ShiningSector

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

Upon reaching their destination, which so happened to be at the center of an abandoned village, Elm provided the entire exploration team with their orders and instructions. Scientists and security guards immediately set out to their respective tasks. Gue'rach, whom up until this part was busy playing the part of an overgrown pack mule, finally laid down may duffle bags he had carried all the way here. Arranging them all in a row and opening each bag, he revealed that many of the sacks contained an abundance of supplies. A couple of the bags contained water containers and a variety of pre-packaged meals, along with the typical rations most crew members would rather not consume unless their very survival depended on it. Gue'rach honestly didn't understand his crew sometimes, especially with them not holding the protein-rich supplements with any high regard; he practically lived off the stuff while he was in the KIDF. The other bags in the row possessed medical supplies, full-on first aid kits, cargo harness, additional universal power cells, and an array of electronic equipment and sensors.

It was clear he had made quite the arrangement with the logistics and supply department to relinquish many of the assembles assets available to everyone in the group.

But perhaps the most impressive of his arsenal was the large metallic container he had carried in which, upon unsealing the box which unfolded itself upon his command, deployed a transportable console for field-use. Similar in design to the terminals found back on the Prize, the mobile console allowed for the same kind of functions, such as site-to-site communications, analysis scans, and data storage. As everyone spread through the ruins, Gue'rach spent most of his time setting up the seemingly convenient device and establishing the wireless and digital handshake with the Prize's main computer. Minutes later and after some fumbling with the apparently not-as-convenient-as-originally-thought device, Gue'rach has programmed the console to rune several automated surveys of the local area. Already, he could see data being compiled, ranging from soil make-up to carbon-dating. Satisfied, he had the program run in the background while allowing anyone in the team to use the console as they saw fit.

---

For about an hour, Gue'rach wandered through the village on patrol, passing by some of the researchers and security personnel as he strolled through the street, assuming the cobbled path he was on was in fact a street. While he wasn't much of an archeologist, he couldn't help but ponder in interest on the history of the ruined village they dwelled in. Obviously, they knew next to nothing of the inhabitants of this planet and could only, for the time being, uncover the most basic of aspects of the people who once occupied the small town. The architecture belonging to some of the mostly intact structures seemed rudimentary and matched that with similar construction practices shares by many other ancient and primitive civilizations, such as the notable use of clay - assuming the material he was observing was in fact clay - and the use of archways to strengthen the design of the structures.

His venture eventually lead him to a rather small and narrow building, probably large enough to hardly house a single person. Half of the structure appeared to have rotted away, resulting in the roof caving in. But perhaps the most notable feature was inside of the building. As Gue'rach curiously peered inward, he could make out an elevated platform at its apex, a rimmed circular cavity purposely falling into a compartment within the altar-like platform. Turning his head slightly to his right and presenting his two left eyes, he looked into the pit before him. Using a light-emitter, he could see dark greenish stains splattered about the floor of the pit with clumps of what appeared to be ash scattered inside. He emitted an intrigued hum and produced a scanner and held the device just over the small entryway. After a few seconds, the scanner resonated a ping, indicating its scan had concluded. The scan report detailed that the composition of the material within the pit contained several mineral compounds, listing components such as silicate, calcium carbonates, calcium phosphate...

The list continued, soon containing an additional listing of unexpected biological material and then - coprolite. Gue'rach suddenly groaned and with the instinctual evasive movement one would perform to avoid getting decked, he recoiled away from the pit and soon from the entire structure. As it turned out, the building was, in fact, an ancient outhouse.

As Gue'rach stomped away and compiled what was quickly becoming an embarrassing report; a report he was suddenly keen on scrapping, his communicated badge had pinged. And then pinged again. It was quick widespread message from Captain Carabello ordering the exploration team to abandon their mission.

"Crap," grumbled Gue'rach.

