USS Penumbra Sim Narrative, SD 202202.04

 

 

Introduction:

The Penumbra was at Yellow Alert at All Stop within the borders of the Breen Confederacy in interstellar space.

They had come here looking for the one Breen Battlecruiser that had been fitted with reverse-engineered Borg technology intended to create Transwarp Conduits.

But before they could even begin looking, as soon as they'd exited from the Slipstream Corridor, a strange shadow swept across the Bridge and some kind of spacial anomaly created a "drag" on the ship, pulling navigation slightly off course, and making a slight "imbalance" going in the Warp Core. The anomaly, the imbalance, and the navigational drag all shifted from port to starboard as the shadow moved.

But, LtCmdrs. Denovan and Katarina Hawke, the former-Borg siblings, had seen more than just a shadow. They saw some kind of Shadow Demon. And it, apparently, saw them, or at least Den, since it stared at him for a couple of seconds before disappearing again.

After some head scratching and general complaining and a bit of brainstorming, the Commodore eventually ordered Den and Kat off his ship, and Relok suggested they take Lt. Jackson Carshel with them!

But it wasn't as bad as it seemed. This was an experiment to see if the strange anomaly followed the Hawkes or stayed attached to the Penumbra. They sought to confirm whether or not this thing was attached to the siblings, and if they could, they'd have a better idea of what to do about it.

 

Astrometrics:

Analysis

SgtMaj. Derek Hines, the 6'-6" Marine non-comm in command of the Marines while Col. Travis Patterson served his sentence, had gone to the Astrometrics lab to make use of the advanced 3D holographic display dome in his analysis of the strange spacial anomaly. LtCmdr. T'Lin, the Vulcan D'Vir serving as the Chief of Sciences while Cmdr. Relok took over for Patterson as the Executive Officer, sat cross-legged on the floor surrounded by paper files and folders (and empty coffee cups) as she, too, tried to figure out the strange shadow.

Hines grumbled, mostly to himself, "It just doesn't make any sense!"

T'Lin, a senior officer, had heard that the Commodore was sending the Hawke siblings on the shuttle, Ahrele, and that her subordinate, Lt. Jackson Carshel, would be going with them to collect scientific data. She tapped her commbadge, "Carshel, I need a full scan of the Hawkes before you leave this ship. Scanner and old school physical checks, pupil dilation, eye tracking, hearing, anything."

"Yes, mo-," Carshel started to reply. But instead of saying "mom" he corrected himself and said instead, "I mean, boss."

T'Lin replied, "I will handle Bevin, Carter, and Tabeshk, since they are not going with you." She lifted her gaze to the tall Marine across from her and asked, "Hines, do you know where I placed the black hole diametrics? I cannot find them." She she scratched her head with an ancient pencil as she scanned the large pile of folders.

Hines turned towards her and regarded the chaos surrounding her. "Honestly, I'm surprised you're able to keep up with ANYTHING in all of ... that," he waved a hand taking in the whole scene.

"What do you mean?" she asked him, looking puzzled. She points to one section of folders and said, "Those files are on all reported spacial anomalies." She switched to the other side of the pile, "Those are my scans of the Hawkes and all treatments they have received as of late." She turned and pointed yet again at another pile, "That is the information I was given access to on Borg technology." She looked back towards the big Marine. "What is there to not understand?"

Hines noticed a shuttle disembarking from the hangar bay and frowned. "Wait, why is the Ahrele leaving? Where is it headed? Who's on it?"

T'Lin looked up at him, again looking confused, "The ... Hawkes are."

Apparently, the senior-most enlisted crewman, who was temporarily in command of the entire Marine detachment even though he wasn't even an officer, had not been notified of the plan!

 

Back to the Bridge

Hines stared at her a moment, one eyebrow raised, then he looked at the 3D display and saw that the anomaly had moved with the shuttle, and that the shuttle was beginning to drift towards it. He tapped his commbadge, "Hines to Taylor."

Before he'd even received a reply, Hines started for the exit. As he passed T'Lin he said, "You have the lab, Commander," and broke into a jog for the Turbolift.

T'Lin decided she, too, would head to the Bridge and signed off, coding the lock on the lab as she exited and followed Hines.

