MSNPC Shakti - Classroom of the Elite
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steve...@yahoo.com
Apr 13, 2026, 9:38:31 PM (10 days ago) Apr 13
to USS Khitomer – StarBase 118 Star Trek PBEM RPG
((Palace of Education - Lecture Hall A, Mahila))
The chatter of conversations died instantly as Shakti appeared in the doorway. It was unusual for the high priestess of Shekhinah to be the guest lecturer. All one hundred and twenty-eight young women stood and bowed their respect as Shakti marched into the lecture hall and down to the front of the amphitheater shaped room. She hesitated only an instant, basking in the attention.
Shakti: Be seated, ladies. :: a moment as the students returned to their seats. :: Ladies. You are the elite of your generation of our race. You will be the leaders, the engineers, the researchers of the future. One of you may become High Priestess in time. :: clacking of mandibles. :: Like all your generation of Velithari, you have heard the scripture, the history, the story of our people. Everything you have heard in these classrooms is true ... as far as it goes.
Shakti nodded to a technician behind the students. The wall behind Shakti dissolved away into a pitch-black screen with twinkling stars.
Shakti: This is the view of space from one of our astronomical research facilities in the defense web. I assume your instructors have told you of the web and how it forms a shell inclosing the sacred Orb and all the habitable Velithari planets. It collects all the power of the Orb and defends our people. Beyond the web, there are other orbs. You have learned that one of them also harbors the seed of life planted by the Goddess. Like everyone in our society, you have learned how the creatures from that distant orb came to destroy our worlds, kill our people, and destroy everything Shekhinah has given us. You have heard that the Goddess intervened killing those who attacked us. As the future leaders, etcetera, you deserve to know the complete story.
Shakti paused for dramatic effect. Everything she had said so far was part of the knowledge even the most unintelligent males knew.
Shakti: The attackers were all males of a species we knew nothing about. Greedy. Violent. Ignorant. Emotionally unstable. They attacked without mercy and as a result, the entire population of two of our worlds died. The Goddess used some of the smallest of her creatures to defeat them; microbes. By doing this, Shekhinah taught us a lesson in humility. :: beat :: Yes. It was not our doing that we were saved. The invaders grew ill and died. And we vowed that would never happen again. We modified what had been an energy web which had blessed us for millennia with the Shekhinah's bountiful gifts and added defensive properties to it.
Shakti walked slowly to the front of the speaker’s dais.
Shakti: What most of our people do not know is that there are many worlds circling many orbs beyond the web. And a few have come to our web. Some of them have come accident. Some have come in peace seeking only trade. Some have come with malice and belligerence. Our web has protected us from all of them including a recent one that attacked us with a weapon more powerful than any we have seen before. There may come a time when the web will fail but that time has not come yet.
Despite the students overall respectful demeanor, this news set off a wave of chatter. Shakti allowed it to continue for a few minutes before raising her hands to silence them again. The chatter died away.
Shakti: The reason we are meeting today like this is that the web has caught a new ship. A ship unlike any we have seen before.
Another nod to the technician in the back of the room and the screen shifted to a view of an oddly shaped starship partly enveloped in pink clouds.
Shakti: This is the view from the Jorogumo of a ship the inhabitants referred to as the Kitomeer.
Almost as one the students leaned forward seeking a better view.
Shakti: What makes this ship unusual, in addition to the odd overall design, is the crew. Every previous vessel we have encountered has had a crew composed of a single species. Our scans indicate that the Kitomeer's crew members belong to at least three hands of different species. This is one of them.
There was a collective gasp from students as the image of Richard Matthews appeared on the screen.
Shakti: Hideous, isn’t he? If we are going to continue to deal with alien species, we need to learn to ignore their appearance. We must learn to judge them by their actions and thoughts. We rescued this Terran male for certain death when he came loose from Kitomeer. So far, he has proven to be as ignorant as a newly hatched larva but that may be deceiving. No species as dense as this individual appears to be could have achieved travel between the stars.
Shakti: I have spoken too much. Now it is your turn. What can we reasonably deduce from that fact? Anyone?
There was a long silence before one girl in the back row stood.
Student: Speciation never results in more than two species in the same biological niche, the crew of the Kitomeer come from different worlds.
Shakti: Your conclusion is correct. And from that?
Student: Most probably the species have learned to coexist and cooperate peacefully.
Shakti: Very good. You may be seated. Unlike the other large vessels, we believe Kitomeer has a mix of species and genders in their crew with females in the dominant positions. Further they have taken no belligerent action toward our vessel and they have stated that the She-li-aks are their enemies. As it says in the scriptures. the enemy of my enemy is not necessarily my enemy.
The screen shifted again, this time to a conference room where a technician was adjusting the communications screen.
Shakti: Captain Rana. We can see you clearly.
Rana: =/\= Response =/\=
Shakti: And we can hear you clearly. The students here and in schools of the elite in several cities on all the worlds are waiting with abated breath to see how your discussions with aliens proceed. I will not speak unless you request it. May Shekhinah be with you today.
