All eyes are on McCurrvey. Suddenly, he feels more responsible than he ever had as captain. His orders are to cross the border with the Triangle and proceed to the Baker's Dozen capital, Baker's World. Thelev's question is a mere formality, as McCurrvey has heard Lt Perkins' report to Cdr DesMarais that the course has been laid in. Brad searches his mind for a suitably momentous phrase to begin the mission.


This message was last edited by the GM at 22:56, Thu 19 Mar 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 1):

OOC: FYI Owen, Bruce needed to go to Montreal.  His mom had taken a turn for the worst, fortunately he has told use she is stabilized, but his focus is elsewhere.

[OOC: Well as I've always said, real life trumps gaming, so I'll simply put the NPC light on on his forehead.]

McCurrvey thinks for a moment and quotes Shakespeare, an all purpose tradition, “Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more” [Henry V act 3 scene 1]

Saavik nudges the controls and the great ship slides majestically out of drydock. Shuttles and workbees scurry to clear the way for the Odyssey.

A yeoman enters the bridge and approaches Thelev. "Latest intelligence estimates, sir. The IKS is still snooping around the Baker's Dozen border. One K'el Ri'anda and two K't'Inga's spotted in the area, maintaining their distance but actively patrolling."

The Imperial Klingon States are a breakaway faction from the Klingon Empire consisting of smooth headed so-called fusion Klingons who refused the cure to the Augment virus when it was discovered twenty years ago. They continued the traditional hostility against the UFP and flirted occasionally with the Romulan Star Empire. It's been speculated that the would like to absorb the Human-dominated Baker's Dozen but Starfleet has a long tradition of running interference. The K'el Ri'anda is the IKS's largest and more powerful battleship. The name translates to 'Dangerous Fat Man' so it's known to the Federation as the Fat Man or by its less formal sobriquet the Turtle for its hulking outline.


This message was last edited by the GM at 22:43, Fri 20 Mar 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 3):

After reading his pad he turns to Mercer and asks to anyone willing to answer " As you all know we are heading in the Baker's World which is in the Baker's Dozen. And reports say the IKS is in that area, specially with a K'el Ri'anda and two K't'Inga. What intel do we have on the K'el Ri'anda, max cruising speed, max emergency speed, cloak type, weapon types, weapons range.  I don't want to be surprised by them if they engage us, I want to know where we have the advantage. "

While waiting for someone to pull up the info Thelev turns back to helm and navigation, " What is our ETA to reach the border with the Triangle? "

Collette replies, "Forty hours, thirty-three point six minutes, sir."

The yeoman types in a query and hands the PADD back to Thelev. The display reads:
K'el Ri'anda class (Dangerous Fat Man)
Affiliation: Imperial Klingon States Defense Force
Type: battleship
Service period: 2280-present
Dimensions:
Length: 244 meters
Width: 147 meters
Height: 110 meters
Specifications
Crew: 1062 crew, 420 troops
Maximum speed: warp 8
Cruising speed: warp 7
Armaments: 11 disruptors, 4 photon torpedo tubes
Defenses: deflector shields
Auxiliary craft: 16 shuttles
This message was last edited by the player at 12:21, Sun 22 Mar 2020.

In reply to Commander Collette DesMarais (msg # 5):

"These turtles," Khendron says to the Thelev, "are not known for impressive manoeuvrability or performance. Though this looks to be a more recent model. Let's not underestimate it. It could also have a cloaking device. Our intel here doesn't mention one, but I'd be happier if it stated that it didn't have one!"

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 6):

" Mercer, once we are in long range sensor distance start having your team scanning the triangle, lets hope they don't know we are coming and we have a long range sensor advantage.  We might have to get them before they turtle. " Thelev replies to Kendron and pun intended.  " Plus their two K't'Inga likely have been fitted with cloaks. " he adds.

Turning back to the main screen he say " Remember our intent is to avoid engaging them on the way to Baker's World, and if we know where they are that will be a lot easier. My gut is they will only engage us if they think they can surprise us, so if we don't let that happen we should be good. "

LCdr Bowman, sitting to Mercer's right, reports, "Scans laid in. Long-range sensors detect nothing as yet, other than local commercial traffic. Of course, at this distance we wouldn't expect to see even a ship as large as a Turtle."


The bridge crew settles into normal operations, glad to be out of Starbase 31's immediate control. Thelev imagines that sailors for millennia have felt the same exhilaration on leaving port.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:41, Sun 22 Mar 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 8):

" Bowman keep regular scans going and keep DesMarias informed of any ships between here and Baker's World.  Let me know if you detect any of the three IKS ships. DesMarias set a common but less than regular course to Baker's World. Ramirez prepare plans to engage just the Turtle, and the Turtle and its two friends, and once done give me your suggestions. " Thelev commands as he looks around the bridge.

He turns towards McCurrvey and asks " Commodore anything we need to know about our mission that may interest the IKS in us. "

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 9):

I need a mission background.  I provide the appropriate response and politely retire to my office.  I imagine that my quarters are separated into quarters and an office.  I want to fully understand the mission and resources available (starships and bases in the area).  I begin to prepare a briefing package.  Resources I want to check are starfleet intelligence reports on the latest models of Fat Men and K’tinga classes.  I also want to understand what a troop carrier could be doing in the area.  What is my tactical assessment of an Excelsior versus the three amigos?

Actually, the Odyssey has a Flag Ready Room adjacent to the Bridge, opposite the Captain's Ready Room. This is similar to Picard's Ready Room in TNG, a comfortable office with a daybed and washroom. Here, McCurrvey has his own Library Computer that allows him to access any of this data.

The Odyssey is based out of Starbase 31 in the Candace System, Sector 595 Alpha. Starbase 31 is commanded by Commodore Antonia Marie Niccomachi, an acquaintance of Brad's about 10 years older than him.

Right now, the mission is a simply showing of the flag to the UFP's most valuable ally in the Triangle. Formally known as the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds, the Baker's Dozen is a relatively tight alliance based on common interests and mutual defence. Baker's World was founded by Starfleet Lt. David Lawrence Baker after the disastrous Four Years War in the 2250's. The alliance known as the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds quickly grew up around Baker's World, gaining the nickname Baker's Dozen.

The IKS is a very rigid collection of five planets inhabited by Klingons who fled what they call the Great Plague in the late 2260's. This refers to the cure to the Augment Virus, which they saw as undesirable. In effect, they are TOS smooth-headed Klingons. They reject any contact with the Klingon Empire, considering them unclean, and worship the oldest Klingon gods.

Just to zenith of Sector 595 Alpha is a large area of mostly-unexplored space known as the Kellinan Reach. The Reach is home to four Federation colonies in the Bright Stars Cluster: Emerson's World (Epsilon Zeta II), Alpha Kallick III,  Sanctum (Beta Kallick V), a Free Thinkers' religious colony and Prospero Colony (Beta Kallick IXa), on the moon of a class J gas giant. In the Bloodfield Nebula, in the Sheila System, the Federation R-class station Deep Space 6 Alpha stationed there to monitor the asteroid Bridgetown, site of an alien installation run by a shady figure known only as "Sam".

Deeper into the Triangle is the so-called Planet of Galactic Peace, site of the USS Enterpise-A's first mission.

The Fat Man, or Turtle, is largely considered a borderline ship by the Klingon Empire. It unclear just how many the IKS has, and what versions they are. There are 3 versions, the A, C and D models (the B was adismal failure and never entered service. It's not exactly a troop carrier, since all Klingon ships carry some troops. It's classed as a Battleship. While it can't even come close to the Excelsior's speed, it armoured and armed up the proverbial wazoo. Many of them have cloaks, and since the IKS maintains to old alliance with the Romulan Star Empire, Starfleet Intelligence believes there's a high probability that these do as well. The three K't'Ingas are most likely standard models each of which is almost a match for a Constitution class Heavy Cruiser. The Odyssey can easily handle one K't'Inga, probably two, but three are a definite problem.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:54, Wed 25 Mar 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 11):

I invite Thelev and Mercer into the Ready Room for a discussion about the mission.  “As we’re to show the flag, my intent is to drop to Warp 2 on entering the Triangle and extend every possible welcoming action we can.  We need to show benevolence and that this is not an armed invasion.  While I’m concerned about the Klingons, we are strong enough to survive any surprises and get away.  Let’s not go in ‘looking for a fight’.  Opinions?”

[OOC] I think there may be some misunderstanding here. The Triangle isn't a stellar nation, it's just an area of (mostly lawless) space. The closest analogy would be leaving US territorial waters and entering the Pacific Ocean. What I think may be closer to what you're talking about is crossing the border and entering the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds, a.k.a. the Baker's Dozen. Any IKS ships you may encounter technically have every right to be there as it's figuratively speaking the "high seas". The thing is, the IKS ships may be conducting surveillance or harassing shipping. Unfortunately a lot of the shipping in the Triangle is illicit - smugglers and pirates. The IKS may well be preying on trade traffic or may be legitimately pursuing pirates and other criminal shipping.]

The ship is a day and a half out of Starbase 31. Collette reports, "Captain, we're leaving Federation Space and are now in uncontrolled interstellar space. Your orders?"

Thelev cocks an eye toward McCurrvey. He looks at the latest updates on his PADD.

He notes that the K't'Ingas are capable of cruising at WF7, with WF8.8 for 12 hours, while the K'el Ri'anda can only do WF7 or WF8.0 for 12 hours. The Odyssey, however can cruise at WF12, or WF14 for 12 hours. The K't'Inga can match the Odyssey at Impulse speeds, while the K'el Ri'anda is sluggish at best. The Odyssey is a match for two K't'Ingas but would have trouble with all three. The K'el Ri'anda would tip the scales decisively in the Klingons' favour if it's supporting the battlecruisers.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:03, Sat 28 Mar 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 13):

" Helm as per Commodore McCurrvey slow to warp factor 2 until we can assess the current climate in the region. Bowman keep scanning for any ships, if the IKS ships are dedicated be sure to info myself, the Commodore and tactical. "

He turns to Thoma and says " If any one hails us, identify ourselves and tell them we are on a peaceful mission on behalf of the Federation. "

" DesMarias, maintain course to Baker's World but keep us clear of all ships until we are able to establish communication with them and know their intent. " Thelev says.

