Mission 9: Tears of Procopius

Quote :

"First thing's first, people. Contact the landing party again. Find out what in the blue hell is going on down there."

A direct order from an Admiral that fell right into his lap.  Perfect timing after the intruder situation.  Hoping that whatever or whoever that was hadn't screwed up their systems too badly, he punched the comms to full-power again, focusing the titanic energies on the Runabout on the surface below.

=/\="Away team, this is Phoenix.  We've just had something weird happen.  How are things down there?"=/\=

He thought for a moment about what the hologram had said and ran a hand over his chin.  He turned back to face Rellek at Science, and the Admiral.  He thought for a moment, trying to calculate in his head, but the numbers were staggering for what he was thinking.  "Um, Admiral, Lieutenant... if that is their equivalent to Memory Alpha down there, then presumably there's some means to download the data.  And these energy waves might be some indication of it; since they're affecting our warp core, our transporters, our shields, our communications... but not our main computer.  I'm not sure where we could go with this idea, and I'll admit I think it's the craziest thing I've thought of since deliberately mis-balancing the Bellerophon's warp field with the variable nacelles... but I'm thinking that if we could download the data, maybe to a series of isolinear wafers, which we could then drop off at Starbase to be filed at Memory Alpha.  And removing the data by download might just cut down some of these distortions.  Of course, we'd need to figure out how to interface with their system, their file structure, and somehow work around the corruption from these 'parasites'... but the computer obviously had the language down well.  Now all we need is a primer on how their data storage is supposed to work. No one leaves something like this if they don't want it accessed.  That hologram or whatever it was said as much.  With your permission, Admiral, I'd like to get a cross-functional team working on that theory in the Engineering lab."

This was coming down to life and death for the runabout crew.  He had a bad feeling, and usually that preceded catastrophe.  So he was trying to head it off at the pass.  And his experience was rather vast; and very few people discounted him just because he'd been Enlisted for much of it.

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

Gabriel's eyebrows shot up as he saw the predicament that Gavin was in.  He had come to know the kid fairly well of late, since the girls had taken right to Van Gelder's boyfriend, Thelos.  "Hold tight!" he said, unnecessarily, seeing as how the science officer probably couldn't go anywhere.  "Looks like his phaser is -- hey!"

The only indication that something was wrong was Archangel's hunching over.  And, then, in an instant, she was going tumbling toward the fissure opening.  He grabbed on instinct, gripping a handful of her uniform tunic.  It was hard for his boots to find purchase on the crystalline ground, but he managed.  Barely.  "T'Lara!" he yelled, grunting with the exertion of keeping his wife from hurtling into the hole.  "Help me get her up!"

T'Lara wrote:

T'Lara struggled for a few vital seconds, then her mind was cleared and she heard Gabriel's command. Taking a deep breath, she crawled forward and reached for Archangel, tugging the rope around her waist until it was taught. She pulled with all her strength, ignoring the pain the surged through her.

[Planetside]

Without the same honed skills at blocking out pain as the Vulcans, Archangel was struggling to deal with the onslaught of pain and screaming inside her head. She squeezed her eyes shut, groaning and panting, trying to block it out. It made thinking so difficult, but not impossible.

Dangling as she was, held back from tumbling down into the hole as Gavin had only by the good graces of Gabriel, T'Lara and her uniform jacket, the stray thought that maybe Gavin could grab hold of her foot crossed her mind. Gabriel and T'Lara might then be able to pull both of them out.

"Gavin!" she gasped, wishing she had another dose of that painkiller Kintiss had given her. "Gavin, grab hold of my leg!"

Kejal Buris wrote:

=/\="Away team, this is Phoenix.  We've just had something weird happen.  How are things down there?"=/\=

It was something of a relief to catch the voice of the operations officer back on the Phoenix coming back to her over the communications channel. It was full of static and crackled badly, but it was a response.

=/\=We landed safely enough, but some of the away team are experrrriencing strrrrrange symptoms! One memberrrr is currrrrrrrently missing but we arrrrre conducting a thorrrrrough searrrrch. We-=/\= The words were interrupted by a very feline yowl and hiss.

Creeping through the hatch, into the shuttle, black shadows crawled over the space. Persephone's ears flattened against her skull, her fur bristling. She shook her head, thinking that she could hear voices even though it wasn't logical at all. A broken purring sound started up in her throat, a subconscious act on behalf of her feline side designed to sooth herself.

=/\= Phoenix, therrrre's something in the shuttle with us. I don't know what it is, but it doesn't look frrrrriendly! Some sorrrrt of black shadow, almost like a living ink!=/\=

Kejal Buris wrote:

A direct order from an Admiral that fell right into his lap.  Perfect timing after the intruder situation.  Hoping that whatever or whoever that was hadn't screwed up their systems too badly, he punched the comms to full-power again, focusing the titanic energies on the Runabout on the surface below.

