POST INDEX
| Post # | Character | Title |
| 001 | Morningstar | Working Together Selene comes to visit Erik while the ships are in NA |
| 002 | Bruxa | New Assignment Satella goes to see Adriana to share the news |
| 003 | Shar'El | Status Report Shar'El reports to Erik about recent events |
| 004 | Ya'Han | Can't Sleep Ya'Han and Jayson talk unable to sleep |
| 005 | Morningstar | Morning Meetings Erik promots Satella and speaks with Shar'El |
| 006 | Paquette | Crystal Pain In The Aft Sonja and Elan come up with a new theory |
| 007 | Stark | Breakfast Things gets rought between Jayson and Ya'Han |
| 008 | Lopez | Inner Debate Adriana debates with Amanda about the transfer |
| 009 | Bruxa | Together Again Satella is beyond happy at Adriana's decision |
| 010 | Ya'Han | Overreacting Ya'Han runs into Satella and Adriana |
| 011 | Lopez | Emergency Session Adriana and Satella rush to see Misaki |
| 012 | Maya | Thinking Harder Maya comes up with a new promessing idea |
| 013 | Shar'El | Searching For Brainwaves Shar'El answers a call from Maya |
| 014 | Lopez | Fitting In Adriana and Satella have a little chat |
| 015 | Morningstar | One Step Closer Erik is informed of the discovery re Nicole |
| 016 | Stark | Different Perspective Jayson watches Ya'Han train |
| 017 | Ya'Han | Inner Anger Ya'Han has a flashback of her past |
| 018 | Paquette | I can't Hear You Erik and Sonja talk about the HATHOR |
| 019 | Shar'El | On The Far Side of Upset Shar'El meets with Sarena and Janeel seperately |
| 020 | Morningstar | Wishing You Were Here The crew goes about its business until a wave hits |
| 021 | Stark | Old Joys Jayson finds himself back in his childhood home |
| 022 | Bruxa | Sisterly Love Satella finds herself back home on MIKULA PRIME |
| 023 | Ya'Han | A Different Kind of Dizzy Ya'Han finds herself in her future |
| 024 | Lopez | Spilled Wine Adriana finds herself back on the Krogen |
| 025 | Maya | Time To Think About Time Maya returns to her father's lab |
| Post # | Character | Title |
| 026 | Shar'El | Looking Back, Moving... Shar'El experiences someone else's past |
| 027 | Stark | Rewriting History Jayson speaks to his younger brother Jesse |
| 028 | Lopez | Looking Into The Void Adriana tries to make the best of her situation |
| 029 | Bruxa | Boxed Memories Satella is enjoying reliving this part of her past |
| 030 | Paquette | Working on a Fix Sonja is contacted by ANI |
| 031 | Maya | A Friend in Need The reality of Maya is merged with another |
| 032 | Shar'El | Someone Else's Past Shar'El relives a moment in Lyta's past |
| 033 | Bruxa | Medical Complications Satella ends up with Shar'El on NA |
| 034 | Ya'Han | For Things Not Yet Forgotten Ya'Han enjoys time with her daughter Ya'Jay |
| 035 | Morningstar | Unexpected Visitor Erik chats with his dead father before Tanith arrives |
| 036 | Lopez | Altered Past Adriana heads to Engineering and runs into Ya'Han |
| 037 | Bruxa | Situatioal Review Satella and Shar'El try to figure things out |
| 038 | Shar'El | Deeper Secrets Shar'El and Satella search for answers |
| 039 | Stark | Not The Most Pleasant Jayson finds himself in Shar'El's reality |
| 040 | Ya'Han | Drawn Together Ya'Han regroups with Shar'El, Jayson and Satella |
| 041 | Bruxa | More People Adriana joins the group. Satella speaks with Jayson |
| 042 | Shar'El | Linked beyond Understanding Shar'El is regaiing some of Lyta's telepathic abilities |
| 043 | Jones | Anywhere But There Tanith and Erik have a discussion |
| 044 | Morningstar | Losing More Than Yourself The reality around Tanith and Erik is shrinking |
| 045 | Paquette | Compressed Realities Sonja and Maya are working hard to find a solution |
| 046 | Shar'El | Darkness Inside The Void Gemma's past is linked to the Lokustaar and Lyta |
| 047 | Morningstar | From One Unknown... Erik and Tanith regroup with Maya and Sonja |
| 048 | Ya'Han | Field Counseling Ya'Han and Adriana have a friendly chat |
| 049 | Stark | Whispered Voices Jayson and Satella have a friendly chat |
| 050 | Paquette | Clicking Heels The group is brought back to their realities |
##########
"Working Together"
Previous post "Blinking"
##########
"We don't develop courage by being happy every day. We develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity."
- Barbara De Angelis
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Captain's Ready Room
Stardate: 33002.0900
The Native American sat at his desk, looking up every so often to the currently empty couch where the Ship's Counsellor Nicole Dima usually sat when the two of them chatted. Since her disappearance, Erik had been on edge, and ironically the Trill had been the one person he would have sought out to talk about how to best deal with how he felt. Instead, the Captain had no other recourse but to continue on his self-appointed task, doing everything he could to help with the efforts to locate the missing member of his crew.
The crews of both the USS ANUBIS and USS BASTET had joined forces, some teams working in their respective fields of expertise to find and return Counsellor Dima safely where she belonged, while others joined for more personal reasons. In either cases, the two crews had come as one for the time being.
The door chime drew the Native American out of his thoughts, instinctively instructing the person on the other side of the door to come in. For a brief moment Erik actually expected the joint Trill to walk in, so it was with a hint of disappointment and a certain amount of surprise that he instead greeted the Commanding Officer of the BASTET as she walked in.
"Captain Iverson," Morningstar politely acknowledged. "To what do I owe this unexpected visit?"
"Just thought I would drop in and add a new pairing," Selene said in the serious tone that had become her trademark causing Erik to ever so subtlety lean back in his chair. The reaching, as subtle as it might have been intended to be, was easily noticed by the Intel trained Terran / Dinaali hybrid who in response shook her head. "You need to relax; I do not believe that I have ever seen you so much on edge. If I may be so bold as to suggest something, it might do you some good to get some rest. All I meant to say was that the members of the senior staff of our respective vessels are currently working together, except for the two of us."
The Native American smiled as he returned to a more normal sitting posture in order to reach for a PADD with one hand and invite the visiting Captain to sit with the other. With a rare smile, Selene Iverson accepted the invitation and took the seat directly in front of the ANUBIS' CO. "I've read the reports," Erik informed. "Our Chief Science Officers, Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba are trying to figure out a way to locate my Ship's Counsellor trough isolating the faint quantum trail theorized to being left behind by the effect of the 'blink device' created by putting all nine crystals together."
"I actually sat in on their discussion for a few minutes and had to walk out," Iverson admitted. "As hard as I tried, I could not make heads or tails of what they were talking about. I'm usually pretty good with understanding what weird scientific fact or theory Misaki is trying to explain, but this was way beyond anything that I am accustomed to, and I command a ship able to travel to other dimensions as well as through time."
"Birds of a feather," Morningstar chuckled. "I have learned long ago to give my Chief Science Officer as much space as she needs. It is the best way to insure her sanity as well as that of the rest of my crew. As for your command, as great as the adventures may be, I for one am happy to be stuck in this dimension. There is enough happening here to keep me and my crew busy for a very long time."
"If the shadows we have seen are any indication, thing might get a lot busier in the year to come," Captain Iverson muttered under her breath, her report to Admiral Koniki as to what the BASTET had been forced to deal with still not having been made public to the other Captains of the NEW ALEXANDRIA fleet.
"Shadows?" Erik inquired, his earlier dealings with the Lokustaar making him weary anytime someone used that particular term.
"Not important," Selene dismissed. "It looks like our children are playing well together," Selene added. The Captain of the BASTET did not really consider those under her command as children, but she thought that using such a term might help the Captain of the ANUBIS find some sort of humour in the situation they were dealing with. As sad as the disappearance of Counsellor Dima was, appracohing the matter with gloom would only make things worse.
The Native American glanced down at the PADD he had fetched, quickly confirming who amongst his officers had paired with whom from the other crew. Commander Sarena Valentine, the BASTET's First Officer had joined forces with her counterpart on board the ANUBIS, Commander Shar'El, both women trying to come up with the best possible plan of action once Nicole's location was confirmed. From their latest report though, Erik also suspected that the two Executive Officers were sharing insights into personnel issues from their respective vessels.
Lieutenant Jayson Stark, the Chief of Operations for the ANUBIS was speaking with the BASTET's Counsellor, Lieutenant Adriana Lopez, while Lieutenant Ya'Han, the Chief of Security for Erik had been working with Selene's Chief Medical Officer Satella Bruxa. It was unclear as to what both pairs were working on, but just the fact that they had come together was looked upon as a positive development.
An even stranger pairing was that of Commander Janeel, the Intelligence Liaison Officer of the BASTET who somehow had come to work with the ANUBIS' Flight Control Officer, Ensign Tanith Jones. From what others had reported, the two women appeared to have quite a bit to talk about, not that there was any official account of the extensive time they spent together.
All this left was Lieutenant Paquette who had teamed up with the Oltharian Robotics expert to work on a way to incorporate the 'blink device' as it had come to be known into the propulsion system of the USS HATHOR. To Erik's chagrin, the ANUBIS as well all other primary ships in the NEW ALEXANDRIA fleet having been deemed to be too large and complex to be a viable platform for the unique abilities of Professor Arken's unexpected crystal creation.
"From what I can see here, everyone does seem to be getting along splendidly," Erik pointed out as he looked up at Selene.
"They are," the BASTET's Captain said, again surprising the Native American with a faint smile before leaning forward over the other's Captain's desk. "We need to talk."
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
=-=
"New Assignment"
[previous post were (ANU) "Working Together" / (BAS) "Working Together, Part 2"]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Corridor outside Holodeck 3
Stardate: 33002.1110
Satella stood motionless in the corridor for the longest time. The news given by her Captain was both an unexpected and welcomed one. The situation with Commander Valentine had really been a difficult one. That was why she would not hesitate to jump at the chance given by Selene. As much as the CMO loved working on the BASTET, serving on the ANUBIS would offer new opportunities and challenges. This left Bruxa to hope that her new ExO was less of a stick in the mud than Sarena was.
After a few more minutes Bruxa chuckled to herself before being hit by wave of sadness. Leaving the BASTET was not going to be all nice and sweet. Satella would be leaving Adriana behind and that was not something she was looking forward to. In fact she was dreading it more than she could have imagined. The CNS was more than a shipmate; she had become a cherished friend and a confident. Their friendship allowed them to be there for one another. With Satella gone, who else on the crew would understand the dynamic of the woman's relationship with her twin sister? Would anyone support the woman's need to *see* her sister? What possible hell would Valentine put Lopez through without someone being there to help?
For a moment, Satella debated reversing her decision to jump ship. What kind of a friend would she be if she left? Dealing with the First Officer would be easier if they remained together as a team. This also applied to the Lokustaar, not that the physician believed that they could do all that much against those walking nightmares. Together or otherwise that is. That's when a new idea took form, a solution that would solve everyone's problems. At least as best as could be given the situation that brought the crews of the two ships together.
With both Lopez and Bruxa on the ANUBIS things would be simpler. The friends would be together, away from Valentine and the Lokustaar. What more could Satella ask for? Now, would Adriana agree to move and would Captain Morningstar accept a new CNS along with his new CMO?
As cold as it might sound, the ANUBIS was at the moment without the services of both a CMO and CNS. That should, in theory, stack the deck in Adriana's and Satella's favor as they could fill those vacancies. Before approaching Captain Morningstar though, Doctor Bruxa needed to speak to her friend.
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Counselor's Office
Stardate: 33002.1120
Thanks to the computer's help, Satella had no problems locating Adriana. Oddly enough, the Counselor of the BASTET could be found in the offices of the Counselor of the ANUBIS. Was this the universe's way to say that her plan would work?
With a bounce in her step, Doctor Bruxa walked into the Cousnelor's office. It felt oddly right to be walking through doorways that belonged to another ship. With each step she took, Satella felt more at ease on the ANUBIS. The physician could not understand why. She loved being on the BASTET, but somehow being here felt better. Maybe the fact she was filling in a need by taking on the vacancy made it all right.
"What are you doing?" Doctor Bruxa asked in joyful surprise of her friend who as sitting. It was not the fact that she was sitting that was surprising. It was rather where she was sitting. Taking the layout of the room into account, it seemed that Adriana was in the chair where the Ship's Counselor should be. Even more interesting was the fact that an officer of the ANUBIS was sitting on the couch across from her friend.
"We were searching for something that might give us a clue as to Nicole's whereabouts. Unfortunately, we found nothing," the man with the gold-colored uniform replied. "We say down for a moment and started talking."
The Counselor of the BASTET looked at her friend. For a brief moment Adriana expected Satella to give her a piece of her mind. Instead, the physician just smiled, hinting that she knew something that the other did not.
"Should I gather that you like this place?" Doctor Bruxa asked in a friendly manner. Seeing Adriana like this provided Satella with the perfect setup. Questions could be asked without letting her know the endgame of the interrogation
"What is there not to like? This place is just amazing!" Adriana said, greeting her friend and inviting her to join them. "My offices on the BASTET are not even half the size of this place. A counselor could easily do a group session with room to spare."
"Glad to see that you are making yourself comfortable," Satella said.
Interpreting her friend's words as a reality check, Adriana jumped to her feet. "You are right, I am sorry. This place is not mine. I am so sorry. We came searching for something to help us find Counselor Dima. Instead I allowed myself to act as if this place was mine. I am truly sorry."
Lopez had thrown herself into a full-sized knot. Like Satella, Adriana had found it difficult to deal with the BASTET's ExO. That was likely the reason for her jumping in with both feet into this place. All that Bruxa needed to do now was to see if her friend would be willing to go all the way.
"Lieutenant," Doctor Bruxa said to the ANUBIS' officer. "If you wouldn't mind, could you give us a few minutes?"
"Of course," he replied before walking out. It seemed that he did not have any problems with leaving the two of them alone in this place.
"I am sorry," Adriana continued the guilt more than visible on her face. "I did not mean any disrespect. Jayson and i just started talking and before we knew it, we were sitting down."
"Captain Iverson has made arrangement for me to come aboard the ANUBIS as the new CMO." Satella wanted to find a better way to make the announcement, but the short and direct approach won out in the end.
"You are leaving the BASTET?" Adriana's previous guilt had suddenly transmuted into fear.
"I have not given my final decision yet," the physician said to her friend in an effort to reassure her. I wanted to talk to you first and see if you would be interested in coming with."
"How did Captain Iverson convince the ANUBIS' Captain to take me on as his new Counselor? We are still looking for her."
"That's where it gets a little more complicated," Satella said, ushering her friend back down to sit on the chair. "I was given the CMO spot. Everything was arranged between the two Captains. There was no mention of doing the same with the CNS position."
"What do you expect me to do? Walk in and claim this office while the Counselor of the ANUBIS is out there, somewhere?" Adriana bluntly demanded. "You may be filling a vacancy. Jayson did mention that they had been without a Chief Medical officer for quite some time. When it comes to their Counselor though, it's an entirely different story. She went missing only a few days ago. Her chair was still warm."
Satella wanted to break the tension by making a joke. She could have pointed out that the chair had been warm because a new Counselor had been sitting there. Quickly realizing that it would not be as funny as the Physician might have liked, she changed her approach.
"I don't want to leave you alone to deal with Valentine. After what happened she is going to be biting at the bit to find something wrong with anything we do. At least together we have a better fighting chance," Doctor Bruxa stressed.
"Wait," Adriana interrupted as she jumped back to her feet. "What are you saying? Are you putting all of this on my shoulders? Are you telling me that if I don't transfer to the ANUBIS with you, you'll stay on the BASTET?"
"Maybe not quite in those words, but close enough." This friendly discussion was not turning out the way Satella had hoped. "All I am asking you to do is to think about the possibility. Even if they find their Counselor, there is no telling in what state she will be. A ship this size needs a Counselor just as much as they need a Chief Medical Officer. I am not saying that my final decision depends on yours. I just think that it would be in both our interests to consider this move.
"I need time to think."
Satella had seen her friend happy, scared, puzzled and even confused. She had seen her going through countless emotions, but this she had to admit was a new one. At first glance it appeared to be a mixture of all those emotions and countless more.
"I'm sorry for having dropped this on you like that," Doctor Bruxa said to her friend. "I'm still spinning from the news myself. Just promise me that you will think about it. We can both go see Captain Morningstar if you chose to stay. I know that Captain Iverson will understand if you do."
"Give me some time, please. I really need to think this through."
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Ensign Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
=-=
"Status Report"
[previous post were (ANU) "New Assignment" by Rachel / (BAS) "Faster than Gossip" by Karen]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Captain's Ready Room
Stardate: 33002.1900
Since their return to NEW ALEXANDRiA and the disappearance of Counselor Nicole Dima, the crews of both the ANUBIS and BASTET dedicated their time and every effort to solving this puzzling mystery. In addition to this, certain personnel issues were being dealt with, some with greater ease than others.
"The science team still has not figured out where Nicole was transported to?" The Captain of the ANUBIS asked reading the PADD in his hands, the disappointment he felt heard loud and clear by the ExO / ILO who was the only other person in the room.
"They have not given up," Shar'El added, her report to her Captain having been kept simple due to the number of items it dealt with. "Lt. Commander Quitys, the head of the Astrometrics Department of NEW ALEXANDRIA hinted to Maya and Misaki that they were wasting their time and should instead be focusing on helping the Engineering team with the integration of the crystals into the HATHOR. My guess is that Quitys has been working under the Admiral for a little too long and has taken some of his less endearing ways of dealing with the loss of an officer."
"Nicole is not now nor will ever be an 'acceptable casualty'," Morningstar hissed, slamming the PADD onto his desk. This was not the first time he was dealing with the Admiral's more callous ways. "Until such time as we have proof that she is not out there, somewhere, hoping for us to find her, I will not let anyone slap an MIA tag on her file."
"No one is expecting you do to so," the ExO / ILO said in a reassuring manner. "That is part of the reason why the Admiral is likely going to be giving the rescue mission to Captain Iverson."
"Of course he will," Captain Morningstar sighed. "He knows that we would put finding Nicole above testing whatever that Blink Device is supposed to do."
"There is another matter that we need to discuss," Shar'El hesitantly said, something that the Captain instantly picked up on as the ExO / ILO had never been known for being shy to share her opinions, be them professional or personal. "It seems that we may have a replacement available for the position of Ship's Counselor."
"What? We go without a Doctor for *months* and in just a few days of Nicole going missing we are assigned a new Counselor? What is Koniki trying to pull?"
"Actually this is not from the Admiral," The ExO / ILO clarified. "It's Adriana Lopez, the Counselor of the BASTET and friend of Doctor Satella Bruxa."
"She wants to jump ship too? What is Selene doing on the BASTET?"
"Actually, it's Satella who is trying to convince Adriana to follow her here to the ANUBIS," Shar'El explained. "It seems that the two of them have had some issues with Commander Valentine, because of that the Doctor believes that this would be a good move for her friend, a move that Captain Iverson does not seem to be all that anxious to oppose."
"Sounds like you and your IGC team have been busy," Captain Morningstar said, shaking his head.
"I would be a poor ExO / ILO for you and the ANUBIS if I did not know what people were planning, especially when it directly deals with the crew," Shar'El chuckled back. "I do not believe that Doctor Bruxa would use her new position as your Chief Medical Officer to influence your decision, but she is trying to come up with a way to present her case should her friend accept to try, which I believe she is honestly considering."
"Let me guess, you ran into her at some point during the day and scanned her memories?"
"I did not breach my promise to you," Shar'El was quick to point out. "Lieutenant Lopez is not a member of this crew and therefore not subject to the agreement I have made with you. Plus, I thought it would be good to know more about what all of their discussions were about."
"How much progress has Sonja made on adapting the crystals to the HATHOR's system?" Captain Morningstar asked, thinking it time to change the subject away from the apparent exodus of officers from the BASTET.
"Sonja is working with Elan and ANI, and according to her last report, and I quote, 'Those blasted crystals may fit nicely with one another but they sure don't want to fit with anything else we have here. We probably would have a better chance forcing Elan inside the warp core of the HATHOR and using him as the energy source.'"
"In other words, we have some time ahead of us to settle the Counselor issue," Morningstar noted. "Where is our new Doctor now?" the Captain asked of the ExO / ILO suspecting that he would get a quicker and just as accurate an answer as if he asked the computer.
"Doctor Bruxa is in Sickbay and has been there for quite some time," Shar'El replied. "It seems that she wants to make herself as comfortable with the setup and equipment as possible, this to possibly insure that you do not regret accepting her transfer. It might also be her hope that her dedication to making this work will be considered when you are asked to accept her friend Adriana Lopez on board as our new Counselor."
"I can't help but wonder if Doctor Bruxa has any idea of the kind of crew she just agreed to join," Morningstar said, laughing ever so slightly. "Whatever problems she and her friend might have had with the BASTET's ExO may pale in comparison with the headaches they are going to have with you constantly looking over their shoulders."
"They?" Shar'El said with a distinct tone of surprise, focusing on one particular word said by the Captain. "Have you already made a decision as to the yet-to-be-made request from Lieutenant Lopez?"
"Case and point," the Captain sighed as he leaned back into his chair. "Maybe I should send the Doctor back and tell her to count her blessings instead of seeking an escape onto the ANUBIS. In the end, she and her friend might actually thank me."
"By the way you make it sound, I'm a horrible ExO / ILO," Shar'El said, exaggerating her words and actions from being hurt by her Captain's words
"You are an excellent ExO and ILO, although I do have to admit that your skills as an actress do appear to be somewhat lacking," Captain Morningstar added as he returned to a more professional sitting position behind his desk. "All kidding aside, every ship has a distinct way to go about things and I know that there will be some amount of adjustment required from our new CMO. As for my accepting a replacement Counselor, I think I should speak with Doctor Bruxa and get a little more information as to what happened on the BASTET. I have the feeling that Captain Iverson might have left some details out when we spoke to make sure I would accept this transfer request."
"Would you like for me to meet with Counselor Lopez and see if I can get additional information on what this conflict between them and Commander Valentine is all about?" Shar'El proposed.
The Captain chuckled. "You have already scanned her memories, what more could you possibly do to her?"
"I could just have a friendly chat with her," Shar'El grinned.
"That might solve our issue right there and then," Erik laughed. "You might scare her straight out of Starfleet. Let me speak with Doctor Bruxa first, we can figure out what route we'll take after. For the record though I will say this, even if I do accept to take on Miss Lopez as a member of this crew, she will not be listed as a replacement for Counselor Dima."
"Of course," Shar'El said with a smile, finding the passing in the man's voice to be an endearing quality that was alas not seen by the other members of the crew as often as it should.
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Lieutenant Commander Janeel [Access Character BIO for Janeel]
Intel Liaison Officer / Mission Specialist
USS BASTET
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
"Can't Sleep"
[previous post were (ANU) "Status Report" / (BAS) "Not Alone"]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Ya'Han's Quarters
Stardate: 33003.0100
"Having problems sleeping?" Jayson asked with some relief as he walked out of the bedroom to find the Sec/Tac sitting on the couch, her legs folded under her as she read something on a PADD. Waking up during the night was not something new for him, but the moment he realized that he was in her quarters and alone, he jumped out of bed in near panic.
"After the second nightmare in a row, I figure it was best for me to just give up trying to get some sleep," Ya'Han said, a quiet calmness about her
"Nightmares? I do try to keep my feet warm without using your back," he chuckled. The goal had been to make her smile, or at the very least try to break the overly serious expression engraved on her face. The fact that her hair was colored in all black indicated that something was clearly bothering her.
"It wasn't you, nor your feet," she far too seriously dismissed before making herself a little smaller so that he could join her on the couch. "It was those Lokustaar creatures that Doctor Bruxa and I were studying in the holodeck. We pooled all of the data we could and created a holographic recreation. Even knowing that the creature that was right there in front of us was nothing more than a hologram, it still managed to creep me out. So much so in fact that I have gone through two separate nightmares involving them in a single night."
"You and Doctor Bruxa? Did you know that she is going to be our new Chief Medical Officer?" Jayson asked thinking that a change of subject might help. "I saw the Captain's request for the transfer of her personnel file."
"She seems to be a very nice and knowledgeable person," Ya'Han nodded, accepting the invitation to change subject. "It will be nice to have a Doctor on board; we have been without for far too long."
"Don't use that as an excuse to send me flying across the gymnasium later during our daily sparring exercise," Jayson teased, making sure that Ya'Han would not be able to strike back at him, at least not yet.
"Don't worry, I will give her some time to adjust to a new ship and crew before I send you to see her with injuries that will keep her busy for at least several hours," the Sec/Tac teased back, pushing her feet against his leg pinning the Terran against the edge of the couch with enough force that he knew he would have a bruise to show for it.
"Ouch! You said that you would give her time."
"That was just the prequel of what is heading you way if you keep acting like this," she shot back, still sounding far too serious for Jayson's liking.
"You win," Jayson quickly added, raising his hands in a show of accepting defeat. "Wonder what the BASTET is going to be doing without a Doctor. I have not seen or heard anything about there being a replacement to take her place, but then again I was not looking all that hard."
"I know," Ya'Han smirked, finally breaking through the aura of seriousness that had been around her. "I heard that you were busy talking to the BASTET's Counselor. According to rumors, your two were having a great old time."
"We were only talking," Jayson quickly claimed in his defense, shocked and even a little hurt that Ya'Han would even think for a instant that something else might have been going on.
"Relax, I was only teasing," the Sec/Tac reassured although her words did not sound all that amused. "In fact, I am surprise that not more people sought her out after what happened to Nicole. Like so many things in life, you only realize just how much something or someone is important to you when that thing or person is no longer there."
Jayson blinked. Had he stumbled upon the real reason for Ya'Han current saddened mood? With the disappearance of their Ship's Counselor and the knowledge that those Lokustaar were out there, closer than anyone would have liked them to be, it was no surprise that the Sec/Tac had fallen into a near depressive state.
"Nicole is not gone," the Terran man said taking on the task of reassuring the Nylaan woman sitting next to him. "Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba are madly working to figure out where those crystals sent her. Even without Professor Arken's help, I am sure that they will figure something out soon."
"I hope so, I truly do," Ya'Han quietly declared. "One of the nightmares I had dealt with Nicole. Somehow she ended up captured by those walking nightmares and was calling for help at the top of her lungs. The problem was that there was nothing any of us could do. I felt completely powerless, not only as the ANUBIS' Sec/Tac but as a friend."
"Maybe you should speak to Adriana," Jayson suggested, not at all liking seeing Ya'Han the way she was. Based on the fact that he felt better after their professional discussion, the Chief of Operations could only guess that the Sec/Tac would feel the same way following his recommendation.
The Nylaan paused for a moment as if time itself had come to a stop. Then, she slowly drew a long, deep breath and turned her head in order to face the Terran sitting by her side straight on.
"Adriana?"
"Sorry, Counselor Lopez, the Counselor of the BASTET," he corrected, realizing that he might have made a huge mistake by the way Ya'Han was glaring back at him. There was no way for him to predict the way she would react thanks to the way she currently felt.
"So you two are on a first-name basis?" Ya'Han asked causing a cold sweat to trickle down his back before realizing that her hair had still not change color from the solid black he found her with when he came into the living area of her quarters.
"Why do I have the feeling that I am going to be seeing Doctor Bruxa a lot faster than anyone might have expected?" Jayson lamented knowing that if Ya'Han truly wanted to injure him there was little he could do to stop her. Her speed and strength far surpassed his, and in the end he would not actually fight back. As she had just explained, people needed to lose something in order to know how much it meant to them, and he did not want to do anything that might risk him losing her as he had believed he had not that long ago.
"You know that I am teasing," Ya'Han said, not wanting Jayson to go into a full panic attack. "Anyway, as much as it might be nice to speak to her about my nightmares, it would not be fair to the Counselor of the BASTET to take on two crews to take care of. I am sure that there will be people on her ship who will need to be helped following the news that their Chief Medical Officer is coming over to the ANUBIS."
"Maybe, but after the disappearance of Dima, I have noticed quite a few long faces wandering this ship, and that includes the Captain," the Chief of Operations said. "Nicole might not have been on the ANUBIS for all that long, but she did manage to make a difference in a lot of people's lives, including mine. That is why her sudden disappearing is being felt by a lot of people."
"That is how things work on a ship like the ANUBIS," the Sec/Tac started, poised to explain her point of view on the matter. "Because of our mission profile, we face some of the harshest and darkest missions out there. This leads us to bond as a crew much more than the normal average. On some ships, the idea of being that close to anyone else makes no sense, but to us and others like us, we quickly fall into the mentality that the rest of the crew are not just people you work with, but rather are part of the same family that you belong to. It also means that when you lose someone, like we did Nicole, you feel it that much more because you have not only lost someone you knew as a shipmate, you ended up losing a member of your family."
"And that is part of the reason why I needed to speak to Adriana," Jayson said before quickly adding an amendment. "I meant Counselor Lopez. Being from the BASTET, she understands that way of thinking very well. As different as their mission profile may be from ours, they deal with a kind of horror and darkness the likes of which we can barely imagine."
"Thanks to Doctor Bruxa, I don't need to imagine anything anymore," the Sec/Tac sighed. "Those creepy spider-like creatures known as the Lokustaar are as dark and scary as it gets. I can't imagine anyone not having nightmares after seeing something like that."
"Promise me that you will at least keep an open mind with the idea of speaking to her," Jayson pushed. "As much as I enjoy us having these ultra-early morning chat, I would much rather us enjoying several more hours of sleep, together. The bed does feel empty without you there."
"Fine," Ya'Han reluctantly agreed, actually adding a grin, as faint as it might have been.
"Are you saying fine to speaking with Adriana or fine with coming back to bed?"
"Speak about that Counselor using only her first name again, and I guarantee she will have no other choice but to join this crew?"
"What?" Jayson asked, not sure as to what Ya'Han was saying. "How do you figure that?"
The Sec/Tac narrowed her eyes as she glared straight into the eyes of the Chief of Operations. "Simple, I will beat you clear pass any need for you to see Doctor Bruxa and right into the morgue. After that, the crew will have no other option but to seek out the Counselor to help them deal with the grief of your loss as well as the trauma of having seen your mangled body dragged through every deck of this ship."
If it wasn't for the fact that her hair had changed to being the normal mixture of black and red, Jayson would have honestly been concerned for his own safety. Even with knowing that she was kidding, the Terran could not help but fear the day when he would actually make the Nylaan angry enough for her to act in the manner she had just described, even if only in the slightest possible fraction.
"Shall we go to bed?" Ya'Han playfully asked following a short pause of complete silence, the question further surprising Jayson by its unexpectedness.
"I'm not sure if I will be able to sleep now," Jayson hesitantly replied. "I think it will be my turn to have a few nightmares, those likely being about a red dragon crushing my bones into dust through increasingly painful methods."
"Come here!" The Nylaan commanded as she reached out to grab hold of the man who barely managed to slip out of her reach in time before seeking refuge in their bedroom. "Did I not specifically tell you *never* to call me that?"
"I wasn't calling you a Red Dragon," he rapidly claimed, seeking to put as much distance between her and him as possible while being confined to the space available within their quarters. "I was just stating what kind of nightmare I was expecting to have."
"Come back here and I will show you what a real nightmare can do."
If Shar'El or any member of her IGC team were listening, as the Sec/Tac always suspected they were, their report would show that a great deal of laughter was heard next. Doctor Bruxa would have to wait a little longer to see her first patient, at least as far as this couple was involved.
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
##########
"Morning Meetings"
Previous posts (ANU) "Can't Sleep" / (BAS) "Not Alone"
##########
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards."
- Søren Kierkegaard
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Sickbay
Stardate: 33003.0730
The Native American Captain walked into the ANUBIS' Sickbay looking for his new Chief Medical Officer, Doctor Satella Bruxa. He had expected the Ensign to be in her newly assigned quarters but after inquiring from the computer as to her location, Erik was pleasantly surprised to discover that the Mikulak woman had already made her way to Sickbay.
As a Captain, it was always nice to see such eagerness in a new officer, showing that they were ready to tackle the demands of their position and maybe try to impress their Commanding Officer by the same account.
"Doctor?" Erik called out, making his way towards the office of the Chief Medical Officer after finding the main treatment area empty.
"I'm right here!" Satella replied, not having realized that someone had come into her department. "How may I be of assistance?" The CMO added, from behind her desk, offering the standard welcome for someone in her position, When the man came into view though, Doctor Bruxa instantly changed her posture quickly realizing that she was addressing none other than the Captain of the ANUBIS and the man to who she owed her being here to.
"I hope that I am not interrupting anything important," the Native American said as he walked into the office. "I just wanted to see if everything was alright with your transfer, and by the looks of things you seem to be making yourself at home very quickly."
"I am," the Ensign enthusiastically replied. "I am, I hope that this is alright with you Captain? I know I should have met with you before coming here, but you all seemed so busy and i did not want to get in anyone's way."
"It is quite all right Doctor," Erik guaranteed, trying to put the visible nervous woman more at ease. Although she had been serving on board the BASTET for exactly a year before now, the Ensign displayed the eagerness and uncertainties of a fresh Starfleet Academy graduate. "This is your department now, and as such it is expected for you to make yourself at ease."
"Thank you Captain," the Mikulak woman acknowledged, attempting to calm her nerves.
"I also needed to see you about a more official matter," the Native American captain said, causing the woman's tension to spike once again. "Captain Iverson asked me to take care of something. She believed that it would be best if I handled the situation as it might cause some problems back on the BASTET."
Satella gulped, certain that what would come next would be some sort of disciplinary measure that her previous Commanding Officer had not have the opportunity to take care of before the transfer.
"Captain, if I may?" Doctor Bruxa asked, hoping to be able to say a few things before the axe fell.
"Of course," the Native American said, granting the request mostly because he was curious to see what his new CMO was thinking of at this moment.
"Whatever reasons Captain Iverson stated to explain what you are about to do, I wanted to assure you that I would never disobey any orders given to me. It was just that the case of the Yxidii we rescued from the disabled MASTER's cruiser was a unique set of circumstances. Actually trying to end his life did seem to be the only viable option at the time in order to save him from a never ending cycle of his being in limbo between life and death," Bruxa paused, trying to gauge her Captain's reaction. "I have learned my lesson and will not be going against orders even if I believe that a better option may be available."
"I truly hope not," Erik said, surprising Satella straight back into her chair. "Starfleet is not about creating officers who blindly follow orders. I expect every officer under my command to feel comfortable in expressing an opposing opinion. If in the end though my decision stands, I hope that whatever conversation we had prior would explain why the decision made was reached."
"Of course Captain," the CMO grinned, still not entirely certain as to what had just happened. "Am I being disciplined for what I did on the BASTET?"
"Only if you consider these to be a form of punishment," the Native American said placing a small blue velvet box on the desk. After several seconds of hesitation, the Mikulak woman reached for the small box and opened it to reveal a single hollowed pip.
"I don't know what to say," Satella gasped, this not having been in the least what she had expected.
"I believe that it is customary for someone receiving a promotion to say thank you, and maybe stand," Erik said, unable to hide his amusement at the whole affair.
In the blink of an eye the Chief Medical Officer of the ANUBIS came to a full upright stance as the Captain reached for the box and retrieved the single pip to affix it to the officer's collar.
"Congratulations Lieutenant Junior Grade Satella Bruxa," the Captain announced. "In recognition for your dedication to your work and to Starfleet in general, you are awarded this promotion granting all of the rights and responsibilities associated with your new rank."
"Thank you Captain," the new Lieutenant said, visibly shaken if not clearly overjoyed by what had just happened.
"I am only the messenger," Erik grinned. "I do hope that in time though I will be able to give you a promotion not sanctioned by someone else."
"I will do my best to prove myself worthy of this promotion and of the confidence you have shown in my regards," Doctor Bruxa stated, the woman appearing ready to leap out of her own skin with joy.
"I am sure you will Doctor. Now if you will excuse me, I have other matters to attend do. Congratulations on your promotion and welcome aboard the ANUBIS *Lieutenant*."
Satella watched the man leave her office, remembering only after he was gone that she had wanted to discuss an important matter with him. The transfer of her friend Adriana Lopez, the Counsellor of the USS BASTET needed to be addressed, this especially since the CMO had now officially left her friend behind despite claiming that she would not do so.
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Bridge
Stardate: 33003.0800
"Good morning Captain," Shar'El said, greeting the Native American onto the Command Deck. "How was your meeting with Doctor Bruxa? I am gathering that she was happy with her promotion?"
"Have I ever told you how truly disturbing it is to have you know everything that happens on the ANUBIS?" Erik rhetorically asked as he made his way to the central chair. "What gave it away?"
"Captain Iverson did file the official paperwork to Admiral Koniki, the PADD on which the request was submitted not having been as secured as it should have been," the First Officer explained letting it be beyond clear that she was as much if not even more so an Intel Operative as well. "The fact that you requested the pip from the replicator left little doubt that you were planning on carrying out the promotion. The rest was pure deduction as you made your way straight to Sickbay after leaving your quarters."
"I am sure that others have said this to you Commander, but I feel the need to reiterate it. You can be rather scary at times," the Native American said as he accepted the PADD from his First Officer which contained the daily reports. "How are we doing on locating our missing Counsellor?" The question came across as much more serious and solemn indicating that the time for pleasantries had come to an end.
"After a short rest, Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba have resumed their work. According to the report of our own Chief Science officer, they are trying to isolate a fluctuating sub-space quantum vibration that was detected by our internal sensors when the ninth crystal was joined with the first eight. This vibration lasted for less than a second, which is of course only making it that much more difficult for them to work with, but they have made a fair amount of progress."
"Professor Arken is still refusing to assist?" Morningstar asked, not sounding in the least bit happy about the eccentric scientist's apparent lack of interest in the fact that a member of the ANUBIS' crew had gone missing thanks to his work.
"All of his research notes on the crystals have been transferred over and closely reviewed by both Maya and ANI," Shar'El reported. "Unfortunately, the Admiral has made it clear that the Professor is not available to offer any additional help in this matter."
