Alex Blair

Congrats on a job well done guys and welcome to the fleet!

((Deck 1- Bridge, U.S.S. Gemini)) ::Shayne sat back hard into his chair. The brazen, self-assured confidence that had flowed through him like a drug was causing him to crash. Hard. He felt a little sick. His eyes were wide, as if they were saying, "Holy cow, what was that?" The chirp of a commbadge disrupted his musings.:: Konstava: =/\= Chief Konstava to Ensign Shayne. Could I borrow a word for a moment sir? =/\= Shayne: =/\= Ah, yes, Chief. What, um-What can I do for you? =/\= Konstava: =/\= I have just been informed that the Transporter system has just blown out. Something that should not have been possible under normal circumstances given the modifications I helped implement. If it is not too much trouble sir, would you mind explaining what just transpired? =/\= ::Shayne was suddenly feeling constricted, almost mortified, by the chief's innocent question. He knew he needed to respond, but he felt as if he spoke, he would spew his last meal all over the deck. He'd experienced this phenomenon many times before, and over the years he'd learned a few tricks for getting past it. So he took several deep breaths and, in an almost comical maneuver, licked his wrist, which had a small amount of salt on it. His speech returned, but he knew it wouldn't be long before a relapse, so he rushed through.:: Shayne: =/\= Ah, uh, I, um, I modulated the deflector to emit an anti-proton pulse which briefly allowed both our transporter and that of the, um, Klingons to-to, um, to integrate, in a sense. Then I modulated our beam to use the Klingon's beam as a sort of carrier, which allowed me to lock onto their transporter room, deep inside the ship, and actually beam most of it straight out of there, along with Captain Clarkson. The transporter was never meant to handle such an uncooperative load all at once, and that's probably what did it.=/\= ::Almost nonsensically, he began to apologize:: =/\= I'm sorry, I just had a flash of inspiration, and, oh, you think I'm mad--=/\= ::Thankfully the Chief put an end to his blubbering rather quickly:: Konstava: =/\= Mad sir? Quite the opposite in fact, I should imagine they’ll be naming that little piece of trickery the Shayne manoeuvre. I shall have to remember it for future reference so I can plan equipment modifications appropriately. You should be very proud of what you managed to achieve. =/\= ::Shayne almost let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Now that the chief had given him some reassurance, his controlled demeanor began to return.:: Shayne: =/\= Oh, um, thank you, Chief. (Ahem). I'm sorry about the mess down there. =/\= Konstava: =/\= Not a problem sir, thank you for speaking with me. If you ever want to just talk shop, my ear is always open and you’ll normally find me in the Twin star lounge, Chief Konstava out. =/\= ::Shayne leaned back into his chair, as a smile began to creep across his face. If he was correct, he'd just made the first impression he was hoping for:: oO Well, that went well Oo Ensign Randal Shayne Helmsman U.S.S. Gemini

Well done and congratulations! Welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome!

Congrats you all did a fine job! Welcome to the Fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the Fleet!