=/\="Away team, this is Phoenix.  We've just had something weird happen.  How are things down there?"=/\=

He thought for a moment about what the hologram had said and ran a hand over his chin.  He turned back to face Rellek at Science, and the Admiral.  He thought for a moment, trying to calculate in his head, but the numbers were staggering for what he was thinking.  "Um, Admiral, Lieutenant... if that is their equivalent to Memory Alpha down there, then presumably there's some means to download the data.  And these energy waves might be some indication of it; since they're affecting our warp core, our transporters, our shields, our communications... but not our main computer.  I'm not sure where we could go with this idea, and I'll admit I think it's the craziest thing I've thought of since deliberately mis-balancing the Bellerophon's warp field with the variable nacelles... but I'm thinking that if we could download the data, maybe to a series of isolinear wafers, which we could then drop off at Starbase to be filed at Memory Alpha.  And removing the data by download might just cut down some of these distortions.  Of course, we'd need to figure out how to interface with their system, their file structure, and somehow work around the corruption from these 'parasites'... but the computer obviously had the language down well.  Now all we need is a primer on how their data storage is supposed to work. No one leaves something like this if they don't want it accessed.  That hologram or whatever it was said as much.  With your permission, Admiral, I'd like to get a cross-functional team working on that theory in the Engineering lab."

This was coming down to life and death for the runabout crew.  He had a bad feeling, and usually that preceded catastrophe.  So he was trying to head it off at the pass.  And his experience was rather vast; and very few people discounted him just because he'd been Enlisted for much of it.

Julia listened as Ensign Kejal laid out his idea. It was bold to be so willing express an idea to an Admiral. A trait she wished she had possessed when she was an Ensign. After he finished she looked to Stark and injected. "It's a better theory than anything I have. It's also logical to assume that if we can gain access to the data we might be able to figure out how to stop the parasites."

She was interrupted by the voice of Ensign M'Rai.

E

Ensign M'Rai wrote:

=/\= Phoenix, therrrre's something in the shuttle with us. I don't know what it is, but it doesn't look frrrrriendly! Some sorrrrt of black shadow, almost like a living ink!=/\=

Julia didn't wait for a response from Stark. She jumped in and responded to Ensign M'Rai. =/\="Living ink? We need more than that Ensign. Can you get a scan of the entity? Has it compromised the vessels security?"=/\=

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

[USS Phoenix - Engineering]

"Nuh-uh," Aria said, her face still buried in Leela's knees.  "They're using a lot of big people words.  Daddy would know."  She looked up again, her large blue eyes brimming with tears ready to be shed.  "I want daddy.  Will you find him for me?"

Leela did her best to comfort the frightened child. One thing as for certain, this child was genuinely afraid. "Aria, listen to me, listen closely. Daddy is on the planets surface. He'll be back soon. I promise I won't leave your side until he returns. Can you tell me what big words they're using? I might be able to help?"

Kejal Buris wrote:

He thought for a moment about what the hologram had said and ran a hand over his chin.  He turned back to face Rellek at Science, and the Admiral.  He thought for a moment, trying to calculate in his head, but the numbers were staggering for what he was thinking.  "Um, Admiral, Lieutenant... if that is their equivalent to Memory Alpha down there, then presumably there's some means to download the data.  And these energy waves might be some indication of it; since they're affecting our warp core, our transporters, our shields, our communications... but not our main computer.  I'm not sure where we could go with this idea, and I'll admit I think it's the craziest thing I've thought of since deliberately mis-balancing the Bellerophon's warp field with the variable nacelles... but I'm thinking that if we could download the data, maybe to a series of isolinear wafers, which we could then drop off at Starbase to be filed at Memory Alpha.  And removing the data by download might just cut down some of these distortions.  Of course, we'd need to figure out how to interface with their system, their file structure, and somehow work around the corruption from these 'parasites'... but the computer obviously had the language down well.  Now all we need is a primer on how their data storage is supposed to work. No one leaves something like this if they don't want it accessed.  That hologram or whatever it was said as much.  With your permission, Admiral, I'd like to get a cross-functional team working on that theory in the Engineering lab."

[Bridge]

"Use whatever resources you need," Stark replied. "First of all, we need to find out just how much data we're talking about, and if shipboard storage can even handle it all." It might be possible to load it into the ship's three computer cores, but the triple-core setup was for purposes of redundancy, and any number of things could happen between here and making it back to Athena or, eventually, Memory Alpha. "If we can't do it, we can possibly clear up these parasites until other ships from the Task Force can join to help load the information."

