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Star Wars: Shards Discussion Boards Wednesday's Child Chapter 2
  Kummer wolfe
Mon, Oct 2nd 2023 11:20   Edited on Sat, Apr 13th 2024 05:52

A Powered Welcome

holoscan of a ship's bridge by CB Ash
 
Nyx navigated along Kipo’s path through a docking bay hatch, followed by the control room itself. At last she reached the near silent corridor that stretched for meters in both directions to her left and right.
 
Kipo was nowhere to be seen.
 
The ship’s lighting was a rich twilight, a pleasant change for Nyx’s Catharian eyes. This dim illumination wasn’t surprising since the Wednesday’s Child was supposed to be retrofit. It was common practice to keep the ship reactors running at minimal power. No sense to waste precious fuel.
 
There wasn’t enough dust along the old white-gray floors to track which direction Kipo slithered. A moment’s search did nothing but add fuel to Nyx’s frustrations. After a glance in either direction, she chose a path, then stalked off. Two of JN-66’s drones trailed obediently behind her.
 
A short walk, and several thoughts about sign language retribution against Kipo later, Nyx found herself one deck up at a door marked ‘bridge’.
 
Once the door hissed open with a short, veiled snarl, a series of automatic lights cascaded to life around the wide room. Deck lights bathed the floor in a stream of orange illumination. Consoles were mostly dark, with the occasional flicker of life. Specifically the life support, bridge engineering, and the round shield table station.
 
Then, without warning, every console activated on its own. Telemetry, system maps, and ship subsystems glimmered across the empty room that should have been powerless. It was as if the bridge became aware that a visitor had stopped by.
Storyteller Instructions
Nyx, what do you do?
  Nyxeil Nyx Synarris
(a.k.a. Moke)
Sun, Oct 15th 2023 10:15   Edited on Sun, Oct 15th 2023 10:30
I shiver at the thought of a ship that keeps herself clean being clever and creepy all at the same time. The little logic voice in the back of my head says it is just sensors and droids, sensors and droids. Talk about the fur standing up,
  I make a complete circuit of the bridge just glancing at every monitor and holo display. Taking special interest of the local system with position and placement of the Black Hats and anything additional roaming about. Next I stand in the center of the bridge running my eyes across the panels, consoles, displays and holoscreens. I am looking for what is out of place as I begin to roam through my environment. I whisper aloud, "This is a mystery and there is always something out of place in a mystery!"
  I glance back at one of Jane's remote floats, "How is it going Jane? Are you in contact with Kipo and where the hell is he?"  
  Kummer wolfe
Fri, Nov 3rd 2023 12:46
A brief burst of static spit out of the drone before there was anything that resembled words.
 
“Kipo is in Engineering… I think. I’m trying to reach him now,” Jane replied.
 
The consoles across the bridge were a cascade of information. Ship telemetry, navigation, system diagnostics, and more ran through standard maintenance routines. Automatic processes, running obediently on command.
 
Perfectly normal for a bridge start up activity. That is, if the menu options and passcodes were not being selected or entered on their own as if there was someone at the controls.
 
Subsystems flicker. Registering power, water, and air being transferred through parts of the ship. So far, the engines appear idle as does the hyperdrive. For some reason, the shields are on and at full. Already the Child is tracking the Black Hat pirate ships. Not a focused target lock, but a passive scan to take temperature and other life sign readings.
 
In the distance, a low hum that wasn’t there a second ago echoes from the air recycler that is punctuated with a periodic slow, rasp. Like a loose filter that rattles with the air flow.
  Graylion
Mon, Nov 6th 2023 01:07
"Well in that case I will head towards engineering in a few. I just want to take a last look around here on the bridge. Its lit up and active like a Larax Festival up here. You may be able to figure out more but first I think we should regroup and maybe not split up again.   I muse to to myself it should be better to be on the inside of a fulled functional spaceship compared to the outside. The hairs on my neck stand up and that is never a good sign. And those are not noises I think will be healthy for me. I spin scanning the bridge again as if I could look through the bulkheads at the internal working. Out of reflex I seal my re-breather on just in case while snagging a backup from an emergency station. I make my way to the main exit and trigger the door while dropping my staff into my right hand.
  Kummer wolfe
Sun, Nov 19th 2023 08:20   Edited on Sun, Nov 19th 2023 08:21
A quick glance does nothing to settle any nerves in the back of Nyx’s mind. Consoles should not do that.
 
