Ten minutes prior to the Philadelphia being captured
Aazrus, U.S.S. Philadelphia, crew quarters
Aazrus sat in his quarters re-reading the text message on his computer terminal that had been sent via subspace less than a minute ago. He'd read it three times already.
You need a new haircut and a new suit.
It was a code, and it meant one thing, but how and when did Elihu get this coded message to Captain Jade? In the end, it did not matter. There was one thing to do...
One Month Ago...
“I don't trust her,” Elihu told Aazrus in the privacy of the chef's own quarters.
“She's your aunt,” said Aazrus from the comfort of his sofa. “What's not to trust? More importantly, why are you coming to me with this? I'm not the ship's counselor.”
This hurt Elihu immensely. He just stared at Aazrus with the look of a man who'd been betrayed.
“I'm sorry,” Aazrus apologized, and then cleared his throat.
Pacing in front of Aazrus and his sofa, Elihu said, “She blocks me pretty well, but not well enough. The little blow-up I had in the mess hall a few weeks ago...I apologized to her afterward, but I may have been right. She might be trying to figure out how to get the Phili away from me.”
“Again,” said Aazrus, this time more respectfully, “why are you telling me this?”
Elihu said, “When she attempts to take the ship, I want you to pretend to be on her side.”
“What if I really am on her side? It's not like you're the greatest leader right now, no offense.”
“None taken, you're mostly right,” admitted Elihu. “Just go along with her. If things get too hairy, I wanna have someone like you on the inside.”
“Someone like me?” questioned the civilian, before realizing what Elihu meant. “You want me to get my powers back, don't you?” As Elihu tried to explain, Aazrus talked over him. “It's not fair that you're coming to me with this, damn it, Elihu! I left the Continuum for a reason, not just because I was bored.”
Elihu held up his hands to placate the man. “Look, I'd rather you not do it, but if things get too outta control, I need you to be able to make things right! What if an Undine invasion force threatens Earth again, or what if the Iconians return!”
Aazrus groaned. “Fine,” he relented. “But only as a last resort, man.”
Elihu nodded. “That's all I ask.”
“How will I know when that is, if I'm stuck on this ship with Lydia?”
“I'll send a message,” replied Elihu, returning to his thoughtful pacing. “Um, something like...”
You need a new haircut and a new suit.
Aazrus, U.S.S. Philadelphia, crew quarters
After staring at the text for another minute, Aazrus cleared his throat and nervously stood up behind his computer terminal. He stretched his limbs and cracked his knuckles.
Then he said, “Q, I know you're watching. You keep an eye on all the Q. Please. Grant me an audience with the Continuum.”
Vaughn Vincent appeared in a flash of white light. He looked down at his body in disgust. “Ugh! Boy, I really hate this thing. I wish the Continuum had assigned me a different celebrity to impersonate. Q got de Lancie! So unfair.”
“Are you...?”
The Q looked at Aazrus as if he'd just noticed him. “The counselor? Nah, I'm just using this form temporarily. Soooo...you want an audience with the Continuum, eh?”
“If you don't mind,” said Aazrus. “I don't care the cost.”
Q nodded slowly, raising his fingers to his chin in thought. “I see. I take it you're gonna fix everything?”
Aazrus shook his head. “No,” he said. “I couldn't care less about the state of the galaxy. All I know is that if Elihu M'Konel needs me to get my powers back, that's what I need to do.”
Q nodded again, this time more cynically. He said, “You really, really do not want to return to the Continuum right now.”
Aazrus blinked, understanding the meaning behind his words. “The war...”
“Everything's gone. There are maybe half a dozen Q still left, and I just so happen to be one of them. There is no more Q elders' council, no more Q police force, nothing. There is no one for you to petition, my dear friend.”
“Q,” Aazrus intoned desperately, stepping toward him. “Please. I'm begging you. I...I will join whichever cause you wish me to join...”
“It doesn't work that way, Aazy,” Q laughed, crossing his arms. “You left because you didn't want to choose sides in The Q Civil War II: the Reckoning, and now...you will live with the consequences.”
“You act as though I could have made a difference. I was a soldier, not an elder.”
“Exactly!” Q spat. “You were a soldier! And you deserted us when we needed you the most! You didn't even have the guts to choose a philosophy!”
“They were both wrong!” Aazrus shouted. “I refuse to choose between the lesser of two evils, as the humans say.”
Q shook his head ruefully. “You still have not learned your lesson. Sure, you may have left on principle, or maybe you really did only leave because you were bored of the civil war...but it does not matter – you left. And now you will live with it.”
And that was when Aazrus dropped a bombshell. “I know where she is.”
Q blinked and then stared at Aazrus for several seconds in silence before saying, surprised, “My mate? Where?”
“The Infamous uses her for her power,” Aazrus claimed. “Give me my abilities and I will help you liberate her.”
Q nodded. “I returned to you the moment you mentioned The Infamous. I would love nothing more than to go to war against him to rescue my bride, even if I have a Denobulan Slime Devil like you watching my back.”
As soon as he got his powers back, Aazrus inhaled with regret and sorrow. “Too bad.” He clapped his hands once and Q exploded into pieces, dead. Stepping over the shining remains of his former colleague, Qaazrus headed for the exit. “I don't give a damn about you or your wife. May you both meet again in Gre'thor.”
Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the straight-jacket
“By Gre'thor!” Grilka screamed at The Infamous, “You will tell me what I want to know or I will –!”
“What?” The Infamous asked the Klingon woman. “What will ya do? Kill me? Did our little walks along the beach not mean anything to you, Grillie?”
Grilka sighed, leaning closer to the man. “Of course they did,” she whispered, “but that Romulan p'takgh has made Elihu M'Konel first officer of the Zipporah. She plans to take over your fleets, your empire.”
“And you think if I tell you where my precious Q is, what? Ye'll just use her powers to take o'er my ship?” The Irishman scoffed, “Ha! Not a chance! She's my pet. Now...let me out, so I can –”
“So you can what?” Donatra asked as she walked up behind Grilka.
Rage. The Klingon reached for her dagger but Elihu could sense her murderous intent, so he caught her wrist and slammed the ridge of his palm up into her nose, bloodying her face. Grilka collapsed against the bulkhead beside the straight-jacket.
Elihu said, “Looks like The Infamous wants his dreadnaught back.”
“Make no mistake,” The Infamous sneered, “I'll enjoy killing you, Eli.” He slowly, ominously turned his eyes upon Donatra. “And I will enjoy TRIBBLE you even more.” He licked his lips at her.
Donatra briefly glanced aside, recalling his previous forced encounters. Then she leveled him with a glower. “We need the Q to find Admiral Nat and restore peace to the Republic, Sir.”
The Infamous smirked and nodded once. “Then ye need me.”
Elihu said, “Donatra has informed me that this ship has a time dilation device. Five minutes in the real world could take hours or days here. And we are also shielded from outside temporal influences. In other words, even a temporal agent who goes forward in time cannot locate or predict the actions taken aboard this vessel. Is this true?”
The Infamous nodded. “What of it?”
“Can this ship go back in time as well?”
“No,” claimed The Infamous, “she cannot. So ya can't save your lovely Young Lady,” he laughed darkly.
Elihu angrily punched him in the face, a few times before Donatra reluctantly pulled him back.
“You knew her,” Elihu said. “How can you just--?”
“Ye're right,” The Infamous plus one bloody lip said contemptuously, “I did know her, if ya know what I mean.” He winked. Untrue.
Elihu sighed and restrained himself, despite his intense anger. “Not gonna work.”
The Infamous shrugged. “Was worth a try.”
Elihu turned to Donatra. “We're going to ESD.”
Lydia M'Konel, Earth spacedock, ops
In the distance, an Iconian gateway opens. A squadron of Quas Cruisers emerge. All but one of them distract the surrounding ships while the one locks a tractor beam on the Philadelphia and disappears with her into the gateway, the other cruisers following them inside and the gateway closing behind them.
Sarah turns to Admiral Quinn. "Admiral, in case you haven't noticed, the Iconians just stole the Philadelphia. I told you, the admiral knows about the future! He knows there's something important about that ship! We need to capture him!"
Lieutenant Cameron taps his combadge. "Sally, two to beam up. Set course for the Firestorm's coordinates, maximum speed."
They disappear as they are beamed to the U.S.S. Sally, who leaves the system and warps out, shrugging off any attempts to stop them from getting away.
As Captain Walker beamed away, Admiral Quinn glared at Lydia and Tuvok. “How do people keep beaming back and forth with our shields up?” he exclaimed.
Tuvok nodded and perked a brow. “That is a good question, Admiral. What are your orders?”
Suddenly a Romulan transporter beamed Elihu M'Konel and Commander Donatra into Admiral Quinn's office.
Admiral Quinn carelessly tossed a PADD and it slid across his desk until it fell off the other side. “I quit.”
“Eli!” Amazed at seeing him again, Lydia moved toward her nephew, but Donatra intercepted her.
Elihu said, “I will no longer work with you. In fact, I do not want to have anything more to do with you. Keep her away from me.”
As the emotionally wounded Sub-Commander was beginning her objection to his comments, Elihu collapsed to a knee and held his head.
“What is it?” Donatra asked him, almost concerned for his well-being.
“A – a message,” he stammered in response, “from...the Vorta? No, the Undine defector. He...she...it... it's taken Kidna's form and...and he's got her...consciousness. They are...sending...a message...” It was clear that the connection between he and Kidna, while strong, was also painfully strained due to distance and mental and emotional duress. “Someone...will be here...soon...to take the Phila –”
Lydia scoffed to herself, “A little late...”
Elihu continued, “What? Anti...Iconian? We don't...” Despite the agony, Elihu had to laugh. “Kidna's feeding the Reman lies, knowing that Nat has some kind of connection with him. She...she's told him we have anti-Iconian devices on the ship...she...she also told him...I work for a Founder, to throw the corrupt admiral off my scent. It...it's worked for now.”
Lydia asked, “What about our friends?”
Donatra said, “The Zipporah's scanners reported only three persons remaining aboard the Philadelphia. The rest are here, on spacedock.”
“Who are they?” asked Elihu and Lydia simultaneously.
Donatra looked down at a Romulan tricorder she pulled from her belt. She said, “A Caitian, a human female, and a...something else. Whatever this other thing is, our scanners are recognizing it as a warp in the space-time...continuum.”
Elihu grinned. “Krys, you did it.” He had recovered from his emotional torment and told the others, “Aazrus has gotten his powers back.”
“Who the hell is Aazrus?” asked Admiral Quinn.
Tuvok answered, “Aazrus is a former Q that the late Captain Taggart and I recruited into Section 31. We believed his knowledge and experience would prove to be invaluable.”
“Aww, Tuvok,” Qaazrus said as he somehow appeared behind the Vulcan without anyone noticing. “That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said about me.”
Elihu smiled and said a silent 'thank you' to Krystal Jade before moving quickly toward Qaazrus, and the two shook hands. “It's good seeing you again, man,” Elihu said, and then asked, “Can you get the Phili and our friends back?”
“I mean, I could,” replied Qaazrus, lowering his hands behind his back. “But what's in it for me?”
Admiral Quinn face-palmed. “Great, just what we need: another ruthless opportunist.”
“Now, now,” Qaazrus said, “I do have some principles, and a heart – don't hurt it.”
Elihu said, “Who was the woman on the Philadelphia with you?”
“It was Nel,” the omnipotent being said dramatically.
“How about rescuing her, and whoever the Caitian is?”
Qaazrus acted as though he was mind-melding with the space-time continuum as he held his hands up before him, his eyes closed. Then he opened his eyes. “First of all, yes, I have the power. But one of the reasons I gave up my powers is because when the Q went to war with each other over the fate of mankind, I was in the middle. Some wanted complete interference, the right to dominate, manipulate, create, and destroy as they saw fit. The others wanted to completely ignore the lesser beings, never to help them even if it did not jeopardize the balance of the universe. My judgment was that I would protect people whenever I could, but never harm another individual unless absolutely necessary, nor would I ever bring anyone back from the dead.”
Elihu glared at Qaazrus. “Then protect Nel and the Caitian by bringing them here. Unharmed.”
Qaazrus answered Elihu, “No. But I will temporarily make them unkillable. If someone shoots at them, their aim will be off. If an airlock malfunctions, there will be a safety protocol initiated. If someone attempts to torture information out of them, that person will become so sick they won't be able to stand. No Philadelphia personnel will die until the Fleet Admiral responsible for this Iconian invasion is brought to justice.”
“That is fine, Aazrus,” said Elihu.
“It's 'Qaazrus' now,” Qaazrus said.
Elihu shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Oh. One more thing: do the same for Krystal Jade and her crew.”
Qaazrus shook his head. “Sorry, not in the script.”
Admiral Quinn said, “Qaazrus or whatever your name is. I appreciate your help in the matter, but we all know that the Federation has nothing to offer you in the way of payment for your deeds.”
“This is true,” Qaazrus sighed. “So I'll settle for 'President'...”
“We cannot just hand over the President of the Federation to you,” scoffed Quinn.
Qaazrus rolled his eyes. “No. Elect me President of the Federation.”
Elihu said, “There would have to be...an election. It would take months. And no human would vote a Q into office.”
Lydia said, “We do not have time for this discussion. What are we going to do about the traitor?”
“Nothing at the moment,” said Elihu. “With Quasar here...”
“'Qaazrus'!” corrected Qaazrus.
Elihu continued, “...we'll be fine, but we still need to locate the Phili and protect Sarah Walker and Krystal Jade.”
Quinn said to Donatra, “I have one request: decloak your ship.”
Donatra answered, “I cannot. The Infamous dreadnaught Zipporah may be under my command, but The Infamous' Q prisoner retains control over the ship in general, including shields, weapons, and phase-cloak. And we cannot locate her at this moment.”
Qaazrus said, “I'm sure I could.”
Then Elihu said something that shocked even Donatra: “I do not believe the female Q is being held against her will...”
Eleven Months Ago...
The Q Continuum
The Q Continuum had been interpreted by mere mortals in many ways in the past, but this time it was a post-apocalyptic dystopia with an imperial government that subjugated its citizens. In the Capital, twelve Elders argued.
“I vote we obliterate mankind from the face of the galaxy,” said an old crotchety Q named Q.
Another slightly younger male Q with salt-and-pepper hair and a chiseled jaw, who most called Q, shook his head with exasperation. “Q, that is ridiculous. We should be helping in their spiritual advances so that one day –”
“What? Become like gods and slaughter us all?” the crotchety Q said, arms crossed.
A female Q with long dreadlocks named Q stood up and pounded her fist on the huge round table. “Enough! I vote we simply avoid mankind at all costs! They will eventually destroy themselves with war and disease and temporal paradoxes!”
“All the more reason to help them,” said a fourth Q, who was, not surprisingly, called Q. “We could not only assist in their development, but also keep them from making some of the same mistakes we made growing up.”
A fifth Q, from the warrior cast, stood up and formed a blue energy ball in the palm of his hand. “Long live the resistance!” He fired it at Q, killing him, and then turned to shoot Q, but Q intervened and banished him to another realm.
That was the beginning of the civil war that ended the Q Continuum. But Qaazrus, son of Q, was a soldier who did not believe in the Q council's decrees, namely that all Q must obey the strict laws of the Q, which, at this moment, included never leaving the Q Continuum. Qaazrus was not only a warrior, but an explorer and what amounted to a chef in the Continuum.
His father, a member of the council, arrived home and set his brief case on the kitchen table. He undid his black tie and let out a sigh of exhaustion. “Q, where are you?”
Qaazrus emerged from his bedroom. “Father, I told you, I like having an actual name.”
“I'm not calling you 'Qaazrus',” his father said. “Where is Q?”
“He's still out looking for his wife.”
“You should talk to him,” his father said. “He's your best friend.”
Qaazrus nodded. “But I disagree with his philosophy of total non-interference.”
“You also disagree with mine,” his father remarked with a smirk as he took a seat at the kitchen table to eat.
“True. You want to give the corporeal beings of the universe a utopia. That is not only impractical, it would be detrimental.”
Q rolled his eyes as he swallowed some dinner. “You still believe that people need hardship to grow?” He shook his head.
“I not only believe it,” Qaazrus said, “I will live it...”
Not too far away, same Continuum
A female Q was creeping through the ruins of a city when three Q-warriors appeared and started shooting energy balls at her. The filthy, bloodied, and sweaty woman fell to the ground behind a broken wall. She threw a fire ball, which incinerated one of her pursuers.
Suddenly, Q, her mate who looked like Vaughn Vincent, showed up and killed the last two warriors. He ran over to Q and the two embraced.
“You – you found me!”
VVQ pulled from the hug and peered into her eyes. “I may be able to salvage my career if you come with me –”
Q stepped back, her hand going to her long, matted and filthy dark hair. She blinked, looking around in confusion. “'Y-your career'?” She looked at the Q who betrayed her. “Is that all you care about?” She became angry. “I hoped you would find me before they did, so we could leave together! Now I see that... I see that it's you I should leave.”
VVQ shook his head sadly. “Please Q, don't do this to me. We can make this work. Just confess your crimes to the Qouncil...”
“No!” Q screamed, and then vanished in a white light, which was so brightly hot that it even blinded VVQ.
USS Firestorm, brig
In spite of Javan Eras' insistence that they could kill Cardassians because the Hypocratic Oath did not pertain to them, Lieutenant Lang ordered Patar to remain unharmed until they could properly “interrogate” him, and then he admitted shock and disgust at the nurse's attitude.
Then the Herald Harbinger showed up. The three Philadelphia crew-mates were afraid for a micro-second until a random impenetrable orange and red grid patterned energy barrier was erected between them and the Harbinger. Unfortunately, Patar was stuck on the other side of it. No attempt to penetrate the shield or portal around it would work, since it was erected by a Q.
Since Talitha Roseblade was technically part of the Philadelphia crew, she was protected by the same Q-induced probability anomaly that would protect everyone else. Her pattern could not be erased from the backup buffer without causing a cascade failure which would result in the destruction of the ship. However, now that the Philadelphia was in the hands of Krystal Jade, there was a possibility the experiment could be rescued and guarded.
Nel Kestral, Tholian moon-prison
Ensign Nel Kestral had been held for hours, alone in a cold dark cell. Just outside was a Tholian guard. However, she believed if she attempted escape, she would end up like the Caitian lieutenant, dead from lack of oxygen. The Tholians did not breathe oxygen.
In the Tholian medical clinic, a Tholian doctor was reviving the Caitian, Lieutenant Yalo M'arnon. The Tholian was a deranged scientist who conducted experiments on other species. M'arnon had become the unfortunate subject of one of his experiments, having been introduced to Tholian and Borg anatomy and technology, allowing him to breathe in both H2O and whatever Tholians breathe.
The Tholian mad scientist was now working on a way to keep control over this angry feline's mind, to use him against the Federation.
The Infamous, T.I.S. Zipporah, the straight-jacket
“Play me a song,” The Infamous stated in a nonchalant, but commanding tone.
Neela gulped, standing as far as she could from The Infamous. She feared him, like everyone did. His own family had feared him, before he brutally murdered them. Only one of his brothers remained, but only because he could not find him.
Another woman walked over to the straight-jacket, dismissing Neela, but the Bajoran engineer did not recognize her. This was not unusual, since the dreadnought consisted of thousands of operators and troops, all female. However, this was the first time Neela had seen this woman, and their current location was situated just below the main bridge, which was at the very core of the massive spacecraft. Neela knew every woman who was stationed in this section, and would certainly recognize someone wearing a black leather collar with small metal spikes. And...was that a small chain leash hanging from the back of it?
“I need your clearance code,” Neela said nervously.
“Q,” said the woman.
Neela was confused. “Is that all? One letter? I don't think that qualifies.”
The Infamous was grinning at Q when he told Neela, “Actually, it does.”
“Shhh.” Q put her forefinger by her delectable lips.
Neela yawned and then laid down to sleep.
The Infamous' smile vanished. “Ra'Quella. I told you I don't want or need your help right now. I can escape whenever I want.”
Merely flexing caused the straight-jacket to break, malfunction, and unseal. The Infamous shoved his way out and stretched his neck and back.
“Sorry Master,” Ra'Quella said, “but you are not indestructible. You are merely human after all.”
He shrugged in response. “Yeah, well, as true as that is, I'm confident in my ability to charm the pants off any woman.”
The corner of Ra'Quella's mouth twitched as she restrained a smile. “Confident? Or arrogant?”
Chuckling, he commented, “There's a difference?” He moved toward the portal that would take him to the bridge.
“Sir, what are you going to do? You can't expect to just walk onto the bridge and sit down in the captain's chair without anyone saying anything.”
“I invite you,” he said, glancing back momentarily as he stepped into the portal device, “to watch me.”
The Infamous, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
The bridge was quiet as second officer and chief flight coordinator Major Ro Laren was strolling the deck, observing each officer's activities at their stations. She stopped at the engineering console and peered over the Romulan T'Rul's padded, wide shoulders.
“Did you finish upgrading quantum torp launcher 639?” Ro asked.
Before T'Rul could answer, the bridge was inundated with trumpet blasts of triumph. It took a moment for Ro to realize it was a song from The Infamous' playlist. The door to aft opened. Everyone turned to see The Infamous standing there, hands on his leather-clad hips. His chest was exposed despite his long black leather coat. He entered as if nothing had happened and swaggered over to the vacant captain's chair, running his fingernails along the banister around the recliner.
Ro inhaled deeply, watching him as he took his comfortable throne. Everyone else kept their eyes averted, especially comm officer Gaila. Nima and Zyree did not budge from their positions behind the center seat, but they did eyeball Ro, who ignored their questioning gaze.
Clearing her throat, Ro turned back to T'Rul. “Well?”
T'Rul answered nervously, “Um, yes. Yes, ma'am. All five thousand torpedo launchers can now fire any type of torpedo, including trans-phasic antiproton torpedoes.”
“Good,” said Ro, equally anxious.
When she turned to give her report to The Infamous, she was shocked to find he was standing only a few inches behind her, slightly to her right. She didn't move her body or head at all, just stared straight ahead over his shoulder as his penetrating green eyes burrowed into her. When her eyes flickered over to take in his handsome countenance, she found herself wanting to touch his facial scar. What the Bajoran did not see was that the invisible Ra'Quella was actually doing so, running her finger down his face. The Infamous' cheek twitched to her unseen touch.
“The Zipporah,” Ro stated, “is in top condition, Sir.”
The Infamous smiled and nodded. “Good. You have my complete confidence, Laren. Oh, by the way, where's me dear Donnie?”
Ro said, “Donatra is on ESD reporting to Admiral Quinn. Elihu M'Konel is with her.”
The ship's chief security officer, Grilka, entered the bridge. She was shocked when she saw The Infamous, and when he turned to smile at her, fear replaced surprise.
