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Epilogue: For the Win [D06|1430]

EPILOGUE: FOR THE WIN [ DAY 06 | 1430 HRS. ]



Captain's Log, stardate 57556.69. Three hours ago, we emerged from a collapsing subspace tunnel into a sector bordering to the hollowed-out Mutara Nebula - disturbing a group of gormaganders chasing a solar wind with our sudden appearance.

Because of the state of our ship, it will take us 12 hours to reach the Epsilon Mynos System, which is the closest star system. I sent the Allegiant ahead of us, to try and establish communications with High Chancellor Martok, in hope that he will stand by his word, and lend the Empire's aid to our mission. Given the Empire's ties to the Aldeans, and my familiarity with the planet, we hope to have the ship repaired there, and to decide on our next move together with Martok.

Three days ago, about this time of the alpha shift, we encountered the Versant, which may have answered the call of the Asurians to find us in the Azure Nebula, but the Savi had an altogether own agenda when it came to this crew. One of the Infested led the aliens, and those of interest that were abducted did not manage to escape the ship until today. I was one of them, which explains the lack of logs made since then. I was liberated by a mix of abductees on that ship, after one of the aliens - named Echtand - aided in our escape, all for his own gain in a rebellion. Unfortunately, Echtand did not survive, but I hope the uprising of his caste will be victorious, and that the whole species not only find a way to live together in mutual understanding, but abide to their Old Code.




V-Nine had found her way to sickbay, and was trying to help in the time of crisis for the specimens, despite how crude and insufficient the medical facilities were. At least she had the tools installed into her platform to aid in the endeavour, but she had yet to begin any restoring surgeries to those who had been on the Versant.

At first, her efficiency was hampered by the reactions to her presence, but at least the medical staff had acknowledged that she was able to help after a short time, and they had allowed her to preform her tasks under supervision. The last thirty minutes and twenty two seconds, however, she had started to treat patients unsupervised, which showed that - perhaps - the crew might accept her services on a more official basis soon enough. Purse speculation, of course, but it was good to have a purpose.

"I see, so you were vaccinated prior to assimilation? Then there might hope for you yet, we offer ORE treat- Oh!" she exclaimed, er lens zooming back, when a metal implant sprouted from the neck of the patient she was scanning. It caused the specimen toscream in horror. "Pardon me, I w-will take you to the specialists now."



During the time spent on the Versant, the Continuance Protocol was in effect for the Theurgy, ensuring that the truth would survive an enemy such as the Savi. In the end, facing many hardships, the ship was reunited in a common cause to thwart a pending Borg invasion, and we who were abducted by the Savi managed to take command of the Versant and escape on our own. I commend the late Wenn Cinn for this choice, instead of trying to save those abducted. It must not have been an easy choice, frowned upon by many, but it proved to be the right one.

Unfortunately, Wenn Cinn sacrificed his life to seal the passageway the Borg had found into Federation space, claiming it was the will of the alien entities in the Bajoran wormhole. To grant him this wish, for the sake of the greater good, was a difficult choice of my own - surely frowned upon - but given the extreme circumstances, I also believe it might have been the right one. Nonetheless, I will always regret it on the basis of loosing a fine officer - and a friend - a second time.




Walking down the corridor, ThanIda zh'Wann was no longer in the Savi infiltration suit, having showered and donned her regular uniform. She had a Type II pulse phase pistol at her hip, and she had just thanked and relieved Adam Kingston from his duties as Acting Deputy. There was an unknown pinkskin named Kai Akoni that served as Acting CSec after they lost Wenn Cinn, but between runaway Devoted, half the Bellerophon survivors missing, and countless other security issues, Ida had yet to speak at length with the man. No one could replace Cinn, and she wasn't even sure he would be the one to keep the position. It was too soon to tell.

[Sehl th'Chilnes to ThanIda zh'Wann,] came a call from her combadge, the voice belonging to one of the Andorians she'd shared more time with than she cared for. Sighing, she ran a hand through her wet hair.

"This is Ida, what is it, Ensign?" she asked keeping her tone cordial. She felt numb anyway, the loss of Cinn still felt.

[We were told to inform you if there was any sightings of the Devoted. I am looking at them right now. Can you come to my position?]

"On my way. Ida out." Perhaps the three bondmates would come to their senses after all?



I have made Lieutenant Commander Natalie Stark Acting Executive Officer, because I have learned what Trent did wile in command of Vector 01. Whereas he should have upheld the Continuance Protocol in the respect of preserving the truth and the mission, his personal priority was the reassembling of the ship under his command - opting to needlessly stay in the final Rendezvous Zone. This, apparently in desperate wish to liberate the abductees from the Versant, and his love interest. Doing so, he would have jeopardised the ship against a superior adversary. While I can sympathise with his motivations, his heart leading him, his actions led to the destruction of the Bellerophon. This made Lieutenant Commander Dewitt relieve him from command, and she used any time available in the battlefield to initiate rescue operations of the survivors, meaning to flee as soon as engineering said they could.

Some would call what Dewitt did 'mutiny', and not agree with it out of principle, even if she did her utmost to both preserve the truth and do the right thing in the aftermath of what Trent had done. Before Trent came aboard, the Theurgy had defended herself against many starships, but only when absolutely forced to do so. Accounts so far indicate that the Bellerophon did not have to be destroyed, but Dewitt's actions in the sense of preserving the chain of command aboard is problematic at best. Of course, not many would dare do what Dewitt did this morning, but I have yet to decide what to do with them both. Nonetheless, their actions during the battle at the apertures commendable in their own merit.

For the time being, I have had Dewitt take the Allegiant to Epsilon Mynos space, and Trent is to compile the latest intel on this sector.




In the Main Computer Core, Thea had been working together with two engineers to help reinstall her positronic brain into it's proper place. A level one diagnostic was about to be concluded, after which she would go online once more. While her holographic interface waited, she thought of Lin Kae, and the hour she had fought as best as she might to maintain control of the Versant. Moreover, she thought of the Android humanoid and owl, who had both been given the Synthesis Code. What were they to her now?

"All systems check out," said the Engineer, "There is a bit of backlog in the memory banks to delve into, but as far as access goes, you're good to go."

"Thank you," said Thea and smiled, then she raised her chin. "Thea to Captain Ives, I am ready to be activated again."

[This is Ives, no need to ask. Please go ahead, and inform the Senior Staff.]

"Aye, Captain," she said, and with a nod to the Engineer, the Theurgy was truly whole again.



Wenn Cinn was not the only Senior Staff member I lost while in captivity. Chief Tactical Officer Leon Marquez and Chief Intelligence Officer Keval ch'Rayya, both gone, and I have been informed that the Savi raided the stasis units on the ship when they did their forage. As it were, Commander Nerina led the abductees on the Versant until her demise at the hands of a Scion. I deeply regret her passing, and how I was unable to meet her once more.

Of course, there is also the matter of Doctor Nicander, who's true nature as an Infested disqualifies him to continue serving as Chief Medical Officer, despite his apparent willingness to aid the mission. Evidently, something was done to him that allows him a modicum of independence and free will, and apparently, he has aided the crew with intel on the enemy. As I make this log, I am undecided on how much he may be trusted.




In the Parasite Cell, as the temporary holding cell had come to be called in the Security Center, Doctor Nicander waited, having been told that Heather McMillan was - indeed - alive. He'd been told, without detail, what had happened to her, which explained how he could have seen her die. She had been obliterated by that Scion after all, only to be reassembled... after a quantum stasis field had held her matter in animated suspense? It sounded ludicrous, had he not read the Voyager logs about the scientist Jetrel. Had the Savi succeeded where the Voyager's transporter systems had failed? Was there any limit to the discoveries those aliens had made?

Still, this did not explain the second sight, where a lot of crewmembers had been liquefied on a metal platform. Who were they?Did they exist? Were they a holographic illusion? Can I trust what I see when I look into the abyss, or will there be mirages there waiting for me?

As it were, he was waiting for the Radiant to come, having requested that she could try and permanently remove the taint inside him. It was not redemption... but perhaps a chance to be free, and earn the trust of the crew once more. Moreover, it would be the answer to the question he'd been asking since what happened at Starbase 84. Could they weaponize the light?

Of course, he'd told them that the Borg must have powered down the cell he sat in before, so that they might reach him. It would have been foolish to give them an excuse to kill him in fear of not being able to contain him. A white lie, for their own good, since how else could he make sure they knew what they needed about the enemy?



Furthermore, we have new shipmates from the Belleophon, the Endeavour and the Cayuga. Even a few security officers and fighter pilots from the Dauntless. Among these new faces on the Theurgy are high ranking officers who will likely understand the import of our mission, and I hope they will offer to serve with us. Given the situation, I realise I may have to select a new Senior Staff, but this will have to wait until after the dire needs of Thea herself can be seen to, and we've established an accord with the Klingons.

While we wait for the Allegiant, critical repairs are currently prioritised. Plasma fires are still rampant, and we have yet to tame the fluctuations in the EPS grid, which only serve to cause more fires. We dare not power down the warp cores since we might be unable to restart them, diagnostics offline after a well needed purge of Borg contamination in our systems. Security are still working on finding escaped Devoted and dangerous individuals among our new shipmates. Medical are working tirelessly under Doctor Rez' command with ORE treatment of any vaccinated crew that were assimilated during the battle. Rez, indeed, even if I have yet to evaluate her suitability for running Sickbay given what her former host - Jona - did at Starbase 84. My final decision is not set in that respect.




In the Fighter Assault Bay, Liam Herrold was working tirelessly with the deck crew, the squadron as a whole in great need of repairs, just like everything else aboard the ship. With Covington gone, and him being second in command, he had to step up and do what was needed. For three hours, he had delegated the duties between the Heads of Fighter Ops - Ji included - and reviewed the tactical logs from the battle to better understand the conditions of some of the fighters.

Only four fighters, those in the best condition, were out on patrol - the rest of the Wolves off drinking no doubt. He surely could need a drink himself...

At one point, he found himself in the SCO and COD office, pressing his hands against his eyes and trying to dispel the fatigue. The sliding doors opened... and there she was. Ji, lit from the back by the fighter bay, and despite it all, he found himself smiling to her. Regardless the workload, she was there to share it with him.



I was pleased when I recently learned how Lieutenant Commander Miles Renard managed to reach the Theurgy in his fighter, rejoining the Lone Wolves even though he was declared MIA at Starbase 84. I do look forward to read his report. As for the Lone Wolves, new and old, two fighter elements are patrolling the sector to find any present threats to the ship, but the rest are off duty. Since we're no longer in the Azure Nebula, Mission Ops are able to maintain subspace communication with the patrolling wolves, and we have real time threat assessment once more.

