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USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

USS CAYUGA: RESISTANCE IS FUTILE



Captain’s Log.

Exploration of the Azure Nebula continues. While the Chief Science Officer continues to tell me that this trip bears merit, I, for one, look forward to the day that I can look out of my quarters and see the stars again.

Part of me had hoped the blue of the nebula would make me feel like I was planetside but it’s not the case. While I have lost many an hour staring into the swirling mass, it has started to feel stifling.

Apparently though, I am not the only one. Under guidance from our counsellor, I have increased rest time for the crew as well as increasing provisions for community-based events within the mess hall. Hopefully that, along with some holodeck time, should stave any cabin fever.

Many of the crew are using the time to craft messages home for when we reach the far edge of the nebula. I know Security Chief Toren is expecting a new holonovel that they intend to share with the crew on the return journey, however I’m just looking forward to an update from the Federation News Service. We have missed the elections on Rathana Prime and I want to know if Tremorea managed to retain his premiership.

One thing this journey has accomplished is highlight how dependant my life has come on a constant uplink to Starfleet. Without the immediate influx of information at my fingertips, it definitely feels like we are alone.

Computer, end log.
- Captain Ziegler, Commanding Officer, USS Cayuga

[ Captain Anya Ziegler | Bridge | Deck 01 | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @Masorin  @JosiahDorn  @DocReno @Gadget @lisavw , Anyone else 
[Show/Hide]

Stepping from her ready room, raktajino in hand, Anya Ziegler surveyed the bridge. It was quiet, as it was often and although the main viewscreen filtered a lot, there was still a light blue hue to nearly everything. The large majority of the senior staff were in the Mess Hall preparing for this evening’s festivities. As such, the bridge was manned mostly by deputies or beta shift officers. Martin at Tactical, Deputy Bannin at Security, Will Stevens – relief Science officer at his duty station. Nodding, she called to the young man operating the, albeit currently limited, sensor suite on the Iroquois class.

“Mister Stevens. How goes the mapping? Still struggling with adequate resolution?” Anya knew the answer, just as she had asked when she came out to the bridge an hour ago. Still, old habits died hard. Ziegler brought herself to the centre chair and stopped, standing just in front of it. She contemplated sitting and spending some time with the junior officers, or she could just retreat to her ready room. In the end, she decided to wait until she had an update of each station before making her decision.

“Aye Captain. Computer indicates that we are still sub par. We may need to retrace our steps when we are operating fully again.” The astrophysicist called. Stevens was very young - Fresh from the academy. He had joined the ship just before the mission the Azure Nebula. So far, he seemed to be settling in well. Anya was pleased, the crew had bonded well since she took over command.

“Don't tell me that, Ensign. If I find out that you’re making us fly in circles, I’ll make sure that Commander West assigns you to official Piñata holder tonight.” Ziegler couldn’t help but smirk. She didn’t often engage in joking banter and as such, her deadpan approach could often be misinterpreted, much to her own amusement. Without leaving Stevens chance to respond, she moved on with her check of the bridge.

“Engineering.” She announced, picking the station at random and turning to face the aft of the bridge. “The Chief was commenting that the port plasma vent was showing a fault in the last Senior Staff meeting. Has a team fixed the issue yet?”

“Captain…” Stevens’ voice was shakey, as if unsure of what he was going to say. Before he could continue, he was interrupted by a loud static crunch over the intercom. Turning back towards the front of the bridge, the image on screen caught Ziegler’s eye.

Paling, she stared at the ship now visible against the sea of blue. The coffee, now forgotten, tumbled from her hands and smashed across the deck. The sound of shattering ceramic was covered by that voice no one wanted to hear.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

“Red Alert, all hands to battle stations!” Ziegler called, unable to look away from the cube. Using her hands alone, she guided herself into the command chair.

Never before in her life, had Anya wished so hard to just see empty space before her.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #1 –
[Lt. Winter Bannin| Turbolift en route to main bridge/Deck 1| USS Cayuga] Attn: @Arista @JosiahDorn @Masorin & anyone else.

Winter was on her way to the bridge, the PADD that held the latest tactical team results was being tapped against her right thigh as she smiled since while doing this was a standard part of her duties but she took it as an extra bit more joy as it allowed her to see the captain and always seeing Anya was a bright spot in her day.

Inwardly she also wondered if Salem would also be on the bridge as she recalled the spot of fun that the two had a day or so ago as the young hybrid vividly recalled what happened and wondered if they could possibly have another try at it but this time with maybe a light dinner before hand because she wouldn't mind a more regular partner to spend time with...anything else would require a lot more thought.

As the lift slowed to a stop, the smile disappeared from her face as she moved to more standing position as she stepped out onto the main deck of the explorer and noticed Salem was at his station at which point she decided that the report could wait a moment and walked over to him, drawing just close enough for him to hear her easily over the common sounds of the bridge.

"Hello Salem, I wanted you to know that I did enjoy myself the other day and was wondering if you'd be up for a repeat some day?" Winter said in soft tone to the older man, the fingers of her free hand gently brushing his free hand as she gave him a soft but warm smile.

At that moment she heard Anya's voice asking the navigation officer a question and she turned to look over at the brunette and was about to make her way over to her but she stopped in mid movement when she heard Steven's voice get the captain's attention which was then followed when a strange sound then came through the ship's communications that triggered a long hidden fear through her body.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

There against the pulsing of the blue nebula was a shape that she had grown up fearing as her hand quickly grabbed Salem's as Winter's already slightly pale skin went even paler as a cup shattering on the deck was a proper highlight to the situation that was going on around them as she tried to fight down her first reaction which was to run in fear but instead she tried to draw from Salem's presence.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #2 –
[ Lt JG, Salem Martin | Main Bridge| Deck 1 | USS Cayuga] Attn: @DocReno @Arista
[Show/Hide]

Sensors were slow to update, and even sitting at the tactical station on the bridge of the Cayuga he was almost as blind as the other people in his crew. Except there was an odd green dot on his tactical display. It was big, and he wasn't sure what it was. Sensors were having a problem picking it up, and he was about to bring it up to the captain, but she was going through station by station, and until this blip on the radar was some kind of threat, it was big but in this cloud it could be some kind of meteor.

Besides he was more focused on the voice beside him. The pleasant memories of the Luitenant the day or so before were still very much there, and he nodded towards her when she asked if she wanted to try again at some point. However before he could respond his consul beeped with a warning, more info on that green blip.

He looked down at the consol and froze for a moment, the object's measurements were coming in. 3 kilometer sides forming a perfect cube, an internal volume of 27 cubic meters, no sign of of standard engines, scanning arrays, or weapon alignments, and yet it was on a controlled course. For  a moment he couldn't take his eyes off the console he was reading.

Slowly though he knew he had to look up. He had to see it, as the crackle of static taking over their comms would tell them exactly what he had been reading.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

Salem felt the hand on his, and looked at Winter, he gave her a slight smile. A breath escaped him as he tried to think this through. He had to take back his hand from Winter, and do his job. Thankfully the Federation had always been more prepared than the days of wolf 359.

"I thought they were all destroyed."

He swallowed unsure why this thing was here. At the same time it didn't matter why it was here. He was at the tactical station, until the chief tactical officer got to the bridge and he could run to another battle station the ships fire power was entirely at his disposal.

He didn't exactly have to wait for the first order. His fingers danced across the tactical display for a moment bringing shields to full without needing to be told. Resistance may be futile but it was a hell of a lot better than the alternative. Modulating the shields was probably going to be the full time job as Borg weapons were notorious for adapting to move through the countermeasures.

"Shields to full captain, Readying forward torpedo bays at your order. The good thing is these guys are really easy to hit, it's like shooting the broad side of a barn." The cubic nature of the ship and just how large they were meant that he could pretty much fire blind and still get a hit, however he was programming tragectories so that if fired the torpedos would hit the same spot.

Since the cube was resiliant and self reparing his main interest was not to try and hit target systems he wouldn't even know where the hell their key systems were to start that. No his goal was jut to pile on the damage in a narrow area, drilling into the durasteel compound and hopefully hitting the sweet delicious drone center behind the cubes wall. Lets see how many torpedoes it takes to get the center of a Borg cube.

He turned to winter. "I'll take you up on the dinner." He said trying to be confident that they would get the chance too.

If not maybe they would get regeneration pods close to one another?

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #3 –
[Lt. Winter Bannin & Ensign Kyle Gibson| Turbolift en route to main bridge/Deck 1| USS Cayuga] Attn: @Arista  @Masorin  @Mektari  and anyone else.

