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  1. ((Main Engineering, USS Columbia)) Breeman: What do you make of this data Ben? ::Ben glanced over at the console. Stresses were growing all over hull, that much was clear. But rather than the typical rainbow of colors indicating wide regions of stresses, it was a chicken-pocked ship; flaring red indicators each only a few meters wide were popping up in fields of low stress areas – each an indicator of another attack incoming. :: Livingston: Looks like this has only just begun. Can we seal off any of these compartments? ::But before they could talk further, Ben pointed out another hull breach. Looking at the data from the hull breach it looked like it was still quite small -- not large enough for a dragon to make it through.:: Breeman: I'm compensating! ::He tapped a command and a magnetic arc fired across the hull.:: Breeman: Hopefully that will make it think twice about coming in... Livingston: Hope is good, but I’d rather hope and a plan. We need more data! ((Flashback)) Livingston: =/\= Thought you might want to know, they captured one of these things. You might want to take a look. I know I do. =/\= Nevarass: =/\= I certainly do. Is the dragon secured? ::That was an excellent question. Knowing next to nothing about the things, not understanding their strength or abilities or intelligence, how was it that he could tell the ensign that it was secured? Was it not just as likely that the dragons had the crew “secured”?:: Livingston: =/\= Uh – officially no. Proceed at your own risk. And bring security. =/\= :: As she listened to Livingston’s response, Allie glanced at B’Sara. She didn't want B'Sara to worry, so she mustered a small smile. :: Nevarass: =/\= I see. Well, I’m headed to the Bridge, now. Maybe we can figure out a way to tell our dragon visitors to stop attacking us, if they’re sentient. Unless we can find a way to communicate, we might have to face the possibility of destroying them all. Livingston: ::raising eyebrows:: =/\= I’m not sure destroying them is a possibility. ::pause:: But communication would be the best way to stem any slaughter.=/\= Nevarass: =/\= Agreed. That would be most unfortunate. For all we know, these may be the last of dragon-kind in the universe. Has anyone tried to communicate with them telepathically? Such a method would make sense, evolutionarily speaking. ::That kernel of xenophobia that lived inside everyone as a defensive mechanism had apparently been at work in Ben. He hadn’t much considered the prospect of them communicating, let alone a capability to communicate with other species. And yet, the ensign’s open-mindedness had led her to a conclusion that was quite probable.:: Livingston: =/\= Because they live in a vacuum? Very insightful! I suppose that would be a likely solution. Well – let’s get to it then. Best of luck.=/\= Nevarass: =/\= Right, sir. Almost to the Bridge. Nevarass out. ((End Flashback)) ::It wasn’t long after that another hull breach turned up, taking Ben’s attention as he monitored it. He nearly dispatched an engineering team before remembering the futility – and the danger – of doing so. Instead, he sealed off what he could. Anything that slowed these creatures down would help them have a better solution in place when it was finally time.:: ::Ben was about to report another breach when the ceiling nearly came crashing down around him. Steam, conduit, and shrieking jaws exploded down into the room just meters away, knocking him (thank goodness) to the ground.:: :: And then he watched Kevin Breeman, the ship’s nurturer and protector, charge towards it with terror and fury in his eyes.:: Breeman: Kill it!! ::Shocked, Ben looked around. He had no phaser; even if he had, was killing it a possibility?:: Livingston: We need a plan! ::Kevin’s weapon fire only enraged it, but still the engineer persisted in engaging it in combat, a modern day St. George defending his people. The beast showed no pity, no reservations – it sought only to consume as it was itself consumed by hatred:: ::But Kevin would be destroyed by this, if Ben stayed put, sheltered by a console that was now half separated from the floor plating, exposing cables that had begun to arc intermittently. And yet that hazard seemed much preferable to the one involving dragon slaying. And yet … He raised his eyebrows in surprise.:: Livingston: It’s okay – I have a plan! ::Lifting himself from the floor, Ben dashed around the corner and into full view of the beast. It had moved from its original point of entry, but it would still be close. Ahead of him, Kevin had its full attention, allowing Ben to jump up and grab one of the cables still swaying as it hung from the cavity above. He held onto it as it swung him along the wing-crested back of the animal. From this vantage point, he hoped to find some point of weakness, but he was moving too quickly. Near the end of its stroke, the human pendulum let go and threw himself over the upper deck rail.:: ::Sitting there was precisely what he had hoped to find – a EPS tap cable. Plugging it into the system, he rushed back toward the creature and using the rail as a jumping off point, leapt onto the thing’s back, holding the cable as a dagger to pierce through its armored skin.:: ::Ben could not tell at first if it had made a difference, but soon the wings convulsed and it tried to throw him off. As it tried to reach him, Ben saw Kevin regaining his footing and take a defensive stance, but not once did the Chief Engineer cease his attack.:: Orman: FIRE!! :: Katy’s voice filled the air, a tremendous relief. But when it dawned on him that he might be caught in the line of fire should it turn and expose him, Ben leapt back to the floor, still holding the cable but no longer within striking distance.:: ::He dragged it along the floor as he fought to rejoin the security team, dodging wingtips and claws as he moved. He reached Katy first.:: Livingston: ::shouting:: Nice of you to stop by! Orman: ::shouting as well, to be heard over the phasers and shrieking:: Report! Livingston: Breeman’s been at it for nearly a minute. I hoped EPS would do the job, but I think it’s just angrier now. Have you had luck elsewhere? Orman: ::still shouting as she tracked her target and attempted to put a bolt into it:: Killed one. Takes a lot. Would love to chat, but kind of busy! Kevin's bleeding, call Medical! ----- Lieutenant, J.G. Ben Livingston Assistant Chief Engineer Starbase 118 Ops / USS Victory (Columbia)
  2. ((Assembly Chamber Grounds, Prak Zel)) ::With nothing more than a cursory glance at the assembled flock, Vahini Dalal assumed her position on the rostrum that had been constructed for the media event that she was rapidly beginning to see as a total farce. Unimpressed with the rhetoric of a Laudean and his alien cronies, she had been disappointed to see that the public opinion polls were swaying back towards the Federation camp. To cap it all off, she couldn't understand why her Stratagema match with Minister Zaveri was scheduled for this particular time. It seemed as though it was an unnecessary bolt-on, nothing more than a side-show to gain one or two more per cent in the polls. Still, she knew Zakdorn culture well enough that a refusal to play Stratagema was the same thing as a loss at Stratagema. Glaring scornfully at her opponent, she took her seat.:: Dalal: Alright, Zaveri. Let's get this over with. I'll make it as painless for you as possible. ::The more benign of the two Zakdorn women simply smiled sweetly and remained on her feet as her counterpart seated herself and donned her gauntlets.:: Zaveri: Actually, Vahini, I won't be playing you. ::So indignant was the aide that she almost choked on her response.:: Dalal: What!? You drag me into your little melodrama to forfeit a match? Explain yourself! ::Zaveri could have sat and basked in Dalal's rage for quite some time. It was delicious. Pulling out the chair opposite Dalal at the Stratagema table, she stepped to one side to allow Ensign Fox to approach.:: Zaveri: If you read the invitation carefully, it said I had *invited* you to a Stratagema match, not challenged you to one. Allow me to introduce the young man who did. Oh, and I should probably point out that your microphone just went live. ::She grinned so widely at the last comment that her cheek ridges stacked themselves into a tight pile. Turning the expression on Ensign Fox, she listened as the crowd cheered for him to take his place.:: Fox: ::Quietly to Zaveri:: She doesn't look pleased to see me.... Zaveri: ::Dropping her voice:: Good luck, Ensign. Hopefully her emotional state will hamper her performance. Fox: oO I sure hope so...Oo ::The young Ensign displayed no outward signs of his nerves; a bright smile covered his face as he raised a hand, signalling to the section of the crowd cheering. For him, he hoped, but he couldn't be sure. Retreating from the gaming platform, Zaveri took up a position alongside Dr. Malon just as Ensign Fox took his seat opposite Dalal.:: Zaveri: I hope whatever plan you have works. Otherwise we're going to lose face here. ::Ilyazi turned glinting black eyes on the Zakdorn woman, but none of them wanted their foulplay to be revealed - preferably ever. And while they were talking foulplay, there was no reason not to add to it.:: Malon: Oh, I think you'll be surprised, Minister. Fox and I had a few games just before we came. He's...*quite* the Stratagemist. ::pausing for effect, putting on a sour expression:: He thrashed me without really trying. ::Well...he *would've* done, had they actually been playing. But Ilyazi was as good at boardgames as she was at currently trying to read Dalal - not very. Which was odd. Not exactly problematic...just odd.:: ::Zaveri politely tried her best to look impressed. While she didn't want to belittle the doctor, Rodulans were not known galaxy-wide for their expertise in Stratagema... although the more she thought about it, the more she began to appreciate that some of the skills the two Starfleet officers had developed might stand them in good stead for the speed of wit that the game required.:: Zaveri: Well, let's hope he can repeat that performance against Dalal. He certainly doesn't look all that worried. ::Ilyazi let her eyes roam the grounds and the spectators, picking up general thoughts of confusion that they weren't about to see a match between the Zakdorn women, and confusion at the presence of Starfleet officers. One or two were blatantly angry that Fox thought himself capable of taking on a Zakdorn opponent, and the evil side of her was grinning from figurative ear to figurative ear. Let them be angry.:: ::Of course, not everyone was angry. Some were simply jeering inside, laughing mockingly at the Stratagema wannabe. But Ilyazi had a lot more faith in Fox than any of them combined.:: Malon: ::eyes glinting at no one in particular:: ~ Remember that dinner I promised you... ~ Fox: ~ Only reason I'm smiling up here... ~ ::She smiled inwardly at that.:: Malon: ~ You'll be fine. You know what you're doing. ~ ::With the game just about to start, Ilyazi was happy to let Fox take control from the very start, and kept herself fairly well distanced from his mind to avoid interfering with his thoughts. Instead, she let the thoughts of those around her flock in...and Fox's, just in case.:: ::But try as she might to read Dalal...it was like trying to eat a ball of fuzz. Every time she tried, she had to pull back and wash her mind clean of fluff. There just *wasn't* anything that she could gain from her. Fox wasn't faring much better. Sat but three feet away, he could feel Dalal's fury. A cheeky wink did little to brighten her spirits.:: Fox: ::Into his mic:: Minister Dalal, my name is Ensign James Fox of Starfleet. I'd like to first thank you for affording me the privilege of this game. I consider it quite the honour. ::Through piggy eyes, Vahini sneered at her Terran opponent, sizing him up. She was going to snap him like a twig and embarrass Starfleet in front of the simpering crowd of morons they had assembled.:: Dalal: ::With a crocodile grin:: Enjoy it while it lasts, *Ensign*. I do not anticipate that this game will take very long at all. Let me know if you require any assistance strapping your gloves on... ::She smirked at her comment and one or two laughs could be heard from the crowd as well.:: Fox: I'll offer you the same courtesy when it comes to taking the gloves off, Minister. ::Lifting one eyebrow:: They look a snug fit... ::Waiting for the green officer to set himself up, Vahini stared intently at the gaming table between them as the three-dimensional display initialised. With a high-pitched whine, strategically placed holo-emitters recreated the cuboid playing field high in the air above them; it began rotating so that the crowd could see the game from all sides. A timer appeared on the table in front of them, counting down to the start of the game. The Ensign looked confident, but Dalal was determined not to let that sway her.:: ::Now that the game was almost at its start, the crowds settled down and Ilyazi picked out a strong undercurrent that had been drowned out by the mental jeering - it was hope. Hope that Fox would somehow win, and that the game might bring the two forces - Starfleet and Zakdorn - closer, more united. And it was that hope that spurred Ilyazi on to focus on the game again.:: ::The moment the timer reached zero, Vahini launched into a ferocious attack on the central quadrant of the central plane, attempting to establish a solid foothold to allow her to expand her power base. She watched with pleasure as an area of blue began to spread. This was going to be easy; her opponent's green squares looked few and far between. She felt more confident by the second that he would fall to her out and out attack strategy.:: Dalal: oO So much for Starfleet...Oo ::The sudden onset of her attack took Fox aback. He regained his composure not a moment too soon; he rallied and simulataneously launched attacks on both the left and right quadrants, both of his hands blurring with the speed of his movements. Vahini's blue straight was soon flanked on either side by a steadily growing green zone. A green U shape had quickly formed. As the first conflict reached an impasse, the U shape slowly receded back into a straight line as both players fought to regain lost squares. :: Malon: ~ You're doing good. ~ ::And that was about as much as she could say. He was. Exceptionally. In fact, she was the one struggling to keep up with this. Which was a worry. A silent one. But a worry nonetheless.:: ::Displeased at the failure of her first tactic, Dalal employed a sudden shift; while the focus had been on the central plane, the two outer planes were still relatively unpopulated. If Fox wanted to convert her blue squares into green ones, he would have to spend time focusing on the territory he had yet to conquer, which would afford her a chance to build a secondary power base in the corner of her nearest plane before expanding along through the three moving playing fields and into the one closest to the Ensign. She could not wait to see his face when blue squares began to crop up deep within his own territory. A smile began to cross her lips at the very thought of it.:: Dalal: If you want to forfeit now and save yourself some time, we would all understand... Fox: And rob you of such an easy victory, Minister? Perish the thought.... ::He was enjoying the trash talk more than the game. Fox had managed to maintain his air of confidence thus far but that first skirmish had been tricky; trickier than he'd like. And this was *with* Dalal underestimating him. The longer the game went, the better the PR. Dalal needed to win convincingly, he thought. If he could just hold on....:: Fox: oO Do we know what's coming, oh-guide-of-mine? Oo Malon: ~ She's heading towards your playing area. Planning on invading from the inside. ~ ::The game itself had been proceeding just as Dalal had planned. Fox had aggressively attacked Dalal, hoping to expand his green zone while she consolidated her power base and began circle around deep into Fox's nearest plane. Alerted to the danger by Doctor Malon, Fox shifted his attention to the threat, cutting off the incursion by splitting it in twain. He mopped up the blue squares stranded in his nearest plane but in doing so conceded all of the territory he had gained. A single bead of sweat rolled down his forehead as he struggled to maintain the stalemate.:: ::Ilyazi wasn't a good Stratagema player, she knew. But she was counting on the spectators being experts. Even their fingers were twitching as if they had the gauntlets on themselves, playing the match.:: ::And it was because of their enthusiasm that Ilyazi was able to pick on one of the spectator's thought and transfer their mental images across to Fox in a split second. All she could hope was that that individual was mentally playing for them...and that they were a better player than Dalal.:: ::But better player or not, the mental imagery transferred into Fox's brain wholly changed his perspective. Before, he was seeing just Green and Blue. Now he was seeing innumerable shades of both; each shade helped instantly convey differing information and statistics. One light green square, it was clear to him, signified a 65% chance of being contested in the next turn. Furthemore it showed him that should it be taken it would offer Dalal a 72% probability of going on to capture the entire quadrant. He had such information and more on all 256 squares at every given instant and it was all very clear to him. Fox assumed this was his brain's way of coping with all of the processing power of the Zakdorn. Coupling his new reading of the game with his impressive dexterity, Fox fought back.:: Fox: Let's get started, shall we? ::Irritation about the fact that the Terran had dared to play possum against her was quickly replaced by a healthy dose of panic as Vahini saw a dangerous incursion into her own territory. She had seconds to respond before the map was washed green and her humiliation was complete. Feverishly manipulating her gauntlet, she surged outwards from her central power base, vying for control of areas that were less easy for him to defend. As the green territory rapidly expanded, she pushed for the lower edge of the central square and coloured the upper right hand corner closest to her. A two-pronged assault, while difficult to maintain, seemed to represent the best hope for the time being; it left her with options of spaces from which she could defend herself.:: Dalal: Terran pig... this is impossible! Malon: ::to Zaveri:: What do you make of it so far? ::playing on the fact she knew little:: I'd already lost to Fox by this point. Is he heading in the right direction? ::Zaveri's eyes were positively gleaming with delighted surprise. She could hardly believe what she was seeing.:: Zaveri: I've never seen a non-Zakdorn play like this. Your Ensign is incredible! To hold a Zakdorn for over seven hundred moves! ::She watched for a moment, her head bobbing up and down as she carefully inspected the rotating 3D display.:: Although... he should probably watch out for his right flank if he wants to stay in the game. Dalal hasn't seen it yet, but if she does it will undo all the good work he just did... ::It was puzzling that Dalal hadn't seen that threat; nearly every spectator seemed to be looking at the same thing, some shaking their heads. Was it matchday nerves that were causing her a problem, or overconfidence?:: Malon: ~ Watch out for your right flank. You're vulnerable there. ~ ::Fox's focus was entirely on the game; he mentally grunted an acknowledgement then reinforced his right flank. Ilyazi was right to warn him; had that section fallen there was a 78% chance of him losing the game within 24 turns.:: Dalal: ::Half under her breath:: I will not lose to a human... ::Seeing him reinforce his right flank, Dalal took a deep breath and forced herself to focus. She was mere moments from defeat. It was time for an all-out offensive. Kicking herself into a higher gear, she worked frantically to push all of her territories into wedge shapes, conceding squares where necessary to allow the tactic to form. Fingers moving into a blur, she waited for exactly the right moment before sending blue surging across the board in an attempt to break into the deepest areas of green colouring and disrupt Fox's considerable foothold from the inside. It was all or nothing now. If he saw through this tactic then she was finished...:: Zaveri: ::Gasping:: She's going to turn it around... such a shame. He was doing so well. ::Ilyazi flicked calm eyes on Zaveri, but on the inside, that little comment hadn't been appreciated. Still...:: Malon: ::infusing a lighthearted smile:: You don't know our Fox, Minister. ::The previously hushed crowd broke out into an array of conflicting conversation, some animated, some defeated, some cheering encouragement. Dalal's attempt to pull the rug out from under Fox was causing beads of sweat to appear on her brow and it was clear that she had very little left to give. If he could just survive her attack then the game was his, and the crowd knew it...:: ::Fox felt the urgency of the crowd. Perhaps more accurately, he could see the urgency. Large swathes of his green zone had went from a dark, safe, green to a very pale green. At first his conscious mind struggled to interpret the sudden dramatic change in data. Then came the blue wedges, smashing into his squares like a cavalry charge. Fox instinctively reacted, staunchly defending the two outer quadrants while conceding the centre. Panic almost overtook him as even the outer quadrants buckled; slowly he stemmed the tide and pushed his own green squares forward and diagonally, encircling the lost centre quadrant. Fox couldn't quite believe what he was seeing as his frenzied hands dealt the killing blow; the blue central quadrant, under bombardment from all directions, suddenly shrank to the size of a penny then disappeared altogether. Game over.:: ::Ilyazi had struggled to keep up with the mass of information and the speed of the game, and in the end, hadn't needed to. Fox, using instincts that should rarely be ignored, had fought the last battle and won with incredible swiftness. Even the images she'd received from some of the Zakdorn wouldn't have gotten him that victory. He'd won that one fair and square.:: ::As she withdrew quickly from his mind, feeling a tiredness descend now that everything was over, she had to ask just how a human had managed to beat a Zakdorn.:: ::It happened so quickly that Vahini didn't even have time to reach for the power control to disable the board before the win could be displayed above them. The crowd's roar of surprise was matched by her roar of anger and frustration; wrenching her hands from the gloves that controlled the game, she caught them as they fell into her lap and hurled them over the table at Fox, hatred burning in her eyes as the depth of her humiliation sunk in. Jeers and laughter from those she recognised as former supporters did nothing to improve her mood as she stood abruptly from her chair and turned her back to the audience, standing stock still as if about to explode.:: ::Fox hadn't moved. Even when Dalal's gloves had been thrown into his face, he still sat quiet. The gloves themselves had barely registered to him; he felt rather disorientated now that his mind was his own again. The roaring of the crowd didn't seem real somehow. He felt disassociated from his surroundings, like he was watching it on a holovid.:: Fox: oO Ilyazi.....we have won, right? Oo Malon: ::after a moment:: ~ Put it this way, you now need to decide where you want dinner. ~ ::As some semblance of independent thought returned to Fox, he stood and offered his hand to his opponent. One final slap in the face.:: Fox: Good game. ::The defeated minister spat the words at him spitefully.:: Dalal: Do not patronise me, human. ::Remembering in that moment a comment that Minister Wadke had made in reference to the Vigilant crew, Dalal's eyes narrowed, but she held her tongue. She knew that the Minister would have been watching even though she was unsure of his current whereabouts. If her suspicions were correct, she had a feeling he would be making himself known very soon...:: Malon: ::turning tired but happy black eyes on Zaveri:: I told you our Fox was quite something. Zaveri: I... I... yes, he most certainly is! ::The delight in her eyes was unfathomable. She was stunned, finding it difficult to process the fact that a non-android off-worlder had just accomplished what she had just seen accomplished.:: Malon: ~ Well done, James. Are you alright? ~ Fox: oO I think I'm going to throw up... Oo JP by Ens James Fox Helm USS Vigilant & MSNPC Minister Tamasa Zaveri Zakdorn Assembly Zakdorn IV SIMmed by: Captain Diego Herrera & MSNPC Vahini Dalal Aide to Minister Dakshi Wadke Zakdorn IV SIMmed by: Captain Diego Herrera & Ens Ilyazi Malon Medical Officer USS Vigilant
  3. ((Breeman Residence - Earth)) ::Patri was gone. Jan sat at the edge of the young woman's bed and wondered. Why had she been out so late like that the other night? Why had she said Kevin would be alright with such odd certainty?:: ::The clock had just struck seven AM and Alvin was already outside, pacing the deck wondering what to do next. Had she run away? She hadn't seemed terribly angry with her. Why would she break the law like that when she'd been proving herself now to be such an upstanding citizen?:: ((Dreamscape - Patri's Mind)) ::She's outside the house again, the dark figure looming in the distance down the straight snowy path. The moon overhead looks at her surprised to see her out like this. As she approaches the man and finds only a long tree trunk where she'd previously met Kevin the other night she shivers. Beneath her feet the snow crunches softly as she walks through the otherwise silent night.:: ::Looking down she lets her mind drift through the sparkling stars in the snow as the ice crystals pick up the moonlight. If she moves her head or her body just right some of the stars come on and others turn off. Swaying slowly to let one particular star switch on and off she barely notices the mountains forming in her patch of milky white space on the ground. Soon they have mountain tops that shine brilliantly. And then shadows, as the light shines on her. She looks up. There's a doorway standing in front of her.:: ::Blinking she wonders if she's ended up in front of someone's house. Suddenly self conscious she prepares her best explanation. I'm sorry sir, I was just out for a midnight stroll. I didn't mean to walk onto your property.:: ::No one's there. It's just a door in the snow, in front of a pair of trees. She steps forward.:: ((Breeman Residence - Earth)) Alvin: Did you hear anything last night? Jan: No... ::She sighed.:: Alvin: She was doing so well. And now this!?? Jan: You don't know that she ran away. Alvin: What else could this be? ::She looked at him, trying to calm him down. Should she tell him about the incident the other night? Should she tell him she was starting to see aspects of Kevin in her?:: Alvin: What? What is it? Jan: ::Quietly:: I saw her outside the other night night. ((Dreamscape - Patri's Mind)) ::Patri recognizes Jan speaking softly with Alvin in her room. In Kevin's room. The whole thing seems so real. She runs a finger along the spine of a book and she lets it gently slide and then fall over on his bookshelf. Jan's upset. Alvin's angry. Disappointed. Did she read that on his face right?:: ::She walks a little closer to the point her nose is almost between the husband and wife as they speak.:: Alvin: So you think she left last night? ::Sighing, Jan says,:: Jan: I don't know. I wasn't sure how to tell you about this but... Well there it is. ::Patri blinks, lays a hand down on Jan's shoulder.:: Jan: I wish she'd stop tugging at me like that. ::Her voice is muffled, strange.:: Alvin: It's never fair when she does that. ::She pats her hand atop Alvin's head, as the room fades from view into the darkness that's always been there.:: Alvin: Come on..... ::The voice fades.:: ((Breeman Residence - Earth)) Alvin: So you think she left last night? Jan: I don't know. I didn't think it was if she went for the occasional walk. Kevin did it and I got used to it. ::Sighing, Alvin said,:: Alvin: Then we're just going to have to call the police. I'm sorry, but she's technically violating the terms of her release. ::Jan nodded and said,:: Jan: I know.. ::Behind them the room was silent, save for the sound of something small slipping on one of Kevin's old bookshelves.:: ((Patri's Perspective)) ::She's sitting in a wing chair now, her head resting on the cushions. How long was she asleep? In front of her is another chair, along with a sofa. Standing she approaches the door. Turning the handle she steps out into a street made of shining brass. Beneath her feet several clear papers drift by, carried by wind from the sun that hangs directly above. The door behind her closes and a building that casts no shadow stands above her, two lonely windows separated by a gulf of decaying wall peering dimly out into the city street.:: ::She turns to her left and gasps. There's no horizon. The street rolls up toward her. She turns to run to escape it only to be confronted with the very same landscape that threatens to envelop her on the other side. Nothing is flat. She's perpetually falling forward. No. She's standing straight up while the ground rushes to catch her but never succeeds.:: Patri: What the hell? ::She looks down at her feet picks up a sheet of clear paper and tries to read the writing that flickers on and off. The gentle breeze tosses her long brown hair that catches the light of the sun in the center of her sphere.:: Patri Jia Kom Former Computer Hacker As simmed by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Breeman Chief Engineer Starbase 118