While the implications of the battle's import rely heavily on the word of Nicander and Sarresh Morali, I see how they might be correct. In stopping the Borg, we have delayed the...

Thea, pause log.

- Captain Jien Ives, USS Theurgy NX-79854

[ Captain Ives | Main Bridge | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ]
[Show/Hide]

After the call came, Captain Ives - in his male form - left his Ready Room and stepped out behind his chair.

"Captain on the bridge!" someone called, making him raise a hand to the present crew.

"At lease. Report?"

"It's the Allegiant," one of the present officers said. "She's returned, having entered comm range. She's hailing us."

"On screen," said Ives, and sat down in his chair when Dewitt appeared. "Do you bear news, Commander?"

[Aye, Captain,] she said, folding her hands behind her back where she stood on the small bridge of the scoutship. [We were able to reach a subspace relay network of the Empire's and requested access in order to reach the Klingon Defence Force and High Chancellor Martok. It was not easy to have them understand the need for absolute discretion, but when I told them what you said, and delivered Zyrao Natauna's message to identify us to the recipient, Martok knew it was really us trying to make contact. He told me to tell you that.... you fought with great honour, for being a shapeshifter.]

Despite of all that had happened, this earned a quiet smile from Ives, and some chuckles around the damaged bridge. "How did he respond to my suggestion?"

Smiling a bit as well, Dewitt gave them the news. [Chancellor Martok has spoken with the stationed KDF General and the Aldea Defence Committee already, and in respect to the threat the galaxy face, they have offered to receive us at the Aldea Prime Shipyards. It will not be easy to keep us hidden there for the duration of extended repairs, but the Aldeans were confident that they could provide complete discretion and prevent direct Federation insight. Fake military drills are being arranged to clear the orbit of Aldea, and all traffic will be diverted upon our arrival. We've got the coordinates, and we just need to send word ahead when we reach the edge of the solar system.]

Hearing that they had been given sanctuary, after five months of constantly being on the run, was far more soothing than Ives had thought. He had not liked the mentioning of a new cloaking device being installed aboard, but he would not dismiss it's usage just yet. As it were, they didn't even have energy enough to use it.

"Well done, Commander, and you can dock that poor ship for repairs now. Helm, set a course, for the Epsilon Mynos System."

As it looked, perhaps Aldea would be their home for quite some time, while they planned the next step to fight the Infested.


OOC: The Epilogue is open for posting! Either you post once or twice in this thread, or you set up scenes in Supplemental threads that belong to the Epilogue. These supplemental threads can either detail the immediate aftermath of Chapter 05 and the Battle of the Apertures, meaning between the aperture exit and this scene above which takes place 3 hours later (Day 06 between 1130 hrs and 1430 hrs.). Secondly, you can also post Supplemental threads that take place between the scene above and 12 hours later, when they arrive to the Epsilon Mynos System (between Day 06 at 1430 hrs. and Day 07 at 0230 hrs.).

Regardless the time you pick, the naming convention for all such threads belonging to this Epilogue is: EPIL: S [D06|XXXX] Insert Title. Have fun! The next board will open up when all preparations are finished for Aldea, but it shouldn't be too long. :)

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #1
PO2 Sithick | Deck 06| Search and Rescue Operations ]Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Doc M. @Nolan
[Show/Hide]

Put out one fire and two more spring up, deck six having direct contact with a majority of the helmets EPS conduits was one of the ones hit hard by the damage. Sithick was clearing debris, getting to life signs, and getting them to sickbay. He had found a few people, whom had been scared, and cut off from the rest of the ship. He was one of the best for the job because his strength made it easier for him to lift debris, while his body was still sore from his own encounter with Borg Plasma weapons he had to admit that he could move a lot faster than most of the other teams.

Lifting up some of the scaffolding that had fallen, and pushing back another fire he was directed to a location where there was another survivor. Lifting up the injured crew men he was careful to support the neck of the man he pulled out. "Sithick to sickbay?"

"I have anozker." His translator had been smashed to bits in the previous battle, and he hadn't had time to replicate a new one, so people would just have to deal with his deep accented tone. "Male Andorian, alif'the, but unrezpontive." He said bringing the man to one of the muster points where they could be beamed to theurgy.

"Sithick to O'Connel, Zir, I hask re'th'eived a few more thur'vivors, I could uze th'erp on Dezk six." Sithick sighed, why was Federation common so obnoxious to speak?  He looked up at the cieling. "Zhea-compzir? Ma'am?" (Thea computer) He realized he had never spoken to a ship AI before and so he had no idea exactly how he was supposed to speak to her, Did the ship outrank him? was Ma'am even the correct term? gender nouns were difficult, but all ships were female right? he had heard a few engineers tell him that.

"Zhea-Compzir, can shou thow me vere the next injured are?"

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #2
[ Lieutenant Elro Kobol | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Top Hat @BZ

“Doctor Kobol ?” A soft, if not somewhat agitated, voice asked from somewhere behind him, making the Betazoid turn on the spot with a rapid motion that made his white coat billow dramatically alongside him. At least, it was meant to be a white coat. In reality he spun with a grimy, soot-stained garment dragging through the air behind him. The expression on his face was neutral, as it usually was, but one who knew him well enough would know that the slight tilt to his usual brow shape, was a solid indication that he was rather irritated at the disruption…

“Yes?” Elro replied to the Doctor before him, trying not to sound too short or abrupt, but also aware that he had at least two dozen pretty serious things on his mind. Alongside the usual, pretty serious, plasma burns, Elro was contending with multiple crush victims, several patients who were battling for their wills against the Borg nanoprobes that had been injected into them alongside the rest of Sickbay that was equally heaving with other patients with a litany of different issues, all of whom needed to be treated as soon as he could manage.

And they were just the patients that he was responding to.

Yet somehow, despite the actual and literal chaos he was immersed in, it was still far more calming for the Betazoid to be immersed in the miasma of activity that was Sickbay, then to be quietly and carefully moving through corridors and jefferies tubes, or lingering about treating minor injuries whilst he waited for the Borg to descend upon them.

Keeping himself busy had allowed him to clear the majority of the crippling anxiety caused by the presence of the Borg from his mind, relinquishing his distress and replacing it with a cold focus that was necessary to triage and treat his patients.

And he certainly had a surplus of those.

“I’ve got the next of kin for a Lieutenant Commander Tiran on bed seven asking for you?”

Elro partially dismissed the comment, more than ready to tell the other Doctor that he didn’t have time to respond to specific requests, before that particular name hit him like a mallet to the ribs.

“You take over here, I’ve given them a standard dose of terakine to help with the pain, and I was about to set the arm with the osteogenic stimulator…” Elro tapered off, all but throwing the devices at the other Doctor and abandoning his broken-armed patient. The Betazoid dexterously moved his way through the teeming activity of the Sickbay to reach the bed in question, feeling a breath that he wasn’t aware he had been holding expel through his lips as he caught a glimpse of the alabaster skinned engineer.

So, at least some of the others had survived too. Commander Tiran… Did that mean that Lieutenant Cross could also be somewhere? Would Lieutenant sh’Zenne soon be returning to grace him with her furtive face during her nocturnal trips to sickbay with elusive and unexplained injuries? Would he get to try another new meal with R’Rori and have a conversation that he enjoyed perhaps a little more than when he spoke to other members of the crew…

The thought of seeing some of his former colleagues again almost brought tears to his eyes, despite knowing that he was most certainly jumping the gun.

“Commander…” Elro softly spoke as he approached, placing a gentle hand against the shoulder of his former XO and colleague. “I’m…” Elro hesitated to express any form of good wishes to Ducote, not needing to peak through his paracortex to know that the Commander wasn’t finding it easy to be watching over his fiance in such duress, even though Elro couldn’t quite imagine how elated that the Commander must have felt to be seeing her again.

Yet, to see her again in the state that she was in… Compared to how she’d looked just a few days prior when they’d had their last senior staff meeting, evidently whatever she had suffered through was far worse than the short time in the brig that he and Ducote had ‘suffered’. She looked almost malnourished, her arms were thin and her hip bones were gaunt and poked against her skin like tentpoles…

Elro didn’t need a tricorder to identify the angry looking, jagged slashes up her arm, nor the vicious puncture wounds decorating her palm like a macabre mosaic in her flesh. Some of them looked infected, others crusted over with a mixture of clotted blood and grime… Elro felt his heart wrench, not for her perhaps as much as it did for Ducote.

She was in a rough state, but probably the least at risk patient whom Elro had been assigned to… He could easily mend her, though her psychological trauma would no doubt be somewhat substantial, given that her wounds looked to be self-inflicted… But she was unconscious now… Ducote was the one who had to look down and see someone whom he loved in such a terrible way… Elro didn’t imagine there was anything he could say which would help the Commander with that.

“What do you need?”



Put this here as a response to the tag from Dropspace. If we want to expand this later, we can create a supplimental after a short time jump.
Elro Kobol  - Chief Medical Officer - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Otheusz - Grey Scars Pirate - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Y'Lev - Syndicate Dominus - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #3
[ Maya | Primary Surgical Suite | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @TWilkins @lisavw @FollowTomorrow @Masorin  

Despite the fact that the battle against the Borg had ended three hours ago, Main Sickbay on Deck Eleven and the two battle sickbays on Decks Seven and Fifteen remained busy.  In Main Sickbay, in the primary surgical suite attached to the chief medical officer’s office Doctor Maya of Vulcan was handing the influx of patients, in much the same way she had done during the battle.  Even though her bedside manner was nothing to brag about, everyone had to admit that her cold professional demeanor was perfect for the heartless and gut-wrenching task of triage.  Although the patient calls kept coming, at least they now came at intervals instead of the near constant demand the medical staff had dealt with during the battle.

[ Sithick to sickbay?  I have anozker.  Male Andorian, alif'the, but unrezpontive. ]

[ Sickbay to Sithick, ]  Maya responded.  [ We read you.  Activate his combadge or use one of the emergency transponders so the transporter can beam him here. ]

[ Transporter room to sickbay, ] the voice of Chief Petty Officer Jeff Kowalski interjected, [ It’s all right Ma’am, Mister Sithick has moved him to one of our muster points.  Locking on to him now. ]

Back on Deck Six, the injured Andorian vanished in a shower of sparks to reappear on the biobed in the main surgical suite in Main Sickbay.



