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Prologue: Insurgency [D05|2315]

Prologue: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

[ Echtand qi Versant | The Quarters of the Voice | Precept-ship Versant ]
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With his two hearts racing, Echtand had made it back to his quarters, and he began to follow the development in the holo-program. With his access codes, he could see what the Low Class degenerates could see in their mundane surveillance of the specimens. It quickly became apparent that time was short, before the crews of the Theurgy and the Endeavour would disrupt the program entirely. He immediately began to make his calculations, trying to figure out the most efficient way to go forth with his plan without creating a trace that could lead back to him.

Then, just an hour later, the priority message came. It held Semathal's seal on his screen. Echtand closed his eyes momentarily, suspecting what it was about. He decided to patch through audio only, not wanting the Scion to read his facial features. He had no way of knowing if the Commanding Officer of the Versant suspected him. Clenching his jaw, he answered.

"This is the Voice," he said, while his six fingers continued to work on the solution he needed.

[Echtand,] clicked the deep voice, making his name sound like a failed lab test, and the word reverberated in Echtand's quarters. [The High Council has approved my motion. If you need any verification, see your messages. I want the Correction Program and the Biolab experiments discontinued for the time being, and all specimens Recycled. Immediately.]

Closing his hands into shaking fists, Echtand lowered his head, the profanities all in his mind. Immediately? Surely he could come up with something to stall it. Yet he knew that if he offered any kind of counter-argument, his loyalty would be in question. He couldn't even pause for thought. "Aye, Admiral Semathal."

There was a pause before Semathal spoke again. "I want them all in the Nonary Recycling Buffer, where I will oversee the completion of the process myself. I will be there within the minute. Proceed."

Echtand didn't know if Semathal had detected something in his voice, or if he had meant to oversee the Recycling of all the specimens to begin with. Either way, it didn't matter. All he could do was to comply before he ended the conversation. "At once."

Once the comm-link to the Scion was cut, Echtand pushed away from his desk, pacing his quarters. There was no time. Everything was riding on the aid he needed from these specimens if he was to save his people from its oppressors. He had to know the real Code, and he couldn't proceed on his own. But there was no time! He prided himself with his emotional control, but right then, he hissed in frustration, and lashed out. He struck the bulkhead, screaming at it even if he was perfectly aware that it mattered naught.

There was another chirp, from the surveillance of the starship simulation, and he saw on the screen that the specimens were attacking the warp core. In any other situation, he might actually have admired their fortitude. Yet as he stared at them, how they worked together...

...an idea came to him.

It was far from ideal, knowing perfectly well what it would entail. Another chirp, and the starship simulation had been disrupted. He took a couple of deep breaths, knowing that Semathal would be watching him, anticipating the arrival. So, he schooled himself, and with another deep breath, he picked up his tablet and initiated the holographic feed of himself in the Undenary Observation Pen. With his stoic gaze even, he spoke. "Specimens, this is the Voice of the Savi. You have disrupted your humane containment, choosing to not conform to the process in a peaceful manner. You were warned about the consequences of such actions."

Echtand saw how they scrambled, trying to access one emitter in the deckhead. He could but continue.

"At another time, you would have been given further options, your health paramount for the memory treatment and release. Yet as of ten minutes ago, your conformity has been rendered a moot point." Echtand uncrossed his arms and picked up his tablet again. He began to make his preparations for the transport. The hardest part was the reflection he needed to create, and to hide it... Meanwhile he worked, he had to continue to speak, positively feeling Semathal's four eyes on him. "The High Council has evaluated a motion regarding the Versant's need for repairs, where it has been argued that this need surpass the importance of the Correction Program and all the current projects in our Biolabs. Since your biomatter will sustain the Versant during its expedited repairs, the final decision has been made."

Reflection made, hidden in the buffer as best as he might, he started to work on the second containment beam.

"In spite of the Code and how it dictates your release, you will all be Recycled instead."

He did not want to look up, didn't want to see the emotional response of his words, because he could hear it well enough, muffled through his console. After speaking with Blue Tiran, he knew that the taking of lives might not be a part of the Code at all, and in the interest of verifying this, he had to go though with this, despite the consequences.

"This is Echtand qi Versant, and on behalf of all Savi, we apologise for not being able to release you as intended. Please remain calm, and know that your biomatter is valuble to us. You will aid in our continued research, and your names will be added to our Archive."

Then, Echtand energised the transport, raising his black eyes, and seeing how the collected specimens all vanished, knowing perfectly well what would befall them... and what awaited for the others. The last thing he did, sombre and quiet, was to finally send a text message in Federation Standard to the tablet he had left with Lieutenant Commander Blue Tiran. The message was short.

RATIONS WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO YOUR LOCATION. PREPARE FOR THE MORROW. REST.



[ Lieutenant ThanIda zh'Wann | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn: All
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Once all the shaken officers re-materialised, it took them all a while to understand that something wasn't adding up.

There were no Savi present, and in the dim-lit area - empty and barren though quite spacious - there was no sign of them being Recycled after all. Even though they were all as bare as they had been in the dark Observation Pen, there seemed to be no immediate cause for concern, noting present being a threat to them. Nothing besides a slight chill, given their lack of holographic uniforms and clothes.

ThanIda zh'Wann frowned as she looked about, and finally, she saw a figure. A humanoid. Human, with a streak of blue in her dark hair. Ida's antennae angled forward, fists clenching at her sides. She made no motion to cover herself, her senses pinned on the humanoid in the darkness. She might have spoken for many others present when she raised her voice.

"Who goes there?" she asked quietly, though the three words carried clearly... since the crowd of lab subjects had quietened down.

Yet like many others, Ida also wondered where they were, since the spacious interiors looked Savi, but completely abandoned.

OOC: All right! 7 days response time begins now for all listed below! Here are the characters present in Blue Tiran's hideout in the Maintenance Bays, and if there are significant reunions because of this, it should be handled in Supplemental threads or mid-discussion in this thread. The naming convention for such threads belonging to this Prologue is: PRO: S [DXX|XXXX] Insert Title. Here goes: [Show/Hide]

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #1 –
[ K'Ren | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn:  @all
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Materializing in the relative darkness of the bay, K'Ren felt confused as the transporter released it's grip on her. Moments before she'd felt the grip of a transporter beam and assumed that was the end, that she'd fade into oblivion, peacefully consigned to the nothingness, a fading memory only a few would remember. But now, as she felt the grav plates beneath her, instinct took hold, a fight or flight response welling up inside. Tail still, her claws extended, pupils dilating she felt the furr on the back of her neck went up as she adjusted to the dimly lit bay. Ears swiveling, taking in this new area, she crouched a little, tensing in case an attacker appeared from the dim recesses of the large bay.

That didn't seem to be the case however and with the rest of the survivors all in the same area, and no sign of threats, she could relax a little, just a little. Scanning the room, surrounded by the scent of fear and naked bodies, she looked for familiar faces, specifically Deacon and R'Rori, whom she hoped were also alive though hard to find in the sea of naked monkies. It was ThanIda's outburst to a figure apart from the other's that made her tense up again, her focus on the new threat, wondering how she'd missed the outsider in the room, apart from everyone as they were.  Moving between the throng of people and this unknown, K'Ren tensed up, claws extending again, her senses focused despite the almost overwhelming feeling of the sensory information coming in. She'd fight, and die if need be to defend the others.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #2 –
[ Lt. JG Sinead O'Riley | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan, @Brutus, @Zenozine, @Masorin, @SummerDawn, @chXinya, @Absinthe, @steelphoenix, @Blue Zephyr, @YasyraTrill, @patches, @Fife & @Numen
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Perhaps they didn't need Sinead to do something unexpected, seeing as their act of defiance had not gone unnoticed, and in moments they would be nothing more than material for consumption. It was a sobering moment that once again, her reputation as the Grim Reaper held true, and that anybody who worked with her would end up dead, only this time, this time, she would surely die too. Nothing could escape this. Sinead was a dealer of photonics and transporter technology. She saw no way out, but the truth was, she didn't care to search for a way out. Now she could be with him in the afterlife. With Captain Kendrick.

But that was not to be.

As her ghostly self taunted her, assuring her that when they least expected it, she would lose control of her body, and kill the leaders who could save the crew members on board, she opened her silvery-blue eyes to see they were not anywhere near anything that would supposedly turn them into Savi paste. In fact, she had her doubts that they'd been sent to the correct place. The lighting was low, but thanks to her Bringloidi heritage, she saw in the dim lighting like it was a sunny midday afternoon on Earth. She noticed the woman who was clearly not a part of their group.

She slowly sank to the ground, heedless of the fact that she was once again naked, and she said, “We didna die.” If anyone could read tones well, they would have noticed that the main emotion she expressed was disappointment, not a hint of relief or gladness. She looked at the ground a little longer, then sighed, resigned, and stood up, moving to stand beside the Andorian woman who had spoken, her hands hanging in a relaxed but ready manner as she studied the new person with very little interest, but she was alert all the same.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #3 –
[ Khorin, son of Margon, of House Mo'Kai | Day 5 | 2315 hrs. |  Undenary Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | The Versant  ]
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Attn: @Auctor Lucan  @Brutus  @Zenozine  @Masorin  @SummerDawn  @chXinya @Absinthe  @steelphoenix  @Blue Zephyr @YasyraTrill  @patches  @Fife  & @Triage


For a moment, Khorin wanted to thank his Wolf fellow for her help, but Dragon's gaze suddenly turned into a ballistic stance, an incongruous expression in her now too human face. However, her anger didn't seem directed towards the Klingon, but against someone who was behind him. Margon's son turned to face the enemy that caused such affliction in his Pack Sister, only to meet Hylota's black eyes. Still, he didn't have time to act in any way, because the simulation exploded suddenly in a white flash.

Blinking, eyes watering from the excess of light to which they weren't accustomed, in barely an instant Khorin found himself in the observation pen where he had been transported after his Correction. Naked and disoriented, he put his hands to his eyes, taking a couple of insecure steps, his body prepared to act even when his confused brain wasn't yet able to assimilate the transit from one reality to another. He had to focus, it was time to escape, they had little time in fact, he had to ... he had to find Cross, and Zeph. They had a plan. He only just had to ...

"You two, lift me up to the deckhead, right over here, now! Hurry!" the anguished voice changed his plans, and Khorin went to where the young Bajoran pointed. Soon he found himself shoulder to shoulder with the quasi-human with murderous eyes, his twisted body more evident now that nudity didn't prevent seeing the extent of the modifications practiced in him by the Savi. The man staggered, determined to lean on the ball of his feet, as if he weren't used to supporting the weight of his body in the full sole. In the corridors it had been evident that he couldn't run, but now the reason was obvious. The other warrior seemed to have been modified by some kind of Savi interns, turning him into a kind of cripple. If Khorin's hatred against grayish creatures needed more spur, there was a new one there.

Staggering under the uncoordinated movements of the Bajoran, the Klingon could hear the ill-fated voice of one of his captors begin to narrate his condemnation and punishment. "Hey puny boy, do something!" He growled, trying to ignite the young man to made whatever he was trying to make a bit faster. Little could do his words to accelerate the process, but simply holding the engineer, as if it were a mere pedestal was not in the pilot's way of being. "Do something!" Commander Nerina shouted, somewhere out of Khorin's visual range. The Klingon clenched his jaw, trying to raise the slender Bajoran even more. A few drops of blood fell on his forehead, creating capricious paths in his ridges. The engineer was literally working his fingers to the bone on what he was doing, whatever it was. However, it was too late.

[This is Echtand qi Versant, and on behalf of all Savi, we apologise for not being able to release you as intended. Please remain calm, and know that your biomatter is valuble to us. You will aid in our continued research, and your names will be added to our Archive.]

“Do'Ha'!” Khorin roared in frustration as he felt his body begin to lose consistency, the familiar feeling of the transporter settling in the pit of his stomach. They had failed. His last look, with his almost intangible body, turned to the crowd, searching for Zeph. He hadn't could keep his promise to her.





[ LtJr. Khelleshar sh'Zenne | Day 5 | 2315 hrs.| Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]
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When her body materialized again, Shar acquired a defensive pose, ready to fight for her life. She wouldn't enter gentlely in the other life, she would burn and rave, rage against the dying of all hope. With her fists clenched, she looked around, unable to prevent her antennae from being rigid and quivering above her scalp. She had expected to re-materialize in some kind of factory, a slaughterhouse destined to turn them into mere chains of nutrients and building materials, ready to be consumed by their captors or that damn starship. Instead of that, she found herself in a huge and empty room, barely illuminated, that extended beyond where her eyesight reached. Around her, the rest of the abductees seemed as bewildered as she was, the soft murmur of their voices growing once it was clear that her death wasn't imminent anymore.  At some point a thud sounded against the bulkplates, as if an ox had been knocked down. The Ops officer turned to the sound, but she didn't see any danger. What she did see was the naked body of another of the Andorians, Selh, as he had seen it at the beginning of the experiment to which they had been subjected. Well ALMOST.

