Star Trek: Season 4 - Family Matters

[X]

"Sir, if an away mission is involved, I recomend that the Aurora be used as the primary means of transportation. She has abilities that you won't find on a standard Starfleet vessel and she is not registered as a part of the fleet," Aeric said. He didn't want to bring it up, but he needed to make sure that all the resources the crew needed were available.

He didn't feel the need to yet mention that the nanites within himself and Aria could be reconfigured to send out false biosigns and effectivly disguise their races on a technological level. That would come in due time and there was not enough nanites to innoculate the entire crew or mission team. It would also take time to configure the machines to each new host.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Isaac was annoyed with himself.  'What is wrong with me?  No one has ever been able to detect me when I'm scanning the crew.  Of course...I shouldn't have to read the Captain's mind.  What was I thinking??  I don't even have to read his mind to know that he is going to talk to me later.  Maybe its because of my mood lately.  That mind-meld...perhaps that's the cause?'  He talked up and volunteered to be the pilot during the rough parts of the mission.  It was with hopes that he could get back on the Admiral's good side.  He needed it.  He was more than positive he could do it. 

He sighed to himself.  Doctor Peterson asked a question but Isaac tuned it out.  'What is happening to me?' 

Then at the worst possible moment, his Sugar Gliders decided to jump out and they went straight for Aeric and Peterson.  'Oh no...'


King Linksr

[Jen]

Just before the Captain addressed the various questions asked by his senior staff, Sevryll noticed Ensign Starstriker's facial expression transform. At the start of the meeting he seemed to be distracted, but now his face reflected alarm. It was not long before she discovered why—Sevryll's eye caught the flash of two small animals edging towards Lt. James and Doctor Peterson. Her mother had told her of the animals she captured for the young ensign in Five Forward and she instantly recognized the event unfolding as a repeat of her mother's account. Without delay Sevryll detained the small creatures before the staff noticed the occurrence. As it was, the ensign was in enough trouble—the Commander then discretely handed the two back to Isaac, with a look only another Vulcan would recognize as scorn. He met her eye reluctantly and gave her a furtive nod of thanks and apology.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

He gave Sevryll a furtive nod of thanks and apology.  'What a bad day.  Now both the commander and the captain are going to have my heads.'  He immediately put the Sugar Gliders in his pocket, reached out with his mind and told them not to move.  They weren't very intelligent, but they could figure out what he meant.  They immediately calmed down and curled up in his pocket.  He was happy, however, that Sevryll had restrained them before the staff noticed.  He was in enough trouble as it was and having the little Gliders distracting the meeting would be nothing short of doom.  He laid back in his chair, took a deep breath and listened to the Captain's answers. 

King Linksr

[Geekyfanboy]

As the Admiral sat down Quinn looked around the room for questions. Commander Servyll was the first to speak up. "is there a strategy in place for our recovery mission? Should we begin forming teams for the task?" Quinn could hear the concern in Servyll's voice every so slightly and though she was a Vulcan and had immense control over her emotions she still had them. Quinn smiled and nodded. "Yes Commander please see to this. I would like you to lead the away team.

Doctor Peterson then spoke up. " Captain would there be any need for minor medical modifications for the landing party to blend into their environment for as long as possible, or any special medical equipment needed other than the standard med kit." Quinn turned to the Doctor. "There may be some modifications needed. We are going to try and limit ourselves to our Vulcan crewmembers for this away mission. And I don't foresee any need for anything other than the standard med kit."

Quinn looked around the room "Anything else?"

Lt. James spoke up. "Sir, if an away mission is involved, I recommend that the Aurora be used as the primary means of transportation. She has abilities that you won't find on a standard Starfleet vessel and she is not registered as a part of the fleet," Aeric said. He didn't want to bring it up, but he needed to make sure that all the resources the crew needed were available.