Having given that order, he turned back to security, ordering the weapons and shields be maintained at peak readiness. Just because one kindly-looking entity seemed to just be wanting help...well, it didn't always mean it was so. He'd be damned if they got caught with their pants down because space-grandpa seemed nice. It infuriated him to have a landing party trapped down there with so little resources to help them...but T'Koris was there, too. Whatever his reservations about her status as CO, he knew she was a decorated veteran. They could take care of themselves.

Archangel T'Koris wrote:

"Gavin!" she gasped, wishing she had another dose of that painkiller Kintiss had given her.  "Gavin, grab hold of my leg!"

[Planetside - Down in a Hooooole]

Gavin jerked out of his stupor at the sound of Captain T'Koris' voice, blinking stupidly for a second or two. The oily blackness was almost upon him, reaching out with finger-like appendages, seeming to radiate negativity and an inborn need to...feed. On him? Maybe. Or maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, maybe, it was like a bear trying to find out if something was even worth eating - if it decided not, he'd still be torn asunder in the process!

Alright, stop thinking and start moving! His phaser was still hopelessly out of his grasp, so Gavin jumped up, gripping the Romulan's trouser leg. He felt the blackness take ahold of his leg in the process. Gavin wasn't sure who was screaming more - him, or the darkness. All he knew was that he felt a jolt of pain go right to his brain.

T'Lara wrote:

T'Lara struggled for a few vital seconds, then her mind was cleared and she heard Gabriel's command. Taking a deep breath, she crawled forward and reached for Archangel, tugging the rope around her waist until it was taught. She pulled with all her strength, ignoring the pain the surged through her.

[Planetside]

Whatever the hell was in that hole with Van Gelder, it seemed to have grabbed a hold of him. That, or maybe the kid caught on something, because the scream he let out wasn't a pleasant one. Thankfully, with T'Lara's Vulcanoid strength added to his own, they were able to hoist Archangel and Gavin out of the hole.

He was also thankful that whatever it was that was down there had stayed in the cavity fissure, apparently unable to keep the grip on Gavin's leg. With the science officer and his wife safely (a relative term) on the ground, Gabe whipped out his phaser pistol, firing a blast at max stun into the hole. He'd have preferred to have just blown the thing to hell, but there was still protocol to follow.

The stun blast seemed to do the trick, though - once the energy beam struck the shadow-man, it appeared to burn away like ashes of paper.

Leela Kaz wrote:

Leela did her best to comfort the frightened child. One thing as for certain, this child was genuinely afraid. "Aria, listen to me, listen closely. Daddy is on the planets surface. He'll be back soon. I promise I won't leave your side until he returns. Can you tell me what big words they're using? I might be able to help?"

[Engineering]

She didn't know what a 'planets surface' was, but if Miss Lee said that daddy would be back soon, Aria believed her. She liked Lee and trusted her, knowing that the big person wouldn't lie to her. "The voices are just sad. They don't want to go away, but the bad things want to eat them. The bad things sound like monsters. Mommy always tells me that if I'm 'fraid of monsters, I close my eyes and make them go away."

Aria clambered back onto her pod-bed, covering herself over with the sparkly blanket she liked. "If I have one more sleep, daddy will be home."

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

Whatever the hell was in that hole with Van Gelder, it seemed to have grabbed a hold of him.  That, or maybe the kid caught on something, because the scream he let out wasn't a pleasant one.  Thankfully, with T'Lara's Vulcanoid strength added to his own, they were able to hoist Archangel and Gavin out of the hole.

He was also thankful that whatever it was that was down there had stayed in the cavity fissure, apparently unable to keep the grip on Gavin's leg.  With the science officer and his wife safely (a relative term) on the ground, Gabe whipped out his phaser pistol, firing a blast at max stun into the hole.  He'd have preferred to have just blown the thing to hell, but there was still protocol to follow.  

The stun blast seemed to do the trick, though - once the energy beam struck the shadow-man, it appeared to burn away like ashes of paper.

[Planetside]

As soon as T'Lara and Gabriel had managed to pull her and Gavin out of the hole, Archangel stayed on her knees, her head in her hands. The pain had diminished somewhat, but it still felt as if the Klingons were waging war in there.

If she squinted through the headache, she could just make out the shuttle, and the officers still gathered around it, trying to see if Kintiss was still there, but she couldn't make out the indviduals.

"What... What was that down there?" she managed to ask, rubbing at her temples. "It felt... it felt as if it was screaming at me."

Julia Rellek wrote:

=/\="Living ink? We need more than that Ensign. Can you get a scan of the entity? Has it compromised the vessels security?"=/\=

[Planetside - Shuttle]

It took a lot of effort for Persephone not to growl at the officer on the other end of the comm channel. The darkness was swarming closer to her and she thought that she could hear voices talking to her out of it. It was extremely disconcerting for the young officer, given that this was technically her first ever away mission. She had always had the protection of being behind the helm, even when she had been sent out with a cadet ship during the Dominion war.