  4. ((Staging Area, Assembly Building)) ::The premiere trade district on Zakdorn filled the huge screen as Greir pressed a button on the lectern. There was a buzz of activity as goods were handled and checked for import and export. Upbeat, melodic trance techno music played in the background, but not so loudly that Greir could not be heard clearly over it. A few seconds later the camera zoomed out and the planet of Zakdorn filled the whole screen.:: ::This was going to be truly spectacular and he was very proud of not only his research but the way it was presented. He wasn’t going down the usual route for delivering a speech and the opener was designed to grab the audiences attention. :: Reinard: The Zakdorn have always been resourceful and prudent in their management of business. Even before your involvement with the Federation you had a strong and thriving economy. ::The image of the planet shrunk on the screen and slipped over to one side as a statistical overview displayed a year on year overview of key economic data for the years prior to their entry into the Federation. There was another zoom out as the camera took a trip around the system and the music's tempo increased. New statistical data appeared on the screen and graphs showed impressive spikes upwards as Zakdorn entered the Federation. Though the data changed he’d made sure there was enough time for the viewers to properly read and absorb the information.:: Reinard: It was by no miscalculation that the Zakdorn people chose to join the Federation. We opened the doors of the universe to you. ::The camera zoomed through the region, passing beautiful stars and planets along the biggest shipping lane as more statistics were relayed demonstrating how the economy had hugely been boosted by the new business opportunities that had opened up to them by joining the Federation. The displayed figures were clear for all the room to see and he knew every Zakdorn in the room could read the unspoken facts for themselves.:: Reinard: Business has boomed, your economy has grown and gone from strength to strength, but it’s not always been easy. Unfriendly factions have often tried to block or close that trade route. There have been incidences in which your cargo freighters, hauling high valued goods have come under attack. ::The beat and tempo of the music changed again and became more aggressive as the screen seemed to zoom in to a point until a lone Zakdorn cargo freighter travelling the trade route filled a good portion of the screen. It wasn’t real footage he was showing here, it was computer generated. It was a simulation based of real events and the date of the incident showed on the top left of the screen. A line from the freighter led to a box illustrating the ship, it’s cargo manifest and the value of goods it was carrying. It was a huge, slow, poorly armed ship but it was built like a tank and could sustain a lot of punishment...:: :: ...Which was just as well because at that point another, aggressive ship was seen to approach and start harassing the freighter. Weapons fire lit up the screen and struck at the ship whose defensive armaments were failing to do much damage in retaliation. The action played at an increased pace to give a taste of the events as they had unfolded and you could see the scars on the hull as the ship took more and more damage from the severe beating it was getting. As with the rest of it, the vital tactical information was flagged up to put the situation in perspective for the viewers. The time at which a distress call was made was flagged up on screen.:: ::So when the Federation ship was seen to warp in and take control of the situation you could see the response time. Considering how big space was Greir felt it was pretty good, in fact it was better than good to the point of being lucky. That is, lucky that there had happened to be a ship so close by at the time - otherwise things would have gone much more poorly and he wouldn’t be playing the clip here today.:: Reinard: The Federation supports its member worlds, whether it’s a single ship coming under attack or a group. ::The action on the screen continued as it slid and shrunk until it was only taking up the left half of the screen. The right half showed a second scene with a convoy of Zakdorn ships coming under attack much further down the trading route. It’s a similar scene. Even though the convoy worked as a team to focus what little firepower they had to do the most damage there was little impact. The group took heavy damage before a StarFleet ship arrived in time to save them and see the attackers off. More than that, in each case the StarFleet ships remained behind after the attack and sent repair crews to help fix the damaged ships. Then the StarFleet vessel escorted them along the route until repairs were finished, the area was deemed clear and it was appropriate to let them continue alone again.:: ::Greir had taken care to construct this part of the presentation to be as engaging visually as it was packed with all the facts and statistics the Zakdorn craved. Right now he only needed to solidify what was on the screen with some key points from himself.:: Reinard: We also make an excellent breakdown service. ::Smiling and adding a touch of humor.:: ::The left half of the screen shrunk to the top of the screen and was now filling a 1/4 of the space; the action continued to play out but it was near complete by now. The space that was vacated was filled with a new scene - of a freighter that hadn’t come under attack. One that had suffered mechanical failure - the details of which were highlighted in the appropriate place. Once again StarFleet was there to save the day.:: ::Thankfully the screen was big enough to accommodate all of this information clearly. :: Reinard: If the Zakdorn choose to leave the Federation in favor of an alliance with the Klingons this kind of support will not be provided and you will lose access to Federation worlds. The Klingons will consider you weak if you cannot stand alone and protect your own assets. Of course, you might argue the case that you don’t have to go far from home for good trading opportunities. ::It was time for the bigger picture and the music seemed to calm and slow back down, becoming more peaceful as a territory map of the Zeta Gelis region. Symbols for various resources appeared on the map and were listed in a key to the bottom right of the screen. It showed the various imports and exports and indicated a lot of expensive, heavy materials were being mined and traded and it was clear a lot of this supported their thriving construction industry.:: Reinard: It looks great right now but let’s see what happens when we strip away access to Federation Worlds. ::The screen changed and Zakdorn and it’s territory was now coloured red, the symbols for resources now closed to them were gone. They were replaced with symbols elsewhere of resources that the Klingons were known to be able to provide. The figures here were educated estimates that he’d worked out as accurately as possible to illustrate to them how a change of allegiance would hit their pockets. If Zakdorn and it’s colonies started losing as much money as was indicated by the projected figures it was going to affect their standard of living. He had no doubt they were smart enough to realise this.:: Reinard: ::Wincing for effect:: Ouch, that’s a blow, but that’s not all. The bigger picture is considerably worse. Take away the Federation and all those lucrative exports go. :: ::The map zoomed out displaying the entire map of the universe with all the territories marked in and colour coded. Only details for the biggest imports and exports were shown. The figures changed from showing current trading details to projected figures for a Klingon alliance, with the resource markers changing as before.:: Reinard: A number of your export businesses will dry up with a move away from the Federation. You will also lose access to these resources completely as the Klingon Empire doesn’t have access to them at all. ::Images of the resources danced across the screen. Some of these were as simple as popular food stuffs but a number of them were fairly important - such as construction materials and would most likely be missed. There was no doubt that an alternative would have to be found and that was both time consuming and costly.:: Reinard: ::Confidently:: I’m Lieutenant Commander Greir Reinard from the USS Vigilant. You built StarFleet this fantastic new ship and your contributions are widely known and appreciated. The USS Vigilant will add to our assets operating in and around the region. More support for you. As you can clearly see and will continue to see, the Zakdorn people simply cannot afford to leave the Federation. :: With a nervous glance around the room Greir noted his introduction seemed to have done an adequate job of grabbing the audience’s attention. All eyes were on him and he felt you could just about cut the atmosphere with a knife. Now that he had their attention he was going to hit them with his strongest point. This was the tough one, the Battle of Bondi.:: Reinard: You’ve already seen that the Federation offers a greater variety of resources and greater scope for trade. What you’ll see next is that though the Klingons are a formidable adversary they are no real threat to the Federation. ::Greir pressed a button to once again show the map of local areas of space, highlighting Zakdorn and Til’ahn - although it was labeled with it’s Federation designation Duronis II. Showing it in this way made sure all present were familiar with the planet as it’s relative proximity. Some details about the planet, it’s population - and facts that might interest the Zakdorn were displayed but he reiterated the most important one.:: Reinard: What follows next is live footage from a battle fought on Duronis II, which is not a Federation Member. StarFleet played a key role in helping the local militia remove the invading Klingons off the planet. ::Pressing another button the advisory warning appeared on the screen, giving adequate time for any who wished to leave to get up and do so. He didn’t know if any of the individuals present here today had heart problems. They were reputed to be quite healthy despite their size but Greir wasn’t a doctor and didn’t want to be responsible for any heart attacks. He didn’t expect any would leave but they had to have fair warning. Given the Minister's positive response earlier he was fairly hopeful of getting the result he wanted. :: ::The News feed began and the Laudean militia assembled in Bondi, Manar Providence, and prepared for battle. You could see them equipping themselves with disruptor weapons, and grenades as well as laying explosive charges. :: ::The Laudeans were down in the valley and StarFleet was supporting them up on the ridge in strategic positions. Greir was sure the Zakdorn could see the merit in the strategy used, indeed it had not taken a complicated Zakdorn strategy to push back the Klingons. The plan was simple and even a child could have anticipated it - he felt it did not paint the Klingons in a very good light.:: ::The Klingons advanced and when the time was right and they’d come far enough forward the Laudeans opened fire. The sound of battle filled the room. Greir kept his attention on the audience, trying to gauge their reaction. He could practically see the cogs turning in the minds of the audience as they weighed the merit of what was before them. Many faces did not look particularly impressed.:: ::Once more the sounds of explosions, screams, rockfall and weapons fire pierced his ears and the surround sound was doing it’s job. Greir felt his blood turn to ice but held steady and composed. StarFleet were giving it their all shooting and throwing grenades from above. The Brotherhood crumbled and their flank began to collapse forcing the Klingons to try resupplying them. Laudean fighters circled, firing down relentlessly and a StarFleet shuttle was zipping around dropping recovered mines in strategic locations. :: ::StarFleet soon started drawing fire but the Klingons had no success in their effort to return fire and eliminate the StarFleet threat. The Laudeans never let up and it was greatly revealing of the character and spirit of their people that they fought with such determination and passion. The battle finished with the Laudeans steamrolling the last of the Klingons and the eyes in the room turned once more to Greir.:: Reinard: Klingons are a warrior species by choice, the Laudeans are not but any species can step up and be warriors when what they hold dear is threatened. There is no doubt that the Federation presence in the region is enough to adequately support Zakdorn IV, because it’s also adequate enough to support non-member worlds. ::Greir had only received this next data recently and so had no supporting footage to go with it, so the data was displayed in a more simplified way on the screen and contained other key dates and battles where the Klingons had failed to conquer Federation worlds and he had another prime example standing just behind him.:: Reinard: It took no sophisticated Zakdorn plan to defeat the Klingons. If a species so devoted to the art of war cannot defeat peaceful species such as the Laudeans, what hope do they have of defeating larger foes, like the Brikar? ::Greir spared a purposeful glance back to Eerie to draw the audiences attention to him.:: Reinard: Lieutenant Commander Eerie here, is Brikar and I’m sure he would love to share some war stories with you as the Brikar are also a warrior race. They are renowned for their stoic nature and devotion to duty and I would rather take a Brikar into battle than a Klingon - any day! They are sturdy and can withstand tremendous phaser fire, they can breathe underwater for over twenty minutes. They’re as tough as they come, fearsome and powerful in battle - but more than that they’re reliable and trustworthy. They won’t turn on you when the wind changes. ::Here he was referring to the fact the Klingons had in the past made and broken alliances to further their own personal agendas. Greir had no doubt in his mind that the Klingons would turn on the Zakdorn the minute they had whatever it was they were after here and he hoped they’d be smart enough to realise it too.:: ::The Klingons had tried several times in battle to conquer the Brikar and failed. If the Brikar Defence Force had only been stronger they could have been the ones steamrolling through the galaxy instead. The battle details were up on the screen and Greir summarized the final battle. :: Reinard: The Klingons finally realised they could not conquer the Brikar on Stardate 234112.07 after the battle for Purex Sector. ::A system map highlighted the 5th planet in the system and displayed statistics on the ground and space assets deployed by both forces.:: Reinard: While the Klingon Empire had a vast numerical superiority of starships and was a bit more advanced technologically they met Brikar for the first time in ground to ground combat. Brikar ground troops destroyed a Klingon division in pitch battle and the Klingons lost thousands of troops. The Brikar forces had a handful of deaths and only about 100 injured. ::Greir paused and let them absorb the simple fact that the Brikar had effectively rolled over an entire Klingon division and had sustained minimal casualties. The Brikar space forces had fared poorly and had lost 10 of 12 starships while only managing to destroy 2 Klingon battle cruisers. Greir did not mention this, though it was available in the statistics that were displayed. It had not been Federation Starships involved in the conflict - which had taken place before the Brikar had joined the Federation. The point was to illustrate the considerable capabilities of one of the Federations most powerful warrior races.:: Reinard: The Federation being made up of so many species, all having equal rights and value is not a weakness - it is a strength. Every species has it’s strengths and weaknesses but every race adds something to the Federation which makes it stronger. The greatest strategists know how to capitalize on this to get the greatest returns. ::This led him onto his final point of the presentation. He continued to observe the audience and was mindful that he didn’t want to lose their attention by dragging this out too long. He felt he’d struck the right balance as he moved on to finish it.:: Reinard: The Federation has brought to you bio-neural gel packs which have greatly enhanced the computer architecture of your supercomputers allowing them to process considerably more complex data and strategies. Perhaps now they can keep up with the Zakdorn mind. :: He smiled charismatically and noted the response to another little light comment.:: Reinard: Mark IV construction mechs, brought to you by the Federation have halved construction time for you. This has not only saved you money but allowed you to fill more orders. ::His handy statistics were back, showing how business had boomed with a nice image showing the construction mechs at work next to it. Yes, he was fully emphasising and driving it home now. Federation, Federation, Federation. Construction was one of their major industries and this had been a huge leap forward for them, so he wasn’t going to let them forget it.:: ::The next example was a little weaker but only in the sense that the Zakdorn didn’t have starships of their own. They had 6 defense satellites around the planet only. However these torpedoes were being used in defence of Zakdorn, it’s people and assets so still very relevant and showed StarFleet’s ability to keep producing it’s own top level military technology.:: Reinard: The Federation is very pleased with it’s Quantum Torpedos. The USS Vigilant is equipped with 5 pulse-fire quantum torpedo launchers and will use them where necessary to defend you, your people and your assets as we’ve done throughout our alliance. ::In some ways Greir was saving the best for last and he was sure the audience was getting hungry by now. He wouldn’t have been surprised at all to learn the Zakdorn people enjoy 7 meals a day. If nothing else in his speech had sated their appetite for answers he hoped that this would finally fill them.:: Reinard: As if that wasn’t enough the Federation has also introduced you to the wonderful technology of food replication. The replicator, an absolute must in every household. Saving time and effort, allowing access to a far wider variety of foods and drink as well as eliminating waste. It has raised the living standards for all. ::The final image on the screen was a clever representation of all the points he was pushing formed in such a way as to really highlight and summarize the symbiotic relationship between the Federation and the Zakdorn. This was primarily a pro-Federation campaign after all, the fact it highlighted the Klingons in a bad way in many situations was a bonus.:: Reinard: The Zakdorn made the right choice in choosing an alliance with the Federation. The opportunities for trade and the exchange of knowledge and technology have benefited us both. Closing those doors will damage your economy and standard of living because the Klingons simply can’t compare when it comes to providing the range and quality of opportunities that we do. ::This had been demonstrated from the start and was represented in the final image.:: Reinard: We’ve been through so much together and supported each other when threatened by enemies more dangerous than the Klingons - like the Dominion and the Borg. The Klingons think they are the premiere warriors in the universe but time and again the Federation and it’s member worlds have driven back their invading forces. ::The screen slowly faded to black.:: Reinard: To leave the Federation and form an alliance with the Klingons who are as unreliable as they are ineffective is as smart as constructing a war strategy by rolling dice. Lt Cmdr Reinard Chief Counsellor USS Vigilant
  5. ((Assembly Chamber, Prak Zel)) ::Following Minister Haksar into the lion's den, Diego caught himself tapping his PADD against his leg and quickly flipped it through his fingers to look at the display. He had left himself bullet points to guide his speech along with the necessary logs and records from his various sources. As he was shown to the lectern in the centre of the room, he was pleased to see an LCARS interface, which was going to make the technical side of the affair relatively easy, at least.:: ::Many of the seats around the chamber had now been filled, and those that weren't were about to be, it seemed. Zakdorn were filing in through doors on the upper level. The atmosphere was entirely different now to how it had been during their previous visit. Granted, there had been tension between Haksar and Wadke but this was more electric. Anticipation from both sides laced the atmosphere; this felt comparable to the feeling that Diego often experienced at the beginning of a Parrises Squares match, with two sides staring each other down, each trying to anticipate the other's tactics and plan accordingly.:: ::Tapping at the lectern controls, Diego transferred the files from his PADD to the device, ready to start his presentation. Instantly, the viewscreen switched to a split field, with the Federation logo on the left and the Zakdorn emblem on the right. Diego turned towards Haksar, who was still positioned nearby.:: Herrera: Everything's set, unless you can think of anything else? Haksar: I have full confidence in you Captain, and you too Ensign. ::Smiling:: Just be true to your convictions and you will be fine. Herrera: Alright. ::He clapped a hand on the Minister's shoulder in thanks.:: You've been a big help. Haksar: Not at all. Thank you Captain! And it's been a pleasure working with you madam. Androsia: Yes Minister, as always you have remained a true delight and a refreshing presence here on Prak Zel. Whatever success shall be had here today, I know you have played a key role in it. Thank You again. ::The Minister left to assume his position in the Assembly Chamber. Diego looked around the room for a moment; a sea of faces looked down on his position with great interest and comments were already being passed between members, all lost in the sea of general conversation. There was a seat placed alongside him on which Ensign Androsia could sit during the address and as she was about to settle, Diego took one final opportunity to ease his nerves.:: Herrera: You'd better be ready for questions. Androsia: My dear Captain, THEY had better be ready for some answers. Do not fear, you will do just fine, of this I have no doubts. Herrera: ::Smiling:: I'm not worried. If the Minister's appetite is anything to go by, we'll be done in time for lunch. Androsia: Very true, though too I fear it is the Zakdorn and Klingon appetite’s alike that have caused this issue in the first place. But nonetheless, you must focus. ::A pre-recorded chime rang throughout the building, followed by an announcement that the assembly was in session. Diego listened as his name was announced, as was Androsia's, alongside the matter for discussion. The massed Ministers fell silent one by one and Diego left them that way for a moment before launching into his address, tapping at the lectern controls to bring up his first visual rendition of a sensor log.:: ::On the wall, the Klingon moon Praxis exploded.:: Herrera: 2293. The Klingon empire experiences a disaster that throws their home planet into turmoil. This was the trigger for one of the most important events in the history of the Federation: the signing of the Khitomer accords. Since that day, we have been allied with the Klingons, for better or for worse, for almost a century. We have traded with each other. Explored each other's culture. Protected each other. ::He paused just long enough to let that sentence hang in the air.:: There have been times when we have stood together to face unrelenting enemies. We stared into the eyes of the Dominion and we did not blink. Even after General Martok was replaced by a changeling and our two powers stood on the brink of war, we were able to patch things up and put our differences behind us. ::The viewscreen changed to a display of the Klingon incursion into the Trinity sector, depicted as a tactical map.:: Herrera: Recently, something changed. The Klingons' thirst for war reawakened. After the Hobus supernova, they were given the opportunity to exact what they would consider to be revenge against a long standing enemy. The Federation objected. The Romulans are in no position to threaten us on any major scale, after all. Their homeworld and their fleets are in disarray and it will be decades before they can rebuild. Even then, they would need our help and support and in that time we have an opportunity to forge peaceful relations with the Star Empire. It's happened before, briefly, on a range of different occasions. Unfortunately, that doesn't appeal to the Klingon psyche. ::Knowing the next part of his speech well enough that he did not need to look at his notes, Diego wandered out from behind the lectern, leaning back against it and folding his arms.:: Herrera: If we go back to Praxis for a moment... that was the start of quite a different journey. You see, the Klingons made peace with the Federation because they needed us. Their technology was not as advanced as our own. They had concentrated for too long on making weapons, ships and cloaking devices, but without resources to power them, they were dead in the water. We supported them as they asked. We took the initiative in forging peace with their worlds. Without our help, who knows whether they would have survived the explosion of Praxis and maybe the Romulans would have had a chance to finish them off? Sure, the Klingons fought alongside us during the Dominion War, but who was first onto Cardassia Prime? It was Starfleet who sent support to the Cardassian Resistance and that led to the Founder Leader being taken hostage. Who fought against the Scarlet Brotherhood when they threatened to take control of Deep Space Nine and the wormhole? Who was it who came out on top when we last locked horns? Without wanting to cause any offence, the Klingon invasion forces did not even push us into a position where a drawn out conflict ensued and that meant that we did not even reach a stage where the superior tactical minds of the Zakdorn were called into play. Wouldn't it be infuriating to engage in fight after fight alongside an ally that wasn't patient enough to listen to you? That has consistenly depended on the Federation for aid? That has lost out to us so many times when we have fought? ::Turning around, he changed the screen to a map of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants:: If our methods are so weak, why is our territory larger than the Klingons'? ::Returning to his original position, he showed footage of the first fleet engaging a Borg Cube at Earth.:: Herrera: Maybe the Klingons did employ tactics in certain situations. Where were they when the Borg attempted an invasion of Earth? Where were they at Wolf 359? Perhaps their long-term goal in that regard was to let Starfleet get wiped out while they turned a blind eye? ::Without warning, he cut the video feed altogether.:: Herrera: Or, maybe they didn't. Maybe there isn't going to be a war. Maybe we're looking at a rogue faction of Klingons that has very little support on the High Council. Think what would happen then if Zakdorn IV were to withdraw from Federation membership and join the Klingon Empire. Would you still enjoy the same privileges you do with us? There's a common misconception throughout the Federation sometimes that the founding races receive preferential treatment. I can't argue with the fact that there are still more humans in Starfleet than any other race, but we're talking non-military benefits as well here. The Zakdorn, by virtue of being members of the Federation, have access to some of the greatest scientific minds in the galaxy. There are opportunities to interact with other species and benefit from their unique talents. Vulcan logic. Human resourcefulness. Bajoran spiritualism. Trill experience. Bolian enterprise. By replacing that all with the Klingons' prowess in battle, your world would lose more than it would gain. And while the Klingon High Council might be grateful, where are the guarantees that they will look after your non-military interests in the same way as the Federation? ::He looked around the room, trying to make eye contact with as many people as possible in quick succession. When next he spoke, he had dropped his voice to a near whisper.:: Herrera: Will you sacrifice culture, science and risk your race's identity over the half-truths the pro-Klingon movement offers you? Or will you see this for what it truly is: an ill-planned attempt to switch reason for armament? I'd like you all to think about that carefully for a moment before I open the floor for questions. ::Conversation bloomed once more around the room as Ministers considered what had been said. Diego looked to his diplomatic officer for her reaction.:: Androsia: Captain...if they don’t see the logic and reason and truth and passion from what you’ve said...I don’t think they are deserving to be in the Federation from this point on. Herrera: That should provoke a few interesting questions, I hope. Androsia: Oh no doubt about that. Nows time that we hear a few challenging roars. But don’t worry, I am with you in this and you did as admirably if not more so as could ever be asked of a true StarFleet Captain. ::Another chime brought the Ministers slowly to silence. The grilling was about to begin.:: TAG/TBC Captain Diego HerreraCommanding OfficerUSS VigilantNCC-75515http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php?title=Herrera,_Diego
