Yes, definitely. Take good care of yourself, choie.
I will move things along in the game thread and then we can go from there.
Yes, definitely. Take good care of yourself, choie.
I will move things along in the game thread and then we can go from there.
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 06 Jan 2022 at 03:32 PM.
Here's a reminder and short overview of the Hutchinson murder case, drawn from the previous Mission #6, "Marala." Each cite refers to page number and then post number:
A serious-looking, middle-aged black woman in miner's garb appears on one of Kylah's small Communications console display screens. "Yorktown, hello, this is Lt. Patricia Camden, Starfleet Security, serial number SS224-8723MLL. My cover name on NR is Patricia Collins. I've been undercover here for almost three months, looking for a fugitive, Paul Hutchinson, a Starfleet officer who poisoned his wife and son - allegedly - and disappeared from Starbase 9 about two years ago. I was following up on a solid lead which placed him here after a full identity swap. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find him." She clears her throat. "I've heard rumors that the colony is now under threat and is about to be evacuated. I request immediate evac myself, and I'll help you screen any other evacuees to find Hutchinson."
29/1428
The Federation News Service, Solar Post and other media sources have several stories on the Hutchinson murders which confirm what Camden said. Hutchinson fled Starbase 9, where he was an Engineering officer, just hours after the poisoning deaths of his family. Starfleet Security investigators were unable to turn up any other suspects. Hutchinson's possible motive, and his source for the poison, were not disclosed publicly. A Federation warrant is still pending for his arrest on two counts of murder and one count of obstruction of justice.
29/1430
Dr. Bennett says to Onn, still quietly, "The biosigns of the museum security guard are... weird. I've never seen this before. She has the gross anatomy and hormone profile of a woman, but the genetic markers of a man."
43/2059
"My real name isn't Annette White," the museum guard says quietly. "It's Paul Hutchinson."
43/2067
Looking at his own tricorder Rangin is pretty sure, from the readings, that a DNA shift of this type could not have been accomplished by surgery. The molecular trace resonances suggest alteration either by nanobots, microsubstitution or some other highly advanced biomedical technology. Teasing out the mitochondrial echoes of any such treatment, especially in the all-important NnR07 and PW09 ranges, could take hours if not days, he sees. He also learns that almost a year passed between Hutchinson's disappearance from Starbase 9 and White's arrival on Novy Rostov. White arrived on the regular monthly ore carrier, as most civilians here do, and not an alien vessel. There is no record of any non-Federation-flagged starship having visited the mining colony in almost eight years.
44/2160
Rangin reviews the database on Orion biomedical engineering, which is highly advanced indeed. The Orion Syndicate and other unaffiliated Orion organized crime rings - no less dangerous and resourceful - are known to be able to do just about anything, including full identity swaps for humanoids down to the cellular level, for a price. Changes can include sex (including external and internal genitalia), eye color, skin pigmentation, overall height, weight, fingerprints, hair color, facial and cranial structure, shortening or lengthening extremities, fingers and toes, and so on. It is still believed impossible to permanently change brainwave or retina patterns, or to change the genetic code of every single cell of the humanoid body, although there have been uncorroborated reports in the past few years as to research on each.
44/2170
Rangin begins his tricorder scan. Comparing the physiological details of Hutchinson's Starfleet medical records to White as she now sits on the deck of the shuttle, the xenobiologist notes the obvious sex change (including both external and internal genitalia, and breast augmentation), as well as a chondrolaryngoplasty or Adam's apple reduction. There have been changes to his facial structure, ear shape and eye color (from gray to brown), and he has a slightly now-darker skin pigmentation. The hips have been widened, but White's bone structure is otherwise largely unchanged. She is the same height as Hutchinson but weighs almost five kilos less than his last-reported weight. Although some of the DNA, RNA and cellular resonance readings are still puzzling, Rangin sees no indication of any non-Human additions to Hutchinson's genetic code or gross physical capabilities.
44/2173
Russell stands and helps Graham remove Hutchinson from the shuttle. One of the Security officers who has just arrived holds a pair of duranium hand restraints, which she puts on the unresisting prisoner. Cmdr. Vargas says, "Paul Hutchinson, also known as Annette White, pursuant to a warrant issued by the Federation District Court, and under the authority granted to me by Starfleet, you're under arrest on suspicion of homicide and other charges." Vargas reads Hutchinson his rights under Federation law. At a nod from the First Officer, Russell and two of the Security officers leave with him, presumably for the Brig.