“Me beloved Grilka,” said The Infamous. “How's the bloody nose, love?”
“How's the lip?” groused Grilka, taking her position at the small console between the two bodyguards.
The Infamous shrugged. “Healed. Thanks to me Q.” He grinned.
Grilka snarled but began conducting random sensor sweeps of the immediate area of space around the Zipporah, which dwarfed the spacedock they were currently hovering over.
The Infamous started to dance as another song came over the bridge's speakers. He danced over to Nima and ran his fingers through her red hair. She flinched but dare not move away. He sauntered behind Grilka, trailing his fingers over her armored shoulders before sliding his hand over the Dosi warrior's bald scalp. She smirked lightly.
“Is anyone gonna tell me,” he sang, “where the Phili went?”
Grilka blinked and her eyes went wide. The view screen depicted ESD, not the Philadelphia, and no one had reported to The Infamous that the coveted light cruiser was missing. Everyone knew he was angry, but restraining his usual brutality. Instead, he would enlist his manipulative charm to guilt-trip everyone.
“I mean, all I wanted was the roll-bar 'cause it looked cool as TRIBBLE,” he said as he straddled the frightened Orion slave girl's lap on the communications seat. He propped his arms over her shoulders and smiled, looking around at the others. His sinister gaze landed on Sakonna who was standing at the rear of the command deck by the entrance. “Imagine firing trans-phasic antiproton torpedoes outta that TRIBBLE!” He laughed and stood up, much to Gaila's infinite relief. “Me coolness level'd be a couple points higher, yeah?” Again, he looked around, but nobody answered him. So he commanded them to. “Somebody answer me or I will cleave each of ye in two...slowly.”
Ranking officer Ro said, “The Iconians took her. We are not sure why.”
“Well I know why!” yelled The Infamous. “Because they love to die!” Suddenly he turned to his unseen ally. “Kill 'em and bring 'em back, but give only their boss the memory of an agonizing death!” As the invisible Q departed from the Zipporah, The Infamous fell backwards into his chair. “All this unlawful detainment and mutiny has made me bloody peckish. Somebody bring me a bowl of Reman.”
That was when Qaazrus, Commander Donatra, and Lieutenant Commander Elihu M'Konel appeared via Q teleportation in front of The Infamous. Acting on instinct, the bridge crew moved to surround and protect the man they both feared and revered so much.
The Infamous' head and eyes rolled back in annoyance. “Oh come on! Can't a guy take over the universe without meddling do-gooders getting in the way?”
Lt. Cmdr M'Konel said, “We want your Q.”
To Elihu's amazement, Qaazrus admitted, “I don't. I just want to save my friends.”
The Infamous stood up and pushed Ro and Gaila aside. He shook his head, standing between them. “And I don't want any of you here, except for my babe Donnie.”
Donatra narrowed her eyes at him. “You already know I belong to you, but I still suggest you help these people find their missing crew-mates. Then you and your crew can have and do whatever you want.”
“As long as you don't kill too many innocent people,” said Qaazrus.
Elihu corrected, “Any people, innocent or not. Only one more man will die, and it will be at my hands.”
“You,” The Infamous said, pointing accusingly at Elihu, “are the biggest fun-killer in the universe.”
“Where is she?” demanded Elihu.
“Not here,” replied The Infamous as he sat down and patted his leather-clad knee. Gaila sat down on it.
Qaazrus sighed, crossing his arms. “I do not know how you do it, but you have managed to not only manipulate a Q to join your cause in destroying or dominating the galaxy, but you have also managed to somehow prevent other Q from finding or gaining access to you and your ship. The only reason we're here is because Donatra told us where to teleport. If it weren't for her, we might've teleported in a bulkhead or in space or something.”
The Infamous smirked as he nibbled Gaila's ear. “Good. Go do that instead of bothering me.”
“Donatra says you just want the Phili's torp bar,” said Elihu.
“Yeah,” said The Infamous with a shrug. “And?”
Elihu folded his arms over his chest and reluctantly said, “I will give you the entire ship to incorporate into your stupid little fleet. Merge it to your dreadnought if you want. Just help me locate the damn thing, and help us rescue my crew. They were once your friends too.”
“Look,” said The Infamous. He turned to Gaila and tapped her thigh lightly. “Hop up.” She obeyed and The Infamous stood, pushing past his guards and stood in front of Elihu. “First of all, the key word in your last remark is 'once'...and 'were'...okay, two words. Second, you don't need me or me Q. Ya got one o' yer own. And last but certainly not least...'little'? TRIBBLE, me fleet's huge. Ten thousand ships, from all over the universe.”
Elihu sighed. “So you're not gonna help us?”
The Infamous shook his head. “Nope.” He headed back to his recliner. "Now kindly TRIBBLE off. I'm hungry..." He grinned at one of his crew. "...in more ways than one."
Ra'Quella, wherever Admiral Nat is
Ra'Quella appeared in the traditional Q manner and grabbed the admiral by his throat, a vicious look in her eye. “You made Master mad. Now I make you dead.” She broke his neck.
Then she brought him back to life, and forced him to watch all of his friends die in some of the most horrible, painful ways possible. She killed Nat again, this time slowly cutting him in two with an acid-covered dull blade. She then put him together again but left him with a small, reminding scar on his chest. Lastly, she reversed time so that it never happened, but made sure that Admiral Nat remembered the event, and he'd still have the scar to prove it.
She whispered in his ear, “Don't...touch...property...of...The Infamous.”
Then she vanished.
U.S.S. Philadelphia
A Starfleet communique, priority one, comes in directly from Rear Admiral Tuvok on ESD: "Access the program in the backup pattern buffer and integrate it into the ship's main computer."
0
rattler2Member, Star Trek Online ModeratorPosts: 58,582Community Moderator
Krystal actually sits up after reading the message before checking with Deunan and Amelei.
"Well... there is something... no idea what it is but... it survived," Deunan said.
"You think you can..."
"Pretty sure."
"Do it. In the meantime lets form up on the Lexington and get out of this area. Set course for Starbase 39."
Deunan started working on the mysterious program as both ships jumped to warp.
The Iconian Herald Harbinger looked down at Patar. Recognizing that Patar was one with the alliance, he teleported him away to the Natara Dyson Sphere, so The Alliance could deal with him themselves. It then looked at the barrier preventing it from breaking into the brig. It tried opening a gateway to the other side, but for unknown reasons, the gateway generators couldn't get a lock on the inside of the brig. It decided to leave, headed for the bridge to activate the Firestorm's self destruct.
C.U.V. Natulak, bridge
The admiral stands up immediately screaming out
"Q!!"
The bridge crew, remembering nothing, turn to him in confusion. Soon enough, Q (junior) appears in the captain's chair via the usual Q teleportation, as the admiral turns around to look at him.
"So you were watching me, of course. Anyway, Q, what, the hell, was that? Was that one of your Qs running around going on a rampage!? I thought you were better than that!"
"Oh, I'm so sorry admiral, but it's really beyond my control. We're actually kind've in the middle of a civil war. I'm surprised I even made it here alive."
"Civil war?" the admiral replied in surprise. "one day, you made me save Sisko in the past from Borg assimilation. Then you give us a winter holiday every few months. Now, you're having a war? What the heck is wrong with you people!?"
"Oh, I really wouldn't know" the Q said, spinning in the chair before stopping to face Admiral Nat again.
"Well, you Q have virtually unlimited powers, you know. I'd like to think one of you could find a way to overpower the rest of you before you accidentally destroy the whole damn universe!"
Q ironically actually wonders of how a Q could become more powerful than all the other Qs combined. "Well, there was that time that one Q... no. I'm not going to tell you about that, because all the other Q are probably listening and would take all that power for themselves."
The admiral glares at Q, "and risk the lives of every other Q and literally everyone else in the universe?"
The Q stands up, looking at the admiral, almost worried. "but admiral, I wouldn't be ready for that kind of power! Like--"
"Not ready for that kind of power!? I'm surprised at you. You literally play with the universe as some kind of toy, yet actually fear the power to stop the deaths of hundreds of thousands of millions of innocent lives!? Well, I think we've discovered your weakness, now haven't we?"
The admiral looks Q in the eye. Obviously, he's pretty disoriented by the fact that the entire war just involved the Q, but he stood his ground. Q insisted. "Please, don't make me do that. The Q civil war has killed off too many already. Even..."
"Don't worry, we don't need to kill anyone. I've heard stories about how Voyager once encountered a Q that had been sealed away somehow, unable to escape. I'd just need you to do the same."
The Heart of the Storm - Theoretical and Literal Center of the Universe
"This is it." Q told the admiral, who was floating in space in the literal chaos at the center of the universe.
"How am I floating in space without being dead?" the admiral remarked.
"My powers, obviously, but admiral, I really don't think I can do this. Really. You and I both know that I have no self control over my powers already."
"Then why have you brought me here? If you're not going to... oh no. I couldn't. I shouldn't. Really, you and I both know about my alliance with the Iconians, and the Cardassians, and Tholians, and even some of the Breen! This kind of power... sure, I would be able to do away with the other Q, but then what? You know what they say; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
"I know" the Q replied, "but your heart's in the right place. I've been watching you for the last while, and I know that while you may have allied with some of the most deadly factions in the galaxy, your heart's in the right place. You only wanted to protect them, your family... friends... acquaintances... literally everyone from whatever might try to destroy them. There are others, however, that have very different plans for the universe. That's why we need someone else that can fight them. Someone that won't dare hesitate to do whatever for the greater good. Like you."
"...this is not going to end well" the admiral replied. "I'm really not that much of a do-gooder, you know. You really can't trust me with those kinds of godly powers. If this... thing... would make someone even stronger than every other Q combined, there would be no one that could stop me. That, I believe, is too dangerous."
"You'll learn" the Q replied. "We did."
Suddenly enough, the area glowed with power, flowing through the former admiral, filling him with unspeakable power. Soon enough, Q teleported away, and the center of the universe was now filled with an unusual calm then it had before.
Nat floated in space, a little puzzled and disoriented. He really didn't know what just happened, but he sure felt empowered. Oh, and was he determined to make sure the other Q would never mess around with anyone again. Nat fused himself with The Heart of the Storm, gaining unnatural powers stronger than the Q combined, fusing with the timeline so that he existed in all times at once, so his death and even loss of power in the present would be "corrected" by his past and future selves. He managed to reach the Q continuum, and despite the Qs' resistance, sealed it off once and for all. Qaazrus, Ra'Quella, Q (junior) and Nat were the only Q power-level beings in the universe. Where Q junior had gone is a mystery, but he's probably watching. Very intently, in fact.
Nat, wanting to find the two other Q he could sense in the universe, returned to the Natara Dyson Sphere, leaving his loyalists on the C.U.V. Natulak to fend for themselves. For now, anyway, although he placed the ship and crew under a probability anomaly that protected them from death. Nat returned to T'Ket, floating over to her, almost Iconian like.
"The Q are having a civil war. One of them, called Q, gave me the power to stop them. I sealed off the Q continuum, but two other Q remain in the galaxy. We have to find them so I can seal them away forever."
T'Ket looked at Nat, a little surprised. She recognized the Q, who were rumored to have helped the Iconians to make their gateway technology in the first place, and thus their powers. She agreed that it was time to take action.
Earth Spacedock, Operations
In the distant view of the window, the Natara Dyson Sphere appeared out of nowhere, outside the Sol System. The gravitational forces affected several star systems, but the Q powers throughout the area preventing any destruction from occurring, and soon enough, all the systems orbits were stable again, perfectly adjusted to the Dyson Sphere's newfound presence. Iconian Heralds, supported by Cardassians, some Breen, Tholians, and Elachi all starting pouring out of gateways throughout the known galaxy, searching for the two lost Q.
Nat appeared in ESD operations in the typical Q manner, walking up to Admiral Quinn, levitating him in the air, ominously.
"You of all people probably already know. Where are the last 2 Q, admiral?" the admiral asked quite clearly, implying that failure to answer would result in Quinn's death.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Aeris sat up in a biobed with Cetra scanning her with a medical tricorder. "How's it looking Doc-- I mean, Lieutenant?"
"Actually, I'm earning my MD, so you really will be able to call me Doc soon." Cetra closed her device. "Oh, and along with elevated stress levels, I'm detecting residual bio plasma on you. It doesn't seem to be harming you, but I think you should wear this bio electric caliper for now."
The Captain attached a small device on her neck as an Engineer entered and went to a nearby bed. "Thanks," Aeris said. "Now, if I could deal with this lockdown and possible threats to ESD. Did you know there's a warship cloaked in the vicinity and we're okay with that?"
"No, ma'am," Cetra answered in shock as she moved to work on the next patient.
Lieutenant Winry sighed. "Just a headache. Ship decommissioning is so much fun, I think I got over-excited."
"Bio plasma, huh?" Aeris pondered. "The Zephyra once detected the same residue on Undine a long time ago. I wonder if it's related."
Winry perked up. "Hold on. Are you the Captain that spent weeks aiding a group of 8472 ships? They said you were crazy?"
"Doing nothing would've been crazy. The Zephyra developed specialized medical equipment to treat them."
The Engineer nodded. "I was more interested in the technology you created anyway. If you can localize Undine biology and detect their native realm's molecules, you could adapt that to some kind of interdimensional device."
"And, what, access Fluidic space? What for?" Aeris asked.
Winry shrugged. "I don't know. Scientific interest, I suppose."
"Lieutenant, are you developing interdimensional technology?"
The woman smiled. "How'd you guess? I'm heading a side project for a scanner with some of my team. We're competing with the Corps Engineers. They think they're so great."
"Huh," Aeris replied surprised. "Can you use my medical data to extrapolate quantum signatures and then scan those with your device?"
Lieutenant Winry nodded. "If you let me on the Zephyra, perhaps. I'd have to use your modified Sickbay equipment."
"Done. I'm taking you off ship mothballing duty, not to ruin your fun too much. In the meantime, I have to check ESD's lockdown--"
But then the station went to red alert. Reeve's voice flew over to her comm. "Reeve to Aeris. You might want to get back to Operations."
"Acknowledged," Aeris tapped her commbadge. "Well, Doc, looks like those stress levels are going to have to wait."
Captain Sarah's side had barely managed to take control of the ship, and captured those from the other side. She took command, and hailed ESD for instructions regarding the swarms on Iconians throughout everywhere. The Iconians had jammed the transmission, so they set a course for ESD, arriving nearby, informing them that they had control of the vessel. Sarah beamed down to ESD, heading for operations.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
The Nova class U.S.S. Talitha under the temporary command of full Lieutenant Jonah McDaniels moved at maximum impulse away from Utopia Planitia Shipyards. Her construction had just a couple days ago been finished, and only a few hours ago officially been commissioned, in honor of the presumed late Talitha Roseblade. Now she was en route to Earth Spacedock with a skeletal crew complement of less than a dozen, but Starfleet planned on filling her roster with a total of at least 38 personnel, and in light of the recent events that had transpired on or around ESD, there were a few individuals that the Starfleet brass thought deserved first pickings of this state-of-the-art, highly upgraded light cruiser.
Lieutenant Jonah McDaniels, Earth Spacedock
Once docked, Lieutenant McDaniels stepped through the airlock with his acting first officer, Lieutenant Thalora, a female Vulcan-Aenar halfbreed in the science field. She had ice gray skin, pale eyes, and antennae, but also pointed ears and angled brows, and her silver hair was cut in a very Vulcan way. Unlike full-blooded Aenar, she was only partially blind, and her telepathic powers were more advanced than either Aenar or Vulcans.
Jonah McDaniels, however, was a typical security chief, loyal to Starfleet and the Federation to the end. He had a brown crew-cut and a serious demeanor. In fact, he was the half-brother of Captain Alvarez, but looked as though he could have been his twin.
“It appears ESD's shields are down again,” said McDaniels. “The threat must be over.”
The halfbreed shook her head. “I am afraid it has just begun, Sir. We must find Admiral Tuvok. He has our orders.”
The Infamous, Lt. Cmdr Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
“This is despicable, even for you!” Elihu shouted at The Infamous.
The warlord shook his head. “Not really. Par for the course, I'd say.”
Ra'Quella appeared and glared at Qaazrus. “You.”
“You,” said Qaazrus. “You do not have to worry about your ex finding you. I killed him.”
Ra'Quella looked heart-broken for a second but regained her composure. She turned to The Infamous and smirked. “I did as you requested.”
Suddenly Qaazrus' mouth fell open, his eyes went wide. “What have you done?” he gasped. “The Fleet Admiral had a Q ally. Now they're working together to give the admiral nearly infinite power! He could kill us all!”
Worried, Ra'Quella said, “I – I shielded this ship from his ability to detect –”
“Nearly infinite power!” Qaazrus repeated.
The Infamous joined in too: “Yes, 'nearly' infinite, Assrust.”
Qaazrus glared at The Infamous. “It's still more power than we have, even combined. I believe he plans on destroying everything that gets in his way.”
“Okay look,” said Elihu. “What's the bottom line? Are you saying not even the Zipporah is safe?”
Qaazrus hesitantly nodded. “It's a possibility. Our time dilation device –”
The Infamous corrected, “MY time dilation device...”
“...could buy us a few minutes, but he could just come back in time...at any time. He could be here now.”
The Infamous said, “Than there is only one place to escape him.”
Qaazrus looked to Ra'Quella, who returned a look of terror. She nodded. Together they raised their hands to clap.
“Wait!” Elihu shouted, “Where in the hell are we going? If the rules have changed, Qaazrus, I want the Phili and everyone on board going wherever we're going! Even...” He shook his head, almost regretting saying it. “Even Aunt Lydia.”
“Fine,” said Qaazrus, “but my original principle stands: I will not bring anyone from the dead!”
Elihu yelled, “Stop sayin' that, TRIBBLE! I know! Now let's go!”
Together, the two Q clapped their hands, sending the Zipporah and her crew somewhere else.
Lydia M'Konel, ESD, Operations
Admiral Quinn watched Lydia disappear only moments before Q-Nat appeared. Quinn rolled his eyes and stood up to pour himself a glass of wine. He may as well die content.
Super-Q-Nat said, "You of all people probably already know. Where are the last two Q, admiral?" the admiral asked quite clearly, implying that failure to answer would result in Quinn's death.
Quinn sighed, ignoring Q-Nat. He took a huge swig of wine and exhaled with a smile. “Stop being so melodramatic, Nat. Have a drink.” He offered him a glass.
Admiral Tuvok, who was still standing in the corner of the room, merely raised a brow. “Fleet Admiral Nat. Would it be pointless to inquire as to your motives over the last couple of days? I find it hard to believe that a distinguished flag officer such as yourself would so readily throw in with the likes of T'Kek and the Tholians.”
By now, Captain Jade would have sent a preliminary report to Starfleet informing them of the Tholians' involvement with the Philadelphia.
“Why the hell would I even know where the two other Q are, Admiral?” asked Quinn, before taking another sip as he sat down. “Do you really think some Q are gonna tell me anything? I mean, have you met them? They don't exactly care what we think.”
That was when Aeris would have entered Operations.
Talitha Roseblade, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
As soon as Talitha's consciousness took over the Philadelphia, both ships vanished in mid-warp from the known universe. Krystal Jade would be the only one who could move, as everything was frozen in time in a white void, but not the Q Continuum. This void was in another universe altogether.
A pixelated image of Talitha's face appeared on the main view screen in front of Jade. She looked around, both afraid and amazed. “W-Where am I? What's – what's going on?” She leveled a glare at Krystal. “Who in the world are you? Is – is this the Phili? Am I – am I in the Philadelphia's computer? Answer me!” she screamed, her amazement turning into anger, though fear was clearly still her prevalent emotion.
USS Firestorm, bridge
The entire ship vanished from normal space as soon as it dropped out of warp near ESD, leaving behind any Nat supporters on the spacedock for the admirals to deal with, except for the Reman T'Kek. He might be useful later. He'd been transported behind a force field in the brig. As the Firestorm disappeared, the self-destruct shut down.
Sarah Walker had beamed to ESD, leaving any of her crew members or loyalists behind on the Firestorm. If she had remained on board, she would have gone with them.
Lang assumed control of the ship and used his engineering skill to reprogram the ship to only accept commands from him, especially the ones involving self-destruct or remote-control from elsewhere outside the vessel. Staring out into the white void of nothingness, he wondered just what the hell was going on now.
Qaazrus appeared, scaring the daylights out of everyone. “Hi guys.”
Javan jumped, drawing his phaser.
Tina James ran to hug Qaazrus. “You got your powers back!”
“Yeah, no time for pleasantries,” Qaazrus remarked as he brushed the woman aside. “I've transported this ship into a void for the moment until we can figure out where to go from here. Elihu and I have ideas, but we do not want to say anything lest someone overhears, or someone decides to be a traitor again.”
Dolth, now fully healed, cleared his throat. “You mean like you.”
“You shot me,” said Javan.
“Sorry about that,” said Qaazrus. “I had to make it look good.”
Lang said, “He has a point. I'm sure if he had wanted you dead, you'd be dead, Eras.”
Javan holstered his phaser. “Fair enough.”
The Undine, still in the form of Kidna, told Qaazrus, “Kidna is dead, but I have her consciousness. Can you make a Vorta clone for her to inhabit?”
Qaazrus shook his head. “That's too much like resurrecting someone. I won't do it. But I will transport you to the Zipporah.”
“The what?” Lang asked.
“The Infamous' ship. He has Vorta cloning technology, among other things. Everything actually.”
Lang scoffed, “The Infamous? Thought he died in the fight with the Tal'Shiar.”
Qaazrus shook his head. “Nah. Apparently, he escaped by beaming onto a cloaking Valdore. He seduced the females, which I still have no idea how he does, and overpowered the males of the crew. Then he harvested all the parts of the destroyed Fleet of the Cursed and Tal'Shiar vessels and formed one giant ship. One of the Cursed ships had a time dilation device, which he used to slow down time so he could use slave labor to build his ship into a dreadnought ten times the size of ESD, almost the size of a moon.”
“Well,” Lang said, “I'm sorry I asked. Is he on our side?”
“Who knows?” shrugged Qaazrus. “I have to go talk to Jade. She's on the Phili out there with the Lexington.”
Counting on his fingers, Dolth concluded incorrectly, “So we have...four ships here with us...in this void?”
Qaazrus smirked. “Not quite. Just hang tight and make sure none of the admiral's crew changes their mind about their allegiances. If they do, let them know I will throw them out...like...into the void.”
He vanished.
Talitha Roseblade, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
Qaazrus gave Krystal Jade the necessary time to answer the AI Talitha before he appeared between the captain and the view screen in a brilliant flash.
“Aazrus!” Talitha exclaimed, momentarily forgetting her anger. "What's happening?" A theory crossed her mind, making her angry again. “Did you do this to me? If you're gonna bring me back from the dead...”