  6. ((StarFleet Intelligence, Operative branch)) :: Chang stood before a window, looking in on one of her former operatives. Alix Ozera had been a promising prospect, and his early initiative had garnered him several undercover assignments, of which te information he had obtained had been quite usable to Starfleet...except the last mission he was sent on. He had returned and been debriefed, he seemed fine..but once it had been determined that he had been compromised by the Orion Syndicate, culminating in the attempted assassination of Commander Hannibal Parker, an attempt which was foiled by Isaac Bale aboard the USS Mercury. Since then, Alix had remained in custody, and repeated debriefings could shed no more light as to where the chip which had been implanted in his brain had come from, or who had given him the order to do it. :: Much information had been gained from the information retrieved on Duronis, and it was still being analysed. One of the things Starfleet did was to order Chang to pull some of her deep cover operatives out of the Orion Syndicate, while some, who were too deep, were allowed to stay. Of those she recalled, one was Alisha Ozera, Alix's sister. She had been invaluable in her role, but Starfleet decided that she needed to be reassigned back in her old role as a Medical analyst, much to Changs' displeasure. Alisha had given up a lot to work in deep cover, and she was good at it.Chang had summoned her here to see her brother, and to tell her of her reassignment. In some ways, this would be good for her, as she could spend time with her brother while he recovered, and Alisha's first assignment would be to find out who made that chip and where could they be found...:: ::Many things were on Alisha Ozera’s mind, and most of them troubled her. Her brother’s condition had deteriorated – back on the [REDACTED], his brain had done some rather odd things, giving off strange readings – at one stage, it seemed like he was having an unexplained seizure. Alisha was Alix’s twin sister – she couldn’t stand by and watch his brain give up on him. ::But it wasn’t just Alix that was starting to concern her. After going through the procedure to have her Human DNA flushed out and “swapped” with an Orion’s, turning her skin permanently green and making the computer register her as Orion, she felt . . . stronger. More physically able than what she used to. Whether it was something to do with the newly-implanted Orion DNA or not, she didn’t know, but she was starting to like it. But due to the constantly changing situation, the process looks like it was all done for nothing. Alisha was going to be reassigned, and she didn’t like the sound of that. She had already spent too much time as a Medical Analyst on Chang’s ship, and she didn’t intend on doing it again. Sure, she appreciated Chang for pulling her out of the cold and allowing her to do what she had been doing, but she didn’t appreciate being assigned a task which would become boring very quickly. ::Alisha shook her head slowly at herself. No, she wasn’t going to allow Intelligence to put her in some room with a heap of data on “strange” deaths that other Medical officers “couldn’t explain”. And she wasn’t going to allow them to lock Alix in a cell in his condition, when he clearly didn’t remember the assassination attempt on Commander Parker – if there ever was one, as Isaac Bale seemed far too interested in Alix’s case than what he would normally be; for all Alisha knew, it was Bale that had committed the attempt on Parker’s life, and it was Alix that had stopped him. With all Bale’s mucking around, there was no longer proof of what had actually happened . . . and that’s what’s been keeping Intelligence from locking Alix in some hell hole somewhere as soon as they possibly could. No proof.:: Chang: : Looking at the chip in Alishas' hand:: It's amazing something so small could cause so much damage..... ::Alisha barely acknowledged the woman standing next to her. Alisha had been watching the operation to remove the foreign chip from Alix’s head – a delicate operation that *should* have had Alisha at the well, but, according to regulation, she wasn’t allowed to due to being his sister. The group of “doctors” had finished, and Alix was already hours into recovery, but that didn’t stop Alisha from examining the small chip that had apparently made Alix a killing machine. But it wasn’t concern for Alix that had her examining it – in reality, it was for potential use . . . for Volkoff Industries.:: Alisha: It’s a very interesting piece of equipment. Especially if it’s from the Brotherhood or the Syndicate. I sent a deal out as Volkoff to see if I can catch the creators. Chang: Do you think that was wise? Alisha: Well, it’s the logical thing to do. The chip comes from the two organizations, Volkoff Industries sells weapons to both of them, and I head the industry. It was quicker than becoming a new identity all together. :: Alisha did have a point...but it could also raise red flags and Alisha would then be in more danger. Both the Scarlet Brotherhood and Orion Syndicate would be very wary of dealing with someone new, and the power vacum currently sweeping through both organizations, both sides had itchy trigger fingers...hence, the pullback ordered by Starfleet Intelligence..:: Chang: It light of recent events, it would seem to be wise....and you can still monitor the progress of your inquiry from your new post... ::Alisha put down the chip at the mentioning of a new post. Slowly, she turned her eyes to Chang.:: Alisha: Director, I’m not *Human* anymore, and you know why? To make the cover of Vivian Volkoff more believable and convincing to buyers. Putting me in a different position means that I’ve done all this, gone through so much pain, for *nothing*. :: Chang undestood how she felt...no field operative liked being reassigned to perform "staff" work. As important as it was, there were those in the upper echelons of Intelligence who have forgotten the adrenaline rush, the sacrifice, the living on the edge that came with field work. Then, she thought again...most in the upper echelons WERE analysts who had done very little field work...that was how they managed to survive to achieve such a rank in the first place...:: Chang: Alisha...if it makes you feel any better, I was not in favor of the reassignment. You have established a solid cover, and your information has been spot on:: Looking at her:: Being here will also give you a chance to check on your brother more frequently than if you were in deep cover... Alisha: I am *Orion*! My life has been taken away. I am no longer *related* to Alix, purely because it was necessary! Chang: In many ways, our lives are not ours to have. We serve a jealous master in Starfleet Intelligence...those deltas on the walls mean something, Alisha... :: Chang was referring to the large white granite wall in Starfleet Intelligence headquarters in San Franciscoonto which black deltas were affixed..each delta representing a member of Starfleet Intelligence who had lost their life in performance of their duty. Three of those had been recently added, one representing Tallis Soban, killed by the Orion Syndicate. That sobering fact was one which weighed on her mind daily as her operatives went about their dangerous, but necessary work...:: ::Sure, they mean throwing away two years work for some idiot behind a desk.:: Alisha: I can’t stand this anymore, Chang. ::She stood up.:: I’m going to see my brother. At this stage, he has more difficult work to do then what I would in years if I’m forced to work as an analyst. ::The Orion stood up, leaving the room and Chang to her thoughts. What Chang didn’t realize, however, was the Alisha had swapped the chip that had controlled Alix with a fake. Her plan was now in motion, and she had little time before someone realized what she was doing.:: :: Chang watched her go, but something within her was telling her that Alisha more more than unhappy with her new assignment, and her feelings of unsatisfaction. Chang sttod up to leave, and preceeded out to check on the repairs to her ship. They should be close to finished by now, and the rest of her crew could continue to enjoy the rare opportunity to enjoy Earth..:: ((Recovery, StarFleet Intelligence)) Alisha: How are you feeling? Ozera: Better then what I did a few days ago . . . ::The Terran tugged at his restraints and motioned to the lack of his left hand.:: Nice to know that they trust me. ::During an early mission with the Marines, Alix’s hand had been severed. The details as of why were unknown, but Intelligence reports suggested that it was to save his life – and as he was stuck in a Borg-prone area, it seemed logical enough. So, it was replaced with a robotic one, and apparently, the officers that put the restraints on him didn’t want to take any chances.:: Alisha: I’m surprised to see you up this quickly. While the chip was deep in the brain, it’s still a lot to recover from. Ozera: The doctors said I’ll be absolutely fine in a matter of days. ::Taking a hypospray, Alisha loaded it up with a knock-out drug.:: Alisha: Good. Unfortunately, I can’t take any chances, and having you fall unconscious when we’re trying to escape this branch is only makes things harder. Ozera: Understanda- Wait, *what*? ::It was then that Alisha released the spray into Alix’s neck, and the Terran’s eyes shut.:: Volkoff: I’ll talk to you later. ::Oh yes. StarFleet Intelligence had a traitor, and a very dangerous one at that. Alisha has always been “iffy” when it came to Intelligence. Never reporting on time, making ridiculous “mistakes”, constantly arguing and threatening Chang. Alisha was a ruse, and she was about to walk out of Intelligence without even a scratch due to the leverage on the bed that she was now moving.:: Officer: Hey, *stop*! ::Having no time for a random Intelligence officer, Vivian immediately disabled him, snapping his neck in the process, which immediately got the attention of the rest of the branch, the alarm going off when the life-sign suddenly disappeared. Soon, she’d be surrounded, but Vivian Volkoff had a plan for that, and everybody watching knew it.:: ::After defeating several officers, Vivian had gotten to the front doors, of which she knew, by experience, would be in lockdown, and trying to transport out of the main base would be a no-go, especially if Chang had anything to do with it. She wasn’t stupid. So, turning around to face the hoard of officers with phasers, rifles and even disruptors, the Orion merely laughed. A field officer would have jumped her by now, Allison would have shot her by now, but neither Kamela Allison or any properly trained field officers were present. Standing before her were merely analysts and scientists that were hardly worth the trouble.:: :: Chang was three levels below Medical when the klaxon went off..a truly unusual event. Chang ordered the facility locked down, making it impossible to beam out or leave. The facility was low level,nondescript, but bereft of operatives for the most part. Chang knew the security personnell were good, but nothing was kept there of great importance. The lift stopped and Chang was hung between floors until she entered her override code to get the lift moving..this time, moving towards the upper level and the exit. The doors opened and she was greeted by a sea of personnell storming towards the front doors. She knew beaming out was impossible, and the facility was locked down...no code would open those doors except one...and Chang had it.Changs' short stature made it impossible for her to see who was now trapped at the front doors until she fought her way to the front of the line...and she was shocked and enraged at what she saw. Alisha had gone rougue, and was taking her brother with her...:: Chang: There is no escape Alisha....you know that...... Volkoff: If you managed to catch me, we’d both know I’d be in a cell by now. Chang: What do you want? Volkoff: I want to leave. Chang: You have no reason to. Your brother needs care. What other possible reason would you want to leave? :: Chang thought about the chip, and a know grew in her gut....she was selling out to the Orions.....:: Volkoff: Isn’t it obvious? I have *buyers* to get to. So let’s say we put forward out stakes and speed this up. ::She pulled out her phaser, and pointed it at Alix’s head.:: Allow me to leave, or your chance at ever finding out how Ozera got a controller chip in his head is gone forever. :: Chang knew that if she had Bale, Allison, or any one of her other operatives, the woman would have been dead by now, or at least stunned.There were several weapons pointed at Alisha,and they were good shots, not snipers..which meant that they could not take out Alisha without also taking out her brother.. The worst part was, Alisha did not even have to have her phaser set to kill to take out her brother, not with the emitter right next to Alixs' head. She had one choice...try to stall her, and hope she made a mistake...:: Chang: Alisha...the Orion Syndicate is responsible for what happened to you brother...you know that...why would you want to abandon Starfleet to join them? :: Chang took a step forward..there were only fifteen meters seperating them....:: Volkoff: It’s not the Orions that want him, it’s the Brotherhood. They only joined forces with the Orions in order to achieve a common goal. You’d know this, except your other analysts are useless. ::She sighed, apparently getting a bit bored of the situation.:: The reason I’m leaving is because Intelligence has no use for me anymore, and my file has some serious red flags, which means that some idiot behind a desk will attach my file to a cancel order – I’d be sent into a room, and eliminated so that I don’t cause any more trouble for your little organization. Alix is merely leverage to help me leave. If he wants to come back and face cancelation, I’ll let him do so, but first, he’s going to help me leave. Chang: Alisha...there are other ways to achieve your goal. Let Alix go, and come with me to the (REDACTED).We can sort it all out there...I know you are upset, and you could be a great asset here... :: Chang knew that once she got to space, all bets were off. There were only three starships currently in the Sol system...hers, the USS Thunder-A, and the USS Charleston. All the crews were on holiday leave, and even if they were available, persuing Alisha, who was trained to evade, would be difficult. Her ship was the only one which could catch her, but her impulse engines were still being repaired.She picked a good time for a jailbreak..:: Volkoff: Chang, you’ve got twenty seconds before I pull the trigger and kill Ozera. It’s either I kill him and disappear, *or*, you let us go and he comes back after I leave the system. ::She wasn’t bluffing and she wasn’t lying – there was no hint of hesitation (she was trained to avoid it and do whatever necessary to complete a mission), and there was no look of fear in her eyes. From the looks of things, she’d willingly kill her own brother just to get out of the Sol System and back to Volkoff Industries. Vivian knew that without Alix, if she got out of Intelligence, she’d merely be caught once she got back onto her ship. Taking Alix with her was really the only way out, and Chang wasn’t going to just let Volkoff kill Alix . . . was she? No matter. Alix was just colattoral damage. Alisha Ozera was the chameleon, changing appearance with ease and skipping past borders without problems – disappearing and becoming someone else was what she did for a living. Volkoff, however, was going to be better. She was going to be the master, and she knew she’d get out of the facility one way or another, and disappear until she got back to her ship, Alix, or no Alix.:: :: Chang looked into Alishas' eyes...she knew there was no doubt she would kill Alix if she had to, but it also meant that she would die in a hail of phaser and disruptor fire. Chang was faced with an impossible choice...they would either both die, or they would both escape. Chang was enraged, but only her calm was appaarent. She took another step closer to Alisha...her next words as cold as space...:: Chang: If you do this, you know we will hunt you down...and you know what that means...... Volkoff: Oh I know very well what it means – a cancel order will be put on my file, and I get quick and easy access into the Orion Syndicate. ::She pressed the phaser into her brother’s temple.:: And now you’re out of time. What’s it going to be? :: The phaser firmly against Alixs' temple made her meaning clear:: ::Chang keyed in the override command to open the doors ONLY, so as long as she was on the grounds, she was still vulnerable..and carrying her brother would have to slow her down some....... ::As the door opened, Vivian pulled herself and Ozera out the doors, the hoard of officers and doctors gathered, watching her leave the facility, unable to do anything about it without losing an asset. While Chang probably thought that she could take Vivian out, the Orion with her hostage had a plan.:: Volkoff: Good choice. I’m sure we’ll be in touch, Director Chang. Chang: Your [...] right...we will be...... :: Chang was hoping Alisha would surrender...but as time went by, surrender was no longer an option on the table for her..:: ::The crowd in the building and the few officers that had their weapon trained on her outside of it stared. Time seemed slow, and there was little regret in Volkoff’s eyes. She couldn’t help but think, however, that she was leaving her family. No matter – she was sure that she’d be up against StarFleet soon enough. Finally, as she walked out of the facility gates, Vivian pulled a signal transmitter out of her pocket and pressed the button. Outside of the grounds, the lockdown was pointless. Volkoff, and her hostage, were beamed up to a ship.:: :: Chang silently cursed herself.. Alisha was a trained and skilled operative, and her transmitter had the ability to beam through shields. She watched as the shimmer of a transporter beam took Alisha and Alix away...they were now fugitives. Chang hurried back inside and quickly issued a scrambled and encrypted broadcast to every Intelligence outlet in Starfleet, and uploaded to every Intelligence briefing to every Starfleet installation. The orders were simple...if spotted, moniter her movements, but do not engage. Intelligence would track her..and eventually, Alisha would lead them to the new heads of the Orion Syndicate...and the Scarlet Brotherhood..and they would all suffer for the pain they have caused...:: ((4 hours later, Unknown Orion vessel)) ::Volkoff had merely waited during the hours of Alix being unconscious. While she wasn’t patient with her buyers or her own “crew”, she was much kinder to the Terran on the biobed. She wanted answers, and if she was going to mass-produce or even sell the chip, she was going to need to know what he had experienced. After he had told her everything he could, she would let him go, but not without offering him a position within Volkoff Industries. But finally, he stirred and opened his eyes with a groan.:: Ozera: I would feel better if you had physically knocked me out . . . ::Volkoff smiled a little, crossing her arms.:: Volkoff: I’m afraid that would have been *too* convincing for your Director. I had to make her believe that I would actually kill you, not torture you. That’s how your operatives make mistakes. ::She could tell that he was calm with the situation. While he was barely conscious, Alix was able to work out what had happened – he was in some sort of area that belonged to Orions, Alisha was not in a uniform, and there were no tools of torture or death nearby. He wasn’t even restrained, and his hand was back on his left arm. It seemed like they trusted him.:: Ozera: You defected. Volkoff: No, just changed my identity like I had a few months ago. ::She stood up to look out the window, the stars shooting past with the ship at warp speed.:: I needed your help to get out, and you gave it to me. For that, I’m in your debt. Ozera: And help wasn’t given unwillingly. ::He stared at her.:: It’s nice to finally meet you, Miss Volkoff. Volkoff:::She turned around to face him around.:: You too, Mister Ozera. ::Vivian pulled a data display over to the bed, the details of Volkoff Industries loaded up.:: Volkoff: Now, Mister Ozera, I’d like to propose an offer. Ozera: Oh? Volkoff: To repay you for your troubles, you have a choice on what you’re going to do next. You can either leave, and return to StarFleet Intelligence, *or*, you can join us here at Volkoff Industries as soon as you’re up and running about. ::Alix tilted his head a little, a grin on his face. Vivian couldn’t tell whether it was because he thought she was joking or if he was considering joining her.:: Ozera: It really depends on what position I’d be getting. I don’t exactly want to leave Intelligence for a desk job in an enemy company. ::Vivian shrugged. Alix Ozera was a very strong man, very resilient and demanding when he wanted to be. If he was going to be a part of the company, the Terran would have to shove his way in, and that meant playing the bad guy *permenantly*, being quick on his feet and trusting no one but Volkoff herself. Of course, he’d have to learn the ropes, especially if he was going to be placed in the position Vivian thought he was suited for.:: Volkoff: You are my most trusted asset, Mister Ozera, with skills I can’t deny – I can assure you that Volkoff Industries is merely here to help with the . . . growing economy of the Orions. Therefore, you’ll be my second in command and my security chief. ::Weakly, Alix folded his arms and stared at Vivian.:: Ozera: Your First Officer? ::Vivian nodded, and Alix smiled.:: Well, in that case, when do I start? JP by Vivian Volkoff Head of Volkoff Industries As simmed by LtCmdr Sky Blake Chief of Security/Second Officer USS Avandar & Chang Director, Starfleet Intelligence USS( REDACTED) As simmed by: Major Hannibal Tiberious Parker 2nd Officer/ Marine Commander/ Chief Of Strategic Operations USS Thunder/ Duronis II Embassy
  7. ((T’Mar’s Quarters, USS Apollo)) ::As the Betazoid man moved into her quarters, he smiled slightly. He took his seat on the floor and looked toward her as she lit the candles. He could almost sense the emotions in her raging like a summer storm. There was something much different about her than standard issue Vulcans. It was almost as if there was a [...] holding back everything, but it was leaking. He was not sure about how she was able to suppress her emotions as well as those from others around her. Being a Vulcan with empathic abilities, no matter how small, was a difficult thing to imagine.:: ::T’Mar lit her candles then sat down across from Zage. She looked at him in the eye, wondering why he was so willing to help her. She was thankful, but at the same time worried. When she was around him, her emotions were harder to suppress. She could only hope that these lessons would help her control that.:: T’Mar: Where shall we begin? Bolani: Close your eyes, and take a few deep breaths. T’Mar: ::Raising an eyebrow:: Alright.. ::Immediately, she closed her eyes and straightened her back, her hands in her lap and her shoulders back. It was a position she often was in when she meditated throughout the day. She began breathing in deeply through her nose, her chest rising, she held it for a moment then breathing out through her nose. As she relaxed, she let her wall drop that attempted to block out others’ emotions. For a moment she thought she sensed attraction from Zage, but she tossed it aside, figuring she was sensing someone else.:: ::As she closed her eyes, Zage glanced at her demeanor. He wanted to look for physical signs of stress and tension. Occasionally, he would catch himself admiring her features. It was something he would not dare be caught doing. As she drew her breaths one by one, he watched as she started to center. Closing his eyes, he began projecting a sense of calm as best as he could. His empathic abilities were good, but far from strong. He wondered if she was able to sense his feelings.:: Bolani: Are you able sense where your feelings start, and where mine begin? T’Mar: I.. ::She hesitated, afraid to prod and sense Zage’s feelings. She decided to just let it all go for the moment. It was not logical, of course, but an empathic Vulcan was biologically not logical! She stopped forcing the suppression her own emotions, which allowed her to sense Zage’s as well. With her mental walls down, she now had a better focus the feelings that she sensed from others. She found it almost exhilarating for a moment:: T’Mar: Yes. I do! ::With his eyes closed he listened intently. Until now, he was not sure how much of her feelings she allowed to surface. She was an odd creature to watch while on duty. Some moments we was as Vulcan as Vulcan could be. In other moments, her emotions were like a ray of sunshine barely shining through the clouds.:: Bolani: Tell me what you can decipher. T’Mar: Well.. I sense that my behaviour confuses you and.. ::She focused and once again sensed feelings of lust, which amused her:: nevermind. ::Suddenly T’Mar was afraid. She had never been so open with her feelings. She felt herself wanting to suppress her own emotions again. It had been so long since she had fully acknowledged her own feelings. She opened her eyes and looked at Zage.:: You will keep all of this private, correct? Bolani: ::smiling:: Of course. What happens behind the walls of this room will remain in this room. ::He thought for a moment about their location. If she were Human, or any other species it might have sounded like he was hitting on her, but given the situation it was a completely benign comment. Keeping their interactions private was his top priority. In the end, it would only help her develop things. At some point if she no longer wanted to sense the emotions of others, he could teach her to drown it out. At the same time, he could teach her to really be in tune with what is going on around her.:: T’Mar: I know. Thank you. I just.. I do not feel comfortable showing emotions around others. It’s not logical... but I know that this is necessary. ::For a moment, she wanted to hold his hand. She yearned for comfort. She then thought about the Vulcan she had been bonded with as a child. She never spoke of him, because she barely remembered him. He was a scientist and the last she had heard, he was on a ship studying dark matter. He would never comfort her. He would never understand what it is like to struggle with emotions. They should have been married by now, but neither one of them had been able to make it to a ceremony due to their duties. As far as she was concerned, she would never marry the cold man.:: ::Then she thought of Zage. He understood empathy and feelings in general. Perhaps, though, he didn’t fully understand her Vulcan side..:: ::Zage could sense her discomfort. It was akin to the feeling one would get doing anything for the first time. He remembered the first time he went skiing. He was so worried he would fall in the snow and tumble down the hill. He recalled how awkward he felt, but it did not last very long. Sure he fell from time to time, but he was able to get right back up. By the time he was done with his first trip, he could not wait to go back and do it again. After years of skiing, he was pretty good at it. Most things in life were like that. Bolani: Good. Now, broaden your focus to reach out into the corridor. Anyone out there walking by? Do you sense anything? ::T’Mar broadened her focus and was overwhelmed with many emotions belonging to many people in the surrounding quarters. She found it hard to distinguish at first, but she forced herself to focus on the corridor.:: T’Mar: I sense someone.. they are stressed, worried about something. Bolani: Now, very quickly, focus on yourself. What are you feeling right now? ::It was a simple question. She needed to be able to quickly distinguish between the feelings of others and her own. Betazoids had a the gift to project emotions, and the burden of allowing the emotions of others affect them. He was wondering how she would be as she progressed. Vulcans and Betazoids are the polar opposites. He had no idea how someone in her family managed to procreate with a Betazoid. Of all the ways they were incompatible, it was odd and intriguing at the same time.:: ::T’Mar tried to determine how she was feeling, but it went against everything she was taught. She wasn’t supposed to have emotions. Was she worried or was that the person in the corridor?:: T’Mar: I am uncertain how to answer. Why must I sense my own emotions? Should we not be focusing on others’? Bolani: The more you focus the better reception you will get this early in your development. It is also important that you try to switch back to your own emotions, such as they are, as often as possible. This will help prevent you from sharing in the emotions of others. Think of it like being out of your body. The longer you are, the easier it will be to become involved in others. Focusing on yourself is a way to center yourself. ::Most species would be able to do this easily. Because Vulcans suppressed their emotions, it would be harder for her. She would have to embrace her own emotions and it would oddly go against what she did on a daily basis. It would take a toll on her throughout the day. Headaches would come, and she would have bouts of confusion and maybe even dizziness. There was not a lot of information on the Vulcan/Betazoid mix. With each one, it would likely be different. He was very curious how it would work for her.:: ::T’Mar closed her eyes tightly and concentrated on herself, battling against her natural suppression. She had tried to drop that mental wall earlier, but subconsciously she had put it back up.. she put it back up because she had begun to feel emotions for her self.. and that had..:: T’Mar: Fear? ::She did not want to say it. Of all emotions, she always found fear to be the most illogical besides love. It was less that she has sensed it in herself, but more a logical conclusion. It seemed that she did not have much control over when she could sense and feel her own emotions and when they remained suppressed.:: Bolani: Fear of what? ::Zage could imagine what she was going through. It would be like asking Betazoids to stop sensing other feelings, or to only communicate verbally. It went against everything he was brought up to do, but it was necessary. He was surprised it was not done sooner in her life. She was fairly young for a Vulcan. The better handle she had on her abilities to sense other emotions, the better she would be able to suppress hers as well as those sensed, if that is what she chose to do. It was just...logical.:: T’Mar: I believe I am afraid of feeling... ::The room seemed to spin momentarily, but soon returned to normal. She blinked a few times to clear her eyes and her stomach churned a little.: ..of feeling emotions. Bolani: Are you alright? ::The look on her face already answered the question. It was quite a bit for someone to deal with that had not faced their own emotions. Now, he was asking her to face the emotions of others, as well as her own. It was a big step and he wanted to know what she was capable of for their first session. She could stop at any time, they could take it slow...but he wanted to understand how much she would push herself, even more so since she admitted her fear.:: T’Mar: I am fine. oOPerhaps pride is another emotion to add on that list?Oo Bolani: As long as you are certain. I know it is a lot and do not want you overdoing it. ::T’Mar took a deep breath:: T’Mar: I was a little dizzy, but I assure you that I am quite alright now. Please continue. ::The truth was, the only feeling she was certain of, was that she enjoyed Zage’s presence. It made her feel.. happy? No, content. She did not want him to leave.:: Bolani: Very well. Take that fear, and suppress it as you normally would and tell me how I am feeling. ::In that moment, he focused on his final days on the Crawford. It was not a happy point in his career, and when he got word...it did not please him. The more he thought of it, the more he was able to relive those feelings he felt as he left. It was a combination of anger and sadness. He had formed bonds with those he worked with and was not looking forward to leaving.:: ::T'Mar suppressed her emotions and focused in Zage, this time envisioning it as a mind meld without physical contact. She felt...:: T'Mar: Anger. You are angry. ::She wondered what was making him feel enraged, but at the same time felt proud of herself for picking up on the emotion:: Bolani: Very good. ::Fast forwarding to his arrival on the Apollo, he thought of when he got his reassignment orders at the starbase. While he was not excited to leave the Crawford, he accepted it. When he found out he got the Apollo, he was actually excited to serve on the Achilles Class ship. It brought a sense of pride and happiness.:: ::The anger melted away and new sensations overtook her. She was beginning to get the hang of this.:: T'Mar: Joy? Bolani: Good. ::Before he could move on to the next question he continued on his train of thought, remembering the first time he thought he saw the corner of her mouth start to form a smile, and the moment his eyes traced over her features. He quickly realized that she was still focusing on him and his memories were betraying his purpose in her quarters. He found the Vulcan woman attractive, but he was not sure he would ever act on it. She was so different, and even though he was intrigued, they could be described as oil and water. He was curious how her grandparents did it. Even though he liked spending time with her and loved to see her struggle with the emotions of others, his initial instinct was attraction. There was something in her eyes that he had never seen in a Vulcan and it made it easier to forget that in the end...she was.:: ::T’Mar was surprised by how quickly she was able to feel what Zage felt. She could only assume he was projecting the emotions stronger in order to help her along. She continued to focus and soon felt another emotion. She was not certain if it was her feelings or his, but they bombarded her system and she leaned in closer without thinking about it first.:: T'Mar: Attraction... ::she whispered, staring into his eyes. Logic had abandoned her as her abilities went into overdrive.:: ::Zage widened his eyes. He was not trying to project his attraction for her, but she was able to pick up on it. It was a small feeling he had inside, and the Vulcan seemed to identify it quickly. He was not sure what to do next. He could have just played it off as him thinking of an old flame, but when dealing with an empath, it was easy to tell when they were not being honest. He could not think of anything to do but move one. He was worried about how she might take it. There was a lot to be said about the things that were never said. Neither confirming, nor denying he was feeling the attraction toward her, he nervously moved on.:: Bolani: ::nodding:: Yes. And now... ::T'Mar felt her heart pound and her blood rush to her cheeks, probably tinting them green.:: T'Mar: Nervous.. Bolani: I think you are getting pretty good at this. ::Looking into her eyes he paused. There was a look briefly in her eyes and it was one he shared. He realized that while she was learning quite a bit, they hit the ground running. He was winging it instead of planning out the different aspects. It made him nervous and concerned that he was feeling the attraction to her, and working with her empathic abilities at the same time. He felt the urge to drift his lips toward her, but fought it...knowing better. In one swift moment, he broke eye contact with her.:: ::T'Mar suddenly pulled back, her logic taking over. she remained silent, unsure what to say:: Bolani: I uh...I think we had a good lesson. You are actually pretty good at this once you get started. It will be harder for you to suppress your emotions and be able to read others at the same time. T’Mar: Indeed, I am noticing that.. ::T’Mar began focusing on getting her emotions in check. She was not fond of that aspect of these sessions. At the same time, she was not sure what to make of what had just occurred.:: ::Zage quickly stood up from the center of the room. He wanted to stay longer, but he could not afford the prolonged responses of his emotional state. Had she been any other species, he may not have shut down so quickly. He felt helpless, and as if his feelings were futile. He was not sure what he was doing, but he knew it needed to stop, at least until he had time to figure it out.:: Bolani: I think we can call it a night. It is getting late, and I do not want to impose...besides, the more you spend on it at one time, the more it can become blurry. ::smiling at her:: For what it is worth, I think you did a great job. I cannot wait until our next session, we will do it in the mess hall, or the Complex. ::His idea was to take the focus off of his feelings and put it onto someone else. Being an empath, he would be able to tell if her guess was right. That would keep his emotions out of the discussion, and he would try better to mask his attraction for her. It was the best way to help her and try to keep his feelings from her at the same time.:: ::T’Mar blew out the candles and stood, looking at Zage.. not daring to sense his emotions, for fear that she may lose control again. Instead, she nodded at his suggestion, a tiny smile creeping in.:: T’Mar: I look forward to the session as well. You are indeed a talented instructor. Thank you.. ::Moving to the door he turned around and gave her one last smile. He knew that he would need to see her in the morning when he came on duty. He was hoping he would not feel awkward. The last thing he needed was to have his personal feelings spill over to his work, but he knew enough to be able to prevent it from happening.:: Bolani: I will see you in the morning. ::T’Mar watched as he made his way to her door. A part of her wanted him to stay, the other knew it was not logical for many reasons.:: T’Mar: I will expect you to be on time, despite this late session. ::Turning Zage headed out of her quarters and off toward his. The entire trip he dwelled upon his feelings and the thoughts he was having in her quarters. He was not sure why they chose that moment to really surface. He thought that because he was trying to adapt his feelings through memories and at the same time focus on her...he just became over extended. It was a lot to handle on their first lesson, but in the end the benefits were greater than the drawbacks.:: ::And he left. T’Mar suddenly felt so alone in her quarters. She changed into her pajamas, dwelling on the emotions that had surfaced in the session. How was it that she so easily became overwhelmed with attraction? Unless.. she was feeling it too. It only made sense. Except that it didn’t. She was a Vulcan, she shouldn’t be allowing herself to feel anything. She sat on her bed, still deep in thought, wondering what was going through Zage’s mind. As she laid down, she soon became aware that the session had worn her out more than she originally thought. She drifted off into sleep, wondering what their interaction would be like the next day..:: TBC Lieutenant JG T’Mar Chief Security Officer USS Apollo, NCC-71669 & PNPC Lieutenant JG Zage Bolani Security Officer USS Apollo, NCC-71669 as simmed by: Fleet Captain Andrus Jaxx Commanding Officer USS Apollo, NCC-71669 Captains Council Magistrate