=/\= It's in the bloody shuttle with me!=/\= she practically yowled back. =/\= Scannerrrrrrs are offline and I don't have a trrrrricorrrrderrrr on me rrrrright now. T'Korrrrris and Parrrrrdeck are down, T'Lara is also experrrrriencing difficulty!=/\=

Archangel T'Koris wrote:

As soon as T'Lara and Gabriel had managed to pull her and Gavin out of the hole, Archangel stayed on her knees, her head in her hands.  The pain had diminished somewhat, but it still felt as if the Klingons were waging war in there.

If she squinted through the headache, she could just make out the shuttle, and the officers still gathered around it, trying to see if Kintiss was still there, but she couldn't make out the indviduals.  

"What... What was that down there?" she managed to ask, rubbing at her temples.  "It felt... it felt as if it was screaming at me."

[Planetside]

"Hold sssstill, Captain," Kintiss said as he squatted next to her, scanning her with a medical tricorder. Again, the readings he'd seen before came up, but it seemed more intense this time. Maybe whatever was down there had been screaming at her in a psychic sense. He quickly relieved the symptoms with a hypospray before moving over to Gavin. Yep, he'd experienced something similar, and he definitely wasn't telepathic.

Archangel T'Koris wrote:

As soon as T'Lara and Gabriel had managed to pull her and Gavin out of the hole, Archangel stayed on her knees, her head in her hands.  The pain had diminished somewhat, but it still felt as if the Klingons were waging war in there.

If she squinted through the headache, she could just make out the shuttle, and the officers still gathered around it, trying to see if Kintiss was still there, but she couldn't make out the individuals.  

"What... What was that down there?" she managed to ask, rubbing at her temples.  "It felt... it felt as if it was screaming at me."

[Planetside]

Black flecks swam across Gavin's vision, filling his world with a swirling sense of dizziness that wasn't helped at all by the reflection of light off the myriad crystal columns. He dropped to one knee, keeping a wary eye on the fissure as Chief Arthur started shooting.

"I...I don't know," he muttered, holding his head. "Just blackness. Bleakness. I...I don't think I've ever felt anything so nihilistic in my life." Gavin felt a little better once Kintiss administered a hypo, but he still wanted to decorate his boots with lunch.

Kintiss wrote:

"Hold sssstill, Captain," Kintiss said as he squatted next to her, scanning her with a medical tricorder. Again, the readings he'd seen before came up, but it seemed more intense this time. Maybe whatever was down there had been screaming at her in a psychic sense. He quickly relieved the symptoms with a hypospray before moving over to Gavin. Yep, he'd experienced something similar, and he definitely wasn't telepathic.

[Planetside]

Gabriel could also feel a pounding in his temples, but it was more a buzz of low-level static than anything else. Nothing close to what his wife was going through...T'Lara, too, he imagined. Oh well. There was no time for that, now.

"Whatever they are, apparently they don't like taking energy blasts. Even the high stun setting seemed to dissipate the creature in the hole." Gabriel knelt down, putting Archangel's arm over his shoulder, steadying her as they stood. "Kintiss, see if you can help Gavin out...T'Lara, if you can make it, let's go. It's past time we got the hell out of this place."

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

[Planetside]

Whatever the hell was in that hole with Van Gelder, it seemed to have grabbed a hold of him.  That, or maybe the kid caught on something, because the scream he let out wasn't a pleasant one.  Thankfully, with T'Lara's Vulcanoid strength added to his own, they were able to hoist Archangel and Gavin out of the hole.

He was also thankful that whatever it was that was down there had stayed in the cavity fissure, apparently unable to keep the grip on Gavin's leg.  With the science officer and his wife safely (a relative term) on the ground, Gabe whipped out his phaser pistol, firing a blast at max stun into the hole.  He'd have preferred to have just blown the thing to hell, but there was still protocol to follow.  

The stun blast seemed to do the trick, though - once the energy beam struck the shadow-man, it appeared to burn away like ashes of paper.

[Planetside]

Once she and Gabriel had gotten Archangel and Gavin to safety, T'Lara relaxed. Suddenly, the headaches became something entirely different. A dark feeling consumed her and the voices became louder and mixed with a piercing drone. T'Lara clutched her stomach with one hand and her forehead with the other, uttering a single cry of pain. Whatever it was, it was now too much for her to handle. Distantly, she heard the sound of a phaser.

"No!" She cried desperately, but her plea was too weak to be heard. She hadn't gotten a chance to see whatever it was that was in the hole with Gavin, but since the being hadn't climbed out of the fissure and attacked them, she saw no reason to kill it.