44/2189
Ooh fun follow-up. And I see we're getting into your area of expertise, woohoo! Thanks for the reminder of this guy's complex (to put it mildly) background, EH.
Almost forgot--what's the ship time now? How long do we have before the hearing?
It can be whatever time your character is waking up that morning, really. But I'd like to get to the hearing in the next day or so IRL. Just a post or two apiece before that, I suggest. If you don't wish to have your character attend the hearing (which could be everyone but Onn and Graham), of course, you could post more.
A-OK.
Is it cool to write Marala-related things that are "what I imagined about Marala but not plot affecting things" in posts? Here's an example:
Graham rises quietly, being careful not to wake Marala.
"It's OK, Boojee," the woman lying beside him says. "I've been awake for awhile, just thnking and listening to you breathe." She smiles and sits up slightly, somewhat demurely pulling covers up toward her neck. "I'm an early riser, usually. I like the quiet time."
"Duly noted," Graham replies, smiling slightly and leaning over to give her a kiss. She holds it longer than expected, and has to gently pull away--not because he wouldn't want to reciprocate, or for that matter hop back into bed with her--but checking his messages is nagging at him.
As it always does, when he's focused on doing a good job.
Anything urgent would have been pushed through...but maybe something almost urgent enough wasn't, in order to avoid waking me.
He quickly checks, and grunts as he reads about the Hutchinson hearing.
A piece of shit I'd prefer to have on the colony. He almost chuckles. Ordered to attend. Maybe I'll get invited to a congratulations party for Rangin's promotion too and it will be a real red letter day.
"Uh, Marala--I've got a mandatory assigning I've got to take care of today..."
"Don't look like you need to apologize. Nikolai and I will be fine." She stands, all demureness left behind with the sheets on the bed, and gives his midsection a squeeze. "And I know we couldn't be safer anywhere in the galaxy, my husband."
Of course! Remember Rule 4 (in the first post in this thread): "This is a role-playing game, and I encourage you to write about anything which gives further meaning and depth to your character, both on- and off-duty."
Repost what you posted above in the game thread, if you like, perhaps as a flashback, or a memory while his mind wanders during the hearing.
Since Rangin is going back to the issue of Kylah's damaged communicator--a plot point that occurred during the Obama administration (that is not an exaggeration--early 2016)--I thought I'd give a quick rundown of her side of the story just to catch people up.
Most of this is old news to everyone but stolz, and to prevent his having to reread gazillions of old posts, I've gone into a little detail with the backstory. Hopefully it's not too much.
(Oh and I'll explain the retcon Rangin added to the footnote to his latest post.)
The Background:
During a previous mission (Codex Aelyrr, to be precise) while most of the ship's crew was dealing with a yellow-alert situation, an exhausted Kylah went off-duty for rest. Outside her cabin, she was accosted by a visiting officer, someone she knew and disliked back at the Academy. Before she could activate her communicator for help, he disabled her with some unknown device or object, which left her paralyzed.
When she woke, she had no memory of what happened--and her empathic abilities were gone.
(Which I should mention, for stolz's sake, that something not in Kylah's bio is that she's empathic/telepathic, and these abilities are known only to two living people: Dr. T'Var on the ship, and Kylah's uncle/guardian, Aldaan, back on her home planet. There's no doubt it'll be revealed eventually but so far, everyone's clueless. There are reasons why she has to keep this hidden, I promise!)
Anyway, back to the poor girl's post-attack situation. The only tangible clue that might explain what precisely happened was her communicator, which was badly damaged. Though she's keeping the attack secret--because of course she is, that's worked sooooo well for her all her life--Kylah got up the nerve to ask engineer Ens. Delaney to examine the defunct item to see if he could explain how a communicator could have been destroyed in this particular, peculiar way. He agreed to work on it.
Results of Delaney's inspection:
In the next mission (Of Captains and Capos) Delaney told Kylah the confusing and not hugely productive results of his tinkering. I've condensed the conversation and posts so that they only give us the essential info for now.
