Star Trek: Theurgy

Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

June 20, 2019, 10:08:47 PM

Stardate 57566.62
March 14, 2381
1415 Hours

[ Jaya Thorne, Asst. Chief CONN Officer, Ensign | Jaya's Quarters| Uss Theurgy ], @fiendfall
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2:00pm
Jaya put her pen down.  She stared at the page in front of her. Blank. She'd been trying to write for an hour. Trying to get her thoughts down. That book from the library had suggested journaling as a way to free the mind but speaking her thoughts aloud into a log PADD was way too weird. She had never been one to monologue. The sound of her voice echoing throughout her quarters made her ears hurt. She found herself second guessing her word choices, deleting the sentences she'd just spoken. She'd barely managed to get in one entry. So she thought maybe paper and pen would be better. But after an hour all she'd managed was a few random scribbles and some blue marks where the pen got too close to the paper.

This was hopeless. There had to be a better way. Maybe self help wasn't what she needed? Maybe she should actually visit that counselor she met a few days ago? Nah. She was probably just restless. She needed something to take her mind off of all this sudden nothing.


[ Jaya Thorne, Asst. Chief CONN Officer, Ensign | Holodeck | Uss Theurgy

2:15pm
Jaya arrived at her chosen holodeck. She brought up program specifications and punched in the options she wanted. Hand to hand combat training. Flight simulation possible. Assault weapons possible. A white sandy beach. Bikinis and mai tai's. Perfect!

The program was saved as Thorne_Beach_01 and she entered. She replicated a skimpy red and gold bikini for herself, changed and walked down the gritty shoreline towards her waiting opponent. A surge of light coursed over the program as she kicked her feet in the water. She paid it no mind. Holodecks were weird. They did weird things. She was itching to let some steam off and nothing was gonna get in her way.

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #1 – June 27, 2019, 11:12:11 PM

[ CPO Morgan Song | Holodeck 06 | Deck 21 | Vector 03 | USS Theurgy | Aldea ] attn: @Even Angels Cry

With one thing and another, Morgan had been busy all morning, doing a million little jobs that apparently fell under the umbrella of ‘maintenance’ — an umbrella that, he was learning, could pretty much cover anything if you phrased it right. In many ways he was glad: he’d always preferred being a jack of all trades, and this way he got to work pretty much anywhere on the ship, on all sorts of different issues and systems. It was like a grand tour of everything that could possibly go wrong on a starship, and honestly he was enjoying it.

Unusually, he’d taken his full lunch break rather than cutting it short to return to work. He’d run into one of his new subordinates in the mess hall and taken the opportunity to get to know them better. It had been both nice and nerve-wracking, and he’d been half-glad to leave in time for his shift and get back to work.

He’d only just made it back to Main Engineering when an alert beeped his PADD awake, notifying him of a power surge on Deck 21 that set of warnings from holodecks 5 and 6. No rest for the wicked; he headed to the nearest transporter to beam over to Vector 3 and take a look.

Holodeck 5 just needed a simple reboot, something that could’ve been done remotely but he figured it was better to be safe than sorry. He oversaw the procedure with more care than was strictly necessary, and it all seemed to go smoothly. Holodeck 6 on the other hand was a bit more troublesome. It looked like a program had been running when the power surge occurred and some of the files had been force shutdown, leaving the program in a kind of stasis or loop where no new content could be loaded. If the system did attempt to access the other files, the assets would blink and flicker in and out of existence as the computer tried to read corrupted data. It was messy stuff.

A scan for life signs inside the deck brought up nothing; had the program been pre-loaded ready for something later? Or maybe it had been a test — sometimes the computer system would cycle through a number of programs, loading each one before switching out, just to ensure things were still running smoothly. He’d never really had much to do with general upkeep before, so he didn’t know if Maintenance usually got notification of these things or could find out if one had recently taken place.

With no signs of life inside the deck, however, he had to assume it had been a test. The program was still glitching out; first thing was to shut it down properly. He initiated the sequence and waited for the holodeck to go dark.

