In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 65):

Thelev sits stewing in his chair on the bridge. "Damn it, Brad never let frakking General Order Number Fifteen get in his way when he was captain," he thinks glaring daggers at the back of Saavik's head. "Damn her Vulcan logic, anyway!"

Still, at least the comm channel is open and there is a security video feed of vital Engineering spaces, so he's been able to see the newly-named Vincentius. The creature has chosen a thoroughly mundane appearance, indistinguishable from about half the crew of the ship, uniform aside.

Khendron calls the Commodore. "Commodore, I presume you are monitoring. Shall I bring Vincentius to your ready room?"

"Well, at least Brad's ready room is right next to the bridge, so I can at least attend in person..."
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:45, Mon 05 July 2021.

“Yes, bring him up and make sure someone deals with quarters and such”

McCurrvey turns to Commander Boren and Dworkin.

“Dworkin, should you be here when our guest arrives?”  “Commander, you are dismissed”

OOC:  I believe it was just the three of us in my ready room.

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 82):

It was my impression you were still in the classroom, but no matter—it makes sense that you would move to the Flag Ready Room for security. [Make it so.]

As Thelev exits the Bridge, Mercer arrives in the turbolift with Vincentius and two Marines who take up positions flanking the door. He enters the Ready Room with Mercer and the hellhound. Vincentius's new form is a blond Caucasian Human, 1.8m tall and massing about 90kg. Thelev notes that Khendron has an assault phaser at his waist. Brad likewise has a type II phaser on his desk. From long habit, Thelev has a type I phaser tucked inside his belt [just assuming established habits from the original and future campaigns]. Otherwise, he reflects, he'd feel under dressed. Dworkin sits in his usual chair.

Vincentius braces to attention for a second, then relaxes and sits on the settee. "Commodore McCurrvey, Captain Mercer—Kendron‐ has granted me sanctuary, but as his superior I request asylum from you as an escaped slave." He nods to Thelev, "Captain Thelev."

While on the way up from Engineering in the turbolift, Mercer had a chance to look inside the pouch Pistos had discarded. He finds it easier to regard Pistos and Vincentius as two distinct personnæ. The pouch contains a small leather bundle filled with herbs, three tiny bones on a copper chain and a silver amulet on a silver chain. The bones are wrapped in a fold of white silk while the amulet is wrapped in black leather.

Khendron's eyes water and his nose begins to run. He's obviously allergic to something in the pouch.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:12, Wed 07 July 2021.

“Vincentious, welcome aboard.”

McCurrvey is a little put off that the XO offered sanctuary so quickly to an unknown and potentially hostile individual.  However he’s learnt to trust Mercer’s instincts.

“Captain Mercer and I have been comrades in arms for many years and I trust him explicitly.  However before I make sanctuary official, I would like two things from you”

McCurrvey eyes the new guest for reaction to this and how well he is mimicking general human responses (is it a simple illusion to make him look human or is it something more that allows him to mimic human responses, etc)

“Firstly I want your word that you will not harm any member of this crew or those under my protection.  That includes allowing another to harm them through your actions or inactions.  Secondly I would like to better understand how and why you are onboard this ship.  Beyond that, you may have official sanctuary and I expect you to conduct yourself in accordance with our rules and regulations.  I’ll assign a yeoman, not a security guard or keeper, to assist you in your acclimatization.  Is that acceptable to you?”

McCurrvey continues to survey the guest but glances at the others in the room.

If the hellhound is faking its Human mannerisms, it's doing a hell of a job. It gives every appearance of considering the implications of McCurrvey's offer and conditions. Out of the corner of his eye, Brad sees Dworkin nod slightly in approval.

Vincentius notes, "And of course I will protect myself in that it does not violate the other conditions..." thus completing the Asimovian triad. "I agree. I also agree to the help from your yeoman. Yeoman: a naval petty officer who performs clerical duties. Middle English young plus man, perhaps a contraction of Old English: iunge man." It cocks its head to the side like a spaniel learning a new trick.