"Sometimes, Admiral Koniki can really test my resolve," Erik said through grinding teeth.
"I was able to find out that the Professor has been spending all of his time with the Idanian agent we apprehended and who was in possession of the seventh crystal," the First Officer stated. "My guess is that the Professor is using his position to protect the Intel operative from the Admiral's more intrusive interrogation techniques. Of course, the only possible reason for him to be doing this is that he has feelings for the Idanian agent. That alone would be enough for Admiral Koniki to keep him on a very short leash."
"What about Sonja? How much progress as she and Lieutenant Fairborn made in the integration of the crystals into the propulsion system of the HATHOR?" The Native American inquired, curious if he would be regaining the services of his Chief Engineer before the science team found Nicole's location.
"They have come across a few issues," Shar'El reported. "That said, I believe it is fair to remind you that should both teams manage their respective objectives, it is likely going to be Captain Iverson and her crew that will be leading the test and rescue mission."
"I am quite aware of this," Erik hissed, the man not usually prone to display his emotions, be them good or bad, the current one falling well within the general definition of the latter. "Koniki suspects that we would put rescuing Nicole ahead of completing the propulsion tests on the Blink Device."
"Suspects?" Shar'El repeated.
"All right, he knows," the Captain admitted. "That is part of the problem, I can't exactly be mad at him for knowing what we would do. I am not in the habit of leaving a member of my crew behind or not doing everything in my power to seeing them be returned to safety. This ship needs its Counsellor."
"Speaking of which," the Commander said seeing the perfect opportunity to slide into her next subject matter she wanted to discuss with the Captain.
"Let me guess, you have already met with Lieutenant Lopez and are here to inform me that she too wants to join the ANUBIS?" Erik said, feeling as if he was in some way betraying Nicole by even considering accepting another Counsellor on board his vessel.
"Actually I have not," Shar'El admitted. "We did agree that I would do so only after you spoke with Doctor Bruxa, which you only did this morning. I am guessing that with the promotion, you failed to inquire about her opinion on this matter."
"I didn't have to," the Native American explained. "It was easy to see that she is happy to be here and is trying her best to fit in as best she can. Her unexpected promotion made her forget for a moment about speaking to me about it, but I still could see it in her face. That is why she has been trying so hard since her arrival."
"So you wish me to speak with Miss Lopez now?"
Erik just nodded. Ignoring the situation with the BASTET's Counsellor and her friendship with the new ANUBIS' CMO would not help in any way. The Native American also needed to deal with the harsh reality that Counsellor Dima was no longer on board the ANUBIS and would likely not be so for quite some time, especially given that he and his crew would not be the ones going after her.
The best Morningstar could hope for the time being was for Sonja to find out where Nicole was, for Sonja to get the crystals to work on the HATHOR and for the crew of the BASTET to rescue his Ship's Counsellor and give her a new home for the time being. After that, the two Captain could meet and discuss the best course of action to take in regards to the make-up of their respective crews.
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
"Crystal Pain In The Aft"
previous posts were (ANU) "Morning Meetings" / (BAS) "Cold As Ice"
=====
Setting: USS HATHOR, Deck 3, Engineering Room
Stardate: 33003.0730
If the puzzle of the crystals had not been bad enough to figure out, getting them to actually do whatever it is that they were supposed to do with the propulsion system of the USS HATHOR have proven to be flat out impossible. Every possible permutation of the crystals had been used; every interface conceivable had been tried out. Sonja had even tried swearing at the bloody crystals in every language she could recall, and still nothing worked. Her frustration had reach such a point that the Chief Engineer of the ANUBIS had even considered asking the towering Oltharian to pray to whatever deity his people believed in.
In the early hours of the morning, they had abandoned their work, partly because nothing worked, but also because neither Elan nor Sonja could think straight after having work for so many hours straight. The Oltharian had been gracious enough not to remind the Terran that he came from a world that saw a full planetary rotation happen every 36 earth hours. As much as it explained his ability to work for as long as he did, it also proved to be a sore spot for the redhead who refused to let the length of a day back on her homeworld dictate what she could or could not do.
Following a short break, the redhead Engineer had returned to the HATHOR, hoping that they would have better luck this time around although Sonja believed that they would need more than luck to find a solution that worked.
"Welcome back," the AVATAR said, greeting the Chief Engineer.
"Where is Elan?" Sonja asked, not seeing the imposing giant, something that was nearly impossible given his large stature and the compressed layout of the room. "If he is not here, I am going to pull those out-of-reach ears of his right down to his heals."
"I am here," the Oltharian exclaimed, his voice apparently coming from within the warp core of the HATHOR.
"How?" The ANUBIS' Chief Engineer gasped, unable to visualize how the massive Oltharian could have forced his way into the core that was barely just as large as he was. "How did he get in there?" Sonja added in a stunned whispered voice as she looked over her shoulder to the ANUBIS' Avatar
ANI smiled and pointed to an access panel located at the floor level near the rear of the Matter / Antimatter Reaction Assembly.
"What are you doing down there?" Sonja demanded. "More to the point, *how* did you get in there?"
"Last night I went through some of the engineering reports and papers on theoretical propulsion, thinking that maybe we were missing something, and then it hit me."
"What? The lower support frame of the warp core you are currently working under?"
"That we might have been approaching this situation from the wrong angle," Elan replied, not paying the slightest attention to the woman's attempt at a personal jab at him. After having worked for so many hours together, the Oltharian had grown accustomed to her unique sense of humour. "We have been trying to link these crystals with the propulsion system of the HATHOR while we should have been trying to sync their unique energy signature with the ship's shields and deflector system."
"You think that Nicole was attacking the crystals before she vanished?" Sonja asked, puzzled by the giant's latest theory. "There is nothing in Professor Arken's notes that points to those crystals as being some sort of defensive system."
"Those crystals being any sort of defensive or even offensive system would make just as much sense as a Federation vessel having a spinning saucer section," the Oltharian pointed out. "No, what I believe is that in order to affect the ship in the same manner as it did Ensign Dima, I believe that we have to cause the energy from the crystals to envelop the ship."
"Alright, I'll bite," the redhead sighed. "If you are correct with this theory of yours, why are you waist-deep inside the HATHOR's MARA(*)? Should you not be working on the deflector or the shield generators?"
"As soon as I have managed to match the power frequency of warp core to that of the crystals, those two components will be my next stop," Elan confirmed. "The crystals on their own have just enough power to send a single object, or a person as we have witnessed, to another location through folding space around them. Without being able to channel more energy through the crystals, it would be impossible to have the same effect happen to something larger, like the HATHOR."
"So Koniki was right by saying that the ANUBIS or even the BASTET would be too large for the crystals to work on," Sonja reluctantly admitted, not at all liking giving the man any sort of compliments. "He was right, for all the wrong reasons, but that still doesn't explain how you became such an expert on theoretical propulsion overnight."
"I woke early and had a few hours before we were scheduled to return to the HATHOR," Elan explained.
"Don't you dare say that it's because of your 36 hour days," Sonja quickly countered. Although Elan had not used that specific term to explain anything since they had started working on this project, it was clear that the redhead did not like hearing about it one bit.
"I was not," the Oltharian reassured. "I simply used that time to confer with Lieutenant Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba. With their combined knowledge on space-folding theorems and the way the BASTET itself generates the required field to travel to other dimensions, I figured that it was very likely that the same general process would work here. By increasing the power output of the crystals, we should, in theory, be able to use the HATHOR's own shields to create a sub-space quantum vibration similar to that of the one the internal sensors picked up at the moment of Counsellor Dima's disappearance."
"If it does work, we will be one step closer to getting Nicole back," the Chief Engineer nearly cheered, her enthusiasm lasting for mere seconds. "During your talk with Maya, she didn't happen to say that she figured out a way to track her whereabouts by any chance, did she?"
The silence that was offered as an answer was all that Sonja needed to understand that the two scientists in charge of that particular aspect of their rescue mission had yet to make any headway in figuring out where the ANUBIS' Counsellor had vanished to.
"According to Maya, all that they were able to get Professor Arken to add to his notes was that they needed to 'think harder'," Elan reported.
"Maya think harder? If she does that, we may all end up having to deal with a breach in the fabric of space-time with its focal point where her brain used to be," the redhead Engineer sarcastically joked. "I don't think that woman could think more than she already does." Sonja paused and looked at the legs of the Oltharian, her mind returning to the puzzling question of how he had managed to squeeze himself in there in the first place. "Maya and her friend have their work to do, and we have ours. What do you need me to do to help, and don't say that you want me in there with you or that you want me to help you out. You figured out a way to get in there, you can figure out a way out by yourself."
Sonja had been more than willing to help Elan, and she knew that he knew this, but where was the fun in making things simple for everyone. As urgent and desperate as the need to accomplish all of this was in order to find and rescue Nicole, there was no need for everyone to become sticks in the mud and make the task that much more taxing because of it. Having their Counsellor somewhere out there, facing possible life-threatening dangers, had been more than enough to cast a very dark shadow over everyone who knew her.
=====
Lorraine Paquette
Lieutenant Sonja Paquette [Access Character BIO for Sonja Paquette]
Chief Engineering Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
"Breakfast"
[previous (ANU) "Crystal Pain in the Aft" / (BAS) "Cold As Ice"]
[/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Ya'Han's Quarters
Stardate: 33003.0745
The atmosphere this morning was very different from what it was yesterday, or earlier that same morning. The two of them had played and joked as if neither had the slightest care in the universe, but that facade could not last forever. The truth was that there was something very wrong and it weighed heavily on everyone, including them.
"Good morning, how are you feeling?" Ya'Han casually asked of Jayson who was already sitting at the dinning room table, the Chief of Security remembering quite well giving him several bruises during the more playful part of their early morning.
"I might just have to go and see our new CMO after the beating that you gave me," he chuckled, rubbing his right upper arm and shoulder. "I think you need to speak to Nicole about managing that anger of yours."
They both froze, Jayson cursing himself for having said her name out of pure habit, and Ya'Han out of disbelief that he had mentioned the woman's name. Now, there was nothing wrong with using her name, but in this case, it only served to remind the Nylaan about the absence of the Trill and the fact that there was nothing either the Chief of Security or OPS Officer could do about it.
"Sorry," he sheepishly offered. "It just came out."
"I know," she replied. "It's the not knowing that is the worst part. We do not even know if she is still alive. The science team formed by Maya and Mitshiba have not been able to confirm what happened to her. Professor Arken might have indicated how those crystals work, but that is all in theory. Nicole could have been transporter anywhere in this universe, including onto a planet without an atmosphere or even straight into a sun."
"You can't think like that," Jayson said sternly. "You of all people should know that there is never a reason to give up, not as long as there is the slightest sliver of possibility that things might work out for the better. What would have happened if you had given up while on one of those freighters as you escaped your father?"
"Enjoy your breakfast, I'm heading to the gymnasium," Ya'Han spat before making her way out of her quarters. Normally, Jayson would have tried to say or do something to smooth things over, but the bright red color of her hair warned him that any attempt to stop the woman would most certainly result in his requiring emergency medical attention
Twice in the same morning, he had said something that he should have known better than to say. Mentioning Nicole's name had been a simple reflex, but still he should have been mindful enough to know that this would rattle them both. Hinting in any way to the hardships she endured on board those countless freighters as she made her way out of Ferengi controlled space in an effort to escape her father had just been stupid of him. It took her so long to be able to consider sharing some of those stories with him, and here he was throwing that right back at her without thinking as to how painful and difficult it had all been. The worst part of all this was that right now, he would have contacted the Ship's Counselor to see if she had a moment to talk to him.
[/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Sickbay
Stardate: 33003.0815
"Doc! You in here?" Jayson said, loudly enough to be heard throughout Sickbay but not that forceful that he was screaming.
"I'm right here," the CMO replied. "I'm going t have to set time aside outside of regular hours to read all of these files, people keep walking in."
"Sorry Doc, didn't mean to interrupt anything. I can come back later."
"Stop right there!" Satella ordered. There were some distinct advantages to being the CMO. "If it was bad enough for you to come here, it's important enough for me to have a look at. So have a seat on the examination bed and let me have a look at whatever it is that brought you here."
"Glad to see that it didn't take you long to get your footing on board the ANUBIS," Jayson said as he complied with the order given by the Doctor. "I hope that you will still be feeling that way after the Captain's welcome aboard visit."
"He was here not all that long ago," she smiled, absentmindedly rubbing the new pip he had placed on her collar. The gesture had not been subtle at all and easily noticed by the OPS Officer.
"You received a promotion?" Jayson said with a smile. The personnel file he had managed to get a look at indicated that their new CMO would be an Ensign, not a Lieutenant JG. It could have been a mistake in the file, but the beaming smile and general happiness displayed by the woman hinted that the Captain had done more than just welcome a new officer on board the ANUBIS. "Congratulations."
"Thank you. I will say that it was rather unexpected."
"Enjoy the good times when they are here," he sighed. "Things have a bad habit of happening when you least expect them to."
"Is that what happened with you?" The CMO asked as he pulled back his shirtsleeve to show the multiple bruises on his arm that went up all the way to his shoulder.
"That was only the start," Jayson replied, thinking back to what he said to Ya'Han causing hr to just walk out instead of sharing breakfast with him.
"Am I right in guessing that the other part was not some sort of physical altercation?" Satella said, trying to fish for more information.
"You would be right," he confirmed. "The problem is that we do not have the one person that would be able to help."
The CMO remained quiet as she took care of the man's bruised arm and shoulder. It did not take a genius to understand what he meant or whom the person was that he would have liked to be able to speak with. There was little she could do to help him, and with the ANUBIS' Counselor missing, there was no one else who could offer the support that he and likely several others needed. That said, there was one option available, but it could even be considered, a great many things to happen first. At the top of that list was to convince her friend to follow her example and come on board this ship, a task hat seemed t be far more difficult than it should have been.
[/\]
Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
-=-=-
"Inner Debate"
[Previous post: (ANU) "Breakfast" & (BAS) "Painful Revelation"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Counselor's Office
Stardate: 33003.0830
Sitting alone in the Counselling office, Adriana stared at the empty couch in front of her. Lieutenant Stark had been kind enough to leave the office unlock after their search of the premise and the impromptu session that followed. Everyone had been more than kind, the reason for this having been as clear as crystal, no pun intended.
Counselor Dima had made her mark on this ship and her crew, everyone having nothing but praises to offer for the missing joint Trill. In some ways, it made sense, Nicole being able to call upon the collective experiences of multiple lifetimes to avoid repeating mistakes. For that, Adriana envied the person who should have been here, in this office, sitting in the chair she was currently occupying.
"You really need to get a hold of yourself," Amanda grumbled at her sister, the twin making herself as comfortable as she could on the couch by taking as much room as she could on it. "She's not here, but you are, so get over it."
"Don't be so cold," Adriana snapped at her grinning sister.
"I am as you make me to be," Amanda confidently shot back without even bothering to look back at her sister. "Remember, I am nothing more than a projection of your shattered subconscious mind that is refusing to accept that your twin sister vanished at the tender age of 6. I do not have a mind or body of my own, all you see and hear comes from inside that messed up head of yours, so don't blame me, I'm just a figment of your imagination."
As much as she might have wanted to argue, the sister knew that her twin had been right, frighteningly so. There were times when the hallucinations of her lost sister appeared to behave in an independent manner, but the truth was that it was nothing more than her mind creating a physical and auditory illusion to help her deal with whatever was happening at that time.
"You're the Counselor and yet of all the people you have ever spoken to in that capacity, you are by far the one that needs counselling the most. I am sure that they have a nice padded room in that secret base of theirs, four nice white walls behind a door that already have your name engraved on a plaque that is bolted to the door," the twin sister said, shuffling her body like a cat in order to make herself even more comfortable on the couch.
"I am not crazy!" Adriana asserted as she argued with her twin sister once more, something that she had not done in quite some time thanks to the support and friendship of Satella Bruxa, the ANUBIS' new CMO.
"So you say," Amanda said laughing. "Who am I to argue? Some people go into a holodeck to face off against never before seen monsters born from the deepest and darkest recesses of their minds in the hopes of vanquishing whatever darkness is within them. Others spend countless hours crying into a pillow or arguing with their reflection in a mirror. Honestly, I think that you have them all beat in that not only do you not even have to go to a holodeck to see something that is not real, but this mirrorless mental reflection actually talks back to you. The best part is that I get to tell you what you often do not want to hear which allows you to be that much more honest with yourself. Even back on the LANCELOT, the last thing you wanted to hear was my relentless encouragements, and yet here we are, safe and sound."
"Yes," the Counsellor sighed knowing that everything that her sister said was spot on accurate. "You are incessantly annoying, just as figured my twin sister would have been had she actually been here by my side through everything we, I mean that *I* went through."
"It is that wish to believe that your sister is alive that has kept you going all this time. So you could rightfully claim that you are not crazy, just very single-mindedly driven by an inner voice... mine."
"I don't think anyone else would look at this that way, but right now I think it safest to agree with you," Adriana said, chuckling as she did so.
"Now that we have gotten that out of the way, let's tackle the reason why you are here, sitting in that chair, talking to me," the twin sister proposed as she swung her legs down to end up in a sitting stance. If one was to be arguing with one's self, it was best that everyone involved was in as conducive and comfortable a position as could be.
"I just sat down to collect my thoughts before speaking with Satella," Adriana said, tugging down at her shirt.
"You know, for being the *real* sister, you really have got to get a better grip on your reality," Amanda sharply argued. "You came here because you like it here. This office is times better than the one you have on the BASTET, and you like the way your one and only session with Jayson went. You also have to admit that his being cute does help."
"Amanda!" The real twin sister yelled as she felt her cheeks begin to burn. The sensation vanished as quickly as it had come, Adriana feeling a certain relief in the fact that throughout Starfleet, Counselor's offices were for obvious reasons designed to be soundproof.
"Sorry, I'm just saying what's in that head of your, but you are right. The way he was talking about this Ya'Han chick, you would do well to stay away from him, she sounds like the type that would snap in half anyone she perceives as a threat," Amanda explained before moving on to another subject. "Back to the why you are here, in this room, arguing with yourself. You like it here, your friend is in charge of Sickbay right next door and you already know Captain Morningstar. The only thing that is holding you back from letting Satella know that you are willing to request the transfer is that you are holding on to misplaced guilt."
"It's not misplaced guilt," Adriana forcefully argued. The advantage, or in this case the disadvantage of arguing with one's self was that the illusion of the twin sister knew exactly what to say to trigger a reaction. "Counselor Dima is a cherished member of this crew. She vanished into thin air only a few days ago, no one can or even should expect to be able to just walk in and take her place. Maybe if she was dead, the need for a new Counselor would make the transition easier, but this is not the case."
"You cannot deny that there is a need for a Counselor on board this ship," Amanda said as a counter argument. "Just talking to Jayson made that perfectly clear, this crew is in mourning at the lost of their friend and Ship's Counselor, and emotions are running high because there is no closure. No one knows what happened or if she is even alive. That is the reason why they need someone to help them deal with the uncertainty of this situation. It is sort of ironic that they need a Counselor to deal with the absence of their Counselor, but you know that it is true." The illusion of the twin sister paused before a large smile formed on her face. "Of course you know this, how else would I be saying this? I agree that there are grounds for you to feel this guilt, but you cannot let that stand in the way of you doing the right thing."
"Doing the right thing is subjective," Adriana pointed out closing her eyes and burying her face into the palms of her hands. "Every culture, every person has a unique take on what is the right thing."
"Only you can manage to argue semantics with the hallucination of your twin sister," the illusion said, laughing aloud. "You being here on the ANUBIS right now is the right thing for both them and you. They need someone to talk to more than ever, and you need to be here. As great as it was to be on the BASTET, there is just so much anyone can be asked to deal with. All of these jumps from dimension to dimension and even back through time is enough to make anyone crazy."
"That is why I need to stay on the BASTET," the sister sitting on the chair claimed. "They need me, just as much as the crew of the ANUBIS does, maybe even more."
"They might need you more, but in the end you won't be able to help anyone if you are locked in your room unable to deal with the outside world. With the one person who actually understands you practicing medicine another ship, and a First Officer ready to pick at everything you do to make her point, how long do you believe you are going to survive on the BASTET?"
"I can always ask for a transfer at that time," the Counselor said, the sadness in her voice echoing throughout the otherwise empty room.
"Reality check," Amanda said loudly. "My telling you that has to be the irony of ironies," she chuckled. "You have absolutely no idea what might happen in a week, a month or a year from now. This position will have been filled by then because of everything that you have seen, if not by you than by someone else. That means that you will be assigned to another ship and have to start everything all over again. That is of course if Commander Valentine has not locked you away in the nearest stockades after discovering that you have full conversations with the hallucination of your missing twin sister. At least here on the ANUBIS, Satella will be able to help. Let's face it, you speaking to her about your problems means that you talk to me a whole lot less."
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, CMO's Office
Stardate: 33003.0900
"Satella, can we talk?" Adriana asked, not having expected to find her friend sitting with the ship's First Officer. "I'm sorry; I did not know that you were with someone. I will come back at a later time."
"No need," the Commander said as she invited the surprised Counselor to sit in the chair the First Officer had just vacated. "In fact your timing is perfect as we were discussing your situation."
"My situation?" Adriana gulped. "Should I be worried?"
"Of course not. Captain Morningstar has tasked me with getting in touch with you and see if you are indeed interested in transferring to the ANUBIS, nothing more."
"Don't blow your chance now sis," Amanda said, the image of the Counselor's twin sister having joined this unexpected little gathering. "She's here to see if you are interested, if you want the Counselor's position on the ANUBIS. You have the right to tell her about your worries, even your guilt, but you cannot let any of that overshadow the rest. She is here because they need you, and you know that you need them just as much. So don't blow this one chance as you may not get another."
"I am," Counselor Lopez said as she eased herself into the chair.
"You are?" Satella asked, wanting to make sure that she heard correctly.
"Yes," Adriana confirmed. "I would be delighted to be part of this crew if you will have me. I understand that I may be accepted only as an acting Ship's Counselor. I also understand that I may be required to take on the responsibilities of assistant Counselor following the return of Counselor Dima, but in the meantime, I believe that my presence here will have a positive impact on the crew as they struggle with the current crisis. Should the position become permanently available, I will do my best to perform all required duties knowing that I can only take the former Ship's Counselor's place and never truly replace her. My hope is to help this crew in any way that I can, nothing more."
The Counselor smiled as she saw a very pleased Doctor Bruxa looking back at her from behind her deck while Amanda stood behind the woman extending two thumbs up.
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
=-=
"Together Again"
[previous post were (ANU) "Inner Debate" / (BAS) "Playing The Odds"]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, CMO's Office
Stardate: 33003.0915
Nothing was official. The transfer request still needed to be processed by whatever powers were responsible for such things. After that, it was up to the Captain to give the final approval for the transfer of an officer on board his ship. As the Commanding Officer, Captain Morningstar had after all the right to say no. With Adriana having agreed though, the biggest step was taken and the rest would hopefully be nothing more than formality.
The moment the Commander left the Doctor's office, Satella tackled her friend with a powerful hug. The act was so unexpected and strong that it nearly knocked the Counselor off her feet. "I am so glad that you decided to join me on the ANUBIS. This will make things so much more fun."
"Fun?" The Counselor asked, surprised by the choice of word. "We are on board a heavily armed Intel cruiser. There is enough firepower on this ship to take on a small army or conquer a small planet. Several decks of this ship are completely dedicated to gathering Intel through whatever means possible. The mere thought of this ship is meant to instill a sense of fear, not fun, very much like our First Officer. As friendly as she was a few minutes ago, the fact that she is also this ship's ILO scares me a little. All that to say that I think your idea of fun needs tweaking," Adriana concluded with a smirk.
"Perfect!" Satella cheered in a high pitch voice. "As this ship's new CNS, I can be your first patient and you can tweak to your heart's content."
Adriana had come to know Satella quite well. Following their journey to the sandy world of EPSILON 358 and fighting off the invasion of CAIT, the two became great friends. The CMO knowing about the CNS's hallucinations of her sister only strengthened their bond. Their friendship had been so important to her that Bruxa had seriously considered returning to the BASTET if her friend chose to stay there.
The two shared a moment, grinning at one another. Life had brought them together as fellow shipmates, and events had made them friends. This was something that they both silently hoped would continue regardless of what the universe threw at them.
"You are way too happy about all this. Were you that unhappy on board the BASTET?" Adriana asked, jumping straight into professional counseling mode. The CNS doubted that this was the case, but there was always the possibility that she had missed the signs. Dealing with the Lokustaar not once but twice had certainly not made things any easier. Those nightmarish creatures had a way all of their own to get into the heads of people.
"We all have the same choices to make in cases such as the one we are in. We can choose to live in the past and try to hold onto whatever we had. You end up living in your memories of people and places that are no longer there. This will lead to sadness and even possible depression as we only think about what it was that we had. Take Halston for example and how I so loved teasing him with the nickname I gave him. On the other hand, we can chose to take the opportunity to move forward anew. Embrace the changes and the challenges that are being set before us. You get to cherish the memories you have instead of living in them. Again, I can chose to remember the way Thor made me smile, or lose myself in wondering what happened to him. As much as I miss him, I know that he would not want any of us to linger on what happened. You of all people should understand this as a Counselor," the CMO explained making her friend smile.
"Maybe I should run after Commander Shar'El and tell her to hold on that transfer," Adriana said in perfect seriousness. The fact that she actually took a step forward towards the door made it seem that Adriana was dead serious.
"Why would you do that? I thought you made your choice, so what changed?" Satella's voice hinted to a deeply felt sadness and confusion. After all that she had said, after all that they had done together, what could have happened.
"After that speech about moving forward, this ship has no need for me here as a Counselor. Let's face it, they already have you. By the sounds of things, you can easily pull dual duties and act as both CMO and CNS. Why should Commander Shar'El be the only one to have the fun of wearing multiple hats? My being here would only deprive you of that fun," Adriana said, using her friend's word against her in a playful way.
For the first few seconds that followed, Satella appeared unimpressed by her friend's joke. After that, she laughed aloud before speaking. "It's nice to have you here. As for my playing Ship's Counselor, you have no worries about that. The only person I am interested in helping in that manner is you. That is unless you no longer need me in that regards."
Adriana looked over Satella's shoulder and offered a weak smile. No words had been required for the CMO to understand what was going on. As far as her friend was concerned, there were three people in the room even if the Doctor could account for one more besides herself.
"I should get back to my office and start reviewing the psychological dossiers of the senior officers. I have an entirely new set of officers to get to know," Adriana said. Again, nothing was official, but it made sense for her to show that she was ready to start her duties right away.
"There will be more than enough time to do that later," the Doctor said, taking her friend by the arm. "Right now, we need to celebrate and I have to show you this ship. Did you know that the ANUBIS has almost twice the number of decks as compared to the BASTET?"
"You cannot tell me that you have had the time to visit the whole ship already?" Adriana asked while being pulled out of the CMO's office.
"Of course not. Like I said, this ship is huge and I suspect that only a select few who have seen it all. The Chief Engineer and the Captain are the first that come to mind. We can explore and discover the various specialized rooms together. One such location is the Black Hole Lounge that I read about when I was looking at the ship's layout. Who knows, we might run into some of the other members of the senior staff. Will make it easier to introduce yourself there in a less formal manner."
"The transfer has not been made official yet," the Counselor argued. "What if the Captain says no?"
"What if the universe was suddenly erased from existence? Come on Adriana, this is your chance to a new start. You cannot go around going 'what if' at every corner. You need to embrace the moment and show everyone that you are happy to be here. Just like me."
The Counselor could not fight against her friend's enthusiasm, no to mention the iron grip she had on her arm. That she wanted to or not, Adriana had not other choice but to follow Satella wherever she went.
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Lieutenant JG Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
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"Over Reacting"
[previous post were (ANU) "Together Again" / (BAS) "Weakest Link"]
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Setting: USS ANUBIS, Black Hole Lounge, Upper level
Stardate: 33003.0930
After one of the worst workout she had even taken part in, the Sec/Tac took a quick shower and made her way to the Black Hole Lounge where she hoped to take some time for herself and think. With the ANUBIS docked at their base of operation it meant that there was no danger, so she did not have to report to the bridge. Ya'Han also knew that if she did report for duty there would be questions asked of her that she would rather not have to answer. Too much had happened over the last little while and it was best to take a moment to think things through in order not to act or react in an improper fashion.
With a glass of water in her hands, the Sec/Tac looked down at the level below, remembering some of the celebrations the senior staff had indulged in in the past. There would be no such frivolities for quite some time now, the mood of the crew being rather gloomy. It said something of a person's impact on others when their absence was so widely felt.
Ya'Han knew that Sonja and Maya were busy with solving this dilemma, each woman working in their respective fields to find a solution that would lead to discovering what happened. After solving that problem, the Sec/Tac could only hope that the rumors of the ANUBIS not being sent on a rescue mission were wrong. To lose Nicole had been hard enough, but to be unable to do anything about it proved to be even harder for the Nylaan to accept.
Taking a sip from her drink, the Sec/Tac noted two women making their way to the upper level. As neither one of them appeared familiar, Ya'Han was of course intrigued wondering who they were and why they had come here. As far as she knew, the ANUBIS being docked at NEW ALEXANDRIA was not an invitation to non-crew members to just come wandering.
"May I help you?" Ya'Han asked as the two unknown women approached.
"Lieutenant Ya'Han," the silver-haired woman wearing the uniform of a Medical Officer smiled. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Doctor Satella Bruxa, the new Chief Medical Officer and this is my friend Lieutenant Adriana Lopez. She will be taking over the position of Ship's Counsellor. We both transferred over from the BASTET.
The Sec/Tac blinked a few times, processing the information that she had just been provided. She recalled seeing a notice about the transfer of a new Chief Medical Officer, but there had not been any mention of a new Counselor.
"Is it just me or did her hair just change color?" Adriana asked in a whispered voice of her friend standing next to, the mixture of black and red having rather quickly changed to being fully red. To anyone else, especially Jayson, this would have been a sign that something was wrong, very wrong, but to the Doctor and Counselor, this change meant nothing. In fact, judging by the expression on Satella's face, she found this unexpected change to be fascinating and even a possible medical curiosity.
"You're Nylaan," the new Doctor said in a joyful mood that the Sec/Tac was starting to find irritating. "I heard that there was a member of that species here on the ANUBIS. I did read something about your ability to change your hair color to reflect the caste you belong to, so my guess is that you are the Chief of Security. I will admit that I only skimmed through the personnel dossiers to give me an idea of who I would be working with, but I did not take the time to more carefully identify who was who."
Ya'Han's fists slowly clenched as she glared at the two women. It would be nice to finally have a Chief Medical Officer on board, but how could Captain Morningstar authorise the transfer of a new Counselor so quickly? Maya and Sonja were still working on solving the mystery surrounding Nicole, so had they come across something new, something that indicated that the Counselor would never return? If that was not enough, the woman standing next to the new CMO was the same person Jayson had been speaking to earlier, the woman he kept referring to by her first name.
"Adriana?" The Sec/Tac said, her fiery red hair almost glowing.
"See," Satella chimed in her overly happy tone that was still finding its way to rub the fiery haired Nylaan the wrong way. "The crew already knows who you are. There is nothing for you to be worried about."
Counselor Lopez remained silent, all of the pieces of the puzzle falling into place in an alarming rate. This was the woman Lieutenant Stark had spoken of, a woman who turned out to be the ANUBIS' Sec/Tac and someone who clearly did not appear to be in the most joyous of moods. The reason for this were just as easily understood making Adriana feel very uncomfortable, fearing that there might be some sort of misunderstanding.
"The transfer had not been made official by any means," Adriana quickly said hoping to offset the anger she could clearly see growing within Ya'Han. "I have offered my services as a Counselor to Captain Morningstar and the crew of the ANUBIS during this time of need. I can only imagine how difficult it is for everyone who was close to Counselor Dima, especially given that there are no confirmation of what her status is at this time. I would only be here to help if the Captain sees it to accept my transfer into whatever position he would deem appropriate for me to hold."
Ya'Han forced herself to take several mental steps back. Her personal feelings had made her over react to all of this. Jayson needed to talk to someone about Nicole, just as much as she needed to, and by her own admission, Adriana was here to help, not to take the Nicole's place. Could the Sec/Tac truly hold Lopez responsible for wanting to do nothing more than to help them?
"I am sure that the Lieutenant has a great many things to do, and we still have a lot more of this ship to see. I hope to see you in Sickbay soon," Satella said to Ya'Han not having picked up in the least on the Nylaan's angered mood. "Of course, I mean that I hope to see you for a visit and not because you suffered some injury, although if you do, rest assured that I will be there to take care of your medical needs, be them small or large."
With that, Doctor Bruxa began to walk away, dragging a dazed and troubled Counselor Lopez by the arm. Ya'Han just watched them leave, talking herself down from wanting to confront Adriana. The worst part was that the Sec/Tac was not entirely certain if her reaction had come from her fear of seeing Nicole so carelessly replaced or because Jayson had been speaking to her.
It was easy to see that there was a need for the ANUBIS to have a Counselor on board at this time; all someone had to do was to look at Jayson and Ya'Han. The question was how many others amongst the member of the senior staff would find themselves over reacting in the manner with which Ya'Han had?
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Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
-=-=-
"Emergency Session"
[Previous post: (ANU) "Overreacting" & (BAS) "Thinking"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Deck 12, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1030
"She sounded upset," Adriana said to Satella who was struggling to keep pace with the CNS who was almost running down the corridor
"Of course she sounded upset," Amanda commented, rolling her eyes while leaning against a wall several meters ahead. "She just learned that both the Doctor and Counselor whom she considered to be her friends are abandoning the BASTET like rats would a sinking ship."
"Do you think she believes we are abandoning her and the rest of the BASTET's crew?" Lopez asked of Bruxa using what the illusion of her twin sister had just said.
"Misaki is a scientist, she will approach this like everything else," Satella said, not ready or willing to let this put a damper on her good mood.
"I don't think that is going to help all that much. If she looks at only the facts, as any good scientist would, she will see that a request was made from one Captain to another and that after your transfer was authorized I followed. How is that not making it look like we have abandoned her and the others?"
Satella stopped letting Adriana realise after a few steps that she was now going ahead alone. When the Counselor did, she turned and looked back with an expression of puzzlement at the Doctor. "If she believes that, then she is no scientist," the CMO sighed.
"How do you figure that?"
"Simple, she will not have taken every fact into account, namely the conflict that was created when we disobeyed Commander Valentine. Actually, that conflict was there before, it just got shoved into the spotlight with what happened."
"That is so much better. So instead of abandoning her and the other friends we made on the BASTET, all we are doing is to run away from a professional conflict. Thank you for clearing that up, I feel so much better now."
"Stop! If you want to play the wounded little Counselor, you can ask Lieutenant Stark or anyone else on the bridge to beam straight back to the BASTET. There you can hide in your quarters and cry your eyes out." The sternness of Satella words actually surprised Adriana. "We are both doing what we believe is right, not only for us but for everyone else on board both ships. How do you suppose things would have evolved back on the BASTET if we stayed? Sarena made it perfectly clear that she would not trust us as she did before, not that I entirely believe she ever did. That woman has a way of looking at everything and everyone as if they were ready to do something bad that would end as we knew it our universe as well as all others."
"I'm sorry. I guess I am still struggling with my decision to follow you here."
"You guess?" Amanda laughed, the image of the twin sister clearly not giving any wiggle room to her sibling.
"I am just trying to do the right thing for everyone involved," Adriana added, knowing that the hallucination of her sister had been completely right.
"You are," Satella reassured as she walked up to her friend. "As far as the crew of the BASTET is concerned, this will give them the chance to get a clean start when they will finally head out to look for Nicole Dima. That is the kind of mission they need and that will allow them to let go of the shadows of the past. For the crew of the ANUBIS, us being here will give them the opportunity to heal, in more ways then one."
"Before we can get that far, it might be a good idea to go and explain things to Misaki. I think she will be the first to need some healing."
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometrics Lab
Stardate: 33003.1045
Doctor Bruxa and Counselor Lopez walked in to find Misaki sitting at one end of the room while the ANUBIS' CSciO sat at the other.
"Are you okay?" Adriana asked of the BASTET's CSciO.
"I've been better. Why are you two leaving the BASTET?"
"Maybe it would be best to discuss this in a more private setting." Satella said, glancing over to Maya who seemed completely oblivious as to their arrival and presence in the room.
"She's working, and she she gets like that the ship could undergo a warp core breach and she would not even notice," Misaki explained.
"Defensively an A-type personality," Adriana said, noting this for her own records as this might prove helpful in dealing with the scientist at some later point.
"So the burnt toast smell actually came from her," Satella jokingly said trying to lighten the mood.
"Why are you two leaving the BASTET? And I don;t want to hear that it's a long story. Give me the abridged version." Misaki asked, not wanting to have the conversation be sidetracked in any way.
"Commander Valentine was never a huge fan of the way I did things, and after what happened with our Yxidii friend, the pot boiled over. So when I saw an opportunity to come to the ANUBIS, I approached Captain Iverson," Satella explained.
"That explains your reasoning, what about you?" the BASTET's CSciO asked of Lopez who instead of replying only looked at her friend the newly promoted CMO of the ANUBIS. "Great, as if losing Halston was not bad enough, now I have to deal with you both not being on the ship."
"That's not the same thing, but i do understand your feeling of loss. You will need to do as you have always done, that is to focus on your work and solving the mysteries of the multi-verse. The BASTET is the best possible place for you as it allows you to see and research things that no one could have even imagined. As great of a fit as it is for you, it was not for us and in the long-run our being there would only have made things more complicated for everyone else. As hard as this is for us all, it is the best course of action for everyone."
Adriana could see that Misaki wanted to argue or at the very least offer some comment to place the whole decision back in question, but the CSciO understood that this was no longer a question to be debated but a fact that she and the remaining crew of the BASTET would just have to deal with.
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
---
"Thinking Harder"
(Previous Posts: (ANU) "Emergency Session" / (BAS) "Thinking")
---
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometrics Laboratory
Stardate: 33003.1100
The words offered by Professor Arken had been echoing in the mind of the Shillian since she had first heard them. Refusing to believe that the man she admired so much for his brilliance and genius could be so callous, Maya tried her best to understand the possible hidden meaning of those two otherwise simple words.
