USS Penumbra Sim Narrative, SD 202202.18

Introduction:

The Penumbra remained 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.

And it had followed the siblings. The Shadow Demon came to them on the Ahrele, and while they tried to make some kind of intelligent contact with it, their shuttle was drawn through the anomaly!

Bridge:

"We need more power than we have available."

Cdre. Zak Taylor and SgtMaj. Derek Hines stepped out of the Ready Room where they'd been having a private conversation to serious tension on the Bridge. Hines immediately rounded the aft side of the Bridge and logged in at the Reconnaissance Station on the port-side bulkhead as Zak called, "Report!"

Cmdr. Relok, serving as the Executive Officer while Col. Travis Patterson was serving his sentence, looked up from the Primary Science Station, his former posting, and said, "Commodore, the Ahrele appears to have slipped the event horizon of the anomaly, but we have a tractor beam ...," he did not say to what the beam was attached.

"Well," Zak retorted, "what are we waiting for, pull them back!" He flopped into the Command Chair in the center of the Bridge.

Standing near Relok was LtCmdr. T'Lin, who was the Chief of Sciences while Relok was XO. She was using the Secondary Science Station to conduct readings on the anomaly while trying to recall what she'd heard of what her people, the N'Ereon, a tribe of Vulcans who continued to live in harmony with their natural environment, called "Shadow Planets", planets that existed psionically but not physically. There wasn't much to recall.

Relok relinquished the Science Area to T'Lin and moved back to the XO seat. As he walked, the Artificial Intelligence known as MAX manifested his holographic face above the Ops console and said, "I am unable to confirm whether the beam is locked onto the Ahrele or not, and the gravitational pull of the anomaly is putting a heavy strain on our systems. We can maintain it, but if we attempt to pull back on our own we may have ship-wide blowouts."

Relok nodded, "It's true what MAX said. We still can't see the other side of the anomaly, but there is a big planet over there, sir, and I think the Ahrele is caught in its gravitational well."

At the Helm, LtCmdr. Jason Carter just nodded with a low grunt as he struggled to keep the Penumbra herself from being drawn into the anomaly even as their Tractor Beam extended into it.

"OK," Zak said, "so, we need more power to the Tractor Beam? Is that what you're saying?"

MAX answered, "We need more power than we have available. The anomaly seems fairly stable, sir. I would be intrigued to know personally what's on the other side of it."

Carter quipped, "Well, maybe next time we'll plug you into the shuttle!"

Relok ignored Carter and said, "Again, I must agree with MAX's analysis. We can't simply pour more power into it without risking an overload and losing what hold we have. But perhaps ...," he trailed off.

"We're gonna have to fly into the event horizon, aren't we?"

Zak stared at Relok, waiting for him to continue. Carter raised an eyebrow at him as well, then said, "You're not suggesting we take the SHIP in, are you?"

Relok returned the raised eyebrow and replied, "That would be highly illogical, to risk all of our lives in such a manner. What I was thinking was ... what if we had more sources of Tractor Beams?"

Zak was struggling to keep up. "We have Grabby Hands, that's two or more Tractor Beams at once ...," he trailed off.

Relok shook his head, "No, Commodore, that's still a single source: us."

MAX confirmed, "The power demand on our systems would not sustain for more than a minute at best, considering the gravitational shear."

It was Carter who made the connection. "Delta Flight."

Relok nodded, "Those modified Delta Flyers all have Tractor Beam capability, correct? Perhaps not enough to tow a ship like the Penumbra, but surely they could tow a shuttle like the Ahrele?"

Zak said, "But ... they can't target the Ahrele, it's on the other side of the anomaly."

Carter nodded slowly, "That's an extreme risk for our typical pilots to handle. Hell, I wouldn't really know if anyone but me and Sandy can handle the amount of shear that thing is putting off."

Zak made a face like he'd bitten into a lemon. "OK, Sandy and Hines in Delta One, Carter, you and Khal'Gon take Delta Two. Let's get our ex-Borg siblings and the young Mr. Carshel back, shall we?"

Carter activated the autopilot to hold station, stood, and started for the Turbolift. Then, Relok added, "And be sure to have all sensors recording any data you can gather while you're there. I'd hate to lose this opportunity."

Hines spoke up, "Sir, with me acting Chief of Security, I think it's better to send Davies in my stead with Sandy."

Nearly to the Turbolift, Carter turned and said, "Good point, Hines."

