Lt. Jg. Maddy Nicolau - Portmanteau To You Too
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Karrod Niac
Mar 6, 2026, 9:14:59 PM (4 days ago) Mar 6
to USS Ronin – StarBase 118 Star Trek PBEM RPG
((Bridge, Deck 3, USS Ronin))
Kel: ::nodding to Wren:: Lt. Nicolau please allow Commander O'Connor to take the helm.
She'd been so absorbed in trying to keep the ship safe from the anomalies that seemed to be cropping up everywhere on their sensors that she hadn't noticed O'Connor's arrival and felt a huge wave of relief wash over her as they exchanged looks. Right up until she realized she was looking at a version of their chief helmsman who seemed quite a bit younger than the one she remembered. He offered a sympathetic shrug as they swapped position and a war of confused emotions all but bolted her to the deck. She was trapped between feeling relieved, confused, terrified, and confused again before landing somewhere in the midst of all that as she heard the Captain's voice speaking to her once again.
Kel: Take one of the auxiliary stations just in case Mr. O'Connor develops an extreme case of acne or angst.
O’Connor: You're better at navigational charting than me anyway. Can you get us a couple of back-door courses out of here?... just in case. Also see if you can find some asteroids or anything like that that could hamper their maneuverability even more. It’s our main advantage, let’s press it if we need to.
It took her an extra second to parse his slightly pitchier than normal voice but she shook her head and jumped over to one of the nearby unoccupied auxiliary stations, summoning up their navigational system as her feelings headed back towards their new hybrid state of confusified. She looked back towards their helmsman as he settled into the chair she recently occupied and couldn't help but wonder.
Nicolau: Aye sir, plotting...uh...when were you demoted to Ian, "junior" grade?
Wren: Based on what I understand, Sheliak ships are built more for durability than maneuverability. They’re large and dense, which wouldn’t serve them well in close quarters. We could easily outpace them if we need to make a break for it.
T’Fearne: The hostile vessel is heavier and less maneuverable than we are. If they attempt to pursue us through the gravity well their targeting solutions will lag behind ours, but that could bring them between us and the moon. If I miss, my targeting solutions would be dangerous to any personnel left on the surface.
O’Connor: You won’t miss.
While the ships computer were working to verify the first course she'd plotted their short range sensors began ringing in alert. Her emotional state slid from confusified to relieoused at nearly neckbreaking speed as the energy output from the moon plummeted.
Nicolau: Sir! Readings from the moon are stabilizing...I think....I think our people did it!
Wren: Response
Kel: Finally some good news.
T’Fearne: Who else is left on the surface?
Kel: A team under Commander Tucker and a team under Lieutenant Shortrith. Lt. T'Fearne signal them both to get back to the Ronin.
She could feel a real sense of relief radiating off everyone around her now and even space itself seemed to agree as the gravitational anomalies they'd been dodging began to gradually disperse.
Nicolau: Sir, sensor interference is dropping, we should be able to confirm the location of our people to within a few meters if this keeps up.
Wren: Response
T’Fearne: ::worried:: We need to get them back aboard. I can’t risk firing at Hostile One if it’s got our teams on the moon behind it.
Kel: =/\= Kel to Esot. It looks like the cooling system is working. Crank it as high as possible, maybe we can extinguish the reaction all together. =/\=
Esot: =/\= Response =/\=
Part of her wished she was down on the surface where she could be in a position to help. The rest of her was entirely glad to have the bulk and safety of the Ronin wrapped around her as she considered getting face to face with an out of control experimental reactor. She refocused the sensors on the moon and took real joy in watching their readings slowly but measurably dropping back into safe ranges.
Nicolau: Whatever they're doing is definitely have an effect, sir...radiation levels are diminishing, energy readings have plateaued...space around the moon is returning to normal, sir. Well...as normal as it ever is in the Isles.
Wren: Response
Kel: The amount of radiation escaping the lid is diminishing. Ensign Wren can we get a lock on our people?
The computer chirped and she felt herself smiling.
Nicolau: Lieutenant Junior...uh...sorry sir...Ian Junior...sorry...escape course alpha and bravo are plotted and on your board, sir. Bravo takes us within a few hundred meters of some stellar debris that's stuck in the moons orbit if you're looking for an opportunity to...razzle dazzle, sir.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
Kel: Lt. Nicolau what's the status of the black hole?
