Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Jan 27, 2018 3:52:53 GMT
The forcefield had caught Karka off guard; such technology hadn't seemed within the reach of the isolationists. It was projected across the path he was taking through the mesa towards the HQ, a trap laid by the isolationists a squadron of which stood before him in dark EVA suits, plasma rifles and projectile guns trained on him. He knelt, raising his hands and showing himself to be unarmed, Koni kneeling, too, albeit much more reluctantly as it involved disarming herself.
Karka saw Crossfield approaching, his harsh face just visible within his visor. He snarled, "It's about time I should surrender, you think, perhaps, Commander..." Astonishingly, Karka witnessed Crossfield's expression change, to one of... sadness, or remorse, shame he might almost say, "And perhaps you'd be right." Crossfield lowered his weapon, signalled the isolationists to do the same. Surprisingly, they complied immediately. "They're with me... Wanting to escape this hellhole, Mr Psonoir, like me. For Berz... has finally gone too far."
To Psonoir's surprise, his first reaction was anger, "You destroyed your opposition on this world, Albert. I do not understand your sudden guilt. Unless this action is part of a ploy to get off the plan- "
"I have always been guilty and have felt it strongly, now moreso than ever, given Berz Syphax's... I mean the Klingon's infidelities." Crossfield had the forcefield deactivated, sat down on an outjutting rock and had Karka do the same. The Commissioner looked back towards the HQ, then to the darkening sky - evening was coming on - Karka saw his eyes glint in the reddening starlight, the crags in his face illuminated, and was moved as he realised the humanity of the man, buried though it was in his recent atrocities.
"You must prepare yourself to face charges in a Federation court of law, Mr Crossfield," Karka said, subdued though still cautious, allowing periods of silence to develop, for them to fall heavily, "Though your cooperation may see your sentence reduced up to a maximum of -"
A phaser beam shot out of the gloom that'd layered itself about them and Crossfield was disintegrated, his molecules vanishing on the wind that kicked up in the mesa, filtering through the criss-crossing ravines in a chorus of sibilant whispers. Karka stood abruptly, looked about and saw a man being wrestled to the ground by Crossfield's enraged group of isolationists - one of whom was Unwin! he realised now - and charged over. He who committed the murder, he who lay under the fists of the isolationists robbed of their co-leader, was Zuur, having fulfilled his promise to Karka to remove the last member of the Six on the surface - now rendered unconscious. Psonoir's previous fury at Crossfield now at last given a new channel, he exercised all his self-control to not kick sharply at unconscious Zuur's body.
He and T'Seng greeted Unwin who apparently had escaped with the assistance of these disaffected isolationists, then enquired of the latter how they might get off the planet... The group replied that they'd hoped the shuttle he'd come down in would still be functional; apparently they'd been planning to meet them at the shuttle to ask for a ride. They would have to crouch in the mesas, hope isolationists more sympathetic to Syphax's position wouldn't come looking, and wait for rescuers from above the sky.
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 4, 2018 19:51:28 GMT
=^= I'm willing to forego firing .. After all .. A considerable amount of time and effort went into the construction of that ship .. Seems a waste to destroy it don't you think .. But only as long as you agree to hand the Belfast over to the most Senior Starfleet Officer currently aboard .. .. On confirmation of your immediate compliance you and you confederates will be taken into custody and returned to Earth .. Where you will no doubt face multiple charges .. .. You have fifteen seconds to comply .. .. Beware Syphax .. I will 'NOT' extend this option a second time =^= .......... ~~~~~=^= You need not be kept waiting Captain .. .. .. I have made my decision =^= Sypahx said, nodding to someone off-screen ... To Daniel's shock, the Belfast, far from being stood down, began an almost lazy roll to their Port. Daniel almost grinned for a second until the ship shot away from them. He shook his head. "Helm, go after them." he said almost resigned to having to destroy the Federation vessel lest it fall into Klingon hands. "Sir, the Belfast is on a direct heading for the star." "What ?" Dan asked, Lieutenant Wentworth not repeating the comment knowing the Captain had heard her, "Increase speed to intercept." "They are pushing their engines way beyond safety, we'll not catch them before they enter the sun's gravitation field." "Can we get close enough to fire on them ?" Dan asked, sitting on the edge of his seat. "Barely Sir, and even if we do their momentum will still drive them into the star." "Tractor's ?" "Too far Sir." The gap, a second ago closing as the Excalibur pusher her own drive systems, was increasing by the second now. Did he disable their engines and let them fall to a tortuous death, or did he let them continue their headlong dive making their deaths come seconds quicker. He was still mulling options when the duty Tactical Officer spoke: "Captain, the remaining