When Salem gently withdrew his hand from her grasp, it brought Winter's mind back to the present as the various junior officers on the bridge like Stevens over at the Sciences whose eyes were wide with fright which only served to reassure Winter a resolve within the hybrid that she knew what she had to do next.

There was a chirp at her breast which was followed by her superior's gruff voice asking <Lieutenant Bannin, where are you?>

She tapped her badge, "I'm on the main bridge sir, orders?"

<Good, I'm starting protocol Toren J Twelve. We've practiced this, so you know what to do kid.> came her chief's reply. <I'm also sending you your partner and some of hazard trained deputies. Hopefully your partner will keep his eye on the job and not a certain flight controller.>

Even with the seriousness of the situation, her department chief in Hiro Toren would find a way to crack a bad joke to try and lighten the mood...even when his timing was utterly horrible. "Understood sir, following protocol now." she said before closing the channel at which point she heard Salem's comment and that brought a hopeful smile to her face.

But before she could reply, the turbolift doors to the bridge opened and her partner in the form of Ensign Kyle Gibson quickly moved onto the bridge, already clad in his security armor with his rifle slung over his shoulder with another rifle gripped firmly in his right hand as he held a weapons case in his left at which point he handed the rifle to Winter. "I heard that you had a possible bug infestation, ma'am?" he quipped in his lightly accented voice.

"Oh, you're funny, Kyle." Winter said in a humorless tone as she accepted the rifle and started to check its settings before holding it at the ready. "Still glad that I stole you from the Columbia?"

The Arcadian native simply shrugged lightly, "Perhaps but at least it's not dull." Kyle retorted to Winter before pulling a spare phaser out of a case to hold out to Salem. "Your sidearm sir." the security deputy said quickly before adding "It's already been set to fire on a randomized bandwidth setting, sir."

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #4 –
[CONN Officer Dumral|Bridge | Deck 1 | USS Cayuga]
[Show/Hide]

Mektari smiled to herself as her fingers moved lazily across the console, eyes flicking up to check the view screen every so often as she made sure the ship stayed steadily on course. It didn’t take much at the moment. The blue haze from the nebula added to the calm atmosphere of the ‘skeleton crew’, a term she had heard one of the human officers use that she thought was an appropriate term. It was her favorite time to work. Not a lot people to interact with and the few that tried to engage her were easily put off by a kind smile, a few words and an obvious effort on her side to not continue the conversation. The ease of this shift let her be alone with her thoughts, idly planning the next move on her Kotra game back in her quarters when she heard the captain step onto the bridge.

She turned to give a smile and a curt nod before returning to her duties, half listening to the pleasant banter between the captain and her crew until..She didn’t believe it at first, it was all so surreal. She glanced down at her controls, checked her course, then looked back up. What was once nothing more than swirling colors of azure was suddenly blocked by the thing of nightmares. A cube, dark, glowing green and ominous to any creature who knew what lived inside; imminent death.

She was the first to see it, but she couldn’t say a word. No, there’s something wrong with my mind. Maybe I’m daydreaming again, but I’ve never dreamt of anything like this. It came from nowhere! Stevens gave the warning call for the captain and the clattering cup crashing on the ground roused her from her suspicions. It was real.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

Then her training was back. Whatever fear that was trying to rise along her spine and run her arms to make her fingers quiver was forced to the back of her mind. Instead she sat straight, the lazy actions of only minutes before disappearing as her hands took on new life and danced across the console. The ship swiveled carefully, only a small degree, but enough to make them face even more directly towards the cube. It was a tactical decision. Lessons on the Borg she had taken in Starfleet Academy came flooding back. Knowing generally where the first shots came from on a cube and knowing just the speed with which she could maneuver the ship gave her the chance to calculate the best position to try and evade the first inevitable volleys that would come towards them.

She ran the various evasive maneuvers through her mind as she heard the light banter between Bannin and Gibson. How could anyone joke at a time like this? It doesn’t matter, focus on the task at hand.

”Ready for your orders, Captain,” her voice came out crisp, strong, feigning confidence in the situation. Although she did feel some confidence in the fact that she would only have to be here for a few minutes. Her Chief was surely on the way and she could step back from her post, something she was eager to do as quickly as possible.


Hey guys, I’m slowly but surely working on the BBCode to get the formatting worked out but I might have some issues for a bit with things like tagging. I’m working on it though, sorry for the inconvenience!

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #5 –
[ Chief Medical Officer, T'Panu | Personal Quarters | Sickbay | USS Cayuga ]

T'Panu arose from her sleep in her quarters. It had been a late night again last night, as she had been studying her Osmotic Eels. Her research had taken her to the brink of finally determining whether Osmotic Eels had a greater benefit in the healing process of cauterizing wounds. She understood the Dermal Regenerator's were more widely used, but she felt mainly because they were simpler and most people had an issue with keeping Osmotic Eels alive.

She made her tea and waltzed down towards sickbay. She had been grateful to Captain Ziegler for the increased rest time she had been using for her research. She typically worked in her quarters, as she preferred to keep it away from everyone, how much she had been working. T'Panu had a bad habit of getting too involved in her work; she never remembered to poke her head up once in a while, and open her eyes. Because of this, she often became so enveloped in her work she would hardly notice what was going on around her.

T'Panu's day began as every other day had as of late, treating another routine wound. This time, it was a fight between a stuck warp drive casing and an engineer. The warp drive won, leaving the engineer with a few pulled muscles. "I've healed what I can, I recommend you take it easy. Try not to do anything strenuous for a day or two and get some rest."

T'Panu resumed her usual work. She was lost in her mind, as ideas began swirling around her. She was excited to finish the work she had been doing. It was her dream to have cutting edge research published, although she knew how difficult that was.

In the back of her mind, she could have sworn that she heard the sound of the klaxon. That was when she heard it.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

T'Panu panicked. Or maybe she didn't, she wasn't sure. The days of Wolf 359 were long behind her, was this going to turn out the same way? Would she survive this time? How did she survive last time? What was even going on? she internally bickered with herself.

She was flooded with answer-less questions. She knew she shouldn't be naive enough to believe the Borg weren't truly here. She knew better than that; but she couldn't help being frozen in fear, wondering, hoping, praying this was a dream.

She was crippled in fear with all these horrible memories flooding back, gripped by PTSD. T'Panu couldn't help but think of the irony of her advice to the engineer to "take it easy." What a terrible thing to think about at a time like this. It took every ounce of strength for her to pull herself back to reality and prepare for whatever hell was about to ensue.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #6 –
[ Captain Anya Ziegler | Bridge | Deck 01 | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @Masorin  @DocReno @Gadget @lisavw @Veridian , Anyone else 
[Show/Hide]

Staring at the viewscreen, Anya could feel her features harden. She had already been too slow to respond. Various stations called out their readiness, alongside a security member who decided to hand deliver items to the bridge.

“Can the chatter Gibson, get to your post.” She chided the young officer without even turning to face him. Most likely too harsh, but the situation already causing stress. She did not need this today.

“Helm, Evasive manoeuvres. See if you can plot a course to the nearest edge of the Nebula.” A plan started to formulate in her head. They needed to run. Cayuga was a predominantly a science vessel – fast but lightly armed. In a straight out slugging match, they would stand no chance against the cube. Finishing her thought aloud, she turned it into a continuation of orders for the Cardassian. “We need to a get a message out, even if it’s to the Klingons”

Anya didn’t know too much about Ensign Dumral, mainly that she was competent, punctual and preferred the late shift. One area of concern raised had been how isolationist she was within the crew. Most likely due to her race, Anya herself knew about the problems of discrimination. She had felt nervous when first meeting the Cardassian, mainly due to left over feelings from the Dominion War. It was stupid then, and it was still stupid now. If they came out of this in once piece, Ziegler promised herself that she would do more to help the conn officer integrate.

“Tactical” She called to Martin. “Let’s see if we can disable their tractor beams before we get caught. Do what you need to” It had been rare that the Cayuga had found herself in trouble, but Ziegler was resolute in her belief in the department. Tactical officers trained hard and regularly, often more than Anya felt necessary. She wouldn’t complain anymore, assuming Martin performed well.

“Engineering, reroute power to-“ The first barrage hit the ship, breaking Ziegler’s flow as she clung to the arms of the captain’s chair. Lights flickered, consoles sparked, and internal dampers whined under the pressure but held, stopping many of being thrown off their feet.