Rana: =/\= Response. =/\=
Tags/TBC
——— ○● ———
LtJg Lera Michaels
Engineering Officer
USS Khitomer
K240106LM2
The chatter of conversations died instantly as Shakti appeared in the doorway. It was unusual for the high priestess of Shekhinah to be the guest lecturer. All one hundred and twenty-eight young women stood and bowed their respect as Shakti marched into the lecture hall and down to the front of the amphitheater shaped room. She hesitated only an instant, basking in the attention.
Shakti: Be seated, ladies. :: a moment as the students returned to their seats. :: Ladies. You are the elite of your generation of our race. You will be the leaders, the engineers, the researchers of the future. One of you may become High Priestess in time. :: clacking of mandibles. :: Like all your generation of Velithari, you have heard the scripture, the history, the story of our people. Everything you have heard in these classrooms is true ... as far as it goes.
Shakti nodded to a technician behind the students. The wall behind Shakti dissolved away into a pitch-black screen with twinkling stars.
Shakti: This is the view of space from one of our astronomical research facilities in the defense web. I assume your instructors have told you of the web and how it forms a shell inclosing the sacred Orb and all the habitable Velithari planets. It collects all the power of the Orb and defends our people. Beyond the web, there are other orbs. You have learned that one of them also harbors the seed of life planted by the Goddess. Like everyone in our society, you have learned how the creatures from that distant orb came to destroy our worlds, kill our people, and destroy everything Shekhinah has given us. You have heard that the Goddess intervened killing those who attacked us. As the future leaders, etcetera, you deserve to know the complete story.
Shakti paused for dramatic effect. Everything she had said so far was part of the knowledge even the most unintelligent males knew.
Shakti: The attackers were all males of a species we knew nothing about. Greedy. Violent. Ignorant. Emotionally unstable. They attacked without mercy and as a result, the entire population of two of our worlds died. The Goddess used some of the smallest of her creatures to defeat them; microbes. By doing this, Shekhinah taught us a lesson in humility. :: beat :: Yes. It was not our doing that we were saved. The invaders grew ill and died. And we vowed that would never happen again. We modified what had been an energy web which had blessed us for millennia with the Shekhinah's bountiful gifts and added defensive properties to it.
Shakti walked slowly to the front of the speaker’s dais.
Shakti: What most of our people do not know is that there are many worlds circling many orbs beyond the web. And a few have come to our web. Some of them have come accident. Some have come in peace seeking only trade. Some have come with malice and belligerence. Our web has protected us from all of them including a recent one that attacked us with a weapon more powerful than any we have seen before. There may come a time when the web will fail but that time has not come yet.
Despite the students overall respectful demeanor, this news set off a wave of chatter. Shakti allowed it to continue for a few minutes before raising her hands to silence them again. The chatter died away.
Shakti: The reason we are meeting today like this is that the web has caught a new ship. A ship unlike any we have seen before.
Another nod to the technician in the back of the room and the screen shifted to a view of an oddly shaped starship partly enveloped in pink clouds.
Shakti: This is the view from the Jorogumo of a ship the inhabitants referred to as the Kitomeer.
Almost as one the students leaned forward seeking a better view.
Shakti: What makes this ship unusual, in addition to the odd overall design, is the crew. Every previous vessel we have encountered has had a crew composed of a single species. Our scans indicate that the Kitomeer's crew members belong to at least three hands of different species. This is one of them.
There was a collective gasp from students as the image of Richard Matthews appeared on the screen.
Shakti: Hideous, isn’t he? If we are going to continue to deal with alien species, we need to learn to ignore their appearance. We must learn to judge them by their actions and thoughts. We rescued this Terran male for certain death when he came loose from Kitomeer. So far, he has proven to be as ignorant as a newly hatched larva but that may be deceiving. No species as dense as this individual appears to be could have achieved travel between the stars.
Shakti: I have spoken too much. Now it is your turn. What can we reasonably deduce from that fact? Anyone?
There was a long silence before one girl in the back row stood.
Student: Speciation never results in more than two species in the same biological niche, the crew of the Kitomeer come from different worlds.
Shakti: Your conclusion is correct. And from that?
Student: Most probably the species have learned to coexist and cooperate peacefully.
Shakti: Very good. You may be seated. Unlike the other large vessels, we believe Kitomeer has a mix of species and genders in their crew with females in the dominant positions. Further they have taken no belligerent action toward our vessel and they have stated that the She-li-aks are their enemies. As it says in the scriptures. the enemy of my enemy is not necessarily my enemy.
The screen shifted again, this time to a conference room where a technician was adjusting the communications screen.
Shakti: Captain Rana. We can see you clearly.
Rana: =/\= Response =/\=
Shakti: And we can hear you clearly. The students here and in schools of the elite in several cities on all the worlds are waiting with abated breath to see how your discussions with aliens proceed. I will not speak unless you request it. May Shekhinah be with you today.
Rana: =/\= Response. =/\=
Tags/TBC
——— ○● ———
LtJg Lera Michaels
Engineering Officer
USS Khitomer
K240106LM2
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