the gear safe and last a long time as well. :: :: Finished Tal packed the last few items that he would be taking with him, ignoring the small creature who watched him the whole time. :: ((Short Time Jump)) :: Tal heard it long before he saw it, the shuttle slowing its descent as it got closer and closer. It was obviously time and as he gave his tree top shelter one last look his comms badge chirped. Tal automatically reached up and tapped it. :: Tel-ar: =/\= Cmdr. Tel-ar here. =/\= Pilot: =/\= You ready to go sir? =/\= Tel-ar: =/\= Yes. =/\= :: Tal replied as he glanced around one last time as he reached out and grabbed his pack, swinging it easily up and onto one shoulder. =/\= Beam me aboard. =/\= :: As Tal felt the all too familiar tingling sensation that meant he was being disassembled into his various subatomic parts for the transfer to the shuttle he distinctly felt the sudden and unexpected contact of a small object, obviously the creature as he could feel its tiny hands and tail through his shirt. :: ((Shuttle)) :: It was too late to shoo it off as the next moment he reappeared on the shuttle standing on the transporter pad in the back. He expected the creature to panic, to act irrationally but all it did was to tighten its grip on his shirt while looking around. :: :: Tal turned his head to look at it, his steel gray eyes staring deep into its dark green eyes. It merely tilted its head then reached up with one tiny paw to touch one of his antenna. :: Pilot: Sir what is that? :: Tal considered the question carefully. Not once during the time that he had spent on the planet had he seen any other members of this creature’s species. Obviously there had to be more on the planet but there had not been any, anywhere near to where he had met this one. :: :: It was also obviously a social creature, one who must have normally belonged to a larger group. Otherwise it would never have spent so much time near him or overcome its natural fear of predators to get so close as to touch him. :: :: For some unknown reason Tal suspected that the creature had been lonely. That, that was the reason it had spent so much time following and watching him and if that was true then its actions in leaping into the transporter beam and its seeming lack of fear was due to it not wanting to be left alone again. :: Tel-ar: That Ensign is our passenger. Pilot: Passenger? Tel-ar: You heard me Ensign. :: Tal replied calmly as he took his backpack off his shoulder and tossed it onto one of the empty seats. As he did the tiny creature leapt off his shoulder onto the bag and sat, curling its tail around itself as it looked all around. :: Pilot: But Cmdr. I don’t think I should be bringing that back to the ship. Tel-ar: That’s perfectly all right Ensign. Consider it to be a direct order. That way your completely off the hook. Understood. :: The young man just stared at him for a moment, then glanced at the tiny creature, then back at the Cmdr. Only then did he move turning and sliding back into the pilots seat even as he replied. :: Pilot: Direct order it is Cmdr. :: He replied as he turned the shuttle and piloted it away from the planet’s surface. :: :: Tal turned and sat down, relaxing into the seat, ready to enjoy the flight back to the USS Doyle-A. :: ((Shuttle inbound to the USS Doyle-A)) :: Tal sat in the back of the shuttle, dressed in stained, worn and distinctly smelly clothes. He sat up straight, his back barely touching the backrest with his eyes closed but he was not asleep. His mind was active even though he had not moved a single muscle in over 3 hours. :: :: This ability to remain motionless for hours had been an essential survival trait for him while growing up. Without it he would have either starved or been killed by other savage predators or even more violent humanoids and while he often relaxed into what appeared to be complete rigidity he was actually very comfortable like this. :: :: Not the same with most people around him. It freaked most of them out and further distanced him from them as both a person and an individual. Tal did not mind, he liked the solitude, hence his going camping by himself. Still there were times when it was nice to have someone around. :: :: His mind drifted back to his last vacation as it had in-numerable times over the last week. He had spent almost every single waking moment and sleeping moment as well with Sherana, an exotic Orion woman trained to be a Klingon warrior by her adoptive father. She was a civilian aboard the USS Constitution-B, a botanist who was responsible for taking care of the ship’s arboretum. :: :: Like him she felt out of place, alone. They had found each other and as unlikely a couple as they were, they had enjoyed each other’s company. It helped that their unusual backgrounds and childhood upbringing provided them with many of the same outlooks and personality quirks that made it difficult for them to make friends among the rest of the crew. :: :: He hated to admit it but he missed her, not just her company which had been both a comfort and enjoyable but everything about her. The way the light caressed her green skin, the way she moved, her scent, so earthy yet intoxicating and almost indescribably sensual regardless of the medication that she took to curb and control her genetic quirk, to repress her pheromones. Most species and most people could not sense it but he could, even more so than most Andorians and he could understand how her kind had enslaved countless men. :: :: Still it had been the quiet times he had enjoyed the most with her, when it was just the two of them, when they could relax and simply enjoy each other’s company. He still remembered the last night they had spent together, the passion, the closeness, the feeling of moving against each other, kissing, caressing. Him waking up in the morning with her warm, tender body molded to his side, her head on his shoulder, her warm breath wafting gently over his chest. :: Pilot: Cmdr. We’re on final approach. Touch down should be in less than 5 minutes. :: The pilot’s voice snapped him out of the day dream, his eyes opened and the intense memory drifted back into his past as he replied. :: Tel-ar: Thank you Ensign. :: Tal glanced over to where his bag was, his tiny friend stirred, lifted his head and stared back at Tal with his tiny, large eyes. Then it stretched, arms and legs both straightened for a moment then it sat up looking around. :: ((Small time jump – Shuttle Bay, USS Doyle-A)) :: As the sound of the engine stopped, Tal stood up, reaching out and grabbing his bag as he did so, his friend leapt onto his arm and ran up it like it was a branch on a tree. Tal ignored this as he moved to the hatch and activated the controls to cause it to open. Then he waited patiently as the door unlocked and opened. :: :: Tal walked off, his long legs quickly taking him across the large room, past other vessels, mechanics hard at work, pilots inspecting their ships and various other crewmembers busy with their various duties. :: :: Out in the corridor he immediately headed towards the closest lift, climbed on and continued his journer to his quarters. :: ((Short time jump - Cmdr. Tal Tel-ar’s quarters)) :: Tal walked in, crossed his large empty room and tossed his bag onto his bed. Then he started to get undressed. As he did his tiny friend leapt off on his shoulder, bounced off of the bed and landed on the floor. Once there he scampered around the room. :: :: Tal tossed his dirty clothes into the chute that would take them away to be cleaned and walked into his bathroom and into his shower. :: ((Short time jump - Bathroom)) :: Tal turned off his shower feeling refreshed and noticeably cleaner. As he opened the door he spotted his tiny friend standing on the counter beside his sink, looking at himself in the mirror. For a moment he paused, simply watching him, his actions and reactions. Again Tal wondered why he had not beamed the small creature back down to Igguden III. It was his home, there he was free to live, to wander amid the tops and branches of the dense equatorial jungle. :: :: Tal gave a small shake of his head as he left his bathroom, content to drip dry. Out in the large empty space that was his quarters he started to walk towards his closet but stopped, turned and walked instead over to where a wall screen could be seen. It stood out against the uneven, tan surface of simulated stone that covered his walls, floor and ceiling. :: :: Once he reached it he taped in his code and checked to see why the light was flashing. He had a message. He was slightly surprised to see who had sent it, surprised and pleased. It had been a while since they had talked, duty and other factors making the time seem to fly between then and now. Without thinking he selected it and activated it. :: :: An image of Sherana appeared on the screen. Her hand was partially blocking the image, as if she was reaching out towards him. Then she lowered her hand and started to speak. Her voice captivated him, thrilled him after not being able to hear it for so long. His antenna twitched and leaned forward so as to drink in every single subtle sound. :: Sherana: =/\= Would you believe if I told you that we were in 1914 and are just back? Of course you would, I wouldn't lie to you. I have not seen any of it, you know the rules for civilian personnel, but I hear it was interesting. :: She paused. :: I have gotten into a fight last night. Because of that ride through some rift, we didn't have much energy and life support was pulled down. My plants were freezing and I went to demand power. The woman I spoke with did not like that and we got into a brawl. Now I have to apologize to her. =/\= :: A this last part a ghost of a smile drifted across Tal’s features. She had growled the last words, her feeling plain in regards to what had happened. :: Sherana: =/\= She will have to as well, but that does not change my dislike. :: She exhaled. :: She was no substitute for you anyway. Even our training was more challenging than this. I ... :: Tal felt a sudden wave of concern as Sherana’s voice broke. He found himself worrying about her, concerned about her even as she inhaled deeply before she continued to speak. :: You know that I am not good when it comes to talking about emotions. :: There was another slight pause as she raised her eyes to look directly into the camera lens. :: tIqwIj Sa'angnIS.* I miss you, Tal. =/\= *((OOC Translation: I must show you my heart)) :: That was the end of the transmission. :: :: Tal stood there for a moment, then reached up and hit replay, watching the short video two or three more times, memorizing again every single subtle aspect of her features, movements and mannerisms. Only then did he activate the record button himself. :: Tel-ar: =/\= Hello Sherana. It is nice to hear from you. =/\= :: Even as he said it he winced inside. He could just hear his best friend Jason chuckle and shake his head before saying, “How many times do I have to tell you Tal, the best way to win a woman’s heart is to let her know yours.” He reached up and stopped the recording, erased it and started over. :: Tel-ar: =/\= Hello Sherana. I miss you as well. =/\= :: This time there was no inner chuckle and he continued. :: =/\= In fact I was reminded of you on my last mission. We ran into a Klingon Bird of Prey with a renegade crew. They destroyed a Federation colony and then the planet as well. =/\= :: Just then a loud metallic clangor made him turn and look towards where his bed was. He could see that his Bat’leth had been knocked off of the wall and it was pretty obvious who had done it. The sight of it laying there caused him to close his eyes for a moment. When he opened them he looked back and erased the recording. What was he thinking, telling her that running into some renegade Klingons had made him think of her. :: :: Tal paused, taking a few long deep breaths before he restarted the recording again. :: Tel-ar: =/\= Hello Sherana. I miss you as well. I just came back from a week off. I visited a nearby planet Igguden III. It is mostly deserted but pleasant, tropical with a large fresh water lake buried within dense jungle. It reminded me of that time we spent together on my shore leave, us walking along the beach, enjoying the warm waters, our hotel room with the amazing view. :: Tal paused for a moment before continuing. :: It was just me roughing it…. Camping out in the upper branches of one of the bigger trees…. Still I wish you could have been there with me… in my arms… waking beside me…. I miss you… I need you… =/\= :: Suddenly Tal reached out and turned off the recording even as he blinked his eyes rapidly a number of times. What was wrong with him? Tal closed his eyes and took a few deep breathes. When he was done he restarted the recording. :: Tel-ar: =/\= I do not know how to explain just what you mean to me…. Other than you are important… that I think of you often… that you haunt my memories… pleasant memories… some of the best I have… that I do miss you… :: Tal paused, and for a moment a brief smile softened his otherwise stern features, his steel gray eyes seemed to mellow and his voice softened, grew a bit more husky with hidden emotion as he finished speaking. :: I miss holding you… being with you…. I miss it all…. :: Again Tal paused as he stared deep into the screen. :: Bye my heart, until we meet again. =/\= :: Then Tal stopped the recording and programmed the computer to send the message to her on the USS Constitution-B. :: :: When he was finished he turned and walked over to where the Bat’leth lay, picked it up and returned it to its spot on the wall before he turned and looked at where his small friend crouched atop the rounded head of a bronze mace. :: Tel-ar: I guess I am going to have to provide you with some form of amusement, otherwise you are likely to either kill yourself, chop your tail off or even worse damage one of my toys with your activities. :: The small creature grinned, then leapt the 14 feet easily to land on his bare shoulder, tail and hands ensuring that he did not fall off as Tal turned to walk back over to the monitor. This time when he activated it, it was for internal communication. :: Tel-ar: =/\= Cmdr. Tal Tel-ar to Engineering. =/\= Engineer: =/\= Yes Cmdr. How can I help you. =/\= Tel-ar: =/\= I will be submitting a work request for my quarters. I need the alterations to be completed before the end of the alpha shift. =/\= Engineer: =/\= I cannot guarantee that Cmdr. It will depend a lot on the nature of the work you need done. =/\= Tel-ar: =/\= I see. :: Tal paused for a moment then he continued to speak. :: You should be able to see the creature on my shoulder Ensign. =/\= Engineer: =/\= Yes Cmdr. I can. =/\= Tel-ar: =/\= Good the alterations are to provide him with a living space and recreational facilities with in my quarters. I doubt that it will be a very difficult or time consuming job. =/\= Engineer: =/\= No, I doubt it will be. I will get started on it as soon as I receive the details of your request Cmdr. =/\= Tel-ar: =/\= Thank you. I will send them within the hour. Tel-ar out. =/\= :: Tal closed the channel and turned to walk over to the closet. He still needed to get dressed. :: ************************************ Cmdr. Tal Tel-ar Chief Tactical Officer USS Doyle-A, NCC-80221-A darylpea[...]@hotmail.com Daryl.Pea[...]@ontario.ca Tal Tel-ar’s Writer’s ID: T237708TT0 With help from Cmdr. Jalana Rajel, the writer for PNPC Sherana from the USS Constitution-B Jalana Rajel