Quote :

[Planetside]

As soon as T'Lara and Gabriel had managed to pull her and Gavin out of the hole, Archangel stayed on her knees, her head in her hands. The pain had diminished somewhat, but it still felt as if the Klingons were waging war in there.

If she squinted through the headache, she could just make out the shuttle, and the officers still gathered around it, trying to see if Kintiss was still there, but she couldn't make out the indviduals.

"What... What was that down there?" she managed to ask, rubbing at her temples. "It felt... it felt as if it was screaming at me."

Quote :

[Planetside]

"Hold sssstill, Captain," Kintiss said as he squatted next to her, scanning her with a medical tricorder. Again, the readings he'd seen before came up, but it seemed more intense this time. Maybe whatever was down there had been screaming at her in a psychic sense. He quickly relieved the symptoms with a hypospray before moving over to Gavin. Yep, he'd experienced something similar, and he definitely wasn't telepathic.

T'Lara barely heard the voices of Archangel and Kintiss as she doubled over in pain. Despite what was happening to her, she still wanted to know what the being was. It had a profound effect on everyone and she wanted to know how and why. She tried to dismiss the pain. It was an emotion that she could control, she didn't need a hypospray. But even as she thought it, the truth was that she was wrong.

Quote :

[Planetside]

Gabriel could also feel a pounding in his temples, but it was more a buzz of low-level static than anything else. Nothing close to what his wife was going through...T'Lara, too, he imagined. Oh well. There was no time for that, now.

"Whatever they are, apparently they don't like taking energy blasts. Even the high stun setting seemed to dissipate the creature in the hole." Gabriel knelt down, putting Archangel's arm over his shoulder, steadying her as they stood. "Kintiss, see if you can help Gavin out...T'Lara, if you can make it, let's go. It's past time we got the hell out of this place."

T'Lara grunted with exertion. She slowly stood up and followed Gabriel, her head pounding with each step she took.

Kintiss wrote:

"Hold sssstill, Captain," Kintiss said as he squatted next to her, scanning her with a medical tricorder. Again, the readings he'd seen before came up, but it seemed more intense this time. Maybe whatever was down there had been screaming at her in a psychic sense. He quickly relieved the symptoms with a hypospray before moving over to Gavin. Yep, he'd experienced something similar, and he definitely wasn't telepathic.

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

Gabriel could also feel a pounding in his temples, but it was more a buzz of low-level static than anything else. Nothing close to what his wife was going through...T'Lara, too, he imagined. Oh well. There was no time for that, now.

"Whatever they are, apparently they don't like taking energy blasts. Even the high stun setting seemed to dissipate the creature in the hole." Gabriel knelt down, putting Archangel's arm over his shoulder, steadying her as they stood. "Kintiss, see if you can help Gavin out...T'Lara, if you can make it, let's go. It's past time we got the hell out of this place."

T'Lara wrote:

T'Lara grunted with exertion. She slowly stood up and followed Gabriel, her head pounding with each step she took.

[Planetside]

Even with the second dose of painkiller from Kintiss, Archangel's head still felt painful and heavy. The screaming had quietened, now more a suggestion than a presence, but the pressure was still there.

"Ship. We have to get back to the ship," she said as Gabriel helped her up, glad for his assistance in keeping her upright as she wondered how T'Lara could be maintaining her composure as well as she was. The shuttle, however, seemed to be surrounded by the shadows and, before she could stifle it, Archangel whimpered again, feeling the voices start to get louder again the closer they got to it.

Archangel T'Koris wrote:

[Planetside]

Even with the second dose of painkiller from Kintiss, Archangel's head still felt painful and heavy.  The screaming had quietened, now more a suggestion than a presence, but the pressure was still there.  

"Ship.  We have to get back to the ship," she said as Gabriel helped her up, glad for his assistance in keeping her upright as she wondered how T'Lara could be maintaining her composure as well as she was.  The shuttle, however, seemed to be surrounded by the shadows and, before she could stifle it, Archangel whimpered again, feeling the voices start to get louder again the closer they got to it.

[Planetside, Near Shuttle]

As they got closer to the shuttle, T'Lara could see the shadows drifting around it. The voices got louder with each step, echoing inside her head. She suddenly felt anger towards them, an emotion she'd never exposed before. They were the ones responsible for the pain, the reason why she was losing control so rapidly. Suddenly, all she wanted was to kill the shadows, all of them. She gripped her phaser and pulled it from her belt, but before she could pull the trigger all her strength left her and she fell to the ground.

[Runabout]

There is nothing to eat, the parasite thought, as its shadowy appendages whipped around the metal container. The forms inside had images in their heads, thoughts...there could be something to eat, there...if only there wasn't all the redundant meat surrounding it!