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #2 – July 23, 2019, 08:56:17 PM

@fiendfall

Jaya made her way along the water's edge, walking casually toward a group of people un the distance. It  was delightfully empty except for the fight ring she'd requested. The water was cool on her ankles but it felt good. The sun overhead was warm but not sweltering.  There was a small cabana bar just upshore from the group where she could get her mai tais and pina coladas. Everything was perfect.

She waved hello as she approached but no one seemed to acknowledge her. Weird but whatever. She wanted a drink first anyway. Jaya trudged through the soft white sand up to the cabana and sat at the bar. An old man in a Hawaiian shirt was cleaning glasses with his back to her. "Hey pops." He said nothing. She waved her hand at him. "Hellooo, customer here?" He didn't turn around. "Ugh! Whatever ill just make my own! Computer,
one mai tai please." There were no beeps or acknowledgements and no drink appeared on the bar for her. "What the fuck computer! Fuck it, give me an arch. I'm done."

No chirps or chimes. No arch. No acknowledgement. Jaya slammed her hands down onto the bar. "Fucking hell!! I said Arch! Computer, Arch! ARCH!!!"

The holodeck went dark and Jaya fell off her barstool as it disappeared. She stood alone in the room watching the occasional flicker of light crisscross the walls and floor. "What the fuck is going on? Computer? Can you hear me? Computer! Thea!" The silence was deafening. No response. No acknowledgement. Just Jaya alone in the middle of a dark holodeck with no program. She kicked at the floor with her bare feet. "Just fucking great!"

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #3 – July 30, 2019, 10:34:27 PM

[ CPO Morgan Song | Holodeck 06 | Deck 21 | Vector 03 | USS Theurgy | Aldea ] Attn: @Even Angels Cry

It was luck, really. Pure and simple. If Morgan hadn’t been looking at the console at precisely that second, or if he’d been distracted by the bells and whistles of data recording the holodeck shutdown procedure, or if he’d simply not noticed the tiny blips on the readout… Well. No need to think about worst-case scenarios. He did notice, and his natural curiosity meant he looked closer, and his experience meant he understood what he saw, and all together this all meant he had a chance to fix his mistake before things got much, much worse.

‘What…’ he muttered to himself as the console recorded one, two, three — heavens, four, five failed attempts to generate an arch. Why would the holodeck be trying to make an exit when there were no signs of life inside? Was it just another instance of the program flickering and faltering, or… or was there someone stuck inside?

Morgan came to life, working quickly. He couldn’t stop the program from shutting down, that ship had sailed and trying to stop it now would be more stupid and dangerous than anything else. He had to let the process play out, but that didn’t mean he was sitting idle.

A blank holodeck was never meant to be seen from the inside, but even so it wasn’t exactly an unsafe place to be. It was still a physical space on the ship that could be entered and exited by the normal means — the arch didn’t vanish out of existence, he could still see the door on his side, and he could still open it and get inside. The only real issue was that the arch couldn’t be accessed from the inside if a program wasn’t running, because there was nothing to call the code to tell the computer that the arch even existed let alone that it could be interacted with.

That had been a lie. That wasn’t the only issue. The other issue was that life support would be cut from the inside of a dormant holodeck. What was the point in pumping air into an uninhabited space? He could load up another program but he’d just ordered a total system reboot and it’d take several minutes for the computer to cycle through that order before it would even start to think about a new program.

Once the current program finished shutting down, he calculated he would have maybe one minute before the oxygen started being filtered from the inside of the deck. It was a slow process, it’d take maybe two minutes to complete; another four minutes after that and whoever was stuck inside would have brain damage, and another two and they’d be dead.

The reboot would probably take ten minutes, which was two more than they had. So, yes, Morgan got to work quickly.