Klingon vessel is underway .... They are coming up behind us." "Of course they are." Schirra said, each syllable seething with sarcasm, "Lock dorsal phasers on the Klingon and fire when in range." "Sir, they seem to be on a course that will pass us, they appear to be heading for the Belfast." "What the hell for ?" Dan asked rhetorically. "Sir, their engines are running well over safe levels, even if they manage to reach the Belfast they won't survive." Wentworth informed him.. Dan watched as the Klingon ship reached then passed them, their impulse ports glowing white against the stars as they plunged headlong into the inferno. They were out of sight now but Dan could still see both ships on the inlaid image on the 'window' as the two ships neared each other. Seconds later the Belfast, seemingly throwing the last iota of her power cells into their efforts to end themselves, forged ahead of the Klingon vessel. Surprisingly, rather than following suit, the Klingon ship appeared to be trying to alter their flight path ! "They are trying to turn." someone said quietly. Dan watched as the Klingon ship, degree by degree, was turning away from certain death in the cauldron ahead. "Alter course .... Head for the Klingon ship." Schirra ordered, knowing beyond all doubt that the Belfast, along with anyone aboard her, was lost. "Sir, I'm reading massive overloads in the Klingon vessel, their drive systems are going to ......" the duty Tactical Officer stopped speaking as the Klingon ship miraculously jumped to warp, dropping back to sub-light less than a second later. Schirra could'n believe his eyes that the maneuver had not only prevented their plunge into the star, but instead had thrown them past. It was tumbling end over end now, one of the long nacelles missing the other in ruin. How the ship was still holding together was he supposed testament to the Klingon's manufacturing process, geared as it seemed to the functional rather than aesthetic. "SIR .... Life-signs ! .... Aboard the Klingon ship. It's not going to last much longer." "Get into transporter range .... NOW !" "Sir they are hailing us." "I bet they bloody well are, have transporters start grabbing them off there as soon as we're in range. Helm, the second that thing starts to go get us the hell out of here, don't wait on my order, understood ?" "Aye Sir." "Sir, it's a Federation Commander, one of ours." "Tell them we're coming." Dan said ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Feb 7, 2018 0:47:06 GMT
Syphax watched disbelievingly as the Klingon cruiser - magnified on the viewscreen - emerged from behind his star, shorn of a nacelle and in a fatal spin. He was extremely fortunate, he told himself, that the warp bubble had not been large enough to extend around the Belfast, or indeed around part of it. Death would've come sooner, but he would not have joined with the Avian Spirits ensconced in the heart of the star.
"The Excalibur is peeling away from pursuit of us, Syphax," one of his loyal supporters reported, manning the starboard-side console beside the helm, "They are assisting the House of Met'oq's vessel."
"And they may recover the Belfast officers," he intoned. "We have made a lucky escape, friends." He would've pushed the engines to maximum, up to 2/5 of the speed of light, if he'd been sure of the ship's structural integrity and the ability of the engines to cope with such increased power usage; it was a balancing act to make it into the Eyrie as quickly as possible, and now the Excalibur was no longer willing to stop him... Perhaps whoever was in charge on the cruiser had diverted the Excalibur intentionally, made a final sacrifice in support of their leader...
Commander Bremmell took his seat at the centre of the wrecked Klingon vessel's bridge. His self-promotion had been accepted grudgingly by the Klingon crew - those that survived - as he'd proven himself to be not only the highest-ranked officer amongst them - taking into account equivalent ranks in the KDF - but also the serviceman who'd seized the initiative when they'd all seen the two Constitution class starships start off towards the star Eyrie Syphax.
Upon arrival here, he'd grouped together with others of the Belfast crew he'd found with him in the section of corridor in which he'd materialised, had located a nearby weapons locker, stormed a subsidiary room to the bridge and vanquished in single combat the Klingon first officer.
With the bridge under siege, G'rakk - the Commander, badly injured - had requested that he be permitted to take his leave, and Bremmell and his vicious inner circle had granted this; G'rakk had boarded the jolly-boat and set course at warp 3 for Qo'nos - to revive his shattered House's fortunes in its attempt to overthrow the current ruling faction in the High Council.
After siphoning off power from all other major systems - including artificial gravity and life support - to the fractured engines, the flagship of the House of Met'oq had set off in pursuit of the Belfast, ostensibly to shield it from the Excalibur and to draw the aforementioned vessel away from it, but really to ensure that Syphax perished as he intended. To play chicken with the Belfast, Bremmell had reasoned, to coax it forward in competition with the Klingon vessel whose crew, it would appear, were deciding it was a good day to die, would facilitate the Klingon-Trill's demise.