Think; verb; to have a particular opinion, belief, or idea about someone or something. Noun; the act of thinking
Thinking or to think; noun, the process of using one's mind to consider or reason about something. Adjective: using thought or rational judgment; intelligent.
The Chief Science Officer felt a sudden wave of dizziness sweep through her mind. Maybe Lieutenant Mitshiba had been correct when she claimed not that long ago that with all of this heavy thinking, someone risked a brain aneurysm. Once the sensation had passed, Maya resumed her train of thought, hoping that the woman she was working with had found the source of the strange burnt toasts odour she had made reference to not too long ago.
Harder; comparative adjective of hard; 1) solid, firm, and resistant to pressure; not easily broken, bent, or pierced. 2) requiring a great deal of endurance or effort. Comparative adverb of hard; 1) with a great deal of effort. 2) so as to be solid or firm.
Based on those definitions, 'thinking harder' as suggested by Professor Arken would imply that they needed to have a particular opinion, belief or idea that required to be considered with a higher than usual level of effort and/or endurance. Of course, this sounded a lot easier in theory than in reality, but it did give the Chief Science Officer of the USS ANUBIS something new to work from.
What if the Professor had not been referring to the amplitude of thought but rather the frequency? Maya found the possibility perplexing and wasted no time in exploring it further. A quick scan of the medical database confirmed what the Shillian scientist suspected in that most humanoid brains operated within the range of 30 to 4 Hertz, or cycles per second. With the help of the computer, a rapid scan of various medical journals on the subject indicated that the average human brain functioned in the area of 13 Hertz. The question was, how was this information useful?
Expanding her research on this matter, Maya called up the brain wave patterns of several other species, including a comparative analysis of Trills and joint Trills. One of the things the Chief Science Officer found interesting was that in those members of that race with symbionts, there were actually two separate waves. In most cases, these waves operated independently, like two computers working side by side, but there were certain exceptions caused by heightened emotions that wold cause these waves to synchronize on order to create a single, amplified pattern. The effect would be very short-lived, but it could offer a possibility that had not been considered up to this moment.
"Lieutenant Mitshiba, could I ask for your opinion on this please?" Maya asked, not having realized that the other scientist had not been alone.
"I thought you were working on trying to figure out how the crystals worked," the woman wearing the colours of a Medical Officer said, surprising Maya.
"Who are you?" The Shillian inquired, now realizing that there were two officers that she did not recognize present in the room with them.
"My apologies Commander, I am Doctor Satella Bruxa, the new Chief Medical Officer and this is Lieutenant Adriana Lopez, she will be part of the Counselling team."
Although Maya had been the one to ask the question, the Chief Science Officer displayed no apparent interest in the answer she received, instead addressing the earlier comment made by Medical Officer. "Professor Arken recommended that we 'think harder' in order to figure out how the crystals work and how they were responsible for the disappearance of Counsellor Dima. I have been considering the possible alternate significance of his words and thought that maybe his suggestion dealt with the frequency of the act of thinking instead of the amplitude."
"That is a very interesting way of looking at it," Lieutenant Mitshiba noted, her interest clearly piqued.
"Given that Counsellor Dima is a joint Trill, I included her species in my analysis and discovered that in certain instances, the two independent wave patterns of a joint Trill could actually merge and create an amplified wave," Maya explained, calling the specific file and visual representation to appear on one of the screens so that everyone could see. "During our simulated tests, we did discover that the crystals did resonate when exposed to very specific wavelengths, but we never considered the possibility that these waves could have originated from a nearby brain, in this case that of the Counsellor Nicole Dima."
"If you are right, you may just have figured out not only how she managed to trigger the crystals, but we might be able to identify the specific wave amplitude allow us to recreate it," Lieutenant Mitshiba said, the Chief Science Officer of the USS BASTET sounding exceptionally confident in this new discovery.
"How would being able to recreate the specific brain wave patter help?" Counsellor Lopez inquired; everything said thus far being well outside of her normal field of expertise.
"This will allow the HATHOR, once the crystals are properly integrated into the propulsion system of the vessel, to follow Counsellor Dima wherever her thoughts took her," the Shillian Scientist explained. "Of course this is going to require a great deal of work as we try to isolate the exact brainwave patter at the exact time when Nicole vanished. Since the crystals were in this very lab, it is possible that one of the monitoring instruments could have picked up this sudden spike in brainwaves."
"That is going to be a lot of very delicate tools to check one by one," Lieutenant Mitshiba noted as she scanned the room.
"Maybe we could help," Doctor Bruxa offered. "This level of science may be outside of both our expertise, but brainwaves are right up our alley. You show us how to access the files and we will be more than happy to go through each and every single one of them until we find what it is that you are searching for."
Maya smiled. The task ahead of them would be long and tedious but with the help of Doctor Bruxa and Counsellor Lopez, the work would in theory only require half as much time to accomplish, which meant that they were that much closer to finding the whereabouts of the missing Trill Counsellor. All that the Shillian could do, aside from working on isolating the brainwave pattern, was to hope that all of this would prove to happen fast enough to mount a valid rescue effort in order to bring Nicole back to where she belonged.
---
Jessica Solarik
Lieutenant Commander Maya [Access Character BIO for Maya]
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS
&
Captain Selene Fiona Iverson [Access Character BIO for Selene Iverson]
Commanding Officer
USS BASTET
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."
- William Blake (British, 1757-1827)
=-=
"Searching For Brainwaves"
[previous post were (ANU) "Thinking Harder" by Jessica/ (BAS) "Thinking" by Dawn]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometrics Lab
Stardate: 33003.1130
The message received from Commander Maya was unclear, or at least the ExO / ILO could not make sense of what had been asked. Stating that they were searching for brainwaves made Shar'El wonder if the Shillian had not truly lost her marbles.
Thanks to the internal sensors and the IGC monitoring everything happening on board the ANUBIS, the ExO / ILO knew that the lab had been occupied by not only Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba, but also the ANUBIS' latest addition tot he senior staff, namely Doctor Satella Bruxa and Counselor Adriana Lopez. What Shar'El was not expecting was to find all four women searching through the laboratory's equipment the way they were.
"Commander, glad that you could come here so quickly," Maya said the moment the door wooshed open, the Shillian evidently havin been waiting for the woman for a reason that the ExO / ILO was sure would be relayed to her in excruciatingly specific details. "We need your assistance. I know that the IGC monitors everything and we are hoping that maybe the IGC recorded something through the internal sensors."
"You are going to have to be a little more specific," Shar'El said, knowing that she would likely end up regretting this at some point in the very near future.
"Of course, my apologies, we have been so excited with our discovery that I have not considered telling you what it is we are searching for and why," Maya blurred at an equivalent verbal speed of high warp before taking in a long, deep breath as she readied herself to jump into higher gear. "We knew that the crystals were responsible for the disappearance of Cousnelor Dima, and based on the data we collected along with the information provided by Professor Arken, we also understood the general process used, but we were unable to identify the actual trigger, that is until recently. We suspected that the crystals activated because they were all brought together, I mean there were no reasons for us to believe otherwise especially after discovering that there was an additional crystal to the eight that we were sent searching through the galaxy for. Anyway, what we discovered seems to indicate that the crystals respond to a very specific energy wave, one that matches the unique Trill brainwave that occurs when both the symbiont and host thinking process come together in perfect sync. The timing was an unfortunate one for Nicole, as this effect only lasts for a second or so, but her brainwaves at the time should in theory allow us, meaning the HATHOR and its crew, to follow her wherever her thoughts directed the 'Blink Device' to target. We are looking through every instruments here with the hopes of finding one that might have recorded that particular brainwave pattern at the time of the Counselor's disappearance. The only other scanning device that was active at the time were the internal sensors, that is why I contacted you to see if maybe there is something about the way the IGC keeps records that might prove useful in our search."
Shar'El blinked a few times. If asked to, there would be no way for the ExO / ILO to repeat anything that had been said to her, but the interesting part was that she heard and understood everything, well most of it. "If I get what you are saying, you are searching through the instruments in this lab for Nicole's brainwave and are hoping that maybe the internal sensors picked something up."
Maya enthusiastically nodded her head, the woman appearing ready to jump out of her skin with hope.
"As much as I appreciate you believing that the internal sensors and the IGC are able to keep such accurate records of everything that happens on the ANUBIS, I am sorry to have to disappoint you," the ExO / ILO reported. "The best we can provide is the exact time at which her disappearance occured. We might be able to have some video and audio recordings, but those will not help in providing you with the information you seek. I am sorry Maya, but there is nothing I or the IGC can do to help you more than we already have. Whatever brainwave patterns you are looking for will have to be found in this room in one of these instruments."
"Thank you Commander," the Shillian said, returning to her search visibly dejected by the news given to her.
"Maya," Shar'El called out causing the woman to look back over her shoulder. "I will have the ICG team scan everything they can and review every internal sensor logs from this location. Maybe we did pick something unexpected up. If we did, I will make sure that you are informed right away."
"Thank you again Commander," Maya said, forcing a smile before continuing on. The simple fact that the woman had gone from hyper verbal speed to something more within the low-end of what would be considered normal was a clear indication that this was not been the answer she had hoped for.
With the reason why she was called here done and over with, Shar'El found herself standing alone, looking at the three ANUBIS' officers and their guest, the Chief Science Officer of the USS BASTET. As she looked at their visitor, the Ullian could easily pick up on memories of her recent work with Maya along with her latest dealings with the Lokustaar while being in another dimension. As interesting as this was, the ExO / ILO found herself drawn to the two new additions to her crew.
Now, Satella Bruxa was officially the new Chief Medical Officer of the ANUBIS, and therefore fell under the agreement the Ullian and her Commanding Officer had reached. She could not scan the woman's memories without her consentment, but that was not the case for her friend, Counselor Lopez. The ExO / ILO understood that this was splitting hairs as far as justifying what she was about to do, but the fact was that at this time, no official transfer orders had been received concerning Adriana making her just as much a guest as Mitshiba.
Accepting her own reasoning without hesitation to justify her actions, Shar'El focused all of her attention on the woman in question. If there was something of interest to be found in the memories of Counselor Lopez, it would not take too long for the Ullian to find it.
The ExO / ILO was not surprised to find the same general memories in Adriana's head as she found in Misaki's. The Lokustaar encounters played a huge role in their recent past, but there was one major difference. Counselor Lopez had several distinct memories of her dealings with someone who looked a great deal the way she did. Since her transfer had not been granted as of yet, there was no official personnel file available to the EXO, but the ILO had a few aces up her sleeves that would allow her to easily confirm her suspicions. The Counselor had a twin sister, but why would the sibling be on board the BASTET and why would she not be following her sister to the ANUBIS?
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Lieutenant Commander Janeel [Access Character BIO for Janeel]
Intel Liaison Officer / Mission Specialist
USS BASTET
-=-=-
"Fitting In"
[Previous post: (ANU) "Searching For Brainwaves" & (BAS) "Self-Evaluation"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometrics Lab
Stardate: 33003.1145
"Things sure move fast around here," the mental recreation of the Counselor's twin sister said while sitting on top of the workstation where Adriana was currently working. "I mean, you are not even an official member of this crew and here you are working to find some way for them to get their own Counselor back. At this rate, you'll find a way to send yourself back to the BASTET or flat out transferred to another ship by the end of the day."
Normally Adriana would have verbally confronted her sister as she had done countless times before, but she could hardly do so right now. Satella knew of this particular oddity but there was no need to advertise her hallucinations to the others. As scientists, there was not a great many ways that Maya or Misaki would react after learning that the Counselor was seeing her long lost twin sister on a more than regular basis.
Having suddenly become very self-conscientious, Adriana glanced over her shoulder to see what the others were doing. As expected, she found Bruxa, Mitshiba and Maya working in their respective areas, but it was when she saw the intense stare directed straight at her from Shar'El that the CNS felt beyond uncomfortable. After their eyes met, the ANUBIS' First Officer simply smiled and exited the room.
"I don't think she likes you," Amanda offered, the image of the sister having moved to stand by the door the Commander had just used. Adriana softly growled and returned to her work, the twin sister having instantly returned to her previous location. "Fine, she does like you, but I suspect that she doesn't *trust* you, is that better? She must be concerned about you working here, in this lab. Let's face it, you came here offering to take on the position and responsibilities of their Ship's Counselor, a woman that you are currently involved in searching for. The Commander either believes you to be nuts or trying to sabotage their efforts to insure that you have a place to go to now that you have officially left the BASTET."
The Counselor did her best to ignore her twin sister, but as far as these hallucinations went, they tended to be exceptionally persistent and have a mind of their own.
"Sis," Amanda continued as she jumped off the workstation to stand next to her twin sister. "You have to be realistic about this. You know that Valentine and Shar'El have already spoken, and that as First Officers they discussed Satella's transfer. Even if your name was not directly mentioned, which I doubt it was not, your new Commander knows that something happened. That would be more than enough to have me keep an eye on you if I were in her shoes. You also have to admit that she has a way of looking at people, a way that makes you feel like your every thoughts and feelings are being analysed and evaluated. I would not be surprised if she was a telepath meaning that she no longer suspects that you are nuts but actually knows this for a fact."
"I hope not," Adriana sighed in a whispered voice.
"You hope not what?" Satella asked, the Doctor having moved to join her friend for a yet to be determined reason.
"Nothing important," the Counselor replied in a way that made the Doctor immediately understand that she had just arrived in the middle of an unpleasant conversation pitting the twins against one another. "Did you find something?" Adriana asked, changing the subject, not wanting to go into any sort of explanation at this time or place.
"No. I just needed to stretch my legs a little. I have the computer running another full scan of the files at the station I was at, but I have the feeling that we are all wasting our time."
"The moment we give up, Nicole Dima is lost," Adriana indicated, the Counselor sounding exactly as someone in her position should. "Misaki has some leeway that permits her to consider stopping being part of the search simply because she is not a member of this crew, but you do not have that luxury anymore. As the CMO of the ANUBIS, you are obliged to pursue this search to the very end until either something is found or the Captain gives the order to stop. I may not know him, but from everything I have heard and seen, I suspect that he is not the type to give up as some others might."
"Oh. You just did it there sis. That was not nice, not nice at all."
"As some others might? Why do I have the feeling you have someone in mind when you say that," Satella said, making sure that her voice did not carry beyond the two of them. "You are still holding Captain Iverson accountable for not having done more in searching for Halston aren't you?"
"I'm not, but I know you are. I was actually referring to you wanting to quit the search," Lopez explained. "I know that you and Halston were close, at least as close as two friends who enjoyed teasing one another could be. His vanishing through time hit you the hardest and it makes sense that you feel as you do now, the event surrounding Counselor Dima's disappearance being far too similar to be simply ignored. What truly bothers you is that days after her disappearance they are still looking for her while we stopped mere hours after Halston was found missing in Main Engineering," Adriana added.
The two friends looked at one another for a few moments, each trying to figure out what the other was thinking. It was the CMO who would end the silence that had come to stand between them. Satella allowed a few tears to escape before she caught herself and wiped the evidence of her feelings away.
"Captain Iverson made the call, and it was you who made me understand that it was the right one. Being lost somewhere inside a 20,000 years span means that we could spend our entire lives searching for him and never get close," Satella said, justifying the woman's decision as she tried to dismiss her feelings. "And you are right again, as similar as this is, Nicole is not lost in time and we have to find her before it is too late. What I find interesting is how you put all of that on my shoulders alone. What about you? You are just as much a member of this crew as I am."
"Actually I am not. Aside from the fact that my transfer orders have not been made official yet, I am here only in the capacity of an acting Ship's Counselor at best. Anything else might make some believe that I am here with ulterior motives that might or might not be in conflict with the task at hand."
"Relax Adriana," Satella said finding a way to smile once again as she placed her hands on her friend's shoulders. "No one is suspecting you of being here to undermine the search; in fact I would go as far as to say that you just did the exact opposite by making me see the error of my ways. Now, I had better get back to those scans and I would not worry about you not fitting in. You have already proven yourself to be more than deserving to being here, so don't let *anyone* tell you otherwise."
Adriana understood that Satella's last words had been meant to target the twin sister who haunted her friend. Amanda was nothing more than a psychological counterweight, a means for Adriana to not only confront and deal with the absence of her twin sister but also to permit her to debate situations in a way that most others could never hope to achieve.
"You might have managed to convince Satella, but I don’t think it is going to be that easy with Commander Shar'El. Remember, that lady over there is *your* friend, Shar'El is Nicole's friend, and in the end that will make all the difference in the world," Amanda outlined, having taken her place back on the workstation, making sure that her twin sister did not become too bored with her search. "You fitting in is not going to be that simple, not with that woman keeping an eye on you the way she was earlier."
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
##########
"One Step Closer"
Previous posts (ANU) "Fitting In" / (BAS) "Game Changer"
##########
“Despite your best efforts, people are going to be hurt when it's time for them to be hurt.”
- Haruki Murakami
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Captain's Ready Room
Stardate: 33003.1430
The Native American sat at his desk, the PADD he had just been handed by his First Officer, Commander Shar'El, firmly in his hands. As he read, a smile slowly came to appear on his face. If there was one thing he had learned from his time as Captain of the ANUBIS was that there was nothing faster than the speed of Intel, especially while on board a vessel such as the ANUBIS.
"Have these findings been confirmed?" Erik inquired, already suspecting that he knew the answer.
"Yes they have," Shar'El confirmed. "Commander Maya is on her way here as we speak to inform you on their findings. Lieutenant Mitshiba is heading back to the BASTET to do the same."
"Guess they are in a rush to spread the good news," the Native American chuckled.
"Do you blame them?" The Ullian countered with.
"I guess not," Erik agreed just as the sound of the door chime was heard.
"Commander Maya here to see you Sir," Shar'El teased, doing a relatively good impersonation of an old style butler.
"Show her in. I wouldn't want to deprive her of her fun. Let's face it; sharing good news doesn't happen all that often in our field of work."
Shar'El nodded and complied with her Captain's orders, opening the door to allow the ANUBIS' Chief Science officer to explode into the room as only the Shillian could following her making a ground-breaking scientific discovery.
"Captain! We found her! Well, more specifically, we found a way to track her. Actually, that's not entirely accurate; it would be more precise to say that we have found a way to direct the crystals, which are currently on board the HATHOR, to the exact location where those same crystals sent Counsellor Dima. We did it Sir, we can go after Nicole!"
"Well done Commander," Erik acknowledged, not revealing that he already knew. "Should I contact Captain Iverson or has her Chief Science officer, Lieutenant Mitshiba I believe, already gone to relay the good news?"
"Yes, Lieutenant Mitshiba did return to the BASTET as soon as the discovery was confirmed. She was rather excited about telling her Captain of our success," Maya reported, the Shillian unable to stand still because of the joy she felt.
"Very well," Morningstar said with a smile. "I will give the Lieutenant some time to relay the good news before I contact her Captain to discuss our next step. In the meantime, I believe that you have more than earned some time to yourself. I have no doubts that Nicole greatly appreciates everything that you have done up to this point. Now it will be to the rest of us to continue."
"Yes Captain, thank you," the Shillian offered, quickly spinning on her heels and exiting the room without even considering for a moment to ask permission to do so.
Once he was alone in his Ready Room once more, Erik turned his attention back to the PADD that Shar'El had bought him. The Native American smiled, not entirely sure why. Yes the news had been a good one, great even, but it had been but the first step in a journey that no one could know the outcome of. Knowing where the crystals had sent Nicole would allow the HATHOR to go after her, and whatever crew would be on board, there was no telling what they would find once they arrived.
Without understanding how the crystals truly worked, and without knowing what Counsellor Dima's thoughts had been at the exact time of her being whisked away as she was, there were simply too many possibilities to consider. The fact that no signal had been received by their base of operation or any of the units operating from it meant that Nicole had been carried somewhere beyond their immediate reach. Considering the scope of the NEW ALEXANDRIA's operations, this was not small task. This meant that she was out there, in one of the dark recesses of the universe. At best, one could hope that she was alone or maybe had managed to make a friend or two, but it was the other possibility that scared the Native American.
Many of the species encountered by the federation in their travels proved to be dangerous, untrusting and even at times flat out apprehensive of outsiders. For every world their Counsellor could have been transporter to where she might have found someone friendly, there were several more which would spell the woman's doom in matters of minutes.
If the environment was not hostile, or simply deadly, the native life forms that inhabited it could prove to be just as dangerous regardless of their size or appearance. Yes they were one step closer to reaching her, but it did not mean that they would arrive in time to save and rescue her from whatever place she had been taken to.
"It is when things are at their darkest that the smallest light shines the brightest," Erik began, recalling something that he had heard many years ago. "When despair is absolute, the slightest hope can guide a single person to victory. When nothing but complete desolation can be seen, a single small flower can be the sign needed to remind an entire race that everything is not lost. Hope is a powerful thing, as long as one believes in it."
The Native American glanced over to the seat on the couch where the Counselor of the ANUBIS usually sat. For some reason it was the location of choice when speaking to the Captain about something psychological or emotion. Nicole had quickly found that spot, just as the Counsellor who came before her. Eve's words had been meant at the time to remind the Captain that however dark things might seem, as long as someone could hold on to the slightest bit of hope, the battle was not over. Never had he expected to one day use her words in a situation that dealt specifically with another Counsellor, but somehow it seemed only fitting.
Eve Dalziel, at least the one who had come to serve on the ANUBIS, had reminded him not to lose hope once. Erik could only hope that Nicole would do the same and focus on whatever small spec of hope was available to her in order to allow her to continue. All she needed to do was to hold on just a little bit longer. It did not matter who would be going after her, the important part was that soon someone would be heading out her way.
Erik would of course prefer if it was him and his crew to do this, but the universe never played by the rules of others. The Native American would be happy just to know that she had been found safe and sound.
"Captain Morningstar to Captain Iverson," Erik said after opening a comm channel to the BASTET.
=/\= Go ahead. =/\=
"Guess you have heard the news? =/\=
=/\= By now I would not be surprised that the entire base knows about this. I was planning on heading to the HATHOR to see how the Engineering team was doing. =/\=
"We both know that it is going to be you and your crew heading the rescue mission. You go speak to Koniki, I'll take care of speaking to the Engineering team. Plus, it makes more sense since the one in charge there is my Chief Engineer," the Native American proposed.
=/\= I know better than to fight with you, no matter the reason. I'll speak to Koniki while you take care of the Engineering team. Shall we meet on the bridge of the HATHOR after? =/\=
"Sounds like a plan. See you then. Morningstar out."
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
"A Different Perspective"
[previous (ANU) "One Step Closer" / (BAS) "Game Changer"]
[/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Gymnasium
Stardate: 33003.1500
The way she moved was breathtaking, mesmerizing, bewitching and a little scary. It was amazing to see the difference in the styles she used when her hair was red compared to when it was green, a difference that he had never until now been truly able to admire. When they were in the Gymnasium together, Jayson saw things from a much closer and usually more horizontal perspective.
Sitting on a bench set against one of the far walls, Jayson had an unobstructed view of Ya'Han as she practiced various combat styles and attacks. The woman moved with an equal balance of strength and grace in a dizzying ballet, making her display appear just as much as a dance as it was a deadly sequence of attacks and defensive moves. At least for once, he was not the target of those enchantingly lethal moves.
He knew that she knew. At this point in time, it would have surprised the OPS Officer if there was a single soul on board the ANUBIS who had not heard the news. A general sense of joy had spread through the ship and crew, everyone celebrating in their own way. Some saw the discovery made by Commander Maya and Lieutenant Mitshiba as being the final, winning answer, while others understood that this was not going to be that simple. Ya'Han appeared to have taken on a stance that placed her well inside that second group of people, the woman prepping for a fight like no other.
"You do know that it is unlikely we will be the ones sent to go after Nicole, right?" He asked just as she finished a sequence of moves that would have resulted in several broken bones in her adversaries had she actually been fighting a group of opponents. "Rumor have it that it will be the BASTET's crew who are going to be on the HATHOR."
"I am well aware of that," she replied starting a new sequence of moves that made him that much more relieved to be where he was instead of on the training mat with her. "I am also aware that there is a possibility that Captain Iverson could call upon any one of us to assist. Maya made one thing clear when I asked her for details on her findings; they have no idea what will be encountered."
"I know, I read the report. Maya was able to isolate Nicole's brainwave pattern at the time of her disappearance, which means they call feed that to the crystals once more and have them send the HATHOR and its crew to the same location, wherever that may be. I for one am hoping that she was sent to PACIFICA or RISA," Jayson said, still very much admiring the fluidity of the moves being performed by the fiery red-haired woman.
"PACIFICA or RISA? Really?" Ya'Han huffed, not even bothering with looking in his direction, even if only for a split second. "You would think that she could have contacted us by now if she was taken to either one of those worlds or even one remotely similar to them."
"Maybe she's having too much fun to think about us," Jayson hoped aloud. He knew that the scenario he presented was highly unlikely to be real, but voicing any of the other possibilities was just too much for him. To hear his own words would only make the possibility that much more real, nd right now just thinking about some of the less welcoming locations she could have found her way to was enough to make him feel a tightness in his chest. "What if we're too late?" He added, his whisper loud enough to be heard by the training Chief of Security.
Ya'Han froze in mid strike after hearing what she did. Everyone had considered that possibility but no one wanted to believe that it might actually be the case. Knowing the universe and the dangers that could be found within as they did, the list of ways the Counselor could have met her end was frightfully lengthy.
"You cannot think that way," she snapped at him, interrupting her training to rapidly approach the sitting man. "No one can. Nicole is out there and she is expecting someone to go after her."
"And we are," Jayson nervously observed, meeting Ya'Han's eyes with his own while his back was flat against the wall. As much as he admired and adored her, the woman he playfully nicknamed the 'Red Dragon' stood a little too close for his comfort at the moment. In a fit of rage, she could easily send every single crewmember currently in the room to Sickbay for an extended duration.
"Is everything alright?" A woman asked after having walked in with another. Turning to see who had just said this, the OPS Officer was pleased to see the ANUBIS' two newest additions to the Senior Staff. Their timely arrival, he hoped, would defuse the situation that he had found his way dead smack in the middle of without really trying.
"We were just talking about Nicole and what we are ready and willing to do in order to help her," he specified, welcoming the Counselor and Doctor with a grateful smile.
"Who isn't talking about her?" The Doctor noted. "The news of Commander Maya's findings must have spread through the whole of the ANUBIS in less time than it takes me to heal a small cut. I would have already found that an impressive achievement on the BASTET, but on ship this size, that was truly astonishing to see."
"Members of tis crew are like family, and we are not in a habit of leaving anyone behind," Ya'Han snapped as she made her way back to the training mat, her hair appearing just a little more red than it was a few seconds ago.
Jayson's eyes bounced from the woman walking away to the other two now standing near him. The report on the lost of the BASTET's Chief Engineer had made its way through the hands of both the Chief of Security and OPS Officer, and he could not help wonder if Ya'Han had intended her words to point to those events. As much as he might have agreed with her, he also understood that the circumstances and situation concerning the other ship and its crew could not be compared to their current plight.
As he watched Ya'Han resume her training with even more passion than before, it was easy to see that she did not share his perspective of their situation. Instead, she only seemed willing to embrace her anger and channel it through her exercises, something that Jayson was very thankful for as it gave him the chance to remain out of reach and most important safe.
[/\]
Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
"Inner Anger"
[previous post were (ANU) "A Different Perspective" / (BAS) "Game Changer"]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Gymnasium
Stardate: 33003.1520
The sweat steadily rolled off her forehead as the imaginary opponents fell one after the other in rapid sequence. Had the Sec/Tac been in a holodeck for this training session, the extent of the injuries she was inflicting would have most certainly caused someone to voice some heartfelt concern, that was if they did not just run away for fear of becoming the next victim.
She felt sorry for having verbally run into Jayson the way she did. He was dealing with the situation as best he could, just as she was, the only real difference being the way they addressed their feelings. The news of Maya's breakthrough had indeed made its way through the ANUBIS in record time, but the Sec/Tac wished that people had not been so happy about it. Being able to follow Nicole to wherever those crystals had taken her was but the first of what the Nylaan suspected would be a long list of obstacles to overcome. Life had been a harsh teacher in that regards, and Ya'Han knew that tings never went the way people hoped they would, especially when such hopes were based on the best possible outcome.
Ya'Han was happy about the discovery, as little as it might have shown, but she did not want to allow herself to feel complacent in that feeling, Instead she wanted to use this sensation to increase her drive to go after her, that she would be chosen to help or not. Giving up was something that she could not permit herself the luxury of doing, not anymore. Once had already been too much.
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
FLASHBACK
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Setting: Freighter #3
Stardate: 20312.1 (Age of 13)
It had been 71 days since her escape from her home, 71 days spent in hiding in cargo holds of whatever freighter she could find her way into. This would be the third such place, and it appeared to be just as dark and grimy as the previous two. The one difference this time around was that she was not alone.
Another Nylaan had been in the cargo hold, her black hair filled with tangles indicating that her journey had been just as rough if not more so than her own. Their eyes met on several occasion but neither said a word for reasons that were their own. The youngest daughter of the High Sovereign feared saying something that might hint to her lineage, so she remained perfectly quiet, hoping that the other girl would not be able to recognize who she was without her having her hair the color that was hers to display by blood right.
As time passed, Ya'Han felt a growing need to speak to the other girl, even if only to strike up a short and innocent conversation. Tomorrow would be her 14th birthday and she hoped that not spending that day alone would make her running away from everything she knew a little easier to handle. The problem was that the other Nylaan distinctively appeared to be just as scared if not more than she was, not giving the impression that she was in the least bit interested or willing to acknowledge the presence of someone else in the cargo hold. Although they shared the same location, it seemed that they would be doing so in a self-imposed solitude.
Later that night, Ya'Han was awakened by the sound of a member of the crew staggering into the cargo hold, the man clearly being intoxicated by the way he stumbled about while singing. Without hesitation, he made his way to the other Nylaan and began forcing himself upon her, ripping the clothes off her body without caring that they were not alone in the room. A few moment later another man entered the room, this one easily recognizable as the ship's Captain.
"What are you two doing?" He demanded, visibly upset by what he had discovered.
"Captain? I came in here to make sure they were not tampering with the cargo when that one attacked me," the crewmember explained pointing an accusing finger to the other Nylaan girl. "I thought she was asleep, so I paid her no attention but when I got close enough she reached out and took a solid hold of me. That wench even suggested that she would show me a good time if I granted her a little more food."
"Is that true?" He bellowed, causing her to move back in order to save herself. She was so terrified that all she could do was to frantically shake her head 'no', trying as best she could to cover herself with her now torn clothes.
Ya'Han watched in silence, certain that the Captain would not be so easily fooled by the lies of his crewmember. The daughter of the High Sovereign was shocked when his hand flew through the air to strike the girls across her face.
"I am speaking to you! Did you attack one of my men?"
"No!" She cried. "I did not, he attacked me. I was sleeping, and he forced himself on me."
The Captain paused and looked around the cargo hold, knowing that there was another somewhere in the shadow-filled darkness. When he say Ya'Han, his attention quickly shifted onto the black-haired daughter of the High Sovereign.
"Is it true? Did he attack her?"
Fear caused Ya'Han to be unable to speak or even make the slightest noise. Her eyes darted from the dark-haired commoner from her own world to the scruffy looking crewmember back to the displeased Captain. If she collaborated the girl's story, it was very likely that the drunken man would seek revenge at some point later during their journey. If she on the other hand confirmed the false story provided by the sorry excuse of a man, the girl would be made to suffer the consequences for something that she had not done. In the end, only the sound of her silence would be the answer she would give.
"See, even that one refuses to speak," the crewmember added. "I'm telling you Captain, you were way too generous by allowing both of them on board. They are nothing more than a waste of space and a drain on our limited resources."
"Get out!" The Captain ordered as he glared at one girl than the next. Once the crewmember was gone, the man in charge moved towards the other Nylaan, leaving Ya'Han to hope that he might provide her with new clothes or maybe even apologise for the behavior of his subordinate as well as his own. Instead, he stroke the girl with the back of his hand once again before grabbing her by the dark hair in order to drag her out of the cargo hold.
"I did nothing wrong," she pleaded through her tears. "Please, tell him," she begged of Ya'Han who could not find the strength and courage to say what she had seen. The girl's pleas continued well after the door to the cargo hold had closed behind them, the sound of her terrified voice piercing through the large metallic doors.
Ya'Han cried as she came face-to-face with her own feelings. It would have been easy enough to help, to say what she had seen, but instead she had simple given up on trying to change the situation. The Nylaan who knew little of the outside world beyond the Imperial palace hid in a corner between two crates hoping that the other girl would understand why she had said nothing. This had been the third freighter she had found her way on and each time she had been abused enough to make her wary of saying anything that might go against the members of the crew. The best she would be able to do was to be here when her friend came back, and help her with whatever emotional and physical scars she would surely return with.
After several minutes, Ya'Han heard several strange sounds. This had not been the first time she heard these, allowing the self-exiled daughter of the High Sovereign to guess as to what it was. The first noise hinted that the ship had dropped out of warp speed and the next seemed to be the opening of an outside hatch. A cold chill swept through the black haired Nylaan as the possible explanation for this came to mind. What she heard next confirmed her greatest fears as the sound of something, or someone, repeatedly hitting the outer hull was heard making its way down the side of he cargo hold. Seconds later, only silence could be heard just before the freighter jumped back to warp speed.
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End of FLASHBACK
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Setting: USS ANUBIS, Gymnasium
Stardate: 33003.1525
Where all encompassing sadness had once been, only anger remained. The Sec/Tac had done her best to ignore this memory, to push it out of her mind, but the discussion with Jayson and the arrival of Doctor Bruxa and Counselor Lopez had brought all of it back that Ya'Han liked it or not. She had turned her back on a friend once and made a promise then to never ever again do so, no matter the reason or situation.
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Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
"I Can't Hear You"
previous posts were (ANU) "Inner Anger" / (BAS) "Game Changer"
=====
Setting: USS HATHOR, Deck 3, Engineering Room
Stardate: 33003.1530
Sonja and Elan both knew that Erik had been there for a while, looking at them as they worked on the HATHOR's propulsion system. The redhead Engineer had made it perfectly clear to the Oltharian giant that he was not to acknowledge the man's presence in any way. Since the Robotics expert knew better than to go against what the ANUBIS' Chief Engineer said, he remained silent focusing on his work.
"She's ignoring me," the Native American said to the ANUBIS' Avatar who was standing right next to him. His every attempt to draw the woman's attention having thus far failed, and by now all options as to why she had shun him had been crossed off the list he had been forced to create in his head.
"Ignoring might be a strong word," ANI politely argued in defence of her co-creator, the Avatar sounding very much like herself despite the hardships she faced during their encounter with the Ub-Hani. "She could simply be unable to acknowledge your requests for her time in a satisfactory manner at this time due to the level of concentration demanded by her current line of work. The integration of the crystals into the operating and propulsion systems of the HATHOR has not been an easy task. Therefore, I am sure that she is not ignoring you as you claim she is."
"You are right," Erik sighed. "She's ignoring me," he sarcastically added before unleashing a powerful roar. "LIEUTENANT PAQUETTE!"
"WHAAAAT?" The redhead snapped back matching the loudness of his voice, startling the Oltharian by her side so much that he knocked his head against one of the power conduits he had been kneeling under.
"Maya has managed to figure out not only how the crystals are given the transport locations, but she has also identified the specific information provided by Nicole before she vanished," the Captain explained, glad he had finally been able to speak to his Chief Engineer.
"I know," Sonja bluntly admitted, resuming her work. "Everything is done through low frequency energy waves very similar to the amplified brainwave patterns of a joint Trill."
"How?" Erik asked before he realized that the answer to his question was standing right next to him. The news of Maya's discovery had quickly spread through the ANUBIS, therefore, it made sense that ANI had become aware of it. It was not much of a stretch of the imagination to believe that the Avatar had relayed the news to the Engineer as soon as she had become aware of it.
"If you know, you will understand why I need you to tell me how close you are with completing the integration of the crystals into the HATHOR's system," the Captain continued, never having expected this meeting and discussion to be as difficult as it had turned out to be.
"It's all done," the redhead Engineer said, not sounding at all pleased, which understandably puzzled the Captain. "The integration was completed a few hours ago and every tests shows that everything is working as it should. We even fine-tuned the interfaced based on what Maya discovered. Everything is ready to go."
"I thought you wold have been happier about what Maya found, especially since the work on the HATHOR is completed," Erik stated, trying to make sense of her attitude. "This means that the rescue mission can proceed."
"With all due respect Captain, I didn't think you to be that naive," Sonja announced as she exited from the area she and Elan had been working in since the arrival of the Native American. "Koniki has no intentions on sending us to rescue Nicole."
"We already knew that it was a strong possibility that he would not be sending the crew of the ANUBIS on that mission," Erik pointed out. "I have the utmost confidence in Captain Iverson and her crew. Their experience with the BASTET's unique propulsion system will prove useful in figuring out the specific workings of the 'Blink Drive' which will greatly increase their odds of successfully finding Nicole safe and sound."
"That's not what I meant," Sonja clarified sounding utterly disappointed. "He's not sending ANYONE. Not you, not Iverson, not anyone else to rescue Nicole. The crew of the BASTET received their orders, and there is no mention of Nicole anywhere in them. They are to test the 'Blink Drive' and nothing else."
"How?" Erik asked, again surprised by the fact that his Chief Engineer knew more than he did, and again he realized that the answer to that question had been standing right next to him.
"Since the orders were not restricted of encoded, they were easily accessible through the NEW ALEXANDRIA network to which I am directed connected to while the ANUBIS is docked here," ANI explained. "The Admiral made no point to keeping this information a secret."
"You have always said that he could not be fully trusted," Sonja said. "The man has plans within plans, and after being the head of NEW ALEXANDRIA and now Starfleet Intelligence, his focus is not on the small-time players but rather on the larger game. Honestly, I am not entirely convinced that he ever did consider the small players like Nicole, you or me, but it is clear that right now his focus is on the 'Blink Drive'."
"I have been working under the Admiral for many years," Morningstar admitted. "Maybe I was hoping that he had changed, maybe I was counting on him making an exception in this case because she was a member of my crew, or maybe you are right and I am too naive."