The young Shen flushed suddenly, her cheeks a bright purple clearly discernible despite the dim light. She turned her back on the RIO without waiting to see his reaction, there were things that, for the moment, it was better not to think about. Thanks to the Water Guardian, the crowd seemed to quiet for a moment, so she could clearly hear Ida's words. Without thinking, she walked her steps to the zhen, stopping behind her.

Her surprise was huge when she could see who she had addressed. The Beast herself, Commander No-So-Blue Tiran. "I know her," she said, resting a reassuring hand on Ida's shoulder, then moving forward a few steps, facing the former Chief Engineer of the Endeavour. Of all the people she could expected to find in those moments, the one she had least expected was that pink-skin. She had considered that know-it-all her personal enemy, she had sworn to herself in the scape-pod that she would do whatever was in her hands to make her life impossible, to erase that smug smirk on her face and, however... yet now, after everything that had happened, she was glad to see her. One knew what to expect with Tiran. She was arrogant, medding and a smartypants. But she was also devilishly intelligent, tireless and efficient. And given the tendency shown by the crew of the USS Theurgy to reduce their plans to hit hard and without thinking, The Beast was the ally they needed at that time.

She stopped one stride from her, and looked her up and down. She looked exhausted, hungry and almost mad, but her eyes shone with the determination she remembered. Shar allowed herself one of her few smiles, a shark-like one. "You look like shit Commander. Tiran" she said as greeting. "But I'm glad that you are alive." Without knowing how, she found herself hugging the other woman, clinging to the known and logical world she represented.






[ Khorin, son of Margon, of House Mo'Kai | Day 5 | 2315 hrs.| Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]



The sudden transport made Khorin unbalanced, so when he rematerialized, on tiptoe, trying to get Lin Kae to reach something that was no longer where it should be, he rushed forward, hitting his ribs on the ground, dragging the quasi-human with him. The engineer fell on both men seconds later. His head bouncing painfully against the Klingon knee pit. The Lone wolf growled at the blow and crawled out of the limbs pile as soon as he could. When he was able to stand up, he looked around, surprised that he wasn't where The Voice of the Savi had announced. They seemed to be in an abandoned section of the ship, empty, barely lit and cold, damn cold.

Unable to avoid it, he began to shiver, all his bare skin (that was, actually, all of it) got goosebumps. Another colacteral effect of his Correction that he hadn't anticipated: a poor tolerance to the coldness. He clenched his teeth, trying to avoid them to chatter. Khorin endured the unpleasant sensation, watching the throng in search of some of his allies. He wanted to find Dragon and the rest of the Wolves, the words about keep the pack stick together still fresh in his mind. He also wanted to find Cross and Spots and the Ovri siblings. But, above all, he wanted to find Zeph. Almost instinctively, his sight fell where she was and went towards her, pushing the rest of the abductees away, not caring how rough his gesture was or who he shoved. His eyes never left her.

When he reached her, his first impulse was to hug her, but he hesitated a moment given the nakedness of both them. It was something that didn't bother the Klingon, coming as he did from a culture that estimated physical potency above all and being in the highest point of his physical condition. But he didn't know if she would be uncomfortable with that. Finally, he traveled the distance between them and cupped her face between his hands, resting his forehead against hers, feeling the warmth of her skin against his. "Here you are, beautiful," he whispered, the relief evident in his gruff voice. A mischievous grin appeared in his beard before he continued talking. "I had intended to wait for you to see this hot, chiseled body after a date but ... whatever" he chuckled

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #4 –
[LCdr Blue Tiran | Blue's Bay | Heads Up 7 Up | I Love to Hate You | Ambassador of Bad Shit]

@Auctor Lucan @patches @Fife @SummerDawn @Numen @Masorin @Zenozine @Brutus @Absinthe @chXinya @steelphoenix @YasyraTrill @Triage


Quote
The breeze of the Brazilian city of Rio blew through her dark curls through the modern favelas.  They fluttered about her on the spot where she stood.  Over looking his mother's garden.  She was gifted, green thumb and all, the beauty of the back garden was something to behold.  Though Blue wasn't the sort to really put much thought into flowers and vegetables it was quiet back here.  The kind of quiet that settled the heart but allowed the mind to drift.  To drift to how she had ended up here, and to drift back to her own family.  Watching Ducote and his family, watching the love for one another even if Ducote and his father were always at each other's throats it was still... family. 

There were times, that Blue wondered about the parents she had walked out on when she entered the Starfleet Academy.  She had kept herself and her situation hidden for the most part in regular school, scored stellarly on the Entrance Exams and worked herself into the Academy.  She had never once looked back and to her knowledge they had never once tried to find her.  Perhaps now that all their children had died or abandoned them they would miss her but she was not about to hold her breath.  She cared not for the familial people that had abandoned her in every meaning of the word when she was a small girl.

Footsteps behind her, she knew who it was.  The heavy footfalls sounded different here in the natural surroundings than they did back on the Bulkheads of the ship they served on together.  But, she knew his foot falls anywhere.  She knew the sound of his breathing, his sighs, his hidden anger.  She knew every look in his eyes and how he could tell her to get her shit together without even opening his mouth.  She also knew, that he knew things about her she could not verbalize and while she stood out here looking at the garden, she knew he could feel the turmoil in her mind.  It wasn't often she thought about the things she didn't have  Blue was grateful for the things that she did. 

Mostly, the man who's large arms came around her waist.  Chin resting on her shoulder.  Her mind eased, just the mere presence of him with her, did that.  The way that he grounded her in ways that not a single other person in creation could do. 

“You always show up...” she said softly, though she didn't finish the statement with 'when I need you'.  Because, he already knew that part.

“Blue, I ...”

The ping from her PADD woke her up.  Blue shot up right, for a moment she forgot where she was, the sound so familiar to her past, that her mind had nearly wiped out the present circumstances for just a fraction of a second.  She brushed angrily at her cheeks as the traitorous tears fell down her cheeks from the dream.  Her tongue was stuck to the top of her mouth and she was so hungry but the pain in her stomach and the pain of her body was something that kept her mind sharp for now.  When it wasn't buried in fog, anyway.  Taking a steadying breath she grabbed up the PADD that Echtand had given to her.  She hardly remembered crawling back to her spot.  To falling out of the air shaft and into the large bay that she had taken for her own. 

Pulling it over she brushed her thumb across the PADD and the screen came to life.  She winced at the bright light as she blinked and let her eyes adjust to the bright lettering in Federation Standard on the PADD in front of her. 

[RATIONS WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO YOUR LOCATION.  PREPARE FOR THE MORROW.  REST.]

The Morrow?  I'm going to have to talk to Echtand about his lack of … realism.

Rations. 

Rations.

Rations.

Rations.. rations are coming. 

The thought of eating made saliva fill her mouth which made her stomach go wild with the influx of fluids heading down the way.  She could and would eat anything.  Even.. vegetables at this point. I'd rather a pile of twinkies... or steak.  Steak would be good.  Or those coxinhas that Ducote made me that one time.  I want to eat some Brazilian food.  I want to go back to Brazil and hike in Peru and go play in the water fall again.  Maybe this time I'll jump off the water fall and make him freak out. her mind was all over the place.

Before she could even get it caught up her day dreams of water falls and food, and food water falls ended with an amazing flash of bright light.  She buried her face in her arms and waited for the light to die out.  SON OF A BITCH!  She thought she had either been caught or this was the promised rations.  I don't smell twinkies.. I smell... something else.

Finally, she blinked the bright spots out of her vision and stood up shakily.  Holy mother of fucking hell and twinkies.... they're here.  She looked around at the mass of naked people that stood there staring around.  The room was still fairly dark to be less conspicuous she had only used the small pen lights in the walls instead of the over head so that no one could walk by and get curious.  However, now, this room that had seemed so gigantic and lonely was smaller, by a large margin with that many people in it.  There had to be about .. fifty... or so she could, she supposed, count them all but she didn't really want to do that and she would probably get lost at some point.  So it was best not to push the mental parameters that she had left in her brain.

Suddenly, there was a voice. 

Okay well... I'm not hallucinating then.  Rations don't speak, so .. they must actually be people... oh Echtand you beautiful white bastard... you fucking did it..  She shifted her sharp blue eyes to the woman that stood there.  She looked familiar, but it wasn't someone that Blue knew, no, it was as if it was out of body.  She knew her, but didn't know her.  This was someone the Deltan knew, the one that had locked minds with Blue briefly while the heavy attack on her psyche happened. 

The room they found themselves in was spacious, a nice maintenance bay and it was clear with the debris all around the area where Blue had stood up from that she had been here a while.  There was a pile of what looked like make shift weapons, not just for herself but for others if she could manage it.  She had a small amount of a savi suit that she had been laying on top of and a Savi pad that was still in her hand.  There were parts, bits, and pieces of various machinery and 'junk' that she had collected to probably make the weapons that were stacked somewhat neatly in a pile.  When she was losing her mind she liked to re-organize them.  There were two doors that went off the bay where they now stood, storage closets, that would open up and she thought about how she could get all of them to sleep since now Echtand's message took a whole different meaning. They would have to use the storage rooms and even then it wasn't going to be super spacious but it would do.  She knew the spaces that she had, because she had been living here for days. 

Surviving, anyway.

Another mentioned that she hadn't died, and then... then there was Shar.  Blue's face drank in the visage of the Andorian woman.  Not for a moment, giving a shit that she was naked as the day she was born.  The woman stood forward and said she knew Blue.  That would make things far more easy if someone recognized her.  Blue's eyes locked with the woman that was her enemy in almost every way.  But the enemy of my enemy is still my friend.  Right now, that was exactly what she was feeling.  Shar closed the small space between them and came towards Blue.  Saying that she looked like shit. 

“Understatement of the century.” she whispered in a heavy voice and then there was Shar, again, but this time she was hugging her.  For a moment Blue just stood there absolutely shocked not just because it was Shar but she was being touched, held, she was being something.. other than alone and hungry and tortured.  Blue trembled slightly, she didn't need to fall apart now, she had a job to do and it was a very important one.  Still her arms came up and hugged the Andorian to her. 

“I hate your fucking guts.” she whispered but it was the kindest tone in the world as she clung to the woman that she couldn't stand.  The one that took her away from Ducote, the one that had separated them and the one that had been a bitch on the Escape pod.  She pulled back from the hug.  “I guess you're too mean for even the Savi to knock out.” she smirked slightly though it had lost some of it's general snarkiness because of all that Blue had been through.

She turned to the rest of the group, allowing Shar to stay beside her if she wished.  She thought about what to say, how to say it.  What she did right now would be important and it was something that would decide if these people turned into a problem or if they turned into a solution.  She had worked hard to get them this far, an alliance she never should have made, but also Echtand was putting his life on the line to save them.  He got nothing, truly, out of it.  But she was glad for it.

No... no Albert though.

Her heart ached to see the only family she had left.  With Ducote gone, she had Albert and that was all.  Once things were over Shar and she would become the enemies they truly were and things would be shit again.  Swallowing heavily her eyes alighted on those in the bay.  Some were her own crew, some weren't, some she assumed were from other ships.  Where ever the Deltan was from, several people here were from there too. 

“My name is Lieutanant Commander Blue Tiran, formerly of the USS Endeavour.” she stated out she was in her Starfleet uniform, without it's badge or anything like that.  She had lost a lot of weight since she had been here and it hung on her slightly here and there.  But the Engineering woman was not worried about that.  “I was to be recycled.  To be turned into the food that these people eat and yet, I ran.  I escaped.  I have been here, trying to gather information.  I've seen what the Savi do.  I've witnessed the horrors, I've been biding my time.  Down here, making weapons, so that when I could collect you, we could escape.  We are Starfleet.  We will not go down without a fight, you have all proven that yourselves.  I know what you did in the holodeck, I know how hard you've fought, and I have found an ally here.  He is the one responsible for you being here, he is the one that is going to help us off this mother fucking ship of doom and he is the one that is making all this shit possible.”

She looked at all of them.  “I could only do so much, I am one person but we... together we can fuck this ship over.  Take ourselves back to the people that are waiting for us.  We can make them never forget the ire of Starfleet.” she said as she straightened her back.  “I have been informed that we cannot move until tomorrow.  Food, is on the way.  We will sleep here tonight, it's late, and we need to be rested, tomorrow will take all of what we've got.  But if I know anything about Starfleet, I know that we can do this together.”

Blue was trembling, it was taking everything she had just to stand up, just to speak so much, just to see so much hope in one room.  To know that there was possibility.  They were going to get out of here, there was hope, true hope.

