Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Sept 28, 2015 7:36:25 GMT
It is possible I have pushed my luck a little too far, played my part a little too well, Karka thought as he rubbed at his jaw, sitting up and swinging his legs off the bunk as Davis informed the Commander that Vance had awoken. That had hurt; he was not used to unaugmented human bodies... physically, like just now, and mentally: The complex interaction required to convincingly portray Vance while also hint that perhaps something had changed in the man/coward was proving difficult to execute... Certainly a knock-out blow to the face was an indication he wasn't doing so well in treading that thin line.
Under Adams' watchful eye, he was led into the main compartment of the shuttle. It was unnerving to look into the eyes of the man who'd tried to save his life and failed.
Of course, it had been wise to destroy the Excalibur. Having that many Whal in the same place, while morally dubious, was too good an opportunity to pass up... Unfortunately, as Commander Schirra's question had alluded to, it would likely multiply their problems rather than reduce them.
"I understand that Adams," he shrugged off the security officer's hand that was preventing him from sitting near the front again as he had done previously - while still operating very much in the mindset of his true identity, "Was poisoned, or tagged with a Whal pheromone while on the Excalibur...?"
Schirra answered in the affirmative; Karka turned to Sulla of the Tycho, who was lying down with her feet up across three of the passenger chairs, clearly enjoying the space and cleanliness of the shuttle - it seemed from Karka's limited experience of her thus far that she was in a permanent state of exhaustion, having spent years running from the Whal and raiding stricken vessels for supplies.
"What range do the pheromones broadcast to, or rather from what distance can other Whal detect them?" he asked her.
She shrugged, "It depends... The pheromone agent - unique to each transplantation - tends to spread from Whal to Whal by one Whal's initial detection of the source, while simultaneously transforming its own anatomy to become a producer of that pheromone and thus spread it to other Whal. It's like a contagion though with positive effects, and each Whal's detection of the pheromone will eventually lead them all inexorably to the source of where the initial pheromone marker was transplanted..." she pointed, "In your man Adams there. That is, providing there are enough Whal in the region to pick up the scent before it eventually decays, after a couple of lightyears, at our nearest guess."
"Scan the region," Karka said promptly.
Schirra and Robertson turned as one, giving him looks of fury before facing forward again, Schirra curtly confirming Karka/Vance's order to Robertson. The pilot/engineer squinted at his console, "Reading... approximately five thousand Whal lifesigns within a million kilometre radius... Exponentially more beyond except in one narrow tunnel..."
Karka looked back at Sulla; she shook her head, lowering her eyes. It hardly needed to be said: that many Whal to detect the irremovable pheromone marker in Adams' body wasn't good. Karka said, "Ok, my method of stunning the Whal, using short bursts of tau neutrinos directed at the most intense area of synaptic activity in each of them may be employed here. It will hold them off for a while, but only stuns individual Whal for a minute, approximately."
He added to Schirra, "I seriously doubt that was our - ... Rather, your Excalibur, sir." Karka hoped he'd calibrated that just right. "Everything seemed wrong. No sign that it had ever been occupied by a Starfleet crew. A mere fabrication of a ship... Along with that tunnel they've left open, perhaps something to trick us further into this other universe?" he looked at the Commander, hoping that perhaps he'd see something of the Excalibur engineer behind Vance's spineless posturing (to a degree that didn't reveal his identity of course).
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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 Sept 30, 2015 20:11:45 GMT
Dan glanced at the stricken Adams while Vance spoke ... They needed to remove Adams, or rather, the 'tag' from the equation somehow, and short of killing the Security Officer, he couldn't come up with an alternative solution at this moment in time. So, it was a given that hundreds, possibly thousands of the Whal were detecting or soon would detect the 'tag' ....
"Lieutenant Robertson, come about. Heading ....." he hesitated, suddenly realizing their frame of navigation was not compatible to their surroundings, "Lock our current location and attitude into the computer, then come around eighty degrees, five degree declination. Let's see if we can put some safe distance between us and that tunnel out there. Remain at full impulse for thirty minutes. We'll scan the area once more then. If we're clear jump to warp for zero point five of a second then we'll coast, repeat this each time we're about to return to sub-light, got that ?"
"Aye Sir, skipping stone." Robertson said. Davis was looking down at his friend and suddenly had a thought:
"Just 'how' does the pheromone marker work, do we know ?"
"You have an idea Lieutenant, feel free to share." Vance said, the sarcasm obvious. Davis glanced at Adams once again before looking at Schirra:
"Commander, we have the stasis cell. It's small, it would only normally be used to transport contagious bio-materials, but it could hold the pheromone in check, maybe ?" he said, already doubting his own suggestion, "We could rig up a harness, re-calibrate to monitor life-signs ...."
"It would kill him." Vance said instantly, "Better to throw hi ......." he didn't finish the comment as he noticed Schirra looking at him, face expressionless but dark.
"What about a force field ?" Davis offered.
"Wouldn't work." Sulla answered, shaking her head as she wiped sweat from the injured lieutenant's brow, "Though stasis could help stem the infection spread, and 'could' possibly give us more chance to escape detection, it should at least minimize the pheromone output if not contain it completely." Dan looked at Adams, who was in no condition now to reply as the poison sapped every iota of energy from the young man. Cryostasis wasn't new, it had been around for hundreds of years, but preserving a Human life took specialized equipment, not some modernized bio-sample petri dish. While in stasis, Adams wouldn't stop living, but wouldn't be completely frozen in time either. His metabolism and even motor-neuron functions within the brain would slow incredibly but the neurons within the brain would still discharge though at a massively reduced rate ... He made his decision:
"OK ... Let's get ready. I want the stasis cell monitored. We'll need to place him in the foetal position or we'll not get him in there. We will review his situation every hour, if there is no discernible change and the Whal are still coming after us, we'll pull him out of there, Otherwise I think keeping him in stasis until the phera ......" he stopped, it suddenly occurred to him that he was placing Adams in a no-win situation, outside the chamber the pheromone would decay like any other pathogen, but in stasis, it too would be slowed comparable to Adams own life cycle, "DAMN !" he said, slamming a fist into the nearest console. He turned and apologized for his actions.
"If we put him in there, and ensure he's safe, we can revive him once we're back in our own Universe." Sulla said, the tiniest hint of desperation in her voice, ".... And .... If we do find your Excalibur Commander we can transfer him to your Medical Bay where he'll stand a much better chance of ... Much better chance." she amended her last comment quickly. Dan knew he had little option but to try. They placed Adams in the cell and sealed it. Fifteen minutes later one console had been re-calibrated and now it's sole task was to monitor the life within the cell. That done, it was activated ......
Five hours later ::
The stasis cell, now containing the curled up form of Lieutenant Adams was silently preserving the man within. There had been no signs that the Whal had further detected the small craft ... Dan ordered a course change to begin bringing them back towards the main bulk of Star Ships and other craft. They had shut down all non-essential systems, reducing their prospective 'footprint' to a minimum. They needed to find their Excalibur and get the hell out of this situation.
Quickly ! ..........
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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 Oct 1, 2015 22:27:22 GMT
As the Telemachus returned to the mass of ships, some dead, some derelict, some with hints of hidden life, people trying their hardest to survive in the face of insurmountable odds, Daniel glanced back toward the cryo-cell containing Lieutenant Adams. He once again wondered if he had made the right decision, but the uncertainty disappeared in the face of what they needed to do.
"Bring the sensors on-line, make a passive scan ahead ...." he ordered.
"Other than the derelicts, there's nothing moving." Robertson confirmed, "I'm scanning the nearest Federation Vessel Commander, it's the USS Collingwood ... Miranda Class ... It was transporting colonists when it vanished."
"Any signs of life ?"
"No Sir." Robertson confirmed, Dan turned to face Ensign Sulla:
"You've been here longer than any of us Ensign. Any thoughts on why the Whal are taking people off their vessels ?"
"No .... Though last year, I think, we boarded a ship for supplies, we were out of luck as it had already been ransacked, but whoever had done it had been caught in the act, so to speak." the young woman said, hesitating as she recalled the scene on the ship before continuing, "We found one left alive, though 'alive' was a relative term, given his condition .... He was delirious, almost insane, but we managed to calm him and once coherent he managed to tell us something of what had happened to the others." she put her head down, not wanting to continue, but Vance sniggered, telling her to continue her 'ghost story'
"He, he said they came aboard, killing the first ones they came across, and suffering some casualties themselves in the process, but eventually they overpowered them. They herded the remaining living into one of the cargo bays and stripped them, then, then ..... One of the 'Whal' as you call them, approached one of the others and, joined wi ..." she broke down, unable to continue, but Dan needed to hear the rest, it could mean their own survival to have the information before they encountered the Whal themselves.
"Tamarika." he said quietly, not wanting his words to sound in any way official, "Please try to tell us what happened. It could help us all." she finally nodded, then wiped her eyes before continuing:
"They joined with the captors, physically I mean, or at least that's what we were led to believe from the survivor. It was, he said, like their hands 'molded' around each of the captors heads and something was passed between them. After a few moment the pairings separated and the Whal waited. The captors, initially relieved to be free, huddled together against the far bulkhead, but then one by one they stepped forward, blood running from the corner of their eyes. They stood before the Whal almost bowing to them it seemed, then they simply followed the Whal from the ship."
"Wait a minute." Davis said when she had stopped speaking, "You said this man survived, did he not get 'molded' or whatever it was ?"
"No, for some reason they attempted to join with him but the Whal recoiled, vomiting some foul-smelling thing onto the deck before throwing the man across the cargo bay leaving him for dead ... He explained that he had contracted some genetic abnormality when a child and he thought this was the thing that upset the Whal, and before you ask he died before he could tell us anything more !"
The others sat in silence as Sulla finished her narrative.
"What are they doing ?" Davis asked.
"Recruiting." Robertson answered ominously, "It stands to reason, they coax vessels into the funnel, and ultimately into this realm. Once here they feed on those not suitable for joining, and change or adopting some form of metamorphism to adapt those that are into some sort of pseudo-Whal. Foot-soldiers maybe."
"For 'WHAT' purpose may I ask ?" Vance asked raising his eyebrows, glancing for a fraction of a second at Daniel before returning his gaze to Lieutenant Davis, hoping his friend would hear the inflection in his voice and allow it to remind him of Psonoir.
"How the hell would I know ... You're supposed to be the bloody Scientist after all !" Davis spat, "I was simply speculating as to 'why' they would need to take countless people while only leaving a scattered few to rot. But 'HEY !' do feel free to come up with an alternate explanation Vance."
"OK that's enough, the last thing we need is in-fighting." Schirra said.
"Sir, I've been scanning the Collingwood, it's still got internal power, life support seems to be working too."
"Well let's go take a look, maybe we can use her rather than the shuttle." Dan said turning to the Pilot, "Lieutenant, take us close, let's see if they left a door open." ..........
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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 Oct 2, 2015 14:24:04 GMT
"How the hell would I know ... You're supposed to be the bloody Scientist after all !" Davis spat, "I was simply speculating as to 'why' they would need to take countless people while only leaving a scattered few to rot. But 'HEY !' do feel free to come up with an alternate explanation Vance."
"Ifs, buts and maybes... There's nothing I can explain until we get some hard evidence, Lieutenant. Why the Whal are attacking random ships and dragging them into their space, I don't know. Why they occasionally annihilate vessels lying inside the funnel to their realm, I don't know. I could speculate all day and get nowhere!" Karka finished, pleased with his performance.
"OK that's enough, the last thing we need is in-fighting." Schirra said.
He built up an expression of outrage and incredulity and turned towards Daniel, "You knocked me UNCONS - !"
""Sir, I've been scanning the Collingwood, it's still got internal power, life support seems to be working too."
"Well let's go take a look, maybe we can use her rather than the shuttle." Dan said turning to the Pilot, "Lieutenant, take us close, let's see if they left a door open."
The shuttle Telemachus lined up alongside the Collingwood, correcting its rotation and velocity so that it matched with the Collingwood's reference frame... Out one of the windows they could see that the starboard airlock to the saucer had been partially blasted away - nothing remained of the outer door, the docking mechanisms were tangled masses of distorted metal that continued to exfoliate and send small duranium fragments spinning off into space to hang suspended beside the ship.
"Transporters on the Collingwood are non-functional," Davis reported, "Both airlocks have been destroyed, sir. The inner doors are intact; there's still air within the vessel."
"I suggest we approach as close as possible; EVA to the inner door - it should only be a gap of approximately three metres, then attempt to manually release the inner door," Karka said, then frowned, "The problem will be keeping the inner door open for short enough a time while we climb aboard and not let too much of the air inside from being blown out into the vacuum."
Somewhat reluctantly, the plan was agreed to, and soon all the shuttle's occupants were geared up for EVA to the Collingwood's blown airlock. The step was indeed tiny; they need only push off and would be next to the inner door; Karka went first, surprising the others with Vance's bravery, and signalled to the others that one more could fit on the ledge. Robertson joined him. "We've got to stop meeting like this, Lieutenant." Karka/Vance chuckled.
"Vance... Shut it. And keep it shut while I try to open this door..."
The period in which air ventilated into the vacuum through the open door was not more than thirty seconds, but the difference once they were all inside and had removed their helmets, panting for breath from the adrenaline and mad rush to get through the open inner door, was quite noticeable. The computer sounded out a warning of low oxygen levels. The core, which was apparently still active but in reserve mode kicked into life, supplying the EPS conduits with enough plasma to recharge the deuterium tanks' electrics from which oxygen could be extracted and vented into the habitable spaces. Soon they were breathing somewhat normally again.