She shook her head out of her self-satisfied grin and turned back to the sensors.
Nicolau: It appears to be...collapsing, sir. Gravimetric output is down by fifteen percent, radius of the event horizon has contracted significantly.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
O’Connor: So I don’t think it’ll be an issue for us. In fact we might be able to use it to our advantage against that slower ship if need be.
She'd just relaxed enough to get back to pure confusion at Ian's appearance when something rocked the ship with enough force to nearly throw her into the console. As everyone reset themselves and the viewscreen flickered Captain Kel's voice was almost perversely calm. She didn't know how he did it.
Kel: Let me guess, our Sheliak friends?
O’Connor: Actually no, it was some sort of aftershock of radiation from the facility. As it shut down it must have built up in the atmosphere then released as one last burst. Shields drained to 37% though.
Nicolau: Outer hull temperature spiked...minor alpha and gamma radiation bleed through the shields but nothing serious...we blew out a few EPS couplings on deck eight...I think we're alright sir.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
O’Connor: No, it was actually a good thing. I just used the momentum of that blast to move us farther. T’Fearne should have a clear line of fire now.
O’Connor: Incoming message…from the Sheliak vessel.
Nicolau: Any chance you can turn the volume down before he starts speaking?
Kel: Response
O’Connor: Aye, on screen
B’hab: Was it something I said, Captain?
Kel: Response
The long range sensors chimed an alert and Ian swiveled in his chair towards the Captain just as Madalain's face pinched, her feelings heading back towards confusion.
oO What in the Koala's name are the Ferengi doing here?! Oo
Mercifully the Sheliak muted the comm but she could somehow tell from his...undulations...that he...it...they...weren't happy.
The Sheliak turned away from whoever they'd been gesticulating towards and back to the viewscreen. She knew the creatures gaze wasn't fixed on her but she tried to make herself small all the same.
B’hab:=/\= Well, well, well Captian, what do we have here? I’m guessing it was someone smarter than you to got the Fregengi involved. I had no clue your ship came with a lawyer. This could backfire, you know.
Kel: Response
The screen split down the middle and half was suddenly filled with a much too close Ferengi face. Madalain was reminded of her therapist and realized she needed to schedule another appointment with him before the ship was hit with a 'non-repeat customer' fee.
Brac: =/\= This is Liquidator Brac, and I’m escorting an Arbitor as requested by Judge Advocate General Representative Lieutenant Junior Grade Jack Morrow of the USS Ronin =/\=
B’hab: =/\= This is none of your business, Ferengi; this is between the Alliance and the Ronin, you have no claim to this system. =/\=
Brac: =/\= You are correct, or were correct. As of this Stardate, the Ferengi Alliance has put in a sizable bid on this system. Which would include whatever is left of the station on the moon. You’re both to remove yourselves within the next hour, or face the consequences. I’m willing to parlay if that is your choice; hostilities will not be tolerated. =/\=
The transmission ended from the Ferengi side.
Kel: =/\= Response =/\=
B’hab: =/\= You heard the tube grub, what will it be. =/\=
Kel: Response
There was a kind of disbelieving silence on the bridge as she looked towards the Captain. She felt an awed giggle sneak it's way out of her as she spoke.
Nicolau: Sir...did you just....use the Ferengi to out litigate the Sheliak?! We should get our people out of here before those two start flinging injunctions in all directions...last thing we need is an away team crippled by a restraining order.
Kel/Wren/T'Fearne/O'Connor: Response
Nicolau: I'll update those course plots to avoid any red tape, sir. I'll alert you immediately if I see any process servers closing in.
Kel/Wren/T'Fearne/O'Connor: Response
Madalain felt like laughing as she leaned back into the stations chair and began working on the course plots as promised, her confusion still firmly in place but her terror finally giving way to real relief. Soon they'd have their people back and they could get out of this miserable excuse for a star system and then maybe, if she was lucky, someone would bother to explain to her what exactly had happened down on that moon.
And why it made her want to pinch Ian's cheek so much.
Tags/End Act 3 for Nicolau!