Not everyone was that lucky. In a shower of sparks and the sound of wrenching metal, the engineering station was simply not there anymore. The explosion caused the officer operating it to be thrown several feet across the deck plating, landing unceremoniously in a heap. Depressing a small button on one of the panels of her captain’s chair, Ziegler opening internal communications.

“Bridge to Sickbay, we’ve got wounded up here.”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #7 –
[Lt. Winter Bannin & Ensign Kyle Gibson| Turbolift en route to main bridge/Deck 1| USS Cayuga] Attn: @Arista @Masorin @Gadget @lisavw @Hastata-Nerada & anyone/everyone else.

Gibson's attempt at humor was quickly stopped by the captain's words which the young man from Arcadia simply nodded, "Aye captain." he said, his tone easily shifting back into professional without a problem as he finished handing out the last of the phasers before moving to take his post at the corner of the bridge near the engineering station, admiring how quickly the bridge crew was moving to prevent the Borg from possibly catching them.

His dark eyes quickly landed on his partner who was still standing close to the deputy chief of tactical, his observational skills allowing him to see that this encounter was slightly throwing her off balance which was never a good sign.

Winter caught his gaze and then held up two fingers, hooking the first one slightly and then extending her thumb just a little to which he only nodded in return as he understood that gesture from their security training as she was trying to be reassuring as the captain started issuing orders to try and get them underway before one of the most dreaded foes that the Federation had ever faced started to make their way aboard the ship.

On her side of the bridge, Winter's eyes were scanning the bridge and keeping her trained senses alert for the familiar noise of a transporter as her grip on the rifle turned her lovely tanned knuckles white as she hoped that if anything she can help keep Salem and Iris safe, her own personal safety be damned as green eyes kept up their search.

Suddenly the deck shifted hard which even threw Winter to the ground, somehow she was still able to keep a firm grip on her rifle as she quickly stood back up as there was an explosion from behind her, she swung her rifle in that direction just in case the Borg had beamed in behind them on the bridge.

Instead what she saw was Kyle pulling himself up off of the ground, a thin trickle of scarlet creeping down his youthful face from the shrapnel flying due to the engineering station exploding. "Sitrep!" she quickly snapped at him.

"I'm fine." Kyle said right before Captain Ziegler called for a medic to the bridge as he hauled himself up, shaking his head lightly from where he'd been thrown as he started to keep an eye out as well.

Winter nodded as she quickly went over to one of the unmanned secondary bridge stations and brought up the engineering menu, using her training. "Rerounting energy to the aft shields, captain!" she shouted.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #8 –
[CONN Officer Dumral|Bridge | Deck 1 | USS Cayuga]
[Show/Hide]

The captain barely finished saying the word ‘evasive’ before she was in action, switching her attention between her console, the views screen and listening the captain’s orders. She seemed unfazed by the multitasking, back stiff but fingers working with aptitude as she nodded to the commands given. “Aye Captain, heading for the edge. Distress signal is being broadcast, but interference from the nebula means it probably won’t get far. I’ll try to get us out.”

The ship dipped suddenly as she forced the nose of the vessel to tilt upward just in time to dodge at least one shot that skimmed past the starboard bow. She kept the momentum of the maneuver to add to the sudden, sharp turn she performed. Suddenly the ominous cube disappeared from sight, replaced with the familiar view of the nebula as she turned them about. She wasn’t sure what was worse, seeing the enemy or knowing that it loomed behind them, ready for the chase with fangs bared.

She was pushing the internal dampeners to their limit. She was certain others felt the lurch in their stomach just as she did when the turn was executed and she started plotting their escape. Every second mattered. With no cube on screen she focused on her console, engines at full before she had even brought them all the way about. It was a disadvantage, but a required one. They had to leave, but without the chance to see the shots coming on the view screen she couldn’t use her own vision to try and anticipate the shots, so it was down to sensors.

Her actions were slow, the enemy was too fast, or a fine mixture of the two; she braced as she saw the first shot coming straight for them. No amount of maneuvering would save them, so instead she pushed on in a straight line to reach the exit as fast as possible, breathing steadily to try and keep calm. Boots braced against the deck as the ship rattled with sudden hit. Don’t look back, stay focused. If you want anyone to live, whatever’s happening behind you doesn’t matter. Fly the ship, listen to the captain. Focus!

The sound of sparks and the call for medics let her know that it was serious. The chanting to herself worked though, not budging from the task at hand as the ship began to sway and tilt here and there as they made for open space. Each time the view screen shifted, another of the familiar green bolts could be seen shooting forward and disappearing into the blue haze of the nebula. If only she could dodge them all, but no pilot could. Well, maybe another Borg could, but she certainly couldn’t. Just as she was contemplating just how many more hits they could take she heard someone call out about shields in aft. At least they were quick to band together and handle the situation.

A new kind of terror began to sink into her, but this time she didn’t freeze, she was quick to inform the captain, but some of her professionalism was lost. Dread creeped into her tone as she called loudly over the sounds of destruction, “Captain, they’re in pursuit and gaining. We’re still 10,000 kilometers from the edge of the nebula. Even with full power to engines we’re not going to make it before they’re on us.”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #9 –
[Science officer Vanya|Crew quarters | Deck 8 | USS Cayuga]

Vanya sat at her desk as the words in the books zoomed across the screen.   She occasionally stopped to laugh.   This series of fantasy novels was hilarious, though some of it was juxtaposed to 20th and 21st century Earth humour, she was able to understand the majority of the jokes.  

Her reading was stopped by her door chime.   The doors hissed open, and the XO Anderson West walked through the doors.   Vanya got up from her desk,

“Vanya good I…”   he saw her and immediately averted his eyes as he registered her naked body.     “Um, I’m sorry, would you like to put some clothes on?”  

She allowed herself a small smile.   She did enjoy these small conversations, and this was the first time that Anderson had come to her quarters.   “I don’t have any personal clothes, so it would be counter-productive to attempt to do so”

“Well, just put a uniform on?”   He asked  

Vanya turned off her screen and made a point of walking past the human officer as she moved towards the back of the room.   She opened her wardrobe and started to dress.  

“Why don’t you have any clothes again?” he asked her.  

“My emotions and personality are copied from my creator.” She said as she let her blue uniform top cover her torso.   “I have a complicated relationship with her, or at least with her memory.   Are my tastes and desires mine, or hers?”   As she stepped into her pants, she tried to quell the rising tide of anger   “Ultimately what’s the point of clothes in private?   I have had both Romulan and Federation scientists rattling around in my head.   You can’t get much more intimate than that    I am wearing my undershirt and uniform pants iss this sufficient, or would you like me to don my full uniform.”   

Anderson turned around to face her, folding his arms across his chest   “Vanya, you’re a brilliant science officer, and we’re lucky to have you.   But this is the reason why I’m here.   I’m told you aren’t attending tonight?”       

She nodded   “I’m not one for social gatherings, the ex-Romulan killbot doesn’t exactly bring the social buzz to the party.”

“That might be true, but you’re not just an ‘ex-killbot’ you’re also a senior officer of this crew.   It’s a great title, but with it comes the responsibility of being a leader of the community.   You can’t just stay in doors brooding.   You need to be seen….   Fully dressed, of course. “  

She shook her head    “People don’t trust me.”   She said.   

“This crew aren’t ‘people’.    Dammit Vanya you’ve started to earn our trust, and to keep it, you need to show that you’re one of us.”  
He turned and headed for the door.   He stopped and looked at her over his shoulder.    “We’re meeting in the mess hall.   You can sit here naked like a shop dummy waiting until the store opens, or you can start being there for the crew.”      

She paced up and down her quarters after he left.   She didn’t ask to be a leader, she was just a scientist, who desired to work in the Daystrom institute in the hope they would find, or create a being with which she could spend however long she was going to live.  

And yet…   this ship was starting to feel like home.   Perhaps she could make a brief visit.   She slipped on her boots, when it happened.  

Everything in her quarters  turned to red.   There was a garbled metallic voice that filled her with dread 

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE]
+++
She dashed outside of the room, the entire corridor was intertwined with Borg Technology that snaked throughout the ship.   She was grabbed by each arm by hulking Borg Drones.   She was marched down the corridor as other crew were also pushed along.   Instead of the familiar sounds of the ship that had been her home, she heard the sound of drills and screaming.  