"Hope springs eternal," the Engineer said not entirely certain as to what they would be able to do about any of this.
"I have a meeting with Captain Iverson on the bridge, maybe we can come up with something that will meet everyone's expectations. In the meantime, you three finish things down here and have the HATHOR ready for departure," the Captain said before heading out of the room.
"Do you believe that he will be able to convince Captain Iverson to not follow the Admiral's orders?" Elan asked, knowing all too well the price paid by those who defied the man's orders. "The ANUBIS was banished for over 200 days because of the crew not following his instructions to the letter. I doubt he would be less stern if any other Captain or crew did the same."
"What I believe makes no difference. Right now, everything, including Nicole's safety and possible return to us, rests on the shoulders of Captain Iverson. The only thing we can do is to make sure that this little lady is up for the task. The faster they complete the tests, the faster they will have the chance to maybe go after Nicole, wherever she may be."
=====
Lorraine Paquette
Lieutenant Sonja Paquette [Access Character BIO for Sonja Paquette]
Chief Engineering Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
=-=
"On The Far Side of Upset"
[previous post were (ANU) "I Can't Hear You" by Lorraine / (BAS) "New Orders" by Karen]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Deck A-4, IGC
Stardate: 33003.1545
As fast as the news of Maya's discovery had spread through the whole of the ANUBIS, the confirmation that they would not be going on a rescue mission to retrieve their Ship's Counselor had reached every section of the ship even faster. Most had not been surprised by this development, but it was the added detail that no one would be dispatched that caught most off guard.
Now, it was rumors as to the reason or reasons as to why that were being shared and spread throughout the ship, the ExO / ILO trying to keep track of them all while at her station in the IGC. Some of the suggested reasons made little sense, such as the one that would have some believe the Admiral wanted to strike back at the Dima symbiont for something done through a previous host. The rumors that made more sense all pointed to the head of the NEW ALEXANDRIA complex to simply not caring for the life of a single officer under his command.
As cold as that possibility was, Shar'El had to admit that in many ways she agreed with it. On one side of the equation was Nicole, the woman having vanished to some unknown location somewhere in the vastness of the universe. On the other side was the HATHOR and the newly integrated technology found within, technology that had never been live tested.
If Nicole was indeed alive and waiting for some sort of rescue as many hoped, risking a ship and crew through the use of unproven tech was irresponsible, placing the lives of many in peril for no other reason than to rush in head first to claim the title of hero and savior. If Nicole were dead, as some sadly believed, then risking the HATHOR and those on board would be foolish, as it would change absolutely nothing. Therefore, logic dictated that everyone needed to put their emotions aside and take the required time to make sure that if a rescue attempt were to be made, it would be a safe one for all involved.
The ExO / ILO could also understand the apprehension in blindly sending the HATHOR after the missing Counselor. Without knowing exactly where the ship would arrive after using the aptly named Blink Device would be a gamble that not only risked the ship and crew but also the new installed tech. It was conceivable that the ship would appear in the middle of some unknown conflict or worse dead in the center of a hostile sector of the galaxy controlled by forces less than amicable with the United Federation of Planets. Such an unannounced arrival could possibly trigger a much larger conflict that would lead to the demise of countless others.
Many might have perceived the Admiral's decision as being overly cold ad insensitive, but the ExO / ILO of the ANUBIS could only agree with it, at least on an official level. On a more personal level, and as a friend of the missing officer, Shar'El could not simply stand by and accept things as they were. To do so would make them no better than the Borg had once been, acting and reacting on simple mathematics instead of emotions.
Knowing what she needed to do, or at least try to do, the ExO / ILO reached for one of the controls and opened a secured, encoded channel. "Commander Shar'El to Commander Valentine."
=/\= Valentine here, what can I do for you? =/\=
"Are you available for us to meet? There is something I would like to discuss with you."
=/\= I suspected that you would, and to your credit i will admit that your call came faster than i had anticipated. Where would you like us to meet? =/\=
"I would normally suggest a more neutral location, but in this case I feel that somewhere more private and secure would be best."
=/\= I might have just the place; meet me on the BASTET, Deck 12, Engineering section say in 15 minutes? =/\=
"I could be there in 5, but I will take my time. See you there, Shar'El out."
As the ExO / ILO was closing the channel, her hands were already busy researching what could be so special about the BASTET's Engineering section. It did not take Shar'El long to figure out why Sarena had chosen that particular location over countless others, a selection that the raven-haired woman completely agreed with. Before starting to make her way there though, there was one more person she needed to get in contact with before her meeting.
=-=
Setting: USS BASTET, Deck 12, Main Engineering
Stardate: 33003.1600
"Commander Valentine?" Shar'El said as she walked into the oddly vacant room.
"Right on time, not that I expected you to be late. Now, if you would be so kind as to follow me, I will give you a tour of what makes our little ship so special," the BASTET's First Officer said, inviting her guest to follow with a motion of her hand.
Even though she had not come here for a guided tour of the Engineering department, Shar'El compiled confident that she knew why Sarena had wanted them to meet here. When the two ExOs came to stand right next to the Temporal Drive, the First Officer of the ANUBIS smiled.
With a flick of a switch, the Temporal Drive was activated by Commander Valentine, causing the small room to be filled in an eerie glow. "Nicely done," Shar'El noted. "The temporal distortion waves created by this lovely little device is going to make sure that no one is able to listen in on our conversation."
"There is no hiding anything from you though," Sarena chuckled dryly. As much as the BASTET's ExO had half expected to surprise the other ExO with this little twist, Commander Valentine was not surprised that the woman already knew everything there was to know about the ship and all of its specialized equipment. "Let me guess, you want to talk about our latest orders and the fact that Counselor Dima's name is not mentioned in them?"
"I know that our respective Captains are already talking about this, but i wanted to get your opinion," the ANUBIS' ExO / ILO explained. "Will Captain Iverson follow the orders as they are or will she try to help Captain Morningstar in looking for our missing officer?"
"Selene plays by the rules, more than most Captains I have come to know," Sarena replied right away, not having to think about this in the least. "The best I see her do is to rush the testing a little, but she won't go against Koniki, especially not with his daughter on board the BASTET. Although she will likely remain on the ship while we test the HATHOR, our association with her only insures that his attention and scrutiny are never far away from us."
"Of course," Shar'El said, nodding her head with understanding. "The Admiral and his daughter may be estranged but Alexandria's presence on the BASTET makes it impossible for any of you to to anything beyond the stated limits of your mission. Captain Iverson is most fortunate to have a First officer such as yourself by her side. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you and clarify our respective positions on this matter."
"I don't like it any more than you do, but there is no way that we can do what you and Captain Morningstar hope us to accomplish, at least not in the timeframe you wish it to happen in. What I can do is to reassure you that as soon as we can, if it is still something that needs to be done, we will go after your Counselor Dima," Commander Valentine stated.
"I appreciate you saying that," Shar'El said, knowing that there was no point in turning this into an argument. Both Iverson and Valentine were model officers, which was another reason why the Admiral selected them over the crew of the ANUBIS to test the HATHOR's new equipment.
"I have to get back to the HATHOR and get everything ready for our departure, you are free to remain on board the BASTET for as long as you wish," Sarena said. "I would caution you not to touch the Temporal or Dimensional Drives but I suspect that you likely know how they function just as much as we do. Again, I am sorry," the woman said before leaving her guest behind, but not quite as alone as she might have believed.
"You knew that she would not go against the Captain or their orders, so why even try?" Another woman asked as she emerged from the nearby shadows.
"I had to try," Shar'El replied. "But you are correct, I knew, that is why I asked you to join us, so that we could have an ILO-to-ILO talk."
Janeel grinned as she came to stand right in front of her counterpart from the ANUBIS. "I see that being a First Officer in addition to an Intel Operative has not dulled your instincts too much. What do you want me to do?"
"I will leave the how entirely to you as I have no way to know what will happen, but I know that you will need this," the ExO / ILO said handing over a single data chip to the BASTET's ILO. "Are you sure that you are willing to do this?"
"I am," Janeel firmly confirmed. "Too many have already been lost through inactions or general lack of caring. I will not let Koniki's lack of a soul force another one to be added to is already lengthy list of people who have been left to die. Return to your ship, I will take care of things, you have my word."
Shar'El smiled. She knew what Janeel's word meant, and that was more than enough to ease the concerns of the ANUBIS' ExO / ILO.
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Lieutenant Commander Janeel [Access Character BIO for Janeel]
Intel Liaison Officer / Mission Specialist
USS BASTET
##########
"Wishing You Were Here"
Previous posts (ANU) "On The Far Side of Upset" / (BAS) "Darker Times"
##########
"We are products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it."
- Rick Warren
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Deck 13, Stellar Cartography
Stardate: 33003.1730
Normally, when the Native American needed to ease his thoughts between missions, he would venture onto the outer hull of the ship and lose himself in the endless void filled with the twinkling of the distant stars that surrounded him. With the ANUBIS hidden inside the huge asteroid home to the NEW ALEXANDRIA base of operation, that option was not possible. The closest alternative was for Captain Morningstar to stand in the extended platform stretching in the middle of the 5-deck tall Stellar Cartography on board his own ship.
From there, the Commanding Officer of the USS ANUBIS could delight in seeing all of the stars normally visible from their current location in space. If being locked inside his ship was to be a drawback to this exercise, being able to focus his attention on a very specific section of this endless dark void would prove to be a desired advantage.
The area of space Captain Morningstar was so interested in appeared to be nothing more than a vacant sector, deprived of anything that could draw someone's attention. No sun, no planets, no asteroids, no comets, not even a random gathering of noble gases could be found within several light-years of that single point in space. Yet, that was where the Native American's complete and undivided focus was.
"Captain?" Commander Shar'El quietly said as she walked into the room, not wishing to startle her Commanding Officer who clearly appeared lost in his own thoughts.
"Yes Commander?" Morningstar casually replied, not diverting his attention in the slightest from the area of space that had captured his fullest interest.
"Keeping an eye on the HATHOR I see," the ILO added revealing once again that no secret, however small or insignificant could escape the woman's reach. In this case though, it was nothing more than pure logic as well as an understanding of the man that lead the Ullian to identify what was happening. The location where the small ship would go to in order to proceed with the tests of the Blink Device had not been a secret, at least not for someone with the resources of the ANUBIS' ILO.
"You are right," Erik sighed heavily. "I should not be wasting my time like this. It only serves to add to my troubles and frustration since there is nothing I can do about any of this," the Captain admitted even if his First Officer had not said anything that forced him to say what he did. "Part of me wishes that it was us out there, testing the Blink Device in order to find where Nicole vanished to and to get her back."
"That would be the exact reason why we are here instead," Shar'El noted, her tone of voice and mannerism coming across as being far more Human than usual. "We would all have pushed these tests to their absolute limits and likely rushed through them without taking into account our own safety. Our goal, to find a way to get to Nicole, would have very rapidly been proven to stand in opposition to what the Admiral wished, that is to test the device and insure that it functions as intended and withing our ability to control."
"We should never allow for the life of a single individual to take second place behind scientific and tactical knowledge," the Native American unhappily stated. "The moment we do this, the value of the Human race as a whole is diminished beyond measure."
"I am sure that Captain Iverson agrees and understands this and I am sure that she will do everything she can to move these tests forward as quickly as possible while maintaining the highest level of caution for all involved," Shar'El stated in a reassuring voice. "Who knows, maybe they will get lucky during their tests and come across an opportunity to go after Counsellor Dima themselves while still staying within the parameters set by Admiral Koniki."
"You are sounding very optimistic," the Native American pointed out; surprised by the knowledge that such a display was far from standard for the First Officer and Intel Liaison Operative of the ANUBIS. "What are you aware of that I am not?"
The question almost seemed rhetorical when asked of the Ullian, the woman having proven time and time again her ability to gather Intel for the most unlikely places. This time though, the subject matter proved to hit far closer to home than usual and Erik wanted to be aware of every possible ways that might come to play in getting their missing officer back safe and sound.
"Saying that I am aware of a specific detail of the current happenings on board the HATHOR would be inaccurate," Shar'El clarified. "I simply have knowledge as to some of the information they are working with, information that may prove to be more useful than had first been realized at the time."
"You being optimistic is a hint, be it a strong one, that something is not as it is believed to be," the Native American pointed out. "You being vague in your answers is a confirmation that something else is going one."
"Just possibilities, nothing more," Shar'El said with a faint smile gracing her lips. "I know what cards are in play, but I have no saying in whether or not they will be used and if so, how they will impact the game. I just know that someone on board the HATHOR has something that might help them."
"Why do I have the feeling that it would be best for me not to ask for details on this?" Captain Morningstar asked, actual concerns mixed in with his light amusement.
"Because you are a wise man Captain," Shar'El smiled back before making her way out of Stellar Cartography to leave the man to his own thoughts.
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Bridge
Stardate: 33003.1730
After having work as long as she had in the engineering section of the HATHOR, the Chief Engineer Officer had needed a break while still finding a way to not go mad doing nothing. That is why being on the bridge of the ANUBIS had been the perfect solution. From there Sonja could check on every system of the ship while feeling as if she was home, which in fact she was.
"I thought you would be resting now that the HATHOR has left to test the Blink Device," the ship's FCO, Ensign Tanith Jones said having noticed the CEO at the engineering station while the Ensign made her way to the Flight Control Station.
"This is resting," Sonja confirmed. "Actually having some legroom is quite relaxing believe it or not, plus ANI mentioned something about some low intensity distortion that was picked up by the sensors, so I came to check it out. Now, as far as resting is concerned, what are you doing here on the bridge?"
"I find being at my station soothing," Tanith replied. "It allows me to have my thoughts focused on something concrete instead of having them wandering onto other things that i would rather no have to think about or remember."
"I know the feeling," the redhead chuckled. "For me though, it's a nice bottle of wine that does the trick. Okay, okay, maybe it does take more than one bottle, but it still works. You would be surprised of what you don;t think about when you are busy dancing in the middle of your quarters."
"I will have to take your word for it," the Flight Control Officer said, accepting that everyone had a different way of dealing with such situations, thoughts and memories.
"Looks like the distortions are coming from the HATHOR," the Engineer reported to no one in particular. "My guess is that someone left the Temporal and/or the Dimensional drives on stand-by. Well, I'd better get down there and fix that. Wouldn't want anything to go wrong because of those things creating sensor interference now would be?" The question had been rhetorical, but had provided Sonja with the perfect excuse to venture to the other ship and investigate the two special drives that were on board the BASTET. "Don't wait up for me honey; I might be there a while."
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Sickbay
Stardate: 33003.1730
Counsellor Lopez walked into Sickbay to find her friend, Doctor Bruxa, busy with insuring that her department was as perfect as could be.
"Keep it up like that and I might have to report you for possible OCD in my daily log entry," the Latino woman said as she glanced at the room, unable to find the slightest thing out of place.
"There is no harm in a Doctor having pride in where they work," the Mikulak woman countered with. "It also gives me the chance to make sure I know where everything is, this Sickbay is way bigger than the one on the BASTET."
"They've left," Adriana sighed causing her friend to stop dead in her tracks.
"I know, and before you ask, yes it does feel weird," Satella admitted.
"They will be fine, just as we will be. As soon as we have a mission of our own, we won't have time to think about this," the Counsellor explained, trying to ease her friend's visible concerns.
"It still going to take some getting use to," the Doctor noted.
"Tell you what, I'll replicate a real bottle of white wine and will have it ready for us to share in my office. As soon as you are finished here, just come over and we can talk," Lopez offered.
"See, I knew that you would fit it just fine on board this ship, you are already acting like a Ship's Counsellor," Bruxa grinned in return.
"The location may fit a Ship's Counsellor, but I assure you that the wine is by a friend, for a friend."
"Give me ten, maybe fifteen minutes and I will be right there."
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Stark's Quarters
Stardate: 33003.1730
Following their lover's spat back in the Gymnasium, Jayson thought it safer to return to his quarters instead of hers. Stark understood and even shared in some way Ya'Han's anger and frustration, but their difference in perception of the situation had created a rift between them that could not be ignored.
=/\= Ya'Han to Jayson. =/\=
The call was equally unexpected as it was welcomed. The way things had gone, the Chief of Operations feared that it might take a few days for things to return to normal.
"Go ahead," Jayson quickly replied, realizing once again just how much he delighted in hearing her voice.
=/\= I wanted to apologize for this afternoon. I overreacted, =/\= Ya'Han stated.
"You have nothing to apologize for, I understand, we are all feeling out of sorts with the way the situation is being handled," Jayson offered in return, trying to not only ease the Nylaan's concerns but also to smooth things over between them.
=/\= Tell you what, I'll make dinner and will even prepare those round flat breads with toppings you like so much. =/\=
"You are going to make pizzas?"
=/\= You get your pizza, and I get my cloud cake, deal? =/\=
"Absolutely," Jayson agreed unable to refuse the terms he had just been offered, not to mention that it wold meant that he would be with her sooner than he had hoped, which was something he could never complain about. "I'm on my way."
=/\= Give me at least 10 to 15 minutes so that I can start replicating everything that we'll need. You know how much it bugs me to have you looking over my shoulders. =/\=
"See you in 15 minutes."
=====
Setting: USS HATHOR, Main Engineering
Stardate: 33003.1740
The only way for Sonja to make it here as fast as she had wanted to was to use the same method she employed back on the ANUBIS; sight-to-sight transport. The advantages of such a method of travel was that the Chief Engineer could arrive right away where she needed to be, giving her more time to dedicate on what needed to be done.
This time around though, Sonja had been slightly delayed because of one simple reason, she had wanted the Avatar to be here with her.
"You do realize that I could have established a remote access link and turned both the Dimensional and Temporal Drives off from the ANUBIS?" ANI said, the Chief Engineer already having taken several steps forward since their beam-in.
"Of course I knew that, but that would have deprived me of checking out those two beauties," Sonja admitted sounding like a child on Christmas morning. "This way, I can honestly state to anyone who might ask that I witnessed both drives having been off, that is as soon as I have run a few diagnostic checks and make sure that nothing was out of place. You know, just me being a great neighbour."
The Avatar simply stood there, watching her co-creator study the two specialty drives as quickly and thoroughly as she could.
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometric Lab
Stardate: 33003.1745
It felt weird for the Shillian being alone in the laboratory where she had been working with others for so long. Maya had grown accustomed to being by herself when dealing with the greater majority of her scientific researches, but the last one had been different. Standing in the room, looking at all the vacant stations, the Chief Science Officer actually felt lonely for a split second.
As she scanned the laboratory, a flashing red light drew her immediate attention to the station where the indicator had been located. After performing a quick sensor scan, Maya reached for her communicator.
"Commander Maya to Lieutenant Sonja."
=/\= Not now Maya, kind of busy right now, =/\= the Chief Engineer replied sounding somewhat flustered.
"Are you aware that there is a buildup of temporal energy emanating from your location on board the BASTET?"
=/\= No I was not! I just thought that this thing did whatever it is doing now on a regular basis, =/\= Sonja replied sarcastically. =/\= Of course i know, why do you think I am busy right now? I'm trying to fix this blasted thing. =/\=
=====
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Stellar Cartography
Stardate: 33003.1747
The Native American had been ready to end his stargazing session when a strange energy wave swept through the room, causing the Captain to experience an odd sensation of dizziness. As he tried to regain his wits in order to reach for his communicator and request a status update, Erik felt a presence behind him.
"The stars are wonderful aren't they? I could stay here and watch them all night, but your mother would be less than happy with me if i did that."
"Dad?" Erik asked confused beyond words for no other reason that the man who had just spoken to him and whom he was now looking at was none other than his father, a man who had died several decades ago.
Trying to make sense of what he was seeing, the Native American quickly looked around him, expecting to see the outer edges of Stellar Cartography, but instead he found nothing more than the hillside of his youth. Even the fresh smell in the air was as it should be, how could this be possible, this exact scene had played out more than 30 years ago?
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
"Old Joys"
[previous (ANU) "Wishing You Were Here" / (BAS) "Domino Effect"]
[/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Stark's Quarters
Stardate: 33003.1745
He leaned against the wall, barely able to stay standing. Whatever happened to make him feel this way had not pulled back any punches. As the fog gradually cleared from his mind, details of his surroundings returned and confused him even more than the reason or reasons why he had come to feel this way.
The smooth wall of his quarters had somehow become uneven, rougher. As Jayson looked at his hand and the wall behind it, he saw something strange, the natural color and texture of wood. Blinking several times in an effort to push this vision away, the OPS Officer realized that this was no dream, his fingers actually following the edge of the natural wood panels lining the wall.
As his gaze dropped to where the wall met the floor, Jayson failed to see the flooring of his quarters. Instead, he saw the same general texture that he had seen and felt behind his hand, natural wood. There was only one other place where he had seen this, and that confused him even more. How could it be possible?
"Hey, Jayson! Stop daydreaming, mother made pizza and if you get there last, I won't make any guarantees that we'll save any of it for you."
The voice had been that of his younger brother James, but how could that be possible, he was piloting shuttles back on EARTH, which is where these walls and floors also belonged. Jayson turned his head towards where the window should have been, and to his surprise, there it was. So far, it seemed that this place, wherever it was, had been made to resemble the house where he grew up. Even the view from the window matched perfectly the countryside he had enjoyed as a young man.
"Jayson! Dinner is served!"
If hearing the voice of his younger brother had not been enough of a shock, hearing his mother calling out to him as she had done countless times before during his youth had been enough to knock the legs from beneath him. How was any of this possible? The last thing he remembered was being in his quarters on board the ANUBIS getting ready to head over to Ya'Han's quarters for dinner,
There had also been a mention of Pizza then, but that was the extent of the similarities. The walls, the floor, even the smell of freshly baked pizza in the air pointed to him not being where he had been a minute ago. Jayson made a mental note to see their new CMO as soon as he got the chance, but first he would need to figure out where he actually was. If the question was not 'where was he?', then it would certainly by 'when was he?'.
"Computer, end program," he instructed, just in case this had been a trick being played on him, Jayson did not put it passed their Chief Engineer to do something like that to amuse herself or to make a point to Ya'Han by showing her the reactions he would have to whatever situation he had been dropped in the middle of. When the yellow grid of the holodeck did not replace the wood paneling and floors, that simple and neat answer was cast aside.
Slowly making his way through the rooms and corridors, Jayson remembered several details of this house as he saw them, details that he had forgotten about but which made this surreal experience come fell that much more real. Even the cracks in the floor and missing chips of wood in the wall panels were replicated to perfection. Jayson could not believe what he was seeing and figured that even if Shar'El had scanned his memories, se could not have come up with such an accurate replica of his childhood home.
"You really need to speed thing up there bro," James said, stuffing the majority of a slice of pizza straight into his mouth. "You are lucky there is some left."
"James! How many times have I told you not to talk with your mouth full?" Their mother said which made Jayson laugh. She had said that very same line at every meal they ever shared, his brother unable to grasp the concept that eating and talking were two separate activities. "Come Jayson, sit. If there is not enough pizza on the table for you, don't worry, I already have another in the oven."
Jayson took in a long deep breath, enjoying the smell of the pizza as it cooked. His mother had never been a big fan of replicated foods, enjoying cooking and baking when she was not busy working as a biochemist.
"Are you taking the last slices or are you stuck in dreamland?" James said, not even waiting for the reply to reach for the remaining pizza slices that were on the table between them.
"Jayson, is everything alright?" His mother asked, concerned by the vague expression and lack of an argument between him and his younger brother. "You seem lost, confused. Are you coming down with something?"
"It's called love mother," James teased, his mouth filled with the latest slices of pizza to be shoved in. "He's dreaming of that blonde girl again."
"Blonde girl?" The older brother asked, not having a clue as to what his younger sibling was talking about. Over the years, Jayson had come to know a fair number of woman fitting that description, so he needed a little more to identify which his brother had been referring to.
"Nice try bro. Stephanie? The daughter of that crazy Starfleet Doctor? Remember her now? You have not stopped talking about her for several months now, so don't try telling me that you suddenly forgot about her."
"Stephanie?" He gasped. She was his first crush, the girl he dreamt of marrying and having a family together with. She was perfection made real as far as he was concerned. The woman had been everything he could have hoped for and more, but fate had other plans for them. The way she broke his heart was more than a good enough reason for him to have forgotten everything about her. Back in those days, she had meant everything to him and in the span of a single heartbeat she had destroyed it all. It was only when he met Sofia Andersson back in Paris that the buried memories of his first love resurfaced for a brief moment. Oddly enough, Stephanie and Sofia shared several distinct similarities, which was why he had been so fascinated by her.
"You will need to invite her for dinner one of these day," Jayson's mother said as she placed a new pizza in the center of the table. "It would be so nice to meet her."
"You did meet her, or will meet her," he whispered to himself, trying to pin down the exact date that this wild journey into his past had landed him on. "That's when the troubles started, but that was years, decades ago, so how is this happening now?"
[/\]
Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
=-=
"Sisterly Love"
[previous post were (ANU) "Old Joys" / (BAS) "Domino Effect"]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Sickbay
Stardate: 33003.1745
If the dizzy spell Satella had just experienced was any indication, she was working too hard. The job of CMO on board the ANUBIS was hers, and that was a done deal. It would remain so as long as she did not make herself to be a liability to the crew. Falling ill so quickly following her new appointment would not reflect well on her, both as a member of the crew and as a Doctor.
"If father learns that you have not been taking care of yourself, he will most displeased."
"Wow," the CMO smirked, certain that Adriana had returned to have a little bit of fun at the expense of the Doctor. "You sounded just like my sister. Even the way you said *father* was spot on, how did you manage that?" Satella turned expecting to see her friend the Counselor. Instead she was shocked to see someone else standing in front of her. Someone whom she had not seen in a very long time. Someone who by all account should not have been here at all.
"I truly hope that I sound like you sister," the one-year older Mikulan woman said in the holier-than-thou tone that had become her trademark. "Are you feeling ill sibling? Shall I fetch father so that he can examine you. I will say, you do look a touch on the pale side."
"Drelna? What are you doing here?" Satella demanded. How had her sister found her way on board the ANUBIS? Being inside the ultra secret base of NEW ALEXANDRIA was strange enough. To have come on board the ship was more than the CMO could imagine. Had Admiral Koniki enlisted her sister into the secret Intel organization? Had she been here because of a family emergency? Had something happened to their parents?
"I find your attempt at humor most displeasing," the sister snarled back. "This is my home, just as much as it is yours. After a display such as yours right now, I do find myself wishing for your hasty departure. Maybe it is time for you to spread your wings as they say. I heard that they were looking for test subjects to test new possible cures for dementia. You may be exceptionally qualified at this time."
The younger of the Bruxa sisters did a quick scan of her surroundings. In only a few seconds, she was able to confirm that this place was as her sister had just claim. Satella was no longer in the ANUBIS's sickbay; instead, she was standing in the main living area of her family's home back on MIKULA PRIME.
The CMO reached for her communicator but found nothing but her blouse. The medical vest she had on having unexplainably vanished.
**This cannot be real,** Satella thought. Until she could figure out what had happened, it was best for her to keep her thoughts to herself. Also, there was no need to further confirm her sister's suspicions about her mental state. Had she truly lost her mind? Could all of this have been nothing more than an hallucination? "At least now I know how Adriana feels."
"Who is this Adriana you speak of?" Drelna asked, her sister's question having been spoken aloud. "Is she one of those Starfleet Cadets you have been speaking about?"
**If I am back in my own past, she likely will be soon,** Satella thought. This time she would make sure not to say anything out loud unless she was certain of what she wanted to say. "You know me, keeping my options open."
"Keeping your options open would require you to at the very least consider the Medical Academy here on MIKULA PRIME. Since you learned about that Starfleet Academy, you have not considered any other and better facilities. You need to let father and mother know of your intents to apply there. I do not recommend surprising them with such news," her sister recommended.
"You are right," Satella agreed. At least this little exchanged had served to set the specific time period she was in, but what this real or only a dream. Had she still been on the BASTET, the CMO could have assumed that they had somehow travelled back in time. This was the ANUBIS though, and as far as she knew, the ship did not possess such capabilities. "I will tell them soon."
"Soon? How you intend to successfully complete the entrance exam is beyond me. The deadline for applications is tomorrow. Therefore, you will need to speak to them tonight during dinner," Drelna indicated. "If not, I would suggest you jump on the first freighter to EARTH available."
Satella smiled. She remembered this day. This was when she announced her wish to join Starfleet having already passed her entrance exam. Her sister was not aware of that at the time, which fit the conversation they had just shared. Her parents would be thrilled that she had been accepted, at least in her past. If this were a temporal event, their reaction would be the same. If on the other hand this were something else, there would be no telling how they would react. Until she would be able to figure out exactly where and when she was, the younger Bruxa sister decided to play along. The reality of the matter was that she did not have any choice at the moment.
In the meantime, Satella could study her surroundings. So far though, every detail had been perfect. So, if this was some kind of recreation, whoever was responsible had gone to extreme lengths to make it believable. That realization made her think of a specific detail that no one else knew about. A detail that would confirm if this was indeed real or an elaborate fabrication.
"Where are you going?" Drelna asked of her sister who had suddenly decided to run to her room.
"I just need to check something. Don't worry about me. You might want to open the door for Venra though."
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Confused, Drelna quickly went to open the door to opening. The older sister was shocked to see the mentioned woman standing there. Venra was a friend of their mother, but how could Satella know that she would be there even before the knock at the door?
"Is everything alright dear? You appear quite troubled." Drelna dismissed the question, looking down the hallway where her sister had vanished.
"It is just my sister. She manages on a daily to raise our expectations on her strangeness. There are times when I truly question our genetic relation. Our parents are adamant that she is not adopted, but yet I still hold on to that hope."
The visitor to their home laughed aloud before speaking. "That my dear is called sisterly love, and it is quite normal. When the day comes and you two go your separate ways, I assure you that you will miss each other."
From her bedroom, Satella could hear the conversation between Drelna and Venra. A conversation that had taken place word for word on that special day. Events were unfolding as they had, but she still needed to confirm is this was real. In her room, she reached for a locked box to which she had the only key. Inside was an odd collection of trinkets gathered over the years. No one else knew about the existence of these items or their significance to her.
To her surprise and delight, she found the box filled with everything she expected to find there. This might not have been such a noteworthy discovery had the box not been lost years ago. On her first day at the Academy, the box was inadvertently left on a chair in the common room. Moments later, a large heavy metal crate was dropped on top of it. The small, delicate container was instantly crushed into dust as well as everything that it contained.
At the time, Satella saw this as a sign to let go of her past and embrace her future. Starfleet would be her new life and there would be no need to carry pieces of her past with her. To hold that box in her hands now confirmed that this was more than a detailed recreation, but was it really her past.
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
"A Different Kind of Dizzy"
[previous post were (ANU) "Sisterly Love" / (BAS) "Visiting Hours"]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Ya'Han's Quarters
Stardate: 33003.1745
The dizziness the Sec/Tac suddenly experienced was so extreme that Ya'Han quickly collapsed onto the floor, unable to reach out to grab hold of something that would have stopped her from falling. Trying desperately to understand what had just happened to her, the Nylaan forced herself back onto her feet as quickly as possible but found the task more than she could manage. Whatever had caused this instant unset of dizziness had also deprived her of the majority of her physical strength.
"Let me help you up," someone said as they took careful hold of her arm. Their voice was sweet, gentle and caring, but Ya'Han could not identify who the person was. More troubling was the fact that she clearly remembered being alone in her quarters. Had she lost consciousness following her fall? Even if she had, it did not explain why someone else had entered her quarters and why she had been unable to identify her right away. "Have a seat; I will get you something to drink."
The strength and ability to move of the Sec/Tac were nearly nonexistent, the slightest effort requiring a great deal of work on her part. As Ya'Han turned her head in an attempt to see who had helped her, a strand of hair fell down into her field of vision. The issue with this was not the hair but rather the color, which appeared to be a bright silvery gray. As she reached to touch this oddity, a hand that could not have been hers came into view covered in veins and dark spots.
Ya'Han's inquiring gaze abandoned the strangely colored hair to instead investigate the hand she appeared to have complete control of despite her certitude that it could not have belonged to her. Frail looking, to the point of appearing almost fragile, the hand could not have been hers as it looked to be that of an elderly woman well past her prime. What shocked the Nylaan even more was that another similar hand came into view when she summoned her other hand up into view.
"Here you are mother, drink. You must be dehydrated. Should I fetch the Doctor?"
Despite her desire to do so, the Nylaan could not raise her head enough to see the face of the person who had just bought her a glass of water. The best she could do was to watch as two frail-looking trembling hands reached out for the glass.
"What happened to me?" Ya'Han asked, the sound of her own words being the latest unexpected surprise. The voice was hers, at least for the most part, but it sounded so old that she could not accept that it had actually come from her. She brought the glass to her lips, took a small sip and offered the glass back to her caregiver who quickly retrieved it to put it on the nearest available flat surface.
"You fell. I told you to stay in your room until I came to help but as always you were just too stubborn to listen. I honestly never believed father when he claimed your constant unwillingness to listen to anyone, but now I have no choice but to see that he was right. Like it or not, you have to be more careful. You are no longer that 30 years old Chief of Security that everyone feared and who single-handedly took on a battalion of Imperian Centurions," the younger sounding woman explained, the tone of amusement in her voice hinting that she had heard that story more than once.
As the woman was about to walk away, Ya'Han quickly reached out within the limits of her current weakened form and managed to get a hold of her helper's wrist. She tried to take a solid hold but she discovered that she could barely to find the strength to wrap her fingers around it in order to hold her into place. "Wait. Please. Let me see you."
"It's alright mother, I am not going anywhere. You are not alone and have nothing to fear. Those were just nightmares that you had last night," the young sounding woman reassured as she lowered herself onto her knees to allow the two of them to see one another. Gentle, caring fingers brushed the gray strand of hair out of the way allowing for an unobstructed view between them.
"Mother?" Had this girl actually referred to her as in such a way? How could that be possible? One would hope that she would have known about having been pregnant and giving birth.
"Yes, you are my mother," the young woman happily confirmed. "The Doctor did say that you might start suffering from confusion and possible memory loss. I was hoping that it would not happen for quite some time but I guess I should be happy that it took this long to happen. You have nothing to be worried about; it's me, Ya'Jay, your daughter. I am here to take care of you as I have been doing for the last few years."
"Ya'Jay?" She hesitantly repeated, the name having been one that Jayson and she had spoken of should one day a child come to them. "Where is Jayson?" Ya'Han asked, trying to figure out what was happening. If this were a prank, she would quickly let him know that she had not found it in the slightest way amusing. One thing was certain though; the woman playing the role of their would-be daughter did have an uncanny resemblance to whom she claimed her parents to be. The confused Nylaan had to also admit that the purple streak against the solid black of her hair was a nice touch, adding a certain genuine feel to her allegations.
"Mom," the daughter said, her voice burdened with deeply heartfelt pain. "Dad has been dead for many years now. Don't you remember? That was the reason why I arranged for your transfer to this ship, so that we could be together and I could take care of you."
How could she remember something that had never happened? She had just spoken with him minutes ago as they planned the arrangements for dinner, so how could any of this have come to happen? Ya'Han forced her head up, fighting against the pain of her muscles and joints, a pain that led a great deal of credibility to her being, as she had felt, old, very old.
The room, at least what she could see of it, appeared to be a standard issue quarters for a starship although they held no resemblance to those she had on the ANUBIS. The decor was pleasant, very much as she would have done it herself, but that room had not been hers, nor had this life. How could it be?
"Let me help you up," Ya'Jay said, helping the elderly Nylaan onto her trembling legs. "Maybe we should go see the Doctor, just to make sure that everything is alright. The walk might also help a little; you have been locked up in your room for days now. I should have dragged you out earlier, but again you were too stubborn to let me do what needed to be done."
Ya'Han wanted to argue, she wanted to fight, but her body could barely manage to find the strength needed to stay standing. As they made their way to the door, the Nylaan caught a full-length reflection of herself in a mirror. There was no denying the resemblance, but the woman appeared ancient, frail, as if she had forgotten to die decades ago. The long silvery gray hair was frazzled, as was everything else about her.
Could that old woman looking back at her from the mirror actually be her? Had her inability to remember things such as having a daughter and Jayson's death been the result of her advanced age? What else had happened? What else did she need to know about the life that she could no longer remember anything about?
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
-=-=-
"Spilled Wine"
[Previous post: (ANU) "A Different Kind of Dizzy" & (BAS) "Visiting Hours"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Counselor's Office
Stardate: 33003.1745
The bottle of white wine slipped from her grasp as the Counselor suddenly felt dizzy and the room began to spin, Adriana's immediate thoughts being that she would need to clean the mess and replicate another bottle before Satella's arrival. As the malaise gradually dispelled, Adriana's vision cleared allowing her to find and analyse the mess that she had just help create.
"Well, maybe that was fortunate," Lopez said noticing that the spilled wine had not been of the color she expected to find. "Either I messed up when making my request from the replicator or there is something wrong with the equipment. I really hope that this was my fault though as I would hate to have to make out a repair request. If I do so, it might make someone believe that I am claiming ownership of something that I have no rights to."
Bending over to pick up the bottle, Adriana noticed something odd. The carpet beneath the bottle and spilled wine was not the same as the one she remembered being there before. A rapid scan of the floor revealed many more anomalies such as the location and style of the furniture. Having returned to a fully upright stance, Lopez scrutinized the room to discover that she was not in the Counselor's office, or even on the ANUBIS.
"Where am I?" Adriana asked of herself, dismissing the question almost as quickly as she had spoken it. "These were my quarters while I was on the KROGEN. I was getting ready to share dinner with Jorelly before we reached the GUMBARA Nebula. I dropped a bottle of red wine when we were attacked. How did I manage to get back here?"
Instead of an answer, Adriana was thrown off her feet as the ship was hit a second time, this time with far more power, causing the lights to go out. Soon after the emergency lighting activated, providing just enough illumination to insure that she would not trip over objects that had fallen in her path.
"No, no, no, no, no, no. This can't be happening. Not again!" Panic quickly took a hold of the woman, the memories of the events that followed still very fresh in her mind. It would take months for her to finally stop having nightmares about what happened next, but even then the slightest perceived motion in any surrounding shadows would be enough to make her shake in fear.