What retcon?
The retcon Rangin mentioned in his post relates to his PC having any real knowledge of this communicator puzzle at all. We've never seen or referred to the possibility that Kylah shared the issue with Rangin, especially since they'd been on pretty bad terms until the middle of the last mission.
The funny thing is that both Rangin and I recalled that we'd intended to have that conversation, and even remembered having written it, but... it wasn't anywhere to be found in the game threads.
Turns out we had written it, back in 2017, but it was a long scene intended for the Apocrypha. Right before we finished, Rangin had to be written out for personal reasons, so that little bit of Kylah/Rangin ephemera never made it to canon.
Fast forward to now. Rangin (and Rangin) wanted something to toy with when the latter's off duty, so he brought up the possibility of working on the Kylah's communicator. That's when we learned he doesn't canonically know about the damn thing. We decided a tiny retcon was in order. So, we are now saying that during Kylah and Rangin/s walk in the park the other day, Kylah made mention of the damaged communicator. Is that cool? Are you willing to so stipulate this egregious breach in continuity?
Just for fun:
As an aside, stolz, there's a running gag with Kylah losing or damaging communicators, btw. I think she's now on her fourth communicator since she joined the Yorktown only four months ago. She lost access to Comm1 during a very vulnerable situation, Comm2 was destroyed by muggers/kidnappers, and she lost Comm3 somewhere in or near Lt. JG Mark Ferguson's quarters. Technically she had Comm4 taken away from her during the last mission when she was confined to quarters, but at least she got that one back.)
Well, there you all are! Hope this wasn't too boring.
OK, I had skimmed some of those threads, but apparently I did not know that, at least, not all of those details. Definitely not conversations that were never posted to the thread in the first place
That's a terrific summary, choie - many thanks! And yes, we'll roll with the (not all that egregious) retcon.
Sorry for Nia's extended memory thing there that added to the length of all that. I was gonna post it after Graham's comment after the hearing, but the time jump whirlwind caught me flat-footed (is that the right use of the phrase? I'll figure it out one day) and the moment was lost.
So you all get to read it in a semi-flashback, hooray. Not ideal but omg heaven forbid I should skip some random character reaction that could probably just have waited for another inevitable opportunity. Unthinkable!
(Really, it's because--believe it or not--producing anything at all is coming pretty difficult to me lately, word count notwithstanding, and if I have some creative impulse I really want to see it through.)
Understood, and thanks, SG. This next short leave can be just as long or as short as anyone wants, before Hutchinson is sentenced and the Yorktown breaks orbit.
Good to know! Thanks EH.
This may be old Trek news, but I only just read it and I think it's lovely. Picard's Ressikan flute from the sublime TNG episode "The Inner Light" was sold at auction last August for $190,000! And it doesn't even play!
I'm not surprised it sold high. It's both iconic and beautiful, and from one of the episodes that (IMO) represents the absolute pinnacle of the kind of storytelling that made TNG unique. No enemies or even (much) science. Just one man learning about another culture in the most intimate of ways.
Ah, thanks, hadn't heard about that! It's certainly one of the most memorable props from all of TNG, from one of the very best episodes of all of Trekdom. Hope it finds a good home.
Someone who paid nearly $200K must have a pretty good home in mind!
Re: Nia's latest activity in the Maintenance Bay... "Hydrocoil Integrator" pretty much exhausted my vocabulary when it comes to what the heck she's supposed to be doing with that nacelle. Thank goodness continuity saved the day and gave me something to talk about!
Heheh. Hard to go wrong with some good Treknobabble.
Anyway, it just occurred to me that I swear I remember the crew on TNG referring to Data as "Commander," though his rank was Lt. Cmdr. Do we infer that formality of address changed over the years, or maybe it was just among the crew of the 1701-D?
If he is a Lieutenant Commander, then he would be referred to as "Commander," right? I mean, people are not going to literally say "Lieutenant Commander" in conversation?
As a courtesy, yes, lieutenant commanders may be referred to as "Commander" in conversation.
All the ranks shown in post 1 of this thread are, I believe, accurate and up to date.
