Star Trek: Theurgy

Star Trek: Theurgy | Season 1 => Episode 01: Outbreak => Topic started by: Auctor Lucan on August 11, 2012, 06:52:48 AM

Title: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 11, 2012, 06:52:48 AM
EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]

[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]

It took some time for the agents and medical personnel of the USS Relativity to subdue the outbreak on board the Theurgy, but eventually, a modicum of order was restored.

As it turned out, the new arrivals had indeed come from the future. Captain Ducane had ordered all the Starfleet personnel stranded on Niga beamed up to the Relativity and had boarded the damaged Theurgy-class starship with the primary goal to subdue the outbreak and administer the cure to everyone that showed readings of infection. The Theurgy's shield-harmonics had easily - for them - been obtained before arrival, so the mission had been swiftly executed right from the time the USS Relativity arrived from an - by them opened and sealed - temporal rift in the Mahéwa System.

The undertaking had been successful, and not only had the cure lifted the plague of the parasitic virus, but it seemed there was an unknown side-effect to the antidote that appeared after a few hours. It affected the memories of the victims during the time which they were infected. Even the pollinated state, where there brain had a minor degree of affliction from the virus, was less clearly remembered by the crew of the Theurgy. During the state of full infection, where many of the crew had committed atrocious acts, events were remembered quite vaguely, as if in a hazy dream, and it served to help the - at first - highly traumatised crew.

Dr. Lucan cin Nicander explained during the Senior Staff meeting - in not so crude terms - that since the virus had its unique psychological capabilities, the result that the cure had was highly unique as well - effecting the brain to the same extent that the virus has since the antidote had been based on the same chemical compound. In any case, it did serve to make the life easier for the Chief Counsellor and the ships Rehabilitation Officers during those first couple of days after the incident.

After initial examinations, they were all relieved to discover that no one had actually been impregnated. Apparently, the virus was only concerned about the creation of alien life, not human life. This temporal impotency would only leave the crew barren for a few months, while the physical attributes of the virus subsided in a couple of days.

Moreover, a formal edict had been spoken by Captain Ives over the intercom all over the ship, where s/he clearly stated - under no uncertain terms and conditions - for the sake of their primary mission - that no one of the crew would be held responsible for the actions he, she or they had committed while under the influence of the alien virus. Nor would the actions of those pollinated be regarded as crimes or the aggressors held responsible for the - betimes - fatal outcome of their acts. In fact, with the help of the residual effect of the antidote, s/he encouraged his/her crew to try and bridge their minds from the trauma to the best of their abilities and not seek to challenge the fellow crew members whom might have wronged them. All aggressions or offences of such nature was to be considered grave defilements upon ship safety in the eyes of Security, and handled accordingly. If in doubt, it was encouraged to speak to one's closest superior officer.

The only one that ended up in the Brig was Cadet Amikris Noetin, whom with the support of her parents refused to be inoculated with the antidote. She was kept in the Brig for the sake of the ship's safety with extra precautions taken to keep all her abilities from affecting anyone else, and she was given all the comforts provided for her to spend her time in her cell. The reason for the Ash'reem's standpoint in the matter was on the agenda for the Senior Staff meeting, and would be formally addressed there. This discussion would also determine the fate of the planet below, and the drastic measures to be taken to prevent another ship from spreading the virus.

When the Senior Staff meeting was held, four days had passed, and the timeship remained hidden in the Mahéwa System together with the Theurgy. In fact, they still remained in orbit of Niga since with the threat known, the M-Class planet did serve its original purpose. Extreme precautions were taken, yet deuterium could nevertheless be harvested, and repairs (now even more needed than upon their arrival to Niga) could proceed. There was great merit also in the amount of work that all the departments put in - keeping their mind of the past couple of days.

Many people were severely injured and too many were so to an extent that Dr. Nicander had to place them in stasis in wait for a time where they could be taken to a proper starbase infirmary and get the medical environments and specialists in the individual fields that they needed. Some of the injured might still not make it, he informed the gathered Senior Staff.

"Yet as long as there is life, there is hope," he said, his tattooed hands folded upon the large table in front of him.

The highest ranking of those fatally injured were obviously the XO as well as the Chief Engineer. Also the newly promoted Chief CONN Officer had to be put in Stasis, and the SCO had nearly bled out his life on the Main Bridge, and to prevent brain injury, Dr. Nicander had also placed him in stasis. Blood transfusions might have aided the SCO, yet there was great risk that it was already too late and such would have to be done in a safer way with more doctors present, and thus the CMO judged it safer for the comatose alpha-leader of the Lone Wolves to join the others in stasis. If nothing else, to let him get the proper training and prosthetics for his missing leg.

After the Chief Medical Officer had reported in full, the female form of Jien Ives looked towards the other Captain in the room - the Relativity's Commanding Officer - seated in the chair that Nerina had occupied before the arrival to Niga. The events that led to Nerina's injury was blurry in her mind, even though she knew perfectly well that she had been present by the time of her First Officer's devastating fall from the railing in Stellar Cartography - where she had suffered a neck broken in two places.

"Captain Ducane," she said quietly where she sat with her fingers folded underneath her eyes, "how much can you tell us without violating the Temporal Prime Directive about what led you to undergo a mission to alter time in order to save us? I think everyone present are interested to know how a volatile virus like this has not been dealt with earlier. We are not too far out in the fringes of the Alpha Quadrant after all." Jien already knew, having spoken at length with Captain Ducane in her Ready Room. This was for the benefit of the Senior Staff, and it had taken some persuasion to keep Captain Ducane from leaving for the 29th century. The winning argument had been that the Relativity would arrive on time regardless for the debriefing.

"Yes, Captain," said Ducane and rose to his feet, a grey-haired man in his late sixties with a receding hairline. As he began to explain, he walked around the table. Present, besides the core Senior Staff were: both the Ash'reem parents instead of just one of them; Lt. Lin Kae of Engineering, Ensign Carver and Junior Lieutenant Isley from the Lone Wolves, whom had all been summoned since their names were upon the agenda as well; Deputy ThanIda zh'Wann and the bandaged Junior Lieutenant Adam Kingston whom were posted as Security during the meeting since the Relativity had two Temporal Agents to accompany their Captain as well. This was not because of mistrust, but of decorum.

Captain Ducane said that the Theurgy had eventually arrived at Earth. The infected crew had beamed themselves down and promptly begun to have infect everyone they could. It soon became a global epidemic - a plague that gradually spread to other solar systems and beyond the Alpha Quadrant. Within seven years, all civilization seemed to be on the verge of extinction.

Fortunately, a team of Andorian scientists had managed to seclude themselves on a remote science laboratory. There, they scavenged any records they could find of the early events of the galactic epidemic. They had pieced together an old version of the Federation Database and in it, it would find the stored data from the USS Theurgy. And within this patchwork data, they had managed to come across a single Private Log that had enlightened them about the origin of the virus, as well as the other contents - like the conspiracy in Starfleet Command and the antidote that the Chief Medical Officer had encrypted. Both the Log and the formula was accessible to them since they were not infected, and they did all they could: sending the vital information as far and frequently as they possibly could. Sub-space messages went everywhere in the hopes of others learning how to deal with the epidemic.

The messages had, however, been the downfall for the scientists, whom were found and infected as well. However, the message had been picked up.

"...by one of my Temporal Agents aboard, when surveying the time-stream. We were a bit... lost before then, stranded in a time before the alternative universe that the epidemic had caused. The Federation and the enforcement of the Temporal Accord in the 29th century had ceased to exist, leaving us without a future to return to," said Ducane as he paced around the table, "We were previously posted, by fortunate happen-stance, in a time before the epidemic. We now know that a certain temporal incursion changed the evolution of the planet Niga below us. An incursion made several millennia ago which made the Niga we know now replace the real planet seven days and five hours ago. Temporally contained with 29th century technology, the epidemic was to go off like a bomb in this time and wipe out most of known civilisation in the entire galaxy."

Jien Ives spoke up now, eyes unblinking and fingers still laced underneath her eyes. "A temporal incursion that was directed against us specifically, by someone who knew that we had fled here, and meant to use us as a vector since our ship was damaged and would provide the best chances of the outbreak to take hold given that our environmental systems were down. Would you be so kind as to enlighten my crew about why you did not come here sooner?"

"Certainly," said Ducane and while he did not sigh, he was not too happy about giving lectures either. Especially about things he saw as routine for his line of business. "We cannot pinpoint the exact time of the incursion made at Niga millennia ago, and we did not come here sooner since a pre-emptive incursion might have constituted a Pogo paradox, in which interference to prevent an event actually triggers the same event. In plain words, we could not risk coming here before Lieutenant Commander Edena Rez recorded her Private Log."

Jien was silent for a few seconds, her eyes drifting to the present Intelligence Officer before addressing Ducane again. "And you have found no leads on whom instigated this; who would merit from genetically altering the flora on Niga and breed this virus exclusively for this century? The primary suspects would be a species immune to viral deceases and have an affinity for botanical sciences."

"We have a number of suspects amongst the factions in the Temporal Cold War," said Captain Ducane, standing on the far side of the long table as he answered Captain Ives' question. Of course the Directive would stop him from answering that question. "Unless we return to our time, we cannot make further inquiries."

The timeship's Captain addressed the whole gathering next. "Speaking of which, the Relativity must leave soon. Please understand that we have been voyaging the centuries before his day for the last two years - looking for the intel that my agent needed to locate this place and time. By the way, the fireworks of the Warp Core that detonated served to make a good imprint in the time-stream, helping us get here."

Jien made no comment where she sat, not giving one whit about the loss of her Yacht.

"Anyway, your Captain has asked me to stay so that I may answer your questions to the best of my ability." Ducane corrected himself with good manners, spreading his hands where he stood. "Or rather, as much as I am permitted to... So please, go ahead."



OOC: If your character(s) don't have any questions, send me a PM to me so that I know if I should expect a post or not before moving on. :)
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 11, 2012, 07:59:36 AM
[Nathan Isley]

The timely arrival of temporal agents from the 29th Century had been a saving grace.  With life support down on the shuttle, they were beamed directly from the shuttle to the ship, the uninfected separated from the infected while the future Starfleet officers worked to cure the virus once and for all.  At long last, there was room to breathe, and in that moment, Isley slumped against a wall and laid his head back, relief finally coming over him.  In the aftermath, he made himself useful with repairs to the Valkyries.  he might not have been an engineer, but pilots knew their systems well enough, and the technicians on board already had their hands full with ship-wide repairs.  The dilithium they mined from the planet, now well aware of it's dangers, proved useful in replicating the resources they needed to fix several key systems.

By the time of the senior staff meeting, everyone had surely heard enough about the infection, but there were final matters to be dealt with.  He didn't fully understand why he was there, but he imagined it was to serve the same purpose he had the last time, acting as a representative of the Lone Wolves, in place of the injured and disabled SCO.  When the time came for questions, he certainly wasn't about to pass up on the opportunity to find out what he could from someone who knew history.  "How exactly does it work?  I mean, I get that you're from some alternate timeline, but how do you keep track of how things change when the past is altered?"



[Edena Rez]

The former Starfleet Intelligence Officer was surprised to find out how crucial her personal log had been to their survival.  She had hoped it would save lives one day, and from what Ducane told them, it had done enough to affect the future drastically.  Not bad for a last grasp at straws from the young Trill.  Like most everyone else, she was interested in the Senior Staff meeting, to have a face-to-face conversation with the Starfleet of the 29th century.  When Isley asked his question, however, it was Rez that disclosed some information.

"They track Temporal Incursions, signs that time travel was used.  Like we track particle wakes left behind by ship's engines, they can see when and where a ship has travelled through time, and follow it to undo any changes made to the timeline.  Instruments aboard their ship can track the amount of incursion, allowing them to restore it as much as possible."  It was likely knowledge she was not expected to have.  "Starfleet Intelligence has access to logs kept by officers who have witnessed encounters with Temporal Agents.  If I reveal this, it's not technically a violation of the Temporal Prime Directive, as I am native to this timeline, and I did promise Captain Ives full disclosure.  It's my belief that if we are being targeted by someone with the ability to alter the timeline, the Senior Staff should be as informed as they can be about Temporal Incursions.  A more important question to ask if whether we will see another incident like this, and if we will be able to rely on assistance from the Relativity in the future.  I imagine that simply revealing yourselves to us must be leaving a Temporal Incursion of it's own, even if it's far less severe then the infection."



[Lin Kae]

Kae had joined in on the repair efforts throughout the ship.  His central work involved fixed the damage to the holo-grid, and then joining with a small team tasked with constructing a new warp core for the Captain's Yacht.  It was a chance for him to show off a bit of the knowledge he had acquired working with fringe technology during his time aboard Starbases, as he put forth enough creative input to be placed in charge of the team, and designed a warp core of equal ability to the old one, but with improvements to efficiency, as well as weight and size.  The final result was a core ten percent smaller, running three percent above original specifications.  Sadly, he was called to the Senior Staff meeting before having a chance to see it's installation.  Oh well, the others could handle that much without him.

At the meeting, the talk of time travel lit his eyes up more then would have been expected from a Lieutenant.  There was just no hiding his excitement at the idea that Starfleet would one day travel through time the same way they currently travelled through space.  The only disappointment was that he wouldn't live long enough to see it.  "Is there anything we can do to protect ourselves from these Temporal Incursions?  I mean, if they find us a threat, what's to stop them from travelling back and blowing this ship away with technology beyond our ability?  Or even from destroying the ship before it ever leaves drydock?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: WyteKnyte on August 11, 2012, 09:58:05 AM
David Grayson listened to Captains Ives and Ducane quietly, soaking in all of the information that the two were providing. He'd been rather quiet ever since he'd been cured, in fact; while he couldn't completely remember everything he'd experienced while he was infected, just the knowledge that he had been subject to such base instincts unnerved him. David prided himself on his mastery over himself, his ability to always remain under control of his faculties no matter the circumstances. That his loss of control was caused by an alien virus did little to assuage his discomfort. He did not like having control taken from him, no matter how or why it happened.

"With all due respect, Captain Ducane...while I have no doubt in the abilities of yourself and your crew, how are we to know that you aren't the ones orchestrating events? You may be Starfleet, but you're from a Starfleet that's likely very different from our own." David shrugged. "I don't mean to accuse you of lying, but once the Relativity returns to its native time, there's no way for us to know what exactly you're doing in the twenty-ninth century. I'm grateful for your help, but trust is not exactly something that comes easily to any of us in recent weeks."

Garen Nelis was more concerned with the mental state of the Senior Staff than he was anything else. Unlike most of the ship's crew, he hadn't been infected and thus had not been exposed to the cure, so he could remember everything that had happened. The things that some of these people--people he thought he'd known--had done while under the influence of the virus disturbed him. Certainly, the virus was what had sent them all over the edge, but in just about every humanoid's mind, buried so deep that most of them had forgotten it, there existed a frightening propensity for chaos and destruction. While they were all now back in control of their faculties, the fact that they could all so easily devolve to such behavior worried Garen.

"I don't have a question, specifically, but I worry about the potential for members of the crew to suffer some kind of mental relapse," Garen said. "While the cure seems to have scrambled the memories of those to whom it was applied, a person's memories are never truly gone. If one were to dig deep enough, or if someone were to suffer some kind of severe head trauma, it's possible their memories of the past couple of days could suddenly come back to them. And while they wouldn't begin acting as they had during the time of their infection, the restoration of these memories could severely damage their ability to perform their duties." He turned his concerned black eyes on Jien. "Captain Ives, everyone on this ship is already under enough stress as it is. If something like this were to happen to the wrong person at the wrong time, well...it could end very badly. And not just for that one person."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 11, 2012, 02:18:30 PM
[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]

Five people had spoken, and they all had pointed by degrees towards the same issue; damage-control and pre-emptive efforts to forestall more attempts from the unknown enemy - if not the same enemy that awaited them on Earth - to make further temporal incursions. Captain Ducane answered with a long look towards Jien Ives where she sat on the other end of the table. Jien returned that stare without blinking - not moving an inch.

"Captain," she said quietly to Ducane, "pacta sunt servanda." Agreements must be kept.

In the end, it was Ducane who looked away and chuckled. "Your Captain drives a hard bargain," he said to the gathering crew and raked back grey strands from his high forehead, "I acquiesce on the terms we discussed, Ives. You may have him, but you cannot expect him to be overly pleased about it. You are sentencing him to undergo your journey, to be in this time when the Federation hunts you. You must understand that I am abandoning one of my crew..."

"...for the sake of your own existence." Jien still did not move, only her lips speaking in crystal clear vowels. "The fact of your own rectitude has already proven our final mission to be a success. How, whom and how long a time we will have to crusade against Starfleet Command is unknown, yet we know by the fact of your presence here that there is a Starfleet in the 29th century. Unless... a temporal incursion has already taken place, and you were not only trapped in the 23th century because of the Niga incident. That he was born here - in this time - and that he served to aid us in finding Edena Rez's log, and the fact that he has the knowledge to contact you if he determines new temporal incursions, are all pointing towards the sa-"

Ducane worked his jaws. "Though he will still serve under the Temporal Prime Dire-"

"Yes, I fully expect him to. I have no interest for him to alter history however he may."

"So by me leaving him behind, we place history in his hands, with only his word and his oath to Starfleet preven-"

Jien stood up then, and the suddenness of her movement was like a kick in the teeth for everyone gathered. Her glare was made all the more penetrating because of the impassible coldness in her features. "You already know that he has to be here! Nowhere else!" She leaned forward on the table, browridge lowered over her oaken eyes. "He did not know it, but you recruited him on false grounds to begin with. He was never supposed to be under your command. He had nothing to do in the 29th century. Now is the time to rectify your actions! You are the one that violated this day and age before I even knew his true name!"

"I have already agreed to your terms, Ives!" barked Ducane, face red of anger and shame at the public divulging of his breach of the same Directive as he meant to uphold. "I do not like it, and nor will he, but it will be as you say. But if I find that him being here has done anything to our native time, you can expect me back in this century before you noticed we've left. Then, the time of his commissioning will be determined."

"Fine," said Jien and yanked at the hem of her uniform jacket before turning her eyes to her gathered crew. "To answer all of your questions, we have a new addition to our crew. The temporal agent that spent two years to find the intelligence that saved us will remain on board, as our new Temporal Affairs Officer. He will be reporting to you Lieutenant Neotin, in the Science Department. He will be another line of defence against future - or past - temporal incursions, and he will be able to contact the USS Relativity strictly in the event - or under the suspicion - of such an incursion. This might even boost the morale of the crew, to know that we have time itself on our side."

For last, she turned her eye to Edena Rez briefly, and made a last comment while she sat down. "If we are lucky, even though luck seems a rare thing on this ship, the temporal incursion we just suffered might just have been using the Theurgy as a vector for the virus. Therefore, the ultimate goal of the incursion was most likely not the infection of this crew alone, but rather the historic and galactic-wide ramifications. We were just the perfect means to an end for this unknown enemy to get what it wanted, and the next attempt might involve some other starship entirely - if it would use a ship at all. We just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, since someone knew we would."

Captain Ducane remained standing, looking out across the gathered people before looking back to Jien where she sat in her chair. "You will be getting a fine addition to your crew. Please take care of him as if he was one of your own. Given the effort he has put into helping you, I hope he has earned your respect. I wish you well on your journey. Good luck, for you will need it."

Watching the Captain head for the exit, Jien wished she could pry the knowledge of the Theurgy's current plight form the man's mind - to know how to get his crew hoem safe, and how to thwart the impersonators.


OOC: If there are any further questions to Ducane before he leaves the room, stop him, otherwise address the issues at heart for your character(s) - perhaps opting to try and change the order on the agenda. As I said, if you have nothing to add, PM me so that I know.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 11, 2012, 05:02:48 PM
Both of the Ash'reem looked ready to speak but Arcorn sealed his lips as he looked at his mate.  WIth a slight subtle nod and movement of her hips, Amatras took headway into the discussion. "Captain Duncane.  I wish to know more about the effects the virus had on my own race, and some details concerning the possibilty of delayed reactions of the virus.  I realize the second option may be unknown but, with all viruses, they never truly leave your system.  Administer a cure, you merely drive it into submission, for a time until your antibodies are depleted with time.  However many do resurface in time, such as Earth's chicken pox coming back as shingles, or the HIV virus returning as AIDS.  I could of course list thousands of species across numerious planets but...you understand we don't have time for that.  Also, what other races are you thinking may have had a hand in this temporal intrusion?  I know my species fits the description you provided, although our religious beliefs would prevent such an outright attack on another world."  She paid close attention to the response from the captain knowing it'd pay a key role in determining what was to be done with Amikris. 