They began their trek into the vessel, the only two crew left on the Telemachus being Ensign Harty, the officer Karka had found on the Tycho's raider craft, and of course Lieutenant Adams in his stasis; the virulence of the pheromone tag and its infection in his body now slowed immensely but his immune system equally decelerated in its ability to fight off the poison. Passing through the corridors, they found at irregular intervals mangled remains of crewmembers and other such horrors... Whal, apparently when they died, shrivelled into a foot long mass of darkened decomposing matter, with what seemed to Karka/Vance a type of spiked carapace covering their skin...
Once they reached the Collingwood's bridge they set about trying to reactivate consoles, seeing if the ship would accept command overrides courtesy of Commander Schirra's intelligence access codes. A few consoles began lighting up, and Karka took the science station, with its trademark viewing scope, used by a fair few famous Starfleet officers over the years.
"The ship's relatively unscathed," Robertson reported from Karka's usual berth at the engineering station, "It seems the Whal were after the crew alone; they seemed to have cared less about the vessel."
Sulla, stood next to the command chair, looked across at him, "I told you that." There was a stubbornness in her that Karka admired. Then he saw her shudder, and knew she must be recalling memories of her last time on this vessel. As they managed to activate the main viewer, they saw an object moving off quickly on their starboard side, in the direction the Collingwood was facing.
"Magnification," Schirra ordered, taken by surprise as much as everybody. They gasped; it was the Telemachus, rotating end over end. "Report! What's happened to it?"
"Not with any certainty, sir, but it seems something hit it from behind, severed the jury-rigged link we made between it and the Collingwood to keep our headings steady," Davis said, "It could've been an asteroid, debris..."
"Or a weapon?" Karka asked. He looked into the scope at the science console, using the reactivating sensors of the vessel to scan the Telemachus. "Reading both Adams and Harty's lifesigns; I'd say from the reduced level of brain activity in Harty that the blow from behind rendered him unconscious. Also, reading on long range sensors... A Whal vessel, accompanied by three other ships of similar configuration, smaller, likely escort craft, and... another Federation vessel behind them, disabled. Commander Schirra, or... Dan," Karka/Vance emphasised, "If you'd like our relations to become more cordial from now on, I suggest we get after that shuttle, before it runs into the Whal."
<Tag Schirra>
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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 Oct 3, 2015 1:24:52 GMT
" ..... Also, reading on long range sensors ... A Whal vessel, accompanied by three other ships of similar configuration, smaller, likely escort craft, and ... another Federation vessel behind them, disabled. Commander Schirra, or... Dan," Karka/Vance emphasized, "If you'd like our relations to become more cordial from now on, I suggest we get after that shuttle, before it runs into the Whal." Vance said. Dan looked at the Scientist for a long moment then replied;
"Is there any way to know if the Whal vessels have seen us ?"
"Impossible to say Sir." Davis said, double checking, "But they 'are' closing. They will pass ahead of us if we remain on this heading. It's possible they didn't fire on the Telemachus, they're hardly rushing to see how they did. I'm guessing it was just dumb luck that the shuttle got hit by something. I do agree with Lieutenant Vance though Sir, we should get to the shuttle before they do. We have weapons and shields now, but I can't guarantee how long for."
"Use maneuvering thrusters, match the shuttles' speed and heading, then shut everything down that you can but don't leave us completely blind, reduce life support to minimal, we should have enough air to keep us going until the Whal vessels are out of range." Schirra ordered.
"What about our men on the shuttle ?" Vance asked.
"I'm hoping that if they bother to scan the Telemachus they won't feel the need to investigate." Dan said, nodding to Davis to do as ordered.
~~~~~
The Collingwood, hopefully appearing as lifeless hulk tumbling end over end, as the Whal vessels began to pass well ahead of them .....
"They're scanning us, they have to be." Davis whispered, feeling the strap holding him in his seat tense as the inertia tried to push him away, "They should be past by now, and with luck well on their way." Dan agreed, visualizing the four craft passing across their heading, he was about to comment when they all heard the sound !
"That was one of the escape hatch cycling." Robertson whispered, spinning to face the rear of the Bridge, the others following suit ... The escape hatch was only meters from the rear Bridge access, if the Whal had come aboard there they would step onto the Command Center and right into the Star Fleet Officers. Dan quickly pointed left and right, everyone knew to get as much cover as they could, impossible on the Bridge of a Star Ship, but they at least needed that moment of surprise to hopefully jump the Whal as they entered, otherwise their fate was sealed ......
As the hatch slid aside the first Whal stepped onto the Bridge. They had no reason to think there was anyone aboard as they had harvested this ship previously, so maybe they were simply exploring, but their reasons for being here were moot as Robertson moved. He ran across the mouth of the doorway grasping the shocked Whal as he did so. Rolling in and utilizing a Judo Harai Makikomi or sweeping wraparound throw, slamming his opponent into the deck and choking him into unconsciousness in seconds. As the second Whal, now alerted to their presence, stepped quickly onto the Bridge he was jumped on by Davis and Schirra. Robertson, now back on his feet was eyeing the hatch ready for round two, but no more Whal entered.
They quickly bound and gagged their prizes and Dan told Davis to bring sensors on-line. He needed to know where those other ships were and if they were likely waiting on their companions.
"They are well off to out Port Commander, still four in formation. These two must have come over on their version of a shuttle. The Federation Vessel is drifting off Starboard at the outer edge of our sensors, still unable to get any identification but judging by the size it's a Star Ship."
"What about the Telemachus ?" Vance asked, including himself for the first time since the Whal boarded.
"Still there." Davis answered curtly.
"Is there any way we could get transporters on-line to beam them off ?" Dan asked.
"Dan ... Commander, I have some Engineering knowledge, if I may, I could look at the transporter relays, it may be a quick-fix. Though it could be possible to get them into the cargo bay, with a little imaginative helmsmanship."
"Oh, you're a qualified 'PILOT' too now I suppose ?" Robertson asked with a glance at Schirra.
"I was referring to you actu ...." Vance began to say but Davis cut him off.
"Our guests are awake."
"Lieutenant Robertson, see what this 'idea' Mister Vance has regarding our crew, Lieutenant Davis, lets get these two off the Bridge and better restrained, I'd also like a look at whatever craft they dropped in on us with." .....
Securing the two Whal in separate rooms Schirra and Davis returned to the Bridge ... As much as he wanted to 'coax' information out of the two marauding aliens, he needed to ensure the safety of the two Officers still stranded on the Telemachus. It seemed that Vance and Robertson had reached an agreement regarding the shuttle, though Lieutenant Davis seemed less than convinced of the plan than Vance did.
"You 'DO' realise that we could crush the Telemachus if we get this even slightly wrong !"
"What's the plan ?" Schirra asked.
"With due respect Commander ...." Robertson began, "Mister Vance seems to think that, with his guidance, I should be able to increase our rate of rotation fractionally, thereby reducing the distance between us. If, and I do mean a 'BIG' if, we can coordinate our rotation to coincide with the approach of the shuttle, we should 'catch' it in the mid or upper shuttle bay, no problem." he finished, throwing his hands in the air as if he'd been asked to catch a falling star between his fingertips.
"As skeptical as I am ...." Davis said casually, "If we say no to this idea, do we have anything else on the table that won't alert the Whal out there to our presence ?" he shrugged. Dan looked at the two Officers debating.
"Well ?" he asked, eyebrows raised.
"Bleeding Scientist's." Robertson muttered as he sat at the Navigation Console ..........
< tag : Vance >
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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 Oct 6, 2015 16:12:39 GMT
Karka looked across from the science station where he was running last minute checks before the attempt at an unlikely rendezvous with the Telemachus. In theory and in ideal conditions it would work, the Collingwood would collect the Telemachus as both vessels spun through their axes of rotation. Computer simulations indicated that only a 14 arcsecond reduction in their rate of angular velocity was needed to encounter the shuttle, though there were numerous factors which could cause the manoeuvre to fail: if the shuttlebay doors didn't close fast enough, the shuttle if it made it in at all would tumble back out into space, seeing as the Miranda class was gaining on it; their thruster firing might be detected by the Whal vessels if their sensors were sensitive enough to read such minimal rotational adjustments, and the impact of the spinning Telemachus with the interior of the Collingwood's shuttlebay could at worst pulp the two officers aboard.
Robertson had his hands poised over the helm ready to fire the thrusters, "Ready, Commander."
Karka was likewise ready. He did wonder though that if the two Whal they'd secured in the mess hall were here on a reconnaissance mission, would their commanders have expected a report from them by now? In spite of this audacious manoeuvre that required little to negligible power usage, would the Whal be coming after their missing crewmen anyway?
The Collingwood adjusted its rate of spin and set itself on a collision course with the shuttle. The Miranda class, second of the two Federation starships the Joyeuse's crew and its two mission advisors had boarded since arriving in this vast 3km ship, or interdimensional wormhole without an end; more akin to a sinkhole, Karka thought, seeing as there was no exit and no singularity either that would indicate something more like a black hole, places where spacetime was effectively ripped open. Instead they had a singularity of spatial dimensions of infinite length. Was it possible that entering another universe was in fact entering a quantum singularity, that this was the nature of singularities? It had some similarity with the theory posited that black holes scattered throughout the universe were portals to other dimensions.
"1 km and closing," he reported, glaring into the blue light of his science station's viewing apparatus. "We're on target. Well within margin for error. I'd say it was too soon to say congratulations, Lieutenant Robertson, but... it seems I just have."
"Yes, thank you, Vance..." Robertson - who didn't actually have to do anything except wait and see if any last minute adjustments were required - sat tensed at the helm, watching the viewscreen and the approaching Telemachus, its internal lights flickering - damage from its impact - and dipping its nose, flipping over in the vacuum - while the Collingwood was raising its nose, spinning in the opposite direction to the vessel it hoped to scoop into the shuttlebay.
"50 metres..." Shortly after a scraping was heard from below and aft, the shuttle sliding along the edge of the bay entrance. Checking the sensors Karka/Vance realised the shuttle's nacelle had struck the lip of the bay. Before he had a chance to pass the information on to Robertson a shunt that pitched them forwards slightly was felt throughout the chassis.
"We've got them. Closing bay doors," Robertson leant over the helm.
"Mr Psonoir, excellent to have found you again. If you only knew the troubles I've been through to reach you... Let me give you forewarning, Ancient Rome is not a great place to be on the day of Caesar's assassination. Now, it seems the human body you've inhabited has somewhat dulled your observational skills... If you were to direct your sensor array at the supposedly inactive Federation starship, I think you'll see what I mean. See you yesterday. Your dearest friend, Lirwa."
He clenched his fists. This was not the time, though he hated to be showed up by his tenuous friend, especially when he was effectively in another universe. The starship, its classification still indiscernible - it was one of Constitution, Federation or refitted NX class (out of service by the early 23rd century) - was now inexplicably showing an engine signature and several dozen lifesigns, all humanoid, all recognisable species that were members of the Federation, with one important difference: an anomaly in their biosignatures that matched with Whal DNA. A Federation starship crewed by automatons under Whal control. Not then, the true Excalibur as he had hoped.
Shortly after reporting this to Schirra, there came a familiar thrumming through the deck plates. Up til now they'd been running on absolute minimal auxiliary from the batteries alone, yet that had sounded like the activation of a warp core. "Sir, someone's accessed the master console in engineering. There's no other explanation, it must be our Whal intruders."
Tamarika Sulla at the back of the bridge slammed a fist against a console, "I secured them! I was sure of it, nothing could've broken through those bonds, I've captured Whal a dozen times."