Zak eyed the big Marine, then nodded, "You're right, Hines. Send Davies instead."

Hines nodded and tapped his commbadge, "Master Sergeant Khal'Gon, Staff Sergeant Davies, report to the Flight Deck immediately."

Carter stepped into the Turbolift and tapped his commbadge, "Sandy, mount up in Delta 2. We're going after the Ahrele. You and Davies. Me and Khal'Gon will be in Delta 1."

Just before the doors slid shut, they heard CfWrnt. "Sandy" Sandoval reply, "You got it, flyboy ... we're gonna have to fly into the event horizon, aren't we?"

Shadow Planet

Relok turned to the quiet Vulcan filling in at the Tactical Station while their usual Chief Tactical Officer, LtCmdr. Denovan Hawke, was on the shuttle, "Mr. Standin, ready another round of tachyon particles." The stoic Vulcan nodded as his fingers moved across his console. Relok turned and said, "T'Lin, get scans while we have it lit up. Let's take a look before we go in blind."

T'Lin gave a slight nod and replied, "I am working on that as we speak." Then she added, "I have only ever heard stories from my people about these, never did I think I would see one too. Fascinating."

Relok responded, "I am intrigued at how the anomaly could move in our dimension, when on the other side there is a huge planetary mass. Obviously the other end isn't moving around."

T'Lin answered, "It is similar to a ... psionic wormhole, if you please. Here but not here. A connection between worlds where there should not be one."

Relok stood from the XO seat and walked back over to join T'Lin in the Sciences Area, logging in at the Secondary Station now that T'Lin had moved to the Primary. He asked, "Is it in any way similar to Transwarp Conduits? We know the Breen were experimenting with Borg tech."

T'Lin answered, "It is possible. I need more information. But there is nothing in any file on these anomalies. All I know is that it is, what we call, a Shadow Planet. A planet that exists but does not exist, and it is so ... unbelievably frustrating to know but not know."

Relok nodded, "That's what I found as well. This is nothing like any conduit I've read about. But still ... it reacts to tachyon particles like a conduit would, and it's attached to our former Borg somehow. I have a feeling they're related, somehow."

T'Lin nodded back, "Especially when we are currently dealing with Borg technology. Makes me wonder if they have done something to punch a hole in between our ... realities."

As the two Vulcan Science officers speculated, Hines stepped over to the Tactical station and nodded to Standin. "I can take Tactical. We're still on Alert One status, and we need someone down in Engineering."

Standin, again the quiet one, simply nodded and stepped to the Turbolift without a word. Hines turned to Filler, "Take the Helm, Filler."

The young Ensign stepped forward, gulping as he nodded at the big Marine, "Yes, sir, I mean, um, Sergeant Major, sir ... uh ...." He wasn't quite sure how to address the man who was not an officer, so the lowly Ensign outranked him, but was clearly in a command role with far more experience than the young officer.

Red Alert!

A few moments later, MAX's face, hovering over the Ops console where he was filling in for LtCmdr. Tabeshk Tibris, said, "Commodore, Delta One and Two are reporting ready for launch."

Zak nodded and tapped his commbadge, "Godspeed, Delta Flight!" He then said, "MAX, Filler, send our Rescue Teams."

"Acknowledged," MAX said, "green light."

Then Zak added, "MAX, keep our Tractor Beam taut. And if we can spare the power, put a line on each of our Flyers. I don't care if you fry every circuit, you hold those lines until we're in the dark, got it?"

MAX responded, "Recommend we issue evacuation orders to all non-essential parts of the ship, and relocate all personnel from quarters to the cargo bays. I will need to reroute life support from living quarters. I also request Command level clearance to transfer power from the Darmok-B." The Darmok-B was the Captain's Yacht slung in a niche on the belly of the Penumbra. It hadn't left that docking port since they'd launched from Deep Space Nine into the Gamma Quadrant over a year before!

Zak nodded, "Do it, MAX. Clear all non-essential areas, send our people to the secure evac zones, and route all power to those Tractor Beams until we get our people back!"

MAX responded, "Aye, sir." Even though the Commodore hadn't specifically ordered it, MAX knew the situation called for it and activated Red Alert. The klaxon wailed and lights flashed red all around the ship.

Then MAX announced, "All power from non-essential decks are being transferred to the tractor beam." The red lights around the ceiling began alternating their flashes with a dim silvery flash as MAX activated Condition Grey, indicating they were in "power-saving mode" where all non-essential functions would be shut down. Once that was done he said, "I am attempting a tow."