Thanks! Now another question raised by the latest weather report. I know umbrellas still exist, if only 'cause why wouldn't they? Also I just checked and they're mentioned in an episode of TAS as well as the first TNG episode, but... do you think crew members would own them?
(I would imagine Kylah is well prepared for most contingencies thanks to servants and being royalty and if nothing else, she seems to have the proper wardrobe/accessory accouterments for various occasions.)
What do you think, might there be any interesting tech that might be added? I'm trying to imagine what useful additions I'd want to an umbrella that don't currently exist and I'm coming up blank, except maybe a little force field to prevent wind and rain from blowing underneath. But that seems a lot more effort than I think would be put into umbrellas except for all but the wealthiest and most effete/sheltered set. (Lord Fastolfe, for example. Or, I guess, Kylah for that matter!)
For that matter, what about coats? They spend most of their time shipboard, of course, but they might visit planets with tundras or rainforests. Picard had his jacket, but I can't recall seeing anyone else with any outdoor-appropriate uniforms.
These are thought experiments rather than really necessary to the current action. I never thought about how 23rd-century (and later) people deal with weather before. We see so little of it.
That's true. For budget reasons, the worlds Kirk & Co. visited seemed always to be blessed by shirtsleeve-comfortable weather (although a storm was looming in the opening scene of "Mirror, Mirror"). By TNG's era, there are regional weather-control networks on Earth, but I can't any remember any references to them in TOS.
No reason there couldn't still be umbrellas (including with mini-deflector shields) at the time of our game. There must be Starfleet uniform overcoats, parkas and/or raingear, too, but we never saw them.
Let's wrap up writing about shore leave (and shuttle servicing and Sickbay duty) by, say, Wednesday, and we can move on from there. Your character, if dirtside, is welcome to return to the ship sooner, of course.
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 18 Mar 2022 at 01:32 PM.
If Lt. Onn is Sidonian, is Dr. Mäkeläinen especially familiar with that species? Asking this since it does not seem to appear on the regular Star Trek wiki. Though, in Star Trek we should note that, for the most part, human(oid)s from different planets are more or less biologically similar even though some of then have green blood or purple skin or antennae, as opposed to "alien" aliens such as interdimensional subspace energy beings.
Heh. The Sidonian race is Elendil's Heir's invention, with the biological/historic/societal factors jointly brainstormed when we were developing Nia's character back in 2015 or so.
She isn't the most alien-looking alien we have, but while she's humanoid, she comes from an H-class planet, so she doesn't even naturally tolerate the air on the ship. Because of this incompatibility there are no other Sidonians in Starfleet, and I don't believe many (if any) living randomly in the Federation, for that matter. (EH can correct me on that.)
So, long story short, the good Doc is unlikely to be familiar, unless he studied up on whatever researchers have learned about the race over the years. (Which he may have done upon getting assigned to the Yorktown.) I'm guessing a lot of computer searches might be in order.
If it helps, I created this mock ST wiki page awhile back to corral info about Sidonia, its doomed people & messed-up culture as EH and I worked it out. Things have been refined/detailed more since then, though, so I'm guessing Dr. Villa and the computer will probably be able to add a few more details about the medical side of things, esp. the atmospheric workaround that Nia requires to survive, fertility, etc.
Actually, this post, the result of Graham's curiosity, includes some additional (and changed) details.
(One thing I've always been meaning to fix is the history timeline. In retrospect I think it's way too short--some of the things described as happening in the 22nd and early 23rd centuries should really have occurred earlier in order for the huge societal and even biological changes to make sense. In particular, the Propagation Act should definitely be at least a century older than described. That's definitely my fault, I didn't think it through.)
Anyway, Bizhi can always ask Nia--who's used to answering questions from scientists/medicos/curious sexual partners--or consult with the Yorktown's resident xenobiologist. (SG points up at Rangin's avatar.)
Is that a decent summary, EH?
Last edited by SidonianGal; 21 Mar 2022 at 09:25 PM.
I mean, he knows what is on her chart (which presumably mentions chemicals she needs to breathe/metabolize oxygen!) after he takes a look at it, and he can ask her questions directly, but there are thousands of known planets out there, so I get the impression that while he may or may not have heard of Sidonians or related peoples, the laws of probability say that he is unlikely to have randomly run into (say in Starfleet Academy or on some random planet) or treated one before, if you say they are not common.