---

It didn't take a genius, or even perhaps an empath, to grasp the mood that spread like an infectious disease through the Prize. After a quick debriefing, it was made known that the Holy Vei and maybe even in association, the Havi people, had rejected ISA negotiations for coexistence and had promptly banished the Prize and any other ISA civilizations from the system the wormhole resided in, thus effectively ending any interests of exploring other star systems outside the Havi system. Gue'rach could understand how this could damper the spirits of the Prize's ISA crew of explorers. Even he felt disappointed that their mission had come to such an unfortunate conclusion such as this. Then again, he could somewhat understand where Vie was coming from. The Kotor Star Union, despite being an ISA member state, had often grown tiresome of the advances of some of the peaceful members, especially calls for more potent immigration treaties and full disclosure of cultural information. The stress was also shared by many Auval’kotor as well, with a smaller and yet growing percentage joining the ISA. Though in comparison, Vie was presuming an extreme and unproven notion of full cultural assimilation.

Gue'rach pondered these thoughts at his main station on the bridge while going through the routine system and security reports. Before the somber mood could fester any further, the communications officer snapped to Carabello and reported a smaller Havi fact was hailing them. Gue'reach quickly looked up on the main screen and brought up his station's defensive and offensive features and redied them, standing by and waiting for Carabello's word. At it so happens, a Havi individual was pleading for help, stating they were hurt and being pursued. The declaration seemed suspicious but before Gue'rach could interject, Carabello had already ordered to have the Havi being brought aboard. Seconds later, Korax made the advisory that if the individual they had just rescued were being pursued, their pursuers would not be far behind.

"I agree with Korax's assessment," he declared to Nick, "it would be advantageous for the Prize to be brought to Yellow alert."

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

Quick update from me. I will be pushing to upload a post either tonight or tomorrow. My PC apparently went braindead the other day after a failed update and after nearly a full day of troubleshooting, forced me to factory reset it (ugh). It appears to be working now so we'll see how that goes.

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

Don't know if i should respond to your posts; or wait for the person speaking to D'Artgnan to post something before i proceed.

@Eviledd1984

I'm assuming you mean me as my post, for the most part, was directed towards your OC (even though it invites anyone in the group to jump in). It's your call honestly if you want to reply now or hold off.

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

Adressing: @MST3K 4ever @Raylah @Randomness @Eviledd1984

"Interesting statement," came Gue'rach's voice, echoing from behind D'Artagnan and Mason, "You are nervous about the kind of fauna we might encounter and yet you are also eager in witnessing what lifeforms this planet has to offer. That is the sense of adventure, Ya'arani. It is the experience of terror and travel; learning the lessons of danger and beholding the rewards of what nature and perseverance can manifest."

The Auval’kotor pushed forward ahead of the two despite the loads of supplies and equipment he carried. Several duffle bags containing medical instruments and survival gear hung from their straps, supported by his bulky left. While on his rightmost profile, Gue'rach carried something large over his shoulder, simply by its handle. Something that suspiciously appeared to be an anti-gravity trolley cart with a large metallic container magnetically connected to its platform. Apparently, this is what he meant by handling the logistics of their expedition.

"That said," he continued as he looked over to the both of them, "you will not have to worry about such threats. Your fellow security officers and I included will see that no harm comes to you."

For a moment, Gue'rach briefly looked around his surroundings and began speaking again; aloud and apparently to no one in particular, "though I must say, the planet is an excellent example of a significant rarity that has defied cosmic expectations. Consider the trinary star system we are exploring. There are far more singular star systems than those possessing more than one sun. Take that into account that we breathe in the oxygen provided by a habitable world, which is rare in their own right, that resides in such a stellar formation. Note that aspect, especially given that the ultraviolet radiation released by three suns would, in most cases, render worlds such as this one uninhabitable. Not only that, but the gravitational pull exerted by those same stars would also easily destroy the planet if it had fallen inside their - what do humans call it? - ah, their Roche limit."

Gue'rach allowed that sentence to linger for a bit, "allow that sensation to settle in and you'll find greater respect and admiration for the environment you now traverse through... especially for the one worm-like creature whose tail you had nearly stepped on back there. I'm surprised you had missed it."

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

Small update, I'll have a post up today after work.

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

"Apologies, Doctor, Lan'thar," Gue'rach replied, sounding sincere in his restating the Lavathulin's official title along with her name. After some time, Elm brought up the fair idea of another meeting concerning the upcoming survey expedition and how they would go about the mission. Geu’rach nodded in agreement with this proposal, “of course.”