  16. ((Starbase 118 Ops, Operations)) (Day of the Party and Awards Dinner) *OOC: A little long but should be enjoyable none the less.* ::Baylen had been sitting up in Ops watching the reports of the Flight Officer while he had gone to lunch, This was not his normal cup of tea, there was far more that he should be doing. Station traffic was pretty run of the mill but while he running names against the station watch list there was a name that caught his eyes and made him jump straight up. He looked at the screen with a big huge grin for several minutes. While he watched the Runabout approaching the Star Base, a Runabout with Baylen’s best friend from his youth. Standing up and pull a Operations Ensign over to the Flight Ops station. Baylen pointing at the station and the incoming Runabout.:: Anders: Ensign Morgan, that Runabout there, it has VIP docking, it bumps all other incoming ship. ::Looking at Morgan:: Are we clear? Morgan: Aye sir, Shuttle Port 12 fine sir? ::She looked at the runabout in some confusion.:: But sir there are no known VIP’s on that runabout. Anders: There is a VIP on the shuttle make no mistake, a VIP for me, and that will be very good, let the flight officer know I have gone to greet an incoming guest. Morgan: Very well sir. Anders: Too bad I did not know he was coming, I would have had the Statbase 118th Marine Corps Band waiting in the shuttle port. ::Baylen was grinning was he got out of Ashley’s way.:: ::Ashley Morgan took the station as Baylen walked to the Turbolift and departed Main Upper Operations. As he rode the lift down the 200 decks he smiled and thought about all the times sitting on the white sandy beaches and the crystal clear ocean, while they rubbed wax on there boards for hours, while looking at the visitors and talking about how funny some looked and how good some looked and and how out of place others were. All the times the would sneak and place a Horgon next to some stranger and sit back and watch with big grins on their young faces. (( Runabout Bastille - Outside Starbase 118 )) ::Antero sat at the helm, leaning lazily against the wall of the runabout, sure that he would start hitting his head against it at any moment. He had the expression of a zombie and was watching the comm traffic and praying it would all be over soon.:: Honeycutt: ::Laughing:: Well it turns out the plasma coil was wrapped around the isolinear rod in such a way that it was coming through with a negative charge! Oh man, you should have seen the look on his face. ::Sobering:: Hey, are you listening? Flynn: Hm..? Oh, yeah. Of course I am. ::He sat up a little straighter:: That's definitely the most interesting story I have ever heard about isolinear plasma....charges? Honeycutt: ::Smiling:: You know if you paid more attention you might learn something. Flynn: Sorry, what was that? ::He shot the Engineer a wink.:: Honeycutt: Have it your way. ::He looked toward the main viewer at the busy Starbase:: How much longer until we dock? Flynn: Were in the que but they are pretty backed up. ::He leaned forward to check the docking status, tilting his head in confusion at a notification.:: Something about you I should know Honeycutt? Honeycutt: What do you mean? Flynn: They gave us VIP priority. ::His hands went to the controls and he moved them into position at Port 12:: Better let everyone know to grab their gear, won't be long now. ::As Honeycutt moved to the back of the Runabout, Antero wondered silently what their special clearance was about. Whatever the case, he had no objection. He sent proper notification to approach control that the vessel was ready for docking, and confirmation was received almost immediately and the space doors opened. With the system locked on, the vessel had a short trip along the directional array and before long the Risian was slinging his pack over his shoulder, off to complete his final check in.:: ((Starbase 118, Docking Port 12, Deck 44)) The turbolift doors parted and Baylen stepped off the lift and walked right across to the Shuttle Port just as the Runabout set down on PAD Five, Baylen watched as other shuttles came into the large 14 deck tall shuttle hangar bay, others turned and went into docking ports. Baylen walked over to the Port side hatch of the runabout as a few flight deck hands pushed over a set of steps and watched as a few Officers got off the ship, then there was Antero Flynn, stepping off with his bags. Baylen just beamed, Overcome with joy to seeing his old friend.:: Anders: Lt. Antero Flynn, What the hell are you doing in this part of space, much less in that uniform. ::Smiling:: ::The last one out, Antero was surprised to hear his name as he exited the craft. He turned and his eyes went wide, it had been several years, but he recognized the officer instantly. He dropped his bag practically tackled him in a hug before pulling back, hands on his shoulders.:: Flynn: Baylen?! No way! When did you join Starfleet? Anders: I joined the fleet six years ago. Now I am the Mission Specialist of the Station. I did not think anything would drag you away from beaches of Suraya Bay? ::It dawned on Antero that he might not have heard about what happened to his younger brother Aurelio. This was not the time, but he still answered honestly.:: Flynn: Oh you know, had to find that next great adventure. The waves only get so big on Risa. ::He grinned:: Anders: Well that still does answer my question, what brings you to Starbase 118. ::Grinning and throwing an arm around his neck and shoulder and picking up his other bag with his free hand as he walked Antero out of the shuttle port.:: Flynn: I volunteered to transfer a reassigned runabout from the Apollo, my home away from Risa. ::He looked to his old friend, happy to have the person he used to confide in the most.:: I actually have a tiny bit of an ulterior motive. Anders: You an Ulterior Motive? Never… ::Grinning:: Flynn: ::Smiling sheepishly:: It’s not like me but, I sort of fell for a guy on my last assignment. Anders: Oh really, that is great. I have meet someone myself, I really like him a lot. He is such a sweetheart, and very sexy. Flynn: Oh yeah? I’ll be interested in hearing more. ::He shrugged:: Things have hit a bit of a bump for us. Transfers tore us apart and we never really talked about it. I figured it’s time for some resolution, maybe see if there is a way we can keep things going. Anders: ::Smiling:: Cheers to that. Shall we head out of here? ::The two stepped into the turbolift.:: Flynn: You bet, I’ve got some time to kill. Lead the way. Anders: Did you arrange for quarters, I have a guest room, or are you staying? Flynn: I’m all set, thanks. Anders: ::Baylen started to Laugh at random: Sorry I just thought about those Tellarites. Flynn: Tellarites? Anders: You know the four that was skinny dipping in mavgos bay? We snuck out on to the beach and stole their clothing and hid them in the woods. Flynn: ::Laughing:: Oh, man. How could I forget! We definitely knew how to keep ourselves entertained. Anders: ::Smiling:: We watched them all day running around naked looking for there clothes and women running off and screaming. Flynn: It was like staring at the sun, I think i'm still a little scarred from it. Anders: ::making a funny face:: I am too, I have never seen four butt cheeks on anything before. Flynn: ::Chuckling:: Reminds me of the time I took Illona tandem skydiving and we landed in the middle of a nudist colony populated by some Yridian crew. She still can’t look a Yridian in the eye… Anders: That is funny. ::Smiling:: Flynn: ::He paused, suddenly considering:: How did you know I was here anyway? My arrivals don't exactly make the news... Anders: Oh, well I was in Flight Control in Ops and saw your name in the runabout crew and you had a two hour wait, so I thought I would fix that. ::Grinning:: I bumped two Captains for you. Flynn: Good to see you still have my back. ::grinning:: I guess it’s safe to say I have connections in the fleet. Anders: You want to go get a drink, or are you in a hurry to go find this man of yours? ::Antero felt butterflies at the mention of the conversation he had come here for. A couple drinks sounded like the perfect remedy.:: Flynn: Definitely a drink. If i’m not pulling you away from anything…? Anders: Not at all, we are on leave I was just lending a hand up on ops. Flynn: ::Smiling:: Great. So where do all the cool kids go to put their feet up around here? Anders: Well the Promenade has a place I like called Cabo Breeze Flynn: Yeah? Is it any good? Anders: I is a lot like the old Mole Hole back home, very beach resort like but not too overdone. Flynn: Sounds right up our alley! Anders: ::Pressing a button on the lift.:: Promenade Beach section. Flynn: ::Smirking:: The important question, is are they as tolerant of spontaneous tabletop musical numbers? Anders: ::Blushing a little:: Hey I am part of the Command Staff here, I am not so sure I could get away with that here. ::Laughing:: Well maybe after a few Rums I might be talked into doing a musical number. ::Cutting Antero and silly look.:: Flynn: Sounds like we're going to be drinking some rum. ::He winked with a wicked grin:: Assuming they are any good. ::The Turbolift dropped into the clear tube part of the Promenade, you can all five cities and all there highrises. The bay in the middle of them all with branches of water that flow out between the cities with bridges over them. The bay was full of sailboats coming and going. The lift hit the water line and the two went under the water line to the subway like station below the Promenade and the lifts moved and adjusted and came back up and opened up at the beach.:: ((Promenade, Beach Area Cabo Breeze)) http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php/Cabo_Breeze Anders: ::Pointing:: Cabo Breeze, they have some Rum Punches that are awesome. ::The pilot looked the place over and nodded his approval.:: Flynn: Looks like they did a good job of capturing a nice beach vibe. ::The two started to walk to the bar it was like a Bamboo Hut, with a palm leaf roof. That sat on the edge of the beach and a deck that hung over the water. The two walked up and Baylen sat down some the bags he was carrying on the floor next one of the outside tables. He walked up to bar and picked up two drinks that are in coconut shells with little umbrellas hanging out of them and tons a fresh fruit and walked back and handed one to Antero and took a seat.:: Anders: One of my favorite places off duty, I come here often. ::Smiling:: So tell me about their person you are here to see? Flynn: ::Taking his drink gratefully.:: An officer I met on Columbia. Really a sweetheart, and his hair had magical powers of always looking awesome. Couldnt resist! ::He paused in reflection:: I admit, it’s the first time I ever really connected with someone at that level. Anders: Oh really, I just can't see you chasing after someone. ::Smiling:: What a change, I guess we all do finally grow up, even if we don't want to. ::Baylen took a large drink of his Rum and Fruit juice and smiles:: oO That is cool, Theo was on the Columbia, I wonder he knows him. Oo Flynn: Grow up? ::He took a big drink from his Coconut shell.:: Lets not get hasty. Anders: Ok so not growing up then, but being more open to more than oneself maybe? ::Grinning:: Perfect hair huh? ::Baylen ran his hands through his hair and frowned:: I wish I could say that about mine. ::Laughing.:: Flynn: Hey you do alright, but like me you actually have to put work into maintaining a nice mane. ::He smiled:: So tell me something about this fellow that caught your eye. Anders: Well, I first meet him on the Bridge of the Albion, it was odd because he was glowing, he was so warm and radiated a white light then I noticed he was just standing in front of a light beam on the bridge, but he was so beautiful he almost took my breath away. On top of that he saved my life. He jumped on top of me in the torpedo room and knocked me to the ground and laid on top of me as a plasma fire raged over head. And you remember be telling you my fantasy about something along those those lines. ::Baylen leaned back and took another drink almost lost in the memory.:: So you know me, I flirted while he lay on top of me with the fire over head. ::Smiling:: Flynn: ::Leaning forward, looking amazed:: Wow, sounds like quite a catch. If only we could combine these two gentlemen we might have one hell of a specimen. ::He smiled:: Though I have a feeling you would agree that our own respective individuals are perfect just as they are. ::Baylen smiled and nodded at the Bar Tender and help up his hand with two fingers up. A few seconds later a female in a grass skirt walked over and placed two large drinks on the table and nodded and left.:: Anders: I would say that would be about right. ::Grinning:: Early this morning he saved my little pug from being cooked. ::Smiling:: I would have died if I lost Baxter. ::Taking a big sip.:: How are your Parents