Zak sat forward on the edge of his seat and said, "Filler, pull back, nice and slow, see if we can reel in our catch."

"Are you mad?"

Then Hines, thinking out loud, said, "Commodore, I'm curious what an antimatter detonation would do to the anomaly at this point."

Relok turned and stared at Hines as if the big Marine had lost his mind. "Are you mad?"

Hines shook his bald head, "If what you and T'Lin are both saying is true, it functions similarly to a transwarp conduit, but by unknown origin or cause. An antimatter blast may actually destroy the anomaly, or close the corridor ... once we get our people back, of course."

Without further commentary Hines activated the tachyon particle burst and the energetic particles lit up the edges of the anomaly. With their light they could see through the anomaly to the strange universe beyond. There was the Ahrele, and a huge planet. There was no star lighting the planet, but it's dark surface sparkled with thousands of tiny lights on its own. And as they observed, Deltas One and Two were hurled at near light speed from the catapults on the Flight Deck and began shrieking towards the anomaly.

In moments, the two Deltas broke the event horizon of the anomaly and were suddenly in the deep gravity well of the huge planet. There they could clearly see the Ahrele, and be seen by them!

They watched tensely a moment. Hines was idly drumming his fingers on the railing near the Tactical station. Suddenly he reached and tapped his commbadge, "Hines to Ordnance Bay. Modify 4 quantum torpedoes with a 200-kiloton antimatter warhead. Advise when ready."

Relok squinted across at Hines. The big Marine gave a slight shrug and said, "Just in case we decide to try it."

A moment later a call came back from the Ordinance Bay, "Modifications complete. Ordinance standing by."

In the strange light of the tachyons surrounding the anomaly they could dimly see one of the Delta Flyers parked just at the edge of the event horizon. The other zipped past, making a sudden turn and looping around the Ahrele, a Tractor Beam lancing out and catching the shuttle as the Flyer suddenly sling-shotted around it back towards the anomaly!

The shuttle lurched, now tugged by two Tractor Beams with different anchor points. Filler quickly called out, "It's moving! The Tractor Beam ... pulling them out, now, I think. Um, sirs."

"Something is wrong with Kat!"

Relok was watching the sensor feeds from the two Delta Flyers. He muttered, "A rogue planet? No star? And ... it's sparkling? What are those lights?"

And then, conduits began to blow. The Operations console went first sending a shower of sparks as the holographic face of MAX winked out. Almost instantly the A.I.'s face appeared over one of the various pedestals on the Bridge as one of the Reconnaissance Stations blew out with another shower of sparks. The huge Master Systems Display on the aft wall of the bridge flickered and went faded to darkness.

MAX calmly announced, "Thirty seconds until Tractor Beam failure."

Through the anomaly they could see Delta One tugging on one Tractor Beam attached to the Ahrele. Another, thicker, Beam was anchored on the Penumbra herself. The tiny shuttle bucked and bounced like crazy at the conflicting forces.

Suddenly, T'Lin, working at the Primary Science Station stiffened, freezing in place. She raised her eyes and stared at the main viewer and said, "It wants us to ... close the connection." She stared another moment, then said, "Kat." A pause, then more excitedly, "Kat! Something is wrong with Kat!"

Relok looked at T'Lin and said, "How do you -?" He abandoned the question and turned to the Tactical station, "Hines, as soon as our people are on this side, fire your torpedoes. Um, if the Commodore doesn't object."

Zak gave a curt nod. "Once our people are on this side, do what you can to that hole, Hines. Just don't take out our people with it, if you don't mind."

Hines nodded, loading the modified warheads into the forward launching bays. His fingers moved over the console and then he announced, "Acquiring target lock."

MAX calmly reported, "Ten seconds to Tractor Beam failure."

And then, Delta One went rocketing past Delta Two parked at the event horizon, with the Ahrele skipping and bouncing behind on a fraying Tractor Beam.

Filler said, "They're out! Pulling them to a safe distance, sirs, then ... maybe we kill the Tractor Beam before we lose everything?"

Zak nodded, "Yeah, Filler." The Ensign moved them away from the anomaly.

They hadn't moved far at all when the Penumbra's Tractor Beam winked out. MAX said, "Tractor beam is offline. I have the Deltas and the Ahrele on sensors."

Zak said, "Get the Deltas on the line."

Over the communication link they heard Carter, "Delta One to Penumbra ... I hope everybody saw that because I will NOT be doing that again!"