Having taken power himself and having witnessed the Belfast close with the star for its fatal encounter, Bremmell had prepared a solution in order to escape with his new vessel into regions unknown; the engines, however, could not fulfill his demands; the cruiser's attempt to jump through the star had caused its near-disintegration, and now all was lost. The Klingons disapproved, but Bremmell wasn't yet willing to die, and now contacted the Excalibur to provide for their rescue.
Interminable seconds dragged by, devastation occurred all about him, leaking coolant made him retch, and the viewscreen came online, "Captain Schirra, we meet again," he managed to say to the image that appeared on the cracked viewscreen, the view of the Excalibur's bridge and personnel fractallised and dispersed by the ruined display.
"I have acquired a new rank courtesy of my compatriots," he indicated the mixed bridge crew of Klingon officers and traitor Belfast crewmembers - at consoles where those were available, standing, sitting or lying prone where stations had previously been and had been ripped from their fittings by the series of explosions occurring on dropping out of warp. The viewscreen failed.
Would the Excal choose to rescue them? In line with that eventuality, Bremmell now gave the order he'd had the crew prepare for beforehand, his two remaining trusted staff - one crawling round the bridge, unable to stand - distributed the plasma-driven explosive devices (held in the hand and impervious to detection by transporters, he'd tested them on the previous Belfast mission with the Captain's permission) to all the bridge officers, ready for detonation the moment they were beamed aboard.
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 7, 2018 22:08:04 GMT
"Any contact ?" Daniel asked as the Excalibur closed on the stricken and doubtless soon to be non-existent Klingon vessel.
"Still trying Captain, the trouble is on their end."
"Get a comm established."
The seconds then minutes slipped by, with the two ships now less than five kilometers apart Schirra ordered full stop. It was extremely dangerous, bordering on reckless in fact, but it was the only way they could guarantee getting what remained of the Belfast crew away before the Klingon vessel tore itself apart.
"Sir, getting something." the Comms Officer said motioning towards the superimposed image, crackling, static, the image was almost unidentifiable and would likely have remained so had someone on the Klingon vessel not spoke:
=^= Captain Schirra .. We meet again .. I have acquired a new .. .. ank courtesy of my compatriots =^=
=^= Bremmell .. You need to get off tha .. .. .. =^= sorry Captain, the Comms Officer said as the image vanished completely.
"Any chance you can reestablish ?"
"Trying."
"Sir, I am reading massive power fluctuations over there, their core is approaching critical." Lieutenant Yukigori informed him from the Security Station.
"Lieutenant you have one hell of a knack for stating the startlingly obvious." Schirra said with a wry grin, "How many can we transport off that ship at a time ?"
"Using the cargo transports, thirty six"
"Lock onto the Bridge, transpor ....." before he could complete the order the Klingon vessel's remaining nacelle sheered away and exploded. The shock-wave slammed into the Excalibur before her shields could be raised and it was spun away, her inertial dampers fighting to keep her level, Daniel climbed to his feet, eyes on the window, "Reneus, get us stable and back alongside the Klingon vessel."
He could see the ship now, tumbling end over end ... He could also see bodies, thrown into space when the nacelle separated he assumed, where they Klingon, Human, did it really matter in the scheme of things, no, they were casualties, their loss would be mourned of celebrated, depending on you point of view. It mattered not, there were still survivors, and if he could save them regardless of affiliation, then he would.
"How is that thing retaining atmosphere ?" the Navigator muttered.
"Sir, scans show both Human and Klingon casualties adrift." Wentworth informed him.
"Understood Lieutenant." he replied needlessly before getting out of the cloying center seat, "Scan the wreckage, lock on to any Human life-sign." seconds later, dazed, bloodied, on the verge of surrendering to his fate, Bremmell felt the tell-tale caress of a transporter beam, the shattered Klingon Bridge faded from view ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Feb 17, 2018 14:05:28 GMT
Waiting for his Comms officer to reestablish the link with the Excalibur's bridge, if possible, Bremmell contemplated the loss of his sector-wide empire, extinguished in the cradle of his mind before it'd had a chance to take root in reality. He'd bided his time in the service of the soon-to-be traitor Captain of the Belfast, and when the moment had finally arrived and XO Lotos - or Zuur or whatever his true name was - had been kidnapped by the Excal, he'd taken hold of the ship and bent people and events to his will.