doing? I was thinking about Hewitt the other day he was always so much nicer than my dad? Flynn: ::Adopting a look of puzzled amusement:: Don’t they always say that saving a pug is the key to true love? ::He shrugged with a small smile and looked away evasively, not sure he was ready darken their enjoyable reunion.:: They are okay I guess... Anders: ::Baylen could pick up the fact that Antero did not want to talk about family at this moment. Risians has a small amount of Empathic abilities but it was much stronger Risian to Risian.:: Did you say you are on the Apollo? A friend of mine the this Ship's X.O., Alex and I go way back. I went the Academy with her Commanding Officer Kali for that matter. ::He hoped that was a good change of subject.:: Flynn: ::Brightening.:: Oh yeah? I guess I’m more connected than I thought! ::He grinned:: I’ll be sure to do some name dropping as soon as the opportunity presents itself. Anders: I hope it does not land you in the brig. ::Grinning, he picked up the two empty coconut shells and held them up to chest and did a little dance in his chair, with a stupid look on his face as he could feel the rum in his body.:: I have no idea why I just did that. Flynn: ::Laughing:: Oh man, it’s just like old times. It really is great to see you. Thanks for this. Anders: Anytime you are in this area feel free and drop in we can do sleepovers and PJ parties like when we were kids ::Grinning:: Flynn: Count on it. I won’t bother arranging quarters. :: He smirked:: We can even get up early and watch cartoons in our underwear again. Anders: Oh my that is really going back. The “Risian Dress Whites.” : : But sounds awesome… As long as we don't have to eat those nasty eggs with green sauce on them. ::Making a funny face.:: Hey!!! I got an invite from the Station Commander for a big function tonight in the Command Holodeck, we are doing winter sports and such with dinner and award. I would love it if you can come? I can introduce you to guy I have been talking about. Flynn: I do have some paperwork to file over this vessel reassignment. ::He paused and then smiled:: But what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t stop in at least to say hello. Anders: That would be most awesome. ::Baylen looked up at the artificial sun light beaming down on him and Antero.:: To bad we don't have our swim trunks, we could go Surfing. They have some awesome waves that break beautiful out there. There is also some great caves and reefs down there I love to explore while Scuba Diving. Flynn: Oh man, it’s been too long since I had even a taste of ocean. ::He looked at his childhood friend with resolution:: Next time i’m on the base, nothing stops this from happening. Anders: Agreed, we can make a full weekend of it, I can use a friend of mines sailboat and we can camp on the boat all weekend, take tanks out with us and catch our food, there are lots of lobsters out there with our name all over them. Then grill them and drink on the deck of the boat. This time I will sail it though. Last time I went sailing with you we were off the coast of Suraya Bay in the Gaxlin divide on my dad's boat and you wanted to see how fast the boat would go, Next thing I remember was the stren coming up and the bow going down and the Gaxlin ocean hitting my face as we flipped four times. ::Smiling:: And we had to swim back home, a five hour swim I might add. ::Baylen stood up and walked over to the bar and handed the bartender his Federation Credit Disk. He waited to make sure it was all good and then walked back over to Antero and tossed him a t-shirt.:: Anders: I got you a shirt to remember the day. ::Smiling and tossing it to Antero.:: I guess I will let you go get your paperwork done. But I look forward to seeing you in a few hours at holodeck 4. ::Baylen walked away quickly before he got sucked into having another drink and showing up to the awards dinner drunk. But as he walked from the bar he was very happy at seeing his oldest friend, and being able to catch up a little with him.:: Anders: oO It will be fun getting to introduce him to Theo tonight. So long as Antero does not try and put the moves on him with those cunning way of his. How many dates have I lost to Antero now, too many to count. Oo ::Smiling ::Baylen smiled and walked to the Turbolift and made his way back to Ops. He walked out and nodded at a few people and then made his way into his office and laid down on the sofa to let the Rum settle for a moment. Before he had to get ready for the Awards Dinner.:: * To Be Continued............ */Wishing you Fair Winds and following Seas.../* *Lt. Commander Baylen M. Anders* Mission Specialist Fleet Operations 118th Fleet *Star Base 118* http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php/Anders,_Baylen ID: R238606GH0 */~The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.~/* AND * **Lt. JG Antero Flynn* Helm Officer USS Apollo - A C239205AF0
  17. (( Kaitlyn Falcon's Quarters; Starbase 118 )) ::It was quiet. Far too quiet.:: ::After a wonderful night spent with Leo, the in-depth conversation began. He gave her his updates; what had happened, what he had learned, what he had done for his sister and his friends.:: ::He also told her what had to happen next... He would be leaving the station, turning over command to Sal, and he had no idea when he would be back.:: ::Kaitlyn's next question was the obvious one; "When do we leave?":: ::That was when the other shoe dropped. Leo needed Kaitlyn to remain there. Kaitlyn had immediately prepared for a lengthy verbal battle... though it seemed Leo knew exactly how to diffuse the situation. He had need of Kaitlyn's skills, but this time her most important contribution would be off of the battlefield. He would need a reliable source of supplies, something he knew she could provide.:: ::It was a blow, to be sure, but it was also something Kaitlyn could not argue against. If Leo needed her providing support from where she was, then she would provide him the best support she could.:: ::Leo had not remained much longer. Their farewells were not exactly happy, but they were hopeful at the very least.:: ::And then... silence. Her quarters seemed far more silent than they had before, even though it was still just her and Rhino.:: ::She needed to move. Needed to do... something...:: ::Then she remembered her mental note, to fire up the old sparring program and work out her stresses. A quick check with the computer found a free holodeck. She booked a reservation immediately.:: (( Holodeck 47; Starbase 118 )) ::The holodeck doors parted, admitting the civilian dressed officer onto the gold-grid-on-black room.:: Falcon: Computer, activate program Kaitlyn Spar 1, with gear. Computer: Acknowledged. ::The room around Kaitlyn shimmered, floor replaced with a hard white surface as the room faded into darkness all around her. A spotlight illuminated the center of the room, a black ring marking the floor. A similar light remained over her head, showing a table and chair form nearby. Atop the table were a line of bottles of chilled water and a duplicate of her weighted staff.:: ::She had first used a staff in combat many years ago, before she had joined Starfleet. She had been taken hostage by the Orion Syndicate, long story, and after breaking loose grabbed the closest thing she could use as an improvised weapon; a metal rod with large hexagonal nut at either end. While she was able to recover her twin phase pistols, her initial escape had been thanks to that rod.:: ::Once she returned to civilization, she got her hands on a better constructed staff and learned how to use it. While she had not yet been able to use her knowledge in the field, it did give her an excellent form of stress relief.:: ::Kaitlyn grabbed the staff, hefting it slightly to remind her arm of the weight.:: Falcon: Computer, reduce ambient temperature to 18.3 degrees Celsius. Computer: Working. ::The room started to chill as she removed her jacket and flung it over a chair. She liked working out in the cold; it meant she was unlikely to overheat, and the added pain of impact (while maintaining safeties, of course) gave her ample reason to avoid hits.:: ::Kaitlyn moved to the center of the circle, holding her staff in a two-handed ready stance. She did a short warm-up, making multiple practice swings of the staff with steadily increasing speed and sweep.:: ::Once she felt adequately stretched, she dropped back into her ready stance.:: Falcon: Computer, begin round one. ::The computer gave its acknowledging beep as Kaitlyn listened to the shuffles beyond the light, waiting for the first opponent to appear.:: ::Points of light manifested; eyes in the darkness. Two figures entered the light, both Orions in patched leather jackets and tan pants. Each had the symbol of the Orion Syndicate at his shoulder. One cracked his knuckles, the other his neck, and both charged.:: ::Kaitlyn stepped forward, thrusting the end of her staff into one Orion's chest to stop him before spinning the staff around to bring the other end's weight into his head. The blow dazed him, leaving him open for a follow-up side swing to the side of his head, knocking him down as he vanished from the program. She immediately reversed, ducking down as she brought the staff around and into the side of the second Orion's head twice. The second opponent vanished as well.:: ::Kaitlyn had encountered the Orion Syndicate many times over the years, or rather FAR TOO MANY times. The amount of harm they caused, the amount of destruction she had witnessed over the years... No minced words; she hated them. Time might have given her some distance from it, but it would never truly be gone.:: ::While at the Academy, she had asked one of her more holographically capable friends to make this sparring program for her. While training dummies were okay, sometimes Kaitlyn wanted to fight something that could fight back. Besides, it always provided excellent stress relief.:: Falcon: Computer, begin round two. ::As Kaitlyn got back into position, four new opponents emerged from the shadows. They remained in two pairs, moving around the ring to attack from two directions. Kaitlyn turned in place, keeping the assailants to her left and right.:: ::The quartet charged her, Kaitlyn snapping her staff up and around to knock each pair into each other. They staggered, three of them momentarily collapsing while the fourth managed to keep his feet.:: ::That simply meant he was the first to fall, as Kaitlyn swiftly brought her staff around for another decisive strike.:: ::The remaining trio regained their feet, though did little to coordinate their attack. Kaitlyn dodged the clumsy grasp of the closest Orion, snapping her staff behind her to crack against the back of his head. Reversing her swing, she swept the second's feet out from under him, chaining her movement to slam the other weight down against the Orion's chest. Both vanished from the program as the final Orion approached. Kaitlyn made another two-hit combination; a straight strike to the Orion's chest followed by a comical upswing between the Orion's legs.:: ::The look on the Orion's face was priceless. Kaitlyn couldn't help but smirk as he fell over sideways and vanished.:: ::Kaitlyn took a moment to breathe, using her staff as support. Typically, she would make the next round one-on-one, going up against an opponent armed with a staff of his own and getting more movement into the mix. However... Kaitlyn found she really did not feel like continuing.:: Computer: Standing by for round three. Falcon: I know... ::Sighs.:: I know... ::The escape was always nice, and as expected she had burned through the residual stress of the last mission.:: ::Yet, all it had done was remind her of the terrible new truth... She was separated from Leo once again. She had spent a couple years and several postings away from him before, and the prospect of repeating that did not sit well with her.:: ::It was necessary, sure, but that did not make it any better.:: ::Kaitlyn walked back over to the table, setting down the duplicate staff and picking up her jacket from the chair. That day, there would be no round three.:: Falcon: Computer, end program. ::The room shimmered, quickly replaced with the same gold-grid-on-black she had seen on entry. Her escape would have to come from elsewhere.:: =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Lt Commander Kaitlyn Falcon Chief Helm Officer Starbase 118 / U.S.S. Albion F237507RF0 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
