Following the repairs due to the sabotage on their mercy mission to Dourap IV, fighting d'kar fever... the Independence is dispatched to Omega Draconis A* to respond to a Starfleet emergency.

Omega Draconis A* (pronounced “A Star”) is a black hole with a brilliant radiation plume. Abyss Station is a base set up to orbit and monitor it to learn about the local phenomena. The system features a single surviving small planet, Omega Draconis I, which reports confirm contains some pockets of sentient life. The planet was likely much larger and more hospitable before its sun went supernova and incinerated much of the crust.

Also orbiting the black hole, halfway to Omega Draconis I, is a massive alien facility. It’s spherical, featureless, approximately the size of Earth, and very, very old. Starfleet anthropologists hypothesize that it was built by the Preservers, Iconians, or T’Kon empire sometime before the supernova. Until now the alien facility has been silent and dark, with no way to gain entrance...


This message was last edited by the GM at 01:37, Tue 27 Aug 2019.

"Captains Log, Stardate 5436.5 - We've arrived at Omega Draconis on schedule; the ship has operated as smoothly as her crew.  They'll both need to be in top shape if reports from Abyss Station regarding a change is status of the massive alien artifact orbiting the black hole are accurate.  Myself, I'm pensive.  Smooth is one thing but comfortable, in-tune, is another.  This crew lost its captain and following a tense standoff with now Commander ch'Pertha no less.  Now here we are on the precipice of the unknown and its understandable if the men and women of this ship are nervous.

I feel it.  The build-up.

This is exactly why I joined Starfleet."

"LT Mcreeg bring us to one-quarter impulse," Mana smiles as the view screen switches from the awe-inspiring image of the black hole itself to the gigantic artificial satellite orbiting it.

"LCDR Decker, what are our scans showing?  XO," she glances to each of the men in turn, "any signs of threat?  If word of this has leaked we'll need to expect interest by other empires of the region.  I don't want to be caught with our pants down should they make an appearance."

"LT T’kres, prepare to hail Abyss Station once our scans are complete."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:15, Tue 27 Aug 2019.

Mcreeg smiles..taking in the sight before them, the screen looking like one of those art projects he saw so much of, and was encouraged to create himself, back home..the beauty of it all touching him deep inside even as his fingers move over his controls, his eyes dipping for a moment to confirm that the ship was reacting as he wanted, still wanting to make sure the controls are all back to fully functional..

"Aye, Captain..one-quarter impulse.."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:54, Tue 27 Aug 2019.

The Science Officer shut down the rather specialized scan he had been running as Independence dropped out of warp and he proceeded to reconfigure the ship's sensors for a more conventional sweep. Most starships, aside from assigned research vessels, rarely had the opportunity to intentionally approach a hyper-mass, and studying the scans later would better prepare him to identify unknown and unexpected dangers in the future.

"Aye, Captain. Scanning now."  He runs a standard sweep of the system, and assuming nothing unusual appears, focuses briefly on both stations looking for anything unusual.

21:34, Today: LCDR Christopher Decker rolled 44 using 3d20 with rolls of 11,18,15.  Sensor sweep: Reason+Science (17) with Sensors+Science (12).
21:35, Today: LCDR Christopher Decker rolled 18 using 1d20 with rolls of 18.  Re-roll of the 18 using the Technical Expertise talent (target 17).
I guess that 18 was meant to be...so, 1 success. Keep in mind that the ship has Advanced Sensors!

Decker frowned, "The gravimetric interference is making it difficult to see...."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:59, Tue 27 Aug 2019.

T'kres watches her board, occasionally reaching out to fine-tune some readout she apparently finds unsatisfactory. The Lieutenant nods confirmation of the Captain's order. "Yes-" And cuts off halfway through the verbal confirmation. Another minute adjustment, and then "Captain, Abyss Station appears to be hailing us. Shall I put it onscreen?"
This message was last edited by the player at 09:49, Tue 27 Aug 2019.

"Proceed," Mana nods to the comms officer.  ch'Pertha could continue his security sweep as they spoke with the station personnel.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:14, Wed 28 Aug 2019.