Hope in 57 faces.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #5 –
[Lt. Zephyr Praise | Unknown Location | Unknown Bay | Unknown Ship ]
@Numen

She had been terrified.  The holodeck program had ended and she found herself, with the others, without anything again, in the Observation Pen.  She was naked again, her weapons that they had been given on the holodeck  Everything was reset.  She stood there on the deck and watched as the great beast... thing.. walked around just out of sight.  The visage and voice of the Voice.. whatever his name was, terrified her.  She looked around in horror.  Searching desperately for the one face that could offer her any amount of comfort for the moment.  Her eyes were wide, horror filled, she was terrified of what was about to happen, what was going to go down.  They were going to be recycled.  At the very least the one thing she could take with her was the fact that they had shared a moment in the closet.  They had fought, side by side, but that she would never truly know if they would have been able to forward.

She wasn't beside him any more.  He was over to the other side of the room.  He was there, but she could see him in the sea of people.  She hardly listened to the voice, she knew that it didn't matter.  They were dead, they were dying, and she knew only one person in here.  There were people that were acquaintances.  But, only Khorin was the one her eyes went for.  She swallowed heavily and just watched Khorin unsure of what was going on.  She knew that it wouldn't be good, it could never be good.  Even if she tried to make it okay, she knew that overall.. things would never be the same.

This was it.

This was all that was in the fate for her and Khorin.

Never once, did her eyes move from his.  Echtand could have been speaking to give her the recipe to his Grandmother's cookies and she would never actually know.  She didn't care what he had to say, he had already said they were dead.  Whatever she had wanted .. that future, the chance that something could develop, a life, her career.  It was gone.  Tears welled in her eyes and slid softly down her cheeks. 

He was the last thing she saw as the bright lights brightened up the room, and blinded her.

==Stayin' Alive, Ah, Ah, Ah, Ah, Stayin Aliiiiiiii-iive==

The light died.  She was naked, and she looked around, it was dim in here but the retinal burns on her eyes for the moment.  She closed them allowing her eyes to adjust even though the colorful array behind her eye lids for the moment.  She could hear the people around her, she could feel the people around her.  The shock, the surprise, and she swore she felt the pang of disappointment from someone but she couldn't pick them out.  There were way too many people in here to select them out all together unless she was very familiar with one of them.  She could pick out Khorin's mind out of the whole building. 

Opening her eyes she blinked again and noticed the frazzled mind that was in front of them.  Hazel green eyes shifted to the front to see the Human woman with blue eyes that matched the streaks in her hair.  The girl looked as though she had been through the ringer.  Weight loss, dirty skin, circles around her eyes said that there was a lack of sleep and a lack of food.  She couldn't tell much more without an actual medical scan but to be certain she was in rather bad shape.  Zephyr's heart went out to the woman though apparently she knew people here because before she could say all the words that would later come from her mouth she was hugged by a naked Andorian woman. 

She could feel the woman's psyche shaking.  Trembling.  Trying desperately not to break down to be strong.  The woman was strong, Zeph could tell.  The way she shoved her emotions to the side, straightened her back, and delivered a speech in the hopes that it would move the masses to help her get them all off the ship.  The woman had a history of emotional turmoil.  Zeph turned her mind away from the girl's emotional state and to the words that she said. 

“She is one of us.” she admitted, she could feel it, and tell it through the empathic link.

Suddenly, there was Khorin.  She looked up and she smiled bright at him.  Despite all the crap that was going on around her she was so glad that he was alive.  She hugged him tightly without even thinking about her naked body for the moment.  She looked up into his eyes she wasn't much paying attention to his body right now, she didn't think it was something she needed to be paying attention to right now.  She just lay her head against his chest and waited for the rest of the people to understand the words they were hearing.  To make a plan, to get things together.  She was ready.  She was so ready to be off this damn ship.

“I'm so glad we're okay.” she confessed to him.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #6 –
[ Lt. Cross | Corridors | USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E | Precept-ship Versant ]Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Numen @Blue Zephyr Everyone Else.

The doors to Main Engineering aboard the Enterprise slid open ahead of Cross and PO Narelle, allowing them to hear the sounds of chaos emanating from within. Cross was steps from the threshold, with the PO on his heels, when everything around them changed. The simulation was gone, the Enterprise ceasing to exist. Cross tried in vain to halt his advance, skidding on bare feet along the deck plating and bowling over another of the captives before tumbling forward himself as PO Narelle barreled into his back, her legs getting tangled with his own. Cross rolled onto his back and attempted to extract himself from the tangle of limbs that was himself, the PO and the Betazoid Ensign that he had seen in Ten Forward. He was cold again, the air frigid on his skin. Cross glanced down at himself and found his clothes were gone. It only made sense that the holographic clothing would disappear with the rest of the simulation.

Cross glanced up and met PO Narelle’s gaze as the image of one of their captors appeared. It was the same Savi who had addressed them before the simulation had started. Cross listened as he explained the situation. As he explained that they would be recycled. As he apologized.

Apologies seem a little redundant in a situation like this… Cross thought, his mind seeming oddly calm under the circumstances. He felt no anger, no rage. Not even hatred.

He felt nothing.

For what might have been the first time in his life, Cross was utterly calm, devoid of any emotion. With death looming over him he felt utterly empty. He heard panic around him. Yelling. He saw fear in the eyes of the Trill woman that faced him. Saw the panicked look on the Betazoid’s face.

Then the transporter beam enveloped them all.

[ Lt. Cross | Undenary Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | Versant ]

Cross was still kneeling as he materialized alongside all the other captives on a large pad. It seemed to be the main feature in the room they now found themselves in, though Cross could see little of the room from his position. Panic was reigning among the abductees, increasing in volume and desperation. Cross’ voice did not join the din. Instead, he remained in his kneeling position, shifting his weight to sit back on his heels. He closed his eyes and took a slow, deep breath in through his nose. His imagined he could smell the panic of the group, the scent joining the horrible sounds that assaulted his ears. Through his eyelids he saw a blue light grow into being, accompanied by a further increase in the volume of the terrified crowd.

Cross truly felt for them. They all had lives they wanted to cling to, to keep on with. Cross felt pity for them. They were losing something they cherished.

He let out his breath slowly as he was enveloped by a growing pain, the sensation quickly overwhelming him to a point beyond thought or pity.

Then he disappeared from existence.

[ Lt. Cross | Day 5 | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]

Cross became aware again. Aware of his own being, of the cold, of the noise around him.

As he opened his eyes he saw that he was in a dimly lit room, still surrounded by the naked forms of the abductees. The panic had subsided, the group calmer than when death had loomed over them. It seemed they had been given a reprieve. The thought caused the anger to creep back into him. It came slowly, barely noticed beyond a tightening in his jaw. He shivered, both at the returning rage and the cold of the room.

Cross rose slowly to his feet, his gaze travelling around the room. Then he saw a figure in the dim light, beyond the cluster of abductees. A figure with blue in it’s hair.

Lieutenant Commander Ti…

Cross’ thought was cut short as he was bowled over, hitting the deck plating hard. Rage flared in his chest and his teeth ground audibly as he raised his eyes to see the retreating back of a naked Klingon. He saw Khorin slow as he approached Lieutenant Praise, who was also naked.

Bloody Klingons… Cross thought as he pushed himself to his knees and staggered back to his feet. A low growl emanated from his throat, causing startled looks from the abductees closest to him. They could have at least recycled him…

Cross turned his gaze back towards Lieutenant Commander Tiran, but found himself watching Shar hugging the woman. It took Cross a moment to realize they were hugging, his initial thought being that Shar had attacked the Endeavour’s former Chief Engineer. Then Blue Tiran turned and addressed the group, giving a surprisingly inspiring speech considering the tempestuous officer it was coming from.

Cross approached his two former crewmates as Blue finished speaking, glancing between Shar and LCdr Tiran as he stopped several paces away. ”Now why couldn’t you two get along like this when we were stuck in that escape pod?” Cross’ feigned stern look was spoiled by a chuckle that escaped him. ”It’s good to see you, ma’am. Cross said with a grin, the movement of his face causing several flakes of dried green blood to free themselves from the crusted green smears on his cheek and fall to the deck. ”I would say you look like hell, but I don’t imagine we look much better from where you stand.”

Now that he was closer, he could see the changes in Lieutenant Commander Tiran. Her face looked thinner, almost gaunt. Dark circles framed eyes that spoke of strain and lack of sleep. The engineer had obviously been through hell while they were being “corrected” and fighting to free themselves from the Enterprise simulation. It suddenly dawned on Cross that while Blue knew Shar on sight, the Lieutenant Commander might not recognize him post correction, lacking nasal ridges and sporting the ridiculous Vulcan eyebrows. And naked. ”Sorry, ma’am. It’s Lieutenant Cross.” He clarified, giving a slight shrug as he shifted his weight, feeling suddenly awkward and uncomfortable as he realized he was once again standing naked before his former crewmates.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #7 –
Lt JG Hi'Jak | Undenary Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | Versant ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Brutus @Triage
[Show/Hide]

When the program dropped Jack knew they only had a matter of minutes to seconds to fix the problem, find a way out of the place before they were put into some area to be recycled. His original expectation had been a door, or just about anything that would help them to dig out of this situation. Instead the room was lacking in just about every kind of feature.

He had been drugged pretty heavily still when they had first brought him here, so he had assumed that dropping the program was the simplist way to get out of the room. Instead it was a mad rush to do anything that would save them. Jack was slow, his one eye and one arm weren't enough to keep up with the other two, and he lagged behind.

As they were whisked away with the soft glow of a transporter the pit in his stomach and the voice in his head told him one thing.

Your fault.

Lt JG Hi'Jak |Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] attn: @SummerDawn @steelphoenix @Blue Zephyr @patches @Absinthe @Fife @Zenozine @YasyraTrill @anyone else i missed.)

When they re-emerged however they weren't in the type of facility that he had hypothesized He stumbled backwards his bare ass hitting the ground as he looked about the room. His arm going to his face as his stub went to support himself only to realize that his other hand didn't exist so he fell onto his back. His eyes looking up at the soft pink ass of Lahkesis Song as his head fell basically at her feet. "Sorry."

He said with his one eye still intact getting a nice under-view of her, probably the only nice thing about this entire situation. His eye closed and he didn't get up as for a moment he just needed to relax, and think, to gather his wits about him and in effect work on what he knew.

Rest, recouperation, and tomorrow movement. "We have a few different priorities than." He said unsure who he was speaking too or who would listen to him, now that he was in a room where Ida could probably see that he was alive. His hand moved from his face to grab Lahkesis's ankle pulling on her to gain her attention and get her to help him up. Though he wasn't sure whom she was, and had no idea she was a doctor he just needed an able body to help him at the moment.

"Guerrilla tactics, we need to disrupt their supply lines." He was talking now from his experience in the Klingon academy, the four years he had trained to do infiltration and operations. "The Savi have pads, that we see them using constantly. I'd like to get a hold of one, if we can grab one, me and the god can work on finding out more about the ships layout, it's communication set up, it's size and where they are hurting. We have seen enough of the language that I'm already working on some rough translations. With some paper, and some help I can probably get something good by tomorrow." He called Moralli the god with a joking tone.

"Further more, our captain, our ships AI, and a puzzle box that was taken aboard our ship have all been taken here by the Savi, I have the most experience with the omega device, but i'd like to request some help anyone with a science background would be helpful." He said basically volunteering for a mission.

"Of course we can't move till tomorrow, but as we are in a bay, and we have no idea what time it is now, only you." He said turning to blue the outside element. "Really know what that means. If we are going to attempt to break out all of our objectives, than we need to form teams and gather some line of communication between teams."

