Bright Ideas

Posted on Jul 18, 2015 @ 12:49pm by Captain Kassandra Thytos
Edited on on Jul 18, 2015 @ 12:50pm

Mission: The Lights of Hyperion

“Bright ideas”

(cont. “The needs of the many, part 3”)

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New ideas pass through three periods: 1) It can’t be done. 2) It probably can be done, but it’s not worth doing. 3) I knew it was a good idea all along!

– Arthur C. Clarke

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Scene: Deck 25

Jacen Barnes was jarred into wakefulness by the not so dulcet sound of Kassandra Thytos’ husky, twangy drawl as it echoed down the hallway.

“Ah’m approachin’ that junction where tha computer terminal wuz accessed, don’t see nothin’ yet though, but soon as I’ve got there I’ll check t’ see if Embry’s DNA is on it. Hang on a moment-” Her boots clomped none-too gently across the deck plates towards him. His eyes opened and he struggled to focus. She rounded the corner and he found himself staring at the toes of some sort of heavy combat armor boot with magnetic soles. It explained the heaviness of her footfalls, the magnetic devices were weighty and cumbersome. He struggled to focus, to say something, but nothing would come out. He’d forgotten how singularly unpleasant being on the receiving end of a sustained stun was. “Ah’ve got Jacen Barnes and Evangeline Montoya here.”

There was a long pause as Kassandra listened to someone though her headset.

“Well, she looks like she’s met the receivin’ end a Miss Chen’s brain drain, heart beat’s steady, vitals are OK, so Miss Chen didn’t finish shuttin’ down her nervous system. Mister Barnes looks like he’s been hit with a good dose a stun beam. Give me a minute, ah’m gonna get him up to snuff and then we’ll see.” Her feet were replaced by her knees and hands as she knelt down next to him. His field of view shifted to the ceiling and her upside down face as she hauled him half upright to rest against the bulkhead. She fumbled at her side for a moment, and then held a small canteen to his lips, and tipped some sort of slightly salty, chalky water down his throat. “Electrolytes. Stun beam energizes the calcium ions in yer muscles and makes lose an electron, makes them unusable fer opening th' gated channels in yer muscle tissue, they'll return t' normal eventually, but we can speed th' process. Hold still, I’ll give you somethin’ to get yer muscles workin’ again and treat any burns an scrapes you got.” Her face disappeared and her hands reappeared holding a knife. He tried to protest but his muscles didn’t respond, and he heard the sound of the blade cutting through his shirt. She worked quickly and efficiently, her rough, callused hands surprisingly gentle as she tended to the burns on his torso, wrapped his injuries from the riot in the cargo bay, and applied antibiotics and salves to his cuts and bruises. He heard the hiss of a hypospray and his limbs began to twitch back to life. Kassandra sat back on her heels, letting out a sigh and stretched. Barnes flexed his hands experimentally and studied her as she turned back towards the woman that Selyara had put the psychic kibosh on.

She looked tired, and her pupils were two pin pricks in her blue eyes, indicating that was taking something significantly stronger than coffee to stay awake. Probably one of the myriad of special pharmaceuticals that Marines were issued with. He remembered having once seen a Marine showing the standard kit in a greasy alleyway on Limbo in hoped of hocking it for cash. Amphetamines, painkillers, things to make you stronger, things to make you stay awake, things to make you fall asleep, things to turn you into a modern day berserker. Making use of the pharmacopoeia was encouraged to the point of becoming effectively mandatory. Small wonder then, that so many Marines quickly ended up washed up, down on their luck, living on thrill seeking and whatever drugs they could score.

Whatever it was she was taking she'd pay for it later, bypassing the body's natural warning systems almost always resulted in injury. The bruise from her bust up with the man in Shanty Town had turned into a sickly purplish yellow, there were dark circles under her eyes. She looked haggard. Her skin seemed pale and thin and the sparkle of her sensor nets underneath was in stark contrast. He came to the decision that she was older than he’d first thought; there were fine lines around her eyes and mouth he hadn't noticed before that had deepened with exhaustion.

“I look like crap, you can just out n’ say it, and stop starin’ at me,” Kassandra said over her shoulder, a tired, limp half-smile on her face. “You don’t look so hot either, just FYI. Can ya tell me what happened ta ya? How’d you get ta be travellin’ with this miscreant, anyhow?”

