Episode 36: Act 1 [The VerbenaVerse]

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~~META:
title = Episode 36: Act 1
~~
====== Episode 36: The Hand of the Prophets - Act 1 ======

//Game session: 1/23/20//

===== Stardate 49357.69, Wednesday May 10th 2372, 2200 hours =====
 
[[trek:solstice:pcs:mel|Mel]] spends some time on paperwork before she turns in. [[trek:solstice:pcs:ssleestak]] sends a message to Mel revealing he told the [[trek:characters:orta|Orta-Founder]] about his quantum surprise project. He spends the rest of beta shift and most of gamma shift double-checking the repairs to the //Solstice// and reviewing the repairs to the //Vanguard// remotely. Fortunately, he finds no evidence of sabotage on either ship. [[trek:solstice:pcs:ktral]] taps [[trek:characters:aurora|Aurora]] her Saurian second-in-command, to show her the EPS grid. Aurora happily complies, and walks her through the ship to various important junctions. K’tral notes the installation of old-fashioned circuit breakers and eventually finds her predecessor’s neatly handwritten notes, which she promptly devours.

[[trek:solstice:pcs:fal|Fal]] collates all material on the Dominion and the Founders, and reads some before turning in. [[trek:solstice:pcs:phillip|Phillip]] returns to his shared cabin and turns in after some time with [[trek:characters:peel|Peel]]. [[trek:solstice:pcs:jessa|Jessa]] holds some late office hours before she heads to bed. The other senior officers – [[trek:characters:saval]], [[trek:characters:armina|Armina]], [[trek:characters:swims]], and [[trek:characters:shantaar|Shan'taar]] – all turn in as well. Thankfully, gamma shift passes uneventfully.

===== Stardate 49358.80, Thursday May 11th 2372, 0745 hours =====
 
The senior officers gather for the daily staff meeting. Phillip happily reports that the Starfleet Corps of Engineers (SCE) repaired the //Thunderbird// and she is back in the shuttlebay. The rest of the meeting is perfunctory, but Ssleestak and K’tral both report they have found no evidence of sabotage on the //Solstice//. Saval reviews their orders for reconnaissance, and Jessa jokes, “So poke it, but not with your fingers.” Saval raises her eyebrow and retorts, “Thank you, counselor.” Before she can say anything further, the doors swish open and [[trek:characters:jen]] strides in, followed meekly by Nurse [[trek:characters:akorim|Akorim Fala]]. Ssleestak tenses, as he’s half-convinced the young woman is a changeling.

Swims immediately rears up and snaps, “You’re supposed to be resting!” Jen ignores her, marches straight to Saval, and whispers something in her ear. Mel and the others catch bits and pieces, but K’tral overhears her clearly – the Dominion has murdered the [[trek:characters:karrana|Thearch]]! K’tral leans back to whisper to Mel, while Saval announces, “I find it disturbing, ensign, that despite the fact I’m almost four times your age, you are very good at manipulating me.” She gestures, and Jen walks to the foot of the table. She toggles a command on the viewscreen, and then the officers see a Dai’Loq in segmented platinum armor, the emblem of the Dai’Loq Sphere molded to her chest, and a mask depicting a crying face with tears of amethyst. 

Jen states, “That was Theárch Karrana. She was killed and replaced by a Founder.” Ssleestak asks, “Are you in communication with the Dai’Loq now, or did you glean this form your brief contact with their network during the confrontation?” Jen replies, “The latter, apparently I was a busy corpse. It’s only after resting was I able to piece things together. The most important thing is that Captain **[[trek:characters:buldini|Buldini]]** hailed the Dai’Loq flagship just before the //Phoenix// collided with it. During the collision, a piece of the ceiling speared through the false Theárch and it reverted back to liquid form for a second. Captain Buldini yelled a warning, and Bishop [[trek:characters:kital]], who was there so the archbishops could keep an eye on her, opened fire. The Dai’Loq killed that changeling, and took the //Phoenix// survivors into custody. After an interrogation, the newly promoted Archbishop Kital called off the assault. I decided this was mission-critical intelligence that you needed to know as soon as possible.”