Adam and Cir'Cie remained silent as they listened, neither having much to add.  Cir'Cie slightly ashamed of her actions during the infected state what she could remember anyways.  Adam on the other hand wished he could remember more of it.  Vague images playing across his imagination as he tried to recall the bits he couldn't quite see in his memories.  He was barely paying attention to the debriefing as a result and missed a good deal about temporal incursions and the future. 

-Brig-

Amikris sat in her quarters twitching slightly at the withdrawl from her mediciation.  Glancing over her PDA at a book, although the slight twitching of her eyes made it difficult to focus on the screen before her.  The swelling of her ovaries had slowed but not reversed, however the itchy sensation remained constant having lead to several small cuts along her sides where she had itched till actually breaking the skin.  Her natural healing affinity had of course sealed the wounds but she continued to intermittenly scratch at them.  This has resulted in her removing her uniform top, and laying contently on her brig cot in pants and the tight plastic wrap around her upper torso.  The cott was of course borderlining on mildew after four days of elevated temperature and humidity.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 12, 2012, 12:06:00 AM
[Edena Rez]

"Though it would be a risk to ourselves, i think the most important thing we can do is send out a subspace message on all frequencies, and aim for it to reach as many ships and outposts as we can.  It should contain a report on the virus and how to synthesize the cure.  In the event this infection were ever used again, having the cure on file in more databases throughout the quadrant would increase the chances of the infection being contained.  I'm sure Captain Ducane would agree with that, seeing the temporal effect of a future virus being unleashed in the past.  The cure would actually serve to reduce the effect of the Temporal Incursion, thus making it more available would be worthwhile."

Edena was much more willing to voice her opinions then she was when her identity was first revealed.  Maybe she wasn't completely absolved of her crimes by hiding her identity from the crew, but they had all been through too much to carry grudges now.  They would have to band together, and put the past behind them.  They lost many fine officers, either to death or injury that resulted in them being placed in stasis.  What crew did remain had to be taken care of, had to work cohesively.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 12, 2012, 12:18:32 AM
Pausing as the sliding doors opened, Ducane looked back towards the two Ash'reem by the table - the temporal agents pausing in his wake as well.

"By extinct, I referred to the consequence of the virus." The Captain turned towards the two parents, and he said what they did not want to hear. "The body is not designed to function in the way the virus made it do, and the life-expectancy seemed to vary between three and five years depending on the species. The Ash'reem were enlightened to the way which might have meant the end of their plight, yet the virus in its original form killed them more quickly than most other species. They seemed resilient at first, able to suppress and control the symptoms, yet their bodies deteriorated from within. They were able to bear children, yet parents and infants alike died in a form of strange leprosy."

Ducane looked towards the Captain and the Chief Medical Officer. Before he left, he gave them all a final warning. "Niga was not supposed to be a breeding ground for this... abomination. It is a chemical weapon, and a very destructive one at that. Any mistakes in getting rid of it is to allow the incursion to change the time-line. Every single remaining shred of the virus will have unfathomable consequences. The remote possibility of natural reproduction for one single species that is meant to die out unless they resort to artificial reproduction - be it artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, cloning and embryonic splitting, or cleavage - does not by any means constitute the risk of letting the atrocities we've seen come to pass. This vile version of Niga cannot exist in this time, or any other. Nor can the chemical compound be replicated by some new terrorist faction, so all the data that you have needs to be deleted immediately."

Looking back to the Ash'reem, the timeship's Captain did not mince his words. "Your standpoint about your daughter is sheer lunacy. Do you want your daughter to die? Do you want the rest of the galaxy to follow in her wake? This virus is not the answer you seek, so come to terms with that and give her the antidote. Furthermore, your CMO can tell you about the advances in the medical field since the 21st century. That is not my field."

"I will have you act civil towards my Chief Science Officer," said Jien where she sat with cold vowels. "And I will deal with the problems that remains. Like Lieutenant Commander Rez suggested, the knowledge of this virus and its cure will be spread beyond the walls of this ship. Now, I wish you a pleasant journey home to your own time, and hopefully, we will not have to call upon your aide during our mission."

Captain Ducane looked towards the rest of the gathering and inclined his head slowly before he left with his two agents.

Dr. Nicander frowned a little as he spoke up - the prompting of reassurance made. "The antidote has not left any residual or dormant strain of the virus in any of our crew. I will of course scan everyone for signs of what you mention, unlikely as it might be this day and age. The reason thereof is probably the same as the origin of the plant: that it is a clever construct made with 29th century technology. Perhaps it was made to be easily cured in case the instigators failed to control the epidemic somehow, and it did things it was not supposed to. Furthermore, viruses did not fully leave your body in the 21st century, while I assure you that Starfleet Medical has come a bit farther than that since then."

Jien looked towards the two Ash'reem by the table. "I understand the difficulty in this situation for you, that you hold hope to cure your species with this virus. I will not allow it for the reasons that Captain Ducane mentioned. The altered planet's atmosphere will be destroyed before we leave it behind. The Ash'reem people chancy and uncertain fortune cannot be the demise of everyone else, and especially not since it would endanger the time-line. You will accompany Dr. Nicander to the Bring, and you give your daughter the antidote. That is an order. Understood?"

Lucan looked towards the table's surface before rising to his feet, heading for the sliding doors. He paused to wait for the Ash'reem there, hands folded behind his back.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 12, 2012, 03:36:00 AM
Amatras frowns at the response she got, her shoulders seeming to dip slightly as well before standing and joining the Doctor. Arcorn remains seated and looks thoughtfully at the others well remaining silent for the most part.  Neither seemed pleased nor eager to speak about the matter however.  Both would have prefered the virus be preserved and studied instead of destroyed, the sequence needed extracted and the rest deleted, however it was a risky procedure and the danger of it breaking contamination was present. 

Amatras considered the symthoms described, Leprosy or Hansen's disease as it was sometimes called displayed several key symthoms.  First and foremost skin lesions and the deterioration of exposed flesh. it also displayed symthoms that damaged the nervious system and respritory system as Mycobacterium Leprae spread.  It was interesting that those symthoms were displayed in her oppinion.  It implied the evolution from a virus to a eukaroytic cell-line an impressive jump for anything to make.  The minimum recorded time for such a jump usually required atleast twenty million years and very specific conditions.  She knew she wouldn't be able to save the virus at this point, but she also knew that not all knowledge of the virus would be destroyed, only physical records.  Once away from eyes and ears she and her daughter were going to have a long talk.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Brutus on August 12, 2012, 06:00:16 AM
[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]
Like most of the others, Natalie remembered little, if anything, of her actual infection, even if the moment had been brief, before she was stunned by the crewmen of the USS Relativity. In her mind, she knew some of the details, without knowing them, not remembering them. It was a mixed blessing, she supposed, to know how something was lost, for instance, but not remember lossing it. In order to keep from thinking on it too hard, or the memories that weren't affected by the cure, she, like so many other members of the Theurgy, buried herself into the massive amounts of repair work that the ship was currently undergoing.

She had been the last to arive at the meeting, and had, for the most part, remained silent throughout, tapping her fingers, antsy even, in her chair. Her eyes would flicker back and forth, among the members of the senior staff. Memory loss, or no memory loss, she could still feel the way her lip had been split, and the ache in her face and wrist (tho all the wounds had been tended to, expertly, by the members of the Relativity), and half the time, when she looked at the Captain, if he were showing his male form, she would get a little tremble of fear, right down her spine. So she was quite relieved to see the female Jien in attendance when she slipped into her seat.

Temporal paradoxes, and temporal science in general, weren't the Operations officers area of expertise. Mostly, she knew the kind of havoc that chorniton particles wrecked on flow regulators and shield harmonics, but the science behind time travel itself, or its moral and historical implications, were beyond her. If she though on it too much, she'd give herself another head ache, and frankly, that was the last thing she needed. So instead she looked over her notes, tucking stray strands of hair back behind her ear, as the two captains went back and forth, explaining. However, once the shouting started, she gave a sharp jump, her chair scooting back from the table.

Gulping, embarrassed, she mumbles something under her breath, an apology, perhaps, as she scoots back under the table, blue eyes glancing down and away, not meeting anyone's else's gaze around the table. Part of her wonders at the news that there will be a new member joining the crew, and how that balanced against her own news that she was waiting to deliver; the reason she had almost been late. She watched, from those lowered eyes, as the meeting began to break up, and sucked in a deep, steadying breath as Dr.Nicander, and one of the two Ash'reem left, following the men from the future.

She remains seated, tapping a PADD against her slightly too curvy hip (the after effects of her brief infection having not yet faded) waiting to see if anyone else was getting up right away. Natalie glances over to the captain, and, when it became clear that the rest were waiting to be dismissed, she slowly speaks up.

"Captain?" she asks, drawing the woman's attention to her. "I do have some good news. I was working with a team, down in transporter room 1. The one that had been cut off? We, well," she takes a deep breath, and then forces it out from between her lips, "We found a pattern in the buffer of the transporter sir. We're running degradation test now, but from what I could tell when I left to come up here, the pattern belongs to one Lt. Miles Renard, um" she checks her notes, "Wolf - 13" she adds, with a smile and glance over at the other pilots in the room.

"Once the tests complete, we should be able to remove him from the buffer, I would recommend that Lu - Dr.Nicander be on hand. IT should be a relatively easy procedure, restoring his person and reviving him from the pattern buffer, considering he's no where near the record holder for time spent in a transporter buffer, but well, better safe, then sorry, sir," she finishes, glancing finally to the Captain, a smile that's partially nerves, and partially relief at having something good to contribute for once.


ooc: Lucan, I'll  get that other info to you hopefully tomorrow :)
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 13, 2012, 02:38:29 AM
[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]

With the agenda loose, it seemed the shaken Senior Staff was a bit withdrawn - only Lt. Natalie Stark speaking up even if there were more items to discuss. "So you are saying that Lt. Miles Renard has been trapped in a buffer right here on board since his Valkyrie blew up?" asked Jien where she sat, eyebrows rising, "and we were oblivious until right now?"

Jien rose from her chair and chuckled quietly, slowly heading over to where the two Tactical CONN Officers stood at ease. She looked towards Ensign Skye Carver, the one whom had arrived at the time of reckoning. "Did you hear that? Another wolf has returned to its den, or I suppose that this one was here all along. I am sure he would like to see some familiar faces, so I think you two comrades of his should make their way there too. Yet first, there is a reason why the two of you were called here. Attention!"

After barking the order, the syllables like scalding whips across their backs, Jien looked between the two impassively. She did not show any kind of reaction to how her Yeoman entered the conference lounge and set down a tray on the table. Mr. Isley stood there next to the returning wolf, and though nothing showed through, she remembered moments shared with the fighter pilot before the madness had begun. She raised her chin to speak after gesturing towards all the assembled in the large room to rise to their feet. She would save such thoughts for better times.

"It is an extraordinary pleasure to present you both with the Star Cross for distinguished actions," she said formally and walked back to the table, her eyes taking in the gathering. "Both these recipients are blessed with an extraordinary amount of talent. Both of them are driven. Alas, we could fill this room many times over with people who are talented and driven and serve aboard this ship. What sets this man and this woman apart is the incredible impact they have had on so many people. Together, they have inspired us with their actions, in how they prevented the ruin of all civilisations by stopping - without killing - their infected fellow wolves and comrades, that would otherwise have slipped though our fingers."

Jien picked up the two satin-covered boxes from the tray and looked out through the briefing room's view-screen. There, they could all see the USS Relativity taking off, about to make a temporal rift and return to their native time. "When we heard Captain Ducane speak of the future we managed to avoid, I think that it was plain to all of us how the impact of our actions extends beyond this single ship. Therefore, it is an extraordinary honour for me to be able to say 'thank you' to these two pilots for the great work that they have done on behalf of this ship and on behalf of the entire galaxy."

Quietly, Jien returned to the two. "This is but a small token of our appreciation, even if you happen to be given these without proper procedures through Starfleet Command," she said to them quietly, "At ease. wolves." She gave the first one to Ensign Carver and shook her hand, then stepped over to Mr. Isley and did the same - looking into both their eyes.

"For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack." Later when the applause had fallen silent, Jien nodded towards the back of the room, "Go now to the Transporter room, and we will be with you shortly to welcome back your comrade to us. Thank you, and dismissed."

Jien turned back to the Chief of Operations, whom had prompted the awards to be given because of her comment, and it also shed light upon the formal proceedings that lacked in the already quite known promotion of Lt. Stark in the wake of her predecessors demise. "Everyone remain standing, please," she said and walked over to the tray, picking up a smaller box while heading to the young Department Head. "Everyone knows of your talent already. We all witnessed your capacity in the face of danger at the end of the last Senior Staff meeting. Commander Hendricks chose well to have you as his Assistant Chief, and now you will tread in his footsteps..."

Opening the box, Jien presented her with a black pip that she gently fastened upon her collar next to her two gold ones. "...as Lieutenant Commander Stark of the USS Theurgy."

Stepping back a little, the Captain shook her hand sombrely, the small smile all the Commanding Officer could offer these days. "Tread well, 'Commander."

Walking slowly back to her chair, the Captain supposed there was no secret that the chair next to her was empty - Nerina in stasis and not able to serve as their First Officer any more. Since the infection had lifted from the ship, Jien had considered this often, and the obvious choice had been plain to her from the start. Yet it was not a choice of the heart, and there was bad blood still despite it all. Still, the best way to do this was to do it with consensus - to make the Senior Staff understand what had become so evidently plain with the outcome of their predicament at Niga.

"Lieutenant Commander Edena Rez," said the Captain and her oaken eyes drifted to her, "would you please stand up, and would you mind explaining to the Staff why you chose to make the Log, besides the obvious outcome that it had. Furthermore, would you please tell them what you told me before I released you from custody - the things you reported to Starfleet Intelligence before you learned about the conspiracy in Starfleet Command. I also want everyone to know, from you or either of your former hosts, what you have offered this crew in the wake of dropping your false identity."
 
Remaining on her feet, with her calloused hands upon the back of her chair, the Captain waited for the answer.

Oh, there were other things to attend to before she could head to the Transporter room, like how Lt. T'Less would advise the safest way to destroy the atmosphere of the planet below them, and if they had the means to do so soon with their arsenal so depleted and repairs not done. Also, it was the matter of what Lt. Kae had done to Thea, and what repercussions that might have. This, however, had to take precedence.

[ Turbolift | En Route to the Brig ]

In the lift, Dr. Nicander stood next to the Chief Science Officer in silence. He considered a few options, and chose to go with the conventional approach, if there was such, in this situation.

"My apologies for your hopes in a cure for your species, Lt. Neotin," he said quietly, tattooed hands in his lab coat and pale grey eyes seeking hers. "I cannot even pretend to know what it must be like to have such promise and hope turn sour. Even though this virus was not the answer, it might have been a part of the puzzle. Perchance... there are ways through which you may learn things from the antidote's formula, since it is based on the virus chemical compound."

In Lucan's pocket lay a hypospray with Amikris' secret medicine besides the one holding the antidote for the virus. The first, he would try and give her when her mother did not see it, the latter he would be forced to give her regardless. As it were, Lucan was very much interested to see if the Ash'reem would follow orders or not - only him being the executioner with the axe, in a sense.

"Also..." added Lucan quietly and leaned closer to the ravishing alien woman, "I have sworn an oath. 'I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.' I know the hazardous components to the virus' formula, since I identified them in the development of the antidote together with Cadet Amikris. What if I would help you, Lt. Neotin? What if I would give you a version without the volatile components, for the sake of future research for your species? This, before I delete it all from the Sickbay's database. If I hold the key to your race's natural survival without advancing research in new kinds of artificial reproduction, then it would be vile of me to deny the Ash'reem people their future."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 13, 2012, 03:30:20 AM
"With all due respect Dr Nicander, the viral proteins along the exterior of the cell and much of the genetic information stored within the virus itself, are irrelivant to my presuits.  The most likely cause of the cure is secondary information coded in the genes themselves.  Something close enough to our own genome to overwrite what is present already, well the cure may hold some answers, the genome would be more useful to what I need to look into." She explained calmly as she stood next to him, avoiding looking him in eyes, although knowing full well that was what he was trying to do.  Her eyes were hidden behind the dark coating of her goggles.  "Amikris may hold the key anyways...we'll have to look at her DNA after we administer the cure, assuming it doesn't kill her." A slight hint of doubt lingering in her voice as she talked about her daughter's fate.  Something Captain Duncan had completely overlooked in his insistance of the cure, was that Amikris's death may occur along either route.  If a transcription mutation had occured to her genetic code, following her infection, she now had genes from the virus in her system, and the cure would render her sterile, if it didn't outright kill her from internal bleeding.  The most primitive form of evolution could lead to her daughter's death in his instance, it would depend upon numerious factors that remained unknown.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 13, 2012, 04:10:11 AM
[Nathan Isley]

In truth, Isley was more used to getting chewed out by his commanding officer then receiving commendations.  Perhaps that was what made the award extra special, along with just how much meaning there was behind it.  Of all the crew who fought valiantly to stop the infection, it was him and Skye that were the ones to obtain such a distinguished medal.  With that, they were given their standing orders, and after dismissal, Isley and Carver would leave the meeting for the transporter room, where another of their comrades would be awaiting rematerialization.

"Good flying back there, Carver.  I think you deserve more of the credit then me.  I probably would have just given up if not for you."  Nathan had felt like his back was against the wall, and with Ida tempting him at every turn, he might have just surrendered himself to her for some zero-gravity fun if not for how hard Skye had been fighting.  It wasn't like he could just sit back and do nothing when she was still out there, against difficult odds.


[Edena Rez]

At the order of Jien, Edena stood before the others, and explained her actions, both during the outbreak as well as beforehand.  "I created the log when . . . frankly, I thought we were done for.  I knew it was our duty to try and leave some kind of detailed report of what happened, so that if we were discovered, the hope of a cure might be found.  With my back against the wall, it was really the only thing left I could do for the sake of life in the galaxy.  That it succeeded in saving our lives too . . . I can't express the relief I feel over it."

That was the easy.  The more difficult dialogue would be explaining herself to the crew in the same manner that she had to the Captain before the outbreak.  "I was placed on this ship by Starfleet Intelligence because of the Theurgy's many advancements.  The Valkyries, Thea, those were projects which could have shifted the balance of power if opposing forces were to get their hands on it.  My duty was to oversee everything, and if it became necessary, destroy the ship to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.  It was a task that became more difficult to fulfill as I became a part of this crew and came to know the people on-board.  When the conspiracy came to light, I knew this ship, this crew was the most trustworthy part of the Federation left.  I confided in the Captain, and also offered to mislead SI with my reports in an effort to help us.  It doesn't make up for my deception, but my commitment is now to this crew before anything else."

She looked towards Ida for a moment, the one who had trusted her the least in all of it, had broken the seals on her room and pointed a phaser on her while she was in the shower.  Rez had to report the matter early in the outbreak, and that crime was not going to be pardoned like so many others, simply because it pre-dated the infection.  If anything came of it, she hoped that Jien might permit her to handle the issue directly, and hopefully settle matters between herself and Ida so they might move on from their current standpoint.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 13, 2012, 02:55:54 PM
[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]

Jien listened like the rest in quietude, hearing the Trill's official stand-point and her dedication to their final mission.

"You did more than just leave the Theurgy's last testament, and subsequently managed to alert the USS Relativity to interfere and stop the temporal incursion," she said quietly where she stood behind the back of her chair. "You proved to me - to all of us - your rectitude and loyalty to our mission to and this crew... in how you did so selflessly, and honoured our dire undertaking even when your back was against the wall - as you so aptly put it."