"Yes!" it concludes. "That will be satifactory. Thank you." With every word from its mouth it seems to be more and more comfortable with Human inflection and body language. It leans back on the settee and extends its legs, crossing them at the ankles and extending its arms along the back, giving the impression of relaxation and non-belligerence.

In fact, it's getting hard to think of the hellhound in the neuter—his appearance and mannerisms seem completely masculine to the Starfleet officers.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:05, Thu 08 July 2021.

In reply to Vincentius (msg # 85):

As he enters the ready room, Khendron closes the pouch and tucks it away. He plans to show it to Dworkin at the soonest opportunity. Although Khendron doesn't appreciate Dworkin's wild card potential, he is not going to let having such a resource go to waste.

As McCurvey and Vincentius talk, Khendron watches Dworkin closely to see his reaction to the situation.

OOC: Not sure if Thelev is in the room.  If he is, I address him.  Otherwise I address Mercer.

“XO, please see that a Yeoman is assigned to Vincentius.  I’d like someone gregarious, but with some diplomatic training.  He is to be treated as a foreign envoy.”

OOC:  I want a Tilly

“Vincentious, can you please fill us in on what your mission was and wether you were acting on your own or with a team.  I’m concerned we are being blamed for a situation that was not in our control and would like to correct that.  In addition, I want to ensure we take reasonable precautions against any hostile actions against us.”

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 87):

[OOC: Yes, he came in with Khendron and Vincentius. "Tilly?" Who or what is that?]
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:14, Thu 08 July 2021.

OCC: Ensign Sylvia Tilly: gregarious to a fault.

[OOC: Oh, yeah. Captain Killy! How about your personal yeoman, a female Denobulan named Lt(jg) Xanthe? Denobulans can be summed up by the word gregarious! As XO, Khendron is in charge of crew assignments. Think of him as your head of HR (Humanoid Resources).]

Khendron gets more and more stuffed and he begins to have trouble breathing. Suddenly he collapses to the deck his complexion turning bluish, far from his normal ruddy tone.

Dworkin kneels over himand says, "Call your doctor immediately—He's gone into anaphylaxis!" Picking up the pouch, he opens it and reveals the dried herbs. He re-seals the pouch and asks, "Do you have an air-tight sample container?" As it happens, after the incident with the nanites in Dworkin's card, Khendron had ordered Xanthe to make certain that a pack of sample bags be placed in Brad's desk, so Dworkin seals the entire pouch and its contents in one.

Dworkin says, "Computer, replicate one litre of pure isopropanol." As the replicator produces a beaker of clear liquid, Brad and Thelev both realise that there's no possibility that it's programmed to produce non-food items, aside from dishes and cutlery. Brad remembers he'd had doubts earlier whe Dworkin had ordered an alcoholic drink.

Dworkin places Khendron's blistered hands, one at a time, into the beaker. He looks up as Ensign Goldberg enters the ready room. "He came into contact with dried borgia plant. Went into anaphylactic shock. I cleaned the residue from his fingers with alcohol."

Goldberg nods and pulls out a hypospray and presses it against Mercer's jugular. It hisses and Goldberg sprays clear bandaging on Mercer's hands, much as McCurrvey had seen him do to Saavik's burned hands an eternity ago. Two orderlies arrive with an antigrav gurney and take the XO to sickbay for treatment.

Goldberg asks, "Where did he get the borgia plant?"

Vincentius stands and answers, "It was in a talisman my former master prepared to control me. When your ship teleported into the microuniverse with the other ships and the Museum, it lost its potency over time when we were stranded there. After we teleported to our current location, the effect had become so weak that I was able to overcome it. I had no idea that it would cause such a violent reaction when lifeforms such as yours came into contact with it. I am truly sorry. Will Khendron recover, monsieur le medécin?"

"Medécin? No sir, I'm just a nurse, un infirmier," replies Goldberg.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:19, Fri 09 July 2021.

In reply to Dworkin the Black (msg # 90):

OOC: Finally caught back up I think.