<Tag Schirra>
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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 Oct 11, 2015 9:50:24 GMT
Dan sat in the Command seat of the Miranda Class Collingwood as it rotated end over end, every second it was getting closer to the Telemachus. The minutest miscalculation would see the shuttle crushed and the Collingwood damaged severely ... While an accomplished pilot in his own right, he knew when to leave procedures to those better qualified. It didn't prevent him gripping the arms of the seat as if the act would change the course of either vessel. "One kilometer." The Telemachus was out of sight for almost a full minute as the Collingwood rotated, then the seemingly tiny shuttle would appear at the bottom of the screen, move up and once more vanish from sight. "Fifty meters !" He knew that if this didn't work, both men would die instantly, then Robertson shouted: "WE'VE GOT THEM ! .... Closing bay doors ...." Everyone almost jumped as Roberton reduced the rotation of the Star Ship until it was orientated with what they hoped was the Galactic Zee, they were about to head to the shuttle-bay to retrieve their crewmen when an ominous thrum began to reverberate through the deck-plates. At the same time, the once derelict Federation vessel they had scanned previously was showing signs of life. But their immediate concern was what was happening on their own vessel ! "Sir. Someone has accessed the master console in engineering. There's no other explanation, it must be our Whal intruders." Sulla said, confusion and utter frustration on her face as she slammed a fist into the console before her, "I secured them I was sure of it ! ... Nothing could have broken through those bonds, I've captured Whal a dozen times Commander." Davis had been monitoring from the Helm: "Sir, we will be able to go to warp in two minutes if they don't blow us all to hell beforehand, the Whal are obviously attempting to 'cold start' the core." "Davis, Robertson, you're with me. Sulla, do whatever you can from up here to prevent this ship going to warp, take everything off-line if you have to, including life support. I don't want us moving a meter, understand." "Sir, I don't have autho ...." she began, but Dan was ahead of her: "Use authorization Schirra-Delta-Nine-Nine-Omicron !" he said, entering the turbo-lift and dropping to Main Engineering on level four. ~~~~~Standing with their backs against the bulkhead either side of the doors, Dan pointed left and right, Robertson and Davis nodded their understanding and the three stepped in front of the sensor that would activate and open the doors. Stepping inside they realized Engineering was in almost complete darkness, just the eerie glow of the partially re-started warp core throwing shadows. They quickly stepped inside and out of silhouette, then they arced their phasers to cover the large room. Suddenly, Davis was thrown across the room to land hard against one of the consoles, his attacker moving quickly out of sight despite Robertson firing in his direction, he escaped injury ... 'We need lights' Schirra mouthed silently, Robertson nodded and moved away, knowing neither dared to simply 'ask' the computer to raise the lighting level unless they wanted to paint a proverbial target on their location. Dan began to edge towards the matter/anti-matter control panel, hoping he could disable the system before he too was attacked. Suddenly the core fell silent, dead, Sulla and Vance had obviously been able to drop it off-line from the Bridge. There was a groan of frustration from the darkness as the Whal realized they may have failed in their task. A beam of light lanced past his head and he ducked down. The Whal were firing blindly into the darkness, and if they managed to be unlucky enough to hit something vital, no-one would be worrying how this encounter would end as there would be no-one or nothing left to worry about ! He crawled forward, managing to grasp the ankle of the fallen Security Officer. Pulling, he managed to drag the unconscious man behind the console. Checking for a pulse he breathed a sigh of relief as Davis opened his bloodshot eyes. Dan held a finger to his lips and Davis nodded, holding up a hand, thumb touching middle finger in the universal sign signifying he was 'OK' ... Across the room several beams of phaser-fire crisscrossed before they heard a 'thud' of someone hitting the deck unconscious. A weapon, rattled across the deck plates and the remaining Whal stepped into the open in front of Robertson. "Computer. Raise lighting to standard." he said, phaser aimed at the remaining Whal's head, "Commander, I have him. We're secure." Dan and a still shaky Davis stood up from their concealment, stepping into the open Davis went to the fallen Whal and pronounced him dead. Robertson checked the setting on his phaser and confirmed it was still set to 'Stun' not maximum. So even a stun setting killed the Whal, no wonder the second one surrendered the instant his companion was hit. Dan realized the information would come in useful if they were to encounter further Whal. He went to the wall and tapped the Comm: =^= Schirra to Bridge =^= =^= Vance .. .. =^= =^= We have recaptured one of the Whal .. .. The second didn't survive the firefight .. We will be taking him to the Brig .. Have Ensign Sulla meet us there =^= =^= Yes Commander .. But may I suggest I come .. As a Scientist I may have 'insight' into how to proceed ? =^= =^= Commander we are monitoring the other Federation vessel .. It has not yet moved position but power output is still rising =^= Sulla reported. =^= Keep an eye on it Ensign .. Schirra out =^= ..........
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Oct 11, 2015 14:40:02 GMT
Aly was in her office reading reports. Sensors were starting to come back online after a lot of work. It appeared that they were in a ship graveyard, or at least they were surrounded by wrecked vessels of different ages and designs. They were not in a star system. They were in a void between stars. It might have been slightly poetic if it hadn't been so frustrating. The sensors weren't yet working well enough to determine where they were. The comms array was working but there seemed to be no one within range to communicate with, or at least no one who was interested in talking.
The good news was that all those who had be injured when the Excal had ended up here had now been released from sick bay. The bad news was that time was passing and still they didn't know where they were or what had happened. The Science department had made lots of observations but analysis I me was limited. Aly knew she and her ship must have been declared missing by now. She wondered if anyone had been able to spare the time to look for them, Starfleet was stretched after all. She knew Dan and Karka would want to look, assuming they themselves were all right, but who wouldn't think to look for them here.
It would be simplest if the Excal could rescue herself. Aly continued to work on plans for just that occurrence.
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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 Oct 12, 2015 23:12:48 GMT
Pleased that he'd managed to persuade Schirra - or rather let him be persuaded by Sulla, who he nodded to on exiting the bridge - Karka made his way down to the brig level. In a way he'd have liked to remain to keep tabs on that other Federation starship which now had resolved itself as a Federation class dreadnought, approximately thirty years of age...
A check in the databanks confirmed that a Federation class vessel had disappeared roughly 25 years ago in this region of space; it also told him that this 3km 'ship' or tunnel to another universe perhaps - he was still debating that theory - rarely moved from this location. The USS Lafayette: presumed lost with all crew, now manned in this expanse or universe by officers made soldiers by Whal 'impregnation' methods, as he'd gathered from what Sulla had reported tearfully on the bridge earlier.
He arrived in the brig and immediately on entry felt the compulsion to bow down and clench at his gut. Voices came from the unconscious, assailing his mind; images, unfolding events like part of a tapestry of a man's life, pains and cries for the light... Vance's own voice, the inflections he put on it, the always complaining scientist bruised and now suppressed in Karka's consciousness. This couldn't be... he was losing control, or at least was being shown a semblance of the 'host's' ability to reassert itself in its own body.
He pushed Vance back down in his psyche, unused to this body's configuration - that of the non-augmented human - with its single cortex and spinal cord, as opposed to his engineered body that, while appearing wholly human from the outside and the most penetrating scans that Federation science and medicine could produce, had for its brain a series of mental partitions consisting of spacetime membranes of infinitesimal thickness, along which ran streams of data from the 29th century and other time-locations of vigilantes like himself - all sharing information, yet it was only accessible on one particular elevated plane.
"No," he intoned. Vance retreated from Karka back to the corner of his cell, whimpering in this place, the madness of his own unconscious. Karka passed the cell resolutely - he was the dominating entity within the Karka/Vance body - and viewed the others along this insane chamber of Vancian horrors. Inside each were segments of the scientist's memories, people, events, starships, discoveries, childhood, all manner of items and persons playing out a repetitive routine each a snapshot of his past, yet somehow becoming contorted as they tried to elevate themselves to the level of consciousness within Karka's new mind. He didn't care to look too closely; this man's memories, his successes, his failures, were not for him to analyse. It did cause him a flicker of amusement though just before exiting the man's subconscious - satisfied all of it was back in its place - that the last cell he'd encountered showed a repeating scene of one of the security guards, Adams or Davis it wasn't possible to tell, striking Vance unconscious on the shuttle Telemachus. Vance's body had taken two such beatings on this outing.
"Sir, I'd like to say again I apologise for my desertion on the other Excalibur," he addressed Schirra. "It did result in the rescue of another Tycho crewman though." The Commander, Davis and Robertson checked him over wondering likely if he was alright considering the brief pain in his stomach he'd visibly shown.
He studied the Whal in its cell; it was splayed out on the bench, semi-conscious, breathing shallowly and regarding him with half-opened eyes one of which he thought showed a measure of contempt, though he knew he shouldn't try to transplant human body language onto a mainly non-humanoid species.
After a minute or so of pacing back and forth, he spoke to Schirra, "You say it took only a stun setting to kill one of them? Hmm, that's a vast difference to what we witnessed on the false Excalibur... On full setting we could only just hold them back, before our phaser beams slowly started drilling through their bodies. It wasn't pleasant, but, it's possible... that the species has been genetically engineered to produce variants. Say for example if they are a warlike race, they'd have manipulated genetics to produce a soldier, a medic, an engineer, a commander variant, strategist et cetera... This one was trying to reinitate the core, it could be an engineer; the Whal decided that this variant required little in the way of protection."
"Alright, enough," Robertson stepped up, "How does any of this help us? You mentioned something about... 'insights'?"
Karka/Vance shrugged, "Was that not an insight? Ok, well, have we tried talking to it?"
Davis shook his head, "Sulla said every attempt the Tycho made at communicating with the Whal ended in failure. And face to face, they were too busy defending themselves - anything they might've been able to say the Whal weren't listening or weren't able to comprehend."
"This time we have one cornered though." Psonoir turned back to the cell and loomed as best he could in the Whal's field of vision, "Speak." The Whal sat there, chest rising and falling slowly, a wheeze almost in its throat. "I know you can understand me, speak."
It drew itself up slightly, still struggling for breath and its alien mandibles opening and closing in a strange rhythmic fashion. The translator worked its magic, "Your search is hopeless," it said, "All these vessels marooned here in our Extraverse, all are searchers, trying to find what they had lost and not knowing that the first few vessels attracted here had the same thought. Those unfortunate first few searched for nothing. Their minds had been wiped of sensibility when they received our subliminal code we have been transmitting omnidirectionally for thousands of years. Slowly, all of you are being drawn into the web."
Karka looked at the others; they indicated he go on, "Thank you," he said, thinking it best to go by the route of diplomacy, "That was informative. What do you mean by the term web? Why have you done this, what are your goals."
The Whal sat up, shaking all over its body pulsating in colours of yellow and green; it started coughing, a harsh hacking that they soon realised was laughter, "We have no goals for ourselves. Only to maintain our Extraverse, or our realm as I've heard your species quaintly put it, for the coming of the Lletia." 'Masters' the universal translator promptly translated the word. "The more raw material we draw in, searching for their lost paradise, the more the Masters will reward us, perhaps a place, they promise, alongside them as rulers of the Extraverse, and your own 'realm' to come..." It hacked its laugh again and slumped back to the bench, exhausted.
"Do you know of the location of the USS Excalibur. Our universe's USS Excalibur," Karka/Vance asked.
"One more searcher amongst millions? A mechanic such as I isn't privy to such information. And seeing as you will likely kill me now, I may as well tell you that the searcher ship, the nearby USS Lafayette has Whal-Riritika-Mehhn aboard that will be able to give you that information." It shrugged, "What's the value of my life now? Something to help the searchers in their blind directionlessness, not knowing who's friend or foe as they flounder helplessly in the door to the Extraverse." It cough-laughed a final time before falling unconscious.
Karka turned to Schirra and the others. "I suggest, Commander, we make our way to the bridge." They concurred. "It would seem," he said as they darted along corridors, "That the Whal have us boxed in from both sides... The Whal mothership and its three escorts on one side, intentions unknown, though they'll surely be missing their two engineers now; on the other the USS Lafayette crewed by officers under Whal control. And it's the Lafayette we need."
<Tag Schirra, Ryat>
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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 Oct 15, 2015 20:41:46 GMT
Listening to the conversation, Dan had the distinct feeling that the Whal wasn't telling them everything, or rather, by some perverse twist of logic, 'was' telling them what he thought they wanted to hear. Either way, he was loosing patience. He spun on the Whal, making him, it, step away from the confinement field in surprise ...
"How many of you are on the Lafayette !" he asked, every word oozing in menace, "We know the ship can be operated by minimal personnel, so how many of you are over there ?"
"Of what use would that information be to you ..... Human ?" their prisoner asked.
"Let's say I am curious." Schirra said, wondering if he was ever going to get anything useful, "Have you infested the Excalibur like the Lafayette, or is our ship still out there searching for a means of escape too."
"We have little use for the names, or the form of the chalice we choose for our coming of the Lletia. We only require the flesh within." Dan turned his back on the prisoner and whispered to Vance.
"Is there 'any' possibility that we could scan the Lafayette without it being detected ?" he asked, but Vance shrugged in resignation, saying it would be almost impossible given 'who' were aboard the aged Federation vessel. Dan looked at the man, annoyance and frustration welling within him once again. Their task was gravitating towards being impossible every second they wasted, but their chances against a combined attack from the five vessels currently in their quadrant would only have one outcome ... For the first time, he was forced to consider the possibility that they would not find the Excalibur, and if they did, would be trapped at the mercy of the Whal's Masters once they were able to return. Then something occurred to him and again he faced the Whal:
"You said your Masters required the 'flesh' of those occupying the vessels you coax into this realm, am I right ?" the Whal simply made the smallest nod by way of reply, "Given your obvious technological superiority over those you trapped here, I assume you would be aware of the results of a Matter Anti-matter detonation ?" the Whal merely sat, expressionless for a second then replied.
"One vessel exploding would cause us small concern Human, do not try to threaten us, the Whal-Riritika-Mehhn have suffered much worse in the millennium's prior to our discovering the por ......" he suddenly stopped speaking, and Dan knew that in his arrogance, he had said more than he had wanted to, and Schirra wasn't about to let him recover his composure:
"So 'YOU' didn't in fact design and build the, what were you about to call it, a 'portal' ? ....... That piece of information is very interesting indeed." Dan said, turning away and leaning close to Vance as if in conference, then he turned back to the prisoner, "Tell me, Whal ... When was the last time any of your race were visited by the Masters, what did you call them, the Lletia ... I'm betting that no-one in your lifetime has had the pleasure, right ?"
"PROFANATION !" the Whal screamed, throwing itself against the confinement field and dropping to the floor semi-conscious, but Dan wasn't finished:
"I'm betting that what you pass for religion, was faltering, so those in fear of loosing their hold over your race decided to act. Fortune dropped the technology into their lap to drag vessels from a parallel Universe. Maybe you wasn't planning on using it that way at first, but hey, gift horse and all that ... They 'chose' to hold over everyone the 'ONE' thing no-one could question. 'The Masters' ......"
"I would kill you myself should you allow me beyond this feeble barrier !" the Whal spat, getting to his feet but remaining centimeters from the 'field.
"Well alas, you won't be getting the opportunity." Dan said turning his back on the prisoner, "Clear the room then open it to vacuum." he ordered.