Now he was about to perish on his sinking Klingon ship, not being able to envisage rescue despite having distributed the plasma grenades to his inner circle and Klingon allies in the event the Excal did attempt to transport them aboard. And then the nacelle was ripped away from the vessel, accompanied by a massive explosion.
On his side with his sight hampered, experiencing tunnel vision and a reddening of his visual field, Bremmell saw his bridge crew being catapulted from their consoles into the walls and ceiling, standing and sitting officers thrown across the floor or pinned where they lay by falling machinery; plasma grenades rolled from hands, some still inert, some triggered, skittering towards the gaps between console underside and floor on the port side as the ship banked and rolled in reaction to the force imparted by the exploding nacelle.
Bremmell tried to sit up, and then the transporter effect came, a golden haze and wash coruscating along his form; he dissolved in a chrysalis of light as the bridge lit up with the near-simultaneous detonation of several of the plasma devices. Unbeknownst to him - only to the eyes of a dying Klingon spiralling out of a tear in the bulkhead - screaming silently - one of the grenades slipped from a hand only to roll inert up the sleeve, lodging itself in the armpit area as the owner too dissolved in a sudden golden aura... Bremmell's surviving lieutenant.
One sitting, the other flying in mid-air - though robbed of its angular momentum components by the motion dampening applied in transit by the transporter - the two surviving Starfleet officers of the Belfast - Bremmell and his lieutenant - materialised on the pad of the Excalibur's main transporter room. Bremmell glanced up at the operator, amazed at his survival, then noticing the expression on the operator's face, looked to his right...
There was a desperate scramble as the plasma device rolled free from his LT, down from the pad and towards the operator's console. The owner of the shirt sleeve from which it emerged expired in that moment, succumbing to suffocation due to vacuum exposure, yet the grenade as it passed across his hand was activated...
Bremmell dived for the grenade instinctively, aware the operator had discerned its purpose and wishing to prevent him from resetting the trigger, yet Bremmell missed, fell awkwardly near the transporter console and shattered his leg; a scream escaped his throat as the operator grabbed for the plasma grenade that was beeping urgently - kaleidoscopic colours playing hypnotically off its surfaces - and lobbed it towards the pad; in the same movement, the operator slung himself over the console and slammed a hand at the transporter activation levers.
Bremmell watched in despair as the device and its deceased brandisher evaporated in the cascade effect, sure that in the last moments he detected the very beginning of the plasma grenade's deadly explosion, its energy inhaled by the compensators and their quasi-molecular extraction units.
"Transporter operator to bridge," the operator spoke raggedly over the comm, taking deep breaths, "I have Bremmell, sir, and no one else. You may have detected two transports, one off and one on... We narrowly avoided disaster. Recommend guards are brought down to secure Bremmell."
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 17, 2018 23:56:16 GMT
As Bremmell and the Lieutenant materialised, the ships' sensors detected the device and sounded the alarm ... On the Bridge, Daniel spun his seat to face the Tactical Officer:
"What's going on ?"
"Sir, sensors have detected anomalous matter following the transport. Attempting to ...."
"There's a transport in progress." A fraction of a second later the ship shook as the device exploded less than two hundred meters ahead.
=^= Transporter operator to bridge .. .. I have Bremmell .. and no one else .. You may have detected two transports one off and one on .. .. We narrowly avoided disaster .. Recommend guards are brought down to secure Bremmell =^=
=^= On their way Lieutenant =^= the Security Chief said, leaving the Bridge to join his Officers already en-route, Schirra right behind him. Once they reached the transporter room Bremmell was already being led out, Daniel halted their progress. He felt like punching the man unconscious but knew better than to give into the base emotion, instead he glared at the man.
"You attempted to destroy this ship."
"I do not know what you are referring to, Captain. I did no such thing."
"Take him to the Brig."
"Sir, he's requested to see the Medical Officer."
"Request denied ..." Schirra said, "Brig, now, no visitors until we are ready to question him, is that understood ?"
"Aye Sir." he stood aside as the man was unceremoniously dragged away. Once the corridor was clear he entered the transporter room where the Chief confirmed his earlier report that he had managed to retrieve only the two federation Personnel. Daniel could scarcely believe what he was hearing, the last scans showed over two hundred people on the Klingon vessel, now all lost to the depths of space. He ordered the Transporter Chief to begin beaming the deceased aboard, direct to Cargo-bay Two where they would be identified and logged for return to Earth ... With a heavy heart he left the room leaving the Chief to work. Heading back to the Bridge he couldn't get rid of the nagging in the back of his mind that the leaders of this rebellion would not have ensured a means of escape should they find themselves loosing or cornered, but how, where ?