“No,” Qaazrus said, dismissing her theory with a wave of his hand. “Listen, both of you,” he said, glancing back to Jade. “First of all, you can call me Qaazrus. Second, Fleet Admiral Nat has decided he wants to become a super-Q to imprison or kill the remaining two or three Q left in existence, not to mention take over the galaxy. So...I've teleported everyone here, a nice safe void of nothingness. But don't worry, this is only a waiting room for the next universe I will be taking you to. The Q, even the Super-Q, cannot simply jump from one universe or reality to another. Despite what they'd like to believe, the Q are not pan-dimensional beings. There are other realities and dimensions that have their own sets of Q, their own sets of limitations and rules and even laws of physics... so... when one universe's Q wants to jump to another universe, they must first come here. In this void, I have set a trap. Any Q, even a so-called Super-Q, will not be able to follow us. Two minutes here would be years to us in our other reality. I will also leave very powerful warriors to guard our whereabouts, should Q-Nat find a way to leave this realm. Though it's highly unlikely. The trap is designed to drain a Q's power the more he uses them. That is why I am merely teleporting within the void, and doing nothing else. Teleporting out or blowing up a ship could result in me losing all of my power...before I wish to.”
Nel Kestral had been standing at the back of the bridge listening. “Aazrus?”
“Qaazrus,” he corrected once more, turning to her with a sad smile.
She had overheard some of what he said. She said, “What do you mean 'before you wish to'?”
Qaazrus said, “I am relinquishing my abilities once more, this time to Ra'Quella.”
Talitha groaned. “Aazrus or Qaazrus or whatever your name is, wasn't I vaporized? Can you get my body back?"
Qaazrus rapidly shook his head, becoming increasingly frustrated with people asking him to go against his principles. “No! It's too much like resurrecting you! It goes against what I believe in! Just stay in the Phili, alright? Sheesh.” He turned to Jade. “Thank you by the way, for the message. Elihu and I both owe you...like, literally the universe.”
"Inquire about my motives? Go ahead. You and I both know that I've been serving with Starfleet for a long time. I commanded task forces during the Klingon war. I commanded task forces against the Borg. Against the Iconians. The Na'kuhl. I eventually realized that all the needless death could be avoided if we were... more powerful. Others, like Gul Kentar, the Tholians, T'Ket... they understand that. So I brought us together to take over the galaxy, so we could prepare us for the next big threat which is more powerful than you could imagine.
That's the moment Sarah suddenly found herself in operations, surrounded by the Firestorm's Nat supporters were didn't already leave for the C.U.V. Natulak.
Nat turned to Sarah. "You were transported here from the Firestorm. I thought you had it under control. They--"
He stopped.
"You let somebody else take over my damn ship!?"
The C.U.V. Natulak then warped into the system, and 11 of 14 beamed down, walking into Ops, ignoring any security that might to stop her. "Admiral, what are you even doing?"
"Hunting for the other 2 Q. I'm assuming you don't know where they are."
"Admiral, first you're working with the Iconians, now you're hunting for Q? You mind explaining some things?"
"T'Ket's Iconians" Sarah clarified, unsure if 11 of 14 knew that particular detail.
"T'Ket's Iconians!?" 11 of 14 practically shouted. "...and here we thought you were working with the Iconians on Iconia, trying to get them to join the Federation or something, but no... you've joined the side we've been fighting this entire time!?"
"11, don't betray me now. This is the worst possible time for you to do that."
"I'm so sorry." 11 of 14 pulled out a phaser, pointing it at Nat as he disintegrated it with a wave of his hand.
"In case you haven't noticed, I have Q powers now. Well, not even Q powers. Powers stronger than all of the Q combined." the former admiral replied. "No one can stop me now, especially once we get rid of the other remaining Q."
"I thought you were better than this" Sarah said, turning to 11 of 14. "See why I tried to stop him?"
11 of 14 turned to Sarah. "I really figured he was better than this. Here I thought you were the traitor in all this, but no, it was him."
Nat looked at 11 of 14, while using his Q sense to tap into perception beyond that of a humans'. Soon enough, he realized that the other Q, the Philadelphia, and another Q in one giant ship had vanished into another reality. He realized that moving from reality to reality was too big of a risk for himself, and with a wave of a hand, the C.U.V. Natulak vanished, replaced with a Nova Class U.S.S. Molly. The Sek, Gydl, and the 8 Omega Operatives from the Natulak appeared with Nat, while the rest of the Natulak's crew were now on the Molly, along with Sarah's dedicated supporters from the Firestorm (all 20 of them), who he tore right out of the void reality and placed on the ship.
"If you're so sure you want to betray me, join the others then."
He teleported Sarah and 11 of 14 to the newly created U.S.S. Molly in a flash, and flung the ship into the void, nearly crashing into the Philadelphia. Nat then turns to Admiral Quinn.
"I'll be back."
He vanished in a flash of light, sending him, Sek, Gydl, his 8 Omegas, his other supporters from the Firestorm on ESD, and all of The Alliance (Natara Dyson Sphere included), to the Andromeda Galaxy. For the hell of it, he brought the Andromeda Dyson Sphere along too, using his powers to make all of the Heralds inside loyal to The Alliance, leaving the other Iconians (which would be all by T'Ket) on Iconia with only a handful of Heralds left.
U.S.S. Molly, bridge - In The Void
Appearing on the bridge in the captain's chair, Sarah became conscious again, turning to Lieutenant Jenn, who was at the ops station. "What are you doing here? Sarah asked. She turned and saw Scott at the science station. "You too? I..."
Sarah looked around, seeing the assortment of bridge crew. Lieutenant Jenn at the ops station. 1 of 6 at tactical. Varat'etan, a Jem'Hadar, at the helm. Kevin Mays, a lieutenant commander that was on Sarah's side on the Firestorm, sitting in the first officer's chair.
"Give me the crew roster, whatever that crew roster may be."
Somebody handed one over, looking puzzled themselves. Sarah read it, almost confused.
"So... you, like, 20 from the Firestorm that were on my side and... the admiral's loyalists that the admiral was tricking into being on his side, not knowing his true motives? Ok then. Scott, where are we?"
Scott did a scan, detecting the Philadelphia and Firestorm nearby, but nothing else on sensors, just yet.
"It appears that we're trapped in some kind of void with the U.S.S. Philadelphia and the U.S.S. Firestorm, captain. And, captain... believe me, I didn't want to be part of the admiral's plan. Really. I didn't even know."
"I know." Sarah replied, turning to Jenn at ops. "Hail the two ships, then. I need answers."
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
After witnessing the sudden disappearance of Sarah and the Borg drone, Aeris exited the Admiral's office and met with Reeve at the command ring.
"We just lost Captain Sarah and her double," Aeris reported.
Reeve tilted his head as he focused on his control panel. "The Firestorm and the Dyson sphere are gone too. Seems that omnipotent power is having its way at the moment."
"She also reported Iconian threats. Any signs of them as well?"
The Commander shook his head. "Negative. There were spawns beginning on lower decks, but they disappeared with everything else."
"We could've taken them. Ah, well. This giant mushroom will get another chance," she speculated. "The Lexington and the Philadelphia?"
Reeve switched the holo-display at the center of the ring, warp-path data. "Gone too, in mid-warp, according to a relay station."
"This job just gets harder and harder. It's enough for a Science officer to go insane."
The other human nodded just as he suddenly came to the realization of what she said. "Wait. What? You're a Science officer??"
"Uh, yeah, I mentioned it to you during one of our first meetings."
Reeve was still shocked. "Actually, I zone out when it comes to those things. I am in Tactical after all, so if it's not action, I'm done."
"Well, I can't fault you for that. Anyway, is the cloaked Zipporah any threat to Earth?"
He crossed his arms and turned to her. "Definitely. According to Quinn, they have the power to destroy any planet from here."
"Well, it seems over-poweredness is having its heyday. Let's keep Spacedock on alert and locate those ships. In the meantime, I'll compile a mid-progress report for Starfleet Command."
"Nat turned into a Super-Q, and he was hunting for two other Qs. I suspect they might be involved." Sarah said. "I think you already know me, but for those that might not, this is Captain Sarah Walker, captain of the... what's this ship called?"
A voice is heard from beside Sarah. "The U.S.S. Molly."
"Captain of the U.S.S. Molly."
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
The starships USS Firestorm, Philadelphia, Zipporah, Molly, and Lexington appeared from the void orbiting Arcturus Prime, a Federation member-planet.
Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
“What the hell?” groused M'Konel. “What alternate reality is this?”
The Infamous smirked, lounging back in his chair with a Caitian female on his lap. He was petting her like a cat and she did not mind.
Qaazrus white-lighted in and immediately Ra'Quella became visible, ready to protect The Infamous if need-be. “Oh please,” snipped Qaazrus. “If I wanted to kill your man, I wouldn't be stupid enough to show up to do it. Besides, you know I don't do that.”
Ra'Quella stepped back, lowering her clawed hands; it was actually reminiscent of an anti-Q defense learned by the El-Aurians centuries ago.
Elihu asked, “What is it? Is this the other universe?”
“Nah, this is actually Arcturus Prime. The threat, for now, has fled the galaxy, no doubt searching for easier pickings before returning here en masse. Don't worry, it will takes years for him to conquer that galaxy.”
Elihu groaned, “Qaazrus, that does not make me feel any better. What's the news, man?”
Qaazrus answered, “Super-Fleet-Admiral-Q-Nat and his colleagues are gone and he left those he could not trust, mostly, here in this galaxy. In fact, he sent the Molly to the void with us.”
“He must've known he couldn't follow,” mused Elihu thoughtfully.
“Doesn't matter,” Qaazrus stated. “Everything is under control.”
The Infamous cleared his throat, continuing to stroke his pet, which Qaazrus just noticed actually had a collar on.
What in the universe is up with this guy?
Grinning, The Infamous asked, “Why are we o'er one o' me bloody planets?”
Elihu glared at him. “This is one of your conquered planets?”
The Infamous shrugged. “Who do ya think showed 'em how to clone themselves, mate? The Federation needed an infinite supply of infantry. I was very handsomely paid, I might add.”
Shocked, Elihu turned to Qaazrus, who nodded sadly. It was true. Elihu turned back to The Infamous with a look of contempt and disgust. “Now that things are settled, you disappear.”
Almost hurt, The Infamous blinked and clenched his jaw. He nodded very lightly and inhaled deeply before ordering Ro at the helm, “Prepare to trans-warp to Risa.” He turned and smirked at Elihu. “Unless you wanna join us for some, eh, fun, I suggest ya bugger off, yeah?”
Qaazrus turned and glowered at Ra'Quella. “One more thing,” he said. “I want to give her my powers. I don't need them anymore.”
Elihu turned and smacked Qaazrus upside the back of the head. “Are you frickin' crazy, dude?”
Qaazrus exclaimed, “First of all, OW! Second of all, my power just attracts other powerful beings. Third, Ra'Quella may have questionable choice in men...” Ra'Quella just shrugged and nodded to concede the point. “...but she's mostly a good woman and I trust her to use my power responsibly...mostly. And last, but certainly not least... OW!”
“See, it's that 'mostly' stuff I'm worried about,” said Elihu.
Ra'Quella spoke up finally: “My values were somewhat similar to Qaazrus, during the civil war. I fought to keep humanity and her allies from total obliteration. However, I now differ in that I have no problem killing to protect the people I care about. It took many eons to learn that lesson.” She and The Infamous exchanged mushy looks.
Elihu moaned with irritation. “Whatever. Take me back to the Phili.”
That was when Kidna and the Undine defector both entered the bridge. Kidna told The Infamous, "Thank you for giving me a body." She glared at Qaazrus, who felt slightly guilty for not helping.
Nel Kestral, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
After Qaazrus had left and everyone had spent two hours doing mostly nothing except catching each other up on their respective events, missions, and happenings, Talitha had buried herself into the ship's computer, not wanting to talk to anyone. She knew Elihu would be coming over soon and if they saw each other...she had no idea how she'd react, but she knew he'd react badly. He might even kill his own aunt for doing this to his fiance.
Nel Kestral was at the Ops station, monitoring scans of the planet below. When her scans noticed the Zipporah turning, she reported it to Captain Jade. “The, uh, huge dreadnought is preparing to depart, Ma'am.” She put it up on the view screen and indeed the moon-sized vessel went to trans-warp.
USS Firestorm, the bridge
“What are we gonna do with this ship?” asked Tina James.
Javan Eras said, “I vote we blow it up.”
“Now, now,” Lang said with a smirk. The idea did have a certain poetic justice to it. “Let's just consider all of our options with a clear head; we don't actually work for SI. We don't even technically work for 31. We're so far black and off the books, we're generating our own event horizon.”
Dolth laughed obnoxiously. “That's a good one, Sir.”
Lang narrowed his eyes at the hulking science officer as he sat at the appropriate station on the bridge. “Um...thanks...” Lang looked up at the hole in the ceiling. “I wonder how that got there.”
Tina James looked around the bridge from her spot at the helm. “It looks like someone just cleaned everything up before we got here.”
“Probably Qaazrus,” suggested Lang. “Anyway, we need to take this junk back to ESD. They will want to restore her and give her a sane commanding officer.”
Dolth groaned, “Ugh...do we have to, Sir? From a scientific perspective, this ship is nothing short of amazing.”
“Hail the others, inform them we're heading back to ESD and we'll need a ride, and probably escorts. Who knows how many people want this ship, or just want it destroyed.”
“Um,” stammered Dolth, “actually, Elihu is hailing us from the Philadelphia.”
Lang smiled. “Put him on.” When Dolth opened the visual channel, Lang stood up from the command chair, his smile widening. “I see they promoted you, finally.”
Elihu M'Konel, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
The newly-minted Lieutenant Commander tried to restrain his sad, exhausted smile. “Lower your shields, man. I'm beaming you and your Reman prisoner aboard. We're towing the Firestorm to a salvage area in an asteroid belt just a few minutes away.”
“May I ask why?” Lang asked, now confused.
Elihu shrugged. “If we take it back to Starfleet Command, they'll try to use it, and when Nat returns, he'll take it by force. If we destroy it, who knows what he'll do. Honestly, maybe if he finds out we didn't destroy the Firestorm, maybe he will realize we're not his enemy and I can get some sleep.”
“How about,” Lang suggested with a sardonic look on his face, “we don't do any of that, and we blow it up because he killed our friends?”
Elihu closed his eyes and sighed deeply. “For the love of God, just do what I ask,” he snapped as he opened his eyes. “Phili out.”
Once Lang unlocked the command codes and reverted everything back to normal running procedure, he, Undine-Kidna, and the others were beamed safely aboard the Philadelphia. Lt. Cmdr M'Konel asked the Molly and the Lexington to tractor and tow the Firestorm to the salvage yard. Once done, the three Starfleet ships jumped to warp, heading toward ESD.
The Firestorm is sucked into a gateway, retrieved by the Iconians.
U.S.S. Molly, bridge
Sarah sat in the captain's chair, wondering what in the universe was going to happen next.
Andromeda Galaxy - Now
By now, The Alliance had already established their foot-hold in the galaxy, and conquered a number of systems already. There was no resistance, as they were too powerful for anyone to actually fight. T'Ket, however, was slowly losing patience, wanting to return to the Milky Way immediately. By now, T'Ket had already moved all of her Heralds into a Herald Sphere, and set up a headquarters of her own there. Nat, however, naturally retained the Heralds he had taken for his own, his headquarters in the Natara Dyson Sphere.
Their member races were already building themselves some pretty powerful forces using Iconian technology. Their Breen members were implementing all sorts of Dyson Sphere technology into their ships. The Tholian members were using Herald technology to make some especially fierce ships. The Cardassians, however, were itching to return to the Milky Way, and were developing some unique quantum singularity technology that would let them do just that.
Nat really didn't care either way. Powerful allies are never a bad thing, especially when his virtually infinite power could force his control over anyone who dared betray him. If anyone left The Alliance, so be it. He still had everything he needed or wanted... except for an armada bigger than the entire Milky Way combined. That, however, would take a while.
Andromeda Galaxy - A Week Later
T'Ket and her Heralds left, returning to the Milky Way. Being as few in number as they were, they couldn't amass any worthwhile invasion force, and settled for the occasional attack on Qo'Nos here and there, like they were doing before.
U.S.S. Molly - At Earth Spacedock - Now
Captain Sarah Walker arrived at ESD. For some reason, the admiralty though it was a good idea to give the captain official command of the U.S.S. Molly, keeping the crew they had earlier, despite the fact that many of them were literally traitors that had previous worked with Admiral Nat. Maybe they recognized that the crew had been fooled by the admiral into thinking they were actually bringing the Iconians into the Federation, and couldn't be held responsible. Maybe Nat decided to use his godly powers to influence the admiralty's decision. We may never know.
The U.S.S. Molly, of course, was literally brand new. The ship, being a Nova Class, was quite small, suited for nothing more than sort term (maximum of 2 years) missions for planetary research and the like. As the search for The Alliance beforehand had discovered the Natara Expanse, which was full of potential, they sent the U.S.S. Molly on a mission to explore a system there. System NCG-479834 as they called it, although Sarah figured they would name the system something else eventually.
Of course, being as new as the ship was, and that it had been spawned out of nowhere by a super-Q who wasn't too experienced with his powers, the ship needing some fine-tuning, and the crew needed to run some tests and get settled before actually taking the Molly on a mission. The ship, despite it's small size and purpose, had unusually top of the line technology; probably thanks to the former admiral Nat. Sarah went to ESD, going to the food court and ordering a pizza, sharing it with 11 of 14, who was there with her.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Terry walked around the curved hallway and into Operations. It was busy with senior personnel commanding and managing their own staff for various sections of Spacedock.
"Hi, I'm looking for Admiral Nat?" Terry said, approaching Commander Batou from Spacedock's engineering and showing him a PADD. "He gave me this mission I'm to join to a mysterious Dyson sphere."
Batou just looked at him, overly stunned. "Have you even been around lately?"
"Huh? I was working on my ship's approach strategy this whole time. I have so many ideas!" Terry said, knowing he probably couldn't ignore the fact Batou's implication was that he probably missed several key events.
The Commander took Terry's PADD and erased it. "Trust me. You're late."
"Well, this was unexpected," the Captain replied, but decided that it was probably better to accept things. "So, what's going on up here? Any Ferengi merchant ships?"
Batou shook his head as he continued working at his holo-console. "That's not my area, but I did notice a Ferengi ship, the Fortune's Gold, come right up to the window to tap it incessantly with its hull. Apparently, they couldn't wait for docking procedures."
"Oh! That is so interesting. Everything you do up here fascinates me, a man of strict Starfleet procedure."
The other officer looked at him. "You know, if you're up to no good, not everyone is going to judge you for it. Also, you could hide it better."
"Hey, people judge things all the time. I mean, it's not like I can read minds, but I know it happens. That, and my motives are not as transparent as you think."
Batou closed his console. "Well, what are they?"
"Huh?"
He asked again. "Your motives. I always find it odd that people go off on rants and then end them so cryptically. For once, I want to be that guy that asks straight out what's going on, negating further actions on the part of the subject and preventing what possible outcomes may arise." But as he had looked away halfway through his diatribe, upon returning to glance, he found Captain Terry had already left Operations. "Oh."
T'Ket floated in the air, somewhat angrily, an Elachi standing in front of her.
"You made your allegiance to us a long time ago. You will assist my Heralds in setting up defenses around my Herald Sphere here in the Natara expanse. It is my will."
"Yes, mistress." the Elachi replied, returning to their ship and returning to the other Elachi, who established a base in the expanse from which to assist T'Ket's Heralds.
For now, it was only an expanse with lots of planets, stars, nebulae, and the occasional anomaly. Soon, it'll be a deathtrap. Of course, no one will know until somebody goes into the expanse and learns the hard way...
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Oh, look, an explosion...
0
rattler2Member, Star Trek Online ModeratorPosts: 58,582Community Moderator
Krystal just stood totally confused on the Bridge of the Philidelphia. Everything was happening so fast she had no idea what to think. Meanwhile the Lexington was conducting scans of the surrounding system in hopes of figuring out what happened.
In the days following the chaos, a timid and nervous calm fell upon Earth spacedock and the surrounding space. Nobody was sure when things would get out of hand next, and so they were constantly preparing for it, constantly worrying about it. Drills and training exercises were the norm.
People got even more anxious when intelligence reports and the media indicated the assassination of Empress Sela by a Hirogen hunter, supposedly one of her allies. However, not two days later, Lydia M'Konel informed Starfleet Intelligence that the sniper disruptor used by the Hirogen had been recognized and identified as one of the few weapons she had re-purposed into a transporter. Sela was out there somewhere and probably with the Hirogen defectors. Thus there was a power vacuum at the head of the Star Empire, which Toreth fought to fill. However, upon the hero Donatra's return to the Star Empire, Toreth was quickly forgotten. Her oppressive Tal'Shiar supporters tried to fight to get her into the Empress' seat, but most of her own turned against her in support of Donatra. The Empress position was temporarily dissolved until a formal election could be held to decide what to do next. Donatra wanted to merge the Star Empire with the Republic and give control over to Proconsul D'Tan, but many, even well-intending citizens, wanted to remain separate. They wanted the reluctant Donatra to reign as Empress.
“I want to die. I don't deserve to live...”
Admiral Tuvok, Talitha, Nel Kestral, and Lydia M'Konel agreed that Elihu should never find out that Talitha Roseblade was still alive, and in order to add irony to injury, she was safely transferred from the Philadelphia to the Nova class Talitha. With only a crew of six, the Talitha was dispatched to Rator III to investigate the claims of Sela's death/disappearance. Only Lydia, the commanding officer of the advanced light cruiser, knew the truth about Sela. Her true orders were to locate anyone who believed anything other than the official story and stealthily question them. If they knew too much, she was to bring them back to Federation space.
“How far will we go just to keep ourselves safe?”
The Philadelphia was dry-docked and decommissioned, her crew dispersed among other starships. Lieutenant Daniel Benson's Bereavement LOA was approved. Garn Pekh, the Tellarite engineer, left Starfleet and was hired on a civilian freighter heading to the Gamma Quadrant. Toman Kannor was discovered to be a Romulan spy and was sentenced to life of hard labor in the Federation Penal Settlement in New Zealand. Ensign Nel Kestral received a promotion to Junior Lieutenant and was transferred to the Molly as relief ops officer under Lieutenant Jenn. Lieutenant Commander Hektor Lang, Ensign Javan Eras, and Chief Petty Officer Tina James were transferred to the Lexington, becoming second-in-command of engineering, a nurse, and chief transporter operator, respectively.
Chief of Starfleet Intelligence, Admiral Chekov (2388): “We have already gone too far...”