“I wasn’t, I was travelling with a different miscreant, Selyara, the telepath no one warned me about, when Embry came along with that one there, and decided to get trigger happy.” Barnes replied as he managed to move his whole arm, laboriously. He felt like he’d been hit in the chest with a club. It had been a while since he’d had the crap kicked out of him quite so thoroughly. Kassandra’s head snapped back towards him, her eyes narrowing, her expression foxlike.

“Miss Chen? Where did she go? With Embry?” Kassandra said, switching her comminications from her earpiece to an audible setting. She waved at him to let him know that his answer was being heard by whomever was on the other end.

“Yes-“ Barnes began, when Kane’s tinny voice interrupted him.

[[Was she working with him?]] Kane’s voice was strained, and sounded… worried… as though he was afraid that he might have made a grave miscalculation in trusting Selyara Chen. Barnes had a sudden fleeting thought that Selyara would probably have been extremely hurt to have heard the suspicion in Kane’s voice. Her feelings about him were far more complicated than she seemed to realize, the sense of anger and betrayal she felt towards him was at war with a desire for his approval, or at least his understanding. He shook that thought off, it wasn’t his business, and he was still pretty damn pissed about her foray into his mind anyway.

“She wasn’t going willingly at the point I was stunned, if that’s what you mean. After that I can’t really say. Embry is pretty persuasive, she isn’t a fan of Starfleet right now, and she’s pretty angry with you, so given enough time he might be able to change that.” Barnes said, working the spittle around in his mouth and swallowing as he tried to wet his parched throat. Kassandra wordlessly handed him her canteen and communicator and went back to tending to the prone woman on the floor next to her, muttering under her breath about being a Marine, not a goddamn doctor. There was a long pause on Kane’s end, and Barnes could practically feel the unasked question burning in the Captain’s silence. Barnes didn’t offer up any more information, it wasn’t his secret to tell, and he didn’t want to get involved. “Why, what happened?”

“Someone separated the drive section from th’ saucer,” Kassandra obligingly filled in, as she snapped her combat medkit shut. “Used command codes that only the Cap’n and Miss Chen knew. She knows which side her bread is buttered on, ain’t in her best interests to try n’ take over the ship. But if she’s with Embry it makes a lot more sense.”

[[Major…]] Kane’s voice was heavy with warning. It didn’t stray as far as reproof or castigation, but he was clearly less than pleased with her candor.

“All due respect Sir, me an’ my people ain’t slept more than six hours in the last seventy two, an’ you ain’t got much more than that. We ain’t in any position ta be turnin’ down any possible assets, so I’m tellin’ him what I’m tellin’ him. Court martial me later.” For her part, Kassandra’s voice was sharp, but civil. Barely. It was probably a good thing Captain Kane couldn’t see her because the sudden stubborn jut to her chin, the flare of her nostrils, and the narrowing of her eyes practically screamed that what she was saying was being said with absolutely no due respect whatsoever. It was also, Jacen privately admitted, pretty funny. Her ears and nose were turning crimson, and she looked like a very angry, small, fluffy animal, or a petulant child about to throw a temper tantrum. She struggled to her feet, Montoya’s limp body balanced across her shoulders in a fireman’s hold. One of the unconscious woman’s arms nearly brushed the ground, threatening to trip the Marine. “And what the hell are you smirking at, Barnes?”

[[If you decide to bring him into this, you’re taking full responsibility for him.]] Kane’s voice was similarly tense, but resigned. They were clearly reaching the end of their ropes outside of Shanty Town, strained, stretched too thin, tired, barely managing to keep from turning on each other out of sheer exhaustion and frustration.

“Understood. Sorry Sir.” The tension drained slowly from her jaw, and she sagged under Montoya’s weight. “Didn’t mean t’ get snappy on ya. I’m just getting’ real close to my limit here-”

[[No apologies necessary, Major. I think we’re all feeling the strain.]] Kane’s voice cut her off and Kassandra scowled, hiking her burden up higher on her shoulders. [[Come back to Engineering and we’ll regroup and plan. He’s locked us out of the major shipboard systems. Jake’s worried about what could happen if an Amaterasu appears in the warp core again while Engineering doesn’t have access to any of its controls.]]

“Yessir. I’ll have to stop in security to drop off Montoya, I’ll get Stacy to watch her, and I’ll grab one of our HUDs and a projector. As luck’d have it I loaded up the ship’s schema into it in preparation earlier. Least we won't be flyin' completely blind. ” Kassandra hefted the unconscious woman again and glanced at him. “How’re you doing? Think you’re ready to tag along yet?”