But.
 
There are always explanations. Remote access, automatic programs, and more are never out of the question. As Nyx stepped out of the bridge, what looked to be a log file flashed across a nearby screen. A second later, the bridge door snapped shut with a dull hiss, cutting off her from anything more on the bridge.
 
Staff in hand, bridge hum a brief memory, the silence of the passageway is almost deafening. Dim emergency lights provide brief, bright islands between long stretches of gloom.
 
But it was only a few steps away from the bridge that Nyx noticed Jane hadn’t replied through her drone. Based on what she remembered of the Child’s layout, this current passageway was the best route to Engineering and Kipo. A long walk, or just a brief jog away.
 
It was only ten standard minutes away, when Nyx heard a faint scratching from inside the walls. Not far from a junction to crew quarters, mess hall, and other mundane locations.
 
Storyteller Instructions
Where to Nyx? A little side trip? Or onto Engineering?
  Graylion
Sat, Dec 9th 2023 07:41   Edited on Sat, Dec 9th 2023 07:41
Damn it all to the nine rings of Helios. Every fiber of my being is screaming to investogate but it was the wrong call. In fact nothing felt right about this ship. I point my staff at a corner wall panel and discharge it to scorch the plating as a marker. Then I start towards engineering at a dead run, not a jog a dead run. Jane! What the hell?Are you taking a digital cat nap? Do let me interupt your zeros and ones soup, but why is it so hard to get a patch through with Kipo? What the devil. A growing concern was starting to scratch at the back of her mind and I absolutely need to place eyes on Kipo and Jane. Oh and not damn split up again. Terrible idea.
  Kummer wolfe
Thu, Dec 28th 2023 07:44
With the plating scorched, Nyx takes off at a dead run. Jane’s drone races behind, struggling to keep up with the Cathar pilot. Doors, dead consoles, broken emergency cabinets blur past while they make a frantic dash for Engineering.
 
Jane’s reply was a little scratchy during the flight through the passageway.
 
“I’m trying to patch through, Captain! There’s some sort of interference where he is! I don’t understand what! Maybe Engineering is shielded?”
 
Then Jane’s reply rose a sharp octave.
 
“Captain! Look out!”
 
Ahead, a figure in a tattered spacer’s coveralls stumbled out of the bulkhead on the right and into the passageway. A gaunt human, he stared at Nyx with frantic, desperate eyes.
 
Most of all, he was semi-transparent. Not a hologram either, but ghastly gray-white. Which may explain how he staggered out of a wall where there was no door!
 
“Captain! Turn right! Passageway to your right!” Jane pleaded.
 
Storyteller Instructions
Nyx? What do you do?
  Nyxeil Nyx Synarris
(a.k.a. Moke)
Mon, Jan 1st 2024 03:24   Edited on Mon, Jan 1st 2024 07:57
Nyx growls and launches herself to the right gliding off of the passage wall and tumbling into a low roll to continue forward in re-uniting the team.
  "Push a signal through a powered hardline and use a local speaker to get me in contact with to Kipo. Hey Jane I thought you were good at this stuff...".   Her voice fluctuates with a bit of a growl.   "I would imagine having the Wednesday access codes and being permissioned as administrators in the system would count for something. Or do we need to go back to drydock and locate a more an unpgrades droid?"
  Nyx felt this bot had enough personality to respond to a slap of pride but seems to be falling behind lately. There was also a brewing question forming in the back of her mind. Why did Kipo run off that was not a good plan. Is there any chance he was running a secondary retrieval gig and keeping me in the dark. I glanced a decerning eye at Jane's remote drones. What if they were not here to help but to run interference.
  Kummer wolfe
Mon, Jan 15th 2024 07:58
Nyx tore off down the passageway, bolting from one dim emergency light to the other. Preciously small glowing islands in a sea of gloom. Even the air temperature had dropped to a chill. Behind her flew one of Jane’s drones, rattling off a stream of dialog after a mild, undignified burst of static.
 
“Why, Captain! I so apologize for the oversight! Please forgive me for the mistake. This is a trying moment after all with a challenging system, security or not. But of course, I can push a signal though a powered hardline…” What remained was a stream of dialog about types of hardlines, system specifications, and relays in need of a firmware update from Sonus Systems to Tri-Comsoft.
 