Quinn nodded "Very good Lt. Please have the ship ready and on standby." Lt. James gave Quinn a quick nod. Quinn continued "Very good.. if there are no other questions. Commander please take us out of dry dock and set a course for Romulas warp 5." Servyll nodded as Quinn announced "Dismissed" Everyone started to get up. Quinn spoke up "Ensign Starstriker" could you please wait for a minute I would like to speak with you." As the last person left the ready room Quinn sat down behind his desk and gestured for Starstriker to take a seat. "Ensign we have a problem"

[iceman]

The Dr. left the briefing and set out to prepare a set of field medical kits to be used on the mission and and prepare his staff for the possibility of modification that may be needed for the mission.

[Jen]

Collaboration between Just X and Jen
----------------
As Sevryll entered the turbolift on the bridge, Lieutenant James rushed in after. "Commander Sevryll," Aeric started. "If you are not busy, could I speak with you for a few moments in regards to Aria?"

Despite her distrust of him, she nodded politely, willing herself to maintain a proper amount of civility. "Deck 14, she said aloud and the turbolift began its descent. She turned to face the door.

"I recently spoke with Aria about your meeting," he said as he glanced down at the woman that he once knew. "She attempted to explain her existence to you, but I think that she might have failed to adequately describe the more important details. Not having been trained to suppress her emotions, she was somewhat hurt by the content of the conversation."

Annoyed, Sevryll's eyes swept over him in silent appraisal. While she understood why the girl would be upset, an ethical incursion had occurred, and it could not be swiftly forgotten. "It was not my desire to upset her, but trust is based on truth—and when there is no trust, there can be no rapport." Honesty was sacred to Sevryll; she thought about the many half-truths and falsehoods David had told her. Though he eventually revealed the truth in full, the wound his deceptions made left scars. She had become much more careful—less credulous, since the time her husband finally came forward with the truth of who he really was.

"After Aria and I spoke, I decided to approach you with the idea of performing a mind meld so that you can gain a better understanding of her position," said the nervous Lieutenant.

Her ability to meld was not common knowledge—she kept it secret for the simple fact that she did not enjoy performing them.  And when others learned of her abilities, they frequently made requests for her 'services'. "Mind melds are intensely personal experiences—in fact, I rarely conduct them at all, especially with individuals with whom I am not closely acquainted," she shifted her weight and grasped her hands tightly behind her back.

He was silent for a moment, considering how to approach the next detail. He glanced nervously down at his shoes and swallowed hard, "in one of my previous timelines, we knew each other," Aeric started. "We spent time as friends on Vulcan, and were connected through several friends and family members. I know that, in this timeline, you don't know me, and I have long accepted these changes as a fact of my existence, but Aria can't. She needs her mother and this is the only way I know to restore the connection that a mother and daughter should share." Lifting his gaze from the floor to her familiar face, he tried in vane to identify any subtle variances in her features.

Uncomfortable with the unorthodox proposition, Sevryll stepped around the Lieutenant as the turbolift doors parted. She paused in the corridor and with her back still to him she replied, "I....I am sorry. I can not accommodate her." The doors closed behind her leaving Aeric alone in the lift.

[X]

"Shuttlebay," Aeric said as he absorbed the refusal. He needed to find a way to achieve the impossible. He needed to create a mother daughter bond between a Vulcan and a child she didn't really give birth to.

Tapping his communications badge, he readied a plan. "James to Aurora."

"Sir," replied Aurora's new voice.

"I need you to transfer all personal and data files pertaining to Aria's birth timeline to Commander Sevryll's computers from the temporal database." Aeric said. It was one thing to be offended by what was done to bring Aria back, but it would be harder for a Vulcan to deny the facts contained in those files.

"Orders confirmed and transmitted," Aurora said as she tranfered what would have otherwise been classified information.

Aeric sighed as the doors to the turbolift opened to his destination. Aria stood in the airlock as she waited for her father.

"How did it go?" she asked. There was an undercurrent of anticipation on every word.

"It's moving slowly. We can't force a bond to be established," he said as he moved to his child. "I think that she is going to come around once she deals with her emotions about all of this. You know first hand that Vulcans, as much as they pretend to not have emotions, are only supressing them. At this point, any reaction is a positive one."