"DesMarias and Saavik, if we are engaged by the IKS be ready to go to WF10 on a moments notice. If we find ourselves one on one or even two on one we will likely stay and discuss matters with them, any more I would like to give ourselves some distance to talk. "

He them taps the button on his chair to open ship wide communication " Attention all crew and civilians, we are leaving Federation Space and will be entering the area know as The Triangle.  For some of you this will be your first time outside of Federation Space. We are here representing the Federation in support of an ally in this region. We are not expecting any trouble, but I asking everyone to be ready on a moments notice. Your Captain out. " after closing the channel he swips his glance around the bridge with a slight smile and giving a slight nod to anyone who had turned to look at him.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:59, Sat 28 Mar 2020.

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 14):

The goal is to proceed to Baker’s World without seeming to be running away, responding to an emergency (at Baker’s World) or otherwise.  I want people to see us, be able to identify us, ask for assistance, etc.  We can also take the time to run drills and learn to act as a team.  We don’t want to give the impression that there are bullies in the Triangle that we want to avoid.  The message is:  “Hello, we’re your new neighbour, we don’t want trouble but don’t push us.  Would you like to borrow a cup of sugar?”

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 15):

Khendron is thinking to himself "Neighours? Sugar? I know this is McCurvey, but he is sounding extra loopy!"

"We are not going to be an effective presence," snaps Khendron aloud, "if we get jumped by bullies at the first encounter! ... sir."

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 16):

" As McCurrvey mentioned we want to be the friendly new neighbour, and are here to help if you want it. "

As he turns to Mercer he adds " But you are correct, we don't want to be jumped by bullies, that is why we are scanning, and if by chance we are jumped we need to be ready.  So Khendron put the crew through some drills to make sure we are not just a good team but a great team. "

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 17):

I dismiss the command team and go about learning as much as I can about the Baker’s Dozen and the recent movements of the IKS Trio.  I want to look for patterns and possible motivations.  If I have contacts in the Triangle, I want to give them a call to see what I can find out.

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 18):

Khendron starts running the crew through some tactical drills involving various simulated scenarios, including both violent and non-violent (don't want to be too trigger happy) encounters with the Klingon vessels.

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 19):

" Captain Mercer, how are the drills going?  Any concerns, any places you believe we have a big advantage. " he ask Khendron.

He turns to science and asks " Bowman, do the scans still look good? "

It's been nearly a week, and the Odyssey is nearing the border with the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds, as the Baker's Dozen is formally known. Mercer's been drilling the crew non-stop and their efficiency rating for the combat drills has gone up by five percent. Not bad for a crew busy integrating a lot of new personnel and getting used to a new command structure.

Bowman turns to Thelev. "Yessir. The USS Pathfinder has been in contact. They're one of the two Oberths watching over the joint patrol area surrounding Colil V and its Preserver ruins. All's going well there..." He breaks off as an a alarm sounds.
"Intruder Alert. Intruder Alert. Security to Crew Lounge deck five. Security to Crew Lounge deck five. Intruder Alert. Intruder Alert."

The alert silences itself as Thelev draws a finger across his throat, a habit he'd picked up from Captain Tobi Perrini.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:38, Mon 30 Mar 2020.

Moments later, the intercom announces, "Lt Trask, security chief reporting. Captain, someone just appeared in the crew lounge—two someones that is. Human, male and female. Dressed oddly, answer to Spaxter, NFN, and Louella, also NFN. Spaxter appears to have cerebral implants and a bionic hand. Louella appears to be unenhanced. They claim to be friendly, from Earth, but nothing else they say makes much sense... Something about a South American anti-tech cult and a supercomputer named MARS. When pressed on how they got here, they say they... jumped..."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 23:18, Mon 30 Mar 2020.

[OOC: I'm assuming one or all three of you will want to talk to this "Spaxter" fellow, whether in the brig or a briefing room]

When Thelev walks in, Lt Trask is standing guard on two basic Humans.

Spaxter is wearing a twentieth century double-breasted suit and tie topped off with a classic fedora. He's wearing a leather glove on his right hand, while Louella is wearing a strapless cocktail dress, long blonde curls around her bare shoulders, as if they'd arrived from a party. They are also coated in a layer of dust and have traces of dried mud on their shoes.

"Hi, there," says Spaxter brightly, as if the armed guard wasn't holding him in custody. "Call me Spaxter. Say, I'll bet you get this all the time, but you're... blue. With antennae. Snazzy threads. This lovely lady is my main squeeze, Louella."

"Pleased to meet you," she says breathlessly. "Where are we? I'm assuming you're the captain. Your bully-boy here  wouldn't let us get cleaned up. We're not usually this dusty—well I'm not, at least." She gives Spaxter a sideways look.

Trask says, "Sir, these two simply stepped out of a solid bulkhead. No sign of a transporter effect. Refused to give more than a single name each, saying they wanted to talk to the big cheese."

Spaxter holds out his hand. "Sam Spaxter, under-the-covers, out-of-the-woodwork, ex-secret agent and sometime private eye. Pardon the gauntlet. It became fused to my hand during the battle against Akhenaten in the Ray-Gun club. This is Louella Goodbody—she was there then after we the Earth from his Vague Plague, we wound up in a South America where an anti-tech cult had taken over. You know how things can change when you jump. Then MARS had us save the Earth again, this time from cheesey fifties-style aliens at Woodstock and we wound up back in South America. I'd thought we were out of jumps, but I found a couple in my pocket and here we are. Where, by the way, is here. I'm assuming this is some sort of space ship—at least it's not upholstered in blue vinyl—so what the hell is the year? Slip me the whole helix, Slim," he says in rapid-fire staccato without taking a breath.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:12, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 23):

" Mr. Spaxter, Ms. Goodbody, I'm Captain Thelev, commanding officer of the USS Odyssey. " he replies.

Using his knowledge of 20th Century Earth, he based his intro on. Does any of this sound familiar outside of the cloth they are wearing.

In an attempt to be vague and not give away anything I will rattle off the current star date, based on the fact that Andoria was one of the founding member, if Sam Spaxter knew of the current time system he would know of blue skinned people with antennae. "It is Stardate nnnnn.nn"

[OOC: Could not find a conversion tool for 2290s]

" It is tough for me to say what year it is in your terms, since I don't know when or where you are from. Once I knew that I could possibly convert our Stardate into your time frame. You mentioned you thought you were out of jumps, can I assume you are time travelers of a sort? " he asks.

" Oh would you mind if we did a few quick medical scans of you, to ensure you are not bringing anything harmful to us onto our ship.  Since you did come aboard in an unorthodox method. " assuming someone else other than Lt. Trask is with him he nods hoping they do more than just a medical scan.

[OOC: By my calculations, based on whole cloth, the date is March 14, 2290, 07:25 hours, or SD 9239.51]

The clothing worn by Spaxter is mid-late 20^th business wear, and that worn by Louella is a somewhat fanciful evening gown with a vaguely Egyptian theme. The references to a post-apocalyptic South American antitech cult seem to place them in Argentina post WW III during the Post-Atomic Horror. It's very confusing.

Khendron does a quick search in the historical database and comes up with a result for Spaxter. He finds an obscure reference to a pair of obscure radio plays (audio only) from 1986-87 called Spaxter and Spaxterback, the synopses of which match what Spaxter is saying about his own history.

When it's pointed out that the historical database claims he's a fictional character, he replies wryly, "Yeah, I get that a lot."

[OOC: A note on Stardates: I established a rationale for stardates quite awhile ago: http://www.coldnorth.com/owen/.../source/stardate.htm —this is based on canon sources and on-air examples.

I determined that the Star Trek, a Space Odyssey would begin in 2290, three years before Star Trek VI, on my birthday. I took the closest established stardates from the movies closest to that date and extrapolated that the date Jan. 01, 2290, 12:43:12 = SD 9200.00 , and thus Mar. 07, 2290, 12:45:00 = SD 9211.83. Noting that this post was Mar.14, 2290, 07:25:00 ,based on the morning briefing starting at 07:00 I simply calculated the number of hours and divided that by 8 hours 45.95 minutes to give 18.514 stardates.

So much for a peek behind the curtain...]
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:12, Wed 01 Apr 2020.

Spaxter replies, "Time traveller? Um, yeah, maybe. Jumps can change all sorts of things. Time? Sure, I guess. Makes as much sense as anything... They seem to warp reality. I mean, one day you're living in a representative democracy and then you use a jump and Zam! the world is ruled by an Emperor. It's not always that big a change, though. Sometimes it's a little thing, like you wind up five minutes before you left, or twelve hours later... So, yeah, time travel happens. Mostly it's like a change in probability, though, like history went different some time in the past. It's enough to rip your cortex.

"Medical scans? Sure, I guess. I mean, I've got my meld gear, courtesy of my former employer, the Company. You know, like the See Eye Aye? And the Shadow Shield, which stops anyone else from brain-snooping me in return. And my gauntlet—can't take it off since it got fused to my system by the feedback from Ahkenaten's bundle. It's kind of a multipurpose tool with built-in defensive systems." He doffs his hat, revealing a number of silver discs embedded in his scalp, mostly concealed by his hair. Then he pulls off the thin black leather glove, revealing a series of burnished plates encasing the flesh. "I invented the gauntlet. Used to be able to take it off, but now? No way, nohow—it's like it's part of me now."

He looks at the gauntlet on his hand. "Hey, looks like MARS did some adjustments to it. Looks a lot sleeker than before... Hmmmm, I wonder..." He flexes his fingers.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:21, Wed 01 Apr 2020.

I arrive moments later.  I get taken aback by the antique garments.

“Oh hello”.

I notice Thelev’s ease and turn slightly to him

“So I see we have some guests”

In reply to Commodore Bradron McCurrvey (msg # 28):

" Commodore McCurrvey , our guests are Sam Spaxter and Louella Goodbody. " he introduces each of them pausing briefly between each for Bradron to acknowledge them.

" According to Mr. Spaxter, he tells us that they are both time and dimensional travelers, and it sounds like they have come from perhaps our Earth past perhaps a different Earth past. And as you walked in he was just telling us a bit about his gauntlet. " trying to capture the key highlights without tipping anything of their own knowledge and understanding of these areas.

He turns slightly to his XO (CSO) to see if he is scanning Spaxter based on his acknowledgement we could.

"Commodore?" Spaxter looks bemused. "Does that mean you're the Captain's captain?"

Louella kicks him, based on his reaction. "No, Spax, it just means he's the Captain's superior officer!" she says sardonically.