Elihu M'Konel resigned his commission and took a job as inventory clerk at the Lunar Mining Colony. At his own request, nobody looked for him and nobody interacted with him, save for Kidna. He tried to raise his Vulcan mental barrier, but after several days, he realized that his angst over Talitha's death, as well as that over the death of his friends, had made it extremely difficult for him to remain logical and unemotional. Most days, Elihu did not eat; most nights, he cried himself to sleep, when he did find sleep.
Ten days after planting the anti-Undine/Borg devices on ESD
Elihu M'Konel, Lunar Mining Colony barracks
The emaciated Empath stumbled out of his bunk and crossed the small room to the wash-room. Behind him, another worker slept comfortably on the top bunk. Elihu approached the sink, already hating his self-destructive appearance in the mirror. Leaning on the sink, he stared at himself with self-loathing. After a moment, he rinsed his very bearded face off and then dried his reddened eyes. He almost laughed. Even his supposedly form-fitting muscle shirt hung loose on his boney torso. He dragged his bare feet as he headed out of the wash-room with a yawn.
The door chimed. “Whaaat?” he groaned, half-turning.
“Are you decent?” Kidna asked.
“No, I'm terrible.”
The door opened and the Vorta entered, a tiny smile threatening her thin lips. “Admirals Quinn and Tuvok would like you to return to ESD. Tuvok gave Quinn security clearance to know about the AUDs. They want you to help secure the station and find the designer.”
Another groan escaped Elihu as he sat down on his bunk. “Fine, I need to get out anyway.” When Kidna stood there, staring, Elihu asked, “Can I get dressed first?”
The U.S.S. Molly was finally in order, and departed for the Natara expanse, to explore it and hopefully not end up getting involved in anything chaotic this time. Sure, some of the crew she didn't even know got shuffled around, some leaving the ship and others joining, but "the family" as it were, were all on ship, so things worked out well enough.
Sarah questioned why there was never even an investigation into the Firestorm's crew that were transferred to the Molly, but decided not to worry about it, as the remainder of the Firestorm's crew on board she already knew beforehand, and trusted well enough to not be secretly working with the admiral when he's all the way out in the Andromeda Galaxy.
The worry, of course, was in the Natara Expanse. Sure, The Alliance's base there had jumped away to another galaxy, but was to say they didn't leave someone behind? She figured they would find out soon enough.
They would arrive at the expanse in 3 hours. Once they entered, there would be no contact with Starfleet, as the expanse was a very nebulous region, so transmissions in and out were virtually impossible. If their were any Iconian Heralds, or any of their servitors, inside, they would be alone with them.
Little did they know T'Ket, her Heralds, and the Elachi were already prepared for them, although they didn't yet know the Molly was coming.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Oh, look, an explosion...
0
rattler2Member, Star Trek Online ModeratorPosts: 58,582Community Moderator
The USS Lexington was back at Earth Spacedock for some minor repairs. The crew was granted shore leave on Earth, and Krystal took the opprotunity to visit one of her favorite places on Earth, Point Defiance Park in Tacoma, Washington. Having grown up in the Pacific Northwest, Krystal always came across as more human than Trill.
With everything that's been going on, Krystal needed some time to relax and try and wrap her brain around recent events. So there she was, sitting at one of the viewpoints looking out over Puget Sound and the Narrows Bridges with a bottle of soda in hand.
"With everything that's happened... its pretty strange even for the Lexington..." she said before taking a drink. While the Lexington gained a reputation for getting all the weird assignments, seemed like mad scientists were every second Wednesday, Whis whole situation with Admiral Nat, the Philidelphia, and Elihu topped all that. She couldn't help but wonder about that Dyson Sphere Nat wanted her to help check out. Had he actually been trying to recruit her? Or was it an attempt to steal her ship? She honestly didn't know.
"Reeve, we need to locate those lost ships. What have we found out so far?" Aeris asked, intently. She wasn't going to lose the Lexington, the Philadelphia and the Firestorm all in one go.
The security commander turned to her in sudden shock. "You're back!?"
"I only went to get more PADDs. One for each ship we're searching for," Aeris said as she handed them to him. "An extra one for that Vulcan ship that keeps flying by the window."
Reeve shook his head and gestured to the pattern enhancers surrounding the Captain. "No; you disappeared from this spot for quite some time. You've been gone a whole week!"
"What?" Aeris replied, shocked. "What'd I miss?"
Commander Reeve brought up some data on his holo-screen. "The Lexington and the Philadelphia returned, reporting having been stuck in a dimensional void. The Firestorm went even more missing and the Molly appeared out of nowhere."
"The Zipporah?"
Reeve nodded. "The Admiral seems somewhat content and was even heard singing Edge of Etiquette songs, so probably gone."
"Let me get this straight; everyone got to have a week of recovery and getting their heads together and I get nothing??"
The man shrugged. "I guess. Also, since you've been gone, I've taken over security again, and, in an effort maintain heightened levels of awareness, I've been running drills and exercises around the clock. Living in fear! It's a new thing I'm trying. Also, I think, due to your situation, you should step down in your role in Security."
"Are you kidding me? I need to add to this heightened level of stress, if not, to channel mine into everyone else!"
Reeve shook his head. "Yeah, I'm already pushing the threshold. You'd just be a tipping point in our Tuvok sweat drills that would send our token Bolian officer off the edge."
"Forget that!" She pointed to nearby tactical officer Lieutenant Aramaki. "You there! Laps around ESD and don't stop until I tell you!"
Aramaki fumbled in shock. "Ye-- Yes, ma'am."
"Still got it," Aeris said as she suddenly noticed Reeve standing in different location than the last. She then turned to see Aramaki not moving, but panting, out of breath. "What did I just say? Now it's double laps!"
Aramaki groaned and then ran off.
"You disappeared again. He did twenty laps," Reeve reported.
Aeris cursed. "Damn. I guess you're right. And I was this close to normalcy, ever since the Zephyra had been recalled here. It was finally feeling like I had a life again."
"If it makes you feel any better, I'll call you for our weekly Cargo Bay raids? We mostly target unsuspecting Romulans."
So far, Kestral felt useless on the Molly; more than that, she felt wholly unwelcome. She didn't trust anyone on the ship as far as she could throw them – which she actually achieved when one crewman tried to incorporate her into his weekly strip poker games. He did not go far, about four or five feet vertically, three feet horizontally. After her reprimand from a superior officer, Kestral was taken off the duty schedule for the foreseeable future, not that she particularly minded. However, once the ship arrived at the Natara Expanse, she became anxious.
Elihu M'Konel, the shuttle Sardis
“I change my mind,” Elihu told the shuttle pilot. “Take me back to the moon.”
Kidna gave Elihu a look of disappointment. “Sir. Everything is going to be fine.”
“Says you,” mumbled Elihu. “I have a feeling this is all a ruse.”
“Right,” Kidna said sardonically, “the top brass ordering you to return to ESD to secretly help them find a way to secretly locate the creator of the AUD's so we can possibly secretly acquire more is a ruse for something even more secretive...”
Elihu turned and narrowed his eyes at the Vorta, but could not hide the smirk. “Don't be difficult,” he said, leaning his shoulder into hers.
Tina James, Chicago, Illinois – her apartment
Tina activated the comms channel and her sister Cynthia's face appeared on the monitor. “Hey sis! About time you answer my calls! Where you been the last five days or so?'
“Kidnapped. How are things with you?”
Cynthia's eyes went wide. “Wow, so it's true. Dad told me but I thought he was exaggerating. You know how he is. Anyway, did you get the invitations?”
Tina narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Invitations? To what?”
“My wedding! I'm getting married to, like, the best guy in the galaxy!”
Tina sighed. “You exaggerate worse than dad. Who is this guy? I hope he's better than the last one you dated. Dad doesn't need another drinking buddy, Cynthia.”
Tina's younger sister rolled her eyes. “Christina, why do you always do that? Stop being jealous.”
“What's his name?” Tina sighed.
“D'ren.”
“What's that, Klingon? K'Tarian?”
Cynthia answered, “No, he's human. There's this sweet story about how his little brother couldn't pronounce A's so he changed his name from Daren to D'ren just for him.”
“Well, congrats. I'm happy for you. I hope it works out. Does this D'ren have a last name?”
“You just want to look him up on your Starfleet research computer, don't you?” Cynthia inquired mistrustfully.
Tina shrugged, grinning slightly. “Maybe.”
“It's McDonnell,” said Cynthia.
Nodding slowly, Tina said, “Alright, and when did you meet this D'ren Daren McDonnell? 'Cause the last I talked to you was two weeks ago and you weren't seeing anyone.”
“Yeah, we just started seeing each other a few days ago.”
A long, heavy sigh escaped Tina's lungs. She face-palmed. “Typical Cynthia.”
Admiral Nathan Valdes, stuck in a 6 hour anti-Borg strategy meeting with Starfleet top brass
"The meaning of victory is not to merely defeat your enemy but to destroy him, to completely eradicate him from living memory, to leave no remnant of his endeavours, to crush utterly his achievement and remove from all record his every trace of existence. From that defeat no enemy can ever recover. That is the meaning of victory."
-Lord Commander Solar Macharius
Captain Sarah was a little anxious. Not only were they flying into a place where they'd lose contact with Starfleet, but one of the crew, Kestral, apparently wasn't getting along with the crew very well. The captain did a little investigating of her own, discovering that certain activities one of the crew, specifically the very one that was thrown by and filed a report against Kestral, had been trying, but failing to organize were against Starfleet regulations, and had take give him a reprimand of his own. He too was taken off the duty schedule, at least temporarily. Sarah wanted to keep him and Kestral off duty until the Molly returned from their mission, but with a crew of 15 officers (Sarah included) and 20 crewman, that probably wouldn't last.
On the bridge, the operations officer, Jenn, noticed something on the sensors that was unusual. "Captain, we've detected a... it's gone."
Sarah looked over. "What was it?"
"I don't it... there it is again! Wait... no. It's gone again."
"What the hell is it--"
Sure enough, the U.S.S. Molly took a hit from a volley of Elachi cannon shots, coming about to the right as an Elachi S'golth Escort passed them on the left, hitting them with a volley from their Elachi turret.
"Quick, bring us about and return fire!"
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Lieutenant Kestral almost laughed as she looked out a porthole from her quarters on the port side of the ship. The Elachi escort appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and opened fire, causing the Molly to quake. Kestral thanked God for internal dampeners and shields, as well as whoever invented them, and exited her quarters before she even tapped her combadge.
“Kestral to Captain Walker, permission to come to the bridge,” the young woman requested, though she was actually heading toward the armory first. And she was not the only one.
She intended to arm herself before going to the bridge, and she also intended to have a little chat with the captain about the trustworthiness of the crew.
Sub-Commander Lydia M'Konel, U.S.S. Talitha, main engineering
Most of her crew was asleep, but Lydia M'Konel was a night owl. As she took a sip of her Roktajino, she eyed the PADD that displayed the results of the impulse drive test. Damn, still only 99% efficiency. When she turned around from the impulse drive panel, she jumped in surprise, nearly dropping her Klingon coffee.
The ship's Chief Medical Officer, Lieutenant Commander Shran-Vix, was standing there, her hands on her hips as she intently peered at her rival.
“Vix, don't scare me like that,” snapped Lydia, setting her hot drink down on a nearby console.
“Are you going to explain this Tali thing to me? To the crew? To her?”
Lydia was already heading over to her main engineering station by the warp core. “What are you talking about?”
“You claim that you beamed her disintegrated molecules into the pattern buffer to store them.” Shran-Vix clearly did not believe this. She followed close behind Lydia, crossing her arms.
“That is what I claim, yes.”
Shran-Vix continued, “You are the engineer, I am the doctor. And from a medical standpoint, that is ridiculous and impossible. Not to mention it has never happened before, and if it had, it would've been published in every medical journal from here to Parada Prime.”
“You are correct,” answered Lydia. “I am the engineer. You are not. I simply narrowed the confinement beam and –”
“No,” said Shran-Vix with a scowl, pointing accusingly at her. “You had something to do with her death, if she even died at all.” She shook her head in disbelief, her antennae slanting angrily. “And you think it's better Elihu live in ignorance about all this?”
Lydia spun around, raising her tightly clenched PADD as she spoke. “Even Talitha agreed it was for the best. Best case scenario? Elihu believes Talitha is still alive and tries to forcibly remove her from the ship's computer, probably killing her. If he succeeds, he gets her back but for how long, Shran? Tali's physical body is so far degraded she would not be able to be fully recovered. And even if he chose to leave her in the ship, he'd go mad trying to reconcile his life to this new reality. He can't marry a starship, Shran!”
The doctor retorted, mostly humorously, “There is the case of the Denobulan who married a Glesseene radish.”
Lydia's visage softened, but she just sighed and turned back to her computer terminal. “Tali cannot be recovered. And I had nothing to do with her death.” Lydia blinked, hoping Shran-Vix bought it.
Apparently she did, because the Andorian silently turned around and walked out of engineering.
2395
Starfleet Intelligence Home Duck Blind and Safe-house #595 – Ceth'lenn Township, Ireland
The village-town of Ceth'lenn was completely unaware of the cloaked, holographic Starfleet Duck Blind that concealed their observers. The mobile Duck Blind was more of a hovercraft than anything. The unseen overseers took notes and scanned much of what transpired in the town, but their main concern was a young boy of 15, and his three younger brothers.
“Daren,” Joseph said, “where are we going?”
Joseph McDonnell was only a year younger than his brother Daren, but relied heavily on the firstborn's guidance, not because he was incompetent, but because Daren would not have it any other way. The two boys could not have been much more different. While Joseph wore a casual school uniform, complete with a gray sports coat with a coat of arms on the breast, Daren couldn't have cared less about school, responsibility, or respect, and it showed in his punk rock attire and spiked black hair.
Half-turning toward his brother as they moved down an alley, Daren grinned mischievously as he answered, “Ye'll see,” he said.
Unlike his younger brother, Daren had a slight Irish accent that he was obviously trying to pass off as native. All four brothers, however, were orphans who had been transported to Ceth'lenn from North America.
In the mobile Duck Blind, Commander Resler, the special-agent-in-charge, crossed his arms as he monitored the two boys' movements from a mere fifty yards away. “What's he up to now?” He turned to an ensign sitting at a row of camera monitors. “Pull up that alley, all angles.”
Sure enough, Resler saw Daren's destination on one of the screens. Resler informed the dozen or so other spies, “He's taking Joseph to the fight. Alright, everyone. Keep a close eye on things. The last thing we need is our boy getting hurt.”
The illegal street brawl was on schedule, just starting as Daren and Joseph arrived. Immediately Joseph turned to leave, heading back around the corner into the alley, but Daren darted over and grabbed his bicep.
“C'mon, mate,” said the Irish poser. “Just one bout, I'll get ya a pop o' somethin', yeah?”
The clearly more American boy jerked his arm out of Daren's grasp. “Dude, I don't like violence. You know that. Why would you bring me to this? Besides, Derrick needs his medicine while John's away.”
Daren rolled his eyes. “Fine, bugger off back home, but I'm stayin', right?”
“Whatever,” Joseph groaned, heading back down the alley. “The sun goes down in two hours!” Joseph hollered back over his shoulder. “You should be home by supper.”
Daren shook his head with disappointment and annoyance, and silently turned back to the fight to cheer on his favorite champion.
By the time Daren got to the modular home, it was well after dark and he was hungry. He replicated something to eat and fell onto the sofa. He'd taken a single bite when he noticed his youngest brother Derrick standing at the threshold of the living room and the main hallway.
“What?” said Daren hotly, glaring at the 8-year-old who just rubbed the bags under his eyes.
Daren swallowed his mouthful of food and set down the plate with a sigh. He gave Derrick a warm smile. Derrick had always been the only person Daren was nice to because he wanted to be, not because he had to be. He patted his knee and his brother smiled as he went over and hopped into his lap, wrapping his arms around him.
“I'm sorry I didn't get home earlier,” said Daren, almost losing his fake thick accent. In fact, his voice sounded remarkably Carolinian. “Maybe next time I'll take you with me.” He smiled at the child, poking his chest. “You'd probably be more fun than Joey.”
Derrick giggled and poked Daren's chest back. “I dun wunu fight.”
“You don't fight, you git,” said Daren with a light laugh. “You watch other people fight.”
“But...dun dey get hort?”
For a moment, Daren did not reply. His brother's innocence was something he wished he still had. After blinking the emotion away, Daren shrugged and said, “We all get hurt, little guy. I just prefer it be physically than emotionally.”
The battle was going surprisingly well for a mere Nova Class starship, the Molly's shields still holding at 47%. Sarah, however, didn't want to take any chances, and had the crew arm themselves should the shields go down and Elachi start boarding the ship. The Elachi fired a subspace torpedo as the U.S.S. Molly disappeared into a nebula, hiding them from sensors. The Elachi, for the moment, stopped pursuing them.
Although no one on the bridges knows why that is. Are the Elachi somehow incapable of being inside these kinds of nebulae? Is it a trap? Sarah could only wonder.
U.S.S. Molly, armory
As Kestral arrived at the armory, she was stopped by 3 of 5, the liberated Borg half-human half-Vulcan, who was the the chief of security, serving under 1 of 6. "Where do you think you're going? We have strict security here, you know. This is the security complex, after all."
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Kestral narrowed her eyes at the Borg officer, and then glanced around at the other officers and crewmen entering to arm themselves. She smirked lightly and shook her head.
"Fine. I don't need a sidearm." She turned and left, heading for the bridge.
If the Elachi did board them, and any of the Molly crew were nearby and busy, or incapacitated, she'd take their phaser. As far as she was concerned, they could still be secretly working for Admiral Nat. And even if they weren't, they didn't seem particularly worried about anything that was going on.
Just in case, Kestral contacted the bridge. She tapped her badge again. "Kestral to bridge; the Elachi's ventral shields are usually 20% weaker than the rest of their shields because that part only has one shield emitter and it's located on the on the aft ventral quarter. The Elachi's shields are also not designed to keep out low-power phaser blasts. If timed right, you should be able to take out their aft ventral shield emitter with one low-power phaser beam. Then you'll want to target their impulse drive or their targeting scanners with quantum torps."
Being a Black Ops operations officer for SFI did have its advantages.
Seifer took a few stabs at his monochrome plate of bland, cold, uneaten potatoes. The replicator-peeled vegetable slipped under misplaced fork-pressure and spun off the table onto the floor. In his heart, he knew he would have his revenge against that particular food item. In no way did he ever intend on letting that little inanimate spud go without a taste of his vengeance. Oh, he would spend the rest of his life, plotting and scheming the most elaborate and harsh--
"--Well, well. How the mighty have fallen," came the interrupting voice of an old, Vulcan man, from behind Seifer. "Do you plan on staring at your mess all day, or are you going to pick it up?"
Turning, in shock, Seifer came to perceive his old Vulcan teacher from Starfleet Academy. "Master Chivaul??"
"You've become weak, Oroku. Where once you commanded one of Starfleet's most over-powered, uber ships of incomprehensibly small scale, now, you sit in this pale and unforgiving food court with nothing to show for it."
Seifer shook his head in disbelief. "Uh, I saved my crew from that horrible Calibus VII sickness, and stopped the cross-dimensional Nibiru from reconfiguring our space-- Not that that hadn't been done before. Mine was just more recent."
"Fulfilled with accomplishment, you are entitled to magnificence and respect. Your lack of position is a betrayal to you and what you have done in the past."
Pointing, Seifer replied, "You know what? You have always been rude and mean to me, with no explanation whatsoever; for what I can only assume is because I stuck with you until the bitter end, and--"
"You talk too much!" Chivaul knocked Seifer's pointing arm away and launched a claw-posed hand right at the Trill's face.
Grabbing the wrist of the incoming attack, shocked, Seifer was forced to use his other arm to knock a second incoming hand, this time, toward his throat. The old Vulcan twisted Seifer's grip free and jabbed both his fists, forward again. Seifer, while seated, shot both his feet up and kicked the fists away. He kicked again toward Chivaul's chest, where his foot was met with blocking palms, with enough force to push the old man back a few steps.
"Oh, real mature, you decrepit old Vulcan!" Seifer responded before noticing a few officers nearby standing up from their meals and looking at them in shock. The Captain quickly got out of his seat and addressed the food court. "--Uh, it's nothing, everyone; this senior is just looking for his meds. Poor guy can't even go to the bathroom without--"
But Chivaul force-palmed Seifer in the face, then quadruple-jabbed the Trill in the chest, before a second palm with force toward the same spot. The Captain grabbed the incoming wrist with both hands, softening the blow as much as he could, before being knocked right over his table and onto the floor, next to the potato.
"This is all your fault," Seifer turned to the spud in shifting anger. "If only you let me eat you, instead of this run-around, we wouldn't be in this m--"
The old fighting Vulcan, showing no emotion, flew over the table with an incoming foot of immense force. Seifer quickly wondered if picking up the potato would be metaphor enough to stop his old teacher. Unfortunately, he had to roll away from it to live. Chivaul landed his intense stomp, while, Seifer, still on his back, flung kick after kick at Chivaul. Each kick was blocked by the Vulcan's even faster-moving left foot.
"I-- told-- you---! No visitors-- before-- nap time--" Seifer said in mid-fight, noticing the shocked look of confused faces around him. Chivaul leapt another downward-forced foot, prompting Seifer to decide to roll underneath him, toward the potato.
Seifer picked up the food, got up and placed it on a table. Chivaul, after landing and turning his position to face the Captain, stopped his attack and continued his unemotional repertoire. "Meet me in the Holodeck to finish this."
"Should I bring your ointment??" Seifer replied, unimpressed, as Chivaul walked his way through the sea of tables out of the food court. The Captain dusted his Odyssey uniform off and noticed an Ensign looking at him with wide-eyed disbelief. "He has a skin thing."
Flanked by his ever loyal Vorta, Elihu watched the end of the fight as he stepped into the food court and crossed his arms over his chest. The part-Vulcan was donned in a black hooded cloak that mostly concealed his decrepit and frail appearance; only his scruffy brown beard was fully visible, while the rest of his face was hidden in mysterious shadow.
The blue-uniformed Vorta Kidna's hands were draped behind her back as she stood beside him, her back straight, chin held high, unlike the depressed and morose M'Konel. She turned to her friend: "We can still eat here, Sir. He's only broken one table," she said with a snarky attitude. "Or perhaps Admirals Tuvok and Quinn would like him to help us locate the AUD maker?"
Elihu just continued to silently stare at Seifer with a blank look on his mostly-shrouded face. After a few seconds, he dead-panned at the ranking officer, "Eat that."
That was when Ensign Javan Eras entered the food court. Apparently, he'd been immediately reassigned from the Lexington to the non-moving Zephyra. Elihu had not yet seen Eras, since he was behind him, and yet he knew the Bajoran nurse was there. A thin, barely perceptible smile crossed Elihu's face.