  8. ((Yosemite National Forest, Earth)) ::He'd jogged until he was out of breath, and then stopped only to regain it before running again. Certain that he'd distanced himself sufficiently from the Yacht and from Kieran, he finally stopped, chest heaving, and dropped to his knees. Tears spilled from his eyes as he looked up into the dark sky filled with stars, the silouhettes of the trees outlined by the moonlight.:: o O I can't do this again. Not to myself, not to Daisha or the twins. I can't get involved again. It hurts too much.. O o ::Sighing, he sat on the broken stump of a tree that had fallen and died long ago, his eyes reflecting in the moonlight. His sensitive infravision picked up a skulking wolf, far in the distance, and its prey, a small rabbit attempting to remain absolutely still. What the Ba'ku's night-vision did not intercept, however, was the figure that emerged from shadows of the trees and into the clearing. The moonlight danced off of her brown/burgundy-colored hair, her green eyes, and her pointed ears. Tyr gasped as he recognized her.:: WALTAS: Eden.. REDSTONE::Remaining partially in the shadows:: So you blame me for your fear? Did I "break" you, k'diwa? WALTAS::Anger rising to the surface:: Don't call me that. REDSTONE::Mockingly:: What? K'diwa? Would you rather I called you the human translation? Beloved? WALTAS: You don't have the right to call me ANYTHING. ::Even through the haze of anger, he found himself drawn to her, wanting to hold her again, to feel her lithe frame wrapped around him. He furiously fought down the urge to reach out for her.:: REDSTONE: The great Captain Tyr Waltas, broken by a woman. I was right to leave. You ARE pathetic. WALTAS::Looking away:: I loved you with every piece of me..every bit of my soul I poured into you. And you did nothing but wait for the moment to destroy everything we had. You walked away from me. From them... REDSTONE: And I'll do it again. Goodbye, Tyr. ::His head snapped around in the direction where she'd stood, only to find empty space. His eyes searched the wilderness, only to find what he'd found before-the wolf and the rabbit. Predator and prey. The rabbit was on the run, with the wolf in pursuit. He watched the chase idly, until another voice snapped his head in the direction where Eden Redstone had stood. There, in the moonlight, another form now materialized. This one from the dirt and mud itself, as if rising from the grave. It took form, and Tyr quickly found himself wishing it hadn't. Lieutenant Hammond, complete with her vintage gold-colored command shirt from Kirk's era, stood before him in all of her glory, carrying a fresh bag of guilt for the Captain.:: HAMMOND: It was easy to rid yourself of someone who walks away from you. What about someone who couldn't? WALTAS::Bitterly:: You KNOW why I left. The timeline.. HAMMOND: So you abandoned someone you loved for Starfleet protocol. To preserve the future. What about my future, Tyr? Our future? So the Constellation would have survived...would it have made that great a difference? To wipe out the planet killer together and spend the rest of our lives in each others' arms? Was that worth your precious temporal prime directive? WALTAS: It would never have worked.. HAMMOND::Walking forward, she planted an accusing finger squarely in his chest:: YOU walked away from ME, Tyr. You left me.. ::She walked backward, her form disappearing into the shadows:: to die.. WALTAS::Plaintively:: Please! Wait! ::Silence only greeted him. The Ba'ku lowered his head, tears falling upon the now dew-laden grass. The memories of the USS Constellation and his decision to consign them to their fate, including the woman he loved, tore at him from all sides. A strong yet feminine hand cupped his chin and lifted his eyes to hers. His heart nearly stopped in shock.:: WALTAS: Merigold. ::Merigold Kitiganzibi stood before him, smelling of sandalwood and lavender as she always had, the wind carrying the scent to him like the touch of a lost love. While Tyr had grown older and his hair was now gray, she stood before him in the flower of youth-just as when they'd first met aboard the Constitution. Her powerful form was accentuated in the moonlight, giving her an almost statuesque appearance. Except this statue spoke, and delivered more pain.:: KITIGANZIBI: Ah, the memories of first love. WALTAS::Shaking his head:: YOU walked away. KITIGANZIBI::[...]ing her head curiously, a curl of dark hair escaping to stray into her face:: Did I? Or did you ask too much, Tyr? ::She raised her other hand, holding the wedding band he'd given her. It gleamed golden in the moonlight:: Too much, too soon? You always wanted it all, when you wanted it, didn't you? Never willing to wait until the time was right. WALTAS: The time was NEVER right for you. You never would hold yourself to me. KITIGANZIBI: Blaming others again, Tyr? ::Snorting, she dropped the ring to the ground, where it dissolved into the vegetation around it:: I can see you still haven't grown up after all this time. ::Playfully, she flicked his graying long hair:: You've only grown older. ::She began to walk away as the words cut at him, wounding him from every side and angle. Through the pain and tears he spoke, his voice weak and labored. In the distance the wolf had caught the rabbit and quickly made the kill.:: WALTAS: Y..you killed me.. KITIGANZIBI: I did. ::Turning, a phaser now in hand:: And I would again. ::She fired, the bright orange beam burning a hole in his chest and blasting him off the log. He landed in a heap nearby as pain radiated outward, burning him, consuming him as the wolf consumed the rabbit. An anguished scream was all he could muster before the beam destroyed him utterly.:: ((Yosemite Forest, Earth)) ::He awoke with a continuation of the scream from the nightmare, but quickly silenced himself. He was shaking with terror, and his hand went involuntarily to his chest to feel for the phaser burn. There was nothing but the fabric of his sweat-soaked shirt. Allowing his breathing to return to normal and his heart to slow to its regular pace, he climbed down from the large branch of the tree he'd perched in and stood unsteadily on the ground. He looked about and found the wolf in the distance. The rabbit was nowhere to be seen. Quietly, he returned to the campsite with no firewood, but still bearing a burden heavier than he had left with.:: ============================== Captain Tyr Waltas Commanding Officer USS Discovery
  9. ((Counsellor’s Office)) ::Greir was running out of time and had been procrastinating about watching the news feed from Britta Daysa. He’d even gone so far as to coax Eerie into coming in for his yearly psych eval. Anyone would think he wasn’t taking his task seriously, especially given how important his task was and the greater things at stake – things that mattered a great deal to him personally.:: oOSo what was the problem then? Oo :: He knew how the battle went, he’d read the reports, talked to surviving relatives. They’d won, massacred the Klingons and drove them from their home so what was he afraid of? He cracked his fingers as he thought about it. This was hardly the first battle he’d seen or participated in for that matter. It wasn’t the first time his planet had seen strife either –there had been the Romulan occupation.:: ::The battle had been fought outside the city, in the ridge at the far end of the valley that led in towards it. A few small groups of townspeople in the city had caused a riot and some damage; he’d lost family due to that but that wasn’t the cause of his problem either. He’d lost a few family and friends from the militia, but he’d lost friends in his Starfleet career too. He had barely even bothered to keep in touch with his family and friends, now that did bother him. Those that he’d lost, he’d never have a chance to express what they meant to him or even say goodbye. He had no one to blame but himself for that and for one person in particular that he’d lost the thought was unbearable.:: oORori…Oo :: Most fielders in Greir’s family were of average ability but Rori had a lot of natural talent for it. When Greir was small he had suffered terribly with headaches and other symptoms and at times he’d been inconsolable. Rori had frequently stepped in to give his parents a break from the constant crying and fuss he’d kicked up. He could remember most clearly looking into the man’s big, yellow and copper flecked, warm eyes. He had always been so patient and kind soothing Greir with stories and song. They had spent hours drawing what they fielded. In this and other ways Rori had helped Greir learn to use and cope with his fielding abilities. This continued for years and when a new school was found for Greir it was Rori who went with him. His parents had commitments in Bondi that they could not leave behind . Greir’s older brother Loffe was at school too, he was doing well and had friends and did not want to move. There were also elderly, frail grandparents that needed constant care. Coupled with their jobs it was a lot of upheaval, so it looked like Greir would not be able to attend and would have to make to where he was.:: ::It was a great relief when Rori offered to accompany him as the two had always been very close...:: oO What are you expecting to see? It was a big battle there’s no way… Just grow a beard and be a man. Oo ::He was getting frustrated and irritated with himself.:: ::Also he was now procrastinating by considering the merits of, and imagining himself… with a beard.:: ::He slammed his hand down on the table flat and hard making the PADD resting on it rattle.:: Reinard: Do it! ::He prodded the touchscreen aggressively making the newsfeed finally begin.:: ==========THE BATTLE OF BONDI========= ((Bondi, Manar Providence, Til’ahn)) ::The Laudean militia assembled in the ridge at the far end of the valley. The invading forces had to pass through here to be able to get into the coastal city Bondi. The Laudeans were equipped with disrupter weapons and there were explosive charges and grenades ready to be used.:: ::The Laudeans in the valley looked tense but very very determined as they waited on the Klingons advancing far enough into the valley for them, and the StarFleet Officers supporting them to shoot them like Meeka in a well. The Starfleet Officers were up on the ridge in strategic positions. Much preparation had gone into this - fielders, including Rori had done sweeps for Houdinis , mines and other traps before assembling in the valley.:: ::You could tell the Laudeans wanted to open fire but Daysa and his Lieutenants held them in check. Greir had so much respect for that man. Once the Klingons had come forward enough they finally let rip! The battle roiled this way and that, all sides were losing men. The sight of blood, energy burns, explosion damage, dismembered people – Laudeans was tough to behold. There were his people, fighting hard and dying for the freedom of their very planet.:: ::Greir had been blissfully unaware at the time. The news hadn’t reached him until sometime later and what a pile of dren he felt. He’d been quite comfortably sat in his officegoofing off! He’d been wasting time, flirting and cracking jokes with a terran called Aidan. There probably wasn’t anything he could have done about it even had he known what was coming prior to it, but he still felt he should have been there. He felt like he’d abandoned his people.:: ::Up on the ridge StarFleet Officers fought fiercely. They shot and dropped grenades on the invading Klingon and Scarlet Brotherhood invaders– Grier should have been among them! The Klingons were ferocious and held their own for a long time. It was the Brotherhood that crumbled first, their flank began to collapse forcing the Klingons to try and resupply them.:: ::The sound of Klingons roaring, people screaming and dying in agony filled the air, along with the boom of yet more explosions and the familiar sound of mortar fire. There was rock fall and dust as weapons fire impacted the walls of the cliffs. Greir remembered climbing those as a child but now he’d never look at this area the same again. As the battle unfolded before him it was clear that the Laudeans would be finished for if the Klingons managed to get their reinforcements up through the gully, and resupply the Brotherhood. :: ::Laudean fighters circled overhead and fired down upon the invaders relentlessly. Greir had wanted to be a fighter pilot – like many young boys – and had collected toy models and read the articles in the ezines, but had not possessed the required reflexes. A Starfleet shuttle could be seen zipping overhead as well depositing the previously recovered mines in strategic positions. :: ::It seemed the StarFleet Officers were having the desired impact because their efforts were starting to draw attention causing some weapons and mortar fire to be concentrated on their positions. A lot of that fire however was just hitting the rocks causing… more rock fall… It was actually rock fall that had killed Rori.:: ::The Laudeans were never let up or faltered, they fought with passion and determination. With StarFleet and the air support the battle was won. These were true heroes. Greir knew that a lot of them had little or no combat experience but they still put themselves forward, put themselves at risk and died for their people – their loved ones. The Laudeans finished them off while StarFleet went on to locate the cowardly leaders of the brotherhood and prevent them from sneaking off and re-surfacing to cause evil and damage elsewhere at another time.:: ==========END OF NEWS FEED========= ::As the news feed faded to black Greir slumped back in his chair, absorbing it all in a way he hadn’t had to before. He missed Rori terribly and wondered if there was some kind of memorial he could pay his respects at some day. He was sure Rori knew how much Greir had cared for him and hoped he hadn’t passed on thinking that Greir had stopped caring, that he’d abandoned him.:: ::He had to pull it together and he had to watch it again. This time he’d watch it from a more tactical and strategic viewpoint. He needed to see the battle as the Zakdorn would, he had to anticipate their reaction to this, what questions they might have. What in here had merit to the Zakdorn and how was he going to sell the Federation to the masses.:: ::He went to get a fresh drink of tea and was feeling a little jittery now. His cup trembled slightly in his hands as he pressed the button to play it again. He took notes on his PADD and drank the calming tea as he watched the second play through. Viewing it with a more focussed mind helped him regain his cool a little. When it was done he put the PADD down and set the chronometer. Ten minutes.:: ::He took out a small device that resonated energy, it wasn’t very powerful. His terran friend Aidan had seen it once and likened it to a ‘Lava lamp’ whatever that was, but it gave off soothing energy and he began a small meditation exercise to bring himself back into balance.:: _____________________________________ ((USS Vigilant, Deck 5: Counsellor's Office)) ::Happy to have had the chance to sit down with his first officer at long last, Herrera had taken to the corridors once again. The coffee he had drunk had started to take effect and had stemmed the onslaught of yawns that had begun to take hold. Quite apart from the fact he knew he needed to be alert for the task he and Counsellor Reinard were about to undertake, he knew quite well from experience that yawns were contagious. He imagined Reinard was probably a little tired himself and having the captain sat in front of him half-asleep wouldn't exactly be conducive to making progress.:: ::Pushing the chime on the door to the office, he waited to be called inside.:: oO(Greir)Is that the Captain? So soon? Perhaps not… Oo Reinard: ::Calling out:: Come on in. ::And so it was that Diego stepped through the now open door into the Counsellor's office, hefting a PADD of information he had hastily downloaded and believed would help both of them in their cause.:: Herrera: How's everything going? Reinard: Ah… well… I-uh- … Well… ::Stammering a bit:: ::He was trying to think what to say about it. He hadn’t made as much progress as he’d ideally wanted to. It seemed to be an annoying constant right now but as always, he was determined to get on top of it. By now though he was getting tired, the meditation at least had helped soothe some of the sour mood that had been forming earlier however. Even so he wasn’t half as cheery or optimistic as normal. :: ::Depositing his PADD on the desk, the captain's eyes were immediately drawn to the replicator.:: Herrera: Do you mind if I grab a coffee? Reinard: Oh. Not at all Sir, help yourself. Herrera: Thanks, do you want anything? Reinard: Yes actually, that would be nice. I’ll take a Jestral Tea please. ::Placing his order, Diego quickly returned to the desk putting down Greir's drink where he could reach it. Fighting the urge to push his seat backwards and put his feet up on someone else's desk, he instead activated his PADD.:: Herrera: So... what have we got so far? Reinard: ::Clearing his throat and cracking his fingers:: Well, I got in touch with Britta Daysa from home. The minister and I were both of the opinion that we needed something more… concrete to show them, as proof. We don’t expect them to simply trust and believe in our word and heart felt sentiments. ::Slurping his tea and gulping it down in one go.:: Hererra: I'm with you on that too. The more hard evidence we can show them, the better. Reinard: ::Rolling and cracking his neck this time:: She sent me a data packet – a newsfeed of the Battle of Bondi. It’s a bit of a … tense battle. A bit of a slaughter really. ::Pointing a finger:: …Of the Klingons. ::He wasn’t too sure what he was trying to convey right now but he was going to have to step it up quite considerably for tomorrow.:: Herrera: ::Encouragingly:: Well, that sounds like a great selling point. The Zakdorn public will definitely be interested in hearing about things that are recent, relevant and local. I figured that I'd maybe try a more historical approach that reaches further afield with the Assembly. They're more likely to be concerned about the political picture over the Alpha and Beta quadrants. Reinard: ::Picking himself up a bit:: I think that’s an excellent approach Captain, it will reinforce our position quite well I think. What will you tell them? ::He took a swig of his drink before setting his PADD to display an old mission report from the USS Challenger.:: Herrera: I crossed paths with the Klingons some time ago. They requested assistance from Starfleet to deal with a race that had suddenly withdrawn from a war they had been fighting under mysterious circumstances. When the orders came through it took me a while to understand exactly why that was a problem, until we all realised that there was something else to it. Reinard: Yes, it does seem very odd. ::Scratching his left cheek with his right hand as he mulled it over.:: Herrera: To cut through a lot of complications, we found out that the Klingons had been completely duped by a third race who they didn't even seem to know existed. I'd say it's a perfect example of a tactical blind spot and a result of their collective overconfidence. Not something a Zakdorn would necessarily approve of. Reinard: I agree. I tend to wonder, if the Zakdorn only sought ‘muscle’ in their alliance they’d have sided with the Klingon’s long before now. Klingons are not known for having great achievements in science for example. Almost all Klingons are warriors and they actually look down upon their scientists as inferior. In some ways it’s amazing they even made it out to space… don’t you think? ::Put like that, it did seem like quite a feat for them to have accomplished, although despite the fact that scientists weren't exactly top dogs in Klingon society, they had made some important advances of their own.:: Herrera: Maybe it was the urge to conquer that spurred them to develop better technology... but yes, I think we can probably play on that a little. Reinard: I know we’re short on time but what about giving a shout out to some of the technological or scientific or medical achievements the Zakdorn have benefitted from due to the Federation? ::The category of 'medical achievements' was home territory as far as Diego was concerned and the same could probably be said for Greir. They wouldn't have to look too far into those topics to find useful things that Starfleet had developed before the Klingon Empire being as the Klingons had been through a period of sharing technology with the Romulans in order to further advance themselves in the past.:: Herrera: Good call. I'll focus on military... why don't you look at day-to-day things? Hospital equipment, communications technology... the sorts of things that we can't do without. The only thing I can think of that the Klingons have that we don't is cloaking technology but even those aren't completely impenetrable any more... Reinard: I doubt it will be long before we crack it though. We have working Klingon and Romulan devices that researchers are working on and a growing number of aliens coming in with knowledge of the technology. However I agree, our alliance is not based only on one thing and it would be good to remind them of the every day things they have and take for granted that can be attributed to the Federation. : :It was as his thoughts drifted to how he might feel if he had to make the public address that Diego got the feeling that he could have been asking more of his chief counsellor than he first thought. He didn't doubt his capabilities to make the address for a second, but his mind lingered on the fact that a battle that had taken place on Til'ahn would be included as part of that event. Putting himself in the Laudean's shoes, he had the unpleasant feeling that were their situations reversed and Earth had been hit, he might have been less than comfortable. He didn't want to patronise Greir, but then he didn't want to just railroad over him without considering in more detail what he was asking him to do.:: Herrera: Greir, where... ::He stopped short of asking the question. Maybe it was just tiredness that was making him overthink it; that wasn't normally his style. Or maybe he knew he should have been listening to his own counsellor's training and continued with the question. Either way, he'd already attracted the man's attention.:: ::Greir was fidgeting and shunting his cup around with one hand as he scrolled through databases looking for some hits for the additional strategy they were going to bring in. His nostrils flared as he stifled a yawn and he raised his eyes and brow to look at the Captain.:: Reinard: Sir? Herrera: Whereabouts on Til'ahn did you say you were from again? ::He knew the answer even as it was being given. Diego had asked in the turbolift. He was from Bondi. The same place as the battle in the newsfeed.:: Reinard: ::Returning his eyes to the PADD his reply was monotone, clipped and fast.:: Bondi ::Eyes dropping to the floor for a moment, Diego sighed. Had he had to pick through a newsfeed about a Klingon invasion of Santander, he knew exactly how he'd feel.:: ::Reinard raised his hand and wiped his eye before it could shed a tear.:: Herrera: God, I'm sorry. I should have realised as soon as you said it. Are you alright? Reinard: Well I knew about it before this. Just... wa'ching it. ::Choking up a bit:: So many... dih dih... ::Strained:: lost. Terrible. Heroes. ::Greir slapped his PADD down in frustration. He was tired and mostly shocked, he'd barely just finished watching these events and after everything that had been going on he felt like his mind was still trying to catch up. He couldn't afford to lose it though. There was too much at stake.:: Herrera: ::Sympathetically:: That's not true... Reinard: What really gets me right now. Those StarFleet Officers... Fleet Captain Turner, Major Parker, Marine Captain Hella, Lt Cmdr Allison and Tallis Rhul among others... they've done more for my people than I have. ::Greir put his head in his hands.:: Herrera: They're permanently assigned to the Embassy, you don't get to choose where you get posted. Reinard: I should have been there! I did nothing... I didn't even touch... ::He felt shaky and despairing all over again:: ::Diego wasn't sure what the significance of the word 'touch' was, but Greir's emotions were unquestionably raw. He wished he'd had the chance to put two and two together before he'd had to go through this ordeal but hindsight wasn't going to do Greir any good. The counsellor's guilt was understandable but hardly rational and this wasn't the kind of thing that just passed like a cloud in the wind; Diego knew from his own experience that he would need support in the coming days and he had no intention of forcing him into something so difficult and painful.:: Hererra: You can't blame yourself for not being there. ::He knew that the comment would provide cold comfort if any at all.:: Would it help if someone else made the presentation tomorrow? We can find a different case file, anything that will make this easier on you. Reinard: ::Bucking himself up again. He was quite determined:: Captain. I can do this. I won't crumble tomorrow and I won't let you down. ::The captain took a second to digest that. Even in the wake of such personal tragedy, here was a man who was determined not to fail him and to do his duty. Was this what a commanding officer and service to Starfleet represented to those in its service?:: Herrera: I can't think of a way that you could let me down right now. This is one hell of a thing you've just put yourself through and lesser men would have crumbled. The truth is, I've served with Captain Turner, Hella and Parker. They're [...] good officers. But just because you're not serving on your home world doesn't mean you're doing less for your people than they are. Your actions tomorrow will prevent an alliance between the Klingons and the Zakdorn. I know that because you've put every ounce of your expertise into drawing together an address that will bring the Zakdorn who have lost their way right back to their senses. You're fighting for your homeworld just by being here and in everything that you do. Reinard: ::Nodding in agreement:: I try to see it that way too. ::One question remained and Diego purposefully pushed it to the back of his mind. At some point, he knew he would need to bring it to light but at the present time it would hinder Greir more than it would help him. Finding out whether or not he'd heard the names of any friends or loved ones on the death list would have to wait for another day.:: Herrera: I think we both could use some rest. I'd like to talk about this again some time when you're not under so much pressure. ::Effectively, it was a request for an appointment. There were enough trained mental health experts aboard that in this situation there would always be someone to counsel the counsellor if it was needed.:: It would be good to talk about some happier things too. Reinard: ::Trying to smile:: You're right and it certainly will, I'd like that but for now let's focus on the mission. Herrera: ::Nodding:: Alright. ::He stood from his chair, PADD in hand before looking Greir in the eye and offering him something that rank, position and previous training did not generate; it was a genuine gesture from one person to another.:: If you need anything, call me. I'll probably be up for a little while yet. Reinard: ::Sincerely:: Thank you, I really appreciate that. I'm going to stay up a bit more. There is some more work I need to get done on this before I will be remotely happy and i'm going to need some more meditation to focus and balance myself properly again. ::He knew he was going to have to address what had occurred here today but he needed to do it at an appropriate time. He would muster every ounce of determination and professional resolve he could and steel himself for tomorrow. It was going to be a tough day but he was a Lt Commander now, his fresh faced ensign days were long gone. He'd gotten to this stage in his career by handling tough situations, by coping with pressure and he would make this work.:: Herrera: See you tomorrow. ::Waving over his shoulder as he reached the door, Diego sincerely hoped that Greir really would be alright.:: Reinard: Goodnight Captain, rest well. ::Turning over his notes and looking to make sure he'd covered all the points he wanted to make, searching for weakness.:: A JP by: Captain Diego Herrera Commanding Officer: USS Vigilant http://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php?title=Herrera,_Diego and Lt Cmdr Reinard Chief Counsellor USS Vigilant__._,_.___