"Yeah, I know. Just trying to lighten the mood," he replies. "Based on what Captain... Thelev? was saying, I assume we're some time in the future and we're on some kind of... starship. Based on the flag in the corner, you're from a United Federation of Planets? So, the Captain and his geriatric biker friend Ken (I'm assuming that Thelev introduced Mercer by name) are aliens? I was expecting some sort of short, bulbous-headed grey fellow or a sexy green slave girl in a shiny metallic bikini. And what your Lieutenant Trask there is brandishing is either a stun gun or a disintegrator, eh?"

Khendron raises an eyebrow at the geriatric biker remark. His scans reveal deep cortical implants and the so-called gauntlet, which appears to have been expertly grafted onto Spaxter's hand, contrary to his description of its having been fused to his hand by some sort of feedback.

In reply to Sam Spaxter (msg # 30):

"Mr. Spaxter," says Khendron. "If you are looking for alien, perhaps you should look no further than yourselves. The way your implants are expertly integration with your body suggests very advanced technology! And as for good looking women in sexy clothing..." Khendron drops a wink in Louella's direction.

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 31):

Looking at Louella and then turning towards Sam “ I am the captain of this ship and in fact the Commodore is my commanding officer. “. Turning to Khendron “ This is my XO Captain Mercer, this ship is not typical of the number of Captain’s and above.  And yes this ship and crew are part of the United Federation of Planets. “

“ As for the weapon likely a combination of both a stun gun and a disintegrator, I’m sure the Lt. has it set on stun right now.  And as when we are if you were previously at our timelines Earth we are a bit over 300 years in the future.  Perhaps we should go somewhere we can have a seat and talk. “


OOC: if I can get anyone to the side I will ask them to make sure for the time being we keep Dr. Smith away from them, but I want Dr. Smith to dig up what he can on these two. At least not until I can confirm their paths have not crossed.

When Mercer mentions the gauntlet, Spaxter looks at it as if seeing it for the first time. "Hey, when MARS said he was doing a few upgrades, I guess he adjusted the gauntlet. I've been too busy since then to inspect it, but it wasn't causing me any pain so I kinda forgot about it. And yeah MARS was quite the advanced computer. In his reality, he pretty much ran the planet, while keeping his capabilities a secret from the governments that built him... or it, or whatever. Not certain what gender preferences AIs have after all..."

Louella catches Mercer's wink and says, "Well, I'm not exactly green... I'm a hundred per cent human, Kenmdash;can I call you Ken? Hey, I thought all space navies were all spit'n'polish, but you've got a real mane and 'staches that would make Fu Manchu proud. But Spax was being a bit snarky with the geriatric biker bit—you don't really look that old..." She flashes a mouthful of gleaming white teeth in a wide grin.

While Spaxter is musing about this MARS's gender identity and Louella is flirting with Mercer, Thelev is able to speak to Trask, who leaves to brief Smith.

The intercom chimes and announces, "Navigation to Capt Thelev, please inform the Commodore that we've officially crossed the boarder with the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds. The light cruiser FWS Montgomery is hailing us."

"United Federation of Planets? Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds? Sounds very official." says Spaxter, pulling the black leather glove back on over the gauntlet. "Reminds me of an old episode of Space Ranger on TV."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:50, Fri 03 Apr 2020.

In reply to Sam Spaxter (msg # 33):

"You'll find that I am not that old at all!", says Khendron to Louella with a playful grin. He then adds, with a more serious note "Your colourful companion implied he used some sort of device—a 'jump' I think he called it—to get you here. Does that mean you are able to 'jump' away as well?"

"A jump is—well, I'm not a biochemist, so I'm not really sure how it works, but it's a pill, sort of like a gel-cap... you know, like for a cold medication, that you swallow and it transports you somewhere else. But it changes things, so I think it sort of flips you into another reality where you already are where you want to go. At least that's what the big brains think—I just know what I read or see on the newsbyte. I'm no scientist," says Louella.

It occurs to Khendron that if this jump is something biochemical and they've ingested it recently, there might be trace residue in their systems so he can figure out just what it is. He'll need to get Dr. Driveon to do a bioscan of them both as soon as possible. That would be a good idea anyway, if they did come directly from some post-Apocalyptic agrarian anti-tech society without the transporter and its biofilters.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:50, Fri 03 Apr 2020.

In reply to Louella (msg # 35):

" Captain Mercer, the guests are yours.  Mr. Spaxter and Ms. Goodbody, I'm needed on the bridge and I will leave you in the hands of my XO. Commodore, as you likely heard we are entering Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds, and are being hailed, we should return to the bridge. " Thelev said.

He steps over to the intercom and replies " Commander DesMarias, I have informed the Commodore, I'm on my way to the bridge. Commander Thoma prepare to open a channel to the FWS Montgomery. "

Before stepping out of the Crew Lounge he glances over to McCurrvey to see if he was coming.

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 36):

Khendron contacts Dr. Driveon and requests that he meet them in sick bay. He then gestures for the 2 visitors to accompany him.

"While the captain and the commodore are dealing with the natives," he says, "I'll take you to sick bay for a medical checkup. Then we can get you setup in some guest quarters.

"Will you be needing one or two cabins?" Khendron asks, catching Louelle's eye.

Arriving at the sickbay, Mercer and the two guests encounter Dr. Driveon, who approaches them. "Come this way, Mr. Spaxter and Ms. Goodbody. I'm Dr. Willard Driveon. We'll get your in-routine done right away. I'm told you were recently in a high-risk environment. This is Dr. Clearbranch and Nurse Parducci. They'll conduct your examination, Ms. Goodbody. I'll see to yours, Mr. Spaxter."

As Louella leaves with the doctor and nurse, Khendron overhears her ask the nurse, "Is that really Marcus Welby?" The door slides shut behind them, he muses that her surname certainly fits her and turns his attention to Driveon and Spaxter. Driveon has Spaxter sit on the edge of an examination bed and strip to the waist.

"Patient is a male Human, apparently in good health, well muscled and in his mid-thirties," Driveon begins, speaking clearly for the computer's audio pickup. "Patient has a cerebral implant and an enhanced prosthesis on his right hand. Patient indicates that he was recently in a post-war environment with an anti-technological agrarian culture. So, lets begin with a wide-spectrum immune booster..."

Khendron has available to him a console where he can examine the scans of Spaxter and his enhancements.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:13, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

As Thelev and McCurrvey enter the bridge, Thoma announces, "I have the captain of the Free Worlds Ship Montgomery on hailing frequencies. Captain de Laroche, go ahead, sir."


Captain de Laroche is a swarthy Human with a kepi and a waxed moustache. "Commodore, Captain, I am Henri de Laroche of the light cruiser Montgomery. Welcome to the Baker's Dozen. Captain Thelev, congratulations on your new command. It is my first time seeing one of your new Excelsiors up close, and I must say it makes the Monty look like a child's toy. Most impressive. I have been ordered to accompany you to Baker's World for Commodore McCurrvey's meeting with President Baker." Henri de Laroche is a short, stout man with a soft voice and a slight French accent.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:14, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

In reply to Commander Thoma (msg # 39):

Thelev stands in front of the center seat and replies. " Captain de Laroche, thank you very much.  The United Federation of Planets is pleased to be here to show our support to our ally the Baker' Dozen. If you and the Montgomery can lead the way we will follow you to Baker's World for the Commodore's meeting with Predisdent Baker. Hopefully during our visit to Baker's World we will find the time, so I can give you a tour of the USS Odyssey. "

In reply to Commander Thoma (msg # 39):

Meanwhile in sick bay, Khendron is looking at the scans the doctor is making with interest.

"By the way, Doctor," he says "Mr Spaxter's transportation method involves the ingestion of a pill. Be sure to look out for any odd biochemical traces in the bloodstream. We might need to reproduce it if Mr Spaxter ever wants to go home again."

A thought occurs to Khendron. "I am sorry, Mr Spaxter, I don't think anybody has asked you this. Do you have somewhere that you consider home? And why did you leave wherever you were before this?"

"Very well, Captain, Commodore. Again, welcome. I am transmitting a navigational course to your Cdr DesMarais." replies de Laroche.

The FWS Montgomery is an old Lancaster class light cruiser, obsolete by Federation standards but a powerful ship in its day. Collette taps in the course and Saavik engages the warp drive to follow the Monty at a comfortable Warp 5.

"ETA Baker's World in 47.8 hours," confirms Saavik.

Meanwhile, down in sickbay, Dr. Diveon has completed Spaxter's examination. "Now, you say you originated on Earth in the late 21^st century in a place called Million Mind City, which was an area enveloping old New York City through to Boston. You were a field officer for the American Central Intelligence Agency, who installed this Meld, an artificial psionic enhancer. You designed this gauntlet for the Agency, and at a later date it became fused to your body by an overload. Then, two years later you were reconstructed by this AI, MARS, who claimed that it had genetically engineered your body and infused it with a personality it had extrapolated from fictional accounts. We've done some research into your claims and can find no historical records of any MARS project. Indeed, it seems well beyond anything that was technologically possible at the time, especially given the devastation caused by World War III."

"World War what-now?" asks Spaxter. "That was averted when I was a kid—never happened!"

"What about Wierdstock?" asks Louella. "The alien invasion? Barada Nikto and the Callers?"

"Ah, yes. About that..." Dr. Driveon presses the intercom. "Dr. Smith, can you brief our friends on your findings?"

"Of course, doctor," replies the intercom. The door opens and Smith walks in.

"I've discovered references to an abandoned project proposed by DARPA to link three supercomputers together in the manner you've described, but they suffered a feedback loop and a complete failure. The project was abandoned in 2020. As for your rock concert, in 2024 there was indeed a Woodstock III on the original site of the famous rock concert, on its 55^th anniversary. The opening act was indeed a group named the callers, led by the infamous cult leader Barada Nikto, who had spiked all the food and beverages there with a psychoactive drug which caused mass hallucinations and hysteria," he states. "As for you, Mr. Spaxter, I have found references to you as a character in a 1986 audio drama written and starring one Jeff Green. The narrative of this drama follows your story. You, sir, appear to be a fictional character."

"Yeah, I get that a lot," replies Spaxter resignedly.

"Furthermore," interjects Driveon, "Both you and Ms. Goodbody do show signs of having been genetically engineered. However, you are not a product of the Nazi super-soldier programme that produced Khan Singh. In fact, you show signs of massive gene splicing. You are, in effect, completely artificial human beings."

"Indeed, your appearance seems also to be artificial. You look exactly like an actor from the early 21st century," Smith continues. He calls up a hologram of a man who closely resembles Spaxter. "Sam Spaxter, meet Nathan Fillion."