Jacen rose to his feet and nodded. Whatever was in the hypospray had dulled his pain to manageable levels, and his limbs seemed to be obeying his commands again. He glanced at her as she began to move down the hallway again, slow and ponderous under the dead weight of the other woman and considered offering to take Montoya off her hands. The expression on Kassandra's face as he drew level with her made him change his mind, she was definitely not in the mood for even the implication that she might not be capable of handling her duties, well intentioned and innocent as it might be.

"You got a plan?" He asked casually.

"Course I got a plan. I'm the plan master. I'm so friggin' full of plans I got em comin' outta mah ass," Kassandra snorted. She paused and balanced Montoya against the wall as she lit a cigarette and took a puff. The smoke was instantly whisked away by the ship's atmospheric scrubbers. Kassandra readjusted her burden and started off again, her black armor glinting like the carapace of some sort of insect, clacking rhythmically in time with her movements.

"So that's a no, I take it." Jacen kept pace with her easily, his muscles seemed to have recovered, and the pain of any other injuries he'd sustained earlier were just a dull roar. She gave a half hearted shrug of assent and exhaled a stream of smoke, her eyes half closed.

"No... Yeah. No. I mean yes, that's a no. See? My brain ain't even workin' anymore. Much more a' this an' I swear I'm quittin' and movin' back t' Sherman's Planet where at least ah c'n die a' boredom in peace an' quiet," she gave him a wry, lopsided smile and stubbed out her cigarette on the hip of her armor and tucked the end of it into a pouch on her utility belt. "Don't suppose you've got one that I could blatantly steal, claim as my own an' take all the credit for? All mine involve bunker busters and excessive firepower, and I think the Cap'n'd prefer his ship stay, you know, intact?"

"As a matter of fact I think I do," he grinned back at her in spite of himself. Her directness and lack of deception was a refreshing change from Selyara, and her humor was good-natured and playful, not biting and whip sharp. Furthermore she seemed to trust him implicitly and made him feel as though he were part of a team again - like he was normal, and not the monster from Limbo. It was nice. He almost felt like Jaso-

"And... are you gonna share this plan? Earth to Barnes, the lights are on, but you don’t seem to be home." Kassandra's voice cut into his thoughts. She'd stopped and was looking in his general direction with an inscrutable expression. She was leaning up against the wall, and something in her face told him that she was in pain. The body of her erstwhile prisoner was beginning to sag dangerously low towards the ground, and Kassandra gamely tried to shift her back up to a better position. “Ain’t nice t’ make a girl beg, you know.”

“Sure, but on one condition, you hand her over to me.” Jacen gestured to her burden. Kassandra bristled and started to bluster about how she was perfectly capable, and how dare he patronize her, but it was a testament to how tired that she was that it quickly petered out to a disgruntled snort, and she handed the woman over to him with no further comment except for a sulky mutter to the effect that she’d probably been a Marine already when he was still eating his own boogers. She followed him down the hall, clutching her side gingerly. “Right, so the problem is that Embry's on the battle bridge, right? He’s locked down the computer systems, separated the drive section from the saucer, and he’s what, threatening to destroy the command staff?”

“No, he hasn’t said anythin’ made any demands nor nothin’- and I’m bettin’ he doesn’t realize that the Cap’n isn’t in the saucer section. We left for engineerin’ ta take out Savaar and his banda chuckleheads. Ah don’t think he knows what he wants, but Ah gotta say that I’m super glad that ah’d already disabled all the damn torpedoes ‘fore this happened. He can’t do nearly as much damage to the saucer with jus’ the phasers. If we had time there’s a real good computer guy, that Gorn, Chaucer. Him n’ Cindy Rochemonte could prolly crack us in, but there ain’ no way to do it with Embry watchin’ even less if Miss Chen’s there.” She lit another cigarette, and shook her head, sending stray wisps flying, making her hair look for a moment like it was on fire. “Ah jus’ don’t get it, Barnes, what does he even want?”

“Kane’s respect, his attention, I guess? He didn’t feel like the needs of Shanty Town were being met- Why are you laughing at me?”

“He can join the line!” Kassandra chuckled. “Like a distant father, Kane keeps us all lookin’ for that. Tell Embry to know if he figures out how to do it. Not that the Captain’s a bad kinda guy, mind you, he’s jus’… Ah, never mind, all ah could do is make wild conjectures. So anyway, plan?”