"Understood" Sarah responded. "Lieutenant, bring us about and target their aft ventral shield emitter with a low power phaser beam!"
"Low power...?" 1 of 6 replied, carrying out the order anyway and firing at the Elachi vessel, disabling their shields long enough to hit their targeting sensors with a few photon torpedoes. They would've fired quantum torpedoes like Kestral suggested, but the Molly simply doesn't have any.
"Now get us out of here!"
The U.S.S. Molly's sensors had already been confused by the nebulous nature of the expanse, and couldn't identify which way they came in from. The helm officer, a Jem'Hadar defector named Varat'etan, took his best guess and the Molly was now headed... somewhere, hopefully out of the expanse.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Comments
Ten minutes prior to the Philadelphia being captured
Aazrus, U.S.S. Philadelphia, crew quarters
Aazrus sat in his quarters re-reading the text message on his computer terminal that had been sent via subspace less than a minute ago. He'd read it three times already.
You need a new haircut and a new suit.
It was a code, and it meant one thing, but how and when did Elihu get this coded message to Captain Jade? In the end, it did not matter. There was one thing to do...
One Month Ago...
“I don't trust her,” Elihu told Aazrus in the privacy of the chef's own quarters.
“She's your aunt,” said Aazrus from the comfort of his sofa. “What's not to trust? More importantly, why are you coming to me with this? I'm not the ship's counselor.”
This hurt Elihu immensely. He just stared at Aazrus with the look of a man who'd been betrayed.
“I'm sorry,” Aazrus apologized, and then cleared his throat.
Pacing in front of Aazrus and his sofa, Elihu said, “She blocks me pretty well, but not well enough. The little blow-up I had in the mess hall a few weeks ago...I apologized to her afterward, but I may have been right. She might be trying to figure out how to get the Phili away from me.”
“Again,” said Aazrus, this time more respectfully, “why are you telling me this?”
Elihu said, “When she attempts to take the ship, I want you to pretend to be on her side.”
“What if I really am on her side? It's not like you're the greatest leader right now, no offense.”
“None taken, you're mostly right,” admitted Elihu. “Just go along with her. If things get too hairy, I wanna have someone like you on the inside.”
“Someone like me?” questioned the civilian, before realizing what Elihu meant. “You want me to get my powers back, don't you?” As Elihu tried to explain, Aazrus talked over him. “It's not fair that you're coming to me with this, damn it, Elihu! I left the Continuum for a reason, not just because I was bored.”
Elihu held up his hands to placate the man. “Look, I'd rather you not do it, but if things get too outta control, I need you to be able to make things right! What if an Undine invasion force threatens Earth again, or what if the Iconians return!”
Aazrus groaned. “Fine,” he relented. “But only as a last resort, man.”
Elihu nodded. “That's all I ask.”
“How will I know when that is, if I'm stuck on this ship with Lydia?”
“I'll send a message,” replied Elihu, returning to his thoughtful pacing. “Um, something like...”
You need a new haircut and a new suit.
Aazrus, U.S.S. Philadelphia, crew quarters
After staring at the text for another minute, Aazrus cleared his throat and nervously stood up behind his computer terminal. He stretched his limbs and cracked his knuckles.
Then he said, “Q, I know you're watching. You keep an eye on all the Q. Please. Grant me an audience with the Continuum.”
Vaughn Vincent appeared in a flash of white light. He looked down at his body in disgust. “Ugh! Boy, I really hate this thing. I wish the Continuum had assigned me a different celebrity to impersonate. Q got de Lancie! So unfair.”
“Are you...?”
The Q looked at Aazrus as if he'd just noticed him. “The counselor? Nah, I'm just using this form temporarily. Soooo...you want an audience with the Continuum, eh?”
“If you don't mind,” said Aazrus. “I don't care the cost.”
Q nodded slowly, raising his fingers to his chin in thought. “I see. I take it you're gonna fix everything?”
Aazrus shook his head. “No,” he said. “I couldn't care less about the state of the galaxy. All I know is that if Elihu M'Konel needs me to get my powers back, that's what I need to do.”
Q nodded again, this time more cynically. He said, “You really, really do not want to return to the Continuum right now.”
Aazrus blinked, understanding the meaning behind his words. “The war...”
“Everything's gone. There are maybe half a dozen Q still left, and I just so happen to be one of them. There is no more Q elders' council, no more Q police force, nothing. There is no one for you to petition, my dear friend.”
“Q,” Aazrus intoned desperately, stepping toward him. “Please. I'm begging you. I...I will join whichever cause you wish me to join...”
“It doesn't work that way, Aazy,” Q laughed, crossing his arms. “You left because you didn't want to choose sides in The Q Civil War II: the Reckoning, and now...you will live with the consequences.”
“You act as though I could have made a difference. I was a soldier, not an elder.”
“Exactly!” Q spat. “You were a soldier! And you deserted us when we needed you the most! You didn't even have the guts to choose a philosophy!”
“They were both wrong!” Aazrus shouted. “I refuse to choose between the lesser of two evils, as the humans say.”
Q shook his head ruefully. “You still have not learned your lesson. Sure, you may have left on principle, or maybe you really did only leave because you were bored of the civil war...but it does not matter – you left. And now you will live with it.”
And that was when Aazrus dropped a bombshell. “I know where she is.”
Q blinked and then stared at Aazrus for several seconds in silence before saying, surprised, “My mate? Where?”
“The Infamous uses her for her power,” Aazrus claimed. “Give me my abilities and I will help you liberate her.”
Q nodded. “I returned to you the moment you mentioned The Infamous. I would love nothing more than to go to war against him to rescue my bride, even if I have a Denobulan Slime Devil like you watching my back.”
As soon as he got his powers back, Aazrus inhaled with regret and sorrow. “Too bad.” He clapped his hands once and Q exploded into pieces, dead. Stepping over the shining remains of his former colleague, Qaazrus headed for the exit. “I don't give a damn about you or your wife. May you both meet again in Gre'thor.”
Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the straight-jacket
“By Gre'thor!” Grilka screamed at The Infamous, “You will tell me what I want to know or I will –!”
“What?” The Infamous asked the Klingon woman. “What will ya do? Kill me? Did our little walks along the beach not mean anything to you, Grillie?”
Grilka sighed, leaning closer to the man. “Of course they did,” she whispered, “but that Romulan p'takgh has made Elihu M'Konel first officer of the Zipporah. She plans to take over your fleets, your empire.”
“And you think if I tell you where my precious Q is, what? Ye'll just use her powers to take o'er my ship?” The Irishman scoffed, “Ha! Not a chance! She's my pet. Now...let me out, so I can –”
“So you can what?” Donatra asked as she walked up behind Grilka.
Rage. The Klingon reached for her dagger but Elihu could sense her murderous intent, so he caught her wrist and slammed the ridge of his palm up into her nose, bloodying her face. Grilka collapsed against the bulkhead beside the straight-jacket.
Elihu said, “Looks like The Infamous wants his dreadnaught back.”
“Make no mistake,” The Infamous sneered, “I'll enjoy killing you, Eli.” He slowly, ominously turned his eyes upon Donatra. “And I will enjoy TRIBBLE you even more.” He licked his lips at her.
Donatra briefly glanced aside, recalling his previous forced encounters. Then she leveled him with a glower. “We need the Q to find Admiral Nat and restore peace to the Republic, Sir.”
The Infamous smirked and nodded once. “Then ye need me.”
Elihu said, “Donatra has informed me that this ship has a time dilation device. Five minutes in the real world could take hours or days here. And we are also shielded from outside temporal influences. In other words, even a temporal agent who goes forward in time cannot locate or predict the actions taken aboard this vessel. Is this true?”
The Infamous nodded. “What of it?”
“Can this ship go back in time as well?”
“No,” claimed The Infamous, “she cannot. So ya can't save your lovely Young Lady,” he laughed darkly.
Elihu angrily punched him in the face, a few times before Donatra reluctantly pulled him back.
“You knew her,” Elihu said. “How can you just--?”
“Ye're right,” The Infamous plus one bloody lip said contemptuously, “I did know her, if ya know what I mean.” He winked. Untrue.
Elihu sighed and restrained himself, despite his intense anger. “Not gonna work.”
The Infamous shrugged. “Was worth a try.”
Elihu turned to Donatra. “We're going to ESD.”
Lydia M'Konel, Earth spacedock, ops
As Captain Walker beamed away, Admiral Quinn glared at Lydia and Tuvok. “How do people keep beaming back and forth with our shields up?” he exclaimed.
Tuvok nodded and perked a brow. “That is a good question, Admiral. What are your orders?”
Suddenly a Romulan transporter beamed Elihu M'Konel and Commander Donatra into Admiral Quinn's office.
Admiral Quinn carelessly tossed a PADD and it slid across his desk until it fell off the other side. “I quit.”
“Eli!” Amazed at seeing him again, Lydia moved toward her nephew, but Donatra intercepted her.
Elihu said, “I will no longer work with you. In fact, I do not want to have anything more to do with you. Keep her away from me.”
As the emotionally wounded Sub-Commander was beginning her objection to his comments, Elihu collapsed to a knee and held his head.
“What is it?” Donatra asked him, almost concerned for his well-being.
“A – a message,” he stammered in response, “from...the Vorta? No, the Undine defector. He...she...it... it's taken Kidna's form and...and he's got her...consciousness. They are...sending...a message...” It was clear that the connection between he and Kidna, while strong, was also painfully strained due to distance and mental and emotional duress. “Someone...will be here...soon...to take the Phila –”
Lydia scoffed to herself, “A little late...”
Elihu continued, “What? Anti...Iconian? We don't...” Despite the agony, Elihu had to laugh. “Kidna's feeding the Reman lies, knowing that Nat has some kind of connection with him. She...she's told him we have anti-Iconian devices on the ship...she...she also told him...I work for a Founder, to throw the corrupt admiral off my scent. It...it's worked for now.”
Lydia asked, “What about our friends?”
Donatra said, “The Zipporah's scanners reported only three persons remaining aboard the Philadelphia. The rest are here, on spacedock.”
“Who are they?” asked Elihu and Lydia simultaneously.
Donatra looked down at a Romulan tricorder she pulled from her belt. She said, “A Caitian, a human female, and a...something else. Whatever this other thing is, our scanners are recognizing it as a warp in the space-time...continuum.”
Elihu grinned. “Krys, you did it.” He had recovered from his emotional torment and told the others, “Aazrus has gotten his powers back.”
“Who the hell is Aazrus?” asked Admiral Quinn.
Tuvok answered, “Aazrus is a former Q that the late Captain Taggart and I recruited into Section 31. We believed his knowledge and experience would prove to be invaluable.”
“Aww, Tuvok,” Qaazrus said as he somehow appeared behind the Vulcan without anyone noticing. “That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said about me.”
Elihu smiled and said a silent 'thank you' to Krystal Jade before moving quickly toward Qaazrus, and the two shook hands. “It's good seeing you again, man,” Elihu said, and then asked, “Can you get the Phili and our friends back?”
“I mean, I could,” replied Qaazrus, lowering his hands behind his back. “But what's in it for me?”
Admiral Quinn face-palmed. “Great, just what we need: another ruthless opportunist.”
“Now, now,” Qaazrus said, “I do have some principles, and a heart – don't hurt it.”
Elihu said, “Who was the woman on the Philadelphia with you?”
“It was Nel,” the omnipotent being said dramatically.
“How about rescuing her, and whoever the Caitian is?”
Qaazrus acted as though he was mind-melding with the space-time continuum as he held his hands up before him, his eyes closed. Then he opened his eyes. “First of all, yes, I have the power. But one of the reasons I gave up my powers is because when the Q went to war with each other over the fate of mankind, I was in the middle. Some wanted complete interference, the right to dominate, manipulate, create, and destroy as they saw fit. The others wanted to completely ignore the lesser beings, never to help them even if it did not jeopardize the balance of the universe. My judgment was that I would protect people whenever I could, but never harm another individual unless absolutely necessary, nor would I ever bring anyone back from the dead.”
Elihu glared at Qaazrus. “Then protect Nel and the Caitian by bringing them here. Unharmed.”
Qaazrus answered Elihu, “No. But I will temporarily make them unkillable. If someone shoots at them, their aim will be off. If an airlock malfunctions, there will be a safety protocol initiated. If someone attempts to torture information out of them, that person will become so sick they won't be able to stand. No Philadelphia personnel will die until the Fleet Admiral responsible for this Iconian invasion is brought to justice.”
“That is fine, Aazrus,” said Elihu.
“It's 'Qaazrus' now,” Qaazrus said.
Elihu shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Oh. One more thing: do the same for Krystal Jade and her crew.”
Qaazrus shook his head. “Sorry, not in the script.”
Admiral Quinn said, “Qaazrus or whatever your name is. I appreciate your help in the matter, but we all know that the Federation has nothing to offer you in the way of payment for your deeds.”
“This is true,” Qaazrus sighed. “So I'll settle for 'President'...”
“We cannot just hand over the President of the Federation to you,” scoffed Quinn.
Qaazrus rolled his eyes. “No. Elect me President of the Federation.”
Elihu said, “There would have to be...an election. It would take months. And no human would vote a Q into office.”
Lydia said, “We do not have time for this discussion. What are we going to do about the traitor?”
“Nothing at the moment,” said Elihu. “With Quasar here...”
“'Qaazrus'!” corrected Qaazrus.
Elihu continued, “...we'll be fine, but we still need to locate the Phili and protect Sarah Walker and Krystal Jade.”
Quinn said to Donatra, “I have one request: decloak your ship.”
Donatra answered, “I cannot. The Infamous dreadnaught Zipporah may be under my command, but The Infamous' Q prisoner retains control over the ship in general, including shields, weapons, and phase-cloak. And we cannot locate her at this moment.”
Qaazrus said, “I'm sure I could.”
Then Elihu said something that shocked even Donatra: “I do not believe the female Q is being held against her will...”
Eleven Months Ago...
The Q Continuum
The Q Continuum had been interpreted by mere mortals in many ways in the past, but this time it was a post-apocalyptic dystopia with an imperial government that subjugated its citizens. In the Capital, twelve Elders argued.
“I vote we obliterate mankind from the face of the galaxy,” said an old crotchety Q named Q.
Another slightly younger male Q with salt-and-pepper hair and a chiseled jaw, who most called Q, shook his head with exasperation. “Q, that is ridiculous. We should be helping in their spiritual advances so that one day –”
“What? Become like gods and slaughter us all?” the crotchety Q said, arms crossed.
A female Q with long dreadlocks named Q stood up and pounded her fist on the huge round table. “Enough! I vote we simply avoid mankind at all costs! They will eventually destroy themselves with war and disease and temporal paradoxes!”
“All the more reason to help them,” said a fourth Q, who was, not surprisingly, called Q. “We could not only assist in their development, but also keep them from making some of the same mistakes we made growing up.”
A fifth Q, from the warrior cast, stood up and formed a blue energy ball in the palm of his hand. “Long live the resistance!” He fired it at Q, killing him, and then turned to shoot Q, but Q intervened and banished him to another realm.
That was the beginning of the civil war that ended the Q Continuum. But Qaazrus, son of Q, was a soldier who did not believe in the Q council's decrees, namely that all Q must obey the strict laws of the Q, which, at this moment, included never leaving the Q Continuum. Qaazrus was not only a warrior, but an explorer and what amounted to a chef in the Continuum.
His father, a member of the council, arrived home and set his brief case on the kitchen table. He undid his black tie and let out a sigh of exhaustion. “Q, where are you?”
Qaazrus emerged from his bedroom. “Father, I told you, I like having an actual name.”
“I'm not calling you 'Qaazrus',” his father said. “Where is Q?”
“He's still out looking for his wife.”
“You should talk to him,” his father said. “He's your best friend.”
Qaazrus nodded. “But I disagree with his philosophy of total non-interference.”
“You also disagree with mine,” his father remarked with a smirk as he took a seat at the kitchen table to eat.
“True. You want to give the corporeal beings of the universe a utopia. That is not only impractical, it would be detrimental.”
Q rolled his eyes as he swallowed some dinner. “You still believe that people need hardship to grow?” He shook his head.
“I not only believe it,” Qaazrus said, “I will live it...”
Not too far away, same Continuum
A female Q was creeping through the ruins of a city when three Q-warriors appeared and started shooting energy balls at her. The filthy, bloodied, and sweaty woman fell to the ground behind a broken wall. She threw a fire ball, which incinerated one of her pursuers.
Suddenly, Q, her mate who looked like Vaughn Vincent, showed up and killed the last two warriors. He ran over to Q and the two embraced.
“You – you found me!”
VVQ pulled from the hug and peered into her eyes. “I may be able to salvage my career if you come with me –”
Q stepped back, her hand going to her long, matted and filthy dark hair. She blinked, looking around in confusion. “'Y-your career'?” She looked at the Q who betrayed her. “Is that all you care about?” She became angry. “I hoped you would find me before they did, so we could leave together! Now I see that... I see that it's you I should leave.”
VVQ shook his head sadly. “Please Q, don't do this to me. We can make this work. Just confess your crimes to the Qouncil...”
“No!” Q screamed, and then vanished in a white light, which was so brightly hot that it even blinded VVQ.
USS Firestorm, brig
In spite of Javan Eras' insistence that they could kill Cardassians because the Hypocratic Oath did not pertain to them, Lieutenant Lang ordered Patar to remain unharmed until they could properly “interrogate” him, and then he admitted shock and disgust at the nurse's attitude.
Then the Herald Harbinger showed up. The three Philadelphia crew-mates were afraid for a micro-second until a random impenetrable orange and red grid patterned energy barrier was erected between them and the Harbinger. Unfortunately, Patar was stuck on the other side of it. No attempt to penetrate the shield or portal around it would work, since it was erected by a Q.
Talitha Roseblade, U.S.S. Philadelphia, pattern buffer backup system, decrypted sub-file
Since Talitha Roseblade was technically part of the Philadelphia crew, she was protected by the same Q-induced probability anomaly that would protect everyone else. Her pattern could not be erased from the backup buffer without causing a cascade failure which would result in the destruction of the ship. However, now that the Philadelphia was in the hands of Krystal Jade, there was a possibility the experiment could be rescued and guarded.
Nel Kestral, Tholian moon-prison
Ensign Nel Kestral had been held for hours, alone in a cold dark cell. Just outside was a Tholian guard. However, she believed if she attempted escape, she would end up like the Caitian lieutenant, dead from lack of oxygen. The Tholians did not breathe oxygen.
In the Tholian medical clinic, a Tholian doctor was reviving the Caitian, Lieutenant Yalo M'arnon. The Tholian was a deranged scientist who conducted experiments on other species. M'arnon had become the unfortunate subject of one of his experiments, having been introduced to Tholian and Borg anatomy and technology, allowing him to breathe in both H2O and whatever Tholians breathe.
The Tholian mad scientist was now working on a way to keep control over this angry feline's mind, to use him against the Federation.
“The Irresistible Dark”
1900, Federation Starship Standard Time
The Infamous, T.I.S. Zipporah, the straight-jacket
“Play me a song,” The Infamous stated in a nonchalant, but commanding tone.
Neela gulped, standing as far as she could from The Infamous. She feared him, like everyone did. His own family had feared him, before he brutally murdered them. Only one of his brothers remained, but only because he could not find him.
The only way to appease such a creature was to obey. She went to a console and played an old song he liked, “Dark Necessities” by The Red Hot Chili Peppers . He closed his eyes and smiled.
Another woman walked over to the straight-jacket, dismissing Neela, but the Bajoran engineer did not recognize her. This was not unusual, since the dreadnought consisted of thousands of operators and troops, all female. However, this was the first time Neela had seen this woman, and their current location was situated just below the main bridge, which was at the very core of the massive spacecraft. Neela knew every woman who was stationed in this section, and would certainly recognize someone wearing a black leather collar with small metal spikes. And...was that a small chain leash hanging from the back of it?
“I need your clearance code,” Neela said nervously.
“Q,” said the woman.
Neela was confused. “Is that all? One letter? I don't think that qualifies.”
The Infamous was grinning at Q when he told Neela, “Actually, it does.”
“Shhh.” Q put her forefinger by her delectable lips.
Neela yawned and then laid down to sleep.
The Infamous' smile vanished. “Ra'Quella. I told you I don't want or need your help right now. I can escape whenever I want.”
Merely flexing caused the straight-jacket to break, malfunction, and unseal. The Infamous shoved his way out and stretched his neck and back.
“Sorry Master,” Ra'Quella said, “but you are not indestructible. You are merely human after all.”
He shrugged in response. “Yeah, well, as true as that is, I'm confident in my ability to charm the pants off any woman.”
The corner of Ra'Quella's mouth twitched as she restrained a smile. “Confident? Or arrogant?”
Chuckling, he commented, “There's a difference?” He moved toward the portal that would take him to the bridge.
“Sir, what are you going to do? You can't expect to just walk onto the bridge and sit down in the captain's chair without anyone saying anything.”
“I invite you,” he said, glancing back momentarily as he stepped into the portal device, “to watch me.”
The Infamous, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
The bridge was quiet as second officer and chief flight coordinator Major Ro Laren was strolling the deck, observing each officer's activities at their stations. She stopped at the engineering console and peered over the Romulan T'Rul's padded, wide shoulders.
“Did you finish upgrading quantum torp launcher 639?” Ro asked.
Before T'Rul could answer, the bridge was inundated with trumpet blasts of triumph. It took a moment for Ro to realize it was a song from The Infamous' playlist. The door to aft opened. Everyone turned to see The Infamous standing there, hands on his leather-clad hips. His chest was exposed despite his long black leather coat. He entered as if nothing had happened and swaggered over to the vacant captain's chair, running his fingernails along the banister around the recliner.
Ro inhaled deeply, watching him as he took his comfortable throne. Everyone else kept their eyes averted, especially comm officer Gaila. Nima and Zyree did not budge from their positions behind the center seat, but they did eyeball Ro, who ignored their questioning gaze.
Clearing her throat, Ro turned back to T'Rul. “Well?”
T'Rul answered nervously, “Um, yes. Yes, ma'am. All five thousand torpedo launchers can now fire any type of torpedo, including trans-phasic antiproton torpedoes.”
“Good,” said Ro, equally anxious.
When she turned to give her report to The Infamous, she was shocked to find he was standing only a few inches behind her, slightly to her right. She didn't move her body or head at all, just stared straight ahead over his shoulder as his penetrating green eyes burrowed into her. When her eyes flickered over to take in his handsome countenance, she found herself wanting to touch his facial scar. What the Bajoran did not see was that the invisible Ra'Quella was actually doing so, running her finger down his face. The Infamous' cheek twitched to her unseen touch.
“The Zipporah,” Ro stated, “is in top condition, Sir.”
The Infamous smiled and nodded. “Good. You have my complete confidence, Laren. Oh, by the way, where's me dear Donnie?”