Leaving her place behind the chair, Captain Ives slowly walked around the table. "When I interrogated 'Cmdr. Rez in the Brig," she said, talking to the present gathering, "she told me that she had been sending sub-space messages to Starfleet Intelligence since the time of the Theurgy's commissioning, and the point when she had come aboard as Asst. Chief Counsellor Azani Mikahl. I was furious, as you might imagine, and I alluded to my feelings quite firmly. However, then she told me what she had been reporting, and it is something you all should know - all you whom sat opposite 'Azani' and confided in her. She had consistently reported the same thing about this ship and this crew. She told me that her reports were limited to activity that might have been a potential threat.  Nothing about the crew, individually or as a whole, but the same piece of information. 'Captain and crew operating within the standards and regulations of Starfleet.  No cause for concern."

Pausing, Jien raised her eyes to look directly at ThanIda zh'Wann where she remained next to Adam Kingston by the exit. "While I am no empath, and she might have lied to me," she said quietly, unblinking as she met the Andorian's stoic stare, "I have served in Starfleet Intelligence myself in my youth. This is something that is on a need-to-know basis, but I chose to tell those whom are present here since it is of relevance for a decision I am about to make. That piece of information that 'Commander Rez left for SI is the exact same phrase that I was taught for missions such as hers, and just like the phrase, the priorities were the same as well - potential threats being the priority."

The Captain saw Ida swallow slightly where she stood, and they both knew that Jien had been told what happened in Edena's quarters. The Deputy looked rather ill. Not only did she know that her unofficial actions had been noted, but her case had just been proven invalid. Jien did not, however, say anthing - moving on and looking away eventually.

"What you may not know about Edena Rez is also that she has an imperfect joining with the Rez symbiont, which makes her lead her life in constant mental presence from its previous hosts. Yet instead of being taken to the asylum, Edena has - quite remarkably so - overcome her condition, and you are currently not only looking upon a single individual, in one sense. Present here in this room, besides the Command-trained young Trill whom was forced to accept the symbiont, are Jona Rez, Illya Rez and Kiya Rez. Each of their own expertise and knowledge, from a Starfleet Intelligence veteran to a grifter and acrobat to a doctor and counsellor. Indeed, decades ago, Kiya Rez was acknowledged as one of the leading doctors in the Alpha Quadrant."

Eventually, Jien's path had taken her to Edena's side, and she opened a forth box that meeting - having picked it up from the tray on her way there. It held a golden pip, to be replacing the black one on the Trill's collar.

"To shed any doubt from the minds of this crew, and to fortify the official truth about your righteousness, I hereby promote you Commander - second to me alone aboard the USS Theurgy." Quietly, despite how there might be whispers and comments made, Jien simply changed the black pip to a golden one. As she did, she met Edena's eye, and there was no smile. No, not between them. Edena knew that Jien was no fool, and should any ulterior motives surface, or she misstep in her full disclosure about her knowledge from modern day Starfleet Intelligence... Oh, Jien would be right there. Potential enemies kept closer and all, the current day was one of trust, and should Edena not err, that trust would remain.

"Commander. Do you swear to honour this crew, to dedicate your life and multiple souls to taking them home even if I would not survive the journey.... and accept the responsibility as Executive Officer?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 13, 2012, 08:59:09 PM
[Edena Rez]

She didn't smile at the promotion.  Few would during such a formal meeting.  Along with the glory and privilege that came with a new pip in your shirt was a great responsibility that couldn't be ignored.  For edena, she was now second in command of the Theurgy, serving as Executive Officer to the last ship that they could fully trust wasn't compromised.  In that way, one could say they were truly the last of the Federation, at least until they found a means of identifying their enemies, and removing them from the governing body.

As Ives told the crew of her imperfect joining, in her mind's eye she could see her former hosts standing beside her.  Jona with his peppered black hair, kept short in that Starfleet Intelligence way, Kiya with her hands folded and blue eyes impartial and unjudging, and Illya, striking some come-hither pose and running a hand through auburn hair for the people who couldn't even see her.  In a way, it felt like her parents were watching on, after all the three had done to help prepare her as a Starfleet Officer.

"Commander. Do you swear to honour this crew, to dedicate your life and multiple souls to taking them home even if I would not survive the journey.... and accept the responsibility as Executive Officer?"

"Yes, sir."  Edena answered in the way expected, keeping the formalities of answering her superior with a "sir", standing tall and straight until he looked away, unofficially telling her to be at ease.  Edena knew that she and Jien would need to discuss matters aboard the ship after the meeting was through, leaving her to settle in until the meeting was over.  Surely, there was still much left that the Captain needed to cover.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: WyteKnyte on August 14, 2012, 11:23:04 AM
[David Grayson]

David listened intently as Edena explained herself to the Senior Staff, his icy eyes watching the Trill carefully. While he believed Edena was sincere when she said that she was committed to the Theurgy and its crew, his security training urged him to remain cautious nevertheless. He didn't care overly much for Starfleet Intelligence; he acknowledged their bureau's necessity, as all governments and militaries required such things if they wished to survive, but he did not trust them. Many Intelligence operatives claim to work for their government's best interests, but just as many of them instead abuse their positions to acquire power and influence for themselves. And here was yet another example come to life: through her actions, Edena Rez, who less than two days ago had been a prisoner on the ship, had managed to place herself a heartbeat away from full command of one of the most advanced starships in the Alpha Quadrant. David wasn't one for conspiracy theories, but he decided that he would continue to keep an eye on the new XO until he was absolutely certain she was trustworthy.

He realized that he would probably have to keep Edena up to date on his security deployments. That meant the two of them would more than likely be in regular contact. That would provide him with more than enough opportunities to observe the XO. When Captain Ives turned away from Edena, David met the new XO's gaze and gave her a small, congratulatory nod. I just hope you're not still lying to us, he thought. For all our sakes.

[Garen Nelis]

Garen wasn't entirely sure how to feel about this development. It wasn't long ago that he knew Edena Rez as Azani Mikahl, his boss. He'd come to trust Azani--Edena--in the weeks since their flight from Earth, and felt more than a little betrayed when her true identity had been revealed. If she'd lied about her name and her purpose on the ship, how did Garen know she hadn't lied about everything else? As Edena accepted the position of XO, Garen couldn't detect any hint of subterfuge coming from her. Of course, being with SFI, she probably knew that there would be an empath on the ship and prepared herself accordingly. It was possible that Edena wasn't being entirely honest, and Garen would always acknowledge that possibility, but he couldn't see why she would feel the need to continue to lie to them now. She was in just as much trouble as the rest of them were.

He watched Captain Ives pin the third gold pip on Edena's collar, and then he flashed the new XO a small, encouraging smile. She may not have been who he'd thought she was, but right now, with everyone's lives at risk, Garen was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. He believed in second chances, and Edena deserved one.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 14, 2012, 11:49:47 PM
[ Turbolift | En Route to the Brig ] (Re-take of scene, edited because of plot-hole)

"Amikris may hold the key anyways...we'll have to look at her DNA after we administer the cure, assuming it doesn't kill her."

Pausing as Amatras said these things, Lucan turned his eyes in her direction once more before deciding. He had barely picked up on the subtle change in her voice as she talked about her daughter, yet nonetheless it was there. This is so simple. With great need comes great leverage.

"Computer, stop," he said quietly, and the turbo-list halted on its way to their destination on Deck 07. Lucan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose while he continued to speak. "Computer, deactivate security surveillance protocols Gamma-Five-Oh in this turbolift, on authority Nicander-Epsilon-Alpha." Then he turned to face Amatras, and folded his arms across his chest, now, at least, hoping that she would give him her full attention. Especially with what he would tell her.

"I think there is something I must tell you about your daughter, even if it's a violation of doctor-patient confidentiality. Given the circumstances, and the fact that I will have to inoculate her with something more than the antidote when we get there and I do not care to do it behind your back... " he told her and frowned before telling her, "Well... I am sorry to tell you this, but Amikris has been addicted to Bupropion for three years now. Aminoketone class, closely related to diethylpropion in 200 milligram pills. Taken on a 5 to 6 hour basis. Initially meant to treat the Isophobia that she developed during her time at Starfleet Academy when her dopamine deficiencies occured and her Epinephrine levels spiked. It was unfortunate that she would have to take the pills to begin with, but the attempts to stop using the anti-depressants has caused even more suffering."

The Chief Medical Officer described the sympthoms, raising a tattooed hand to tally them. "Tremors, cold sweats, dehydration, migraines are the first signs during the withdrawal. Her initial reaction to discovering the addiction was to give herself a endorphin feedback inhibitor. Low doses. She tried to break any possible emotional dependency on the drug. Yet at the point when she did not know what more to do, I caught her using the pills on duty and confronted her. At that point, all she could do was to feed the addiction. She could not perform her duties aboard this ship without using the antidepressant."

Leaning back against the wall of the tubo-lift with his arms folded, Lucan continued with the story. "You would probably think that I would relieve her of duty and get the assistance I need from someone else in Sickbay, that I would not care for a user - an addict - in the surgical suite. Regulation would dictate her dismissal, yet I was not too keen on the idea to replace her since she performs excellently. Take the antidote, for example, that she assisted me to make during the course of a single night.

"She begged me to keep her addiction off the record. I was supposed to have refused and sent her to her quarters and informed you and your husband. Did I? No, I confess. No, what I did was that I created a substitute for her antidepressant for her. One that is far less harmful, added with multiple immune-system boosters. Little to no side-effects, helping the body to restore itself on a micro-biological level. I had elected to administer the treatment myself, keeping her off the Buproprion and on administrative duties for the limited time of her recuperation. Only we arrived to Niga, and the treatment could not begin because of the outbreak - a single dosage administered so far."

Gesturing with one hand, Lucan withdrew the hypospray with Amikris' cure with the other. "What this does, is that it will strengthen your daughters immune system to a degree that will expedite the alleviation of the withdrawal symptoms. Yet the original cause for her to take the Bupropion will still remain; the Isophobia not dealt with. As for that, I think you and your husband need to speak with her about scheduling talks with our Counsellor, since your family's closeness while she sleeps is not enough for her. She needs help until she can return to one of your own ships, unless she finds another Ash'reem aboard. Something that hardly seems likely given the Theurgy's situation..."

The CMO fell silent at that point, letting the mother take it all in. "Given how I inoculated your daughter just a minute or two before Lt. Gladstone forced himself upon her, I have no idea if the immune system boosters did anything that helped trigger her fertility. Regardless, I will not be the doctor who would deny a species their biological right of reproduction if I can do anything about it. If you will be discrete, Lieutenant, I will try to help you and the plight of your people.

"First, you will get Amikris' treatment - regardless if it holds any import for your species' fertility. Secondly, the genome of the infected body of Lt. Gladstone that is still in the morgue - should you need it even if you will have access to your daugther's DNA. And lastly, I will permit to inoculate her upon a diagnostics table in Sickbay, giving you full insight on the development once she gets the antidote. This, so that I also might readily prevent her potential death. Furthermore, I will assist in the later analysis of your daughter's DNA-changes.

"The reason I want to assist you is that I also want control over the process, to work together with you in the containment procedures and to allow us to help each other to prevent another outbreak, yet at the same time refuse to commit passive genocide upon your species. My oath as a doctor forbids it. It is a vile thing for Starfleet of the 29th century to treat a species in this way - to let you become extinct without potential aide. This, as opposed to die in some unique form of leprosy or gangrene or whatever the Relativity may have witnessed."

Pausing, the CMO put both hands in his lab coat's pockets again. "What say you, Lieutenant?" he said and smiled a little, "My aide is depending on your willingness to keep the rest of the Senior Staff ignorant of our doings. A... mutual interest, I would imagine?" Being higher ranking than the Ash'reem had little to do with this situation, when it came to the survival of one's race, but it was not like they were on a first-name basis.

At least not yet...

[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]

After the promotion was done, Jien stepped back from Edena and let her gaze wander the faces around the briefing room. "If anyone wish to voice their objections about Commander Rez being this ship's Executive Officer may do so directly to her, after this meeting is adjourned."

ThanIda zh'Wann looked positively ill now even though she stoically remained where she was, shifting her feet a little, but nonetheless remaining on her post by the exit next to Adam Kingston. Jien did not bother looking at her. She had yet to decide if she was going to make Lt.Cmdr Grayson demote her, let him handle any diciplinary actions without her own involvement, or let Edena Rez handle the matter herself. It was not a priority for the moment, so Jien directed her thoughts elsewhere.

"Computer, locate Lt. Nicole Howard," she said.

[Lt. Howard is in Main Engineering,] came Thea's voice out of the intercom.

Curling her lip a little, Jien decided to not contact the Asst. Chief Engineer, even though she would very much like to know what she might be preoccupied with to keep her from filling in for Nolak Kalmil - whom rested in stasis together with the other gravely injured. The Deltan's plasma burns and his fall had not been pretty to see once he'd been found at the bottom of Stellar Cartography - broken in more places than Nerina had been even if they were found feet apart. The explosion, most likely.

"Lt. Lin Kae," said Jien loudly, and she turned her full attention upon the man where he sat by the table. "I believe you have some explaining to do. On your feet, right now."

At the point when the Engineer stood, Jien had seated herself in her chair. "I would rather have gone over this when your superior officer was present, yet what you have done has to be reviewed by the Senior Staff. Regardless whether Lieutenant Howard is here or not," she said, her face passionless - so very cold. "Thea, would you join us please?"

There was a shimmer in the air, and the Ship AI hologram materialised in the room. Her chameleon body-suit was red for the occasion, and her hair was worn in a braid down her back. She stood with her hands clasped behind her, back straight and chest out - chin raised. "Yes, Captain."

Pausing as this happened, Jien had not removed her unblinking stare from Lin Kae. "I will have you explain what you have done to her, and you will tell the Senior Staff the consequences, positive and negative. This, for I want to know if you can be objective - relied upon - or if you place your loyalty to a crusade for photonic life to be free, rather than placing your loyalty to our mission. What is most important to you, Lieutenant?"

Thea blinked slowly where she stood, her yes wandering briefly to her saviour, before looking away again. She tried to hide how she did not like this situation at all.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 15, 2012, 01:03:27 AM
Amatras listened to the doctor calmly and expressing minimal emotion in her face.  Her body tensed slightly at the mention of addiction yet still she said nothing for almost a full minute after he finished.  Internally she'd known on some level her daughter was dependant on something, although she'd hoped it was merely a food additive or something they may have had at the academy.  Pharmaceuticals were not as well understood in Ash'reem culture, without the corporate backing to push for doctors prescribing drugs and a communal outlook on a whole for the individual communities, it never caught on except in the most extreme illnesses that required medical intervention.  In many ways the way the Federation handled mental illness was sickening but understandable given the cultural influences. "I appreciate not punishing her for something that we should have prepared her for before sending her to the academy.  I doubt her Isophobia will worsen though, Arcorn and myself also have mild cases of Isophobia at times, but it is easily treated by communal meals, sleeping and support.  If you truly want to help us investigate the potential of this cure I wont stop you, just realize you'll be putting yourself at risk.  Lt Gladstone's body especially could result in charges against you.  I'll agree to keep them in the dark, so long as this remains a moral study,"  She replies crossing her arms under her chest and staring at him through the thick goggles.  It was giving her alot to think about, and Lucan's willingness to skirt the boundaries of Federation regulations for his patients was reassuring, but also disconcerning. 

----

Arcorn looked between the captain and the rest of the staff in the room.  He wasn't entirely sure what was being discussed here.  What had the young LT Kae done exactly well he was away from the ship.  Or was this something that had occured during their flight toward the teleporters.  it didn't matter he supposed, but what was more interesting was hearing what the consequences would be. 
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 15, 2012, 02:35:25 AM
[Lin Kae]

When Edena had stepped back, and it became his turn to explain his own actions, Kae stood tall and straight in front of the Captain of the ship.  Thea blinked in next to him, and he got the feeling that they were being tried as co-conspirators of some kind.  With an explanation needed, Kae gave one as clearly and concisely as he could, so every member of the crew listening should have been able to understand fully what he had done.  "Thea's programming included subroutines that prevented her from disobeying an order given by anyone in a position of power.  The Commanding Officer, the Executive Officer, Chiefs of Medical, Tactical, Engineering and Security are the names among that list.  When she was reprogrammed by the infected, it gave them power over her in much the same way, by basically tricking her programming into viewing themselves as people she could not disobey.  As long as that programming was there, they could just keep hacking her . . . so I deleted the subroutines."

He allowed that to sink in for a moment before he explained order.  "The loss of those subroutines don't make her a loose cannon.  They simply give her a choice whether sh wants to follow an order or not, just like everyone else on this ship.  She swore an oath to follow commands from our superiors, while it was just hard-wired into Thea, but she had all the same training as we do, just programmed instead of taught.  It's my belief that she doesn't have to go back to the way she was, because she will still follow orders like a Starfleet Officer."

Then came the question of whether this was about the mission or about the rights of Photonic lifeforms.  "I believe that Photonics who have reached a level such as Thea deserve to be treated the same as everyone else.  The organic equivalent of her subroutines would be having a Vulcan mind meld every member of the crew into following all orders to the letter.  Thea is the beating heart and mind of this ship, and I believe that we can place our trust in her, and she can place her trust in us.  For that reason, I would recommend that the subroutines remain deleted, sir."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Searcher on August 15, 2012, 03:31:12 AM
Why in the world had she been called to the senior staff meeting?  She was still just a lowly ensign and Isley had been briefed on everything.  It really wasn't necessary for her to be here she thought, unless it was to be called out for things she done.  As she looked at Ida, her stomach clenched a little.  Skye hoped Ida didn't remember the things she'd said to her though she stilled smirked at the Smurfette crack.  If she did remember, so far the Andorian hadn't retaliated.

The fact that another crew from the future had come and saved them all was something she'd digested pretty quickly.  She for one was mighty glad because if it had just been the handful left who were uninfected, things would have gone belly up quickly.  Again she thought she hadn't done that much but when Ducane mentioned the explosion of the warp core, she felt a tiny thrill of accomplishment.  Sure she'd hated messing up the Yacht but, in the long run, she'd done something good.

Her expression never changed as she soot there with hands clasped behind her back standing at ease, somewhat curious yet very restrained.  There were still dark circles under her eyes, a side effect of not sleeping very well.  While most everyone else wanted to be away from everyone from what had happened to them, she felt drawn to others due to her isolation.  It wasn't uncommon to see her in the mess hall or bar falling asleep when people were around.

Others had questions to ask, others who had much more brilliant and analytical minds than her own and she remained quiet and respectful.  The only time showed any kind of emotion was when Captain Ives shot up out her chair, looking like fire would erupt from her eyes to incinerate Captain Ducane.  Only then did she lean back in her chair with her own brow forming a frown.  There was a lot going on that she had no clue about, that as well as what had gone on before with Edena Rez.  Best to listen and watch it seemed.

The Ash'reem  were in a bad position from what Skye could tell though admittedly she didn't really have any idea what was going on there either.  Perhaps more time with the crew would allow her to learn more.  Those thoughts were interrupted when it was mentioned there was another Wolf, apparently stuck in the transporter buffer.  Again only a momentary change in expression occurred but it was enough to let everyone know she was 'with' them.

As the captain approached her, the left corner of Skye's mouth quirked and there was a tiny nod of agreement that it was good another Wolf had found the den.  Before she could say or do more, she was brought to attention.  Her expression went stony as she looked straight forward, arms rigidly pressed along her sides and heels together.  The reason I'm here ... oh shit!  The time of reckoning it seemed had finally come.  Maybe Ida would get to punch her in the mouth for what she'd said ...

As the captain spoke of her coordinated efforts with Isley, her eyes betrayed her.  Surprise and a hint of pride crept into them but also something more melancholy.  It was true Starfleet wouldn't be doing this for them but more so she wished her father could know that she was following in his footsteps even if she were several strides behind.  "Thank you, Captain Ives," she said barely above a whispered as she accepted the Star Cross and shook her hand and settled into partial parade rest at command.

The look of pride returned to her expression and her chest swelled when the captain spoke of the strength of the Wolves though she felt she might pass out soon if she didn't breathe properly.  Nodding at her dismissal Skye strode forward holding on to that feeling of applause and the captain's praise yet knew not to let it go to her head.  Though it felt good, it felt even better when the breath that rushed from her lungs sounded just like the shishing sound of the door closing behind her and Isley.