The sound of muffled screams could be heard coming from beyond the closed door of her quarters. The first time around she had not been entirely certain as to what she would find, but this time she knew exactly what to expect. Broken bodies covered in strange black ooze would be discovered, and that would only be the start of her final days on board this doomed vessel.
"Alright, I have to think," Adriana coaxed herself. If this was the past as she believed it to be, the Counselor already knew what would happen next. With that knowledge, she hoped to influence some of the events in order to save some of those who were lost during the attack. "Last time I tried to reach Sickbay to see if I could lend a hand, but it was already too late. All I found there and along the way was death in all of its most horrific expressions. This time I need to go elsewhere, maybe if I make it to the bridge I could inform the Captain as to what is happening."
Lopez easily convinced herself on this altered course of action, not at all interested in reliving events as they had previously happened. Surely she would be able to save at least one member of the crew if she did things differently. At the very least, there would be nothing to lose in trying, other than maybe her own life that is.
Adriana stood in front of the door, her finger hovering over the controls to open it. Making the decision to act differently from what she had done the first time around had been easy enough, but that did not change in any way the carnage she would encounter on the other side of that door.
As the new aCMO assigned to the KROGEN, Lopez had been beyond hopeful in her abilities to help others. That was until the events that would come to pass here on this ship, which would make it impossible for her to continue on in this career path. She knew that the moment she would open the door the eviscerated body of a then unidentifiable crewman waited for her. He would be the first of many she would discover.
That knowledge was enough for Adriana to hold back pressing the controls that would open the door. Even back then, Lopez had debated staying in her quarters, but the desire of the Ensign to prove herself to everyone else had simply been too great to overcome. Instead of that, she faced the need to make amends for all that she had not been able to do. Whatever fear she felt then was now nothing more than guilt, and that was enough for her to open the door once again.
She quickly looked at the dead crewman, finding him exactly as she remembered him to be. Gathering her courage, she made her way to the nearest turbolift with the goal to reach the bridge and not Sickbay. By making different decisions, she hoped to save herself from this horrific experience.
Maybe the universe had brought her back to this moment in time to give her an opportunity to make a difference, something that she had been unable to when the ship was attacked and the more than half the crew would be eventually found to have been killed in the most gruesome manner imaginable.
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
---
"Time to Think About Time"
(Previous Posts: (ANU) "Spilled Wine" / (BAS) "Out of the Cold")
---
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Astrometrics Laboratory
Stardate: 33003.1745
From the Astrometrics Laboratory, the Shillian Scientist was keeping a close eye on the build-up of temporal energy originating from the engine room of the USS BASTET. Maya had already begun to work out several scenarios in which she would either use a directed tachyon beam to help disperse the temporal energy, or remotely erect a force field with an inversed temporal amplitude to try and contain the effects of the build-up.
What the Chief Science officer had not expected was the speed at which the field grew and expended, enveloping not only the BASTET but the ANUBIS as well. Based on her initial observations, Maya suspected that the temporal energy would have been powerful enough to envelop the whole of the NEW ALEXANDRIA complex, but things happened far too quickly for her to be able to do anything about it.
When the wave of dizziness that washed over her finally released its grip on her, the Shillian found herself in a similar yet completely different setting. The room that she was in was still a laboratory, but judging by the appearance of the instruments, workstations and beakers containing liquids of various colours scattered throughout the room, it was evident that she was no longer on the ANUBIS.
Suspecting that her earlier spell of dizziness was caused by the rapid expansion of temporal energy, the Shillian wasted no time in trying to figure out where she was, focusing instead on identifying when the man-made anomaly had brought her to. Of course, given the familiarity of her surroundings, the answer had been an easy one to figure out. What the last child of SHILLIA PRIME needed to solve was to know exactly how far back in time she had been sent.
"Be careful with those chemicals, I have not had the time to seal them for storage. I would not want for you to get burnt or worst yet turned into an invertebrate slug."
Maya knew the man's voice, the Shillian hearing it from time to time in her dreams. This was his laboratory, she recognized it right away, but the placements of the beakers and instruments had not been enough to pinpoint the exact temporal location of this moment from her distant past.
"I would hate for your mother to be angry at me once again for allowing you to come here while I work," her father added forcing Maya to try and recall the exact date that this conversation had taken place.
"Mother pretends to be angry at you, but she is not," the Shillian heard herself say, the words having come as natural as could be without her having to think about them. "She is actually happy that you allow me to be here and learn all that I can."
"Is that so?" Sonah smiled as he came into view of his daughter. The man appeared far shorter than she remembered him which indicated that somehow she had traveled back in time as herself and not slipped into the form of her former self. If so, why had her father not reacted to the unexpected older appearance of his own daughter? Something about all this was not adding up as far as the Chief Science Officer of the USS ANUBIS was concerned.
"Are the preparations for your presentations to the Science Guild complete?" Maya asked. The question was innocent enough that it should not interfere with the normal flow of events no matter what the answer would be, but it would give the Shillian a good starting point to uncover when in her own past she had arrived.
"I still have two months before then," Sonah replied. "I still have time to make sure all of the gathered data is accurate and incontestable. You know those old scientists; they will find every possible argument to claim that I am wrong."
The truth was that he was wrong, in that his timeline for the end of their world had been overly generous taking all of the variables at the most optimistic values. SHILLIA PRIME would be destroyed far earlier than he would report to the Science Guild which never questioned the timeline given by Sonah. Maybe if they had, their culture would have been saved through more than a single surviving daughter.
"No need to worry about those old fools, come Maya, it is time for your next lesson. I need you to master the Trusa form. I believe that it is one of the most useful animal forms that you may need later on in life."
The Shillian daughter smiled at the accuracy of the statement made by her father. Her ability to take on the form of the tree-dwelling primate had indeed proven useful on more than a few occasions, most recently during their investigation on MARKALA PRIME. As the memories of that mission came to mind, Maya realized that she possessed the full knowledge of her future, a realization that proved to be as interesting as it was scary.
If this was her past according to the Prime Timeline, anything she did, anything she said, risked changing events and could alter the present she knew to such an extent that it would become unrecognizable to her or anyone else. For that to be true though, she would need to be over a decade younger which was evident she was not. The only way the Chief Science Officer could reconcile this with the fact that a temporal event had taken place, that she was in her past and that her father accepted her as she appeared was that the temporal energy from the BASTET had not only thrown her back in time but had somehow created an isolated temporal reality. Such a bubble in time could, in theory, flow in parallel through time without impacting in the slightest on events as recorded by what was referred to by members of the Department of Temporal Investigations as the Prime Timeline. Could the proximity of the Dimensional Jump Drive near the Temporal Drive have been responsible for such an odd and unexpected development?
Maya considered her thoughts for a few moments, trying to better understand what it was that had taken place. If the BASTET had indeed created such bubbles, and if these had taken on a life of their own based on the thoughts of each individual at the time, it would mean that every member of the crews of both vessels would be experiencing similar journeys through time. Based on that theory, which in her case did appear to have strong merits, was that the most prominent thoughts would have created an echo of what those thoughts and memories were about, or even of what might come to pass.
As fascinating as this might appear to be to a scientist such as herself, if these temporal bubbles were indeed isolated from the main flow of time, they risked creating a sort of time prison that no one would wish to escape from. The reason for this was simple in that those trapped in these temporal bubbles would be able to make changes to their past in a way to create a false future that they would find far more appealing than what the Prime Timeline had been set to be.
"Maya, are you coming?" Sonah beckoned, the man not used to having his daughter remain behind when it was time for her to practice her animal transformation skills.
"I'll be right there father," she replied catching herself off guard with the last word she said. The Shillian Scientist had no proof that this was indeed a bubble temporal universe, or that events in this timeline could be altered to lead to what would be considered to be a better future. What she did know was that her being able to once again say 'father' to the man to whom that title belonged to had created an emotional response that made her wish to stay here for at least a little while longer.
Real or fake, this was her past and it deserved to be properly investigated. That she would use this to spend more time with her father had been an advantage that she could not deny herself, not that she wanted to do so. For the time being, the best Maya could do was to enjoy the time she had been given with her father, time that would come to an end far too quickly even if she were to stay here for the next couple of months.
---
Jessica Solarik
Lieutenant Commander Maya [Access Character BIO for Maya]
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS
&
Captain Selene Fiona Iverson [Access Character BIO for Selene Iverson]
Commanding Officer
USS BASTET
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."
- William Blake (British, 1757-1827)
=-=
"Looking Back, Moving Forward"
[previous post were (ANU) "Time to Think About Time" by Jessica/ (BAS) "Unexpected Surprises" by Rachel]
=-=
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Deck 13, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1745
It was understandable as to why Captain Morningstar was concerned for Counselor Dima. Although Nicole had not been on the ANUBIS for all that long, she had made an impact on those around her, a credit to the sort of person she was. Shar'El had to admit though that having access to multiple lifetimes of experiences did give the joint Trill an unfair advantage in that regards, but no one seemed to complain about that.
With the HATHOR out testing the crystals the ANUBIS had gathered one by one, the crew could take some time to think about not only the situation with their Counselor but also their own personal involvements. Gathering the crystals had proven to be demanding for several of them in ways that could not simply be dismissed. Maybe that had been part of the reason why Shar'El had gone above and beyond to try and help Nicole by providing her counterpart on the BASTET with the specific brainwave pattern that was proven to be the cause of Dima's disappearance.
Shar'El suddenly stopped in mid-stride, feeling as if she was about to lose her balance and go crashing onto the floor. The dizziness was extreme and caused the ExO / ILO to desperately search for the nearest wall to help steady herself. When the feeling finally began to dissipate, the Ullian wondered if this was some sort of side effect of the substance she was using to help her deal with the withdrawal symptoms to Felicium. To be entirely honest, the substance had not been the means to a cure from the addiction but rather a replacement that granted her the ability to no longer have to deal with the painful memories that had encountered while in the mind of their Nylaan Chief of Security.
"Lyta!" A deep and commanding voice said, snapping the operative to full attention. She did not need to see the man to know who he was, and her reaction had been made to be automated after years of training. What surprised the woman was just how quickly and instinctual the reaction had been. The fact that he had referred to her by someone else's name had not even struck her as being strange or out of place.
"Yes Admiral?" The ILO asked, turning to face a man appearing decades younger than she remembered him to be. She had been about to inquire as to why he had come on board the ANUBIS but suddenly realized that it was not where either of them were. The decor on the walls was clearly that of the NEW ALEXANDRIA base, but how had she managed to get from where she had been to where she now was?
"I wanted your opinion on something," Koniki said, inviting the ILO to follow him with a motion of his hand. The two made their way to the large window giving onto the docking bays for the SCARAB-Class cruisers, and when they reached it and Shar'El looked into the large opened area she was surprised to see a large amount of scaffolding and workers in EVA suits. What further caught her attention was that neither the ANUBIS nor BASTET were absent from their mourning stations, the only ship visible being the USS SCARAB which also appeared to be under construction.
"What do you think?" Koniki asked, the man sounding far more jovial than she now knew him to be. This actually made the Intel Operative smile as she remembered him being exactly like this many years ago, when she had come to NEW ALEXANDRIA for the first time.
"You are asking me about my thoughts on the USS SCARAB, the first ship to operate from this secret base of operation," the woman replied, more as a statement than a question, recalling that this exact scene had played out long ago.
"Don't go looking into my head," the Admiral warned. His demeanor having instantly changed to being what the ILO knew him to normally be like.
"My apologies Admiral, I was not scanning your thoughts. Your were broadcasting them with such force that I could not help but picking up on them," the woman explained knowing that the excuse would be accepted without hesitation, just as it had been the first time this happened.
"I guess I am a little excited about all of this," the Admiral admitted. "I always thought that I could lower my guards while here, but I appreciate you showing me that even in this place, I need to better control my thoughts. Now, Lyta, the actual reason why I have called you here is to ask you for your help with one of my special projects."
"My help," the woman repeated sounding intrigued.
"Yes Lyta," the Admiral confirmed as he began to walk away.
There he went again, calling her by a name that had not been hers, and still she did not find it strange as if all of this had been perfectly normal. In fact, the way he said her name made her smile, a reaction that she could not stop or explain.
Before following the Admiral, the woman looked through the imposing windows of the observation deck, paying special attention to the faint reflection that her presence was creation. She could not make out a lot of the details, but there was enough there to make Shar'El realize that she had been looking at someone else's reflection.
"This is not my past although it is part of my memories," she mumbled to herself after having done the mental math that placed this moment in time long before her being of age to join Starfleet. "That is why I accept him calling me Lyta, because that's her name, but if these are nothing more than memories of hers why does this feel so real? It is as if I am actually here, in her body, experiencing events as they happened. If I was just remembering someone else's memories I would never be able to feel this way. Something else is happening and the fact that I am unable to force those memories to the surface is even more of an indication that this is not right."
"Lyta!"
"Sorry Admiral," the woman acknowledged before turning away from the imposing windows and rushing to catch up with the man who had taken quite a large lead on her. "What special project did you want to show me?"
"I need your unique telepathic skills. No one else has been able to get inside her head and I was hoping that you would be able to succeed where everyone else has failed," Koniki explained.
"Inside her head?"
"Yes, I need to know who and what she is as well as to figure out if she represents a threat to this base. All other telepaths I sent in to scan her claim they are unable to break through whatever barriers are present. I need you to break in, no matter the cost."
Now Shar'El knew that whoever this Lyta was, she had been a telepath and a powerful one at that based on the way the Koniki had spoken. Obviously, the two of them knew one another more than would have been expected between an Admiral and a member of his staff. He respected her; almost admired her and she felt the same towards him. Experiencing that feeling further pointed to this being much more than a simple reliving of a distant and forgotten memory. This was as real as her senses could perceive the world around her, but why had she come to be in the body of this person, in a past that was not her own?
Unable to find a suitable explanation for any of this, Shar'El decided to play along, not that she had much of a choice. For the time being she would be whoever this Lyta was and do what the Admiral needed her to do. At some point the ILO hoped to be able to put all of the pieces of this puzzle together and understand what was happening to her.
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Lieutenant Commander Janeel [Access Character BIO for Janeel]
Intel Liaison Officer / Mission Specialist
USS BASTET
"Rewriting History"
[previous (ANU) "Looking Back, Moving Forward" / (BAS) "Unexpected Surprise"]
[/\]
Setting: EARTH, Stark Residence,
Stardate: Not Applicable
He sat at the dinner table, the slice of pizza given to him by his mother untouched except for a single bite. Everything around him was as it was years ago; the feel of the wooden chair against his back, the smell of the freshly cooked pizza in the air, the way his brother James was inhaling one slice after the other. Even the absence of his younger brother Jesse was in line with the way things were back then. Everything was as he remembered it to be almost a full decade ago.
The main difference that Jayson noticed was the way the discussion about the then love of his life went. The discrepancies between what he remembered having been said and what had just been expressed were small, but by the end the same conclusion was reached. His mother wanted to meet Stephanie and that would be the beginning of the end for that relationship.
It had not been his mother's fault. It had not even been his brother's fault. Stephanie would happily return home after what everyone had thought to be a wonderful evening, but it was her parents that would step in with their objections. Up until that evening, she had not mentioned him to her parents, probably because she knew how it would all turn out. Accepting to come over for dinner meant that things were serious enough, and that would prove to be their undoing.
According to her parents, who were both experts in their respective medical fields, their daughter deserved better than to be with the son of an interplanetary trader and biochemist. The fact that he had admitted to not being sure as to what he wanted to do in life had just sealed their fate.
Jayson's parents believed in enjoying life and not locking one's future into a cage that would lead to disappointment and unhappiness. Instead, they hoped, as any parent should, that their three sons would find a meaningful, happy life in whatever field they would eventually chose.
On that day over ten years ago, Jayson had simply smiled at the thought of Stephanie coming over for dinner gladly finishing his meal before his brother claimed the plate as his. Being young and inexperienced, he could not have predicted the way things would unfold and how absolutely crushed it would leave him.
This time around though, Jayson could not finish his slice of pizza and even went as far as to push the plate in his brother's direction before standing.
"Where are you going?" His mother asked, surprised by his reaction.
"I'm just going outside, I need some fresh air."
"Wow," James exclaimed as he pulled his brother's plate closer. "If this what love does to you, remind me never to fall for a pretty face."
Jayson had been ready to tell him that he had nothing to fear in that domain. As a shuttle pilot, he would spend the greater majority of his time alone, enjoy eating more than he did anyone else's company. Instead, the middle brother headed for the door and the wide open space beyond where he knew his younger brother would be.
As passionate and dedicated as James was to food, Jesse was equally driven in his activity of choice; physical training. Behind the deceptive scrawny appearance of his younger brother was someone who dreamt of making a name for himself in MMA competitions, both on EARTH and abroad. Looking at him training, Jayson actually believed at the time that he would make it, but an injury suffered by a Nausicaan who used an illegal move would put an end to that dream.
"You do know that dinner is ready, right?" Jayson asked, sitting down on a cut log near to where is brother was training.
"I know. Mother made pizza and James is eating it all. It's alright, I'll have one of my protein shakes after I am finished here," Jesse said, pulling up a set of weights more than twice his own mass. "What are you doing here? You love mom's pizzas."
"I'm just not in the mood today."
"Let me guess, James is teasing you about that girl, what's her name?"
"Stephanie?"
"Yes, that's the one. You do know that he teases you because he's jealous. You have always had a way to attract the girls, while all he manages to do is to make sure his plate is never empty."
Jayson laughed. "Maybe if he actually took the time to look up from that plate once in a while he would be able to get more than food."
"Maybe, but as mom always says, we'll all end up where we are meant to be as long as we follow our dreams," Jesse said before clean lifting the weights over his head.
"Speaking of which, you are still aiming for that chance at the junior MMA championship?" Jayson asked, knowing that his brother not only had his eyes set on that tournament but would actually win the top spot in his weight category.
"Of course. I intend to make it all the way to the inter-race championship. I want to be the first Human to win that trophy."
As hard as he would work and train, as dedicated he would be to achieving that goal, that one injury would take him out of the running. Jesse would eventually become a first-class trainer but he would never even get a chance to try to win that trophy. The closest he would ever get to it would be to hang a holographic image of it in his gymnasium.
"Fighting against aliens is not the same as fighting against other humans," Jayson said, wondering if he would be able to change his brother's future with a few well-placed words of caution.
"I know that. That is one of the reasons why no human has every made it to the finals. Most of those guys are faster and stronger, that is why I am training as hard as I am now."
"You'll make it there, that I have no doubts, but do me a favor."
"What?" Jesse asked as he came to sit next to his older brother.
"Don't ever put a Nausicaan in a reverse headlock."
"That's pretty specific. Why should I not do that if I may ask?"
"I just heard stories about a move that they use to get out of a hold like that."
"I've heard the stories too. It's called the 'ramming flip' but it's illegal in all competitions, so you have nothing to worry about."
"I'm your brother, worrying is part of the contract. Just promise me that you will never do that to a Nausicaan, they are not the type to always abide by the rules, especially when they get angry."
"Alright, alright, I'll take that move off my list. Not sure what I'll use instead, but I won't be using any reserve headlocks on a Nausicaan or anyone one else for that matter. Will that make you happy?"
"Yes it does," Jayson confirmed. "In fact it makes me happy enough to go back inside and see if James actually ate everything. Maybe I can still get a slice or two."
It was Jesse's turn to laugh. "Good luck with that. If EARTH ever experiences a food shortage, it will be because of James, that I am sure of."
Jayson smiled. The thought was amusing, especially knowing that as a shuttle pilot, their older brother would be responsible for bringing down certain foods that could not be transported using any type of matter-to-energy system. As he was about to walk back into the house, the middle brother glanced over to the youngest of the three, silently hoping that their little conversation would change his life for the better. That was of course as long as Temporal Investigations didn't suddenly appear to restore the Prime Timeline to what it had been before his arrival here.
[/\]
Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
-=-=-
"Looking Into The Void"
[Previous post: (ANU) "Rewriting History" & (BAS) "Nice And Easy"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS KROGEN, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1800
The black ooze was everywhere, covering the majority of the floor, walls, and bodies that he came across. The first time around, Adriana had gone to Sickbay to offer her assistance following the attack on the ship. That had not gone so well, so with this second chance at this, she decided to head for the bridge. The decision seemed to be the right one when she was in her quarters. Now that she was in the corridor faced with much of the same that she had then, the then aCMO wondered if it might not be better for her to go back.
"No, I can't do that," Lopez said to herself, calling upon every ounce of courage she had available. I was brought back here for a reason, and am sure that hiding in my quarters was not it. I need to push on, no matter what gets in my way."
The self-given pep talk had not been overly inspirational, but it had proven to be enough to keep Adriana moving forward. Keeping her eyes glued to the doors to the turbolift located at the end of the corridor ignoring everything else had helped quite a bit. Whatever attacked the ship had been merciless leaving broken bodies to be found at every corner. The black ooze that was everywhere didn't make it any easier to ignore the results of the attack. By heading down the other end of the corridor, Lopez had hoped to find that things had not been s bad as she had discovered them to be so many years ago. With each new steps she took though, the trembling woman came to see that this was just as bad if not worse than she had believed them to be. Death surrounded her wherever she went.
With the turbolift now directly in front of her, Adriana could only hope that the worst of this was behind her. When the door opened though, those thoughts were quickly pushed aside replaced by the gruesome realization that wherever she went, the nightmare would be there waiting for her.
The sight of the dead crewman now covered in that awful black ooze sent Adriana running back down the corridor. She had no idea where she was going, all she wanted to do was to try and escape this, whatever it was. If she had indeed been thrown back in time, she wanted nothing more then to return to her time. If this was some sort of a dream, illusion or holographic simulation, she wanted it to end. All of this death and darkness was more than she cared to deal with at this moment, or at any other time.
Out of blind desperation, Adriana found her way back into her quarters on board the KROGEN. How she had gotten there was nothing more than a blur, but at least she figured that she would be safe there. As the door closed hissed behind her, she realized that this was more than a bad dream as the ooze that seemed to be everywhere had somehow found its way into her quarters. Before now, she believed it to be some sort of residual matter left behind by whatever or however had been responsible for the death of so many. Now, she wondered if the ooze had not been the cause of this horrendous calamity.
Drawing on her curiosity instead of falling prey to her feelings and fears, Adriana approached one of the larger blobs of this black ooze. The first time she had seen this odd substance, Lopez had not realized just how completely void of any markings it displayed. Looking at it much closer than she had ever dreamt of doing, she could not see that it was like looking into nothingness.
As the Counselor studied the ooze more closely, she came to realize something new, something that she would never have noticed before. The ooze was moving, slowly mind you, but it was still able to self-propelled, crawling over anything in its path with relative ease. At first, she believed this to be due to some sort of gravity pull until she noted that the ooze was actually moving towards her, no matter where it had initially been. It would take a scientist with the skills of Commander Maya to better understand this substance, but right now there was no one else here.
Maybe this journey through time had not been meant to give Adriana an opportunity to change how things had come to pass, but rather to better understand why it had happened. The official report would state that the KROGEN had been attacked by an unknown force, claiming the lives of the majority of the crew. Ensign Lopez, like so other few, had managed to survive by finding shelter in various corners of the ship. No one it seems had made the connection that their survival had been due to the ooze not having been able to reach them. Maybe now, that answer could be found. At the very least it would give her something to focus on and work towards while being alone in this nightmarish setting.
"Alone? Really? I don't know why I bother, you actually go out of your way to deny my presence when I am here to help you."
The Counselor closed her eyes and sighed. She should not have been so surprised to hear the voice of her twin sister since she had been the main reason for Adriana having survived this ordeal the first time around. Thanks to the constant encouragements from this mental projection of her sister, she had found her way down to main engineering despite having suffered a broken leg.
"I am not denying your existence, I am just reminding myself that you are not real, at least not in a physical sense. The fact that I can hear and see you makes you real to me, and I guess in the end that is what matters," Adriana said in what could have only been described to be a heartfelt manner as she looked over her shoulder to the sister sitting cross-legged on the dining table.
"Well, that was more progress than I ever thought I would hear from you. Now, I would suggest that you don't take your eyes from that slimy black ooze. It does seem to have taken a liking to you," Amanda said, causing her sister to look back at the substance that had moved far more than she could have expected it to.
"This thing moves fast. It would explain why it was able to take over the ship so fast. I just have to figure out why it was not able to reach the survivors. There had to be a reason why we made it out while so many others died."
"Good luck with that," the hallucination grinned. "You might want to get out of here while you can though. Whatever that ooze may be, it sure seems to be trying to make sure you never get the chance to find the answer you are now looking for."
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
=-=
"Boxed Memories"
[previous post were (ANU) "Looking Into The Void" / (BAS) "Questions"]
=-=
Setting: MIKULA PRIME, Bruxa Residence, Satella's bredroom
Stardate: 33003.1800
Satella studied the ornate small box being delicately held in her hands. The container was not that fragile but the woman could not help fearing that it would break or simply vanish at a moment's notice. In reality, the box no longer existed, shattered into a million pieces on her first day at Starfleet Academy. Holding on to that fact, the youngest of the Bruxa sisters tried to understand what was happening to her.
The house of her childhood was exactly as she remembered it to be, even more so in fact. Therefore, this could not have been a recreation constructed from her memories. The box in her hands and its content suggested that this was a temporal event. There were few other ways to explain the item she was so carefully holding. Having served on the BASTET before coming on board the ANUBIS meant she knew that such journeys through time were possible. In fact, they were more frequent and common than the general public had been aware of. If this was her past though, the question remained as to how had she made her way back to this moment?
Moving the BASTET through time required a great deal of energy as well as a specific mechanical component. Without the Temporal Drive, there was no easy way to explain how she had traveled back in time. Another possibility was that this was some trick from Q, although Satella could not imagine why she would have been singled out. Her only knowledge of the omniscient and omnipotent being had been acquired through required readings back at the Academy. So there was no reason for a member of the Continuum to do this to her. Whatever or whoever had been responsible for her being here, it appeared that she would not be going anywhere else for some time.
It seemed that she would have to tell her parents and sister about her having been accepted at Starfleet Academy, again. Although everyone was shocked by the announcement, no one objected to her choice of a career path. The Medical Academy of MIKULA PRIME was good, but it was not Starfleet Academy or Starfleet Medical. There she would be able t learn a great deal more than she could have ever hoped to while here on her homeworld. The best part was that she knew this for a fact having gone through those four years to earn her commission and rank.
Returning to the common living area, Staella was greeted by her sister Drelna and Venra, a friend of the family.
"Why did you bring your beloved box here with you?" The junior sister asked, surprised that the container had been removed from where it was kept protected from all harm. "Do you need an inanimate object to give you the strength to tell our parents of your decision to apply to Starfleet? If so, I am sorry to say that you will not make it through the first set of tests. I have been told that they are excruciatingly difficult and demanding."
"I know," Satella said, a knowing smile playing in the corner of her lips.
"There's that arrogance that mother and father have grown so accustomed to. It will be your undoing one of these days."
"What your sister is displaying is confidence my dear," Venra said, the family friend not wishing for either sister to make the other feel smaller than they were. Life had taught the elder Mikulan woman that a certain amount of conviction in one's self could go a long way. "You should admire and not try to belittle her for that."
"Confidence and arrogance are different sides of the same coin. One can claim having had confidence in their endeavors only if they win. Knowing my sister as I do, I can assure you that what she is displaying is arrogance." Drelna had no intentions of stepping back from her position. As the elder sister, even if only by one year, she knew best thanks to her higher amount of experience.
Satella smiled. By her own sister's definition, what she felt was not arrogance since she had already passed her entrance exam. The soon to be Starfleet Cadet wanted to set the record straight now. To see the expression on her sister's face now would be priceless. The look she would see on that same face at dinner time though would be far better. Not only would Drelna be proven wrong, but this would happen in front of their parents. Even better was that both their mother and father would be overjoyed by the news. They might not have fully agreed with the decision made by their younger daughter, but they could not find any faults in it. This was what she wanted to do and by the looks of things, she would pursue her goals to the end.
How could a parent find anything wrong with such a revelation about their own child? When Satella made the announcement the first time, she had been nervous. As much as she suspected what her parents' reaction would be, there was no way to be certain. This time though, she knew exactly how happy they would be, and how utterly stunned her sister would be. Maybe this time, the younger sister would be able to actually knock her sister off her chair. It would all depend on how good her timing would be in making this historic announcement, for the second time.
"Girls! Supper is almost ready," their mother said.
Satella made her way to the dining room, leaving her sister Derlna and their guest Venra to take care of their business. The advantage of traveling back in time was that you knew the sequence of events. In this case, there was no need to invite the woman for dinner as she had come only to drop off a letter for their father. Strangely enough, she could not remember what the letter had been about or even if her father had mentioned its content. Maybe this time she would be able to discover what the letter had been about before her announcement took center stage.
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Ensign Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
"Working On A Fix"
previous posts were (ANU) "Boxed Memories" / (BAS) "Questions"
=====
Setting: USS BASTET, Main Engineering
Stardate: 33003.1800
The dizziness had long vanished, as did her previous surroundings. Instead of the BASTET's Engineering room, the redhead had found herself back on EARTH, more specifically in her grandfather's old workshop. It didn't take Sonja long to understand what had just happened, the energy built-up in the Temporal Drive had sent her back here leaving her with only one goal in mind -- to get back without altering the timeline.
As Sonja scanned the workshop filled with tools and contraptions spanning decades of work, countless memories of the time she had spent with her grandfather came rushing back. It was in this place that she discovered the love for all things relating to engineering thanks to her Grandfather's unique approach. To him, everything was a problem to be fixed, even if it was not believed to be a problem at the time. It was because of him that she took on the unconscious habit of speaking to devices small and large alike as if they were alive. The man possessed an uncanny insight into anything mechanical and in time she grew not only to match his love and skills in that field but even to surpass him.
A bright smile came to grace her lips as Sonja's eyes locked onto a miniature warp core set on a shelf. The item was the first working model she had ever built and it was something that her grandfather cherished and used to remind his granddaughter that she could accomplish anything she set her mind to. The location of that particular item, along with the presence of several others, placed the time traveling Engineer less than a year before her joining Starfleet Academy. This likely meant that her grandparents, parents, and brother, as well as her own native self to this timeline, were out on some starship or starbase. The only member of the family who never followed in such excursions was her nature-loving sister who preferred to look at rocks instead of stars.
With everyone gone, it meant that Sonja would be free to figure this problem out on her own, thus ensuring that she did not mess with the established progression of events. As much as she would have enjoyed seeing her grandfather, the redhead knew that doing so could be bad, very bad as far as keeping the integrity of the Prime Timeline.
"What are you doing here?" A youngish female voice asked making Sonja realize that she was not as alone as she had hoped to be.
"I was just looking around for something that I misplaced," the redhead replied to her sister's inquiry. "What are you doing here? You never come to grandpa's workshop. By your own account, it smells too much like one of those stale and lifeless engineering rooms on board starships."
"I just came to get a polarity inducer," Tiffany huffed; the younger sister clearly had hoped to conduct the repair without anyone finding out. "My geo-scanner isn't working the way it is supposed to."
Sonja grinned and effortlessly took the device from her sister's hands. "All right, tell Aunty Sonja what's wrong," the redhead said to the device now in her hands.
"You are just as crazy as grandpa," the sister declared trying to get the device back but to no avail.
"Thank you," Sonja retaliated with, accepting the would-be insult as a gracious compliment. Having wanted to be like her grandfather for as long as she could remember, being likened to him in any fashion was high praise to the redhead. "As for your geo-scanner, you don't need a polarity inducer, you need a phase adjuster. You probably got a little too close to some magnetic rocks and it threw the calibration off."
"You are so annoying," Tiffany growled as she finally took the device from her sister's grasp before reaching for the specified tool. "You deserve to go to Starfleet and be just like the rest of the family, proud little robotic soldiers without a mind of their own," the sister added in a huff as she stormed out of the workshop.
"You bloody welcome you rock-headed brat," Sonja angrily shot back, not that she expected her sister to offer any kind of thanks.
"Don't let her get to you," the grandfather said while walking in through the same doorway that the youngest sibling had just used to make her dramatic exit. "Your choices are your own, just as much as hers are. You being accepted at Starfleet Academy is something that we are all very proud of, and if you are anything like your old grandpa, you will be anything but a mindless robotic soldier. In fact, I would go as far as to say that I expect you to build robots and not be one."
"Grandpa?" Sonja gasped, her blood freezing in her own veins, fearing that this encounter could irreversibly alter the timeline. She could remember similar words spoken to her by him, but those had been offered just before her departure for San Francisco.
"Are you alright, you seem a little pale."
"I'm fine," the redhead said trying to reassure the man, but it was evident by the expression on his face that he had not believed her in the least. "No really, I'm all right."
"Sweetie," the elderly man said as he smiled. "I may be old, but I'm no fool. I am able to tell when a warp core is out of alignment by simply looking at the variations of the energy pulses. I can tell you behind which panel a plasma conduit with a micro-fracture can be found by listening to the ambient noise in the room. If I am able to do all that, I can assure you that I can tell when something is troubling my granddaughter. So tell me, what's the matter?"
Sonja debated for a moment telling her grandfather about her journey through time, but she quickly decided against it. Him being aware of any part of the future could have catastrophic consequences and the Chief Engineer could not take that chance, especially not with him. "I can't. It's not that I don't want to because I do, it's just that I can't tell you. I really don't have the time to explain. I should not even be talking to you like this right now."
"It's all right sweetie," he reassured while offering the same caring and supportive smile to his granddaughter. "You'll figure it out, you always do," he added before placing a loving kiss on her forehead before leaving Sonja alone in the workshop.
Minutes passed in silence before being shattered by a familiar female voice that startled Sonja so much that she physically jumped.
"Lieutenant Paquette?"
"ANI! What the heck are you doing here?" Sonja demanded as she turned and searched to find so sign of the Avatar.
"You, as well as every member of the crew of the ANUBIS are caught in a confined dimensional bubble with temporal properties," the artificial woman explained. "We are able to project my voice from this reality to the one you are currently in, this is partially possible because I am not a biological entity."
"Thank you, Pinocchio! Now, you mean to say that this is not my past?" Sonja said, allowing a momentary sigh of relief to escape from her lips.
"It is a carefully recreated moment of your past set into a self-contained dimensional enclosure. The science team of NEW ALEXANDRIA along with me are currently attempting to rectify the situation," ANI announced.
"How come the rest of the complex was not affected?" Sonja asked, the woman possessing a unique way of looking beyond the immediate problems to see the larger situation.
"With a ship like the BASTET equipped with a Temporal Drive, Admiral Koniki thought it wise to have several sections of NEW ALEXANDRIA shielded from changes in the Prime Timeline," the Avatar replied.
"Well, I will say that his paranoia has finally paid off," Sonja chuckled. "Now, how do I get out of here and back to my own time and dimension?"
"We are still trying to understand how this came to be. The current theory is that the Temporal Drive somehow interacted with the Dimensional Jump Drive to create these bubble realities. The good news is that nothing anyone does in those temporal realities will affect the Prime Timeline."
"What's the bad news ANI?"
"No one here has any idea how to collapse these new realities without killing those stuck in them," the Avatar explained sounding far too unemotional for the Chief Engineer's liking. "As we speak, the NEW ALEXANDRIA team is trying to find a way to merge some of these realities with others, hoping that a larger, more stable bubble will allow to safely extract those inside. Yours has been the only dimensional bubble we have been able to access at this point."
"Well, there are worse places to be stuck in I suppose," the redhead engineer shrugged.
"Actually, the situation is not that simple," ANI amended.
"Of course not, why would it ever be simple," Sonja said exasperatedly. "Starfleet should really add a disclaimer for new graduates of the Academy stating something along the lines of 'From this day forth, nothing you do will be easy, and when you think you have hit rock bottom, someone will open up a dimensional hole beneath you and suck you into a whole new hell'."
"That statement might be an exaggeration, although in your current case it does appear to be accurate to some degree. The dimensional bubble you are in is shrinking, and we need to bring you all out of your respective journeys through time before they collapse and kill everyone inside. That is why we are trying to merge these bubbles, hoping that this will give us the time required to find a solution."
"Well, get working! What are you wasting your time talking to me for? Shouldn't you be chin deep in figuring out a way to fix this? While you do that, I will see if I can come up with something to help while I am here. You would be surprised what you could find in Grandpa's workshop. Keep me updated as to your progress," Sonja said not wasting a moment to jump into action and trying to find something that she could use to help solve these isolated temporal bubbles scattered through time.
=====
Lorraine Paquette
Lieutenant Sonja Paquette [Access Character BIO for Sonja Paquette]
Chief Engineering Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
---
"A Friend In Need"
(Previous Posts: (ANU) "Working On A Fix" / (BAS) "Questions")
---
Setting: SHILLIA PRIME, Sonah's Laboratory
Stardate: 33003.1800
Responding to her father's call, Maya was about to step through the door leading out of the laboratory, but before doing so she felt the need to look back. The Shillian knew every detail of the room by heart, so it was with some surprise that she noticed something different. Items and tools that she had never before seen were on workstations and shelves that had never been there. Something strange was happening, something that went beyond this being a simple journey back into her past.
"Sonja?" Maya gasped in surprise at the sight of the redhead. Since this was her past, her world, never had the Shillian expected to see the Chief Engineering Officer of the ANUBIS to be here.
"My guess is that the merger worked?" Sonja claimed, looking around at the odd combination that came to be created from the merging of the two reality bubbles. The workshop and the laboratory were nothing alike, yet when combined, the two temporal locations appeared to fit exceptionally well together, as if both were meant to deal with different aspects of the same problem. Science and Engineering know-how coming seamlessly together to work as one.
"Merger?" Maya echoed. "Are we inside some sort of isolated temporal bubbles that are being forced pone into the other?"
The Chief Engineer chuckled. "No hiding anything from you. Maybe that is why they brought our realities together, hoping that we would be able to find a more effective and hasty solution."
"That does not sound all that reassuring," the Shillian said, trying to make sense of things as she studied the remodeled Laboratory of her father. "Am I right in saying that all of this was created due to the energy built-up in the Temporal Drive on board the BASTET?"