Mel and Saval both nod in agreement, and Jen continues, “I don’t know much more, unfortunately, as the rest has been classified by the Questoria. ((the Dai’Loq secret police)) But there are survivors from the //Phoenix// and the Questoria have them, and I think I can track down at least one of their bases.” Mel muses on the prospect of Archbishop Kital being an ally, but Jen shakes her head and says, “She’s archbishop in name only. The Vak’tal Council won’t allow an atavism that much power. Currently, Archbishop Kaeras is the frontrunner for Theárch.”

Mel leans in to ask Saval quietly, “Did you manage to talk to your mother last night?” Saval shakes her head and says softly, “Admiral [[trek:characters:tkonra|T’konra]] is unavailable.” Ssleestak and K’tral try to keep all the new names straight, but Ssleestak asks, “Do the nanites communicate over subspace? Is this a security risk?” Shan’taar replies, “We’re aware, but the crucial factor is the nanites have mutated to function within a human host. Although I don’t put too much stock in anything else they said, the Questoria did inform us that they can’t override Jen’s nanites anymore. The security risk is primarily one way, in our benefit.” 

The senior officers relocate to the bridge at the beginning of alpha shift, and Saval sends Captain [[trek:characters:shrasaan|Shras’aan zh’Shonnas]] a summary of Jen’s briefing. Mel reluctantly decrees that the Dominion is the bigger problem right now. 

===== Stardate 49358.80, Thursday May 11th 2372, 0820 hours =====
The //Solstice// decouples from the starbase at 0820 hours and Phillip flies her out to the edges of the New P’Jem system. Once they’re clear, he jumps to warp at 0900 hours. He immediately increases speed to warp 9.99 and sets course for the unknown region of space. Ssleestak asks, “Is it wise to just plow forward in a straight line?” Shan’taar replies, “This ship is so overpowered, anybody within five light years knows where we are.” 

Jen settles into Science II to try to locate the Questoria base; Fal helps her as needed but also focuses on the remaining Dominion material. Ssleestak calls up the records on Jen’s nanites and hisses happily as he examines them; Dai’Loq nano-technology is centuries ahead of the Federation. K’tral keeps an eye on the EPS grid but after a while, she sidles over to Ssleestak and asks, “Is this speed safe?” Ssleestak shrugs and replies, “For maybe twelve hours.” K’tral asks, “Then why are we going so fast?” He replies, “Presumably, because we can.”  K’tral sighs imperceptibly and says, “Fine. Please turn Rush down.” Ssleestak complies and keeps a wary eye on the warp core. However, Shan’taar speaks up, “Lieutenant K’tral has a valid point. We may need the extra speed later.” Mel agrees, and orders Phillip to reduce speed. He reluctantly drops back to warp 9.9 and the warp core settles. 

The bridge crew settles into some friendly banter, which Ssleestak participates in as he hisses Rush songs under his breath. He also makes a point to engage [[trek:characters:sola|Sola]], and learns of her origins in the alternate Borg-dominated future. K’tral stands around awkwardly while Phillip slowly loses his mind at the "slow" speed. Ssleestak notices and calls out, “I hear chamomile tea is good for that!” Phillip glowers, until he realizes Ssleestak and K’tral need shuttle certification on the Type-11.

The banter continues, and K’tral and Ssleestak learn how Mel shot Phillip in the butt. Shan’taar reveals his love of basketball; he eyes Ssleestak and murmurs, “Do you play?” Ssleestak concedes, “I can //block//,” and Shan’taar smirks. K’tral learns she is the third operations manager and how the first was from the Mirror Universe; Mel states, “He came pre-ruined.” K’tral misses the joke and Jen tells her best friend, “Fal, you may no longer be the straight man here.” Fal replies with mock-gravitas, “One can’t compete with Vulcans.” 