T'Lin still stood as if entranced. She spoke, "Her body is too cold to last much longer, something has happened in there." She reached and tapped her commbadge. "Shadow, you need equipment for internal hypothermia ASAP, prepare for 5. And steel your mind, I have a feeling your telepathy may be required." Their Chief Medical Officer was the strongest telepath on the ship.

She turned to Relok, wrapping her arms around herself and seeming to shiver. "I can feel her, cold, confused. Something happened in there."

Hines confirmed the Deltas and the Ahrele were out of blast range, then said, "Firing!" and launched all four of his modified warheads at the edges of the anomaly.

And then, the four heavy antimatter torpedoes detonated around the perimeter of the anomaly. A shockwave flashed back and washed over the Penumbra, the Ahrele, and the two Delta Flyers ... and everything on the Penumbra went dark!

Delta Flight:

"Making it up on the fly."

From the Turbolift, LtCmdr. Jason Carter called over the commlink, "Sandy, mount up in Delta 2. We're going after the Ahrele. You and Davies. Me and Khal'Gon will be in Delta 1."

CfWrnt. "Sandy" Sandoval replied, "You got it, flyboy. We're gonna have to fly into the event horizon, aren't we?"

A few moments later, Carter jogged onto the Flight Deck headed towards Delta One. He saw Sandy nearby and waved at the small ship, "She all good to go, Sandy?"

Sandy nodded, "Yeah. Rations and emergency supplies for 2 should last 2 weeks without power if we get to that point." He paused and then said, "This is gonna be rough."

They each went to their separate craft. With Carter was MstSgt. Khal'Gon, the huge, half-Nausicaan, half-Klingon Marine, and with Sandy was SSgt. Will Davies. As Carter settled into the pilot's seat he opened the commlink, "Just stay close on my right wing, Sandy. Just like the holodeck simulations we ran."

Sandy responded, "Yeah, 'cept there's no safeties in play this time." There was a pause then he said, "Green light here, Cat 2. Ready on your go."

"Gotcha," Carter said, "green light. Stand by." He switched the channel, "Delta Flight to Penumbra. We're ready to launch."

They both heard the voice of Cdre. Zak Taylor, "Godspeed, Delta Flight!"

Carter nodded and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. I've turned the fasten seatbelt sign on because we're going to be expecting heavy turbulence. Please return your trays to their upright and locked position. The air sickness bags can be located tucked between the bench panels to either side of you. Please sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride." He grinned at his own humor, gave a slight chuckle, then said, "Let's punch it, Sandy."

And then they were catapulted from the Flight Deck launch tubes at nearly light speed and were on their way towards the anomaly, now eerily lit by glowing tachyon particles around its edges. Beyond they could see the Ahrele, and a huge dark planet that sparkled with thousands of tiny lights.

Carter rolled his Flyer slightly towards the anomaly and said, "Sandy, once we start pushing the event horizon, break off and hold the edge, and get a tether on me. I'll need that to slingshot at max warp to break out of it. If I can't get the Ahrele free, I'll beam them off and we'll abandon the shuttle."

Sandy's voice came back over their commlink, "A moving slingshot? This sounds like you're making it up on the fly!" He paused, then added with a grin, "I like it."

"We caused this."

Sandy parked Delta Two right at the event horizon and let Carter fly Delta One past him. As he passed, Carter called out, "Now, Sandy!"

Sandy quickly anchored a Tractor Beam onto Delta One, even as he turned to skirt the edge of the anomaly's event horizon. He called, "Ten seconds and we're gonna lose the tether!"

The Flyer streaked past, then arced sharply around the Ahrele. At their closest point, Carter sent out a Tractor Beam of his own to the Ahrele. Even as he did, the on-board computer established transporter locks on the three Starfleet officers on the tiny shuttle.

And then, the huge planet's gravity tried to pull him off course. And the Tractor Beam to Delta Two yanked against it. And then the Tractor Beam on the Ahrele yanked, with its own anchor back through the event horizon to the Penumbra beyond. Delta One did some major bucking and skidding as it was slingshot around the Ahrele headed back towards the anomaly's exit.

Delta Two was doing its own little dance at the threshold. The Tractor Beam on Delta One was strained to its peak, holding Carter while Carter held the Ahrele, and both of them being tugged by a huge planet on one side of the anomaly, and the Penumbra's Tractor Beam on the other. Sandy wrestled with the controls as he called, "I'm losing the Tractor Beam, Carter! Hope you've got enough speed!"