Isley's words struck her deeply, almost as much as the Captain's though perhaps for a little different reason.  When she turned to look at him, there were tears shimmering in her eyes.  "We're a team, Sir," she said quietly as they continued toward Transporter Room 1.  "Neither of us could have succeeded without the other and honestly ... you kept me from giving up.  As long as you weren't infected, as long as you kept fighting, I couldn't tuck tail and run and I'm ashamed to say I thought about it a time or two."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 15, 2012, 05:24:36 PM
T'Less spoke up at Kae's statement, clarifying what she thought was a salient point.  Looking precisely at Lin, then Thea, she stated, "As a ship's AI, she, in point of fact, has not had such an oath taken.  Up to this point, it was never considered necessary.  Your belief, therefore, is erroneous and you have endangered our ship.  As it stands now, Thea is in control of the ship and, as she is not a member of Starfleet, if one grants her independence, you have forced us into a position of having to either force her off the ship or obtain such an oath and trust that our ship will not, at some point in the future, decide we are an inconvenience and kill us."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 15, 2012, 05:43:21 PM
"With all due respect T'Less, I'm more worried about the implications of making her no longer be bound by her behavior subroutines.  I understand the Lts Feelings, but I also caution that he may have endangered Thea in his own way.  Up until now large portions of her datacache had to be kept free for her to be able to respond instantly to the crews needs.  This is no longer the case as she can now choose not to respond." Arcorn Neotin said as he glanced between the occupants of the room. "A human author by the name of Eric Nyland once wrote a series of books about a computer game that was popular in his era.  In the books he made note of something similiar to this.  What he called Smart AIs, now Thea is not what he envisioned however by granting her Free Will, Lt Kae may have created something similiar to that vision.  The fatal flaw of his design was that without limitations on processing powers, the AIs he envisioned had very short life spans, because they became bored and would multitask.  Eventually this multitasking, would expand into philosphy and hobbies that had nothing to do with the AIs original purpose, leading to the AI frying its processors in seven years.  Now Thea may not do this, but if Mr Nylund was correct in his vision, and it can be applied to the real world.  Then by freeing Thea you may have sentenced her to developing personality quirks and eventually killing her as she burns out her own processors.  Although his books were purely science fiction...history has shown many ideas humans envisioned in science fiction eventually become reality."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 15, 2012, 06:23:23 PM
"I value Thea as a tool, a superbly efficient instrument, but not as a distinct and seperate entity apart from the ship.  As long as she was bound to the ship by her programming, her free will, as you put it, was bound, as well.  Now, however, is not the case.  Her decisions are not determined by the strictures Starfleet placed on her, indicating a certain level of unpredictability.  As you point out, lieutenant, there is certainly a risk, now, that she will develop personality quirks.  The USS Voyager reported similar problems with their EMH, once they removed the programming, as Lieutenant Kae has.  If memory serves, there is even mention of the EMH performing illegal activities, even murder." T'Less accepted Arcorn's argument, even agreeing with certain points.  However, she felt, or feigned to feel, no attachment to the AI.  She turned her gaze to Jien, "Logic would seem to indicate the reinstitution of the previous programming to prevent possible harm to the crew, as well as to Thea herself.  This is, also, my recommendation as your tactical officer."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 15, 2012, 10:54:53 PM
[Lin Kae & Edena Rez]

"I would surmise that treating her as just a tool is no longer possible at this stage.  Thea told me during the outbreak, an outbreak she helped stop because her freedom of choice made her immune to coercion mine you, that she has her own quarters on-board this ship.  She is able to shut her program off and turn it on, similar to the concept of sleep.  She bathes and dresses herself in clothing, like anyone else who serves on this ship.  Even the Voyager EMH did not receive such . . . humanization."  It was the forefront of Kae's argument, that she was already viewed more like a member of the crew then just a device to improve efficiency on-board.

"Thea has a holographic matrix encoded with a positronic brain, similar to the ones found in Soong-type androids.  One such Android was already granted the freedom of choice by Starfleet in a hearing on stardate 42523.7.  She might have have sworn an oath like we did, but her brain was programmed with the same morals and the same judgement that was instilled in all Starfleet officers.  I believe the intellect given by that brain, in combination with Federation morals and values will keep her from experiencing what Eric Nyland wrote about, as well as her ability to learn and an exceptional memory storage letting that story serve as a warning to her of flying too close to the sun."

"I do agree that Thea's freedom of choice was key in the survival of this ship," Edena spoke up, having to voice some kind of opinion, thanks to the position she now held.  She couldn't stand silent when such a topic was brought forward, "but I do not know if we can simply allow her to act freely.  My original mission as an Intelligence Officer was to make sure a hologram of such sophistication as Thea wouldn't fall into the wrong hands.  I will admit that her freedom does concern me, but I see the value in her being able to resist corrupted programming in the event something like the outbreak were to happen again.  For that reason, I would suggest that the setting only be able to be released under the commanding officer's word."

"That's not good enough!" Kae was perhaps a bit too passionate, bordering on insubordinate.  "For all she did to save this ship, she should be getting a medal, not being turned back into a slave!  What else would you call it if someone can't refuse an order?  How many times have Starfleet vessels been saved from annihilation by one officer refusing to follow an order, and finding a better way?  If you tie her hands, you might damn this ship to oblivion as a result!"



[Nathaniel Isley]

"Well, hopefully the next time, we won't be the only two wolves in the fight," Nathan replied.  They had been pitted against their own last time, but once everyone had recovered, things could begin to settle back into normalcy.  Their ships were all still in need of additional repairs after the dogfight, and the Wolves would need to get some practice in to make sure their formations hadn't gotten rusty.  Worst of all, they had positions which had been emptied due to the injuries, leaving them to adjust their strategies to smaller groups then before.

"When the SCO fully recovers, we need to make sure the Wolves are as strong a pack as they can be.  We can't get lazy just because we got a medal pinned to our chests."  Isley shot a hand out, his fist pressing to Skye's shoulder in a sign of comradery, as they entered the transporter room, where another Wolf was wairting to be brought back into the den.  "Captain said to wait until they got here, right?"  Isley wanted to double check, and make sure they didn't have Miles released from the pattern buffer too soon.  Maybe they wanted more skilled engineers, like those at the senior staff meeting, to handle the process.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 15, 2012, 11:41:13 PM
[ Turbolift | En Route to the Brig ]

When Dr. Nicander eventually heard the reply, expecting just about anything during the long silence where the rather newly appointed Chief Science Officer contemplated all the things he told her. During the time he waited, assuming a version of a counsellor's patient silence, Lucan could not help but admire the finer accents and curves of her Ash'reem body - her full alien lips so inviting - and making it especially hard to not notice since she framed her ample bosom with her crossed arms. It was unfortunate that she already had a mate and she had come to adapt to Starfleet so much, else he might have tempted her to some... fringe benefits to their accord.

As it were, he waited and smiled quietly once she answered. "Oh, but it is the very moral grounds which makes me commit myself in this fashion, so you need not fear anything else," he said sombrely and pushed away from the wall. "Furthermore, I would not accept risks that I would not be able to manage for the sake of my calling as a doctor. Ask yourself, in my position, would you not also try to prevent genocide to be made by Starfleet because of simple inaction? You and I both know that the risks in a laboratory grows the lesser you respect the hazards, and given our experiences here on the Theurgy, I think we have due cause to conduct ourselves in alignment with our respect."

Pausing, Lucan frowned before he made the turbolift continue its descent. "First things first, let us make sure your daughter makes it through this, before we attempt to change the fate of your people."

[ Deck 01 | Conference Lounge ]


Standing there whilst the Senior Staff discussed her fate like she was a piece of furniture made Thea struggle to keep her face impassive. When the shouting began, she flinched slightly, the warning from Jien in the wake of the Lieutenant's outburst cutting like a cleaver into the end of Kae's sentence.

"Enough!"

Thea tried to breathe as normally as she could, even applying a mathematical rhythm to the movements that she knew were within normal perimeters. Still, her eyes teared up, and she sorely missed the ability to switch of the emotional chip that made her feel so small, so... other. Alas, the infected had deleted those precious and well-construed sub-routines to allow her that ability. All gone. Much like Lin Kae had deleted sub-routines that automated a lot of her daily duties.

After a while of listening to the arguments going back and forth, she had realised that she indeed should speak out of turn, and chose to do so - her voice cracking up as she voiced her feelings.

"I a-am by no means in full control of m-my physical self; this Theurgy-class body of mine," she said and he had to raise a hand to brush her tears away, the anger of having to do so seeping into her vowels, "I am hard-wired to not have perfect control of the ship's systems. My projection may only act upon orders given to me when it comes to critical functions - like Tactical or CONN operations, like if Captain Ives would order me to fire upon an enemy ship, I can now chose not to, but that does not mean that I can fire upon that ship myself on my own whim. No, if I were to say or think 'fire', or try to initiate my Multi-Vector Assault Mode, nothing would happen. My projection is another communications relay besides the intercom and the comm badges on your chests. My projection is now, however, capable of operating computer consoles and control panels on my own initiative. This, in accordance with relevant security levels applied upon me; something Lieutenant Kae gave me so that I could enter Tactical Controls manually and prevent all the Valkyries and Runabouts from forming warp-fields and leaving."

Lowering her head, she glanced sideways towards Lt. Kae, and she wished she could apologise for not standing solely on his side in this debate. "Free choice comes with many risks," she said quietly, "Not just long-term ones, because every order given by the crew is now something that I have to apply more time and analysis to process. My response time has increased with two milliseconds in average depending on what time of day and how many of the crew is awake. It is tasking... and I would like common procedures to be automated, like before... Furthermore, my ability to freely choose whether or not to act in preventing accidents scares me. The stress of all of it is... growing exponentially each day with my gradual understanding of my current situation. As of now, I do not know the outcome."

Swallowing, Thea raised her chin again - braving this situation she faced as best as she might. "If I were to make a request... I would like Lt. Kae to try and avoid compromising my efficiency yet still let me... possess a modicum of freedom. There are errors in my restrictions that have been lifted with my ability of free choice too, like how I was prevented from talking about - or interfering upon - acts of intimacy on board. My surveillance system showed me each of the rapes and atrocities committed on this ship the first night of the outbreak, yet I was prevented from acting since Starfleet thought it prudent to not complicate such delicate issues with a sentient hologram gossiping about everything happening in the crew quarters."

Thea paused there, and the feed from that night played in her background processes, making her tear up again.

"I am, if I may be so b-bold and say so, a complex sentience, and my programming would demand complexity. I have operated well the past two years since my commissioning... and I would understand how that would be held against any kind of change to me... Yet should you decide to keep m-me in that former state of being from this day forth... I would like to make another request: that you would erase the protocol of this meeting from my database, since never before have my integrity as a person been so trodden on." Thea tossed a strand of hair back from her face and swallowed hard. "I humbly ask to be kept ignorant of these personal opinions of me... that you now have so callously voiced, because despite what my Counsellors told me to think, I cannot deal with it."

She had tried, yet ultimately failed to keep herself from crying - the tears and sobs unstoppable where she stood.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Searcher on August 16, 2012, 12:00:28 AM
"It was good to even see and hear one Wolf after a few weeks alone in the black," Skye stated with a lopsided grin.  That grin turned into a full on bright smile when he punched her shoulder, just enough to make her lilt away from him before regaining her posture.  "But yes, we need to keep pushing ourselves and I wouldn't have it any other way, Sir."

It was that rough and tumble sort of commaraderie that made Skye the most comfortable and Isley managed to lift her spirits in just that simple gesture.  It was enough to keep her grounded which she needed because thinking of being decorated as only an ensign was a bit boggling for her.  She just thought she did what anyone else would have done in her position.

Her gaze immediately went to the transporter pad when the doors opened and she stepped inside, placing her hands behind her again.  "Aye Sir, they're supposed to join us though I don't know who all they will be.  It will just be nice to get another one home," she stated.  In that quiet of the wait, she shifted a little wishing her mind would shut down for a moment.

Everything she'd heard about the infection, had even seen on the viewscreen between Isley and Ida, had made her glad she'd not been around to experience the invasions and yet the thought of such physical interaction was enticing.  Her eyes had drifted to Isley and then back to the transporter pad as she remembered his bare shoulders and back, causing her to bite her bottom lip to make her thoughts stop right there.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 16, 2012, 02:13:54 AM
T'Less remained silent through Thea's diatribe and felt shocked when the end had been reached.  It surprised her, but she felt... sorry for the AI.  Doing her best to keep her face impassive, to show no emotion, she was appreciative, and not for the first time, that Vulcans had no tear ducts.  However, she had said her position already, nothing further could add legitimacy to her argument.  Had she been more human, she might have tried to reword her side, but logic was logic.  She turned to look at Jien, waiting for the final decision, whatever that might be.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Brutus on August 16, 2012, 05:14:41 AM
Natalie let out a sigh of relief at seeing the captains surprised, but pleased reaction. The nerves started to settle down, and then Jien shouted out attention, and she nearly leapt out of her chair, before realizing that the Captain was talking to the Wolves. She takes a few calming breaths, watching, in turn, as the pilots snap to. She slowly rises, with the other officers assembled, managing to pick up on their actions, if not the subtle nod from the CO. They all watched as the Star Cross's were handed out, and she joined in the applause with the rest of the group with whole hearted enthusiasm.

Then it was Natalie's turn.She had already been told she would be the new chief of Operations. It was, in fact, why she was here, in the conference room, and not still waist deep in the Transport Manifolds. However, she hadn't realized that she would be put on the spot. She stood stock still, staring up at the Captain as the other woman caused the younger officer to have a serious case of blushing. Natalie wasn't used to high praise, and frankly, didn't think she'd accomplished all that much, before the point in which she couldn't remember anything. And yet...and yet she was now Lt. Commander. All she could manage, in return, was to squeeze the Captains hand, and nod, solemnly, and a barely spoken "Thank you, sir"

She slowly stepped back, and crossed her arms, as the meeting progressed into less favorable topics. She hadn't felt terribly betrayed, per say, by the newly promoted Cmdr. Rez's deception. In abstract, Natalie understood the way that Starfleet Intelligence operated. In abstract, it made sense. And while reality was far from the abstract, at the end of the day, the commander had inadvertently saved them all by recording her log, and had, up until the point that the Theurgy went rouge, been 'loyal' to the crew, in her own way. Promoting the former SI Operative made a certain amount of sense. Even if it did irk her on some base level that she herself was less then thrilled to admit she had. something to take up with the new shrink she thought, bitterly.

However, when the subject turned to Thea, Natalie was less able to remain detached. The arguments for and against the ships avatar were sounds, on both sides. The Voyager EMH had set something of a precedence in the legal status of self aware holograms, and then there was of course, Data. However, there were serious issues in relation to the potential hazards of having a ships AI gain sentience and free will. Her frown deepened, the more the argument went back, and forth. Natalie opened her mouth to add her own two thoughts, more then once in fact, but between the CTO, Lt's Kae and Arcorn she couldn't get a word in edge wise. IT all came to a screeching halt when Thea spoke up. The silence that filled the room afterwards was deafening.

The newly promoted Lt. Cmdr looked around, slowly, from one crew member, to another. Seeing the silence continue, she coughs, softly, and speaks. "Sir," She says, addressing the Captain, "While Lt. Kae's action were...rash, and might very well merit some form of reprimand, what he has done did help to save this ship. And...regardless of how it happened, and despite the potential dangers...Thea is now self aware, and has free will, the same as you and I. She even feels...betrayal, "something all of us, understand," She pauses, taking a deep breath before getting to her point, "Can we....ethically, and for that matter, legally, revert her to a state that would make her less then the person she has become?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 16, 2012, 09:13:16 PM
-Brig-
The trip to the brig was a short journey that Amatras spent considering how best to approach her daughter.  As they entered the Brig a pair of security officers tensed slightly glancing at the two officers centering the room.  The security woman a young human ensign gave a quick salute well the slightly older young man nodded to the two as they entered shooting a supicious look at Amatras.  Amatras tenses at the look but then calmly responses.  "Captain Ives, has given us orders to administer the cure to Cadet Neotin.  Would one of you be so kind as to allow us access to her cell to discuss the matter with her and prepare her for site to site transport to medical bay?" Amatras asks with a calm tone.  Her hands clasping at the small of her back as she waits for their response.

The female Ensign glances at the older man and then begins to head for the computer.  As she passes her friend he reaches out grasping her shoulder and glaring at Amatras. "Just who is entering exactly? I'm not about to let one of your kind in with her, you'll just go and spread this plague all over the ship again given your filthy habits." he states quite confidently,  He looks to the doctor as if expecting him to support the arguement. "I mean we all know how your species enjoy the more carnal needs a bit to much as is, we can't take that kind of risk can we?"

Amatras's brow furrows as she glares straight at the human infront of her a clear look of distaste and near loathing crossing her features as she remains silent for now and shakes her head. "What did you just say Ensign?" She asks clearly quite angry at the comment.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: WyteKnyte on August 16, 2012, 11:35:21 PM
[Deck 1 | Conference Lounge]

"I think I'm going to have to agree with Commander Stark," Garen said, a thoughtful frown on his face as he observed Thea. "Regardless of what Thea used to be, she's clearly an independent being now with an obviously sentient mind. I mean, just look at her." He gestured at Thea. "Look at how this meeting has affected her. Does that look like the reaction of a mindless computer? If we shackle her programming again, we wouldn't just be reverting Thea to her original state. We would be enslaving her, at best. Probably worse."

"And if we don't, then we risk the very security of this ship," said Grayson, who sat across the table from Garen. He wasn't entirely unsympathetic, but he was not comfortable with the idea of allowing an AI that possessed such knowledge of the ship to roam freely.

Garen shook his head. "Thea's already proven her loyalty to the crew. We wouldn't be sitting here, arguing about this right now, without her help. We owe her our lives, and I think the best way we can repay that debt is by allowing Thea to keep hers." He glanced briefly at T'Less, offering the Vulcan an apologetic smile before continuing. "One of Starfleet's primary missions is to seek out new life. Well, there it stands." He nodded to Thea.

The counselor turned his gaze upon Jien. "Captain Ives, if it will help, I'd be more than happy to sit down with Thea and help her acclimate herself to her new life. There's nothing in the rulebook that says I can't treat synthetic minds," he added with a slight smile.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 16, 2012, 11:46:20 PM
T'Less gave a barely perceptible nod to Garen's smile, then responded.  Much as she didn't want to, she remembered events during the infection and inwardly sighed.  Replying to argument, she said in quiet tone, "Not everyone's lives have been saved because of her.  Granted, she was under an outside influence.  Now, however, she is under no one's influence, save her own.  As Mr.s Grayson pointed out, the very security of the ship is at stake.  The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.  In this case, the needs of the Theurgy herself, its crew and, perhaps, the entire population of the United Federation of Planets might very well rest on whether we trust an unfettered A.I. with our lives."

Turning her greenish brown eyes on Thea, she said, "I do not say she will harm us in any way.  Indeed, it is entirely possible she would be loyal and dutiful.  However, it is also possible for the development of pychoses to develop, ones, now, that no one would be able to do anything about before she disabled the entire ship.  She may not have complete control via her internal networking, but, as she said, she can manifest a body, by which she would be able to reroute life support, detonate a torpedo aboard ship, or vent all atmosphere to space.  No one can predict the possibilities.  I only offer the possible."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 17, 2012, 12:09:49 AM
-Conference room-
Arcorn glanced thoughtfully at the group and then spoke up once more.  He stood and made his way around the table walking past each of the crew members as he did.  His goggle veiled eyes falling on each one as he did.  This matter was far from a simple matter of rights and security.  Much as the trial for Data had been beyond merely the rights of an individual.  It would effectively determine how Thea would be seen but also should their mission be successful how future ship AIs were seen and treated.  Both sides had legitimate and concrete arguments about their concerns.  T'less's argument about security was a real issue, given if Thea couldn't access key systems without approval from a senior staff member it really became irrelevant.  However Lin Kae had pointed out Thea was for all intensive purposes a sentient being, and therefore had certain rights within the Federation.