The voice of Cdre. Zak Taylor came back, "Go ahead, Sergeant Major."

"A word with you in private, once I get to the Bridge, sir?" Hines asked.

"Acknowledged, Hines," Zak replied.

"And get Delta 1 and 2 up to pursue the Ahrele!" Hines barked as the Turbolift doors slid open.

Zak's voice came back again, "Belay launching Delta Flight. We're running an experiment, Sergeant. I'll explain when you get here."

Hines would follow the Commodore's "belay launching" order, but he still would mobilize his teams. He tapped his commbadge again, "Sandoval, get Delta 1 and 2 on the launch pads and crewed for immediate departure, and await further instructions. I've got a REAL bad feeling."

The voice of CfWrnt. Sandoval came back, "Aye, Sergeant Major, two minutes, out."

T'Lin slid into the Turbolift just as the doors shut. She seemed to stare off into space, sensing the rising emotions of the crew throughout the ship.

 

Bridge:

Heading Out

Cmdr. Relok had moved over to the Primary Science Station. While he was now the Executive Officer while Col. Patterson served his time, he was formerly the Chief of Sciences, and his former assistant, LtCmdr. T'Lin, now the Chief, was in Astrometrics, and their subordinate, Lt. Jackson Carshel, had been sent with the Hawke siblings.

LtCmdr. Tabeshk Tibris, the Chief of Operations and current Second Officer was in his usual spot at the Operations Console, and beside him Ens. Proxy Filler had taken over the Helm of a parked ship while LtCmdr. Jason Carter, the Chief of Flight Operations who usually piloted the ship, sat with his back against the aft wall of the Bridge, still clenching one hand to his temple after being mentally assaulted by something from the anomaly. Lt. Re'Libel Standin, the stoic Vulcan Tactical Officer, had taken over for LtCmdr. Denovan Hawke when the Commodore had ordered the Hawke siblings to take the Ahrele out for a spin.

Cdre. Zak Taylor was standing in the center of the Bridge. He returned to the Command Chair and as he sat he said, "Relok, keep an eye on that anomaly. Tabby, keep an open comm with the shuttle. Carter, signal ... um, I mean, Filler, signal the shuttle they're free to launch."

Filler nodded and opened a communication line, "Shuttle, um, you guys are good to go when you're ready, sirs." Everyone on that shuttle outranked the Ensign.

Relok looked up from his console and reported, "The anomaly is stable at the moment, sir. Still detecting the strong gravimetric distortion but unable to determine its source."

Zak grunted in acknowledgement and then said, "Filler, once the Ahrele has launched, turn us 60 degrees port and go to 1/4 impulse for a minute or so."

A voice came over the comm line. It was Den from the Ahrele, "Control, we're heading out."

The tiny shuttle banked to the Penumbra's starboard side a ways and the much larger ship turned to port and put some distance between them. It took a moment, but then the anomaly moved. It followed the shuttle.

 

Light it up

Relok reported, "Sir, I confirm the anomaly followed the Hawkes. It's definitely attached to them, specifically. I wonder ... could it be connected to the Breen's Transwarp attempts? It's nothing like I've ever read about them, though."

Carter got to his feet, grunting with the effort, and moved to the front to lean over Filler's shoulder to watch the navigational sensors. His head was still pounding and he didn't relieve the younger officer.

Then Zak's commbadge chirped and the voice of SgtMaj. Derek Hines came through, "Hines to Taylor."

Zak tapped his badge, "Go ahead, Sergeant Major."

Hines said, "A word with you in private once I get to the Bridge, sir?"

"Acknowledged, Hines."

"And get Delta 1 and 2 up to pursue the Ahrele!" Hines barked out.

Zak responded, "Belay launching Delta Flight. We're running an experiment, Sergeant. I'll explain when you get here."

"Sir," Relok said, "it was suggested we use tachyon particles on the anomaly to see if it helps us see it or through it. Should we try it now since we have some space?"

Zak looked at his First Officer, then turned to Tabby at Ops, "OK, let's send out some tachyon particles. Light it up, folks."

Carter gestured at the nav console, "Filler, did that anomaly just encompass the shuttle?"