Carter flicked the channel on the commlink, "Delta One to Ahrele."

Suddenly, they heard the voice of LtCmdr. Denovan Hawke, "What are you guys doing here?" Only, he didn't wait for an answer. He continued, "We made contact. It's saying we caused this."

Now, it was the Ahrele that was jolted and bounced around. Carter punched the engines of Delta One, straightening his exit path. "Heard you guys could use a tow!" he said to Den.

Den repeated, "We made contact!" Then he continued, "It said we have to close the anomaly. It'll kill all of us or something bad if we don't."

Carter's tiny Flyer was shaking with the strain and Carter was doing everything he could just to hold on. He tried to respond, "I-iiiiit's ggggoooonnnnaaaa haaaaave tttooo waaaaiiiitttttt!!!"

And then, Delta One went rocketing past Delta Two parked at the event horizon, with the Ahrele skipping and bouncing behind on a fraying Tractor Beam.

As they exited the anomaly, Carter called out, "Delta One to Penumbra ... I hope everybody saw that because I will NOT be doing that again!"

And then, four heavy antimatter torpedoes detonated around the perimeter of the anomaly! A shockwave flashed back and washed over them all ... and everything went dark!

The Shuttle, Ahrele:

Visitation

Aboard the shuttle, Ahrele, LtCmdr. Katarina Hawke groaned, putting a hand to her forehead as she started to get up. The shuttle had been pulled through the anomaly with a violent shake that tossed the small crew of three in the shuttle around.

Outside the forward viewports she saw a huge planet, so huge, and so close, it filled the viewport. But, no sun shined on it. Instead, it sparkled with thousands of tiny lights of its own.

She glanced around inside the shuttle and saw that both Lt. Jackson Carshel and her brother, LtCmdr. Denovan Hawke, were prone and went to check on them. She breathed a sigh and muttered, "Thank the gods they are just unconscious." The readings on her medical tricorder showed they'd both have prime headaches when they came to but were otherwise fine.

She glanced around the shuttle again, then tapped her commbadge, just in case, to see if she could get through. "Katarina Hawke to the Penumbra." There was no response.

After a few minutes, she heard a groan as Den started to sit up, reaching a hand to his head. Kat moved to check him over again. Satisfied he'd be okay, she tapped her commbadge once again, "Katarina Hawke to Penumbra, come in Penumbra." Still there was no response. She shook her head and sighed again, then spoke to her brother as he came around, "Careful, you might have a concussion, though my tricorder didn't pick one up."

"What the hell happened?" Den asked, still rubbing his head and looking around.

"We were pulled in-" She suddenly gasped. The Shadow Demon was back! "It's back!" she said, then glared at her brother, "Don't you dare touch it again! Your hand still hasn't defrosted from the last time you touched it."

"Yeah, yeah," Den groaned, standing and turning towards the Demon-like creature.

Kat stood and moved to face the Demon as well. She glanced back at her brother and asked, "Is it just me, or is it more ... whole?"

Den tilted his head, then tilted it the other way. "Kind of," he said.

The Shadow Demon hissed and squealed again, gesturing back towards the anomaly.

"LISTEN!"

Kat watched the thing, glancing towards the anomaly then back to the creature. "You pulled us through it. How do we get back?"

Den said, "I think it's trying to communicate. And I think it's wanting us to keep going."

"Keep going?" Kat turned to her brother. "If we keep going we're going to be stuck here, Den! According to the sensor readings we're still tethered to the Penumbra. If we move in, we risk pulling the ship in with us."

Den pointed at the planet beyond the viewport, "Do you want to go there? Nod your head for yes."

But the creature instead shook its head vigorously, no, and pointed back at the anomaly itself, then clenched its fist.

Kat watched the shadow, though the shimmering and sparkling planet kept catching her eye as well. It was beautiful and it made her curious to see more of it, but ... she had been lost alone on an ice planet once before and did not relish being so again, no matter how pretty it looked from space! She asked, "Is it saying it wants to go back through the anomaly? Or ... that it wants US to go back through the anomaly?"

Den glanced at the planet again. The creature's response wasn't what he had expected. To his sister he responded, "Dunno ... that's what I just asked it."

"I know, Den, but ...," she was cut off as the Shadow Demon shrieked in frustration, then lunged at Kat and grabbed her by the face.