"That is just the start of it," Sonja confirmed. "According to ANI, the Temporal and Dimensional Jump Drives interacted with one another thanks to that energy spike which ended up creating isolated temporal dimensions. Apparently, the entire crew of the ANUBIS has been affected by this, but as always there is an additional problem."
"The creation of so many temporal dimensional bubbles has likely caused a tear in the fabric of time which can only be sealed and repaired by the cancellation of each of these new realities. Those in NEW ALEXANDRIA who were not affected by this dimensional shattering, due to them having been in some temporally shielded section of the base, are therefore trying to get us out of these bubbles before they collapse. From what you have told me so far, I suspect that they are currently unable to do so, hence why they are forcing these independent realities together to help stabilize them and provide everyone with more time to find a solution," Maya said as if everything had been nothing more than common knowledge and basic logic.
"Everything that I have told you?" Sonja gasped in astonishment. "I have said barely anything. You are the one figuring it all out on your own. I will say this; it does make it easier and will save us a great deal of time as I do not have to explain anything to you. That will allow us to get to work that much faster."
"Of course," the Shillian noted. "We are faced with a time restriction. Failure to get us out of these temporal reality bubbles before they collapse will result in our deaths."
"That settles it, next time we have a senior staff game of Clue or A Night of Murder, you are on my team," Sonja admitted. "I barely manage to tell you anything about what is happening and you seem to better understand it than those fools outside."
"Understanding what is happening and being able to do something about it is an entirely different matter," Maya stated. "We have to find a way to bridge this reality with our own, meaning the one that we originally came from. The advantage of being in independent dimensional bubbles is that whatever we do here will not adversely affect the Prime Timeline, which means that we could in theory call upon the assistance of those who inhabit these realities."
The demeanour of the redhead Chief Engineer instantly brightened up at the thought of working with her Grandfather once again, and there was no mistaking that Maya felt even more elated at the prospect of her working on this matter with her own father. As serious as the situation they faced was, the opportunity for both women to recapture even a small part of their past would prove to be a joyous event.
"Maya? Who is your friend?" Sonah asked having returned to the laboratory to investigate why his daughter had not joined him for their shape-shifting practice and lesson. The Shillian was momentarily surprised by the fact that her father did not appear to be in the least bothered by the new configuration of his laboratory, but as the scientist she was, it quickly became evident that the man was an integral part of this bubble reality. This meant that his perception of this reality would always reflect whatever form it took. As strange as it seems though, it would make things a great deal easier for members of each temporal reality as they would accept the others without questions.
"Her name is Sonja, and we need your help," Maya replied.
"It is an honour to meet you, Miss Sonja," Sonah said adding a deep and respectful bow. "I do not get a chance to meet many friends of my daughter. In fact, I do believe that you are the first I have ever come to see. I would be pleased to help you in whatever manner is required of me."
"No friends?" Sonja whispered to Maya, this little tidbit about the past of the Shillian having been a rather surprising one if not entirely unexpected.
"We can talk about this at a later time; right now we need to focus on opening a bridge between this reality and our own before it is too late for us all," the Shillian said wanting to find a solution almost as much as she wanted to be working side-by-side with her father on its discovery.
---
Jessica Solarik
Lieutenant Commander Maya [Access Character BIO for Maya]
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS
&
Captain Selene Fiona Iverson [Access Character BIO for Selene Iverson]
Commanding Officer
USS BASTET
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."
- William Blake (British, 1757-1827)
=-=
"Someone Else's Past"
[previous post were (ANU) "A Friend In Need" by Jessica/ (BAS) "The Hardest Part" by Karen]
=-=
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1800
Whoever this Lyta was, the personnel of the NEW ALEXANDRIA complex feared her enough to stop dead in their tracks to search for another route to take instead of risking walking next to her. A few quick glances up at the much taller and imposing Admiral revealed that he was well aware of this and found the entire affair to be quite entertaining.
Those reactions stopped the moment the duo arrived at a section of the secret base of operations that Commander Shar'El knew nothing about. Admiral Koniki used his clearance to gain access to this lower level referred to simply as Section I. The reactions those who worked in this restricted section upon seeing Lyta's was not one of fear but rather of pleasant admiration. It was easy to see that everyone here knew her quite well, something that Shar'El found a little disturbing since she knew nothing of the woman through whom she was currently experiencing the past.
"Here we are," the Admiral announced, stopping in front of a large glass window that gave an unobstructed view into some sort of sterile examination room. All of the scanning and life support equipment present in that room surrounded a single medical diagnostic table upon which the form of a completely naked human female could be seen.
"Who is she?" Shar'El asked, surprising herself due to the fact that it was the voice of Lyta she heard ask the question.
"That is why you are here. I need to know who she is. The USS AVALON came across the wreckage of a small craft and found her inside. She was brought to the nearest starbase from where she was sent to EARTH to Starfleet Medical. At every step, she was scanned, tested, analyzed, probed but nothing about who or what she is could be found. The only thing certain about her is that she appears to be humanoid on the outside but her cells have an amazing regenerative ability. Although her brain appears undamaged, all efforts to get her out of this coma she has been in since before her being discovered have failed. When SFI became aware of her, she was transferred into our care," the Admiral explained, his gaze locked on the unconscious woman on the other side of the thick protective sheet of glass.
"Why not use a telepath to scan her thoughts?" Shar'El asked. The glare she received from the Admiral though made it perfectly clear that the question had not been one that Lyta would have voiced in these circumstances. In an effort to brush this misstep aside, the ILO offered a soft, teasing smile, the kind that women of all races used when trying to charm and sway someone into a more friendly and amicable frame of mind.
"Glad to see that you are working on that sense of humor, but this is neither the time nor place," the Admiral said sternly, returning his gaze to the mystery woman. "You are here because everyone else has been unable to break through the mental barrier that is protecting her thoughts. Every effort to make contact came back with the exact same result, nothing."
"Could it be that her mind is just completely void of any thoughts?" Lyta asked, the woman sounding far more like the woman the Admiral knew her to be.
"That is also why you are here," Koniki explained. "You have the strength and experience to get into her head and confirm if this barrier is actually protecting something of interest or if there is truly nothing but an empty brain deprived of the most basic thoughts and primal feelings."
"Do you wish me to enter the room and make direct contact?" The ILO asked, having easily gathered that she was a powerful telepath.
"You can scan the thoughts of a man light-years away without even seeing them," the Commanding officer of the NEW ALEXANDRIA complex growled, evidently not impressed by the woman's latest attempt at humor. "Stop wasting time, get in her head and find out what's in there. Do whatever it takes to break through."
The ILO quickly nodded her head to show that she understood her instructions before facing the glass and focusing all of her thoughts on the woman in question. As a telepath, Shar'El knew what to do, she never could she have expected the ease with which she reached across the space that separated them. Normally, the Ullian would need to actually focus and make her way through the surface memories of her target in order to reach what she wanted or needed to find. As Lyta though, the process had been as easy as reaching out to touch the glass that stood between them. In mere seconds the telepath had reached the metal barrier and explored its entirety.
"So, who is she?" Koniki impatiently asked.
Having a little more understanding of the kind of telepathic prowess she now possessed, Shar'El sighed before replying to the Admiral's rushed question. "Yes I can break through that barrier, but I am trying to see if this was something that was created by her or telepathically installed in her mind to protect whatever is behind. If I rush in too fast, we could lose what it is that you brought me here to find. Trust me in knowing what I am doing. Surely a few extra seconds are not going to bring the entire universe to collapse around us."
"Very well," the Admiral sighed. " I know better than to argue with you on such matters. Take all of the time you require to get the answers we seek."
"Thank you," Shar'El acknowledged realizing that she was picking up on the admiral thoughts even though she had not been actively searching his mind. The more the ILO tested the limits of this woman's telepathic abilities, the more she understood why so many feared her as they did. "To answer your first question, the mental blockade is not self-imposed, the absence of any edges on the surface indicates that it was someone else who blocked her mind from the outside world. I would go even further and say that the near-perfect smoothness of the barrier indicates that whoever or whatever is responsible for this is skilled and powerful."
"Can you break through?"
Lyta giggled. "Is your daughter's name Alexandria and the reason why you named this base as you did?" The revelation took Shar'El by complete surprise. The ILO of the USS ANUBIS knew that a woman by that name had been assigned to the BASTET, but never as she or anyone else expected her to be the Admiral's daughter.
"Then, do it."
The telepath's eyes narrowed and she prepared to drill past the mental barrier. As easy as everything else had been up until now, the struggle that Shar'El now faced proved to be quite a shock. The mental blockade had been created to easily withstand the most basic of telepathic attacks, and the more she pushed, the more the ILO realized that this would require all of her strength, skills and resolve if she was to break through.
The warm taste of copper soon made its way to her upper lip, the strain of the task having caused the telepath to bleed from her nose. As unpleasant as the sensation was, Lyta could not permit herself from being distracted. The mental barrier that she had set to break through had been far more than a simple shell to break. The field was almost alive in its ability to adapt to her efforts to get past it, requiring the ILO to be increasingly more resourceful in her efforts.
"Lyta? Are you alright?" Koniki asked the woman by his side clearly in distress. What Shar'El found interesting was the tone with which the man as said those simple words, as if he genuinely cared for her well-being, something the ILO had never thought possible from the man she worked for. To answer him though would require time and effort that she could not spare. If she was to succeed in breaking through, every ounce of mental power at her disposal needed to be focused on this task.
Fearing that she might be losing ground in this battle, Shar'El decided to unleash one last attack, using everything she had. Either the barrier would break, or she would, but this could not continue on this way. When she did, everything went black.
When Lyta managed to reopen her eyes, she found Admiral Koniki looking down at her, his strong arms cradling the woman's weakened form. "Are you alright?" He emotionally asked, placing a small cloth beneath her nose to help stop the bleeding.
"I'm alright, and the barrier has been breached."
"Well done Lyta, I knew you could do it."
"There is a problem though. There is nothing behind it. Her mind is completely black, a void without form or purpose. Why would anyone place such a powerful barrier to hide nothing?"
"You no longer need to concern yourself about this," Koniki said as he instructed members of the medical staff to come and take care of the attenuated telepath. "Take Lyta back to the Medical level and have our mindless patient transfer to Gamma Division."
Shar'El, while in the body of this powerful telepath known as Lyta, managed to stay long enough to watch as the woman was taken out of the examination room and a small bracelet placed around her wrist. On it, the only word that could be seen was 'GAMMA' inscribed on it, the first 'A' being almost illegible making it evident that whoever this woman was, she had not been the first to wear that bracelet.
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Lieutenant Commander Janeel [Access Character BIO for Janeel]
Intel Liaison Officer / Mission Specialist
USS BASTET
=-=
"Medical Complications"
[previous post were (ANU) "Someone Else's Past" / (BAS) "The Hardest Part"]
=-=
Setting: MIKULA PRIME, Bruxa Residence, Kitchen
Stardate: 33003.1815
With the last dish needing to be brought to the table in her hands, Satella proudly made her way to the dining room. The knowledge of her acceptance at Starfleet Academy felt just as exhilarating now as it did then. Maybe it was the fact that she was given the chance to relive this moment that made her feel so light on her feet. Maybe it was just because she was back home that accounted for her giddiness. In either case, the young Mikulak woman could barely wait for dinner to begin so that she could make her grand announcement.
Pushing her way through the swinging door, Satella carefully made sure not to spill any of the delicious stew made by her mother. With the task completed, she was shocked to find herself elsewhere than expected. Not a single dining room chair or table could be found. Not only was she no longer in her family's home, but by the looks of things she was not even on MIKULA PRIME. More modern and angled walls covered by medical instruments had replaced the simpler ones of her home.
"This is the NEW ALEXANDRIA infirmary. How is this possible?" Satella said aloud, confused as to how this could have happened. Having been thrown back in time to her own home was one thing. To be brought to this place unexpectedly was a completely different matter. Looking back over her shoulder, the sight of the swinging door made things even more puzzling.
Her instinct demanded that she go through the door once again in the hopes of finding herself back home. Her curiosity though beckoned her to investigate this oddity just a little more. Therefore, with her mother's hot dish still in her hands, Satella scanned her new surroundings. Unlike the Sickbay on a starship, the base's infirmary was huge, spacious, and reminiscent of a hospital. Amongst the numerous beds and patients, the Mikulak woman managed to recognize someone. A person, like herself, who should not have been here.
"Commander Shar'El?"
"Doctor Bruxa?" The ExO asked in return, appearing just as shocked as the CMO was. "What are you doing here?"
"With all due respect Commander, I could be asking you the same. I was on board the ANUBIS in Sickbay, and then I found myself back home on MIKULA PRIME. The best part was that I was reliving my past, before suddenly finding myself here with you. By the way, if I may inquire, is this part of your past?"
"It is not," the Commander replied. "For a reason that I am still trying to understand, I am reliving events from someone else's past. A telepath by the name of Lyta," Shar'El explained as best as she could.
"Do you have any idea as to what is happening?" Satella asked, placing her mother's stew next to her as she sat on a nearby bed.
"You said that you were reliving events from your past before you found your way to this place. Maybe we involved in some sort of temporal event that struck our base of operation. It would account for both of us being here as we are. What it does not explain is why you relived your past and I find myself experiencing this Lyta's past."
"Maybe the two of you are connected in some way." The suggestion made sense, at least as far as any of this was concerned.
"I am unaware of any links between this Lyta and myself. From what I have observed of her telepathic abilities, she is no Ullian. Speaking of which, how is it that you see me as I am and not as everyone else does?"
"I was wondering the same while I was back home," Satella noted. "Although we both appear to be whom we currently are, unaffected by this journey through time. Everyone around us seems to be interacting with us as though we were whom we were meant to be in this time and place."
"This would indicate that we are not in a normal temporal event. Your presence here as well as the door you used to enter the Infirmary being a strong hint to that." The words of the ExO made the CMO look at the swinging door she walked through only a few minutes ago. The door appeared well out of place in these surroundings. "That must have been nice for you to see your home again. I am sorry that you coming here is going to deprive you of making your announcement to your family."
"Commander?" Satella physically jerked back, not having expected the woman to be scanning her thoughts.
"My apologies. The telepathic abilities of this Lyta are much more difficult to get used to than I could have expected. Without even trying, I can feel all of your thoughts and feelings. It took years for me to train in order to use my own abilities. Now, I have to concentrate every second in order not to be overwhelmed by everything happening around me. I can feel your mother beyond that door. She is looking for you wondering where you and the stew are. I can feel the presence of those here in NEW ALEXANDRIA as they work to build this base."
"I would suggest you regaining control of these telepathic abilities. Your heart rate and blood pressure are dangerously increasing." Satella warned, seeing the readouts on the diagnostic board set at the head of the bed.
"I'm trying. I just can't control it." Shar'El struggled to say as blood began to flow from one of her nostrils. A few seconds later, the ExO lost consciousness and, the mental stress of what she was experiencing being too much for her.
"I need help here!" Satella screamed in a panic. Had they been on the ANUBIS, the CMO would have taken care of everything, but that was not the case. Here, on NEW ALEXANDRIA of the past, Doctor Bruxa knew nothing as to the placement of anything she would need. The best she could do was to call for help and assist if they allowed her. One by one, members of the base's medical staff rushed in.
As they worked to stabilize the woman they saw as being Lyta, Satella's thoughts and concerns were on Shar'El. There was so much they did not understand in regards to what was happening to them. How and why had they come to be in the past? Why had the ExO been in someone else's body while the CMO had been in her own? Had all of this already happened or were they now rewriting history by merging things that never should have been together?
Bruxa stared at the bowl she carried here through the swinging door that was still there. No one said anything about either as if it had been normal for all of this to be here. Of course, right now, everyone's attention was on their patient and not on the out of place door and rapidly cooling stew.
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Ensign Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
"For Things Not Yet Forgotten"
[previous post were (ANU) "Medical Complications" / (BAS) "Personal Report"]
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Setting: Unknown Ship, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1815
The thought of Jayson being dead haunted her every step as she walked down the corridor, aided by the young Nylaan woman who had called her 'mom'. As hard as she tried, Ya'Han could not come to terms with what was happening, not only had she lost years of memories concerning her own life, but she had apparently forgotten about having bonded with Jayson so that the two of them could have a child.
With each step, she grew a little sadder for not being able to remember any of this. With each step, she grew a little angrier for having allowed herself to forget how all of this had come to be. With each step, she grew a little more confused as nothing seemed to make sense. All of these emotions became so much for her to process that Ya'Han stopped walking causing the young Nylaan holding her arm to stop as well.
Mother and child looked at one another for a brief moment making Ya'Han feel like never before as far as she could remember. How could any mother forget the way her own child smiled with such care and love? The elderly Nylaan felt pride like nothing before in the young woman she studied for the first time in her life. Echoes of who her father was were visible in her eyes and cheeks, but her features were clearly those of her mother.
"It's alright, I've got you." Ya'Jay's words were tender and caring as only those of a loving daughter could be. Never had Ya'Han spoken in this manner to her mother, and now she wished that she had. The memories of such heartfelt words would have certainly made her smile during those dark and difficult times. "There is no need for you to be worried or scared. We are only going to see the Doctor in order to make sure everything is alright with you. You have nothing to fear, I will be there by your side the entire time."
Again, Ya'Han smiled. What had she done to be blessed with such a caring and considerate daughter? "You are too kind," the mother said, gently caressing her daughter's cheek and shocked to see just how old her hand appeared to be. The fatigue she felt was real, even her bones begged for rest, so they resumed their trek to Sickbay.
Maybe it was best for her not to remember all of these things. So much had happened that she could easily lose herself in the memories of entwined in regret and fear. What Ya'Han needed to do was to enjoy the moment at hand, just as she delighted in the sensation of her daughter's protective hold on her arm. To remember the past meant she would feel the sadness she felt upon losing her mate and maybe more. Right now, she could not recall anything about what had happened to her friends and fellow shipmates of the ANUBIS. As far as she knew, they could all have been dead leaving to be the only surviving member. That alone could have been a good enough reason for her to forget.
It was best for her to focus on the here and now, to enjoy the simpler joys life had to offer, and just be thankful in knowing that she had a daughter as caring and loving as Ya'Jay. "Your father would be so proud of you, as I am."
"I know," the young Nylaan said, her smile warming the old woman's soul. "You have said those exact words almost every day since dad's passing. You said them when I was accepted at Starfleet Academy. You said them again after each successful exam as well as when I finally graduated. Guess that's one of the reasons why I chose this posting because I knew that I would be able to have you on board with me."
Tears of joy blurred the old woman's sight, Ya'Han unable to hold back the emotions that were once again threatening to sweep through her. Something had caused her to forget all of these momentous events, so she needed to make that extra effort to make sure she would never forget this moment. What she had and felt now could end up being the only thing she would have.
"Here we are, Sickbay. Now, don't worry, I will right there with you."
With Ya'Jay's reassuring words, Ya'Han approached the door that hissed opened to grant her access. Without fear, knowing that her daughter would be right there by her side, she stepped through the doorway and entered the room.
As she did so, the Nylaan woman experienced a strange sensation, as if her bones and muscles were returning to a younger, stronger state. She could stand to her fullest height without feeling the pain in her back, the weakness in her legs was gone and even the appearance of her hands reflected a more youthful texture. Curious as to what had just happened, Ya'Han turned to ask her daughter if she knew how this was possible, but Ya'Jay was nowhere to be seen, the young woman had simply vanished.
The doorway she had just walked through was now closed and the door refused to move in order to grant her access back to where Ya'Han was sure her daughter was. As she unleashed the most powerful verbal and physical assault she could against the inanimate object, the Nylaan woman realized that her new surroundings did not match those that she had left behind. Foregoing trying to break down the door, the rejuvenated Sec/Tac studied the room she was now in, a room that clearly did not appear to be anything resembling the Sickbay of a starship.
Cautiously making her way in, Ya'Han vowed to not forget the daughter she had just met, a person she would find no matter how hard the task would be or how long it took. The Nylaan mother accepted that she had forgotten many things, but her daughter would not now nor ever be amongst them.
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
##########
"Unexpected Visitor"
Previous posts (ANU) "For Things Not Yet Forgotten" / (BAS) "Personal Report"
##########
"Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground."
- Theodore Roosevelt
=====
Setting: EARTH, Nevada, Star Peak
Stardate: 33003.1815
The Native American sat cross-legged on the grassy ground, his father sitting next to him in a more natural manner, the older man not being as flexible as his son. The two men spoke and looked up at the star-filled night sky as if this unexpected meeting had been a common occurrence.
Most would have been shocked, troubled or even confused if not terrified at the sudden appearance of one of their deceased parent who passed into the great beyond nearly two decades ago. Then again, most were not Erik Morningstar, a man who thanks to his time on board the PROPHECY and the USS PARADOX had seen more than the majority of people could ever imagine. Instead of trying to understand what was happening, of figuring out if this was some sort of temporal abnormality or just a realistic figment of his imagination, the Native American decided to embrace the moment and see what knowledge and wisdom he might be able to gather.
As far as Erik was concerned, this was the perfect opportunity for him to reconnect with a part of his past, with a part of himself. To deny himself the chance to enjoy this would be to go against everything he believed, namely that the living universe would provide guidance even when the person did not realize it was needed. If Jean Claude Morningstar was here, at this time, speaking to his son, it was because there was something he needed to know, something he needed to listen to.
"So, has your joining Starfleet finally allowed you to find what it was that you were searching for?" The elder Okanagan man asked as he gazed up at the stars. Erik smiled softly as he filled his lungs with the cold, fresh air of the cloudless night. This very spot was where his father had brought him at the age of 5 to introduce him to the stars, and they would return to this very spot each year until the man's passing. Even after that, the boy who had grown into a man continued to come to this place every chance he could to continue the tradition.
This was here that he felt the closest to his father, so it was not a shock when Erik saw his father standing there, with a night's sky filled with stars over their heads. The Native American knew that this could not be real, but it did not diminish the significance of the event he was experiencing.
"Joining Starfleet has allowed me to see many wonderful things scattered through many strange worlds."
"Still, you find your way back here, on EARTH, on this very hill sitting with your old man looking up at the stars that you have visited or wish to go visit one day," Jean Claude teased.
"To forget our roots is to forget where we came from and who we truly are," Erik said, echoing the words that the man sitting next to him had said to him many moons ago. "I am sorry that I have not been able to come back those last few years. I never seem to be able to escape the chaos and darkness that fills the emptiness between those stars."
The elder Native American smiled as he leaned back a little more. "That is the paradox of the stars. It is those small shining specks of lights that beckon us to follow our dreams, but it is what lies in the darkness between them that causes us to come face-to-face with our most terrifying nightmares. The key is to keep our sights on those stars, they are what the creatures found in the darkest voids between them want to stop you from reaching. The moment we give up on our dreams is the moment we stop being alive."
Erik nodded his head to show understanding even though his comprehension of what his father had just explained was for the moment beyond his grasp, but that was the way it always was. Wisdom, especially that handed down by the spirit of an old Native American, was not to be understood at that time but later, much later.
"Now, let's forget about the light of the stars and the darkness of the void between them and let us talk about your lady friend."
"My lady friend?" Erik asked, not having expected this change of topic, especially given that he was not in any sort of relationship.
"The one hiding behind the large rock over there," the elder said, pointing over his shoulder to something beyond his ability to see. Erik quickly turned around to see someone he had truly not expected to find in this place.
"Ensign Jones?"
"Sorry Captain," The ANUBIS' FCO offered as she stood from the boulder she had attempted to hide behind.
"I heard some voices and wanted to see whom they belonged to. I hope that I am not interrupting anything?"
"You are not interrupting anything Ensign," Erik replied as he turned to introduce the elderly man representing his dead father, a man who was no longer there. "Good-by father," the Native American added in a soft, whispered prayer. "May your spirit rest until next time we meet."
"Captain?" Tanith looked around, searching for someone or something. Although the FCO had distinctly heard voices, she had only been able to see the Native American.
"It is not important," Morningstar dismissed. "Do you have any ideas as to what is happening? Before being here I was in Stellar Cartography."
"I could not say, Sir," Tanith respectfully replied. "One moment I was on the bridge, the next I was somewhere else, somewhere from my past."
"That pretty much describes what happened to me here as this place is also from my past; the question is what caused this to happen?"
"I am not sure Sir, but we should have a better chance figuring it out now that we are together. Two heads are better than one as they say."
"Agreed," Erik admitted, glancing up one last time at the stars one last time. "Where were you before you came to find me here?"
Tanith cautiously looked over her shoulder at the hole in the side of the hill from which she had crawled out of. The memories of her previous location were still very fresh in her mind, but that didn't mean she was ready to share. "Somewhere not quite as nice as this place Sir," she replied keeping her answer as vague as she could not thinking it necessary to give those types of details to her Commanding Officer, at least not for the time being.
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
-=-=-
"Altered Past"
[Previous post: (ANU) "Unexpected Visitor" & (BAS) "Personal Report"]
-=-=-
Setting: USS KROGEN, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1815
Adriana managed to make it back to the corridor and escape the black ooze that was taking over her quarters. From there, she made her way to the same Jefferies Tube access she used the first time she was in this situation with the goal of reaching the ship's engineering section. As much as she knew that this would be futile in trying to save others from the crew, it would at least have her follow the course of events as they had occurred.
"See, told you that you could do it," Amanda said, the hallucination of the missing sister repeating word for word what she had said almost three years ago while Adriana was in this exact same situation. Remembering the rest of the exchange, Lopez looked down at her leg, which at the time had been badly injured. Unlike then though, this time her leg showed no indication of having been cut or in the least bit wounded. Looking up at her twin sister leaning against one of the support frames, she smiled recalling the rest of the discussion the two shared in what felt to be another life.
"You know, it would be a lot more helpful if you just stopped talking," Adriana said. The first time those words had been spoken, she had almost yelled them out of frustration, but this time the real sister actually giggled.
"Remember," Amanda continued in a very serious manner, "I am nothing more than a figment of your imagination, an idea given form inside your head. What you hear is not my voice but an auditory hallucination. The only way that you can have me stop talking is for you to make yourself do it. I am not the one having a psychological break; I am just here because some part of you needs me to be here."
"Glad to see that some things haven't changed," Adriana said actually laughing. The mental projection of her sister acted exactly as she remembered her doing the first time around. "As I recall, I told you to be quiet and you vanished."
"It's going to take a lot more than you saying that to see me leave you alone Sis. You need me," the twin said going off-script from the original rendition.
"I said, BE QUIET!" Lopez screams at the top of her lungs just as she did three years ago, and like then the hallucination of her sister vanished. The twin laughed once again, recalling what she had told herself back then. "There is not a single Counselor who is going to be able to help me. The moment I start talking about my interacting with my sister like this, they are going to lock me up and permanently seal the access."
Continuing down the narrow passageway, Adriana smiled at the irony of her current situation and duties. As a Counselor, she was best equipped and trained to deal with such matters, but it was difficult for her to be her own patient. However difficult that situation would be for her to deal with, the lack of an injury had made her journey to the Engineering section a much speedier one.
In only a few minutes, Adriana had navigated the inner passages of the ship to arrive at her intended destination. Pushing the cover panel out of her way, she crawled into the Engineering section where she expected to find things as they had been three years ago. Instead, she found the room completely vacant without a single speck of the black ooze visible. In addition to this odd change, Lopez noticed one more glaring difference.
"Lt. Ya'Han? What are you doing in the engineering section of the KROGEN?"
"I wish that I could answer that," the Chief of Security replied, still trying to understand how she had made her way to wherever this place was. "Where did you say we are?"
"The USS KROGEN. It was the ship I was assigned to as the aCMO. We were attacked by some kind of black ooze that claimed the lives of the majority of the crew," Adriana explained.
"Black ooze?" Ya'Han grimaced, drawing a phaser that was not there. "Are we in danger?"
"To be completely honest, I have no idea. Although this is the past, things are not happening exactly as they did, you being here is proof of that. I am not sure what it is that is happening, but I think we might have been caught in some sort of temporal anomaly," the Counselor said, that theory was the best she could come up with in order to account for what she had experienced up to this point.
"A temporal anomaly you say? It would explain why I was with my daughter."
"You have a daughter?" Adriana exclaimed, not recalling reading anything about this in the woman's personnel file.
"I don't, at least not yet," Ya'Han replied, a faint smile appearing on her lips. "It would appear that I was taken into my future."
"If I may be so bold, I would suggest you keep in mind that according to everything we know about time, what you experienced is likely nothing more than a possible future. What you saw, the people you interacted with were based on events that may or may not happen," Lopez explained. "Your simple knowledge of this future is enough to alter it."
"You sound like you just finished speaking with Lt. Cmdr. Maya."
"In this particular case, the psychological and scientific views of experiencing future temporal events are very closely related," Lopez smiled. "Lt. Cmdr. Maya is likely in agreement that there are endless possibilities that would affect how events come to pass and that the future will depend on those variables. As a Counselor, I have to side with the idea that it is our thoughts that shape the future, and such are just as varied."
"I hope that I will be able to keep certain aspects of that future intact, and to be able to change others," Ya'Han said, thinking of Ya'Jay and Jayson respectively.
"The future is unknown," Adriana added," but everything is possible. Now, do you have any ideas as to what we are supposed to do from this point on?"
-=-=-
Marissa Montonera-Lombardi
Lieutenant JG Adriana Lopez [Access Character BIO for Adriana Lopez]
Ship's Counselor
USS ANUBIS
=-=
"Situational Review"
[previous post were (ANU) "Altered Past" / (BAS) "Different Surroundings"]
=-=
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Infirmary
Stardate: 33003.1830
The patient's condition was finally stabilized thanks to the large and numerous injections of telepathic blockers used. The dosage of a single hypospray would have been enough for anyone to be impressed. The compound contained therein able to easily deprive several Betazoids of their mental abilities. The frightening part was that half a dozen of these injectors were on the tray next to the bed, emptied of their content. It was only after the sixth device was pressed against her neck that the convulsing woman began to relax.
Satella sat next to the now unconscious woman she knew as Shar'El. Strangely enough, everyone else was referring to the crazed woman as Lyta. Even while unconscious, they feared her enough to leave the patient alone with a stranger. As a member of the medical staff, the Doctor could not leave her alone. That she was the ExO of the crew she was now a part of made her need to stay that much more important. Not only had they somehow traveled into a merged past, but the ANUBIS' First officer had landed into a different identity. Even more surprising was the fact that Bruxa did not see this other person when looking at the patient.
In their hurry to leave, the Infirmary's medical staff left several PADDs behind, one of which contained the woman's file. As the caregiver on-sight, Satella saw no reason why she should not learn as much as she could about this Lyta. The woman's file ready more like a science report than a medical dossier. Using unspecified methods she was genetically altered to increase her telepathic abilities. This procedure was performed on another unspecified world, under the guides of an undisclosed race. All that was file indicated was to which extent the patient's telepathic abilities had been increased. The reason for that was also omitted from the dossier.
Bruxa turned her attention back to the woman as she began to moan. At first, the ANUBIS' CMO thought that Lyta was having another episode, but that was not the case. To the sitting woman's relief, it was nothing more than Shar'El pulling herself out of her unconscious state.
"Are you alright Commander?" Satella asked, having forgotten that who she saw was not who everyone else did. Where Bruxa saw the ExO of the ANUBIS, the rest of those here saw a powerful and potentially dangerous telepath who went by a different name.
"My head feels like an entire battalion of Klingons were step-dancing on it. Aside from that, I'll survive. What happened?"
"It would appear that you lost control of your telepathic abilities. More accurately of Miss Lyta's abilities, something that does appear to not be as infrequent as one might hope. I have read many case studies on hyper-powerful telepaths, like that of Tam Elbrun. None of them come anywhere close to what I have read here." Satella held the PADD and pointed to it displaying surprise, admiration and even some fear. "What you experienced appears to be but a small fraction of what this person is capable of."
"No one can naturally have this kind of telepathic abilities. Something, some device, or some weird alien must have caused her abilities to be amplified to this extent."
Satella shook her head. "Actually, Lyta was genetically modified to see her telepathic abilities augmented beyond anyone's ability to measure. Whatever happened during that last episode, it was all you, Commander."
"Great, now I feel like I'm a walking mental time bomb."
The CMO reached for a handful of the empty hyposprays sitting on the medical tray. "I do not think you have anything to worry for the time being," Satella said showing the devices off. "You should not be experiencing any telepathic abilities for quite some time."
Shar'El gazed at the woman sitting next to her, narrowing her eyes. After a few seconds, the patient flopped her head back down on the pillow, closed her eyes and allowed a sigh to escape. "I'm not picking up any thoughts or memories from you. Not sure if this is something that I like though, but it will have to do for now. Any idea as to what happened? I mean by that about why we are here instead of on the ANUBIS."
"I am not certain. We do appear to have travelled backward in time. I remember seeing images of this Infirmary in the earlier days, and our surroundings match perfectly. Before being here, I was on MIKULA PRIME with my family. We were just getting ready for dinner when went through the door and arrived here."
"Is that why there is a bowl on the adjacent bed?"
"I was supposed to bring that to the dining room table. Once I arrived here and you began having that episode, dinner did seem to not be as important."
"So, two completely unrelated past are somehow connected by a doorway? That does seem to be a little peculiar."
"With all due respect Commander, I think that the single door linking two distant past events is the least peculiar part of all this. Not only did you travel back in time, but as far as everyone else is concerned, you are not you."
"I was trying to forget about that part," Shar'El chuckled dryly. "Is there anything else that we might be able to figure out about why or even how we came to be here?"
"I am afraid that my expertise is not in temporal anomalies. This whole thing is a complete mystery to me. At first, I believed that I was simply reliving events from my past, but now it is clear that this is no longer the case."
"You might be right. We could have been caught in some sort of temporal event that hurled us back into our pasts. A moment dictated by our own thoughts."
"How would that explain you being here, in the body of someone else?" Satella asked, puzzled and concerned.
"Remember Doctor, I am able to hold on to the memories of others. Although this is not *my* past, there could be a memory in there somewhere that brought me here." Shar'El gently tapped the side of her head as if doing so might summon said memory to the surface. "What troubles me is that I am unable to remember that specific memory."
"Are you in a habit of hiding the memories of others in that head of yours?" Doctor Bruxa asked, not realizing just how close to the mark she actually was.
"I do not make a habit of is, but it has been known to happen." That would be as far as Shar'El would admit to having other people's memories locked inside her head. "If I do have some of this Lyta's memories in my head, maybe it would be a good idea to investigate. You returning to your family's dinner will not be a surprise, but here we could uncover something interesting."
"Like a temporal hack into your own brain," Bruxa noted, sounding even more concerned than before. "As interesting as this might be, there is no telling of the dangers it might present. You were unable to control this Lyta's telepathic abilities before, what makes you believe that you will be able to do so now?"
"Like you said, Doctor, I should be fine for quite some time," Shar'El said holding up a single empty hypospray. "I will not force you to stay with me. You can return to your family if you so wish. I for one want to discover more about this Lyta and what happened to that woman I scanned."
"There is someone else here?"
"Not like us. I defensively get the impression that she belongs here, in this time and place. I am just curious to know why her mind was completely vacant of any thoughts or memories. Never before did I touch such a complete void, and never did I encounter such a powerful barrier protecting nothing."
"Commander, if you will permit me, I would prefer to go with you. There is no telling what you may encounter in this past. I strongly believe that it would be wise for you to have someone medically trained by your side."
Shar'El smiled before swinging her legs off the bed. "Glad to have you on the team Doctor. Now, let's see if we can find our way to that Gamma Division Admiral Koniki mentioned."
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Ensign Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
=-=
"Deeper Secrets"
[previous post were (ANU) " Situational Review " by Rachel / (BAS) "Adapting" by Karen]
=-=
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1900
Since her departure from the Infirmary, Shar'El had been trying to see if this Gamma Division meant anything to her. The memory of that name was there, buried deep in her mind along with whatever else she possessed of this Lyta. As hard as the ANUBIS' ExO / ILO tried to access said memories though, she could only get a faint glimpse that something was there, just out of her reach. How easy would it be if only she could use Lyta's telepathic skills to look into her own mind? That said, there was no denying that there was something there, memories that she never knew existed, but her steps were as certain and purposeful as could be and they hinted that the woman knew exactly where to find the location in question.
The more she walked, the more Shar'El was convinced that there was something unique between Koniki and Lyta. The extensive almost instinctual knowledge of NEW ALEXANDRIA meant that the telepath had been involved with the construction of the base since the very beginning. Her familiarity with the Admiral hinted that the two of them had worked together long before, but the ExO / ILO somehow knew that this was not as simple as it seemed. The worst of it was that she was not certain that going to this Gamma Division would provide any answers about this. It was more likely that it would only add more questions about the woman with nothing more than a void in her head.
From where she was, several steps behind the raven-haired woman, Doctor Bruxa was amusing herself at the sight of people tripping over their own feet in a desperate effort to get out of the telepath's way. Based on what the CMO had witnessed in the base's infirmary, Satella suspected that there was nowhere any of them could really run to escape Lyta's mental reach. All they could do was to give into their basic survival instincts and seek whatever cover they could, that it would be effective or not. This continued for several minutes as they made their way deeper into an unknown area of NEW ALEXANDRIA.
"Do you have any ideas as to where we are or what we will find here?" Satella asked not using the woman's rank or name, as they were different from those of the person everyone else saw and feared. Bruxa would have loved to be able to study the woman more closely, to test the extent of her telepathic powers, but in some ways, she was glad that this was not possible at the time. Sometimes not know was best.
Shar'El remained silent for several steps before suddenly stopping to place her opened hand on a solid black panel. No outline of a door was evident and the panel appeared like countless others that lined the walls of this section, yet the woman acted as if this one was different. "I have no idea as to what to expect," Shar'El admitted as door-sized panel vanished granting access to a secret passageway. "All I can tell you is that I know where I am going."
"Obviously," Satella muttered, cautiously following Shar'El into the dark, secret passageway.
Unlike before, the CMO very closely followed the ExO / ILO as she made her way down the corridor. Apparently, someone, very likely Admiral Charles N. Koniki, had seen fit to add a secret section to this already secret base. This seemed to show that the man's paranoia had not been a recent development but rather an integral part of who the mysterious man had always been.