Aria nodded slowly. She didn't want to know the detail because she needed to focus on something else. She needed to focus on work. "Aurora recieved your mind link after the meeting. She'll be ready for anything the captain needs her for."

She gave a brief smile to her father as she tucked her hair behind her ear. Without a word, she used the machines inside her to assist in supressing her emotions. She had work to do and she couldn't afford to be distracted.

[Geekyfanboy]

As Ensign Starstriker sat down, Quinn clasped his fingers and placed his hands in front of him on his desk. He took a deep breath and began.

" Ensign, I am sure you are aware of why I asked you to stay behind." Starstriker gave Quinn a slight nod. "I think Admiral Talbot say everything that needed to be said, but I would like to add a few personal thoughts." Quinn looked into Isaac's eyes. He reached out with his thoughts oO I was the one who requested you for this ship. I read your Starfleet records and was very impressed. I knew you would be a perfect fit for this crew, was I wrong? I don't know, I hope not. I do know that I am very disappointed in you ensign, I expect more from my senior staff. I understand the urge to read minds, but you must learn to control that urge. There are fundamental laws that strictly forbid what you did. An unlawful invasion of someone's thoughts without permission is cause for an official reprimand, but I will not be putting this incident in your permanent record. Everyone deserves a second chance. You've just used yours. You may have been able to get away with this on your other assignments but this ship is unique in the fact that  there are quite a few telepaths aboard, keep that in mind. Oo 

As Quinn stood Isaac did the same, he was about to say something when Quinn said, "Dismissed Ensign". Isaac turned and started to head toward the door. "One last thing Mr. Starstriker," Quinn said with a stern look, "from here on out pets will remain in our quarters.... Understood!!! "  Isaac's hand reached for his pocket, he nodded and exited the ready room. Quinn sat back down and took a sit of his now cold raktajino.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Isaac Starstriker headed straight for his quarters.  He was very unhappy and felt crushed.  Despite his best attempts, he had embarrassed himself in front of the Admiral and in front of his Captain.  He felt more depressed then ever before.  He entered his quarters and fell onto his bed.  A few tears fell onto his cheek.  The whole incident with his telepathic powers should  never have happened.  'What is going on with me?  I've never been this irresponsible or stupid.'  He racked his brain in an attempt at a self-diagnostic.  The only thing he could think of was the mind-meld with Sevryll.  'Did it have more effects on me than I first thought?  I never realized it could damage me like this for so long but then again, I'm not exactly human.'

His Sugar Gliders slid out of pocket and ran over to the new changes to his room.  He did not hate them, but he wanted nothing to do with them at the moment.  They were troublesome, but then, he had also been stupid by carrying them around.  The new changes to his room were some nice trees and a "dispenser" that contained their food.  It was actually quite neat, but he was too depressed to bother looking at them.  The Sugar Gliders in the mean time got used to their new room.

Isaac still laid on his stomach for a while with tears rolling down his cheeks.  It felt like his defenses were crashing down upon him.  He had never felt so alone in his life.  He got up from his bed and walked out of his room.  As he walked down the corridor..he didn't know what would happen next.


King Linksr

[moyer777]

Margon rounded the corner and came face to face with Isaac.

"Ensign" said Margon, "are you ok?"

Isaac just stared at him.  What was he supposed to say, of course he wasn't "OK"  but he really didn't know what to say to the counselor.  This was all such a strange situation.

"I'll be ok Counselor."  Starstriker mumbled.  He managed to crack a small smile.

"Well, if you need me, I'm around", just say the word.  I know things were a little intense in the meeting.  The captain asked you to stay back and talk?"

"Yes, Counselor, he did.  I just need to work some things out", he turned red and looked flustered.

"Well, I can help, so maybe we could talk sometime."  Margon smiled and placed a hand on Isaac's shoulder.

"Yeah, well, I'll get back to you on that"  he said and kept walking down the corridor.