Inside her head Kat heard it shout, ~LISTEN!~

Kat blinked as her eyes glazed over slightly. Inside her own head she heard her voice, like when she spoke to her brother over their Borg interlink that only the two of them shared, ~I ... I heard you!~

"Let go of her!" Den lunged at the Shadow Demon, trying to make it get off his sister.

A look of surprise came over the Demon's face. ~You hear me!~ Then it got anxious again, ~You must close the door! It's killing us! Close it quickly or it'll destroy your worlds too!~

Where the creature touched Kat her face began to frost slightly. But she didn't seem to feel the burn as she was entranced at the moment. ~H-how do we do that?~ she asked. ~How do we help you close it?~

Den couldn't hear their telepathic exchanges. All he saw was the frostbite beginning to spread on his younger sister's face. "You're killing her! Let go!" He shoved at the Demon but it didn't let go.

Rescue

The Shadow Demon only glanced at Den, then turned back to Kat, whose face he still held, steam rising from where her flesh froze at his touch. ~It was you who opened it! You with your implants. You keep the door open. Close it! Close it now!~

Kat's eyes widened slightly. ~Wi-with our implants?~ she thought back to the creature. She reached blindly for her brother's hand, thinking that if they'd done it, opened the anomaly, then they needed to close it together. On a different "channel" in her mind, she reached for him over their Borg interlink. ~We need to close the anomaly. We're the reason it's open.~

But Den wasn't there. He'd given up shoving the thing and moved for a weapons locker and produced a hand phaser. He quickly armed it and turned back to it. "Last warning!" he said, brandishing the weapon.

Reluctantly, the Shadow Demon released Kat and stepped back, hissing.

Den saw Kat reaching towards him, and with the phaser in one hand pointed at the Demon, he took her hand with his other hand. He thought back to her over their interlink, ~What? How are we the reason?~

Released by the Demon, Kat's knees buckled and she crumpled to the floor. Now she felt the cold on her face, so cold it felt like it was on fire! She managed to say out loud, "We're the reason for the anomaly, Den. Our Borg implants opened it." But talking made her face hurt. The pain brought tears to her eyes and she blinked.

Den let her go and went for the emergency medical kit. Once he had it, he knelt beside her and opened it. "Here," he said, noticing that at least his frozen hand hadn't shattered. "I don't know how we can do that," he said, "we kind of need them." He tapped the Borg cortical node on the side of his head. Then he tapped his commbadge, "Penumbra, come in. We have an answer, sort of."

Kat was fading. She mumbled, "You n-need ... dermal reg-regenerator ... for ... the damaged ... skin." In her mind she wondered about how they need to close the anomaly but didn't even know how they'd opened it!

Suddenly, the Shadow Demon seemed to flinch and just as he'd appeared, he blinked out and was gone. In the viewport Den saw a Delta Flyer whip past!

The communication system cracked and the voice of LtCmdr. Jason Carter came through, "Delta One to Ahrele."

"I will NOT be doing that again!"

Den moved to the pilot station and hit the comm, "What are you guys doing here?" He didn't wait for an answer. He continued, "We made contact. It's saying we caused this."

He moved back and found the dermal regenerator in the medical supplies and began moving it slowly around his sister's face.

And then, the Ahrele that was jolted and bounced around as a new Tractor Beam locked on in addition to their anchor back to the Penumbra.

Kat was growing tired and her eyes were starting to close. But she knew she needed to get someone to understand. Then she remembered how the Demon had spoken in her mind. Could it work with the telepaths back on the Penumbra? With Shadow or Bevin or Carter? What about T'Lin? She mustered the last of her energy and focused it into a telepathic scream with as much feeling as she could, ~WE NEED TO CLOSE THE ANOMALY!~ And then she passed out.

Over the comm he heard Carter joke, "Heard you guys could use a tow!"

Den repeated, "We made contact!" Then he continued, "It said we have to close the anomaly. It'll kill all of us or something bad if we don't." He stowed the dermal regenerator as he said, "I think that's as much as I can do for now. It's probably still going to sting for a bit!"

And then, the Ahrele began to snatch and jerk, bouncing between the two Tractor Beams pulling at variance with each other and the deep gravity well of the enormous planet in the other direction. Carter's voice seemed to bounce and shake too as he answered, "I-iiiiit's ggggoooonnnnaaaa haaaaave tttooo waaaaiiiitttttt!!!"

USS Penumbra Sim Narrative, SD 202202.18

Introduction:

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

YELLOW ALERT

THE SHADOW DEMON