"Zam, Spax!" cries Louella, "That's you!"

[OOC: Insert Khendron's post here]

Spaxter looks completely flabbergasted. "Hell, I don't know... Home? What's that? I'll be damned if I can figure this whole thing out."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:34, Mon 06 Apr 2020.

In reply to Captain Henri de Laroche (msg # 42):

"Dr. Diveon," says Khendron, "if Mr. Spaxter and Ms. Goodbody are indeed artificial, do your scans give an indication of the actual age of their bodies, as opposed to their apparent age?"

He turns to Spaxter and Goodbody and adds "Sorry to be so blunt about it. Artificial or not, you are obviously sentient beings with feelings and by extension, rights. But we need to either confirm or refute the possibility that you have both been created specifically to be sent to this time and place, for some unknown purpose."

Another notion occurs to Khendron. "I wonder if there are any fans of 20th century audio dramas on board. I can't explain how, but perhaps somebody somehow conjured our guests up from their imagination. Dr. Smith, can you check if, other than for your research, any crew members have recently accessed such audio dramas in the ship's entertainment archives?"

[OOC: If you're interested in Spaxter's backstory, here it is as he experienced it: http://www.coldnorth.com/owen/files/Jeff%20Green/ ]

"So you're saying that what MARS told me wasn't just a dream or hallucination? So I'm some sort of clone? I'm not me? Even my face isn't mine, but this Fillion fellow's? Zam!" exclaims Spaxter.

"Spax, what the photon are you talking about? Ken, you're really freaking me out," says Louella. "I'm not sure I can wrap my mind around this."

Driveon pulls out the remote peripheral for his tricorder. It warbles as he points it at Louella. "Easy miss. Your blood pressure is spiking. Breathe slowly. Nurse, please prepare a hypospray with 5cc improvoline. It'll help you relax, Ms. Goodbody."

Nurse Parducci produces the hypo and Louella submits to the shot. She relaxes and says, "Whoo—sorry. Like I said, I'm a little freaked out. Spax, did you know about this?" She looks as if she's going to cry.

"Sorry, baby, but I half-didn't believe it myself. Then, when the aliens showed up there wasn't time. Once we wound up back in South America there didn't seem to be any point." says Spaxter.

"Well, I'm pissed off at you, Spax!" She turns  away from Spaxter, tears trickling down her cheeks.

Driveon says, "Louella, would you like some privacy? Andrea?" he looks to Nurse Parducci. "Show Ms. Goodbody to the meditation room, would you?"

"So, I'm gonna have to accept the fact that I'm only..." he looks at the doctor... "What, a week old?"

"Well, biologically, a little older than that. The accelerated maturation this MARS put you through developed you to be cosmetically about 35—36 years old, but there's absolutely no wear and tear on your systems, no genetic diseases or weaknesses, so physically you're in your prime. Say, 18 years old... -ish. You're in excellent shape. Not Olympic level, but extremely athletic. Louella, as well. However, you are, aside from your implants, pure Human, not an android or anything like that. You're in peak condition, but nothing to indicate that you're... enhanced. You should live a long and active life; both of you." Driveon leans back in his chair.

Meanwhile, Khendron has cursorily analysed the readings on Spaxter's implant and gauntlet. The implant seems to incorporate neural boosters and self-repair circuitry. He's not certain how to evaluate Spaxter's claims that it is some sort of mind-meld equipment and/or psi shield. While such things are theoretically possible, Federation science is undeveloped in this area... The gauntlet, on the other hand, seems to have some sort of intravenous feeding system, incredible grip strength, reinforced striking surfaces, and a peculiar mechanism which may be some sort of hand-to-hand defensive weapon.

The communications system chimes. "XO to the bridge, please." comes Thoma's voice.

In reply to Sam Spaxter (msg # 45):

Once on our way Thelev turns to science " Basic long range scans of the systems and planets we pass on our way to Baker's World.  Mainly want to confirm everything is consistent with Star Fleets records, let me know if anything is strange. Oh yeah, also let me know if you spot the IKS, they have as much right to be here as us, but still would like to know if they are around. "

Bowman calls out, "Got something on sensors! Looks like a small vessel—no life signs, no power. Scans reveal it to be a Sub Pro JS-77B Interstellar Shuttle, a model used on Colil V. Reading energy weapons damage. Thoma, call the Science Officer, please."

At the sight of the wrecked shuttle, Thoma toggles the red alert and says "XO to the bridge, please."

Matt calls up an image on the main screen.

It is a boxy little craft with a cargo door on the port side. The cargo door is open to space and several standard 1m³ cargo boxes drift nearby. The boxes are open and small items and packing material drift nearby. A single humanoid in an unhelmeted space suit floats among the flotsam and jetsam.

Khendron arrives and relieves Matt at the science station.

In reply to Lt. Commander Matt Bowman (msg # 47):

Before being called to the bridge, Khendron forwards the results of the readings on Spaxter's implant and gauntlet to Trask in security, attaching a note that while he doesn't anticipate any trouble from Spaxter, an "tactical" analysis of his physical and combat capabilities would be prudent.

Upon hearing the red alert, Khendron rushes to the bridge and take over the science station. He runs some more scans on the drifting vessel, trying to determine when the energy weapon damage occurred. He also scans the drifting huminoid figure for life signs, on the off chance that, contrary to all visual indications, the person is only mostly dead.

The humanoid figure is most certainly dead [not just merely dead, but most sincerely dead], its head surrounded by a halo of frozen blood crystals from a nosebleed and punctured eardrums. Unlike in the holodramas, peoples' heads don't explode when exposed to hard vacuum.

The blast marks and carbon scoring indicate an attack using generic disruptor fire some time in the last 24 hours. A query to the Monty reveals that the shuttle is four hours late for its rendezvous.

Major Bilgebottom asks, "Permission to send a boarding party over to investigate and recover the body, sir!" The marine commandant, despite massing a quarter of a tonne, walks so silently that Kendron had not heard his approach.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:55, Thu 09 Apr 2020.

Lieutenant (jg) Andrew York, the duty tactical officer announces, "No ships within sensor range. Deck plan for the JS-77B shuttle on the screen."

"The shuttle has a nominal crew complement of two, helm and flight engineer; and bunks for two passengers. Current crew listed as PO3^rdclass Susan Lawson, helmsman, Starfleet; and Crewman 1^stclass Jack Drayton, AFOFW Navy. No passengers on the manifest. Scans indicate the body in free fall is a male Human, most likely crewman Drayton. I have a transporter lock on the body."
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:17, Sat 11 Apr 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 50):

" Drop shields and beam the body aboard and get it to sick bay. We need to confirm cause of death was actually decompression. As soon as we have it get the shields back-up"

" Major coordinate with the Montgomery and send over a party to locate the second crew member and the shuttles logs, they should be able to give you any codes needed to get the logs quickly, share everything you find out with them, it is their shuttle we are here to help.  Need to know what happened to it. When ready to go let us know so we can drop shields for as short of time as needed. " Thelev orders.

Turning to Khendron he says " Full scan of the area, make sure there is nothing out there, no mines, no cloaked ships, no surprises. "

" Commander Thoma, get me the Montgomery. "

The Montgomery's communications officer puts Captain de Laroche on the line. "Yes, Captain Thelev, what are your results?"

Meanwhile, Dr. Driveon reports, "Body received in sickbay. Preliminary examination indicates the cause of death to be explosive decompression. No signs of weapons use against the deceased. I'll keep you advised."

"Aye, aye, sir!" With that, Bilgebottom leaves the bridge to head to the transporter room.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:19, Fri 10 Apr 2020.

Several minutes later, Bilgebottom contacts the Odyssey from the JS-77B shuttle, "Captain, we're aboard. The entire shuttle is decompressed. Petty Officer Lawson is dead. She sustained plasma burns from an exploding console in the cockpit. Debris floating in the cockpit indicates someone opened up a trauma kit to treat her, but there are indications of a close-range disruptor bolt to the back of her head. The shuttle has been ransacked. There are two standard helmets in their racks, so it would seem that neither Lawson nor Drayton had a chance to don them. No other bodies are aboard. The cargo bay is empty aside from floating debris from ransacked cargo containers."

In reply to Major Korran Bilgebottom (msg # 53):

Khendron has thoroughly scanned the are, looking for close-by danger and also for long range traces of any ships that might have been the attacker.

"Sounds like pirates!" says Khendron when he hears Bilgebottom's report. "But why would somebody shoot her in the back of the head and then decompress? Maybe the pirates beamed on board, killed the petty officer, and somehow ended up in a firefight with the other crewman. So they blew the hatch just to rush things long."

"Captain," Khendron days to Thelev, "We should ask the Montgomery if the MO here matches any recent incident in the area. Also, should we take the ship in tow, or see if can proceed under its own power?"

Lawson's file comes up on Khendron's display. She's a 37-year-old Human Starfleet Petty Officer 3^rd class assigned to the Colil V project as a shuttle pilot.

Bilgebottom's video reveals that she had received some first aid for her plasma burns before her murder.

Ensign Marc Goldberg, the RN accompanying the boarding party reports, "I've got the tricorder from the shuttle's medkit. It records that twelve hours ago she was diagnosed with moderate to severe plasma burns to her face and upper chest. A sedative was administered by hypospray. At some later point—Dr. Driveon should be able to narrow it down—she was shot at close range by a disruptor set to kill."

Bilgebottom replies to Khendron, "Pirates would be my bet, too. Preserver artifacts are a lucrative commodity on the black market." He pauses and then continues, "The computer records indicate that the shuttle's atmosphere was flushed about ten hours ago. The bunkrooms show signs of having been searched—slashed mattresses and ransacked effects lockers. No signs of any firefight, though. Just the one shot to the helmsman at close range. The cargo hold was apparently rifled and unwanted items discarded before the shuttle was evacuated of atmosphere. Looks like they opened the cargo door on their way out, spacing Drayton. Nasty way to go. I want these bastards."

Once Bilgebottom and his team have gone over the shuttle and recorded everything, the shuttle is tractored into the large hangar bay and all jetsam and flotsam transported to a lab for exhamination.

After his autopsy of Drayton, Dr. Driveon is able to confirm that he'd been stunned, but had recovered consciousness before being spaced. Khendron is able to detect Impulse residue characteristic of an Orion Lightning class blockade runner, a favourite with pirates in the triangle. The viciousness of the attack is unusual for most known pirates.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:21, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

The Monty's captain agrees that the violence seems both unusual and unnecessary. The only pirate active in the area who would fit this MO would be a half-Orion known as Calista the Damned, a particularly evil psychopath. Her First Mate, an Andorian zhen going by the name Jasmine seems to really enjoy spacing her victims, but the shot to the head is characteristic of Calista. Further, they are known to fly a Lightning class named the Armida IV.