That's an excellent summary, SidGal, and thanks for the links, too. You get the vast majority of credit for everything developed in this game as to Onn, her people and culture.
Dr. Mäkeläinen can certainly access Onn's past medical records and the database built up by Dr. Villa and other Sickbay staff as to Sidonian medical issues. If you want to PM me, stolz, with any questions about how to proceed, feel free.
"Kylah and Rangin beam down to Beta Antares IV and find themselves in the stone-paved entry plaza of Armstrong Park. "
Graham pats Marala's hand as they approach Armstrong Park, a pleasant place named for a legendary Terran space explorer.
The hum of a transporter attracts Graham's attention, and...
"Oh you have got to be fucking kidding me..." Graham thinks.
[Just kidding, the honeymoon post was the only planetside post for G & M]
Do it! Do it!!!
As things now stand, let's try to wrap up the current scenes by Friday instead. Thanks.Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
"I also have a herbal tea I want to get to you. Medicine is not all tricorders, biobeds, and force fields like some people imagine."
Nice touch, stolz!
Aw thanks chief! I'm grateful for the opportunity to give Nia her favorite swear/oath, "Seht'Dar's Holy Balls."
Funny, the other day I was just looking up something in the OCIII mission thread when, fairly near the end, I spotted the random reference to Graham passing by a Sidonian officer in the corridor. She'd existed on the crew list since the beginning (I think?) but I believe this was her first in-game mention.
Speaking of which...to you, general_urko, for Graham's idea of some floral gift for Marala. The guy is nothing if not consistent!
Last edited by SidonianGal; 24 Mar 2022 at 08:39 PM.
Thanks for the extension! Kylah and Rangin should have just one more post each. If it rains or time moves forward, we'll be ready either way.
Very good, thanks. And TGIF!
stolz, that polymorphic contraceptive idea is gold! What a clever concept.
As you know, essential to Star Trek writing is technobabble. In this case, there is the (real) concept of polymorphic or metamorphic computer code, which does something but keeps mutating itself so that it never looks the same. For example, a computer virus could hide itself from anti-virus software since there would be no specific signature. Biological agents (such as viruses or nucleotide sequences) can also mutate. So, deep into the technobabble, why not imagine using an advanced version of proteomics and immunology to engineer a delivery mechanism that analogously mutates?
I like that! Nicely done.
You'll appreciate these - main cast members rejected when TOS was in development: https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv...ch/839004/8612
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 29 Mar 2022 at 11:24 AM.
Took me waaay longer than it should have to figure that thread out.
Speaking of names... Out of curiosity, what's the genesis of Cavinre? The few hits on the name seem to come from a couple of folks from Mozambique... so maybe Portuguese? And most important: Do we mentally pronounce it "Cavin-ray" or "Caviner"?
Hey just wondering, where is Kylah stationed right now? Is she on Bridge watch or in the Comms department? Or off-duty? I'm assuming we're back to a regular workday, yes?
"Cavinre" just popped into my head back in Mission #2, "Primum Nil Nocere" (see post 308 there, for instance). A troubled world, time and again, but I didn't have any particular name-origin in mind. I'd pronounce it "Ca VIN ry," with the last syllable sounding the same as "cavalry."
Kylah can be wherever you want her to be. She's back from shore leave and beyond that it's up to you.
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 30 Mar 2022 at 12:58 PM.
Ah cool to know about the history and pronunciation, many thanks. Of course you had to start me down the rabbit hole of rereading Mission #2!
And thanks about Kylah. I didn't want to stick her on the Bridge or wherever if you already had specific officers there already.
Yes, I always like to weave in little bits of our own (and also broader ST:TOS) history and references when I can.
And as to Kylah, glad to.
When the call comes for your character to go on the shuttle mission, you may each bring along a small suitcase or carry-on bag, if you wish, which will be stowed in the shuttle's narrow cargo hold, accessible from outside and just aft of the entryway. If you do, given the planned length of the mission, I will assume each of you is bringing along toiletries, a spare uniform, a change of underclothes, a communicator and a phaser-1. If there's something else your character is packing, please mention it specifically in the game thread when you write about your preparations for the mission, or I will assume you've left it behind. Thanks!