At the centre of what had once been the Mess Hall was a large scanner.    The scanner probed each Cayuga crewman and flashed white for a second.   Over on the nearby display viewer, a single word flashed up in the Borg language.    From what she knew of the language, it was a single word after each person was scanned.   “Tactical”, “Adjunct”, or “Probe” were the most common.   After each word flashed up, the drone on the right of each crewman jammed assimilation tubules into their neck, after which the crewman would move obediently along their path.       

Finally she was dragged into the light.   Instead of white, the green beam flashed blue when it was her turn.   She glanced over at the display screen.   It was a word she had not seen before.  
“Obsolete.”   Assimilation tubules were stuck in her neck.   Suddenly she was inside the Borg system, looking back at her own body that was still wincing in pain.   The nanoprobes were removed, and the drone on her left took three paces away before a deadly plume of blue plasma seared the flesh from her body.   She tried to scream but could only watch as two more drones tore her exposed skeleton apart. 

As they dumped it in the replicator, she couldn’t remember why it was important to her anymore.   She couldn’t remember who these people were.   She couldn’t remember who she had been.  

She only knew fear of oblivion.  
+++
“Lieutenant?”   Vanya was brought out of her daydream.  The entire ship was bathed in red, not green.   There were no drones yet.   Just the red alert sound.   She looked at the ensign that brought her out of her nightmare.   “Are you alright, Lieutenant?”  

She nodded.   She wasn’t of course.   She had clearly had another episode.    In times of impending danger, her brain would create tactical scenarios based on probable outcomes from data that she had gathered.   In times of intense stress, these manifested themselves as waking day dreams.   Her body would go into autopilot, (she had clearly managed to finish dressing in her uniform in this case), but the emotional toll would soon become visible.  

Once again she felt loathing for T’Vrella for giving her emotions, and imagination.  

Finally she stepped onto the bridge, and relieved the nervous looking ensign from her station.    She refused to go into oblivion.        


Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #10 –
[Science officer Vanya|Main Bridge| Deck 1 | USS Cayuga]
Attn: @Arista and anyone else

The possibilities swirled around in Vanya’s brain.   Hundreds of possibilities in less than a second.   Each idea was to get them safely out of their predicament safely   Her best idea had a 3.098 chance of succeeding and the odds gradually dwindled from there.   That meant it was time to reconfigure the search parameters  

Now, she wasn’t after a way to get away safely.   It was time to get away as safely as possible.   There it was, like a beacon of hope in a maelstrom of distress.   Or at least, an 86% chance of hope, which was dynamite in this situation.  

“I’ve got a method” she said.   “But it brings with it extreme risk.”  She performed a last minute simulation on her console and was happy with the results  

“Captain, I have a suggestion.   If we launch a probe from the aft section we configure it to trigger a photonic charge.   The charge will ignite the Serillium in the nebula, and it should create a photnic pulse that should destroy the Borg…”  

She sighed sadly.   “However, the wake from the ignition will cause smaller photonic bursts across the nebula.     We stand to receive 20 to 50% damage to the ship.”  

She had been a programmed killer, and had done so with remorse, a lifetime ago   Yet since her reactivation in Federation space, she had hated the idea of being responsible for anyone’s death.   Yet she also knew that this was the best option to save every life on the ship from the possibly eternal torment of being a Borg drone.  

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #11 –
[ CPO Ekon Okotie-Eboh |Shuttle Bay 2 | USS Cayuga ] @Arista @DocReno @Masorin @Gadget @Hastata-Nerada @lisavw @Veridian Anyone Else

Chief Petty Officer Ekon Okotie-Eboh, who everyone called Chief Eboh due to the fact that Okotie-Eboh was too much of a mouthful, straighten up and stretched his back. He let out a soft groan as he kneaded his lower back with his knuckles before turning to Lt. Mason, the Chief of Operations, and giving the Operations officer a smile. They had just finished maintenance on the shuttle bay door controls which had been registering a minor malfunction since the previous evening, and now it was on to the next issue. Ekon turned to the two other NCOs present, Crewman Halliday and Petty Officer Tovelok, and gave them a nod.

“Looks like the system is operating properly.” Ekon said to no one in particular, before addressing PO Tovelok, “PO, take Halliday and head to the mess hall. Chef has reported that the replicators have been having problems. He said that all the food is coming out in liquid form. See what you can do.” With the instructions doled out and the NCOs heading off to their assignment, Ekon turned to Lieutenant Mason. “Well Sir, would you like to tackle the EPS relays on deck 3 or the temperature controls on deck 5 first?” Ekon laughed when he saw Lt. Mason roll his eyes theatrically.

“God, Chief, you’re a slave driver!” Lieutenant Mason laughed in his cheerful English accent as the two men finished packing up the last of their tools, “You won’t give a poor Lieutenant a moment’s rest!”

“I am sorry, sir” Ekon replied in mock apology, his deep voice rumbling as he chuckled at the superior officer’s false despair, “Perhaps you would like a nap before we get on with things? Or maybe a beer on the beach on the holodeck?”

“A beer would be lovely!” Exclaimed the Englishman, smacking his lips in mimed appreciation of the fictitious beer, “Maybe a nice pint of lager, with some fish and chi…” Lieutenant Mason’s jesting was cut short when the shuttle bay was suddenly filled with static noise droning out of the comm system. Ekon’s heart stopped, and his blood ran cold. He’d heard this noise before and knew what was to come next.

[WE ARE THE BORG. LOWER YOUR SHIELDS AND SURRENDER YOUR SHIP. WE WILL ADD YOUR BIOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DISTINCTIVENESS TO OUR OWN. YOUR CULTURE WILL ADAPT TO SERVICE US. RESISTANCE IS FUTILE.]

Ekon felt panic well up inside of him. Suddenly he was back aboard the Saratoga, hearing those same words. The memories seemed to flicker through his mind.

The ship rocking violently as the Borg tractor beam lock on to the Saratoga and began draining its shields. The explosions throughout the ship as the Borg cutting beam cut a swath out of the Saratoga’s upper decks. The screams of the injured and the dying. Ekon had been a Nurse at the time and was tasked with seeking out the sick and injured and bringing them to sickbay, the transporters having been knocked out in the Borg attack. Ekon and Crewman Neilson had been carrying a horribly burned civilian woman to sickbay when Commander Sisko had given the order to abandon ship. They carried the woman to the nearest escape pod and were ordered to board the escape pod as well. They had launched almost immediately and had seen the Saratoga’s destruction out of the escape pod’s viewport. The civilian died of her injuries a few minutes after the escape pod had launched.

Ekon shook himself back to the present and looked at Lieutenant Mason, who’s expression reflected Ekon’s own fear. The Lieutenant was too young to have been in Starfleet at Wolf 359, but he was no doubt aware of what the Borg were capable of. The shuttle bay was bathed in red light and the klaxon blared out the alert as the two men grabbed their tools and headed for the exit. Ekon and Lt. Mason were at the far end of the shuttle bay from the exit to the corridor, and they had covered only half the distance when the ship rocked with the first Borg barrage. Ekon was thrown to the deck with the sudden impact, but Lt. Mason managed to keep his feet, stumbling a few paces forward. An electrical conduit in the ceiling blew, scattering debris down onto the deck of the shuttle bay. Ekon squeezed his eyes shut and raised his arms to shield his head, hearing the Chief Operations Officer curse as he was hit be a piece of falling debris. Once he was sure his head wasn’t about to be cracked open by falling pieces of the ceiling Ekon raised his head and opened his eyes, seeing that Lt. Mason had turned and was holding out his hand to help Ekon up. From his vantage on the floor he could see through Mason’s legs, and he realized too late that there were 5 pairs of legs beyond Mason that shouldn’t have been there.

“Lieutenant!” Ekon yelled, but too late. He saw an implant-ridden hand land on Lt. Mason’s left shoulder and pull him backwards, saw another hand come into view over Mason’s right shoulder. And he saw the tubules extend from the hovering hand and bury themselves in Lt. Mason’s neck. Mason, eyes wide with horror, went rigid and convulsed. Ekon rolled to the side and into a crouching position and bolted to the aft wall of the shuttle bay, to the phaser locker mounted on the wall. He drew out a hand phaser, hastily cranked the setting to kill, aimed at the drone holding Mason, and fired. The directed energy weapon discharged, lancing out and taking the drone in the side of the head. Sparks showered from the Borg’s cranial implants as the phaser burned meat and machine alike, and the drone fell. Mason, released from the drone’s grasp, staggered forward and fell to his knees. Mason’s eyes met Ekon’s, and Ekon heard the Lieutenant’s shaking voice utter words that chilled him to the marrow.