Relok corrected him, "It didn't envelop them, Carter, it's between us and them."

Just then, the Turbolift slid open and Hines and T'Lin nearly burst out. Hines snapped out, "Commodore?" and gestured with his head towards the Ready Room door. Zak stood and hurried with Hines into the Ready Room.

As he followed the Commodore to the Ready Room, Hines pointed at Standin and Tabby and said, "Keep a transporter lock on all of our personnel, and make sure we can recover that shuttle with a tractor beam on a moment's notice if necessary."

Standin, ever the quiet one, simply nodded. Tabby responded, "Understood, readying."

 

Ready Room:

Left Out

Cdre. Zak Taylor and SgtMaj. Derek Hines stepped through the door to the Ready Room and as the door slid shut, Zak turned and said, "Make it quick, Sergeant Major."

Hines asked, "Are you telling me to speak frankly, then, sir?"

Zak eyed the big Marine a moment then said, "Yes, let's hear it."

Hines took a breath and began, "All due respect, sir, ... have you lost your mind? You sent our two ex-Borg out on their own into an unidentified anomaly shortly after their hallucinations, in a sector of Breen space with known Borg technology present? Without informing me, might I add!"

Zak took the Marine's wrath in stride. He answered, "You're right, I should have let you know the plan, but my priority is this ship and if that means I sacrifice two of my senior officers to save the rest, that's what I'm going to do! But ... they're not sacrifices, Sergeant, they're lab rats!"

Hines rebuffed, "They're ex-Borg, Commodore! Still as human as the rest of us at heart, and I'm damn sure they didn't agree with being used like little white mice." He paused for breath then added, "We should've looked at all other alternatives: psychic communication, frequency modulations. Hell, I went to Astrometrics to analyze the damn thing personally, and while my back is turned, you and the rest of the Brass decide to take drastic action without further intel, when we aren't at immediate risk of death and harm!"

Zak scowled. "Are you done, Sergeant?"

Hines stiffened to a semblance of attention. "You told me to speak frankly, sir, and I have done so. Nothing further."

 

Bridge:

Check-Up

T'Lin called to Carter, "Carter, come here." She pulled out a tricorder scanner.

Carter gave her a dismissive wave. "In a minute, I might be on to something."

"Um, sirs," Filler interrupted, "the Ahrele is drifting closer to the anomaly. Do you think we ought to tell them?"

T'Lin looked over at Tabby and said, "Tabeshk, get ready to grab that shuttle. If it drifts another foot into it, pull it out." She then turned her attention back to Carter, who stood holding the back of Filler's seat at the Helm. "Carter, look at me, now." She pulled out a light pen to check his pupillary reactions.

Carter, slightly annoyed, told her, "Now isn't the time to be breaking my focus off that anomaly, T'Lin."

T'Lin ignored his protest and shined the light in his eyes. "You, Bevin, and Shadow have all been affected by this anomaly. I have not. That tells me that it is in your head and I need to make sure it does not affect your brain's responses. You can take less than a minute to ensure your safety."

Carter rolled his eyes. "Less than a minute and we may lose three crewmembers."

"Follow my finger and repeat after me. 'Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Where she shines she sits, and where she sits she shines.'"

Carter stared at her as if she'd lost her mind. But, he finally acquiesced and repeated part of the strange phrase, "Susie works in a shoeshine shop. Are we done now?"

"The entire thing," T'Lin insisted.

Tabby said the other part of the phrase for him, "Where she shines she sits and where she sits she shines."

Carter shook his head. "You two are insane."

"Now, follow my finger," T'Lin said, waving her finger in front of his face.

Filler spoke up, "Again, sirs, the Ahrele is awfully close to that ... thing ... what are we going to do?"

 

Shadow Planet?

Standin had finalized the set-up for the tachyon pulse and suddenly the edges of the anomaly glowed with an eerie light.

Relok exclaimed, "The tachyons did it! They defined the edges of the anomaly. I had sensor readings for a few seconds before they faded out. There's a planet through that hole!"

Carter turned towards Relok. "There's a what?"

Tabby did the same, "A what?"

"There's a planet," Relok explained, "a big one, just the other side of the anomaly."

T'Lin asked, "A shadow planet?"