"The Lletia will return, and everyone in the myriad of the Extraverse will bow to their Masters .... You think I perish once out in the darkness, no, I will join the Masters and serve at their feet for all of eternity."
"Good luck with that." Dan said as he walked out of the room, the doors sealing shut behind him. Once in the corridor he spoke quickly to Lieutenant Davis, "Get a transporter lock on him, drop the room lighting to zero and reduce the atmosphere by twenty percent per minute, on the third minute blow the emergency hatch and flush it into space."
"Sir ?" Davis said.
"Once he's flushed into space, beam him direct to Sick-bay, we'll hold him in stasis ... Hell, he's going to have one doozy of a surprise, not to mention be totally confused when he finds out we're the Masters."
"With all due respect Commander ....." Vance said, "You are playing with a life here, one I seriously doubt will believe that 'YOU' are one of the Mas ......"
"We're not killing him Mister Vance, we're amending his preconceptions to suit our requirements ... But if that offends you, I am sure Lieutenant Davis can find something for you to be doing that keeps you out of the proverbial loop ?" Dan said, waiting for the objections to his orders. When they didn't come he continued, "OK let's get back to the Bridge, we'll set a parabolic course for the Lafayette."
~~~~~
"Sir, I've been checking our progress into this realm, attempting to use some of the relatively stationary vessels as points of reference ! .... As we get further away from our point of entry, the navigation computer is loosing it's lock on the 'POE' co-ordinates. I estimate, tentatively, that if we travel a further one million kilometers deeper we'll have no way of back-tracking to the entry/exit point." Sulla said as they entered the Bridge ..........
< Tag : Vance >
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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 Oct 16, 2015 15:12:20 GMT
Karka gave voice to Vance's objections in the form he knew they would exist. The scientist's attitude towards Schirra would be one of moral objection, his conscience taking control. Karka could well understand human morality and shared it to some measure himself - albeit from the point of view of a Hybrudean from the 29th century - yet this people's primary concern was escaping the Whal's Extraverse and getting back to what they considered normal reality. Any compromises to their moral unflappability were necessary to achieve that.
He kept his silence though he was ready to give his full agreement. If the Whal was detained for any longer he may draw others closer to him, via some mechanism similar to the spore-transponder that the Whal on the Extraverse's Excalibur had deposited on Lieutenant Adams - attracting all Whal in the vicinity via some pheromonic network. The flushing into space was of course ethically abhorrent, especially in giving the Whal a false hope he would find his Masters when it was known that would not be the case, though Karka found his position quite aligned with that of Commander Schirra.
"... if we travel a further one million kilometers deeper we'll have no way of back-tracking to the entry/exit point."
"Are they trying to draw us further into the Extraverse?" Karka/Vance conjectured. "They may know we'll no longer be able to identify the POE point once we cross that threshold; the ships either side of us are drawing us towards it, knowing that finally they'll have us trapped here forever."
Schirra, his decision obviously difficult because it would mean revealing their presence, though they had no other choice, had the Collingwood's thrusters fired up bringing the ship to a full stop. Now what would the Whal do, Karka wondered, taking to the science station and looking through the haze of blue of the station's sensor apparatus, "Now reading multiple Whal lifesigns aboard the Lafayette, not just the mindless drones of its former crew - or whoever else they've managed to take aboard the vessel."
"It was hiding something!" Schirra said.
"Indeed, Mr Daniel," Karka smiled, still looking into the device, "It appears the Whal was not so ready to give up all its information close to its death, or what it perceived to be its death."
Below deck, the stolid Lieutenant Davis prepared to release the locking mechanisms on the hatch in the brig. He was doing so remotely from the transporter room, having also acquired a lock on the Whal in its cell. Whatever queasiness he may have felt in exercising this duty was circumvented by his professionalism. He tapped the comm button, "Bridge, this is Davis. All ready here."
Schirra acknowledged and the hatch was blown, the Whal spiralling out into space gripping its gangly arms about its legs and squeezing its eyes shut, knowing that on opening them it would be meeting the Lletia, and it eyes while right now wiped in all totality of moisture would be full of reverence in the next few moments...
Davis's voice came back over the comm, the bridge crew tensed - there always being the element of doubt, though they trusted that it would work. "We have it, sir," Davis reported, "In sickbay, and in stasis. Awaiting your pleasure."
Karka was intent now on studying the movements of the Whal vessels and the Lafayette - would they continue to try leading them on? Continue on anyway and leave them behind? Or come to a full stop and...
"They're coming about," he reported, "The Lafayette back to starboard, keeping its distance... outside phaser range. We have operable phasers but no torpedoes; I'm guessing the Whal have learnt that. The other vessels are on direct approach, the escort craft much faster and arming weapons... They're going to make a strafing run."
The bridge of the minimally powered Collingwood - its warp core still offline and running purely on auxiliary power from the batteries - shook at the impact of the Whal's beam weaponry, the three vessels passing above and under the Miranda class - each approximately half the Miranda's size and together perhaps an even match for it - and they started coming round for another pass.
"Sir, recommend quick-start of the warp core and full power," Robertson said at the helm, frantically working the controls trying to pitch the Collingwood at an appropriate angle that would minimise the possibility of critical damage given the current trajectories of the escort craft upon their next strafing run.
<Tag Schirra> <Tag Ryat & Excalibur>
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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 Oct 17, 2015 10:43:14 GMT
Dan didn't reply immediately ..... He was looking at the view screen. Standing he approached the Ops Station and put up the tactical view of their position ..... "We're getting in over our heads here." he said, reluctantly admitting they were in trouble. We need to start thinking about getting out of this situation. Options are, We press ahead and look for the Excalibur, or we make a concerted effort to get back to our own Universe and close the portal for good ..." he hesitated for a second then continued, "I want your opinion on how we could proceed please." he asked. The vote, surprisingly had only one 'Nay'vote for continuing on to search for the Excalibur. It was what Dan wanted to hear ... "OK. Forget bringing the core on-line. Vance, Davis, I know you are not Engineers, but is it possible to 'tweak' the core into emitting ultra low frequency static ?" "It's possible yes." Davis said instantly, "All we would need to do is knock the alignment out of kilter enough, but if we do that the core will be useless. Even realigning the matter anti-matter feeds wouldn't fix the problem. The ship would effectively be a sub-light vessel from the second we activate the fault." Vance agreed with the Security Officer. "Do we have enough power for weapons and impulse ?" "We can cut everything back, it depends on what you have in mind." Vance said skeptically. "We don't need the Lafayette, just someone high enough to have the information we require, right ?" everyone nodded, wondering where their Commanding Officer was going with this. They found out quickly, "OK, Davis, Vance, make the necessary modifications to the core, I want it emitting a 'ULF' of no wider than zero point four kilohertz." he sat back as the ship shook under another barrage. Davis said he was ready ... "Bring weapons on-line, take us to half impulse and head directly for the Lafayette. Set the Auto system to target their shield generators, weapons, and drive systems ... I want everyone on the Telemachus ... NOW !" No-one moved for a several seconds, and Dan wondered if he may need to explain his order. But then they cleared the Bridge. He watched as the Miranda Class Star Ship approached the Dreadnought. Indicators showed they were in firing range and he activated the automated firing system. Pure energy lanced from the Collingwood beginning to drain what little power the ship had quickly as Dan brought the now defective core on-line before running from the Bridge himself ... Making it to the shuttle-bay he ran into the Telemachus, where everyone now knew Schirra's plan of action ! "Open the bay doors. Time to impact ?" Fifteen seconds, if they don't manage to move out of the way." Sulla said nervously. "At five seconds, push us out and away. Lock onto one of the Whal on the Bridge and beam it direct to the shuttle, Vance, get a phaser ready. Then cut 'ALL' power ....." "... Three ...""... Two ...""... ONE ! ..."The saucer section of the Collingwood sliced through the main dorsal connecting the Engineering and Command sections of the Dreadnought, effectively cutting the ship in two ..... As the inertia pushed the Collingwood forward it began to rotate, her Nacelles slamming into the Engineering Section. The shock-wave from the collision and resulting explosion of the dreadnought's core threw the shuttle away, tumbling end over end in a stomach-wrenching roller coaster ride. Davis vomited and Dan was trying not to follow suit. Robertson had been knocked unconscious and was being thrown around like the proverbial rag-doll ..... *** Three hours later *** With a tremendous effort, Dan managed to open his eyes. The Telemachus was in disarray, consoles had dropped open, one chair had somehow been torn from it's fixture and was drifting around the compartment. Looking around he could see the others in the semi-darkness of the emergency lighting. He looked out through the plexi-glass windows and could see only stars, rotating leisurely around them. Other's were coming around, Sulla was the first to make it to the pilots seats. She was bleeding from a gash in her forehead and was holding one arm with the other. "What now Commander ?" she asked. "Try to bring the sensors on-line. minimal power, if there's anyone out there we need to know it." He went back to help the other's while she worked. After a few moments she turned to him: "Sir. I can't be sure the sensors are working effectively, but if these readings are correct, the Mother ship and the other Whal vessels have left the area. Maybe they think we perished in the collision ?" "Scan for the wreckage." Dan said helping Vance to his feet. "It's there .... Approximately two hundred thousand kilometers away. Looks like the two ships are stuck together. No life-signs." "Scan for the ultra low frequency .... In the three kilohertz range." " GOT IT ! ... Zero point three nine four seven kilohertz, coming through strong, I'd have dismissed it as background static from the damaged core if I didn't know what I was looking for !" she said. "Get a lock on the heading for the signal then shut everything down. Let's get artificial gravity on-line and see to our injuries before we move on." Schirra said, relieved that his idea had worked. "On, on to where !" Vance asked. "You wanted a beacon Lieutenant." Dan said, a wry grin forming, "As long as no-one comes along and decides to use those ships for target practice, we'll be able to keep a lock on that signal. The ultra low frequency will travel millions of kilometers before beginning to degrade. There should be plenty for us to pick up once we have found the Excalibur." Vance looked at the erratic signal being picked up by the Telemachus, then back at Schirra, everyone suddenly realized that their lives depended on a single, weak, lifeline ..........
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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 Oct 18, 2015 1:31:31 GMT
OOC: I'm so sorry, I was really taken with enthusiasm on this one. I've split the post into two to hopefully make for easier reading :/
He had to admit, that was one courageous if quite foolhardy exploit from Commander Schirra. "You are insane!" he shouted from the back of the shuttle, having been flung across the passenger seats with his head striking the bulkhead. He was thankful secretly; ingenuity, bravery, stubbornness, all characteristics of this ever-surprising human race, had been displayed.
Everyone had picked themselves up by now. The burning fusion of the two starships lay behind them, their momentums having roughly cancelled each other out and kept the Lafayette-Collingwood 'hybrid' within range of the POE. Vance's thoughts... Karka froze, stepped back a few lines in his internal monologue, that was, 'his' thoughts. It was a worry; Vance's unconscious drives trying to reassert themselves in the form of conscious monologue, sparring with Karka's own. It had happened more times than had been outwardly detectable perhaps, by his body language... Each of the dozen occasions had involved a pseudo-argument or dialogue within Vance's skull, and each time Karka had won, but barely and less convincingly with each recurrence.
His thoughts now turned to why the Whal had so abruptly withdrawn from the combat zone. Yes, the Miranda class had made a devastating run on the Federation class dreadnought but the escort craft had been pressing home their attack, looking as though - if they'd followed the Collingwood on its course towards its erstwhile allied vessel - they would've been able to bring about the Miranda class's destruction.
Something else had frightened them off, or perhaps it was a tactical withdrawal, gathering their forces to deal the knock out blow on... the battered and bruised Telemachus. It didn't add up, but then perhaps the Whal lurking in the aft compartment of the shuttle was the missing factor...
It'd been impossible for Karka to have his phaser at the ready while the Whal from the Lafayette was being beamed aboard, the transport executed just in time before the two vessels arrived at the point of their cataclysmic collision. He'd of course been too busy tumbling about the shuttle's interior as it was propelled away from the Collingwood's bay - the shuttle had indeed taken a pounding within the Extraverse, he considered amusedly, struck loose of its mooring to the damaged airlock, collected and knocked about the Collingwood's shuttlebay in the daring manoeuvre that may have ended with the vessel named after the mythic character the son of the inventor of the Trojan Horse in Earth's Ancient Greece's destruction, and then sliding out of the bay on impact with the dreadnought.
Anyhow, he entered the aft compartment, Sulla and Davis ahead of him with their own phasers raised. Vance of course wouldn't be expected to take the lead in the encounter with the Whal; only when the questioning came, this scientist's persona - twisted though it may be from its original parameters - having proven useful before.
The Whal launched itself at them - looking not at all like its counterpart presumably still in the Collingwood's shuttlebay or what was left of it; this looked very much like one of what Karka had termed the soldier variant from the false Excalibur - quickly finding itself surrounded by a forcefield on the single person transporter pad from which it hadn't moved, after a warning shot from Davis at its abdomen. They were indeed much stronger than the engineering variant, the being barely having flinched.
"Why have your people withdrawn from us?" Karka asked, receiving the nod from Davis who was watchful of him, still perhaps not trusting Vance in this role.
The Whal didn't respond at first, snapping its mandibles and looking about itself, understandably dazed from its sudden displacement from the bridge of the Lafayette that, from its point of view, had just suffered a colossal impact from a daredevil Searcher ship. It tore at the forcefield, its words barely translated, "... people... Lletia... Die! Die! Blasphemy..."