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 01 Apr 2022 at 11:50 PM.
I didn't even think about the length of the journey being essentially an overnight trip. Bad judgment. Nia didn't even tell Graham how long the mission would be. My apologies, and thank you for bringing it up. I'll have her give better details in her recruitment pitches.
Edited to add -- what about the deck issue? Is there some kinda hydraulic lift/elevator that will bring a shuttle to and from the Maintenance Deck? Or can the Tesla depart from where it is now? Just noticed that Cheverez gave the answer. Cool, thanks.
Sorry about the double post (and here too) but I thought I'd loop Rangin in sooner rather than later while waiting for Bizhi to arrive.
No worries, and thanks.
Yes, there's a lift connecting the Shuttlebay to the shuttle maintenance area directly below it, so that shuttles may be raised for departure and lowered for repairs as needed. I think I mentioned it most recently when the Kaku returned from the surface of Novy Rostov. It would be the yellow circle on the deck here:
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki...y_Max_Gabl.jpg
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki...remastered.jpg
I had previously mentioned the Starfleet courier USS Sugihara, named after a courageous Japanese diplomat of World War II. I just caught a reference to a later starship Sugihara in the DS9-era alternate universe short story "A Gutted World" by Keith R.A. DeCandido, in the pretty good collection Star Trek Myriad Universes: Echoes and Refractions. Check it out.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiune_Sugihara
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 09 Apr 2022 at 10:53 PM.
Great minds, EH! Nice reference.
Do we want to decide who's sitting where? It may not matter if we skip right from our departure to the arrival at Jaros II, but if there's gonna be some time spent on the journey, I figure the seating arrangements might be useful.
FWIW, here's how everyone looked seated in the Galileo 7.
Larger image here.
In the image above, the front-most officer in gold--Latimer, acc. to Memory Alpha--is at helm, w/Spock leading the mission, beside him. Right behind Spock is the woman in red, with an empty space to port (well, our right, looking at it from our POV) to accommodate the hatch.
So assuming our layout is (from front to back):
1 | 2
_ | 3
4 | 5
6 | 7
Nia is at #2 as pilot. What's the logical arrangement, do you think?
Last edited by SidonianGal; 10 Apr 2022 at 07:21 PM.
Good question, SidGal - thanks for asking. How about, from the bow:
Graham / Onn
[Hatchway] Rangin
Rawlings / Hutchinson
Dr. Mäkeläinen / Kylah
That lets Onn, Graham and Rangin talk relatively easily, and the doctor and Kylah as well, while having the two NPCs in the same row, with Rawlings close at hand if Hutchinson gets ornery. In the alternative, I suppose we might have the two NPCs in the sternmost row. I have no particular preference.
I've started out Onn in the front row, of course, as pilot, and Graham beside her, as second-in-command for this mission. But that, too, could change, and of course there's no rule that anyone (even Hutchinson, while under guard) must remain in the same seat throughout the trip. FWIW, I don't anticipate that seating placement will be an important issue on this little jaunt.
I forget if we established that any of the other player characters are qualified pilots - is Graham? I don't think any of the others would be likely to be (if not, Rawlings could be, if needed). It would make good sense for Starfleet to require at least two qualified pilots on every mission, I think, just in case.
Last edited by Elendil's Heir; 11 Apr 2022 at 08:22 PM.
Looks fine to me for Kylah. Kinda worried about Graham having such easy access to both Rangin and the hatch.
If Kylah's supposed to be testing things out she will need access to controls somehow. But if this guy's amazing walk-through 3D model is accurate, there are panels by each of the seats. Does that look correct?
(You can see one starting at about 2:03 in, beside seat #4 where he's placed the Comms panel. But that might be an arbitrary assignment for his purposes... the Tesla can have its panel arrangement wherever we want since it's been customized and pimped up, right?)
I love that he even includes a look at the back storage area, with a toilet and food provision locker.
That was a cool video - thanks! The Tesla would be very similar to that, but not completely identical. In particular, the helm controls would look much more like Sulu's console on the Bridge than the featureless rectangular video screen shown here. Also, the area aft of the crew compartment would be "shallower" from front to back (gotta leave room for the impulse drive, after all).
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