[ William Robert O’Connell | Turbolift Car Interior | USS Theurgy ]  Attn:  @alphawiz  @Auctor Lucan  @Fiendfall @Masorin 

In the meantime, Master Chief Petty Officer William Robert O’Connell that acting chief engineer of the starship Theurgy entered the turbolift with Lieutenant Kaylon Jeen the chief engineering officer of the starship Cayuga

”Az Ah wuz sayin’ we’re glad tuh have yuh helpin’ out around here Lieutenenant,”  O’Connell was saying.  ”Ah jest heard tell thet Cap’n Ives iz back aboard th’ ship, our skipper has returned that is.  Ah don’t, Ah say Ah don’t know how managed tuh pull thet off but we’re maighty glad tuh have ‘im back.  It’s long story.  Did they tell yuh about th’ Savi?  Well thet’s uh tale fur another day, some other time that is, but raight now Ah reckon it’s uh good time as any tuh innerduce yuh tuh th' skipper.  Deck One.” 

As the doors slid shut and the lift started moving a hissing rasping noise that could nearly be called a voice was heard:

[ Sithick to O'Connel, Zir, I hask re'th'eived a few more thur'vivors, I could uze th'erp on Dezk six. ]

”Hold car,” the master chief ordered before calling up at the ceiling.  [ O’Connell tuh Sithick, I’ve got teams workin’ on other decks.  Ah’ll try tuh find someone tuh help out but in th’ meantime you’ll have tuh make do.  Iffin yuh cain’t wait, contact Mister Covington an’ see if he kin spare anyone from deck ops.  In th’ meantime, Ah think thet Petty Officer Song iz in th’ area.  Jest give me uh few minutes an’ Ah’ll check.  O’Connell out. ] 

After speaking with the Gorn Billy Bob looked at Kaylon with an bemused expression and exclaimed ”Tarnation!  Ah cud hardly unnerstand uh single word he said!  Ah do declare sir, have yew ever heard someone mangle th’ language of which we are speakin’ lahk thet before?  Doesn’t thet jest take th’ biscuit!”

”Resume,” the master chief ordered as the car continued its ascent.  He tapped his combadge.  [ O’Connell tuh Song, Petty Officer Sithick requests assistance with rescue an’ recovery efforts on Deck Six, Vector one.  Head to his location as soon as yer able.  O’Connell out. ] 

The doors to the turbolift opened to reveal the bridge.  Billy Bob paused.  There he was the man himself.  Unless he decided to be the woman herself.  Well it didn’t matter, there was the captain as large as life standing in front of the command chair speaking with Lieutenant Commander Jennifer Dewitt whose image was up on the main screen.  He patiently waited until Ives had finished his conversation with Dewitt and didn’t speak until the captain glanced in his direction.  ”Howdy there Captain, it’s good tuh have yuh back,” O’Connell smiled disarmingly.  ”This here is Lieutenant Kaylon Jeen, thuh chief engineerin’ ossifer of the USS Cayuga,” he added with a wink and bob of his head in Kaylon’s direction.  ”It seems he missed th’ last shuttle tuh git back t' his ship and is lookin’ fer work 'round here.  Ah thought we’d have an openin’, uh position suited fur his rank, experience ‘n’ skill that is.”

This was Billy Bob’s chance to break the curse.  So far the position of chief engineer seemed jinxed.  Only the position of chief tactical officer could compete for the number of department heads the Theurgy had gone through, most of them in the last two months.  If Kaylon was willing to take the position, Billy Bob would be the first chief engineer that wasn’t carried out on his shield when he left.  Besides, loathe as he was to admit it, the position of chief engineering officer required someone with a college degree.  He had seen Kaylon operate aboard his own ship and had confidence in him.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #4
[ Captain Ives | Main Bridge | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] @Doc M. @alphawiz
[Show/Hide]
After Dewitt vanished from the screen, it didn't take long until two visitors from Engineering arrived. Chief O'Connell, being the Acting Chief Engineer since before the battle at Starbase 84, stepped onto the bridge and introduced the Chief Engineer of the Cayuga, whom Ives as already aware of, but had yet to meet.

"Thank you, Chief O'Connell, and while I have a bit of backlog to handle, it's good to be back," said Jien with a small smile and rose to his feet, walking up to the two engineers. He held out his hand to shake the Trill's in the Earth fashion. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lieutenant Jeen. As belatedly as it might be, welcome aboard the Theurgy."

Having let go of the Trill's hand, he folded his hands behind his back. "I promised Captain Ziegler that I would take care of any crew of hers that ended up aboard this ship, and I keep my promises." A simple statement, but delivered without the rhetorical air such might hold. "I have yet to read your personnel file, but I will make the time to talk to you about your permanent position aboard. That being said..."

Jien walked towards the Engineering station, where the on-duty engineers were at. "I would like you to familiarise yourself with the ship, Mister Jeen, and I think the best way to do so is to monitor everything right here from the bridge." Jien put his hand on the edge of the duty station. "Here, you have full insight on all three warp cores on this ship. You can learn everything you need about the larger scope of this ship's systems. Here is where I want you first, on bridge duty, until the time a decision is made about your role aboard."

Turning his eyes towards O'Connell, knowing fully well how he wasn't liking his position, he gave the man a small smile. "In the meantime, I need you down there, Chief Engineer O'Connell. Thea has never been in more need of repairs, so I look forward to a full report on her damages - on all her Vectors. Would you please send it to me within six hours? Of course, I would also need your estimate on required manpower to keep her warp cores online until we reach Aldea Prime. 12 hours, Chief, that's what we need. Any less and we'll have to suffer the embarrassment of asking High Chancellor Martok for a tow. Dismissed."

He then turned back to Jeen. "Do you have any questions?"

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #5

[ LtJr. Khelleshar sh'Zenne | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]
[Show/Hide]

Att: @Auctor Lucan @Top Hat @BZ @Fife  @chXinya 



The USS Endeavour survivors group were grazed like cattle towards sickbay. The triage was done quickly and Shar was soon separated from the rest of the group of people she knew. Each of the abductees was redirected to a different box, and the only andorian's consolation was that she lost sight of The Beast and the suddenly came-back-from-the-dead Ranaan Ducote.  She knew well enough that No-So-Blue would claim revenge at some point about her statements about him...

Soon, a human nurse made her sit on a stretcher whithout avert her gaze from the padd she held in her hands. She didn't even look at her face one time. Despite the lack of antennae, there was plain for Shar than the human was over worked and with a severe lack of sleep. "Please adrees your name, rank and other pertinent data." said the nurse in a tired voice.


The impersonal tone caused her own antennae to squeeze against her scalp. She had never been too fond of medical staff and this lack of interest only increased her distaste for them.


"Lieutenant Junior Grade Kelleshar sh'Zenne. Former assistant Chief of Operations of USS Endeavour" she finally grunted, a sneer badly hidden in her face. The nurse finally lifted her gaze from the screen and looked at the shen's  blue bitter face. "Errr.... could you spell it?" she asked, apologetically.


Shar rolled her eyes and complied.


A few minutes later, the nurse left the Padd on the stretcher and began to scan the Andorian with a basic medical tricorder. Shar suspected what she was going to find and, when she saw the human's eyebrows rose up suddenly, she knew she had found it. "Mmmmh... maybe I should call a doctor," said the nurse, her voice suddenly nervous. "I'm fine," Shar assured her, crossing her slender arms over her belly. "It's an andorian thing, i'll...'solve' this in an andorian way" The voice of the youngest of the Zenne trembled slightly, backtracking the security of her words. She averted her gaze, while a purple tone began to tint her cheeks.


An uncomfortable silence began to thicken between the two women. Luckily, a chirp on Shar's right offered her a needed distraction. Someone had left a operations uniform there, neatly folded. It seemed that there had been a life since the last time she had dressed one. The badge chirped again and the Andorian turned to the nurse, an unsaid question in her face. The human nodded quickly and folded her arms on her back.  Shar pressed her slender finger over the small device, feeling strange as she made that simple gesture.


[Sehl th'Chilnes to Shar sh'Zenne] Came the thaan's deep voice from it. The andorian antennae quivered. She glanced sidelong at the nurse, who pretended to be attentive reading the data in the tricorder's screen, but she kept herself close enough to listen to the conversation.  "Shar here" she answered, the usual bitterness in her voice somehow softened. [We need to talk] said plainly the pilot. “Set a location” she hastened to request. The nurse giggled nervously. Shar looked at her, her white eyebrows deeply knitted over her pale eyes. "Can I have a second of privacy, please" she asked. “O-oh, yeah, sure, I-I'll go get a doctor" the nurse quickly stuttered.


Shar watched her until she got lost in the bustling crowd in the infirmary. [Selh to Shar, do you read?] repeated the thaan, as he had done a couple of times at the last minute. Shar took the combadge, cradling it in her hands close to her mouth. "Repeat the meeting location.” The pilot complied with her request, explaining in detail how she should get there, given Shar lacked of knowledge about the starship's plans. The shen mentally repeated the directions and threw the uniform jacket over her shoulders covering the Savi jumpsuit. "Copy, on my way" She acknowledged.


Shar looked around her. The nurse who had scanned her wasn't on sight and most of the medical staff seemed too busy to pay attention to her. She took the rest of the garments under her arms and hurried to leave the sickbay, unnoticed to anyone else.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #6
[ Cmdr Ranaan Ducote | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] attn: @TWilkins @BZ

Ducote stood very still; around him was a flurry of activity in the surrounding beds and the gangways between the wards. He didn't want to interfere with any of it, knowing he was an intruder in this demesne as he was, but he was also worried that if he moved, he might miss some detail, some ephemeral clue as to what had happened on that ship without her having to tell him. Blue had always been a woman of action, and circumspect for all her colourful language. He knew she found it difficult to say what she meant, just the way she knew he could tell anyway. But now, after she had retreated so completely inside herself again - to the extent that even while pharmaceutically unconscious he couldn't get a good empathic link with her - he wasn't sure he could even provide that any more.

It didn't help to see her so still after being sedated. May as well have been on a morgue trolley.

"I love you. Go."

"I'll be waiting."

"Just go!"


The last words they shared on the Endeavour, before he left to aid the evacuation, before he was cut off from the crew decks and had to find another way off. He'd known then - as a certainty, even if he didn't want to admit it - that he wouldn't see her again. There was just no way, not with a thrice-damned Cube bearing down on them flat-footed. Perhaps he just hadn't wanted to see it happen. To watch her skin get flayed away by a cutting beam, or shredded by impact spall, or worst of all - be assimilated. Once they were separate, one of them had a better than even chance of dying, and that prediction was easier to stomach knowing the other wouldn't have to witness them bite it.

The neanderthal parts of his brain wanted to exact retributive 'justice' from the people that had done this to his crew, to his family. To Blue. But that wouldn't be feasible; firstly the Borg wouldn't care, and secondly the Savi... had their own problems, he supposed. Still - his fists bunched unbidden, tight enough that one of his knuckles popped. He closed his eyes, gradually filtering out the background babble of the minds around him. Even with the attenuated noise, he still couldn't find Blue's thread. His brow knitted into a frown.