  10. ((Counselor’s Office)) ::Grier was leaning back in his high backed leather chair and listening to some Mozart as he made preparations for his speech and waited for Eerie to arrive for his yearly psych eval. He’d never listened to it before but despite his time constraints he’d done his homework and knew that Eerie listened to it. Having it play quietly in the background was as much an effort to understand the officer as it was to put him at ease when he arrived. Shame it did nothing for his, but then perhaps he was just procrastinating. That was an extremely bad idea right now. He needed to watch that news feed and get that speech prepared. He was making himself anxious now but he justified the diversion - he did really want to check in with those who’d been held hostage - and his review was due... :: ::Eerie was not pleased, another ship and another evaluation. He moved down the corridor, with purpose as always, new crewman got out of his way, but it was not for want of getting there. It was for want of getting it over with. He found the Counselor’s office and buzzed the door.:: Grier: ::Hearing the door buzzer:: Enter! ::Pleasantly.:: ::Eerie entered the office to see Counselor sitting in his chair, he was a bit surprised to find some of his favorite music playing quietly in the background. But it did not soften his mood. He stood in front of the Counselor..:: Eerie :: Lt. Commander Eerie, reporting as ordered.. ::It was stiff and formal.:: ::Grier noticed with a trace of disappointment that Eerie was every bit as stiff and formal as ever. Whatever friendliness he had glimpsed... or imagined the first day they had met was nowhere to be seen. The music however was not the only trick he was using in his ‘charm’ offensive.:: Grier: Hello Eerie, thank you for keeping your appointment and arriving punctually. As you are aware you’re here for your standard, yearly psych evaluation. Just a point of note, while we are in this room rank is irrelevant. In this case we’re the same rank but experience shows rank, particularly where there are big differences can present an obstacle in itself, so please, address me as Grier. oO(Eerie) Not a bad speech. Gets an ‘A’ for effort, so far Oo Eerie: Of course. ...Grier. if you want to address me as Eerie, that is fine. I am here to answer your questions. ...oO(Eerie) Come on rock head....what do they call it? ...little talk.Oo ::Pause:: Eerie: I hope you are settling in alright? ::It was still stiff and formal. But he tried taking some of the edge of it off. The Brikar took a quick glance at the table and saw a chess set on it.:: Grier: ::Smiling warmly and laughing lightly:: Eerie, this is not an interrogation you know. I’m not here with a purpose in mind. ::It seemed to him that so many people came in here thinking he was going out his way to find a reason to take them of duty or classify them as insane or unstable.:: However, in answer to your question i’m settling in great. We have a varied and interesting crew, i’m enjoying getting to know everyone and making some friends. How are you settling in yourself? ::Switching the focus back to Eerie:: Eerie: I am Brikar, I would not crack under interrogation. ::Stiff, but with a bit of pride.:: I look forward to getting to know the rest of the crew as well. But I am getting to know the ship. I have found the crew well trained, and do their jobs. ::Eerie’s tone was almost monologue.:: Greir: Of course not, never suggested such a thing. I am glad you’re settling in fine, but how did it feel to be held hostage like that? Eerie: I was only a hostage so, no one else would get hurt. :: His voice stiff and formal, like a textbook response.:: Grier: Okay, but how much damage can a Brikar sustain. ::He imagined it was a great deal but no one was invincible.:: Did you have any concerns for your colleagues if not yourself? Eerie: My concern was for my crewmates, Doctor. My life is to serve, it is our way, the Brikar way. I have put myself in the way of harm before for my crewmates, I will do so again.::With a bit of pride.:: Greir: Very courageous Eerie, we’re all very lucky to have you by our side! Eerie: We all use our talents, just don’t ask me to save someone from a lake. It would take me a very long time to wade out to them. ::There was minor hint of humor in his voice.:: We don’t swim.:: Greir: ::Smiling and hoping to fish a bit more:: Perhaps there’s an interesting story there you’d like to share? Eerie: Perhaps another time. ::Eerie remembered the time he almost drowned and froze. It was not a pleasant experience. :: :: He was a little disappointed but decided it was time to play his next card in his effort to get the Brikar to relax with him a little more. He knew it was a tall order given the species psychological profiles and that’s why particular care had been taken.:: Greir: While you’re here, I thought you might enjoy a game of chess as I get to know you a little better. ::Grier had only had a little time to brush up on the game, and wasn’t anywhere near as ready as he would have liked.:: oO(Eerie) Chess?.....Hmmm. Oo Eerie : White or Black? ::Eerie took a detailed examination of the the chess board.:: Oh...yes.: ::The board was on table with two chairs, and Eerie carefully eased into on. The game started with Greir using a knight to open the game. Eerie decided on a conservative approach to the unknown skill of the counselor. He remembered the conversation in the transport, and how good the counselor was supposed to be. He had checked the records of the Starbase, and had not found any record of him playing in any of the tournaments. :: ::The game progressed slowly as the Counselor, seems very tentative. Eerie started to get into the game and started to relax a bit. :: ::Grier was playing a bit cautiously and taking his time. It was difficult to concentrate on the game and also the counseling session. He had to be choosy not only about what he asked, but how and when. He had to be an attentive observer of body language, tone and general reactions. He wasn’t so much here for a chess match as the opportunity to unravel the mystery of Eerie after all. Though he was trying to anticipate what move Eerie might make after each of his possible moves before he settled on one.:: ::Grier wanted to begin the session on a positive note and chose a subject that he thought Eerie would respond positively to. Not to mention it was quite interesting in it’s own right. He’s learned from records that Eerie had been involved in a personal relationship with a Bolian. It was a huge difference in personalities but he could see how it might have worked. Bolian’s being generally outgoing, sociable and upbeat creatures was possibly the best antidote to the Brikarn’s formal and stiff demeanor. :: Grier: I hope you don’t mind me asking, but how is Peiy doing? ::The only concern was that if he was missing her terribly then bringing her up might be touching on a nerve. He took the gamble and observed carefully.:: ::Eerie could see that the last move was a mistake and he captured a bishop. He said nothing. Just letting the game continue. The question was however a bit of surprise, he missed Peiy. But he knew that it was the best situation, for right now.:: Eerie: She is fine. We are sharing personal logs. But we thought that any direct communication should wait for a while, but I am sure that we will talk again. She...is a very special person. ::He tried to keep it formal, but he soften a bit, thinking of all the good experiences that he had with her. Forcing ‘Eden’ out of his memory. :: ::Grier was slightly kicking himself for losing a bishop but didn’t let it show. Who won the match was the least of his interests and concerns.:: Grier: I’m very glad that you still keep in touch with her. What was it that attracted you to her in the first place and did you have any difficulties during the course of your relationship? ::By that he meant as much culturally as physically. It was purposefully a broad question designed to allow Eerie to interpret it appropriately for what they’d shared.:: ::Eerie wasn’t thrilled with the open ended question, by nature Brikar never talked about such matters, counselor or no counselor. But he had to say something. He paused for a moment, and took his mind off the game.:: Eerie: I worked will with her, and as she was tactical officer, we worked in close proximity. I felt some attraction to her. So we had a picnic together eventually. I was able to talk to her. We shared a lot. And she still means a great deal to me. There were of course, difficulties. Most Brikar do not have ‘relationships’ outside of their species.::Eerie’s eyes and mind focused back on the chess game, now wanting to be a bit more bold and aggressive in the game. He could now see an open path to a checkmate and hopefully and put an end to this ‘discussion’.:: ::In answering the question Eerie seemed to have been distracted and Greir thought the last move might have been a mistake. More interesting than the piece he just captured was the question about how Eerie overcame the species barrier. He examined the captured piece in his hand as Eerie looked at the board, probably thinking how to compensate for the loss.:: :: Greir’s mind was not on the game. He was considering whether it would be more fruitful to pursue this line of questioning or come back to it another day after gaining some more trust. This was just a standard psych eval, there was nothing he had observed or written in any reports that suggested there was any concern about Eerie’s mental state or ability to function. He didn’t want to needlessly push him away.:: Grier: ::Sincerely:: That was very bold of you to be able to step beyond your boundaries like that. ::Eerie watched the next move, and it was a rare move that wasn’t employed very often. Eerie watched Grier executed a ‘castling’.Moving both the rook and the king. Throwing Eeries’ attack strategy in disarray.:::: oO(Eerie) Didn’t see that move. Come on Eerie, you better focus on one thing. Oo Eerie: I had some help from one of my friends. She gave me some ‘dating’ advice. As most relationships are arranged for us. It was a good experience for me. ::Eerie tried to focus back on the game, and not doing particularly well as he lost a knight to the counselor.:: ::Grier smiled, he knew it was important to have good friends and the best ones were those that challenged you to grow. It could be hard to make truly great friends like that and a big change such as moving ship could be the death knell for some friendships but hopefully not for this one.:: Grier: ::Upbeat and merry:: That’s good to hear, do you still keep in touch with this friend? ::Eerie took his ‘hand’ off of the piece he was about to move, losing his concentration.:: Eerie: She was killed during an away mission, Counselor. ::Becoming very formal again, and stiffening back up. His focus on the game, now gone. He straighten up to regain his equilibrium.:: ::Grier knew instantly he’d touched a nerve and deduced that this was the person he heard about in the course of his foraging for information.:: Grier: ::More serious and very sincere:: I’m terribly sorry for your loss Eerie. Losing a friend is never easy. Did the two of you have anything special, or fun that you used to enjoy together? ::Eerie remembered back the the holodeck and the surprise greeting he got on more then one occasion.:: Eerie : She loved to call me ‘Buster’ and toss rocks at me to get my attention. But I got her back ‘good’ once. But it is a long story. ::Remembering the entire “Pippin Longstocking holoprogram.” ::Keeping a smile, down but his tone changed slightly.:: ::Grier checked himself before frowning and just managed to maintain the mask of neutrality. ‘Buster’? … and tossing rocks... that didn’t sound too friendly. He supposed Eerie was more than big and tough enough to handle it but still... It wasn’t his place to judge, Eerie seemed to remember it fondly enough and he figured that was all that mattered. :: ::Eerie focused again and came back to the present. The game was still in front of him.:: Grier: No one can take away those fond memories and you’re welcome to talk to me - informally even - about those good times. Eerie: Agreed. She was a great friend. My first real friend. ::There was a bittersweet taste in his mouth. He focused back on the game and make a move that would probably end the game soon.::: ::Eerie’s game seemed to be picking up again and it didn’t look as though it would be long before a winner was determined. There were just a few standard questions he wanted to ask before they finished up.:: Grier: What would you say has been the most challenging thing you’ve had to overcome? ::Eerie knew right away, but today was not the day for it and he would keep a lid on it.:: Eerie: The Eden mission, but it is not a topic for discussion. At least not yet. ::Eerie made another move, Using his Queen in a start of a systemic approach to eliminate the rest of the Counselors pieces. :: Grier: Alright Eerie, I can respect that. What are your hopes and dreams for the future? Eerie: Command....Someday.. ::The answer was simple and direct.:: ::Grier had given it his best shot and had actually done better than he’d hoped, both with Eerie himself and the chess game. There were a few turns when he thought he’d turned the game around. Eerie most certainly seemed to have the upper hand now and seemed to be pushing to get finished, presumably so he could leave. Grier noted with disappointment that he’d clammed up again. He couldn’t see a way to turn the game around but thought at least he could be a little irritating and drag it out a few more turns to get his last questions in before the big officer tried to make his escape.:: Greir: Alright, a commendable goal... what are the things you most like and dislike about your job? Eerie: I am the Chief Tactical and Security officer, other than the reports that I have to write and read. I have a great career. ::Eerie moved his rook in for the kill before there was a chance of a stalemate.:: ::Well report writing certainly could be a bit boring but if that was all he had to complain about then he was either a very good liar or a very content officer. :: Grier: I wish we could all be as content as you seem to be. ::Standing up and offering his hand.:: Well Eerie, you beat me fair and square but it was a good match. Thank you for coming to see me today, I don’t see any reason to detain you further. Please feel free to come and talk with me again any time you need anything. ::Smiling warmly: Eerie:: Eerie got up from the chair and carefully gave the man a firm shake: Commander, you may not be the ships best chess player, but tactically. ::Thinking of the Chess game and the music, he had set the scene perfectly. He should of had Turkish coffee. But Eerie was certain that one does not play all of his assets to begin with. :: I will not underestimate you... Grier: ::Watching Eerie depart:: Don’t kid yourself Commander, you've had one victory and only because I went easy on you. You’ve not had the best from me. ::Grinning jovially.:: ::Eerie turned and decided that he ‘actually’ liked this officer, there was something about him. There was some cunning as well.:: Eerie: Commander, it was a pleasure. Just be aware that you have not seen my ‘best’ game either. ::The tone was still formal and dry. But the words conveyed some warmth. Eerie turned and exited the office.:: A JP by: Lt Cmdr Reinard Chief Counsellor USS Vigilant and Lt. Cmdr Eerie CTO/CSO USS Vigilant
  11. ((Private room, Assembly Hall, Prak Zel)) ::Things hadn't yet been explained to Fox on the plans for how they were going to deal with - and hopefully win - a game of Stratagema, and so Ilyazi, having already retrieved the Ensign from Zaveri's office, walked with him back to the room Minister Haksar had allocated for their use. He was nervous, she could tell, and she needed time with him both to explain, and then prepare him for what was possibly going to be quite an experience. She didn't know yet just how much contact he'd had with telepaths, and getting him used to her in his brain was her main priority.:: Malon: ::laughing:: I tell you what, if you win, I'll buy you dinner, how does that sound? ::This was the second time he'd been surprised by Malon in as many minutes. A shy smile managed to grow on his face. A few drinks with Counsellor Reinard and dinner with Dr Malon. If only he'd known making friends with his colleagues would be so easy, he might have managed to sleep the past fortnight.:: Fox: ::Smiling:: Well with that incentive, I've no excuse to lose. ::She smiled to herself, and as they finally approached the private room, she silently opened the door and held it while Fox came in, much as she might have welcomed a patient into her offices back on Earth. But he wasn't a patient. He was a colleague. And with that in mind, she closed the door, literally shutting everything outside that room off.:: ::The door closing and the ensuing silence startled Fox. The young Ensign quite clearly had no idea why Ilyazi wanted him alone. He cautiously took a seat in the far end of the room, facing the Doctor. He had nervously begun to run his hand through his hair.:: Malon: ::laughing gently:: You look a bit nervous. Are you okay? Fox: ::Hesitantly:: Uh...that depends. What are we here for? Malon: ::smiling:: Just relax. I wanted to talk to you about this game of stratagema. How are you feeling about it? Fox: Alright....I suppose. I'm quite a good player but with so much riding on me winning....and the quality of the opposition... ::He slowly shook his head, doubt plastered over his face.:: Malon: Hopefully I can help with that. ::moving to bring a chair over to where Fox was sat:: The Captain and I have come up with a little plan to aid you in winning this game of stratagema. But for it to work, I need you to be completely and utterly comfortable with me. Fox: W-what? Malon: Do you know that I'm a telepath? ::Of course, the moment he registered the question in his mind, she'd have her answer. Not even the most skillful of liars could ever school their first thoughts from her.:: oOYesOo Fox: I think I heard the Captain mention as such in the briefing.... Malon: ::giving a curt nod, keeping her black eyes settled on him:: How do you feel about telepaths and communicating via telepathy? ::She was keeping contact verbal for the time being, more with the aim of building trust than anything else. Captain Herrera had been forearmed with the knowledge she was a telepath, and by his thoughts made it quite clear he had no problems communicating that way. Fox, though...she wasn't sure yet. Nor, for that matter, was Fox:: Fox: How do I feel about it...? I don't know. I mean, you're the first telepath I've met. oOI've nothing against telepaths if that's what this is about....is that what she thinks? God, I hope not. Does she think I'm a bigot? Does the Captain?Oo ::She heard his quite obvious distressed thoughts and, with a warm smile, held up a forestalling hand.:: Malon: It's okay, I'm not asking because I think you're bigoted. No one thinks that of you, so relax. This is purely about the game. ::pause:: Obviously, for me its quite natural to hear other people's thoughts in my head. For you it isn't. It can be quite a...unique experience, especially if you're new to it. Fox: ::Cautiously:: If I'm new to it....? Malon: The idea is that I'll be with you while you play a game of stratagema. The Zakdorn spectators won't worry about their thoughts being overheard, and you can guarantee that with their skill, they'll be thinking of what your next move should be if *they* were playing. All I need to do is listen in, pick up the best move from them, and relay it to you. How does that sound to you? ::Fox's face was quite the sight; his jaw hung open and his eyes narrowed as he fought to take in and comprehend this barrage of new information.:: Fox: Wh.....but isn't that cheating? Malon: ::chuckling:: Yes. But as much as I'd love to say you're up to the Zakdorn's level...no one but a Zakdorn is. Fox: I suppose you're right....Stratagema's a pacy game though, could you....'communicate' with me that fast? Malon: ::nodding reassuringly:: I think so, but we'll need to practice. I don't want to overload you, so I want to take this fairly slowly. ::She paused again, giving him chance to think it through.:: Malon: Ready? Fox: ::Nervously::....Alright. I'm willing to try. Do I need to do anything? Will this hurt? ::She put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze, her next words being sent telepathically to him.:: Malon: ~ I promise you, it won't hurt. And all you have to do is listen. ~ ::speaking aloud:: I'm going to send you a list of four words. All I want you to do is relay them back to me verbally. Alright? ::He was startled as he first heard Ilyazi's voice inside his own head; he jolted upright in his seat. As she finished and he realised no harm had come to him he softened.:: Fox: ::With growing confidence:: Yeah....yeah, alright. ::She made sure to only send him thought words, not images. She started off with simple words, gradually making them more complex until she reached 'schizophrenia'.:: Fox: Tree....yoghurt....vigilant.....::Grinning:: schizophrenia? A few hundred years ago, that'd be my diagnosis if I told anyone about this. Malon: ::grinning:: And how do you know I'm not a figment of your imagination? ::more serious:: How was that? Fox: Okay...I think. How was it for you? ::He almost kicked himself for asking such a silly question.:: Malon: ::smiling at him:: It was fine, trust me. I'm used to this, so you don't need to worry about me. ::shifting to lean forward on her knees:: Now, the next part is a little more intense, a little more tricky. I'm going to send you images - a few basic items, a few complex scenes. All you have to do is relay them back to me as fast as you can. We'll start when you're ready. Fox: ::Exhale:: Okay, I'll give it a good go. Malon: I promise you, you'll be absolutely fine. ::As long as *she* didn't mess this up, anyway.:: Fox: ::Smiling:: Even if I'm not, at least there'll be a Doctor in the room. ::Ilyazi nodded, smiling at him, and then proceeded on with his "training". She started off by showing him an image of a pear. As he responded, she added to the image, imagining the bowl the pear was sat in. And then finally the table.:: Fox: An apple.....no, a pear sorry. It's.....it's now inside a bowl....the bowl's on top of a counter...or a table, rather.. Malon: Good, that's correct. ::Ilyazi sat back at that point, clearly indicating it was time for a few minutes break. She stood and walked over to the wall unit that Haksar had welcomed them to use. Fox welcomed the distraction, this was all rather disconcerting.:: Malon: What would you like? Fox: A pint of Romulan ale....::grin:: but I'll settle for a glass of water. ::She laughed and tapped in the order for two waters, waited for them to appear, and then held Fox's out for him to take. He gladly accepted the drink.:: Malon: ::concerned but relaxed:: How are you doing with this? Are you okay? Fox: I...think so. It's just a bit strange, I've never had anyone visit my brain before. If I knew you were coming, I'd have tidied up a little. ::He ventured a little smile then took a few sips from his water. It had been quite a busy day...they hadn't prepared him for this in the Academy.:: Malon: ::smiling:: I'm glad you can still keep your humour through this. Some people totally freak having someone else in their minds. Fox: How about you? Is it tiring, telepathy? ::She took a sip of her own glass of water, considering his question. She wasn't entirely certain how much to tell him. Not *everything*, obviously, or he really would freak at being anywhere near her.:: Malon: It's...complicated. Rodulans have four lobed brains, which means that when we're among our own people, we're blind to each other. Put me in a crowd of people, and its like a deaf person from birth can suddenly hear one hundred conversations going on around him, all the time, non-stop. It's not always easy to filter out. Fox: I can't even imagine what it must be like..... ::A sudden thought occurred to Fox. His mind flashed back to their initial briefing and the marine that had approached Ilyazi. He had offered her apologies and romance in equal measure, much to her chagrin.:: Fox: So back on the Vigilant....with that marine Iceman....you must've known what was coming? ::She chuckled and bit her lip all at once.:: Malon: Oh yes, I did. I perhaps could have been a little kinder to him by *not* rejecting him in front of the entire senior staff, but honestly... ::She trailed off at that point, not wanting to finish the sentence.:: Fox: I think during times like that, I wouldn't want to know what the guy was thinking.... ::She held his gaze for a long moment, and judged his comment to be entirely truthful and frank. She felt like she could trust him, seeing as he was putting so much trust in her.:: Malon: ::carefully:: Sometimes its good to know. It can be...a protection. If you know what's coming, you can avoid it. ::oO(Malon) Or exploit it. Oo:: Fox: That makes sense.. Malon: ::giving him a grim smile:: Are you ready to continue? Fox: Yeah, let's do it. ::There was a steel in Fox's voice which wasn't there before. Ilyazi, extremely glad to find him more confident, put her glass down on the desk and crossed one leg over the other, letting herself relax into the chair.:: Malon: This next image is going to progress faster and will be more detailed. If you're struggling, I'll know. But I'll also know if I think you can do it, okay? Do you trust me enough to do this? Fox: I do. Trust you, that is. Malon: ~ I'm here to support you, so don't worry. ~ ::Once he'd given her the all-clear, Ilyazi sent him an image of a palm tree. A sandy beach quickly formed around the tree. A beautiful coloured parrot flew into the branches as-:: Fox: I can see...a palm tree. And now a beach. I've just seen a parrot fly onto the tree. A green wing Macaw, I think. I saw one of those once when.... Malon: ~ Focus. ~ Fox: oORight....sorryOo ::She didn't let him lose concentration. She now did something she rarely did - she forced other thoughts that came to him out of the way, forcing him to remain focused, and then continued with the image. It was a more intense way of doing it, but he needed to learn mental concentration.:: ::A coconut fell to the beach and rolled towards the lapping waves, as a lizard crawled upon a rock. Everything she sent him progressed rapidly.:: Fox: A coconut's fallen....it's rolling towards the sea. I can see a lizard....it's....it's.......crawled on the rock. The parrot's looking at it. The parrot's flying towards it...landed on it's back. They're both now scampering after the coconut. They're not fast enough, the coconut is in the sea drifting away. ::She knew he'd struggled part way through, but Ilyazi kept him focused on the task at hand. Once they'd finished the image, Ilyazi pulled herself back out of his mind, giving him chance to recover and gain control of his own mind. She hadn't hurt him, but she was concerned it may have been too much.:: Fox: ::Breathlessly:: Wow....that was...quite a lot... ::He hadn't expected telepathy to be so....vivid. The image forced into his mind was clearer than his own recollections; his focus was so intense that he had momentarily forgotten about the room he was sat in. Returning so abruptly to his own thoughts was quite disjarring. Malon: ::quietly:: It's not easy, I know. But are you okay? Fox: I'm okay, honestly. That felt alright. Malon: ::smiling and picking up her glass:: Good. ::taking a sip:: How do you feel about the game tomorrow? Fox: ::Pausing to think for a moment:: Pretty good, all things considered. Better than I did, at any rate.. Malon: My plan of attack is to let you do the hard part. I'll only be there as a guide. ::wryly:: If you count shoving images into your mind as "guiding". Fox: ::Grinning:: I like guide. It sounds gentler than 'mind image shover'. ::She laughed at that, thankful he was okay after what some would deem an intrusion.:: Malon: Thanks! ::smiling reassuringly:: I think you'll do okay. Just...react as quick as you can, and stay *focused*, and you'll be absolutely fine. ::React as quickly as you can, stay focused and you'll be absolutely fine; he'd been told exactly the same thing by his father before his maiden flight. The words themselves did little to assuage his unease but the familiarity of them brought yet another smile to his face.:: ::Ilyazi put her empty glass down on the desk and stood up. She was worried, now she thought of it. Not because of Fox's abilities. But because of hers. Stratagema was *fast*, and she had to be careful.:: Malon: Tomorrow morning we'll have a quick practice session, but I think otherwise you seem fairly comfortable with me in your mind. That's all I wanted to make sure of. ::Following Ilyazi's cue, Fox also stood. He felt confident that the advantage afforded to them by Ilyazi's telepathy would be significant. Now all he needed to do was brush up on his own skills.:: Fox: Not that I'd wish rooting around in my brain on anyone... but I'm glad it's you helping me with this. Thankyou. ::And *that* was all she needed to hear to make her totally relax again. She was always wary of using her telepathy in such a forceful way, but hearing a "thank you" made it all worthwhile.:: JP by Ensign James Fox Helm Officer USS Vigilant & Ensign Ilyazi Malon Medical Officer USS Vigilant
