[sb118-butler] Lt. Toxin Arlill - Chaos

[Lhandon_Nilsen]

FINALLY!!!! For once, Toxin gets to be the hero and @Erik Johnson took this moment and ran. We got to see not just the moment that Toxin Arlill stood up for greatness but also the greatness that his friends have seen in him. We also get to see him be assertive and we get a glimpse as to what kind of leader Arlill will become.

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((Engineering, Deck 20, USS Unity Dow))

 

They'd finally made it to engineering. To say they'd arrived unscathed would be a gross understatement. The journey through the ship had been a harrowing odyssey of hallucinations, paranoia, and near-constant struggle against their own minds. Toxin's nerves were frayed, his usual stoic demeanor cracking under the weight of the relentless mental assault. As he surveyed the room, taking in the familiar consoles and equipment, a part of him wondered if this too was just another cruel trick of the mind. But there was work to be done, and Toxin knew that focusing on the task at hand was their best defense against the chaos threatening to consume them all.

 

Sh’shelor: Nilsen. Tell me what you wish for me to do.

 

Toxin let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. Finally, something to do besides fighting off hallucinations. He wasn't great with words, but he knew how to get a job done.

 

Arlill: Alright, let's... uh, let's get this thing moving. Nilsen, get those thrusters going. Sh'shelor, watch the power levels. Don't want this bucket falling apart on us now.

 

Toxin glanced at Sh'shelor, noticing the Andorian's tense posture and the way her eyes darted around the room. It was clear she was struggling with something.

 

Arlill: Are you ok ::to Ithri::

 

Lhandon interrupted Toxin’s observation.l

 

Nilsen: Someone very unpleasant who didn’t like people like me. ::looking up at the rest of the party:: And if you don’t mind, I’ll leave it at that he was…::beat, changing the subject:: these hallucinations are not fun. Why can’t they ever be fun? You know like erm…gimme a MX-5 or a Type 14R racing shuttle or something fun ::smiles:: Caras laughed, but the nervousness undermined any sincere humour.

 

Caras: Wish it were like that. I think it tries to find the things that will upset us most.

 

Fritea’s Voice (to Arlill): Toxin! Toxin!

 

Toxin focused on the work, feeling confident they'd succeed. That is, until his mother's voice threw him off guard.

 

Arlill: You’re not real!

 

Nilsen: Tox…::stopping himself, knowing Toxin’s preference:: sir. comm lines are established with the bridge of the OEB, we can talk to them whenever we need to.

 

Shaking his head, grateful that Lhandon had snapped him out of whatever that was, once again.

 

Arlill: Good, might be helpful to have other company with us, at least digitally.

 

Caras: Reactors primed, ready for ignition. Not an amazing patch job, but it will work. It’ll hold for a few hours.

 

Nilsen: Commander ::to Sh’shelor:: I need to you keep those inertia dampeners engaged while I fire up the thrusters igniters to breathe life into those little things.

 

An eerie thought came over Toxin, oO what if the progress they were witnessing wasn’t progress at all, but just another hallucination OR worse, what if the ship was still working all along and they were actually making the situation worse. Oo

 

Caras: I’ll keep an eye on systems once we have ignition to make sure we don’t have a blow out.

 

Sh’shelor: Lieutenant, not Commander.

 

Sh’shelor: Inertia dampeners online and remain active.

 

Fritea’s Voice (to Arlill): Toxin, Please!

 

Arlill: Is anyone else experiencing familiar voices?!

 

Caras: Yes sir. On it.

 

Nilsen/Sh’shelor: Response

 

Toxin: We need to ignore them, they’re only trying to draw us away from the task at hand. It’s not going to be easy, but use all your energy to remain focused.

 

Caras: It’s working! It’s working!

 

Sh’shelor: What is this?

 

Nilsen: Response

 

Caras: I think that means that the nodes are on their way, and they’re hungry for power. Get ready to phaser them…

 

Arlill: Do we have power for force fields?! ::yelling at the top of his lungs::

 

Caras/Nilsen: Response

 

Voice (To Arlill): Toxin! Help me! Help!

 

A vision of Toxin’s mother appeared, her eyes wide with fear. She plunged through a wave of nodes and stretched out her hand toward her son, only to have a Zet emerge and drag her back under.

 

Another body emerged from the crashing of the nodes, forming into a face and body that was all too familiar. That of the pilot who had been seriously injured in the crash, face twisted in pain.

 

Voice (to Nilsen): Never the same. Never the same. Never the same.