“So, distract him, send people to blow out the power and computer junctions that go to the battle bridge, get them in place, have Kane try to talk to him, if he can’t or if Selyara’s gone rogue, then give the signal, and lights out. That will allow you to go in, detain them with little risk to the ship systems.” Kassandra nodded appreciatively.

“Great, you c’n tell the Captain that when we get to Engineerin’.” Kassandra grinned, and pulled off a panel. She disappeared into the Jeffries tube behind it momentarily, and then her hands emerged and waved at him. “Here, pass her in, I pull you push.” They dragged the comatose body through the tube until they reached a tube that descended downwards to the lower decks. Kassandra dragged Montoya the lip of the hole, and perched at it for a moment. “You can either climb or fall, I suggest fallin’, more fun!” With that she kicked herself off of the edge of the hatch, her arms wrapped around Montoya, and went into freefall. Barnes stuck his head over the edge, and saw her her standing several decks down on a shimmering force field. She waved up at him. “Emergency systems, all the tubes have them to keep falls from turnin’ deadly. Really, really fun to use. Hurry up.”

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Scene: Battle Bridge, Deck 3

Arthur Embry was finding his guest to be less than pleasant company. She was not being actively obstructive, but she was not being particularly helpful either. She was sitting slumped against one of the bulkheads, her dark green eyes fixed on him unblinkingly, predatorily, looking like two black holes under the shadows of the loose tendrils of hair that had fallen out of her formerly neatly coiffed ponytail. The bruising on her cheeks from recent fights were peridot green, adding to her demonic appearance.

He had the eerie feeling like she was waiting for him to make a mistake. He could feel her hostility emanating from her location like a physical weight in the air; see her muscles working under her skin like a lion waiting to pounce, despite the artificial languor in her pose.

And then there was that damn, smug, sphinx-like smile plastered on the edges of her lips, like she was watching him, judging him, finding him lacking. As he looked at her that smile widened, and she lifted her eyes to meet his.

“So, you’ve separated the ship, Arthur,” the Shadow Master smiled, her voice solicitous. “What now? Do you know how to fly a top of the line Starfleet Flagship? Do you think any of that rabble from down in the cargo bay does? It’s not like flying a freighter, it’s not like flying your standard intergalactic passenger ship, it’s definitely not like flying a shuttle. They were barely managing to keep this ship running with the number of people they had, and those were specially trained crew that had been doing this for years. Do you think there’s even a fraction of that who are able to fly it from your faction?”

She’d been like this for the last half hour as he prepared for separation, whispering, commenting, her voice chastising him mercilessly, like an internal monologue of self-doubt brought to life. A soul crushing litany of his plan’s shortcomings, of his personal shortcomings, of her scorn, her patronizing overseeing of his work. Ignoring her didn’t work; she was relentless, hissing in his ear like the serpent to Eve, or the devil to Jesus in the wilderness. She scared Embry.

She knew things, if the now erstwhile Montoya was telling the truth, and he was inclined to believe Montoya after Selyara’s little show in the corridors. It had been an awful experience for him- he’d been frozen in his tracks for a moment or two as he watched the lights flickering out behind the human woman’s eyes: Not snuffed out or extinguished all at once like a candle, but dimmed by increments, each facet of her being slowly expunged a piece at a time.

Selyara rested her elbow on one knee and cupped her cheek in her palm, sighing noisily.

“I just want to talk to Captain Kane,” Embry muttered. “He needs to understand the situation down there in Shanty Town, he needs to take me seriously-“

“Me, me, me, me,” Selyara used her free hand as a puppet to mock Embry’s words. “Do you really think that Michael is trying to spite you? Do you really think he WANTED to deprive everyone in Shanty Town of their needs? Do you really think this is about YOU? There are things in the Hyperion Expanse, Arthur, things that you can’t even imagine, things that were more important than YOU or the petty squabbles of Shanty Town.” She paused, and gave him a sneering half smile. “My goodness, that was rather melodramatic. Your hysteria seems to be infectious. My point is that there are things going on that are far more important than you.”

“Things? What things could possibly be more important than the lives and health of four thousand beings?” Embry demanded. The corners of the woman’s mouth twitched wider for a brief moment, and Embry had the sinking feeling that he’d just been neatly manipulated into asking precisely the question she wanted him to.