  12. ((Earth – Scotland – Castle of Mey – Side Room)) :: The lot of them continued to talk and eat, with each of them taking turns spinning space stories. Each of them had a few stories to tell, although Kamela was at a distinct disadvantage....almost from the time she entered Starfleet, she had been in Intelligence, so her stories were limited...but she did have the story of how she met Hannibal on Starbase 375...which seemed to delight everyone at the table. finally, with their bellies stuffed and lubricated with an array of intoxicating liquors, the two of them bid goodnight to the rest of them and they made their way to the guest quarters, which were situated high above in the castle. The room they were shown to was huge, with it's own fireplace and decorative rugs covering the stone floor. A large window opened out to the sea, and the fireplace crackled as Hannibal stoked the fire. The both of them were stripped out of their dress uniforms, with Hannibal in a pair of shorts and a black exercise shirt, emblazoned with SFMC on the chest, his bare feet making no sound as he moved across the floor. She was dressed in a simple blue camisole, and her feet were also bare, her long, curly blond locks freely flowing down her back. What she had to do next was either going to send her out into the cold, or bind her to him forever...The two sat before the huge window, looking out towards the sea, unseen in the darkness but audible as the waves crashed into the rocks below. They sat in silence for awhile with both of them nursing a cup of coffee. She turned to look at the massive Marine, who knew all along this conversation was coming, and she knew he had steeled himself for it, just as he would have for combat..but this was combat he had never before experienced, a battle not fought with weapons or hand to hand, or mental tactics to gain an advantage over an enemy....this was a battle for his heart, and to win, she had to come at him with everything she had.....:: Allison: Hannibal.....do you love me? :: The big Marine, still looking out over the water, bit his lip....he knew this day would come, but he had hoped he could hold off on it as long as possible.Kamela was not going to give him a choice now...:: Parker: You know the answer to that question.... Allison: No Hannibal...I don't..... :: Still maintaining his cool dimeanor, Hannibal spoke again...:: Parker: You know I would do anything in the galaxy for you... Allison: Anything but say "I love you?" :: His face, now turned back towards the sea, responded: Parker: I would kill for you, Kamela. I would risk everything for you if I had to, just to make sure you were safe.... Allison: How long have we done this dance, Hannibal? Four years? Five? All that time, I have known I have loved you. When Hella and I rescued you from that pier, I would have done anything to trade places with you, just so you would not have had to go through that pain. While you were lying in Hellas' cave I prayed that you would live, that you would not leave me that way. I knew then that life without you would not be worth living, and dammit, I wanted to have a life with you...as your wife..... :: Hannibal turned to her and spoke, his voice tinged with anger..as much as he cared about her, she was still standing into forbidden territory...:: Parker: I...never asked you to love me...I never asked you to care..... :: Hannibal didn't want to go down this road..she was pushing him hard..too hard.....For the first time in his life, he reined in attacking someone who was attacking him...:: Allison: Well, Hannibal, it's too late for that...so...exactly what am I to you? Someone you can conveniently frak whenever you feel like it? Is that it? I'm just like all the others you have slept with through the years? I am the same as Maya Gemini? Sky Blake? Hanna Martinez? Is that all I am to you? :: Hannibal had made no secret over the years of his many lovers he had, and her throwing out the names of some of them was going against the rules they had set so long ago. .especially since he didn't know how she knew about Chief Martinez since they had never talked about her....his father often said a woman knows, and over the years, his advice had been true....buthis anger continued to build as Kamela bore in..:: :: Kamela knew the anger was building within him, an anger towards her that she had never seen...but she had to press on...:: Parker:: tight lipped:: Kamela....you are nothing like any of those other women. You mean more to me than that.... Allison: pressing the point:: Do I? Really? Hannibal...you are the only man I have ever met that says what he means, then does it, no matter the consequences, no matter the risk. Enemies fear you. Marines respect you. Tell me, Hannibal, why does the great warrior who can walk through the Great Hall on Qo' noS and have the respect of Chancellor Martok and be a member of his House be afraid of three little words? He would laugh at you...... :: Kamela knew she had crossed the line as Hannibal got up, the fire clearly visible in his eyes. Her blood ran cold, as she had seen the look in his eyes before. She knew he would never lay a hand on her, but he could do something far worse to her...abandon her..and she had no place to go.....Instead, he angrily turned and flung his coffee mug into the fireplace, the shards falling into the fire.... The room was deathly silent, as the fate of their relationship hung on a wire. Tears rimmed her eyes as she watched him in the firelight, his gaze only for the fireplace.When he turned back towards her, he stood in front of the fireplace, his face not completely visible. She knew in that moment, she had given her all, and now she was completely vulnerable, like a ship with its shields down in the sights of a powerful enemy. If Hannibal attacked her now, he would destroy her, but her love for him made her take that chance....When Hannibal spoke, his voice was low...even..... Parker: You want to know why I don't say those words, Kamela? I will tell you why. Everyone with one exception I have told that to is DEAD! My father...my mother...my uncle...all gone! My sister I have not told her that since the Dominion War, but she accepts that. Why can't you? [...] it all! You know that I do! And this marriage thing? Kamela...our enemies are still out there. We both have prices on our heads.... Allison: And you think by marrying me that is going to change? Hannibal...together we are stronger than we are apart. Let them come,Ty.... :: Hannibal was furious with her, and in the firelight, he could see her eyes rimmed with tears...at that moment, he saw Kamela not as the trained killer and Intelligence operative she was. Now, she was a woman who risked his wrath to tell him how she felt...and where she wanted him to truly fit into his life.Slowly, as she approached him, his anger began to melt away, and for the first time in his life, he was vulnerable to another human being.... :: She walked slowly over to him, and placed a hand on his massive chest, right over his heart...:: Parker:: softly:: I do not want to lose you......I ....am...... :: She had him. She had done what no enemy could have done. She had his heart....the only [...] in his formidable armor was the woman who now stood before him. How ironic, he thought...they were in a castle, a very worthy fortress, and the only way to take a fortress like this without heavy losses was from the inside out...just as she had done...:: Allison: Yes,Ty? Parker: I am not easy to get along with..... Allison: I know....... Parker: I drink..I fight...I smoke cigars....... Allison: I know...and as long as you don't dally with any of those women you dance with.... Parker: I haven't..... Allison:: Just setting the ground rules.... Parker: And you know I will still take on any mission and any enemy...... Allison: And you know I will as well.... Parker: This will not be easy for you... Allison: Are you proposing to me Hannibal? :: Hannibal was now holding her close, the fire gone from his eyes, replaced by something else...love...:: Parker: It would seem so..... Allison: [...]ing her head slightly:: Hannibal..... :: He held her even more tightly, then lightly kissed her lips.....:: Parker: There is no other woman who is worthy to stand by my side. You have seen me at my worst..and perhaps...it is time for you to see me at my best...I ...love you, Kamela.::beat:: And I have for a long time...... :: For the first time in a great while, Kamela felt she could breathe. She had risked it all confronting Hannibal, and now she was silently thanking God he felt the same way about her. She felt his hands come up and deftly move the straps of her camisole down her shoulders, until it was lying on the floor.She kissed him, hungrily, as he picked her up and put her on the bed..:: Allison: So...are we consumating the engagement? Parker:: smiling:: I have not heard you say yes to the......engagement.....or marriage..... :: Now Hannibal was playing coy...:: Allison:: also smiling:: Yes.... to both.....now shut up and ravage me.... post by Major Hannibal Tiberious Parker2ndOfficer/Marine Commander/Chief Of Strategic OperationsEmbassy, Duronis II
  13. ((Latched to the Dorsal Fin of a Hardskin Ally, The Void)) :: Iron Breaker sent out a pulse of excitement at the conflict it was engaged in. To the Hardskins it would mean nothing but to its people they would know that battle had been joined in the spawning grounds. And to Born in Broken Light, closer at hand, it would be an admonition towards his inaction. His carapace still glowed a bright pearlescent white as he gave into the hate he'd borne for generations. He could hear, vaguely, Broken Light pleading with him but remained deaf to it and all other entreaties. This Hardskin-friend was obviously defenceless and he would soon have another victory to add to his already long list. :: :: Flexing his carapace he gained a firm purchase on the prey-beasts dorsal fin and began to crush it between his void hardened plates. Fissures and breaks in it's skin released puffs of gasses that blew out along his stomach with significant force. Around him he could sense debris being torn loose and drifting away as he rocked back and forth and from side to side. To Born in Broken Light it would look like he was thrashing on the Hardskin's back, using the long lower half of his body as a counter weight as it hung along the back and below its target. :: :: With a final, terrible heave Iron Breaker reared back. The lower half of his body swung like a pendulum beneath the Hardskin and his upper half arched backwards with his prize. Dozens of black fissures and cracks spider webbed along the top disc of the Hardskin, each spreading away from the gaping wound left in its back. Inside the sound of shearing metal would resound through every level of the Ally as part of it was torn away, exposed to the cold. In between his plates he squeezed again, putting a final effort into destroying the dorsal fin he'd taken. It buckled and bent and he felt the last explosions of gas as he let it go and watched it drift up and away from the fray. :: :: Iron Breaker allowed himself a moments rest as he drifted away from the wounded prey-beast. Though in part it was also to take in the terrible wound he'd inflicted. Iron Breaker watched with cold eyes as the last few burst of white gas escaped the two ragged spars that stretched above the disc. His carapace glowed a soft blue as a euphoric pleasure swept through him, a pride in what he'd just accomplished. Reaffirmation that his name was rightly earned and that age had now slowed him or dulled his instincts. He watched as the Hardskins tiny Ally hung limply in the void below him and felt victory close at hand. Rearing back his massive, scarred head he let out a void roar that made even Broken Light recoil. :: :: His one remaining antenna twitched a fraction of a second before the first spear struck him in his exposed belly. It was one of the Hardskin Predators vorpal spears. The largest they possessed and tipped in such a way that removing it was impossible. Iron Breaker had survived five such blows in the past, but only once to his stomach. His roar of victory changed swiftly to anguish as his carapace lit up bright white again, and with frightening speed he turned from the wounded Hardskin and expelled gasses from four of his six gills, rocketing away to a safer distance. :: Iron Breaker Cosmozoan Guardian and Warrior as simmed by Lieutenant Oliver Weston Intelligence Officer USS Drake
  14. ((Reaper Unreality)) T'Mihn: This place might not even be real, but in our minds. Jorey: oO This isn't in my mind... must be their mind.Oo ::As the realization came the environment seemed to flicker in agreement with him. Tagren: What makes you say that? ::As the two women discussed the situation, Jorey focused on the idea of being caught in another's mind. oOMaybe this isn't our nightmare, but rather we are in a Reaper's dream. There is no way out, we cannot wake up, because we are merely character's in the Reaper's dream.Oo Tagren: I noticed my medical kit missing but I wasn't sure... I did try to use my communicator but got nothing. Not even a... T'Mihn: ::nodding:: I believe we are in a virtual environment. ::Jorey turned his thoughts inward again and the two women's voices faded into the background. oO Virtual environment... no that can't be. How would I be back aboard the Helios at the Battle of Betazed while the others were still in the twisted hospital replica? If it were virtual, wouldn't we all be in the same location?Oo T'Mihn: ::T'Mihn's voice slowly made its way back to holding Jorey's attention:: Existing in fear is a choice. Tagren: It feels like they... whoever they.... a Reaper? It feels as if they are trying their best to force that choice on us. Jorey: Why? oO Why do they want to dream about us afraid? Does it make them feel better to see others weak? Maybe they can't experience fear and need to feel it second hand? Like fear addicts...Oo ::Jorey's thoughts gave way to the doctor's confusion and fear. Tagren: Are... are we back on the ship? No, wait... Jorey: ::Jorey, involuntary, moved slowly toward the doctor:: No doctor, we are not on the ship. ::Jorey felt the strange sensation of not being able to control himself. He placed his hand gently on her arm and looked her in the eye and with all sincerity continued:: We are in no place... we are nowhere. Alone. Tagren: I... don't feel very good. Please, give me a moment. ::Jorey watched as the doctor closed her eyes and slumped down against the wall.:: oO Nowhere? No, not nowhere. Somewhere, but not a place in our reality. A dream can exist, but that doesn't make it real. The reaper dreams of us in nightmares.Oo Jorey: If a man dies, but exists in another man's dreams, is he still real? Does he still exist? ::Jorey slowly sat down on the cold, hard floor. He crossed his legs, placed his elbows on his thighs, and held his chin up with the palms of his hands.:: oO Am I already dead? And the Doctor and T'Mihn too. But instead of our souls being blessed and joining the gods, we are somehow trapped in this purgatory to be a reaper's play things while he dreams?Oo Jorey: ::Jorey felt the predator within him.:: Doctor, we will not die and leave you alone...:: Jorey felt oddly compelled and whispered just loud enough to be heard.:: Maybe we are already dead and trapped here together. No escape, no relief, and no hope. ::Jorey looked up Tagren and then to T'Mihn before closing his eyes and cradling his face between his hands. Jorey wondered if he was losing himself to the despair and hopelessness that had been stalking him since he first beamed down to Bilire IV.:: Ensign Brayden Jorey USS Tiger – A Helm Officer
  15. ((Here… But not really… )) ::Even though my parents never married, I knew that they loved me and each other. I wanted for basically nothing, only the desire to see each more, but I understood at a very young age that a person's duty bound them to things. Despite that, I knew that their bond with me was stronger, their duty as my parents, and it never had to be vocally stated. It simply was.:: ::I was sheltered to an extent as a child. We would spend almost every Christmas in a cabin in the Rockies, removed from Starfleet and duty, huddled in our winter coats, watching the snow, and sitting by an old-time fireplace singing and exchanging gifts over hot chocolate and dishes from recipes that originated from across the sea of stars. We enjoyed getting away from it all and spending time as a family.:: ::In one cherished memory, I remember standing, the crispy tundra underneath my boots, catching snowflakes with my tongue as my dad lifted me to his shoulders, his blue eyes smiling tenderly, happily. To bring me closer to the deep purples and blues that tinted the sky, he said. I would stretch my arms and pretend that I could touch the peaks of the mountains, that I was just as tall. My mom would watch, her smile wide, covered in what seemed to be ten layers of shirts, pants and an oversized parka. She never handled the cold well.:: ::Cold.:: ::This place was cold and I trembled.:: ::So was death, the idea of it. I thought the three of us were unstoppable, empowered by my mother's and my grandfather's tales of the El-Aurians. I thought we could live forever. That time in this moment would simply remain the same, constant, never changing.:: ::I trembled.:: ::I could still hear the beeping of machines. The vision of my paling father resting in the hospital bed he would later pass away in. His hand holding mine as he struggled to breath. His eyes always remained the same. Smiling, tenderly at me with happiness, even as his body deteriorated. I was young, unaffected by death, and then it hit me like a bullet.:: ::And I trembled, crying, cold.:: ::Death was cold.:: ::Cold.:: ((Present: Bilire IV, Reaper's Unreality)) ::Just like this room…:: ::Aribelle felt her mind slipping and she struggled to fight the surge of memories that flooded her as she patted down the concrete walls, her body cold, drenched from water and in pain.:: Tagren: Where am I? What is this place? Dodhun: It is your worst nightmare. Tagren: My… worst nightmare? ::It did not register. She mulled over it in her brain, which was still fuzzy, in a haze. She shivered, teeth chattering. She thought to press her communicator, her fingers in pain from the cold, but was greeted by nothing. Instantly, she closed her eyes and rode out all the emotions she was feeling in that moment. Slowly, memories started to come back to her. Of the water, rushing into the hospital, of it overpowering her, the turbulent waters taking her over.:: ::She should have died.:: ::Maybe she did.:: ::Cold, she trembled.:: ::Is she was dead, would she be able to feel this much pain? This much cold? Still feel wet? Still feel fear? She could not think…:: Tagren: oO Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me… Oo ::With a sense of purpose, Tagren straightened herself up, still shaking.:: Tagren: Let me out of here! ::No answer.:: Tagren: Hello? ::No answer. The ominous presence had faded, but that did not leave Aribelle any less terrified. There was something so wrong, unreal about this whole thing. Breathing and coughing up more water, Aribelle twisted around and tried to walk, to the other side of the cell, the light flickering in and out above her. Just as she stretched her arms to touch the other wall, she lost her footing and fell forward onto the floor, the side of her face cracking onto the concrete. As she faded into unconsciousness, blood pooled slowly around her head, soaking into her already wet fiery colored hair.:: TBC Dr. Aribelle "Ari" Tagren Ensign, Medical Officer USS Tiger-A
  16. ((San Francisco, Earth)) ::The surface of the bay was refulgent. A cold salty breeze swept inland and into the refurbished San Francisco Ferry Building, now filled with bistros and cafes and quaint cozy restaurants. They sat facing each other at a small round table by the waterfront, the rays of sunlight pleasant on the skin and brilliant on the bunch of mauve and pink petunias at the center of the table. Coffee is always a bad idea when it comes to ex-flames. He thought about this as he sipped his beverage staring out onto the resplendent bay. He also thought about other things. Things from the past.:: ((Flashback – 4 years ago, Migrant Colony Medical Camp, Mars)) ::Their relationship had been on the verge of collapse for some time now. Raj had continued to water and nourish the wilting relationship obsessively, not realizing that he was in fact drowning them both.:: MATTHEWS: ::gently leading him aside by the elbow:: A word, Raj? BLUEHEART: Sure, Dylan. ::His heart sank.:: MATTHEWS: Look, this isn't working out. We both know it. We both need to move on. BLUEHEART: Okay. ::He smiled. He surrendered.:: MATTHEWS: You're hurt, I can see that, but this is for the best. If only…. ::That evening Raj had returned home to his temporary quarters and stripped off all his clothes before stepping into the common shower room. Finding it deserted, he turned on the water to a scalding temperature, and sat under the cascading water jet, naked, with his knees drawn up close to his chest, too numb to cry, too numb to feel any heartache. He unclenched his right hand where he had concealed a scalpel he had sneaked out of the infirmary. He stared at the gleaming blade for the longest time, his heart never even picking up pace. How tranquil it would feel to be numb and unaware towards everything, forever, he contemplated. The universe had conspired against him that evening. For the waters did not run scarlet.:: ((End flashback)) ::Raj shuddered. The gentle breeze was cold. But not that cold.:: MATTHEWS: Sorry I haven't kept in touch. ::There was a tinge of sadness in his voice. Maybe Raj just imagined there was. The Starfleet officer gently placed his cup on the table and cautiously gazed into a set of incredibly deep blue eyes. The years have been good on him, he thought to himself. He still looked essentially the same as he did all those years ago. The strong jaw, the distinguished nose, the furrows creasing his brow. If at all, those fine lines radiating from the outer corner of his eyes only lent an air of distinction and success to that handsome face.:: BLUEHEART: I wouldn't expect you to. ::His smile was not a smile.:: MATTHEWS: ::removing his jacket and placing it over the back of his chair:: So tell me, officer. ::He leaned forward, gripping both elbows as he placed them on the table.:: Who's that handsome specimen I saw you with earlier? BLUEHEART: ::trying to disregard the sparkle in those mesmerizing eyes:: Em? ::This time it was a smile.:: He's…. a xenolinguist. Part of the crew. ::The bay was like a bowl of diamonds glittering under the noon sun.:: MATTHEWS: ::chuckling:: Em. That's his name, is it? Well he's not only a xenolinguist. ::There was that sparkle in the eyes again.:: He's more than that. He's someone special, isn't he? ::He smiled broader.:: I'm really glad you found---- BLUEHEART: Can we not talk about Em? ::He reminded himself to smile. And did.:: MATTHEWS: ::leaning back in his seat but still retaining that infectious smile:: Now you're being defensive. ::He even chuckled.:: BLUEHEART: No. I'm being protective. Of my privacy. oO And of my friends. Oo ::He sipped some coffee because he couldn't smile. Not this time.:: MATTHEWS: Okay, okay. Right. So.. ::running a hand through his wind-swept hair:: what's it like being on a starship? ::Raj inwardly groaned. But at least that unclassy, worn out question was a little effort on Dylan's part in the right direction. He unfastened the buttons of his formal attire jacket and removed it, folding it neatly before placing it gingerly on his lap like one would a newborn kitten.:: BLUEHEART: oO In four years time you can ask your brother. Oo It's cool. ::pause:: Well, actually it's pretty awesome. oO If you don't count the mutiny and my ill-stricken holodeck adventures. Oo ::He caressed the velvet of the petunias. A massive cloud lumbered across the sun, its shadow silently gliding over the shimmering surface of the bay. The wind, still as cold, picked up speed momentarily, ruffling the doctor's already tousled hair. Raj couldn't bear looking lest bittersweet memories be awakened, so he glanced away, out onto the dark shape rolling across the bay. A seagull swooped down near their table and perched itself on the railing some feet away. It squawked loudly, gawking at the pair for the longest time with inquisitive eyes, then flew off into the re-emerging sun, perhaps bored with the placid antics of the two mundane humans.:: MATTHEWS: I bet. ::There's that dimple at the left corner of his mouth. Raj had been wondering what was missing from that face.:: You see a whole different set of patients in the military, huh? ::A waitress appeared out of nowhere and refilled their cups. The sweet aroma of cinnamon coffee, like the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance, was breathtaking.:: BLUEHEART: ::inhaling the beguiling scent and cradling the cup in both palms:: I'm not a medical officer on board the Discovery. But yes. You see a lot more combat-related injuries and novel pathogenic diseases. I guess. ::The coffee was divine.:: MATTHEWS: Oh? ::He crossed his legs under the table.:: You're not practicing on board? BLUEHEART: No. I'm the First Officer. Counselor before that. MATTHEWS: Wow. That's news. First Officer. ::He took a sip of his coffee.:: You were so passionate about Medicine in school. I thought for sure you'd win the Nobel prize one day. ::Perfect white teeth. Again.:: ::The giant cumulonimbus was taking its sweet idle time to stroll across the pale blue sky. As punishment for its lassitude, it got lanced by several shards of sunbeams piercing their way through to the surface of the bay. It was a beautiful. Almost serene. Gloomy and bright all at once. Just how Raj thought perfect weather should be. Should always be. A slim shaft of sunlight hit their table. The petunias seemed more opulent in color than before. Something glinted, gleamed, catching his eye. Dylan's left hand rested on the table top, palm facing down.:: BLUEHEART: ::shrugging:: People change I guess. ::He had spoken the words without forethought.:: MATTHEWS: You're right. ::There was that tinge of sadness again.:: People do change. But it never occurred to me you'd quit Medicine. Why did you? BLUEHEART: ::staring right through and beyond Dylan's handsome face:: You know why. ::He stifled a sigh.:: MATTHEWS: ::It was he who sighed.:: Perhaps I do. But I'd still like to hear it. For the record. ::Patrons were walking by, to and fro. A child was crying somewhere, maybe lost and unable to locate her guardians. The ferry building was swarming with people.:: BLUEHEART: I couldn't stand to be near you. ::He said it so casually, like he was mentioning the weather forecast.:: There. I said. MATTHEWS: ::downcast eyes:: Thank you. I understand. BLUEHEART: I don't think you do. Understand. ::His voice was as cool as the light breeze streaming through Dylan's curls.:: MATTHEWS: ::Another sigh.:: I told you the reason---- BLUEHEART: Well, I had stopped listening after "this isn't working out". ::It was a mystery how he remained cool, composed and collected right then.:: MATTHEWS: The next instant you vanished. BLUEHEART: You expected me to stay? ::He almost snorted. Almost.:: ::Dylan Matthews remained silent. Now it was he who looked past Raj into that mystical eternal space that stretched till the edge of the universe. The silence was unnerving, uncomfortable. But necessary.:: MATTHEWS: I'm truly sorry, Raj. ::He leaned forward. His words were soft, warm, heartfelt. Raj quickly drew back anticipating Dylan's hand reaching out to touch his. Of course, it was all in his imagination.:: BLUEHEART: It's okay. ::It was not.:: That's all in the past. ::A forced smile. A pathetically fake smile.:: ::In a parallel universe, the waters might have actually run scarlet. And Raj Blueheart may not have existed to see himself rise through the ranks in Starfleet. He shuddered again at the macabre thought. He also considered revealing to the man before him what he had set out to do that fateful night. Kill him softly and slowly with guilt. Make him suffer the same way he did four years ago, alone and naked in that shower stall, under the streaming hot water, a stolen scalpel poised and quivering in his hand. Yet he didn't. He couldn't. A certain desperation, a vacuum, was already present in the man, slowly devouring him from within.:: MATTHEWS: ::managing a forced smile himself:: Yes, the past. The past is always a good place to start. ::A hover-ferry hurried by, an amalgamation of native Terrans and aliens alike acting all touristy on board the speeding craft. A passenger's large yellow hat flew off in a gust of wind. Raj watched it soar into the clouds then plummet into the bay. He returned his gaze to the glimmering object diverting the sun's rays into his eyes. Suddenly self-conscious, he tried to look away, swiftly and inconspicuously, but was too late.:: MATTHEWS: I still wear it even though it has been two years…. ::He brought his hand up to his chest and twisted the gold band round and round and round his ring finger.:: BLUEHEART: I'm sorry. ::He didn't know exactly what for, but it seemed like the appropriate thing to say.:: MATTHEWS: ::shrugging:: No, it's all right. ::He stretched his long legs under the table. He paused a bit, taking his turn to stare out at the Golden Gate Bridge. Then, as if reading Raj's mind, he spoke, with that same tinge of melancholy in his voice.:: The infirmary he was working in on Xaloq IV was bombed. ::Melancholy was highly infectious. Raj felt his heart implode with sudden, unexpected sadness. When he looked at Dylan, he almost saw a different person before him. How was it that stories, happy or catastrophic, were able to morph a person's features right before one's eyes? Dylan had aged ten years, such was the grief still strong and menacing within him.:: MATTHEWS: No one survived. ::He looked away. Far away.:: He was at the wrong place at the wrong time…. ::The lively sparkle in his eyes had been replaced with glistening moisture.:: ::The languid cloud finally set the afternoon sun free from behind its murky veil. The waters of the bay was gloriously refulgent once again. The cool salty breeze had died down but the sea gulls still glided high above on lofty air drafts. The Golden Gate Bridge stood majestic but silent in the distance, casting a keen eye on two men revisiting their past in the present. He hesitantly reached out a mildly tremulous hand, across the table and coffee cups and petunias, to drape over Dylan's.:: TBC ======================================= LtCmdr Raj Blueheart First Officer USS DISCOVERY-C
  17. ((Edited because the board screwed up the formatting. )) ((Turbolift, Enroute to Docking Ring Bay 7, Starbase 118)) ::Rumors. From the beginnings of written history, it seemed that they alone could be responsible for a rise to power, or a tragic fall from grace. In the words that spread as wildfire through the social vine, were the power to build up, and the power to tear asunder. Entire civilizations were created and maintained on rumors of strength and power, or terror. Those same civilizations fell easily under the weight of the words, and for eons, good men fell victim to the sword that was the pen.:: ::In pervasive whispers, men became consumed. Eaten from the inside out, souls were devoured by the acts that sought to hush the voices of the crowd. But the voices only changed. The blackness vanquished the good, and into the abyss that remained, fell the hope of humanity.:: ::It was a recurring theme, at least throughout the history of Earth; the rise and fall of entire world powers on the whims of the rumors that were always hanging on to the coattails of mere mortal men. Now Kali found herself caught up in the same on her second day of command. It terrified her to an extent, but that emotion would never surface. Instead, she would have to find a sort of resolve and soldier through.:: Nicholotti: Eh. ::She paused carefully considering what she would say next.:: Would you believe me if I said I don't know quite how to respond? Daniels: Yes. Yes I would. I know don't want to cause any problems for you with all these untrue rumors flying around... ::It was then, that Kali chose to turn and face him. She studied his face for a moment, thinking of the choice she was making. It was something she hadn't been prepared for, especially so soon after the heartbreak of losing Makal for a second time, but the way she felt when she was near him.:: ::She couldn't fight it. She wouldn't fight it. Rumors be [...]ed; she would not let all that made life precious crash into the soul eating darkness of whispering insurrection. It was what she had fought for when she stood between the knife and Jaxx, what she refused to let be taken away from her when she pulled Tressa from the mangled shuttle that day, and what she had brought into the world only a short time before the crisis began.:: ::It was worth fighting for, even if she faced a battle on many fronts; the projectiles in front of her and the smoldering fuse of social ambiguity behind.:: Nicholotti: I was thinking that maybe there could be some truth to what they say. ::From the moment she joined the Marines and Starfleet, Kali had been known for her passion for her team, for her chain of command, and for the sanctity of life itself. And God help those who would put any of those in danger; to incur her wrath meant meeting with a fury unmatched.:: ::Again, she found herself studying his facial expressions. The seeming cacophony of things made it all hard to read and she smiled. Maybe they were both a bit unsure of things, but together, they could certainly find their way.:: Daniels: I... I think there is definitely some truth to these rumors. I also think we should do whatever makes us happy and to hell with what other people think. ::Her smile only grew. It wouldn't be quite that easy, but she would let him have his moment. He hadn't really spoken his mind since they had returned to the life of the uniform and it was actually quite the sight to see him just then. The filter was down and his thoughts spilled out into the silence of the turbolift as they headed towards destiny.:: Nicholotti: I wish it could be that simple. ::But destiny would wait for a moment longer.:: Daniels: I care for you...a lot, Kali. ::He looked at the beautiful officer next to him and tried to think outside of their Starfleet ranks:: I don't know exactly where this is...::He paused and rephrased:: Where WE are going, but I do know that I don't want to let a few gossipy officers and wild rumors get in the way of us finding out. ::Kali had fallen before and the resulting crash made this even more difficult. But in that moment, seeing the fire burn in his eyes, and hearing the intensity of the words, she felt the weight of command, and the fear of falling, melt away. For a single moment, the raven haired commander was no more. In her place stood only a woman who craved more of the feelings that his presence invoked.:: ::Locking eyes with him, Kali conveyed the trust she had in him that he would catch her and not let her crash. It was the sentiment that if this road led to the hard fall she had suffered once before, it would be different this time.:: Nicholotti: Then let's not let them. ::And with that, she jumped in.:: TAG/TBC -- Commander Kalianna Nicholotti Commanding Officer Starbase 118 / USS Victory
  18. As we close the 2012 Top Sims Contest, I'm curious if anyone has suggestions for improving the contest for 2013? Are there any suggestions on getting more people involved in each round of voting? Ways we can cut down on the number of sims people have to vote on/read each round? Are there important changes that we have to make to ensure the contest is more fair, or more representative? Let's hear your thoughts!