The hail from the station is patched through.  "Greetings, Independence. This is Dr. T'Lah, commander of Abyss Station," comes the hail. T’lah, a middle-aged, dark-skinned Vulcan, quickly brings the crew up to speed. She speaks with the intense single-mindedness befitting a Vulcan:

“We’ve determined that the alien artifact... the ancient base... has a shell of neutronium, which prevents our sensors from penetrating. Our staff managed to rig a set of gravimetric dampeners that allowed them to walk on the surface without being crushed."

“Several weeks ago, one of our research teams located what turned out to be an ancient computer terminal on the exterior of the alien base. After much study and trial and error, they were able to activate and interface with the system. The last transmission indicated that they opened a doorway on the surface. The base began to activate.”

At this point, T’Lah transmits pictures of the base, which is now covered in glowing meridians crisscrossing the surface.



"After it became active, the base began generating gravitational distortions that somehow tilted the black hole very slowly. The immediate danger is that the hole’s radiation jets are now aimed along the galactic plane. They’re not long enough to reach nearby star systems, but this system’s planet is directly in the path of the jets. The gamma rays will certainly devastate the population.  Yes, the planet has a small population; survivors of the original supernova, we believe. The alien base is orbiting perpendicular to the radiation jets and is in no danger, as is Abyss Station."

T’Lah explains that the station’s two shuttlecraft are inoperable. The first one was on the alien station when the gravitational distortions began and is assumed lost. The second shuttle was en route to Omega Draconis I when the black hole tilted, making it little more than a loose cloud of ever-expanding atoms...

In reply to LCDR Christopher Decker (msg # 4):

Decker's scans are difficult, but magnificent, given the unprecedented scenery...

ch'Pertha was standing at his Security Console, running local security scans of both the structure and nearby space for any indication of threats.
One thing about ch'Pertha that his shipmates eventually noticed, he was Constantly Watching to detect danger or hidden enemies.
- rolled 36 using 3d20 with rolls of 20,14,2.  Insight(10)+Security(5), with Ships Sensors(9)+Sec(2).
   -- 'Constantly Watching' Talent.
That seems to be 3 Successes

"Ltn Commander Decker, when you get a chance, could you please run a simulated analysis of how the structure's energies would interact with our shields" ... presuming that any offensive array discharged from the edifice would be of the same energy type, ch'Pertha wanted an educated guess at how effective their defences would be.

Decker turned away from a console full of distorted and conflicting data, "Of course, Commander. However, we need to understand the basics of what those" and he gestured to the viewscreen "energies are before we can build models or draw conclusions. While my department could work that out in time, with the Captain's permission, I'd like to interface with the station's science team. It was built here to study these phenomena, or something similar anyway, and they surely have a considerable head start on us."

"I understand, Ltn Commander", ch'Pertha replied ... 'which is why I said 'when you get the chance', of course', he thought to himself, 'and you don't need the 'Captains Permission' to perform these matters'.

He wondered if every request he made would need to be ratified by the captain by some of the crew.

As the senior science officer and her XO clarified their intensions Captain Rakoto stood and nodded to T'Lah on the viewscreen, "Please make all your data available for the Indepdence staff; we will collaborate with Abyss Station to determine a strategy to save the inhbitants of Omega Draconis A*."

"We will confer again in 1 hour," Captain Rakoto assures T'Lar.

Barring any other pressing information she ends the discussion.  Still standing she requests, "Ship-wide hail please," of T’kres.  Once established she begins.

"Attention all hands!  We face a grave situation in  Omega Draconis.  The survival of the inhabitants of the lone planet hinge on our efforts.  We WILL determine the means which have cause the system's black hole to alter its rotation.  We WILL determine how the alien artifact has influenced the singularity.  We will do these things because we are Starfleet.  We hold the line against all odds.  This ship and her crew have already proven their worth; today I know they will do so again.  It is an honor to serve with each of you."

"All hands, man your stations!",

What else is necessary to perform Rally?
This message was last edited by the player at 02:53, Fri 30 Aug 2019.