Karka decided not to waste any more time in trying to glean the truth of the Lletia or the Masters, or try to work the Whal into some sort of resigned cooperative state as they'd achieved to some degree on the Collingwood.
"There is another vessel like the one you appropriated," he said, "Like the one we crashed into yours and of similar design aesthetic to this shuttle. It arrived here a matter of weeks ago. Not long," he added, aware of course that the Whal would not use Earth measurements. "Where is it? Where?" he repeated stepping closer to the forcefield, staring into the Whal's composite eyes that glared back at him in mockery, "If you don't answer, it means your life."
Sulla pulled Karka back, "Vance, what if it doesn't actually know? Regular soldiers aren't always informed of the overall strategic situation."
Eventually the Whal deigned to reply, "The Llet -"
Karka threw his arms up, shrugging off Sulla and circling the cylindrical forcefield, "Yes! The Lletia, your overlords, from some long past time and who will one day return... a recurring theme in religions across the galaxy it seems... You will tell me, or communicate with your commanders to learn the location of the USS Excalibur."
The soldier Whal sat its gangly frame on the floor inside its forcefield. What could've created such a creature? Karka thought. Its body didn't conform to any known modes of natural selection that he'd encountered in his travels, and it certainly wouldn't have evolved this way in this Extraverse. Even accounting for their genetically engineered bodies, which produced the soldier, engineer, commander variants that he'd theorised, such an anatomy could not possibly exist, unless... they were genetically engineered from the start, created in the laboratory. The thought intrigued him: the Lletia then, had created this species, and had then died out some time ago?
The Whal, its words oozing with sarcasm and mockery, spoke again, "The Lletia," it repeated slowly, "Will reward me in the next life with exposure to their divinity, and I will realise then the purpose of my life and will know that it was not in vain."
"Your gods are dead! Answer me, because I promise you, there is nothing after death." The irony was not lost on Karka, as he continued to control Lieutenant Vance's actions.
"Not so. The Lletia are not beyond our knowledge. One of the divine, their messenger, manifests itself to us every three of your years, instructing us, guiding us, reminding us of the path of righteousness."
"Oh, and when did this light from the darkness last manifest itself?"
It growled and snapped its jaws, "The messenger, human, is due in two of your days."
Karka imagined this coming 'manifestation' to be some deistic ritual on a faraway Whal world, full of rites and reverent Whal, a Whal priest, or whatever they used, proclaiming that the word of the messenger spoke through it - though the coincidence in timing of the Excalibur's arrival here with the messenger's supposed manifestation did intrigue him.
He positioned a finger over the personnel transporter panel, "Your death is at hand."
TBC
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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 Oct 18, 2015 1:32:50 GMT
OOC: There is a post above, sorry for length :/
"Vance, no," Davis gripped his arm, though with some hesitation; he was not merely surprised, but almost shocked at the turn in Vance's behaviour. It'd been developing over the last few days and - contrary to what Karka had thought - it had not gone unnoticed by the Joyeuse crew. Their timid, irritating and hypochondriac science officer, suddenly transformed into a man of courage who seemed to have an edge over them, something that made his bearing imperious and his mind unknowable in a way they couldn't quite define. Rather than a fostering of trust being developed with the reformed science officer, the change in him had unnerved Davis as it had Robertson - who'd sworn he'd thought that on occasion when Vance spoke it was with the voice of someone else he knew.
"Get away from it," Davis pushed Vance to the bench at one side of the compartment. "What's got into you?" he asked, shaking his head and turning to the Whal himself.
"What he says is true, there's nothing beyond this," Davis said, "Now, you know that this ship can no longer escape your realm. You led us past the point of no return where we lost contact with our entry point in the tunnel - you know this."
"And you destroyed your own ship for no discernible reason," the Whal cackled.
Davis wasn't deterred, "So, what is there to lose in telling us the location of the Excalibur? You'd have both it and this shuttle in the same place, ready for destruction or transportation, however you call it."
Karka sat on the bench, passive and contemplative. He knew the Whal wasn't going to fall for Davis's line of argument; it would logically conclude that the Telemachus officers would have something else in mind once they reached the Excalibur's location, something other than their own deaths or lobotomisation. He returned to the main compartment, finding Robertson and Schirra at the controls, the former having set a course deeper into the Whal's realm. He sat behind Schirra's seat, "The Whal states that a 'messenger', one of the Lletia, will arrive somewhere in their space in two days. Obviously I'm inclined not to believe it though if there is some sort of entity that will manifest itself, perhaps we'll be able to scan for it. And Davis is trying to persuade the Whal to tell us the location of the Excalibur."
He sat back against the chair, when a curious sensation struck him. He felt as if he was being displaced from his body. He yelped, surprising the occupants of the cockpit, and noticed that his hands were trembling. No. He tried to dissemble the structure Vance was building in his consciousness but was unsuccessful. He lost control of his eyes' movement, found himself breaking into a sweat; thoughts raced through his head that weren't his own - they were at once terrified, gleeful, vengeful, confused, traumatised, having been suppressed, compressed as if under ice for so long. A sense of paralysis and dissociation set in. He tried to stand but failed, then lost all grip of reality...
He floated in the aether, just glimpsing the luminescent cerulean highways far above and the ill-defined architectural features visible only by virtue of their dim red outlines in front and either side of him; everywhere else in his field of vision there were pinpricks of light like stars, nodal markers of null-space allowing quick passage through space and time. He dived towards one of them, passed through, being surrounded with light and found himself in an overlit meadow, an ethereal silent storm playing overhead, giving rise to the illusion of the imaginary and beyond that, separate, the real. He took in the sight, and saw Lirwa and another Hybrudean, one that he did not like nor did many others, named Makar, a constant antagonistic presence at their meetings. However as Karka understood it, Makar was soon off to the 23rd century, on his triannual visit, 2252, 2255, 2258, ... And thus he made the connection.
Clicking his fingers as he approached the two of them, he knew that he should let Makar return to the past to deliver his message, whatever it was; at least he now knew the Whal was not lying when it said their race received one of the 'Lletia' every three years. He greeted Lirwa who was smiling knowingly and nodded to Makar, who stood with hands linked behind his back, wearing his usual jet black fatigues.
"Psonoir," Makar said, "Your travels take you unusual places... Yes, we've both been keeping track." Lirwa turned away from Makar, unwilling to let him blow out of proportion their association. "You've found your way into another universe, and managed to get yourself killed."
"Indeed, Makar. If I knew you were so interested in my personal exploits, I would've given you my brief before I left." Karka knew he would eventually have to find a way back to the 23rd century - it didn't matter how long he remained here, as long as he left before Makar. The question was, should he fashion a new body for himself and find a way to explain his apparent death to the crew, or resume his dominance of Vance's psyche?
Lieutenant Vance sat in the shuttle, blinking his eyelids rapidly. "What, what's going on?!" he whispered, shaking, horrified and feeling out of place, out of time. Where he'd been he could not describe. It'd felt like one endless nightmare, where all his worst fears were realised, then, with the promise of recovery to some stable mental state being dangled before him, they were brought upon him again, as if he was constantly being reborn into a nightmare body incarnate. "Daniel Schirra? What's happened to the shuttle? Who are these people...?" he pointed at the two Tycho crew, the third of them being Sulla who was questioning the Whal with Davis in the aft.
<Tag Schirra> <Excalibur>
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Oct 18, 2015 14:53:54 GMT
The Excalibur's communications array was online, at least for a generous definition of 'online'. Yes, the could send and receive but, at the moment, they were rather better at sending than receiving. Still there had been no communication incoming since Aly had woken up. She was now on the bridge waiting to hear about the latest round of sensor scans.
"Captain", the Ensign at the science console almost shouted. Aly turned to look over her shoulder.
"Yes, Ensign Moore?" Aly got to her feet. It was clearly good news. That much was obvious from Moore's tone.
Ensign Moore twitched abruptly as the Commodore peered over her shoulder and then took a deep breath. "We' expectations go a ship that' scolding a breathable atmosphere, sir. Can't get a read on lifesigns and they're not responding to hails, at least, I don't think they are."
"Can we get closer?" Aly asked. Moore looked over at helm and navigation before nodding. "Yes, we have an accurate map of the local debris field. Still can't move very fast but we can definitely get closer."
"Transporters?" Aly asked.
"Still offline, sir." Aly nodded, that was what she had expected.
"We'll just have to sent a boarding party by shuttle then." If there was anyone else out there then they might know more about what had happened. If there wasn't, well, then there still might be answers over there. "Let's get moving then."
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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 Oct 24, 2015 12:37:15 GMT
Davis wasn't deterred, "So, what is there to lose in telling us the location of the Excalibur. You'd have both it and this shuttle in the same place, ready for destruction or transportation, however you call it ?" Lieutenant Vance sat in the shuttle, blinking his eyelids rapidly. "What, what's going on ?!" he whispered, shaking, horrified and feeling out of place, out of time. Where he'd been he could not describe. It'd felt like one endless nightmare, where all his worst fears were realized, then, with the promise of recovery to some stable mental state being dangled before him, they were brought upon him again, as if he was constantly being reborn into a nightmare body incarnate. "Daniel Schirra ... What's happened to the shuttle ... Who are these people ...?" he pointed at the two Tycho crew, the third of them being Sulla who was questioning the Whal with Davis in the aft. Schirra turned as the Scientist began to almost mumble his words. All they needed now was for Vance to have suffered some sort of breakdown. He turned to Davis: "Give him something to calm him down, but don't knock him out, he's just confused." the Security Officer approached the Scientist, hypo-spray in one hand, the other held out before him to show the man he meant him no harm, but Vance shuffled back in his seat, trying to put distance between himself and the person he perceived as an attacker. Davis appeared to give up on the effort and began to turn to Schirra, it was all that was needed to allow Vance to relax. Spinning he pinned the man in his seat and placed the hypo against his neck activating the device instantly before stepping back out of reach. Vance glared at Davis then the others, but Dan could see the was sedative was beginning to take effect. "He should be compliant now Sir." Davis said, returning the hypo to the medical kit. Vance was now simply watching proceedings as if disinterested. Dan knelt before him and checked his pupillary response ... Vance was thankfully suffering no ill effects from the sedative, he was just extremely relaxed ...... "OK, let's keep an eye on him. Once he begins to ask questions we'll assess his condition again. We need to press on." Schirra said pulling the safety strap around the Scientist to prevent him falling forward onto the deck. "I've made a decision regarding the Excalibur ... The longer we remain here the more chance we'll be taken, or destroyed. Therefore, I am going to give a further forty eight hours to the search for the ship. If we have no luck we'll return here and make every effort to return through the portal. We'll use whatever we have at hand to destroy the three kilometer ship on our side, hopefully closing the portal to this realm in the process. While the Excalibur is the priority, we cannot allow the Whal to take any more vessels to suit their own goals of bringing back some obscure deity." "You would leave the Excalibur here ?" Robertson voiced the question everyone wanted an answer to. "You want to remain here indefinitely Lieutenant ?" Dan asked, and after receiving no reply he continued, "There was a massive concentration of vessels we located earlier. We'll go to warp then drop to sub-light, our velocity should allow us to drift there with minimal power expenditure. I'd like to arrive without attracting any unwanted attention .... Questions ?" "Given our revised time-frame Commander ..." Robertson said, "I would suggest we go to warp three for ten minutes then shut the core down, inertia will keep us at warp speed for thirty minutes approximately, and would cut the distance appreciably ?" "Agreed. Let's go Lieutenant." Dan replied, addressing Robertson who was again in the Pilot's seat ........ ooo000ooo They had shut down the core and were drifting towards the mass of stationary vessels at sub-light, a high-caliber rifle bullet with nothing to slow it's progress towards it's target ... They had reduced power where possible and unless scanned thoroughly they would appear to be just what they hoped, a drifting derelict unworthy of attention. The crux would come when they needed to slow their momentum and drop into the group of ships ahead. If any Whal vessel was in the area they would see the disturbance caused by the impulse drive as it applied negative pressure to stem their forward momentum ! "Sir, I suggest we begin to slow while we have some distance between us. Less chance we'll be spotted." Robertson suggested. Dan had been sat next to the sedated Vance, who seemed to be regaining some of his senses. The Scientist was speaking as if to himself, seemingly trying to come to some resolution regarding his earlier confusion. Dan listened, but he wasn't too concerned at this point, as long as Vance was stable they could look at him when time allowed. "Agreed Lieutenant, bring the impulse engines on-line and begin to slow us. Do it as smoothly as you can Mister Davis, the last thing we need is company ...." he turned to Vance, who was still quietly talking to himself, "get well Mister Vance. We may well need you in the next few hours." Dan got up, asking Tamarika to sit with the man ... Moving to the second pilot's seat he watched the stars as the Telemachus gradually slowed so it could drift into the multitude of ships ahead. He knew now that this was their last chance. If the Excalibur wasn't here, if she wasn't here with her crew intact, then they would have no option but call off the search and consider the Constitution Class Excalibur ..... Lost ! ..........
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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 Oct 25, 2015 1:54:30 GMT
"... get well Mister Vance. We may well need you in the next few hours."
Vance heard Schirra's words dully, as if they were removed from his sensorial perception, hazy and far away. "Images, past and present, locked behind bars, a faceless overseer, a silhouette against the piercing light that is me..." He continued these murmurings, attended to now by another Starfleet officer, one he didn't recognise though, going by the obvious time lapse between when he'd suddenly lost the sense of his own mind and his awakening now, it was clear he'd at least been introduced to her at some point.