During this time however, he hadn't let go of the new found doctor.

~~~
ooc:
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Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #8 –
[ Deacon | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] attn: Anyone and everyone

The siege against Engineering was as he expected -- a merit-less battle that granted no true satisfaction.  The so-called kills that fell to his blades were little more than projections, only slightly more distracting than an immobile training dummy.  The blood, the viscera, what little scent it had didn't even register in his too human nose.  The weapons of their so-called Federation adversaries, as stated, proved ineffective against the charge -- a curious oversight that he thought any well reasoned species would address.  Perhaps it was an insight into their ultimate foe, or perhaps they knew, as he had suspected, that a disruption to their holographic cage would end with the realization that they were all, as they had been, imprisoned and now without the comforts of tangible objects, the illusion of defense or offense.

And so it was that when the false Enterprise faded from sight, leaving them naked and unarmed as they had been, Deacon was unfazed.  One of the scrawny monkeys begged for his assistance in the darkened bay, seeking a higher vantage in an effort to breach the seals that comprised this alien holodeck even as the Savi announced their great disappointment in the escape attempt and the plan to have the lot of them liquidated.  Again, it was as he expected -- contradictory and yet wholly as he expected.  They had wasted so much time and effort to 'purify' the lot of them, implemented no measures to prevent further contamination, and now readied to purge them rather than sedate them.  The blatant inefficiency of their plan turned Deacon's stomach.  The sheer thought of what the kzinti would do had they half the technology at their disposal as these creatures was almost profound.  No less foolish, true, but certainly far more consistent in its application.

As the captives found themselves on the verge of dis-corporation, Deacon managed to weave his way closer to K'Ren, his mate, his one focus.  Had he the time, room and opportunity, he would have taken her then, before the very eyes of their captors, the ultimate defiance, the ultimate insult, the ultimate union.  Constrained as he was, he could only despise them, sparing a moment of pity for his people that they might face a war they could not win, or worse, win that war and learn nothing from it.  He wondered if the Fanged God would cast aside his human guise and permit him into the Great Hunt or if he would be condemned to prey.  There was no regret.  As unsatisfying as his last battle had been, he had held true to who he was and what he wanted.  These Savi may warp his flesh but they had not broken him and now they would never have him.  This was not resignation, one did not embrace death, but there would be no fear.

But nothing came.  Death wasn't as he expected.  No pain.  Not even a dull ache.  There was merely a momentary sense of vertigo.  Around him, he could feel the crush of confusion, prompting him to open his eyes, even as he regretted the choice.  The chamber was dark and vast and those slated for execution stood crowded around him, their emotions assailing his mental defenses.  "Get away from me," he hissed sharply at those too close to him, their naked flesh against his igniting embers of his ziirgah into flames of empathic overload.  Fake ship, fake sickbay, fake medication.  He expected no less.  Such seemed to be his lot.

Moving away from the others, he focused to drive a wedge between his thoughts and those around him, the distance serving to mute the emotions of the others.  Was he angry, happy, scared?  Taking a deep breath, he managed to right himself, standing up and face the others, his blue eyes scanning the faces in the dark, though he could scarcely discern anything beyond that the monkeys referred to as the visual spectrum.  They'd stolen  the farthest edges of his visual acuity in exchange for nerve endings.  Outrage.  That was his.  That remained true and continued to burn.  But so too was fatigue.  This body exhausted him.  The stress of this place exhausted him.  But what burned hotter, the deepest core of what he felt now, was revenge.  He wanted the Savi to suffer as he had, and if it meant regressing them into some sort of cephalopod or splicing genes from every species in the Alpha and Beta quadrants into their own genetic structure, he would find a way to make that twisted vision happen, so he swore by the Fanged God.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #9 –
[ Lahkesis Saugn | Undenary Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | Versant ] Attn: those present
[Show/Hide]

The world dissolved and as did her uniform, leaving her exposed and surrounded by others. She saw on their faces a panic, the fear of death was over them and she knew it should be over her as well, but she felt nothing. She felt as though the whole of the world mattered naught and soon it would matter even less. Soon her confusion would end. She was surrounded by tormented faces she felt she should know, and yet she could not seem to put it together.

The voice of one of the aliens, one of the creatures that now haunted the back of her mind along with dark phantoms she could barely recall spoke to them, but it's words meant nothing beyond the confirmation of what she had seen on the faces of the people around her. Death was coming for them. There was no other option and no way out.

She closed her eyes and did her best to relax, she did not want to die tense and afraid, as the others seemed to be preparing to. She wanted to die at peace, and even in her turmoiled mind, she did her best to relax.

When she felt the transporter program begin she only assumed it was the process beginning and let herself be taken by it.

[ Lahkesis Saugn |Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] attn: @Masorin , @SummerDawn , @steelphoenix , @Blue Zephyr , @patches , @Fife , @Zenozine , @YasyraTrill , and anyone else there
[Show/Hide]

Only she did not die, or at least the version of her that appeared a moment later was not dead, in fact, she felt a little less confused. Somethings were clearer in her head.

She was Lahkesis Saugn, she was assigned to the USS Theurgy, and she was surrounded by members of that crew. She did not know their names, even though she felt like she should. She did not know why she was not on the ship, even though she felt like something terrible had happened that had taken her from the ship.

There were still an uncomfortable amount of missing details, but she felt as if her feet were on solid ground.

And then suddenly someone grabbed her ankle and she almost screamed in terror.

She looked down and saw a broken man or at least a man who was missing a great deal of himself. She moved to a crouch to assist him, helping him into a seated position, her skills as a doctor telling her to not let him move too much to avoid body strain.

As he spoke he held fast to her and she was aware of the heat of his hand on her skin. She was colder than normal, the ship felt colder and she was little more than room temperature, her skin no warmer than the bulkhead she stood upon. But she rested one hand on his shoulder and one on his back, supporting him so that she could look around easily.

Her own nudity did not bother her, nor did the nudity of the people around her. She was still new to the concepts of sexuality and had come into her anatomical knowledge long before her sexual knowledge, so while as some would focus on more erotic areas of exposed flesh, she made mental notes of bruises and damaged areas on the skin she saw. If there was a fight to come, she could already see who was too badly damaged to be of much help.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #10 –
Ens Nathaniel Isley Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] @Triage  @Auctor Lucan
[Show/Hide]

The fight was over, and the only thing Nathan had to show for it was the fact that he had been enjoying the fight. It had taken away the need to think for a moment and helped him to relax. Now however he was standing in a bay with everyone else, and once again he was stark naked. He found Sinead huddled  to the ground to make herself seem smaller.

"follow me." the words were a touch more stern than he had meant for them to be. He had in some ways been in that position before. He had curled into a ball during his night in the brig and it hadn't helped back then and it wouldn't help now. The Romulan looked Sinead over his mind moving past the confusing mix of powerful emotions even as he passed Ida with no actual recognition or hello, cold to her presence as he was more focused on Sinead than the deputy officer.

"We need to talk." He said gesturing away from the crowd, he didn't pull her up to her feet, but rather walked away from the crowd simply waiting for her to follow.

"I'm going to keep this short, you have voices in your head. I've had another person in my brain as well, multiple times in fact, I may be able to help you." He had failed to recognize the other voice back when he had been a victim of psychic probing, now he had a chance to help someone else going through something close to his own experiences. He took a medatative position near the back away from the crowd. "Unfortunately I lack the psionic ability to perform any kind of mind-meld, but that doesn't mean I can't help to strengthen your resolve, and perhaps block some of that voice."

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #11 –
[ Lt (jg) Sarresh Morali | Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | Precept-ship Versant ] Attn: all y'all naked mother fuckers (and Blue)
[Show/Hide]


As the transporter beam gripped them in the observation Pen, the feeling of defeat clamped down on Sarresh. He froze in place, the confinement protocols standard to all transporter systems he'd encountered locking him in mid-stride. He had a moment, just one, fleeting moment, before he would be whisked away to be turned into paste for the Savi. That moment, many had said over the years, was when one's life was supposed to flash before them. Sarresh's life, however, did not flash. No, only one image flashed in his mind. A crinkled nose, a half shaved head. A smile that was part exasperation and part affection. One that he liked to believe no one else really saw.

Ryuan Sel.

Then there was nothing, for the longest time...

[Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]

...And then there was a small room, crammed with everyone from the pen. Light faded from his eyes. He stumbled forward a few paces, catching himself before he barreled through one of his fellow prisoners. The Voice was reassuring them that rations would be provided and that they needed to rest. He couldn't even begin to imagine what kind of wool was being pulled over the rest of the Savi. And he dreaded to wonder at what the rations would be. Some poor sod that had already been recycled?

Shivering, Sarresh rubbed his arms. He was embarrassed that this last thoughts hadn't been for his mission, nor were they repressed memories finally coming back to him. No, they had been of the Bajoran woman. The only comfort he had left to him in this misbegotten century. The time traveler resolved, then and there, that if he made it out of here alive, he was going to have to confront Sel, and lay it all out on the table. The sheer idea of being that vulnerable to someone else made him shiver in a way that had nothing to do with how cold he felt. But he decided that, as the most important factor in his miserable life, Sel deserved to know how much she had come to mean. How he felt.

why is it so damned cold!? The thought broke through as he rubbed his arms. Before he had been transformed, Sarresh would often pad about naked in his quarters, ducking into the shared bath with the Neotins. Ash'reem were nudists at heart. Their bodies were built for it. Human bodies were not. And while it might not actually be all that cold, there in the nude, in this room, Sarresh felt like he'd walked outside in winter. There wasn't enough humidity for his tastes. Too cold.

He hated this body.

Someone, he belatedly realized, was talking. He didn't know her. He looked up, narrowed his eyes, and sighed when that didn't bring the person into better focus. They'd 'corrected' his eyes after all. Now he had plain, normal human sight. He shuffled forward, repressing an oath. The woman said she was from the Endeavour and her name was...Blue? Fucking humans.

He was having trouble focusing. Great he thought bitterly, shutting his eyes and counting backward in his native tongue. Funny how he still thought in Ash'reem, despite no longer being one. When he opened his eyes again, Hi'Jak was speaking, having managed to get to his feet once more. Rubbing his shoulders, Sarresh padded in that direction now, slipping between one naked body and the next, not noticing whom they belonged to. Not caring. He narrowed his eyes and forced himself to focus, to listen, to nod in agreement when it seemed like the right moment.  IT took him a moment to realize Jack had been talking about him, and he let out a groan,  and (despite himself) a wry grin.

I wonder if any of those idiots are in the crowd. Maybe I can use them as cannon fodder, he thought as he stood up straighter and forced his arms to cross over his chest, instead of clutching his shoulders. A defiant stand, not a shivering one. Ignore the cold. At least Jack had a plan. Kind of. More of one than Sarresh had at the moment. He resisted the urge to tap the side of his head and see if that damned encoding would cough up a useful seizure.

It probably wouldn't have worked.

"For what it is worth," Sarresh spoke, surprised at the sound of his own voice. He expected it to be rough, raw around the edges after the fear he'd felt, the remorse and the longing for Sel, and then the shameful anger and relief that had followed the rematerialization process. It was clear, calm and collected. "We got a decent look into how the Savi system operated before we were all dumped out of the program. As Jack said," he gestured to the one armed man, and he would have sworn he saw Ida - the Andorian Security officer from the Theurgy - scowl. It was hard to tell though, she always looked angry, "We need a padd, one of theirs. Access to their system. From there we can better plan."

Then he turned to the woman from the other ship, this 'blue' and cocked an eyebrow at her. She was the only one in the room with clothing. She looked like a strong breeze would blow her over, even as she was now surrounded by members of her own crew again. "I assume you have some thoughts on that as well?" Belatedly, he remembered she had a rank, and it was a bit higher than his, so he added, "Lt. Commander." Better late than never he thought, though that foresight didn't extend to the point of offering up his own name for her ti know. Not that he could say why. Bad manners, probably.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #12 –
[ Lt R’Rori | Maintenance Bays | The Versant  | Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ] Attn: @Blue Zephyr @Fife @Numen @Masorin @Brutus

As the transporter’s containment beam finally let go of R’Rori, s/he let out a deep sigh and collapsed on the floor, heedless of hir newly nude state and the people around hir. S/he blinked back the tears that came unbidden as hir body adjusted to the new circumstances. Hir mind lagged behind, a corner of it tugging briefly at a sense of alarm before finally letting go and allowing the felinoid enough mental resources to take stock of where s/he was now. It was colder than the holographic Enterprise, that was for sure. And darker.

Cursing the lack of low-light sight s/he now possessed, the counselor pushed hirself back up to an unsteady standing position, hir arms crossed and rubbing her goosebumped skin in an effort to capture just a bit more warmth. S/he could tell the others were in a similar position, noting the positions of the ones s/he knew as one of them called out to … someone else? There was someone else with them? R’Rori couldn’t quite see the other figure through the crowd, so s/he pushed forward through the bodies until s/he could get to the front.