He had other members of his crew missing, and they must take priority now. Entering the Bridge he walked up to the window, standing close enough to touch, he could see what remained of the Klingon ship, glowing almost white hot as it neared it's fate, tumbling end over end as it broke into pieces small enough to carry by hand:
"Helm, take us back to the planet, Full impulse. Long range scans, I want to know if there is anything entering the system." he said, returning to the center seat. Fifteen minutes later they established orbit once again and he ordered scans on the surface hoping to find Karka and Koni.
"Communications. Contact whoever is in charge down there. I want them ready to transport to the Excalbur in one hour. If they fail to comply, or fail to produce my Officers, inform them I will void the planet of what atmosphere it has and will open the facility to vacuum. I'll be in my quarters when they are ready."
Without waiting for confirmation of his order he walked off the Bridge ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Feb 19, 2018 23:31:53 GMT
Syphax's loyal forces had ambushed the Excalibur shuttle occupants along with the traitors (Albert Crossfield's soldiers bereft of their leader) to the Klingon's cause. With a portable heavy gun positioned on top of a collection of fused boulders and pointed at a system of caves, they were playing a waiting game: besiege their quarry until they ran out of basic supplies and either perished or made a daring attack on the numerically superior Syphaxian isolationist forces.
Then they received the call from above the sky. Syphax's field commander made for his command post and had the comms officer replay the message, then had a channel opened, "If you must take them, at least allow us the satisfaction of punishing our own."
Syphax's CO was continuing to fight the Klingon-Trill's cause even though both of the lynchpins of the isolationist forces were dead: Syphax and Crossfield, the old friends who if they'd lived would now be facing off against one another, whose forces had long borne arms and warred, first upon their Federation loyalist enemies and now, like a ravenous beast devouring itself, upon each other.
Karka looked from his cave upon the portable gun platform glinting in the starlight. He didn't know that the star now held the matter of the USS Belfast, of Syphax and his small isolationist crew.
"You have ten minutes to surrender!" an electronic crackling boomed across the ravine separating him from the isolationist soldiers. Friendlies - Crossfield's rebels - filled the cave away to his right, with T'Seng and Unwin in the left hand cave trying to jury-rig a transmitter.
"They've heard," he said to himself, "Dan's returned to orbit, I know it."
"We are not bluffing. Repeat, we are not bluffing. You will surrender or perish!"
Karka's assumed-dead communicator chirped once; in a rapid movement he drew it from his belt and flipped it open, there was only a very faint static, he said, "Psonoir." There was nothing, no waver, increase in volume or sound of anybody's voice over the comm. He returned it to the belt and regarded the small EVA-suited figures milling round the emplacement opposite: they were certainly bluffing, there was no way they could blast his landing party and Crossfield's rebels out of these caves... their methods spoke of desperation.
"Tell us what information you've received, and we'll consider it!" Karka shouted back, the ravine echoing and reverberating with his voice. There was an eerie silence.
"We've heard from your ship. They want you back," he heard the voice at last, "But our soldiers in that cave are coming with us," Psonoir's interlocutor referred to Crossfield's rebels in the caves alongside. Karka had been about to say, 'no deal' - he owed these 'Crossfieldists' his life, as did Unwin and T'Seng, but Crossfield's rebel soldiers answered for him.
They rushed out of their cave, crouching, firing from the hip, finding cover behind boulders that littered the slope at the top of the ravine just ahead of them. Shouted orders and urgent instructions filled the air, as did the deafening sizzle and crack of plasma and laser fire, coupled with the concussive impacts of large projectile shells. The Hybrudean exited the cave and crouch-ran across to T'Seng and Unwin's cave as the bullets flew and the lasers scorched the sunset-lit rock surfaces in huge arcs. Joining them, he decided to use the incidental covering fire to escape the mesa...
Psonoir only hoped they were drawing far enough away from the dampening effect - exerted by the Syphaxian isolationists - for the Excalibur to get a solid lock on the three of them...
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 20, 2018 22:06:57 GMT
He remained in his quarters until the hour was almost up. Truth be told, he actually wasn't surprised that there had been no response from the surface, it fitted with what they had learned, but that said, they were still holding Starfleet personnel hostage, and that was unacceptable !
Getting up he left his quarters and returned to the bridge .....
~~~~~
"Anything from the surface ?" he asked as he took his seat.