==================
Lieutenant JG Madalain Nicolau
Beta Shift Helmsman
USS Ronin - NCC-34523
V239509GT0
Kel: ::nodding to Wren:: Lt. Nicolau please allow Commander O'Connor to take the helm.
She'd been so absorbed in trying to keep the ship safe from the anomalies that seemed to be cropping up everywhere on their sensors that she hadn't noticed O'Connor's arrival and felt a huge wave of relief wash over her as they exchanged looks. Right up until she realized she was looking at a version of their chief helmsman who seemed quite a bit younger than the one she remembered. He offered a sympathetic shrug as they swapped position and a war of confused emotions all but bolted her to the deck. She was trapped between feeling relieved, confused, terrified, and confused again before landing somewhere in the midst of all that as she heard the Captain's voice speaking to her once again.
Kel: Take one of the auxiliary stations just in case Mr. O'Connor develops an extreme case of acne or angst.
O’Connor: You're better at navigational charting than me anyway. Can you get us a couple of back-door courses out of here?... just in case. Also see if you can find some asteroids or anything like that that could hamper their maneuverability even more. It’s our main advantage, let’s press it if we need to.
It took her an extra second to parse his slightly pitchier than normal voice but she shook her head and jumped over to one of the nearby unoccupied auxiliary stations, summoning up their navigational system as her feelings headed back towards their new hybrid state of confusified. She looked back towards their helmsman as he settled into the chair she recently occupied and couldn't help but wonder.
Nicolau: Aye sir, plotting...uh...when were you demoted to Ian, "junior" grade?
Wren: Based on what I understand, Sheliak ships are built more for durability than maneuverability. They’re large and dense, which wouldn’t serve them well in close quarters. We could easily outpace them if we need to make a break for it.
T’Fearne: The hostile vessel is heavier and less maneuverable than we are. If they attempt to pursue us through the gravity well their targeting solutions will lag behind ours, but that could bring them between us and the moon. If I miss, my targeting solutions would be dangerous to any personnel left on the surface.
O’Connor: You won’t miss.
While the ships computer were working to verify the first course she'd plotted their short range sensors began ringing in alert. Her emotional state slid from confusified to relieoused at nearly neckbreaking speed as the energy output from the moon plummeted.
Nicolau: Sir! Readings from the moon are stabilizing...I think....I think our people did it!
Wren: Response
Kel: Finally some good news.
T’Fearne: Who else is left on the surface?
Kel: A team under Commander Tucker and a team under Lieutenant Shortrith. Lt. T'Fearne signal them both to get back to the Ronin.
She could feel a real sense of relief radiating off everyone around her now and even space itself seemed to agree as the gravitational anomalies they'd been dodging began to gradually disperse.
Nicolau: Sir, sensor interference is dropping, we should be able to confirm the location of our people to within a few meters if this keeps up.
Wren: Response
T’Fearne: ::worried:: We need to get them back aboard. I can’t risk firing at Hostile One if it’s got our teams on the moon behind it.
Kel: =/\= Kel to Esot. It looks like the cooling system is working. Crank it as high as possible, maybe we can extinguish the reaction all together. =/\=
Esot: =/\= Response =/\=
Part of her wished she was down on the surface where she could be in a position to help. The rest of her was entirely glad to have the bulk and safety of the Ronin wrapped around her as she considered getting face to face with an out of control experimental reactor. She refocused the sensors on the moon and took real joy in watching their readings slowly but measurably dropping back into safe ranges.
Nicolau: Whatever they're doing is definitely have an effect, sir...radiation levels are diminishing, energy readings have plateaued...space around the moon is returning to normal, sir. Well...as normal as it ever is in the Isles.
Wren: Response
Kel: The amount of radiation escaping the lid is diminishing. Ensign Wren can we get a lock on our people?
The computer chirped and she felt herself smiling.
Nicolau: Lieutenant Junior...uh...sorry sir...Ian Junior...sorry...escape course alpha and bravo are plotted and on your board, sir. Bravo takes us within a few hundred meters of some stellar debris that's stuck in the moons orbit if you're looking for an opportunity to...razzle dazzle, sir.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
Kel: Lt. Nicolau what's the status of the black hole?