  18. (( USS Constitution - Daycare / School )) :: The time had finally came for school to be over. Not that there was much in the way of schooling after the ship jostled everyone like a martini. The adults were solome, milling around constantly asking if they were alright. Worry etched in their features as they offered comforting words and coo’s. :: :: The children, on the other hand, were wound up tighter than a fresh ball of string and bounced around like a spring that had been sent down a flight of steps. Even though they had gotten their fill of bumps and bruises, and the classrooms looked like a massacre of school supplies, energy seemed never ending. In fact it might have grown with the new experience and once the shock wore off. :: :: Tabitha was one of those children, giggling and creating mayhem in her own little way. But the fun she was having with the other children, as the day came to an end, and one by one the others left. She had kept up her bright and cheerful smile until the last student left, leaving her alone with a few teachers still trying to pick up the pieces. But the day had been long on them as well. Quietly they moved around, mumbling slightly to one another, with worn expressions and exhausted bodies. :: :: Tabitha needed to see others smile and be cheerful for her own happiness. Her father, Jack, saying it was because she had such a big heart for someone so young. Seeing the dreary faces pulled the corners of her mouth down, hanging her head as she sat quietly at a desk, closest to the door. :: :: Would Akeelah ever come? She wondered, wrapping her little arms around her chest and pouting. She was hungry by this time, and her father always came to pick her up with a snack to tide her over till dinner. But it wouldn’t be him picking her up, he was too busy. Despite understanding, as much as a 5 year old could, it still hurt. :: :: But at long last, the doors opened and in walked Akeelah. Tabitha jumped up with such glee, a spring under her butt that made her nearly fly towards the woman, and arms thrown out wide that worked quickly to wrap themselves around Akeelah’s legs. Both in happy embrace and to make sure she couldn’t pull away easily from Tabitha. She rested her head on Akeelah’s upper thigh and looked up to her with large eyes and smile. :: Tabitha: You’re here! :: She said as if it had been years since she last saw the woman. :: :: Akeelah had felt guilty for leaving work while they still were in this situation, caught in the past, but at this point there was no direct threat towards ship or crew. There were no alien ships around, no weapons from the planet that could hit them, no criminals who could beam up and enter the ship, so after a short discussion with a colleague, she had been convinced it to be safe enough to go off duty after her shift had ended. Of course under the premise to be called in case she was needed. So Akeelah had made her way directly to the Daycare Center, knowing that Tabitha would already be waiting for her. When she entered she did not have to look around to find the girl, as she had jumped up and run right into her so fast she was merely a blur in Akeelah’s vision. :: D’Sena: Of course I am. Have you thought I go back on my promise? Tabitha: :: Pause. :: Well no, but school let out almost 15 minutes ago! :: It was just so inconceivable to Tabitha. Time, that is. :: D’Sena: I did mention it would take a bit longer than when school is out. ::She reminded the girl and looked down to her, the way she wrapped herself around her legs, as if she wanted to make sure that Akeelah didn’t leave. She could feel that so clear from the girl. :: I won’t be able to walk like that. :: Reluctantly, Tabitha released the trapped legs, with a frown. A spark flared along with another way to ensure her company, quickly snatching up Akeelah’s fingertips and holding them tightly. :: Tabitha: Are you ready? D’Sena: I indeed am. ::She looked at the wrapped up finger. At least Tabby wouldn’t get lost like this. As she raised her eyes she saw that the teacher was looking over, he smiled and nodded to her instead of trying to get her out again, so she assumed Jack had informed him just as he had promised.:: Let us go, Tabitha. :: She turned and headed to the door, careful not to go too fast for the short legs of the girl. :: :: Tabby nodded, her rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes gave away all the excitement she kept bottled up. She glanced around and waved at her teacher ‘goodbye’ before stepping out into the corridor. The lights seemed dimmer than in the classrooms and the air more chilled. :: D’Sena: Are you hungry? Tabitha: :: Perking up even more.:: Yes! Are you? D’Sena: I have not had dinner yet, we can eat together in my quarters. Do you need something from home first for your stay? Tabitha: Um… :: She tapped her free hand on her chin. :: Yes. :: Shhe looked up at Akeelah. :: I need clothes… Toothbrush… *My* b* blankie and… D’Sena: You can have a toothbrush from me. Tabitha: But I can’t sleep without my blankie :: Akeehal was not sure if that was true. A blanket was only an object and objects did not influence how someone would sleep, right? Either way this seemed to be important for Tabby, and it was cold thanks to the reduced life support activity, even in the living quarters. So she nodded.:: D’Sena: Then we will get your blankie. :: Tabby picked up a slight skip in her walk as she and Akeelah stepped into the nearest turbolift. She stepped off to one side, still clinging to the woman’s fingers. Her tummy rumbled and she patted it, looking down then back up too Akeelah.:: Tabitha: What will we have for a snack? D’Sena: I thought we could have something from my home planet. Tabitha: Really? :: She perked up.:: that sounds most yummy. Does the computer make it taste good? :: With the energy level so low they had to bring down life support, replicating was out of the question. Which was good, Akeelah did not like replicated as much anyway. It wasn’t supposed to taste any different, and pretty sure it was all in her head that it still did. :: D’Sena: I will cook. If you like and promise to be careful you can help me. Tabitha: I promise! :: Her voice raised an octave or two.:: :: Akeelah nodded and with the girl at her finger she stepped into the lift to get whatever Tabitha would be needing for the night. :: (( Quarters D’Sena )) :: After the quick trip to the Gards’ quarters Akeelah and Tabitha arrived at the Rodulan’s quarters. They were smaller than the family quarters but quite adequate and pleasant in size for her. There were not many personal things around. It looked like standard quarters, with a couple of books, two pictures and a few small basotile statues. :: :: Tabby smiled in wonder as she glanced around the living quarters. It was just perfect. So clean and neat, everything seemed to have its place. Tabby tried to keep her smile from growing. No wonder her papa liked Akeelah. They were both neat people... Unlike she, herself who preferred things laid out. It made it easy to get or find things. Though her papa would just smile and shake his head at her reasoning.:: D’Sena: You can put your things over there. ::She pointed to an empty spot next to the door.:: Tabitha: O-Tay! :: Tabby nodded, with blanket and dolls in tow, turning to see where she was directed to leave her things. She laid the blanket down first, then her dolls on top. With a smile and a firm nod she turned back to Akeelah, who had already made her way to the kitchen.:: :: Since they both were hungry, or to quote Tabby ‘starving’, Akeelah headed to the kitchen corner and retrieved the tools and checked on which ingredients she had, while she allowed Tabby to take a look around the quarters. She did not have all she needed right now, but she’d adjust and improvise a little. It would still be like home, but with her own spin.:: D’Sena: I hope you like vegetables. Tabitha: I love veggies! :: Tabby clapped her hands together in joy and giddiness. She walked towards where Akeelah stood, stopped for a second and began dragging a chair over to the counter top. :: Tabitha: And fruits. :: Tabby pulled the chair as close as she could to the counter top, sticking her tongue out in concentration. She slide her flats off, using the chair to keep her stable.:: Tabitha: Tomatoes I like mosted. :: She smiled as she stood up on the chair.:: :: Akeelah had noticed, that the girl was pulling a chair closer and she let her. In this cold the ship was in - and unfortunately her quarters as well - she preferred to be near a heat source, which the small stove could provide. It had an internal power source, so she wouldn’t strain the ship’s resources. :: D'Sena: Do you now? Good, because we will have … veggies. Tabitha: What kind of veg-i-ta-bles are these? D'Sena: These are vegetables from my home planet, Rodul. And these here… ::She raised a small cone shaped piece in a nightblue shimmering shade.:: … are the closest that we have to tomatoes. Tabitha: I love to-ma-toes! :: Akeelah smiled slightly and extended her hand to the girl, so she could take it. :: :: Tabby took the tomatoes similar food and popped it into her mouth gladly. She smiled and she chewed, very much pleased with the flavor. It was slightly different. But to her it was just a different type of tomato.:: D’Sena: And? Tabitha: Yummy! :: She threw her hands up.:: Are they real? D’Sena: Yes, they are fresh. I am not very fond of replicators. I receive fresh ingredients during shore leaves or with the help of the botanist. Tabitha: Someone grows these? On the ship? :: It was awe in Tabby's eyes. She had never stopped to consider someone might actually grow real food on a star ship. She was always tickled to learn knew things.:: D’Sena: She grows fresh vegetables as per request, if she has room for it. Tabitha: ::Giggled.:: that is am-a-zing! ::Paused.:: What can I do? :: She looked down at the counter top.:: :: Akeelah made sure to be between Tabby and the stove, so the girl could not burn herself and wondered how she could help. :: D’Sena: Have you cut vegetables before? Tabitha: Yes! :: She clapped her hands together.:: D'Sena: Good then you know, that you need to pay close attention to the blade, so you won’t cut yourself. Keep your fingers away from the sharp edge and cut on a steady surface, like this here. ::She patted the counter:: :: Tabby bit down on her bottom lip in concentration. Listening closely to Akeelah. Her papa often reminded her of safety first.:: Tabitha: What is this? :: Tabby held up a soft green veggie that was long and narrow. It resembled a green bean but with blueish spots all over it. :: D'Sena: This is called a Taruk. It is slightly bitter, but when you bite on the blue spots, it becomes sweet. Tabitha: Can I cut it? D'Sena: ::Thinking about that for a moment she finally nodded.:: Alright. You cut them once along the long side so you have two halves and then once in the middle of the short side to make it 4 pieces. Got it? Tabitha: Okay! I can do that. :: She giggled.:: :: Akeelah smiled and for a moment she watched Tabby. Not only to make sure that she didn’t hurt herself but also because the enthusiasm about helping during cooking preparation reminded her so much about herself and her little sister. Before she could dive too far into the memories she pulled a piece of poultry from the cooling unit and cut it into small pieces. She then mixed spices and herbs with some oil and began to pour the mix over the meat, digging with her hands into the bowl to cover the pieces evenly. :: :: Tabby’s little tongue stuck out of her mouth and her eyes fixated on cutting the veggie. Her determination to cut everything as exactly as she could caused her to be slow. Down the middle and then again. One down! Tabby set the four pieces aside, lining them up side by side. The lengths were close but not exact and Tabby frowned. Grabbing a second one, she focused even harder but much to her dismay they two were uneven, and longer than the first one she cut. She looked to Akeelah.:: Tabitha: Am I do-ing o-kay? D’Sena: You are doing very well. I still have some dough left from last time, so I will be doing some pasta for us and we are going to put everything together with a lovely sauce. :: Tabby beamed, despite the uneven cuts she was still doing good. She thought for minute about what they might be making. Something with pasta? She frowned slightly, thinking. :: Tabitha: Pasta? That is not from your home, right? :: It was half statement and half question. :: D’Sena: ::smiling:: .oO Smart kid Oo. No, pasta is not from Rodul, but I do not have the ingredients for original Rodulan noodles, so these will have to do. Tabitha: :: Smiling.:: O-tay! D’Sena: When you are done with these, you can set the table. This won’t take long. :: Tabby reached for the sixth veggie and continued to cut length ways and then width ways. She nodded pleasantly. Oh how she very much enjoyed having helpful things to do. It made her feel like she was useful and right in the middle of things. :: Tabitha: I can do that… ::Paused.:: Just for two? :: There was slight hope in the undertones of her voice, hope that the answer would be three.:: :: The hope didn’t get past Akeelah and she could understand the girl. Of course she hoped her father would be here. But with the state the ship was in, that wasn’t likely. :: D’Sena: Yes, two. :: Tabby set down the knife delicately, on the opposite side from her, and hopped down off her chair. She snatched a Taruk that was uncut and bit into it as she followed where Akeelah pointed for the dishes. The veggie was indeed bitter and yet almost bland until the sweet stepped in, making the veggie taste more like a sweet pea. She smiled. She retrieved two of everything. Two plates, bowls, cups, knives, little forks and big, little spoons and big, tea cups and tea plates and carried them out to the table two by two. :: :: Akeelah showed her where to find the cutlery and dishes, before returning to the pasta. That went rather quick as she tore small pieces off the dough and as she was done with enough of that, she poured them in boiling water. While that cooked she began to stir-fry the meat and the scent of spices and oil combined with the meat began to fill the whole room. The vegetables were steaming in another pot and the Rodulan was pleased when everything came together and finished at the same time. Quickly she gave everything into a big bowl and from the juices she made a quick sauce with some lovely cream and put that into another vessel. Carefully she brought both into the dining part of the quarters, noticing that Tabby had set the table nicely and was now looking around a bit. :: :: Tabby filled the table with dishes, much like what she does with her dolls’ tea parties. It was fancy like to her. But with the table set, she took the chance to look around the room. :: D’Sena: Dinner is ready. Tabitha: Are you married? :: She turned asking innocently enough. :: :: Akeelah’s eyebrow raised slightly at the question, taken off guard by it. Her people didn’t marry, they did not believe in the artificial binding together of people. They followed the natural flow, things began, things ended, it was not assumed that relationships held forever, especially not with their prolonged lifespan. :: D’Sena: No, I am not. Why do you ask? Tabitha: :: Shrugged.:: Well, :: She spoke walking back to the table. :: Some of the ol-der kids talked a-bout people with lots of love-rs. D’Sena: Ah, but not all lovers get married. ::Just as she said that, she wondered if that might be a wrong subject for a chat with a child.:: Tabitha: :: Thoughtfully.:: Papa says that people that love, get marr-ied. D’Sena: You father is correct. On Earth or in other cultures many people who love each other get married. But not everyone does. Come on sit down. :: Tabby sat down at the table and smiled. The food smelled very good and she was excited to try something new, even though some of