“Don’t… let me turn… Chief…” Lieutenant Mason choked the words out, eyes imploring Ekon to action even as the Lieutenant seemed to convulse again, “That’s… an order.” A metallic spike emerged from Mason’s cheekbone and spread like a spider’s legs, taking on the appearance of a steel star adorning the Chief Operations Officer’s face. Ekon’s hand shook as he raised the phaser and took aim at the Lieutenant’s center of mass.

“I am sorry, Mason.” Ekon told the Lieutenant softly. Ekon’s jaw clenched, his gut clenched, and he had to fight to stop his eyes from clenching shut and he fired the phaser into his commanding officer’s… no, his friend’s chest. Mason seemed to fall in slow motion, and Ekon’s eyes remained locked on his friend’s form as the body hit the floor. As if in a final act of mockery, another piece of Borg machinery emerged from Mason’s eye, expanding to form an ocular covering. Ekon felt like he wanted to vomit. Like he wanted to scream.

There was no time though. The 4 remaining drones were advancing on him. Ekon raised the phaser once more and fired, but the shot was absorbed by a green field that shimmered around his intended target. They had adapted. Ekon stumbled and he attempted to run on leaden legs, dashing to the side, away from the advancing drones and towards the shuttle bay’s exit as he slapped his left hand awkwardly onto his chest, activating his combadge.

“Intruder alert! Borg in shuttle bay 2!” Ekon called over the comm system. He was just about at the door when he risked a glance over his shoulder. The drones were following at a steady walking pace. The lead drone had stopped and raised his tool arm, taking aim. Ekon dove to the deck as the green flash of disruptor fire passed above his head, striking the doors just ahead of him. Ekon scooted forward on all fours and dove through the doors to the shuttle bay as they slid open, landing in the corridor outside.

“Computer, seal the doors to shuttle bay two!” Ekon bellowed, as he watched the Borg drones continuing to advance in his direction. The doors slid shut and obscured his view, the computer’s voice confirmed the doors had been sealed. Knowing that the door seal would only hold the drones in for so long, Ekon turned to the control panel next to the door. He quickly accessed the shuttle bay systems, specifically the door controls. He powered down the field emitters before accessing the controls for the bay doors themselves. Several seconds later the command was ready to be executed. Ekon called up a security feed from inside the shuttle bay. The screen showed the interior of the shuttle bay. The pad that would normally hold a shuttle stood empty. A dozen storage crates stood against one wall, and the Borg drones were visible on the left edge of the screen, attempting to disengage the door locks. Lieutenant Mason’s still form was visible, lying motionless where he had fallen. Ekon entered the final command, and watched on the security feed as the shuttle bay doors began to open. The sudden depressurization of the shuttle bay caused a vacuum that sucked loose tool, storage crates and equipment out into the void of space. It also took with it the 4 Borg drones that had been tampering with the door.

And Mason... Ekon thought bitterly, bile rising in his throat as the events replayed in his mind. He shook his head, clearing is thoughts. Now was not the time to grieve for his friend. He turned from the console and set off down the hallway at a run, phaser still in hand. He patted his chest, activating his combadge again.

“Chief Eboh to the bridge. We have Borg aboard the Cayuga. Lieutenant Mason is dead.”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #12 –
 [ Lieutenant Ritt Dowa | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ]

Rubbing a hand across his shiny bald blue head, Ritt Dowa looked across the main engineering bay. Everything was running to plan. Crewmembers wandered back and forth on their various tasks, swarming around the warp core like worker bees in their hive. The Bolian was duty officer in charge while the chief was out.  Idly, he wondered if the Chief was in the mess decorating. He had heard rumours from some others in the crew that most of the senior staff had met there for an event this evening.

It was Bolarus National Day today, a celebration of when the Bolian people joined the Federation and a planetary holiday back home. If it was anything like last year, there would be a gathering for the all whole crew, but especially the Bolians – as little of them as there were on this crew. There were food, cake, music and fun activities. Would there be messages from loved ones back home on Bolarus? Captain Ziegler had arranged it last year and it was just so special. It had been months since he had heard from his wife, Asha and his little girl, Minka. With a smile, he wondered if how much she had grown and whether that wobbly tooth had finally come out. She had spent so long talking about it last time they had a subspace chat. At the time, Ritt couldn’t help but laugh, she was so proud.
Suddenly and without warning, the engineering bay was bathed in scarlet light. Red Alert. The siren’s tone breaking the calm spell across the work area. What was a slow saunter became a sprint as Engineers moved to their duty stations.

“Jackson, check the starboard plasma manifold.” Dowa shouted. He had trained to command engineering in a crisis if the Chief and Assistant Chief weren’t here. They would be back shortly, he told himself. Hold the fort until then.

“Jeen” Ritt called over the thunderous din. The ship shook under the impact of weapons fire. Just who were they fighting? In the Azure nebula? Rogue Klingons maybe? Romulans? The empire had been in chaos since the new praetor had taken over and the government split.

Focus. He chided himself. Task at hand. What was he doing? Clearing his throat. He bellowed again. “Jeen, shutdown the holodecks, send the power to the shield grid.”

Amongst the sparking and sound of escaping gases, there was a sound that Dowa couldn’t place. Nevermind, he concluded, focus on the task at hand. That was until a loud scream broke through the noise. Turning, Ritt paled, unbelieving of what he could see in front of him. Across the bay was Petty Officer Nakamura standing ramrod straight, a look of sheer terror across her face. Around her neck was the assimilate hand of Ensign Jackson.

Twisting back to his console, Dowa pulled up the comms panel. He needed to alert the bridge. The Borg were aboard. They were in main engineering. Meanwhile in the background there was more, much more, of that unusual sound from earlier. It was the sound of Borg transporting in. As his fingers worked, his mind boggled. The borg? Here? In the Azure nebula? It was hard to take in.

Ritt froze as he felt a hand grasp harshly down on his shoulder. It was cold and strong. He tried to mumble a few words as two small metal tubules pierced his neck.

“Oh Fu…”

His thoughts drifting to Asha and Minka. He’d never find out if they sent him Bolarus day messages or not.


[ Captain Anya Ziegler | Bridge | Deck 01 | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @Masorin @Gadget @lisavw @Veridian @alphawiz  , Anyone else 
[Show/Hide]

The ship rocked under another hit as Ziegler took in the report from her helmswoman. They weren’t going to make it. Cayuga was one of the fastest ships in the fleet and even they couldn’t outrun a Borg cube. They would need a new strategy.

With her mind whirring, she began to formulate a plan. They couldn’t make it out. They couldn’t fight it out. They couldn’t get a message out. To ensure the safety of the crew that left only one option.

“Dumral, bring us about.” Ziegler ordered.  “We’re going deeper into the nebula.”

As if attune to her captain’s inner thoughts, the Chief Science Officer Vanya spoke up. She raised a risky, destructive possibility and one Ziegler hadn’t considered. As much as Ziegler had been concerned about the Romulan Android when she had first taken command, Anya did have to admit that they had proved a valuable resource to the crew. One that that the previous Chief, Laskey, had insisted was used to the fullest potential. When Laskey was lost on an away mission, Ziegler had used his guidance in promoting the android as his replacement.

“Vanya, send your schematics to Tactical. I need you and Stevens to liaise with the conn to find a suitable hiding spot if this probe idea doesn’t work. You’ve been mapping the Nebula, find us somewhere dense to disappear from those Borg sensors.”

Turning, she looked back to the man at tactical. “Martin, see what you can do with that probe idea. You’ve got to keep the Borg off us as long as you can.”

Ziegler swallowed. If they could get Vanya’s probe to destroy enough of the cube without getting caught up in it themselves, they should be able to slink away, patch themselves up and wait a few days before getting out of the nebula and calling the cavalry. That might just work. They might just survive this. That was, until Anya got the call she didn’t want to hear.

[Chief Eboh to the bridge. We have Borg aboard the Cayuga. Lieutenant Mason is dead.]

Pressing a button on her chair, Anya replied. “Thanks for the report Chief. Get yourself a rifle and keep yourself safe.”

She didn’t want to make this announcement. No Captain did. Sighing, Ziegler called up the intercom to all decks. “All hands. This is the Captain speaking. We have been invaded by the Borg. I repeat. We have been invaded by the Borg.”