The last few days were the most turbulent in T’Lara’s life so far.  The simple mission to deliver the vaccine to the colony got unexpectedly complicated when the Independence  was sabotaged, causing them to drop out of Warp right at the border of the Klingon Empire.   The CMO was dead, the Captain grievously injured, and it looked like all of them may soon meet their end at the hands of the Klingons.  It still amazed her that they managed to pull through.

It has been enough excitement, and sorrow, for a lifetime, but it has only been a few days later when the announcement from the new Captain came over the Comms:
People on the face of a planet were in danger from some sort of anomaly.  An Alien artifact was mentioned as well.

Her doubts slowly changed into curiosity, and then a ting of excitement as she reviewed the data from the bridge.   This is what she joined Starfleet for; to escape the dreary life in search of adventure, to explore, to save lives.  Become a better, stronger person.   How can she say no to that now, when opportunity came knocking at the door?

It wasn’t her place to ask, but she did so anyways, sending a communication up to the Bridge:
“Captain; may I join the away team, with your permission?”

Decker sent a quick message to the junior officers and relevant specialists in his department to prepare for a conference and then turned to LT T'Kres, "Lieutenant, can you please open a channel to the station and put me in touch with whomever on their science team has been tasked to work with us?"

He quickly began putting together a short list of the most pressing questions he had regarding this phenomena, beginning with the XO's query.

Ch'Pertha's scans sifted through the myriad arrays of data with a critical eye at the sensor. (Constantly Watching lowers your difficulty by 1.  You scored 3 successes, new difficulty is 1, so that's 2 Momentum to the pool.  You can alternately, use it to Obtain Information to ask more questions.  Also, 1 Complication was rolled. Stay tuned!)

Scans of the structure revealed it had a shell of neutronium, the densest material known to science.  In fact... unless this thing is solid, which gravimetric scans suggest it isn't... the construction of this planet-sized station is beyond Federation science.  The neutronium should collapse in on itself and crush the station like an egg.  But it isn't.

Scans of nearby space, despite the backwash of the black hole's radiation jets, show no signs of interlopers.  The radiation jets themselves, though, are plenty lethal... if the Indy were to blunder into them.

Re: the Captain. RALLY: The CO inspires and coordinates the crew, attempting a Presence + Command Task with a Difficulty of 0; this Task is specifically to generate Momentum, either to use straight away or to save for the group. So, roll away and generate some Momentum! :)

"Very well, Captain. However, some of our data is classified at the highest level.  I will make all data you're cleared to access available, as well as any additional data on a 'need to know' basis," the Vulcan replied crisply.

Fresh from the Academy, at her first posting, Ensign Nyshuri looks worried by the Captain's inspirational speech and glances to LT JG Mcreeg at her left.

"But... what about the Prime Directive?" she muses aloud, although quietly.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:13, Sun 01 Sept 2019.

  In the pristine ward of the Independence's Sickbay, Doctor Laila Abdool had spent her time since coming aboard ship seeing to the condition of the ship's medical department. She'd spent the first couple of days going through the late Dr De Montaine's reports on the vaccine and its parameters. Listening to his logs, Abdool found herself reminded of her Mother's own accent - a hint of the Carribean that occasionally thickened when she was stressed or otherwise agitated. From what she could tell, De Montaine was about the only one who'd been capable of synthesizing enough of the vaccine to keep up with the demand. Her arched dark brows came together at the news that he'd died securing the vaccine in place - crushed, according to the reports - made the Lieutenant Commander sigh.

   When she'd come aboard, she'd immediately taken note of the effect that the late CMO had on the morale of the entire unit. She'd gathered the staff - her staff now, she realised - and called them together for a short meeting to talk about how the Independence's Medical teams were going to go forward. She'd acknowledged the good work that he'd done as Chief, but soon it would be time to move on. She had authorized a short mourning period, and a small table was set up in one of the surgical rooms, with a recent holopic of De Montaine and a small plaque that read:

In Loving Memory
Dr Marius De Montaine
Chief Medical Officer - USS Independence

"In my end is my beginning"
  - Mary, Queen of Scots.