Mumbling to himself for a further minute, the effect of the sedative that had been applied to his neck finally began to withdraw itself... The bedraggled officer's face came into focus before him. "Who are you?" he asked her. "How long was I out?"
She was obviously confused. "Ensign Sulla of the Tycho, Lieutenant. You found me on the Constitution class ship my crew were trying to raid remember?" He stared at her blankly, and she seemed to understand something perhaps, that his memory had not been fully restored since his... accident, or whatever it was that'd befallen him. She pressed, "There were four others of my crew, Vance. Two of whom were killed in the attack by the Whal?"
"I'm sorry, I don't remember you," the scientist answered. "I met you on a Constitution class?" Realisation dawned on his features, "The Excalibur! Have we found it?"
"Not exactly," came the hesitant reply. "You and Lieutenant Robertson saved myself and the last two of my crew from the Whal."
"I did -... what?" Vance sat up, scratching his head. That was the second time she'd mentioned the 'Whal'. "It's possible... I've suffered amnesia. Did something happen to me? Was I injured in some way? The last I remember I was watching Lieutenant Adams trying to resuscitate Lieutenant Commander Psonoir..."
"Psonoir's dead, sir," she answered, wiping sweat from his brow with a towel. "And no, as far as I'm aware..." she considered something, "Well you did, I gather have something of a panic attack when you returned to the cockpit from questioning the Whal. I was worried for a second, I thought you were going to beam it into space." She paused and looked at him, irate. "You do remember me trying to stop you, don't you?"
"No..." Vance felt palpitations coming on... "No, I don't remember any of this! The panic attack as you call it, maybe that's what's caused the amnesia, I don't know." A voice scythed its way into his consciousness:
"Trust them, Vance. I know you don't understand any of this but everything they speak of is the truth. You suffered a case of severe amnesia. You may ask who I am, or what this is, and I equally must ask myself..." the voice in his head laughed, "Who I am, or rather who I intend to be, and how I am going to get back there, back to the realm of the Whal. The Whal, Tamarika Sulla has already told you something about them, inhabit the domain found here... They harvest the flesh of all who become trapped in their 3km tunnel, waiting for the return of their overlords, the Lletia - or rather their impostor who I believe I've located - so that they may give them offerings of the flesh of the captives in their realm.
"So to the question of my identity, Vance I was with you on the way in here and you watched me die. Adams did his best but he couldn't save me. This isn't a delusion in your mind, I am not speaking from beyond death... I will resume from my previous body, I've decided. From here I can guide you as best I can, and will endeavour to arrive, as myself before the Lletia impostor does so."
Vance blinked, shaking off Sulla's arm and looking out the forward viewing port, "What's happening now?"
"We're decelerating at a slow enough rate so that we aren't spotted by any Whal vessels that may be in the vicinity," Robertson said, manoeuvring the shuttle. Out the viewing port, looming large ahead of them now - derelicts spinning on various axes of rotation, a slow dance not hindered by any air resistance in this alternate dimensional void.
"Vance, you feel fit to resume questioning of the prisoner?"
"No," he said, shaking his head, "The... Whal? I don't remember it."
"Well, once again reading a starship of Constitution class size and displacement," Davis said, flicking switches and looking at readouts from the tertiary console.
"Where?" Schirra asked, looking back disapprovingly at Vance as the man's former timidity seemed to have returned.
"Bearing 72 mark 4 by 61 mark 9," Robertson answered. "Let's take a closer look?"
<Tag Schirra, possibly Ryat>
Vance was on his feet, shaking with his own trembling hands the pilot and co-pilot's chairs occupied by Robertson and Schirra. "He's alive! Damn it, he's alive! I don't know how... But Karka Psonoir's alive!"
<Tag Schirra>
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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 Oct 25, 2015 19:10:43 GMT
The shuttle was fairly quiet during the approach to the cluster of vessels. They had dropped from warp and shut down the impulse drive to allow the Telemachus to 'drift' into the region hopefully undetected ..... Lieutenant Davis had kept the sensors on minimal power so as not to cast any electronic 'shadow' as they approached. One by one ships began to show on the shuttle's readouts and he was taking the time to categorize them for reference, hoping to be able to record any Federation vessels for Command, who would have classified them as missing ... Suddenly he leaned forward, expanding one section of the screen and studying it intensely: "Well, once again reading a Star-ship of Constitution class size and displacement." he announced. "Where !" Dan asked, taking his eyes off the awakened Vance for a second. "Bearing, seven two mark four, by six one mark nine." Robertson confirmed. "Take a closer look ?" he asked. "Bring the impulse engines on-line, we'll approach the Consti ....." Schirra began as Vance suddenly appeared, shaking the Pilot seats spasmodically. Dan turned his chair around to see the Scientist leaning in close, eyes wide: "He's alive ... Damn it, he's alive ! ... I don't know how ... But Karka Psonoir is alive !" both men looked at Vance wondering if he needed to be restrained. Dan got up, pushing the Scientist towards Sulla who had a hypo ready to use. Managing to sit the man down and stem his ranting Schirra knelt in front of him. glancing at Sulla he asked Vance what he was talking about: "Psonoir ....... Karka. The other, the one that died, or didn't .... He's ...." Vance began, confusion flooding his face. "Alive ?" Schirra finished for him. Vance tapped his temple rapidly for a few seconds, then slapped his forehead as if trying to exorcise something. Dan reached up and took hold of the mans arms before he injured himself any more, "Vance .... Vance, listen, you need to calm down, I don't want to sedate you, so if you can calm down of your own accord we can talk ... Can you try for me ?" he turned to Robertson and nodded they proceed towards the Constitution Class vessel, then turned his attention back to the Scientist. "He's in, here." Vance said in almost a whisper, "Psonoir, he is in my head. I don't understand it but ....." Dan looked at Sulla, noticing for the first time that Crewman Perry was sat opposite Vance, a phaser trained almost casually at the man. He glanced forward, seeing the cluster of ships getting closer, though at this distance he couldn't distinguish between vessels. He turned back to the now mute Vance and lowered his arms to his knees, tentatively releasing them but ready to react if the man decided to resume beating himself. "Commander Psonoir died Vance, we all know that. Is it possible you are suffering some form of post traumatic str ......" "Don't insult my intelligence Commander." Vance said, suddenly extremely articulate, but falling back into his semi-hypnotic state almost instantly. "We're approaching the cluster of ships Commander." Robertson said from the Pilots seat, "Still can't establish which Constitution Class we're closing on." "Slow us as much as you can but keep us closing." Dan said, "Remain on passive scanning." "He's nuts." Perry said dismissively waving his phaser at Vance. "Thank you for your 'Medical' opinion Crewman." Schirra said, turning back to Vance yet again, "Lieutenant ... Can you try to explain why you think Karka is in your head for me ?" < tag : Karka / Vance >"Whoa, let me run this again. His body is back there, in one of the cryo-stasis tubes, right ?" Sulla asked as Vance finished his explanation, "Yet his 'mind' or 'soul' is right here in Lieutenant Vance ?" "It's not the Excalibur." Davis confirmed, "Checking registry ... USS Kongo ... Hell, didn't that vanish almost six years ago !" "Any signs of our friends ?" Schirra asked. "No, not a peep from them, though there 'are' two inactive vessels close to the Kongo that show modifications." Davis replied, "Maybe these were their first attempts at taking over and adapting to their use ?" "Possible." Robertson confirmed, "Sir, I'm getting more readings now we're so close. There's a second Constitution Class vessel on the edge of our passive sensors." "Let's look over the Kongo first, then we'll head to the second ship." Dan said, looking up at the chronometer to check their time remaining: ... 36:14:51 ...
... 36:14:50 ...
... 36:14:49 ... Thirty six hours to his deadline ..........
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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 Oct 29, 2015 4:11:03 GMT
"Lieutenant ... Can you try to explain why you think Karka is in your head for me ?"
"He spoke to me," Vance answered simply, "The same voice as if he were with us now. The images, the words, all seem withdrawn and distant from me though, sir. As if he speaks not within my head but from some place else, somewhere that's not inside the Whal realm...
"He told me..." Vance coughed, continued to sweat - perhaps some after-effect of the mental intrusion, and the continual state of panic he felt himself under, "He told me that he's found the 'impostor', whoever that is, someone who has displaced the... Lletia, or Masters as he calls them, as the... umm, the Whal's gods."
The others looked at each other dubiously. The red-shirted crewman before him with his phaser rolled his eyes. Sulla stayed her crewman and said, "Lieutenant, he's told you all this from inside your head, while also having managed to track down the Lletia impostor?"
Vance shook his head, sweat dripping from his brow. He didn't know any of these names, the Lletia, the Masters - Psonoir had been firing them into his mind, adding to the confusion, though it'd proved beyond doubt that the Excalibur engineer was 'here', somehow, inside his own head or somehow beyond it.
"He's not speaking to me now. It seems it requires an effort of will to elevate himself in my mind, push his way into my internal monologue so to speak."
The shuttle crew resumed their positions, Sulla keeping a close eye on him and ordering Perry back to the aft compartment with the Whal prisoner. "Who is that creep?" Vance said, looking back.
"Perry. So, you still don't remember what happened after Psonoir died?" she asked.
Vance shook his head, looking ahead at the forward viewport; the Kongo and its two attendant vessels were growing larger as the shuttle continued its relatively fast approach. "All I remember are the nightmares, the silent figure that banished me to a cell, locked me in an impossible box that twisted itself inside out, you know, like those staircases that continue for infinity..." he murmured. Sulla sighed. "... Then waking in the cockpit and wondering what'd happened. Who all these extra people were; where Adams and Psonoir were."
"What was he like?" Sulla asked. Vance looked at her questioningly. "Karka Psonoir. I never knew him, remember?"
"He was an unbearable son of a... Very full of himself, and tried to cover it up by feigning modesty. Now he's in my head would you believe it."
They approached one of the small craft in close proximity to the Kongo, both vessels rotating along different axes relative to the Telemachus. In the distance, behind the Kongo, Vance could see the outline of what he was sure was another Constitution class ship. He stared at it for ten seconds, then saw a flash on what he guessed was its saucer section. It was active!
"He's spoken only twice so far, but both times at length," Vance said, "He says I suffered amnesia, but that he's been with me all along..." Vance made the connection as the shuttle - powered down except for minimal thrusters and life support - drew up alongside one of the attendant vessels. "He was the jailor!" he screamed. "He took over my body, that's why I don't remember it. He banished me to my unconscious, locked me away. Abuser! Psychic murderer!"
"Calm down..." Sulla soothed.
"But it makes sense doesn't it?" No one who'd heard him replied. Vance felt vindicated. He headed through to the cockpit, "Are we boarding that thing?" he pointed out the window at the small craft next to the Kongo. "I recommend we don't, and head straight for the Kongo. But that ship over there," he pointed again, this time at the small outline of the other Constitution class, "Is showing active power signatures. I can prove it." He sat at the tertiary console beside Lieutenant Davis, "You're doing a good job, Lieutenant. Look at that thing over there, its lights are flashing."
Of course regardless of whether the ship Vance was referring to was online - what he was actually seeing on it was a psychic marker, a Hybrudean device fed through from the imaginary presence of Karka in his mind and channeled into his visual field, placed onto the Constitution class as a warning - the appearance of the Lletia impostor, a "Hybrudean named Makar is due to appear there in three hours, Vance. I can't be sure of the identity of the ship, whether it's the Excalibur or no, but it's important that the Lletia impostor who'll appear there be apprehended as soon as possible, before the Whal close in on it and your position with their offerings of flesh for their great demigod, the messenger of the Lletia... Makar."
Little did Vance know that in addition to Karka's voice speaking these words in his mind, he'd also vocalised them himself to Schirra and Robertson - as if he was a mouthpiece for the 'being's' thoughts.
"How are you going to get back aboard..." he said to Karka inside, afraid of the man now, "You mentioned something about... a new body?" There was no response.
33 : 07 : 19 ...
33 : 07 : 18 ...
<Tag Schirra, Ryat>
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Oct 29, 2015 22:01:31 GMT
"Sir, I'm reading an active impulse signature... Bearing 027 mark 2." Ensign Thom's fingers danced across the shuttle's console as she tried to get more information. Aly leaned forward as if she could see the ship with the active engines somewhere ahead of them.
Aly waited patiently, she had been so relieved to not be on her ship, at least this boarding party meant that she was actually doing something g rather than waiting for her crew to do it. Of course her presence also meant that Jenni didn't have to spare a member of the communications team to go on the mission since Aly had taken the time to maintain her certification as a communications specialist even if she was well and truly on the command track now.
"It's reading as Starfleet!" The excitement in Ensign Thom's voice was understandable if not entirely professional. Aly took a deep breath. Send a standard hail, Starfleet frequencies only, keep the power as low as you can."
"This is shuttle Bell from the Federation Starship USS Exacalibur." The words went out across space, Aly could only hope their were friendly ears to hear them.
"Sir, we are now within 100 meters of the ship with an atmosphere." Ensign Perez said.
"Bring the shuttle to relative stop." Aly said, she didn't have to lean to see the ship ahead of them, it filled the view ports. "Let's find a way in.β The Excalibur's sensors had suggested that there was an airlock on this side of the ship but it didn't do to be incautious. Particularly when staring at the unknown. Aly leaned back in her seat and waited for either a response to the hail or the results of the sensor scans to come in.