Carter looked over Filler's shoulder again at the navigational chart then said, "There's no planet anywhere on navigation." He rubbed his forehead.

Tabby turned slightly and asked, "Why would a planet be inside a shadow? And how could it move and cover a ship? I don't understand."

T'Lin muttered, "My people told stories of shadow planets, ones that are not physically there, but psionically are."

At that moment, the shuttle Ahrele slipped over the event horizon of the anomaly, but Tabby's sharp reflexes were ready and he activated a tractor beam at the last second. What they saw now was a tractor beam projecting from the front of the Penumbra and disappearing into a "hole" in space defined by the softly glowing tachyon particles. They could only hope they actually had the Ahrele. All they knew was, they had something!

 

Hangar Bay & Shuttle "Ahrele":

The Bait

LtCmdrs. Denovan and Katarina Hawke, and Lt. Jackson Carshel were just outside the runabout named Ahrele, preparing to board to do the "experiment" to see if the shadow anomaly would follow the former-Borg siblings.

Kat was pacing near the shuttle entrance and Carshel was groaning at being stuck in a shuttle with two psychotics ... one of whom he kind of had a crush on. Den stepped up and as he entered the shuttle asked, "Well, where are we going then? Just hovering outside?"

Kat followed her brother into the shuttle muttering, "Why do I not like being bait?"

Carshel followed the siblings grumbling, "Well, let's get this over with."

Den moved towards the pilot's seat then paused and turned and asked, "Unless you want to take the helm, Carshel?"

Carshel shook his head, "I can't fly a ship ... although I could learn." He took the co-pilot's seat.

Den nodded, "I've got it then, just get us clearance." He settled into the pilot's seat and fired up the engines and did the pre-flight check.

Kat settled into one of the other seats, silently hoping this experiment worked.

Carshel's commbadge chirped and the voice of LtCmdr. T'Lin, the Chief of Sciences (at least while Cmdr. Relok was taking Col. Patterson's spot as Executive Officer), said, "Carshel, I need a full scan of the Hawkes before you leave this ship, scanner and old school physical checks, pupil dilation, eye tracking, hearing, anything."

Carshel tapped his commbadge and answered, "Yes, mo-," he cut off from saying "mom" and said instead, "I mean, boss."

T'Lin replied, "I will handle Bevin, Carter, and Tabeshk, since they are not going with you."

Carshel turned slightly and said, "Den, Kat, I must do exams before we get into anything. Since we don't have much here, it's old school now." He smirked and said, "She sells sea shells by the sea shore."

The Hawke siblings stared at him a moment before repeating the odd phrase. Carshel then asked, "How much wood can a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?"

Again, with some confusion the siblings repeated the odd phase. Then Den volunteered, "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. How many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?" He smirked, then tapped his commbadge, "Control, we're heading out." The alarm sounded and the hangar bay doors opened. He nudged the shuttle out and away a short distance then stopped.

 

A Visit

As they maneuvered away from the Penumbra, Kat pulled up the sensors on the side monitor. "The shadow, or whatever it is, is following us."

Suddenly, various sensors and consoles on the shuttle began to malfunction. Lights began to dim and brighten randomly.

Carshel said, "Okay, that confirms it. That thing wants you two."

"Well that's wonderful," Den said. Then he said, "I've got a stupid idea. Anyone want to replicate a Ouija board?"

Kat shrugged, "Sure, can't hurt."

"No!" Carshel exclaimed. "There's no science in that cursed artifact! I'd rather that shadow demon thing everyone speaks of to stay out of my head, for frak's sake!"

"What are you talking about?" Den asked. "A Ouija board lets a spirit talk to us by moving a thing on a board and spelling out words. Who have you been talking to, Carshel?"

"Listen," Carshel responded, "I have seen and heard some things, let's leave it at that."

He glanced at a reading on his display and said, "What's more important is ... why that thing is pulling us towards it."

Kat said, "Unfortunately, I can't exactly get a read on its why, but if a Ouija board can help us find answers then I suggest we u-" she suddenly cut off, staring, then asked, "Den, do you see that?"

The Shadow Demon had appeared on the shuttle. The Hawke siblings saw the full manifestation, and even though Carshel saw only a dense shadow, he said, "What the F- is that?"