If the parasite could have snarled, it would have. It felt a painful sensation among the groupmind as one of these fleshed invaders attacked its brethren. Too much effort to get to the good parts of these things. Too much chance of being hurt.

The parasite melted into the shadows, slipping out of the runabout like a draining bathtub.

Archangel T'Koris wrote:

Even with the second dose of painkiller from Kintiss, Archangel's head still felt painful and heavy.  The screaming had quietened, now more a suggestion than a presence, but the pressure was still there.  

"Ship.  We have to get back to the ship," she said as Gabriel helped her up, glad for his assistance in keeping her upright as she wondered how T'Lara could be maintaining her composure as well as she was.  The shuttle, however, seemed to be surrounded by the shadows and, before she could stifle it, Archangel whimpered again, feeling the voices start to get louder again the closer they got to it.

[Planetside]

The rag-tag group of officers very nearly made it back to the runabout without seeing more of those shadow-creatures. Gabriel bit off a quick curse as he saw that the ship was damn near overrun with them. It almost looked like a black wave was crashing over the Monongahela.

T'Lara wrote:

As they got closer to the shuttle, T'Lara could see the shadows drifting around it. The voices got louder with each step, echoing inside her head. She suddenly felt anger towards them, an emotion she'd never exposed before. They were the ones responsible for the pain, the reason why she was losing control so rapidly. Suddenly, all she wanted was to kill the shadows, all of them. She gripped her phaser and pulled it from her belt, but before she could pull the trigger all her strength left her and she fell to the ground.

With T'Lara and Archangel just about out for the count, Gabriel knew they'd likely not make it safely while trying to aid them and Gavin. He gently let his wife sit down on the ground, whipping forward the phaser. "Blast on stun, wide dispersal should do it," he muttered. He smiled apologetically at the Vulcan, having noted her disapproval of his shooting earlier. "Sorry, T'Lara."

The phaser cut loose with a high-pitched whrrr, sending a wide beam of stun energy at the shadows. The beings scattered like roaches in the light.

=^="Arthur to Pardek! Saf, if you can hear me, shoot the shadow parasites on stun! I don't know if it kills them, but they sure as hell don't like it!"=^=

Gabriel Arthur wrote:

[Planetside]

Whatever the hell was in that hole with Van Gelder, it seemed to have grabbed a hold of him.  That, or maybe the kid caught on something, because the scream he let out wasn't a pleasant one.  Thankfully, with T'Lara's Vulcanoid strength added to his own, they were able to hoist Archangel and Gavin out of the hole.

He was also thankful that whatever it was that was down there had stayed in the cavity fissure, apparently unable to keep the grip on Gavin's leg.  With the science officer and his wife safely (a relative term) on the ground, Gabe whipped out his phaser pistol, firing a blast at max stun into the hole.  He'd have preferred to have just blown the thing to hell, but there was still protocol to follow.  

The stun blast seemed to do the trick, though - once the energy beam struck the shadow-man, it appeared to burn away like ashes of paper.



[Engineering]

She didn't know what a 'planets surface' was, but if Miss Lee said that daddy would be back soon, Aria believed her.  She liked Lee and trusted her, knowing that the big person wouldn't lie to her.  "The voices are just sad.  They don't want to go away, but the bad things want to eat them.  The bad things sound like monsters.  Mommy always tells me that if I'm 'fraid of monsters, I close my eyes and make them go away."

Aria clambered back onto her pod-bed, covering herself over with the sparkly blanket she liked.  "If I have one more sleep, daddy will be home."

Leela smiled at the child as she let go and moved into her bed in the office. "Sleep well sweetheart. Let me know if you need anything." She flashed another smile. "Computer dim lights." She turned and left the room.

She couldn't get the the child's comments about the strange people in the engine room out of her mind. Having been a parent on several occasions Leela was sensitive to the fact that children often sensed things that adults often were oblivious too. She decided to see if the ship's sensors would give credence to her hunch.

She maneuvered to the sensor control station and ran some scans of the engine room. Nothing She thought, shaking her head. Then she decided to dig a little deeper and ran a higher level scan. Her eyes seemed to widen as she noticed a dimensional shift. Well that wasn't there before? She thought. It could of been many things, but, worst case was some type of cloaking technology hiding intruders in the engine room. She grabbed a nearby tricorder and recalibrated it to scan for phase variances. As she scanned the area Aria has pointed at, an outline of a humanoid phased into vision, almost like a transporter beam. The image shifted back out as quickly as it had faded in.

=/\=Engineering to Bridge! Captain, you may want to come down here. I believe we may have some uninvited guests.=/\=

[Bridge]

"Alright, enough playing around. Whether or not we have enough room in the computers to save these people's culture is secondary to getting our people back to the ship safely. I want us prepared for emergency beam-outs. Divert all necessary resources to that end." It wasn't idea - not by a long shot. Beaming through so much interference was dicey at best. He was honestly waiting for more information from the planet. If the landing party could survive on their own for a while, conditions might improve later for a transport.