Ro said, “Donatra is on ESD reporting to Admiral Quinn. Elihu M'Konel is with her.”
The ship's chief security officer, Grilka, entered the bridge. She was shocked when she saw The Infamous, and when he turned to smile at her, fear replaced surprise.
“Me beloved Grilka,” said The Infamous. “How's the bloody nose, love?”
“How's the lip?” groused Grilka, taking her position at the small console between the two bodyguards.
The Infamous shrugged. “Healed. Thanks to me Q.” He grinned.
Grilka snarled but began conducting random sensor sweeps of the immediate area of space around the Zipporah, which dwarfed the spacedock they were currently hovering over.
The Infamous started to dance as another song came over the bridge's speakers. He danced over to Nima and ran his fingers through her red hair. She flinched but dare not move away. He sauntered behind Grilka, trailing his fingers over her armored shoulders before sliding his hand over the Dosi warrior's bald scalp. She smirked lightly.
“Is anyone gonna tell me,” he sang, “where the Phili went?”
Grilka blinked and her eyes went wide. The view screen depicted ESD, not the Philadelphia, and no one had reported to The Infamous that the coveted light cruiser was missing. Everyone knew he was angry, but restraining his usual brutality. Instead, he would enlist his manipulative charm to guilt-trip everyone.
“I mean, all I wanted was the roll-bar 'cause it looked cool as TRIBBLE,” he said as he straddled the frightened Orion slave girl's lap on the communications seat. He propped his arms over her shoulders and smiled, looking around at the others. His sinister gaze landed on Sakonna who was standing at the rear of the command deck by the entrance. “Imagine firing trans-phasic antiproton torpedoes outta that TRIBBLE!” He laughed and stood up, much to Gaila's infinite relief. “Me coolness level'd be a couple points higher, yeah?” Again, he looked around, but nobody answered him. So he commanded them to. “Somebody answer me or I will cleave each of ye in two...slowly.”
Ranking officer Ro said, “The Iconians took her. We are not sure why.”
“Well I know why!” yelled The Infamous. “Because they love to die!” Suddenly he turned to his unseen ally. “Kill 'em and bring 'em back, but give only their boss the memory of an agonizing death!” As the invisible Q departed from the Zipporah, The Infamous fell backwards into his chair. “All this unlawful detainment and mutiny has made me bloody peckish. Somebody bring me a bowl of Reman.”
That was when Qaazrus, Commander Donatra, and Lieutenant Commander Elihu M'Konel appeared via Q teleportation in front of The Infamous. Acting on instinct, the bridge crew moved to surround and protect the man they both feared and revered so much.
The Infamous' head and eyes rolled back in annoyance. “Oh come on! Can't a guy take over the universe without meddling do-gooders getting in the way?”
Lt. Cmdr M'Konel said, “We want your Q.”
To Elihu's amazement, Qaazrus admitted, “I don't. I just want to save my friends.”
The Infamous stood up and pushed Ro and Gaila aside. He shook his head, standing between them. “And I don't want any of you here, except for my babe Donnie.”
Donatra narrowed her eyes at him. “You already know I belong to you, but I still suggest you help these people find their missing crew-mates. Then you and your crew can have and do whatever you want.”
“As long as you don't kill too many innocent people,” said Qaazrus.
Elihu corrected, “Any people, innocent or not. Only one more man will die, and it will be at my hands.”
“You,” The Infamous said, pointing accusingly at Elihu, “are the biggest fun-killer in the universe.”
“Where is she?” demanded Elihu.
“Not here,” replied The Infamous as he sat down and patted his leather-clad knee. Gaila sat down on it.
Qaazrus sighed, crossing his arms. “I do not know how you do it, but you have managed to not only manipulate a Q to join your cause in destroying or dominating the galaxy, but you have also managed to somehow prevent other Q from finding or gaining access to you and your ship. The only reason we're here is because Donatra told us where to teleport. If it weren't for her, we might've teleported in a bulkhead or in space or something.”
The Infamous smirked as he nibbled Gaila's ear. “Good. Go do that instead of bothering me.”
“Donatra says you just want the Phili's torp bar,” said Elihu.
“Yeah,” said The Infamous with a shrug. “And?”
Elihu folded his arms over his chest and reluctantly said, “I will give you the entire ship to incorporate into your stupid little fleet. Merge it to your dreadnought if you want. Just help me locate the damn thing, and help us rescue my crew. They were once your friends too.”
“Look,” said The Infamous. He turned to Gaila and tapped her thigh lightly. “Hop up.” She obeyed and The Infamous stood, pushing past his guards and stood in front of Elihu. “First of all, the key word in your last remark is 'once'...and 'were'...okay, two words. Second, you don't need me or me Q. Ya got one o' yer own. And last but certainly not least...'little'? TRIBBLE, me fleet's huge. Ten thousand ships, from all over the universe.”
Elihu sighed. “So you're not gonna help us?”
The Infamous shook his head. “Nope.” He headed back to his recliner. "Now kindly TRIBBLE off. I'm hungry..." He grinned at one of his crew. "...in more ways than one."
Ra'Quella, wherever Admiral Nat is
Ra'Quella appeared in the traditional Q manner and grabbed the admiral by his throat, a vicious look in her eye. “You made Master mad. Now I make you dead.” She broke his neck.
Then she brought him back to life, and forced him to watch all of his friends die in some of the most horrible, painful ways possible. She killed Nat again, this time slowly cutting him in two with an acid-covered dull blade. She then put him together again but left him with a small, reminding scar on his chest. Lastly, she reversed time so that it never happened, but made sure that Admiral Nat remembered the event, and he'd still have the scar to prove it.
She whispered in his ear, “Don't...touch...property...of...The Infamous.”
Then she vanished.
U.S.S. Philadelphia
A Starfleet communique, priority one, comes in directly from Rear Admiral Tuvok on ESD: "Access the program in the backup pattern buffer and integrate it into the ship's main computer."
"Well... there is something... no idea what it is but... it survived," Deunan said.
"You think you can..."
"Pretty sure."
"Do it. In the meantime lets form up on the Lexington and get out of this area. Set course for Starbase 39."
Deunan started working on the mysterious program as both ships jumped to warp.
The Iconian Herald Harbinger looked down at Patar. Recognizing that Patar was one with the alliance, he teleported him away to the Natara Dyson Sphere, so The Alliance could deal with him themselves. It then looked at the barrier preventing it from breaking into the brig. It tried opening a gateway to the other side, but for unknown reasons, the gateway generators couldn't get a lock on the inside of the brig. It decided to leave, headed for the bridge to activate the Firestorm's self destruct.
C.U.V. Natulak, bridge
The admiral stands up immediately screaming out
"Q!!"
The bridge crew, remembering nothing, turn to him in confusion. Soon enough, Q (junior) appears in the captain's chair via the usual Q teleportation, as the admiral turns around to look at him.
"So you were watching me, of course. Anyway, Q, what, the hell, was that? Was that one of your Qs running around going on a rampage!? I thought you were better than that!"
"Oh, I'm so sorry admiral, but it's really beyond my control. We're actually kind've in the middle of a civil war. I'm surprised I even made it here alive."
"Civil war?" the admiral replied in surprise. "one day, you made me save Sisko in the past from Borg assimilation. Then you give us a winter holiday every few months. Now, you're having a war? What the heck is wrong with you people!?"
"Oh, I really wouldn't know" the Q said, spinning in the chair before stopping to face Admiral Nat again.
"Well, you Q have virtually unlimited powers, you know. I'd like to think one of you could find a way to overpower the rest of you before you accidentally destroy the whole damn universe!"
Q ironically actually wonders of how a Q could become more powerful than all the other Qs combined. "Well, there was that time that one Q... no. I'm not going to tell you about that, because all the other Q are probably listening and would take all that power for themselves."
The admiral glares at Q, "and risk the lives of every other Q and literally everyone else in the universe?"
The Q stands up, looking at the admiral, almost worried. "but admiral, I wouldn't be ready for that kind of power! Like--"
"Not ready for that kind of power!? I'm surprised at you. You literally play with the universe as some kind of toy, yet actually fear the power to stop the deaths of hundreds of thousands of millions of innocent lives!? Well, I think we've discovered your weakness, now haven't we?"
The admiral looks Q in the eye. Obviously, he's pretty disoriented by the fact that the entire war just involved the Q, but he stood his ground. Q insisted. "Please, don't make me do that. The Q civil war has killed off too many already. Even..."
"Don't worry, we don't need to kill anyone. I've heard stories about how Voyager once encountered a Q that had been sealed away somehow, unable to escape. I'd just need you to do the same."
The Heart of the Storm - Theoretical and Literal Center of the Universe
"This is it." Q told the admiral, who was floating in space in the literal chaos at the center of the universe.
"How am I floating in space without being dead?" the admiral remarked.
"My powers, obviously, but admiral, I really don't think I can do this. Really. You and I both know that I have no self control over my powers already."
"Then why have you brought me here? If you're not going to... oh no. I couldn't. I shouldn't. Really, you and I both know about my alliance with the Iconians, and the Cardassians, and Tholians, and even some of the Breen! This kind of power... sure, I would be able to do away with the other Q, but then what? You know what they say; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
"I know" the Q replied, "but your heart's in the right place. I've been watching you for the last while, and I know that while you may have allied with some of the most deadly factions in the galaxy, your heart's in the right place. You only wanted to protect them, your family... friends... acquaintances... literally everyone from whatever might try to destroy them. There are others, however, that have very different plans for the universe. That's why we need someone else that can fight them. Someone that won't dare hesitate to do whatever for the greater good. Like you."
"...this is not going to end well" the admiral replied. "I'm really not that much of a do-gooder, you know. You really can't trust me with those kinds of godly powers. If this... thing... would make someone even stronger than every other Q combined, there would be no one that could stop me. That, I believe, is too dangerous."
"You'll learn" the Q replied. "We did."
Suddenly enough, the area glowed with power, flowing through the former admiral, filling him with unspeakable power. Soon enough, Q teleported away, and the center of the universe was now filled with an unusual calm then it had before.
Nat floated in space, a little puzzled and disoriented. He really didn't know what just happened, but he sure felt empowered. Oh, and was he determined to make sure the other Q would never mess around with anyone again. Nat fused himself with The Heart of the Storm, gaining unnatural powers stronger than the Q combined, fusing with the timeline so that he existed in all times at once, so his death and even loss of power in the present would be "corrected" by his past and future selves. He managed to reach the Q continuum, and despite the Qs' resistance, sealed it off once and for all. Qaazrus, Ra'Quella, Q (junior) and Nat were the only Q power-level beings in the universe. Where Q junior had gone is a mystery, but he's probably watching. Very intently, in fact.
Nat, wanting to find the two other Q he could sense in the universe, returned to the Natara Dyson Sphere, leaving his loyalists on the C.U.V. Natulak to fend for themselves. For now, anyway, although he placed the ship and crew under a probability anomaly that protected them from death. Nat returned to T'Ket, floating over to her, almost Iconian like.
"The Q are having a civil war. One of them, called Q, gave me the power to stop them. I sealed off the Q continuum, but two other Q remain in the galaxy. We have to find them so I can seal them away forever."
T'Ket looked at Nat, a little surprised. She recognized the Q, who were rumored to have helped the Iconians to make their gateway technology in the first place, and thus their powers. She agreed that it was time to take action.
Earth Spacedock, Operations
In the distant view of the window, the Natara Dyson Sphere appeared out of nowhere, outside the Sol System. The gravitational forces affected several star systems, but the Q powers throughout the area preventing any destruction from occurring, and soon enough, all the systems orbits were stable again, perfectly adjusted to the Dyson Sphere's newfound presence. Iconian Heralds, supported by Cardassians, some Breen, Tholians, and Elachi all starting pouring out of gateways throughout the known galaxy, searching for the two lost Q.
Nat appeared in ESD operations in the typical Q manner, walking up to Admiral Quinn, levitating him in the air, ominously.
"You of all people probably already know. Where are the last 2 Q, admiral?" the admiral asked quite clearly, implying that failure to answer would result in Quinn's death.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Aeris sat up in a biobed with Cetra scanning her with a medical tricorder. "How's it looking Doc-- I mean, Lieutenant?"
"Actually, I'm earning my MD, so you really will be able to call me Doc soon." Cetra closed her device. "Oh, and along with elevated stress levels, I'm detecting residual bio plasma on you. It doesn't seem to be harming you, but I think you should wear this bio electric caliper for now."
The Captain attached a small device on her neck as an Engineer entered and went to a nearby bed. "Thanks," Aeris said. "Now, if I could deal with this lockdown and possible threats to ESD. Did you know there's a warship cloaked in the vicinity and we're okay with that?"
"No, ma'am," Cetra answered in shock as she moved to work on the next patient.
Lieutenant Winry sighed. "Just a headache. Ship decommissioning is so much fun, I think I got over-excited."
"Bio plasma, huh?" Aeris pondered. "The Zephyra once detected the same residue on Undine a long time ago. I wonder if it's related."
Winry perked up. "Hold on. Are you the Captain that spent weeks aiding a group of 8472 ships? They said you were crazy?"
"Doing nothing would've been crazy. The Zephyra developed specialized medical equipment to treat them."
The Engineer nodded. "I was more interested in the technology you created anyway. If you can localize Undine biology and detect their native realm's molecules, you could adapt that to some kind of interdimensional device."
"And, what, access Fluidic space? What for?" Aeris asked.
Winry shrugged. "I don't know. Scientific interest, I suppose."
"Lieutenant, are you developing interdimensional technology?"
The woman smiled. "How'd you guess? I'm heading a side project for a scanner with some of my team. We're competing with the Corps Engineers. They think they're so great."
"Huh," Aeris replied surprised. "Can you use my medical data to extrapolate quantum signatures and then scan those with your device?"
Lieutenant Winry nodded. "If you let me on the Zephyra, perhaps. I'd have to use your modified Sickbay equipment."
"Done. I'm taking you off ship mothballing duty, not to ruin your fun too much. In the meantime, I have to check ESD's lockdown--"
But then the station went to red alert. Reeve's voice flew over to her comm. "Reeve to Aeris. You might want to get back to Operations."
"Acknowledged," Aeris tapped her commbadge. "Well, Doc, looks like those stress levels are going to have to wait."
Captain Sarah's side had barely managed to take control of the ship, and captured those from the other side. She took command, and hailed ESD for instructions regarding the swarms on Iconians throughout everywhere. The Iconians had jammed the transmission, so they set a course for ESD, arriving nearby, informing them that they had control of the vessel. Sarah beamed down to ESD, heading for operations.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
The Nova class U.S.S. Talitha under the temporary command of full Lieutenant Jonah McDaniels moved at maximum impulse away from Utopia Planitia Shipyards. Her construction had just a couple days ago been finished, and only a few hours ago officially been commissioned, in honor of the presumed late Talitha Roseblade. Now she was en route to Earth Spacedock with a skeletal crew complement of less than a dozen, but Starfleet planned on filling her roster with a total of at least 38 personnel, and in light of the recent events that had transpired on or around ESD, there were a few individuals that the Starfleet brass thought deserved first pickings of this state-of-the-art, highly upgraded light cruiser.
Lieutenant Jonah McDaniels, Earth Spacedock
Once docked, Lieutenant McDaniels stepped through the airlock with his acting first officer, Lieutenant Thalora, a female Vulcan-Aenar halfbreed in the science field. She had ice gray skin, pale eyes, and antennae, but also pointed ears and angled brows, and her silver hair was cut in a very Vulcan way. Unlike full-blooded Aenar, she was only partially blind, and her telepathic powers were more advanced than either Aenar or Vulcans.
Jonah McDaniels, however, was a typical security chief, loyal to Starfleet and the Federation to the end. He had a brown crew-cut and a serious demeanor. In fact, he was the half-brother of Captain Alvarez, but looked as though he could have been his twin.
“It appears ESD's shields are down again,” said McDaniels. “The threat must be over.”
The halfbreed shook her head. “I am afraid it has just begun, Sir. We must find Admiral Tuvok. He has our orders.”
The Infamous, Lt. Cmdr Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
“This is despicable, even for you!” Elihu shouted at The Infamous.
The warlord shook his head. “Not really. Par for the course, I'd say.”
Ra'Quella appeared and glared at Qaazrus. “You.”
“You,” said Qaazrus. “You do not have to worry about your ex finding you. I killed him.”
Ra'Quella looked heart-broken for a second but regained her composure. She turned to The Infamous and smirked. “I did as you requested.”
Suddenly Qaazrus' mouth fell open, his eyes went wide. “What have you done?” he gasped. “The Fleet Admiral had a Q ally. Now they're working together to give the admiral nearly infinite power! He could kill us all!”
Worried, Ra'Quella said, “I – I shielded this ship from his ability to detect –”
“Nearly infinite power!” Qaazrus repeated.
The Infamous joined in too: “Yes, 'nearly' infinite, Assrust.”
Qaazrus glared at The Infamous. “It's still more power than we have, even combined. I believe he plans on destroying everything that gets in his way.”
“Okay look,” said Elihu. “What's the bottom line? Are you saying not even the Zipporah is safe?”
Qaazrus hesitantly nodded. “It's a possibility. Our time dilation device –”
The Infamous corrected, “MY time dilation device...”
“...could buy us a few minutes, but he could just come back in time...at any time. He could be here now.”
The Infamous said, “Than there is only one place to escape him.”
Qaazrus looked to Ra'Quella, who returned a look of terror. She nodded. Together they raised their hands to clap.
“Wait!” Elihu shouted, “Where in the hell are we going? If the rules have changed, Qaazrus, I want the Phili and everyone on board going wherever we're going! Even...” He shook his head, almost regretting saying it. “Even Aunt Lydia.”
“Fine,” said Qaazrus, “but my original principle stands: I will not bring anyone from the dead!”
Elihu yelled, “Stop sayin' that, TRIBBLE! I know! Now let's go!”
Together, the two Q clapped their hands, sending the Zipporah and her crew somewhere else.
Lydia M'Konel, ESD, Operations
Admiral Quinn watched Lydia disappear only moments before Q-Nat appeared. Quinn rolled his eyes and stood up to pour himself a glass of wine. He may as well die content.
Super-Q-Nat said, "You of all people probably already know. Where are the last two Q, admiral?" the admiral asked quite clearly, implying that failure to answer would result in Quinn's death.
Quinn sighed, ignoring Q-Nat. He took a huge swig of wine and exhaled with a smile. “Stop being so melodramatic, Nat. Have a drink.” He offered him a glass.
Admiral Tuvok, who was still standing in the corner of the room, merely raised a brow. “Fleet Admiral Nat. Would it be pointless to inquire as to your motives over the last couple of days? I find it hard to believe that a distinguished flag officer such as yourself would so readily throw in with the likes of T'Kek and the Tholians.”
By now, Captain Jade would have sent a preliminary report to Starfleet informing them of the Tholians' involvement with the Philadelphia.
“Why the hell would I even know where the two other Q are, Admiral?” asked Quinn, before taking another sip as he sat down. “Do you really think some Q are gonna tell me anything? I mean, have you met them? They don't exactly care what we think.”
That was when Aeris would have entered Operations.
Talitha Roseblade, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
As soon as Talitha's consciousness took over the Philadelphia, both ships vanished in mid-warp from the known universe. Krystal Jade would be the only one who could move, as everything was frozen in time in a white void, but not the Q Continuum. This void was in another universe altogether.
A pixelated image of Talitha's face appeared on the main view screen in front of Jade. She looked around, both afraid and amazed. “W-Where am I? What's – what's going on?” She leveled a glare at Krystal. “Who in the world are you? Is – is this the Phili? Am I – am I in the Philadelphia's computer? Answer me!” she screamed, her amazement turning into anger, though fear was clearly still her prevalent emotion.
USS Firestorm, bridge
The entire ship vanished from normal space as soon as it dropped out of warp near ESD, leaving behind any Nat supporters on the spacedock for the admirals to deal with, except for the Reman T'Kek. He might be useful later. He'd been transported behind a force field in the brig. As the Firestorm disappeared, the self-destruct shut down.
Sarah Walker had beamed to ESD, leaving any of her crew members or loyalists behind on the Firestorm. If she had remained on board, she would have gone with them.
Lang assumed control of the ship and used his engineering skill to reprogram the ship to only accept commands from him, especially the ones involving self-destruct or remote-control from elsewhere outside the vessel. Staring out into the white void of nothingness, he wondered just what the hell was going on now.
Qaazrus appeared, scaring the daylights out of everyone. “Hi guys.”
Javan jumped, drawing his phaser.
Tina James ran to hug Qaazrus. “You got your powers back!”
“Yeah, no time for pleasantries,” Qaazrus remarked as he brushed the woman aside. “I've transported this ship into a void for the moment until we can figure out where to go from here. Elihu and I have ideas, but we do not want to say anything lest someone overhears, or someone decides to be a traitor again.”
Dolth, now fully healed, cleared his throat. “You mean like you.”
“You shot me,” said Javan.
“Sorry about that,” said Qaazrus. “I had to make it look good.”
Lang said, “He has a point. I'm sure if he had wanted you dead, you'd be dead, Eras.”
Javan holstered his phaser. “Fair enough.”
The Undine, still in the form of Kidna, told Qaazrus, “Kidna is dead, but I have her consciousness. Can you make a Vorta clone for her to inhabit?”
Qaazrus shook his head. “That's too much like resurrecting someone. I won't do it. But I will transport you to the Zipporah.”
“The what?” Lang asked.
“The Infamous' ship. He has Vorta cloning technology, among other things. Everything actually.”
Lang scoffed, “The Infamous? Thought he died in the fight with the Tal'Shiar.”
Qaazrus shook his head. “Nah. Apparently, he escaped by beaming onto a cloaking Valdore. He seduced the females, which I still have no idea how he does, and overpowered the males of the crew. Then he harvested all the parts of the destroyed Fleet of the Cursed and Tal'Shiar vessels and formed one giant ship. One of the Cursed ships had a time dilation device, which he used to slow down time so he could use slave labor to build his ship into a dreadnought ten times the size of ESD, almost the size of a moon.”
“Well,” Lang said, “I'm sorry I asked. Is he on our side?”
“Who knows?” shrugged Qaazrus. “I have to go talk to Jade. She's on the Phili out there with the Lexington.”
Counting on his fingers, Dolth concluded incorrectly, “So we have...four ships here with us...in this void?”
Qaazrus smirked. “Not quite. Just hang tight and make sure none of the admiral's crew changes their mind about their allegiances. If they do, let them know I will throw them out...like...into the void.”
He vanished.
Talitha Roseblade, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
Qaazrus gave Krystal Jade the necessary time to answer the AI Talitha before he appeared between the captain and the view screen in a brilliant flash.