As Kobol 's hand met his shoulder, he gave a slight start and looked almost-guiltily around at the doctor. "Commander... I'm..."

Ducote, opening his empathy again (well, insofar as he was yet able), just nodded as he appreciated the sentiment. "Thanks, Elro."

He looked back at Blue.

"What do you need?"

Ducote pushed a hand through his thick dark hair. "Honestly, you'll be the second to know. I'd like a war fleet, a magic wand, and a nap... and I don't even know what order I want to use them in. If at all." He shook his head, turning away from his fiancée at last so he could properly focus on the conversation. To be polite. To do his job. "There are others; Lieutenant Cross carried her off the transporter pad. I've seen Shar knocking around, too. They've all been... changed. I'm not-"

A cluster of haggard medics rushed past, pushing a trolley laden with another black-clad abductee. He spotted some almost-familiar features. Feline ears, a luxuriously-furred tail hanging curled off the side of the gurney... but mostly-human otherwise. Was that R'Rori? His jaw clenched - another crime against personal autonomy.

"Finally," he heard a snatch of their chatter. "Got hir stabilised. S/he's still critical though; we gotta get her into stasis-" The rest was lost as they rounded a corner towards the euphemistically-named 'long-term care unit'.

The pronouns would certainly fit. His shoulders slumped for about the fifth time in ten minutes. "Fairly sure that was our counsellor, Doc." He cleared his throat of its building gravel, and forced his back to straighten again. "To answer your question, I need you to tell me if there's anything or anyone I can beg borrow or steal to help you down here. I want our people healed, Elro. In every way achievable."


ooc: I'm so sorry I dropped the ball on this one! Thanks for your patience.
Nator 159: "I accept no responsibility for the ensign's manifest stupidity. Sir." [Show/Hide]
Ranaan Ducote: "A ship is a home; its crew a family." [Show/Hide]
T'Less: "Your odds of prevailing against us are... slim." [Show/Hide]
Valkra: "Come! We will shake the gates of Sto'Vo'Kor!" [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #7
[ Lieutenant Elro Kobol | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] @Top Hat

Hearing those names outside of his own head made Elro’s chest tighten, like a winch pulling a corset around his ribs and squeezing the air out of him like he was a ration pack. Cross? Shar? To hear from Ducote that they were alive was… It was a topic of thought that Elro had attempted to avoid at all costs during his brief stay aboard the Theurgy. The Betazoid has never been one to linger on the topic of hope, he’d never found it to be particularly efficient. But alas, there he was, being hit with names like cudgels of emotion against his body.

Of course, countless members of his former crew had died, or worse, and he was sure there were many more names that had been lost than those that had been found, but regardless, he knew these people. Knowing that even a token few of his comrades, his friends, were alive… The relief crushed him.

Cross, Shar, Blue… He wasn’t especially close with any of them. He’d shared more than regular meetings with Cross and Blue, sat around the meeting room table with the room wracked with the delicious scent of pastries. Elro always felt like a glutton in those meetings, but Blue’s sweet tooth always made him feel better. And Shar, she rarely crossed paths with him aside from those late night sickbay visits; Elro has always meant to put in a subtle word with Commander Vasiliev. He supposed he wasn’t likely to get the chance now…

Whatever horrors they had been subject to, Elro was glad he didn’t know just yet. Seeing Blue in such a state was unnerving; Whilst her language wasn’t quite to his taste, he respected her uniqueness and her intellect, and he knew that she had to have been remarkably skilled for Captain Amasov to have prompted her to Chief so soon after her joining the crew. To see her in a state that indicated such a lofty degree of mental turmoil, was hard for him to witness.

And Ducote… Elro couldn’t imagine.

"Fairly sure that was our counsellor, Doc." Ducote quietly said, Elro rigidly glancing in the indicated direction to see a figure with a few features befitting a Caitian being rushed past on a gurney. The unusual part was that the majority of their physiology was far more similar to that of a Human, rather than that of a Caitian that was suggested by the tail. But Elro recognised those few features, the tail and ears… One of his closest companions from the Endeavour… He couldn’t not recognise those features, he’d seen them every day for over a year…

His familiarity for R’Rori’s features did not, however, do anything to dampen his disbelief at seeing the incredible shift in hir overall physiology… Hir form no longer looked Caitian, not as much as it had the last time he had seen it at least… Hell… The concept of such a dramatic physiological overhaul, in just a matter of days, was testing his ability to think…

It was R’Rori, he was as sure of it as he was sure that the taunted figure on the biobed before him was Blue. Yet… He couldn’t quite believe it, not without doing some form of bloodwork profiling to confirm that he was looking at R’Rori and not someone, or something, else.

“To answer your question,” Ducote began replying to Elro’s earlier ask of what he could do to help, Elro catching the man straighten his posture as he did so. "I need you to tell me if there's anything or anyone I can beg borrow or steal to help you down here. I want our people healed, Elro. In every way achievable."

Elro valued the Commander’s vote of confidence, but in truth, Elro wasn’t quite sure what was achievable for him at that moment. Sickbay was overbearingly full and every time he looked up, there seemed to be someone else being rammed in through the doors with equal necessity to be treated. How the hell could they cope with such an overwhelming amount of triage?

“Truth be told Commander, I’d don’t think there are any hints or tricks that will be able to speed this one up for us…” Elro replied softly, realising suddenly how drained he already felt. “And whilst I hesitate to adopt an ‘us’ and ‘them’ mentality, considering how good the Theurgy crew have been to us thus far…” The Doctor paused to work out how best to phrase the rest of his response. “My objective, medical opinion, would dictate that prior knowledge of the Endeavour crew makes me best suitable to be treating them…”

Elro finished with a small smile to the Commander, expanding his telepathy just enough to let Ducote know that he would be looking out for any of the Endeavour crew who came into the Sickbay and he’d make sure to be the first one to their bed if there was any sort of emergency.

“And whilst I’m not in charge here…” Elro added, thinking of one thing that might help keep the Medical team from being smothered to death by the sheer volume of patients. “If you could use that magic wand and get us some more space, that would be appreciated.” A joke seemed a poor choice, especially coming from someone who barely grasped basic humour, but Elro wagered it might at least make the Commander smile.

“We’ve still got people from the Bellerophon with minor injuries sharing bays with partially assimilated crewmen and now people who’ve had their entire physiology twisted apart…” Suddenly he felt warm… He was flustered. He scratched subconsciously at the side of his head. “Some space to put the non-critical clients would be a boon right now, if it’s not too much to ask, of course.” The Doctor paused again, turning his back on Blue’s biobed and looking out over Sickbay with a grim expression.

“I can imagine that the entire ship looks something like this.”
Elro Kobol  - Chief Medical Officer - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Otheusz - Grey Scars Pirate - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Y'Lev - Syndicate Dominus - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #8
[ PWO Heather McMillan | Carrigan Trent's Quarters | Officer's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @CanadianVet
[Show/Hide]
Heather jerked awake, her eyes shot open, and she wondered what woke her up this time. She used to be a deep sleeper, and would rarely awaken for anything except her alarm, which was also specially designed to jar her awake without endangering her life. But she didn't have that alarm anymore, and she had also awakened when Trent got back and lay down and spooned beside her. The slightest touch would trigger her until she reminded herself where she now was. She was safe. She had to be. She would have to keep telling herself that until she believed it again.

Maybe it was because she was so much more afraid than she was before that she'd changed into a light sleeper? Or was it because this new body, this new shell, was so completely different? Perhaps had a mind of its own, almost?

She tried to go back to sleep but suddenly became alert again when she heard a tiny chime coming from somewhere in the room. Oh, it was a message alert. It was probably for Carrigan. She ought to wake him. But curiosity got the better of her, and slid gently out of his grasp, stealthy as a ghost, and padded on bare feet to the console. To her surprise, it was for her.

She was told her presence was required to see the Infected individual...Lucan?!?

Heather stumbled back from the revelation. She'd worked closely with him a few times in recent weeks. She couldn't believe how close she was with death. She knew about Sonya, and the strength she possessed. She was a god among gods. And Lucan was the same?!? Now they wanted her to meet with him because of some theory they had about her light?

She lifted up her hands to examine, and motes of light began to appear on them at will, the hues of her light shifted according to her wishes, and it looked like her hands were made of a myriad of stars and shifting clouds of varying colours and light, it was hypnotic to look at, but also took concentration to maintain, unlike before when it took concentration not to light up.

I need to go now!

Heather dashed clumsily to the replicator, and in her rush, began to press all the wrong buttons and the console shorted, making the girl shriek in fright and leap back. When it stopped making all the sparking and sizzling noises, the screen came back, but there were blinking red lights. She tried to replicate her usual uniform, but it refused to comply, giving a big red ERROR! and then a small diagnostic read out in a rising list on the screen. It could only create the skirt or skant variant. Oh no, said Heather, bloody Nora!

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #9
[ Lt. Carrigan Trent | Carrigan Trent's Quarters | Officer's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] ][/b] Attn: @Triage
[Show/Hide]
Exhaustion was by far the most powerful soporific in known space, and where Trent had usually been a light sleeper who'd awake at the slightest provocation, the chime of the terminal did not register whatsoever.  However, he did stir when the warm mass of Heather's body shifted from before him and his bare chest was suddenly chilled.  But, in his sleep-deprived state, he sough out warmth where he could find it and he partially rolled forward, his skin finding where this new shell of the woman he loved had lain instead. 

And he was nearly back in the depths of sleep when the single sound that was likely to register instantly with him sounded.  The tone was alien, the timbre was that of a stranger.  But he knew her voice, would know it anywhere, and it cried out in alarm.  Eyes that felt full of sand flew open and a body heavy from tiredness bolted upright, an arm and a leg made of metal and composites clawing at the bed to propel him to his feet to meet any threat even as his eyes sought his workstation until he remembered he had left the phaser he'd carried throughout the battle with the Borg in he hangar, and he no longer kept such a weapon in his quarters. 

But there were no boarders, only Heather, facing a replicator that still threw a wisp of smoke and a screen showing a litany of error codes.  In his state of partial undress, he made his way towards her even as the adrenaline started to wash out of his system yet again; this would make for a spectacular crash later, and he knew it.  But there was only one thing on his mind at the time. "Are you all right?"

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #10
[ PWO Heather McMillan & Lt. Carrigan Trent | Carrigan Trent's Quarters | Officer's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan & @TrevorVW
[Show/Hide]
Heather started and turned to look at Carrigan, who had evidently been awakened by her outcry. The quarters being as small as it was, she wasn't surprised it wouldn't take much to alert Carrigan to something being amiss. She shook her head, then sighed. "I-I was taken by surprise...uhm...th-the replicator, it sh-mm-shorted out."