Leela Kaz wrote:

=/\=Engineering to Bridge! Captain, you may want to come down here. I believe we may have some uninvited guests.=/\=

Stark whipped around, glaring at the ceiling as if he could chastise the intercom system. "Fantastic," he muttered, turning to Ops. "Dispatch security down there. I want this ship on lockdown."

=^="Kaz, this is the bridge. Chief Deela is on the way. Keep me apprised."=^=

[Bridge]

Before Buris could even lift himself out of his chair, it seemed there was mayhem afoot belowdecks. He flipped intraship comm on and spoke clearly. "Intruder alert, Intruder alert. Security team to Main Engineering, on the double." That would get people moving quickly, he knew that. But this was preventable, if they'd only listened. They never listened to an enlisted man or a mustang officer like himself down in Engineering, at least not at first. He understood, he'd been an Engineer too. But at the same time, if they'd actually listen to people who knew what they were doing, there'd be far less crises. He muttered under his breath, hoping the Admiral wouldn't hear.  Then again, he found himself not caring - he'd made a suggestion that would have prevented this, and the... officer down in Engineering had refused - and then been supported by the ship's Captain.  "And if they'd brought the portable shield units in, we could beam the whole mess out into space without a problem, signal distortion be damned."

When the Admiral said something about beaming the Away team out, he shook his head and turned around, his voice raised slightly. "Sir, with all due respect, if we're experiencing these so-called 'parasites', as well as the team on the planet, I can't authorize use of the ship's transporters at this time for beaming any life-form anywhere - on or off the ship - if the buffers get corrupted, or the Heisenberg compensator gets hit by the distortion wave... I'm sorry, sir, but I refuse to have that kind of blood on my hands.  I am working on alternative solutions."

That was putting it bluntly enough.  He thought for a moment and raised an eyebrow, checking something for the fourth time that duty shift.  Finally, he sighed after about a half minute.

"Speaking of alternate solutions... If the Away team can get to the runabout and seal it airtight, I suggest we launch the Diogenes, Cratylus, Thales, and Philo in an open starburst formation, with all power dedicated to their tractor beams. We bring the Phoenix in and use our tractor as the core, pulling the runabout up out of the atmosphere and back to the ship as quickly as the SIF and inertial compensation will bear. If need be, we can jury-rig a remote device - then we can remote all four from up here. I've run remote shuttle flights like that before, sir, and as long as the formation stays fixed, we won't need to risk another life on this."

It was a long shot. But it was a much safer long shot than trying to beam anyone aboard. He spoke again, more quietly. "And if we can get them into the edge of the upper atmosphere and it's necessary to ditch the Runabout, we might be able to beam the Away team out from that point into the shuttles - the close proximity might compensate for these distortions. I still would rather them just seal up and get tractored home."

He sat there, waiting. He'd wanted to study this planet, to try and save these people's history. He knew about losing history, about how painful it was to lose where you came from. To lose memories that mattered. But the Admiral was right - lives came first.

[Bridge]

Stark sat silently for a handful of heartbeats, and then simply shrugged. "I don't see anything wrong with those options." And he had wanted options. "It will depend on what condition the landing party and runabout are in. I believe they've been calling up here." Of course, if everyone down there were hurt or worse, more extreme measures would have to be taken.

He stood from the center chair, walking to the Ops console, hands clasped behind his back. Stark's voice was still calm, but the center of pure iron was there, wrapped in deceptive quiet. "Your due respect is appreciated, Ensign. Out of my respect for your past and newness to this crew, I will inform you that beaming is the last of the last resorts. Any and all solutions we can come up with in the interim are to be vigorously pursued. I want my people back, and I don't give a tinker's goddamn how it's done, as long as it's as safe as it can be under the circumstances. It's my job to tell you things like that. It's your job to make it happen. Formal complaints and grievances against officers under my watch can come later."

Stark placed his hand on the headrest portion of the duty chair, a somewhat-fatherly gesture that he hoped would take a small bit of the sting out of everything. Not all of it, though. "Your experience is valuable, and your opinion is always welcome. I am not, however, in the habit of explaining my thought processes. If there's nothing else you need to co-sign on...let's get these people back."

[Shuttlecraft - Planet]

Inside the shuttle, the shadows were getting closer and closer to Persephone, the voices in her head getting louder and louder, the pressure in her skull getting greater and greater. She tried to step away, to get away from the encroaching shadows, but ended tripping over her own tail, falling back, paws flailing in an effort to find something to stabilise herself. Her claws caught the edge of the console. Something that her mother had always done suddenly popped up in her mind. Whenever Persephone had a nightmare, her mother would let her sleep with the lights on half to dispel the shadows of fear.