((Sometime. Someplace.)) ::The glowing from the lab was painfully bright and all encompassing. The static energy around them had subtly shifted, and instead of repelling them from the epicenter, it was now subtly pulling them in. There was no going back now. He had wanted to push Tarch away, free her from this hell of sacrifice, but the time for that was long past. He should have freed her years ago, if not before this whole horrible episode began. It was too late for that now. All he could do was stand by her. Stand by her and hope that somehow time would make things right.:: TARCH: It's coming. Right now. Atlantis has detonated their device. DELAVIGNE: I can’t see it. How can you see it? You need to guide me! TARCH: We have to be everywhere, Frank. In every time. We have to take the anti-polaric energy back with us, to all the moments that came before, back to the very one where you set this disaster loose. We are the conduits. ::She took his hand, something solid in this great wash of light and chaos and he held on back, like a drowning man hold into a life buoy.:: DELAVIGNE: ::Whispering:: Be strong. You can do this. For her. ::Though it was not clear whether he was talking to himself of Tarch. Maybe it didn’t matter. Both of them had someone they cared about, something they hoped they could see again, if only in spirit.:: ::Pain ripped through him and the polaric energy tore through his body, suffusing every cell. Both of them were lifted off the ground, their very physical reality breaking apart as time split into a kaleidoscope of possibilities. Frank saw the lab scene replay, saw his every decision on the Pike, how he had inadvertently engineered destruction into that ship by his own self-centered actions. He saw his descent into madness, his longing for a child, he saw Tarch and Saltas, Arravan and Good, all of them trapped in the rifts of time.:: TARCH: We need more power! We have to be strong, Frank! DELAVIGNE: Strong… ::his word trailed off and he squinted, looking farther and farther away.:: ::He could see the USS Yorkshire, the ship that brought him to the Pike. He could see himself on the USS Hanlon, serving against the Romulans. And if he really looked he could see the New Dakota colony. He could see his little house, the vibrant blue lawn trimmed so neatly with its garish pink flowers along the walkway. He could see Angela waving at him, holding Elizabeth in her arms. His heart swelled. He knew where to find his strength. Power welled around them as he focused on the sight. Whether it was memory of a point in time that he couldn’t remember, but he could somehow see within the stream, it didn’t matter. Angela and Elizabeth were all that ever mattered to him, and they were what fueled him in these final moments.:: TARCH: Thank you, Frank! Thank you! DELAVIGNE: Thank you, Barbara! ::he called back, the words nearly lost in the din:: Thank you for reminding me who I was! ::Her hand slipped out of his and she disappeared, sucked by the eddies of time, away from him. Frank closed his eyes and fixated on that one memory, that one sight. Angela. Elizabeth. He had to see them one last time.:: ~*~ ((New Dakota Colony, 112 years prior)) ::Elizabeth Delavigne stood on her tippy toes, trying to place her father’s favorite Christmas ornament high enough up on the fuzzy fronds of the palm shrub that he could easily see it:: ELIZABETH: Mommy! Mommy! I need a boost! ANGELA: ::Her mother chuckled and walked over:: You know you can hang them on the bottom, I did the top ornaments. ELIZABETH: ::With the steadfast conviction that only a small child could have over a trivial matter, she looked up at her mother, big eyes welling with tears:: Daddy said this one was his favorite! He needs to see it! ANGELA: Well ok, then! ::She laughed and picked the little girl up, lifting her up to chest high and patiently waiting as she wiggled her chubby fingers around a frond, slipping the hanging wire into place.:: ELIZABETH: There! This will be the first one Daddy sees! ::Setting the girl down, both mother and daughter took a step back to admire their ingenuity. On a planet where evergreens simply didn’t exist, Angela Delavigne had to improvise a Christmas tree. She had promised Frank a tree, with presents under it and home baked cookies. They talked about it over subspace, late at nights when Elizabeth had gone to bed. He was due back in a week, and there was a palpable