 

(( ooc: It occurs to me that I removed the voices I assumed I couldn’t hear, those directed at others, if that was a mistake, please add them back when you sim your next scene.))

 

Arlill: What is going on here?! ::confusion in his tone::

 

Caras/Nilsen: Response

 

Z’mat’s voice (to Caras): Really now, Morro, do you call this a life? You weren’t meant to actually fix things. You know you don’t want this life. This is you. And this isn’t yours. It’s all a pottery on a spindle, and once it stops spinning, it will all come crashing down.

 

Voice (to Ithri): Invalid. Incompetent. What can you do? You’re nothing but u’shelat!

 

Toxin gritted his teeth as he stretched to reach the panel. The situation was dire, and he knew the risks involved, but there was no other choice. With practiced precision, he began the delicate process of reversing the polarity of the warp core containment field.

 

Arlill: =/\= Computer, initiate warp core containment field polarity reversal sequence =/\= :: Toxin commanded, his voice steady despite the tension in the air.::

 

The computer chirped in acknowledgment, and Toxin's fingers flew across the controls. He carefully adjusted the phase inducers, recalibrated the multiphasic shields, and rerouted power from non-essential systems to bolster the containment field's integrity during the reversal process.

 

Computer: =/\= Warning: Radiation levels increasing," the computer announced, its monotone voice a stark contrast to the urgency of the situation. =/\=

 

Toxin nodded grimly. He had expected this.

 

Arlill: =/\= Acknowledged. Compensate with additional shielding on this deck. (beat) and release hyronalin into the atmosphere. =/\=

 

Hyronalin is a common treatment for radiation poisoning.

 

As the polarity reversal progressed, Toxin monitored the quantum flux readings closely. The nodes were already reacting to the change, their energy signatures fluctuating wildly. It was working, but at a cost. The radiation levels continued to climb, and Toxin knew that even with the additional shielding, the away team would be exposed to dangerous levels.

 

Sh’Shelor/Nilsen/Caras: Response

 

Arlill: Almost there," Toxin muttered, more to himself than anyone else. He made a final adjustment, inverting the last set of field harmonics. The warp core hummed with a new frequency, and the containment field shimmered with an otherworldly light.

 

The nodes appeared to begin to destabilize. Their erratic movements slowed, and their energy signatures started to dissipate. Toxin allowed himself a small smile of relief, but it was short-lived. The radiation alarms were blaring now.

 

Arlill: we need to find a way to shut them down permanently, the Hyronalin isn’t going to protect us for long and the core needs it’s shielding re-established.

 

Toxin's heart sank as he realized the gravity of his actions. He knew any career he could ever expect in the engineering division was likely coming to an end. Damaging a warp core and endangering an away team was undoubtedly on the list of last resorts, if not outright career-ending moves. But right now, survival took precedence over career prospects.

 

Arlill: We need options, people. Any ideas on how to neutralize these nodes for good?

 

Voice (to Toxin): Stop it, you’re hurting your own mother!

 

Henri: oO Only if she were really here! Oo

 

For a brief moment, Toxin felt a sense of relief wash over him. The constant chatter in his mind had ceased, leaving him with a fleeting taste of solitude. But as quickly as it had come, that feeling vanished. Henri's voice, a digital amalgamation born from the ancient computer on Alpha Brenkelvi II and the OEB's AI, pierced through the silence once more. Surprisingly, Toxin found himself almost grateful for the familiar presence. Henri, with his ever-changing appearance and unpredictable abilities, had become an odd source of comfort in these chaotic times. The holographically emitted being, visible only to Toxin unless on a holodeck, was a reminder that he wasn't truly alone in facing this crisis. Despite the initial shock of their symbiotic relationship, Toxin realized that having Henri's unique perspective and potential to interface with the ship's systems might prove invaluable in their current predicament.

 

Arlill: Do you have any ideas that could help?!

 

Toxin glanced around nervously, realizing the others might find his outburst strange. He hoped the chaos of their current situation—hallucinations, nodes, and all—would mask his seemingly unprompted question. Still, he pressed on, desperate for any solution.

 

Henri: I’m not even sure where I was much less what’s going on here and now, I just know whomever is talking to you isn’t real, but don’t ask me how I know that.

 

Toxin pondered for a moment. oO Could Henri somehow be immune to this? Might he become a sort of detector, distinguishing reality from hallucinations? Oo

 

Sh’Shelor/Caras/Nilsen: Response

 

TBC/Tags!

 

Lieutenant Toxin Arlill

 

Chief of Operations

 

USS Octavia E Buttler NCC-82850

 

Writer ID.: O239910TA4LT