  19. ((Captain's Quarters, USS Discovery)) ::It came from decades of serving aboard a starship. The subtle, yet distinct sound of a starship dropping out of warp. He awoke slowly, warmth and comfort fighting him each step of the way. Kieran lay beside him and he smiled, realizing that part of the comfort he felt was the change in the bond between them. Before, the bond was a burden, feeling incomplete and fractured, and he realized that this was from their indiscretion the night they had met. Now, the bond was still there, but it was whole, complete, and instead of weakness it provided strength. Unfortunately for Kieran, it gave Tyr the strength he needed to go through with what he intended to do.:: ::Rising from the bed, he gently kissed her forehead, then covered her back up with the blankets, trying his best not to wake her. He moved to the shower and let the real water run over him; hot, relaxing and cleansing. When the shower was through he pulled on a towel, and retrieved his dress whites from the closet. Pulling on underwear and then the uniform, he combed out his long hair and tied it into a ponytail. The Captain checked himself in the mirror, then turned to look at the sleeping form of Kieran one more time.:: WALTAS::Softly:: I'm sorry, Kieran. I have to do this. ((Turbolift, USS Discovery)) o O One more time. O o ::He was in his dress whites, with campaign ribbons, medals and citations dripping from the left breast area of the uniform. Four golden pips gleamed from the white collar, and his black polished boots echoed as he stepped onto the bridge. In full military dress, he looked like the heroes of old he'd seen in the pictures of the Federation and back through military history. Picard. Kirk. Archer. Petraeus. Nimitz. Halsey. McArthur. Eisenhower. Patton. Sherman. Grant. Jackson. Washington. Although the Ba'ku was too modest to compare himself to any of the figures, he would acknowledge the similarity in appearance. All of them echoed through time, their pictures with their shining ribbons and medals, rank insignias and deeds forever burned into the pages of history. Old warriors, fading with time.:: ::Discovery was docked. The bridge was empty. Moored at the repair facility high above Earth, Discovery was a ghost town. He walked in silently, taking in every console, every chair, every station. His long career had placed him at all of the stations except Science and Engineering (and Starfleet had likely saved several ships by ensuring he didn't occupy these posts), but the place he had felt most at home and, truthfully, fit him the best (whether he liked it or not) was the command chair.:: ::He'd earned his fourth pip quite some time ago, taking over from Captain McCall, who had gone on to found the Intel wing of Discovery. He had seen a long, fairly distinguished career, having commanded Discovery through many trials and tribulations. The Saurians. The Dyson Sphere. Q's meddling. The Camelot adventure. Countless others.:: ::He moved from the command chair to the First Officer's chair, his hand resting on the back headrest. He had been in Raj's place. He was McCall's First Officer, with the two working together to accomplish herculean tasks-including defending the entire Starbase with a fleet of Starships against a Romulan incursion. He had disobeyed McCall's final command, racing to rescue him from his Romulan captors before they executed him. It was during this mission that Tyr had earned his fourth pip, and he hoped that Raj was well on his way to following in his footsteps.:: ::Before that he was Second Officer on Starbase 118-Ops as a Lt. Commander. He remembered taking the original Discovery out on his first cruise in command, the run-in with the pirates and their subsequent arrest. He moved to the now-dark Security station. He was a Lieutenant on the Constitution, Tactical officer. His hand gently touched the Sisko Tactical Cross he'd earned during that time, mostly for his maneuvers against the Borg. He'd paid a heavy price for that medal-nearly being killed after being assimilated and turning against his crew.:: ::Finally, he walked to the two front stations. He'd occupied both, but his love was helm, and it was the first duty post he'd ever had. An accomplished pilot, Tyr never had lost his love of flying, and maneuvering the massive Galaxy-class Constitution had earned him the respect of his crewmates. Giving the Helm station a final, gentle pat, he walked back to the turbolift doors. They slid open silently.:: WALTAS::Softly:: Goodbye. ::He turned his back on the bridge and entered the turbolift.:: WALTAS: Transporter Room 1. Override stops. ::The turbolift chirped obediently, taking the Captain to the transporter room. He stepped in, finding Raj waiting for him, similarly dressed. He offered an encouraging smile.:: ==================================== Captain Tyr Waltas Commanding Officer USS Discovery
  20. ((Spawning Ground, The Void)) :: Iron Breaker could sense them before he even reached their ancient spawning ground. Or rather he could sense the absence of them. The Hardskins were immune to their natural powers. Entirely invulnerable to the control they so easily asserted over others, and it was that immunity that made them a void in the sea of thoughts the Collosoforms swam through. One Hardskin limped towards a massive concentration of its kind, further off and another, stranger, Hardskin sat silently in space. This stranger was different. Iron Breaker could sense them in the void sea. Hundreds of thoughts and emotions glowing like a hundred stars, each a separate voice. But among those lights there were voids. Like the Predators that have dogged their people since time immemorial. And on the Hardskin Predator, where there was always cold void, emptiness, there was now a handful of lights. :: :: Iron Breaker seethed. Born in Broken Light postured and flashed like the youngling that he was, always ready to first warn and threaten. Never acting. Iron Breaker acted. The old, scarred veteran undulated forwards, gaining speed quickly. He dispensed with flashing off a threat, and instead allowed his anger and fury to set him in a pure white glow. His carapace was pitted and cracked along nearly every foot. A half dozen massive metal spars stuck from him in odd angles, war trophies he'd earned fighting the Hardskin Predators for multiple generations. Their harpoons still glinting in the dull light he gave off. One of his feelers was missing, sheared off by the Predators grasping claws before he had torn it completely off in his rage and spilled the Predators into the sea. To his kind he was ancient and knarled, no longer young and swift like Born in Broken Light, but massive and immensely powerful. A warrior with few equals among his people, and a storied history filled with shattered Hardskins and countless victories. :: :: He moved directly towards the new threat and dispensed with the usual psychic bow wave his kind usually put off. Instead he focused his mind towards rousing the swarms that clung in torpor to his carapace. The twitched and rose groggily, quickly shaking off their slumber and becoming aware. Iron Breaker aimed for the long flat disc that made up the new Hardskins bulk and angled his strike to drag and skid along its top surface. He rocketed past Born in Broken Light without so much as a pulse of greeting and slammed into the Hardskin with gratifying force. He raked along it's edge from one end to another and felt a burst of satisfaction as multiple holes were opened by his rigid flank. The swarm needed no further encouragement and went to work. :: :: Passing the rear of the Hardskin, Iron Breaker turned tightly between the two glowing spars of the creature and coiled to strike again. This time he rose up between the spars and past the disk, up and up until he was looking down on the new, weaker Hardskin. He paused a moment to take in this new foe and wondered why it hadn't clumsily fired any spears at him yet. It made no matter. The lights inside were flickering and dying in places and he was hungry to snuff out others. Like a shot he descended on the Hardskin and smashed through an invisible barrier of force. The act hurt but it was not beyond him to breach it and he screamed into the void as he shattered the field. The feedback shook him inside and made him sick for a moment, but it only arrested his descent by a fraction and he smashed into the top of the disk section, rupturing the Hardskin in multiple places. :: :: With a roar Iron Breaker found purchase with his carapace and gripped hard, buckling the Hardskin beneath him. With enough force and a good grip he would begin to tear this foe creature to shreds. :: Iron Breaker Cosmozoan Guardian and Warrior as simmed by Lieutenant Oliver Weston Intelligence Officer USS Drake
  21. This is it, the final round of voting for 2012's Top Sim. The winner of this vote will be considered the Top Sim of 2012 -- one of the most highly coveted writing awards in our community. Voting closes automatically at 23:59, December 26, 2012, Pacific Time. These sims were submitted by members of the community. A vote was conducted every two weeks, and the winner of each round was sent to one of three run-off rounds which were judged by a staff panel of five members. The winner of each run-off round is listed below and those are the sims your choosing from. Please read all three sims before choosing the one you like the best in the poll above. Your choice will be 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 2013. 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. 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. LIST OF SIMS Danny Wilde & Luna Walker: "The Caper of the Century"Kalianna Nicholotti: "The Bane of History, Repeating"Colt Daniels, "Lost in the Woods"
  22. (( CRR, USS Mercury )) :: In the hour before the away teams left, Aron left the operations of the bridge to Alex and retired to his ready room. In truth, he wanted to be on one of those teams, but it seemed that the job was going to come first: He had a backlog of status reports he needed to review regarding the Jaborrhik project; he'd just received new information regarding the Isharkian shards from Didrik Stennes; and Starbase 118 was still requesting a brutally detailed report of his incarceration on Vador III, as well as any information he had regarding the unknown telepath they had picked up there. It seemed that the Mercury was becoming a haven for lost things: unfinished Borg Queens, sentient computer viruses, a crate full of kittens, and now a weaponized telepath. He almost sighed, but the door interrupted him as it announced the presence of Ensign Richards. :: Kells: Yes, come in. :: He found himself fond of Richards, as he could relate to the man: A strange position and a chieftainship almost forced upon him, as it had been upon Aron once many years ago. But Aron had been a scientist, trained and awkward, whereas Richards had some but not all of the necessary background. Problems were sure to occur, but the one that he'd reported to Aron seemed a step larger than he should've had to field. :: Kells: Have a seat, Ensign, have a seat. Now, I've read your preliminary reports, and I understand that we have some faulty code? Richards: Yes sir. The entire Science module seems to be afflicted with obsolete LCARS code that is interfering with the reliability of some systems and the efficiency of all of them. No systems are below StarFleet standard operational levels however I am concerned that this may only be for the meantime. Kells: But it's not hardware, it's software? Richards: Yes sir. Kells: Well, thank the Architect for that. Code we can rewrite by hand if we need to, but replacement parts would not come cheaply out here. What's the extent of the problem? Richards: As I've said, the problem currently extends to all systems and sub systems software. Unfortunately, it's not the same code in every system. The major problem for now is that to identify and patch out the code requires a level 1 diagnostic to be run. Under normal circumstances, this should only take a few hours to complete but because my team is having to be more thorough, it is going to take much longer. The next system on the list is the Mercury's scientific sensor palettes with my team estimating each palette taking up to 4 hours to work on. That means that the Mercury will be at 66% sensor capacity for aproximately 12 hours. Kells: I see. :: This was not what he wanted to hear. Running at partial sensors meant that they'd effectively lose their senses, or at least a couple of them, and that would not be beneficial to surveying the station. :: Kells: I know you're going over to the station, but who do you have working on the problem? Richards: Cadet Stone and Crewman T'Lex. (Beat.) T'Lex is primarily a Stellar Cartographer but she is a graduate of the Vulcan Science Academy and thus has a massive knowledge of most things scientific. Cadet Stone came on board for her Cadet cruise with high praise from the Academy Commandant on StarBase 118. Her record is impeccable and her devotion to her studies and her field would embarrass several officers. I have faith in their abilities but feel they are being hampered by a lack of available staff to assist. Kells: Yes? Good. I'll try and get some engineers to help -- Chief Walker should prove useful -- and I'll go down myself and see if I can't speed things up. Richards: Sir? :: It wasn't very often that an officer witnessed a Captain wanting to get hands on. Then it stuck him. He remembered reading a PADD about his captain and his background when he came on board. The man was a man of science much like he had been in his early life. :: Kells: We need the sensors back up, Mr. Richards -- and besides, I may not be an engineer, but computer code is very similar to genetic code, just with different symbols. I'll be able to handle myself. Richards: Do you miss it sir? Kells: I will-- what? :: Aron had forged ahead with such momentum that he didn't realize, until he'd already begun speaking, that Richards had asked him a question very different from that he had expected. :: Richards: I mean is there ever a time you wish you were back in my shoes rather than sitting in the chair? :: Aron took a breath. Another. The truth, then: :: Kells: Yes. Every day. Sometimes every hour. I can keep involved, but.... :: Aron slapped his hands down on the desk. :: Kells: There's usually a desk between me and what I want to do. Not always, and I'd rather this was one of those times. :: :: One thing he had learned from his family was that you could take the man away from his science, but you couldn't take science away from the man. :: Richards: I've been meaning to ask you something since the party on 118 sir. :: He paused, inviting the Captain to ask the question. :: Kells: Go on, then. Richards: It's about why you chose me for this position sir, especially after what happened on Valdor III. Kells: Ah. That. (beat) Ignore the last mission. I mean, don't ignore it, but we'll come back to that. About your background: I knew you were the right one because you question, and you've been around. I've fielded my share of myselfs out here: Young scientists, straight from the Academy, eager to prove themselves. But you -- no, you've been in Starfleet before; you've served in three different divisions; you have a family. You're tempered. Richards: :: Feeling a little uneasy. :: So you chose me for the position based on merit despite my record. I did resign from StarFleet after all sir. I still can't get my head around this decision though. It is incredibly rare for an Ensign to be made acting chief of any position except maybe communications or helm on a starship. (Beat.) Was there more to Valdor III and my actions there that shaped your choice? :: Aron [...]ed his head away from Richards, and looked out the window. :: Kells: Yes, let's talk about the planet. Maybe it did play more of a role in helping me decide than I'd like to admit. You know that Lieutenant Wulfantine bore the responsibility for the away team's actions. But I paid attention to what you did. You are hard-headed, Mr. Richards; you leapt without looking; you were stubborn and active. And this is a science ship without a chief science officer. Look, already! You've gone head-to-head with Kvitova and faced down your first crisis in code. Richards: Ah yes, the good Captain. I didn't recognize the name at first. He seemed OK with Science being my department although the rank issue does make me feel uneasy. As for the code crisis. Well, that could have happened to any section. I'm just lucky that the limited crew I have available at this time are incredibly competent. (Beat.) I expect cadet Stone to be ready for her final exams within 6 months at her current work levels. :: Richards took a moment to pause and to allow the captain to digest what he had said. :: Richards: You said I was tempered sir. I still thought myself as gun-ho, arrogant and a little wet behind the ears. Kells: You are tempered in some ways, yes, but still fiery enough to be the advocate for the science department I need here. (beat) Now. What else is there? Richards: :: Pulling out a PADD. :: I just need you to sign off this list of new scientific components to be moved over to Deep Space Ten and installed including an updated Federation Sensor relay and its Palettes. (Beat.) I put the request in for the parts before we departed having reviewed the stations current capacity and it's specifications. (Beat.) Nothing too fancy, but enough to help turn the station into a strategic hub of some significance in the area. Kells: We could definitely use such a thing out here. Let me see -- ah, yes. There, Mr. Richards: Approved. It isnice to be able to avoid the bureaucracy on such things out here. Richards: Yes sir. (Beat.) Oh and sir, I know it is against the regulations and by rights you could put me in the brig for this but (beat) I obtained a bottle of Romulan ale on StarBase 118 from my ex employer. (Beat.) I have absolutely no intention of drinking it though I thought it might make a meeting with Captain Kvitova go slightly smoother. I gathered from my brief meeting with him that he enjoys the finer things in life. (Beat.) Besides, if you don't wish to waste it on Kvitova you could always store it for a special occasion, Captain's privilege and all that. Kells: An excellent idea, and one that may prove necessary if Kvitova's less than forthright about his reasons than I'd like. I have Captain Reynolds working on him now, though, and (beat) well, if she doesn't have much success, then it might be worth just as much to beat him over the head with the ale as it would be to have him drink it, if you know what I mean. (beat) But at all events, I think I'll accept. Though if I suggest you have a drink with me, neither you nor I know where the libations come from, clear? Richards: :: With a knowing smile. :: Yes sir. Next time I shall graciously refuse the offer. (Beat.) My wife, Marissa, knows where it is located. She is a scientist herself. :: He laughed realizing something. :: You know it's funny. Your career progression reminds me of that od my Grandfather. He was the Captain of the Tycho many years back until she went missing near the Cardassian border. They never found the ship, or any signs of a battle though it was assumed destroyed by a Cardassian patrol ship. :: He paused. he realized he was babbling now and that both men had a job to be doing. :: Richards: Sorry sir, I'm beginning to babble on about irrelevant things and we both have jobs to be doing. I should be going. Kells: Yes, I'm sure you have much to do to prepare for your trip to the station. Richards: Aye sir. Thanks for the talk, I needed that if I'm honest. Valdor III and the consequences of the mission and my actions were weighing heavily on my mind. You've put me slightly more at ease, as did Lieutenant Trel'lis and Lieutenant Wulfantine. Kells: Then I've done my job. (beat) But do feel free to see me whenever you like, Mr. Richards. We're a long way from the Federation out here, and we need all the community we can get. (beat) But for now, dismissed. And good luck. TBC! Captain Aron Kells Commanding Officer USS Mercury & Ensign Alexander Richards Acting Chief Science Officer USS Mercury
  23. ((OOC: This sim establishes that the cozmozoa can communicate with "us" through our memories, and we can communicate by similarly recalling our own relevant memories. So, in the absence of an accepted nomenclature for speaking via memory fragment, examples of such in the sim below are denoted by "dialogue in quotes.")) =============================== (( Somewhere inside the Cozmozoan )) STENNES: Hello? HARALD STENNES: "Not like that, Didrik. Like this." ::The memory of Didrik's father teaching him to ski flashed before Didrik's mind.:: STENNES: Hello, is anyone there? ACADEMY PROFESSOR: "Cadet Stennes, you must first listen to my instructions before you can succeed at this assignment." ::Another memory. Fleeting, just like the last. Just long enough to place his mind in the moment, hearing the words, feeling the intent. Didrik felt strength in his limbs return enough to stand. His boots sunk slightly into the organic-looking pinkish surface on which he stood. He spoke again, to no one in particular.:: STENNES: My name is Didrik Stennes. I'm an officer in the Federation Starfleet. HERA GULDBRANDSEN: "I can't talk to you when you're like this, Didrik." STARFLEET BETAZOID COUNSELOR: "I can sense your uncertainty. Your confusion. I don't want to make this difficult for you, Cadet." ::How disorienting. Memories overlapping onto each other. He was at home in Tromsø, a hysterical child who'd just been injured by an older sibling, before being ripped away to a memory of Earth, and a psychological evaluation he underwent upon his readmission into the Academy. Given the context of the memories he was experiencing, Didrik assumed someone, or something, was attempting to contact him.:: STENNES: What are you trying to tell me? ELREM TIRO: "Our language is so unlike yours." ACADEMY TRAINING COMMANDANT: "You must try harder." ::Again, Didrik felt super-present in the moments of the memories that passed. Bajor, Tiro, the first man he'd ever loved warmly instructing him in the finer points of speaking Bajoran. The Academy, struggling to barely pass yet another tactical exam under the constant threat of being tossed out. Clearly, whoever was trying to contact him didn't use vocalisations.:: STENNES: oO Can you understand me now? Are you telepathic? Oo PIANO TEACHER: "You're getting closer." KATARINE STENNES: "The thought was--" ELREM TIRO: "Not genuine." KATARINE STENNES: "The thought was--" SCIENCE FAIR JUDGE: "Not authentic." KATARINE STENNES: "The thought was--" CLEANING LADY: "Too tidy." ::Didrik gripped his head and dropped back down to the spongy floor, his mind at its breaking point with memories forced into the forefront. Stringing the words together from the clips from his past, an understanding started to blossom.:: STENNES: Closer. Thoughts aren't genuine. Thoughts aren't authentic. Thoughts are too tidy? How is that any different from-- ::Projecting thoughts was getting closer, but still wasn't close enough. The thought wasn't authentic, but what could be more authentic than his own thoughts? As an experiment, Didrik conjured up a memory of his own from his childhood. He'd been dared to walk into a centuries old barn at night with nothing but a palm beacon.:: STENNES (MEMORY): "Hello, is anyone there?" ARON KELLS: "I'm here." SAKORRA REED: "Ensign, I'm reading you." ELREM TIRO: "Do you understand now?" ::The inclusion of Aron Kells in the onslaught of memory sentence fragments hit a little close to home. Undaunted, Didrik continued to "remember" bits and pieces to continue a conversation. He thought back to Null Space, when his shuttlecraft had crash landed on the surface of a planet.:: STENNES (MEMORY): "Where are we?" NORWEGIAN SEA CAPTAIN: "Far from home, are ya?" INTERVIEW WITH ADMIRAL JANEWAY: "In an uncharted part of the galaxy." CHURCH OF NORWAY PASTOR: "Inside the beast--" BABYSITTER: "--that lives in the sky!" ::To his credit, Didrik was handling the rapid shifts with increasing steadiness and comprehension. The pieces fit together well enough that he understood; he was inside the whale. Inside the cozmozoan.:: Lieutenant Didrik Stennes Helm Officer USS Drake
  24. ((Grelesev Military Shipyards, Zakdorn IV: Bay One, after all the officer teams have split up and taken off)) :: Dueld would probably freak out, around now, if he wasn't mostly all out of freaked out at this point. First there had been the bizarre final exam on the holodeck-- which, if there was a chance he was going to crash and burn at the last minute and fail out of Starfleet, why did they have to ship him to Starbase 118 to do it? (Maybe Starbase 118 had some kind of cadet reform school hidden away on one of its levels, like, under the lake in the biodome. Or squeezed inside one of the Sovereign-class hangar doors. Those things were huge. Totally feasible.) Then the holoprogram had abruptly stopped. The cadets had been patted on the head and told not to end up in jail. But before he could even decide what kind of spice chips he wanted with his celebration dinner, he'd been commed to report to Airlock HS233-2 on the double, with his gear. Halfway there, they'd halted his turbolift because it was taking too long and just beamed him straight onto an Andorian freighter, one that was already several ship lengths from the starbase, and picking up speed. There had been a pile of Starfleet stuff waiting for him when he rematerialized; apparently it had been sent over before him while they were waiting for his damn turbolift. It included a PADD with his new assignment, the ... USS Vigilant, a new Intrepid-class ship being built all the way out on Zakdorn. Zakdorn? Seriously? Tsooood, there'd be attitude literally built into every system. He'd be wiping snarky comments out of the codebases for months, if not years. Like, at least with Vulcans, you knew they were resigned to your inferiority. Zakdorn seemed to think you'd been born stupid to annoy them. Anyway, Fleet wanted Dueld on the Vigilant before it got even further away. But it had run out of passenger spaces on its own ships in the sector. So, apparently, Fleet had just given up and started tying its personnel onto the hulls of random vessels. The Andorian freighter had been going the right way, at least, carrying relief supplies to Alpha Zeta Volantis. This meant it slid right between the Romulan and Klingon borders (which, what? How could he be a commissioned officer for less than two days and already be violating the Neutral Zone? Even Kirk took a couple of months to work up to it.) Still, either these zhen (shen? how could you tell? maybe you weren't supposed to?) were experienced smugglers, or the Romulan infrastructure truly was fried, because the whole trip went off without so much as a yellow alert. They dumped him at Starbase 173 (not as nice as 118), a Ferengi named Glit (two words: live grubs) ferried him to Deep Space 6, and from there he got folded into a paper glider and thrown really hard toward Zakdorn. Okay, fine, it wasn't a paper glider, but that was not a shuttle. And now, now that he was finally here on Utterly Frozen Zakdorn, Dueld's wacky journey and consequent sheer relief had prepared him to love his new ship. Love it. Worship it. Give it a big hug. Promise it undying fidelity and dilithium chamber micro-alignments every six weeks. And he would totally start one right this very second if only this frekagget Zakdorn woman would let him on board. :: Dueld (plaintively): ... but, see, ma'am, mistress? Lady? Sir? Honoured ally? If my comm badge lets me wander freely around this extremely impressive facility which you and your esteemed colleagues are keeping secure, and I am clearly not a member of the Zakdorn construction teams, I must be one of the crew, right? Yes? Site security team member (flatly): You're still not. On. The. List. Dueld: ::hangs head in anguish and despair :: Okay, fine, whatever, you totally win. How do I get on the list? Who's in charge of it? Site security team member (beginning to finger her sidearm, lips thinned with distaste): Now that the ship's captain has taken charge of this vessel, only he or his designated subordinates can amend this list. He is not available to do so at this time. You may observe the final phases of the ship's preparation while you wait, you may take refreshment in the refectory, or you may go and partake of the many amenities visitors to Zakdorn are priviliged to experience. What you may not do is continue to block this ramp. :: Dueld stifled a moan, and slouched back down onto the bay floor. The bay floor did not look comfortable. The refectory chairs had not been comfortable, either, when he'd tried them earlier. Rolling off the refectory chairs onto the refectory floor had definitely not been comfortable. In a haze of fatigue, he began to wander down the length of the Vigilant, head tilted back. Crews hurried around and past him, applying final coats, slipping hull sensor clusters into their slots, securing hull panels. Aside from the hum and sizzle and skirl of tools, the work progressed mostly in sour silence, as if speaking was the same as admitting there were complications you'd failed to anticipate. But it wasn't completely quiet. They did mutter at each other from time to time. At one point, Dueld wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there, three Zakdorn up on the bay's observation deck got into a massive disagreement-- they were waving their hands around and yelling and pointing at a wireframe hologram. One of them actually knocked the holo projector off the deck railing and kept right on shouting through the resulting smack and bang. By that time, everybody in the hangar had stopped pretending they weren't watching, except for Dueld. The shrieking reminded him uncomfortably of the Ferengi, Glit, arguing via subspace with his mother, grubs spewing out of his mouth, half-chewed. And it was only because Dueld had turned away, at that moment, that he saw some Zakdorn slip through the hatch of one of the Vigilant's lifeboats, lined up on the floor and waiting to be slung into place via antigrav crane. :: ------------ Ensign Dueld taJoot, Engineer, USS Vigilant
  25. ((Holodeck 3, StarBase 118)) Able: Hell if I know. She's an impressive looking ship with a nice doctor and a decent XO, but that's all I know so far. Her service record's certainly impressive. As for the rest, look me up after the first tour and I'll tell you! ::Thera smiled at the young engineer.:: MGia: Wise words. Able: So, Thera was it? What kinds of things do you end up dealing with in Security here? Can't imagine a place like this is exactly a hotbed of crime... MGia: I am new here, but I am sure we do have a lot of dark corners. There is always a place for crime. But I was reassigned due to my specialty. ::B'Sara got herself a little lost in the conversation, watching the pair of them together with a slight mixture of jealousy, amusement, and feeling like she had just been upstaged by the Andorian woman... although Able was about her height, and had a wonderful dark color for a skin tone, and such an easy-going nature... oO Am I falling for this guy? Oo :: :: She was debating whether or not MGia swiped her thunder when her senses kicked in, feeling someone step in next to her. Glancing over, she blinked, feeling suddenly owl-like, looking at Captain Nicholotti shooting a smile at her. oO Uh oh.... what did I do? Oo :: Nicholotti: B'Sara? :: B'Sara had a sickening feeling this was about the R&D Lab incident, gulping while looking briefly back at Able and MGia. Now she was thinking maybe she *should* try that horrid burning drink again. And licked her lips before biting on them. :: Cavann: Captain Nicholotti. Nicholotti: I know we've met before, though under darker circumstance, and lighting conditions. ::The smile turned into a bit of a grin.:: I thought maybe we could try that again. :: B'Sara closed her eyes a moment, mostly to cover her attempts to beat down her suddenly beating heart and stop her emotions from playing the worst case scenario. oO Don't panic... don't panic... it's not that bad... I'm not the reason Science looks like the remains of Pompeii... Oo Although, as bits of the events played out in memory, she perked up again thinking about what she suspected was... :: :: So, what was she supposed to do? Oh hell... protocols managed to go "poof" in B'Sara's memories, even though she had just came out of the Academy. There was something decidedly not fair about that. She looked at the Captain, feeling a little helpless and extremely nervous, and trying really hard not to fidget, although she wished she had one of her hand tools. :: :: And then Captain Nicholotti stuck out a hand. :: Nicholotti: I'm Kalianna. Walk with me? :: B'Sara stared, feeling somewhat dumbstruck the Captain would take such a personal approach, before following the Captain's gesture to the water edge. She didn't know what to think, and her mind was spinning, both from Greg's touch to her back, which brought feelings and things she wasn't sure she was ready to deal with, as her mother came to the forefront, of all things. She had so very few memories of her birth mother. But she remembered B'Selle used to hum to her at night at bedtime. It was that humming, something old, something familiar but never could put her finger on it... that made her feel safe. But that was before her mother was gone, before she met the crew of the Independence, and before she met and found David. oO No... not David. Dad. Oo :: ::And so they walked. Kali realized, in the moments of silence that seemed to follow, that she’d not really had much of a plan. To talk? Was that it? She glanced over at B’Sara and tried to come up with something, but something already seemed to be going through her mind. Slowing as they approached the water’s edge, Kali watched her continue on as if trying to hide the tears she’d thought she saw.:: :: B'Sara had to force herself to stop the tears welling in her eyes, hesitant. She wished she didn't know what she did, but it didn't stop her from breaking apart from the group, including the Captain, and walking toward the water's edge while wiping her eyes. :: ::If Kali hadn’t had a plan before, now she was even less prepared to know what to say. There was a need to make some kind of a good first impression, or second as it may have been, just because of her importance in the life that she’d just found, but for all the experience as a Starfleet Captain she had, Kali was speechless.:: ::After a moment, she stepped forward and put a hand on B’Sara’s shoulder.:: Nicholotti: It’s alright... :: Shivering slightly at the touch, B’Sara had to block her empathic and telepathic sensations as she stopped at the water. She stared out over the body of water as she felt a separation from her thoughts and emotions. oO Finally! Oo The training paid off. Whatever happened, at least she would handle herself with dignity and as any officer here would. She didn't know why the Captain decided to appraoch her and single her out, but thinking of her dad, she didn't want to be an embarrassment. And realized, suddenly, that what she did from this point forward, would reflect. She hadn't considered that, but then again, no one told her that her dad was found, either. :: :: Water was good for thoughts. Maybe it was the ebbs and tides (even though it was a holodeck simulation), but it forced several things that B'Sara hadn't considered. Secretly, she admitted to herself a part of it was getting back here to find out what happened to her father. But apparently, he was found. Even though she had somewhat of a hard time as her premonition from years ago came to the forefront, and all of that was burning in the forefront of her thoughts while she stared at the water, feeling helpless, and confused. :: ::There was silence, but sometimes no words were spoken. Sometimes just a state of being was enough. Kali followed her gaze out into the water and watched the waves come in. Time, at least for now, was something she had, and she couldn’t afford to blow this...:: Cavann: ...if this is about what happened down in Science, Captain, I’m sorry. I