McCurrvey, Thelev and Mercer all recall Calista and Jasmine from several reports of pirate activity years ago in the Federation. Rumours abounded when she went off the radar that she'd headed for the Triangle.

Calista earned her sobriquet from reports that she believes she's possessed by a supernatural entity named Verlegg. She has lost an eye and at least one limb during her career, and has a glossy black, silver-chased prosthetic hand.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:48, Sat 05 June 2021.

In reply to Captain Henri de Laroche (msg # 56):

Thelev relays the intel to the Montgomery and turns to Mercer, “ Can you pick up the trail of the Armida IV. “

“ Thoma, get me de Laroche. I want to know if he is okay with us, pursuing and capture the crew of the Armida IV “

“ Commodore, I feel we need to go after the Armida IV while the trail is fresh.  They did attack a Federation ship. “ Thelev states to McCurrvey.

[OOC: Just to correct a couple of misunderstandings...

I. The Baker's Dozen (AoOFW) is an independent stellar nation, so IKS ships are not permitted to operate in the sector without official recognition. Outside of the AoOFW space, but within the Triangle, is on the "high seas", or interstellar non-aligned space. The Federation is formally allied with the AoOFW, and is empowered under normal circumstances to assist AoOFW ships to repel intruders and pirates.

II. The JS-77B is not a Federation shuttle, but rather an AoOFW craft assigned to Colil V, a protected treaty area with a Preserver ruin. It is manned by both AoOFW and Starfleet personnel, which is whey a Starfleet PO was manning the helm. However, under the UFP/AoOFW alliance, Starfleet does extend its protection to such shuttles. Therefore, both the Montgomery and the Odyssey are empowered to enforce AoOFW laws.]

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 58):

Khendron works with the Montgomery to gather any information available about the Armida IV. Knowing what to look for, he starts scanning the area to try and pick up a trail.

Khendron calls up the available info on the Lightning class Blockade Runner. Little is available specifically on the Armida IV, but the closest to a "standard" Lightning comes up as: The Blockade Runner is an example of an Orion pirate ship, though not a true ship class as Orions have no standard classes. It was designed for high speed but little defense; instead, speed is its defense. It has six Klingon-designed disruptors, with two forward, one starboard, one port, and two aft. It has a standard range of six years at LYV. Despite its small size, it is quite sturdy, as the superstructure is reinforced throughout. It masses 20,000 tonnes empty.  Based on previous encounters, Armida IV is capable of cruising at WF10 and has an estimated emergency speed of WF15 for six hours. It has six Klingon Type VII disruptors but no photon torpedoes, and its deflectors are estimated at 36/50. It is a tough little ship, capable of giving the Odyssey a run for its money. Known crew members are Captain Calista the Damned, a Klingon named Morgue (real name Morgh) as First Mate and Security Chief Jasmine d'Arque. Other crew come and go, but those are the core, though reports vary as to the positions held by Morgue and Jasmine. At its largest, the crew numbers only about a dozen, currently including a pair of Nausicaan brothers and a Gorn engineer.

Capt Thelev, you have my full backing.  Let’s get these bastards.  I speak to Capt DeLaroche to formally ask permission to deviate our mission.  We should be able to take a bit of time and still make our rendezvous.

I also try to contact Baker’s World to tell them of our deviation.

"I agree with your decision, mon ami. However, even with your formidable ship, the Calista is a dangerous enemy. In truth there does seem to be something supernatural about her. Even with such a tiny ship she seems to always come out ahead." De Laroche seems uneasy. "But yes, I also think we should seek the advice of President Baker, just to, as one would say, cover our derrieres, n'est-ce pas?

Thoma reports, "I have the Presidential Office on Baker's World on hailing frequencies." She says to the AoOFW communications officer, "Go ahead, sir."

The AoOFW officer appears on screen against a background of the Office of the AoOFW President. He relies, "USS Odyssey, we read you. President Baker is on the horn with Captain de Laroche. I'll patch you through."

The screen splits into two, showing de Laroche and a middle-aged, flashily dressed Human with gray hair and a thin moustache.

Baker looks at McCurrvey's image onscreen and straightens in his chair. "Why, good day Commodore! Captain de Laroche has just been briefing me on your proposal as regards the notorious pirate queen Calista the Damned," he drawls in a Southern accent.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:25, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

President Baker!  My greeting to you from the United Federation of Planets and Starfleet.  The recent incident we uncovered has left me concerned with the safety of Starfleet personnel in the area.  I am sure you are equally concerned with the safety of your citizens.  With your permission, we would like to attempt to bring this pirate to justice.  As we are within your sovereign borders, any action we take will be communicated to you and any subsequent judicial procedures will be done in conjunction with your government.  Do we have your permission to pursue this matter?  Please be assured that we intend to use the least possible force possible.  However, we will defend this ship and her crew.

[OOC: Sorry for the delay. Real life interrupts...]

Before we continue: Due to a brain fart, I neglected to post the guidelines for formatting posts...

Format for posts: Action will be described in the third person in the present tense, as in: Jim walks onto the bridge and crosses to his seat. Dialogue will be in quotation marks and bold-faced with italics for emphasis, as in: He snaps,"Scotty, I need Warp nine now!" Thoughts are to be in quotes and italics with bold for emphasis, as in: Scotty thinks to himself "Hold yer bluidy horses, Sair!" Telepathic communications will be in angled brackets marks and bolded, as in: Spock begins the meld - <My mind to your mind... Our minds are one..> Ship names are to italicised with the registration number in plain text: USS Odyssey NCC-2001.
[OOC comments should be on a separate line in red boldface and prefaced OOC:]

Anyway, onward!

Baker steeples his fingers and purses his lips. He's obviously a long-time politician and is aware of his every moove and expression—not in a smarmy way, but in the sense that constant practice leads to habit. "Ah understand that a Federation pilot and one of our crewmen were killed with some measure of brutality. Ah expect justice to be swift, but Ah want these pirates alive. We in the AOFW do not have the death penalty, but we do have very secure prisons and prisoners are not pandered to, if you catch mah meanin'..."

Once the subspace conference is over, Bilgebottom comes into Brad's Ready Room. "Well, sir," he rumbles, "We've got the shuttle aboard in the lower hangar deck. It's a bit of a mess, and the bastards have slagged the computer, but we've received a copy of the manifest from the Colil V installation. We've also retrieved all the flotsam and are going over it with a fine toothed comb, cross-checking it with the manifest. However, there is one teensy little thing missing... The shuttle was carrying a passenger—a female reseacher on loan from the Daystrom Institute—one Carol Marcus. I think you're familiar with her, being the ex-wife of James Kirk and all. We've isolated some DNA from the toiletries and hairbrush. No signs of her other than that."

The bridge reports ready to engage War Drive, and Brad can feel the familiar vibrations in the decksole. Thoma's voice comes over the tannoy, "The ship is at battle stations. This is not a drill."
This message was last edited by the player at 07:08, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

In reply to President Willis J.F. Baker (msg # 66):

As Thelev hurries on to the bridge, " Tactical put what we have on the main viewer. Shields to maximum. For now strictly a defense posture. Can you tell me what we have? "

He turns to Thoma and says " Open a channel to whatever ship is out there. "

Thoma replies, "Aye, Captain, hailing frequency open."

Lieutenant Ramirez reports, "Tactical on screen. Shields up. Weapons on standby. Suspect ship is an Orion Lightning class Blockade Runner, highly customised of course. Details copied to your PADD, sir."

Glancing at his PADD, Thelev sees the tactical estimate on the Armida IV, based on old records from Starfleet cross-referenced with the AOFW's records and the "standard" Lightning class. Many details are rated unreliable or conjectural, but it's the best information available.

This message was last edited by the player at 17:05, Tue 21 Apr 2020.

In reply to Commander Thoma (msg # 68):

" Unidentified Orion ship, this is the United Federation of Planet ship USS Odyssey working with AOFW to investigate a situation in this region. Please stand-down at once. " Thelev says before closing his channel to instruct his crew.

" Remember we need to first confirm this is the ship that attacked the shuttle and if Dr. Marcus is still on board.  If she is, we need to determine how to get her off that ship safely. Also remember President Baker has told us that the AOFW does not have the death penalty so we must do everything within reason to take their crew alive. " he tells his crew.

Turning to Ramirez he adds " Ramirez they are quicker than us at maximum warp so if they try to run we need to prevent them from jumping to warp. "

Turning to Thoma " Commander can you confirm if they received our signal, and is there any response. "
This message was last edited by the player at 16:46, Tue 21 Apr 2020.

[OOC: Sorry, Steve, I was updating my reply when you answered. Nothing in the update changes what you posted. Just FYI, the screen are highly a modified screen capture from the old Star Trek Starship Tactical Combat Simulator computer game. Amazing what Google images can find that you can twist and distort for your own purposes.Here's the original image:

]
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:12, Tue 21 Apr 2020.

Thoma says, "I'm pretty certain they heard us, but there's no reply. Like, as I suspect, you expected. Pirates are so uncooperative. Calista the damned—is that the one who claims she's possessed by a demon? There's a real piece of work, a real cast duranium bitch if there ever was one."

Thelev can tell his wife is taking this one seriously. She's normally rather taciturn on duty, but the wanton brutality of the murder of PO Lawson has gotten under her skin. Why blow a wounded, probably unconscious woman's brains all over the cockpit? Just for the hell of it?

Thoma pauses and answers a hail. "I've got a secure call for the commodore. Putting it through to the Flag Ready Room."

McCurrvey is engaged in some of what is still in the 23rd century is called by the anachronistic term paperwork even though it's almost all electronic, and even the odd printout is on disposable polymer; when Thoma puts the call through.

"Secure call for Commodore McCurrvey, Bradron NMI. Identify for retina scan."

Brad looks into the viewer and a laser scans the inner surface of his eyeball.

The screen remains blank, showing only the Federation flag. A familiar voice comes over the commlink, "Hey, Brad, how's your mission going? It just came across my desk that you've had a piracy incident. Just between you and me, we've got a cooperating venture in your area. You remember a Cdore Ch'Dalvi? Andorian—resigned a few years back?"