He cast around the corridor, looking desperately until his gaze alit upon a small hatch in a wall panel. It contained a few emergency items: medkit, defibrillator, extinguisher, and — there! Oxygen masks. Or rather, oxygen mask, singular; there should’ve been at least two, but from the looks of it this stash had been raided and no one had replenished it yet. That was probably his job now, he realised; he’d have to get them seen to. After this.

Still. One mask was better than none. He rushed back to the holodeck as the console began to flash to let him know the shutdown was complete. Not long, then. He queued up another program to load after the reboot, otherwise he’d likely not be able to get out and they’d both end up trapped, and initiated the manual override to get the doors open. The computer tried to fight him briefly, flashing up warnings that he was doing something incredibly stupid; it took him a few precious seconds to effectively armwrestle the system into letting him do the stupid thing anyway.

And then the door was open, and he stepped through to find himself in blackness.

‘Hello?’ he called out, almost choking on the darkness. In the oppressive quiet, he was hyper-aware of the sound of the door sliding closed behind him. Ten minutes. They just needed to last it out. ‘Is anyone in here?’

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #4 – September 20, 2019, 06:43:21 AM

@fiendfall

Jaya hadn't been counting the seconds. Everything felt like an eternity in the dark. But she did notice the sudden hiss when it began. In the void of black, the faint sound was as ominous as it was welcoming. Her thoughts went to animals first, but that was ridiculous. She was trapped in a blank holodeck. So what else could be-

<cough>

Her eyes widened in realization, though it didn't helped her see anything better. That noise! The air! She took a couple deep breaths. It didnt feel any lighter. Then again, she had never been in a room when the oxygen was sucked out before. She had no idea what it should even feel like! Well, she knew what asphyxiation play felt like but... No! This couldn't possibly be the same!

Scenarios blazed in her mind. Shouod she hold her breath? Call out for help? Try to feel for the walls and find the exit? Was it even possible to feel the exit to the holodeck in the dark? Should she even move?

Before she could answer herself, she heard a voice. She wasn't alone!! There was light! And the ships hallway!!!!

"Yes! Thank the universe, Yes!! I'm in here! I think the air is leaving! We need to-"

And then the arch doors automatically closed.

"No!! FUCK!!"

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #5 – October 03, 2019, 04:58:18 PM

[ CPO Morgan Song | Holodeck 06 | Deck 21 | Vector 03 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Even Angels Cry

Morgan's stomach flipped when he heard the voice call out to him -- he'd been right, there was someone trapped in here, and he'd not realised until too late, and now he was stumbling through the dark on some mad rescue mission to make up for his mistake.

'It's okay,' he called, following the sound of the voice in the dark until his outstretched hands met someone in the blackness. 'CPO Morgan Song,' he said by way of introduction, pressing the oxygen mask into the person's hands. 'Put this on, it'll help. We'll have you out in no time.'

Directions were always difficult in the dark, but he knew his way around well enough to point them towards the doors, helping the trapped crewman towards the exit. He tapped the combadge on his chest, hailing Main Engineering: 'Any free personnel to Holodeck 6,' he said, his words starting to become breathy with the shortness of air. 'Shutdown initiated with two inside, requesting emergency override.'

If there was a response he didn't hear it. His chest was becoming constricted, huffy, his head swimming as they staggered towards the doors. No one from Engineering would've made it in time to save whoever had been trapped inside, but with the mask they'd bought themselves some extra time. Hopefully someone would make it over and open the door for them; if not, they'd have to wait until the reboot completed.

He stumbled slightly, catching himself on the wall at the last moment, and had to pause to take a moment to breathe. Or at least, try to. He was out of breath, like he'd just climbed a mountain, and each open-mouthed gasp seemed to bring in less and less air.

They staggered a few more metres, finally reaching the door; Morgan slid down against it. There'd be more oxygen down here, right? Or maybe it was just comfortable to sit. Nothing they could do now except hope.

'Someone's coming,' he said, and hoped it came out reassuring. He hoped it was true.