And then, all of the electronic equipment on the shuttle went dark. They could see only by the dim light of the galaxy full of stars shining through the forward ports. Kat muttered, "So much for replicating a Ouija board!"

 

"Don't poke it, you moron!"

Carshel blurted out, "Okay, you listen here, weird ... shadow ... thing! I've just about had enough of you! What are you and what do you want?"

Den exclaimed, "Oh, shat!" Then he got up from his seat and moved towards the Shadow Demon. "I've about had enough of this, as have the rest of us. What in the hell do you want?" He turned his head slightly and said softly, "Kat, get a tricorder and see if it works and scan the thing ... subtly ... 'cause, I'm gonna poke it."

Kat whispered back, "Don't poke it, you moron!" But she gave a nod and pulled out a tricorder anyway.

Carshel pulled out his own tricorder, whispering softly, "Please work."

In the darkened shuttle, the Shadow Demon began to hiss and growl, gesturing towards the Hawke siblings. Kat told it, "We don't understand you're hisses, growls, and gestures."

Carshel grumbled, "This thing is really beginning to tick me off."

Then Den said, "I'm full of stupid ideas right now. We've tried everything else." He reached out with his artificial hand, moving slowly forward in a non-threatening way.

Kat held her breath, still scanning with her tricorder. Every instinct was telling her to move between her brother and the Shadow Demon, but she allowed him to do his experiment.

Finally, even the tricorders went dead, their power drained. Even the batteries in Carshel's hearing aids went out, leaving him deaf and nearly blind. He cried out, "Frack! I can't hear! Kat, Den, I can't hear you!"

Kat reached out and placed a hand gently on Carshel's arm so he'd know they were still there with him. He flinched at the touch, then calmed.

Den knew it was too late now to turn back. He made contact with the thing. Icy coldness crept up his Borg-installed hand and arm. The cold was so intense it burned, but he wouldn't let go. "I see it!" he said as visions began to flash into his mind. "I saw it. Tell me what to do to fix it! That ..., so much darkness!"

Kat was curious as to what her brother was seeing. She chewed on her lower lip nervously and wondered if she, too, should touch the creature or leave it all up to Den.

 

Event Horizon

After a moment or two, the Shadow Demon faded away, though the shadow remained. As it faded, power returned to most of the shuttle's consoles and lights (though the batteries in the tricorders and Carshel's hearing aids were still dead).

Kat looked at her brother and asked, "What did you see?"

"I'm not ..., it was dark." He said. "It's ... I didn't get any answers. I can try again."

Carshel looked around as the lights came back on. "Okay, I can see, but still can't hear a damn thing." He pulled out a notebook and pencil like his mentor, T'Lin, favored, just in case he needed to write messages.

Kat was still looking at Den. She said, "Maybe you shouldn't be the only one to try?" But even as she said it she added, "OK, I thought that was a bad idea when I suggested it. What gives?"

Then they noticed Den's hand. The Borg-installed artificial arm was encrusted with ice. Carshel quickly scribbled a note on his notepad and held it up, not wanting to seem to be shouting, or whispering, because he couldn't hear himself. The note read, "Den, your hand."

"Aah!" Den finally cried out. He resisted the urge to snatch back his hand and held it in the shadowy area where the Shadow Demon had once been. "Ice!" he said, "Ice planet ... or dimension ... something. It's not showing me any more." He pulled back the arm, careful not to flex the fingers for fear it might shatter. As he did the shadow faded even further and the shuttle's interior returned to normal.

"Let's go," he said. As he turned back to the navigation console he cursed, "Dammit! I can't tell if it wants to go home, or stay here."

Kat had turned and rummaged in her med-kit for something for the ice on her brother's hand that would keep him from losing the limb, and wrapped a thermal blanket around his arm. "This should help," she said.

Suddenly, an alarm sounded. "What now?" Kat asked.

Den checked his console and found there was a proximity alert flashing. The gravimetric forces inside the anomaly were dragging the shuttle toward it!

And then, a tractor beam shot out from the Penumbra and latched onto the shuttle just as it slipped through the event horizon of the anomaly!