At 1210 hours, Jen takes a break and grabs lunch for everyone from the replicator. The officers eat and keep joking, while Ssleestak bemoans the horror of weaponized //hasperat//. At 1230 hours, Jen howls in pain and lurches forward, blood spraying from her nose! The blood splatters all over Science II – and then dissolves into blue dust, which then disintegrates! Mel immediately calls for medical help as Fal rushes over. He grabs her to steady her, and he sees a thin, gray film covers her eyes – she’s blind. Fal tells her quickly, and she rasps, “I had it. I had it, Marik. I understood it, just for a second. Why the Prophets chose me as Their Hand, the Temporal Cold War, Phillip’s deaths, the Krenim, everything. And now it’s gone. How long until we reach Capella?”

Startled, Fal replies, “We’re not going to Capella.” Jen insists, “Yes, of course we are, for Peel’s installation.” K’tral and Ssleestak are totally lost, but the others quickly realize this is Captain Jennifer Kras. Mel speaks up and tells Jen that the //Solstice// is on route to investigate the Dominion warp trail the day following the Founder’s discovery, and provides the exact stardate – 49359.35. Jen freezes as her eyes clear and then she says hoarsely, “That’s it. That’s what the Prophets want. We have to turn around. In four hours, ultritium explosives will destroy the four houses of worship, triggering a massive backlash as the Bajorans slaughter the Cardassians and the Vulcans go after the Romulans. But it’s neither group, the bombs used molecular decay detonators – this is the Romulan Star Empire.”

Phillip brings the //Solstice// about and resumes course back to New P’Jem without hesitation, seconds before Mel issues that exact same order. Doctor [[trek:characters:vrax|Vrax]] bursts onto the bridge and races for Jen; he quickly scans her with a medical tricorder and groans, “Not again.” Jen hisses, “40,000 people, almost two-thirds of the colony, will die. This is [[trek:characters:chevranek|Chevranek]]’s sister, she’s a Romulan senator. Senator [[trek:characters:trell|T’rell]]. We screwed up with //The Pride of Narendra//, we hijacked the ship’s computer but we forgot about their shuttles. Some of their crew managed to get off and warn their allies. This is payback, timed for when we’d be gone for maximum emotional suffering.” 

Mel processes the implications swiftly and Jen pushes past Fal and Vrax. She growls, “The Romulans are likely monitoring all communications channels. I’m going to get a cloaking device and increase our speed. Screw the Treaty of Algernon.” She heads for the turbolift, and Fal, Jessa, K’tral, and Ssleestak follow. Mel catches Jessa and Vrax’s attention and says, “Try to supervise her.” They nod and join the others in the turbolift. Jen rasps, “Main engineering,” and the turbolift descends. She idly plays with her hair and then mutters, “Marik, do me a favor. If at any point in your future I decide to cut my hair, tell me I’m an idiot.” Fal nods and then asks, “Are you hungry? A burger and a beer?” Captain Kras nods enthusiastically as they exit the turbolift and stride into main engineering, so Fal peels off to the nearest replicator.

Captain Kras heads to an industrial replicator and enters a command code Ensign Kras definitely doesn’t possess. An egg-shaped object then materializes. As the others watch, Captain Kras hauls the egg-shaped device to the main engineering table and starts wiring it in. Ssleestak asks cautiously, “What is that?” Fal puts the food in front of Captain Kras and she replies, “A cloaking device.” She starts eating she finishes wiring it up, and then asks Ssleestak, “Sorry, my sense of time is way off. How long have you been on board?” Ssleestak replies morosely, “Two days.” Captain Kras snickers and says, “I’m sorry. It’s only going to get weirder.” She finishes wiring in the cloaking device and toggles a command. Power dips throughout the //Solstice// – and then she cloaks! 