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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 Oct 29, 2015 22:42:31 GMT
"Are we boarding that thing ?" Vance pointed out the window at the small craft next to the Kongo. "I recommend we don't, and head straight for the Kongo. But that ship over there ....." he pointed again, this time at the small outline of the other Constitution class, "Is showing active power signatures. I can prove it." He sat at the tertiary console beside Lieutenant Davis, "You're doing a good job, Lieutenant. Look at that thing over there, its lights are flashing."
Dan nodded almost imperceptibly to Davis, who took hold of Vance's shoulders 'insisting' he get up from the console. Surprisingly, the Scientist didn't object, but allowed the Security Officer to escort him towards the back of the Telemachus, where he sat down, quietly watching proceedings ... Schirra looked at the man, wondering if there was actually some truth in what he had been saying.
"Do you want the Lieutenant secured Commander ?" Davis asked, but Dan said no, he just wanted him to take a moment to gather himself. He ordered Robertson to head directly the Kongo and dock, they didn't have time to be overcautious now, but jumping in blind wasn't an option. Once docked he told everyone to arm themselves:
"Once aboard we'll sweep the ship as quickly as possible. Ideally, I would like to set a remote auto-destruct, but blowing up every ship we come across will sooner than later attract the attention we can sorely do without. Lieutenant Davis, once aboard get to Engineering, make sure this ship isn't going anywhere, ever ! ... If we don't find any crew we'll download the ships logs and scarper. If we come across any of the Whal, don't hesitate, shoot. Understood ?" everyone nodded.
"Commander, I must apologize for my earlier outbur ....." Vance began, but Dan held up a hand.
"Listen Mister Vance. All this about Commander Psonoir being 'in' your head is frankly, disturbing. I'm in no way discounting what you say as ...."
".... A complete fabrication brought on by stress ?" Vance finished for him. Schirra stood eyeing the Scientist for a moment before coming to a decision. Handing him a phaser he took a second from the locker and headed for the air-lock.
"Just one thing Lieutenant." he said, turning back to Vance, "If Mister Psonoir decides to speak to you again, I want to know about it ... Understood ?" Vance nodded his agreement, wondering vaguely if he could hold up his end of the agreement.
~~~~~
The air-lock door slid silently aside, stale air invaded their nostrils. Lighting was at minimal as they stepped onto the Kongo ... He pondered the thought that if the ship had lost so much of it's reserve power, could what little life support and artificial gravity that was left suddenly cease, effectively leaving them stranded inside the massive Star Ship. Lieutenant Davis, accompanied by Ensign Sulla and Crewman Perry headed directly for Engineering, while Schirra, Robertson, and Vance headed for the Bridge ... Once there Robertson attempted to bring some of the more important systems on-line, but nothing was responding. Dan headed for the Tactical Station and tried to check internal sensors, again without any luck. So as far as they were concerned the Kongo could be rife with Whal and they would never know until it was too late !
"Lieutenant Vance, get a record of the Ships' log." Schirra ordered, watching the man in his peripheral vision as the Scientist moved to one of the vacant stations and began doing as instructed. Dan flipped open his communicator and contacted the others:
=^= Lieutenant Davis .. Report =^=
=^= We'll be done in five Commander .. Only way this ship is going anywhere is if someone get's out to push =^=
=^= Good to hear Lieutenant .. Is there any way you can scan for life-signs from Engineering everything up here is dead or as good as =^=
=^= No way to Commander .. What power we have is keeping our feet on the deck and supplying what can laughingly be called an atmosphere .. If I divert any it's a given that on or the other or both will fail =^=
=^= OK .. .. We're done up here .. Meet us back at the Telemachus .. We'll check out the other Constitution Class drifting close by =^=
=^= Aye Sir .. .. .. Commander .. Just curious .. But we should have been able to identify the other ship from the shuttle and more so from here .. After all it's less than a hundred kilometers from us .. .. .. =^=
=^= Your point Lieutenant ? =^=
=^= Just curious Commander .. Nothing much is surprising me lately .. Davis out =^=
Despite the hundreds of thousands of cubit meters of internal space on the Constitution Class Star Ship, both groups were struggling for breath by the time they met up at the dock, Dan was about to open the hatch leading to the Telemachus when Ensign Sulla put herself between him and the hatch controls.
"We have a problem." she said quietly, pointing toward the observation port beside the hatch. Dan followed her line of sight and approached the port ... Approximately five hundred meters away, one of the Whal attack ships was hovering menacingly, irrationally, he quickly stepped away from the port, fearing he would be seen, and swore under his breath. Perry asked what the delay was, "There's a Whal attack ship outside." Sulla explained, shocking everyone who hadn't seen the ship for themselves. Their situation was rapidly developing into a classic 'no-win scenario' ......
"Are they docking ?" Vance asked nervously.
"They are not doing anything, just sitting there. They could be scanning for life-signs, or looking for a means to replenish their power supply, who knows. Wait, the ship is moving away ...." Robertson, who had crept forward and was peeking over the rim of the port, said ... He was about to move back when he gasped, "You are 'NOT' going to believe this !" he said, waving Schirra to the port. Dan cautiously raised himself until he could see down the length of the docked Telemachus, and the Whal craft beyond, but what caused him the most concern was the two figures, obviously both Whal-Riritika-Mahhn, who were approaching the ship. The thought that they were willing to undertake the equivalent of a 'space-walk' rather than take the time to dock was almost bordering on the stupid, but that wasn't the thing that held Dan's full attention.
It was the fact that neither of the Whal approaching the ship wore any form or protective suit.
"They can survive in a vacuum !" Dan said, unable to prevent himself from laughing for the first time since entering this forsaken realm !!!
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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 Oct 30, 2015 7:55:20 GMT
"So we're trapped here..." Vance said, feeling a shiver come all over him, "Great." He looked round agitatedly. "Just great. And now we're going to die. Aren't we? Aren't we!" he shouted in the ear of the nearest officer, who turned out to be Lieutenant Davis.
"Yes, 'some' of us may well die," Davis said through gritted teeth.
Vance sulked next to a bulkhead, opposite the airlock and its portal of doom that'd been showing the Whal raider vessel and was about to begin showing the vacuum breathing Whal soldiery likely sent to pacify them. Yes, they probably picked up our engine signature, he thought, sent their crack unit after us knowing the threat we represent and how we've escaped them several times before...
"Remember, Vance, that their 'god', or one of them, is due to arrive in under three hours, on that other Constitution class if my calculations are correct. The Standing Wave indicates, yes, the temporal flux that exists where I am, is an effect of this Standing Wave. From it we can interpret data in various ways, most pertinently in this case the temporal and spatial displacement of individuals sent from the place I am, to the Whal's domain. One such individual Makar is due to arrive; he's the Whal's false god. The real Lletia probably died out hundreds, thousands of years ago. He's taken on their mantle. I do not know why. That is why there's an increased presence of Whal in the region, not because your team has boarded the Kongo... At least, as far as I'm aware..." Vance sat there stunned, listening intently but with a sort of muted indifference. Karka continued, "In any case I plan to arrive ahead of him."
"How?" Vance whispered, "By taking over my body again? You're a demon, Karka. I had to live - in my unconscious admittedly - in a perpetual state of fear; dream aeons of torment and hell locked in your impossible maze, just like the Minotaur. How did you do all that? How can you be in my head, or speaking from beyond it?
As before, eerily there was no response. The cold silence subsiding into the recesses of his mind was even more unnerving than when the 'soul' presence of Psonoir was voicing his riddles. "Ha." Vance didn't believe in the soul, in a spirit that was separate from and could rise from the body. All was necessarily of the body. "Commander, you wanted the very second..."
Schirra looked round at him, his expression half way between annoyance and expectancy.
"Karka Psonoir's given me his 'thoughts' again." He related what Karka had told him.
<Tag Schirra>
Desperate to find a way to counteract the Whal's possible attack on the ship, Vance was forced back to the bridge along with Schirra and Robertson - instead of Davis this time. Sulla, Perry and Davis had been left at the airlock, hunkered down and ready to receive whatever the Whal might be able to bring against them. "There's some minimal power in the batteries... Something we missed on the first check," Robertson reported from the dim flickering navigation console. "I wouldn't blame Davis too much; the Whal must've missed it too, otherwise they would've crippled the ship beyond repair when they first found it."
"Can we get any of the ship's systems activated; propulsion, shields, these consoles?" Schirra asked, casting about at the dormant stations.
"Sure can," Robertson said, shifting over to the engineering station. He flicked switches and entered commands, then half a minute later an unsteady drone filled the bridge, vibrating through the walls. "That doesn't sound good," Roberston admitted, glancing round the bridge and flattening his palms on the console, feeling the pitiful vibration indicative of activation of the reserve batteries and the energy they were feeding through the EPS network.
"Reading a Federation shuttle off the ship's port side, a hundred metres away!" Vance called out, already having taken the science station. "And they're transmitting a hail!"
<Tag Ryat>
Just after he'd replied to Commodore Ryat - thinking that they were victorious at last - Sulla's voice burst over their communicators, "Sir, the Whal have disappeared! They climbed on top of the Telemachus, then seemed to change their minds and leapt out of sight above us. Be warned, sirs -" the comm cut off suddenly.
Concurrent with this, a series of metallic, menacing thuds were heard through the ceiling of the bridge. The thuds ceased for a moment - Vance could almost picture what was going on; indecision - then they changed direction, slamming their way to the aft of the bridge. Another pause, then an appalling shrieking emanated from the part of the ceiling above the command chair, and in the cacophony of duranium being torn, circuitry being severed and sparks showering over the bridge, a talon - dripping with some type of corrosive acid - became visible in the tear it'd made in the outer hull.
"Oh, I don't like this... I don't like this!" Vance cowered by the science station then deciding it wasn't adequate cover, scampered round to the helm/tactical and navigation consoles and lay prone on the floor.
~ Warning... Warning... Hull breach on deck 1... Depressurisation in progress ~ the male computer voice reported calmly.
Sulla's voice came through, "Commander Schirra, one of the Whal returned! Perry's down. We can't hold out here, retreating to engineering!"
"Yes I believe we have more pressing concerns," Vance murmured. Then one vacuum-inhabiting Whal dropped through the ceiling, now standing on the command chair; it was two and a half metres tall. Casting about at its three prey - as the bridge's air was blown out through the breach; Vance, Schirra and Robertson clinging onto consoles' struts amidst the sudden gale - it let out an unearthly howl.
<Tag Schirra, Ryat>
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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 Oct 31, 2015 1:42:48 GMT
"Karka Psonoir has given me his 'thoughts' again." Vance said, beginning to relate what the Engineer had told him.
"So we need to be on that other ship before the three hour deadline, is that what you are saying ?" Dan asked.
"I AM SAYING NOTHING !" Vance almost screamed, causing Dan concern, but holding off having the man sedated yet again, "It is, 'The Confederate' ..... That is the ship, the ship the Gods will appear upon."
"OK ..." Schirra said after a moment of thought, deciding he couldn't decide if the unknown Constitution Class vessel was the Confederate, or if that was someone who was supposed to arrive along with these Gods, or whomeve the Psonoir persona was expecting. Unfortunately he didn't have the luxury of free time to ponder the issue. mentally he revised their departure time by twelve hours then continued, "So now we need to get across to the other ship. Can we use the Telemach ....."
"Sir .... The Whal ?"
"Bridge." Dan said .....
~~~~~
On arrival, Robertson began bringing minor systems on-line utilizing the reserve of power he had discovered, but hesitated when an ominous rumble began to reverberate through the deck-plates. Trying to adjust his approach to getting what power they needed Robertson suddenly realized the Comm was active but hadn't sounded as normal. Vance confirmed this as he spoke:
"Reading a Federation shuttle off the ship's port side, a hundred meters away !" Vance called out, already having taken the science station. ".... And they're transmitting a hail !"
=^= "This is shuttle Bell from the Federation Starship USS Excalibur =^=
"Can we reply ?" Dan asked urgently as the shuttle slowed it's approach to almost a crawl. Vance replied in the negative, "Use whatever power you need to open the shuttle-bay doors ... While you're at it put the lights on, let's hope they see it as a welcome. Where's the bloody Whal ?" unfortunately, it was the computer that supplied the answer:
'... WARNING ... WARNING ... Hull breach on deck One ... Depressurization in progress ...'
Before anyone could react t the warning one of the Whal dropped through the ceiling and onto the Command seat. For several seconds the life-sustaining oxygen rushed through the breach, until the computer decided to act. It established a force field over the breach and began replenishing the lost atmosphere. The Whal, only a second ago filled with rage and hatred, suddenly realized it's prey was once again gifted a means to live, it eyed Schirra as someone giving little thought to something it had trodden upon, then it crouched, tensing itself in preparation to leap from it's perch, but Robertson had seen it's intention, and as much as one of the 'soldier' Whal would come in useful for information gathering, the life of his Senior Officer took prescience, he fired at the Whal, killing it mid flight ! ... Sulla Commed the Bridge:
=^= Commander Schirra .. One of the Whal returned .. Perry is down .. We can't hold out here and retreating to engineering =^=
=^= Sulla .. Can you make it to the main shuttle-bay ? =^=
=^= With difficulty Sir .. The Whal that is close has a companion we have not yet seen .. Why the shuttle-bay Commander .. Are we leaving ? =^=
=^= It is possible Commodore Ryat has managed to get her shuttle into the bay .. We have just killed one of the two Whal that came aboard .. So as long as you can keep out of harms way you should be able to move unhindered .. We can rendezvous there and if the shuttle is in good order we'll do just that .. Destroying the Kongo in the process .. Get up there Ensign .. Schirra out =^=
~~~~~
Reaching the Main Shuttle-bay Schirra entered. The others had managed to get there too ...... The Bell, one of the shuttles from the Excalibur was sat ominously quiet, no-one had emerged and it didn't look as if they were about to. Dan walked to the shuttle and opened a small panel next to the door. Tapping the internal comm he spoke:
=^= Whoever is in the shuttle .. You can release the door .. I am Commander Schirra .. Executive Officer of the USS Excalibur .. Commodore Ryat you are relatively safe here for the moment .. Open the hatch =^= Almost a minute passed, then he heard the mechanism operating and stepped back and slightly off to the right of the door. he didn't want to get caught in the volley of phaser-fire should anyone but the Excalibur Officers who were supposed to be in there step out to surprise them. But then a young man stepped into the opening, hands raised to chest level as he looked at those present. He nodded and Commodore Ryat stepped out of the shuttle.