air of excitement in the small home.:: ELIZABETH: Daddy will see it soon, right?! ANGELA: Next week, sweetie. He’ll be coming home next week. ::She leaned down, petting her daughter’s hair:: ELIZABETH: Can’t he get home sooner? Won’t the ships fly faster? ANGELA: ::She chuckled:: I’m sure if he can make it home sooner, he will. ::Angela sat down, drawing Elizabeth with her onto the couch as the tree sprang into a brilliant swirl of color from the tiny lights nestled within glittering golden garland. The little girl gasped, looking up in unbridled wonder:: ELIZABETH: It’s beautiful! ::It was beautiful. It was a beautiful beacon that shone past time and space. It was the one thing Frank Delavigne was focused on as his hazy ghost-like form started to flicker into view. He felt tears stinging at the corners of his eyes, watching his little girl clapping with delight in the warm glow of the Christmas tree. It was everything he had ever dreamt of, everything he wanted to see. Frank took in a deep breath and reached out to her:: FRANK: Elizabeth. I love you… ELIZABETH: ::She turned slowly, as if she caught a whisper on the wind:: Daddy? FRANK: I’m here, Elizabeth. Daddy’s here for you. ANGELA: Daddy’s not home yet, Elizabeth. He’ll be home soon. ::She leaned forward to draw her daughter back to the couch:: FRANK: ::Looking towards his wife, he felt his breath catch in his throat.:: Angela… I’m here, Angela. ELIZABETH: I heard Daddy! I hear him! ANGELA: ::She looked around:: Not yet, honey. Soon, I promise! ELIZABETH: But I heard him! ::Angela Delavigne sighed, standing up to check the front door, just to make sure. Frank was usually so organized, but he was not above being a joker. Maybe he did get home early and was trying to surprise them? She grabbed a cardigan to fend of the chill in the winter air and started for the door to the hallway. But she never got there. A sickly green flash spread out over the colony, smashing the windows of the home, vaporizing the oxygen in the air and incinerating Angela and Elizabeth Delavigne in a second. There wasn’t even time to scream. Frank Delavigne gasped, unable to make a sound as he watched the most horrific moment in his entire life, play out in front of his eyes. As the flash intensified, he threw his arm up to shield his eyes, screwing them shut. And when he opened them, there she was.:: FRANK: ::Jaw hanging open:: Angela?! ANGELA: ::She stopped, confused:: Frank? Frank, is that you? ELIZABETH: ::Overjoyed, she ran to him:: Daddy! ::Frank Delavigne dropped to one knee and scooped her up in his arms. She was light as a feather, just like a ghost. That’s all any of them were anymore. Ghosts. Still, her hug was full of all the warmth and love that he had been longing for over the past 112 years. He dipped his head down and nestled into his little girl’s hair:: FRANK: Oh, Elizabeth, I missed you so much. I love you so much! ELIZABETH: I love you too, Daddy! ANGELA: ::Angela, meanwhile, had noticed the hazy world around her and figured out that something was terribly wrong.:: Frank… where are we, Frank? FRANK: ::Slowly he set Elizabeth down and looked to his wife:: We’re… ::he choked up:: We’re not there anymore, Baby. We’re gone. ANGELA: ::She gasped, tears welling in his eyes as she rushed over to him:: We’re… we’re dead? ::She whispered:: how can that be? Why are we all here? FRANK: I don’t know. I looked for you for so long… ::he murmured, his voice throaty with emotion:: I was lost for so long, and I finally found you. And now, now I can finally be at rest. ANGELA: ::She looked up at him, seeing the age in his face, the grey hair, the well worn lines, and she rushed to him, throwing herself into his arms:: Oh, Frank! Don’t go. We’re here now. No matter what, we’re together. FRANK: I know. ::he whispered:: It’s all I ever wanted. ANGELA: ::She felt tears forming in her eyes, but none came forth. She wasn’t even sure if she had a body anymore, but she could somehow feel that Frank and Elizabeth were still there.:: Where do we go now, Frank? Where do we go now? FRANK: Let’s go home, Baby. ::He leaned into her, smelling the scent of her lilac perfume one last time before he stooped down, gathered up his little girl and they all walked into the light.:: Let’s go home. ::And they faded away, together at last.:: ~*~~fin~~*~ MSNPC Lt. Commander Franklin DelavigneScience SpecialistUSS Christopher PikeSimmed by: Wyn Foster