S/he stopped cold, a mere meter from the front line, when the human spoke and her voice registered strongly in hir memories.  Blue? Blue! She spoke of escaping Recycling and knowing what they had been through, as well as ideas for fighting back again now. There was also mention of an ally, which R’Rori filed away mentally to mull about later. Blue was here! And alive! A tear rolled down her cheek as s/he grinned and forced hir way to the front, looking over the gaunt figure in a Starfleet uniform now too big for her frame. Shar was there too and s/he could hear Cross gently chiding them for not getting along in the pod like this. Unwilling to hold hirself back any longer, R’Rori ran forward with an uncharacteristic squeal and nearly tackled Blue in a fierce hug.

“Blue! You’re alive!” S/he finally managed to squeak out after a moment, lessening the pressure just a tad. Hir silver eyes gleamed with the tears now being freely shed. “It’s so good to see you again.”

The formerly half-Caitian stepped back, gingerly letting go of Blue so that the engineer wouldn’t have her balance off by too much. S/he clasped hir hands in front of hir face, visibly putting hirself back together after that rather public display of affection. “It’s Lieutenant R’Rori. I look a bit … different, I’m told.”

A man was now speaking aloud and s/he whirled around to face the source of the voice speaking of guerilla warfare. Hir ears were standing straight up, alert and taking in every ounce of sound s/he could hear. S/he wiped away the remnants of the tears on hir face and tried to get a handle on what he was talking about.

Right. Omega device? Splitting up?

Another man reinforced his statement and request for one of the Savi pads. They had apparently decoded enough of the language and programming to get an idea of how they operated, which was impressive enough in its own right. R’Rori looked at him and then back at Blue for her response. The fight was far from over and now it looked like the pacifist would have to steel hirself for potentially violent conflict. There was a tightness in hir chest now that was becoming too familiar for the usually calm and collected officer.

I just want to go home. A warm bed and one of my mother’s meals.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #13 –
[ K'Ren | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn:  @all
[Show/Hide]
In the chaos of the fight on the holodeck, and the unexpected transport to safety, K'Ren had lost track of the two people that mattered to her in that moment, the two she desired to be close to, the beings that seemed to help her keep her balance emotionally. She could sense her mate's presence at least, that feeling she knew as the bond told her that he was alive, and close by even if she didn't see him in the crush of faces. Smell, well that was a different story, the bay was a confused mess of scents, hormones from a dozen different species, all wafting off the naked mass of humanoids present near her. She'd never been this comingled with so many naked people ebfore and she began to understand why these furrless beings seemed to prefer clothes, aside from the obvious need for temperature regulation. They'd not evolved a measure of control over their pheremone outputs so the clothes she surmised, acted as fur of some sort, regulating the release, containing the scents in the cloth, keeping them dampened. That might also explain why humans and other humanoids seemed to mate more when they were in situations with few clothes on, their baser instincts were more affected by their pheromones, driving them to mate more when semi naked.

She pushed that thought from her head, she needed to focus on the here and now despite the apparent relaitive safety of their location, this humanoid was an unknown, and potentially a threat despite their lack of weapons and professed freindship of sorts. K'Ren still kept a wary eye on the person called Blue, she guessed because of the blue tint to her hair, or perhaps the blue tint was because of the nickname. In any event, K'Ren's disrupted train of thought was brought back to the present as R'Rori burst from the front of the human mass and in what K'Ren could appreciate, hugged the unknown like she'd known the person all her life. K'Ren visibly relaxed, if R'Rori knew this person, then they were freindly, and no real threat to K'Ren. Her ears flopping back into a comfortable pose, K'Ren retarcted her claws and untensed her body, her tail going back to a gentle twitch. This women's words telling of food and a chance to rest for a period of time were calming, even if she knew a fight still remained, a fight to get home, and perhaps K'Ren idly thought, a chance to extract some payment from the Savi for the death of her unborn cub.

But first she had to find her mate, make sure he was okay, that he wasn't being overwhelmed mentally by the crowd of naked humanoids. Then perhaps they could get some rest, curl up in each other's arms, maybe find a quiet corner away from the crowd to bond a little more with her Deacon, one final act of love for her mate before they faced death again. She knew that if they survived this, she was going to hole up with him for at least 24-48hrs and completely ignore the world, ignore what was going on beyond the four walls of their quarters. But that final thought was only if they survived, for now she just wanted to be reunited with her mate, and turning back to the crowd of bodies who seemed focused on Blue, she began to look for a familiar face, at least familiar enough.

It wasn't the most difficult as she soon saw a human standing apart from the others, keeping some distance from the crowd, and with the odd pointed ears she knew it to be Deacon. Moving through the crowd she approached her mate, smiling that teeth covered smile the humans found so odd as she came close to him. She recognized that look in his eyes, the empathic sense he retained from his K'Zin heritage was bothering him and while they didn't have drugs this time, K'Ren could perhaps distract him a little, get him to focus on her, not the others, easing the discomfort she knew he felt. "Deacon," she said softly as she stepped up to him, taking his hand in her paw. "Focus on me mate, ignore the others." She knew that if he was feeling the crush of other's emotions, getting him to a quiet spot where she could get him to relax and draw his attention to her would help. "Let's find a quiet spot away from the others."

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #14 –
[Ens. Irnashall “Shall” ch’Xinya | Undenary Observation Pen | Main Research Hull | The Versant]

Their victory over their captors had been short lived, as much as it could’ve been called a victory.  Shall’s antenna twitched in annoyance when the confining walls of the Enterprise were replaced with the familiar confining walls of a Savi tank, and just like last time he was naked.  Sighing to himself over the situation he looked around for Ida, Sehl, and Shar, but before he could spot them a Savi appeared on the wall and dictated their doom with the dispassionate tone of someone talking to an ant farm.  Out of the corner of his eye he could see something move in the shadows beyond the forcefield, and an instant later the floor shone with a blue light just as he could feel his skin start to burn…

[Ens. Irnashall “Shall” ch’Xinya | Maintenance Bays | The Versant]

Just as quickly as the burning sensation started, it vanished along with most of the light.  Instinct made Shall look around, trying to gauge their new location and find some bearings.  Ida was faster of course, barking out an order to someone he couldn’t see through the mass.  At the very least that told him where the other Andorians were, and Shall started to squeeze his way through the crowd to get to them.  The mass panic was quickly subsiding and normal conversations were popping up, complete with pairs starting to slink off for some semblance of privacy in the expansive room.

Several voices rose above the din, trying to be commanding, or at least express their opinions for whoever ended up in charge.  Shall didn’t pay attention to any of them, he only cared about the three sets of antenna peeking above the crowd.  It didn’t take too long for him to reach the others, and the chan looked all three of them up and down, looking for any outward sign of injury or distress.  “Are you alright?” he asked, antenna angling in concern as he set his hand on Ida and Shar’s shoulders.  The human woman with blue-streaked hair didn’t exist in Shall’s world at the moment, and until he knew this bastardized shelthreth was unharmed nothing else would enter the world either.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #15 –
[ Khorin, son of Margon, of House Mo'Kai | Day 5 | 2315 hrs.| Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]
[Show/Hide]
Attn: @Blue Zephyr


When Zeph smiled at him, and hugged him tight, he let out a conforting growl, just broadcasting her his relieve of found her again, live and sound.  He had lost himself in the battle again, swept along the thrill of the fight, and he had lost sight of her. Khorin felt her relaxing when she leaned her head against his chest, and he just held her closer, cradling her between his arms, and left his cheek rested against her crown. He could smell her pleasant aroma, that mix of flowers and that particular scent that was only hers. And it felt so right simply hold her. Nothing else did matter, the whole world reduced to they both.

"I'm so glad we're okay." She admited, and he found himself grinning like the idiot he was, just delighted she was worried about his well-being. That she was so fond of him to that point. That she felt just like he did. He took his time to answer, nuzzling her hair. “I've told you you'll not get rid of me so easily, my Kyamo” he finally rumbled gently, just for her ears. He shivered a bit, the coldness of the room nibbling his bare skin there where her body didn't touch his.

In their back, there were words and planning, reunions and cries. But he turned a blind eye to all that. He only had eyes for her. For his beautiful one. His Kyamo. Khorin looked at the deep, starless voids that stared him and suddenly the klingon opened his mind, he needed  to feel her voice inside him, only for him. ~I'll always return to you, always~

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #16 –
[ Lieutenant ThanIda zh'Wann | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn: All
[Show/Hide]
When Shar ran up to the Human with the blue streak in her hair, hugging her, and when another couple of officers from the cargo bay had recognised her, Ida's stance eased a bit, and she folded her arms across her chest. Not to preserve a modicum of her modesty, even if it might, but because there appeared to be no immediate threat in this new area.

While listening to what was being said, Ida turned her antennae and eyes to the interior, a frown on her face as studied what she could see. It seemed like they were in some kind of abandoned maintenance bay. This much she could tell. Then, Shall appeared, touching her shoulder, but Ida shrugged it off, stepping away from Shall, Shar and Sehl. She felt violated by what had happened at the hands of the Savi, and she did not care to be touched in any way or form any more. It was even worse now, when they weren't alone any more. Nothing but shame for her, when looking at the others in the forced bond.

Walking away, lips tight, she still listened, slowly going about checking the side rooms. Storage rooms in different sizes, mostly empty. The Human - Blue Tiran - had begun to live in the area, as much was plain, and she was surviving as best as she might. One thing stood out in her quick explanation of what had happened. Someone helped her? Could there be anything but a Savi asset on this kind of ship? Indeed, the one thing that struck Ida as odd was what one of the Savi would possibly gain out of freeing their guinea pigs.

"Well done, Lieutenant Commander Tiran," said Nerina, Ida's former XO on the Theurgy, who now stepped forth. The now fully human woman glanced towards both Hi'Jak and Sarresh Morali, the former whom Ida now spotted. She just now learned who it was when she heard his voice, and she frowned, thinking that he was the only one present during the away mission to SuD Lang, and who might shed some light on how she had ended up on the Savi ship in the first place. As for Sarresh Morali, Ida merely knew that he was a mission-essential asset, and she was concerned that he was on the Savi ship as well. She was, of course, concerned about the Theurgy overall, only having heard from a few of the abductees that there was a battle before they ended up on this ship, called the Versant.

Nerina spoke to them all, while Ida remained silent. "Indeed, our objectives become clearer, and with some planning and preparation, we might have a fighting chance to get off this ship, thanks to officer Tiran here, her companion, and our joint efforts to recover what's on the ship, and leave it," she said, and turned to the only clothed person in the room. "I'm Commander Nerina, and before I ended up here, I was First Officer on the Theurgy."

As a leader, a figure of authority and practiced in being such, Nerina seemed to care none about her state of undress, much like Ida. Though secretly, Ida was trying to not look at all the flaunted male genitalia in the room, since as an Andorian and with Thaan and Chan having their phalluses sheathed, she had been raised to think that any exposed phallus indicated something sexual. Forcefully, she pushed the notion aside, hearing Nerina speak again.

"As urgent as we all think it is to escape, I think we're in no such state to do so at the moment. We have no plan, the ship too advanced, and this mysterious asset is our only life-line for the time being, so I think Tiran is right. We wait for more shipments, more information, and take comfort in how we have made it this far." Having said as much, she turned to Tiran again. "Thank you, Lieutenant Commander. You might have heard a lot about the Theurgy crew, and as I told everyone I rallied inside the simulation of the Enterprise, we are not the traitors Command has made us out to be, but regardless if you believe it or not, we still need to work together."

There was a chirp coming from something Tiran carried, and Ida saw it then. It was a tablet not of Starfleet design, so it had to be one of the Savi's. It was exactly what Hi'Jak and Sarresh Morali needed. It had sounded like a message too, and there were lights in the back of the maintenance bay. A shipment? Transporter delivery from the asset? People amassed there, including Devyrie Okhala and Lin Kae. Ida slowly followed, hoping to find clothes and rations.

Then again, it might be Savi beaming in... to take them back their cells.

[ Echtand qi Versant | The Quarters of the Voice | Precept-ship Versant ]
[Show/Hide]
After feeling like he had just committed treason, Echtand had paced his quarters, flexing his large hands as he considered if it wasn't better to abort the whole thing. He considered if there were any means in which he could undo what he had just done. Perhaps he could get the access he needed without the distraction that the specimens could cause? What was he thinking, jeopardizing everything, even putting the Versant in danger?

No, doubts had no room in the methodology he had applied to this endeavor. He was at a stage where there was no return. He had even improvised, in his lack of time, and used a second containment beam to duplicate the specimens, and they had been recycled right before Semathal's eyes. He knew that, as soon as the specimens left Blue Tiran's hideout, his name would be on the line. He had made the transport, and while he could buy time saying it was them who had altered the protocol for the transport, there was a point where he had to be in possession of the original Code, and to have it broadcast across the Versant.