   Members of the Medical Team, as well as any others who knew the Doctor could stop by and visit the memorial, and even leave small tokens if they so chose. But Abdool made it clear that the memorial would only be permitted for three days, then it would be removed. (When the mourning period had passed, she'd taken the small holo and placed the picture on a small table near her office desk, as though he was looking over her shoulder. When it was all over, she put her team to work, making sure that everything was ship-shape and properly dealt with.

   When she'd gotten word that the Independence was to head to the Draconis A Star system, the Doctor had spent some time looking into what Starfleet information that there was on the system, and was mildly surprised to read that  A-Star was a black hole. She read further that there once was a star system here, the only remnants left being a small planet that was listed as being somewhat habitable. How they are able to live on a planet with no sun, she thought as the Scientist in her rose up to question the logic, Is probably why I went into the Medical Field, rather than follow in Captain Shepard-Abdool's Science footsteps. But Stellar Anomalies were more her forte than mine.

"Attention all hands!  We face a grave situation in  Omega Draconis." Abdool heard over ship-wide communications after the customary whistle to announce attention. She looked up at the speaker as the new Captain continued. "The survival of the inhabitants of the lone planet hinges on our efforts.  We WILL determine the means which have cause the system's black hole to alter its rotation.  We WILL determine how the alien artefact has influenced the singularity.  We will do these things because we are Starfleet.  We hold the line against all odds.  This ship and her crew have already proven their worth; today I know they will do so again.  It is an honor to serve with each of you."

   "All hands, man your stations!"

   Abdool lowered her head after the Captain had finished, and returned her attention to the computer screen she sat in front of. "Computer," she intoned calmly, "Show me everything you have on the planet in the Omega Draconis A-star system, and what effects the Black Hole will have on the people of the planet."

Javker waited for the captains announcement to finish. He was professional enough to keep his concerns about further gravitational stresses on the independence hull to himself for now.
To his engineering staff he nowissued his orders.

'Take immediate stock of all provisions and part neccesary to keep the ship in good working order. There is a chance we will need addition space for rescue operation.So we will consolidate all we can in to B-Hold. Freeing A if required.'

Fired by the captains speech, the crew kept straight faces. Javker had just set them a physically demanding a tedious task. His subordinates called around their teams and quickly set to work.
Now the chief engineer turned his attention to providing the captain with an engineering SitRep and voicing his comcerns about stressing the ship

"Understood," Captain Rakoto stood up from her chair and took a deep breath, "however, I don't think I need to stress to you that events as we understand them currently hint that Abyss Station's away team may be involved in triggering this disaster, all be it unintentionally I'm sure.  Starfleet is charged to seek out new life, not inadvertently destroy it.  Please think carefully about your data and how 'need to know' should be applied."

"In fact, it would be ideal to have you or one of your top personnel join any away team that is sent to the artifact.  That way any new information discovered can be quickly applied to our 'need to know'.  We'll speak further shortly."

Barring further discussion with Abyss Station the Captain closes the channel.

"An alien station with equipment that may be able to manipulate a black hole?" the Captain raised an eyebrow to her Comms officer, "I think your language skills will be invaluable.  Review all data on the alien structure and be prepared to join the team there just as soon as we have suits to survive the journey."

"Commander Decker," Mana turned to face her science officer, "if Abyss Station's team triggered this event then Starfleet may be guilty of genocide.  I'm counting on you and your team to find a way to prevent that."

A look of doubt tugged at the Captain's temple.  Thumbing her chair's comm switch she called to Dr Abdool, "Doctor, you've heard the situation we're facing here in Omega Draconis.  It's possible that an away team caused this; and if so we need to stop it.   However...it does seem strange to me that an advanced structure like this would not recognize the results of such an action.  We need to know if it's possible that the radiation from the black hole will have a different affect on the planet's inhabitants.  If it's true they survived their sun going nova do they have a physiology which allows them to process radiation differently?  Anything at all that you can find will be helpful."

"We'll convene in conference room Alpha in 1 hour."