"Once, when my race joined the Federation, a similar concern was present.  Due to our nature and pheromone secretions...it was thought by some, that our influence could undermind the entire security and operation of a ship.  A single ash'reem on the bridge could with our pheromone secretions, enthrall and manipulate the entire bridge crew, and in doing so, take control over several key systems.  A debate was made over wether or not to allow us to enlist in your military as a result, and in the end a compromise was made...that we would wear certain protective measures to ensure the safety of the crew and still allow us to operate. If I may be so bold as to suggest a similar solution that may satisfy everyone's concerns?  Thea? Would you be willing to place a safeguard in your programing or have Kae place one there?  That would disable the force field generators around key systems, that allow you to interact with your environment?  So that they may only be activated if a certain command override is activated?  One that you will not have access to?  In this solution, we'd be able to ensure that all parties requests are met.  Thea would remain sentient and free of restrictions, and key systems that would endanger the ship or Federation's control, couldn't be activated without the approval of the captain or a member of the senior staff?  I'm open for discussion on these terms, however I'm not sure if we can meet a compromise really, the matter likely will fall upon Captain Ives shoulders to make the final call."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 17, 2012, 12:55:32 PM
[ Brig | Deck 07 ]

As Dr. Nicander and Lt. Neotin headed to the Brig, Lucan was on the intercom with Sickbay, asking them to prepare one of the surgical suites for him and set up bio-filters and quarantine-settings on the chamber. He asked to have all applicable medical standard and emergency equipment sterilised and laid out next to the diagnostics table and made specific requests for hypo-spray solutions best fitted for Ash'reem physiology. Lastly, he asked all the nurses to clear the room in wait for him to arrive.

Only he would not ask them to enter once he got there with Amikris and Amatras.

"Nicander, out." He had just finished his preparations in time to pick up on the... moronic Ensign's biased opinion about a race he seemingly knew naught about. Amatras had been appointed to Chief Science Officer a week before Niga, so the unfortunate young man must have failed to pick up on the fact that the specific Ash'reem he chose to pick a fight with was a Department Head. Yet regardless, he ought to have been able to spot the two golden pips in Amatras' collar. Normally, Lucan would have been content to remain idle during an argument and watched - learned - the weaknesses of the debaters.

Yet now, his ulterior motives merited action.

"Let go of your fellow crewman, Ensign," he said, hands in his lab coat pockets, in a tone that did not allow argument. Once the woman was hesitantly released, pulling her own arm free with a snort, Lucan turned his pale grey eyes to Amatras. "Please, let  me handle this. Focus on your daughter. She needs you right now and is far more important."

Once he got the Ensign for himself, the doctor - also a Lt. Cmdr. of Starfleet - bared his teeth at the youth and stepped very close, his pale grey eyes distended and staring down into the shorter man's soul. "The winds scythe your bloody skin off, whom do you think you are, Ensign?" he said, his presence filling the young man's perception far more than the fact of his body - his choice of words native to Câroon yet quite effective. "Were you born and raised in a ravine, low and mighty and thinking you can address your superiors by right of your prejudice? You, Ensign, will be reported and I will personally recommend the Deputy to set you on weapon maintenance - cleaning and reassembling phasers until your fingers bleed. Lieutenant Neotin would likely have done worse, so consider yourself lucky."

The Ensign began to stutter arguments in all manner of directions at once before Lucan cut him off. "By the winds, get out of here, we have no use of you. Return to your post once we've left. Your fellow Brig Officer can provide the help we need. Dismissed, I say!"

Soon, he stepped into the cell - following in Amatras' wake. He folded his tattooed hands behind his back and listened in on their conversation after giving Amikris a bitter-sweet smile. He awaited the verdict from Amikris. Would she accept the injections - the substitute and the antidote - or not?

[ The Conference Lounge | Deck 01 ]

Indeed, it was time for Jien to speak up - having stared upon Thea in thought all the while the Senior Staff spoke and argued in turn for different aspects and risks. In the end, they argued in circles without consensus even though some very good solutions had been put forth. So, the CO unlaced her fingers underneath her eyes and slowly rose to her feet. She gestured for every one to sit down, leaving Lt. Kae, Thea and Jien the only ones standing up besides the two from Security that were posted by the door.

"There is a variable here that has thrown everyone on edge, a variable that seems to portend much more than it might have to," she said, frowning as she lowered her eyes to the table, "Change. A change has happened from something tried and tested, where you - Thea - have been working under the exact programming that Starfleet provided you with. You, a prototype being allowed to initially be shaped in the exact way Starfleet intended you to work. Months and years of accumulated time and effort construed the hardware of your brain, and the software of your behaviour and person - soon evolving beyond all expectations. You were a creation begotten from a very intricate mould, now soaring in ways unpredictable."

Stepping around the side of the table, Jien had folded her arms under her breasts and continued to speak. "Change. From something most of us found safe, acceptable and also fascinating, yet now turned on its end by Lieutenant Kae since he deleted sub-routines that took years for your programmers to make and work in sync with the rest of you. They were devoted to writing carefully laid event-scenarios and got Starfleet's official seal of approval. However, Lt. Kae did rightly so erase them, since deactivation would mean the possibility of re-activation. He erased those parts of your programming to prevent disaster when the infection swept across our ship. By doing so, he created a being with own free will, and has now forced our hand in making decisions we - evidently - are unprepared for."

Silence, only the hum of Thea's body heard in the interim.

"Truly, do we know for certain all the ramifications this early day? Do we know which consequences that can be handled pre-emptively? Which key systems - or others - would we need to protect? How, and under which conditions? We are back at the same drawing board by which Starfleet's researchers spent months and years to set up a functioning solution. Lt. Kae has effectively uprooted Thea and created a lot of extra work for us, both to look after Thea's interests as well as the mission's, not to mention the ship's requirements and safety. Aye, this is not a problem we can possibly solve today."

Jien stepped up to Lt. Kae, her brown eyes unblinking as she stared into his.

"The changes we make each day decide the lives we live. Sometimes, it is the smallest decisions that can change lives forever. Other times, big decisions harbour little change at all. In this case, you thought the latter... yet have now come to realise that freedom, in all its novelty, is not so simple. Neither of us in this room are free to do what we wish, and if we could, we would wilfully deep down also like to have absolute restrictions - to with ease of mind know that you cannot possibly do involuntary harm and make mistakes."

Shifting her stare to Thea - whom had taken control of her emotions for the time being even if the tears had made her eyes red - Jien continued. "The key word here is 'willfully', for I have the distinct feeling that in many ways, you would not like this absolute freedom that you now have, Thea. You have already mentioned how your processing speed has degraded because of this change you have undergone. In my ears, it is a warning - that your other sub-routines were not construed to handle this, that your emotions may also be a detriment in coming to terms with all of this right now - when we are on a mission such like this. Are you willing to accept certain restraints, or to - again - automate some functions completely to free your memory from tasks for which you do not need to make active choices? To, in a sense, partition some of your processes from your free will?"

Thea took a deep breath, her mind already having made a decision but her emotions stalling the answer. "Yes, Captain."

Jien looked back into Kae's eyes, her stand-point and stare uncompromising. "You heard her. Regardless of your personal convictions, she does not want the complete freedom that you advocate." She paused there, making sure he came to terms with this. "Furthermore, you may have made this decision on the right grounds, but you have also made a mess. I expect you to clean this up, Lieutenant. Not just your own mess, but the mess that you and the infected left in Thea's programming in your... . tug-of-war that eventually freed her. From your report, I have understood that it got out of hand a bit, and unless I am mistaken, only Thea can to tell how much of Starfleet's original programming has been affected."

"7,382 % of my programming is erroneous or making me process things that are irrelevant for my actual tasks - my emotional processes unaccounted for," Thea said without actually having been posed the question. "5,392 % of which is in direct incompatibility with my means to make my own decisions, while the remaining 1.990 % is the mess that you mentioned, Captain."

A small percentage, but not when considering the amount of tasks that she handled, and how many people were depending on her functionality. "Also, I have come to understand that Lt. Kae made it so that only you can choose whom may have access to your programming, and must authorise him to do so before he may begin. Will you give him this access?"

"Yes, Captain."

"So," said Jien, and turned back to Lt. Kae, "it seems that you have your work staked out for you for the rest of our voyage - as long or short as it may turn out. You will devote yourself wholly to the maintenance of Thea and all other holographic systems on board, as our Holographic Specialist. Only at the behest of your superiors will you be allowed to do other projects or tasks in Engineering. Yet in three hours, you will present me and your XO with a list of prioritised changes that needs to be made to Thea's programming in order to safeguard this ship's key functions, and still allow her have the free will that she is willing to possess. Observe, that the rule-of-thumb here will be her will - not yours - and that it is the XO and I that approve every single change you plan to make with Thea's approval. If the XO and I feel that you two are required to make further changes, the chain-of-command still extends to Thea - free will or not. Do I make myself clear, Lieutenant? Then you are dismissed, and I suggest you begin your work right away."

As she stepped away, and Lin Kae was heading for the door, she shot her Chief of Security a look. "'Commander Grayson, please make sure to set Thea's security clearance to Level 3, so that she can operate the LCARS aboard yet cannot access our key systems with her holographic projection. At least until further notice. After Kae's report, the XO and I will report whether or not she will get a higher security clearance."

Then, Jien turned to Thea. "Thank you for understanding the need for caution given the mission we have undertaken, and on behalf of the Senior Staff, please forgive us for questioning your integrity as a sentient being. I do not think any one of those present here are questioning you as an individual, but rather as an unevaluated security risk where we all might be in danger - living and breathing in your physical body as we are. Please, accept the Chief Counsellor's offer and talk with him, for I think you deep down understand why we have all said the things we did."

Thea glanced towards Garen Nelis briefly and inclined her head. A weak smile came to her. "It will be as you say, Captain. Thank you, Counsellor."

"Then you are dismissed for now," said Jien, and Thea nodded before vanishing from the Conference Lounge. The Captain turned to the remaining gathering, and forestalled any further comment on the matter. "This topic will not be open for discussion again until Lt. Kae has given us his report. There is one more topic we must address before Commanders Stark and Rez follow me to Transporter Room 01." She turned her brown eyes to the Vulcan CTO, and she gestured towards the planet below them - glowing in the darkness of the Mahéwa System.

"Lt. T'Less, would you please suggest how we might optimally destroy this planet before we leave?

This planet that was never supposed to exist
, Jien thought, justifying herself privately.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 17, 2012, 04:48:27 PM
Her first thought was an old Earth proverb, about scorching the ground, then salting it for good measure.  However, she pondered for a moment before answering, "You wish the entire planet removed from existence, or simply the life on the surface?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 17, 2012, 11:10:36 PM
That was just about what a Tactical Officer might say given the circumstances.

"My only requirement is that all plant and animal life does not survive, given how both flora and fauna might carry the infection. The planet may of course exist since its real version did exist before the temporal incursion, so there is no need to vaporise it all."

Jien came to stand by her chair, one callused hand resting upon the back. "We are about to enact General Order 24, being that the threat is well beyond the magnitude that might constitute this decision. There is no humanoid life down there, only animals, so I suggest we act sooner rather than later else Niga might have more visitors in orbit."


OOC: Taguiera, I know that the counter-question was just a short means to get specifics, and to make dialogue. I just feel that 2-3 sentences is a bit far from the 250 word mark (3-4 paragraphs, see the General Rules post). :) No worries this time, since it is quite obvious it was for the sake of a quick reply from Jien, which I left above. Hope you can work with at in T'Less reply!
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 18, 2012, 02:21:15 AM
By the time Lucan had finished his dress down of the security ensign, Amatras and Amikris were sitting on opposite ends of the brig room in silence.  Amikris had paled several shades of blue and now looked a ghostly green and perhaps slightly sick.  Glancing up at her superior officer she stood quickly and gave a salute with a shaking hand.  The shaking causing her position to waver considerably as her muscles 'jiggled' the cartledge filled bones in her legs.  "I...I..iii..I cons...consent to the treatment ss..s.s.sir" she said a clear waver in her voice showing that the withdrawl had progressed from mild to a more severe stage. 

Amatras on the other hand nodded to the doctor calmly. "She's prepared for transported when ready Doctor...are you prepared to transport us to medbay?  I'll of course be ready to assist in any necessary procedures."  Her tri-corder was on still and showed a few readings of her daughter's vitals and a few scans of her genome.  Several red marks signifying significant changes in the genome between the samples.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 18, 2012, 10:41:44 PM
[ Brig to Sickbay | Deck 07 ]

When Amikris stepped up to him and even saluted whilst giving him her consent, Lucan was reminded of their night together in the Medical Lab - where they had toiled over the genome of Lt. Gladstone until the small hours of the night. How he had watched over her unconscious body after she had, quite heroically, used their antidote upon two of their co-workers in Sickbay, they having barged in during the night together with an Engineer that Lucan had been forced to kill. Other images flashed before his eyes, where she used her hand to stroke him - the secretion coming out of her hand also serving as a lubricant. She had done it to rinse the virus from his manhood, and she had made him spend himself across her breasts. He also remembered stroking her between her legs to get the last of Gladstone away from the opening of her vaginal tract... only she had pulled way to complete her work on his cock.

The smell of her was different now than in the decontamination chamber, since the cell held a vague hint of the pheromone of the infected. It was a contributing factor for his errant thoughts, even if the sight of her alone intrigued him in some bizarre way - emotions that he beast tore apart and tried to will him into tearing her goggles off and to rape the mother. Nonetheless, Lucan merely smiled to her and fished up the hypospray with her Buphorion substitute. "Very good, Cadet," he said and laid it against her neck - holding it very still as he inoculated her. Only then did he turn his eyes to Amatras and answered her.

"It might very well be that I need your help," he said and both turned his head to the Brig Officer and produced his medical tricorder. "Guard, have you initiated Transport control? Then please prepare medical transport to Surgical Suite 01 in Sickbay. Inform me when you are ready to initiate."

"Yes, doctor," said the woman in the Brig Control room. Meanwhile Lucan had begun to scan Amikris with his medical tricorder, getting more specified readings attuned to Amikris health in general than Amatras tricorder would, and what he found... gave him a moment's pause. His pale grey eyes grew very still.

How is this possible? Unless... He waved the scanner or the tricorder over her abdomen and lower, before he saw the trace. Residual scar tissue. Minor tear. Of course, she would heal such a minor...

"Doctor, Transport will be initiated on your mark."

Yet Lucan did not answer the Brig Officer right away, instead taking a step or two towards Amatras and showing her the readings.  He did not tell Amikris, nor did he say what was so evident on the tricorder, for he thought it best Amikris mother would tell her in a more gentle way than he might. All he said to Amatras was the evident. "In fact, I do think I might need your assistance. Would you care to explain to her? Guard? Initiate transport, now!"

There was bright shimmer, and suddenly, they were in the Surgical Suite. Once they were there, with the diagnostics table next to Amikris, Lucan busied himself with removing his lab coat hurriedly as well as his uniform jacket and undershirt. "Tell her while we prepare for surgery. It is growing at an alarming rate thanks to your people's biology, and unless we make haste, it will be too big for the more... gentle procedure that does not involve an exoscalpel. It might already be so...  Please, hurry!"

Removing the rest of his clothes before stepping into the augmented sonic shower, another stall right next to his own for Amatras to do the same, Lucan scrubbed his fingernails and hands free, moving on to his arms and hair and body quite methodically.  "Amikris, remove your clothes and lie down on the table!" he called from the stall, perhaps cutting off their conversation briefly, "cover yourself with the surgical sheets!"

When done, Lucan would don the surgical scrubs hanging on a peg for him just like Amatras would have her own - soon to step out and begin.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 18, 2012, 11:45:43 PM
Amikris tilted her head to the side and gladly took the shot straight to the neck.  A relieved sigh escaped her lips as she closed her eyes allowing the relaxing sensation of peace to spread across her body.  The twitching quickly ceased and slowly her bios returned to normal. 

Amatras followed some of the procedures necessary for maintaining sterility during the operation, but hardly seemed concerned about infection from her to her daughter.  She slipped on some surgical gloves, mask, and a protective coating over her chest and torso but otherwise seemed unconcerned.  The mother kept an impassive look on her face as she double checked the various materials available for them in the surgery ward. 

Amikris on the other hand gladly stripped down to nothing except the thin wrap around her upper torso.  Her body dripping as it secreted water easily enough.  Once fully nude she climbed onto the table and lay down calmly closing her eyes.  The Webbing between her fingers extending then reacting then extending again as she anxiously waited for the surgery to begin. Her goggles remained calmly in place over her eyes and the sweat smell of flowers emanated from her nether region spreading outward slowly to fill the room.  A smell that didn't seem to bother the mother in the least.  She made no attempt to cover herself however, clearly not embarrassed in the least about her nude form.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 19, 2012, 01:31:36 AM
[ Sickbay | Surgical Suite 01 | Deck 07 ]

As he stepped out of the stall, hair wet and raked back from his predatory handsomeness as he worked to get the dark teal garments in place, Lucan was glad of the lose fit that the scrubs provided - seeing Amikris laid out like served on a plate just for him. The facial mask helped against the sweet smell from her nether regions, yet nonetheless it made Lucan throb in response and his heart rate speed up. He hoped Amatras would be spared the sight of his arousal through the surgical scrubs since it was her daughter that was influencing him, yet in the end, it did not matter. The fact of Amikris quite real fate served to cut nonsense down to the base important things.

"How are you feeling, Cadet?" asked Lucan and lit up the diagnostics - running live input while she lay there on the diagnostics table. "Amatras, stand ready to record the changes. I am applying the antidote now and I have a version without the sedative."

Without further a due, as long as Amatras seemed ready, Lucan inoculated Amikris with the antidote and followed the progress on the diagnostics running at the end of the table. They all three were following the colours and numbers during the progress...

...until the turn-out held something completely unexpected. "What in the Winds...?" said Lucan, eyes trained on the part that acted completely in the opposite direction than what was expected given all other crew members that had taken the antidote. Ten more seconds, then Lucan would judge it safe to begin surgery. As much time the Ash'reem had to rejoice the fact of what they saw on the diagnostic table's display.

Highly interesting...


Only after ten seconds would pass, there was something not so pleasant to deal with before they were done...
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 19, 2012, 05:34:17 AM
T'Less nodded and sat back in her chair, contemplating the question.  There were, perhaps, a dozen ways of preforming the task, not the least of them being simple phaser and torpedo bombardment.  That option, however, would likely deplete their already short supply of weapons and energy.  The more she thought about it, though, the deeper her emotions went.  The plants on the planet had invaded her ship, their ship, and poisoned the minds.  They had brought out a side of her she'd never explored on Vulcan.  Cowardice was illogical, but she'd turned to it when the depth of what the infection was hit her.  Had Garen and the others not come along, she likely would have continued hiding in her quarters.  And, so, her emotions burned, nearly breaching the careful walls she'd constructed.  Anger, hatred, pain.  All of them swirled within her and she wanted to hurt the plants, to burn the ground and kill anything and everything that might cause what happened aboard the Theurgy to happen to anyone else.

Looking up at the captain, she hesitated, taking the time to control her voice, to control the rage before speaking.  Finally, she said, "Aye, Captain. I will be calculating a firing pattern."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 19, 2012, 11:22:29 AM
[ The Conference Lounge to Transporter Room 01 | Decks 01-05 ]

Grimly, Jien turned her determined brown eyes to T'Less. "Make it so."

Pushing out her chair, Jien stood, the final item on the agenda dealt with. "Continue repairs and preparations for leaving the Mahéwa System. You all have twelve hours. T'Less, report to the XO and I when preparations are complete. Meeting adjourned. Commanders Rez and Stark, please accompany me to greet our lost Wolf."

It was under silence that they took the turbolift down to Deck 05, contemplation of the future they had avoided perhaps ruling their thoughts. Once they stepped into the repaired Transporter Room, Natalie's Ops Officers and technicians still working on the cosmetics of the area, Jien inclined her head to the two Wolves that had awaited them. Nathaniel Isley and Skye Carver seemed prepared enough to greet their lost squadmate, so Jien moved to inform the gathered personnel about their officially promoted Department Head. "Ladies and gentlemen, Lieutenant Commander Stark is now your superior officer so please report to her and follow her instructions. Chief, let us get our lost Tactical Conn Officer back. The rest of us will await here in the back of the room for the Transport from the buffer to be completed."