She pushed a few buttons, more carefully now, and replicated a skirt-version of her science uniform. She slid out of her torn Savi stealth suit, and began to pull on some undergarments first, which fortunately, the replicator still made, then the uniform, all in front of Carrigan, whose eyes widened ever so slightly at her open display and lack of modesty. She tugged on the boots, which normally made her visibly uncomfortable, but now it seemed to feel nice, and her face showed the fact by looking surprised and concerned.

"I'm needed to see...Dr. Nicander. There's something about my light having an effect on th-the...parasites, one of which inhabits him."

"And I'm coming with you," Trent decided on the spot, his decisive tone somewhat hampered by the fact he was fighting to bring his breath back under control.  Between the manner of his waking up and the run to face a threat and having his breath robbed by the sight of Heather's new body, he had not been able to properly catch his wind. 

Just as shamelessly as she had stripped, he pulled off his own sleeping clothes and made for the replicator.  He'd yet to treat himself to a fresh uniform, and much to his own consternation, it was not a pair of pants that had been replicated for him... 

"Goddamnit," he softly swore, and then he looked to Heather as he held up the uniform to reveal he was left there, naked, holding up a skant.

"Is something wrong?" asked Heather, her voice taking on its familiar lilting tones. "Don't the Scots wear kilts which are more or less similar to that?"

She smiled at him and stood up, taking the skant in her hands and gently pressed it against his form. "I am so sorry for damaging the replicator. We'll have someone fix it later, but there's really no time and no choice. I think it will look good on you. At least give it a try?"

She gave him a hurried pleading expression. She didn't want to be late, as afraid as she was to go near the man now that she knew what he was.

Meeting Heather's eyes, Carrigan stood there, much like a deer in the headlights.  In his eyes, a number of conflicting emotions briefly flashed.  Refuse and reach for the emergency spare he kept in the closet; laugh at the thought of being compared to an ancient Scot, but in the end he met her smile in kind and something that might even look playful danced in his eyes even as his hand of flesh and blood went around to gently squeeze one of her own.  "All right."

Quickly, he put on the uniform, and as he dressed, he spoke still. "And don't worry about the replicator; the ship took enough damage, it could have gone off at any time."  Once he finished putting on this style of uniform he hardly cared for, he looked down at his legs.  One was flesh and blood, but nearly spindly, a good match for his gauntness.  The other was synthetic, starting at mid-thigh and leading to  cybernetic knee, connected to a single peg, and terminating in a skeletal foot that was kept hidden in his boot.  Injuries of war.  A reminder of what happened to his first starship command. 

However, there was no time to worry about this, and he offered Heather his arm. "Shall we go?"

With a nervous nod, Heather slid her arm into the crook of his elbow and they walked out together.

Along the way to the turbolift, there was a number of individuals they met who offered a varying amount of reactions to the sight of Carrigan's unorthodox choice of attire. Some barely glanced twice, some gawked, and at least one even stammered out a greeting before going on, deciding against asking. "Is it that dated an attire?" asked Heather, "It may be a little old fashioned, but it's-it's still in use...doesn't Lieutenant Randall from Science still use it?"

"It's not just the uniform," Trent replied softly as they walked along.  He knew he would have to tell her at some point, so there was no time like the present.  "I was removed from command, and the Captain relieved me from my position as Executive Officer. Right now, I have no idea what is waiting for me." Gently, he reached across his body to give her hand a gentle squeeze. "But on the bright side, it means I'll have entirely more time to devote to you."

Heather blinked at him, taken aback. Why would they remove him from command? She felt the squeeze of his hand and she looked down at it for a moment, then back up at him. For a moment she just lay her head against his chest, as her only way to offer support.

[ Main Entrance | Security Center | Deck 7 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]

Leaving the turbolift and coming through the main entrance, Heather was greeted by the hustle and bustle of the Security Center, and it reminded her of an ant hill that got stirred very violently. Except these ants shot phasers, there were also gigantic gods here, and one of them was looking at the new arrivals expectantly. She thought Carrigan was tall, but the dark-skinned man was a positive hulk, and was twice as robust and wide as Carrigan was wiry and lean. She thought if she just bumped into him, it would be the end of her life. Standing at all of five feet, she was probably the shortest of the human looking people present.

She slid out of Carrigan's proximity and noticed a short-haired, dark-skinned woman who paused, looked at Carrigan's attire, raised her PADD, smiled, and walked away. With no time to consider that interaction, Heather approached the hulking man.

"M-M-Mister Akoni?" said Heather, "I'mm H-Heather McMillan....h-here to see D-D-Dr. Nicander...sir."



[Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #11
[ Cmdr Ranaan Ducote | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] attn: @TWilkins

Ducote nodded at Kobol 's assurance. Despite everything, despite their dread diaspora, the Endeavour loyalty endured. He wouldn't feel glad that the doctor's attendance might deprive a Theurgy crewman of his expert treatment, but he wasn't about to feel sad that his own crew would benefit first, either. The hybrid's obsidian gaze drifted back to the somnolent Blue, still stubbornly keeping him out despite her unconsciousness.

He knew she'd need to talk about it. Perhaps not to him (and, alas, not to R'Rori this time either), but to someone. Perhaps not for a long while... and knowing her, she'd put it off as long as possible anyway. The words of the nurse as she just rattled off the list of complaints on her tricorder before ran through his head again. Whatever had happened over there, it had been hell.

The commander blinked as he realised Kobol  was addressing him again. Focus, now.

"... could use that magic wand and get us some more space, that would be appreciated."

He felt the intent from the Betazoid doctor clearly enough - particularly rare for Elro. Even if the joke hadn't been intended, the quiet snort it produced was genuine enough. Unfortunately, his detectable entertainment never reached the surface enough to affect his face.

"We've still got people from the Bellerophon with minor injuries sharing bays with partially assimilated crewmen-" Ducote couldn't help but look around sharply at that, before relaxing at Elro's lack of critical concern. Apparently, it was handled. "-and now people who've had their entire physiology twisted apart... Some space to put the non-critical clients would be a boon right now, if it's not too much to ask, of course... I can imagine that the entire ship looks something like this."

"You're not wrong there. Testament to Federation over-engineering that this tub is still flying at all." Not that it had saved their own vessel. Third time around, anyway. He was still struggling not to dwell on past irreparables and concentrate on current solvables. Ducote cleared his throat; after so long on his feet his damaged trachea tended to get filled with even more gravel than usual. "I'll talk to the quartermaster and see what it'll take to bribe them. Probably just the spectre of more Theurgy crew being assimilated in their beds.."

Ducote felt a glare from behind him; glancing over, he saw the piercing gaze of an Andorian nurse at the next bed, with his antennae splayed apart in reproach. "Sorry," he offered lamely, turning back to the erstwhile CMO Endeavour. He briefly looked the taller man over, before lowering his voice a little and inclining his head.

"Take five or ten minutes in a quiet room with your ass firmly planted on a chair, too. Grab a coffee or something." He waved down the inevitable protest. "Direct order, Elro; I know you won't leave here for long regardless. And of course there's a caveat about emergency calls. But you're no good to anyone if you wreck yourself."
Nator 159: "I accept no responsibility for the ensign's manifest stupidity. Sir." [Show/Hide]
Ranaan Ducote: "A ship is a home; its crew a family." [Show/Hide]
T'Less: "Your odds of prevailing against us are... slim." [Show/Hide]
Valkra: "Come! We will shake the gates of Sto'Vo'Kor!" [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #12
[ Lieutenant Elro Kobol | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] @Top Hat

Elro had to resist something of an inward chuckle as he heard Ducote dorkishly apologise to the Andorian Nurse a few beds down, whom he had evidently offended with his prior comment about the Theurgy crewmen being assimilated. Elro could not truthfully deny his schadenfreude adoration to be witness to his Commander’s occasional moments of tactlessness… With no disrespect for the man, his rare slip ups did tend to tumble into truly awful circumstances. It brought a slight curl to Elro’s lips.

Despite the traumatic situation they were contending with, Elro never failed to draw some comfort out of his Senior. Somehow, Ducote had a fantastic way of putting the Doctor at ease, simply by existing.

Ducote was a truly good man. Perhaps a trifle reckless on occasion, in Elro’s uptight opinion, but the right sort of recklessness, the sort that could even rally a stringent man such as himself to the cause. Elro counted Ducote amongst his few, genuine, friends, a rare honour for the Betazoid to bestow upon anyone, and a horrifically full sickbay wasn’t going to hamper his ability to share some comfort, and maybe even the smallest hint of amusement, with his colleague.

He knew that there were patients to see, people to deal with, injuries that needed tending… But Elro also knew that given the horrific turmoil that his Commander had been jousting with over the past few days, he certainly needed a friend in that moment as much as anyone needed a hypospray. Elro was still there, on hand, ready to save a life if needed, and he didn’t intend to let his loyalty to Ducote result in anyone’s death… But as far as he knew, nobody was facing imminent death in the few moments that he had elected to spend making sure that his Commander, his friend, was okay. Ducote had done enough for him over the years to have earned that. More than enough.

Yet, when Ducote looked him over and primed his head, Elro knew that whatever was about to leave the man’s mouth was going to be just that. Ducote doing his best to try and look after his crew.

"Take five or ten minutes in a quiet room with your ass firmly planted on a chair, too. Grab a coffee or something." Ducote instructed him quietly, much to Elro’s expectation, his voice barely above a whisper as he did so, as to not raise the ire of the lingering Andorian nurse once again.

“Commander, let’s…” Elro didn’t get to finish his sentence before he was waved down by the Commander.

"Direct order, Elro; I know you won't leave here for long regardless. And of course there's a caveat about emergency calls. But you're no good to anyone if you wreck yourself." Elro couldn’t help but deliver a bashful little smile in response to his Commander’s Mothering mentality. The man deserved a medal to how seriously he took the welfare of his crew… Whether he was Elro’s superior Officer or not, Elro would never fail to respect him.

“I truly appreciate the sentiment Commander.” The full Betazoid replied softly. “And I understand your due concern for my welfare…” Elro wondered how best to phrase it, without coming off as sarcastic… “But I needn’t remind you that I’m twice the size of the entire medical compliment on the Theurgy…” He let another smile emerge upon his face, putting a hand on the Commander’s shoulder and offering him a squeeze of reassurance. “I’m still in my twenties, I can certainly keep on top of things here. I trust my limits, and when things are better under control, I’ll take a chance to get some food.” Perhaps the last comment was a bluff, because Elro wasn’t sure he’d remember to do so after such a frantic shift… But regardless, the intention was there...