“We’ve all had training for this, so remember it. Arm yourself. Rotate settings and don’t hesitate to fire on any Cayuga crewman already assimilated. You’ll be doing them a favor. Ziegler Out.”

As another hit battered Cayuga, there was another bright flash and spark from the now derelict engineering console. Damnit, where the hell was medical?

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #13 –
 [ Lieutenant JG Kaylon Jeen | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] Attn:  @Arista

"Jeen, shutdown the holodecks, send the power to the shield grid." called Lt. Dowa.

The ship rocked, alarms were going off.  Something was going on, and it was obvious it wasn't any drill.
Kaylon's hands moved quickly across the control board, powering down the holodecks and rerouting the power as instructed.
"Power rerouted!" he called out as he turned to face Ritt.  Immediately, his eyes widened.  There was the lieutenant standing stiff as a board, tubules extending from his neck.

"Arm yourselves!" he called out "Riley, get th-"  Too late.  Ensign Riley was also in the grip of a Borg drone.  One of the other crewmen tossed him a phaser.  He caught it and fired at the drone that held what used to be Lt Ritt.  The drones had not adapted yet, so the drone went down. 

Slapping his combadge as he ran to the other side of the engine room he called for Lt Cmdr Markham, the Chief Engineer.  No response. 

The turbolift doors opened and the Asst Chief stepped out; just ahead of two drones.  The spidery implants having already erupted from his left cheek and eye socket.  Phaser fire rained down from the walkway above.  The Asst Chief went down along with one of the drones.  A power conduit ruptured a second later, and the second drone became collateral damage.
Small favors.

Just then, the captain's voice came over the intercom.

[All hands. This is the Captain speaking. We have been invaded by the Borg. I repeat. We have been invaded by the Borg.]

There was another explosion, and another alarm sounded.  Coolant sprayed from next to the warp plasma conduit. 

Nothing for it now.  He only had one option.  Well, two actually, but letting the warp core overload and breach was not really an option.  Not without the captain implementing self destruct, anyway.
"Computer, Breach Prevention Protocol.  Shut down the warp core!  Authorization Jeen -delta one nine!" 

"Everybody out!  NOW!" he called.

As he rushed past one of the crewmen, Garrett Daly, said "At least the coolant will liquify these Borg Bastards!"

Smiling as he headed to get on the other side of the quickly sealing emergency bulkhead, he said "If we get out of this alive, you get to mop it up!"

As the emergency bulkhead sealed, Jeen stepped to the comm panel.  "Bridge, This is Lieutenant Jeen in Engineering.  We have Borg drones in Main Engineering.  Warp core is offline.  We have plasma coolant leaks in progress.  We've evacuated the engine room. Lt Ritt and Asst Chief Davis are dead.  Assimilated.  No contact with Chief Markham."

Jeen looked around.  Several of the engineering crew had gotten out, but there were at least 5 more people missing that he could see.  One was injured.  Looked like some pretty bad plasma burns on his face and arms.  He was slumped against a crewmate who had helped pull him out.  He sent them both toward sickbay with an admonishment to be careful.  As for the others, it was time to take stock of what was happening since he knew they weren't out of the woods by a long shot.

"Sir, what do we do now?" asked a clearly terrified Bajoran crewman.  Jeen tried to recall the young man's name, but couldn't. 
Following the Battle for DS9, he had spent a couple of days on Deep Space 9, and gotten to know a few of the Bajorans on the station.  They were a deeply religious people, and he knew their faith gave them comfort, and had gotten them thru the Cardassian Occupation.

Sighing, he put a comforting hand on his shoulder.  "Grab a hyperspanner, Pray to the Prophets and stay clear of assimilation tubules."

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #14 –
[ Chief Medical Officer T'Panu | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] Attn:  @Arista @alphawiz

T'Panu had just left sickbay as the klaxon sounded. She froze in place, as she heard the one message she hoped to never hear:

"All hands. This is the Captain speaking. We have been invaded by the Borg. I repeat. We have been invaded by the Borg."

This was definitely not a drill. Her mind raced, and then was completely empty. She heard everything going on around her, but couldn't bring herself back to the moment. She couldn't move, it was as if her legs quit working. Thought of Wolf 359 began circling through her mind, of the treacherous attacks, the crewman lost, her friends, people she loved, murdered by the Borg; and despite her best efforts, there had been nothing she could do. Truth was, she still lived with the survivor's guilt of making it through it, when so many people she loved were lost. Chief, Tarkon, Alason, and so many more were gone.

Lieutenant Jeen ran up to T'Panu and shook her back to reality. "What the hell are you doing? Get your shit together we need you!" T'Panu was pulled back to the USS Cayuga, when she realized what an idiot she had been. How could she be so selfish and gripped by PTSD when so many lives depended on her? This was her chance to make up for what happened last time. Despite the fact she couldn't save everyone, she still carried that weight on her shoulders.

T'Panu grabbed her med kit and began examining the plasma burns. Grabbing her dermal regenerator, she immediately had them fixed up and good to go. She instructed them to try and stay hydrated in all the chaos and left them with a med kit.

T'Panu heard more explosions. She heard them everywhere. T'Panu knew the most important thing was to make sure the bridge crew was alright. As she ran towards the bridge, she passed at least a dozen dead. Some from the explosions, some from the plasma burns. There was nothing else she could do but get to that bridge as fast as she could.

[ Chief Medical Officer T'Panu | Bridge | USS Cayuga ]

It felt like eons when T'Panu finally arrived at the Bridge, slamming the door button as hard as she could; in reality, it had only been mere minutes. Examining the bridge, T'Panu noted that most of their commanders were uninjured. "That's a relief, I don't want us to be stuck out here longer than we have to be," T'Panu thought. Then she turned to the engineering console. Lieutenant Commander Markham, the Chief Engineer, was lying in a heap. T'Panu felt the carotid artery for a pulse and called it. She noticed a few burns from the various consoles that had exploded, but once her scanning was complete, noted everyone was in acceptable condition. She stayed out of the way as they had more on their plate here than she did.

T'Panu turned to Captain Ziegler. "I'll leave behind 5 med kits. Please call me back at the first sign of danger." She kept it short as she knew she needed to stay out of their way with the attack in progress. "We don't need luck Captain Ziegler, we have you." T'Panu turned and left the bridge, seeking more people to help.

[ Chief Medical Officer T'Panu | Sickbay | USS Cayuga ]

T'Panu ran as fast as she could back to sickbay, formulating new orders as she ran. She was not losing as many people as the last Borg attack stole. This was their chance at payback, and she was going to make damn sure they got what they deserved. As she returned to sickbay, there was already 8 people laying on the beds. She instructed more gurneys to be taken to find more people injured and have them brought back as fast as they could. As she pulled out her medical tricorder, she began triaging. "We have our work cut out for us," T'Panu said aloud.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #15 –
Despite the Borg being on board the ship, Vanya was in the odd position of feeling calm.   There weren’t anymore tactical simulations manifesting themselves as nightmares.   Instead she felt renewed, confident laser focused.   This was her home and she was ready to protect it.  

She worked carefully though.   Instead of creating the file in the main computer, she used the console’s diagnostic processor.   If she even got a hint of Borg assimilation, she could delete the weapon and it would be lost for all time.  

She closed her eyes, the charge had to be right.   Too much, and it would blow them up quicker.   Too little, and it would be like trying to use a match to cook a turkey    To say nothing of the other factors, such as the distribution of the nebula’s gasses and energies, or what impact it would have when exposed to the reaction.  

And yet, she was confident.   She felt sure that she had every eventuality covered.   Every bit of the probe could be replicated like clockwork.   Each simulation brought the same result.   Finally, she wrote the entire fire to an isolinear chip and ejected it from her console.   She then accessed the main database including the sensor sweeps from the probe.   She wrote the locations of the best and safest hiding places to the second chipand allowed herself a small hint of gratitude at her photographic memory before she purged the entire record of the scans from the database.   She walked over to tactical and held the first chip out like a golden key  

“Here,”   She said the chip is only accessible using current command code.   “Keep your console in diagnostic mode.   It should reduce the chance of the Borg inserting their collective noses into the plan.”  

She walked back to the auxiliary science post and handed the second chip to Stevens   “This has the scans from the nebula.   Again, keep your console disconnected from the database.   I need the 8 best places to hide, go for cover from view, as few threats as possible, and proximity to our current location.   You’ve got five minutes.”

As she headed back to tactical, she remembered her conversations with the XO

“Please.” She added.  
 

