Lt. Cmdr. Lhandon Nilsen - All In Finding That Third Option!
Lhandon Nilsen
((OOC: Left the space for the thing Tony and Erik have planned, followed Jacob's tags until the KC left. I'm feeling just a tad under the weather today, so my apologies if this one isn't my best))
(( Holodeck 4, Deck 7, USS Octavia E. Butler ))
In the shortest time, the Continuance seemed to have gone from antagonist to member of the crew. Lhandon and the rest were faced with a choice; there wasn't a magic option that they had hoped for, one that was neat and tidy and everyone would be safe.
The Continuance gave an option; it was the best option, and Lhandon knew it. He had to nod, and he had to let the Continuance go.
Nilsen: Good luck. =/\= Bridge, this is Nilsen. Set a course out of the nebula, maximum possible speed. We'll hit the warp command from here. =/\= Woolheater, keep working on the buffers. I'll hold us until the last moment.
Woolheater: Aye sir!
Lhandon had asked the Continuance to upload all of its logs, hoping they might be able to restore them if successful. As the Continuance had said, it was their best choice, but there was a 98% chance the KC's memories would be wiped.
Arlill: The warp core is at standby status, I’ve initiated the intermix and primed the nacelles, should shorten any lag time, as long as we do this quickly.
The second officer had set up a button on his console after telling the bridge to set a course out of the system.
Arlill: Lhandon, monitor the buffers and signal strength, I’ll take responsibility for our jump, that’s something that needs to rest on the XO’s shoulders ::placing his hand on his brother’s shoulder::
The holographic button that was near him was soon removed as Toxin took that duty from his younger brother with a simple hand on the shoulder. Lhandon was unsure what to say; his eyes were raw with tiredness. This entire encounter had been 30 hours, and Lhandon had been on the bridge for a good five hours at least before he made contact with the probe. Throw in his morning workout, and he was close to hour forty of being awake.
Lhandon knew what Tox was doing, forever the big brother. Maybe it was best that Arlill took that from him.
Continuance: Advisory: USS Octavia E. Butler must achieve warp velocity no later than 12.6 seconds prior to projected detonation to avoid catastrophic damage. This threshold is derived from blast propagation modeling and is not adjustable. Recommendation: prioritize majority survival if evacuation window collapses.
The Continuance was right, the needs of the many. Was that why it had been taken by Tox, Lhandon wondered.
Woolheater: Stable window opening.
Another display of stats and figures came up, and Lhandon glanced at them. A latency of 0.84 seconds was something that could be handled, but anything more than that got unpleasant. The wave was routed through the Fledgling.
Rouiancet: =/\= This is Captain Rouiancet routing through the Fledgling's comm systems, hailing the Kevara Continuance on the USS Octavia E. Butler. We have failed to retrieve the Dyson Sphere's computer core, and cannot do so without triggering the Sphere's autodestruct sequence. Please advise. =/\=
Continuance: =/\= Directive: Captain Rouiancet, maintain core installation. Do not attempt removal. Core presence restores limited command channel required for delay attempt. Execute immediate evacuation toward hull-adjacent compartments. I am initiating transfer to Sphere infrastructure to attempt redistribution of stellar energy flow and cascade dampening. Probability of full abort remains low. Delay remains possible. =/\=
Arlill: =/\= Commander Arlill, Kevara Continuance is preparing to transfer over, we’re prepared to go to warp upon the safe return of all crew members. =/\=
Yet, then in that moment, the plan of Arlill's had become clear; he didn't take the button to protect Nilsen, instead, he took the button to do his own foolish plan. One Lhandon might have done himself and one Lhando would have stopped Tox from doing.
Rouiancet: =/\= Response =/\=
Woolheater: Stability. Forty-seconds!
Forty seconds was enough time for a miracle.
Continuance: Final instruction: Initiate warp no later than T-minus 12.6 seconds regardless of remaining away team status. Refusal to depart within threshold will result in projected 87% probability of total vessel loss. Clarification: I will signal optimal departure moment. Transfer sequence commencing.
Lhandon nodded.
Nilsen: Noted.
Arlill: Just get the back! Whether Continuance is successful or not, we’re out of time.
Continuance: Notification: Transfer complete. All Starfleet system access terminated. Departure timer synchronization transmitted. Awaiting evacuation confirmation…
And then it was gone. As quickly as the Continuance had arrived, it had now left.
Continuance/Rouiancet: =/\= Response =/\=
Arlill: =/\= I’m sorry sir, we’re not leaving yet, there’s still time. =/\=
Nilsen: Tox.
He said, quietly.
Nilsen: What are you doing?
Lhandon instinctively held out his hand toward Woolheater, anticipating the protest or comment or whatever route the marine would take. It said, "I know." Knowing himself like Woolheater, both headstrong and stubborn, both with their own sense of control and discipline, although gained from two very different sources.
He knew an order had come down from the captain, and Tox was holding short. Lhandon swallowed the first thing that wanted to come out of his mouth. Yet the hand landing on his shoulder from earlier should have been reassuring. And it was, Tox had this...but it also lit up every stubborn, childish part of him that hated being moved aside.
Woolheater/Arlill: Response
His jaw worked once, hard. He stared at the holo-display instead of at Arlill's face, because if he looked at him properly, he was going to say something career-limiting, something that would bounce around the bridge for the next ten years and end up in somebody's after-action report as "colourful language used under pressure."
Rouiancet: =/\= Response =/\=
There was no changing Arlill's mind. They were playing a very dangerous game, as Arlill was finding that third option, the one they had kept trying to tell the Continuance all about, the option where everyone won.
00:35
Lhandon spoke with quiet frustration. Maybe Woolheater heard it, the kind of muttering from a senior officer that one should ignore. He did not argue again. Not properly.
Nilsen: He’s being stubborn ::to Woolheater:: keep working on the transporters, don’t stop. I’m stealing power from everything else for us.
Woolheater/Arlill: Response
00:30
As the clock ticked down to the dreaded 12.8-second red line, one which the Continuance and Stella were working on, the smallest hint of a signal was detected.
Nilsen: I’ve got a weak lock on Rouiancet’s team. ::to Woolheater:: That window of yours helped a lot. See what you can do about Greaves team. ::calling out to his broroomy:: Tox. We gotta get moving soon.
Woolheater/Arlill: Response
Lhandon no longer had the button to take them to warp; he was all in on Tox's plan to find the third option.
Tags/TBC
Lieutenant Commander Lhandon Joseph Nilsen
Second Officer & Senior Diplomatic Officer
USS Octavia E Butler
O240007LN1
He/Him/His (Both player and character)