Some even from manufacturers in the Corporate Sector Nyx knew had gone out of business decades before.
 
“Oh! Captain! I know exactly why Kipo isn’t answering. He may have found something, or someone in Engineering. Ahead and to the left!”
 
Behind Nyx, the gaunt, gray-white human ran after her, an arm extended. Almost like a plea for help or to grab a handy victim. It was hard to say given the man made no sound. Not from his running or speaking, even though his mouth was moving.
 
The passageway was obviously a secondary route. Faded marks on the walls indicated this led to the starboard sensor stations, maintenance, and the refabrication bay. Engineering, as Nyx remembered it, could be accessed from the maintenance bay though either a sole doorway or a few emergency crawlspaces.
  Nyxeil Nyx Synarris
(a.k.a. Moke)
Mon, Jan 29th 2024 09:04
As my thoughts race, I curse myself for not realizing sooner. Jane mentions long-dead corporations, the stalling, and misdirection. It's clear Kipo is in trouble, and I find myself on a wild goose chase. Spotting the next access panel, I urgently instruct Jane,   "Plug into that panel. I have an idea, but we need to be fast!" I wait for the drone to establish a tether connection, then unleash a shock burst to exploit its reduced maneuverability. Here is hoping that my hunch is correct, but I assume this little drone has been compromised after we left the hanger.
  Kummer wolfe
Sun, Feb 11th 2024 07:43
“Of course, Captain!” replied the drone in a chipper tone, as if Jane was oblivious to the recent, and nearby, spectral threat. That is, if any of the tall tales about ‘space phantoms’ were the least bit real.
 
The drone sped over to the access panel, and popped out a data jack. Quick as a wink connected to the Child’s network.
 
Not even a second later, the drone was lit up with a small, personal lightning storm inside it’s metal frame. Smoke belched out the drone’s seams in a vicious mockery of storm clouds, before the floating extension of Jane hit the deck with a loud, metal bang.
 
Back down the passageway, the stuff of fiction was hot on Nyx’s tail. The gaunt, ghostly human in tattered spacer coveralls raced forward. Right arm extended, his mouth moved to make a sound, any sound, but instead there was nerve-fraying silence. His space-black eyes fixed a desperate, almost hungry gaze at Nyx while he ran.
 
With the drone at her feet, there was the access panel to her left. The burst of electric power had done as much to the panel as it had to the drone. Panel lay partially open, keypad ruined from the burst. On the other side of the passageway, another panel sat closed in the wall, keypad dark. Behind Nyx was more long passageway with what seemed to be two more side passages.
 
In the remote distance, a faint yell from Kipo echoes off the desolate walls.
 
"Nyx, I found the problem. We need to shut down a contraption in the data room beside the ship’s main data core!”
 
His voice sounded like it came from farther down the passageway you had been running through.
 
Storyteller Instructions
Nyx? What do you do? There’s an open panel on one side, a keypad you could try and pick on the other, or more running!
If you try and go for the keypad, give me a roll on your ‘Computer Programming/Repair’
  Nyxeil Nyx Synarris
(a.k.a. Moke)
Sun, Mar 10th 2024 11:46   Edited on Sun, Mar 10th 2024 11:55
I look down at the smoking and scorched drone, I don't make time for regret or second guesses, however I may need this as I scoop up the fallen drone. I smile at it whispering, "you are getting tossed ahead of me when the time is right."   I can hear the stress in Kipo's voice and that is where I need to be because this all went sour when we split up. If this is a double cross frying his bots drone would cause that stress or if he is in trouble that would account for the stress. I begin to sprint full speed toward the sound of Kipo's voice assuming there is a trap. Saran's words echo across time, "there is always a trap." That is the thing that is nagging at me, this is also the route the drone was taking me.   Tossing a quick word over my shoulder, "oh hey I still have questions for you so keep up. Why didn't this drones sensor detect you or even comment on your existence. Why do you look like a reject from an old holo film?"   I shout down the hall, "hey Kipo hang tight I am on my way! Hey what is my favorite carbonized beverage to clean and slick my fur?" Thinking back to my recent use of Hydro-carb soda on that cursed net.
  Kummer wolfe
Sun, Mar 17th 2024 11:55
From behind, while Nyx sprints down the passageway with the singed and savaged drone, the holo-like, ghostly human launches into a lumbering sprint. He’s wearing coveralls, which are covered in blaster burn marks. Coveralls that are typical for any capital ship crew, if they served at the end of the Clone Wars or at the rise of the Galactic Empire.
 
