Ensign Talon Morda: Filament flinger flung
Eston Melton
Morda: Is it possible the Lattice ship isn’t just arbitrarily attacking the nebula -- that instead it’s trying to hollow out a path to recover that object?
Semara: With Sencha Radiation? :: Beat :: But that doesn't make sense, unless you're real sure you ain't gonna rip what you want apart with Sencha when you get deep enough…
The Bridge went quiet as Lieutenant Semara followed her thoughts.
Semara: That's it! They gotta know their weapons didn't work last time. Now they wanna know why. If the Velithari structure is resistant…
Zerva: Response
Naxell: They’ll study it and apply it to their ships, and then come back to finish the job.
And then, with their own hulls and crews protected against the effects of Sencha Radiation, they’d be far more willing to use it on anyone and everyone who opposed them. This was about more than just smoothing out the road to conquest, it was about accelerating down it.
Morda: If that’s the case, then the Tholian ships aren’t waiting to run interference for an attack from the nebula: they’re positioned to go in and secure it. And alerting that Leviathan’s to our presence means we're a potential poacher for their objective.
Semara: Judgin' from nebula die-off after their last barrage, it might only take another shot at full power - maybe two - to have a safe lane. There's already radiation bleed-through to the object.
Zerva: Response
Naxell: Is it possible for us to get in their way?
Semara: It'll take a coupl'a minutes to get there at half impulse. More, if we have any problems with the thicker patches a' nebula in our way. The spinners could make it in less than half that, if they had a clear path.
Morda doubted even an experienced helm officer could cut meaningful time off Lieutenant Semara’s estimate.
Morda: We could try stalling them -- probes giving off Starfleet identifier beacons, that sort of thing. But that’d take some time to rig up, and might just as quickly accelerate their actions.
Zerva: Response
The captain didn’t conceal his frustration, and Semara flew in with another insight.
Semara: Earlier, we were thinkin' a usin' the tractor beam to move bits a' nebula around. Maybe we could push some into the lane? Encourage re-growth, slow 'em... :: Interrupted by an alarm from the console. :: Energy build-up in the Leviathan's weapons array!
Naxell: ::snapping his fingers, pointing towards Morda:: Time between bursts, Mr. Morda?
He’d had the computer timing the low firing wait on the Lattice radiation artillery.
Morda: Three minutes between bursts, plus or minus seven seconds.
Zerva: Response
A status update on the tactical console caught Morda’s attention: the Alpha 2 and 3 slots were printed with the modified filament-flinger and accompanying probe. They merely awaited flight parameters -- and the order to launch.
Dewitt: =/\= Engineering to Bridge. =/\=
Naxell: =/\= I’ve already offered you my kingdom, Number One. I’m not sure what else I have. =/\=
Dewitt: =/\= Captain, the probe and the torpedoes are loaded. Torpedo has five masses sealed in. Probe controls are transferred to Mr Morda. They are yours. ::beat:: I’ll be staying down here, making sure Anti-Sencha systems are operable. =/\=
Naxell: =/\= Response =/\=
Dewitt: =/\= It’d be good if we don’t need them. Dewitt out. =/\=
Like some kind of mad hour-minute-hand, the captain shifted his finger-pointing from Morda to Zerva.
Naxell: Mr. Zerva, how’s your needlework?
::Briefly squeezing his eyes shut:: oO Enough with the threads and ribbons and filaments. Oo
Zerva: Response
Naxell: ::To Semara:: One more blast and they move in, right? ::not waiting for the answer:: I want the torpedo delivered directly at their primary Sencha wave emitter, but don’t go straight for it. The probe clears, and the torpedo pulls, right? Let’s sew the cloud up behind those cruisers.
Semara: Leviathan's re-alignin' now. I think they're goin' for the object. Better get ready quick.
Morda blinked hard again, but for totally different reasons. The captain … might be onto something?
He saw Naxell and Zerva pull up the torpedo guidance parameters. Sure, engineering had transferred flight parameters to him -- but he was no tactical officer, and the captain clearly had something precise in mind.
Morda: Understood, sir. Linking flight control to the science station. Boosting the subspace radio gain to better compensate for any interference from the nebula.
Zerva: Response
Naxell: ::leaning in:: Good. Yes, and then there. ::watching Zerva longer:: Mind the flight time, they need to hit before the Leviathan can fire again. And don’t wait for my order! As soon as the next blast is over, launch.
Morda: Aye, captain. Any second now.
Zerva: Response
Multiple consoles tuned into the Lattice radiation weapon firing cycle pinged.
Semara: Leviathan's firin'!
Morda hovered over the launch icon, noting it was relatively small and seemingly innocuous in a sea of more mundane controls.
Zerva: Response
Semara: Impact!
Morda pressed the fire control. A moment later:
Morda: Torpedo away. Probe away.
Naxell / Zerva: Response
Semara: The cruiser's movin' to cover the Leviathan... :: Beat :: Web-spinner alterin' course... Counter-fire incomin'!
Morda snap-activated and reinforced the shields along the return-fire vector, matching Semara’s movements from the helm to keep the facings active between them at the Lattice ship. If the torpedo’s firing vector wasn’t indicator enough, the defense fields’ interaction with the nebula gasses lit up their position like a beacon, to say nothing of the eddies created by their movement in the denser medium.
Nevertheless, the hastily fired energy weapon burst from the Lattice vessel was a miss -- but close enough that the nebula itself transferred pressure and EM impact against Khitomer’s shields, rocking the ship. The ensign scanned the tactical console for any critical damage information, then verified their tenuous sensor lock on the Lattice ships. The torpedo, he noted, had reached its target, released its payload of five filament masses, then triggered its low-yield kinetic self-destruct once past the target zone.
Morda: Glancing impact to shields; no damage, and ready to return fire. The filament masses have been released on target - no indication yet as to their status or effect. Interference from the nebula -- Lieutenant Zerva, anything coming across on your screens?
Naxell / Zerva / Semara: Response
Tags / TBC