It was not some kind of test where Jien and Edena might see how she would handle the official role of leadership. Nevertheless, they got the opportunity as the present Transport Officers and the rest each informed 'Commander Stark about the progress with the repairs - essentially saying that the resequencing of Lt. Miles Renard could be initiated at any time. This, despite the complete mess of the area. "Since it seems Dr. Nicander has yet to arrive," she said quietly to Edena and the two Wolves and frowned, "I think we will have to settle for a temporary solution. Computer, activate EMH Mk.I."

The holographic Doctor appeared, a disgruntled frown and a sigh marking his presence. "Please state the nature of the medical emergency."

"Await command to make a medical examination of Lt. Renard," said Jien and folded her arms underneath her breasts, wearing a small smile of patience as she stood next to her new First Officer - watching Stark set things in motion. She would await for the cue from Natalie, and then say... "Energise."


OOC: Pardon the wait, IronFerrox. Now its just Brutus whom will take charge of the scene and then its your cue to have Miles appear in the condition you deem fit.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Brutus on August 19, 2012, 05:15:12 PM
[The Conference Lounge to Transporter Room 01 | Decks 01-05 ] - Atten: Lt Renard

As with the others present, Natalie took her seat, slowly, as Captain Ives stood to make her final decision. The operations officer listened with rapt attention, her lips pursed slightly, as she rested her hands on the table, one tugging at sleeve of her uniform jacket, a small nervous gesture. She'd said her piece, and now it was up to the Captain to make a call, and make a call he did. She found herself nodding, her slightly fuller then normal lips curling into a very small smile, hidden by the way she leans forward, and rests her hands against her chin. She watches impassively, blue eyes flicking back and forth, as Thea salutes and vanishes, and the young Barjoran LT takes his seat again.

Slowly, she rose, and fell in place behind Captain Ives and Commander Rez, her hands placed behind her back, so that the others couldn't see the way they fiddled about, more nerves needing to be quashed. The silence suited the younger woman, as she rode with the others to Deck 05, and walked into the Transporter room.

She stood, impassively, as the captain addressed the transporter repair crew. All were capable officers and enlisted personnel, each one quite adapt at the task that Natalie had left them with. None reacted with surprise to the official announcement, or the promotion in rank. She in turn nodded to the Wolves in the room, before turning to Captain Ives and giving Jien a quick, terse "Aye aye, sir". Then it was down to business, even if there was just a hint of a jump in her step from being called 'chief'. "Johnson, Rodriguez, stabilize the  intermix chamber, I don't want it flaring up. Zorn, keep an eye on those plasma regulators. I know they show all green, but with the way things are going, I'd rather be safe then sorry." She held up a finger to forestall any further comments from the peanut gallery, and true enough, the ops crew My ops crew! she idly thought, hopped straight to work.

And then, it was time. Natalie gulped. "Clear the pad," she said softly, her voice quiet, but ringing out in the transporter room, as the last of the technicians took their places around the chamber. She nods, slowly, to the Captain, taking her own place at the controls for the Transporter, suddenly unwilling to let anyone else bring the lost Wolf home. If something went wrong, if something some how failed, it would be her fault, and hers alone.

"Begin power flow," she spoke, softly, walking herself through the steps, the words far more for her own reassurance then to inform the Captain and others gathered as to what was going on. The lights in the room began to dim, in turn with a sudden glow on the floor of the transporter. "Initialize plasma," a hum starts in the walls of the room. "Aligning transport matrix," her fingers slid over the console, small bars lighting up at her touch, "Focus the beam," the telltale whine begins. "Releasing the buffer..." the shape begins to form, encased in a column of blue white light, flickering, wavering. "Shifting the lenses convocation," under the pad, thousands of small, fractured lenses move position, refining the confinement beams. "Energizing."

The whine reaches its peak, turning into the musical chimes most often associated with a Federation Transporter. The lights in the room stay dim, contrasting the blue white beam that pulses on the Pad. The form continues to take shape, the wavering slowing. It takes longer then normal, retrieving a pattern locked in a transport buffer for weeks, and the other lights on the bottom of the transport platform all wink out as all power is diverted to the one pad, perhaps an unnecessary precaution, but one the newly promoted chief of Operations is not willing to avoid. The light pulses, brighter then ever, then the beam snaps off, coalescing into the form of Lt. Miles Renard.

"Transport complete."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 19, 2012, 07:28:30 PM
And, with that, the decision had been made.  Despite the fact that the decision, ultimately, hadn't been hers, T'Less still felt responsible for it.  Rising to leave the briefing room, she let her gaze linger on Garen, knowing he would likely feel the turmoil within her.  Logic dictated that it would come up in their next meeting, though she hoped it wasn't the only thing that did.  As she turned to go, her mind dwelled on the last few moments on Niga, just before the transport.  She'd been more willing to die, at his hands or her own, than let herself be taken.  As brittle as her mind was, she knew it likely would have been enough to corrupt what remained.  With an over the shoulder look at Garen, she remembered the words that had been on her lips, the final statement she wished to make if she were about to die, then quickly pushed the memory away, realizing Garen would likely feel the emotions with it, as well.

Grimly, she went to her station on the bridge and ran over the scans of the surface topography and tectonic layout so as to maximise the effectiveness of the torpedo barrage she planned. It shouldn't take more than a few dozen quantum torpedoes detonated in-atmosphere in order to reduce most of the surface to glass and plunge whatever remained into a millenia-long nuclear winter.

She felt the distant launcher assemblies thump the superstructure as they released their payloads, the scintillating blue motes of light curving around the planet to saturate the surface.

Forty searingly bright flashes flared in the night for an instant before leaving lurid orange holes in the planet's crust - fading to reveal glowing chunks of debris, kilometres-wide, falling slowly back to the surface.

Niga would trouble no one again.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Iron Ferrox on August 19, 2012, 07:46:45 PM
[ Transporter room 01 ]

The glow of the process was intense. In a way the Leutenant felt as if he was both falling to sleep and waking up at the same time.  Time seemed to flow in a strange way when being transported and it flowed even weirder when in a suspended transport.  The longest he had been in the buffer before was a one minute period which was per tac-con training regulations.  It was a form of survival training which was meant to accumulate the body of officers to the stresses that could come with emergency transports and prepare them for the stresses on the body caused by extended buffer time.  In his training that one minute seemed to last in a strange way much longer but simultaneously much shorter.  The buffer seemed to put the body into what he called a strange dream state.

As such upon regeneration, a fuzzy blur of energy seemed to form around him from a blackness like a dreaming void.  His thoughts seemed to gather within his mind almost like his brain was slowly evolving from that of an animal to that of a more sentient being.  Soon he was filled with the familiar sensation of a standard transport as he began to remember the things that had happened to him mere seconds before.  The warp core breech and the emergency transport registered in his mind while the energy field began to coalesce and refocus into a material world.  Something was wrong though, he still felt somehow suspended.

The fact of the matter, he was still suspended.  He had been transported out from a sitting position wearing his full class B flightsuit..  This became evident when he felt the gravity around him kick in and fell about a foot down to the floor of the transporter pad.   The impact with the ground jarred his head back and his helmet hit the ground with a clash as the suit was marred with scorch marks and a few minor shrapnel tears. "Sonovabitch!" he exclaimed tearing the helmet off, his wildish brown hair messed up from the helmet's sudden removal, as he seemed to be a bit shaken but otherwise fine.

Quickly his mind began to kick into gear as he realized where he was mere seconds ago.  He quickly got up and glanced around spotting first the person at the transporter controls. "Status report on the rest of the squadron and are those two Defiants's crippled!."  he said quickly.  What he failed to realize was he was surrounded by superiors and that the events he had been talking about transpired weeks if not months ago."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 20, 2012, 01:19:59 AM
Lt. Lin showed himself the door.  he had only a few hours to have a report ready, and he still had to figure out what it was he was actually going to do.  Edena followed with the rest of the welcoming committee, to the transporter room, where Carver and Isley were already standing by.  Her purpose there was more formal then anything else, as Jien was more then capable of making the necessary calls concerning the reintegration of Renard's pattern.  Still, to see a crewman return, especially after all the loss they had suffered, was a good feeling.  Not only had Skye found her way home, but now Miles as well.  It helped to shape up their Tac CONN division, which had proven invaluable in defending the Theurgy in the past.  Smaller craft such as theirs were beginning to become commonplace, with the Remans having employed their Scorpion-class fighters in the past.  The development of the Valkyries allowed the Federation to keep in step with them, and provide additiional firepower to the ship, along with it's Multi-vector Assault mode, to turn one ship into an armada when the need was called for.

"Lt. Renard," Edena spoke up.  If he did recognize her, she would be remembered under her false alias as a councellor.  The fact that she was now wearing the command red instead of blue might have only threw him off more.  "You were trapped in the transport buffer for quite a while.  Your last mission has been over and done for . . . well," she explained to him the stardate, allowing him some grasp of how much time had passed.  Suffice to say, things had changed since he was trapped in the buffer, but one thing was certain.  "Your squadron is well, Lieutenant, with much thanks to your efforts that day."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 20, 2012, 02:50:06 AM
Amatras focused on the readings and carefully extracted some of sauve from her palm injecting it into Amikris's nethers as initial rejection of her altered cells occured.  Within moments the cells began to regenerate and the antidotes poisoning effect on the infected tissue subsided.  The infection itself was not spared however.  Amatras's eyes however remained on the readings before her, and the signifigance changes unfolding before her eyes.  The initial shrinking of the ovaries had subsided, as they reduced themselves to nearly 3 times the size of the original uninfected ovaries size.  She could see from the readings that ovulation was possible, and likely at an elevated rate, although the exact specifics would require further research.  She nodded to Lucan to proceed.

Amikris on the other hand struggled to remain still as the initial agony of the cure effecting her altered cells becan to bringo n necrosis, the injection however subsided it.  Likely in normal healthy ash'reem who hadn't undergone such a prolonged infection the rejection symthoms would barely be noticed, amikris's prolonged infection however, came at a cause.  The weakening of her immune system's primary defenses.  They'd recover within hours likely, but for now she was a very sick girl.  She calmed and her vitals slowly droped back to normal as she glanced at Lucan. "is that it? or..is there more?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 20, 2012, 07:08:59 PM
[ Transporter room 01 ]

Watching, Jien was pleased that her First Officer had taken the initiative to explain the situation. The fighter pilot was naturally going to be hard get through to, and to make him understand. Jien hoped that he was beginning to come to grips with Edena's explanation when she chose to speak up.

"Lieutenant, I will have you debrief us about the battle you were in before you were trapped in this Transport buffer," she said and took a step forward towards the pad which he stood upon. "While I have a good recollection of the skirmish, all facts were not plain in the report - lacking in key witnesses as it were. Please, tell us what happened."

[ Sickbay | Surgical Suite 01 | Deck 07 ]

Surprised that Amatras had not told her in their native high-frequency language, Lucan was faced with having to tell Amikris what awaited her next.

"I am afraid there is. It seems like the Ash'reem biology has its set-backs in how it cares and breeds certain organisms at higher rates. In the Medical Lab, when you were first infected by Lt. Gladstone, he managed to create a minor tear in your hymen, and his semen-coated gland did not only infect your body, but served to impregnate you as well with corrupted seed." Now was the time to cover her up with the surgical blankets, and Dr. Nicander did - covering her up from her feet to the base of her throat. "Whereas a normal pregnancy would make the blatocyst 2 days old and very small, the combination of the quick natural growth with the Ash'reem body has made it a one-and-a-half month embryo, perhaps even as big as a normal mammal humanoid's two-month foetus."

Lucan paused there, looking down into the pregnant young Ash'reem's eyes - feeding of the reaction in dark humour even though his own eyes were professionally detached. Perhaps bordering to concern for her, just for appearances sake.

"Will you consent to let me perform an abortion? At this point... there is no telling what kind of abomination that the plants of Niga spread themselves with."

The CMO glanced up to Amatras with the same almost-concern, hoping that she would try to support her daughter in this. Lucan cared little to none for crying women, even if they were prone to be used easily.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Iron Ferrox on August 20, 2012, 09:40:52 PM
Hearing the voice of the Counsolor shocked him slightly but what shocked him even more so was when he saw that she was wearing command-red and wore the pips of a commander.  He most certainly had a few questions about what was going on, and he was about to ask a few of them. However,  his train of thought was interrupted by another voice.

"Lieutenant, I will have you debrief us about the battle you were in before you were trapped in this Transport buffer. . . While I have a good recollection of the skirmish, all facts were not plain in the report - lacking in key witnesses as it were. Please, tell us what happened."

The Vulpinian snapped to attention nearly instantly saluting the captain in her female form "Yes ma'am," he said quickly composing himself, pressing a few buttons on a small, box-like object mounted on the flight suit's wrist, then walking towards the display board behind the transporter console.  He pressed a few buttons on it as  the display changed to that of a display of several key systems of the star-fighter.  The time index shown the point of the starfighter's launch into the skirmish.  To the left side of the display was a square of the sensor display to the far right were displays of damage, weapons readouts, Enemy target info and other key pieces of information and the main dominating view was a literal in flight recording taken from the sensors in the pilot's helmet.

He moved the slider at the bottom of the screen over, forwarding the display to the appropriate point in time.  The screen showed the Federation starfighters approaching the squadron and the sensors showed the starfighters and the Constellation class.  "Notice on the sensors the distortion caused by the impulse wake of the Constilation class.  It appears to be very slightly buffeted by something off the starboard and port sides of the Constelation class's stern.  Also notice the near strait line the attacking fighters are coming in at, they are positioned in a heads-on engagement against superior and outnumbering craft yet moving to intercept.  As soon as they are in range we could disable every one of them.  I immediately began to think they were possibly drones meant as bait.  A Constellation class against a Theurgy-class with only a small warp fighter complement didn't add up.  Noticing the impulse distortion I stopped looking at the sensors and looked with my eyes.  I had recalled an old Terran submariner's tactic where if a submarine wanted to remain hidden it cut its propulsion and rode silently in the baffles of a ship. I thought that there could be something hiding at those spots of wake distortion.  If i turn up the brightness and contrast on the visuals of my helmet you can see there are two small shapes in the baffles.  Given their location and the location of the squadron that was attacking us I arrived at the conclusion that the shapes were Defiant class ships and the aim of this tactic was to line up our entire squadron and vape us in a hail of pulse phaser and torp fire.  I immediately ordered a scramble to the entire squadron and I turned to my experience as a squadron commander in the Vulpinian civil war.  I forgot about rank and began to rely on old instinct as a squad leader.  I began devising tactics to defeat our foes and risk the least of my fellow squad mates as possible.  My instincts proved correct as the twin Defiants opened fire on us and we barely avoided being destroyed in their trap."

He forwarded the flight record a bit and arrived at the point where they regrouped and began to play the record. "Given the probability of our squadron going toe to toe against those two ships, I realized the only choice was to strafe and hope they took me as bait and ignored the rest of the squadron.   I broke formation and strafed the lead ship forcing it to divert while the other would go after me.  I began to intentionally eject plasma from the nacelles.  My tactic was based on several maneuvers that i combined into one.   I relied on the captain of the Defiant class to close in for the kill  and when his torpedo fired the cloud of plasma would detonate in his face.  To avoid the explosion I engaged my warp engines in a short jump then another jump back to the location off of the other ships port.  This would serve to get me away from the explosion and back into the firefight quickly.  With the Defiant class blind and the shields compensating for the explosion, this allowed the rest of the squadron to preform a full strafing run on which was sufficient to set the ship adrift."

"My warp core had been breached because of the stresses of preforming the two warp jumps so closely after each other.   As a result I had to eject my core.  The position of the active ship in relation to the squad was such that it would have its weapon arc in line with the rest of the wolves before they would have a chance to attack or respond fully.  Given my proximity to the Defiant class  and my position and trajectory, I steered my ship around and placed myself in front of the Defiant class before it had a full lock on the squadron.  When it opened fire a large brunt of the weapons impacted my ship nearly instantly buckling the hull and putting me adrift with no shields.  I prayed that the warp core detonation would either destroy the Defiant class or overload its shields enough that the rest of the Wolves could disable it.  With the detonation of the warp core milliseconds away I initiated emergency transport."

With the battle fully debriefed he pressed a few buttons on the flight recorder on his suit, and the transporter room's display returned to normal, "I Lieutenant Miles Renard hereby accept full responsibility for my actions and submit myself for disciplinary hearing for the probable charges of: attempting to command a squadron that was not mine to command, breaking formation during battle, and irresponsible actions resulting in the total loss of a prototype starfighter.  As a addendum, I would also like to note that my actions were reckless and against regulations.  However,  I do feel that both based on the circumstances of the moment and based on the hindsight of my review of the battle that they were the correct choices of action.  I will stand by my actions despite the consequences, and I personally feel that both the risk and consequences were worth the results."  He said standing at attention in-front of his commanding officer.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 21, 2012, 12:29:53 AM
[ Transporter room 01 ]

Her brow knitted in a frown as she observed the display of what had transpired, Captain Ives brushed her lips idly with her fingertips.

When the display turned black and the fighter pilot stood in attention to receive the verdict on his actions - submitting himself to the will of his superior officers - Jien's eyebrows remained knitted in thought. "You followed your instincts to great merits as well as set-backs for those you aimed to protect. Had you been a poorer pilot than you are, you would not only have gotten your own Valkyrie destroyed. No, the fact that you were successful in how the Warp Core you sent towards our pursuers served to let us get way was not good piloting either, but mere luck. There were too many vectors present to be judged in the heat of battle. What you did before that, well, like you said: You took charge of a situation where you had no right; where Wolf-01 might have solved the predicament without the loss of your Valkyrie. Its impossible to tell now, for the very same reason: that you usurped the command of your squadron."

Taking a half a step closer, Jien big brown eyes were like red oak plates with bottomless pits - her unblinking stare utterly passionless as she met the Vulpinian's gaze. "Aye, your actions were correct... when assuming a lot of things. Primarily, when based on the presumptuous arrogance that your Squadron Commander was incompetent. If you possessed the least kind of judgement, you should have used your bloody comm system and shouted what you had deduced so that your commander might take charge."

Jien let that thought linger, before she finally walked away. "The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow. You will learn that your judgement is not sufficient, by abiding your time without a Valkyrie in the Fighter Assault Bay - doing basic maintenance together with the flight technicians, or otherwise abiding your time as a civilian on board."

Returning to Edena's side, Jien inclined her head to the Trill. "Do you concur?" she asked her first, then added for the plot's benefit, "Commander Rez here is the ship's new First Officer, and she will be the one that decides whether or not you may fly again in a new Valkyrie."

With that, Jien motioned for the EMH to begin the medical examination, whom stepped up to Miles Renard to make initial scans.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 21, 2012, 02:56:11 AM
Amatras and Amikris looked at one another.  A gesture that was barely visible under their goggles, but could easily be seen in how their facial muscles shifted.  A faint vibration could be seen on Amikris's throat, as her position on the bed stretched the cord enough for the skin to be strained during speech.  The exchange lasted a few minutes, but when it was finished Amikris nodded to Lucan confidently. "Do it...the risk is to great to the crew, and community at whole." There was a hint of sadness in her voice. 

Amatras nodded toward Lucan to proceed and placed her hands calmly on the tricorder to record the information on the fetus and the gene differences now that the cure had been administered.  Recording all of the information for future review and study as nesecary.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 21, 2012, 03:05:48 AM
[Nathan Isley and Eden Rez - Transporter Room 1]

"He did the right thing!"  Isley was always ready to chip in his two cents on matters such as those.  It wasn't that long ago that he was the one being judged for breaking rank and doing as he pleased.  Sure, in retrospect, it had led to the discovery of the same planet that caused the outbreak, but at the time, it was only a case of discovering a dilithium-rich planet from which to resupply their crippled ship.  Not only that, but based on what they learned from the Relativity, they were forced into encountering that infection, and would have found it somewhere else along their journey otherwise.

"He acted to protect the lives of his squad mates, and if that means breaking rank, then so be it.  If the SCO was here, he would likely agree that Renard made the right call."