Well done! Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the Fleet!

Congrats guys, you all did a fine job! Welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats guys and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats guys and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

((Rathos Prime, idyllic site by the lake)) ::Tosz and Vanessa sat there and just watched the sky showing thousands upon thousands of little, sparkling lights… each of those representing the vastness and sheer magnitude of the universe.:: Driscoll: This star… over there… ::Her voice was now nothing more than a whisper almost drowned now by the light and gentle breeze that could be felt coming from the lake. Tosz followed the direction of her finger before her hand almost fell back. Vanessa’s strength had gone. It had vanished rapidly in these last few hours. Now she even seemed to have difficulties keeping her eyes open, but she was trying. Still fighting the deadly illness till the last minute.:: Driscoll: D’you see it?... The small one next to those three… They almost form a …perfect square. Tosz: ::nodding as he now knew which star she was talking about:: Yes, I can see it. Driscoll: That’s my home…. where my brother lives. Tosz: ::looking at the small light:: Yes. This is just amazing. There are so many. Driscoll: Indeed… and that’s why I always wanted to… travel to them. See what is out there. ::They both kept looking in silence for a moment.:: Driscoll: Do you… believe in a life… after death, Tosz? ::He kept his eyes on the stars, but felt the questioning look of Vanessa.:: Tosz: Our people believe in a life after death, yes. Driscoll: What about you? Do … you believe in it? ::That was indeed a good quation. He had never been that religious, but this whole Armageddon that his pople and his world was facing had somehow changed something inside him. It would have been enough for many people to lose their faith, buit for Tosz it somehow caused the opposite to happen.:: Tosz: Yes, I do… This is such a vast and… wondrous universe. And I tend to believe that there must be something awaiting us. ::Tosz looked at Vanessa giving her a reassuring look. He didn’t just say it to comfort a person who was dying. Tosz really believed in what he was saying.:: Driscoll: I… hope that… you ::Another heave cough attack followed. When it was over there was again blood so Tosz wiped it off and gave her another dose of the painkiller. It still worked and he could see that Vanessa felt slightly better again. The pain she had to go through was unimaginable, but she was still brave. She was looking at Tosz and her eyes clearly reflected the thankfulness she felt for the man she hadn’t even known a few hours ago. Now he stayed with her as he had promised. He kept his promise and Vanessa didn’t have to be here alone, dying alone on a planet without her friends near.:: Driscoll: Thank … you… Tosz: Don’t mention it. ::pause:: You know, you somehow remind me of my wife. She… she died a few weeks ago, but I didn’t have the chance to be with her when… when it happened. ::Tosz looked at the calm and serene lake lying before him:: Tosz: I was trying to get help, find a doctor who would come to us and help her, but no one would come. Some didn’t even care or open their doors for me. They were afraid of getting infected as well. Can you imagine this? Doctors! ::One could still hear the anger and deep sadness that had almost broken this man.:: Tosz: When I came home, she was already dead and because they had been afraid of getting infected as well, they had burned their body… I wasn’t even able to say goodbye to her ::beat:: Then my daughter became ill. And she was shot by the police force when I tried to reach that hpsital. Again I was not able to say good bye. ::Tosz looked at Vanessa who was still looking directly at him. :: Tosz: When I saw you in the lab, I knew you were infected. And all that because you were here to help us. Our own doctors didn’t come, our own police shot us dead, but you – an outworlder – came here to our planet to try to help us. And then you had to pay the price. ::Tosz took a deep breath as he felt his anger coming up again – an anger which he didn’t want to feel now that he was here to stay with a young woman who was about to die.:: Tosz: It is the least I can do for you. The least I can do to honour you and what you tried to do to help us. ::Vanessa smiled at him, but she was not saying anything. She tried to keep her eyes open, but eventually failed. Tosz saw that she tried to reach him with her hand, but she was too weak, so he took her hand and held it. He looked at her and watched her chest as it slowly went up and down again… One more breath… and one more… He still watched her as she did her last breath. It was almost like falling asleep. But he still kept sitting there, holding her hand looking up towards the stars and to the one sparkling light she had shown to him earlier. ::As the sun slowly started to light up the scene, Tosz was standing there in silence. He was speaking an old traditional prayer to the Gods he had almost forgotten. Tosz had never been a religious man, but now it felt right to say at least one of those old prayers that his grandmother had taught him. In front of him there was a pile of rocks he had gathered the whole night to cover the grave of Vanessa Driscoll. She wasn’t able to go home again – not even her remains. And Tosz was not able to leave her body lying here due to the wild animals. So he had buried her. This would be the place where she would rest and as long as he was here and alive, he would be coming here and visit her every now and then. As he had finished saying his prayers, he put a little flower on the pile of stones. Then he grabbed the only thing that was still here – Vanessa’s communicator. He had used it to contact the authorities of Rathos Prime. They had been surprised to be hailed via a Strafleet signal and then being greeted by a Rathosian. Tosz had asked them to send a message to the Gemini and they had agreed. The message was simple and plain: --Your crewmate Vanessa Driscoll died this night – peacefully and quiet she just fell asleep. Tosz – ::Then Tosz put the communicator on the top stone and turned round to leave. He had kept his promise.:: END ======== Lieutenant JG Vanessa Driscoll Science officer USS Gemini