“The other key thing to bare in mind Commander, is that if I’m off getting coffee when your fiance wakes up wanting to see you, there’s nobody in this room remotely capable of stopping her from walking out and finding you.” Elro offered the comment without too much humour; both men knew that it was not far from the truth. She’d overpower a Gorn in single combat if it meant finding Ducote again. “At least I’ll be a familiar face.”

“I’ll be sure to take regular, fifteen second, wall-leans…” Elro added, as an attempt to reassure his Commander, returning to having a more neutral, clinical, expression resting on his face. “But you’re the one who needs to get some rest Commander. Knowing you, you were right in the thick of the drama during the Borg attack, and I got fairly lucky with my avoidance of them…” Elro neglected to inform his Commander that he had, in-fact, been very unlucky in his dealings with the Borg, but for good reason. If Ducote found out that his CMO had flooded a forcefield with methane gas and detonated it with an exoscalpel… Well, Elro didn’t know what the outcome would be…

But he thought it wa a conversation best avoided. 

“I’ll be here when she wakes up; and I can assure you that nothing is going to happen to her whilst you’re away.” The Doctor moved on to promise, letting go of his superior’s shoulder, referencing his fiance still unconscious on the biobed, needing a dosage of antibiotics and a decent time with a dermal regenerator, but nothing more serious than that. Physically, at least. “But in the meantime, take some space to yourself, keep hydrated, and I’ll call you when she’s awake.”

Elro Kobol  - Chief Medical Officer - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Otheusz - Grey Scars Pirate - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Y'Lev - Syndicate Dominus - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #13
[ Ens. Cameron Henshaw | Main Bridge | Deck 1 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan
[Show/Hide]
She had been cleared for duty, with the worst of her injuries attended too. It was mostly the concussion she'd sustained than the strain she'd placed on her neck by landing on it. It nearly broke and she was this close to paralysis or death, the latter being considered a mercy if the former occurred. She was caught up on most events, but all she was told was lost to her when she latched on to the one news she cared about: Jien Ives as back, alive and well. She could barely contain her excitement and joy, and it was all the doctor could do to keep her from going back to the bridge right away.

She was so fidgety and impatient after that, that the only way she could be allowed to leave the sickbay, was to agree to wear a ridiculous skullcap that would apply cooling compress and provide her with a little extra protection as well as make her look like a cyborg. Her hair was completely concealed under a grey metal cap with toggles, lights and little monitors. It was so form-fitting, it was hard to see where the skin began and the metal ended. She didn't care how she looked. She had to see Jien! Yet when she was there, she paused, looking nervously at the doors to the bridge.

How was he? Was he hurt? Was he well enough to be on the bridge? She stepped through, hands clasped behind her back, and she looked at him. Jien, alive. It was all that mattered. “Captain,” said Cam, her voice poorly concealed a waiver, and it took all her willpower not to rush up to him and kiss him right there on the bridge, to throw her arms around him and not look like the epitome of calm and a survivor like she was doing now. She gave a small smile, “I'm ready for duty, sir...”

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #14
[ William Robert O’Connell | Turbolift Car Interior | USS Theurgy ]  Attn:  @Auctor Lucan  @Fiendfall @Masorin @Triage 

Meanwhile Lieutenant Kaylon Jeen, the chief engineer of the USS Cayuga, was on the main bridge on Deck One introducing himself to Captain Ives.

“Captain Ives, it’s an honor to meet you sir,” Kaylon addressed him as he extended his hand in greeting.  “Captain Ziegler has mentioned you.  She had nothing but praise,” he finished as he shook the captain’s hand.  Kaylon neglected to mention that Anna Ziegler had nothing but praise for Ives until Starfleet branded the Chameloid a traitor.  After that, Captain Ziegler had avoided mentioning him until the Cayuga encountered the dreadnought’s tertiary stardrive vector known as the Stallion.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lieutenant Jeen. As belatedly as it might be, welcome aboard the Theurgy," Captain Ives concurred as he shook his hand before letting go and folding his hands behind his back.  "I promised Captain Ziegler that I would take care of any crew of hers that ended up aboard this ship, and I keep my promises.  I have yet to read your personnel file, but I will make the time to talk to you about your permanent position aboard. That being said..."

As the captain welcomed the Trill aboard his ship, O’Connell had to marvel at how professional and well-adjusted he was.  Being trapped aboard the Versant must have been a grueling, nightmare experience, but Jien Ives looked as fit as a fiddle.  Perhaps the Chameloid was renewed by his miraculous escape from a species who were technologically far in advance of the Federation.  Rumor had it he had actually been able to commandeer the Versant.  Maybe when he discovered that the Theurgy had managed to ally themselves with the High Chancellor Martok against the Borg it gave him a ray of hope that allowed him to keep going.  Or maybe he was just real good at keeping his cards close to his vest.  In the meantime, Captain Ives introduced Kaylon to the Engineering station and invited him to familiarize himself with the ship.  Afterwards, the newly returned captain directed his gaze towards Billy Bob.

"In the meantime, I need you down there, Chief Engineer O'Connell. Thea has never been in more need of repairs, so I look forward to a full report on her damages - on all her Vectors. Would you please send it to me within six hours? Of course, I would also need your estimate on required manpower to keep her warp cores online until we reach Aldea Prime. 12 hours, Chief, that's what we need. Any less and we'll have to suffer the embarrassment of asking High Chancellor Martok for a tow. Dismissed.”

”Aye-aye sir,” the master chief engineer nodded.  ”Don’t you worry none; Ah’ll git us there if Ah gotta git out an’ push,” he added with a smile before turning to leave. 

Satisfied with O’Connell’s answer, Ives nodded and turned his attention to Kaylon Jeen. ”Do you have any questions?”

O’Connell paused by the turbolift to overhear the Trill’s reply. 

“Commander Stark answered the most important ones sir,” Kaylon replied.  “I guess the only relevant one I have at this time is ‘who do I speak to in order to receive my assigned quarters?’”

As if on cue, turbolift doors opened and Ensign Cameron Elisabeth Henshaw, the captain’s yeoman entered on the bridge, walked past O’Connell and announced that she was ready for duty.

Chuckling to himself, Billy Bob entered the turbolift and prepared to get back to work.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #15
[ Lt. Kai Akoni | Security Centre | Deck 07 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] @Triage 

Kai had just returned to the security centre following his, and everyone else's task of repelling the Borg boarding parties they had just had. He sort of puttered around the centre, realizing that he was tired, sore and sweatier than any workout he had ever done. It had been a long and stressful time, but he was proud of how both himself and the crew of this ship handled that crisis. He found it mind boggling and almost ludicrous how much the Theurgy had been through in such a short period of time.

He looked around the security centre, trying to take it all in. He was pleased with the fact that the people that should be locked up were behind forcefields. He took solace in the fact that most of the security personnel that were here before the battle with the Borg were still here. They had only lost a handful of security people it seemed, which was a surprising piece of information for the big man.

A junior security crewman handed him a PADD with some new orders on it. His eyes moved along the characters written on the PADD and processed the information that followed. 

The first order confused him...Nicander had requested a Heather McMillan visit him in the holding cell. This request had apparently been approved by the Captain. Kai didn't have a problem with this, because he figured if they took the proper precautions it'd be okay. The second order was a little disheartening, albeit, inevitable. Kai had been informed that Thandia zh'Wann was taking over as Acting Chief of Security, since the previous Chief of Security was no longer with them.

Kai sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He knew it was coming but it didn't make it any easier to take. The large man saw out of the corner of his eye that a dark haired man and a very short woman were approaching him.

He turned slightly and as the woman spoke, he looked at her and assessed her, so to speak. Kai noticed he was probably around half a metre taller than her and probably weighed three times more than she did. Her speech sounded meek and unsure, but she had confirmed that she was the Heather McMillan that had received permission to see Nicander.

"Yes, I've been expecting you. When we're in there, follow my orders and I'll keep you safe" he said to her as he motioned towards the area where Nicander had been secured.

The petite woman started making movement towards their destination, and in turn, the Lieutenant that had accompanied her started to follow her. Kai put his right hand up in front of the man as a gesture for him to stop, which he did before reaching Kai's hand.

Kai looked the Lieutenant up and down and noticed the man was wearing a skant. Kai raised his right eyebrow slightly in both amusement and puzzlement.

Interesting choice... Kai thought to himself before he spoke, trying to not verbalize his amusement.

"Sorry Lieutenant. I've only got orders for Heather McMillan to see the prisoner."

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #16
[ Lt. Carrigan Trent | Carrigan Trent's Quarters | Officer's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] ][/b] Attn: @Triage @trevorvw

Carrigan Trent's blood felt as though it had turned to ice, but had the consistency of molten basalt.  His heart was like a animate stone in his chest, beating a frantic tattoo against his ribcage.  His stomach was a pit of frozen acid.  But yet, he forced himself to keep his face a mask of faked calm, and his eyes were the flat grey of unpolished steel.  To anyone not familiar to him, it would look as though he was seized with a cold determination, but he had no doubt that Heather would pick up on the wave of sheer terror that was running through him.

He had just been reunited with her, and the despair that had been crushing him these past few days had barely started to lift from his soul that a very real threat of her being ripped apart by one of the enemy was being presented.  For he knew what those things could do, how they could take punishing damage and barely slow down.  It did not matter that Lieutenant looked to be about the size of a small shuttle, an Infested human would rip through him without even breaking pace. 

"I have no intention to speak to the prisoner, Lieutenant.  But I have been around Starfleet Command and been Admiral Sankolov's staff intelligence officer for four years; I know you weren't there when Acreth was interrogated.  There is no one else on this ship who has spent as much time around this enemy." Trent's usual near-whisper was cool and reserved, the voice of someone who understood threats, and was ready to face them.  And whether his claim was true or not would be hard to verify, but he remembered the gradual shifts within Starfleet Command, the inconsistencies, the changes in character and habits.  Perhaps he'd not been around the parasites the whole four years he'd served as an Intelligence Officer, but Trent did have ample exposure to the enemy, and its handiwork.  "But if there is something that makes it tick, I will know."

He took a deep breath and continued, looking into the larger man's eyes.  "Unless you have specific orders to the contrary, there is nothing to be lost to having me in there, but potentially much to gain."