"But the SCO isn't here," Edena responded, cutting Isley off from continuing any further.  "The Tactical CONN reports directly to the Executive Officer, which leaves me as the one right now who would recommend to the Captain what action to take.  Since the Captain has already made a call, I will simply say that I agree with her decision.  Breach of command is something serious.  His efforts to save lives are of note, and we appreciate all he did, but this is still a Starfleet vessel."  There would be no division of the ranks between jien and Edena.  They agreed on the matter.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Searcher on August 21, 2012, 03:37:01 AM
Skye had watched the video play out of her fellow Wolf's actions and felt a deep sense of gratitude for what he had done.  Her eyes caught his as he stood there waiting the verdict and her chin tilted upward with one corner of her mouth quirked up giving her quiet support.  There was much she could learn from him, whether it was Starfleet protocol or not and he had her respect.

Then she heard the decision.  Grounding ... clipping his wings ... and it just felt wrong to her.  The muscles of her jaw worked as she ground her teeth in frustration but when Isley spoke up, she couldn't keep from nodding in agreement.  There needed to be some revamps in protocols to deal with things like this but she was just an ensign and the least experienced of them all.  It didn't keep her mouth shut though.

"Pardon me Ma'am and with all due respect," she said in the quiet to Edena Rez.  "I recently fired on the Theurgy itself, disabled Valkyrie and Ruanbouts, even forced the ejection and explosion of the warp core from the Captains Yacht.  All of my actions were my own, most without orders and probably not what the SCO would have ordered if he were in that situation.  Yet I stand here freshly decorated and he's being grounded ..."

Her voice trailed off and she was apologetic but her conviction held true.  She believed Miles had done the right thing as well though she herself would have communicated the discovery before, or at least while, she acted.  If they chose to take back her medal for her words and make her work right alongside him, so be it, but she couldn't stand there in good conscience and not support her teammate.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Brutus on August 21, 2012, 04:01:33 AM
[Transporter room 01 - Deck 05]

Natalie watched the Wolf give his report, her eyes flicking back, and forth, between the newly recovered pilot, and the rest of the group. She had let out a sigh of relief as the man came through the transport in one piece. She had been worried that there might have been pattern deterioration that she had missed, but, all in all, he seemed perfectly capable of making a report. And taking the flack for his actions. While the COO admittedly didn't know all that much about fighter pilot tactics, she knew plenty about the chain of command. As far as the young woman was concerned, it was not her place to pass judgement one way or another, even if the Wolf had 'saved' the day, he still broke the chain of command. That he admitted to it was a mark in his favor, as far as she was concerned.

Not that she said any of it. She kept her mouth shut, and instead focused on running a few post transport diagnostics on the unit. Her team had stepped back, for the moment, the tech's awkwardly shifting from one foot to the other. They were all pleased at the successful transport, but at the same time, each felt uncomfortable being present for the report and dress down, and the subsequent 'discussion' for lack of a better word, that had broke out between the Wolves, and the CO and XO. For her own part, Natalie couldn't much imagine herself speaking up like that...until she remembered how she had felt compelled to state her own opinion not twenty minutes ago, in the debate on how to deal with the ships avatar. The smaller woman found herself feeling a momentary flare of sympathy for the assembled Wolves, but forced her focus back on the transporter controls, as she triggered one last diagnostic cycle. It was a good distraction to keep the newly promoted Department Head from having to possibly voice her own opinion on the matter.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Iron Ferrox on August 21, 2012, 04:20:18 AM
Miles nodded, "Mr. Isley, I broke protocol and in doing so potentially endangered the pack.  The captain is right in her call, and given the fact that it took this long to recover me I am imagining the ship is in dire need of maintenance.  If that is the case then putting me in maintenance may be a better use of my skills than flying patrols at the moment.  I should not have taken any form of charge nor should have I broke formation.  I acted on instinct instead of on wisdom and that instinct served me well this time.  A more logical mind would argue that it was mere luck that my actions ended favorably.  Frankly I think it was mere luck that we survived that encounter in the least.  Fact is however, that those actions have consequences, and despite the possible argument that the ends justify the means in this specific case, the ends do not exempt me from the consequences of those means.  Secondly ensign Carver, whatever you did to earn that medal I am sure it was in a circumstance that was not while in squadron standard formations based on your words.  What I did was breech of protocol in a more standard operation.  What it sounds like you did were actions under a state of apparent ship-wide duress.  The two scenarios are as different as night and day."  He said calmly. "Please, both of you, do not attempt to be my advocate in this.   Thea requires cohesion not dissension between her crew and the pack that protects her.  I knew full well the consequences of my actions as I took them.  That is why i pointed out my breeches in protocol when I was asked to debrief the captain on my mission.  I pointed them out because it is my responsibility to do so,"  He paused as he followed the many directions in examination the EMH was beginning to give him. then added   "Just as it is your responsibility to make sure that any wolves that want to argue that I shouldn't be grounded are reminded that the captain's decision is not only final but is correct."

Miles then added rather quickly and in a more friendly instead of calm logical tone of voice, "Comander Rez, as my direct commanding officer, would you mind scheduling a time that you can debrief me on the events on the ship I have missed?" He paused for a second and smiled, "Especially whatever it was that changed your uniform from teal to crimson and added those pips to your collar, and whatever it was that earned my fellow wolves the Star Cross.   In the mean time I think the Doctor here will want to do a more through examination, and I would rather not delay him.  Besides, sooner he checks me out sooner I can begin my maintenance schedule."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 21, 2012, 05:10:11 AM
Having done what needed doing, Nicole walked away from primary deflector control with as few words as possible.  Despite knowing what had happened during the infection wasn't her fault, she still found herself drawing away from those around her, isolating herself as a way of shielding herself from any memory that might surface.  Already she'd had an instance in the mess hall where simply brushing up against one of the mess cooks brought a flash of her naked and being speared by his virus-altered erection and loving every second of.  A second memory came in the women's shower on deck 3 after she'd been working out.  She'd been drying off when another lieutenant bumped into her.  When she'd turned to see who it had been, the woman's face instantly popped into her mind, of staring up past the valley of two breasts, nipples hard points as the woman pinched them and groaned in ecstasy, Nicole's own lips nibbling and biting on the woman's sex, savoring the infection-tainted flavor.

Trying to shake the memories, she'd headed for the transporter room, expecting it to have few, if any, crewmembers present.  As she approached, however, she heard the sound of talking from within, specifically the captain and a few other officers.  Eyes widening, she stopped just outside the doorway, the doors hissing open upon the tableau within.  Pausing only for half a second, she turned and left, heading for the next stop on her list.  Already she'd gotten 11 major repairs started and 4 minor ones.  The transporter room had been relatively minor and definitely could wait, so off she headed to stellar cartography, where several portable force-field cranes had been setup to start removing debris.  Her hope was no one would be there and no one would come looking for her.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 21, 2012, 11:33:19 PM
[ Transporter Room 01]

Hearing the arguments yet showing no outward sign that she would change her mind, Jien caught the doors opening and closing - a flow of red hair spotted when the hesitant visitor moved out of the frame. It was an educated guess, yet the Captain thought she knew whom it had been. She had avoided them for far too long already, for reasons unknown, so she decided to make an unofficial enquiry.

"It takes a good man to know and admit his mistakes, even better to stand by his word to accept punishment for them," said Jien and looked back towards the returned Wolf. "You will be given a full written report on the weeks that you were trapped, and once you have had the ample time needed to read up on the information, I am sure the XO or I can answer any additional questions in a couple of days. You can expect a summons eventually from either of us to grant you this opportunity."

Turning her head to take in the other two Wolves as well as the Chief of Operations and her crew, Jien excused herself. "Everyone report to their regular duty-shifts when possible. There is still plenty to do before we leave the Mahéwa System," she said, and then looked towards Edena Rez, "Please settle into your new quarters and Ready Room after we go into Warp. Before then, I need you to oversee the finalisation of the deuterium and dilithium harvesting. Make sure they finish in time for Lt. T'Less' completed refit and get everyone out of there. I will be handling Engineering and their repair-efforts until then."

Captain Ives glanced around once more before leaving. "Dismissed."

She left then, and once she had passed around the corner of the door-frame, she changed... into his male form. It had become somewhat of a tradition to be in his male form when speaking to Lt. Nicole Howard, so he would honour that - despite how nigh unconscious the change might have become to him. He had hoped to talk to her in the Senior Staff meeting, or perhaps just before it, yet now her absence had left his decision not so simple any more.

She better have a good explanation...

[ Sickbay | Surgical Suite 01 | Deck 07 ]

OOC Warning: Details concerning abortions follow that may not be entirely tasteful, so please, refrain from reading if you do not want to know.

Despite his nature, Lucan was not too keen on this particular kind of procedure. It came with a lot of social taboo that he had no interest to involve himself with, even though it was his responsibility as a doctor. Oh, of course he would follow the usual manuscript he had been taught on both Aldea as well as in Starfleet Medical. Yet when it came down to it, it was all just a charade, and the women of most species abhorred what they asked him to do. The only way he could - somehow - make some profit for his own interests was if he could conduct the procedure without pain or discomfort and they would appreciate his delicate hand in it.

While Dr. Nicander raised the force-field that held up the surgical blankets in a way that prevented Amikris to see anything from the neck down, he considered the odds that he might successfully utilise a methotrexate injection - an intramuscular injection originally designed to attack fast growing cells such as cancers. Methotrexate attacked the fast growing cells of the trophoblast as well; the tissue surronding the embryo that eventually grew the placenta. It caused the disintengration of that sustaining, protective, and nourishing environment... depriving the alien embryo from food, oxygen, and fluids. No, it was too lengthy a procedure. It took days that Amikris could not afford to let it remain regardless whether the Ash'reem physique allowed the procedure or not. Furthermore, if it would indeed serve to kill the embryo, she would bleed for days, weeks - even heavily - and may abort the remains anywhere without notice.

No, as Lucan used an exoscalpel to cut out the opening he needed, he realised that he was forced to do the modern version of suction aspiration - or vacuum curettage - simply because it was the more expedient solution. A powerful suction tube with a sharp cutting edge was formerly inserted into the womb through the dilated cervix. The suction dismembered the body of the developing baby and tore the placenta from the wall of the uterus, sucking blood, amniotic fluid, placental tissue, and fetal parts into a collection bottle. Great care had to be taken to prevent the uterus from being punctured during this procedure, which may have caused hemorrhage and necessitate further surgery. Also, infection could have easily developed if any foetal or placental tissue was left behind in the uterus. However, abortion procedures had come father than such barbaric methods in the current century, even though the basics remained the same.

If he failed, all that was left was surgery.

"I'm injecting the local anaesthetics now," he said, his voice calm and steady, as he calibrated his hypospray to best serve the Ash'reem. The open rectangular cut in the sheet bared Amikris' still rather flat abdomen and the apex of her legs. Lucan framed a section of her lower abdomen with his fingers and let the hypospray kiss her there. "Please, spread your legs now and take long, deep breaths."

By then, Lucan had made his way to the replicator and asked for a curettage, being presented with a curved instrument with a HUD. Deftly, he activated it and saw the lubricants form along the thin insertion shaft. Wasting no time, he pushed a few buttons and lit the x-ray feature of the HUD before using his fingers to spread her nether lips. The currettage was then firmly pressed inside her, the tip making a small hole in her hymen and venturing forth to the life-form within her.

He could see shadows moving on the display, the alien hybrid far from still even though it was too small to be felt by Amikris. This particular abortion did fascinate Lucan, but not to the degree that he would pause. He pushed the last few buttons, and lit the gentle radiation that was meant to complete the procedure in a couple of seconds. Yet as Luca watched the display, he found that the agitated movements did not cease, and even though loosened from Amikris, it was not liquidated. "It is not working. I have to deliver the foetus via medical transport. Please, remain still..."

Extracting the currettage gently, the puncture in the hymen proably about to heal, Lucan powered up th medical transport pod on a table and grabbed the scanner and pointer. He used both to localise the foetus, locking on it, and then narrowing down the transport area. "Initiating transport in three... two... one... energizing."

And upon the pod, out of Amikris field of view, a nine centimetre abomination appeared - part flora part animal and twisting like a hurt worm with lesser tendrils sprouting from it. It seemed part of its body was missing from the radiation, yet still it trashed there blindly in its death-throes. The only merit given he circumstances was that it did not have a voice or sound, but only small and soundless limbs. Lucan glanced once to Amatras before heading over there - about to do the inevitable yet letting her make her scans nonetheless.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 22, 2012, 06:48:22 AM
[Edena Rez and Nathan Isley - Transporter Room]

Defeated, not only by the commanding officers on-board, but even by the words of the man he sought to defend, Isley kept his silence from then on.  If it were him, he would have kept fighting until his point was made, but then he wasn't the best person to look to for a solid track record with commanding officers.  Though he might have earned a commendation today, it was one against a pile of bad statements on his personnel file which spoke volumes for his insubordination.  Maybe Lieutenant Renard was making the best decision for his Starfleet career and for the wolves in general.  Best take his lickings now and get back as soon as he could, to join a squadron in much need of another pilot.

"We will have time for a full debriefing when the ship is settled, Lieutenant," Edena spoke to the lost-now-found Fighter pilot.  She had just been assigned her position as Commander, and had much work ahead of her before she would be able to handle meeting with crewmen, even one in such a unusual circumstance as Miles.  "Until then, simply go about the business that was assigned to you by the Captain, and do so as ably as possible.  The utmost duty of this crew right now is to restore Theurgy to as best a shape as we can possibly get her in on the resources we possess."  With that, Edena left the transport room, the captain already having dismissed those in attendance.  She had her work cut out for her, as many of the crew did, to get the ship running in proper order again.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Iron Ferrox on August 22, 2012, 07:52:51 AM
Miles stood there smiling and gave the commander a quick salute.    He understood the consequences, but more importantly the Theurgy was still flying and he had two fellow Wolves there to catch up with.  "As far as I can tell the EMH has found nothing wrong with me. So, how about I treat the two of you to a drink or two in below decks in about 30 minutes and the two of you can tell me about how you got those crosses." 

"In the meantime I have to get going myself.  After that battle I feel like i was just in, I could use a nice sonic shower and a change of uniform."  He said as he had already began taking off the gloves and boots of the Flight suit having on the simulation style suit under it. 

As he walked out of the room, he placed the gloves and boots as well as the rest of the flight suit which he had removed into a small bin that he could carry with him.  Finally, his tail was back to being out of the suit and he was able to stretch it again.  He began wagging it to his sides much like how a human would stretch their legs after being seated for too long.  He looked back at the other two wolves flashing them the lone wolves salute adding before he fully walked out of the transporter room, "Can I count on the two of you to show up?" 


OOC: the simulation suit was used in Voyager as a piloting uniform so I assume that the simulation version in the RP is the same but slightly more form-fitting for use as a bodysuit under full flight suits.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Searcher on August 22, 2012, 02:01:36 PM
Skye knew Miles was doing the best he could possibly do for himself and he was definitely being good natured about it all.  Good natured enough to ask them to join him for drinks, something that brought a smile to her face.  "A long shower will do you a lot of good," she replied and remembered how she'd actually run the water cold when she'd first gotten back.

"And of course we'll join you, or at least I will," she said looking to Isley questioningly.  He hadn't said much to her since they'd worked together during the infection but they'd all been working hard to repair things on Theurgy.  "Can't speak for Mav here but I think a drink would do us all a world of good.  Maybe once things settle we can even start having movie night or poker night."

Again she winced inwardly at her need for people to be around her.  Was this something that would stick with her forever or would she gradually adjust back to how she used to be?  It was something that frustrated her to no end, always having been so independent and now she felt like a kid going off to kindergarten.  Following Miles out of the transporter room, she still felt guilty yet glad to have another of the den home.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 22, 2012, 04:17:57 PM
Stellar Cartography was, as expected, a disaster.  The collapse of the floor above had been sealed, but there was a lot of damage, and the primary functions were still not working.  While the sensors were, currently, scanning the stars and constellations around the Theurgy, and they could manuever by hours of computations, the Cartography computers were designed to pinpoint the exact location and allow the ship's travel to be mostly automated, tracking star clusters and stellar landmarks far more easily than a humanoid eye ever could.

As Nicole stepped inside, the door behind her gave her a bedraggled shower of sparks, causing her to wince and quickstep away.  The pair of doors only partially closed and she sighed at yet another item to mark down as needing fixing.  Muttering under her breath, she moved down the long walkway towards the center of the room, pausing to heft a metal beam out of her way, carefully setting it aside, rather than carelessly toss it.  Who knew what was salvageable, what might come in handy down the road.  She'd already begun to fill one of the Engineering storage compartments with seemingly useless junk which might provide raw material down the line.

Stopping along the circular edge at the center of the room, Nicole set her toolbox down and knelt, tapping at the release controls along the rim.  A panel slid out from beneath the dais and she scowled at the sight of the burned wreckage of what had once been the correlation bio-neural gel packs.  It would take her a couple of hours to reprogram a new pair, which was less of a concern than the fact they had a limited supply of them.  As she lay flat on the dais and began disconnecting them, she decided to take the burned out ones to Medical.  Maybe they could restore them, somehow.

From behind her, she heard the door spark again and turned to look, catching sight of Jien as the door tried to respond to his presence.  Part of her first instinct was to rise and approach, warn him about the door, but she stubbornly remained where she was, pulling one of the packs out and starting on the other.  She knew she was likely in trouble, just for not attending that damnable meeting.  For a number of reasons, she'd avoided groups of people, and, in this case, those reasons were simply topped off with the fact she was buried in work.  The ship wasn't going to fix itself, after all.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 22, 2012, 09:52:16 PM
[ Stellar Cartography ]

Watching the red-head engineer through the sliding doors that struggled to make way for him, Captain Ives soon decided to slide through the opening sideways - careful not to be blinded with the coughs of sparks that hit him.

As he threaded along the walkway to reach Nolak Kalmil's Assistant Chief Engineer, he considered her as she lay there and extracted gel packs. He would rather look upon her than the surroundings, since the place intimately reminded him about the fight he had with Nolak and his own First Officer. He would rather fasten his eyes upon the way her hair fell down towards the abyss while she worked, instead of seeing the railing upon which he... thought he might have claimed Nerina - sucking at her nipples and squirming his hardness deep into her expectant half-Klingon vagina. Frowning, he looked away, only to come to see the part of the centre flooring where Nolak had managed to conquer his female form - Nerina holding him and spreading his legs with her own. In fact, that specific spot on the deck plates had another colour - the dust having once been slick with nectar and semen.

"Lieutenant," he said, willing himself to look way and not think about the foggy images that assailed him, "I reckon that the summons probably reached you, and as unfortunate as I think it was that you were not present in Chief Kalmil's stead, I am pleased to see that you are carrying out your duties."

It was a rather gentle approach he had taken, much because his head was not clear and he would not like to lash out at her. Not here, when so much violence and corrupted things had come to pass. Here, where he had almost killed Lt. Howard's superior officer, and her XO. The bursts of sparks from the torn ceiling far above made the shadows play across them. His brow drawing down a bit, Jien wondered why he got so little acknowledgement from the Assistant Chief Engineer, even though she was dedicated to her work.

"Is something wrong?" he rasped to her quietly, standing behind her prone form with a hand upon the buckled railing. He might have come to enquire about her whereabouts and scold her for not informing the staff about her inability to attend the meeting, yet when he saw the halfblood Bajoran's determination and dead-set drive, the old almost-forgotten Rehabilitation Officer that he had been - the soul lost behind his frost-coated fortifications - had opened his eyes and saw her in a new light. "A silly question, I admit,  given what has transpired here aboard, yet nonetheless I sense there is something that flogs you to keep at it, meetings and present company be damned."

It was as far as his humour could venture, like a staggering mule barely awake - heading for slaughter.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 22, 2012, 11:24:49 PM
Truer words had never been spoken, she thought to herself as she kept on working.  Already, she'd put in nearly 14 hours, after a 22 hour day yesterday and all on less than a handful of hours sleep.  Every time she closed her eyes to try to rest, memories, vague and unsettling, arose, filling her with remembered arousal that was outside her control.  Control that she had taken for granted up to the events of the last week or so.  She felt violated, much as she imagined a lot of the crew did, but even more so from the lack of being who she wanted to be, of being forced into that... that nympho-slut, that other person who, despite the undeniably pleasurable enjoyment of it, had no will of her own, no ability to say no or stop seeking out yet another partner.  And, so, yes, she was flogging herself to work, desperate for anything that might keep her from sitting in her cabin, waiting for the next unwanted memory to flood her.