it was familiar. She watched intently as Akeelah served the food. :: :: The Rodulan began to fill the plates with the pasta, covering it with the sauce and topping it with a piece of meat. As she put the tool down again she looked over the table and then realized something was missing.:: D’Sena: What would you like to drink? Tabitha: Milk please! :: Tabby sat quietly waiting for Akeelah before tasting the food. She nodded her thanks when the woman placed a glass of milk in front of her. After Akeelah sat down Tabby asked something. She was sure she knew the answer but truly wished to know for sure. :: Tabitha: Do you love Papa? :: Akeelah had just sat down and was in the progress of taking a sip from her glass when Tabby asked her question. The water got stuck in her throat as her heart skipped a beat, just like in those moments when you thought someone caught you in the act of doing something naughty. She coughed and patted her hand on her chest. :: D’Sena: What? ::some more coughing:: Tabitha: :: Giggled. :: Do. You. Love… Papa?!? :: Tabby giggled as she dove into the food. It was very yummy! Tabby enjoyed working with Akeelah to make the food. It would make sense that she would be able to do so if Akeelah and Papa lived together. It was an exciting thought!. :: D’Sena: How do you get that idea? .oO You are evading the answer Oo. :: Tabby covered her mouth as she giggled, curling up into half a ball. Why wouldn’t she think that? Her innocent view of love, she loved Papa and Akeelah and she knew Papa loved her. So, to Tabby, it just seemed to complete the circle. :: Tabitha: :: Bit her lower lip. Shrugged.:: Be-cause, you spend time to-geth-er and seem happy. You smile when you are with us. So? Do you? :: Akeelah stared at the young girl. What was she supposed to say? Love? Did she? No that couldn’t be, they didn’t know each other well enough for that. She believed that love developed over time the more people got to know each other. But granted, she had spent quite some time with Jack and Tabitha. Her cheeks began to warm up, still trying to give an answer, realising that she tried to answer with her head, with logic and rules, instead of her heart. :: D’Sena: I… I ddon’t know, Tabitha. I… .oO You coward. - I’m not a coward I just don’t know. - You keep telling yourself that. Oo. ... like him. Very much. But love takes time. Tabitha: Nuh uh! :: She lightly protested.:: The stories Papa tells, says love is like a shooting star. Happens all the time and all in a blink of an eye. D’Sena: ::tilting her head:: That easy, huh? Tabitha: Yes! :: she threw her arms up. Her face dropped.:: Does that mean… D’Sena: ::She sensed the vulnerability of the little girl, a glimpse of fear and she softened her voice. :: Mean what? Tabitha: Well… :: She tapped her toes together and looked at the flloor.:: I-I love you. Does that mean you do-not love me? :: Akeelah stared at the young girl, who had looked behind her exterior from the first moment they had met. She had looked past the rules, the stern face, the fully black eyes others found so creepy, and had given her unconditional love. And here she said afraid that Akeelah didn’t love her back. :: :: It wasn’t that Akeelah didn’t. But it was true that she held back. The last time she had loved, really really loved someone had been such a long time ago... :: (( Flashback )) :: It was one of those nights, when the starry sky was lit brightly, twinkling and whispering promises of far-away worlds. Akeelah loved sitting on the small hill behind the house and look up, dream of what would be out there. Not many of her people left Rodul, but she kept thinking about it. Not only because of the beauty of it, but to help fight back against those who had tortured her people. But tonight was not the time to think of that. Tonight she was not alone here. :: Jenia: Do you think we can travel the stars, Keelah? :: With a smile she wrapped her arm around her little sister’s shoulder and pulled her closer. Jenia was almost 10, Akeelah almost 25, mere children compared to their lifespan. :: Akeelah: Of course. We can do anything we want. Jenia: ::grinning:: Anything? Even grow wings and fly? Akeelah: ::laughing:: If you work hard on figuring out how to do that, I’m sure you will. :: The little girl wrapped her arms around her sister’s waist and squeezed her tightly. :: Jenia: I love you Keelah. Akeelah: ::She tilt her head and placed a kiss on the curly dark hair:: I love you too, Nia. (( /Flashback )) :: Tabby took notice of the sudden quietness of the room. She had the feeling that it was her fault. Pushing the chair back from the table and shoveling one more, big bite into her mouth, Tabby walked over to Akeelah and pushed her way onto the woman’s lap. Different cultures, her Papa had taught her where different, plain and simple. Some ways they were similar, but you should never pressure another into agreement with your own ways. :: Tabitha: I sorry… :: She wwrapped her arms around Akeelah’s neck.:: I am.. :: She thought of a good neutral word.:: happy we are friends. D’Sena: ::Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around the little girl and kissed the side of her head, right on top of the dark hair as she whispered.:: Me too, sweetie. Tabitha: So! :; Her enthusiasm returned.:: What are we going to do after dinner? D’Sena: :: Akeelah was not sure if she could keep up with the sudden changes Tabby went through, but she tried.:: What do you want to do? Tabitha: Could we build a fort! D’Sena: A fort? Tabitha: Oh please! :: She clapped her hands together.:: We can build it and play with dolls and tell stories.. :: She inhaled sharply. :: D’Sena: Mhmmm, and then? Tabitha: We could sleep in it! :: Tabby jumped down and bounced on her toes in front of Akeelah, her hands folded in front of her. A wide smile upon her face and the conversation from second ago long gone. :: :: Seeing the girl so excited, feeling the dark thoughts that had been hanging around in her head vanish in smoke pleased her. She didn’t want her to doubt and feel this pain at such a young age. How could she not give in when Tabby was reacting to the mere thought of this fort. :: D’Sena: Well then, a fort it is. But now eat up. Tabitha: Oh-Kay. :: Tabby went back to her own chair and gladly became eating again.:: :: After they had devoured their dinner, and just in case left something for Jack - because who knew he might be hungry after all the work he had to do - Akeelah and Tabby began to collect blankets, pillows and other materials they could turn into their magical fort. They had taken apart the bed and half the couch, pushed together the single seaters and this fort was slowly turning into a castle. Both of them stood in front of it, Akeelah had her hands on her hips. :: D’Sena: What do you think? :: Tabby smiled, folding her hand up to her mouth as her dazzling gaze and vivid imagine nation took over. It was an enormous castle, with tall towers to see across the land. A towering door that opened up at the end of a bridge. The bridge went across a moat that surrounded the castle to keep the princess and queen safe. It was one of the biggest castle Tabby had ever built. :: Tabitha: I love it! :: Paused. She spoke seriously:: We should name it. D’Sena: Good idea, would you do the honors? :: Tabby nodded and thought. What would be a good name? She usually just called her castles, Castle Gard. But with Akeelah she wanted it to be something else, something special. Castle… Girl power. oO No Oo Casstle… She smiled :: Tabitha: I dub thee, :: She tapped the entrance of the “castle.”:: Castle Friend-ship :: She turned and smiled at Akeelah. :: D’Sena: ::clapping into her hands:: A lovely name. All that is missing now, is getting into our pajamas. Tabitha: Oh tay! :: Tabby ran over to grab all of her things. Her dolls, blanket, jammies and cloths for tomorrow, and her tooth brush. She pushed her dolls under the canopy they were using for the roof of the castle and held up her onesie pick princess jammies. :: Tabitha: Do you have jammies like these? D’Sena: Not like these, but they are still pretty. Tabitha: :: She giggled.:: Where should I change? D’Sena: ::She had not thought about that and considered the options for a moment.:: Come with me. :: She went with the girl to the bathroom, she’d have the chance to wash and change in privacy here. :: D’Sena: You can prepare here. I’ll be in my bedroom. :: Tabby followed Akeelah into the washroom, setting her toothbrush on the sink’s edge. She nodded to her and once alone changed quickly. She didn’t want to lose any time playing in the fort they had just built. When she emerged she ran to the castle and crawled in. :: Tabitha: :: Poking her head out.:: Come on Ah-key-la! :: Akeelah was just finishing to change. She did not really have pajamas like Tabitha wore, she preferred nightgowns. But with their castle, she could pretend to be a princess in it. The thought made her giggle, something she hadn’t done in ages. :: D’Sena: I’m coming, I’m coming. ::She called out and left the bedroom in direction of the castle, but before she could crawl in Tabitha seemed to have remembered something. :: Tabitha: Oh wait! D’Sena: What is it? Tabitha: We need pop-corn! :: She threw her hands into the air.:: To eat while telling stories of course. D’Sena: ::blinking:: Of course, your highness. ::She smirked as she turned on her heels. She didn’t have popcorn, so since they had been good in saving energy, she allowed herself to replicate some popcorn for them. With the bowl she finally crawled into the fort which was surprisingly big. She didn’t have to crouch and could sit up straight. :: :: Tabby giggled at being called ‘your highness’. She crawled back under the fort and sat on the far side, leaving plenty of room for Akeelah. She closed her eyes and smelled the buttery scent of popcorn filling the air. :: Tabitha: Yay! :: She threw her hands up.:: :: While building the fort they had also put some light-cubes with their own light source inside, so it was not dark, and the confined space with two bodies would also not be too cold. The walls out of pillows and parts of the bed and sofa were thick enough to block the chill out. That was all she cared about: making sure that Tabby was alright. :: D’Sena: So what kind of stories do you want to tell? Tabitha: Princess ones!. :: Giggle.:: Of course. D’Sena: ::sinking a hand into the popcorn she took a good portion out:: Well then, I would love to hear one of your stories. Will you tell me one? :: Tabby leaned over and took a small handful of popcorn and set it in her lap. She loved listening to stories as much as she loved telling them. Though hers usually came from books filled with old fables. :: Tabitha: Have you ev-r heard the story of re-pun-zle? D’Sena: ::Shaking her head:: No, I have not. ::She did not really know stories. She had heard of princesses of course, but she did not recall the details, having heard them over 50 years ago. But she did not know of Terran princesses. :: Tabitha: :: Clapping her hands.:: It is one of my fav-or-ites. D’Sena: Well then, I can’t wait to hear it. :: Tabby ate a few pieces while she thought. She wanted to tell the best story. It was one she knew well, but something about *how* she was going to tell it was important. Her papa would create such awe with just his voice. It was important that she did well for Akeelah. :: Tabitha: :: In a slower voice.:: Once upon a time. :: Dramatic pause.:: There was a pretty princess. With the prettiest-es of hair. :: She reached over and rub Akeelah’s curly hair. :: Every-one in the world wanted to look at her hair. :: She sat back down.:: Her name was Re-pun-zle. :: She finished excitedly.:: D’Sena: What a lovely name. Tabitha: I am not done yet. D’Sena: Well then, continue with the story of Re… what was it again? Tabitha: :: Giggling.:: Re-pun-zle, ::She continued in her best story teller voice.:: had a mean guard-i-an, who did not want any-one to look at the pretty hair. So she built a biggest-es of towers and locked the poor princess away. For a long time, ::She waved her hands for effect.:: She stayed up there. :: Perking up.:: Untill! :: She paused.:: :: It was adorable how Tabby went deep into the story, changed her voice, gesticulated and mimicked. It was a joy to watch and listen to and Akeelah tried to follow the example, feeling a little silly, but at least she wasn’t alone doing it. She widened her fully black eyes and stared at the girl, holding her breath.:: D’Sena: Until what? :: In Tabby's little mind, and big heart, all of Akeelahs actions only encouraged her more. She beamed, believing she told stories as well as her papa and had the woman enthralled in her skills. Of course it was one of her favorite stories and her own happiness blinded her of anything else around. There were no problems with the ship, no sadness of those not present. Simply pure childish joy.:: Tabitha: A prince a-rrived! D’Sena: Nooooooo, a prince? Tabitha: Oh yes! Had he fell in love at first sight. D’Sena: Oh my, how did he get up into the biggest of towers? Tabitha: Well. :: Dramatic pause.:: He yelled up to re-pun-zle, ::she created a hand mega phone but kept her voice down... Slightly... As well as she could.::, "Re-pun-zle, re-pun-zle! :: Yawn.:: Throw down your long hair!" And she did. He climbed all the way up. D’Sena: ::Forming an O with her mouth she placed a hand in front of it, as if in shock.:: Oh no, did the guardian see him? Tabitha: Oh no, but Re-pun-zle had to cut off her long locks ::yawn.:: so they both could climb down and live happily ever after. :: she smile sleepily.:: :: Tabby had finished her story, all the way up until her eyes were heavy and the yawning never ceased. She laid her head down on Akeelah's legs, pulling her blanket in close. Her eyelids closed in mere seconds and sleep was upon her.:: :: Akeelah had known that she’d fall asleep really soon, once the yawning had started. Now that Tabby’s head rested on her lap, she gently brushed through the girl’s hair, smiling at how sweet and peaceful she looked, still a light smile on her lips from telling her most favourite story. :: Rajel: =/\= Rajel to the Crew. =/\= :: Akeelah winced and placed her hand gently over Tabby’s ear, so she