“Aazrus!” Talitha exclaimed, momentarily forgetting her anger. "What's happening?" A theory crossed her mind, making her angry again. “Did you do this to me? If you're gonna bring me back from the dead...”
“No,” Qaazrus said, dismissing her theory with a wave of his hand. “Listen, both of you,” he said, glancing back to Jade. “First of all, you can call me Qaazrus. Second, Fleet Admiral Nat has decided he wants to become a super-Q to imprison or kill the remaining two or three Q left in existence, not to mention take over the galaxy. So...I've teleported everyone here, a nice safe void of nothingness. But don't worry, this is only a waiting room for the next universe I will be taking you to. The Q, even the Super-Q, cannot simply jump from one universe or reality to another. Despite what they'd like to believe, the Q are not pan-dimensional beings. There are other realities and dimensions that have their own sets of Q, their own sets of limitations and rules and even laws of physics... so... when one universe's Q wants to jump to another universe, they must first come here. In this void, I have set a trap. Any Q, even a so-called Super-Q, will not be able to follow us. Two minutes here would be years to us in our other reality. I will also leave very powerful warriors to guard our whereabouts, should Q-Nat find a way to leave this realm. Though it's highly unlikely. The trap is designed to drain a Q's power the more he uses them. That is why I am merely teleporting within the void, and doing nothing else. Teleporting out or blowing up a ship could result in me losing all of my power...before I wish to.”
Nel Kestral had been standing at the back of the bridge listening. “Aazrus?”
“Qaazrus,” he corrected once more, turning to her with a sad smile.
She had overheard some of what he said. She said, “What do you mean 'before you wish to'?”
Qaazrus said, “I am relinquishing my abilities once more, this time to Ra'Quella.”
Talitha groaned. “Aazrus or Qaazrus or whatever your name is, wasn't I vaporized? Can you get my body back?"
Qaazrus rapidly shook his head, becoming increasingly frustrated with people asking him to go against his principles. “No! It's too much like resurrecting you! It goes against what I believe in! Just stay in the Phili, alright? Sheesh.” He turned to Jade. “Thank you by the way, for the message. Elihu and I both owe you...like, literally the universe.”
Then he vanished.
"Inquire about my motives? Go ahead. You and I both know that I've been serving with Starfleet for a long time. I commanded task forces during the Klingon war. I commanded task forces against the Borg. Against the Iconians. The Na'kuhl. I eventually realized that all the needless death could be avoided if we were... more powerful. Others, like Gul Kentar, the Tholians, T'Ket... they understand that. So I brought us together to take over the galaxy, so we could prepare us for the next big threat which is more powerful than you could imagine.
That's the moment Sarah suddenly found herself in operations, surrounded by the Firestorm's Nat supporters were didn't already leave for the C.U.V. Natulak.
Nat turned to Sarah. "You were transported here from the Firestorm. I thought you had it under control. They--"
He stopped.
"You let somebody else take over my damn ship!?"
The C.U.V. Natulak then warped into the system, and 11 of 14 beamed down, walking into Ops, ignoring any security that might to stop her. "Admiral, what are you even doing?"
"Hunting for the other 2 Q. I'm assuming you don't know where they are."
"Admiral, first you're working with the Iconians, now you're hunting for Q? You mind explaining some things?"
"T'Ket's Iconians" Sarah clarified, unsure if 11 of 14 knew that particular detail.
"T'Ket's Iconians!?" 11 of 14 practically shouted. "...and here we thought you were working with the Iconians on Iconia, trying to get them to join the Federation or something, but no... you've joined the side we've been fighting this entire time!?"
"11, don't betray me now. This is the worst possible time for you to do that."
"I'm so sorry." 11 of 14 pulled out a phaser, pointing it at Nat as he disintegrated it with a wave of his hand.
"In case you haven't noticed, I have Q powers now. Well, not even Q powers. Powers stronger than all of the Q combined." the former admiral replied. "No one can stop me now, especially once we get rid of the other remaining Q."
"I thought you were better than this" Sarah said, turning to 11 of 14. "See why I tried to stop him?"
11 of 14 turned to Sarah. "I really figured he was better than this. Here I thought you were the traitor in all this, but no, it was him."
Nat looked at 11 of 14, while using his Q sense to tap into perception beyond that of a humans'. Soon enough, he realized that the other Q, the Philadelphia, and another Q in one giant ship had vanished into another reality. He realized that moving from reality to reality was too big of a risk for himself, and with a wave of a hand, the C.U.V. Natulak vanished, replaced with a Nova Class U.S.S. Molly. The Sek, Gydl, and the 8 Omega Operatives from the Natulak appeared with Nat, while the rest of the Natulak's crew were now on the Molly, along with Sarah's dedicated supporters from the Firestorm (all 20 of them), who he tore right out of the void reality and placed on the ship.
"If you're so sure you want to betray me, join the others then."
He teleported Sarah and 11 of 14 to the newly created U.S.S. Molly in a flash, and flung the ship into the void, nearly crashing into the Philadelphia. Nat then turns to Admiral Quinn.
"I'll be back."
He vanished in a flash of light, sending him, Sek, Gydl, his 8 Omegas, his other supporters from the Firestorm on ESD, and all of The Alliance (Natara Dyson Sphere included), to the Andromeda Galaxy. For the hell of it, he brought the Andromeda Dyson Sphere along too, using his powers to make all of the Heralds inside loyal to The Alliance, leaving the other Iconians (which would be all by T'Ket) on Iconia with only a handful of Heralds left.
U.S.S. Molly, bridge - In The Void
Appearing on the bridge in the captain's chair, Sarah became conscious again, turning to Lieutenant Jenn, who was at the ops station. "What are you doing here? Sarah asked. She turned and saw Scott at the science station. "You too? I..."
Sarah looked around, seeing the assortment of bridge crew. Lieutenant Jenn at the ops station. 1 of 6 at tactical. Varat'etan, a Jem'Hadar, at the helm. Kevin Mays, a lieutenant commander that was on Sarah's side on the Firestorm, sitting in the first officer's chair.
"Give me the crew roster, whatever that crew roster may be."
Somebody handed one over, looking puzzled themselves. Sarah read it, almost confused.
"So... you, like, 20 from the Firestorm that were on my side and... the admiral's loyalists that the admiral was tricking into being on his side, not knowing his true motives? Ok then. Scott, where are we?"
Scott did a scan, detecting the Philadelphia and Firestorm nearby, but nothing else on sensors, just yet.
"It appears that we're trapped in some kind of void with the U.S.S. Philadelphia and the U.S.S. Firestorm, captain. And, captain... believe me, I didn't want to be part of the admiral's plan. Really. I didn't even know."
"I know." Sarah replied, turning to Jenn at ops. "Hail the two ships, then. I need answers."
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
After witnessing the sudden disappearance of Sarah and the Borg drone, Aeris exited the Admiral's office and met with Reeve at the command ring.
"We just lost Captain Sarah and her double," Aeris reported.
Reeve tilted his head as he focused on his control panel. "The Firestorm and the Dyson sphere are gone too. Seems that omnipotent power is having its way at the moment."
"She also reported Iconian threats. Any signs of them as well?"
The Commander shook his head. "Negative. There were spawns beginning on lower decks, but they disappeared with everything else."
"We could've taken them. Ah, well. This giant mushroom will get another chance," she speculated. "The Lexington and the Philadelphia?"
Reeve switched the holo-display at the center of the ring, warp-path data. "Gone too, in mid-warp, according to a relay station."
"This job just gets harder and harder. It's enough for a Science officer to go insane."
The other human nodded just as he suddenly came to the realization of what she said. "Wait. What? You're a Science officer??"
"Uh, yeah, I mentioned it to you during one of our first meetings."
Reeve was still shocked. "Actually, I zone out when it comes to those things. I am in Tactical after all, so if it's not action, I'm done."
"Well, I can't fault you for that. Anyway, is the cloaked Zipporah any threat to Earth?"
He crossed his arms and turned to her. "Definitely. According to Quinn, they have the power to destroy any planet from here."
"Well, it seems over-poweredness is having its heyday. Let's keep Spacedock on alert and locate those ships. In the meantime, I'll compile a mid-progress report for Starfleet Command."
She then looked at the new arrival and blinked.
"O...k... someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?"
"Nat turned into a Super-Q, and he was hunting for two other Qs. I suspect they might be involved." Sarah said. "I think you already know me, but for those that might not, this is Captain Sarah Walker, captain of the... what's this ship called?"
A voice is heard from beside Sarah. "The U.S.S. Molly."
"Captain of the U.S.S. Molly."
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Arcturus System
The starships USS Firestorm, Philadelphia, Zipporah, Molly, and Lexington appeared from the void orbiting Arcturus Prime, a Federation member-planet.
Elihu M'Konel, T.I.S. Zipporah, the bridge
“What the hell?” groused M'Konel. “What alternate reality is this?”
The Infamous smirked, lounging back in his chair with a Caitian female on his lap. He was petting her like a cat and she did not mind.
Qaazrus white-lighted in and immediately Ra'Quella became visible, ready to protect The Infamous if need-be. “Oh please,” snipped Qaazrus. “If I wanted to kill your man, I wouldn't be stupid enough to show up to do it. Besides, you know I don't do that.”
Ra'Quella stepped back, lowering her clawed hands; it was actually reminiscent of an anti-Q defense learned by the El-Aurians centuries ago.
Elihu asked, “What is it? Is this the other universe?”
“Nah, this is actually Arcturus Prime. The threat, for now, has fled the galaxy, no doubt searching for easier pickings before returning here en masse. Don't worry, it will takes years for him to conquer that galaxy.”
Elihu groaned, “Qaazrus, that does not make me feel any better. What's the news, man?”
Qaazrus answered, “Super-Fleet-Admiral-Q-Nat and his colleagues are gone and he left those he could not trust, mostly, here in this galaxy. In fact, he sent the Molly to the void with us.”
“He must've known he couldn't follow,” mused Elihu thoughtfully.
“Doesn't matter,” Qaazrus stated. “Everything is under control.”
The Infamous cleared his throat, continuing to stroke his pet, which Qaazrus just noticed actually had a collar on.
What in the universe is up with this guy?
Grinning, The Infamous asked, “Why are we o'er one o' me bloody planets?”
Elihu glared at him. “This is one of your conquered planets?”
The Infamous shrugged. “Who do ya think showed 'em how to clone themselves, mate? The Federation needed an infinite supply of infantry. I was very handsomely paid, I might add.”
Shocked, Elihu turned to Qaazrus, who nodded sadly. It was true. Elihu turned back to The Infamous with a look of contempt and disgust. “Now that things are settled, you disappear.”
Almost hurt, The Infamous blinked and clenched his jaw. He nodded very lightly and inhaled deeply before ordering Ro at the helm, “Prepare to trans-warp to Risa.” He turned and smirked at Elihu. “Unless you wanna join us for some, eh, fun, I suggest ya bugger off, yeah?”
Qaazrus turned and glowered at Ra'Quella. “One more thing,” he said. “I want to give her my powers. I don't need them anymore.”
Elihu turned and smacked Qaazrus upside the back of the head. “Are you frickin' crazy, dude?”
Qaazrus exclaimed, “First of all, OW! Second of all, my power just attracts other powerful beings. Third, Ra'Quella may have questionable choice in men...” Ra'Quella just shrugged and nodded to concede the point. “...but she's mostly a good woman and I trust her to use my power responsibly...mostly. And last, but certainly not least... OW!”
“See, it's that 'mostly' stuff I'm worried about,” said Elihu.
Ra'Quella spoke up finally: “My values were somewhat similar to Qaazrus, during the civil war. I fought to keep humanity and her allies from total obliteration. However, I now differ in that I have no problem killing to protect the people I care about. It took many eons to learn that lesson.” She and The Infamous exchanged mushy looks.
Elihu moaned with irritation. “Whatever. Take me back to the Phili.”
That was when Kidna and the Undine defector both entered the bridge. Kidna told The Infamous, "Thank you for giving me a body." She glared at Qaazrus, who felt slightly guilty for not helping.
Nel Kestral, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
After Qaazrus had left and everyone had spent two hours doing mostly nothing except catching each other up on their respective events, missions, and happenings, Talitha had buried herself into the ship's computer, not wanting to talk to anyone. She knew Elihu would be coming over soon and if they saw each other...she had no idea how she'd react, but she knew he'd react badly. He might even kill his own aunt for doing this to his fiance.
Nel Kestral was at the Ops station, monitoring scans of the planet below. When her scans noticed the Zipporah turning, she reported it to Captain Jade. “The, uh, huge dreadnought is preparing to depart, Ma'am.” She put it up on the view screen and indeed the moon-sized vessel went to trans-warp.
USS Firestorm, the bridge
“What are we gonna do with this ship?” asked Tina James.
Javan Eras said, “I vote we blow it up.”
“Now, now,” Lang said with a smirk. The idea did have a certain poetic justice to it. “Let's just consider all of our options with a clear head; we don't actually work for SI. We don't even technically work for 31. We're so far black and off the books, we're generating our own event horizon.”
Dolth laughed obnoxiously. “That's a good one, Sir.”
Lang narrowed his eyes at the hulking science officer as he sat at the appropriate station on the bridge. “Um...thanks...” Lang looked up at the hole in the ceiling. “I wonder how that got there.”
Tina James looked around the bridge from her spot at the helm. “It looks like someone just cleaned everything up before we got here.”
“Probably Qaazrus,” suggested Lang. “Anyway, we need to take this junk back to ESD. They will want to restore her and give her a sane commanding officer.”
Dolth groaned, “Ugh...do we have to, Sir? From a scientific perspective, this ship is nothing short of amazing.”
“Hail the others, inform them we're heading back to ESD and we'll need a ride, and probably escorts. Who knows how many people want this ship, or just want it destroyed.”
“Um,” stammered Dolth, “actually, Elihu is hailing us from the Philadelphia.”
Lang smiled. “Put him on.” When Dolth opened the visual channel, Lang stood up from the command chair, his smile widening. “I see they promoted you, finally.”
Elihu M'Konel, U.S.S. Philadelphia, the bridge
The newly-minted Lieutenant Commander tried to restrain his sad, exhausted smile. “Lower your shields, man. I'm beaming you and your Reman prisoner aboard. We're towing the Firestorm to a salvage area in an asteroid belt just a few minutes away.”
“May I ask why?” Lang asked, now confused.
Elihu shrugged. “If we take it back to Starfleet Command, they'll try to use it, and when Nat returns, he'll take it by force. If we destroy it, who knows what he'll do. Honestly, maybe if he finds out we didn't destroy the Firestorm, maybe he will realize we're not his enemy and I can get some sleep.”
“How about,” Lang suggested with a sardonic look on his face, “we don't do any of that, and we blow it up because he killed our friends?”
Elihu closed his eyes and sighed deeply. “For the love of God, just do what I ask,” he snapped as he opened his eyes. “Phili out.”
Once Lang unlocked the command codes and reverted everything back to normal running procedure, he, Undine-Kidna, and the others were beamed safely aboard the Philadelphia. Lt. Cmdr M'Konel asked the Molly and the Lexington to tractor and tow the Firestorm to the salvage yard. Once done, the three Starfleet ships jumped to warp, heading toward ESD.
The Firestorm is sucked into a gateway, retrieved by the Iconians.
U.S.S. Molly, bridge
Sarah sat in the captain's chair, wondering what in the universe was going to happen next.
Andromeda Galaxy - Now
By now, The Alliance had already established their foot-hold in the galaxy, and conquered a number of systems already. There was no resistance, as they were too powerful for anyone to actually fight. T'Ket, however, was slowly losing patience, wanting to return to the Milky Way immediately. By now, T'Ket had already moved all of her Heralds into a Herald Sphere, and set up a headquarters of her own there. Nat, however, naturally retained the Heralds he had taken for his own, his headquarters in the Natara Dyson Sphere.
Their member races were already building themselves some pretty powerful forces using Iconian technology. Their Breen members were implementing all sorts of Dyson Sphere technology into their ships. The Tholian members were using Herald technology to make some especially fierce ships. The Cardassians, however, were itching to return to the Milky Way, and were developing some unique quantum singularity technology that would let them do just that.
Nat really didn't care either way. Powerful allies are never a bad thing, especially when his virtually infinite power could force his control over anyone who dared betray him. If anyone left The Alliance, so be it. He still had everything he needed or wanted... except for an armada bigger than the entire Milky Way combined. That, however, would take a while.
Andromeda Galaxy - A Week Later
T'Ket and her Heralds left, returning to the Milky Way. Being as few in number as they were, they couldn't amass any worthwhile invasion force, and settled for the occasional attack on Qo'Nos here and there, like they were doing before.
U.S.S. Molly - At Earth Spacedock - Now
Captain Sarah Walker arrived at ESD. For some reason, the admiralty though it was a good idea to give the captain official command of the U.S.S. Molly, keeping the crew they had earlier, despite the fact that many of them were literally traitors that had previous worked with Admiral Nat. Maybe they recognized that the crew had been fooled by the admiral into thinking they were actually bringing the Iconians into the Federation, and couldn't be held responsible. Maybe Nat decided to use his godly powers to influence the admiralty's decision. We may never know.
The U.S.S. Molly, of course, was literally brand new. The ship, being a Nova Class, was quite small, suited for nothing more than sort term (maximum of 2 years) missions for planetary research and the like. As the search for The Alliance beforehand had discovered the Natara Expanse, which was full of potential, they sent the U.S.S. Molly on a mission to explore a system there. System NCG-479834 as they called it, although Sarah figured they would name the system something else eventually.
Of course, being as new as the ship was, and that it had been spawned out of nowhere by a super-Q who wasn't too experienced with his powers, the ship needing some fine-tuning, and the crew needed to run some tests and get settled before actually taking the Molly on a mission. The ship, despite it's small size and purpose, had unusually top of the line technology; probably thanks to the former admiral Nat. Sarah went to ESD, going to the food court and ordering a pizza, sharing it with 11 of 14, who was there with her.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Terry walked around the curved hallway and into Operations. It was busy with senior personnel commanding and managing their own staff for various sections of Spacedock.
"Hi, I'm looking for Admiral Nat?" Terry said, approaching Commander Batou from Spacedock's engineering and showing him a PADD. "He gave me this mission I'm to join to a mysterious Dyson sphere."
Batou just looked at him, overly stunned. "Have you even been around lately?"
"Huh? I was working on my ship's approach strategy this whole time. I have so many ideas!" Terry said, knowing he probably couldn't ignore the fact Batou's implication was that he probably missed several key events.
The Commander took Terry's PADD and erased it. "Trust me. You're late."
"Well, this was unexpected," the Captain replied, but decided that it was probably better to accept things. "So, what's going on up here? Any Ferengi merchant ships?"
Batou shook his head as he continued working at his holo-console. "That's not my area, but I did notice a Ferengi ship, the Fortune's Gold, come right up to the window to tap it incessantly with its hull. Apparently, they couldn't wait for docking procedures."
"Oh! That is so interesting. Everything you do up here fascinates me, a man of strict Starfleet procedure."
The other officer looked at him. "You know, if you're up to no good, not everyone is going to judge you for it. Also, you could hide it better."
"Hey, people judge things all the time. I mean, it's not like I can read minds, but I know it happens. That, and my motives are not as transparent as you think."
Batou closed his console. "Well, what are they?"
"Huh?"
He asked again. "Your motives. I always find it odd that people go off on rants and then end them so cryptically. For once, I want to be that guy that asks straight out what's going on, negating further actions on the part of the subject and preventing what possible outcomes may arise." But as he had looked away halfway through his diatribe, upon returning to glance, he found Captain Terry had already left Operations. "Oh."
T'Ket floated in the air, somewhat angrily, an Elachi standing in front of her.
"You made your allegiance to us a long time ago. You will assist my Heralds in setting up defenses around my Herald Sphere here in the Natara expanse. It is my will."
"Yes, mistress." the Elachi replied, returning to their ship and returning to the other Elachi, who established a base in the expanse from which to assist T'Ket's Heralds.
For now, it was only an expanse with lots of planets, stars, nebulae, and the occasional anomaly. Soon, it'll be a deathtrap. Of course, no one will know until somebody goes into the expanse and learns the hard way...
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
“I – I feel like I'm going crazy, Kidna.”
In the days following the chaos, a timid and nervous calm fell upon Earth spacedock and the surrounding space. Nobody was sure when things would get out of hand next, and so they were constantly preparing for it, constantly worrying about it. Drills and training exercises were the norm.
People got even more anxious when intelligence reports and the media indicated the assassination of Empress Sela by a Hirogen hunter, supposedly one of her allies. However, not two days later, Lydia M'Konel informed Starfleet Intelligence that the sniper disruptor used by the Hirogen had been recognized and identified as one of the few weapons she had re-purposed into a transporter. Sela was out there somewhere and probably with the Hirogen defectors. Thus there was a power vacuum at the head of the Star Empire, which Toreth fought to fill. However, upon the hero Donatra's return to the Star Empire, Toreth was quickly forgotten. Her oppressive Tal'Shiar supporters tried to fight to get her into the Empress' seat, but most of her own turned against her in support of Donatra. The Empress position was temporarily dissolved until a formal election could be held to decide what to do next. Donatra wanted to merge the Star Empire with the Republic and give control over to Proconsul D'Tan, but many, even well-intending citizens, wanted to remain separate. They wanted the reluctant Donatra to reign as Empress.
“I want to die. I don't deserve to live...”
Admiral Tuvok, Talitha, Nel Kestral, and Lydia M'Konel agreed that Elihu should never find out that Talitha Roseblade was still alive, and in order to add irony to injury, she was safely transferred from the Philadelphia to the Nova class Talitha. With only a crew of six, the Talitha was dispatched to Rator III to investigate the claims of Sela's death/disappearance. Only Lydia, the commanding officer of the advanced light cruiser, knew the truth about Sela. Her true orders were to locate anyone who believed anything other than the official story and stealthily question them. If they knew too much, she was to bring them back to Federation space.
“How far will we go just to keep ourselves safe?”
The Philadelphia was dry-docked and decommissioned, her crew dispersed among other starships. Lieutenant Daniel Benson's Bereavement LOA was approved. Garn Pekh, the Tellarite engineer, left Starfleet and was hired on a civilian freighter heading to the Gamma Quadrant. Toman Kannor was discovered to be a Romulan spy and was sentenced to life of hard labor in the Federation Penal Settlement in New Zealand. Ensign Nel Kestral received a promotion to Junior Lieutenant and was transferred to the Molly as relief ops officer under Lieutenant Jenn. Lieutenant Commander Hektor Lang, Ensign Javan Eras, and Chief Petty Officer Tina James were transferred to the Lexington, becoming second-in-command of engineering, a nurse, and chief transporter operator, respectively.
Chief of Starfleet Intelligence, Admiral Chekov (2388): “We have already gone too far...”