"There she is," Shar'El softly announced under her breath, the woman they were searching for found behind another large glass window, the only thing on her body being the worn bracelet that was affixed on her wrist.
"What are they doing to her?" Bruxa demanded, concerned by the sheer number of objects and needles all around the woman.
"It would appear that those injectors are filled with some sort of high-end nanite technology," Shar'El explained although she was not sure how she had come to know this.
"Nanites? That will not help her. Will it?" Bruxa queried. "I mean, you said that her mind was a complete void, so I do not see how the use of nanites or any other physical devices will help fix that."
"The nanites are not meant to help her mind," Lyta said, surprising even the woman who was portraying her at this moment. "They are meant to strengthen her body, to grant her abilities that no one else has, to make her into the ultimate Intel Operative. Charles saw in her the perfect candidate to try this little experiment on. The probes on and around her head are designed to fill and mold her mind to his needs; the nanites are just the means to make her be more than she could have ever imagined being."
"Commander?" Satella cautiously leaned in, trying to see the ExO / ILO's face in order to ascertain if the change had only been in the woman's voice or if somehow the memories of Lyta had taken over more completely.
"What?" Shar'El said, blinking several times in an effort to ward off whatever had just happened.
"Are you alright? You didn’t sound like yourself."
"I'm alright," came the stuttered reply. "Whoever this Lyta person is, or was, she had something to do with that woman. The problem is that I cannot remember any of this. I can feel her knowledge, but I have no idea what is or will happen. I just know that she as a role to play in all of this, a significant one. I just wish I knew what it was beforehand."
"We know that this is the past, and maybe all we are meant to do is to be a witness to it, unable to change events as they have come to be," Satella theorized, finding it much more reassuring that they were here to only see what happened instead of being part of it. "Lyta already did what she could and discovered that her the woman's mind was completely devoid of any thoughts or memories. What more could this Lyta do?"
"I don't know," Shar'El replied in her own voice. "All I know is that this story is far from over, and I need to know how her memories found their way into my head."
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Ensign Sofia Andersson [Access Character BIO for Sofia Andersson]
Former Assistant Chief Medical Officer of the USS PHOENIX
Presumed dead but very much alive.
"Not The Most Pleasant"
[previous (ANU) "Deeper Secrets" / (BAS) "Just A Kiss"]
[/\]
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma. Observation Room B
Stardate: 33003.1920
After the chat with his brother Jesse, Jayson decided to take things easy and enjoy the scenery. It was not every day that he found himself back home, and whether or not this was the past did not change the fact that he wanted to make the best of the situation. Being here, away from anything remotely dealing with the ANUBIS or NEW ALEXANDRIA, no one could reprimand him for wanting to take a moment to himself. The MARKALA PRIME mission and the frantic search for the crystals had been rough on everyone, which made just sitting here alone and away from everything that much more enjoyable.
Of course, that feeling was short-lived as his thoughts quickly went to the last traumatic event that rattled the crew of the ANUBIS. The disappearance of Ensign Dima had been the latest challenge to strike at them and it was just another reason for him to want to stay here. Getting close to people, especially those with whom he worked with on a daily basis, was inevitable, but it also was the hardest part of the job when something like what happened to Nicole came to pass.
From the now missing Counselor, he began to think of the other members of the crew. One by one, he wondered how the disappearance of each of them would emotionally affect him. Some could go without bothering him too much, like their CEO who enjoyed far too much attacking him every chance she got, but others would affect him much more than he felt now. One particular person came to mind for obvious reasons, and the more he thought about her, the more he realized that he would never be able to survive the void she would leave behind. Ya'Han meant a lot to him, and he could easily see his future with her by his side.
That thought made him smile, recalling the endless training sessions they shared which all ended in the same way, with him on his back looking up at her. With that image in mind, he leaned down on the grassy ground, hoping that she was alright, wherever or whenever she might be. He closed his eyes, letting his thoughts of her take over. As enjoyable as it was to be back home, his thoughts of her were far more pleasant. As he enjoyed his memories of time shared with her, Jayson suddenly realized that the grassy ground beneath him had grown colder and harder. This led him to open his eyes to investigate what was happening and he discovered something completely unexpected.
The calm and welcoming surroundings of his home were gone, replaced by the cold and sterile layout of what he could only guess was some sort of examination room. More troubling than that was the fact that one of the walls was a large transparent sheet of glass making him instantly feel like some sort of animal in a zoo. What had just happened?
Jayson jumped off the table and rushed the large glass wall to see if he could figure out where and how he had come to be here. He knew based on the low echo of the transparent surface in response to his fists that the glass would not be the type to break without the use of some powerful force or explosives. That did not stop him from banging against the surface to draw the attention of someone who might provide some clue as to what had happened.
The layout of the room did appear somewhat familiar, as did the general color scheme of the walls beyond the glass pane he was stuck behind, but that only made him that much more determined to get someone's attention. Had his trying to change his brother's future cause this? Was this how they intended to make him confess to breaking the Temporal Prime Directive? As bad as those possibilities were, it was those he could not permit himself to think of that truly scared him.
It was because of those thoughts that he continued pounding on the glass, the low tone echo of each hit filling the room to the point where he could barely handle the sound that made his bones vibrate. That he was now some sort of guinea pig was something he could accept, that was as long as he would be told that everyone else was alright. If anything had happened to them, to her because of anything he did, he would never be able to forgive himself.
The man suddenly stopped his assault on the glass when he noticed two sets of eyes looking at him with a great deal of puzzlement. As unexpected as the presence of the two women was, the OPS Officer found it even stranger that he stood on the opposite side of the glass.
"Jayson? What are you doing there?" Shar'El asked using the intercom panel to the side of the glass.
"Wish I knew," he replied. "One moment I'm on EARTH taking it easy, then after closing my eyes for a few moments I found myself here, wherever here is."
"We are in a secret section of NEW ALEXANDRIA," Doctor Bruxa informed. "The best we can come up with is that we are in some sort of temporal event."
He looked at the CMO and then shifted his gaze to the ExO. There was something about what was happening that they were not telling him, that much he could see in their posture and eyes, but right now his first concern was getting out of this cage.
"Temporal event or not, do you think either one of you could find a way to get me out of here? I have never been overly fond of fishes in a bowl, and I certainly do not like being one. If I may be blunt, I also have to admit that all of these medical instruments of torture are giving me the creeps."
"Don't look at me," Satella said feeling targeted by the man's uneasy gaze. "I had nothing to do with what's in there or you being there. Like you, we are all in this place trying to figure out what is happening."
"Hold still for a moment. We'll get you out," the ANUBIS' First Officer said leaving the OPS Officer to wonder what this temporal event was all about and if Ya'Han was lost in time as the three of them were.
[/\]
Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
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"Drawn Together"
[previous post were (ANU) "Not The Most Pleasant" / (BAS) "Officially"]
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma, Infirmary
Stardate: 33003.1930
The Nylaan just stood there, confused. From being a weak old mother, she had somehow regained her youth and strength. Her muscle mass was back, her aching bones were gone and Ya'Han could process her odd surroundings with much greater ease thanks to her mental acuity having returned. As real as it had all felt, the Sec/Tac wondered if anything she had experienced before now was real. Had Ya'Jay truly been the daughter the mother had sworn to never forget and had her father passed as it was claimed?
"Either something really strange is going on here or I am losing my mind," the Sec/Tac announced to the empty room, looking down at her clenching hands as if to confirm that this was real. Had the time spent with her daughter been nothing more than a dream, a fantasy, and if so, where had this flight of fancy taken her now?
With that question on her mind, Ya'Han diligently surveyed the room she was now in; touching anything and everything she could in order to confirm that this was real. After what the Nylaan had experienced though, the bright red-haired woman wondered if she would be able to tell the difference between what was real and what was fake while in this place.
The feel of this Sickbay was clearly born of basic Federation design, the layout, and instruments fitting perfectly in what would be expected. There was one glaring difference; everything about this installation appeared darker, more secretive as if it belonged to a branch of Starfleet that was not meant to be openly acknowledged. Since no one was present for her to ask where she was or what was happening, Ya'Han decided to make her way out of the room in search of answers.
By simple reflex, Ya'Han tried again to cross the doorway that had closed behind her, a doorway that she had been unable to open. To her surprise, the door easily opened giving the Nylaan free access to whatever was beyond it. For a moment, the Nylaan felt as if she was some sort of test animal locked in a maze while someone observed and studied her reactions to things changing around her.
Small wrinkles formed on the ridge of the Sec/Tac's nose as her eyes narrowed, the display would be the only sign of her unfavorable feelings towards any of this. Without a sidearm available, Ya'Han mentally prepared herself for hand-to-hand combat. Although the appearance of her surroundings was familiar she could not allow herself to be less than ready to deal with whatever might be waiting for her.
As Ya'Han stepped out of the room and into the corridor, the first thing the Sec/Tac noticed was a set of large transparent walls lining one side of the corridor. A quick look through these revealed medical observation chambers, all of them empty. Being more concerned than ever before as to where she was, the Nylaan cautiously made her way down the corridor, doing her best to ensure that no one would detect her presence.
The Nylaan pressed her body against the glass wall when she heard voices coming from ahead of her current position. Two, no, three people were whispering to one another and appeared oblivious to her presence. Not knowing the layout of this place, nor knowing who these people were, Ya'Han decided to move closer. She needed to understand what was happening and find a way back to the ANUBIS if that was at all possible.
The Sec/Tac stopped her advance about 30 meters from the trio. Trying to sneak any closer might reveal her presence despite the fact that the ambient lighting was weak making seeing anything clearly next to impossible. Judging by the individual postures of the three individuals, Ya'Han suspected that the group consisted of two women and a man, the latter appearing to be agitated for a reason yet to be determined.
She could try to stay in the shadows and learn more about who they were and what they were all doing here, but staying on the defensive would weaken her position. As much as the physical odds were against her, the Sec/Tac considered her odds of her taking all three of them down before they could react well in her favor. So with a course of action clearly laid out, the bright red-haired woman jumped into action.
Speed had always been one of her strengths, so crossing the 30 or so meters that separated them before they could realize someone was approaching would not be overly difficult. The momentum she would gain from this rush would easily knock down her first target whom she had decided to be the male. Being agitated, he could prove to be the most unpredictable in a fight, so it made sense to take him out first.
Just as Ya'Han was able to make contact, the man turned his head allowing the speeding Sec/Tac to see who she was able to tackle. Of course, by then it was too late for her to alter her plan, sending the man flying several meters ahead of where he was to crash onto his back.
"Jayson? You're alive!"
The man grumbled as he tried to regain his wits following the full-on tackle he had just been made to experience.
"After a hit like that, he might not be alive much longer," Doctor Bruxa exclaimed, running to the downed man to see the damage the charging Sec/Tac had caused.
"Ya'Han?" Commander Shar'El smiled. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but what are you doing here?"
"I was an old woman on a ship that I did not recognize, talking with someone else," the Nylaan quickly explained not ready to make it known that she had been speaking with someone who claimed to be her daughter. "I was being brought to their Sickbay when I suddenly found myself in an infirmary, here. I set out to explore and discover where I was when I found you three."
"Glad to see that despite this temporal event, certain things have not changed," Jayson winced as he was helped back to his feet by Doctor Bruxa. "Glad that you found us, although it would have been nice if you had not tried to kill me when you did."
"I would never want to kill, or even hurt you, Jayson," Ya'Han emotionally admitted, feeling overwhelming happiness at seeing the man alive, if not a little more bruised than she would like him to be. "I could not tell if you three were friend or foe in these surroundings. Speaking of which, where are we?" The Sec/Tac focussed her question on the Commander, fearing that if she allowed herself the opportunity, she would tackle the man once again, just to feel his warm and living form against hers.
"This is a secret area located inside NEW ALEXANDRIA, and we have yet to figure out why we have all been brought here in the past," Shar'E explained, looking at the unconscious woman in the medical observation chamber they all were standing in front of. "Although I cannot explain why I just cannot help but believe that she is part of the reason I am here."
"We are in the past?" The Nylaan questioned, not understanding how she could have traveled from the future of her own present to a time before it by simply walking through a door.
"Something brought me here," the Commander continued, "and for an unknown reason, you are being brought here as well from wherever and whenever you were. I suspect that the others will soon be joining us, although I am at a complete loss to understand why this is happening."
"At least with us being together, our odds of figuring it all out and returning to our time should improve, no?"
Shar'El hesitated to answer the Nylaan's question, noticing that her hair color had reverted to the mixture of black and red that had become her norm. Clearly, the woman felt more at ease now that she had found other members of the crew. As much as the Commander wanted to reassure her fellow shipmate, she also wanted to be truthful as to their situation, not wanting to raise hopes as to how they would get out of it. Truth be told, the First Officer of the ANUBIS had no ideas on how to even begin to make their way out of this temporal mystery they had found themselves in the middle of.
[/\] [/\] [/\] [/\] [/\]
Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
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"More People"
[previous post were (ANU) "Drawn Together" / (BAS) "Officially"]
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.1945
This story was getting stranger by the second. If all this was indeed a temporal event, why were they being forced together? Forced in the sense that no one had done anything to move from where they were to being here. As a CMO, her knowledge of such things was limited, to say the least. As a former officer on board the BASTET though, Satella possessed some basic knowledge on the way time behaved. This merging of events and timelines did not fit into anything that Doctor Bruxa had come to expect when dealing with such things. Therefore, something else was at play, but what?
With the abrupt arrival of Lt. Ya'Han, the group now counted four members. Each came from a personal moment in their own lives, be it from their past or future. What Satella found strange was that none of them had any personal link to this place or time. Even Cmdr. Shar'El was experiencing this temporal event through someone else's identity. Maybe that was why she seemed the most concerned about all this. Everyone else had been taken to a point in what was his or her personal timeline, except Shar'El.
"It's too bad that Adriana is not here," Satella thought to herself aloud, triggering two very distinct reactions. Cmdr. Shar'El seemed puzzled while Lt. Ya'Han gave the impression that the floor had just fallen from beneath her.
"Is there a problem?" Shar'El asked the Chief of Security. Asking the CMO why she wished for the CNS to be here with them would have to wait.
Ya'Han looked down the corridor from which she had come to tackle Jayson. "I left her behind."
"Left who behind?" The man in question followed up with; concerned by the way the Nylaan had so suddenly turned.
"Counselor Lopez. She was with me in the Infirmary. I told her to wait there while I investigated where we were. After finding you, I forgot about her being alone."
Satella giggled. Knowing about the visions Adriana experienced, it was hard to say that the woman was alone. According to the CNS' own accounts of these hallucinations, Amanda was never far. "I would not worry too much about her, but we should still go and get her."
Those present readily accepted the CMO's suggestion. Lt. Ya'Han and Cmdr. Shar'El taking point while the other two followed a few steps behind. Satella could have easily kept up with the other women but Jayson appeared to have some problems in keeping pace.
"Are you alright? You are limping."
"Never thought those mats in the gymnasiums made such a difference in my being tackled to the ground. I'll be fine, it's just that the bruise on my thigh really hurts. I must have landed square on it."
Bruxa chuckled at the explanation provided by Stark. "From what I saw of that tackle, I think you are lucky to only have a bruise. If Ya'Han ever decides to leave Starfleet, I think she could have a career in Blitzball. I could even see her be a runner in a match of Cardassian Rugby."
"It's Ya'Han we are talking about," Jayson laughed. "It would not matter what sport she plays, I would pity the members of the other team."
"Counselor Lopez?" Cmdr. Shar'El called out as soon as they entered the Infirmary.
"Right here." The CNS appeared revealed that someone had returned. That relief turned into full-blown joy when she saw her friend amongst the people walking in. "What are you doing here?" Adriana asked Satella who could only shrug.
"That is what we are all trying to figure out. At this rate though, we might end up with the full command staff here," the CMO replied.
"I will admit that I am not entirely certain it would be a bad idea," Shar'El admitted. "I would not mind having Maya here with us. She might be able to explain what is happening as well as provide us with a possible way out. Right now, this place is starting to feel like the Hotel California."
"Great," Adriana sighed. "I'm going to have that song stuck in my head now."
"Quit complaining," Satella snapped playfully to her friend before turning towards Shar'El. "Commander, can we take a minute here? Lt. Stark's leg could use some TLC."
"I'm sorry," Ya'Han offered. As stated, she had not wanted to hurt him. It was just the way thing happened.
"Well, we are in an Infirmary and there does appear to be all of the required equipment. Make it quick though, I would like for us to be back out there trying to figure what's going on." Cmdr. Shar'El was antsy to get going but saw no reason to deny the CMO's request. In fact, making sure that everyone on the team could move at his or her best was preferable. There were just too many unknowns for them to deal with, so being ready for a fight was prudent.
The CMO pointed to one of the beds. "Have a seat here and show me where the bruise is. Unless you want to remove your pants to give me straight access to your leg."
Jayson glanced at Ya'Han for a brief moment and then shook his head vehemently. "Right there," he said pointing to a specific point on his thigh.
"That's what I thought you'd do," Satella grinned. With a motion of her head, the CMO called her friend closer while running the healing medical device over the indicated spot on the man's leg.
"Is there a problem?" the CNS asked, thinking that there might be an issue with Jayson.
"Just trying to understand what is happening to us. We are being brought to this place and time one by one. The only commonality is Cmdr. Shar'El which leaves me to believe that she is responsible for this, consciously or not." Satella cautiously whispered, ensuring that only those nearest to her could hear them.
"How would Cmdr. Shar'El be responsible for this?" Jayson asked, louder than Doctor Bruxa would have liked. This conversation was meant to be between them and not involve the First Officer, at least not for the time being.
"I'm not sure," Satella shrugged. "This is nothing more than a personal theory shared between friends. I am simply trying to understand what is happening based on what we are experiencing. We have been pulled from our own places and time to be here, and this includes Shar'El. This place is not from her past, at last not that she can remember."
"You think that she's a temporal anchor?" Adriana asked, recalling the term used by Lt. Mitshiba.
Again, the CMO shrugged. The term referred to something or someone that, for a reason or another, was set in the space-time continuum. An immovable point in time that tended to attract others, especially those able to travel through time. There were no indications that Cmdr. Shar'El was such a person, but her link to this place and time was unavoidable. Being here, living events as whoever this Lyta was, means that there is something more at play. As a CNS, I am just asking you to keep an eye on her to see if we might be able to figure out what is happening."
Adriana glanced at the woman who was busy speaking with their Chief of Security. "I will keep an eye on her, but I am not sure what good it will do. If there is some temporal link between her and this place, it is going to take more than a few minutes to figure it out."
"I know. Do what you can." Doctor Bruxa stopped what she was doing and looked at the Chief of Operations. "I am not trying to undermine her in any way; I am just trying to find a way to help her as well as all of us. If I mention this to her, and she is unconsciously affecting what we are experiencing, we could end up in a lot more trouble. I don't like it, but right now I don't think we really have a choice."
Jayson gazed back at Satella with suspicions before relaxing a few moments later. "I don't like it either but I understand what you are saying. You do have more experience in this sort of thing thanks to your time on the BASTET. Because of that, I will follow your lead, but make no mistake; I will follow Cmdr. Shar'El wherever she goes."
"I would never ask you to do any less," the CMO confirmed. "I just want us to look out for things that we might not have thought of. Things that might help us understand why we are here, and why others are being drawn here as well. Shar'El may be the key to all of this without her knowing that she is."
With that said, Jayson, Adriana, and Satella shared a quick nod of the head before rejoining the others.
=-=
Rachel Jackie Johnson
Ensign Satella Bruxa [Access Character BIO for Satella Bruxa]
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
[Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint. - Mark Twain]
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"Linked Beyond Understanding"
[previous post were (ANU) " More People " by Rachel / (BAS) "Officially" by Jessica]
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma, Infirmary
Stardate: 33003.2000
While Doctor Bruxa was taking care of Lieutenant Stark's bruised leg, all under the unofficial supervision of Counselor Lopez, the raven-haired Commander was chatting with the ship's Chief of Security. Shar'El welcomed the chance to speak to Ya'Han alone as there were certain aspects of this journey through time that bothered the Ullian to no end.
"You want me to keep an eye on you? I am sorry Commander, but I don't understand what it is that you are asking me to do." The confusion in Ya'Han's words and face in regards to Shar'El's softly spoken request was evident. The words and instructions given were as simple as could be, but the Commander did understand where the uncertainty originated from. Had the roles been reversed, there was no doubt in the woman's mind that she would have responded in a very similar manner as the Nylaan had just done.
"It is difficult to explain," Shar'El said in the same soft-spoken tone before closing her to sort her thoughts in a more coherent format. "With the exception of you and I, everyone else here was in a moment from their past before finding themselves here. While they were in their past, you traveled to a possible future, but you still found yourself somewhere along what would be considered your own personal timeline. Unlike all of you, I was brought here, to a time that stands well outside of what could be considered my timeline. This was made even more evident when I realized that as far as those native to this time and place, I am not Shar'El but a powerful telepath by the name of Lyta. As strange as this may already seem to be, the fact that my actions and thoughts are focused on a single person found in this time and place makes me wary as to what may come to pass."
"So you want me to make sure you do not do something that might endanger any of us?"
"Maybe, possibly," the Commander agreed in a dismissing fashion. "I do not know exactly what it is that any of you can do, but I need you all to keep an eye on me, my actions and the possible intents I have for those actions."
"So you want me to inform the others?" Ya'Han asked, confused by the fact that Shar'El had suddenly been referring to all of them being involved in this surveillance of the Commander's actions.
"That is what they are talking about."
"Are you sure?" The Nylaan asked, glancing over her shoulder at the three officers out of earshot.
"I am. As I told you before, I am here in this time and place not as Shar'El but as Lyta. I can hear their thoughts just as clearly as if they were standing right here next to us. I can scan their minds without even trying and know all of their concerns even before they voice them to one another. Yes, I am sure, just as I am sure that the young woman you encountered in your timeline is your daughter and that you want to make sure Jayson does not meet the untimely end you discovered in that possible future."
Ya'Han froze, stunned by the Commander's words. Whoever this Lyta was, it was easy to see that she possessed telepathic abilities beyond those that Commander Shar'El called her own. How she had come to have these new abilities was something that the Nylaan did not understand, but the display she had just witnessed was enough to make her see the need to keep an eye on the Ullian.
"Jayson is all fixed up," Satella announced, the three officers joining the other two. "Are we ready to head out?"
The raven-haired Commander remained silent and turned away, prompting the Counselor to inquire as to the woman's status. "Is she alright?"
"She is struggling with the telepathic powers of this Lyta person," Ya'Han explained.
"How is that possible?" Doctor Bruxa exclaimed. "I put her with enough telepathic blockers to knock out a dozen Betazoids for a week.
"I will not claim to understand what is happening here. All I can tell you is that she knew what you three were talking about without even trying. I remember seeing Shar'El scanning someone's memories, and although there were not a lot of outward signs to indicate that she was doing so, there are tale-tale signs. This time, she didn't even need to be looking in your general direction to know all of your thoughts. That is why she is asking all of us to keep an eye on her."
"She claimed earlier to being able to sense everyone in NEW ALEXANDRIA," Satella informed. "I thought that it was only a passing feeling, but now I see that it was more, much more. If she is able to perceive our thoughts with the level of telepathic inhibitors that should be in her body, I can honestly say that I am worried about her not being able to control those powers. Keeping an eye on her may actually not be enough."
"We have to try and do our best to help her," Counselor Lopez added. "We still have no ideas as to why we are here, but it does appear that this Lyta is meant to play an important role in this place and time. We have no other choice but to see this thing through and be there to help in whatever capacity we can."
"Why do I have the feeling I am going to end up on my back once again before all of this ends," Jayson sighed causing Ya'Han to giggle ever so slightly.
"Let's go," Shar'El ordered, the woman sounding mildly upset, likely due to the fact that she had not only heard their words but their thoughts as well. "We need to get back to that woman and figure out what role she plays in this. I need to know and understand her connection to Lyta and in so doing hopefully understand their connection to me."
With that said, the Commander exited the Infirmary with Ya'Han, Satella, Adriana and Jayson not too far behind her, none of them willing to turn their backs on the visibly troubled woman. As much as they each wanted to help Shar'El in whatever capacity they could, it was a foregone conclusion that they all needed to be extra careful and not do anything that might make the situation worse.
Without any concerns of being discovered, the group returned to the glass wall that allowed a view into the examination room where the undressed nameless woman was. Shar'El could effortlessly sense the thoughts of those behind her, but still, the woman on the other side of the glass appeared to be nothing more than a void, a body without thoughts, a physical form without what some might call a soul.
Who was this woman and why had this entire journey been about her and whatever link she possessed with the telepath names Lyta?
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Ensign Sofia Andersson [Access Character BIO for Sofia Andersson]
Chief Medical Officer
USS BASTET
"Anywhere but there"
(Cont. ANU. "Drawn together")
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Stardate: 33003.1930
Scene: Earth, Star Peak, Nevada
Tanith was chewing over recent events, a frown deep on her face. This whole situation was weird, and she didn't like weird. Weird was what got you killed.
"Problems, Ensign?" Tanith nearly jumped, she'd half expected the Captain to forget she was there, and was just padding behind him quietly so she wouldn't get lost again. Someone would definitely come for the Captain, even if they forgot about her. But she supposed it was pretty difficult to forget someone when they were the only person with you.
"Not per se, sir." It occurred to her that this was also not her choice situation for getting to know her commanding officer. "I just don't like the weird. Weird is trouble. Of course, your weird is better than mine. Although I'm not really fond of nature."
"No?" The Captain seemed amused. "Why not?"
"I guess I'm not used to it. I spent most of my life on ships, cities, and space stations. Planets always make me feel like I'm going to fall up into the sky. And this place is so barren. Where are we, anyway if it isn't too impertinent?"
"Earth, a state called Nevada, this is a place called Star Peak," Morningstar looked up at the sky. Tanith followed suit, but the vast expanse of sky threatened to swallow her up and she looked back down quickly.
"Oh. I've never seen much of Earth except for the Academy, of course." Tanith eyed the ground. Everything looked real enough, seemed real enough, only it couldn't be, could it? She had been on the bridge, and then she hadn't been, and then she'd been... Somewhere else...
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Scene: Somewhere else.
Helming a starship was pretty boring, all things considered. Almost everything was taken care of by the computer, especially when the ship was at warp, and so most of her day was spent monitoring for any warp turbulence (which never actually happened) or making sure that all systems were working correctly. It was a pleasant, mostly boring, repetitive routine which was comforting after the unpredictability of her previous job on LIMBO. Tanith reached forward on autopilot to check the heading yet again, and found, instead of her console, a steaming hot cup of coffee. She yelped, and popped her finger into her mouth and looked around, her adrenaline pumping.
"No. No way." Tanith would have trembled if she wasn't by nature rather placid and not easily excited. She knew this place, and it was impossible. She'd sat here, in this booth, for three whole days, waiting for her handler to meet her. She'd been back there every single month on the day her handler should have been there, waiting, hoping that they'd get word to her, set up a new meeting spot, set up an extraction.
"Heya Tammy-Jo, you here still sweetie? If I told ya once, I told ya a thousand times, a man who keeps you waitin' like this isn't a man worth waitin' for. I've been there myself, he probably has a wife, she's probably found out. He won't be back. Can I get you something? More protein cube hash? I tell ya hun, forget that rat bastard, go be happy." The waitress was a gaunt woman, one of the space stations many working poor. She kept herself tidy, her hair a gravity defying monument of neon curls, carefully coiffed, and she was sweet, if far too good at remembering faces for Tanith's liking. Tanith reached forward and grabbed the coffee, taking a swig of it even though it burned her tongue, just so she would have a moment to collect her thoughts.
Maybe everything had been her imagination playing tricks, maybe she'd made up escaping LIMBO, and she was still stuck-
The idea rattled its way through her brain bouncing around the edges for so long she lost track of time- maybe hours, maybe days, before her mind rebelled.
No. No way. She *had* been on the bridge of the ANUBIS. She *wasn't* still trapped on LIMBO living as Tammy-Jo, and she was damned if she was going to fall back into the same patterns. She stood up and emptied the contents of her pockets onto the table and headed for the door. She'd gotten off of LIMBO once, she could do it again.
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Scene: Earth, Star Peak, Nevada
"Not many people who live on Earth come to the desert anyway," Morningstar was saying. "They think it's dead, barren, lifeless. But really, there's life under every stone, even the soils here are sometimes alive, though you wouldn't know it to look at it. It's just that life here knows better than to come out during the heat of the day. Look over there, see? A scorpion, and if you look up at the moon you'll see bats. If we're lucky, there'll be some night blooming cacti in among the creosote."
"You don't sound very bothered by this Sir," Tanith gave the scorpion a very wide berth. She didn't like how many legs it had.
"Neither do you," the Captain pointed out with a smile. "But then you don't seem like someone to get worked up about anything."
"It's not that I'm okay with the situation," Tanith said a bit defensively. "It's just that nothing is ever made better by panicking. Getting worked up leads to rash decisions, rash decisions are generally bad decisions, and bad decisions usually wind up with someone dying. So I don't get worked up. Better to think things through, and act only once you have a plan."
"And do you have a plan?"
"My plan was to follow you. But..."
"But?" The Captain raised his eyebrow.
"But, I did manage to end up in your whatever-this-is, so it stands to reason that maybe we can get to other people's whatever-this-is. At least, we aren't stuck here."
"So, how did you manage to come here from wherever you were?"
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Scene: Wherever she was
She'd gone every place she could think of. She must have walked miles down the favelas of LIMBO, up and down the staircase, through the gambling halls and drinking establishments. She was tired, thirsty, frustrated, angry, ready to give up. The last straw had been bumping in to Harad Sar and his contingent and being told that they had a job for her. Now she was hiding from them, hoping they'd forget her. She'd been everywhere she could think of, tried to talk to anyone that had owed her a favor in the past, all to no avail.
She let out a bellow of frustration. A few of the denizens of the dungheap looked up at her warily, but such unpredictable behavior wasn't uncommon, and they quickly looked away. She just wanted to get out. With a sudden burst of impetuousness that was completely unlike her, she dashed off in a random direction, running as fast as she could, launching herself blindly down turns, her mind blank, until, at last, she emerged on a mountaintop filled with stars.
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Scene: Earth, Star Peak, Nevada
"I let myself get lost," Tanith said. The explanation sounded lame, even to her. "I can't explain, I just ran off, and wanted badly to be somewhere else. I didn't care where, and I didn't think about where I was going, and then, all of a sudden, here I was. I'm sorry, that's not something that makes for a great plan of action."
"No, but it's almost poetic in its own way. I suppose we ought to try to get lost," the Captain said with a smile.
* * *=(/\)=* * *
Alix Fowler
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"Losing More Than Yourself"
Previous posts (ANU) "Anywhere But There" / (BAS) "Officially"
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"Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves."
- Henry David Thoreau
=====
Setting: EARTH, Nevada, Star Peak
Stardate: 33003.2000
The pair had been walking for quite some time now, the Native American Captain in the lead while the Terran Flight Control Officer followed not too far behind. Their quest, as simple as it was, had yet to be accomplished, but then again it was not that easy for someone to get lost in the middle of the Nevada desert under a clear starry sky. Thanks to his heritage, Erik learned at an early age to find his bearings by looking up at the stars, something that he now unconsciously did making their goal that much more difficult to reach. A simple glance was all he needed to find out in which cardinal direction they were heading. Even when not on EARTH or on the surface of some distant world, Morningstar always sought out the faint and distant twinkling lights, no matter the situation.
Erik quietly smiled as he looked back at the woman following him, her gaze locked on the ground beneath their feet. In that regards, Tanith was a complete opposite to Erik, the Flight Control Officer finding peace and safety in the closed containment of a ship or starbase while the Captain needed to feel the wide-open space in order to feel peace and tranquility. The Native American was not one to judge, but he did wonder as to what could have caused the woman to feel such a sense of loss when looking up at the open star-filled sky. This was definitively a question to be addressed by their new Ship's Counsellor, Lieutenant Lopez, but not by his request or insistence. Whatever personal trauma was responsible was no business of his, as long as it did not interfere with the Ensign's ability to perform her duties, which so far it had not.
While continuing with their walk, the Native American once more glanced up at the stars out of simple reflex, but this time his gaze lingered on the distant twinkling specks of light. Since Tanith's attention was on the man's feet, she quickly stopped when he did instead of running into him, the abruptness of the action prompting the woman to wonder what had happened. "Is everything alright Sir?"
An awkward pause followed before the man spoke. "Some of the stars are missing," the Captain replied, puzzled by the discovery which to him made absolutely no sense.
"Could it be clouds?" Tanith proposed without looking up. The solution did seem to be an overly simple one for the captain to not have considered it, but the Flight Control Officer still believed it to be the right thing to do in mentioning the possibility. When dealing with weird, it was best to consider every option, no matter how simple or obvious they might be.
"There is not a cloud in the skies above us," the Native American reported, confusion lacing his words. "In fact, two, no, make that three more stars have just vanished. Something is making the stars disappear."
Tanith risked raising her eyes, stopping at the horizon. This way she would be able to see some of those vanishing stars while still managing to keep her feelings in check, or so she hoped. "Captain," the Ensign gasped. "Wasn't there a mountain to our forward starboard side?"
"Yes," Erik confirmed as he lowered his gaze to the specified mountain to discover something even stranger. "There was," he amended after being unable to locate the large natural landmark. "There are accounts of entities able to destroy planets and even stars, but how could it have swallowed distant stars and a single mountain? Something else is happening here, something very weird."
However weird the Captain had thought this was, the announcement of stars and mountains vanishing from view had moved this entire thing to a whole new level as far as Tanith was concerned. To have gone from wherever she had been to here only to see this place vanishing little by little was something the FCO could have easily done without. Her only consolation at this time was that she would not be alone to deal with whatever this was.
The earlier discussion about the uselessness of panicking quickly returned to the Native American's mind. Tanith was absolutely correct in her beliefs, and Erik agreed wholeheartedly with her on that point, but the initial shock of seeing stars and mountains vanishing proved to be quite a bit to take in. Following a few moments to think this through, the Captain decided to scan the horizon and make a mental list of whatever else he noticed as missing. To his surprise and horror, the landscape did not appear as he believed it should. Based on his memories of this location, which he knew very well.
"If something had come to stand between us and those stars, it would still not explain how those mountains came to vanish," Erik pointed out aloud, several more locations having been added to the list of now missing landmarks. "If I was the only one to experience this phenomenon, it could be argued that something was affecting my perception of our surroundings."
Tanith remained calm and found the Native American's composure to be endearing; now if only they could find their way out of here, everything would be great. "We are both seeing, or more to the point not seeing whatever this is, so it means that it is not your perception that is at fault. It would seem that we are witnessing the disappearance of our surroundings."
"You are correct," the Native American agreed. "We already established that this is some sort of an alternate reality to our own, one that now appears to be losing integrity."
"Some sort of shrinking bubble universe?" Tanith theorized, the Ensign displaying a level of understanding that the Captain would not have normally expected from someone of her rank, but Erik knew that there was much more to his Flight Control Officer than what had been on her official personnel file. Likewise, there was a lot more happening in this place then what they were able to experience.
"If this is a shrinking bubble universe as you have suggested, our only way to safety is to leave this place. The question is, how do we do this?" The Native American thought aloud. "There should be some sort of physical manifestation of a breach in this bubble universe that would permit us to travel from here to anywhere else, but there is nothing that I can see."
Tanith quickly scrutinized their immediate surroundings, disliking the fact that this barren land was a whole lot of nothing as far as her eyes could see, and the vanishing mountains did not make things any easier to deal with. "Would be nice if there was a door or something."
"A door in the middle of the desert would be a whole different kind of weird, but again you are right. It would at the very least give us a location for us to aim to."
"It may not be a door, but we could head for that tree," the FCO said pointing to a lonesome object that seemed to be quite out of place.
"Great," Erik sighed. "First vanishing stars and mountains, now appearing trees."
"Sir, Am I to gather that it was not there before?"
"No, it was not," the Native American unhappily admitted. "Something is clearly happening to this place, and as much as I hate to say it, that tree may be our only hope. Whatever caused it to appear here may be our only way out before this shrinking bubble fully collapses on top of us." The two officers shared a quick look before Morningstar began running in the direction of the latest oddity to this place. Tanith wasted no time to follow suit, memories of her time on LIMBO and her escape from there coming back to her making her run that much faster. Although she knew that she could not outrun her own memories, her survival instinct forced her to try, no matter as to how futile it was.
Pushed by the speed of his Flight Control Officer, the Native American found himself running like never before. This made the 48 years old man realize that he was not in as good a physical shape as he wished he was. Maybe the arrival of a new Chief Medical Officer on board the ANUBIS was serendipitous but he would need to escape from this shrinking bubble universe before making it to Sickbay to see the new Doctor.
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
"Compressed Realities"
previous posts were (ANU) "Losing More Than Yourself" / (BAS) "Officially"
=====
Setting: ALTERNATE REALITY, Combined Laboratory, and Work Area
Stardate: 33003.2000
Working on a new project with her grandfather was a thrill all on its own. The feeling of exuberance coursing through Sonja was the same she experienced so many years ago, and it was the reason why she wanted to become an Engineer then. As she worked with the man, the redhead had to remind herself that she was working on finding a solution to the problem created by the Temporal and Dimensional Drives of the BASTET. A simple glance across the room onto the alien laboratory where Maya and her father were was more than enough to ensure that the Chief Engineer would not forget as to why they were here.
"Maya! How are you coming with those calculations on the field integrity of those realities?" Sonja asked, noting to herself that she had never before now seen the woman so relaxed while working on something. Obviously, being with her father once more had placed the Shillian into a different mindset, one that she would hopefully be able to withdraw from without too many problems once this situation was dealt and done with.
"Several of the realities have been collapsed and those inside forced into another," the Chief Science Officer reported. "I am not sure as to why, but it has been a great deal easier than expected to merge these realities together. Those trapped in them seemed to not have had any issues with moving from one place to the other."
"They may not have had a choice," the redhead added. "All we get to see from here are the field strengths. We just created the links between these realities; they were the ones who actually walked through from one reality to the next. I'm just surprised that no one actually crossed in the wrong direction."