Taking a deep breath, Echtand blinked and returned to his desk. He picked up his tablet, and resigned himself to the task ahead. To both replicate and transport supplies, suppporting the specimens he had enlisted in his campaign to save his own people from Semathal, and abolish the Scion Directive. He already had access to all of their medical and biological files in the Archive, and the most efficient thing to do was to compile individual packages for them all. He just sorted their data in a list, complementing it with their needs in attire, and had his transporter access and the replicator system work in tandem. What hampered the process was to make it look like he was replicating something entirely else; falsifying the records of the expenditure.

Once he was done, and he had made the transport into the hideout, he typed a message to Blue Tiran, the specimen being his main point of contact. It simply read:

DELIVERED: STARFLEET FIELD RATIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH YOUR FEDERATION DATABASE, ALONG WITH INFILTRATION SUITS THAT WILL MASK BIOLOGICAL LIFE-SIGNS FOR THE INTERNAL SENSORS OF THE VERSANT. DO NOT LEAVE THE MAINTENANCE BAY WITHOUT THEM.

THE PACKAGES ARE MARKED WITH RANKS AND NAMES FOR EFFICIENT SIZE DISTRIBUTION. THE NEXT MESSAGE WILL BE SENT IN EIGHT HOURS, WHICH IS WHEN I WILL BE ABLE TO DISTRIBUTE DECK PLANS AND CLEAR ESCAPE ROUTES.

THERE WAS BUT ONE BIOLOGICAL PRISONER I DID NOT HAVE ACCESS TO TRANSPORT: CAPTAIN JIEN IVES, HELD IN THE SCION CAPTAIN'S NEST. NOR COULD I EXTRACT 'ALBERT' AND THE A.I. FROM THE THEURGY, WHICH MIGHT BE CONSIDERED A PRISONER TOO. THEY ARE STILL IN THE MACHINE INTELLIGENCE LABS.
Echtand paused, wondering what prompted the notion, but he added:

I ONLY FOUND ONE REPLICATION SEQUENCE ENTRY FOR "TWINKIES" IN YOUR DATABASE.
It was some kind of apology, he realized, for not being able to give her the data retrieval appliance. Then, Echtand logged out, and put his head in his hands. What am I doing? What if Tiran fails to tell them about the Antes, and they turn violent? Taking a deep breath, he rose, undressing so that he might cleanse his body. As if washing is hands from what he had just done, even though he knew he would be plagued by his conscience until this whole ordeal was over.

OOC: All right! In the maintenance bay, there are now 6 crates filled with 57 packages in total. The individual packages are labelled with ranks and names, and they are black boxes containing the infiltration suits and the Starfleet rations. There are also three twinkies in each package, because Tiran mentioned her preference for them to Echtand. The boxes will, of course, be stored in alphabetical order. As for the black infiltration suits, they look identical to the ones the Savi wear (see the image of Echtand, but I might be able to post more images in the Plot Discussion thread). The suits themselves don't have any features beyond masking sensors.

7 days response time begins now for all listed below! Here are the characters present in Blue Tiran's hideout in the Maintenance Bays, and if there are significant reunions because of this, it should be handled in Supplemental threads or mid-discussion in this thread. The naming convention for such threads belonging to this Prologue is: Prologue: Supplemental [ Day XX | XXXX hrs. ] Insert Title. Here goes: [Show/Hide]

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #17 –
[ Deacon | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] attn: @SummerDawn and anyone else

Although he'd been staring directly at the others, he found his attention focused to the contrary, looking not at them, but past them, through them, willing them silent to his mind.  The distance helped.  To some degree or another, his ziirgah was nowhere near as potent as it had been.  Some of this, he suspected also came from the damage done to his senses which kept him from augmenting the imperceptible traces of his emotional awareness with the physical ticks and tremors that nearly all living creatures employed to betray their inner sense of well being.  Scents were little more than memories, no doubt taste as well.  Pain, he'd discovered, was frustratingly renewed.  No doubt the Savi saw the damaged nerve endings that had resulted of his prior genetic tampering and sought to make repairs either out of some misguided sympathy or, more likely, their own perverted sense of perfection.  Sight, too, was something that they had begun to strip from him, although he found that he retained some shadow of his former sensitivity -- the lack of light in the cargo bay was not overly burdensome and in the dark, he could make out the faint shimmers of heat that emanated from the bodies of the crew, but everything was muted, the vibrancy and intensity that he had been accustomed to all his life was gone.

At K'Ren's touch, he took in a sharp breath, his attention now drawn to her proximity, her emotions.  He turned his eyes towards her, the golden specks swimming amidst the blue seeming to flash and dominate his eyes for the barest moment.  There was an instinct to jerk his hand away, but he resisted.  "Focus on me mate, ignore the others," she said, prompting him to draw her hand to his mouth, giving it a small kiss. "Let's find a quiet spot away from the others."

It was a tempting offer and given how much he desired to lay with her, to reaffirm their union, to comfort her as she comforted him, to show his contempt for their captors, one he would not set aside for long, but the circumstances remained unsettled and he had a duty to perform and precious little resources at his disposal.

Placing his forehead to hers, he whispered, "I'm alright for now.  It's... it's only overwhelming when they're so close.  I'm getting used to it but it's exhausting... like always being on guard."  He closed his eyes for a moment, the now dominant blue reasserting once they reopened, managing to stand out against his tan flesh and brown hair.  "I will get you out of here," he said, locking his eyes on her, his hand holding firmly to hers, "and I will make those pasty grey bastards pay for all of this."  He wasn't sure why he felt the need to reiterate the oath, the promise to secure the safety for the one he loved and avenge himself against those that had violated them, but circumstances felt too out of hand and that chaffed at his sense of purpose and duty.

It was then that his eared picked up the faint whine of a transporter beam.  Hearing.  That, at least, was undiminished, although Deacon had no true desire to eavesdrop on the hushed conversations of the others, comforted as he was that none were screaming and no sense of panic seemed to crash out from the assembled crowd.  It wasn't an attack, no task force of Savi warriors sent in to uncover their escape.  Instead, a long row of boxes had been deposited in the midst of the bay, each identical to the next save for what appeared to be names inscribed on each.

Casting a glance at K'Ren, he motioned for her to remain as he moved towards the new delivery, reviewing how each package was apparently designated for a specific prisoner, each presented in alphabetic order according to Federation standards.  How thoughtful, he mocked internally, carefully dodging past the others who were drawing closer to retrieve their own boxes.  K'Ren's was the first he located.  Curious that with such effort to alphabetize the delivery, he expected his own to be closer to the front even if he lacked an official rank.  As he moved along the line, the answer came to him as he drew closer to the center of the row.  Maryk, Xander.

He supposed he should have expected it, but he found the use of his birthname no less insulting.  He considered leaving the box unclaimed from spite, but the promise of tangibility, the prospect of again having tools at his disposal, overrode his perception of slight, forcing him to swallow his pride and claim the second box, taking both back to K'Ren.  "If I'm to be insulted by this name," he said, flashing the label of his own box to her, "at least they could have placed ours together."  He knelt down to one knee, holding out her own box to her, a wry, cock-sided grin playing across his features.  "Is that not how marriages work?"

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #18 –
We live, we love, we die...no. We be more'n tha'. We are all...so much more. There be no' one o' us tha' will give up this life so easily. Throw wha' yeh will at us. We will go on long after yeh have died 'n' faded from memoreh!
- Sinead O'Riley, Defiance

[ Lt. JG Sinead O'Riley | Maintenance Bays | The Versant ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan, @Brutus, @Zenozine, @Masorin, @SummerDawn, @chXinya, @Absinthe, @steelphoenix, @Blue Zephyr, @YasyraTrill, @patches, @Fife & @Numen
[Show/Hide]
Breathe.

Sinead pulled air into her lungs after seemingly holding it for an eternity. Blue Tiran was not a threat...to the group's continuance. No, that would be herself. Nobody should trust her. Not when she didn't even trust herself. Once she knew who and what Blue Tiran was, she sought a place of refuge in the singular room. There wouldn't be a lot of that, not with this many people around. Yet, for their own safety, she removed herself from the group, especially those of significant importance. Lin Kae, Nerina, and Blue were all of tactical value and importance in terms of leadership and knowledge in their fields. Khorin, Nathaniel and Cross, and a host of others were efficient and dangerous fighters all in their own rights. Either sheer brute strength or agility and natural defenses made them equally valuable.

Breathe.

She reminded herself to keep herself conscious. Watch over them, but keep her distance. She made a point of placing herself where everyone could see her, to know exactly where she was. If she went crazy, if she made a move to attack, there were plenty of telepaths that could pick up the changes in her brain surely, and even if she'd survived encounters with hostile Klingons, Cardassians and the deadly Jem'hadar, perhaps this group would have a chance to stop her before she did damage or worse. Provided they forsook any attempts to subdue her and go straight for killing.

Breathe.

She settled down on her haunches, heedless of her nudity before so many people. She was Bringloidi, and any other time, she would have been helping to appease tensions with what she knew best to use. But not now. And as she took up a vigil from her isolated spot, she went through every single person in the room, examining them with her silvery-blue eyes, glowing bright under the poor lighting. She analyzed the value or use of every person. Placing herself absolute last in value gave her its own sense of odd comfort. That they could continue even and perhaps especially without her. But she had to find the captain herself. She failed one, and she wasn't going to fail another.

Brea- “Jien Ives will mosth definitely die on accoun'a yeh.”

Bloody... Sinead closed her eyes, hugging her knees to her chest and buring her face in her folded arms. “Be gone...” said Sinead, barely a whisper to herself.

“But yeh will miss me, so moch.” said the ghost, and Sinead snapped her head up to glare at the phantasm, anyone looking at her would only see her suddenly looking angrily at nothing in particular, unless they happened to be in her line of sight. But the fury left as quickly as it came. Maybe this was her own guilty conscience punishing her for those innocent lives she'd taken. There would be no excuse whether she had been under her own control or not. The fact was simply that she had blood in her hands. The blood of friends, of Starfleet officers.

Breathe.

She felt more than saw someone boring eyes into her, and when she looked up again, there beside her annoying ghost/conscience was Nathaniel Isley once more.

“Follow me,” he said just as she said, “Yeh shoul' no' be...”

...coming close to me. I could kill you. was the incomplete part of her sentence, but his tone brooked no argument, or heeded the danger he placed himself in when he momentarily turned his back to her. Though he undoubtedly had far more strength than she ever would, Sinead could move swiftly, decisively, just reached out with her hands for his head. Against her better judgement, she unfolded herself from where she sat, and trailed him, for his own safety, and her own restraint, she clasped her hands tightly behind her. When he turned around, she stopped, keeping at least three feet between them. That ought to give him enough time to react and the distance to take any necessary action. She didn't care or notice their bare physical forms and the fact that keeping her hands behind her meant she was essentially exposing herself for him completely. Wasn't that the general idea anyhow?

Breathe.

She drew in air, calming herself, doing her best to concentrate on Nathaniel alone, and not the grating voice of her other self. It made her wonder if she sounded that annoying to other people. She nodded as the Romulan told her that he could help her, having gone through a similar experience. But he probably didn't know the full story behind her situation, and her experiences. Perhaps it would help him to know that first.

“Afterh th' Dominion Warh, I took some time t' join th' Vulcans at a monastery. They taught me th' Ways of Surak, which I have embraced.” She looked up at him, brushing back stray strands of red hair, then quickly snapped her hand back behind her.“Every day, I woul' meditate, t' purge meself of emotions, an' t' fight downh th' fury I feel from my time in th' Dominion War. I do believe tha' yeh can help me. If yeh be Romulan, perhaps there be enough o' yer shared ancestry wi' Vulcans, t' perform a mind meld. I have seen, even practiced the method, as shown by th' Vulcans. If I show yeh, maybe yeh can perform it?”

“An' that will let 'im see me!” said the ghost gleefully, “Yes, make him do it! I think we can take over him too! Then we'll have a Romulan and a Bringloidih t' break this wee li'l insurrection.”

Sinead's eyes widened, and she stepped back from Nathaniel. “I apologize,” said the auburn-haired woman, “perhaps a mind-meld be not th' best ideah. What did yeh have in mind t' help me block th' voices?”

Breathe.

When the familiar hum of the transporter sounded, Sinead held up a hand to forestall Nathaniel's response. She saw the others approaching when it was clear they weren't found out. Moving between two officers, she saw that it was gear and equipment. They also separated the gear by name and assignment. Very efficient and easy. The suits were practical and useful, and she wasted no time in dressing herself. She would be ready to act immediately if needed.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #19 –
[LCdr Blue Tiran | Twinkies are a Girl’s Best Friend |  Blectand Forever | How to Survive on Evil Enemy Ships | It’s War Time, Bitches]
@Auctor Lucan @patches @Triage @Numen @steelphoenix @Fife

The hug, was unexpected.  The chances were, neither of them would speak of this moment again as long as they lived.  Theirs was a rivalry and hatred that continued on, until this moment where seeing a face you knew, any face, was a welcome boon.  Still, Tiran knew there were witnesses.  People that watched the reunion of two people from the same ship.  She almost wanted to cry, but she didn’t.  Now was not the time for crying.  Now was not the time for doing much more than rallying the troops that were likely better rested than the blue-haired woman that stood before them.  One of them was a familiar voice, and she looked up to see Cross standing there asking why they couldn’t have gotten along like this on the escape pod. 

Blue gave a slight bark of half-laughter.  “Because Shar will forever be a bitch.” She laughed nudging the Andorian with her shoulder knowing that the hatred was mutual.  It had always been, theirs was a battle.  But, it was a battle she was glad to continue.  When Cross verified who he was, Blue smirked.  “Your voice gave it away, and we’ve served together long enough I won’t forget, Cross.” She said and looked back at the rest of the room before delivering her information and her pep talk to everyone.

Then another… another hug, and she was tackled by someone else that had skin and a voice that didn’t match that.  She winced slightly, but she hugged the form back of her favorite Counselor.  The woman that had heard all of Blue’s issues, and then all the problems that sent her there.  All the Brig visits, and the only person that cared enough about Blue to take the layers of her onion off little by little until she was able to unravel some of the truth.  Though Blue held onto the kernel at the center fiercely and secretly.  “Wait.  Where’s your fur.  It’s fucking weird.  Bring it back” she said looking at R’Rori and trying to figure out how not to stare at the oddly un-furred body of her friend.  “Yep.  Weird.”