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

Congrats guys, you did an excellent job in training! Welcome to the fleet!

Congrats and welcome back!

Congrats and welcome to the fleet!

((First Minister's Office - The Citadel)) Zim: What. :: A moment ago, Arvin had watched one of his oldest friends destroy a the glass he had been holding, seemingly by sheer force of will. It was something he had only seen once in his life before, and it had scared the hell out of him just as much. Zim's tone didn't help the matter any either. It wasn't a question. It was a simple statement of disbelief, an declaration that he refused to believe what he was being told without something else to back it up with. It wasn't entirely surprising. Arvin had nearly refused to believe it himself. If he hadn't seen the numbers of dead, he would have denied it to his own grave.:: Zagan: Someone at the Board of Science authorize this pathogen as a weapon. Laybrim was a part of that project. Zim: No. No I heard you brother. I... :: His voice trailed off as he became lost in the implications of what he had just been told. It was something that he had struggled with himself. To think that there was somone who was willing to defy not only the law, but basic decency, and create a weapon of such indiscriminate lethality, and then release it intentionally on an ostensibly civilian population was beyond his ability to process. They would claim it had only minitary targets, but there was no way that Arvin could conceive of that would allow them that kind of control. Perhaps that was why they had abandoned it. Maybe there was somone with enough moral fiber left to point that out and put a stop to the project. Perhaps that had even been Jorgen himself. But he didn't have the time to ask about it.:: Zim: I just can't believe it. This? All of this, because of him? Zagan: Among others. He's just the only one we can link to it with any certainty. Zim: I'll kill him Arvin. :: Arvin didn't have the slightest doubt that Tyrek was serious. they had both been soldiers, they had taken lives on the battlefield. But that didn't make them monsters. Taking a life was not something that was done lightly, on a whim. And it was never done when not absolutely necessary. And most importantly, one did everything possible to prevent the deaths of civilians and non-combatants. They were the rules that made the difference between soldiers and murderers. And a biological weapon with no cure and a 100% mortality rate flew in the face of every one of those rules. And Arvin new just about as well as anyone that there was one thing the Tyrek Zim would not abide; those who broke the rules. As far as he was concerned, Jorgen had just admitted to being a war criminal. And the law afforded him only one fate.:: Zagan: The law affords only one punishment for what he's done. But we need him alive... Zim: I'm going to- oh... you're right. :: Arvin reached for the decanter on the table, pouring himself another glass of drisa as he watched his friend clean himself up, pulling what he assumed were a few shards of what had been the glass from his hand with barely a wince. He took a long pull from the glass, suppressing a slight cough as it hit his throat.:: Zagan: I don't like it, Tyrek, but we need his knowledge to have any hope of solving this. Any knowledge he has dies with him. Zim: You're right, of course. You always are, old friend. But when this is over... Zagan: We'll do what we've always done, my friend. We'll let the people decide his fate. :: He knew already what they would likely decide. And he had a suspicion that Jorgen knew what was coming as well. The law was very clear on what would happen to him. But it was important to Arvin that he let the justice system do it's work. No matter how heinous the crime, Jorgen was entitled to the process. It was how they would prove how far they had come since the Great War. No matter what either of them felt, he was entitled to the process.:: Zim: Deal. Zagan: Starfleet has sent down a team of researchers. They've set up a temporary lab in Talisa Park. Zim: Yes I just received a progress report from their surface team. I have my men patrolling the park and keeping the riots