But what remained unsaid was that Carrigan Trent could not bear to lose Heather again; if Nicander broke loose, his own death on the heels of Heather's would be doing him a favour.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #17
[ Captain Ives | Main Bridge | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] @Doc M. @Triage
[Show/Hide]
The Trill from the Cayuga that about to take his seat at the engineering station merely wondered where to go in order to arrange for quarters, and Jien had accommodated him with the directions and name of their Quartermaster on Deck 10. Abraham Savali - the Chief Petty Officer that would meet Kaylon Jeen - surely couldn't find his duties easy with all the different crews that were arriving to the ship during their voyage, but it served to show that a function such as his was important, even if oft overlooked. Jien made a mental note to ensure Mister Savali had everything he needed, and to see if he required additional help with his tasks.

O'Connell, of course, readily went about his set task, leaving the bridge without anything further to add than his reassurance that he'd go out and push Thea if so needed. This, just as a figure appeared from that same turbolift. She stepped onto the bridge, and Jien didn't recognise her right away. She was quite familiar... until the shape of her face caught the light from the bridge in the right angle. The slim metal cap and protective medical gear she wore suggested injury immediately... but it was when she spoke that Jien's eyes widened momentarily. "Henshaw," he said, a bit too quickly, and almost went to her - remembering himself in the last moment. "At ease, Ensign. Please, come. If you are able to, I need to be appraised about Vector 2's voyage, since we lost both Commander Wenn and Lieutenant Tovarek."

After asking the relief officer to take the conn, Jien led the way into his Ready Room. Once the doors closed behind her did Jien turn on his heel and reversed direction, moving to put his hands on on her shoulders - eyes studying her intently through the eye-wear. "Are you all right? What happened to you?" he asked, the concern in his voice unmasked. Whatever she replied, not even waiting for her to finish, he embraced her in his arms, holding her to his chest with his cheek gently pressed against the metal head-piece she wore.

"It seems I am hearing new names of officers killed in action every time a new report arrives," he said, holding her gently there inside his office. Memories of the Versant flared vibrantly whenever he blinked, so he couldn't keep his eyes closed while he held her. Soon enough, he parted far enough to look down into her eyes. "You have no idea how happy I am to see that you, at least, are still alive. Are you sure you are all right? You don't have to be up here and on duty so soon."

Of course, he suspected that she hadn't exactly come to Deck 01 to give her report. Listening to her, he raised his hands to the sides of her neck and rested his forehead against hers. Theirs was a broken, repaired and strange affiliation, but stronger than most Ives had left...

[ Doctor Lucan cin Nicander | Security Center | Deck 07 | USS Theurgy ] @Triage @trevorvw @CanadianVet
[Show/Hide]
When the inner door of his spacious holding cell opened, followed with the outer one, Doctor Lucan cin Nicander raised his head where he sat against the bulkhead. His pale grey eyes pierced two forcefields, decompressed space, and enforced gravity to espy his visitors. The lighting in the lobby of the Security Centre restored, he easily made out the figures that had come to gawk. He did not smile, for it seemed his request had gone unheeded. Heather McMillan was not there. Just disproportionate security dolt, some unknown woman and the deposed First Officer.

Giving them a couple of more seconds to stare at him, as if he was some kind macabre attraction in an amusement park, Nicander soon rose to his feet and ambled closer to the forcefield. The static sound of the commlink activating cued his words. "Ah, Lieutenant Akoni, Commander Trent!" he said in his deep voice... then narrowed his eyes to espy the pips that decorated the fashionable skant the man wore. "Oh, I'm sorry. I stand corrected."

Who is this woman? Frowning, Lucan sorted out what little he knew. Lieutenant Trent it was, which would imply the gaunt Human was no longer First Officer, even after Captain Ives had returned to the ship. Lucan was not really interested in the story behind it, only in regard to what it implied for this visit. He glanced towards the other two before speaking again.

"I made a request to Captain Ives to see Provisional Warrant Officer Heather McMillan. This, with great urgency, for I believe her kind's abilities are directly connected to this enemy we face." He said this and folded his mismatched hands behind his back, his scarred uniform catching the light of the shimmering forcefield. He had no idea how Heather was supposed to be alive after what he had seen, but right then, they were wasting time sending on-essential officer to visit him. If McMillan could still walk, she should be there.

"An enemy, residing inside me, to be specific. She restored me to my body once with her light, and I must know if she can completely suppress the blackness within me. This is key to the mission, not just a plead made for my own sake."

They had to weaponize that light.


OOC: I suggest @trevorvw posts first, since he should reply to Trent and open the sliding doors. Then @Triage or @CanadianVet as you guys see fit? :)

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #18
[ Lt. Kai Akoni | Security Centre | Deck 07 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan @CanadianVet @Triage

Kai once again looked at the Lieutenant that he had stopped from following the physically diminutive, Provisional Warrant Officer. He looked into the man’s eyes as he spoke in a calm, even and somewhat quiet voice. He read the man as he kept speaking. He did mention something about the fact that he had spent the most time around this enemy than anyone else aboard. 

Kai paused to think about the statement the Lieutenant had said. He thought back to his briefing about this enemy, and how if there was anything to be gained from this meeting, they may as well have that opportunity.

Kai had heard rumours about what had happened with the previous XO of this ship, but he had never had a personal encounter with the now, Lieutenant Trent. When Lt. Trent had finished talking, Kai had come to the conclusion that he wasn’t lying. The large man had even figured that the man in front of him wasn’t even exaggerating.

Just before Kai was going to let Lt. Trent follow along, he started talking again, pretty much saying what Kai had been thinking. 

He was right, Kai didn’t have orders to the contrary and there could be so much more intelligence to be gained on the upside. The downside being that it would end up resulting in one more dead Starfleet Officer. Kai didn’t think the downside was likely, so he deemed it an acceptable risk to take.

”Well Lieutenant, you must be telepathic, because you just said what I was thinking” Kai had said before lowering his hand out of the way of the Lieutenant.

The large man made his way and in front of both McMillan and Trent stood and looked at them both.

”If you’ll follow me” he said to them before leading them towards where Nicander was being held. The two that had followed him the short distance had said nothing before they reached the doors.

He turned towards Heather McMillan and looked down at her. She seemed apprehensive, but he wasn’t sure why, and he sure didn’t know what this meeting was all about.

”You ready?” he asked her as he got a small nod in reply and he then pressed the button to open the entrance to the specialized holding cell.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #19
[ Cmdr Ranaan Ducote | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] attn: @TWilkins 

Ducote nodded along as the doctor made his counterpoints, watching Blue sleep on the table. The three of them made quite the little oasis of stillness amidst the chaotic infirmary ward, even if the collected misery in this place was beginning to give him a headache. The hybrid counted his blessings that there were no Halanans present; their brand of projective telepathy never failed to give him a truly exquisite migraine.

Eventually, Ducote stopped nodding. He'd never figured it out, but Elro had a Way. Some subtle method by which he could subvert the clearest intent into something more to Kobol 's liking without the recipient cottoning on... usually used for good, of course; steering recalcitrant patients back to bed, and so on. The ex-XO straightened and half-turned towards the medic, making a chopping motion with one hand as his other dropped back to his side.

"No, wait, hang on. What part of 'direct order' didn't you hear?" The words were firm enough, but his mouth did quirk up at one corner to show it wasn't too harsh a rebuke. "Five minutes will be the death of no one, and Blue is going to be under for another couple of hours yet."

The Brazilian's eyes narrowed a fraction, shrewd and piercing, even as his smile widened a little. "And you should know better than to try and lie to me, Elro..." He held up a hand. "Obviously, you're fine, and whatever you got up to in the battle is over now. But don't try and distract me..." He gestured to Blue, the implication being This is more than enough. 

"I'll start waxing lyrical about 'physician heal thyself' and mangling all sorts of metaphors, and neither of us needs that."

He wasn't annoyed, really - a little amused perhaps - because he knew Kobol  was only looking out for him in turn. And turnabout, as ever, was fair play. The trump card of superior rank was a little murky when it came to medical staff, too. Though at this point, neither of them really having an apparatus to leverage their respective fields of authority, it would just come down to which of them had the greater stubborn streak.

Ducote wouldn't bet on the full-blood, if he were to be asked.
Nator 159: "I accept no responsibility for the ensign's manifest stupidity. Sir." [Show/Hide]
Ranaan Ducote: "A ship is a home; its crew a family." [Show/Hide]
T'Less: "Your odds of prevailing against us are... slim." [Show/Hide]
Valkra: "Come! We will shake the gates of Sto'Vo'Kor!" [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #20
[ PWO Heather McMillan | Main Entrance | Security Center | Deck 7 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan, @CanadianVet & @TrevorVW
[Show/Hide]
Heather looked at the big man. She rather liked him. Then again, she liked more or less everyone, even the terrifying being she was about to see now. It was not so much him she was afraid of, but what was within. The thing that she saw in the recordings, that could reduce the inhibitions and self-control, that could take a person's strength to its absolute limit and beyond, to do little more than instill fear, chaos and death. And there was a theory, a belief that she could somehow turn back this creature, the parasite that inhabited the host? Was that what happened to Sonya Acreth? But if Nicander was one of them too, why did he tell her to...?

She shook her head as if answering Kai's query.

I doubt I'll b-be ready, sir... said Heather honestly, ...more that it is my duty.

Gripping Carrigan's hand for some support, she ventured in with the two men. She was glad when Carrigan convinced Kai to let him in with her. On one hand, she felt she ought to have said something, since the instruction mentioned specifically only her, yet, he seemed to make sense with what he said. She looked nervously ahead at Lucan, the man she thought she knew, and yet couldn't even begin to fathom, and her face betrayed her fear when he mentioned her name. Of course, he wouldn't recognize her. Not even those on the Versant who knew her before could grasp or fully believe that she was indeed, Heather McMillan. Most expected her to return with her own face, not a whole different one, along with purple eyes and a new natural hair colour.

What baffled her was that he believed her light affected him, or rather, the parasite within? Wait...a flash of memory appeared to her and she remembered a conversation held a lifetime ago, about a terrible darkness. Was this it? Were the Radiant a people made to seek out the darkness, and...shine light on it? She stepped out of the protection and cover of the two men, much as she would rather stay hidden behind them, and crossed her arms in an X-position in front of her, and she began to let the light pulse through her skin and her eyes, with a myriad of multicoloured hues filling the room with dancing lights. Motes of golden lights weaved and bobbed around her head.

Hello, Mr. Nicander, said Heather, my name is Heather McMillan. Wh-when last we met, I looked different. This is how I look now.

 

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #21
[ Lt. Carrigan Trent | Security Center |  Deck 07 | USS Theurgy ] ][/b] Attn: @Triage @trevorvw @Auctor Lucan

There were things where a man would not take no for an answer.  And it would see, Akoni of all people did not give Trent the need to further insist.  And frankly, he was not quite certain what good he really would be; Nicander was an unknown to him, so he could not really make heads or tails of his behaviour.  And he knew this enemy were creatures who loved to play games with their would-be victims, if Acreth was any indication; and they lived for cruelty.  That was a start; not much of one, but it was a start all right. 