tried... I tried to jettison the assembly before it blew. Nicholotti: ::Raising an eyebrow.:: Science? ::Kali blinked for a moment and recalled, somewhere in the back of her head, something about a lab in a report. But she’d not gotten down through the rest of the Victory when they had arrived back to the station, so it was still very disjointed in her mind. She smiled reassuringly.:: Nicholotti: No, not about science. I just wanted to talk. ::B’Sara looked over at the Captain then, the confusion even moreso now. She felt bad. Livingston at least was willing to let her make up for it, and she just assumed that the report was made, citing her admittance she was at fault. And that just made her feel worse. oO Starfleet... I’ll be lucky if they don’t boot me out after this. Oo. :: Cavann: I thought this was about what I did with the R&D lab... ::Shaking her head Kali couldn’t help but feel off for not being able to just come out and say what she was thinking. Some things required...more. And though she was still at a loss, she was trying. This was different than how things had been with Rowena, and more important in some ways.:: Nicholotti: No one was in the lab, and it will all be fixed soon enough. We can worry about that later when I have all the pieces, but don’t worry about that now. ::Her own gaze wandered from the woman next to her back out to the water. Instinctively, her hands found their way behind her back, where she clasped them together lightly.:: Nicholotti: There will be time for that then. This is more important. :: B’Sara turned to look at her Captain sharply, surprised. What could possibly be more important than her somewhat illegal lockpicking skills... although she didn’t mention that to Livingston, and felt bad, since he had been so nice, and she really liked him. A part of her felt that if Ben found out she hacked security, it would dim her in his eyes, and she didn’t want that. But she also didn’t know how to explain that it was somewhat personal as well. These were the times she hated Starfleet protocol. :: Cavann: ::a hollow laugh:: More important than my actions, Captain? ::after a moment:: ...I wish I could take it back. It’s my fault. ::In a way, it was heartbreaking to see her tormented by it. Whatever the actions had been hadn’t shown up in the same report Kali had read, and though they might at some point in the future, it wasn’t what she was trying to do here. With a sigh, she turned around and looked back up the beach towards the crowd.:: Nicholotti: Kalianna. You can leave ‘Captain’ out there somewhere. ::Gesturing towards the doors.:: This is not the Hub, or the bridge, and I am not on duty. ::Her eyes wandered between people and movement, allowing her only glimpses of the main thing she had in common with this girl. And Kali wanted so badly to make things right and to just, perhaps, share a moment, that she’d seemingly led B’Sara down a path that only resulted in worry and regret.:: Nicholotti: We have something in common that is more important than an R&D lab. Something that has me out here trying to just talk, but I fear it’s hard to leave the rank behind even when the uniform is. ::Kali sighed. Perhaps she was trying too hard anyways. They said the truth was always the best route to take, so maybe she would try it.:: :: Something in common? B’Sara blinked, shaking her head as she backstepped in her thoughts, feeling that she missed something important along the way. This wasn’t about her actions in the R&D on the Victory? That left her feeling even more confused, and uncertain, not sure what to do in this instance. What the Academy taught her was to develop a working strategy, based on what she was given. She wasn’t used to this... a commanding officer who went out of her way and not in a command capacity.. :: :: B’Sara wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, and while hating herself, extended her senses at her Captain, so she could at least get a feel. She felt a strange conglamorant of emotions at play, and none of it was related to the commanding officer and newly arrived officer. If anything, B’Sara felt that this was something extremely personal, and instantly hated herself for using her abilities to read her Captain. :: Cavann: Captain... I’m sorry. I kinda read you... I don’t make a practice of it! I’m sorry! But I’m really confused right now. ::The look on her face was enough to make Kali wonder if she was capable of handling this on her own to begin with. Frowning, she tried to figure out another way to say it, but it all came down to just saying it. Moments ago they had walked down to the water’s edge in a kind of silence, where words, perhaps, were not needed. Yet now, there were words Kali grasped for but couldn’t put together. And so, for a moment, she was quiet, watching the officers up near the bar, while collecting her thoughts.:: Nicholotti: I’m sorry, you shouldn’t be. Can you do something though? ::Somewhat amused, Kali fell more into herself than trying to do what would make the best impression. The grin she was known for appeared slightly.:: ::Bewildered, B’Sara arched her brows (still wishing she could pull off that one brow raise her dad was able to), uncertain what this was about. But she wasn’t about to disobey a request or an order from her Captain. :: Cavann: Yes, ma’am. Nicholotti: Say Kalianna. :: Time, at least to B’Sara, came to a standstill. She stared at the Captain, uncomprehending, and at a loss to why the Captain would ask her to address her by her first name. Whether the shock registered within her features, she didn’t know. But this was perhaps the strangest order she ever heard of, and for a few moments, seriously debated the wisdom of calling her Captain by her first name. That just seemed.... wrong. :: Cavann: ::working her mouth a moment:: ...Kalianna. ::Finally seeing that it could be done, Kali laughed.:: Nicholotti: Very good. Now that we’ve got that... ::her smiled faded and a serious look appeared.:: B’sara, I don’t know how to say it other than to say it. And the pained looks that have crossed your face are making me regret trying to find any other ways. ::Her eyes moved from B’Sara, up towards the bar area, and back down towards the water again.:: Nicholotti: I suddenly find myself in a place I’ve not been before. And you’re a part of it. ::Now she turned and actually pointed up the beach.:: I’ve fallen for your father...and... ::And she lost her words.:: :: A million things hit at once, and B’Sara wasn’t sure what hit first in that moment. Hearing the Captain say she was in love with her dad and pointing him out, or having this dropped out of the blue without any kind of clue that made her feel a mixture of anger and... what? She found herself breathing harder, and staring back at the water, unwilling to look at the Captain for the moment, but feeling a rage unlike anything she had felt before. :: :: He was HER DAD... and yet... B’Sara blinked. Too much too fast... her tutors and her counselors warned her about this. She found herself gasping and instead of looking at the water, she looked up into the holodeck’s starry lit sky as she felt her tears betray her and burn her eyes while streaming from her cheeks. Everything screamed at her to yell... she wanted to, so badly, right in this moment. What right did this woman have... a woman she didn’t meet until Sickbay... and under aspicious circumstances, who was her Captain... come to her and tell her that she loved the very person that she had based her life on. Jealousy didn’t begin to cut it... she felt like she was being cut off... and within, felt a boiling rage outside of her character... :: :: No... as if she was somehow being replaced. She couldn’t stop herself then, and grimaced before losing the rush of tears that just broke. And she found herself crying, and hated herself for it. She promised herself, and distanced herself... and yet, her emotions got the better of her. :: :: What right did she really have? David never knew her real mother. Hell... she never had a real mother. :: Cavann: ::somehow finding her voice, sounding small:: ...okay... ::The reaction was far from what Kali had hoped for or expected. Immediately she ran through things in her head trying to figure out if there had been another way, a better way... something that would have spared B’sara. And though there may not have been the connection between them as there was between her and David, she found herself heartbroken and searching for a way to fix it. In strange ways, this had brought her far from her stance as a Captain. Everything else was background; all she cared about was the girl in front of her.:: Nicholotti: I’m sorry... it’s not supposed to be like this... :: B’Sara felt small. She had this grandiose scheme of coming back and finding answers, but all she felt she managed to do was become an interloper right now. :: ::Now, Kali second guessed every move, and every word. She didn’t want to make it worse, but her new heart ached to make it better. Unable to imagine what was going through her head, she struggled with what to say to someone who wasn’t saying anything. Strangely enough, tears of her own fell.:: ::Reaching out, she took one of B’Sara’s hands.:: Nicholotti: Why? I... Now I don’t understand. :: B’Sara ripped her hand from Kalianna’s grasp and did turn on her then, heaving while delivering her red, tear-ridden eyes on a woman she barely knew, who was also her commanding officer! :: Cavann: Don’t you?! Do you even know? Do you even know what I’ve been through! ::heaving, and suddenly she couldn’t stop, even if she wanted to. :: They wouldn’t tell me ANYTHING! They wouldn’t tell me if he was dead or alive... your stupid classified protocols! He was MY FATHER... the closest thing I ever had to one. And I have to come here to find out he’s alive... and now with someone else that I barely know and is my commanding officer. How am I supposed to feel? Hell... I screamed at him and told him to his face that he was an imposter... :: And she folded, losing every bit of composure the Academy taught her, feeling suddenly exposed and hating it. She fell onto her knees and cried, staring down at the water. It wasn’t the Captain’s fault... it really wasn’t... but after watching her biological mother murdered, and left at the mercy of a Son’a who was only after genetic perfection... all B’Sara had was David, and the ship crew... and Starfleet. Who gave her a reason, and a purpose, and a drive to be something more. :: B’Sara: ::whispering:: ….just tell me why. ::Kali stood there and listened to it all spill into the open. Things that couldn’t be read in reports, or found in everyday conversation. And when B’sara fell to her knees, Kali followed into the sand. If it were possible for her heart to break further, it would have; she felt even more at a loss to fix things that she’d not known about and likely didn’t even have access to. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to try like hell to fix them anyways.:: Nicholotti: I don’t have answers... but I will find them. ::For a moment, Kali hesitated, but then moved forward and wrapped her arms around her.:: Just let me. Let me be a part of this. ::As her own tears fell faster, Kali held B’Sara tighter.:: Nicholotti: Let me be a part of your life. :: She remembered... maybe it was the simple touch, or feeling arms wrapped around her again, but she remembered her mother, B’Selle, and the moments when she felt the love unspoken passed between her mother to her, even if she hated what her mother had become. She turned, breaking down and found a shoulder, while unfamiliar, she knew she had wanted so much... it wasn’ t fair. It wasn’t fair! Before she even knew what family was, that had been taken away. She refused to think of herself as an orphan. She wasn’t... David made her feel like she was wanted, that she would be accepted... he didn’t think she was a freak. But deep inside, she felt she was. A freak, made by the designs of a woman still on Starfleet’s 10 Most Wanted. :: Cavann: ::crying:: This isn’t how it’s supposed to be.... he’s all I have. You don’t understand... you don’t understand... I don’t have a family. He took me in... he took me, when I had lost everything. Please... please don’t take him away from me. I want my father... I want my family. I want so much to have a family... ::Still holding her, Kali let herself melt at the words and the raw emotions behind them. Rocking her gently, she spoke softly.:: Nicholotti: I won’t take him away, he’s not going anywhere. ::Her own tears drew tracts down her face, but that, nor the fast beating of her heart mattered.:: I want a family too. ::Pushing B’Sara’s hair behind her ear and trying to look at her directly, with just as much raw emotion in her eyes as she could feel from the girl in her arms, Kali felt as if she were closer to that now than ever before.:: Nicholotti: I... I believe we might make a pretty good one... If you wanted to give it a try... ::She smiled now, despite the tears, despite the fears that were there, offering a kind of reassurance that came not from the Captain, or a friend, or a fellow officer. There was something deeper about this, and in so many ways, it filled holes that Kali didn’t even realize existed.:: :: B’Sara felt raw, and exposed, and not necessarily in a way she liked. She heard her words, but outside of David, words were just words. She had heard it as a child and the stupid reassurances from Dr. Riley. She felt herself back in the same situation again, but this time, she wasn’t a child. She sniffed, bringing her emotions somewhat into check, although that was a tenuous barrier. After everything... after having to fight through the coursework on Betazoid when she arrived, and having to fight to earn the right to attend Starfleet Academy, despite her actual age... she didn’t know anymore. It was hell on wheels to have the phyisical appearance and mental growth of an adult and only having lived eleven years. :: Cavann: ::staring into Nicholotti’s eyes, unwavering:: Give me a reason to believe you. Nicholotti: B’Sara, I can’t live without your father, and... I can’t live without you either. Let me be there... ::Kali stared back.:: Nicholotti: Look for yourself. :: Something within her eyes, something about the intensity that drove the Captain made B’Sara abruptly nod. That was open permission to go inside, if she read the Captain right, and she didn’t hesitate to open her empathic and telepathic abilities and extend them to the woman in front of her, dipping into the whirlpool and storm of emotions that at first, took her unaware. B’Sara dipped in further, hating herself for doing it, but at the same time, the protective nature inherent that would fight if anyone ever threatened her or her dad kicked into full gear and she found herself descending into a whirlpool of clashing emotions, fears, hopes, and a desperate need to feel loved. Which rocked her to her core... feeling the raw bitterness of hopes destroyed and left with only the career, and a title that scared most away. Within that moment, she understood then... it was so much like her father to act as he was wont to, often times unpredictable, but always bold and direct. She felt Kalianna’s raw emotions, feeling the streams fork at the rapids, and was hit with a profound guilt for dumping all of her emotions on someone who only wanted to have a family of her own. A family of her own.... :: Cavann: ::after a moment:: ...how does that work? I’m just an Ensign under your command... isn’t there a conflict of interest? Nicholotti: There is more to us than the uniform... ::Though for the longest time, Kali was certain there was nothing else in her world. Now, that outlook had decidedly changed. It was something she was willing to fight for too.:: Nicholotti: Orders are orders, as much as we might hate them. ::Words from another time came back to her.:: But at the end of the day, I’m just Kalianna. :: B’Sara composed herself, drawing in the torrent rage that had taken her, and took a moment to bring it all under some kind of semblance of control. She could still feel her Capain’s emotional turbulence, despite withdrawing, and in that moment, she hated her abilities that her father once said she would master, although at the time, she didn’t believe him. oO Score one for dad for being right. Oo :: Cavann: ::feeling old, despite being young:: Rank aside... what did he do to change your mind? ::For a moment, Kali thought about the question. Before David Cody, and after the departure of Colt, she’d been certain that her life was set on a course to be dedicated to Starfleet. Those around her had found luck in a more personal realm, and while she’d never been jealous, there were days she had wondered what it was like. Then, one night, he’d asked her to dance, and it changed her whole world.:: ::And all he’d done was be himself.:: Nicholotti: ::Smiling.:: He promised he wouldn’t let go. :: B’Sara closed her eyes, feeling those exact same words in a different time and place before she headed for the Academy. Say what one will about her father, he kept his promises, no matter what. The Morgan communicator she wore on a necklace hidden from the rest of the world was proof of that. And she had to figure this out... or rather, she needed to decide and make a decision that still made her gut churn. :: Cavann: What are you asking me here? ::What was she asking? To let her in? To give her a chance to be that which never was... the questions grew exponentially in the wake of the emotions that had flowed. When Kali started this, she’d had no idea of a plan for things, and now she was even more lost, but now it didn’t so much matter. Now it all seemed to fit into the promises that the future could hold.:: Nicholotti: Family. It’s the one word, I think, that covers it all. I want to build a family with the ones I love. Your father, and you. ::And now there was no need to prove the earnest look in Kali’s eyes.:: :: There was the heart of it all. Watching her biological mother murdered, perhaps, set in motion much of this. If Dr. delaSouza was to be believed, she was the product of the geneticist’s mad schemes and her mother suffered for it, killed by the doctor who took her in and framed the Gorn Invasion to make her death appear as a casualty of war. It was the Independence crew, by and large, who rescued her. But it was Starfleet as a whole the shaped her motivations, and want to become an officer, like all of those who helped her out. What Captain Nicholotti was asking, however, had nothing to do with Starfleet at all.. and B’Sara long ago accepted the dad she always wanted. :: :: A mom on the other hand, she hadn’t expected this. :: Cavann: You don’t even know me... I can’t call you mom... not yet. Please don’t take that the wrong way... I lost my own mom a long time ago. I’m not saying no... I’m not saying it isn’t possible... but I don’t know you. What I know is my dad did something stupid, and brilliant... and I saw the results the night you and I first met... that woman i saw... she was you, wasn’t she? Some kind of clone. ::Now that was a torrent of thoughts, statements, feelings, and questions. Mom? That bit had shocked her a bit. Working on getting her not to call her ‘Captain’ would be a good start. Getting her to be alright with Kali being in her life, and in David’s life, was as well. It wasn’t your perfect family, but it was good. It was... family. Kali could only smile and try to get everything, and try to keep up. It wasn’t exactly the meeting she’d envisioned, but sometimes the universe had its own way of shoving you down the paths that needed to be walked.:: Nicholottti: All I ask is that you don’t call me Captain, at least not when you don’t have to. I understand, in a way, and all I ask is that you give this a chance. Give me a chance. ::It was all part of the fight to not let go...:: Nicholotti: And that was Anya, my... clone. ::She smirked slightly, trusting this Ensign...this girl...besides, an explanation was the least she owed her.:: You’ve picked up more than his smile. ::After a moment, she sighed.:: I suppose we will address all of that... soon enough. ::B’Sara had to make a choice. Walker didn’t believe her, and half the time, she wasn’t sure if she believed herself. But if the Captain was hanging the rank, and was really hoping to forge something that she never imagined in a million years, then this was the place to start. She read her father’s padd, and his work... remembering what happened the last time they spoke. :: Cavann: ::drawing a deep breath:: No. We do this now. If you love him as I do, I need you to hear me out, no matter how crazy I sound. I don’t think anyone else will believe me. ::Kali’s look turned serious, and somewhere in those eyes she could see how deep this worry went. Sitting back slightly, she nodded, suddenly concerned for David before ever hearing what she had to say. Something about the urgency in his voice at times, the visions he’d spoken about, and even her own glimpse of the white tendrils that day in her office. She wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what was coming, but if it was this important to her, to the girl who held such a special place in David’s life, then Kali would hear her out. Despite the warmth of the beach, a shiver ran through her.:: Nicholotti: Alright... you have my full attention. ::And Kali let everything fade into the background. At this moment, right here and now, this was what was important. B’Sara, and David; the beginnings of the family she’d wanted, perhaps, but had given up on finding.:: :: Grim, B’Sara searched herself first, wondering if this was even a good idea. :: Cavann: Every person has a distinct feel... it’s like a emotional blueprint, their mindset, that’s uniquely them. You’re familiar with Betazoids and their abilities? ::Kali nodded. She’d spent plenty of years with Jaxx and had learned a lot from him. That was one area where she did not lack knowledge. Beyond that, she was still a doctor, so she had the benefit of both sides of information.:: Nicholotti: Yes, I’m fairly experienced with them. ::Kali’s eyes never left B’Sara as she spoke. If this was the first promise she’d make, she’d make sure that it was kept. Her focus did not stray, though her anxiety did as all of the urgency, and the clouded expressions, and her concerns for David started coming to the forefront of her mind.:: Cavann: Maybe one of these days I’ll tell you what Dr. delaSouza did. That’s how I made your... um... twin, I guess. ::shaking her head, shuddering slightly:: I read some of dad’s notes. I wouldn’t want to be him if the Ethics committee ever got wind of his little stunt... anyway, my point is even with your, uh, twin, she has her own unique feel that’s different from you. Call it mindset if you want, maybe that’s the best way to describe it... :: B’Sara trailed off. She sounded like a nutjob here. oO That’s all I need. Oo And she was babbling, one of the things she hated about herself. She shook her head. :: ::Read his notes? There were many questions in Kali’s head now about how she had done that, but then something clicked in her mind. She was her father’s daughter, and in a way that worried her. David could be more than resourceful, and thus far, she’d not seen anything stop him. He had pulled off some amazing things, one of which was Anya, another of which was how easily he had broken through Kali’s shell. And B’Sara had obviously picked a lot of that up.:: ::What she was saying made sense, and Kali turned her attention from the notes and Ethics committees to the ‘feeling’ B’Sara attributed to Anya and how it was different from her own. What was she saying...?:: Nicholotti: She’s become her own person, the moment she woke up. I’m not sure how, but she’s not me. Maybe at one time she was supposed to be me, but it didn’t quite work out that way. ::Indeed it hadn’t. Kali recalled the proverbial kick in the chest those first moments had been, and how hard it had been to come to terms with the idea that those immediate actions had been Kali’s final thoughts and feelings made manifest in a place where the same bounds of pure experience had not been built. The clone had made leaps and bounds in her growth, at least in her mind, since that moment and with each minute became less Kali, and more Anya. At this point, there was no way not to view her as her own, unique, individual.:: :: B’Sara blinked. Her throat felt scraped and raw while she sorted through a myriad of thoughts, feelings and emotions before jerking her head in David’s direction. :: Cavann: That’s cloning. It’s not my field, but I know the theory. Replication down to the chromosomes... but the issue is say, Mickey died, and his wife knew there was a way he could be brought back. So you grab a bit of his DNA, maybe you have his molecules on file. Everything about him, right? So we make a clone duplicate of him... but right away, there’s going to be something a little different. Little things at first. Tastes, food preferences... formal shirts instead of T’s. There’s no such thing as a perfect clone. They will always be a little different, until an emergent mind forges his or her own unique personality, while similar, is vastly different from the original. So she didn’t get Mickey back, she got Mike instead. Does that sound crazy? Nicholotti: ::Smiling reassuringly.:: Go on. You don’t sound crazy at all yet. ::It was an attempt at humor, and the conveyance of a message that said it was okay to just be herself, whatever that entailed. Kali had a vested interest in this and now it ran deeper than herself and her crew. That, in and of itself, was a strange feeling. The sudden idea of what might have happened had she fought for Rowena, and if Makal had stayed around, kicked her in the head, so to speak, but she quickly dismissed it. That opportunity had been long gone, and long dead.:: ::B’Sara glanced back, seeing the bar, but couldn’t see David. She could feel him though... :: Cavann: I look at him... I see him, and it feels like David. His mind, his emotions... but it’s like the package doesn’t quite line up, even though it’s same features I’ve looked up to since I can remember. At first I thought... ::a nervous laugh:: I thought he might be something like a false face. ::She didn’t want to revisit the “incident” in the brig, and cleared her throat, feeling her cheeks flush. :: Cavann: Any case, I can’t pin it down, but there’s just something off. Sounds crazy, right? ::Kali looked at her and thought about what she had said. Something was... off. Crazy? No. This was his daughter, and seeing as she had picked up the mannerisms that David often showed, if anyone could see something being amiss, this girl would be the one. In the back of her head, something clicked, though the significance of it was still lost on her. The brief moments where David had seemed far away, distant, pained even, and with what he’d told her she could certainly see where something might have seemed off.:: ::And hadn’t he said that it was only since he’d been found on that planet...?:: Nicholotti: ::Softly.:: Not at all. You know him best. If you say something’s off, then... ::She changed the focus.:: What do you think it is? Cavann: ::shivering, in spite of the warmth:: ...I think something happened to him. I don’t what, or when, or who or why. People don’t just vanish off starships without leaving some kind of trace. ::smiling a bit:: Dad calls it Locard’s Principle. It’s true. There’s always an exchange of something. I couldn’t get access to all of it, though. ::suddenly diverting her attention back to the Captain:: Where was he found? ::Blinking for a moment, Kali recalled the vague information she’d read surrounding David Cody when he had first come aboard. It had been in the middle of the shadow crisis, which was soon followed by the attempt on her life, the creation of Anya, and the chaos in Thracian space. The result of it all was that reading reports and files hadn’t been at the top of her list. Still, she did recall some of it, on account of its strangeness.:: Nicholotti: A planet near the edge of the galaxy. Alone. ::Which made it all so much more strange. Not only had the universe gone to great lengths to bring him here and now, but he’d disappeared from a starship and ended up on a planet no one had ever heard of before.:: :: B’Sara stared at this woman, who she had just joined her crew, blinking at she heard something that made her feel hollow inside, as if somehow there was some kind of echo from a crazy dream, or maybe another life from the time she was a child and suffered a horrible nightmare of things like facedancers, and invisible creatures called Ixvapyans who swarmed and bombed her home. At the edge of the galaxy... she closed her eyes. Dad said something once, the last time they had been together, hadn’t he? :: :: Alll of a sudden, B’Sara couldn’t breathe, holding herself close and found herself staring at the water, hearing her Captain’s words. :: Cavann: At the edge of the galaxy... Nicholotti: I don’t know all of the details, yet, but I know they traced some kind of signal to that planet, where they found him. :: Signal? The only signal Starfleet officers had were their combadge. She glanced sharply up at the Captain. :: Cavann: ::almost disbelieving, whispering:: You believe me...? ::Smiling reassuringly, Kali pushed the other side of the girls’ hair behind her ear and let her hand settle on her shoulder.:: Nicholotti: I’ll help you find what you’re looking for. We’ll figure this out. ::Of course part of that would be talking to David himself. She wondered how he would take this, or the fact that Kali’d caused such emotional distress for his daughter. She frowned slightly, hoping with everything she was that she could not only help, but build something here. It was almost a desperate feeling deep within, as if something she’d always wanted was just within her reach and somehow she could capture it, or cause it to flutter away.:: Nicholotti: I promise, B’Sara. ::B’Sara bent forward, trying to put her thoughts in order and remember events that happened almost three years ago. Before she left. Before she left for Betazoid, and before dad left in the Independence to chase after the USS Phoenix, stolen by the Grendallai and the Ixvapyans. She knew that much... and she suddenly knew there was one Independence member left she knew to go to. :: ::But she had to be sure first. She swallowed, and looked up at the Captain, or this would be mom, or something... she didn’t know what. :: Cavann: I need to see her. Nicholotti: ::Puzzled.:: Who? Cavann: I need to see your twin and ask her something. And then Commander Breeman. ::Things started to connect in the eyes of the girl who had, moments before, fallen to pieces. Perhaps all she needed was someone to believe her, though Kali wasn’t quite sure she liked the idea of where these things were leading them. But ignoring something didn’t make it go away; if something was wrong, she needed to find it, and fix it, no matter the fears of losing the idea of a family that she’d just found...:: ::No, she wouldn’t lose that. She refused.:: Nicholotti: Alright. We can talk to Anya tomorrow... why Commander Breeman? Cavann: ::managing a sad smile:: He was there when my dad disappeared. ::That made sense. Kali nodded slowly.:: Nicholotti: We also need to talk to someone else. David. ::He would be able to tell Kali things she’d not thought to ask. Perhaps they could get to the bottom of this and it would be nothing. Maybe it was just a bad dream.:: :: Yes. There was that, too. B’Sara sniffed, wiping her eyes and had this horrid vision she now looked like a wreck. She wasn’t much on the cosmetic side of things, but did wear some. She choked up a chuckle as she found a measure of composure. :: ::Kali smiled. Whatever it was, they would all have each other. All she could do was build on what she had started here; leaving, stepping away, going back to the way life was before she met him... all of that was well outside of the realm of possible. He was her sun, and B’Sara only made the scene more wonderful. It was family, and she’d fight for it with everything she had.:: Cavann: ...so how much of a train wreck do I resemble? Nicholotti: ::Shaking her head.:: Probably less than you would imagine. ::Certainly it was noticable that something had happened, but Kali figured it could be much worse. Still, she wondered if there had been another way, a way that would have avoided such problems and emotional reactions. Turmoil had been the last thing Kali had set out to create, and yet somehow... :: Cavann: ::smiling:: If you’re carrying, mind if I borrow some of your make-up? ::Blinking, Kali pulled her mind from the past and looked at the smiling face before her. Unable to help it, she smiled back and shook her head.:: Nicholotti: You could, had I brought it, but generally I don’t. ::Glancing around.:: It’s thinning out a bit though. We don’t have to stay.... ::B’Sara glanced around. Granted, they had been sidetracked, but she hadn’t realized the crowd began to thin out. She ran a hand through her hair, tucking it back. :: Cavann: They’re not going to say anything? Nicholotti: I don’t think anyone will question where you’re going if the Captain goes with you. ::Grinning.:: Well, almost anyone. ::There was David, and he would probably wonder, especially if he got a good look at B’Sara’s face. Kali tried not to worry about that conversation though. Hopefully he would understand what had happened and the way that the strongest bonds were formed.:: ::B’Sara felt tired all of a sudden. Leaving sounded like a good idea. She nodded, and let the Captain lead the way while trying not to feel conscious of whatever the tears did to her features. She hung around the other side of Captain Nicolotti as they passed within her dad’s peripheral vision. She sure as hell didn’t want him to see her like this. :: Cavann: ::lowering her voice:: Where are we going? ::Kali only smiled and avoided any potentially questioning looks as they walked, intent on not getting sidetracked or caught up in the normal ‘captains’ politics. She looked over at B’Sara and spoke, realizing only after how complex this had all become in the blink of an eye. At one point, her family had been her crew, but this ran deeper. Suddenly there was more to her than the uniform. Suddenly she wasn’t her father, married to the corps and lost in a pit that was work and had taken over any semblance of love for his family. A brief look of distaste for the memories ran behind her eyes, but the smile remained.:: Nicholotti: My place. ::She shrugged slightly.:: Home. ::B”Sara blinked, quiet a moment as they exited the holodeck before nodding. :: Cavann: Sounds good to me. ::And then they were on their way, the holodeck quickly left behind them as the two women, not in uniform, wove their way through people coming and going in relative silence. Home wasn’t far, but for the first time in as long as Kali could remember, it was farther than she wanted it to be. Actually wanting to be there was something new, and knowing David would be close behind them only made everything sweeter. Life itself, it seemed, had found a new path and it lead to places she’d never imagined.:: Nicholotti: I was hoping you’d say something like that... ::Smiling again.:: Things are different now. You’re not alone. Not anymore. ::The sentiment was something she told B’Sara, but also herself. For a long time she’d felt alone, in the office centered in the Hub. Then David came along and twisted everything upside down. Even now the upheaval continued, though difficult at times, Kali wouldn’t trade the end results, the process, or the need to build for anything easier.:: :: Alone. B’Sara tasted a bitter pill. She knew that long before coming to Starfleet. She even had a plan, but of course, that plan died back halfway through her studies. She blinked and felt her eyes widen... what she had set out to do, because she knew how he felt about her. Her heart thudded realizing everything was back in play again. :: Cavann: No. Not anymore, not ever again. Nicholotti: C’mon. Let’s go dig up some answers. ::And with that, Kali led the way home.:: -- Ensign B’Sara Cavann Science Officer StarBase 118 Ops & Captain Kalianna Nicholotti Commanding Officer Starbase 118
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