After the briefing, Geu’rach set out to do as he had suggested and made his way towards the Prize’s security station. Upon arrival, most of the security staff had already assembled per a request he made along the way. The meeting was relatively brief as he delivered the mission profile as established by Captain Carabello and explained the parameters of the present situation. Most of the staff were familiar with ISA First Contact policies and thus, there were little questions brought forth. With a half-hour passing by, the Auval’kotor officer had his roster of candidates to accompany both teams.

He calculated that a lightly armed delegate would probably be the most appropriate when negotiating with an unknown foreign government. He motioned two stringent security officers to accompany the Captain and his team, only armed with standard-issue sidearms - no rifles: much too apparent and risked elevating threat generation - with strict orders to keep their weapons holstered unless the lives of the delegate members were under clear threat. Gue’rach sometime later had determined three officers, including himself, would be adequate to safeguard the expedition should any of the flora or fauna prove to be more hostile than anticipated. He surmised the planned armaments would also be light though he anticipated that any threats would be met with caution with only the intent to stun. Only he would have the authority to decide if lethal action would be necessary. Hopefully, that would not happen.

By now, the occurrence of attending multiple meetings with different groups of the ship within a short period was slowing grinding away at Gue’rach’s enduring patience and tolerance. Still, he knew better and dare not show it. Although, him exhibiting any kind of annoyance probably would not have made him any more imposing than what was typically the norm, as evident with his stern expression that rarely ever faded. Gue’rach, maintaining said stern expression, stared at the holographic display illustrating the I.S.S. Prize’s position and the surrounding foliage, noting some of the initial geological scans gathered during the ship’s entry through the atmosphere as well as the location of the abandoned ruins that were picked up.

“The plan appears sound, I have no objections,” said Gue’rach while his eyes remained on the display, “I’d imagine that if we were approaching some sort of site of religious significance, it would have been marked in a manner that would be easy for anyone to identify. We should be wary of such visuals to prevent any unintended trespassing. That, and noting any active native traffic in the area.”

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

I would be very interested in joining this rp, would their be room for one more?

@Eviledd1984

Yeah, we're still accepting and have some room left. Throw your CS our way once you have it done. I would suggest taking a peek at the Characters tab to see what ship positions are claimed, just to give an idea what role could be available and what you could fill in. If you have any ideas or questions, feel free to ask us (or PM).

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

As the I.S.S Prize entered through the wormhole, Gue'rach kept all four of his eyes fixated on his terminal, oblivious the visuals of the trinary star systems they had been deposited in. Briefly, he afforded one eye to look up to take in the local sensory information before withdrawing it back to the tactical readouts. Intriguingly, it had not taken them long to make first contact with an alien species. A single, rather small shuttle-type craft was on approach towards the Prize's vector though Gue'rach had already reported this find to Carabello several minutes prior. It was evident that the craft posed no threat to the ISA vessel.

The same couldn't be said regarding the much larger ship had jumped in from warp-travel and came to meet the Prize bow-forward at about a few kilometers apart. The vessel certainly seemed imposing but after several initial scans completed the assessment of the large unknown with the results appearing on his console, Gue'rach allowed some tension fade away. Despite its size, the alien's power output was notably inefficient in comparison with the Prize. Additionally, comparison scans had also identified a number of design issues that plagued the vessel's key systems; the issues in question were mainly equivalent to outdated technological leaps which have since been resolved nearly a less than a century ago. Despite there being no hostile intent, getting into a fight with the larger underpowered ship would nevertheless be an ugly venture, but one they could surely win.

While the tactical officer didn't approve of Captain Carabello's antics of annoying the escort by straying away from the guided path, the seemingly antagonizing gesture, at the very least, furthered the apparent oddball behavior of the aliens as they continued to speak through broadcasted text and kept their dialogue overly-simple and cryptic. It was quite clear they were religious sorts and Gue'rach had spoken with many religious leaders in the past and gathered a decent view of their practices and how they worked. If the behaviors witnessed were reflective of their culture and religion, he undoubtedly admitted they were by far the weirdest he had yet encountered.