wouldn’t wake. But to her surprise the girl didn’t even stir. :: Rajel: =/\= We will have the night to get everything ready for departure. As soon as we see that things are in order on Earth, I want us to be ready to head home. So everyone help where they can, even if it is not your department. Those don't matter if we are stuck here. Great work on keeping the ship together so far, let's keep it up! Rajel out. =/\= :: A brief red alert sounded but was silenced immediately. Usually that meant that Akeelah would have to leave and get to Security, ready for anything. But tonight her duty consisted of taking care of Tabitha. She wouldn’t leave even for a minute, but she would have to make a few preparations. Carefully she placed Tabby’s head on a pillow and climbed out of the fort. :: :: She grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and placed the paper on the big table, before she thought about what to write as a note for Jack. Her first thought was to write ‘Dear Jack’ but it sounded so intimate and she didn’t even know if he felt anything like that. To simply write ‘Jack’ sounded impersonal. She sighed and shook her head about her thoughts and finally wrote. ‘Leftovers are in the kitchen, enjoy. Akeelah’. Then she told the computer to add Jack to the access list, so he could simply enter, without having to wake them. :: :: A smile danced over her lips as she did that, though the moment she caught it it vanished again. Tabby’s question ghosted her mind, and again she pushed away the answer, a pang of fear crawling up her neck. Pushing the thought away she went back to the fort. It had started to become warmer, so she removed the ‘roof’ of it, otherwise it would have been too stuffy inside. :: :: Carefully she stepped over the pillows and blankets and laid down in the fort, using a cushion under her head and slipped an arm under Tabitha, pulling her a bit closer. Before she knew it the girl cuddled herself into her. Akeelah relaxed, holding the girl carefully in her arm until she drifted into sleep herself. :: ((Timeskip - Outside Akeelah’s Personal Quarters)) :: No one knew the exact time, only that it was late. No one knew how long they had burned the lamps, only that it had been too long. With the return of the engineering chief something, rather than bits here and there, were finally put into motion. A goal and white light blinked in the distance. And finally engineers were sent away to get what little rest they could. :: :: Jack was one of the last to leave. He felt responsible for getting done all that he could, but the lack of food and rest impaired him greatly. So with last call, he left engineering and now stood just outside Akeelah’s room, leaning against the back wall. They had such little time to work out a plan and it gnawed at him. The last thing he wanted to do was wake them. :: :: Rubbing his burning eyes, Jack walked up to the door. He would have jumped if not so tired, when the door opened automatically. A little smile, almost knowing. Of course she would be prepared and think ahead. The room was darker, but the light from the stars made it easy to see around. :: :: His heart warmed at the sight. Two girls, tucked together in the makeshift fort. Popcorn and Tabby’s dolls scattered around. He wasn’t going to move them now, having planned to take Tabby back to their own quarters. He stepped in far enough to let the door close and looked around. With the exception of the current state, Jack was sure the room was kept cleaned and organized. The second thing he noticed was a picture frame, sitting all alone. Instinctively, he wouldn’t have looked. But a bit of curiosity of the woman he was spending a great deal of time with, made him look. It was of two girls, one undoubtedly Akeelah and the other… Looked similar. He moved quietly around the room, stumbling across the handwritten note. :: :: She really did think ahead. It was welcomed to someone who also thought and planned and organized. He had enough troubles with Rustyy to know he could breath and not be as uptight when around her. He grabbed his plate and ate it in a hurry, not realizing just how hungry he was. :: :: Afterwards, he moved back to the girls and the fort. Kneeling down, he kissed Tabby on the forehead. And of course no movement came. She slept like the dead. He moved to Akeelah, bringing his face close to hers. Then pulled back. The last thing he wanted to do was wake her. He moved to the only bit of the couch still left intact and half laid half sat up. Wrapping his arms across his chest and falling asleep quickly to one of the happiest moments he’s had for a long time. :: ---- Tabitha & Lieutenant Jack Gard Child & Engineer Simmed by Lt JG Rustyy Hael Chief Engineer USS Constitution-B A239202RH0 & LtCmdr Akeelah D'Sena Security Officer USS Constitution-B simmed by Captain Jalana Rajel Commanding Officer USS Constitution B Image Team Facilitator A238906JL0
  19. ((Lomorton, Outside the Shepards School of Medicine, Turisan II, Turisan, Delta Quadrant)) :: The mission that had been issued was to survive and adapt to the planet whilst waiting for the Calvary to reach the Darwin and get the repairs underway. Survive and adapt sounded worse than it was in Graeme's eyes it was a chance to live a different life collecting research on this new alien race and experience their way of life. They had been split into groups of houses where groups of 4-5 of the crew were banded together to work and look after one another. In Cooks band of ruffians as he had heard the local lingo. The group consisted of Commander Kael Thomas, Lieutenant (Helmsman) Todd Manius and their guest and Graeme would like to call a very good friend Lyna Namid. He did wonder how the groups were picked was it by the computer at random before it shut down or was it everyone stood in a line in the playground and people picked the players for their team. Where would Cook fare would he be picked first or would he be one of the last to be picked. Regardless of that last thought his away team as he liked to call it had a good characters in it. :: :: Wrapping his scarf tighter around his neck as the air was dry but cold. Snow lay on the ground. Relaxing so his body didn't shiver. Huge black cast iron gates stood in front of Graeme. One of the gates was open and a lot of young males were going in and out of the gates. To the left a huge wooden sign with the words The Shepard's School of Medicine painted on it. One thing Graeme was nervous every about his accent. Hailing from the north of Scotland his accent was different to the what seemed cockney kind of accent. He rolled his "R's" when saying words and certain words were like a tongue twist. Words like purple, burglar and alarm. He took a huge deep breath, exhaled and headed through the gate. :: :: After walking through the school grounds Graeme could picture there being lush gardens under the snow taking in the rather impressive scenery trees were bare, the bushes were bare it truly felt like he was back on earth. Climbing the stairs towards the entrance the huge building was made of Granite each block glistening in the morning sun Entering the building the doors were huge heavy wooden doors high archways lead into an open hall with corridors all around him leading away to possibly lecture halls, classrooms and hopefully a library. Dotted around the hall Graeme spotted tables with gathered people around them. He walks over to one. The commotion was loud. Listening to the debates and discussions it would seem they were people signing up to take certain classes. Just as Graeme was going to move in to check out what there was to sign up to he felt someone tap his shoulder. :: Receptionist: Can I help you? I know the faces of everyone here but I do not know yours. :: Shocked by the comment made by the lady. Graeme gulped hard, his back started to sweat. :: Cook: Erm yes.... I'm a Doctor and looking to enrol on assisting the lecturers. Receptionist: Strange accent, you look like your not from around these parts. You also look rather young to become a lecturer. Hmm Follow me. I will take you to meet Dr Gray. Cook: oO Wow too many questions Oo :: Following the lady down a corridor. They stopped at a large set of wooden stairs these were impressive made from what looked to be oak. The spiralled upwards to an open archway. Once they reached the top. The architecture was beautiful the craftsman that built this building was truly talented. Hand chiselled decorations were carved into the woo walked down the corridor. They stopped at a huge dark stained door. The receptionist knocked and entered the door she was gone for what seemed an age. Then the door opened and Graeme was asked to come in. Sat behind a huge old fashioned large table it was solid looked like it was constructed there as it would have taken a fair few strong men to lift it. :: Gray: Please come in come in. My name is Dr Wilford Gray and I'm the Chief Head Professor at Shepard's school of medicine. My receptionist Miss Dunstan has informed me you are interested in becoming a lecturer. :: As Graeme entered the room Dr Gray raised from his chair. He was an old man bald with a long grey beard. He was a very stout gentleman. The clothes he wore looked freshly tailored. A quick glimpse around there was three huge wooden bookshelves full of big thick hardback books. Graeme wondered who this Dr Gray was. :: Cook: Hello fellow good Sir. My name is Lieu.... Dr Graeme Cook. :: Extending his hand. As they shook hands Graeme noticed Dr Gray gave a look to Miss Dunstan as if to say can you leave I'm sure you have work to be getting on with. Almost dropping his rank a little thought ran through his head maybe he could use the lieutenant if he knew if they had a military system however he shall try and stay away from that. The door slowly clicked closed. Dr Gray extended a hand to sit in a huge armchair. Sitting down Graeme awaited the questions. :: Gray: So your accent my receptionist seems to think you are not from around here? Cook: Miss Dunstan? :: Looking to make sure he got her name correct. :: Yes that it true. I come from.... Gray: Let me guess?? You have the thick northern accent of Rostern. Am I correct? I worked with a Mr McTavish from there. :: Perfect Graeme originally was going to use the state Kanta but at a guess his accent was probably too thick to be from there. With Mr gray describing another doctor that had a Scottish name sounded perfect. :: Cook: Aye you got it in one! :: Smiling trying to mask his lie. :: Well I have traveled a fair bit I'm looking for work as an assistant lecturer. My main profession is surgery from dissecting to amputations. Anything involving a knife and needle and thread. Gray: Really? Well I have class this afternoon I was going to get some of the students to come and do what I ask them to so they are doing the operation whilst I explain the procedure. Maybe if you would like to assist me. I feel my hands can't perform the surgery anymore. But my mind is as sharpe as the knife used in surgery. :: Graeme felt honoured that Dr Gray had offered him the chance to work alongside of him. Luck Graeme has had a lot of experience on using scalpels and other tools rather than all the modern technology that Starfleet had to offer. Going back to basics was going to be a challenge but it was a challenge Graeme couldn't wait for. Miss Dunstan appeared back with two cups of tea and some fancy pieces. Graeme and Dr gray sat and discussed a position that if all goes well with the surgery they will offer him a position at the university. Something seemed strange it was all too easy to get this far. Maybe the true test will be in the theatre with the Dr and the students. :: Lieutenant JG Cook - Medical Officer - USS Darwin NCC-99312-A =/\= D239206GC0
  20. (( Outside Rajel's quarters )) :: Joren Green had been with the SFI for quite a while. He was the type to follow orders, make sure the rules were enforced and do whatever he had to do, to make sure his superior would be able to do his job without distractions. Commander Prendar had been that superior for longer than Joren could remember. He knew what to expect, what was asked of him, what to do. Like a well oiled machine. Especially in his work with Fallah Rahz, who had been his partner for years. They respected each other too much to mess up. :: :: He remembered when they had been with this crew before. It had been on the Apollo-A under command of Lieutenant Commander Akeelah D'Sena, the First Officer under Jaxx, who had been called away. He did not wonder about the fate of D'Sena. He knew that she was still on board. They prepared themselves for every case. Apparently Starfleet had followed the suggestion to not give her command, or D'Sena did not want it any more after their visit. Maybe both. Now this Trill was the CO, and they had to make sure that she didn't feed any suggestions to her crew on what to tell SFI in their interviews, or do do anything stupid. :: :: She was detained, not really under arrest or she'd be in the brig. But visitors were allowed as long as one of them was there to oversee it. One of these visitors was now on the way to those doors. As if Joren was not standing there, the man in teal collar reached out to hit the chime, but Green's hand landed in front of it within a flash. :: Green: Who are you? Nijil: Hmm I’m the ship’s tattoo artist. Green: ::Flat:: Very funny. ::There were three choices were this man came from: Science, Counseling, Medical. Seeing the bag he carried, he stabbed the dark.:: Medical? Nijil: Yes, I’m here to re-Trill our Trill CO. She called me. Green: ::Ah yes, her spots had been missing, and she had worn this ridiculous dress.:: I see. Nijil: Why don’t you just… Open the door? Green: That would not be your decision, Lieutenant. :: He then looked to the door mechanism and entered a code, that opened the door. Turning as he walked inside he did not see her, but knew that Fallah knew where she was. :: Green: Visit for the Commander. Nijil: Thankssss. Someone called for spots? Rajel: Indeed, please come on in. I'd have done it myself, but was missing the equipment. :: Green looked up and saw that the CO had changed into a personal dress, which was more appropriate for the time they were in. Apparently she did not see the need for a uniform. The doctor mumbled something Green couldn't understand, before they spoke in their regular voices again. :: Nijil: I see. Can we do this privately or will we be giving them a show? Rajel: Well *he* will continue to watch the door from the outside. *She* though will remain here. :: Green gave Fallah a quick glance, who smirked slightly and waved him out. With a quick nod he stepped back and the door closed again. His partner had everything under control, so he went back to the outside, making sure nobody just waltzed into the quarters. :: ---- NPC Lieutenant Joren Green Starfleet Intelligence simmed by Captain Jalana Rajel Commanding Officer USS Constitution B Image Team Facilitator A238906JL0
