Narhelion - Wounded
Rameses
((The Void Sea))
Accomplishment! Peaceful Communication Achieved.
An overwhelming sense of joy and gratitude swelled within her ancient mind. Internal observations confirmed that the Tiny Predator intruders had begun to remove their dermal layers.
She was aware of the minute signals that passed between some of the disparate groups within her, through the technological means of communication these creatures possessed.
The small group in her engineering chamber seemed to be the more progressive or perhaps curiouser one. The response to her immuno defenses had been as varied as their attempts to achieve threat assessment and mind link had been. Were most of her not still stuck in hibernation she would have been able to guide them more efficiently.
Raga: I will consent to the temporary mind link. Hopefully it’ll make communication easier with Narhelion. None of you have to do the same unless you wish to.
Wren: I consent to connection.
Joy! Consent received!
Internal processes began and released more of her immuno response system. Contact was made with at least two of the intruders and the replication of the proper temporary mind linkage was begun. She was aware of the vocal conversations between the arrivals within her but she did not focus on any one in particular.
Her focus shifted externally, to the Tiny Predator now restrained gently within her Snare beam. The external repair secretions had successfully made contact on the vessel and began to attempt the mending of the holes she felt breached in its shell. Her gift of energy curiously and with concern seemed to be having a less than desired effect on the Tiny Predator. She noted energy fluctuations and surges. Adjustment would be needed to properly wean the vessel she had unintentionally damaged.
The Tiny Predator’s belly faced her ventral side. Curious. A sign of non-threat. She was starting to like this Tiny Predator. She resumed her motion with a casual turn that pointed her back towards the distant beacon she sought. A place for her to rest.
An abrupt sensation she’d almost forgotten, lost in the fugue of time suddenly contacted her mind. Successful mind linkage! A deluge of emotions and surface thoughts not her own mingled into her mind. She saw the flitting memory of the creation of an artificial insectoid far smaller than herself.
Another mind with many walls built, but a sense of awe at the joining.
((Aft Chamber, Narhelion))
Raga: By the Branch. This is a maintenance console. Aft Propulsion Monitoring Station.
Narhelion: ~ Correct. You are in what you might call Secondary Engineering. ~
~ oO I know this. I can walk this rhythm. Oo ~
Walk? Form of locomotion. Rhythm? Narhelion understood rhythm.
Wren: This is…… incredible. Commander, are y-?
She sensed the proximity of the young Caretaker’s limb near one of her internal systems and the mix of apprehension and elation at what the youngling experienced.
Wren: ::To anyone not connected:: It’s sort of like…. I’m connected to Raga, and we’re both connected to the Narhelion. It doesn’t hurt, it’s….. It’s fascinating to me. I’ve never experienced anything like this.
Narhelion: ~ All in mind link locally can hear and converse directly. Words, thoughts, memory, emotion. All as much or as little as wanted or needed. Same contact can be made to any so linked with Narhelion anywhere. ~
Since she was aware that not all might wish to, or be capable of the temporary linkage, Narhelion displayed her words to the alien device inserted in the propulsion monitoring station for efficiency. So the linked ones would not have to repetitively repeat what she told them.
Raga/Shortrith/Venn: Responses
Wren: ::pointing to parts of the console:: This is translating atmospheric readings, and this part up here is out estimate speed. I can't decipher what the speed is, since I don't know the unit of measurement, but.... ::excited:: These blobs over here are the other away teams!
Narhelion: ~ Correct. Unit of measurement is from Narhelion’s original Caretakers. Caretaker Wren only has to think of the desired metric. ~
A food of memories of dozens, hundreds and thousands of others. Aliens unknown to any in this galaxy, as they operated her inorganic and bioorganic systems. Slowly, as she did not wish to overwhelm them. With the alien device still connected to her she accessed the linguistics database and altered all of the displayed units of measure to those known to her new temporary caretakers, throughout her systems in every chamber.
Raga/Shortrith/Venn: Responses
((Organic Tunnel, Posterior Dorsal))
Internal observations shifted to another chamber as her sensory organs detected a strange reading from the remains of the angry crystal that had lodged into her dermal layer. Particularly the one she had drawn within herself in order to show the intruders.
Cascading energy build up detected in crystalline remains. Unknown outcome. Potential threat?
Then she felt it. Heat in her dorsal internal chamber. Reflexively she tensed muscles in an attempt to draw the shard deeper and away from the small beings so close to it. Immune responses covered the shard but not fully in time. Her many immuno duplicates moved to impose themselves between the shard and the visiting lifeforms.
Detonation
Pain. Ruptures. Bleeding. Pain! Dead crystal still bites.
The shard erupted for reasons unknown to her, tearing and rending sensitive and less hardened or protected parts of herself. A wound left behind from the shard’s explosion.
Narhelion: ::it was not words that rumbled throughout Narhelion, but a deep pained reverberation akin to a howling whine of agony::
((The Void Sea))
Externally, a half dozen remaining shards of the crystal ship that had attacked her, that she had not yet managed to dissolve within herself exploded across the front of Narhelion. The great cosmozoan flinched abruptly, which took the Tiny Predator along for a momentary jostling from the secondary explosions. Her forward thrust stalled, the two of them carried only by the laws of motion as she reeled from the pain. Her hibernatory state also left her weakened beyond her full functionality.
Pain. Wounds. External damage. Unreclaimed crystal remains sting.
((Organic Tunnel, Posterior Dorsal))
Kel: Narhellion? Can you hear us? ::looking at his tricorder:: There's massive structural damage all around us.