Brad does recall Ch'Dalvi, a gregarious Andorian officer who was enraged by the demotion of Kirk and publicly resigned his commission on the floor of the Federation Council.

Boren continues, "At any rate, he got a job from one of his cousins—or whatever, you know how convoluted Andorian clan relationships are—a group called Rover Security. Doing antipiracy patrols. His boss has a real hate for pirates, especially Orions. Bit of a bigot that way—thinks all Orions are in some way pirates themselves. Anyway, Ch'Dalvi is in command of one of Rover Security's ships, Red Rover—you know, like the old kids' game—and he and his companion ship Blue Rover are in the Dozen. They're a pair of up-gunned Solar class cutters. Normally he's a kind of take-no-prisoners type of chan, but he'll play by the rules and try to capture them.

"At any rate, this is a need-to-know mission, so only your most trusted officers should know any details."
This message was last edited by the player at 07:06, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

In reply to Commander Thoma (msg # 71):

Meanwhile, back on the bridge, Khendron is thoroughly scanning the other ship, trying to match what he sees with the energy weapon damage and other traces picked up at the scene of the crime. This includes scanning for cargo matching what has been deemed stolen, and trying to find a life sign matching Dr. Marcus.

[OOC: Sorry Dave, you haven't tracked down the pirate ship yet, just put out a broadcast to put the fear into them. However, you do have the shuttle in your hangar bay and security assisted by the marines are going over it with a fine-toothed comb to see if anything aside from Dr. Marcus is missing.]

"Security to XO, Trask here," says the intercom. "All we're finding is that they seem to have only picked through the cargo for anything that looks remotely valuable. Of course any Preserver artefacts are gone, but it seems to have only been small items of archæological value. Equally to be expected is the fact that all personal weapons and all unopened medical supplies are gone. They even stripped the shuttle's defensive Type 4 Phaser unit and the dilithium crystals.

On the other hand, Mr. Spaxter and Ms. Goodbody are curious about the red alert. They want to know if space pirates are 'really a thing', as Spaxter phrased it I assured him they very much are."
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:35, Fri 24 Apr 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 73):

[OOC: Oh, I thought we had already caught up to an unidentified Orion ship]

"Seems odd that the pirates would hit a ship like this for such a small gain," replies Khendron to Trask. "I mean, they might be psycho, but they are also profit minded."

Khendron ponders for a few moments, and then adds "It is possible that this hit was entirely motived to capture Dr. Marcus, and anything else taken was just opportunistic. On the other hand, look for any evidence that there may have been some 'off the record' cargo also being carried. Any signs of a secret manifest stored anywhere?"

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 74):

[OOC: I am assuming McCurrvey has not told us his latest intel.]

" Science, tactical.  I want to know everything about that ship, down to the number of Joules they are capable of, their full weapons array, everything.  Number of crew and passengers are aboard, how many humans and their exact location.  Worst comes to worst if we get an opportunity we will beam all human females off.  Also make sure you have a targetting plan for hitting their warp drives, we have to make sure they can't run. " Thelev commands.

" And remember they may have some none standard weapons, we need to be modulating our shield frequency at all times. Be sure it is off standard protocol, these are pirates, who knows what they have bought or stolen. " Thelev adds. " don't get to paranoid here, I'm sure 11 is high enough right now. As he does a quick glance to Thoma to centre himself as he worries how Vethina is reacting, being sure Miss Stone knows what she is doing."

Khendron, perhaps following his hunch about Dr. Marcus, looks up Dr. Carol Marcus and finds a huge section marked EYES ONLY - PROJECT GENESIS. He remembers a confrontation between the Klingons and the Federation six years ago regarding a secret weapons project code-named Genesis, or so the Klingons claimed. The Federation maintained it was a classified experimental terraforming project. It had resulted in the loss of the Regula One space station and the interdiction of the Mutara Nebula for several years. During the incident, the Miranda class light cruiser USS Reliant was lost, as was Dr. Marcus's son, Dr. David Marcus. Conspiracy theorists (among them the Brotherhood of Federation Patriots) linked the incident to the infamous 20^th century warlord and terrorist Khan Noonian Singh, though the connexion seemed tenuous at best. Khendron has a Seclar that covers this level of information, and since Dr. Marcus has been captured by a party or parties unknown with possible links to the Orion Syndicate, he is immediately cleared for access.

What is revealed is a video briefing by Dr. Carol Marcus and a brief reaction by the command crew of the USS Enterprise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnziufszqSE
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:40, Tue 28 Apr 2020.

In reply to Thelev's demand for data, Tactical comes up with a data pack on the Armida IV, tentatively identified as the ship involved. Captained by an Orion/Human hybrid with he colourful nom-de-guerre Calista the Damned, the Armida IV is a modified Lightning class Blockade Runner. Powered by Orion-modified Klingon graf Warp engines, the Armida is armed with six heavy starship phasers. As there is no true standard for the Lightning class, all information is tagged conjectural but it looks like a nasty little bugger of a ship. Much of what is known is derived from a captured crew member, a Romulan Tal Shiar agent embedded with the crew. Unfortunately, he was traded to the Romulan Star Empire in a prisoner exchange two years ago.

Scanning the area, Khendron eventually detects warp plasma residue in the surrounding space, indicating the direction in which the pirate vessel fled. The traces indicate that like many Orion-modified warp engines, there is an identifiable signature to the plasma. Based on previous encounters, the computer estimates a 95% probability that this is the Armida IV. Plotting a rough esitmate of the Armida's course, it seems to be heading in the rough direction of the planet Hoot, on the edge of Baker's Dozen space.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 78):

Given the secrecy surrounding the information he has uncovered, Khendron requests to meet with the Thelev and McCurrvey in the Captain's Ready Room. He summarizes what he has found, and shows them the Project Genesis video. Khendron finds himself agreeing with Dr. McCoy, and is horrified at the very idea of such a project, and personally questions the motives of anybody involved in creating it.

"It is probably a safe assumption that Dr. Marcus has been abducted because of her involvement in this project," Khendron concludes. "Even if that is NOT true, she has very dangerous knowledge that cannot be allowed to fall into the wrong hands!! And there is always the—however unpleasant—possibility that she went willingly and according to plan! Perhaps she's looking for a place to continue her research! Why else would she be outside the Federation?!!"

Khendron realizes that his voice has become quite heated, and has to visible calm himself before continuing. "Anyway, I've picked up a trailing leading in the direction of planet Hoot, on the edge of Baker's Dozen space. We must pursue as quickly as possible!"

Smith regards Khendron gravely. He begins frankly, "In the 316 years since I was first activated, I have studied Human behaviour patterns. Though Emil Vaslovik's initial programming was corrupted by the so-called experts at the University, my good friend and mentor Jerry Robinson taught me to be a good judge of character. It is my judgement that Carol Marcus is what he would call good people. She is profoundly aware of the misuse that her work may be put to, as was her son, Dr. David Marcus, who gave his life to prevent its perversion by the Klingons. Indeed, he himself was afraid that Starfleet officers like yourself might not be able to be trusted to use the technology ethically. When the large-scale test-bed version of Project Genesis failed so spectacularly, she worked tirelessly to make something good come from the ashes of failure. To a great measure she succeeded. Her replicator device which is currently undergoing its first field test on this very ship is but a sample. More than anything else, it may shepherd humanity into a true post-scarcity age. This Calista will have to kill her before she allows the dreadful perversion of her life's work and that of her son."

Smith rarely delves deeply into his past but Khendron briefly spots a deep sadness in his eyes for all the good people the Questor android has known, come to love and eventually lost. "It is people like you, Leonard McCoy, whose reaction you just watched in the Enterprise's log, and David Marcus who will prevent another such misuse of science."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:29, Mon 04 May 2020.

In reply to Dr. John Smith (msg # 80):

Khendron is quite touched by Smith's uncharacteristic frankness. Although on an emotional level he's still not convinced about Dr Marcus's character, given what she created, he will for now give her the benefit of the doubt.

"Captain," Khendron says to Thelev. "Shall we pursue them to the Hoot system?"

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 81):

"DesMarais coordinate with Captain Mercer and lay in a course to pursue.  Helm, plan to pursue at W10.  Mercer, let me know if we are gaining or losing ground on them based on the warp signature trace strength. " Thelev replies.

" Helm if we are losing ground to them increase speed. Would like to catch them before they get to the Hoot system. " he adds.

Turning to everyone Thelev says, " Remember their maximum speed is W15 so they can out run us. Once we have them on long range sensor we need to stay at max sensor range so they don't pick us up and then loop around them. Our sensors should be better than theirs. We need to prevent them getting to a safe space where they may have support. "

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 82):

As the helm lays in the coordinates and start pursuit, Khendron starts a continuous scan of the warp trail, attempting to judge if there is a hope of catching up. He sees if it is possible to determine from the warp signature what warp the ship was travelling at.

"Sir," Khendron says to Thelev after a few minutes of pursuit. "A reminder. We do have that silver ball thing in engineering. Could we use it to get the jump on our quarry, and get to the Hoot system before they do?"

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 83):

" Silver ball check, Dr. Smith check, Wesson no, next most experienced person Thelev, not in engineering.  Tested on this ship, no. Big risk to pull it out now. " Thelev thinks to himself.

OOC: I assuming since both Dr. Smith and I just joined the Odyssey that the silver ball was just installed and since we never said we tested it, that it is untested on this ship at this time

" We will keep the silver ball in our back pocket for now.  If we use it we lose the trail for sure, and if they change course we will never know; " Thelev replies to Mercer.

" If we catch them and they go to something greater than Warp 14 then we can always pull it out. " he adds

"Actually, I was intimately involved with the construction and installation of the device on the Odyssey," says Smith. "The Dyson Institute of Technology oversaw every step of the process. Odyssey was due for its four-year refit, and Dr. Dyson saw the opportunity to promote the use of a first-rate ship-of-the-line with the latest iteration of the Quantum Para-Dimensional Transport Device. Integration of the device into the ship took six months. True, the current iteration of the Silver Ball has not been field-tested, but the last two years have been spent testing it in lab conditions and the Excalibur's experience with the device has been gone over with a fine toothed comb. The device is ready to be tested under field conditions and that is a major part of the mission of the USS Odyssey. we've been working on several algorithms to make it more reliable and to target it accurately. We'll keep it powered up and in standby mode for use at your discretion, Captain." He sounds confident that the device will work as advertised.

"It was during the refit that I came to know Carol Marcus and respect her as she worked on installing the new replicator systems," he concludes.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:13, Thu 07 May 2020.