Elihu M'Konel resigned his commission and took a job as inventory clerk at the Lunar Mining Colony. At his own request, nobody looked for him and nobody interacted with him, save for Kidna. He tried to raise his Vulcan mental barrier, but after several days, he realized that his angst over Talitha's death, as well as that over the death of his friends, had made it extremely difficult for him to remain logical and unemotional. Most days, Elihu did not eat; most nights, he cried himself to sleep, when he did find sleep.
Ten days after planting the anti-Undine/Borg devices on ESD
Elihu M'Konel, Lunar Mining Colony barracks
The emaciated Empath stumbled out of his bunk and crossed the small room to the wash-room. Behind him, another worker slept comfortably on the top bunk. Elihu approached the sink, already hating his self-destructive appearance in the mirror. Leaning on the sink, he stared at himself with self-loathing. After a moment, he rinsed his very bearded face off and then dried his reddened eyes. He almost laughed. Even his supposedly form-fitting muscle shirt hung loose on his boney torso. He dragged his bare feet as he headed out of the wash-room with a yawn.
The door chimed. “Whaaat?” he groaned, half-turning.
“Are you decent?” Kidna asked.
“No, I'm terrible.”
The door opened and the Vorta entered, a tiny smile threatening her thin lips. “Admirals Quinn and Tuvok would like you to return to ESD. Tuvok gave Quinn security clearance to know about the AUDs. They want you to help secure the station and find the designer.”
Another groan escaped Elihu as he sat down on his bunk. “Fine, I need to get out anyway.” When Kidna stood there, staring, Elihu asked, “Can I get dressed first?”
“Oh. Right. Sorry, Sir.” Then she left.
The U.S.S. Molly was finally in order, and departed for the Natara expanse, to explore it and hopefully not end up getting involved in anything chaotic this time. Sure, some of the crew she didn't even know got shuffled around, some leaving the ship and others joining, but "the family" as it were, were all on ship, so things worked out well enough.
Sarah questioned why there was never even an investigation into the Firestorm's crew that were transferred to the Molly, but decided not to worry about it, as the remainder of the Firestorm's crew on board she already knew beforehand, and trusted well enough to not be secretly working with the admiral when he's all the way out in the Andromeda Galaxy.
The worry, of course, was in the Natara Expanse. Sure, The Alliance's base there had jumped away to another galaxy, but was to say they didn't leave someone behind? She figured they would find out soon enough.
They would arrive at the expanse in 3 hours. Once they entered, there would be no contact with Starfleet, as the expanse was a very nebulous region, so transmissions in and out were virtually impossible. If their were any Iconian Heralds, or any of their servitors, inside, they would be alone with them.
Little did they know T'Ket, her Heralds, and the Elachi were already prepared for them, although they didn't yet know the Molly was coming.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
With everything that's been going on, Krystal needed some time to relax and try and wrap her brain around recent events. So there she was, sitting at one of the viewpoints looking out over Puget Sound and the Narrows Bridges with a bottle of soda in hand.
"With everything that's happened... its pretty strange even for the Lexington..." she said before taking a drink. While the Lexington gained a reputation for getting all the weird assignments, seemed like mad scientists were every second Wednesday, Whis whole situation with Admiral Nat, the Philidelphia, and Elihu topped all that. She couldn't help but wonder about that Dyson Sphere Nat wanted her to help check out. Had he actually been trying to recruit her? Or was it an attempt to steal her ship? She honestly didn't know.
"Reeve, we need to locate those lost ships. What have we found out so far?" Aeris asked, intently. She wasn't going to lose the Lexington, the Philadelphia and the Firestorm all in one go.
The security commander turned to her in sudden shock. "You're back!?"
"I only went to get more PADDs. One for each ship we're searching for," Aeris said as she handed them to him. "An extra one for that Vulcan ship that keeps flying by the window."
Reeve shook his head and gestured to the pattern enhancers surrounding the Captain. "No; you disappeared from this spot for quite some time. You've been gone a whole week!"
"What?" Aeris replied, shocked. "What'd I miss?"
Commander Reeve brought up some data on his holo-screen. "The Lexington and the Philadelphia returned, reporting having been stuck in a dimensional void. The Firestorm went even more missing and the Molly appeared out of nowhere."
"The Zipporah?"
Reeve nodded. "The Admiral seems somewhat content and was even heard singing Edge of Etiquette songs, so probably gone."
"Let me get this straight; everyone got to have a week of recovery and getting their heads together and I get nothing??"
The man shrugged. "I guess. Also, since you've been gone, I've taken over security again, and, in an effort maintain heightened levels of awareness, I've been running drills and exercises around the clock. Living in fear! It's a new thing I'm trying. Also, I think, due to your situation, you should step down in your role in Security."
"Are you kidding me? I need to add to this heightened level of stress, if not, to channel mine into everyone else!"
Reeve shook his head. "Yeah, I'm already pushing the threshold. You'd just be a tipping point in our Tuvok sweat drills that would send our token Bolian officer off the edge."
"Forget that!" She pointed to nearby tactical officer Lieutenant Aramaki. "You there! Laps around ESD and don't stop until I tell you!"
Aramaki fumbled in shock. "Ye-- Yes, ma'am."
"Still got it," Aeris said as she suddenly noticed Reeve standing in different location than the last. She then turned to see Aramaki not moving, but panting, out of breath. "What did I just say? Now it's double laps!"
Aramaki groaned and then ran off.
"You disappeared again. He did twenty laps," Reeve reported.
Aeris cursed. "Damn. I guess you're right. And I was this close to normalcy, ever since the Zephyra had been recalled here. It was finally feeling like I had a life again."
"If it makes you feel any better, I'll call you for our weekly Cargo Bay raids? We mostly target unsuspecting Romulans."
The Captain smiled. "I'd like that."
So far, Kestral felt useless on the Molly; more than that, she felt wholly unwelcome. She didn't trust anyone on the ship as far as she could throw them – which she actually achieved when one crewman tried to incorporate her into his weekly strip poker games. He did not go far, about four or five feet vertically, three feet horizontally. After her reprimand from a superior officer, Kestral was taken off the duty schedule for the foreseeable future, not that she particularly minded. However, once the ship arrived at the Natara Expanse, she became anxious.
Elihu M'Konel, the shuttle Sardis
“I change my mind,” Elihu told the shuttle pilot. “Take me back to the moon.”
Kidna gave Elihu a look of disappointment. “Sir. Everything is going to be fine.”
“Says you,” mumbled Elihu. “I have a feeling this is all a ruse.”
“Right,” Kidna said sardonically, “the top brass ordering you to return to ESD to secretly help them find a way to secretly locate the creator of the AUD's so we can possibly secretly acquire more is a ruse for something even more secretive...”
Elihu turned and narrowed his eyes at the Vorta, but could not hide the smirk. “Don't be difficult,” he said, leaning his shoulder into hers.
Tina James, Chicago, Illinois – her apartment
Tina activated the comms channel and her sister Cynthia's face appeared on the monitor. “Hey sis! About time you answer my calls! Where you been the last five days or so?'
“Kidnapped. How are things with you?”
Cynthia's eyes went wide. “Wow, so it's true. Dad told me but I thought he was exaggerating. You know how he is. Anyway, did you get the invitations?”
Tina narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Invitations? To what?”
“My wedding! I'm getting married to, like, the best guy in the galaxy!”
Tina sighed. “You exaggerate worse than dad. Who is this guy? I hope he's better than the last one you dated. Dad doesn't need another drinking buddy, Cynthia.”
Tina's younger sister rolled her eyes. “Christina, why do you always do that? Stop being jealous.”
“What's his name?” Tina sighed.
“D'ren.”
“What's that, Klingon? K'Tarian?”
Cynthia answered, “No, he's human. There's this sweet story about how his little brother couldn't pronounce A's so he changed his name from Daren to D'ren just for him.”
“Well, congrats. I'm happy for you. I hope it works out. Does this D'ren have a last name?”
“You just want to look him up on your Starfleet research computer, don't you?” Cynthia inquired mistrustfully.
Tina shrugged, grinning slightly. “Maybe.”
“It's McDonnell,” said Cynthia.
Nodding slowly, Tina said, “Alright, and when did you meet this D'ren Daren McDonnell? 'Cause the last I talked to you was two weeks ago and you weren't seeing anyone.”
“Yeah, we just started seeing each other a few days ago.”
A long, heavy sigh escaped Tina's lungs. She face-palmed. “Typical Cynthia.”
-Lord Commander Solar Macharius
Captain Sarah was a little anxious. Not only were they flying into a place where they'd lose contact with Starfleet, but one of the crew, Kestral, apparently wasn't getting along with the crew very well. The captain did a little investigating of her own, discovering that certain activities one of the crew, specifically the very one that was thrown by and filed a report against Kestral, had been trying, but failing to organize were against Starfleet regulations, and had take give him a reprimand of his own. He too was taken off the duty schedule, at least temporarily. Sarah wanted to keep him and Kestral off duty until the Molly returned from their mission, but with a crew of 15 officers (Sarah included) and 20 crewman, that probably wouldn't last.
On the bridge, the operations officer, Jenn, noticed something on the sensors that was unusual. "Captain, we've detected a... it's gone."
Sarah looked over. "What was it?"
"I don't it... there it is again! Wait... no. It's gone again."
"What the hell is it--"
Sure enough, the U.S.S. Molly took a hit from a volley of Elachi cannon shots, coming about to the right as an Elachi S'golth Escort passed them on the left, hitting them with a volley from their Elachi turret.
"Quick, bring us about and return fire!"
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
Lieutenant Kestral almost laughed as she looked out a porthole from her quarters on the port side of the ship. The Elachi escort appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and opened fire, causing the Molly to quake. Kestral thanked God for internal dampeners and shields, as well as whoever invented them, and exited her quarters before she even tapped her combadge.
“Kestral to Captain Walker, permission to come to the bridge,” the young woman requested, though she was actually heading toward the armory first. And she was not the only one.
She intended to arm herself before going to the bridge, and she also intended to have a little chat with the captain about the trustworthiness of the crew.
Sub-Commander Lydia M'Konel, U.S.S. Talitha, main engineering
Most of her crew was asleep, but Lydia M'Konel was a night owl. As she took a sip of her Roktajino, she eyed the PADD that displayed the results of the impulse drive test. Damn, still only 99% efficiency. When she turned around from the impulse drive panel, she jumped in surprise, nearly dropping her Klingon coffee.
The ship's Chief Medical Officer, Lieutenant Commander Shran-Vix, was standing there, her hands on her hips as she intently peered at her rival.
“Vix, don't scare me like that,” snapped Lydia, setting her hot drink down on a nearby console.
“Are you going to explain this Tali thing to me? To the crew? To her?”
Lydia was already heading over to her main engineering station by the warp core. “What are you talking about?”
“You claim that you beamed her disintegrated molecules into the pattern buffer to store them.” Shran-Vix clearly did not believe this. She followed close behind Lydia, crossing her arms.
“That is what I claim, yes.”
Shran-Vix continued, “You are the engineer, I am the doctor. And from a medical standpoint, that is ridiculous and impossible. Not to mention it has never happened before, and if it had, it would've been published in every medical journal from here to Parada Prime.”
“You are correct,” answered Lydia. “I am the engineer. You are not. I simply narrowed the confinement beam and –”
“No,” said Shran-Vix with a scowl, pointing accusingly at her. “You had something to do with her death, if she even died at all.” She shook her head in disbelief, her antennae slanting angrily. “And you think it's better Elihu live in ignorance about all this?”
Lydia spun around, raising her tightly clenched PADD as she spoke. “Even Talitha agreed it was for the best. Best case scenario? Elihu believes Talitha is still alive and tries to forcibly remove her from the ship's computer, probably killing her. If he succeeds, he gets her back but for how long, Shran? Tali's physical body is so far degraded she would not be able to be fully recovered. And even if he chose to leave her in the ship, he'd go mad trying to reconcile his life to this new reality. He can't marry a starship, Shran!”
The doctor retorted, mostly humorously, “There is the case of the Denobulan who married a Glesseene radish.”
Lydia's visage softened, but she just sighed and turned back to her computer terminal. “Tali cannot be recovered. And I had nothing to do with her death.” Lydia blinked, hoping Shran-Vix bought it.
Apparently she did, because the Andorian silently turned around and walked out of engineering.
2395
Starfleet Intelligence Home Duck Blind and Safe-house #595 – Ceth'lenn Township, Ireland
The village-town of Ceth'lenn was completely unaware of the cloaked, holographic Starfleet Duck Blind that concealed their observers. The mobile Duck Blind was more of a hovercraft than anything. The unseen overseers took notes and scanned much of what transpired in the town, but their main concern was a young boy of 15, and his three younger brothers.
“Daren,” Joseph said, “where are we going?”
Joseph McDonnell was only a year younger than his brother Daren, but relied heavily on the firstborn's guidance, not because he was incompetent, but because Daren would not have it any other way. The two boys could not have been much more different. While Joseph wore a casual school uniform, complete with a gray sports coat with a coat of arms on the breast, Daren couldn't have cared less about school, responsibility, or respect, and it showed in his punk rock attire and spiked black hair.
Half-turning toward his brother as they moved down an alley, Daren grinned mischievously as he answered, “Ye'll see,” he said.
Unlike his younger brother, Daren had a slight Irish accent that he was obviously trying to pass off as native. All four brothers, however, were orphans who had been transported to Ceth'lenn from North America.
In the mobile Duck Blind, Commander Resler, the special-agent-in-charge, crossed his arms as he monitored the two boys' movements from a mere fifty yards away. “What's he up to now?” He turned to an ensign sitting at a row of camera monitors. “Pull up that alley, all angles.”
Sure enough, Resler saw Daren's destination on one of the screens. Resler informed the dozen or so other spies, “He's taking Joseph to the fight. Alright, everyone. Keep a close eye on things. The last thing we need is our boy getting hurt.”
The illegal street brawl was on schedule, just starting as Daren and Joseph arrived. Immediately Joseph turned to leave, heading back around the corner into the alley, but Daren darted over and grabbed his bicep.
“C'mon, mate,” said the Irish poser. “Just one bout, I'll get ya a pop o' somethin', yeah?”
The clearly more American boy jerked his arm out of Daren's grasp. “Dude, I don't like violence. You know that. Why would you bring me to this? Besides, Derrick needs his medicine while John's away.”
Daren rolled his eyes. “Fine, bugger off back home, but I'm stayin', right?”
“Whatever,” Joseph groaned, heading back down the alley. “The sun goes down in two hours!” Joseph hollered back over his shoulder. “You should be home by supper.”
Daren shook his head with disappointment and annoyance, and silently turned back to the fight to cheer on his favorite champion.
By the time Daren got to the modular home, it was well after dark and he was hungry. He replicated something to eat and fell onto the sofa. He'd taken a single bite when he noticed his youngest brother Derrick standing at the threshold of the living room and the main hallway.
“What?” said Daren hotly, glaring at the 8-year-old who just rubbed the bags under his eyes.
Derrick mumbled, barely coherent, “Dit oo hove fun, D'ren?”
Daren swallowed his mouthful of food and set down the plate with a sigh. He gave Derrick a warm smile. Derrick had always been the only person Daren was nice to because he wanted to be, not because he had to be. He patted his knee and his brother smiled as he went over and hopped into his lap, wrapping his arms around him.
“I'm sorry I didn't get home earlier,” said Daren, almost losing his fake thick accent. In fact, his voice sounded remarkably Carolinian. “Maybe next time I'll take you with me.” He smiled at the child, poking his chest. “You'd probably be more fun than Joey.”
Derrick giggled and poked Daren's chest back. “I dun wunu fight.”
“You don't fight, you git,” said Daren with a light laugh. “You watch other people fight.”
“But...dun dey get hort?”
For a moment, Daren did not reply. His brother's innocence was something he wished he still had. After blinking the emotion away, Daren shrugged and said, “We all get hurt, little guy. I just prefer it be physically than emotionally.”
"Of course" the captain replied.
The battle was going surprisingly well for a mere Nova Class starship, the Molly's shields still holding at 47%. Sarah, however, didn't want to take any chances, and had the crew arm themselves should the shields go down and Elachi start boarding the ship. The Elachi fired a subspace torpedo as the U.S.S. Molly disappeared into a nebula, hiding them from sensors. The Elachi, for the moment, stopped pursuing them.
Although no one on the bridges knows why that is. Are the Elachi somehow incapable of being inside these kinds of nebulae? Is it a trap? Sarah could only wonder.
U.S.S. Molly, armory
As Kestral arrived at the armory, she was stopped by 3 of 5, the liberated Borg half-human half-Vulcan, who was the the chief of security, serving under 1 of 6. "Where do you think you're going? We have strict security here, you know. This is the security complex, after all."
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
"Fine. I don't need a sidearm." She turned and left, heading for the bridge.
If the Elachi did board them, and any of the Molly crew were nearby and busy, or incapacitated, she'd take their phaser. As far as she was concerned, they could still be secretly working for Admiral Nat. And even if they weren't, they didn't seem particularly worried about anything that was going on.
Just in case, Kestral contacted the bridge. She tapped her badge again. "Kestral to bridge; the Elachi's ventral shields are usually 20% weaker than the rest of their shields because that part only has one shield emitter and it's located on the on the aft ventral quarter. The Elachi's shields are also not designed to keep out low-power phaser blasts. If timed right, you should be able to take out their aft ventral shield emitter with one low-power phaser beam. Then you'll want to target their impulse drive or their targeting scanners with quantum torps."
Being a Black Ops operations officer for SFI did have its advantages.
Seifer took a few stabs at his monochrome plate of bland, cold, uneaten potatoes. The replicator-peeled vegetable slipped under misplaced fork-pressure and spun off the table onto the floor. In his heart, he knew he would have his revenge against that particular food item. In no way did he ever intend on letting that little inanimate spud go without a taste of his vengeance. Oh, he would spend the rest of his life, plotting and scheming the most elaborate and harsh--
"--Well, well. How the mighty have fallen," came the interrupting voice of an old, Vulcan man, from behind Seifer. "Do you plan on staring at your mess all day, or are you going to pick it up?"
Turning, in shock, Seifer came to perceive his old Vulcan teacher from Starfleet Academy. "Master Chivaul??"
"You've become weak, Oroku. Where once you commanded one of Starfleet's most over-powered, uber ships of incomprehensibly small scale, now, you sit in this pale and unforgiving food court with nothing to show for it."
Seifer shook his head in disbelief. "Uh, I saved my crew from that horrible Calibus VII sickness, and stopped the cross-dimensional Nibiru from reconfiguring our space-- Not that that hadn't been done before. Mine was just more recent."
"Fulfilled with accomplishment, you are entitled to magnificence and respect. Your lack of position is a betrayal to you and what you have done in the past."
Pointing, Seifer replied, "You know what? You have always been rude and mean to me, with no explanation whatsoever; for what I can only assume is because I stuck with you until the bitter end, and--"
"You talk too much!" Chivaul knocked Seifer's pointing arm away and launched a claw-posed hand right at the Trill's face.
Grabbing the wrist of the incoming attack, shocked, Seifer was forced to use his other arm to knock a second incoming hand, this time, toward his throat. The old Vulcan twisted Seifer's grip free and jabbed both his fists, forward again. Seifer, while seated, shot both his feet up and kicked the fists away. He kicked again toward Chivaul's chest, where his foot was met with blocking palms, with enough force to push the old man back a few steps.
"Oh, real mature, you decrepit old Vulcan!" Seifer responded before noticing a few officers nearby standing up from their meals and looking at them in shock. The Captain quickly got out of his seat and addressed the food court. "--Uh, it's nothing, everyone; this senior is just looking for his meds. Poor guy can't even go to the bathroom without--"
But Chivaul force-palmed Seifer in the face, then quadruple-jabbed the Trill in the chest, before a second palm with force toward the same spot. The Captain grabbed the incoming wrist with both hands, softening the blow as much as he could, before being knocked right over his table and onto the floor, next to the potato.
"This is all your fault," Seifer turned to the spud in shifting anger. "If only you let me eat you, instead of this run-around, we wouldn't be in this m--"
The old fighting Vulcan, showing no emotion, flew over the table with an incoming foot of immense force. Seifer quickly wondered if picking up the potato would be metaphor enough to stop his old teacher. Unfortunately, he had to roll away from it to live. Chivaul landed his intense stomp, while, Seifer, still on his back, flung kick after kick at Chivaul. Each kick was blocked by the Vulcan's even faster-moving left foot.
"I-- told-- you---! No visitors-- before-- nap time--" Seifer said in mid-fight, noticing the shocked look of confused faces around him. Chivaul leapt another downward-forced foot, prompting Seifer to decide to roll underneath him, toward the potato.
Seifer picked up the food, got up and placed it on a table. Chivaul, after landing and turning his position to face the Captain, stopped his attack and continued his unemotional repertoire. "Meet me in the Holodeck to finish this."
"Should I bring your ointment??" Seifer replied, unimpressed, as Chivaul walked his way through the sea of tables out of the food court. The Captain dusted his Odyssey uniform off and noticed an Ensign looking at him with wide-eyed disbelief. "He has a skin thing."
Flanked by his ever loyal Vorta, Elihu watched the end of the fight as he stepped into the food court and crossed his arms over his chest. The part-Vulcan was donned in a black hooded cloak that mostly concealed his decrepit and frail appearance; only his scruffy brown beard was fully visible, while the rest of his face was hidden in mysterious shadow.
The blue-uniformed Vorta Kidna's hands were draped behind her back as she stood beside him, her back straight, chin held high, unlike the depressed and morose M'Konel. She turned to her friend: "We can still eat here, Sir. He's only broken one table," she said with a snarky attitude. "Or perhaps Admirals Tuvok and Quinn would like him to help us locate the AUD maker?"
Elihu just continued to silently stare at Seifer with a blank look on his mostly-shrouded face. After a few seconds, he dead-panned at the ranking officer, "Eat that."
That was when Ensign Javan Eras entered the food court. Apparently, he'd been immediately reassigned from the Lexington to the non-moving Zephyra. Elihu had not yet seen Eras, since he was behind him, and yet he knew the Bajoran nurse was there. A thin, barely perceptible smile crossed Elihu's face.
"Understood" Sarah responded. "Lieutenant, bring us about and target their aft ventral shield emitter with a low power phaser beam!"
"Low power...?" 1 of 6 replied, carrying out the order anyway and firing at the Elachi vessel, disabling their shields long enough to hit their targeting sensors with a few photon torpedoes. They would've fired quantum torpedoes like Kestral suggested, but the Molly simply doesn't have any.
"Now get us out of here!"
The U.S.S. Molly's sensors had already been confused by the nebulous nature of the expanse, and couldn't identify which way they came in from. The helm officer, a Jem'Hadar defector named Varat'etan, took his best guess and the Molly was now headed... somewhere, hopefully out of the expanse.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.