"Based on my preliminary observations, the receiving reality appears to have started being far more stable than any of the others, and now that it has the added field support from the other collapsed realities, its own rate of collapse has actually been reduced by more than 70 percent. It is quite possible that thanks to this, a type of polarity was created, guiding those inside to move from the weaker to the stronger field without realizing it. Since these realities were created using the thoughts and memories of those who were trapped inside, they would likely not even realize that their own actions were being guided to bring them to another reality," Maya explained in a single breath.
Sonja blinked a few times before looking at her grinning grandfather. "Does she always talk that way?" He asked in a giggling whispered voice.
"Unfortunately, yes," Sonja quietly sighed back. "We still have two weaker fields to deal with, one of which is our own," the redhead continued not wishing to announce that she had not truly been listening to the verbose woman's explanation and theory.
"We will be able to draw some of the field strength from the primary reality as soon as the third and last one is merged in with, the problem is that the rate of collapse of that particular reality has actually increased. At this rate, it will completely implode in about 5 minutes, maybe even less as the field density appears to be constantly fluctuating making an accurate estimate of the collapse impossible to make."
"Of course it would," the Chief Engineer exclaimed. "Why would we have something go smoothly for once? The universe hates us I tell you, it's that simple."
"The universe doesn't hate you," Sonja's grandfather said with a smile. "It likes to test you, to challenge you, and it has yet to give you something that you are unable to handle."
"I know that," the redhead shrugged in a half annoyed tone. "It just feels good to vent once in a while, but still, it would be nice if just once everything went our way without having every gremlin in a hundred light-years come rushing in to see which one of them is going to screw with us the most."
"Still making references to those old twentieth century movies I see," the eldest Paquette chuckled.
"What can I say? Nobody puts baby in the corner," Sonja chuckled back. "Now, let's try to figure out how we get those inside that third reality out of there an into the more stable one. We can figure out how we join them after."
"I have already managed to open a bridge between those realities, but the link is very weak," Maya reported. "I am not sure if is it because of the rapid rate of collapse or because of something else, but that particular reality appears to be a lot more difficult to keep a lock on. We might not be able to maintain the connection between the two long enough to allow those trapped inside to get out."
"Following the initial merging, we have been going with the idea of simply having those inside move from their reality to another pre-existing one, what if that is part of the problem?" Claude Paquette suggested, the grandfather clearly thinking about this entire affair in way that no one else was.
"Our stopping the merging of these realities to instead concentrate on the movement of those inside could have created an bias in the field density of those remaining realities making any possible link that much more difficult to establish and maintain," the elder Shillian scientist theorized.
"I see where you get it from," Sonja and Maya said to each other, prompting them to smile and look at their respective family member working with them.
"If the problem is that there are too many people in the target reality, it would mean that we have only one alternative to work with," the redhead offered.
"We have to merge their reality with our own," the Chief Science Officer said, agreeing with the half mentioned plan. "This could in theory bring the bias of the field integrity back in balance and allow one final transfer, that of ours into theirs. From there it will only be a question of finding a way to open up a conduit that will permit everyone to return to our actual non-collapsing reality."
"Talk less and work more," Sonja strongly suggested. "Knowing the way the universe thinks, I am sure that we will end up with Jayson and whoever was unfortunately enough to be thrown in with him. I just hope that he will realize that we are saving his skin."
"I did not realize that you cared for this Jayson so much?" Sonja grandfather teased.
"Care for him? I'm not doing this for him, but for whoever is with him," the Chief Engineer countered.
"We have no way to know if Jayson is in that third reality that we are trying to merge with our own," Maya cautioned. "For all we know it could be Shar'El, Ya'Han or even the Captain."
"I know that, why do you think I'm working as hard as I am to make this work? Now let's go and get that link open. We are rapidly running out of time."
=====
Lorraine Paquette
Lieutenant Sonja Paquette [Access Character BIO for Sonja Paquette]
Chief Engineering Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
=-=
"Darkness Inside The Void"
[previous post were (ANU) "Compressed Realities" by Lorraine / (BAS) "Crowded Mind" by Rachel]
=-=
Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.2015
The group gathered in front of the large glass pane, everyone looking therein, studying the motionless woman wearing nothing more than a bracelet around her wrist. Had it not been for the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of her chest, most would have believed her to be dead.
"Who is she?" Counselor Lopez asked, her question meant to be more of a statement than a query made to those next to her.
"I don't know, but if I read those monitors on the wall correctly, she has an extraordinary metabolism. Her cell regeneration is more than ten times what would be considered normal for most humanoids," Doctor Bruxa noted in admiration. "In fact, I would say that those are the highest levels I have ever seen in any race, humanoid or not." Everyone understood that if given the chance, the ANUBIS' new CMO would not hesitate to enter the sealed room and study the unknown patient more closely.
"Are we sure that she is the reason why we are all here?" Ya'Han investigated, the Chief of Security skeptical as to the role the unconscious woman played on this journey into the unknown. The clues did point to the unknown exposed woman being of some importance in all of this, but the Nylaan was not entirely convinced that this was the whole picture. Her instincts were forcing her to look beyond the evidence before them to find a connecting thread that no one had yet discovered.
"She might not be the sole reason, but you cannot deny that there is something mysterious, something strangely interesting about her. Just look at her," Adriana said, pointing to the attention and instruments that surrounded the person in question.
"She definitively seems to be a very interesting woman," Jayson mused, calling upon himself by his words of awe a single powerful strike against his shoulder from Ya'Han who was standing right next to him. There was nothing the Nylaan could do about the nakedness of the unknown patient, nor the clearly fit physical form that was on display for everyone to see. As much as she might have wanted to, the Chief of Security could not change in any way the woman's defenseless appearance that begged for any sort of attention. Because of that, she believed it her duty to remind the man of proper etiquette, especially in the presence of the woman who apparently would come to birth their daughter.
Oblivious to the conversations and interactions happening all around her, Shar'El stared at the woman beyond the glass, all of her attention and focus targeting the empty void that was her mind. The mental protective barrier was still there, but now the telepath could breach it with far more ease than she had done earlier. There was no reason for this, especially given that the Commander was still under the influence of the telepathic inhibitors given to her by Doctor Bruxa.
The deeper she pushed her mind in, the more Shar'El found herself drawn into the void that was the woman's mind, a complete emptiness that beckoned her into the eternal darkness. The complete absence of any sort of thought or memory was strange, eerie, and yet so inviting that the telepath continued diving into the void as if the secret to this nothingness would be found somewhere beyond it.
The voices of those around her physical presence grew increasingly more distant, even as they tried to draw her back, but Shar'El could not stop the journey that she had begun. She would find out who this woman was and why she was so important to whoever this powerful telepath was. It was beyond evident that the two were in some way connected based on everything that Shar'El had witnessed, and the Commander wanted to know why she was involved in this mystery and what, if any, links the unknown woman and Lyta had with her.
Shar'El forced her way deeper into the dark void, more convinced than ever that the answer was there for her to find. She could not explain why, but she knew that the mental barrier was there for a reason, if not to keep people out, then to keep something in. Following what had felt like hours of flying through nothingness, the telepath finally found something, a single faint light. As she drew closer, the one small peck became two and soon after those became four. When those four small star-like lights divided once more to make eight, their colors shifted to the red end of the light spectrum. That was when Shar'El realized that she was not looking at some random lights or even an oddly patterned set of stars. What the woman was looking at were eyes, eyes that were now looking back at her.
An icy feeling swept through her body and soul as Shar'El recalled those nightmarish eyes looking back at her in the exact same way not so long ago. That terrifying gaze from beyond the darkness was initially encountered by the woman when the ANUBIS had gone up against a Lokustaar ship, and the feeling that accompanied those small red lights was still very much present now. Was this the connection that linked them all together? Were the Lokustaar somehow responsible for all of this?
An all-encompassing fear took hold of Shar'El as the eight red glowing eyes drew increasingly closer, making her wish for nothing more than to escape. She could feel her throat tighten, her heart racing and her breath becoming more and more shallow until she was but a second from passing out. That was when Lyta stepped forth, allowing the Commander to see the woman for the first time since this adventure began.
There was a sense of power emanating from Lyta, a purpose that defied the fear created by the nightmarish glowing red eyes.
"Not here… Not now… Not ever!" Lyta yelled in a commanding voice before a flash of bright white light filled the void. The blinding wave of energy was so powerful that it easily pushed Shar'El back, through not only the perceived space within the mind of the unknown woman but also clear out of whatever telepathic world had been created.
=-=
"Commander! Can you hear me? Are you injured?"
"I think she's coming around."
"What happened?"
"She just screamed and collapsed to the ground."
Slowly Shar'El opened her eyes to see Satella, Adriana, Ya'Han and Jayson looking back at her, the position around her indicating that she was on the floor, the concerned expressions on their faces hinting that they all were worried. Eight eyes were once again looking at her, but these ones did not fill the woman with cold icy fear, but rather with warmth.
"What happened?" Shar'El asked, finding it difficult to articulate her words.
"It appears that you were locked in some kind of telepathic link with our unknown woman," Doctor Bruxa explained. "We tried to get you back but nothing worked, then you started mumbling about glowing eyes and screamed in horror before falling down. We all feared for your safety."
"It's the Lokustaar," the Commander announced, her throat tightening at the simple mention of the shadowy race. "I can't explain what happened, but they touched her mind in some way and it was Lyta that destroyed their influence on her, at least that's what I think happened."
"Not sure what happened, but something changed," Ya'Han said, drawing everyone's attention back into the room where the unclothed patient was. Several medical officers rushed into the room, either not noticing or not caring about the audience they had. Every one of them seemed more than preoccupied with what had transpired in the room and the fact that not one but two women were there, unconscious.
"She wasn't there before," Adriana said, pointing to the woman on the floor.
"That's Lyta," Shar'El clarified, recognizing the woman from the glimpse she had of her back in the patient's mind. "I was her; well I was experiencing events through her eyes, at least until now."
"Vital signs are fading, we are losing her," one of the medical officers exclaimed as they desperately tried to stabilize the collapsed woman.
The gathered officers of the ANUBIS suddenly held their breath as someone else walked in, a much younger looking Admiral Koniki.
"Is that…" Jayson began before being interrupted by Shar'El's reply.
"Yes. It's Admiral Koniki."
"What happened?" The base's CO demanded, not trying in the least to hide his concern for the unconscious woman now on the floor.
"According to these readings, she went into the patient's mind and obviously found something, something bad. The telepathic energy released went off the charts, even for her, and completely shattered the psyche of our test subject. In fact, it looks like we are about to lose them both," one of the physicians reported. "Whatever mental damage was inflicted, it is affecting their bodies and appears to be killing them."
"No, we cannot lose either one of them. Do you understand me? Do whatever you need to do to keep them both alive!" Koniki bellowed, making the medical officers actually take a step back for fear that the Admiral would strike out at them.
"We could inject the patient with the nano-bots as we had initially intended to do. Her extreme healing should be able to offset the effects of the machines in her body and it is possible that they will be able to, at the very least, contain her fractured mind. There is no telling what that will do to her on a conscious level though; we could be creating distinct multiple personalities within her mind using barriers that could never be undone."
"Doctor, I don't care what state her mind ends up in, I need them both to be alive. We can deal with the rest afterward."
"Yes, Admiral. Start the injections and flood her entire body, we need to repair the biological damage until her own healing abilities kick in! As for Lyta, the damage is similar but her body will not be able to survive the procedure or the presence of the nano-bots in her system. The only thing we can do for the time being is to place her in a medical stasis and hope that we can find a way to repair the damage to her body and mind."
"DO IT!" Koniki ordered, despair clearly audible in his voice.
As soon as the injectors were placed against the patient's skin, everyone focussed their attention on Lyta, quickly taking her out of the room to address hr medical needs.
"What did we just witness?" Counselor Lopez asked confused beyond reason by what they all had just seen.
"I'm not sure," Shar'El admitted. "All I know is that the Lokustaar were involved on some level in all of this, which explains why I was drawn to Lyta and why I felt that she played such an important role in all of this, although I am yet unable to understand what that role actually is."
"Maybe it would be best for us to find a way out of here," Ya'Han suggested. "Although the Admiral nor any of the doctors reacted to our presence, it is possible that we could still interfere with these events. It would be prudent for us to not make ourselves too obvious."
Shar'El nodded her agreement before leading the group down the corridor and away from the woman who had somehow been the key to all this. Having moved out of sight of the woman, the members of the ANUBIS' crew missed seeing her regain partial consciousness as her hair and body went through countless changes in color and shape. When those rapid transformations finally came to a stop, the woman tried to move from the examination table but was only able to bring one arm up into view, the one on which the bracelet was on. She could feel her complete exposure and yet felt no shame in how she was; in fact, she felt nothing but conflicting thoughts as if hundreds of people were telepathically talking to her all at the same time.
The woman struggled to make sense of what was happening to her, unable to remember anything about how she had come to being here or even whom she was. The only hint was the bracelet that, thanks to the worn second letter on the small and narrow metal band, she believed to be her name and not some tag to show she was assigned to the GAMMA Research Division of this facility. Desperately searching for anything that would help her figure out who she was, the woman intently studied the visible letters G-M-M-A and filled in the illegible single letter with the only thing she could think of. The only thing she believed made any sort of sense given what was happening to her. A single and lonesome 'E'.
"Gemma?" She asked in a barely audible voice, the sound of that name not sounding in the least bit familiar while still believing that it was hers to claim as her own.
=-=
Tiffany Reeve
Commander Shar'El [Access Character BIO for Shar'El]
Executive Officer / Intel Liaison Officer
USS ANUBIS
Ensign Sofia Andersson [Access Character BIO for Sofia Andersson]
Chief Medical Officer
USS BASTET
##########
"From One Unknown To Another"
Previous posts (ANU) "Darkness Inside The Void" / (BAS) "Crowded Mind"
##########
"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.”
― H.P. Lovecraft
=====
Setting: EARTH, Nevada, Star Peak
Stardate: 33003.2030
With each running step the Native American took, things appeared to be less like some sort of altered reality and more like a dream devolving into a nightmare. Stars were vanishing one after the other and even the distant mountains were disappearing, replaced by a flat horizon that looked and felt completely wrong. Suspecting that they were caught in some sort of collapsing bubble universe only added to the trouble the Captain and Flight Control Officer faced as they rushed towards the lonesome tree that had just appeared out of nowhere.
"Sir," Tanith began, managing quite well to talk and run at full speed the same time. "What happens if we reach that tree and nothing happens?"
"One catastrophe at a time Ensign," Erik replied with some difficulty, further indicating that he was far from being in the physical shape he needed to be. That realization became even more pronounced when the two officers finally reached their objective and Erik found himself leaning against the tree struggling to catch his breath.
"Are you all right Sir?" Ensign Jones inquired, the woman barely showing any signs of exertion following the kilometer or so full-out run to this location they had just completed.
"I will be, just give me a moment to catch my breath," the Native American offered, clearly not at all pleased by his poor performance. "Remind me after this to make sure to have you on our run team. I have the feeling that you would give Lieutenant Ya'Han a run for her money, no pun intended."
Tanith ignored the last statement made by her Captain; instead, she tried to figure out the significance of this tree that had not been there before the universe began collapsing onto itself. Judging by the speed with which their surroundings were disappearing, time was running out. Either they would find some way to leave this bubble universe using this tree or they would be crushed to sub-atomic size, or worst made to be absolutely nothing.
"Why a tree? Why could it not have been a door, an access port, or even a transporter platform?" The Ensign said, voicing her frustration following her inability to find anything but a tree. Normally Tanith would have remained quiet; this having been her way, but there was nothing normal about this situation.
Having caught his breath, Erik shared his knowledge and ideas on this particular matter. "The significance of trees varies greatly from one culture to the next. To most, they are an extension of nature and life, very much in the way the Native Americans believed them to be. For others though, trees are the spirits of departed loved ones who have taken physical form or they may be a representation of the universe."
"You mean like Yggdrasil, the Norse tree that was said to connect the nine realms," the woman elaborated. "Neither one of us is of a Nordic descent, at least not that I know, and we are certainly not druids, but maybe I was looking at this tree in a far too literal way."
"Sounds like you have an idea Ensign," the Native American stated, more than happy to go with whatever thought Tanith had since he had none of his own to follow at this moment.
"The tree does not match the appearance of any single type, in fact, it appears to be several different types of trees forced into a single form," the FCO explained, her scrutiny having moved from the base and trunk to the higher branches. "Is it just me or is there a shimmering effect in those branches. Like some sort of bias in the fabric of space-time?"
"Agree, it does appear to be some sort of spatial anomaly, one that if encountered on board the ANUBIS I would give instructions to avoid," the Native American noted, finding the discovery strange and yet oddly interesting.
"The reality we are in was constructed based on your thoughts as well as your beliefs. The wide-open space, the star-filled sky, none of this would have come from me. Therefore, it would make sense that any doorway in or out of this place would be based on those same thoughts and beliefs. You are a man who is connected to nature, which is easy to see and understand, so of course, the tree makes more sense than a door just appearing in the middle of nowhere."
"I think your skills are being wasted as Flight Control Officer," Erik chimed while he interlocked his fingers to create a step for Tanith to use in order to reach the lowest branch.
The FCO opted to remain silent, accepting the help offered by her Captain before returning the favour by lowering her hand once she had taken a secured position on the branch. Once both officers were within the tree's foliage, the Native American gave their vanishing surroundings one last glance before reaching into the soft and gentle shimmering effect Ensign Jones had noticed. Clearly feeling something, Erik gave the woman by his side one last nod of the head before forcing more of his body through the event horizon of the phenomenon.
=====
Setting: ALTERNATE REALITY, Combined Laboratory, and Work Area
Stardate: 33003.2045
The Native American made a less than dignified entrance as he fell to the ground, the portal between the realities having opened several meters above ground on both sides. Erik was quick enough though to get out of the way when Tanith followed, the FCO landing on her feet as would have a cat.
"Captain! I am so sorry about that," Maya offered, the Chief Science Officer visibly concerned for the state of the man. "There was just no way for us to control where the link between these realities would open, especially with the field collapsing at the rate it was, we were focussing on simply opening a way for whoever was in that reality to escape before it was too late."
"No worries Commander," Erik responded without hesitation. "You accomplished your mission, and for that, we are both grateful," the Captain added, realizing only now that Maya was far from being alone in this merged scientific laboratory and country workshop.
"Captain, please permit me to introduce to you, my father, Sonah."
Erik smiled and offered a deep bow of his head before turning to his Chief Engineer. "Let me guess, this would be your grandfather, Claude I believe. Ensign Tanith and I owe you all a debt of gratitude for getting us out of there in time."
"Don't celebrate too quickly," Sonja chimed in. "We still have to figure out a way to get the others out of their reality and back into the real world. Once that's done, hopefully, we won't be too far behind them."
"I have the utmost confidence in your abilities to make that happen, Lieutenant. I have yet to see you tackle a problem that you have not been able to resolve." Erik words made the woman blush, not that much that she needed to hide her face, but enough to make those who knew her see the difference. "How can Ensign Jones and I help or should we just stay out of your way?"
"We could use some assistance in monitoring the fluctuations in the field intensity of the remaining reality bubble," Maya suggested. "It is how we identify the best way to open a link, the problem is now that the other realities have collapsed, the remaining one is more stable than we had expected to make breaching the buddle that much more difficult."
"Go figure," Sonja joined in. "We have to rush and merge these realities to avoid them collapsing and killing those inside, and now that we have managed to do that, we are faced with a completely different problem in that we can't get through the reality's outer shell. According to all of the readings we collected so far, this reality will collapse long before the other."
"Guess we all better get to work. Ensign Jones, please assist Commander Maya and her father. As a former engineer, I believe that I will be able to better help Lieutenant Paquette and her grandfather."
--==(/\)==--
Francois Charette
Captain Erik Morningstar [Access Character BIO for Erik Morningstar]
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501
AND
Lt. Commander Elan Fairborn [Access Character BIO for Elan Fairborn]
Robotics Engineering Officer
NEW ALEXANDRIA
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"Field Counseling"
[previous post were (ANU) "From One Unknown To Another" / (BAS) "Adapting"]
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma, Corridor
Stardate: 33003.2030
Normally the Sec/Tac would have been ahead of the group or at the very least right there next to the officer in the lead, who in this case was Commander Shar'El. The problem was that there was nothing normal about any of what had and was still happening to them. From traveling to a possible future in which she had a daughter named Ya'Jay, Ya'Han had travelled through time once again to join several members of her crew in what was believed to be a secret division within the NEW ALEXANDRIA base.
According to what she overheard others say up to this point, each had come from a different place and time from their own past, the Nylaan being the one and only exception to this. Why had she traveled to the future while everyone else had returned home to interact with family and friends? The question itself provided a possible answer in that the family and friends she did have from her past were few and far in between. Yes, there were many memories she held close to her heart, but for each of those, there were several more that she wished she could simply forget.
One of the memories she did not want to forget had been about something that had not yet happened, and someone who essentially was not real. According to everything she learned while at the Academy, time was fluid, able to be altered with relative ease, so it was a real possibility that the events leading to Ya'Jay would never take place. A single change along that particular temporal path could lead to their daughter never being born and Jayson maybe never dying.
As the group continued down the corridor as quietly as they could, the Nylaan followed a few steps behind Jayson, her complete attention on him instead of on their surroundings. Her training demanded that she act differently, but the Sec/Tac could not bring herself to be the officer she needed to be instead of the woman she was. Recent events had brought to the surface thoughts that she could no so easily ignore, and in all honesty, Ya'Han was not sure that she wanted to.
With the group preoccupied with the strange environment they were in, no one paid too much attention to the distracted Nylaan who was bringing up the rear, no one except for Counselor Lopez who, thanks to her training and field of expertise, could not ignore the broadcasted signs of the troubled woman. "Are you alright?"
The whispered question caught Ya'Han by surprise, and just as she was about to dismiss the woman's concerns, the Sec/Tac realized that it would be pointless. Adriana was a trained Counselor and as such would likely take the evasive answer as a sign and challenge to push that much harder for an answer to her earlier question.
"I'm alright, just thinking about what happened before I came here," the Sec/Tac said, hoping that it would be enough to have the Counselor abandon her investigation.
"I'm gathering that it had something to do with him," Lopez whispered back, glancing at the man who Ya'Han had been so intently looking at.
The black-haired Nylaan sheepishly smiled, the unexpected change in the woman's hair causing the Counselor to stop walking.
"Adriana, is everything alright?" Satella asked, having noticed that her friend had fallen behind.
"Fine, just fine," the wide-eyed woman replied, quickly catching up to the group and the woman whose hair had returned to the red and black mix that it was only a few moments ago. "That's quite the trick," Adriana admitted in a whispered voice since no one else had noticed this color change.
"It happens more than you think," the woman said. "As a Nylaan, I am able to control the color of my hair. It is a cultural thing meant to identify our skills, expertise, and status within our society. In my case, it also tends to reflect my moods, especially when my thoughts are focused on something else."
"That sounds amazingly interesting; I hope that you will not mind explaining this in more detail to me once we are out of here. It would be nice for me to know which colors to pay attention to and which ones I would be best to avoid," Adriana added. Reading the personnel files only gave an overview of who the person was, to really know them the Counselor needed to sit down and talk with them. This unexpected little exchange would provide the perfect excuse for seeing that happen.
Thinking of all of her colors and their significances, Ya'Han smiled thinking about the fiery red that the Counselor would certain be warned about. If given the chance, she knew that Jayson would not hesitate to link in the nickname he loved to tease her with, a nickname that she had to admit fit better than she cared for. A serious expression washed over the Nylaan's face as she thought of another Counselor, one with whom she would have felt more at ease speaking to. It was hard to believe that Nicole was gone and that another had been assigned so quickly as her replacement, even if only temporarily. Then again, things in this line of work never happened slowly or in accordance with the expectations of others.
"Come on you two," Satella quietly snapped at the two women bringing up the rear. "This is not the time of place for a field counseling session. You can talk all you want when we find our way back to the ship." Th Doctor paused for half a step, noticing the way the Nylaan was caressing her belly. It might not have been something noticeable to most, but to a female Doctor, there was no mistaking the gesture. Obviously, and as stated by herself, this was not the time or place to address such matters, but Bruxa made a mental note to make sure to give the Sec/Tac a complete medical exam the first chance they got.
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Hanali Han
Lieutenant JG Ya'Han [Access Character BIO for Ya'Han]
Chief of Security / Chief Tactical Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
"Whispered Voices"
[previous (ANU) "Field Counseling" / (BAS) "Adapting"]
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma. Corridor
Stardate: 33003.2035
To say that this whole thing was strange would be an understatement beyond measure. Everything about this felt surreal, like a bad dream that he could not wake from. Jayson gave up trying to make sense of what was happening the moment he found himself in that medical observation chamber. Finding Commander Shar'El and Doctor Bruxa here had been unexpected and running into Ya'Han and Counselor Lopez had been surprising. All they needed to do now was to run into Captain Morningstar and the other missing members of the crew, something that oddly enough he figured would happen sooner or later.
What made this even stranger was the fact that Ya'Han was walking behind him. He glanced her way a few times but she appeared lost in her thoughts, so he decided to not bother her. The last thing he needed was to summon the rage of the Red Dragon upon himself at this time. If she needed to talk, she knew exactly where he was, just a few feet ahead of her.
Jayson was surprised when he heard whispered voices coming from behind him. He wanted to look back and see who it was, but since one of them would be Ya'Han, he decided against it. As sweet and loving as he knew her to be, he also knew just how dangerous and deadly she could be. When their new CMO turned back and snapped at the two chatting women, the OPS Officer chuckled to himself, the smile on his face still visible when Satella returned.
"Something amusing?" The Doctor asked, curious to see if what she had noticed and the man walking by her side had anything in common.
"Just laughing at the absurdity of this whole story. I understand that we may be in a temporal event, but honestly, it feels more like some weird dream that we are all sharing, a dream that is not even ours. Whatever happened to take us away from the ANUBIS brought us to somewhere personal from our past. This," Jayson added, showing with a large gesture everything around them, "this is all because of Commander Shar'El, and even she can't tell us what is happening."
"There is never anything certain when dealing with temporal or even personal events," Satella said. "If we all knew exactly what happened in our pasts and what would come to be in our future, there would be little incentive to try and explore the unknown. There would be absolutely no mystery as to our own pasts and certain no adventure waiting for us in the days to come. Think about it this way, there would be no surprises whatsoever when a child is born, the exact date, the gender and even what and when they would achieve anything as they grew up would already be established. How boring would that be?"
"Maybe," he replied, not entirely certain he was in agreement with the proposed scenario. "There would be advantages in knowing when a child would be born and where their path would lead them in life. That way, the guessing game for the parents, as well as the child, would no longer be there. I would not mind knowing if and when a child would come into my life. It would at the very least give me something to look forward to."
That was all Doctor Bruxa needed to know that if her suspicions were correct about the reason why Ya'Han had caressed her belly the way she had, he knew nothing about it. On the other hand, his ignorance could indicate that something had happened to the unborn child and the woman had decided not to inform him to spare him the pain that would certainly be associated with such a loss. There was always a third option, that the Nylaan Chief of Security was simply experiencing some sort of physical or psychosomatic discomfort, but to be sure Satella needed to run a medical exam on her.
"Knowing the future is not meant for people like us," the CMO began, wishing that Adriana were with them as this fell more in her sphere of expertise. "Imagine knowing when something bad would happen or if the one things we truly hoped and wished for was never going to happen. How depressing would our lives be? It is the hope of what may come to be that keeps us going when things get rough."
Jayson sighed. "Are you a ship's Counselor of a Chief Medical Officer?" The only answer he received was a smile before their conversation was interrupted by the whispered voice of their First Officer.
"Something is happening up ahead. I need everyone to remain still and quiet."
Everyone stopped and for the first time, Jayson found himself in a protective position in regards to Ya'Han. The feeling was strange but invigorating, and unfortunately very short-lived as the Chief of Security took the announcement as an indication that she needed to be the officer her life and training had made her to be. He watched in silence as the now bright red-haired woman made her way to the front of the group, Jayson thinking that he would not mind knowing the future just to make sure that nothing would happen to her. Being who she was and her role on board the ANUBIS, he always feared that she would get hurt or worse. Thanks to his feelings for her, he would not hesitate to give his life to save hers, but that would be difficult to do as long as she jumped ahead of him when the situation became dangerous.
Right now, not knowing what would come to happen was not something he enjoyed, in fact, it was something that frightened him.
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Jayson Sousa
Lieutenant JG Jayson Stark [Access Character BIO for Jayson Stark]
Chief of Operations
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
"Clicking Heels"
previous posts were (ANU) "Whispered Voices" / (BAS) "Introduction"
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Setting: ALTERNATE REALITY, Combined Laboratory, and Work Area
Stardate: 33003.2035
With the help of Captain Morningstar and Ensign Jones, the two family duos continued their efforts to bridge and merge together the remaining collapsing bubbles. The goal was to bring everyone together in order to facilitate the journey back home. Trying to do so with nine separate and independent realities was impossible thanks to the weak stability of each self-contained universe. Now that the smaller ones had been unified though, an entirely new set of difficulties faced the gathered officers and respective family members.
"I was afraid of that," Maya announced. "The field integrity of the combined realities is far stronger than we had initially expected. The odds were equal in respect to the stability of the newly formed reality to be either weaker or stronger. According to our most recent gathered data, it appears that we may not have the required energy to merge the last two bubbles. Trying to do so with our currently available resources could lead to the destruction of one if not both realities, killing everyone inside."
"Well, that's not an option," Sonja offered without delay or hesitation. "We need to come up with another plan."
"I agree," the Captain stated. "Given our limited options, I would say that we truly have only one way to approach this dilemma."
"We need to open a bridge from those realities directly back to our own reality," Tanith offered, the FCO again displaying an understanding that surpassed her rank and role on board the ANUBIS.
"Easier said than done," Sonja's grandfather noted. "It took everything we had to be able to bring the other bubble realities together. Now we have to open a portal that will lead those inside back to a location that we have not yet figured out how to reach."
"It is possible that we are looking at this fractured reality wrong," Sonah proposed, the Shillian offering a knowing smile to his daughter. "What if the smaller bubbles were not separate parts of the whole but only became isolated from the whole while remaining within it?"
"Of course," Maya exclaimed. "It is conceivable that these bubbles were not created outside of the prime reality but were instead isolated from it using a temporal dimensional field. Since the malfunction on board the BASTET was responsible for this, it makes perfect sense. Why did I not think of this possibility earlier? It would explain why the containment field for those smaller realities was so weak and rapidly collapsing. It would also account for our difficulties in locating the prime reality for us to return to since we have been searching for another *independent* bubble."
"Dammit woman, I'm an Engineer, not a Theoretical Physicist," Sonja snapped. "Mind telling us all of that in plain simple non-Maya language? Hell, pictograms would be nice."
"Still deflecting I see," the redhead's grandfather chuckled, this having been a trait of his granddaughter from the first day he began showing her how to build working engine models.
With a few press of the controls within her reach, the Shillian created a three-dimensional hologram to more easily make her point to the others. "Imagine our own reality as being this bubble," Maya explained as a single large sphere filled the space over the workstation. "We have proceeded with the idea that the bubble realities we have been working to merge were *outside*, pushed out upon their creation." As she explained this, several smaller bubbles appeared near the larger holographic sphere. "Merging the smaller ones together left us with trying to figure out where the prime reality was located. All of our scans have been unable to find another convex surface leading us to believe that maybe it was beyond our reach. What if those smaller bubble realities had not been pushed out of the prime reality but instead were simply isolated within it?"
With a few more press of the controls, the smaller holographic bubbles were made to appear inside the much larger sphere, allowing everyone present to see a visual representation of this latest theory.
"The scans were specifically calibrated to search for a convex surface," Sonah added. "It is why we were unable to find anything as from inside, the outer edge of the prime reality would, in fact, be concave."
"We are unable to locate the prime reality because we are already in it?" Sonja gasped. "That's completely ludicrous, absolutely mad, utterly unrealistic, several steps inside madness and sitting right next to insane," the redhead Engineer announced in a boisterous voice that made everyone suspect that she was beyond enraged at the suggestion. "I like it," she added with a beaming smile. "You are right; it does explain why we have not been able to locate the prime reality. Oh, why you intelligent one didn't you think of this sooner?" the CEO teased with maniacal laughter.
"If this is the case, how do we proceed?" Morningstar inquired.
"Like those bubbles," Sonah explained. "We have to reintegrate the inside matter with that of the outside, and this without suddenly collapsing the bubble's outer field as it would create a shockwave that would most certainly kill everyone inside."
"Like popping a balloon," Sonja noted with trepidation.
"The reason why the reality bubbles were so rapidly collapsing was that of the pressure exerted on them by the prime reality trying to repair the fractures. Maybe we could use that force to our advantage," the grandfather suggested, the man already working on a possible way to accomplish this. "The key is to keep the pressure equal, so if we could, in theory, allow some of the matter from the prime reality to seep into the fractured bubbles, the reintegration could happen smoothly."
"A most interesting theory, but one that we are unable to test without risking the lives of those inside," Maya cautioned. "We are not even sure how to proceed with created a stable breach to permit the matter from the prime reality to seep into the bubble without shattering the containment field."
"There is a way," Sonja offered. "We test this hypothesis on this bubble first. We could create an isolation field that would push someone here towards the outer edge leading to them being the first to experience the effects. If it works they would find themselves back in our reality and maybe even find a way to help from outside by using the BASTET's temporal and Dimensional drives."
"That sounds like a plan. Proceed," the Captain ordered.
"You do realize that I was thinking about me being the guinea pig here, right?" Sonja said to Erik.
"Not an option, you are too valuable to risk in this manner. As a former Engineer, I can work and fine-tune the controls of the BASTET to help you bring everyone home. If this plan fails, your knowledge and experience to this point cannot be risked. ," Morningstar explained in a way that made it clear this was not a matter open for discussion.
"Captain? I should be the one to go first," Tanith objected, the rest of her argument being stopped by a motion of the man.
"We are wasting time. Please proceed. Ensign Jones, if you are so anxious to attempt this, you are more than welcome to be the second test subject to this little experiment." Erik joked before an energy field surrounded him.
"Please remain very still," the older Paquette suggested. "The field needs to be as small as possible to increase the odds of this being successful." As this was said, the field closed in on the Captain, restricting his ability to move almost to nothing.
"Please bring your tray back to its full upright position, fasten your seatbelt and be sure to keep your arms and legs inside the field at all times," Sonja instructed before the field began to shimmer.
"Field energy readings are starting to match those of the outer edge of this reality," Maya announced.
"Calibrating the harmonics to match," Tanith added, the FCO showing herself to be a truly skilled officer no matter what field she worked in.
Sonha gave his instruments a quick glance before making his report. "The field energy and harmonics will be in perfect sync in 4... 3... 2... 1..."
All eyes focused on the Captain, or at least where he should have been. Instead, the five remaining individuals noticed simultaneously the disappearance of the man.
"Did it work?" Sonja inquired, hoping that she would not have to deal with a new CO anytime soon.
"Impossible to tell as we have no means to scan beyond the limits of the bubble universes," Maya announced. "All we can do is hope that we were successful and that Captain Morningstar will be able to provide some assistance in accomplishing the same for the other group.
Time passed while everyone waited for a sign. None of their efforts to locate the Captain had proven effective, hinting that the experiment had been successful, but without any actual proof, there was still the possibility that something had gone wrong.
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Setting: NEW ALEXANDRIA, Division Gamma. Corridor
Stardate: 33003.2035
The group held position while Shar'El and Ya'Han investigated what was happening further ahead. What the First Officer and Chief of Security saw was nothing special, but still, the sight was unexpected. A group of highly armed security officers was escorting a woman dressed in black to one of the detention and observation chambers. Judging by the concerned and nervous expressions on their faces, it was clear that the security officers considered the woman to be very dangerous, this despite her not being in possession of any visible weapons.
"Who is she?" Ya'Han whispered to Shar'El.
"I don't know, but there is something... familiar about her," the First Officer replied, feeling an odd darkness coming from the unknown woman, a darkness that she had encountered twice now, the last time not having been that long ago in the mind of the woman who now referred to herself as Gemma.
"Commander!" A panicked Doctor Bruxa called out causing everyone's eyes to fall upon her. "What's happening to me?"
An energy field had surrounded the woman and before anyone could say or do anything, the woman vanished. Seconds later another field appeared, this time around Counsellor Lopez leading to her disappearance shortly after.
"Is this some sort of internal defense system?" Ya'Han inquired, but before anyone could offer an answer or possible explanation, another energy field appeared, this one surrounding the Nylaan Chief of Security. Jayson quickly ran towards her, but by the time he reached the woman, she had vanished.
"What's going on?" Jayson demanded, not caring that his voice might carry beyond their immediate location.
"Maybe they have found a way to bring us back," Shar'El said just as the Chief of Operations was enveloped by an energy field and vanished a few seconds later. "At least I hope so," the First Officer muttered to herself as she glanced one last time to the mysterious dark woman before the energy field took the Ullian away.
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Setting: ALTERNATE REALITY, Combined Laboratory, and Work Area
Stardate: 33003.2045
"Maybe we should consider our previous attempt as a failure," Sonah suggested as no signs of the Captain having been received and no indications that the attempt to return him to the prime reality had been successful.
"I would not be so quick to dismiss what happened as a failure," Sonja countered. "I am picking up a lot of weird readings all over. If I didn't know better, I would swear that the bubble realities are opened and those inside are being drawn out. It's either that or the reality bubble we are in is being turned into a sieve and everything inside is going to be flushed down the nearest inter-dimensional drain."
Tanith remained silent as an energy field appeared around her to the surprise and fear of everyone else. After the FCO had vanished, the elder Paquette turned to his granddaughter. "Whatever the reason for this is, it was nice to see you again. May your adventures continue to be this interesting and challenging."
"Father!" Maya gasped, turning to face her father, realizing that this was likely the last time she would be able to see him like this. Father and daughter were able to share one last smile before the Shillian woman vanished inside an energy field of her own.
"Take care," Claude said to Sonja as she too was enveloped in an energy field like the other to vanish seconds later.
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Lorraine Paquette
Lieutenant Sonja Paquette [Access Character BIO for Sonja Paquette]
Chief Engineering Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC 18501