Margon made a mental note- "visit Isaac in a couple of days"

[3 Ducks in a Man Costume]

As Remor sat drinking his tankard of Romulan ale, he thought back to his time at the Order's mind training facility. At the time, it had taken all his concentration to hide his thoughts and emotions from the powerful telepaths they hired to test agents' abilities. And the idea of sending out false readings had seemed impossible. But, as they say, nothing is impossible when it comes to the Obsidian Order.

After a month, he started to find it easier to shield himself, even while concentrating on other tasks. The supervisors had hundreds of different simulations they used to test him. They started out easy, perhaps a single Betazoid asking him questions in a briefing room. Then, it would be a Lethean. Then they would have him disarming a torpedo while multiple telepaths tried to break into his head. They would run battle simulations (with the safeties off, of course) and stage personal combat against other agents, all while the mind readers tried to gain access. If they did gain access, letting even the most minute detail slip, the punishments were harsh. After punishments, he would be briefed again, and then the telepaths who had broken in would explain how they had done it and coach him.

After he had mastered these tests, they started teaching him how to send out false signals. This was significantly more difficult, but in time, he had become proficient enough that the Order felt confident enough to send him into the field. His final destination was Bajor, but he would be taking the long route to get there. The Order had to make sure he could handle small assignments before going up against a trained and seasoned rogue agent. They couldn't afford a sloppy job this time.

And then, of course, there was the implant . . .

Suddenly, outside the window, all the stars became a single blur and then seemed to whiz past on all sides. The ship had gone to warp—warp five, if he wasn't mistaken. Remor was glad that they were finally underway.

[Jen]

Charged with the task of assembling teams, Sevryll began her search for individuals qualified for the mission. The captain's stipulation was clear, the away team must be made up of Vulcans. Surprisingly, Sevryll was one of only a hand full aboard the Tiberius... a fact that made her job all the more challenging.

After some time, the commander found one crewmember experienced enough to join the team— doctor Peterson's head nurse, Lieutenant Relas. Nurse Relas had served in Starfleet for sixty years and had quite an extensive résumé. Sevryll added her summary to the dossier containing team member profiles. Then she called up a list of Vulcan civilians in hopes of finding one among them qualified for the task.

Aside from her own family, and including the individual she saw earlier in Five Forward, there were six civilians hailing from her home world. Seated at her desk in the CSO's office, Sevryll scanned the files for any qualified persons; listed among the civilians was a botanist, a Suss Mahn instructor, a retired astronomer, an artist and a youth—the clone known as Aria. Her file was marked classified and Sevryll did not possess the clearance necessary to access the file. As Sevryll stood in preparation to leave, the commander's computer pealed a series of electronic chimes—gaining her full attention. She glanced down and noticed the summary marked "classified" had been made accessible. She hesitated to request the girl's profile; yet after a few minutes of fighting the temptation to know more, she surrendered to her own inquisitive nature.

Sevryll forced herself to skip the girl's personal history, opting instead to review her skill sets. It seemed during the transfer from a hologram to clone, she had kept all her memories regarding Mark I Aurora...giving her an advanced medical and engineering background. Next to Aeric, she was the only other living person with a knowledge of the Aurora and her systems.

Sevryll pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and dug deeper into the summary, finding medical logs and entries regarding the incorporation of nanites. Sevryll found this information alarming. Certainly nanite technology had been used in the treatment of disease but Aria's records indicated the nanites the girl had been infused with, allowed her to interface with Aurora—an alteration that bore a striking resemblance to Borg capabilities. Yet the nanites also gave Aria many abilities that Sevryll determined would make her an asset to the mission. She tentatively added the clone to the short list of away team members and contacted Captain Quinn.

Tapping her combadge she spoke aloud, "Commander Sevryll to Captain Quinn."

"Quinn here," came his quick reply.

"I have a provisional listing of away team members ready for your review. Can you meet me in my office, on deck fourteen? I require your approval for an unorthodox candidate I included."

