[BACKSIM] LtCmdr. Talos Dakora - One Star Review
Travis
((OOC: Just closing the loop on this one. Thanks for going on this little adventure!))
((Crew Decks - Nova Gamma Borealis))
The small team of Artemis Officers and their guest from the NGB’s crew were huddled in the small comm room of the cruise ship. They’d swung for the fences with their gambit; utilizing the ship's exterior holo-emitters to simulate the arrival of a Starfleet vessel had always been a long shot, but it was the only move they had.
When the New Idran Confederacy ship had opened fire on the hologram, Talos had thought they were cooked.
Amazingly, the pirates– who seemed not to be masters of sensors or observation– seemed to be under the impression that the hologram of the Defiant Class USS Independence had shrugged off their fire. Then, as their prepared hologram had run out and faded out from sight, the NIC Pirates had– astoundingly– mistaken that for the ship going to cloak.
Which brought them to where they were now; with Talos staring dumbfounded at his team wondering how they’d managed to pull this off and more importantly, what they would do next.
Gnai: Commander, they seem afraid of the fact that the ship appeared to have warped out. That the USS Independence is not what it claims to be. Could that be used to scare them off?
Double checking that their hacked comm-solution wasn’t currently broadcasting, Talos responded.
Dakora: Possibly, they don’t seem to know what to make of the Independence’s arrival. Maybe we should let them stew on it a little bit while we wait for the holo-emitters to run the cycle again?
Savel: I would suggest that we capitalize on what appears to be a mixture of confusion on fear from the other vessel.
He had a point. Pressing them now might cause them to act irrationally and make a mistake. The problem was, they didn’t have any real means of capitalizing on their mistakes.
Sadar: Agreed. Perhaps- Ah! Commander, the pirates have opened comms again.
Talos motioned for her to put it through and after a moment the NGB’s aging comm system crackled to life.
Pirate Vessel: =/\= Perhaps we were too hasty in firing on your ship. We're not interested in making an enemy out of the Federation today. I think there's some room for conversation. One condition though, I won't negotiate with someone that I can't see. =/\=
It was progress. And soon enough their holo of Independence would return, whether they wanted it to or not.
Savel: I will admit I am hesitant to believe they are now ready to find a peaceful solution, but as long as their efforts are focused on what they believe to be a real Starfleet vessel we should be safe.
Sadar: Agreed. ::accesses a different part of the console:: Ensign, I think this console allows for some limited interactions with the holographic equipment down in the cargo bay. Can you confirm?
Talos’ head whipped around. If they could tweak the holo-show enough to make it look different, maybe they could keep the ruse alive.
Gnai: Hm… ::tapping at console:: Yes, sir it does. Just re-orienting the view. Nothing else special.
Without really thinking about it, Talos patted the back of Gnai’s containment tank, like he might have patted someone on the back for a job well done.
Dakora: Aces. ::He grinned.:: It only has to look different enough to fool these guys again.
Pirate Vessel: =/\= I will instruct my weapons officer to power down if you agree to talk. As a gesture of peace. In case you don't believe in my intentions. I look forward to hearing your response soon. Please. =/\=
Again the pirates had reached out. Clearly, they were spooked, but Talos knew that it wouldn’t take long for that fear to transition to anger.
Savel: Our negotiations would need to be swift, so that we did not seem to disappear once more in the middle of our conversation.
Sadar: Ideally, we want them to realize that a cloaked Starfleet vessel can do far more damage than this cruiser is worth. ::considers:: If we can use these controls to move the arrival point for the Independence to their aft side, make it seem like we’ve circled behind them undetected?
Talos pointed to Gila affirmatively, with a questioning glance toward Gnai.
Gnai: Yes, that’s possible to do! They seem easily spooked, this could work…
As Gnai got to work, Talos spoke out loud to no one in particular.
Dakora: If you were a meat-headed pirate, what would make you turn-tail and run?
Savel: Response
Sadar: I was thinking, in the spirit of horror stories… ::embarrassed shuffling:: An, uhh, ‘Boo’-scenario?
Talos cocked his head just a little, eying Gila curiously.
Gnai: This never really got into horror stories at the Academy…
As Gnai continued working, Talos dug into the idea. Maybe she was onto something.
Dakora: Right. Yeah. ::He snapped.:: Like a jump scare. It would make them think that we are in control of the situation.
Savel: Response
Sadar: Independence coming back online in 5, Sir.
Gnai: And in the correct ::pause:: “boo” position.
Talos almost winced as the seconds ticked down. One way or another, it’d all be over soon.
Dakora: Get ready to open the hail on my signal.
Savel: Response
Crowded around the only little view screen in the comm room, they watched as the Independence came out of “cloak” right behind the offending ship. It’s canons and torpedo launchers pulsed with energy as it did
Dakora: Great work, all of you. Now it’s my turn.
Savel/Sadar: Response
Pirate Vessel: =/\= Federation vessel - USS Independence, right? Thank you for reappearing, and you’ll note that we’ve powered down our weapons systems, as promised! ::pause, light chatter in the background:: Are you ready to negotiate? =/\=
He gestured for Gila to open the line, allowing his body language to shift into his most commanding presence once again.
Dakora:=/\=Pirate Vessel, this is Commander Dakora of the USS Independence. There will be no negotiations. You may beam your people off the Nove Gamma Borealis and vacate this system immediately, or you will be fired upon. You have one minute to comply.=/\=
Which was convenient, because that was only slightly less than how long they had before their holoshow ended.
Savel/Sadar/Gnai: Response
Pirate Vessel: =/\= You just want us to beam up our people and leave…? That’s it? =/\=
The pirate seemed a little dumbfounded by the offer and Talos willed him to accept with every fiber of his being. Despite his rigid posture and formidable tone, beads of nervous sweat had begun to form on his brow.
Again, he motioned to Gila.
Dakora: =/\= Vacate this system immediately, or you will be fired upon. ::Summoning a hardness to his voice that would’ve made MacKenzie proud, he continued.:: You now have 45 seconds to comply.=/\=
Savel/Sadar: Response
Pirate Vessel: =/\= ::puzzled:: Why do you care so much about this system? ::pause, muffled yelling about the speaker being an idiot and playing with fire:: I mean, yes, we’ll vacate it. We’ll leave! ::beat:: But what’s so special about it? =/\=
As the seconds ran down, the beads of nervous sweat turned to rivulets that ran down the side of his face.
Whatever was going to happen, was about to happen.
Dakora:=/\= 30 Seconds. ::He turned to Savel.:: Ensign Savel, prepare a full spread of torpedoes. =/\=
Of course, they had no torpedoes. They didn’t even have a ship. Time seemed to crawl by as the final few seconds passed.
Savel: Response
Gnai/Sadar: response
Squeezing in to watch on the tiny monitor Talos watched as the Pirate vessel gradually put some distance between itself and the Independence and, amazingly, went smeared into a streak as it went to warp.
Talos deflated visibly, stumbling backward into the wall behind him as the stress of the situation finally broke through the adrenaline that had been holding him together. His arm still stung where the phaser blast had grazed him, but more than anything he just felt tired.
He turned to the Bolian guide that had been huddled in the corner watching everything in stunned silence.
Dakora: Mister Blueberry, please take us home. ::He laughed mirthlessly.:: I’d hate to have to knock another star off of my review of your tour service…
[END SCENE]
LtCmdr. Talos Dakora
First Officer
USS Artemis-A
O238811CD0