  21. ((USS Constitution-B, Sickbay)) ::After talking to Milsap, Dial had a chat with the head nurse. Sito Meru had been busy with paperwork so far and was happy to have the opportunity to delegate some of her duties but also to have some small talk.:: Sito: Hey Dial. Prophets bless you. I'm buried beneath files. Dial: Tell me about it. I worked through all those reports about 'minor injuries'. Too bad that in the chaos yesterday almost every injury that was not life-threatening was filed as a 'minor injury' cause those reports are shorter. Sito: Oh, so you went through them and corrected them? Dial: As far as it is possible to reconstruct what happened, yes. I don't want to cause too much stress today. We're shorthanded today anyway, plus, all people that were treated provisionally with less than today's standards are coming back today. ::She buried her head in a wall that was covered with a layer of foam.:: Sito: Don't worry. We'll get through this. I've been through worse. Dial: Really? Sito: I joined active service when the Dominion war broke out. So yes. Compared to war times, this is running smoothly. Dial: We should share supper at some point and exchange a few more stories. I had no idea you served during the war. Sito: Of course. Oh, by the way, would you do me a favour? Dial: What is it? Sito: Lieutenant Regn gave me an unfinished report with recommendations to prevent catastrophies like this in the future. Basically it is a collection of notes handed in by nurses and orderlies. Someone needs to make a file of it and give it to Foster, so he cand decide whether to propose some of the propositions to the Captain. Dial: Can't you just talk to him? Sito: Yes, I could. But this way, he can give each proposition the time it deserves. If you don't want to, I'll do it. Dial: Nah, it's fine. I'll get me a coffee and get to it. Sito: You're not doing by any chance one of those magnificant hand-made coffees, are you? DIal: Actually, I do. Sito: Could you make an entire can or better two of it? I mean, there are certainly others than me around who would appreciate that. Dial: Course. Won't take much longer than making a cup. Sito: Thanks. ((Timeskipp)) ::After making two cans of coffee after grinding the replicated coffee beans and cooking them, Dial got herself a cup of it. Then she headed to her workplace and started working on the report Sito had asked her to write. She opened the file suprised to find a mix of audio, video and text filed. She decided to go through them one by one..:: Report: ::Audio.:: More crewmen need to be trained as medics for emergency situations. The nursing stuff was overwhelmed by the flood of patients coming. A department, outfitted to take care of single cases of injury and sickness or small groups, can't heal the entire crew within less than a day. It is a miracle that noone was hurt today. - Crewman Tox Report: ::Audio.:: I'm convinced that more plant- and animal-based treatments, alternative medicine, would have give us more and better options on how to react in general... Also in situations like this. - Petty Officer Harak'oun Report: ::Video.:: When the Constitution's energy ressources were shortened, we didn't just lack medical equipment like scanners that would cost too much precious energy, but also drugs. Our supplies need to be trippled to ensure an emergency stock for a third of the crew. Imagine it had come to a total loss of power. What would have happened then? - Chief Petty Officer Calady Report: ::Text.:: Providing more EMHs would have enabled us not to call everyone to duty, causing less undermanned shifts the following days. Also it would have increased the reaction time of sickbay's emergency teams. - Ensign Ramirez Report: ::Audio.:: In my opinion, we got far too less traditional equipment. We need to store bandages, crutches, etc. for cases when there isn't enough or any energy. Had we had no energy, we would have failed to provide anything. We must make ourselves less dependable on replicators and modern technology. - Lieutenant Argiop ::A few other proposals, most of them paraphrases of the ones she heard before, followed and Dial sighed deeply. This would be a rather long day. But at least it would keep her from thinking about family stuff, about depressing stuff, about stuff in general. So instead of thinking she put herself at work.:: Dial: Computer, initiate an audio record please. ::Only when she spoke the words, she remembered the period when the Apollo's computer had constantly malfunctioned and tried to train her to use "please" and "thank you" and be generally nice to the computer. She had never found out what was wrong with the computer or who did this to her, but she had learned to be polite even to the arficial presence of the computer.:: Computer: Recording audio. Dial: This is Ensign Dial, nursing staff. Stardate 239108.12. This is a report about the medical crisis we went through during the Constitution-B's time travelling mission that lead us to Earth in 191427.06. It is filed after the mission containing a number of proposals to prevent triage situations like the one sickbay went through during this mission. Dial: ::She took a sip of the coffee she made a little while ago. The sugar and the warmth comforted her.:: There are two main directions of thoughts. One is how to avoid situations like this. The other train of thoughts tries to outline how to avoid overstressing sickbay's capacities in the future. Dial: ::She took a large gulp of coffee and closed her eye for a second.:: It was suggested that sickbay and engineering might cooperate to find better emergency settings improving the crew's safety during ::She stressed the following term's pronounciation to make sure it was understood as a colloquial expression.:: "bumpy rides" as the one we had. Measures to avoid people from tumbling and falling and hurting themselves badly might include an increase of gravity in situations like this. A team of experts should be formed to discuss emergency options like these. Dial: ::Another large gulp of coffee went down Dial's throat.:: Suggestions about the improvement of sickbay's emergency reactions include the recruitment of more medical personal, special trainings for personnell of other departments and to have more Medical Emergency Holograms. Trained medics would have helped a lot taking care of minor injuries that were reported everywhere aboard. Also sickbay wouldn't need to send out people to every place but only where nurses and doctors are required. Dial: ::Dial drank the rest of her coffee.:: Other proposals aim at situations where the loss or shortage of energy becomes a problem. As the logs and reports of the crisis suggest we keep a very low stockage of medicine. Our instruments need energy and without a dermal regernerator we're even unable to close a wound since we lack bandages in reasonable amounts. The main suggestion is to give sickbay one of the cargo bays where enough rations of drugs and medical equipment not requiring power might be stored. Dial: ::Dial used her long tongue to lick up the last rests of coffee left in her mug.:: While this might seem very drastic and a huge space, I'd like to stress that the amount of equipment and drugs that could be kept there would be enough to treat 2 thirds of the ship's population. Providing those ressources without having to replicate or use the ship's power reserves should be standard. And by saying it should be standard, I mean that the reports about our situation during the last mission as well as this specific proposal should be forwarded to Starfleet Medical. Dial: This report is sent to Dr. Foster as well as his assistant Dr. Milsap. In case of queries please turn to Head nurse Sito or me as I set up this report. We would like you to forward any requests needing the CO's authorization. Dial out. ::Dial pressed a few buttons and send the audio record to Lieutenant Commander Foster as well as a copy to Lieutenant Junior Grade Milsap, who was the new Assistant Chief Medical Officer. Dial also sent a bbc to Sito Meru who would most likely be interested in seeing what Dial had fabricated out of the snippets of other people's proposals.:: [[indirect TAGs/ Foster and Milsap]] -------------------- OOC:http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php?title=Dial/Personal_Glossary ------------------- Ens. Dial Nurse USS Constitution-B A239103D10
  22. (( Deep Space 6, Promenade, Orb of Taste Restaurant )) :: Didrik had disembarked Darwin at the first opportunity after her arrival at DS6. Dr Cook had kept him on a steady dose of drugs that ameliorated the worst symptoms of his Quantum Slipstream Sickness, but he still felt bouts of nausea when the device that powered Darwin’s faster-than-warp engines ramped up and wound down. :: :: He sat across a small cafe table from Dr Linnea Hanadani, who had been his therapist when he lived on DS6, between leaving Columbia and joining Darwin. They shared a pot of deka tea at a Terran-Bajoran fusion restaurant which seemed to be popping up everywhere. :: Hanadani: You look well, Didrik. Pardon me, Counselor Stennes. :: Didrik blushed at the compliment. :: Stennes: I feel well. It’s been a long time since I’ve been so clear headed. Hanadani: Maybe you’ve found your calling then? Stennes: I don’t know about that. I am really enjoying the challenges of being a counselor, but it’s not exactly being on the bridge of a Starship. Hanadani: Speaking of which, Didrik, I’ve had a few conversations with Starfleet Medical about you. :: Didrik froze, mid-sip, suddenly finding it difficult to swallow. He set his cup down and studied the doctor’s expression. She was smiling an ethereal half-smile, but that wasn’t unusual for her. The silence seemed to fill the room. :: Stennes: And? Hanadani: And they’ve not been ignorant of the fact that you’ve spend most of the last year working with Starfleet, albeit in a civilian capacity. Stennes: I’m guessing they weren’t pleased. Last I heard, I was still medically unfit for Starfleet duty. Hanadani: You’re right, there is a sentiment amongst the doctors in charge of your case that you’ve skirted around their orders. That you’ve exploited a loophole to continue working in environments that may be detrimental to your recovery. :: Didrik nodded slowly, feeling his commission slipping further and further out of his reach. :: Stennes: I understand. I always knew that was a possibility. I guess I was just hoping that I’d do such a fantastic job that it would prove I was fully recovered. Hanadani: No one who has been through what you have can “fully recover,” Didrik. You know that. But recovery isn’t a destination, it’s a journey along which you learn how to cope. Stennes: I feel like I have learnt to cope. Hanadani: Then what’s this I heard about you making racial slurs on the bridge of your ship? Stennes: I don’t know what-- Hanadani: You called your telepathic colleagues “a bunch of spoon-benders”? Stennes: That is not what I said… exactly. Hanadani: Didrik… Stennes: We were in a life threatening situation, two away teams were about to be killed. And besides, I profusely apologized personally to the captain and to everyone else on the bridge. I feel like my contrition should be worth something, I felt terrible for what I said. Hanadani: Of course it should. Starfleet Medical is continuing to evaluate your condition with a view of reinstating your commission if it’s in yours and Starfleet’s best interest. Stennes: I’ve been hearing that for two years. Hanadani: And you may continue hearing it for another two years, or twenty years. That’s Starfleet Medical for you. :: Didrik’s eyes lowered. It certainly sounded like she was trying to make bad news sound less bad. :: Stennes: So what should I do? Hanadani: No matter how many positive evaluations you receive, or how far your recovery has progressed, ultimately, the decision to reinstate you as a Starfleet officer is not, and will never be, yours to make. :: Didrik nodded. There was such a finality to that statement. Ever since his trauma, he thought that if he worked hard enough, stayed focused enough, he could get his old life back. But such a thing was not possible. :: Hanadani: I’ve told you this before. You’ve been so single minded about returning to Starfleet, and I’m telling you that you are perfectly capable of living a different, but no less fulfilling life. Stennes: ::quietly:: You’re right. Everything you’ve said is right. Hanadani: I don’t want you to give up on something you want, Didrik. I just want you to have realistic expectations. Stennes: I know. And I do. I really do. I’m enjoying my position on Darwin. Maybe you were right. Maybe I do have a new calling. Hanadani: That’s the spirit. I care about you, Didrik. Not just as a former patient, and not just as a colleague. :: She smiled so warmly that Didrik could feel it radiating from her. :: Hanadani: Excel in whatever you do, Didrik. I know you can. :: Didrik pressed his thumb onto the paypad and they stood. :: Hanadani: The university is looking for some guests for a speakers’ series. If you’re staying over a while, I could see about getting you a timeslot. Didrik: No thanks. Something tells me we may not be at DS6 for very long. I should be getting back to the ship anyway. I need to speak to the captain. Hanadani: Problem? Didrik: Maybe. :: Didrik decided not to talk about the somewhat ironic masquerade ball being planned, and what such an activity said about the current mental state of its attendees. He had a strong feeling that there would be quite a few secrets, not just faces, being unmasked at the event. :: Didrik: Thank you, for everything. Hanadani: My pleasure. :: Didrik wasn’t a hugger, but she pulled him into one and Didrik complied. The diminutive woman looked as though she was being swallowed up by his bearhug. They parted, and Didrik embarked Darwin though the gangway, heading directly for the captain’s ready room. :: =/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\= Didrik Stennes Counselor USS Darwin NCC-99312-A D238804DS0 =/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=|=/\=