In reply to Dr. John Smith (msg # 85):

Khendron continues his scans of the warp trail, trying to figure out what speed they were travelling and whether or not the Odyssey is gaining or losing ground.

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 86):

" Khendron, do you think we are gaining or losing ground on them.  I don't want to go to fast and give them a chance for their sensors to pick us up before we can loop around them. " ask Thelev. " But of course I do want to catch them before they get back to Hoot. " he adds.

Khendron notes that the warp residue indicates a relatively high warp velocity from a graf-style warp engine, though not to the extent of being at emergency power. That means, at least, that they aren't doing their estimated top speed of warp 15. Running more simulations, Khendron comes up with a probable speed of about warp 10-11, easily within Odyssey's safe speed. Collette confirms that the course leads to the Hoot system.

Meanwhile, in the Flag ready room, Brad is able to track down the Romulan spy, as Starfleet keeps careful tabs on ex-prisoners. His name is Tevan, and he's a centurion in Romulan military intelligence, the Tal Diann; last known to be stationed at Romulan Starbase One, about nine parsecs or twenty one light years from the Baker's Dozen.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:43, Mon 11 May 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 88):

Khendron reports his findings to Thelev.

"Sir," he says. "Shall catch up and plot a course around them, keeping them just in sensor range? There is always the danger that they might pick us up and make a dash for it, but if they don't we should be able to get to the Hoot system before they do."

As he is saying this, Khendron runs some numbers through the computer to make sure he's not lying.

In reply to Captain Khendron Mercer (msg # 89):

" Let's try to plot a course around, if they dash then we can jump. " I would like to keep the QPDTD in our back pocket. " Thelev replies

" Dr. Smith, keep adjusting the jump so we can activity the sphere if need be. " he adds

Thelev then turns to everyone " Remember priority one is retreive Dr. Marcus and her research, after that we want to capture the crew of the ship to take them back to face trial."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:37, Sat 16 May 2020.

Receiving a chorus of "Aye aye, sir" from the bridge crew, Thelev sits back in his chair as the mighty ship surges forward. Years as an engineer allow him to get a feel of how the ship is operating from the frequency of the vibrations in the decksole, and he feels confident that all is well. He just hopes that the Silver Ball is just as reliable.

He begins musing about the test programme involving family members aboard starships. While he is immensely grateful to be allowed to be an intimate part of Vethia's formative years, a part of him wonders if he can live with himself if anything should happen to her on his watch. Resolving to make sure that nothing does happen, he makes a mental note to talk to Brad, who is similarly in this new situation. He tests out the replicator by ordering a mug of Katheka, an Andorian stimulant drink that is very similar to Terran coffee. The machine makes a good cup of the drink, strong and faintly bitter. Smiling, he decides that that is yet another reason to rescue Carol Marcus.

After about five hours, Thoma snaps him out of his reverie. "Captain, we're receiving what appears to be a distress call—faint and garbled."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:54, Tue 19 May 2020.

"Putting the distress call on speaker," say Thoma.

There is a brief crackle of subspace interference. "—ention any ship—<crackle>—are under attack by—own Lightning class—ull breach, atmo—ping. Many injuries and several dead. I say again, Attent— is the merchant cruiser —" The distress call goes silent.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:29, Sat 23 May 2020.

In reply to Commander Thoma (msg # 92):

"Do we know where the ship is, is it on course for them to be engaged by Armida IV. " Thelev asks.

" If so plot a jump with the sphere to put us just past the mechant ships location. If its a trap I want to be behind the Armida IV, if they are still engaged I want to be between where they are and where they are going. " he says to Smith.

" Red Alert, be prepared to engage the Armida IV as soon as we jump. "

"Attention all hands, we are about to engage the Quantum Para-Dimensional Transport Device. Blue Alert. I say again Blue Alert. Immediately upon jump, Red Alert will remain in effect." announces Smith over intership.
[OOC: I thought Discovery's Black Alert was kinda dumb, but this .gif was available and I liked it, so we'll run with it.]

The lights dim and there is a noticeable DISCONTINUITY, then the ship appears close to the desired coordinates. Smith pats the console approvingly.


"Captain, jump was successful." His voice sounds almost emotional.

Khendron begins receiving confirmation from all stations that they are on combat alert.

"Captain, detecting the distress signal. Range: five light seconds," reports Thoma. She puts it on speaker.
"—ention any ship—<crackle>—are under attack by—own Lightning class—ull breach, atmo—ping. Many injuries and several dead. I say again, Attent— is the merchant cruiser —"
"Damn it!" she exclaims. That's the exact same transmission, right down to the static breaks. It's a decoy!" Thoma sounds well and truly pissed off.

Ramirez at tactical reports, "No ship or any wreckage detected at that point. There's indications that the Armida went to full emergency speed directly to zenith. Son of a bitch!"

"Transmission is a point source, probably a small buoy," confirms Thoma.

"Tabarnac!" swears DesMarais. A Quebecoise accent, usually absent from her speech, slips out.

Smith clears his throat. "As my friend Jerry would say, 'We've been had.'"

"We're being hailed—it's the Montgomery using secure code 3, sir!" says Thoma wryly.

"Odyssey, this is the Montgomery. What 'as 'appened? There was a glowing field effect 1.4 kilometres in diametre and you simply vanished off our sensors! Odyssey, are you receiving me?" De Laroche sounds distressed. "Odyssey, sensors report you have appeared an entire parsec away! Comment ça va?"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:21, Sun 24 May 2020.

Ramirez reports, "The transmission source is in a small metal cylindre about 16cm in diametre, 17.5cm in length. No weapons or explosives detected. Now that we're in close range, I've got a visual."


"It's a fucking coffee can! And there's a note on it! It's in English and it says 'Crybaby'! Hijo de puta!" Ramirez sounds ready to chew stembolts and spit out razor wire.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:50, Sun 24 May 2020.

In reply to Lieutenant Juan Carlos Ramirez (msg # 96):

"I was concerned that the signal might be a fake," says Khendron. "Unfortunately, there is little way to know otherwise without looking.

"What is more concerning," Khendron muses, "is why they deployed a diversion. Did they detect our pursuit? If they did, their sensors are far superior to what we thought. Better than ours, apparently, since we did not detect them. Or perhaps they were warned, in which case there is an informer in our midst!"

Khendron continues, "It will be prudent to do another jump as soon as the silver ball is ready, if we can determine a likely destination. Our quarry might not yet know of our jump capability, but if there is an informer they soon will! We should use the advantage while we can."

Khendron does another sensor scan. If the Armida IV is at emergency speed—not to mention that they probably just recently left the area—their trail should be easier to pick up.

"We've managed to get the regeneration time on the device down to thirty-three minutes," advises Smith. "We're presently at twenty-five and counting..."

Thoma asks, "What about the Montgomery? We can't just leave de Laroche hanging out to dry. Shall I ask the Commodore to weigh in?"

Meanwhile, in the Flag Ready Room:

The door chime sounds. Krya says "Dad, can I come in? What just happened? Is this that secret device that everyone is so careful not to talk about? Are the pirates getting away?

"I've been reading up on this Calista character. Most of what's out there on the dataweb is pretty lurid. Seems she really does think she's possessed by some demon named Verlegg. Claims he's repossessing her one body part at a time. That's why she has an artificial hand and the eyepatch—she sacrificed them to her patron demon in exchange for mystical powers. They say she's over half a century old, but has eternal youth, that she's half-Orion and half-Human and that no man can resist her allure. Maybe Spax can help—he's supposed to be some super-hero out of the twenty-first century after all."

Clearly Kyra follows in her father's footsteps. Brad's not sure that's a good thing. At any rate she's plugged into the ship's scuttlebutt pretty well for only a touch over a week.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:50, Wed 27 May 2020.

In reply to Kyra McCurrvey (msg # 99):

Sorry guys to have been off for so long.  Things have been...interesting.

“Come”

McCurrvey turns off his screen as the door opens.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:56, Wed 27 May 2020.

Kyra enters at Brad's answer and gives the speech detailed above. She hands him a PADD with all the information she's been able to gather on Calista, and piracy in the Triangle in general. She points out that in the past few years, pirates have been fleeing their known haunts in the Federation for destinations unknown. The planet Tortuge in the Twilight Nebula has been abandoned, according to a story by Federation News Service correspondent Leslie Fielding. Brad has met Fielding and respects her work. She's fair-handed and knowledgeable. She's worked for FNS for almost as long as Kyra has been alive and won several awards for investigative journalism, including a few Pulitzer Awards on Earth.

Brad is concerned that Thelev has used the Silver Ball, though he knows the captain wouldn't do such a thing without cause.

A second chime sounds at the door. "Ensign Julio Jimenez with a message from Dr. Smith," announced the speaker. Brad has not yet met the ensign, but he sounds young and somewhat trepidatious at being sent to speak to a flag officer, possibly for the first time in his career.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:42, Thu 28 May 2020.

In reply to Kyra McCurrvey (msg # 101):

"Hmm Thelev thinks to himself.  Briefing notes, yes he is sure they never mentioned the Silver ball to Laroche, oh well that is Brad's problem to explain now, he grins to himself."

He turns to his wife and say "Commander inform the Montgomery on a secure channel that we jumped in pursuit of the Arminda who we thought had engaged another ship, tell them they tricked us, ask him to see if he can locate any sensor buoy in their current area.  Also let him, they knew we were following them. Hopefully he is a smart captain and understands the possibilities. If they ask for clarification tell them we will update them when we meet up.  Tell them we are going to the Hoth system. "

"Mercer, find their signal and tell me how long to the Hoth system for them at their maximum warp. Smith, get us the silver ball recharged as quickly as possible, let me know when it's ready. We need to beat them there. "

He starts walking over to the engineering station on the bridge and say "DeMarais, Saavik, Warp 14 follow them, lets hope our W14 lasts a lot longer than there W15 and they don't get too far in front of us. "

Thelev is going to see what extra can be coaxed out of the engines.

"Thelev is also thinking to himself that if this decoy was positioned to prevent a double jump before the Arminda can get to Hoth, that the Arminda has intel on the Odyssey's capabilties."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:37, Thu 28 May 2020.

In reply to Captain Thelev (msg # 102):

[OOC: I presume you mean the "Hoot" system]

"Captain, give me 30 seconds to determine their course before we get underway," says Khendron as he scans for the Armida's warp signature trail. "If the Armida was onto us from the beginning, it is probable that their initial course to the Hoot system was a diversion."