“Strange energy phenomena they’re calling Amaterasu have been showing up and wreaking havoc with the shipboard systems. As it is, they don’t have enough people to properly run this entire ship, but the Amaterasu are an added threat. They nearly caused a warp core containment breach. Do you know what that means, Arthur?” She leaned forward, smiling toothily, “It means…” Her pause was pregnant, and then, just when he thought she was done, she suddenly smacked her palms together with a noise like a whip cracking. “BOOM.”

Her hands flittered through the air, simulating the debris from an explosion, and Embry jumped. He knew what she was doing, undermining his confidence, playing on his insecurities, trying to make him break down and give up- he’d played this game many times with other people on LIMBO. It was how he’d survived on LIMBO - convincing people who were stronger, smarter, more powerful than he that the opposite was true, and that they needed him in order to retain their power.

“If that’s true then why didn’t he just tell me? Why did he not let me know?” Embry’s chest was tightening with a hint of panic as he realized how he had painted himself into a corner. He’d just wanted the proper respect due to him, for Kane to treat him as an equal, but it had all spiraled out of control.

“Let you know and then what? Let Shanty Town start a riot when the news caused panic to set in?” Her voice was heavy with sarcasm. “Why don’t you let me talk to Michael, Arthur? I’m sure we can come to a mutually beneficial arrangement?”

“One where your blade slides in between my ribs the moment my back is turned? I think not. You know, silence is a virtue, young lady.” Embry said, waving his phaser at her in what he hoped was a meaningful manner. She didn’t take his hint, and snorted at him in a most irritating manner that set his teeth on edge.

“A Human virtue, and I’m not Human.” she said with an eyeroll. “But I am hungry. I haven’t eaten in days. If you’re not going to let me help you help yourself out of your own mess, may I at least get some food and drink from the replicator? You can lock me out of the rest of the computer if you don’t trust me.”

“Will you stop talking if I let you?” Embry said distractedly, running his hands over the control panels.

“For a little while. My Da did teach me never to talk with my mouth full.” She stood, and waited while he cut her access to the ship, then disappeared into the Captain’s ready-room. She was gone for a couple minutes, and then came back with a bizarre looking plate of food. She sat down in her corner and ate it as though she was trying not to taste it.

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Location: Engineering.

“Sir? Someone’s using the replicator in your ready room,” Jake said with a furrowed brow. “I only noticed it because it damn near overloaded the circuits on that floor. I think it might have been deliberate, they’re one of the only systems we’re able to access still.”

“What did they order?” Kane frowned, leaning over Jake’s shoulder.

“Well, it’s strange- Sandwich with egg salad, lutefisk, yucca, anchovies, radishes, apple, and then a ton of sides, horchata, orzo, salad, tortillas, ambrosia, grapes, and enchiladas,” Jake crinkled up his nose. “That’s why it overloaded the system- that’s not supposed to be a full service replicator, so it wasn’t really designed to take that type of large order, or that kind of strain. Also, it sounds really gross. Who orders that? It can’t possibly taste good.”

Kane frowned, it was a bizarre mix, Jake was right. Embry might have been hungry but the sheer strangeness of the order was- it clicked.

“It’s Selyara. She’s letting us know she’s Embry’s hostage. Either that or she’s playing us.” Kane rubbed his head. “Let’s assume she’s still playing on our side- at least we have some eyes on Embry.”


With a swish the doors opened to admit Kassandra Thytos and Jacen Barnes, a mobile holographic schematic of the ship in tow.

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Scene: Battle Bridge, Deck 3.


Embry motioned Selyara to take the XO’s seat with his phaser as he settled down into the Captain’s chair. Keeping his phaser carefully trained on her, he opened hailing frequencies to saucer’s bridge.

“Hello, Captain Kane. I think it’s about time you and I talked about the conditions in Shanty Town. Are you ready to listen now? I have Miss Chen here too, and while I don’t want to hurt her, I could withdraw my protection, and beam her back into the cargo bay. She’s a lovely woman in her way, and I’m sure that there are many people in the bay who wouldn’t have my qualms about hurting her.” Embry said in his best stern and commanding voice. From her seat, Selyara let out a muffled snicker, and Embry suddenly realized that the Kane was not there. Embry stared blankly at the Andorian seated in the center chair, the dark-haired woman next to him, the human man with odd colored eyes, the android, and a few other human males.

Embry began to throw a fit.

Selyara began to laugh.

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NRPG: LONG LIVE THE PUG.

Alix Fowler as:

Major (Captain) Kassandra Thytos,

The MCO who loves to fall

and

Selyara Chen

The embodiment of the nasty voice in the back of your head.