  23. *((Bridge - USS Albion))* ::The last few minutes had been probably the most terrifying of the Gorns career. The Albion, scarred and battered suddenly face to face with a pristeen, technologically advanced Warbird and it's subsequent weapons lock had almost turned his scales white. A warning probably, not to chase and not to poke them… just let them drift away. If they had wanted the Albion shattered then there was not a [...]ed thing any of them could have done about it. A single volley to the hull and that would have been the end of that. But with their usual Romulan unknown motivations they disappeared, warping away out of the Albions primitive net after stealing the traitor and into the unknown as soon as they could get their cloak back online. What would come of the Captain who had betrayed Starfleet? Either way, if the Romulans knew what he was planning to do the likelihood of him every coming back alive was negligible at best. Interrogation and execution was likely to be the order of the day, a wanton criminal with the knowledge of an experienced Starfleet captain now a plaything for interrogators with a reputation for getting results. His anger and vengeance was now going to do nothing to save him, Tatash could only hope he chose the honorable way out, at the end of his belt from a prison cell bar or the barrel of a disruptor trying to escape. Was it a deserved punishment? If the Albion had hauled him back, would his punishment be fitting? If he was a Gorn Captain, his betrayal would have already resulted in him (not to mention his crew) executed and tossed out of the airlock. Starfleet would probably assign him to a penal colony, hoping to rehabilitate rather than condemn, to softly pick apart the reasons for his turn coating before shipping him off to some laughable 'penal colony'. That, in the eyes of Tatash, was not justice for the crewmen and women in Engineering who had been killed or the thousands of civilians so painfully close to a terrible death. So he felt a grim satisfaction, a macabre sense of completion at least residing in his mind. Let the Romulans have him, let them pick him apart like the birds of prey they idolize, vultures swarming a dead husk of a former man of respect. Anything else would have been too easy a price for a traitor to pay.:: *Taybrim*: Commander Falcon, bring us within transporter range of the Valdis colony so we can beam down the medicine, and then plot a course back to the Tribal. ::He snapped back into the room as the Commander spoke, eyes flicking over to the helm:: *Falcon*: ? *Taybrim*: It will be a short drop off. We're not staying for dinner. ::He shook his head at the planet hanging on the viewscreen. He had enough of Romulans for this day as well.:: *Falcon*: ? *Taybrim*: Mr. Vondaryan, contact Starfleet intel - let them know what you got from the Stormcrow and give them a heads up on what happened with Haz Arrhimen. I have a feeling they will be very interested to hear your report. ::That was an understatement, if anything he could just picture a sea of blackshirts suddenly flailing their arms at this screw up. Justice aside, he knew a lot, enough to cause a storm of changing access codes and any tactical plans he had access too:: *Vondaryan*: ? ::The Commanders eyes rested on him now, forcing himself to stand more upright as his back strained in protest. Despite Malcolm's wizardry, he was still wounded. Rest, a few more visits to sickbay to be patched up properly rather then the battlefield kit on his back were needed:: *Taybrim*: Do we have enough power to tow the Tribal? *Tatash*: Not yet, but I'm pretty sure the best engineer in the fleet can fix that? ::He managed a strained smile to Theo, doing his best to hide the pain on his face. Out of anyone, the person he'd last like to see him suffering was his closest friend:: *Whittaker*: ? *Taybrim*: If we don't there are other ships on patrol. They're outside the neutral zone, so technically we can hang out there for as long as we like. ::He tapped a claw on his map suite, dragging it back to where the Tribal was located and nodding approvingly at the roundal of a friendly ship heading into the area:: *Tatash*: if we time it right we have a Galaxy class passing through that area as well, they might be able to escort us back. *Whittaker*: ? *Taybrim*: ::He nodded, satisfied with that answer:: Ok, let's get medicine delivered, go rescue our friends and go home. I want everyone to get some rest on the way back. *Tatash*: Yes Sir. ::Rest... it had been barely a few hours for the whole drama to play out, but he was exhausted. He'd not tried to lay down or even sit after the explosion tore him to ribbons, but despite the pain it was going to cause, he could think of nothing he wanted more:: *Bridge (any*): ? ~~ Lt Tatash Tactical Officer SB118 Ops C239108T10
  24. (( Interrogation Room - Deck 28 - USS Constitution-B )) :: Thomas Prendar loved the initial quiet of the interrogation room. It was a solid gray room, with no windows (as a nearby holo-projector provided security a view in) and there was simply two chairs facing each other. Prendar especially had the table removed so that his next interrogation had nothing between him and the SFI officer to subconsciously hide behind. :: :: The door shifted open and he saw Lieutenant JG Jerome Milsap enter. :: Prendar: Mister Milsap. Please have a seat. :: Jerry stepped uncertainly to the empty chair, taking in the surroundings as he did. It certainly fit the general idea of an interrogation room. He sat down and reached for the banjo slung across his back. :: :: Thomas’ eyebrows slowly went up as he saw the banjo on the man’s back and that he was reaching for it. :: Prendar: oO What...the...hell? Oo Milsap: Don’t mind if I do. :: He waited for the man to sit down, but before he could get situated, Prendar barked out his first question. :: Prendar: So, do you want confess now or give me a hard time and confess later? :: Jerry jumped in his seat, shock written across his face. :: Milsap: All right, all right! I’ll talk! Prendar: Good. Talk! :: Jerry pulled the banjo from his back in cradled it over his knee, hanging his head with a shamed expression. :: :: It took every ounce of control the man had not to burst into laughter. He had thought he saw everything, but this proved him wrong. :: Milsap: I...I snuck a kiss from Charlotte Mason in third grade. ::He looked up earnestly.:: But only once! Prendar: ::chuckling and looking at the PADD. :: You sure? The file says twice. Milsap: You know, I thought it seemed odd for SFI to come all this way just for that. So what is this about? Prendar: It’s about your mission. I need you to explain to me why you violated the Temporal Prime Directive. Milsap: ::nodding:: Now that makes more sense. I imagine you want to make sure we didn’t mess anything up back then. Prendar: Make sure? Oh, I know you screwed things up. I want to find out who is responsible and deal with them. Milsap: Good, that’s why I brought Mariah here. ::He gingerly patted the top of the banjo.:: She’s gonn help me tell you exactly what went on. Now let’s see…I believe I’ll call it “We Shouldn’t Even Be Here”. ::Jerry cleared his throat, picked up the banjo and started strumming a lively bluegrass melody, bobbing his head in time. When the melody cycled through and began again he started in with some lyrics. :: Milsap: Well, the Constitution was a-makin' her rounds, surveyin' Talos, seein' what could be found When she ran into somethin' we'd never seen before (well, most of us anyway). It chewed her up and spat her out at Earth, and though we had our doubts We found ourselves on the eve of the first world war. At first the only thing we knew was that we had to get back through But the first trip darn near broke Ol' Conny's back. Then we learned things down below weren't goin' the way they's supposed to go And someone had to get history back on track. We traveled through a hole in space and wound up back in time And only we know how to set things right, for what it's worth. We shouldn't even be here, but seein' as we are We might as well do what we can to fix things down on Earth. The warp drive doesn't run on dreams so we split the crew up into teams To patch things up before the core was spent. One went to China to find supplies and they managed to do it, to no one's surprise But I wasn't there, so you'd have to ask them how it went. Now, Starfleet says "Don't interfere!" and that's easy to say when you're safe back here But in a situation like ours, well whadda ya do? Can't call for help, no ships to be found, all we could do was either beam folks down Or just orbit the moon for a century or two. Ol' Connys in some dire shape, her life is fadin' fast Her hull is gonna break up and her power's gonna drain. We shouldn't even be here, but seein' as we are Instead of whinin' that she's broke, let's make her run again! :: Jerry stopped his strumming and leaned in toward Prendar. :: Milsap: Now here’s where I come in. :: He winked and picked up the melody again. Milsap: I was nervous as a man can be when Danzia, Rajel, T'Mar and me Beamed down just as the war was set to begin. I never learned what was to blame but somethin' threw off the transporter's aim And we wound up pretty darn far from Berlin. We saw a horseman nearly die, he turned out to be this Princip guy Who played a major part in those events. We knew we had to fix his head and get him in a biobed So up into the ship's sickbay he went. The medics made sure he was stable and sedated him so he wasn't able To recall any details 'bout the place. And it must have worked 'cause last I looked there weren't no mention in the history book Of Princip bein' beamed up into space. Just when we thought we had it made the Kaiser showed up for a parade, We had to make it so he stayed away. We slipped a potion in his food and at the risk of sounding crude It kept him on the crapper all next day. We found a glitch in history that just might stop the Earth Becoming Federation in a couple hundred years. We shouldn't even be here, but seein' as we are We'll fix things up so no one even knows that we were here. :: Jerry thought about the rumors he'd heard on his way to the interview. He'd picked up on the words "Rajel" and "confined" and could pretty much guess the intelligence officers were giving Jalana a raw deal, likely with others not far behind. Now that he was near the end of the story, he scrounged up the indignation he'd been suppressing and channeled it into the song, adding a subtle edge to the final verses. :: Of course we never planned to go, we didn't have much say in it, though And we might wish someone else had fit the bill But let me ask you something brother, wish in one hand and crap in the other And you tell me which one's the first to fill! Goin' back in time? Y'all might forbid it, but the present's whole because we did it And I can't see anything that we did wrong. If Rajel and the crew'd just let things be, you wouldn't be sittin' across from me And I wouldn't be here to pick out this here song! But SFI is puttin' Constitution's crew on trial, Why don't we lay this nonsense inquisition down to rest? We shouldn't even be here, but seein' as we are Let's just agree that everything has worked out for the best. Instead of puttin' Jalana in jail, y'all should thank her for savin' your tail! It's 'cause of her that everything has worked out for the best! :: As the last strains of the banjo and singing faded in the empty, gray colored room. Prendar just stared at the man. Finally, he spoke. :: Prendar: Get out, Mister Milsap. Now. Milsap: ::smiling:: Don’t mind if I do. :: Jerry grabbed his banjo by the neck and sauntered to the door. He didn’t know if his performance actually helped anyone, but he was confident he’d at least done what he could to clear up the situation. :: ~tbc~ Joint Post By…. Commander Thomas Prendar Lead Investigator Starfleet Intelligence As Simmed by… ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Colonel Nugra Marine Commanding Officer USS Doyle-A, NCC-980221-B Deputy Commandant Captain's Council Magistrate V238008N10 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ & Lieutenant JG Jerome Milsap Assistant Chief Medical Officer USS Constitution-B C239208JM01
  25. Polling closes at 11:59pm Eastern on Sunday, December 6. This is a run-off poll, where our general membership (that's you!) chooses which sim, from Set 4 of 2015 (Rounds 21-26), should proceed to the final round of the contest for a chance to be selected as the Top Sim of 2015! These sims below were chosen by a panel of judges (one from each ship) from the sims submitted in Rounds 21-26 of the contest. TO START, please read these sims: ​Round 21: Charlotte deBarres, "Bird Droppings"​Round 22: Didrik Stennes, "Contrition Vol. 1"​Round 23: Ceilidh Riverview, "The power of memory"​Round 24: Alora DeVeau & Saveron, "Where Vulcan Flowers Grow"​Round 25: Hannibal Parker, "Recognition, Resignation"​Round 26: Wyn Foster, "What Friends are For"NEXT, using the poll above, vote for the sim you like the most. It should be the sim that's the best written, with strong characterization, and evocative or descriptive scene-setting. DON'T vote for a sim just because you serve on the same crew as the person who wrote it. Any crew that "stuffs the ballot" (by having everyone on the crew vote for the same sim to ensure that it wins this poll) will be eliminated from the contest and shamed by the rest of the community as terrible, terrible cheaters. That would be awful. Good luck to the nominees!
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