OCC: Yes God got in right on msg #81 Thelev was fuming and is looking for a good reason to demote Mercer and Saavik until they quit quoting Star Fleet regulations against him.

If I still need to I will grant Vincentius asylum but believe McCyrrvey has as Flag Officer.

Turning to Vicentius "Is there any threat to us from your talisman if we do not touch it, or is physical contact required." He glances at Dworkin as well to see if he reacts to the question.

“Nurse, prognosis?”

McCurrvey looks worriedly after the gurney.

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 91):

"It is my understanding that there are powerful curses attached to such talismans of power. Had I seen Khendron opening the pouch, I would have so warned him." replies Vincentius.

"Balderdash!" exclaims Dworkin. "There is no such thing as a curse, at least not in that sense. Most curses are psionic attacks, directly applied by the co-called sorceror. Others are like this one, simple traps—in this case, the poisonous borgia plant which causes anaphylaxis upon inhalation or contact. Curses also rely on psychology, so if someone is aware of the so-called curse, especially low-tech and superstitious beings, they can cause all manner of psychosomatic mischief. A very rare minority utilise psionic matrices to cause an effect."

"But you have seen the curse take effect upon Khendron, and surely he is not a low-tech, superstitious being." objects the hellhound.

"Not at all! He is a technologically advanced, skeptical being," notes Dworkin. "If your sickbay destroys or isolates the dried borgia plant and decontaminates the rest, it should be safe to analyze the pouch's contents. You may wish tho have a Vulcan or a Betazoid examine the pendants in the off-chance that they are psionic matrices, but I rate that a low probability," he says to Thelev
This message was last edited by the player at 02:40, Mon 12 July 2021.

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 92):

"The XO should be fine as long as Mr. Dworkin is correct and it's simply a reaction to the borgia plant." answers Goldberg. "I'll inform the doctors. Permission to be dismissed, sir?"

“Dismissed.  Please keep us updated”

“Oh, and please have the pouch analyzed for both physical and psionic issues”

“Now back to business.”

Turning to Vincentius. “So what exactly were you commanded to do and were you acting alone or were others dispatched with you?”

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 96):

"My mission was in brief to discover how you travelled between the Outer Planes and if possible to return to my former master with that information. I was given leave to kill if necessary for my mission. I have no knowledge of any other minions of the Dark Lord with similar missions. Certainly none of his minions are capable of surviving in the Outer Void," answers the hellhound.

Khendron wakes up with a blinding headache. A bright light flicks across his right eye's field ov vision, triggering an explosion in his head. He feel finger on his left eyelid and he tries to raise his left hand to swat it away. His hand is restrained, so he tries to move his right hand only to find it similarly restrained.

"U-u-u-h-h-h. R-r-r-gh," he tries to tell them to stop, but his throat is filled with jagged shards of glass, or so it seems. There is something blocking his throat, and a warm hand strokes his cheek.

A female voice says, from a parsec away, "Shhhhh, sir. Don't try to speak, you're on an endotracheal ventilator. Your throat was closed up. Do you need an analgesic? Blink once for yes, twice for no."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:19, Tue 13 July 2021.

In reply to Lieutenant Andrea Parducci, RN (msg # 98):

"Vincentius, knowing you have been granted asylum what information are you willing to offer us about your former master.  What threat does the Dark Lord pose to us himself, what protection if any do you need from him or others that serve or work with him?" Thelev asks

McCurrvey sits back and lets Thelev take the lead in the conversation.  McCurrvey eyes flicker between all parties but linger a bit longer on Vincentius and Dworkin.

McCurrvey’s main objective if to study Dworkin and Vincentius’ reactions.  Are either of them lying or at least hiding something?  How intelligent a creature is Vincentius?  What relationship, if any, do Dworkin and Vincentius have?  What is Dworkin’s reaction to the creature (nervous, fear superiority, etc)?