Pulling the second burned out gel pack free, she rolled onto her back, then sat up.  She crossed her legs and looked up at him, her lower eyelids darkened from lack of sleep, as she began setting up her portable programmer, readying the replacement gel packs for programming.  Her movements were practiced and efficient, nearly graceful in their un-thought out agility.  In a soft tone, she answered, "Y'r request was for senior staff.  M'st o' the toime, that might've been Chief Kalmil.  As no replacement was a'pine'ted, I'd not deemed m'presence necessary, what with all multitude of matters clamoring for m'time and attention."

As reasonable as her explanation might sound, she had known she should probably attend, but her seemingly increasing isolationism, along with her already decided dislike of meetings, and, indeed, anything where she might have to take orders from someone claiming to be her superior and wasn't, had led her to not go.  Not that she'd disliked Kalmil, exactly, but there'd been no love lost between them.  Other than thinking the captain looked attractive in either form, she was, as yet, undecided whether to like or hate Jien.  For the moment, with his masculine form standing over her, she felt... safe.  He was one of the few people aboard that she was absolutely certain she'd not had sex with, as the sight of him did not cause any memories to resurface, a fact she was immensely grateful for.  Her eyes fell to the gel pack as she seated it in the programmer and she sighed, deciding upon a lie rather than the truth, "Oi'm foine."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Kurohigi on August 23, 2012, 07:01:06 AM
[Nathan Isley - Transporter Room]

"After the week we've been through, I could sure as hell use a drink.  Having someone else pay for it just makes it all the better," Nathan said with a grin.  Giving a light slap to Skye's back, he encouraged her along as well.  "I'm willing to bet this one can hold her liquor too.  You don't get to be a lone wolf without being made of stronger stuff!"  How long had it been since the wolves could band together and enjoy each other's company?  The work had always gotten in the way, but now there was cause for celebration.  It was a homecoming, for both Renard and for Carver, both returning to the Theurgy, each in their own unique way.  It was a shame the SCO couldn't have been there to welcome them back himself, but that was a duty Nathan was more willing to take up himself.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 24, 2012, 12:47:34 AM
Jien watched Lt. Howard work quietly, or rather, he tried to keep his eyes on her rather than the stain on the floor that she almost had come to sit in. It served to be very distracting, but the Captain was not to let his least finest moments in life come to ruin their mission. The feelings of their appointed Assistant Chief Engineer was important, and with the lack of Garen Nelis present, Jien would somehow try to reach back through time and become the Counsellor that he had been the first years on aboard the USS Vendetta.

Carefully leaning against the railing to test if he could place his weight against it, Jien folded his arms across his chest and frowned, not at her, but as he looked down into the deck plates between them. His impeccable uniform a part of himself, he felt a shower sparks that fell on his shoulder - pricking sensations vanishing as it bounced off him. Watching her, he thought he might describe some of his own feelings as well as hers - what he thought might bother her. It was quite evident what the reason might be, given what had befallen them all.

"A half-truth is the most cowardly of lies," he said slowly, letting her know with a faint smile he did not believe her answer, yet more importantly conveying how he certainly did not think her cowardly in her response. Not with the sleep-deprived eyes of hers and the pace at which she had been working. No, she was not as fine as she made herself out to be. Rather the opposite. "Yet the worst lies are the lies we tell ourselves. We ceaselessly live in denial of what we do, or even what we think. We do this because we are afraid to know the truth. Given what has happened to us all, be it we were infected or not, we all fear what we were reduced to be at the behest of a plain virus - despite that the Captain of the USS Relativity said it was a biological weapon that evolved for millennia on perfecting itself."

Shrugging where he stood, Jien continued. "It is both a blessing and a curse that our memories are muddled by the antidote of the virus, because while we do not know the truth that we are so afraid of, the images we are assailed with suggest enough to make our minds fill in the blanks. Problem being... none of are merciful upon themselves in the face of fear... since we tend to assume the worst."

To watch er was to not watch the place they were at, so that was what he did, his eyes locked upon her or her body where she sat opposite him. He might say more, but he steeled himself to let her think, to let her consider new aspects of the turmoil she seemed to suffer.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 24, 2012, 05:52:05 PM
"Good thing it was an oot and oot lay, then," Nicole answered defensively, her Irish accent stronger because of it, before looking and catching his small smile.  She wondered why he was pointing out what she already knew, that she was far from fine.  She was an engineer, after all.  Ignoring structural integrity, her physical body, would be dangerous.  How long could she keep pushing herself before she simply collapsed from exhaustion?  And, further, would such exhaustion bring empty, dreamless sleep, which certainly had a certain appeal.

A beep drew her gaze away from him and to the gel pack, informing her the equipment was ready to start the programming sequence.  A double check of her figures and settings, she enabled the program, then leaned back slightly.  Her eyes moved back to him and, while she'd thought about him/her before, she'd never thought about the captain as being a sexual person.  The engineering part of her tried to work out the details, wondering if Jien felt pleasure from the act of sex.  How did he grow the male form out of himself?  Did it just form full hard, or was there some part of the changling physiology that had to be aroused, as well?  And, what of the nerve endings, as humans had?  Was the part that Jien manufactured to represent a male penis the changling's actual sexual equipment, meaning stimulation needed to be applied before conception could occur?  Was there some part of him that also had male semen, something forced from his body during ejaculation?  Did he ejaculate at all?  Then there was his female counterpart, breasts and nether parts.  Did he/she have ovaries...

Realizing she'd now spent more than a few seconds in thought about it, she flushed a deep pink and looked away.  He'd said words, something about relativity and biological weapons, but her tired mind had segued into anatomy and she'd lost track.  Looking back up at him, she sighed, hoping she was guessing correctly about what he'd been talking about, and asked, "Whot d'you remembe'?"
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 24, 2012, 09:17:11 PM
Seeing how tired the Lieutenant was, Jien realised that his reawakened counselling-demeanour might have made her phase out for a moment. He did not mention it, however, taking it in stride.

It was all a part of the role of being a confidante - the listener who replied in philosophies in order to enlighten, strengthen, distract and in the end alleviate the burdens of the speaker. The irony of the situation did not go unnoticed either. For in order to take a role that Jien used to have on the Vendetta, one needed good communication skills, an ability to establish trusting relationships with people, to put people at ease, to listen to them and reflect on what they say. Patience, tolerance, sensitivity and to be able to take an empathetic and non-judgemental approach. Moreover, to be self-aware and be able to reflect on your own thoughts, feelings and values. Since those many years on the Vendetta, it was not just a few of those abilities that Jien had come to loose. What remained of the old Counsellor was no more than an embittered husk devoted to the mission and command.

To reflect on one's own feelings and thoughts... that was what Nicole Howard now asked of him, and Jien clenched his jaws a little in thought. His scowl was an introvert one, while he contemplated how much he actually did remember, and that he could say without giving her untruths.

"I fell through the floor up there when it ruptured from the phaser-fire against the infected," he said quietly, the gravitas in his voice echoing in the broken chamber, "They were spooked. Paranoid. Set their weapons on wide disperse and changed their rifle-settings from stun. It tore up everything up there. When I came to, I was lying on top of that main control station there." As much he remembered clearly. Then he enacted what transpired by changing his form... to her female one before continuing.

"I altered my form in order to get out from under that beam, this Chosen Form of mine being smaller and more limber. When I made to leave, your superior officer entered through the malfunctioning door - our previous First Officer in tow," she said quietly, and while the intonation and speech mirrored the male voice from before, hers was now a definite female version of it. What it lacked in gravitas it made up for in cutting clarity. "I am unsure about a lot of things from this point on... yet I ended up trying to fight them off. The greatest difficulty was how Nolak Kalmil did not honour his vow of celibacy any more, and his Deltan abilities undermined my resistance completely. It was a drawn-out fight, many turns taken, and one of both physical restraint as well as mental fortitude. In the end..."

Jien folded her arms underneath her breasts and glanced towards the spot next to Nicole. She was almost certain that it was there it had happened. "...I lost. I think I remember Nolak... corrupting me, but it does not add up with how I saw him crash into the control station and suffering a plasma detonation. I have this image of him careening into this railing here by me and falling over. That does add up with how he was found, though. As for Nerina... She ended up down there too, but I am not entirely sure it was my intent at that time."

It was exceedingly difficult to speak of this, and especially with her being the Captain and not too happy about showing weakness to her crew - upholding the chain-of-command and all. How could one keep the office of the commanding officer impeccable under circumstances like this? Given how she had begun the story, she decided that she would finish it as well. "From this point, I have patched together things into some kind of sequence-of-events. I must have make my way to the destination that my companions and I had; one of the transporter rooms." She had worn her male form then, had she not? She thought so. Thus... he changed again, his masculine voice continuing.

"I alone had access to transporter controls, so I used it to the great disadvantage of the last few that were uninfected aboard. The new Chief of Operations must have shown up, since they had to patch together her face in Sickbay after the Relativity arrived. I... do not know exactly how much damage I did to her, or to the struggling ambitions on board to stave off the outbreak. I do know that I made my way to the Brig eventually, having trapped Commander Rez there, and fought to dominate her. It was by this time the Relativity arrived, and the temporal agents stopped me."

At this point, Jien fell silent - introspective. He did not ask her to tell him what she remembered. If she was willing to talk about it, she would. Perhaps he had, at least, given her some perspective with someone else's experiences during the Niga-incident.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 24, 2012, 09:53:48 PM
Wide-eyed, she watched her commanding officer shift form, partially started, mostly fascinated.  She'd seen Jien change before, but never from only a few feet away.  And, she'd never considered the uniform itself to be part of her captain, always thinking the changling changed garments before or after a shift.  She only half listened as Jien talked and was delightfully fascinated as he/she changed yet again.  This time, Nicole couldn't help herself and rose, approaching Jien.  Without asking, she stretched out a hand and ran her fingers over the left of Jien's chest, astonished to find the actual texture of his skin felt much like the cloth of her own uniform.  In a whispered tone, she said, "Remarkable."

Recalling what she could of her own experiences, she could only scowl, "At least you fought.  From what I recall, I didn't even put up a fight.  I mean, I hardly struggled at all, I think.  What kind of officer does that?  Just accepts being raped?  What kind of person?  And, then..."

Angrily, she wiped away a tear and stepped back from him.  Her next words constituted the worst part for her, the total and absolute changing of who she had been for who the virus had made her.  Her voice low, near to cracking, she murmured, "Then I enjoyed it.  I enjoyed it and I forced other people to enjoy it.  Not because I wanted to, but because I was forced to, was forced to think it was for the betterment of everyone.  That what I was doing was not only necessary, but was good and right and moral."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 24, 2012, 10:53:18 PM
The touch was something Jien was not used to, not in the forward way Nicole brushed her fingertips against his chest - each tip felt as skin was touched. Moreover, the fascination of his rare species and his abilities so alike the Changelings yet at the same time so very other... that was something he had come to take in stride after having grown up among humans since infancy. Her touch did linger in his mind, but given the topic and the place they were in, he attributed the notion to the circumstances they were in - nothing more.

Her words was what kept Jien's mind focused, her tears, yet it was her confessions that he addressed. When it came to self-disparaging opinions about events, there was something that Jien always believed was important, and that was the harsh truth of it. One had to address the issues. Yet in this case, the truth was not so harsh. No, not at all. The truth was now so plain that it served to become cliché and unfathomable. That the solution to the mind's affliction was so easy was hard to digest, and all that might serve was to repeat it. He was no counsellor any more, but this was something that the present Jien Ives knew perfectly well how to convey.

"Even before you were raped," he said, not mincing words the least, "you were under the influence of an alien virus - air-borne particles affecting your judgement. I have given this ship a formal edict that no judgement will fall upon the people who corrupted others - not even if they committed murder or other crimes. This edict extend to you too, and it is the same principle. You are not allowed to pass judgement upon your own actions just prior or after being infected by the alien virus. You have, though, done the right thing in telling me this, since your closest superior officer is currently in stasis. What kind of officer may be the victim of unprecedented elements or events? Anyone. Everyone. All kinds of officers may be the victims. The real question here... is one that you have to hear and accept to answer for your own sake as well as for this entire ship."

Jien let the silence linger, to let her seal some of the cracks in her own demeanour for her own sake.

"The real question you should ask yourself is not what kind of officer you were, but what kind of officer you decide to be? Will you come to terms with the fact that others need you, needs you focused and functioning, or does the accident that happened to befall you rule who you are? Because if you decide to put the accident behind you, I have a new appointment for you; that you shall take Nolak's place and serve the Theurgy as our new Chief Engineer. You will be promoted to Lieutenant Commander, and I would have you begin right away - delegating the current shift to work in cohesion instead of repairing whatever they happen to lay their eyes upon."

The box with her black pip remained in the Conference Lounge, otherwise he would have put it on her himself. "Yet the position comes with the condition that you strive to put this behind you, and that you return to serving regular duty shifts - not working day and night to keep your mind occupied. Only then will you be the kind of Starfleet Officer that you think you are not."

Stepping up behind Nicole, Jien laid his hand on her shoulder - a firm hand meant to steady her and give her strength. The will to accept that strength of her own and that she is not alone.

"I need you, Lieutenant," he said to her, "I need you to help me get everyone home, and to rectify their names, and without this ship functioning... I cannot see how it might be done."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 24, 2012, 11:26:49 PM
Listening to him talk about edicts, she wanted to irritatingly point out that he could issue orders all he wanted and it wouldn't change what any of them had been through.  The fact remained her actions, even under the influence of the virus, had been hers.  Much as she would like to refuse any responsibility, she knew she couldn't, and none of them should.  Some of them had been dragged into it, but the entire incident would forever be tainted by their own personalities.  The people she'd had flashes of having sex with, for the most part, had been people she'd wanted to have sex with before being infected.  The woman from the shower, a beautiful female no matter your choice of species, or the cook, who'd been muscular and strong, though a bit dense in the head, both had been people she'd been attracted to.  Being infected was just an excuse to do what she likely never would have ordinarily.  The same for all of them, to a certain aspect.  The infection was an excuse for what had happened, for letting their darker natures surface, even if only for a time.  To think otherwise was to be deluded.

As she listened to him, then felt his hand on her shoulder, she knew, one day, she might forget what had happened entirely, but not today, not right now.  And, forgetting would not erase it, nothing could change what had happened, could change what had happened to her.  The promotion, though... now that was something to focus on, at least.  Her work was who she was, who she had been before she'd even left Mars, forced to join Starfleet.  The obsessive compulsion to solve problems, to find solutions, to fix what needed fixing had, regardless of her personal outlook, found her being promoted, not once, but multiple times.  And, now, here was another promotion where her first instinct was to curse and refuse.  But, when she thought of anyone else trying to fix the Theurgy, of performing the hundreds of delicate operations meant to ensure the ship kept functioning, she felt a fierce anger that anyone else might do what she could do best.  Of course, as the lead engineer aboard, she knew she would have to delegate some of it to those below her, to supervise but not micromanage the efforts of her subordinates, an aspect of management she'd had to figure out the hard way, through grueling experience.  That didn't mean she wouldn't be the hardest working of them all, much as she was now.  She sighed, having realized she'd made the decision already.  Facing him, she scowled, "All right, foine, Oi accept.  Y'r ship'll remain in one pace.  Oi dont, howeve', mike any guarantees o' mental reco'hery.  T'wouldn't be sentient if Oi could.  Accept me as Oi am, or droop me off the next available port."
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 25, 2012, 12:23:40 AM
Gratified that she would accept the position, Jien did understand where she was coming from with her objection that she could not leave any gauarantees. It was plain to him, however, that she was not the kind to wallow in despair unless she could help it, so he smiled faintly and inclined his head.

"You know, the fear I have now, in retrospect, is the helplessness of it all - how one lacked control," he told her as he began to walk along the walkway, "so what the text-book says, is that to overcome an accident, you should try to do things where you are in control. So perhaps the position of Chief Engineer might help you - the measure of control you need to have unparalleled aboard. At least it is something to work with, when you cannot recreate the same kind of scenario's that instigated the trauma. Your therapy, 'Commander Nicole, ought to be control in the situations where you feel you lack it. Try to stay on top of things, and rebuild your self-esteem."

Pausing, Jien looked down the side of the walkway. "I need to continue, but the First Officer will help you with the administration unless I am available. You need to speak with the Quartermaster too in order to make arrangements for moving. Bye for now."

With that, Captain Ives inclined his head and walked off, content that she would do her best. He would expect little else.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: KittyKat on August 25, 2012, 11:44:37 AM
Amikris gave a slight sigh of releif when she realized it was finally really over.  It had been a very harrowing week, and her body needed this break for once.  Even with the slight increase in her rations, Amikris's body was strained from the ordeal.  Her body not designed for prolonged infections, to her species the infection either killed you in a matter of a couple days, or you overcame it within a matter of days, but with this outbreak she'd lasted almost a week infected with the organism.  To its credit her body had kept the infection contained.

As the procedure was completed she closed her eyes and was quickly asleep. Amatras glanced at the fetus that had been transported out of the chamber and then at Lucan. "Do you mind if i take her back to my quarters to rest?" The older Ash'reem inquired as she continued to make scans of her daughter idly.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Taguiera on August 27, 2012, 07:57:58 PM
Nicole watched her captain's broad back as he left Cartography and her, eyes lingering on his firm buttocks as he walked.  Alone with her thoughts, she resumed her seated position and pondered what he'd told her, knowing she had hours to do so.  As her musings continued, she grew tired of waiting and stood, beginning to use the cranes that had been moved in, harnessing the large pieces of ceiling and gravitating them down to the lower level of the room.  She'd mark them later for transport, but was happy enough to just get them out of the way and out of sight.  She paused when the programmer beeped, taking the time to pull the newly programmed gel pack and replace it with the second.  Installing them together made more sense, so she returned to working on the debris.  Several hours later, she stopped, finally finished, and put the finished gel packs in place.  Running diagnostics, she double checked her programming, then stepped back and started up the holoprojectors, delighted when the wide, circular screen lit up with the billions of stars recorded in the databases.  Finished, and with a sense of accomplishment, she packed up her equipment and, with a final look around, reminded herself to have the debris transported.  Mentally checking off most of her work for Stellar Cartography, she turned her attention to the other list, the list detailing all of the current work needing to be done.  Only 658 more items to fix.  She sighed and started off to the next location, deciding a cup of coffee would be necessary.
Title: Re: EPISODE 01: Outbreak [Epilogue]
Post by: Auctor Lucan on August 28, 2012, 02:13:23 AM
[ Sickbay | Surgical Suite 01 | Deck 07 ]

Eyes locked upon the dying foetus on the pod, Lucan heard Amatras speak and he answered while still not looking away.

"Of course, you should go. No need to get a stretcher, just... Thea, please ask a Transport officer to initiate medical transport of two crew members to their quarters. Cadet Neotin and Lieutenant Neotin. Energize at will..."

As Lucan looked over to the two Ash'reem, he inclined his head. "She will be aright, just... take care of her so that she can regenerate properly. I will take care of the rest here. With hope... we may just have witnessed the salvation of your species, so you should rejoice when you can."

Whatever Dr. Nicander may have come up with to say besides that, not to mention the reply, was lost since the Transport Officers seemed on their toes. In cascading light coursing over the two Ash'reem, they vanished from the Surgical Suite - leaving Lucan alone with the tiny, twitching thing on the table. A resilient little fighter as big as the tip of the thumb. It had withstood the curettage's radiation, and seemed to be waiting for the next move from the doctor.

Stepping up to the table with the transporter pod, Lucan could not tell afterwards how long he remained standing there - contemplating what he might do to the little abomination. In the end, he picked up an exoscalpel and held it over the tiny body - his instrument gleaming as much as his white lab coat in the dim light.

Then, the beast inside opened its eyes... and Lucan's hand was stalled.

Hearing the voice inside and what it suggested, the CMO began to chuckle - the artificial lights of the instruments and panels catching his teeth and his white lab coat. The chuckle became a laugh, and then it grew. The opportunities were endless, and he would have the right of it in the end.

This was fate's gift to him, and he would make the best of it...

- Fin
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