One of the men, a Klingon, began to speak about if he could get ahold of one of the Savi PADDs, she almost hid hers behind her back.  She didn’t want to lose her one connection to Echtand.  Because while these were her people, and these were those that she had needed to rescue, she needed to keep her communications open with him.  She had seen what amateurs could do to devices and there was no way in fuck she was letting someone that had less training than her get his dirty mitts on her only device to speak to Echtand.  She swiftly tucked the PADD into the back of her uniform.  There was plenty of room there now that she had lost all the weight she had what with the not eating or drinking and barely surviving.  Her sleeve rose up slightly to show the cuts on her pale skin she had administered herself, but they hid again soon after she let her arm back to rest. 

Not one fucking person was going to easily get that fucking PADD from her.  That was her PADD.  Her eyes shifted to the Klingon that wanted her PADD.  Her brow rose.  “it’s just past midnight, we have time, and until I get a message that states otherwise, nothing is going to happen.  We have to wait, if we go too early we fuck all of it up.”

She looked over at another man, that spoke, her eyes were a crystalline blue color, the color of a the sky on a warm summer day.  The kind of eyes that could turn to cold orbs of ice when they needed to as many who knew her could attest.  She listened to what he had to say and she thought about it.

“The PADD is the only communication I have with the Savi that set all of this up for us.”  She figured that she might as well be honest that the benefactor they had was someone that she not only trusted .. as much as someone like Blue could trust, but that he was one of the enemy as well.  She swallowed letting that sink in for a moment.  “We have someone on our side, someone that is risking their life to help me and help you.  Because of his own reasons.  But if this PADD gets fucked up I have no fucking way to get the messages tomorrow of when to begin what we’re supposed to be doing.  We have to get the fuck out of here, off this ship, and to safety.  All while he figures out what to do next.” She looked at all of them.

“I’m a Computer and Hacking expert.  I will be a part of whatever electronics and hacking that we do here.  I have also been putting together phaser like weapons.” She pointed to the pile that was on the floor.  “There may not be one for everyone, I didn’t realize how many people had been transported and imprisoned here.  However, I’ve done what I can.”

Another woman stepped up, and Blue’s eyes swung over to see her saying that she was the First Officer of the Theurgy before being relegated here.  Her brow rose, as she mentioned that she had done well.  Of course I’ve done a good fucking job.  I’ve stayed alive, made alliances, and got all you fuckers here and alive.  If only you had any fucking idea of what the fuck was about to happen to you dick heads you would be groveling at my feet instead of making demands and being pissy about it.  She said none of this but she crossed her arms over her chest and listened as the woman spoke more.

Tiran was glad for the woman who echoed her own thoughts in the fact that they did not need to proceed without caution and a full plan.  Not to mention food, rest, and ideas.  She didn’t want to go out there and jeopardize everything that she had worked so hard to achieve.  Everything Echtand had put on the line for her, this small human that he met and questioned.  Some kind of uneasy alliance had been formed but it was one that was born out of the vulnerability that she felt at this moment.  Her fiancé was dead, her crew was missing, though now recovered. 

A beep chirped from behind her, and she sighed.  Fucking Echtand you have shit timing you white faced mother fucker.  She closed her eyes for a moment as she reached behind her and grabbed the PADD from her pants before she thumbed across it and read the message that was on her screen.  Moments after she read it, she rose her brow and heard the telltale signs of the transporter beam behind her.  She read the message and a soft resigned smile crossed her face as she looked up.  Sure enough there were boxes everywhere.  Each with a name on them each would have clothing and food in there that they could eat, wear, relax with.  It was going to help not only their spirits but their bodies as well.

“We have been sent care packages.  Clothing that is in the Savi style, so we can blend in.  They will mask our biosignatures so that we are not easily caught.  That will come in handy tomorrow.  Each box is labeled a name, find your shit, and get dressed.  Inside the boxes are food as well.  Lets do as the Commander said and take a fucking break.  Rest our bodies and prep.  I know that we won’t receive another message for eight hours.  It has been stated, so we might as well get some rest.”

It was not the time, now, to mention the Antes, that was something she was going to bring up when it was actually time.  Right now, it wasn’t, right now they needed their clothes and their food.  They needed to get shit done and prep themselves for the oncoming battle that was about to ensue.  It wouldn’t be easy, and even with Echtand on their side she knew it was going to be patchy.  But, it would be worth it if they could get out of here.

“I’ve heard that Ives, a Captain was not transported, neither were a few items from the intelligence lab.  We will have to plan to get the Captain and the items on our way out.  It’s going to have to become part of the plan.  We will have to split up, but a well laid plan will see us all through this fucking hell hole.” She commented as she went over to the boxes and found her own.  Pulling it to the side she sat down with it and opened the box, inside, on the top, was a fresh packet of twinkies.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked at the little fluffy yellow cakes.  They skewed slightly with the tears watering in he eyes and sliding down her cheeks.  They were such a throw back.  To a time where she didn’t have to worry about anything other than getting Brig’d again and getting Ducote back for something he had done without even knowing about it.  It was familiar, it was home, it was sad that it fucking was that way but twinkies were home.  Angrily she brushed at the tears on her cheeks and opened the bag of twinkies stuffing an entire one in her mouth and chewing it slowly she felt her chest shaking as the sobs that she had held back so long with finally came out.  She wasn’t a crier, R’Rori would know that, many of the crew she served with would know that, but here she was in front of a shit-ton of strangers crying about twinkies.

[Thank you.] she penned to Echtand while she continued to chew around the massive bit of fluff and dough in her mouth.  [I need schematics of the intelligence lab and the location of the Captain come morning.  They will be worked into our escape plan.  Thank you, Echtand.]  Two thank yous in a day, in one conversation, apparently Blue was overly emotional with her twinkies.

Blue sat by herself.  Being surrounded by so many people made it hard for her.  It made it hard because she had been alone for so fucking long.  She had suffered in ways that they hadn’t, and they had suffered in ways that she hadn’t.  She had seen things, horrendous things, and if anyone knew about the evilness of the Savi experiments it was Blue Fucking Tiran.  But, right now she needed them to trust her, to trust Echtand because that was the fucking key to getting off of this rock.  She couldn’t tell them about all of the things she had seen she could only tell them about the good things.  Later, she could decompress.  Later she could feel the hollow spot in her chest where Ducote used to reside, the spot that would never be healed.  It would seep and fester, and grow every larger until it consumed her.  She knew he had been empathic but there were times she wondered if he ever knew, truly, the depth of how much she loved him.

He had saved her.  Saved her from a darkness that she had embodied since a child.  The sharp prickly exterior he had pushed past all of that and made himself a place of ‘home’ in his arms for her.  He had always been her air, her voice, and her comfort.  Without him, she was a ship without a star upon which to navigate. 

She doubted she would survive long without him.

She didn’t wish R’Rori to know such things, but she hoped that maybe some of the Endeavour crew would come sit with her anyway.  Blue bit the other twinkie in half and chewed at it, her eyes darting from person to person trying to figure out what she should do next.  Who she should trust.  Who were all these people?  The Commander mentioned the Theurgy, Blue had only heard bad things about the ship.  A ship of traitors.  But … Blue Tiran would not suffer anyone to the fate on the Savi ship, traitor or not they could be brought to justice after they were rescued.  Or if they got away, she wouldn’t shed a tear.  She just wanted to get the fuck off this damned ship.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #20 –
[Lt. Zephyr Praise | Cuddles for Klingons | A New Reign | Finding Light in the Dark]
@Numen

He held her, to his chest.  She could hear the heart beneath his rib cage thrumming heavily in his chest.  She cared not that he was nude.  Being half-Betazoid she had seen a lot of nudity in her life and never really cared much about it.  Seeing someone she was physically attracted to and someone that she really liked naked was a bit different.  She didn’t mind it overly much to try to hide herself.  The way he folded down around her and put his head on top of hers.  Inhaling the scent of her hair though she couldn’t imagine that he could inhale the scent it would have normally.  She hoped, that she didn’t smell like Savi Correction Juice or whatever that stuff was called.  All she wanted was to find a dark corner and enjoy the time she had with Khorin.  Know him better, ask a bunch of questions, learn about his past, his dreams.. everything.

You’re falling too fast for him Zeph, that’ll only lead to heartbreak.  she chastised herself even though she didn’t want to.  She knew she should take it slow but her heart would not be calm, not at all.  She couldn’t stop from wanting to kiss him, to know what his breathing sounded like while they slumbered together, to know what it was like to wake up against him.  So many thoughts ran a million miles through her mind as he spoke to her out loud for the first time causing her to smile.  She loved all his voices.  Internal and external.

She could feel so much.  But, Khorin was paramount.  There were the elations of reunions, the realization of safety, and other things like that brushing against her mind but it was Khorin that came up fully and completely in her mind.  She knew they would help, whatever would happen, they would help.  She could tell the woman speaking was speaking the truth, though she was holding something back, Zeph could not tell what it was without pushing.  She smiled up at him having pulled back from his head on top of hers.

~You better.  Because I’ll follow you to the afterlife and haunt you.~ she smiled softly and looked up at him.  Cupping his cheeks as she looked into his lovely dark eyes with her own.  He was beautiful, strong, and honestly everything she could think of needing.  Of course, once they got off this boat they would likely have some issues getting settled.  They would fight, or spat, or whatever until they found a rhythm of not being in danger anymore forcing two hearts to each other.  But, if she got Khorin out of being brought to a Savi hell ship she would be more than happy to have experienced this all together.

~When we get off this ship.  You, me, one Quarters and some Humpy Pumpy Time.~ She said staring straight into his eyes.  The grin on her face proved what Humpy Pumpy time actually meant.  She knew it was this thing…. Between them.  She knew they both wanted to, but she didn’t want her first time to be here, in front of everytime, not with Khorin.  She wanted the time and the place to have time to explore and enjoy.  And privacy.  She didn’t mind nudity but the act of having sex or making love was something she felt was a very private affair. 

A transporter beam sounded and she looked around for the first time since her eyes had found Khorin and she smiled brightly at the supply boxes that had been brought.  She wouldn’t mind clothes, especially ones that fit.  Taking Khorin’s hand she leaned him through the fray that was building around the boxes and looked through to find his handing it to him before grabbing her own.  She lead him off so that others could get their boxes and sat down with him.  Opening hers there was food, some kind of … treat in a package that she put to the side and pulled out the Savi suit.  The woman with the odd colored hair mentioned they would mask bio signatures so she stepped in and pulled hers up quickly.  It fit like a glove and felt amazing. 

“These are surprisingly comfortable.” She said as she sat down next to Khorin so that she was close to him, touching him with the side that faced him.  She opened the small packet of food, not the treat.. things yet, but the food.  It was full of things she liked and she began to eat hungrily.  She had never felt more hungry in her life and she wasted no time getting some food into her stomach.

“That woman that was speaking.  She’s telling the truth.  I can tell that she is, she’s suffering greatly though…. Some kind grief.  I’m not sure what, but knowing how the Savi have treated most of us it could be their fault.  I’m unsure.” She said making small talk to Khorin while they sat side by side together. 

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #21 –
[ Lt. Cross | Maintenance Bay | Precept-ship Versant ] @Auctor Lucan @Blue Zephyr @Numen @patches @Triage @steelphoenix @SummerDawn Anyone Else

Cross watched as Lt. R’Rori tackled Blue in a fierce hug. He had never been a hugger and didn’t understand why so many people were inclined to enter into such close proximity with each other. Glad as he was that almost everyone from their escape pod was alive and relatively safe for the time being, he felt not the slightest urge to hug them. Even if he had, the crust of dried green blood that was smeared across his face would probably have been somewhat off-putting for the intended recipient of said hug.

Cross listened to the various discussions about the PADD, escape plans and resources without comment, barely paying attention to who was speaking at any given moment. He had nothing to add, and knew better than to get involved in the back and forth. His attention was grabbed when the supplies were beamed into the maintenance bay, and he listened with interest as Blue explained about the care packages. Cross moved unhurriedly to the care packages, finding the one that was labelled with his name and picking it up, along with another package with another familiar name on it. He moved off to the side and opened it, taking out the suit that was fitted for him and donning the garment. It fit him perfectly, and was surprisingly comfortable. Cross supposed that the Savi must have had all the abductee’s body measurements from the countless hours correcting and experimenting on them. The thought caused a sneer to spread across the Vulcan’s lips for a long moment before he schooled his expression back to something a little more neutral. Once he had regained some semblance of calm, he turned and moved off in search of the individual who's supplies he intended to deliver.

After delivering PO MacGregor's box, Cross picked his own black box up from the floor and took a moment to peer down at the remaining contents. Starfleet rations, and some strange yellow cake-like things. He’d heard people talking back on the Endeavour about some snack that Lieutenant Commander Tiran liked, and guessed that these must be those confections. Cross peered at the fluffy little cakes for a further moment, then raised his eyes to see Blue sitting by herself. The former Chief Engineer of the Endeavour was sitting on the floor, chewing on one of the yellow cakes and apparently weeping as she chewed. Cross stared blankly at the scene for a long moment, wondering what the hell he was looking at, then took a step forward without fully realizing what he was doing.