Her chief engineer is next, "Commande Javker, Abyss Station will be providing details on environment suits which protect wearers from the intense gravity of the alien artifact in this system as well as data on the structure itself.  Please familiarize yourself with each.  If we have to send an away team after the scientist that entered the artifact we need to be as ready as possible to understand this technology."

"We'll convene in conference room Alpha in 1 hour."

10:29, Today: CPT Manantena Rakoto rolled 24 using 2d20 with rolls of 16,8.  Rally, Presence+Command 15-.
- not sure if Inspiration counts but looks like only 1 success
This message was last edited by the player at 16:12, Mon 02 Sept 2019.

While the rest of the crew ran their own scans, T'kres turned her attention to running a few of her own. She was highly curious about the new signs of activity from the alien station and attempted to tune her system to scan for signs of communication signals- either an active signal or simply an automated broadcast.

"Yes, Captain." T'kres inclined her head in acknowledgement of Rakoto's new orders. This could simply be caused by a translation error on the part of the investigating scientists.Though should equipment be broken or malfunctioning on the station, she was not unskilled in the engineering arena as well. It was a logical choice.

The shiver of unease that ran up her spine was not. The fact that this would be the first dangerous action she would be involved in since her injury had no logical bearing on the situation. The circumstances were not even remotely similar and vestigial fear would negatively impact her ability to fulfill her duty as a Starfleet Officer. She ruthlessly leaned on her controls to suppress the emotional reaction, eyes never leaving her screens.

While she waited on her current scan to run, the Comms officer called up any data Dr. T'lah had sent and began reviewing any data that might be vital to someone on an away team- with particular attention to any linguistic samples they might have found.

She also searched through Dr T'lah's data for identifying information on the missing shuttle, transmitting a request for it through the appropriate channels if she did not find that particular data already included. When her first scan was finished, perhaps the more powerful and refined systems of the Independence could pick up any distress signals where Abyss Station had failed.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:57, Mon 02 Sept 2019.

In reply to LCDR Gullak JavKer (msg # 19):

Kimiko waited until the engineering staff, nodding and uttering understanding, moved about their duties.  Then, she sidled up to her bristly and portly ChENG and spoke quietly.

"We could convert shuttle bay space into emergency lodging for refugees," she said. "But we also might need those shuttles to evacuate the planet.  The gravitational fields in this system are... Ofufukku."  She often slipped into her native Japanese when using colorful metaphors.

"I'd have to check with Elliot*, but I am not confident in transporter reliability under a time crunch," she concluded.

*CPO Elliot Carter, transporter chief. ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:15, Wed 04 Sept 2019.

In reply to DR Laila Abdool (msg # 18):

Dr. Abdool's new team responded as best she'd expect.  They were still reeling at the loss of Dr. de Montaine, but she'd come in with just the right mix of silk and iron and kept the department running.  A medical department on a starship was a finely-tuned instrument, and Abdool knew how to sing the notes to make it an orchestra.



"WORKING," the robotized voice of the Independance's main computer replied.

Data scrolled across Laila's medical screen, all of the information on Omega Draconis I that the Indy was cleared for. Most of this is part of the data packet transferred over by Dr. T'Lah - the Indy herself doesn't have much of it on file...

ch'Pertha activated several security protocols; primarily the ones that set his department into pre-specified operations and readiness.

He ensured that the scans he'd run, regarding both the locale space and the alien structure, were fully downloaded into the current working database ... for easy use by all crew.

At T'Lara's request to join the away team, the Captain nodded to herself, "I'll consider it.  For now I need to understand more about Abyss Station and it's personnel.  I'd like you to pull the files on the away team that entered the station and how the stations mission has proceeded lately."

Frowning, Mara was blunt, "I don't like being stonewalled when situations are as grave as this seems to be.  It could be legitimate or it could be something more.  That's the trouble with secrets."

"Learn what you can and watch for any discrepancies.  We'll meet in 1 hour."

OOC: sorry I got T'Lara and T'Kres confused.  What role is T'Lara filling?  Counselor?