"No contact Captain." Lieutenant Gold replied.
"OK .... Open a channel." he ordered, waiting until the Comms Officer nodded:
=^= Facility .. This is Captain Daniel Schirra .. Commanding Officer USS Excalibur .. .. Respond =^=
=^= .. .. .. .. =^= he looked over at Lieutenant Gold who confirmed they could hear him.
=^= You have ninety seconds to evacuate section Beta Four of your facility .. If I receive no reply to this communication I will fire on that section .. Ninety seconds ! =^= He sat back, watching the planet below slowly rotating, then ordered Tactical to lock phasers on the designated target. He knew full well that those on the surface were essentially calling his bluff, no Federation Starship would openly fire on an occupied facility, it was unheard of.
"Scan the area for life-signs." he instructed as the seconds ticked by. Tactical assured him that the section was unoccupied, "Fire." he said without preamble.
The beams of almost pure energy lanced from the underside of the Excalibur's saucer section, slamming into the evacuated section of the facility. It exploded, the oxygen sealed within vaporising as the structure lost almost seventy meters of corridor. He knew that emergency bulkheads would have slammed into place as the destruction causing a sudden catastrophic hull breach was detected. He waited patiently, wondering if he would be forced to carry out his threat ...
"Sir, I'm picking up a lot of activity." the Duty Tactical Officer said suddenly.
"In the facility ?"
"No Captain, approximately four kilometers beyond the west perimeter, Looks like a bit of a fire-fight going on. I'm picking up weapons fire and .... Sir, picking up individual life-signs now. It's difficult to distinguish who's who."
"Narrow the scan, see if you can get a fix on our people." Schirra said, hoping this could be resolved without further action on his part, "Try to contact the Exec' quickly !"
=^= Excalibur to Commander Psonoir .. .. Commander Psonoir .. Are you receiving ? =^=
=^= .. .. .. Pson .. oir .. .. .. =^=
=^= Karka .. Whats your situation ? =^= Daniel asked but the Comm had fallen silent.
"Did you get a lock in his position ?" Dan asked quickly.
"He's in the firing Captain. There is a cave system on the edge of the fighting, it looks like the firing is directed towards that area."
"Get a transporter lock, pull them out."
"Sorry Captain, it looks like he is inside the cave system. He must be close to the entrance to get the signal but too far in to reply." Jenni Gold explained from Comms.
Dan looked at the planet once again, ruing the day they arrived, but his feelings were moot at the moment, he knew that at least one of his missing Officers was alive, and if Karka was then hopefully Koni and Unwin were too, but there was no way to confirm that unless they left the caves and ventured into the open, which would put them in danger of being hit in the fire-fight. Without the ability to transport them out he had limited options, of course he could fire on the facility once again, but he had the feeling that whoever was in charge could care less. One option was to send a shuttle down, but with one crashed he was reluctant given they could simply shoot that one out of the sky as it approached. He was still giving options consideration when the Transporter Chief contacted the Bridge:
=^= Sir .. I can't be one hundred percent sure but I think I have isolated three life-signs in one of the caves =^=
=^= I thought you wouldn't be able to get a lock =^=
=^= It won't be a complete lock .. Sir =^=
"Sir maybe we could drive them out of the cave and transport before they are hit in the crossfire." the Duty Tactical Officer suggested.
"How would you propose to achieve that Lieutenant ?" Dan asked.
"Well ...." the man said, suddenly hesitant, "The cave structure is unstable ..... But they extend deep into the hillside. If we were to fire on the cave, not the entrance but maybe five hundred meters inside, it could feasibly cause a cave-in, forcing those inside into the open, or at least close enough to the mouth of the cave to establish an adequate transporter lock."
"..... and you are sure that those three are our people and not a group of isolationists separated from their fighters ?"
"Scans will confirm who they are but they will need to be outside the cave to do so ... Sir, scans show that the cave infrastructure is riddled with fractures. A targeted phaser hit at maybe forty percent strength could be enough to cause a cave-in."
"Still nothing from the surface ?" he asked Comms, who shook her head.
"Lock phasers on the cave system you think our people are in, reduce to forty percent, and fire." Again the Excalibur fired on the surface, they waited, and waited, then the Tactical Officer confirmed that the cave system was collapsing. He told the Transporter Chief to be ready, there wouldn't be much time once they were forced into the open, he just hoped they would be able to snatch them away before anyone managed to fire on them !