[Rico]

    Admiral Talbot sat back in the desk chair in his quarters aboard the Tiberius.  He was thinking a lot about what had happened recently, especially in the meeting he had just had with Captain Quinn and his staff.  He wasn't in the habit of disciplining lower ranking officers in front of others, but Ensign Starstriker had hit a nerve with him.  Many years ago he had been on an away mission exploring a new Class M planet.  Before he knew it, his team was attacked and quickly taken prisoner.  The race of beings were known as the Strilarni and were highly telepathic he found out.  Before his team could be rescued he and the others were subjected to intense mind probing.  Very invasive and very disturbing even to this day to the Admiral.  Even though he was half Romulan he had never really tried to develop or discipline himself with the limited telepathic talents he had.  After the mission with the Strilarni, Talbot decided to never let something like that happen again.  He began to take each of his leaves over the next few years on Vulcan.  There he studied among some of the most gifted Vulcan telepaths.  Even though he never was able to link minds for more than a short time and even then it was limited, he was still able to learn the needed to skills to keep telepaths out of his mind.  Even to this day, he unconsciously kept a small mind shield up at almost all times he was awake.  He had vowed to never let another uninvited being into his thoughts if he could help it.  Therefore, the young Ensign had opened an old wound for the Admiral.  Talbot knew the young Ensign was merely inexperienced and was certain it was an innocent mistake.  But he wanted to make sure it didn't happen again.  Just then Talbot's door chimed.

    "Enter."  He said, pulling out of his thoughts.

    "Excuse me for disturbing you Admiral, but I see we have left Earth orbit and gone to warp.  I was hoping for a rematch on our chess game."  The disguised section 31 agent currently known as Khev said to the Admiral.  He gave the Admiral a weak smile. 

    "Certainly Colonel.  It will be good to focus on something else for a time.  I have always found it helpful when working out a problem to focus one's mind on something else for a time.  In that way a new solution may present itself."  Admiral Talbot said as he tapped a control padd on the side of the desk, a replicated tridimensional chess board appeared on the larger padd area in the center of the desk in front of him.

    "Well, Admiral.  I've had quite a bit of tactical and combat training sir.  If you would like any help on planning the mission ahead I would be glad to be of assistance."  The imposter Khev said, this time smiling on the inside.  He knew the basic outline of the mission, but the details were still unknown to him.  Talbot was still keeping much of the mission ahead private.  But he surmised that there were at least two people aboard who would have to know the full extent of what was to come.  Captain Quinn of course, a man the agent respected.  And of course the agent's own wife, Sevryll who was currently second in command of the Tiberius.  He was certain he could get the information from Sevryll if needed, but it might be easier to get it from the Admiral himself.  He was, after all, currently part of his protective staff.  He and Colonel Mowembe would have to know the details fully if they were to carry out their mission to protect Admiral Talbot.

    "I may take you up on your offer, Colonel.  But for now, lets just enjoy a quiet game.  I have a feeling we soon will wish for quiet times like this once we reach our destination.  If not sooner, Colonel."  Talbot said to the eager young Colonel sitting across from him and watching him take the first move on the board with one of his pawns.  The Admiral was beginning to like the young Colonel, but there was still something about him that made him slightly uncomfortable.  He brushed those thoughts aside as he settled into his chair and ran through the moves he had used over the years when starting a new game.  Talbot decided that Khev appeared to be a quick learner and he would have his work cut out for him with each successive game they played. 

[iceman]

The Dr. thought for a moment, then decided to ask Commander to come to sick bay, he had an idea he wanted to discuss with her, After the last mission, he thought that perhaps a small transponder implanted under the skin and  left inactive only to be activated in case of an emergency would be a good idea.

Especially  because of the nature of this mission, and the capture of an Admiral by the Romulans would be a great prize as well as a diplomatic nightmare.

It could be made of a material that would not show up in a scan because it would be inactive but would be away to trac the party if they ran into trouble.

The Dr. sent his request to the Commander and then waited for her reply.