She shook her head out of her self-satisfied grin and turned back to the sensors.
Nicolau: It appears to be...collapsing, sir. Gravimetric output is down by fifteen percent, radius of the event horizon has contracted significantly.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
O’Connor: So I don’t think it’ll be an issue for us. In fact we might be able to use it to our advantage against that slower ship if need be.
She'd just relaxed enough to get back to pure confusion at Ian's appearance when something rocked the ship with enough force to nearly throw her into the console. As everyone reset themselves and the viewscreen flickered Captain Kel's voice was almost perversely calm. She didn't know how he did it.
Kel: Let me guess, our Sheliak friends?
O’Connor: Actually no, it was some sort of aftershock of radiation from the facility. As it shut down it must have built up in the atmosphere then released as one last burst. Shields drained to 37% though.
Nicolau: Outer hull temperature spiked...minor alpha and gamma radiation bleed through the shields but nothing serious...we blew out a few EPS couplings on deck eight...I think we're alright sir.
T'Fearne/Wren: Response
O’Connor: No, it was actually a good thing. I just used the momentum of that blast to move us farther. T’Fearne should have a clear line of fire now.
O’Connor: Incoming message…from the Sheliak vessel.
Nicolau: Any chance you can turn the volume down before he starts speaking?
Kel: Response
O’Connor: Aye, on screen
B’hab: Was it something I said, Captain?
Kel: Response
The long range sensors chimed an alert and Ian swiveled in his chair towards the Captain just as Madalain's face pinched, her feelings heading back towards confusion.
oO What in the Koala's name are the Ferengi doing here?! Oo
Mercifully the Sheliak muted the comm but she could somehow tell from his...undulations...that he...it...they...weren't happy.
The Sheliak turned away from whoever they'd been gesticulating towards and back to the viewscreen. She knew the creatures gaze wasn't fixed on her but she tried to make herself small all the same.
B’hab:=/\= Well, well, well Captian, what do we have here? I’m guessing it was someone smarter than you to got the Fregengi involved. I had no clue your ship came with a lawyer. This could backfire, you know.
Kel: Response
The screen split down the middle and half was suddenly filled with a much too close Ferengi face. Madalain was reminded of her therapist and realized she needed to schedule another appointment with him before the ship was hit with a 'non-repeat customer' fee.
Brac: =/\= This is Liquidator Brac, and I’m escorting an Arbitor as requested by Judge Advocate General Representative Lieutenant Junior Grade Jack Morrow of the USS Ronin =/\=
B’hab: =/\= This is none of your business, Ferengi; this is between the Alliance and the Ronin, you have no claim to this system. =/\=
Brac: =/\= You are correct, or were correct. As of this Stardate, the Ferengi Alliance has put in a sizable bid on this system. Which would include whatever is left of the station on the moon. You’re both to remove yourselves within the next hour, or face the consequences. I’m willing to parlay if that is your choice; hostilities will not be tolerated. =/\=
The transmission ended from the Ferengi side.
Kel: =/\= Response =/\=
B’hab: =/\= You heard the tube grub, what will it be. =/\=
Kel: Response
There was a kind of disbelieving silence on the bridge as she looked towards the Captain. She felt an awed giggle sneak it's way out of her as she spoke.
Nicolau: Sir...did you just....use the Ferengi to out litigate the Sheliak?! We should get our people out of here before those two start flinging injunctions in all directions...last thing we need is an away team crippled by a restraining order.
Kel/Wren/T'Fearne/O'Connor: Response
Nicolau: I'll update those course plots to avoid any red tape, sir. I'll alert you immediately if I see any process servers closing in.
Kel/Wren/T'Fearne/O'Connor: Response
Madalain felt like laughing as she leaned back into the stations chair and began working on the course plots as promised, her confusion still firmly in place but her terror finally giving way to real relief. Soon they'd have their people back and they could get out of this miserable excuse for a star system and then maybe, if she was lucky, someone would bother to explain to her what exactly had happened down on that moon.
And why it made her want to pinch Ian's cheek so much.
Tags/End Act 3 for Nicolau!
==================
Lieutenant JG Madalain Nicolau
Beta Shift Helmsman
USS Ronin - NCC-34523
V239509GT0
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