Thoma hails the Montgomery on the secure channel, "Captain de Laroche, we're using a classified drive system. Commodore McCurrvey will brief you personally when we return. Odyssey, out."

Kendron gets a good reading on the Armida's emissions and feeds the information to Collette, who confirms, "Course laid in, ready for Warp!"

Beside her Saavik replies, "Aye, ready for Warp 14 on your command, Captain." Her hand hovers over the control sliders.

At Thelev's indication, Saavik slides the controls forward. The ship leaps forward at full emergency speed, the stars visibly lengthening into warp streaks on the viewscreen.

In the Flag Ready Room, Brad feels the strain in the decksole as Kyra says, "Wow, we must be going at real high warp speed. I've never felt a vibration like that!" Brad notes that it generally takes first timers several trips before they can tell the difference in the feek of the ship this way. Should she choose to follow him into Starfleet she has the makings of a fine officer. She's got at least a year before she's eligible to enter the Academy even with his and Collette's permission, though. Kyra says, "Maybe they'll need you on the Bridge, Dad. I'll get out of your hair."
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:07, Mon 01 June 2020.

“Get back to our quarters and we’ll talk about how you’re ‘hearing things’ onboard already.  And send the Ensign in” McCurrvey says with a smile.

McCurrvey is itching to go to the bridge but he realizes that he’s better off staying out of their way.  However, HIGH WARP??  He tries to act cordial to the Ensign and put him at ease.

“Welcome Ensign.  What can I do for you?”

De Laroche says, "Bon voyage mes amis. Au revoir!" as the Odyssey leaps to warp.

The Odyssey surges ahead, surfing through subspace. "Leaving the Bakers Dozen," announces Collette.

Saavik notes "Their velocity is 3375c whereas ours is only 2744c. We can maintain Warp 14 for 12 hours. We can only estimate their range at Warp 15. Klingon graf engines are extremely hardy, but Orions typically remove all governors and safeties on their equipment in the name of speed. I calculate the probability of overtaking them to be..."

"Saavik, not now! Pay attention to your piloting," snaps Collette. "You're not your step-brother!"

Excuse me, Commander," says Saavik. "I was merely..." Her voice trails off as she notices Collette's grin. "Ah, Human humour. It is still a difficult concept. I shall never become accustomed to it."

Jimenez steps into the Flag Ready Room, narrowly avoiding colliding with Kyra. "Dr. Smith's compliments sir," he says nervously. Brad can't help noticing the lingering look Kyra gives the young officer.


"Dr. Smith presumes you've noticed that we just jumped, sir. We detected a distress call indicating an attack by an Orion Lightning. The Captain ordered an emergency jump, but we only detected a small decoy broadcast... er,  buoy? The target has accelerated to emergency velocity directly to zenith. Sir!"
This message was last edited by the player at 04:27, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

Ensign Jimenez continues, "If you would, sir, Dr. Smith would like to see you at his station on the Bridge."

Entering the Bridge, they are greeted by Smith. "Ah, Commodore. I take pleasure in reporting that the Silver Ball performed exactly according to our best-case scenario. We did a jump of one parsec and exited jump a mere five light-seconds from our target. However, it seems we were decoyed here. I can only surmise that this Calista is leading us on the proverbial wild goose chase."

Collette announces from the Navigation station. "If they continue on this heading they will exit the Triangle and enter a region known as the Kellinan Reach."

At a touch from Khendron's finger, the Federation database on the Kellinan Reach pops up on his screen:
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:13, Fri 05 June 2020.

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 109):

"Commodore, once the Silver Ball regens I'm thinking to jump in front of them on their current path.  The regen time is quicker on this upgraded version than previously so we likely only have one chance to surprise them. Of course that is assuming they have intel on the old version and don't on this version. Your thoughts?" Thelev asks Bradron.

" I'm thinking they are going to try to set a decoy or trap where they think we are going to jump to.  If we jump earlier we may catch them setting it up and unprepared. " he adds,

In reply to Odyssey GM (msg # 109):

“Captain Thlev, SITREP please.”

Thelev brings Brad up to speed on the last few hours' events. The Odyssey presses on for several hours, and the tension on the bridge is palpable. Khendron, Thelev and Thoma particularly are feeling the heat, despite the Ops officer's assurance that the ambient temperature is only 18° Celsius. Saavik, of course, is as cool as the proverbial cucumber. Thelev can feel the ship beginning to strain when Khendron alerts him to an anomalous sensor reading. A reading consistent with some form of subspace explosion has shown up on sensors.

Saavik suddenly cries out in pain and crumples to the decksole. Collette immediately slaves the helm to her navigation console and snaps into the intercom, "Dr. Driveon to the bridge—medical emergency! Commander Saavik has collapsed. Jimenez, take the helm!"

The young navigation specialist slips into Saavik's chair and secures the helm. "Captain, I'm dropping us down to Warp twelve."

Within a few minutes, Lieutenant Purrn arrives and takes over the helm controls from Jimenez. Hard on her heels is Doctor Driveon accompanied by Head Nurse Parducci. They run their tricorder peripherals over Saavik's supine form and Parducci says to the doctor, "Sir, she's bleeding from the left ear and her pupils are dilated and non-responsive. She appears to have suffered some sort of psionic shock!"

Driveon says, "Get her to sickbay, stat! Transporter room, we need a site-to-site transport!" The three of them disappear in a sparkle of transporter energy, leaving behind a small pool of sticky olive green liquid.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:50, Sat 13 June 2020.

After a few minutes, the intercom blares, "Sickbay to the Bridge. Code White! Commander Saavik has become violent and has attacked the medi—uhn..." His voice cuts off and there is the noise of a falling body. A bone-chilling laugh fills the channel and the call ends.

Thoma reports, "Loss of connection to the sickbay... Security to the Sickbay—possible intruder, injured personnel! Backup Medical staff, medical emergency—coordinate with Security!"

This message was last edited by the player at 08:40, Tue 16 June 2020.

In reply to LCdr Winston Driveon, MD (msg # 113):
McCurrvey grabs a phaser and heads to the turbo lift.  Captain, investigate that anomalous reading and I’ll oversee the security detail.  McCurrvey enters the turbolift and uses the commlink inside to contact the security detail.  Security, this is the Commodore.  Meet me outside of Sickbay and we’ll enter together.
This will be good.  I was feeling like a fifth wheel on the bridge.  Gives me something to do.  Hope I can still go toe to toe with a young vulcanoid.

Trask is waiting with a security team outside sickbay, armed with phasers. A medical team stands nearby, waiting for the all-clear from Security.

Trask looks up to see McCurrvey approaching. "Sir, our tricorders are reading pure gibberish. We can't detect anything even resembling lifesigns, but something is moving around in there—" A low rumble penetrates the door. "—growling. We can smell burning sulphur but it doesn't show up on our scans!"

McCurrvey can smell the odour of burnt sulphur, too. Suddenly, there is a loud impact on the other side of the door and a large dent appears at shoulder height. The door's seals hold but it looks to Brad's practiced eye as though another hit will rupture the seal.

Ensign Goldberg, one of the ship's nurses, says, "Sir, from what we know Dr. Driveon, Nurse Parducci and Commander Saavik were alone in there. A couple of orderlies were in an adjacent compartment but managed to get out after Saavik went crazy and assaulted the nurse. Then something just—appeared and backhanded the doctor— it was humanoid but its head was on fire! We had to treat both of them for shock."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:13, Sun 15 Nov 2020.

Suddenly, with a shriek of tearing metal, the seals on the door part and shredded alloy fills the corridor like shrapnel. The security personnel are closest to the door and suffer lacerations on parts of their bodies unprotected by armour. Trask takes a shard of metal to the forehead and blood flows down his face. He wipes it out of his eyes and snaps, "Keep your phasers on heavy stun! We don't want any friendly casualties."

The smell of brimstone fills the air and the lights dim, a lambent flickering chasing over the bulkheads and decksole. Brad feels a sting on his ear and when he touches it there is blood on his fingers. The air seems to thicken and the temperature climbs as sweat dampens all their uniforms. A figure steps out of the shattered door—humanoid, about 2 metres tall in black leather robes and its head wreathed in flames.

The decks shake under their feet and the lights go out, to be replaced with red emergency illumination. The shriek of the red alert siren fills the air.

On the bridge, there is a violet-blue flare not unlike an opening wormhole and ship shudders. Several crewmen on bridge duty tumble to their feet. None appear injured and they resume their stations. The lights dim and are replaced by red emergency illumination.


Lt Rutherford at the engineering console snaps, ""We've dropped out of Warp! We're on impulse power; the mains are out. Trying to restore power!""

Thoma announces, "Attention all hands. We have lost power to artificial gravity. Gravity will slowly decrease to 0.8G over the next hour. Zero gravity in 239 minutes 45 seconds... Mark!"

On the main screen, the wormhole is exited by a small, slim, high-nacelled starship, pewter in colour. Purrn calls out, "Orion Lightning closing to battle range. Shields up, arming all weapons!"
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:25, Tue 23 June 2020.

Stand down or we will be forced to retaliate!McCurrvey aims at centre of mass.  He doesn’t really expect an answer but feels he needs to go through the niceties.  He tenses to be ready to dodge.  He silently counts to two and fires.

The demonic figure looks down at its chest as a Human might look at a drip of water. Trask and the other two security men fire as one. The three beams hit the same spot that Brad's had. The entity merely laughs as they open a hole right through it, even on heavy stun. For a second Brad can see into the sickbay through the hole, which quickly shrinks and vanishes. It steps forward and gestures with a skeletal hand. "Dost thou know who I am?" comes a grating voice. "I am Verlegg. Fear me."


Verlegg sweeps its hand horizontally across its chest and Brad's phaser as well as those of the security detail fly across the corridor, denting the wall panels and dropping to the deck, smoking. Verlegg steps forward.

As soon as Verlegg has cleared the door, Ens Goldberg and the med team slip into the sickbay. Verlegg strides forward and stops in front of the Commodore. "How art thou called, mortal?" it grates.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:48, Tue 23 June 2020.

Commodore Bradron McCurrvey of Starfleet.  Why have you assaulted my crew?  What do you want?  McCurrvey scans the creature  for any clues to his (her?) origins.  He also scans his knowledge of horror movies for any references.  Impressive but I’ve got to keep him talking so that they can clear the casualties.

[OOC: To be continued in the thread "...Where No One Has Gone Before"]
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:49, Fri 26 June 2020.