On the bridge, Shan’taar runs various programs before turning to Mel and reporting, “Captain, I… I can’t detect us, and we’re on the //Solstice//!” Mel nods as she studies the readouts herself. Back in main engineering, Captain Kras starts rerouting power and then fiddles with the warp core controls. Ssleestak realizes she’s using the cloaking device as a powerful buffer, and then she taps her combadge and says, “Phillip, punch it.” On the bridge, Phillip turns back to Mel, who nods. Phillip swivels back and gently gooses up the speed – and the //Solstice// bumps up to warp 9.991! He continually increases speed until he reaches warp 9.998 – the fastest speed of any Federation ship! Phillip and [[trek:characters:thrishayn|Thri’shayn]], grin wildly, but then Phillip toggles a command and asks Sola, “How are you doing?” The AI howls with glee and Phillip smiles wider. Saval reports incredulously, “We are sustaining warp 9.998, and we are giving off zero energy emissions.” 

Ssleestak stays behind to keep an eye on the warp core, which is now strobing. However, despite the shaking, the //Solstice’s// engines are currently stable. The others head back to the bridge, but as they stand in the turbolift Captain Kras tells Fal, “You look strange clean-shaven.” Fal is surprised to find he sports a beard later in life and Captain Kras makes a joke about it helping maintain diplomatic relations. K’tral look confused, but Jessa and Vrax snicker. They reach the bridge, and Phillip says, “Estimated travel time back to New P’Jem: one hour forty-five minutes.” 

Captain Kras nods and turns to Mel. She says, “I’m going to upload a set of targeting coordinates that we have to hit the instant we drop out of warp over New P’Jem. We’re going to be channeling a lot of excess energy in that blast.” Mel smiles coldly and replies, “Enough to blow out a Romulan warp nacelle?” Captain Kras smirks and nods, and Fal muses, “It’s like an energy enema. Oh, and I apparently need to grow a beard.” Jessa cackles as Mel eyes him, but Fal muses, “Should do it soon, before Jessa tries a Sharpie revenge.” 

Fal then turns to Saval and asks, “I just had an idea. I still have a frequency Chirurgeon [[trek:characters:karzanna|Karzanna]] gave me. May I try to contact her?” Saval replies blithely, “May as well, commander. You did work hard to establish those diplomatic channels.” Fal blushes but heads to Science I and tries the frequency. A second later, the chirurgeon replies, //“Fal? I thought you were dead?”// but static mars the transmission. Fal replies, “I am not. I understand there was an infiltration?” Karzanna replies in the affirmative and things start getting a bit racy until Captain Kras hisses, “Open channel!” K’tral drifts over to lurk behind Fal as he takes the hint and drives the conversation back to topics that are more important.

Karzanna confirms, //“A Flounder… Founder? Whatever. It replaced our Theárch. Good news is massed disruptor fire kills those things quite nicely.”// Fal replies, “It was a Founder, and that’s good to know.” Karzanna adds, //“Also, these Founders cannot replicate our nanites.”// Fal files that away before she adds, “I have to go.” Fal promises, “I’ll call you back soon if I’m not dead.” Karzanna signs off, and then Fal turns to find K’tral right behind him. She asks, “Are you having intercourse with that?” Flabbergasted, Fal replies, “Not currently.” 

<WRAP hide>
=====Summary=====
Jen Kras reveals the death of the Dai’Loq Thearch and the potential rise of Archbishop Kearas. The //Solstice// departs Starbase 212 to investigate the possible location of the Dominion presence in the sector. The senior officers bond a bit with K’tral and Ssleestak. Shortly after lunch, Jen has a seizure and her future self emerges. Captain Kras informs them Chevranek’s sister, a Romulan senator, will destroy Sarek City in a few hours. The //Solstice// reverses course, and Captain Kras replicates an advanced cloaking device, and tweaks the EPS grid to get the ship up to warp 9.998. Fal speaks with Chirurgeon Karzanna and confirms Jen’s earlier intel.  
===== =====
</WRAP>

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<WRAP group>
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[[{}trek:solstice:recap:35_act_3|<= Act 3]]
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[[{}trek:solstice:recap:36_act_2|Act 2 =>]]
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{{tag>star_trek solstice recap}}
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