clear. But we're spread rather thinly. Zagan: I understand they have their own security as well, hopefully that should be enough to keep them safe. :: There was a troubling truth to the situation around the lab that Starfleet had set up. The park was a difficult place to guard properly, especially under the circumstances. It was a huge space, and easy to get lost in. If the rioters managed to find the lab, they would tear the place apart. But most frighteningly of all was the fact that it wasn't a matter of if they would get there, but when. If the people knew the lab was there, they would do the same thing that they had done to every other unprotected facility conducting research. the best hope for the moment was to try to make sure they didn't find out about it.:: Zagan: I would have liked for them to be working a little closer. Zim: We can't risk the Citadel being breached though, Arvin. You and the few thousand people left inside might be the only uninfected Rathosians left in existence. Zagan: I know. And that thought frightens me more than any other that we've faced so far. Zim: I'll keep the park teams on high alert, but I'm not pulling soldiers from elsewhere yet. Give me five city blocks from the south end of the park. Is that fair? The riots reach, :: He looked down at a detailed road map of the city. :: Brindala Avenue and I'll relocate more men to the Federation quarantine from the Citadel. :: It made him a little uncomfortable that they were going to potentially allow a large group of angry and frightened people to get that close to the best chance they had at developing a cure for the pathogen, but Tyrek was right. If the Federation couldn't find a cure for the pathogen, there was still the chance that the people still in the Citadel might be able to ride it out. It would be thir entire civilization in the hands of only a few, but it was better than no civilization at all. This of course, all assumed that they could keep the Citadel quarantined.:: Zagan: That sounds about as reasonable as we're going to get. The federation researchers have reqeusted access to a few of our samples as well as a few... cadavers. :: It felt so impersonal to refer them to cadavers. They were the bodies of his people. The people he had been elected to lead, the people that he had failed. He would have time to mourn them later. As impersonal and undignified as it may have been to them, they were the best hope of a cure.:: Zim: What? :: This time it was a question. :: They haven't received them yet? Of course! :: He furiously tapped at his control window and called up the necessary orders. :: Fates Wheel I can't believe they haven't been sent yet. I'm giving my formal permission now. Send them whatever they want from the labs and morgue. Give them everything! Zagan: What have we got for them? Zim: I'll authorize a transport for half a dozen cadavers and as many samples as we've got. Do we still have a primal sample? :: Arvin had authorized the board of science to put a lot of effort into finding one of the original samples. Something that had survived without mutation, or at least minimally so. But it had taken dangerously long for them to figure out what was happening. by then, most of the bodies had been disposed of in a number of ways, and even those not dealt with by families had been burned in the early mass disposals.:: Zagan: I'm afraid not. The originals were set loose, and the bodies all disposed of. Zim: [...]. My people tell me that would have helped. Zagan: So have the researchers. :: He lifted the glass again, draining the last of it's contents. He felt a slight burning as it hit the back of his throat. It was a sign that he was hitting the wall that came when he was exhausted; a state that he seemed to be perpetually in of late. He debated the merits of another in the hopes that it might help him get to sleep. But he knew it was only likely to make things worse.:: Zim: Do you think they can fix this, Arvin? Zagan: I honestly don't know, Tyrek. But it's the only hope we have. First Minister Arvin Zagan First Minister of Rathos Rathos Prime as simmed by Cpt Liam Frost & Lord Commander Tyrek Zim Rathosian Admiral RSS Longbow as simmed by Oliver Weston