And being ushered forward, he felt Heather's small hand close upon his fingers of flesh and blood, and he returned that gentle squeeze.  And he had to admit to himself, he did not care who saw, or who would draw what conclusions from this observation.  He had not spoken up when she had been sent into danger before, failed to protect her from the Savi.  He was not letting her face this alone.  Perhaps he would be little more than moral support ballast for her, but at least, he would be there.

When the monster behind the forcefield spoke, Trent's face remained a mask.  If anything, it grew even harder.  This creature could not be trusted.  Yes, it had provided what amounted to being crucial data, but it had also been so it could save itself.  For it had also lied about the crew that had been taken, something that could only be a cruel blow to all.  So its words simply washed over he gaunt human, finding no purchase, nor striking. 

But asking to be exposed to her light?  That was rather unexpected.  Trent knew of Heather's abilities, of course; he knew how she'd used her light to fight Acreth, but admitting it knew her light would affect it, he had not expected that from Nicander.  But he did not buy it. 

And then, she shone. 

Carrigan Trent knew of her light; it knew of those lovely displays.  The shades she would turn when she was happy, shy, during their lovemaking, that gentle glow that always followed her.  A glow, he realized, had been mostly absent since her return, but something he had chalked up to exhaustion.  But what she had said, about how she looked now, struck him hard.  She always seemed so happy to share her light.  And now, there was no such joy on her face; instead, there was a look of intense concentration as she was bringing her light to bear, something... unnatural from her. 

A wave of horror crashed over Trent at this point, and his mask slipped.  His eyes widened, and his face read deep, shocked concern.  And he whispered, barely audible under his breath, his voice heavy with horror and concern, and the most undeniable tones of love.  "What did they do to you?"

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #22
[ Ens. Cameron Henshaw | Main Bridge | Deck 1 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan
[Show/Hide]
It was the eternal struggle that they both fought. Resisting the desire to show more affection in public, where the crew could see. Cam had long since accepted this, in lieu of maintaining the ship's morale and opinion, the Captain could not be known, and she could not be known. It was a delicate balance, but love would see them all through. She believed that. If ever one were to write the history of their accounts, it would be quite a tale indeed.

She saw the act before he caught himself, before he gave away how much he felt, how much he cared, and Cam on her part had to resist falling into his arms once he was within proximity, even if she were barely able to stand under her own strength, she forced herself to. Following a respectable distance behind him, at her own pace, a relaxed, somewhat tired one, though it wasn't entirely an act.

She gave a wan smile in the privacy of the ready room when he came to check on her. She believed her wounds and tribulations trivial in comparison to him and that of the Versant survivors. “I landed on my head,” said Cam, “gave myself a good concussion and a hurt neck.”

“But I'm fine,” she quickly added, suspecting that Jien was more worried for her than for himself. She gladly hugged him, as much as she could without inciting pain across her body. She also wanted to give him the usual comfort and support that he clearly needed. Typical of him, he worried whether she ought to be up and running when it's obvious through the medical stuff she was wearing and the skull cap that she was far from okay. When he pulled back and spoke, she rested her palms against his chest, applying no pressure or strength, but just sort of stood there resting her hands on him, to feel his form under the palms. He's really here. He's here and he's not dead. Just be glad, Cameron.

“I'm glad to see you back where you belong,” said Cam, her voice quivering and betraying her emotions and feelings, “Jien...I thought I lost you, when the Savi took you...I've lost too much, I have lost two sets of parents, a sister, I've lost...I can't lose you too.”

She left a lot more unsaid. She didn't want to unload on him just when he'd gotten back, and when there was so much still to be done. He didn't need to know how close she came to despair and how very nearly she'd given up on her life.

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #23
[ Lieutenant Elro Kobol | Main Sickbay | Deck 11 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] @Top Hat 

Elro couldn’t help but secret a slight little smile to himself at Ducote’s soft dismissal of the Doctor's percieved lack of need to take a break mid-triage. He saw the upcurl of the Commander’s mouth and knew clear enough that it wasn’t anything that Ducote considered to be too serious, rather, a stern reminder that Elro needed to take a break. Though, the Betazoid couldn't help but note that it was the Commander's opinion, rather than Elro's own, that he needed a break...

However, the full Betazoid understood diplomacy better than most, having dealt with more than his fair share of difficult patients whom he'd 'compromised' with. And once again, the Doctor was prepared to strive for a 'compromise'...

“If it pleases you, I will ensure that I take a short respite, when we’re no longer in critical circumstances. However, not before all of the patients are out of immediate danger.” Elro confirmed the man, noting that he’d both requested the Doctor to keep an eye on the Endeavour patients, as well as take a break… It was something of a Scarborough Fair. “I yield to your authority, there is absolutely no need for any metaphorical statements, I assure you.” Elro couldn't help feeling a slight pinch of cheekiness creep upon him as he said such, knowing how disastrously some of the Commander's metaphors ended... At least, in Elro's eyes they tended as such...

“However, again, I must remind you that I am the last person in this room who will need to take a break.” Elro's voice was soft, but reassuring, a tone he wielded with patients. As he spoke, he gestured once again to the fact that he stood taller than almost all others in the room, not to mention the way in which his musculature exceeded that of any of the rest of the staff. The Betazoid was hardly a man such as Commander Akoni, but for a medical officer particularly, he was well built. “And whilst I certainly will take one…” Elro hurried to add, knowing that the Commander would pick up on the comment immediately, if he failed to make it irrefutably clear. “I just wish to assure you that I am the last person on this ship whose wellbeing is under threat at this moment in time...” Elro gestured subtly towards the rest of Sickbay, feeling a slither of amusement, in the way he and Ducote were able to lock horns over the inconsequential matter of going on breaks, whilst the absolute maelstrom of calamity waged around them…

Elro had received extensive training on how to dampen his paracortex and dismiss wayward thoughts and emotions as somewhat ambient, when he needed to. However, the Doctor knew that his Commander’s half-human side interfered with his ability to do so. The cacophony of thoughts and emotion that Elro could reliable tune out in such a hellish triage scenario must have been wracking his Commander’s nerves to breaking point…

But the Commander was dealing with it well; enough that Elro could equally pinpoint his amusal alongside the frustration of what the Doctor imagined was a headache forming in the half-human’s head. Or perhaps that had been partially due to the irepressant nodding that the Commander had been doing throughout Elro’s initial reasoning regarding not requiring a break… An explanation that that had been promptly disregarded.

The Betazoid considered suggesting that his time spent liaising with his Commander constituted a break… But he dismissed that idea fairly swiftly… He was sure the Commander would not agree…

Elro instead considered that the offer of a painkiller might distract the Commander from his campaign for Elro’s tea break…

“In the meantime, would you perhaps appreciate an analgesic for that headache that I imagine you have brewing? Alongside my assurance that I'll take a short break when we've moved out of any immediate patient risk, maybe even treat myself to a pastry." Elro found that side thought very tempting... The Commander knew well of the Doctors partiality to something sweet, hardly compatible to the man's fiance, whose obsession for the 'cream' filled polystyrene that she craved so dearly was bordering on the psychotic, but still, something of note. 

Even if his plan had managed to distract himself, Elro knew how stalwart the Commander was. The Doctor wagered that unless the Commander got a signed declaration regarding taking a break and getting something to eat, he’d never quite be satisfied.

After all, this was a man who knew how to contend with the specific moods and demands of Blue Tiran… And despite his way with words, Elro knew that compared to that task, he was proverbially a breath of fresh air.
Elro Kobol  - Chief Medical Officer - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Otheusz - Grey Scars Pirate - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Y'Lev - Syndicate Dominus - USS Theurgy - [Show/Hide]

Re: Epilogue: For the Win [ Day 06 | 1430 hrs. ]

Reply #24
[ Captain Ives | Main Bridge | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] @Triage
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In hearing that Cam was going to be fine, her injuries nothing that Starfleet medical expertise couldn't handle, Jien felt the tensions building in his mimicked neck ease out. His concern for the Ensign's wellbeing made him keep his hands on her shoulders, and he could feel her hands against his chest.

She spoke of loss, and her fear for his fate aboard the Versant. It stirred images from the Scion's Nest, which Ives did not wish to endure right then. He did not blink. He did not allow a moment of darkness impede upon the sight of Henshaw's face. Though her words, they were about her losses, and they were far worse than the losses of dignity Jien had suffered. She'd lost kin, the only family she knew. One by one, over the course of mere weeks. What were Jien's mere three days at the mercy of the Scion in the dark? While Jien had believed he'd lost everyone aboard, Semathal saying they were all Recycled the night before Jien was rescued, it had just proven a lie. Odd, if that, since Jien didn't know why the Infested Scion would not follow through with the threat.

Instead, he'd seen the Scion tormentor vanquished. The waking nightmare had ended, but Jien wasn't sure how his nights would be. He'd already sensed how he dreaded the dark...

"I'm here," he said to Cam, giving her a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "This crew is resourceful, and even more so with some help from Endeavour officers they met on the Savi ship. Not only did they liberate me, but they got Thea back, along with the Reaver warp fighter from the Calamity. The Ovri mother - Lieutenant Vojona - managed to reclaim her egg as well."

Jien moved towards the sitting area, one hand behind the small of Cam's back. "Apparently, our stay provoked some kind of thought, for we had an ally among them, and the inferior caste of Savi rose in rebellion. Things were quite heated aboard, enough to make the Savi deny us our return to the Theurgy. Thea, however, commandeered the ship and got us back - giving us a lift before the Savi got their ship back again. I cannot be sure, of course, but when the Savi resolve their domestic war, I hope they will see our actions more favourably than they did at the time."

It was a command decision made, after Thea had played her hand, and Jien had chosen to protect his crew and make sure those abused by the Savi could return to the Theurgy. It was a part of his role, and he had not relished how the bridge had turned into a warzone. Still, what kind of leader would he be if he let his crew suffer the mercy of hosts such as the Savi? There was no guarantee that the Antes would have prevailed, or what their Old Code might have led to them to do.

Seating himself, Jien held Cam's hand. "I have read the reports. Most of them. It wasn't just your kin you lost. It must have been hard to hear the voices of the lost Lone Wolves. To see their IFFs vanish. Still, you must not blame yourself for that. It was not your fault. There was nothing you could have done. Martok... our ally now, he was simply too cunning. He saw the late launch of those fighters, and picked them off before they managed to get their bearings in the battle. You must not shoulder that responsibility. It's not yours to bear."


OOC: Nicander coming up in a second post! Trevorvw informed me he'll wait for me.

 
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