Almost a minute went by with nothing, the cave had begun collapsing almost a kilometer beyond the entrance, but it was cascading now as section after section came under so much pressure it simply gave way, then the Comm chirped to life:
=^= Medical emergency Transporter Room .. I have them Captain .. Injured but alive =^=
Daniel jumped out of his chair and headed off the Bridge ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Mar 8, 2018 23:00:42 GMT
Psonoir materialised on the pad feeling momentary shock, a residual effect from the moment of dissolution of his neural synapses when a laser beam had struck his chest and neck, the tip of the bolt grazing and damaging his skin, causing a wound to fester and boil before he dematerialised. The remaining energy of the bolt had passed through and scored the rock-face.
Recuperating in sickbay, Psonoir peered over to view the biobed next to him, expecting somehow to see Unwin's missing finger lying on the mag-suspension gurney beside the bed. He remembered the Lieutenant Commander's bark as the concussive impact behind them had propelled Unwin and T'Seng into the wall, the former's hand crumpling against the surface while T'Seng had become jammed between two outjutting segments of limestone. The rescue had been completed, except for that one finger.
Unwin's respiration was noticeably more steady, the rise and fall of his chest having become gradually hypnotic from its previous state. As Karka reflected, Unwin had also suffered a collapsed lung.
He took a moment to contemplate the events of the last few days, weeks... He dived through the highly-organised labyrinth of his partitioned mind-space, taking one of the two main courses that would lead him unerringly through the numerous interfaces and out the other side; to take one of the side paths and lesser used directions may cause him to become lost in the maze.
He remembered Syphax's recent death in the sun, though he'd not witnessed it, instead being present at the killing of Albert Crossfield, Syphax's long-time ally yet recent enemy. It seemed a long time since they'd first received news of Ryat's abduction and the possibility of Eyrie Syphax being her kidnappers' destination, albeit several centuries hence, or at least that was the case for the missing shuttle.
The faces of the various Commissioners - some of whom had also been part of the Council of the Six, Syphax's new executive body to replace the old order still infested with loyalist elements, some of them recently arrived from the Federation core - flashed past his mind's eye like holograph snaps wheeling out of infinity, peeling away to the side into the null-space which filled most of the edifice.
He projected his neural representative forward in time several hours, then days, searching for and yet in a manner incidentally stumbling upon the biographies of Syphax and Alek White's lieutenants Zuur and the younger Ms Rushworth, as they'd interacted with the Excalibur and the ill-fated Belfast. And then in the manner of a seismic shift, elements and blocks of data becoming dislocated, causing a tremor as they shunted about and opened up new possibilities, he experienced an overwhelming sense of deja vu, in combination with Zuur's visage revisiting itself upon him. He recognised the phenomenon and tried to back away, but it was too late, Zuur had found him. He'd been there all along, lying in wait just beyond the null marker at the dawn of the 29th century, awaiting the moment when Karka's mind would use its mental conduits to search forward again.
It seemed at some point in Zuur's own future, he would find a way back to resume his place in the ranks of those raiders who'd been plaguing Karka's homeworld, the knowledge of that affiliation being given to Psonoir now that he bore witness to the minotaur at the centre of his mind's labyrinth. Zuur's presence there extended beyond a mere memory, because for a Hybrudean an inward search was an outward search, a descent an ascent, the way up the way down.
"Zuur has, or rather will escape," he told the doctor, who didn't seem to understand him. "Perhaps three, six months from now. There's nothing we can do, it's inescapable." He was forced to lie down again but wouldn't do so. They'd lost everything in this system, the planet and the Belfast that'd arrived; it was the time to begin retrieving it all, as far as it could be managed, yet a new group would take the assignment, and efforts would start at base and not amidst the present desolation.