The response was slower than before as she focused on shielding those minds linked from the onslaught of what she had just felt. One of the sole remaining immuno duplicates in the chamber where she heard the query turned to face the source. The duplicate was half intact, the analogue for the head was half sundered.
Narhelion: Painnnnn. Narhelion hears. Damage…angry crystal. Narhelion not fully deceased. ~ Self repair possible. But Narhelion is in a partial hibernation state. Will require extensive time to mend without assistance. Narhelion primary offensive weapon, offline. Caretakers. Caretakers would have helped. Narhelion is using most of the remaining resources, focused on mending Tiny Predator outside. ~
The verbal conversation among those in the tunnel was observed but not focused on so she did not listen.
Memories of those she called Caretakers easily flowed along the mind link. Old ones, of a fleet of ships like Tiny Predator travelling with her and others like her. Conflict, her function as protector and weapon. They faded and focused on the Caretakers. A crew of entirely telepathic lifeforms. A crew. Many minds connected, sharing, joined but individual. Then fewer. Then fewer still, until only three remained. The memory of the last three activating hibernation mode for all her systems came next. Followed by a wavering sea of loss as each of the three slowly faded from the link. One by one she had felt their deaths. Their last farewells as their flesh gave out. Their remains became part of her. Absorbed. The memory of all they were stored within her own mind. An entire membrane of memory cells. The collective shared memory of every mind that had ever linked with hers. She could not stop the mournful thoughts and memories from flooding the link and she shielded the new minds from further such thoughts for now.
Slowly she resumed her motion towards the beacon in the dark. The light of safety that was not far off now. Still lightyears away, but closer.
((Aft Chamber, Narhelion))
Narhelion: ~ If contact with Tiny Predator Ronin is required, adjustment to external communication nodules will need to match Tiny Predator’s frequencies. Dampener field can also be adjusted to prevent Narhelion’s external field from interfering. Alien linguistics accessed. Analogue would be Navigational Deflector. Narhelion projects a similar field on all axes out two nearly three light years. ~
Raga/Shortrith/Venn/Wren: Responses
Narhelion: ~ Correct. Frequency match confirmed. Synchronization also confirmed. Tiny Predator should now sense all of Narhelion and you as well, without complication. Narhelion has also awoken vocalization processes fully. Can new Caretakers sing to Tiny Predator? ~
Raga/Shortrith/Venn: Responses
Narhelion: ~ Linguistic correction. Can new Caretakers ‘hail’ Tiny Predator? ~
She felt the changes to the external bio-organic nodules shielded within her external skin, as well as their protrusions emerge.
Giddiness.
She had not conversed with any in so long and now she had many minds to listen to and for the first time since the last Caretakers had died, she called out to another.
Narhelion: Hello, Tiny Predator.
Niac/Ronin: Response
Raga/Shortrith/Venn: Responses
Glee.
The visual link was also established for those conversing with Tiny Predator, and she could see the alien interiors of these beings home. Strange. Shiny. Many more beings. Many species unknown to her beyond the knowledge from the alien device. Uniformity. And the lead Caretaker of the Tiny Predator was fuzzy!
Narhelion: Narhelion apologizes to Tiny Predator’s fuzzy Caretaker. Narhelion did not realize Tiny Predator Ronin fragility.
Niac/Ronin: Response
Raga/Shortrith/Venn: Responses
She fell silent and listened to those within her and the converse with the Tiny Predator Ronin, but didn’t focus on any specifically to give privacy and focus on mending the smaller vessel.
Narhelion: Narhelion has a request. Narhelion is last of my kind. Would Tiny Predator’s fuzzy Caretaker permit Narhelion to take some of Tiny Predator to make a new Narhelion?
Niac/Ronin: Response
Her focus shifted once more externally as her sensory organs noted long range disturbances between herself and the tear of light that was her destination. Gravitational distortions, numerous warp ripples. She focused her external perceptions on the long range contacts. Numerous. Many Dozens. Varied sizes and masses. Crystalline. But mixed with vessels of an unknown design.
Narhelion: ~ Caution. Narhelion has detected approaching. Many more angry crystals and unknown vessels with them. Primary offensive armament still healing. Secondary and tertiary armaments are functional but remain in hibernation state. Primary and secondary defensive functions offline and in hibernation state. Recommend hibernation rescindment as soon as possible. ~ ::there was a somber wail:: ~ Please. Narhelion does not want to expire. ~
Any: Responses
((ooc: I added location tags in places in the hope it’ll make Narhelion’s sims less of a wall of text and make it easier for y’all to keep track of which group she’s speaking directly to.))
Any Narhelion tags that are italicized and bold are ones that anyone mind linked to her at all can hear
The Tholian debris damaged her bow weapon
No ‘hull’ breach but the one by Kel’s group caused massive internal hemorrhaging and damage. Figured our medical folks will have a field day treating a patient bigger than our ship
Comms between the away teams and the Ronin are easier now once y’all do whatever adjustments you’re gonna do
Anyone not mind linked would be able to see her words as text on screens in whatever chamber they’re in. Without the context of all the emotions and memories she’s sharing with those who are
Yes, that’s a Lattice Alliance fleet she’s detected on an intercept course for her, Sheliak and Tholian
Yes, Narhelion is asking for parts from the Ronin to make a space whale baby
This sim is bringing us to the end of Act 2 and setting up things for Act 3 to start. Expect Act 3 to kick off with the skipper’s next bridge sim
[Tags/TBC]
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Narhelion
Cosmozoan
As simmed by
Commander Toryn Raga
First Officer
USS Ronin - NCC-34523
Writer ID: A239410TR0
https://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/index.php?title=Toryn_Raga