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #6 – October 16, 2019, 12:22:37 AM

@fiendfall

Jaya grabbed for the mask as it was thrust towards her. She hastily put it on and inhaled several large, deep breaths. Air! Wonderful amazing air!! She couldn't see her rescuer but she heard his name. Morgan Song. CPO. Thank  the stars!

He took hold of her and together they moved to the door. She was grateful he knew where it was in the pitch black void of the holodeck. But his pace slowed rapidly and once they reached the door he let go of her and sunk downward. He had murmured that someone was coming, but what did that mean?

Jaya took one last deep breath and removed the mask. She felt her way down the door wall and sat beside Morgan. Her hands thrust the mask into his chest. "Thanks for the assist but unless your buddy is in that hallway, we're gonna have to share this air. <cough, cough> Ugh, it is thin now, isn't it? <cough, cough> I'm Jaya, by the way. Jaya Thorne. Ensign. Nice to <cough> meet you.

She huddled beside him. It wasn't cold, but his body heat and bresthing were her only reminders that she wasn't alone in that black hell.

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #7 – October 23, 2019, 03:46:35 PM

[ CPO Morgan Song | Holodeck 06 | Deck 21 | Vector 03 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Even Angels Cry

Morgan felt rather than saw the oxygen mask being pushed towards him. He briefly fumbled with the apparatus, finally managing to press it to his face and take a few desperate gulps of air.

'Thanks,' he said when he'd caught his breath. It was probably stupid, a waste of air, but he didn't want to be rude.

They were going to be okay. They could share this air for a while before true oxygen deprivation would kick in, and that would give his team the time they needed to get here and fix the problem. He leant his head against the door, feeling the weight of the other officer -- Thorne, Ensign, she'd said -- as she leaned against him. They could get through this.

A few moments passed in breathless silence, Thorne coughing at intervals. Morgan took a last breath and handed the mask back to her, pressing it into her hands.

'Here,' he said, before tapping the badge on his chest and calling to the team once more. 'Any ETA on that evac?'

'Two minutes, sir,' came the response.

It felt longer than that, of course it did, each of them passing the mask to the other after only a few seconds of air, the time spent without the mask growing more and more difficult to breathe, the air thinning out. Morgan felt lightheaded, was sure his surroundings would be spinning if he could see them. It was only the comforting weight of someone beside him that kept him grounded.

Finally, to a familiar whooshing sound, the doors behind him slid open, and Morgan tumbled backwards for a moment before catching himself with an elbow. Blinking up into the light, eyes watering, he saw their saviour: PO3 Ento Naz, one of his new subordinates in Maintenance. Thank the stars.

'Just in time, officer,' he said, his voice scratchy in his throat. Then, turning to the ensign still at his side: 'Are you okay, sir?'

Re: Day 04 [1415 hrs.] Once Upon a Time in a Holodeck

Reply #8 – November 10, 2019, 05:58:24 AM

@fiendfall

The room felt heavy. It didn't make sense because the air was basically gone. But her arms pulled at the joints in her shoulders and her neck was too weak to hold up her head.

So she leaned on her rescuer.

He was in just as bad of shape though. Talking wasted too much of her precious oxygen, and as the seconds ticked down, she fell silent.

The mask was passed back and forth. Their muffled inhaking and slow exhaling became a chorus. Fffffft-chuuuuuuuu.... Fffffft-chuuuuuuuu....

Synchronized breathing. Almost.

Then, light! Jaya flopped backwards as her rescuer fell. The door was open and a new crew member was standing above her! Thank the stars!!!

"Oughhh- ghhh.. <cough> ahem! <cough cough> You made it!" She held up her right hand, barely. It sported a thumbs up. "I'm just goh- <cough> gonna lay here till my <cough cough> next shift." It would be fine. She would get her couple weeks of rest and everything would be just fine.

Jaya's lungs were greedy for sustenance and choked up her words as she spoke. She gave Morgan a dumb, goofy grin in between her hacking. "I'm good.  I'm good now. Whew! I haven't tripped that hard since-"

Cough- cough- cough- cough- cough!!

"Ughh.."

-FIN