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #16 –
[ CPO Ekon Okotie-Eboh | Corridors | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @alphawiz

[Thanks for the report Chief. Get yourself a rifle and keep yourself safe.]

Chief Eboh didn’t bother acknowledging the Captain’s response. She would have enough to deal with without unnecessary comms chatter. He moved quickly down the corridor, eyes continuously scanning the path ahead of him for any sign of their attackers. Rounding a corner he came across a fallen security officer. The man’s eyes stared lifelessly up at the ceiling, and the disruptor burn in the middle of his chest told the Chief what had happened. A phaser rifle lay next to the fallen crewman. Eboh made safe and pocketed the type-II phaser he’d used in the shuttle bay and snatched the rifle up, checked it for charge and set it to randomly cycle it’s frequency, hoping it may help if he came across the enemy. That done, he moved on down the corridor with the rifle held at the ready, the fallen security crewman already put out of his mind. There was no time to worry about the dead.

Eboh rounded another corner and found himself looking at two Borg drones, one of them attempting to access a control panel and the other in the process of assimilating a security Ensign. The assimilating drone had her pinned against the wall and was about to inject the Ensign with nanoprobes. The Ensign’s eyes were wide with fear, and her legs kicked wildly, but the drone held her securely against the wall. Ekon raised his rifle and fire at the drone attempting to assimilate his crewmate. The drone fell to the directed energy weapon, and the Ensign slumped down against the bulkhead. Ekon swung his aim right and fired at the next drone. The shot was stopped by a flash of green as the drone adapted to the rifle. Ekon gritted his teeth as the drone turned to face him and began to advance. Light flared behind the drone, and the drone toppled forward, sparks bursting from it’s mechanical parts. As the drone fell, Ekon saw the security Ensign, still on the floor of the corridor, phaser still aimed at the drone.

“Thank you, Ensign,” Ekon breathed, lowering his rifle. “Are you alright?”

Ekon watched as the Ensign sobbed and nodded, hands shaking as she rose to her feet. Ekon approached the Ensign and took her chin between his thumb and index finger, tilting her head up and to the left. No puncture marks on her neck. Ekon exhaled and let go of her face.

“We need to keep moving.” Ekon said, hefting his rifle and moving off down the hallway. He glanced over his shoulder and saw the Ensign wordlessly fall in behind him, scrubbing the tears off her cheeks with the sleeve of her jacket.

Several corridors and jefferies tubes later, they were approaching the Engineering section. Ekon twisted in the tube and kicked the panel out, emerged from the jefferies tube into yet another corridor. Ekon raised his rifle and waited for the Ensign to emerge from the tube before moving down the corridor. He heard the scuffing of feet on the deck ahead, just around a corner. Rounding the corner, rifle at the ready, Ekon found himself face to face with Lieutenant(J.G.) Jeen. Ekon sighed and lowered his rifle, relief flooding though him as he looked past Jeen and saw the group from the Engineering department that was with the Lieutenant.

“It is good to see you, sir.” Ekon said, turning back to Jeen. “We were coming to help secure Engineering, though it would seem we are late to the party. Where do you need us?”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #17 –
Quote from: Fife on
[ CPO Ekon Okotie-Eboh | Corridors | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @alphawiz

“It is good to see you, sir.” Ekon said, turning back to Jeen. “We were coming to help secure Engineering, though it would seem we are late to the party. Where do you need us?”


 Lt JG Kaylon Jeen | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] Attn: @Fife

Turning and smiling.  "Likewise, Chief!  And don't worry!  Anytime you can manage to show up at a Borg party without having been assimilated, you're still welcome!  We've got a coolant leak behind this bulkhead, so any drones in there are probably just stains on the carpet by now  But they could still cause trouble outside the main chamber if they transport in.  Shields are down and I've got some wounded men here.  The doctor came by and the serious cases are on their way to sickbay, but these two could use some attention.  I understand you used to be a Nurse.  Still remember the training?"

Upon getting an acknowledgement, Kaylon turns to a nearby control station.  "Let's see if I can get the coolant cleared out so we can get the shields back online," he mutters to himself. 

Checking the few internal sensors that were still functioning, he confirmed that there were no life forms within the main engine room, and hoping that there weren't any drones still inside that didn't register as being alive because of a mechanical heart or something, he punched in the commands to clear the coolant.  The system readout went dark for a second, flickered twice more then the indicators turned green.

"Looks like we're back in business.  Computer, unseal emergency bulkhead.  Engineering authorization Gamma Four Eight."
The bulkhead slowly lifted, the acrid odor of plasma coolant still hung in the air.  Around the room lay the cybernetic remains of several drones, all of them lying in a grey viscous looking puddle tinged with pink. 

Turning, he saw that the injured engineering staff were back on their feet, if a little unsteadily, their wounds bandaged thanks to Eboh's ministrations and the emergency med kit.

The shield status readouts were dark. as were life support and weapons.  The power grid was fluctuating wildly and the structural integrity field had dropped to less than 50%.  Until the Chief Engineer could be found, if he was still alive, Kaylon was the senior engineering officer.

"Alright, let's try and get these systems back online.  Life Support and Structural Integrity are the priorities, then shields unless the bridge calls and says otherwise or the CE shows up and countermands!" 

Speaking to the security officer that showed up with Eboh, he said "Ensign, cover the  teams on that side of the engine room working on Life Support, in case we get anymore visitors.  Chief, you're with me and the team working on Structural Integrity.  Keep those drones off my spotted ass!"
 

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #18 –
[ Chief Medical Officer T'Panu | Sickbay | USS Cayuga ]

T'Panu was rushing, trying to help as many people as possible. She felt it was her sole duty to get every last person off of this ship, and the ones she couldn't save, to at least be kept from being assimilated.

She had just examined a Bajoran, and determined she was deceased. That's 16 dead, 27 injured, and so far 0 assimilated. She knew that last part was simply too good to be true, it was only a matter of time before she found her dead crewmates, bodies mutilated, attached to sick, horrific wires with nothing left of their living counterparts. Consumed by the most evil, unforgiving race, their bodies gone, who knows what was even left of their soul. As she pondered this, she felt herself growing more and more angry.

It was at that point that a crewmate walked into sickbay, clutching his stomach, a giant hole blown straight through him. She rushed over, and before she could think, reached out to help when she noticed nearly too late the Borg tech attached to his skull. Thankfully, she was pulled abruptly back, before she got too close.

She grabbed the phaser attached to her hip, aimed, and faltered. She stood, as this half human, half thing laid in front of her, and she completely froze. She was unable to pull the trigger as her mind flashed back to her last encounter with the Borg. She was suddenly in the corridor aboard the USS Ahwahnee. The ship was being attacked and had already taken extensive damage. There were sparks flying from the ceiling, parts flying off the walls and bodies scattered everywhere, left in heaps like old discarded things that no one wanted anymore. T'Panu had knelt down to treat a patient with phaser burns. They were still with it as T'Panu was attempting to stop the bleeding and graft their skin using a dermal regenerator. She nearly had the bleeding stopped, when a Borg came out of nowhere and grabbed the patient she had been working on. As they hung from the sick, mechanical arm of the Borg, T'Panu tried to free her crewmember. She was about to run fist first at the Borg in a futile attempt to disarm him and let her crewmember go. She was too late, as the Borg had already began assimilating them, drilling their tech into the brains of her friend. It was at that moment she heard a phaser shot from behind the Borg. The phaser shot clean through its skull, rendering it useless. It collapsed backwards, dropping her crewman from its mechanized arm. T'Panu was so thankful the shot got off in time she could treat him! But it was at that moment, she realized he was too far gone.

She knew what she needed to do, grabbed a pistol, and staring at him, was brought back to the present day. She was standing in sickbay yet again, holding the pistol to his head. Just kill me, she heard him say. She slapped herself back to reality and in one steadfast blow, shot his brains out.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #19 –
[ CPO Ekon Okotie-Eboh | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] @alphawiz

Having done what he could as far as treating the minor injuries of the engineers, Chief Eboh listened as Lt. Jeen doled out orders to his team and instructed Ekon to provide cover for them. Ekon hefted the phaser rifle in his right hand and picked up the med kit in his left. He couldn’t help but crack a smile at Lieutenant Jeen’s last comment.