"Commander. Good to see you again." she said, approaching Dan.
"And you Commodore ..." Schirra replied, glancing at the Ensign accompanying his Commanding Officer before returning his attention to Alyana, "Where is the Excalibur Ma'am ?"
"Excali ......" Ryat replied, a glazed look spreading across her face for a second, "We, we knew the Harvesters were after personnel and power. We, I .... Ordered all but a few into the escape pods, then we jettisoned the cores." Dan almost couldn't believe what he was hearing, the Excalibur crew were adrift in this void, while Ryat had effectively scuppered their last chance of getting back to their own realm, "But we were too clever for the Harvesters ..... We inverted the Excalibur and allowed her to drift. then we took the Bell and tractored the cores into a decrepit wreck we were close to. Powered down they were just more wreckage." she finished, shrugging as if all was well.
"Commander." Perez almost whispered as Ryat began looking around the Shuttle-bay as if seeing it for the first time, "Sir, with respect ... The, Commodore hasn't been acting herself for the last few days. She suffered a head injury, and won't allow anyone, well, me, to check if there is any issues. She has lucid moments, like now, but sometimes she tends to 'drift off' for want of a better explanation."
"So all this about the cores and the Excalibur could be a figment of her imagination !" Schirra asked, glancing at the seemingly bemused Commodore.
"No ... We did jettison the cores, and we did hide them, less than a thousand meters from the Excalibur actually." Perez confirmed, "In fact there is no reason, allowing for natural drain on the cores reserve power, that we couldn't replace them and have a fully operational vessel ...... Sir. The escape pods, the crew, we tried to locate them, we really did, but the Harvesters swarmed over them like, like ...."
"It's OK Ensign, I fully understand." Schirra said, eyeing Ryat, "Do you know how to find the Excalibur ?"
"We programmed the Bell to keep a log. You could transfer the data to your shuttle and extrapolate a heading, but Commander, you can't go to warp, it's like a beacon to the Harves ..."
"Whal." Dan interrupted, "They are called the Whal-Riritika-Mahhn ... Or 'Whal' for short."
"Fair enough." Perez said, "Anyway, the 'Whal' can track a warp signature easier than you can follow a ball across a pool table Commander. Anything faster that full impulse is suicide."
"How far off is the Excalibur ?" Sulla asked the question they were all wanting to know the answer to.
"A day, slightly more, and from what little information we could gather, the Whal are expecting someone or something to happen, pretty quickly, apparently."
"That, is an understatement Ensign." Vance said, sarcasm oozing from every syllable ..........
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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 Oct 31, 2015 12:42:35 GMT
Karka soaked up the ethereal starlight, looking across the plain, it dissolving then taking form of clarity in breaks in the mirage that punctuated the far distance. Three figures approached, dark silhouettes against the radiant light behind; he peered closer, realisation of their identities coming to him as they took on recognisable shape: Lirwa, Soliar and Makar.
He greeted his companions, before all four went to sit under a tree that roughly approximated the Earth sycamore. "When do you head back, Karka?" Lirwa asked.
He placed his palms behind him in the cool grass - which seemed to shine with a radiance all its own - and regarded the horizon serenely, "I am happy to spend perhaps a decade here, before I return once again to my colleagues in the 23rd." If Makar had been watching him, he didn't pay any attention. From what Psonoir had gathered, Makar planned to spend another seventy years on Hybrudea. Karka turned over in the meadow, concentrating his mind and facilitating a link with the nearby archive nodal complex - from there, his thoughts would be broadcast back across the centuries.
His mind was opened up before him, different partitions splaying out in this new hyper-real space he'd been elevated to thanks to the interface with the nodal complex. "Vance, I can see everything. I strongly recommend that on your journey to the Excalibur - news of which I'm extremely relieved about - you at least scan the Confederate as you pass. It's a Federation class dreadnought, same configuration as the USS Lafayette encountered earlier, and not a Constitution class as you'd first thought. In approximately one hour, Makar the Lletia impostor who is a member of my - ... who is a disreputable man, will appear on it and immediately gather all Whal from 100 lightyears around him to his location.
"My, and possibly our objective is to stop Makar before he can draw any of the Whal towards him. I can't do anything to prevent his arrival from my end; I can only arrive before Makar - approximately 5 minutes before - and won't know where he'll appear on the ship. With that in mind, please don't forget about the Telemachus. On it my body is in cold storage; Lieutenant Adams is in deep stasis to prevent growth of a pheromonic pathogen he was exposed to. If you must transfer to the Bell, beam my body and Adams aboard. I understand the journey to the Excalibur will take over 24 hours... That goes a fair way past Commander Schirra's revised time he's willing to spend in the Whal realm, thus your time on the Confederate if you decide to board it must be severely limited -"
"I know!!" Vance screamed, tearing at his skull, nails scratching down his temples and cheeks drawing blood. He fell to his knees; then became suddenly desperate to get the presence of Karka's droning voice out of his head. He hit his head on the floor of the shuttlebay. Then again, harder, and again... He felt something in his forehead crack; his vision started to blur, red filled his sight - blood behind the eyes. Davis and Perez grappled him from behind, pulling under the armpits and against his forehead.
"Vance!" Karka's wispy voice again.
"Silence! Oh, how I want silence." He looked about, it seeming to the others that he didn't recognise his surroundings. He said, "What happened to my room, my lab on the Joyeuse. Is Captain Toshika even still alive? What happened to him, did he just decide to abandon us to this fate?"
He spun and in the dizzy blurriness found himself facing Schirra, "He is in here!" Vance jabbed a finger at his temple, "I swear it, it's no illusion. And he isn't human, Commander. It's just not possible; not even the most advanced neurological transplant technology can move one psyche into another; flesh into machine has been achieved, but not the former."
<Tag Schirra, Ryat>
"Psonoir 'says'," he said, feeling resigned now that the voice would never be banished, "That the Masters' demigod messenger 'Makar' will appear on the USS Confederate in just under an hour, and 'advised' that we scan the vessel for his presence, even attempt docking. Apparently..." he collapsed to the deck, on the verge of losing consciousness as Davis leant beside him pulling a medkit out of the shuttle Bell, "Mr Psonoir himself is going to attempt to stop this Makar, before Makar can draw millions of Whal in the region towards the USS Confederate, and us as we flee for the Excalibur..."
<Tag Schirra, Ryat>
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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 Nov 1, 2015 1:35:08 GMT
Sat in the shuttle, Dan looked from Ryat to Vance and back, wondering if they were all destined to loose their minds in one way or another before they had any chance of returning home ... Officially, Commodore Ryat was now in Command, but with her apparent head injury and her refusal to allow treatment, Dan was within his rights to have her removed. It was of course the last thing he would want to do, so it would eventually depend on what decisions she made, or what decisions she allowed him to make on their behalf.
The USS Confederate was close, though they had yet to maneuver into a position where they could scan the vessel thoroughly. Logically, it would be their next port of call, so to speak, but with the new information regarding the Excalibur, he was tempted to recommend they pass the Confederate and head directly to th ......
"Silence. Oh, how I want silence." Vance mumbled looking about, it seeming to the others that he didn't recognize his surroundings as he continued, "What happened to my room, my lab on the Joyeuse. Is Captain Toshika even still alive. What happened to him, did he just decide to abandon us to this fate ?" He spun and in the dizzy blurriness found himself facing Schirra, "He is in here ! .... I swear it, it is no illusion, and he isn't human, Commander. It's just not possible; not even the most advanced neurological transplant technology can move one psyche into another; flesh into machine has been achieved, but not the former."
"You need to calm down Lieutenant." Schirra said, "We need to establish exactly what is going on, and we cannot do that with what we have here. You know yourself that a tricorder scan would show nothing other than elevated neurotransmi ...."
"Don't insult me Commander." Vance said, incredibly lucid for a second as he glared at Schirra, "Psonoir 'says' that the Masters' demigod messenger 'Makar' will appear on the USS Confederate in just under an hour, and 'advised' that we scan the vessel for his presence, even attempt docking. Apparently ..." he collapsed to the deck, on the verge of losing consciousness as Davis knelt beside him pulling a med-kit out of the shuttle Bell, "Mister Psonoir himself is going to attempt to stop this Makar, before Makar can draw millions of Whal in the region towards the USS Confederate, and us as we flee for the Excalibur ......."
"And just 'how' is Psonoir going to get to the Confederate ?" Robertson asked, but Vance remained stolidly silent, and surprisingly compliant, as Davis administered a mild sedative, "We're to take his body onto the ship, who knows, maybe he'll simply climb back in there and fight this 'Makar' hand to hand." Dan turned to Ryat, still looking around the shuttle bemusedly.
"Commodore ... We need to make a decision ....." he ran through the options open to them, but Alyana just asked for his opinion once he finished. Frustrated, he told her she needed to come to her senses and allow Lieutenant Davis to check out the injury to her head, maybe it was nothing serious, a mild concussion or similar, but again she refused, making things very difficult, if not almost impossible for her Executive Officer.
"Mister Davis, when you are done with Vance please give the Commodore a check-up. It is possible she is suffering from a head injury ......" he said, not allowing Ryat time to protest, "If the Commodore refuses, then under Starfleet order one zero four, section 'C' she will be will relieved of Command ... Lieutenant Robertson, Lieutenant Davis, and Myself will take the Telemachus and board the Confederate. Sulla, Perez, Perry, you will take Commodore Ryat and Mister Vance aboard the Bell and begin heading for the Excalibur. We will catch up with you en-route once we're done."
"NO !" Vance said suddenly, before instantly relaxing and apologizing for the outburst, "Please Commander, I .... He .... Psonoir 'NEEDS' to get over to the Confederate, he's driving me insane with his insistence in this matter."
"Ensign Perez, you will join us." Dan said resignedly glancing at Vance .....
~~~~~
Barely twenty meters apart, the Telemachus and the Bell traversed the distance to the reassigned Dreadnought, Confederate. The Bell began a lazy turn to Port and headed away, while the Telemachus maneuvered into position to dock on the forward section of the massive vessel. They had zero idea of what to expect or even if Vance was telling the truth about this 'Makar' appearing to gather his flock, either way Schirra had to make certain that the ship couldn't be used by anyone once they departed !
Unlike most other abandoned ships, the Confederate was drawing power, either from the core, or the battery reserve. The ships shuttle-craft were all in the hanger bays untouched. It was well lit and had a clean atmosphere, albeit a little thin ... Moving to the Bridge they checked all systems, the core was almost depleted and wouldn't be able to form a cohesive warp bubble, so unless they were planning to 'drag' the leviathan along, it too was going nowhere fast. He kept looking back at Vance, who in turn was eyeing Perez, or rather the phaser the Ensign held steadily aimed at the Scientist' midriff. Suddenly, Vance moaned, a long guttural groan as if in pain. He took a step back until he was against the bulkhead palms at his side fingers seemingly trying to burrow into the fabric-covered panels.
"You must leave, he is coming." he whispered urgently, "Pleeeesse." Dan rushed to the man and asked him what was happening, but Vance looked almost catatonic !
"Vance, who is coming ?" Schirra asked again, "Answer me or I'll drag you off this ship."
"Psonoir, his body, you must ...... Must leave it, behind, if you go now you will live, we will join yo ........"
"Sir !" Robertson said suddenly, "I'm picking up one life-sign, species indeterminate. It is in the lower Engineering Section and is moving slowly."
"Pleeessssseee, leave the body, leave the ship, while you still have chance."
"Can you lock onto the intru ...." Dan began, but Vance spoke again, sending a shiver down Schirra's spine, for it was not Vance speaking.
"Daniel, trust me." Schirra spun almost expecting to see Karka stood before him, but it was Vance, tears falling down his face as if he were pleading for something, salvation, compliance, who could know. He made an decision:
"Back to the Telemachus, NOW !" leaving Vance clutching the bulkhead, they ran through the corridors, the ghostly words of Psonoir seeming to echo through the very walls ... Boarding the shuttle Robertson began the release procedure while Dan transported the cryo-chamber containing his deceased friends body onto the Bridge of the Confederate. Seconds later they were at full impulse heading for the Excalibur. After two minutes he ordered a full stop and asked Robertson to scan the area.
"No new vessels Commander, Whal or otherwise."
"So how the hell did whoever the new life-sign was, get aboard ?" Perez asked.
"Maybe he was there all the time." Robertson speculated.
"Rotate us one eighty degrees. Lock phasers on the Confederate' Engineering Section." Dan ordered, "If anyone but Vance attempts to leave that ship, blow it the hell up !"
"Sir, with all due respect ...." Davis began, but Schirra interrupted him:
"Thirty minutes Lieutenant, then we blow the Confederate and get out of here." ..........
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