"Computerrrrr! Lights to two hundrrrred perrrrcent! Five second burrrrrst!" she called to the shuttle. Immediately, the shuttle's dimmed lights flared up to a degree that was almost painful to see. The Caitian shielded her eyes from the glare, but was relieved to hear the screams in her head receeding. As the lights dimmed again, the relief was doubled as she saw that the creatures had left the shuttle.

Darting over to the hatch, Persephone poked her her head out and shouted to the other crew members of the away team:

"All aboarrrrrd! We'rrrre taking off in less than a minute!" With that, she dove for the pilot's chair, racing through only the most necessary of preflight checks. Once everyone was aboard, she sealed the hatch, not bothering to wait for everyone to be seated before she hit the thrusters, getting them airborne.

It was hard going, the shuttle already damaged by their descend through the atmospheric anomalies, but Persephone pushed the craft for everything that it could give, rapidly gaining height. It was only once they were sufficiently high that she didn't think the shadows could get to them that the young pilot started to relax.

"Is everrrryone ok back therrrre?"

Persephone M'Rai wrote:

[Shuttlecraft - Planet]


Inside the shuttle, the shadows were getting closer and closer to Persephone, the voices in her head getting louder and louder, the pressure in her skull getting greater and greater.  She tried to step away, to get away from the encroaching shadows, but ended tripping over her own tail, falling back, paws flailing in an effort to find something to stabilise herself.  Her claws caught the edge of the console.  Something that her mother had always done suddenly popped up in her mind.  Whenever Persephone had a nightmare, her mother would let her sleep with the lights on half to dispel the shadows of fear.

"Computerrrrr!  Lights to two hundrrrred perrrrcent!  Five second burrrrrst!" she called to the shuttle.  Immediately, the shuttle's dimmed lights flared up to a degree that was almost painful to see.  The Caitian shielded her eyes from the glare, but was relieved to hear the screams in her head receeding.  As the lights dimmed again, the relief was doubled as she saw that the creatures had left the shuttle.

Darting over to the hatch, Persephone poked her her head out and shouted to the other crew members of the away team:

"All aboarrrrrd!  We'rrrre taking off in less than a minute!"  With that, she dove for the pilot's chair, racing through only the most necessary of preflight checks.  Once everyone was aboard, she sealed the hatch, not bothering to wait for everyone to be seated before she hit the thrusters, getting them airborne.

It was hard going, the shuttle already damaged by their descend through the atmospheric anomalies, but Persephone pushed the craft for everything that it could give, rapidly gaining height.  It was only once they were sufficiently high that she didn't think the shadows could get to them that the young pilot started to relax.

"Is everrrryone ok back therrrre?"

[Shuttlecraft]

T'Lara stood up slowly and limped to the shuttle. With the disappearance of the shadows she felt a little better. She followed everyone inside and sat down. Then she looked around warily, making sure that every person was on board before buckling herself in.

After a rather bumpy lift-off she settled herself and began a private meditation, trying to regain the control she'd lost. She still regretted not being able to observe the shadows and the crystal structures. If Gabriel hadn't shot at the shadows, she might have been able to communicate with them using a mind-meld. She believed that what she and the others experienced from the shadow creatures was a form of defense and it was possible they didn't mean any harm. If they took precautions, if she received medication from Kintiss, she could find out. But it was too late for that now.
T'Lara wasn't sure if she would voice her thoughts to the captain, or anyone else for that matter...

Persephone M'Rai wrote:

"All aboarrrrrd!  We'rrrre taking off in less than a minute!"  With that, she dove for the pilot's chair, racing through only the most necessary of preflight checks.  Once everyone was aboard, she sealed the hatch, not bothering to wait for everyone to be seated before she hit the thrusters, getting them airborne.

It was hard going, the shuttle already damaged by their descend through the atmospheric anomalies, but Persephone pushed the craft for everything that it could give, rapidly gaining height.  It was only once they were sufficiently high that she didn't think the shadows could get to them that the young pilot started to relax.

"Is everrrryone ok back therrrre?"

[Shuttlecraft]

With Gabriel's help, Archangel made it back to the shuttle before the hatch was sealed, taking a seat at the front of the craft. Without the presence of the shadow creatures, her headache was rapidly receding, becoming tolerable rather than agonising. A pressure that could be ignored.

Turning around, she did a quick head count, wanting to reassure herself that everyone had made it back onto the shuttle before it had taken off. Seeing that all those who had come down on the craft were back on it, she relaxed fractionally before tapping the console in front of her, opening a channel to the ship.

"This is the Monongehla to the Phoenix, we're on our way back. Be warned, we may need assistance to complete the ascent through the atmosphere!"