---

Per First Contact procedures, diplomacy between representatives of each group was ideal. Niccolò Carabello would possess the authority to speak on behalf of the ISA and was therefore key to the delegation that would meet with the natives. Gue'rach on the other hand, given his role as a tactical officer and his naturally large and imposing presence, would not be an ideal participant in negotiations. A soldier in the midst of a political delegation and a conceivably scary one at that could give the wrong impression; Gue'rach was all too familiar with previous encounters which either spooked or unintentionally antagonized opposite delegates during such meetings. As such, he sought to bring his usefulness elsewhere.

"Since our current situation does not presently involve any dangers to act against," Gue'rach began, "I would opt to accompany Lan'thar in her studies and provide the manpower and logistical support required. I will also advise our security teams of the nature of our operation and assign members to accompany our two groups should they be required,"

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

I'll have a post up later after work, yesterday ended up being busier than anticipated.

Aboard the I.S.S. Prize : An Episodic Sci-Fi Adventure

If there was one thing that was true about Gue'rach, he was a workaholic. More than likely, the thought of looking forward to the end of one's shift had never crossed his mind. Granted, even he knew the importance of a long rest, but that didn't change the fact that the sense of duty had been permanently carved into his consciousness and persona due in part from his rigorous KIDF conditioning regimens. This is why he was compelled to fill in the scheduling hole the late-Rod had left from his passing. Of course, with the Prize having docked with Deep Solar 3, his temporary position would no doubt prove even more uneventful.

Although, the caveat to the job was that it permitted him to explore the ship. His Tactical officer duties essentially regulated him to a single position, which so happened to be the bridge. The only other places that would deem his presence suitable were the multiple areas throughout the ship pertaining to the Prize's weapon hardpoints and shield projectors. However, these sections were usually handled by the many engineering officers aboard and the only thing he could very well do was simply inspecting them and ensuring they were being maintained properly. This was however something he expected the more senior of the engineering staff to ensure. Perhaps in some specific situations, meeting with the Chief of Security and their staff regarding the defense of the ship and away missions would be relevant to his position as well. But all those cases were uncommon for him and thus, it was the bridge where he truly belonged.

Part of his patrol path crossed into the second level of the engineering deck, where upon arrival, Gue'rach would observe an interaction with several engineering officers in a collaborative meeting with the station's maintenance and repair crews. The Tactical officer was not within distance to listen in on the actual conversation, but the holographic visuals projected at the center of their meeting displayed a simple representation of the I.S.S. Prize where several red-highlighted scars appeared over different areas on the external hull. It was probably safe to assume the different staff below him we discussing how to treat and repair each section. With his curiosity satisfied, he immediately continued on his way down the catwalk before eventually exiting the engineering deck.

Addressing: @Xandrya

It wouldn't be too much longer until an anomaly came before him. Or rather, she, had crossed into his path. While entering into a 'T' shaped intersecting hallway that lead to the residential deck which housed all the crew about the Prize, Gue'rach's four eyes were set on a woman whose face he hadn't recognized before. Although with a few hundred souls aboard, it would be difficult, even for him, to remember everyone's name and facial visage. He had just barely scathed by with a victory against Ensign Lorenzo during a team-building exercise-turned-competition where the goal was to match the names to all the correct faces of the crew.

The woman before him appeared dressed in something resembling Starfleet fatigues, something like a causal, off-duty uniform. She appeared legit in that respect, although the purposeful and careful slowness to her walk, along with her presumably curious, or uncertain, facial expression hinted to him that she probably wasn't sure where she was. Or perhaps she was trying to find something. Gue'rach allowed the thoughts to speculate further as he approached the stranger. His large form, paired with his increased pace would have given himself away to anyone in the vicinity as the floor slightly resonated the thumps of his heavy footfalls. Given their individual heights, Gue'rach had to space himself about a couple-feet away, careful not to unintentionally present an imposing or hostile posture while respecting the officer's personal space.

"Excuse me," he began, trying to sound courteous, "I could help but notice you wandering. Is there something I can assist you with?"