The apparition sprints, but his limp makes him lose ground. Then, instead of keeping pace, the figure flickers, then explodes in a shower of static and energy, only to reappear only a couple of meters from grabbing Nyx. Hologram? Or real? It’s hard to tell. Her eyes say ‘hologram’ but the sound of his footsteps, the noise, even his labored breathing is all too real.
 
He lets out a nerve ending digital shriek. Like an overloaded droid shot with an ion pulse. Between the static shriek, Nyx makes out only one word…
 
“FEED!”
 
The echo of Kipo’s voice came from a direction marked Engineering. Nyx doesn’t hear a reply from Kipo, but her Cathar hearing does pick up a distant, faint whoosh of a flame jet somewhere ahead. Also, a thin, soft hiss that may be air leaving a compartment, if not the ship.
 
Ahead on the right is what looks to be an emergency maintenance box. Often one used to store fire suppression canisters, emergency bio-hazard gear, and degaussing gear in case an ion bolt struck any nearby systems. On the left of the passageway, a few meters before the turn to Engineering, is a door with the faded letters of ‘Maintenance Bay 12’ still visible in the half-light.
 
Storyteller Instructions
Nyx, what next? Keep running? Or do you have another plan?
  Nyxeil Nyx Synarris
(a.k.a. Moke)
Sun, Mar 31st 2024 05:15   Edited on Sun, Mar 31st 2024 05:15
I focus on the direction of Kipo's voice or where it came from. My mind cycling through the various problems. Would an energy field effect the hologram? Maybe magnetic or if I were onboard the bitter luck this would be a great place to drop an extra EMP. I take note of the emergency maintenance box, I may need that at some point. However I will swipe the degaussing tool on the way by. You never know when you need to break a seal and I wonder what this would do to the hologram?   "Kipo? Kipo can you hear me? We are on the clock here! Kipo you cold blooded ... if you are warming yourself by the reactor heat exchanger there is going to be hell to pay!"   I will pull up short of where I think Kipo is. I do not want to cross any threshold that I think could be a trap if I am being lured here or herded here.
  Kummer wolfe
Mon, Apr 8th 2024 11:01
Nyx races down the passageway, snatching up the degaussing tool along the way. After calling out, she heard faint, muffled strains of a song…
 
"I feel my temperature rising. Higher, higher, It's burnin' through to my soul…”
 
The rest was obscured by a metal crash like two landspeeders having a violent wrestling match. From the brief, loud chaos, it sounded like both lost.
 
But in moments, Nyx reached the end of the passageway and found the source of the noise. A reinforced door that stood between the passageway and Engineering, lay on the deck. One edge of this thick durasteel was cracked and deformed in places from being rapidly overheated.
 
Steam curled up from the abused edge of the door. A similar column of smoke curled up from one end of Kipo’s guitar where a barrel peeked out.
 
Somewhere behind Kipo in Engineering, Nyx could hear the chilling sound of a slow atmospheric leak.
 
Storyteller Instructions
Nyx, take it on over to : Meeting of the Minds (thread)
Star Wars: Shards is a work of pure, unabashed fiction. In fact, it considers itself rather heroic, noble, and quite proud of itself.   The opinions expressed on the in-world pages or within quotation boxes are those of the characters and should not be confused with either of the authors, since the characters and authors tend to disagree a lot. But … This is the Way.   Names of characters, places, events, organizations and locations are all creations of the authors' imaginations for this fictitious setting, except where credit is given to the sources of inspiration. Any resemblance to persons living, dead, or reanimated is coincidental.   Star Wars TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd. Tapani Sector created by West End Games for Lucasfilm, and used in homage only.
No infringement is intended or implied.   Unless otherwise stated on page or within Metadata tab,
all other artwork and content are Copyright © Kummer Wolfe ( aka CB Ash ) and Jarissa Venters, 1998-2024,
All Rights Reserved.

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