He stopped a few feet in front of Tiran and looked down at the human, wondering if he should just leave her alone even as he seated himself on the floor.

”Do you mind if I join you? It’s nice to see a familiar face, especially one that the Savi haven’t <fucked> around with.” It was true. The few faces in the crowd that he had known before the Savi had taken them still appeared to be strangers, most of them altered in one way or another. Cross lowered his gaze to peer into the box once more and reached a hand inside. ”Human food doesn’t make sense. Your species has great culinary abilities, and are able to create meals that could double as masterpieces, with flavours so developed that they are truly wonderful.” As Cross spoke he extracted the spongey yellow cakes and held them up in between himself and Lieutenant Commander Tiran. ”But you also make weird <shit> like this. I don’t get it.” Cross looked past the cakes to Blue’s face. She looked gaunt, obviously having had a rough time aboard the Savi ship. Her face was dirty and her cheeks now streaked with tears. Yet as she chewed on one of those little yellow sponges, there was a certain relish in her eyes. Cross held his three cakes out to her.

”They’re all yours, if you want them.” He said with a crooked and bloody grin. ”I doubt I’d be able to stomach them.” It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t his full reason for offering her the treats either. He remembered how Blue had been on the escape pod. He knew she had been extremely close with Commander Ducote. He knew she was in a fragile mental state, most likely hanging on by a thread. Cross was no counsellor. Hell, he was probably the least likely in the group to understand the various emotions Blue was feeling. He knew he was well out of his depth. But she was his crewmate, and he wanted to do something for her. And so he sat there, holding out the disgusting little yellow sponges in a weak offering of comfort, unsure of what had possessed him to approach the tempestuous engineer in the first place.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #22 –
[ LtJr. Khelleshar sh'Zenne | Day 5 | 2315 hrs.| Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]
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Attn: @Auctor Lucan  @Brutus  @Zenozine  @Masorin  @SummerDawn  @chXinya @Absinthe  @steelphoenix  @Blue Zephyr @patches  @Fife  & @Triage




"And here, Commander No-so-Blue would always be a smartass piece of shit," Shar replied to Cross's taunt, her fake smile fixed in her face. After that, she turned to Blue, slapping her on the shoulder harder than she should have, worse still given the pitiful state the engineer was in. "Do not get confused, pink-skin, I prefer you to our abducters, but as soon as we get out of here I'll do everything in my hands to make your life impossible, you moron" She spatted, her shark-like grin defiant in her face, but her antennae slashing over her scalp. It felts just right to hate Blue. Even when it seemed that she was their only chance to get out of there, the only one who had gotten an ally in that nightmare wrapped in duranium. That was the only one who had any idea beyond smash security.


When the counselor made her appearance on the scene, Shar stepped back, crossed her arms under her chest and watched with a sneering expression on her face how the tears began to run down the face of her enemy. A scathing comment was beginning to form in the back of her throat, when she looked away as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She leaned her head to find out who that hand belonged to, and she found Shall's concerned look on the other side of the limb. A slight blush rose to the shen's cheeks, and her expression relaxed slightly, arching the antennae in the direction of chan. Despite the unfortunate way she wase bounded to the other members of that adulterated Shelthreth, it made her feel good that there were someone around who cared about her, someone to whom she could feel attached. Shar put her hand on Shall's, a feathery touch that lasted barely a second. "All good here," she replied with a soft whisper, the ferocity with which she used to surround herself, disarmed for a moment. Soon, she pushed her liquid gaze away from the scientist's face, searching for the others. Sehl was close, without finishing joining the contact but close to them, still on the defensive stance since they were beamed there.


Ida ... Ida had gone, rejecting Shall's touch as if it burned, her gesture stern and irritated, as contradictory and fickle as she had been during the experiment. Shar slipped a hand to the bottom of her belly, where she believed that the egg was developing. It was still too early in the process to feel anything under her fingertips, but as soon as they had woken up in the fake-enterprise Shar had felt her body adjusting for the next phase of shelthreth, a strange heat growing inside her and a constant irritation seizing her mood. It wasn't something she had felt before, but like all shen, she knew the symptoms. She still had time, but the zhen's attitude made her antennae wrung with concern. None of them had decided to be part of the Savi's experiment, but once the process was started, there was no turning back. And however small was the possibility of that egg finishing its development, Shar would do everything possible to give it a chance. As was her duty to their declining people.


The young andorian pulled her hand away from where it was resting and balled it into a fist in her side, then looked resolutely at both males. "Let her go and cold her head off," she said authoritatively, her antennae crushing against her skull as anger was growing inside her. "It's not time now, but we'll need to talk about what we need to do sooner or later ... And we will need Ida then" she snorted. It was no time to get carried away by sentimentality, all they had a duty behind their backs and Shar was willing to remind the zhen her duty in that matter. Even if she need to kick it in her head.


However, they still had time and, over all, they had more imperious needs in those moments, as it reminded her of the transporter's swirling noise. Soon, a section of the maintenance bay was filled with dark boxes, which according to The Beast, contained resources. After casting one last look at her crew fellows reunited again, Shar headed toward the crates, hoping that the other andorians  followed her footsteps. A quick inspection allowed her to find the box that was marked with her name and rank. After the long days in the cramped scape pod and the drugs of the experiment, it was strange to remember that she was an officer of the Starfleet, former Assistant Chief of Operations in USS Endeavour, third shei of Keth Zenne in OM-12. She had been barely an animal, starved first, heated later. When she stuffed herself into the dark suit, she could feel a little more like herself, like a person again.


The next step was to feed her body, and she was surprised to find tuber roots among the provisions at her disposal ... and those disgusting things that seemed to be the only fuel of No-So-Blue. Shar pushed them away with displeasure and began to consume the roots, keeping standing and vigilant, attentive to the movements of the rest of the Andorians, regaining control.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #23 –
[ Khorin, son of Margon, of House Mo'Kai | | Day 5 | 2315 hrs.| Maintenance Bays | The Versant ]
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Attn: @Blue Zephyr



When Zeph took his face in her hands, threatening with haunting him in the afterlife if he DARED to die far from her, Khorin only could rumble a chuckle, enchanted by the fierceness of  the betazoid woman. He loved that she allowed him to protect her, to take care of her, just to show seconds after that she only needed ridges on her forehead to be a true daughter of Qo'noS. She was gorgeous, strong, witty and, in some subtle way, terrifying, all those features checked in his list of the perfect woman. He felt unable to stop looking at those unfathomable eyes, he wanted to lose himself on them forever. It could be a good way to die.


When her eyes flickered with a cheeky sparkle and her mind told him about a shared quarters and some Humpy Pumpy time, his grin became even wider and stupider than before. And he had to make real efforts so that his excitement facing such promise would not be reflected in his naked body. For first time since they had arrived at the bay, he was grateful for the cold air that was freezing him to death or he had found himself in a very OBVIOUS uncomfortable situation, surrounded as they were by half a hundred people. Still, he lifted his upper lip, exposing his teeth, showing his approval. But as much as the phrase stirred his groins, he remembered himself that they were in the middle of a war zone, in an enemy ship. They had no room for a proper mating and an oath beyond the one they had already pronounced.


Tilting his head into one of Zeph's hands, Khorin realized that he just not only thought about commit THE oath with her, but that it came natural to his mind when Zeph was involved. Being aware of it, frightened him as few things had done. The pilot had never thought he could have commitment issues, but he hadn't had any intention of committing to anyone until now. And that his heart skipped a beat in his chest just thinking about spending time alone with her, scared him to the bones. Because he knew well that, beneath his overconfident attitude, he had a great capacity to screw things up. And he was usually able to solve stuff with a smug grin and a well-directed joke. But he didn't want to mess  things with Zeph. The idea of ​sadden her in some way terrified him. And he was terrified of being terrified. Khorin had always been someone sure of himself, of winning anything he set out to do, and in the case of not doing so, of being able to get out of the situation better off than most people. So feeling like he felt at that moment was a disturbing novelty.


When the Klingon was beginning to fall into a spiral that he was unable to handle, his mind deafened by an emotion that was alien to him, Zeph took him out of that tumble into an auger by dragging him to the boxes that had just materialized in the bay, placing his crate between his hands before he had time to put his emotions in check. He dressed himself running in autopilot, and only came out of it when Zeph addressed him, sat by his side.He just nodded to avoid the dryness that had taken hold of his throat, while looking betazoid from head to toe. The tight dark suit left little to imagination, and only highlighted how beautiful she was. How perfect she was.


He took possession of the provisions contained in the box, and put almost half of the water available in his stomach in one gulp. Then he search through the food, which consisted mainly of jerky and smoked meat. Klingon field rations, like the ones he had seen his father and uncle prepared before entering combat. He gnawed them for a while, just concentrating on the simplicity of the act, and on the heat of Zephyr's body on his side. Lieutenant Zephyr Praise. Thanks to the black box Khorin knew her full name. It fit her. She really deserved be praised.


Without really knowing how, his attack of... panic? He couldn't call it panic, he didn't have panic attacks. His sudden slight disturbance of his mood, That sounded better. His little mood swing had disappeared, and he felt at ease with Zeph again. It was so easy to be relaxed with Zephyr. Following an impulse, he put an arm around her shoulders, to reassure himself as much as to show her he has cared for her.


"Good to know she tell the truth" He rumbled, joining her small talk. "Anyway Cross trusts her, and I trust Cross, so she's on our pack now. Cross is an ugly and bitter sidekick but you can rely on his criteria." He admitted, his trademarked crooked grin growing in his face. He and the grump vulcan had hit it off almost since they meet, even with their little misunderstanding in Ten Forward. Khorin chuckled while remembering that, and shook his head as he rummaged through the box in search of something else to put in his mouth. That was when he discovered the sweet sponges hidden in the box. Twinkies. "You know ... I loved this junk back on Earth," he said before taking a bite of one of the buns. As he suspected, the taste was repulsive. Just like licking a pan that hadn't been cleaned in five years, seasoned with ashes and soil. "I was such a sweet-toothed back then, my Ma had indulged it all my life ... but since those Savi Correction, i  just can't enjoy sweet flavors anymore ..." He groaned, putting on a tremendously exaggerated pout on his face.

Re: Chapter 06: Insurgency [ Day 05 | 2315 hrs. ]

Reply #24 –
[Ens. Irnashall "Shall" ch'Xinya | Maintenance Bays | The Versant]

Shall knew that Ida wouldn’t have taken his presence well, much less physical contact, but it still hurt when she shrugged out of his touch and stomped off.  Shar was the complete opposite, she took his hand in her own, eyes meeting and despite the darkness he could see her skin blushing a deeper blue.  He couldn’t help but notice the rest of her reactions either, the way she covered her belly, clearly feeling for something that she couldn’t yet, but soon might be able to feel in another.  Sehl was nearby as well, approaching out from out of the crowd to be with them.  Before he or Shall could say anything though, the moment passed and Shar’s voice and stance turned as hard as ice.

White hair rustled as Shall nodded in response.  “It’s not the first time something like this has happened to her.”  For a moment he thought about expounding on that, but with so many around that didn’t sound like a great idea.  “I’ll fill you in another time.” Even though he kept his voice calm, the chan’s antenna drooped in embarrassment.  Before anyone could press for any details new lights flared in the room along with the familiar chiming of a transporter.  Looking over to the source Shall could see multiple rows of boxes, waiting.  Commander Not-so-Blue made an announcement that they were for everyone, and he joined the crowd in hunting for one tagged for himself.  ”Not-so-Blue”? Strange name for a human. He filed that thought away.  Despite all the years he’s spent around the pinkskins there were elements about them he just could not figure out.

Finding the box labeled “Irnashall ch’Xinya” was quite easy, and as soon as he had it open Shall was looking over the bodysuit their Savi “savior” had made for him.  It looked like it would fit without any problem, but it was far from his usual style.  Preferring more loose and flowing clothing, Shall wasn’t very keen on this skintight piece of polymer fabric (or whatever it was made of).  Solid panels shimmered in the light while flexible joints allowed for motion and fitting, and it included built-in boots with massive treading.  Shrugging he threw it over his shoulder and made for the wall, examining the remaining contents.  The tuber roots were a nice surprise, but the package of yellow lookalikes escaped the scientist.

Setting the box down and squeezing into the suit, Shall felt a touch more proper, if confined.  Nothing rode where it shouldn’t, and surprisingly the suit allowed a full range of motion.  Time would tell if it breathed properly, but that was a test better suited for later.  Plopping onto the deck and curling his legs together, Shall set the box on his lap and tore into the roots.  He was slow to eat at first, survival training reminding him to take it easy after a forced fast, but his stomach won the battle and they disappeared quickly thereafter.  A liquid container possessed some water, and he washed the simple meal down with a sizable chunk of his allotted portion.

Satisfied at last, Shall leaned his head back, resting it on the cool metal wall.  His eyes closed and with little else to do but wait for now, he prepped himself mentally for a nap.
 
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