“If your ass was not so spotted perhaps the Borg would not mistake it for a target, sir.” Ekon chuckled, his deep voice rumbling. He flashed a grin at the Lieutenant as he moved into a position to cover the officer and his team. He slung the med kit over his shoulder and scanned the room, rifle held at the ready as he watched for any more drones that might have beamed aboard. Some of the lights were flickering periodically overhead, and many were burnt out altogether. The resulting gloom that washed over Main Engineering lent an eerie quality to the room. One of the LCARS displays further along the wall to Ekon’s right had blown out and was periodically sending plumes of sparks cascading onto the deck.

“I think we will need to postpone our Tongo game tonight, sir.” Ekon spoke to Lt. Jeen without looking at him, eyes still sweeping the room. “It is going to take quite some time to…”

Ekon cut his remark short as his eyes fixed on a spot in the shadows beyond the sputtering LCARS display. Had that been movement in the gloom? The sparks which intermittently burst forth from the panel left tiny tracers in his vision and made it difficult to make out what lurked beyond. Ekon continued to watch the shadows as he moved slowly down on one knee, taking up a firing position.

“Movement.” Was all he said, hissing the word to the engineers behind him.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #20 –
[ Lt JG Kaylon Jeen | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] @Fife 


“If your ass was not so spotted perhaps the Borg would not mistake it for a target, sir.”


Kaylon chuckled at Ekon's quip.  "Perhaps you're right, but you can blame my parents and species for that one." he said as he knelt in front of the conduit access panel and pulled it free.  Sparks shot out as the circuits fizzled now that they were exposed to more oxygen. 


“I think we will need to postpone our Tongo game tonight, sir.” Ekon spoke to Lt. Jeen without looking at him, eyes still sweeping the room. “It is going to take quite some time to…”


His tricorder beeped softly as he scanned the exposed system.  "This is going to need replacing" he muttered mostly to himself, and made a couple of adjustments with a hyperspanner to at least try to stabilize the circuit until more extensive repairs could be made.  "As for our Tongo game, I think you're just trying to Evade a bit more dramatically, after the shellacking I gave you last.." he cut off as Ekon quietly said "Movement", the single word sending a shiver down his spine.  Putting down the tool he was holding, he drew his phaser. 

"Can you see anything?" he asked softly, so as not to give away their position, in case it was yet another drone.



Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #21 –
[CONN Officer Dumral|Bridge | Deck 1 | USS Cayuga]
[Show/Hide]


Mektari’s fingers froze for a millisecond as she heard the captain’s command to turn about. Only for the briefest moment, however, before she crisply answered, “Aye, Captain.” She didn’t understand the move at first, but there was no time to question. The captain knew what she was doing, that’s all Mektari could go with.

The ship was already turning about to once again show the frightening form of the Borg ship once again, green lights flaring as more shots came their way. And it was in this moment that she suddenly became supremely grateful for the fact that she had shown such aptitude for never establishing relative directions when piloting in space. There was no ‘up, down, left and right’, there was only ‘dodge the enemy’. The image of the cube flipped entirely as she spun the ship, dodging two more shots, but they anticipated the roll and the third shot hit, a deep rumble shaking the bridge.

She listened to the two ideas, one to damage the cube and one to send them to coordinates deeper within the nebula. It was a sound idea, but she wasn’t sure what was more challenging; dodging Borg attacks or flying into such a dense part of the nebula that her sensors would be so unreliable that it would be up to her eyesight and understanding of the ship to try and keep them from any hidden dangers within the mass.

But that was a future problem. Danger was right in front of them and time was running out. Power was fluctuating and as engineering did their best to glue everything together despite being overrun by Borg, she saw the inevitable begin to occur. Power was dropping rapidly at her console. Not enough to where she couldn’t pilot them to safety, but her wild maneuvers were going to have to come to an end.

It was obvious too as she veered away from the enemy, the spinning and rotating movements of the cube on the screen coming to a halt as she streamlined into one direction, only tilting here and there to try and dodge. The lack of movement was met with another hit, another sharp shudder rattling the whole ship.

Her voice was tense this time as she called out, “I can’t keep dodging forever! I need the coordinates for our retreat now!”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #22 –
[ CPO Ekon Okotie-Eboh | Main Engineering | USS Cayuga ] @alphawiz

Chief Eboh looked down the length of his rifle as he scanned the gloom for further movement, listening intently for any sound that might give away a possible threat. He heard Lt. Jeen ask if he could see anything and shook his head in response, still searching for the source of the movement. He could hear little over the ambient noise of engineering and the electrical sputtering of the sparking LCARS display as it sent more tracers across his vision.

Perhaps it was just my mind playing tricks. Ekon thought to himself, I must have been imagining… His thoughts ground to a halt as he heard a another noise, this time clearer. Then he saw the source of the movement. A drone, or half of one, was crawling out of the shadows. Or rather dragging itself. It must have been in a storage room when the plasma coolant leaked and, while it survived, it had still sustained considerable damage. Ekon was about to answer Lt. Jeen when a second drone came into view and stood over the damaged drone.

”Two.” Ekon whispered, raising his left hand from the foregrip of his rifle and holding up his index and middle fingers. He watched as the standing drone reached down and pulled out some component from the damaged one, causing the damaged drone to go limp and drop to the deck, where it remained still, the faint lights of it’s implants dimming and disappearing. Ekon dropped his middle finger, now holding up only his index finger, not taking his eyes off the remaining drone. Then a third drone came into view, moving in the same stiff mechanical manner as the other Borg drones that Ekon had seen aboard the Cayuga. This drone stood out, however, in that it was covered in plasma burns and wore the gold uniform of a Starfleet engineer. Were it not for the engineer’s stiff movements and the implants which could be seen on the man’s body, he would have looked like an ordinary member of the crew. The Starfleet drone moved to stand next to the other drone as it straightened up and seemed to cock it’s head to the side as though listening to something, then both were surrounded by a transporter beam and disappeared from the room.

It seems we’ve been given a reprieve. Ekon thought as he signed, pushing out breath he had not realised he’d been holding, and let the muscles in his shoulders and arms relax.

”I don’t know about you, sir,” Ekon said in his normal tone, lowing the rifle and turning to give Lt. Jeen a tired grin, ”But I’m going to need a drink once we’re out of this mess. How are the repairs coming?”

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #23 –
[ Chief Medical Officer T'Panu | Sickbay | USS Cayuga ]

T'Panu stared at the man she had just shot. She felt guilty because she didn't even know his name, having been a new recruit. She was surprised at first at the lack of blood, but quickly realized the phaser shot cauterized the hole as soon as it went through. She called to have the body moved as she realized that everyone else was busy tending to the ones still alive. "I guess I'll move the body myself," she sighed. She was stronger than she remembered being. She knew she should be working out in the holosuite more, but never quite made time. The adrenaline was pumping through her veins making her feel like she was ten times stronger than she ever was.

She felt the ship roll as there was a shot that made contact with the ship. "Those damn bastards are going to pay for this!". Just as she felt her fury rising, she let her Vulcan mind take over so she would have razor sharp focus as more wounded came through the door. She heard reports that there were more wounded as she sent more stretchers out to collect the wounded.

How they were going to get out of this mess in one piece she had no idea, but she was hoping the answer would appear to them soon.

Re: USS Cayuga: Resistance is Futile

Reply #24 –
Lt JG Kaylon Jeen|Main Engineering|USS Cayuga| @Fife

"I don't know about you, sir," But I'm going to need a drink once we're out of this mess. How are the repairs coming?"

Kaylon nodded, his own  expression returning the tired grin that Ekon was giving him.  "I've got a bottle of Saurian brandy in my quarters.  Been aging for 160 years.  My first host bought it, and the symbiont kept hold of it across hosts.  I think if we survive this, it will be a good enough cause to open it." he said.  Turning to the console, he pulled up the status of the power grid.  Most of the internal sensors were down, but he was able to determine that a good portion of the power grid was fused or otherwise damaged, and the generators were going to be offline for a while.  Damn!  he thought to himself.

Ekon said something about the brandy and how old it was, and he replied "Yeah, I was going to open it after Torias Dax made that big test flight, but when the shuttle crashed-..." he broke off.  "The shuttles!  That's how we can stabilize the power grid!" he said, a smile breaking out across his face.   Ekon looked confused for a moment, "The power grid is badly damaged.  It will take longer than we have power for to repair it unless we provide some kind of additional power.  We can use the power systems in the shuttles to
prop up the power systems.  We run umbilicals from the shuttles to  the power systems.  That should stabilize things while we get the systems up and running."    Picking up his phaser and engineer's tool kit he signaled one of the crewman to join them.  "Come on, Chief...let's go really earn that drink!"
 
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