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Apr 3, 2018 11:29:31 GMT
Two Weeks Later :: Negotiations with the 'owners' of the newly named Provenance, had made their feelings and intentions perfectly clear, they and only they would be allowed to continue the terraforming process through to it's completion. Any and all interference from Starfleet, or indeed the Federation, would be met with all the force they could muster ! Daniel had been in constant contact with Command throughout but could offer no reassurances that the occupants of the planet would be left to their own devices indefinitely. This information had been met with further threats and counter-proposals until he had finally reached the point where he felt the Excalibur's further presence was all but a complete waste of his time ... As for those who had fled, he was at a loss. There were compulsive arguments for pursuing them, but there was also the contention that leaving well alone, regrouping to face the possible return of those who had instigated the unrest for their own devices, was more plausible ... Starfleet Command, in their 'wisdom' had left the decision to him, something for once he didn't appreciate. "I'm open to suggestions." Daniel said to the meeting. "It's clear that we, or rather the Federation Council, have completely washed their hands of the planet." Koni said when no-one else spoke. "I have the feeling they will wait until the terraforming is completed then change their minds." Unwin offered, "Let's face it, this planet has a wealth of mineral, chemical, and possibly biological resources that the Federation are not going to allow to go begging." "We have no way of knowing what we'll find once the terraforming is complete." Karka commented. "Future development aside ....." Daniel said, getting up and walking to the panoramic window through which Provenance sedately rotated below, "Our basic options are, stay, or go home, or go after Zuur ... The Council have dispatched representatives to begin negotiations, personally, I say leave them to it ... Contact the surface, inform them that unless they have any need for our continued presence we will be leaving orbit in one hour. Thank you all." he sat back down the exhaustion obvious .......... < Tag : Karka - Final comments ? >
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Apr 8, 2018 20:40:40 GMT
"Since the dampening field lifted a few hours ago we've received three communiques from Command requesting an update on our situation. We've sent them the short formal response each time, adding small amounts of information as more has become apparent.
"The second comm asked regarding the Belfast and stated that long-range observatories had detected spectra of unusual metal composition, indicating the presence of foreign elements heavier than iron new to the star's make up in the last several hours, which would be the Belfast, of course," Karka concluded.
The people around the table nodded, some chafing at the loss of the vessel, subdued, and others not daring to show what amusement they might feel at Karka's obfuscation and long-winded explanation of the change in the star's composition prior to his 'disclosure' that the Belfast had been destroyed.
"The loss of the crew who were loyal is regrettable," someone agreed, "As is the loss of those who turned traitor." Remorse and a sensation of having been robbed of something - even people who'd turned their minds away to do wrong - would hit them, and moreso the families and friends of those people, eventually.
"The remnants, fragments of the second Klingon ship are to be taken by the USS Starover which is coming over from Starbase 782. Any Klingons still alive in one way or another, wherever they may be if they're willing to give themselves up - they won't find much welcome with the victors on the surface, I'd imagine, whoever has triumphed - will be repatriated in time to Qo'nos."
Karka interjected, "I find myself sympathising with Syphax. He discovered this planet's potential for terraforming along with the other original researchers near the start of this century. It's been his project all along, no matter what's happened to him. He was nearly killed by the Klingon who then became his host, and was driven mad as a result of the neural incompatibility between Trill and Klingon, things he could never have planned for. As James T Kirk said of Gary Mitchell, after..."
The people round the table looked at him expectantly, some with brows beginning to crease, others nonplussed but otherwise impassive. "James Kirk? You mean that surviving officer on the old Farragut from when it encountered the dikironium cloud?"
"Ah... never mind," Psonoir finished. He'd remembered almost too late that things had not reached that point in this century yet. He concluded to himself, it was as Kirk said of Mitchell after an attempt to break the Galactic Barrier had ended in tragedy, 'he didn't ask for it.'
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Apr 22, 2018 10:27:28 GMT
During the meeting, Lieutenant Gold entered the ready room, handing Schirra a PADD, informing him it was instructions from Earth before leaving. Daniel read the contents while everyone continued speaking, finally he put the PADD on the table and interjected: "Well, it appears our deliberations as to our next actions have been taken out of our hands ...." he pushed the PADD over to Psonoir then continued, "It appears command has sent a vessel to 'hopefully' intercept the Belfast, failing that they will attempt to negotiate it's return." "Like the Klingon's are going to allow that without taking it to pieces first." Koni T'Seng commented. "It makes no difference in the scheme of things. The Federation cannot allow a new Constitution Class fall into the hands of the Klingon Empire .... They have the unenviable task of assuring that doesn't happen. They will remotely activate the self-destruct should all other options fail." Schirra said, glancing at Karka who seemed to be nodding knowingly. "So where next for us Captain ?" Unwin asked. "Back to Earth .... It seems there are a couple of upgrades we can take advantage of, that should keep you busy Mark." Karka said with a wry grin. "No doubt." the Chief Engineer said. "OK ...." Daniel said, tapping the Comm link set into the table before him: =^= Schirra to Helm =^= =^= Lieutenant Reneus Captain =^= =^= Set course for Earth Lieutenant .. Warp Five .. .. =^= =^= Course laid-in Sir =^= =^= Then lets go =^= Daniel said, watching as the ship made a lazy turn to her new heading before leaping into the nether-realm of warp speed .......... ~ USS Excalibur ~
~ Mission concluded ~
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