The hellhound ponders his reply for a few seconds. "Lord Dhark, the Dread Lord of the Outer Spaces, chafes at the boundaries of his realm, a relatively small crystal sphere on the edge of the Underdark within the Phlogiston. His son, the Verlegg, had found a way to traverse the Outer Planes and happened upon the Prime Material Plane—your universe, and allied itself with Calista, a pirate and worshipper of what you might call evil."

Dworkin catches Brad's eye and nods in aggreement.

"In the Underdark, personae are deemed to be controlled by their alignment on two axes: one of good to evil, the other from lawful (or patterned) to chaotic for a magical square of nine alignments with neutral in the centre. Think of it as a cartesian matrix. Nobody is of a pure alignment, rather it is a coordinate system. Of course, what constitutes good and evil, or lawful and chaotic is—flexible and the True Neutral is the rarest of the rare. It is imprecise, but astrologers and philosophers find it useful," concludes Vincentius.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:45, Thu 15 July 2021.

Dworkin explains, "This can be roughly equated by the system of sixteen personality profiles used by psychologists for the past few centuries beginning on Earth in the late 20^th—early 21^st centuries: Analysts; Intuitive (N) and Thinking (T) personality types, known for their rationality, impartiality, and intellectual excellence; the Architect, Logician, Commander, and Debater: Diplomats; Intuitive (N) and Feeling (F) personality types, known for their empathy, diplomatic skills, and passionate idealism: Advocate, Mediator, Protagonist, Campaigner: Sentinels; Observant (S) and Judging (J) personality types, known for their practicality and focus on order, security, and stability; Logistician, Defender, Executive, Consul: Explorers; Observant (S) and Prospecting (P) personality types, known for their spontaneity, ingenuity, and flexibility: Virtuoso, Adventurer, Entrepreneur, Entertainer."

He steps to the replicator and orders his customary glass of Bushmills with a single ice cube. Once again. Brad is reminded that Dworkin is somehow able to override the replicator's programming. Thelev notices the same thing.

He continues, "One is as good as the other, quite frankly. Both are somewhat primitive but serve their purpose. Both, of course, have their strengths and limitations."

The little man looks directly at Brad and Thelev. "I realise that this seems hard to take in. I'm not trying to be condescending, but I come from a society far in advance, both in the hard and social sciences, of yours.

"You're now wondering how I can override the restrictions placed on your replicators," he raises his glass in salute, "Both Vincentius and I have a limited ability to, well, speak to the low-level AIs that make up your computers. Now, don't overreact, it's just on the surface level, like convincing them to substitute an oxygen atom for a carbon atom or a hydrogen atom here and there, or to access non-restricted linguistc files as Vincentius does. It's an advanced form of psionic technology about a millennium away for you."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 21:38, Thu 15 July 2021.

In reply to Lieutenant Andrea Parducci, RN (msg # 98):

Down in sickbay, Khendron blinks once. Anything to get some peace from the pain. He tries to say, "What happened?" but of course cannot. The last thing he remembers is being in the Commodore's ready room with a slightly stuffy nose. He then remembers the pouch and mentally kicks himself for opening it up in an uncontrolled environment. After his anal retentiveness about the nanites, he is never going to live this one down.

Khendron is also very worried that his actions caused other people to fall ill. He, very very slowly, tries to turn his head and look around to see if there are any other patients in sickbay.

A tall slender Vulcan woman walks over to Khendron's bedside. "I am Dr. T'Sara, Capt Mercer. I have been examining the pouch you took from the alien. We've isolated the borgia plant material and decontaminated the rest of the contents. Here are the two amulets from the pouch. One is a pure metallic silver pendant while the other is bone on a copper chain. Both are psionically inert." She hands over a pair of transparent sample pouches with the two amulets in them.

T'Sara raises Khendron's bed to a sitting position and swings over an LCARS terminal. Handing him a science tricorder she says, "If you feel up to it, you can proceed with your examination of the amulets. In about a hour, we'll remove the endotracheal tube and give you another shot of tri-ox compound. If you're not feeling up to it, you may nap instead."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 05:14, Sat 17 July 2021.