Star Trek: Eventide 777

Not knowing where else to go, Renakir stepped into engineering. With his sunglasses and contact lenses (and a little hand fan), he was prepared for anything. Another day another transport job. At least this time it was going to be something a little more exciting than furnishing some ensign's quarters or transporting a hundred gross of self sealing stembolts. The Romulan-Reman stepped behind one of the consoles to await the arrival of others. He held his PADD in his hand down by his side. K'tann, Aylek, Torre'vnau, Cadet Tral, T'zan, Sh'vaqon, and Avignon, those names stuck out to him on the roster. Aylek, Renakir sighed when he realised he would be on the same ship as him. Well, it was just one mission. Pray to Tenakruvek that no one tries to socialise with him.

Sauk arrived shortly after Renakir, looking around with great excitement. Only a cadet and assigned to an important mission like this one? He could hardly believe it! He walked into engineering and found somewhere to sit, hands flapping in little up and down motions. He couldn't contain it, he was just too excited! Beside him, Shoe hopped up into his lap, looking up at him with her big blue eyes. "Can you believe it, baris reva? A real mission!" He whispered to her, rubbing behind her ears.

As the ship departed, Renakir stood behind his console. He watched as people poured into the room, his eyes catching a familiar face. It was the young Bajoran-Vulcan cadet, Sauk Tral-- and a friend? The cat was certainly an interesting guest. From the looks of it, the cat was an emotional support animal, but he wasn't sure an away mission to a nebula was the best place to bring it. Still, he didn't say a word and kept any judgement to himself. If it was an consolation, out of all the people in the room, Renakir suspected Sauk the least. If this all was a Tal Shiar plot (which he still had suspicion of) at least Sauk wasn't in on it.... unless? The Tal Shiar was defunct. No plot. Renakir kept telling himself in his mind. This was just an away mission. 'Occam's Razor. The theory with the least amount of assumptions is usually correct-- or something like that.

Sauk swung his legs in his chair, letting Shoe settle down beside him. When he noticed his friend, Renakir, standing behind a console, he smiled. "Hi, Renakir! Isn't it cool that we're on the same ship? I can't believe I was picked to go, I'm just a cadet! I'm excited, are you excited? A nebula, wow!" He said to the man, waving enthusiastically. He was in a good mood, almost nothing could ruin it.

Renakir looked at the young cadet when he spoke and managed to crack a small smile. He really did seem happy, it was quite an honour for a cadet to go on an away mission. He set his PADD down on the side of the console and waved back. Awkward to see a Romulan smiling and waving at an alien, but there had been weirder things happen on 777. "Hello Tral. Yes, this is very exciting. And I see you have a new feline friend too who can see it all unfold with you," Renakir said, eyeing the cat and then looking back at Sauk.

"Yeah, this is Shoe! She's a very good girl, she's my emotional support animal!" Sauk explained. "You never know when a panic attack will strike," He shrugged, crossing his legs in his chair.

A Vulcan with an emotional support animal? Renakir was aware of the concept, however he was still not convinced bringing one on a possibly dangerous mission was the right choice. Still, Tral had a medical need so perhaps the stress from not having her around was greater than having her. "I see. Valleka had an emotional support animal when she was younger as well, I believe it was a Neiirrh, a small bird known for having poisonous talons," Renakir said casually, again seeing no issue with having an emotional support animal that could also take out your enemies. That was emotional support for Romulans. Panic attack? Send out your attack bird to kill your enemy. No more panic, just calm knowing there is no more danger.

"Woah, that's kinda cool. But, wait, doesn't that mean she could never hold the bird? How could it be an emotional support animal if she can't cuddle it?" Sauk asked, clearly not understanding the reasoning behind a deadly emotional support animal. Shoe, who had been sitting loyally by Sauk's side, sniffed the air and settled down again, unconcerned by Renakir. Seems cats don't know much about Romulans.

"She could hold it, the animal hides its poison spurs during rest," Renakir explained, speaking calmly as if he wasn't talking about how his fiancée committed multiple hits on political enemies as a child. "I believe that's also how she became a senator, but you didn't hear it from me," He put his finger over his mouth, it secret-- well not really, but it lightened the mood a little. His eyes wandered to Shoe again who was sniffing the air. He noticed she was behaving quite well. Or maybe he just had terrible experiences with cats on earth. Animals never seemed to like him, he assumed it was the green blood. He probably smelled very weird. "Speaking of my betrothed, I met yours a few days ago. She's worried about you," Renakir looked back down at his console. He was no longer going to hide him and Valleka's relationship, clearly keeping it a secret only seemed to play into Valleka's hand and he couldn't have that.

Sauk straightened at the mention of T'kelio, looking away. So she had talked to Renakir. He inhaled slowly, patting his lap. Almost instantly, Shoe looked up and hopped onto him, bonking his stomach and purring comfortingly. "I see," He said in a very shaky voice, petting Shoe's fur. What more was there to say? How was Sauk meant to tell the woman he was apparently engaged to that he was not only not aromantic, but dating someone else? How did you end a Vulcan engagement? Was that even a thing?

"I told her I would talk with you," Renakir said in a slow and calm tone. He was not very knowledgeable about Vulcan customs however he did know that their engagement was important. Perhaps this was the reason for Sauk's sudden change in mood when he mentioned her name. "She was responsive to my words. She understands you have changed and is willing to get to know the new you. I believe her goal is not marriage, but to 'catch up' to use a terran term," He sighed and looked back at Sauk. The emotional response was illogical and a bit confusing. Or maybe he had been spending too much time with Remun and vulcan meditation. "If it is an comfort, I have been going through a similar situation with Valleka. Just like you, I have been avoiding my betrothed. However unlike Valleka, T'kelio is open minded and I am sure she will understand if you told her you found a different path. From our conversation it sounded like she just wanted to see her friend again. Marriage or not. I did not detect any deceit or ill intent, she seemed... Trustworthy."

"I don't want to marry her, Renakir," Sauk said, looking distraught. "But I don't even know if I have a choice. My father didn't explain any of this to me," He knew next to nothing about Vulcan culture, seeing as he tuned most of his father's lectures out and lived on Vulcan for only two years. For all he knew, betrothal had to result in marriage or they'd both drop dead. And for all he knew, T'kelio was in love with him and wanted this marriage. The thought terrified him. If he was marrying anyone, it would be Jack, and they were nowhere near ready for that. "I'm just scared. And I'm scared for Jack to find out," He admitted, hanging his head. What if Jack thought he was just a side fling? That Sauk had always planned to marry T'kelio, and this relationship, this wonderful period of time in his life had just been out of...boredom? He was horrified by the thought. He wouldn't imagine himself with anyone other than Jack. "I'll talk to her, I suppose," He sighed. He had definitely not been prepared for Panic! In Engineering. He tried to mentally shake the negative feelings from his brain and go back to the excitement of earlier. He was on a mission into a nebula! He was with a friend! He had the chance to be noticed by a high ranking officer! He shouldn't be working himself up over something that could probably be ended with the fancy version of 'let's see other people'.

2

"I do not think she has the intentions of forcing marriage on you. If it is anything like Romulan marriages, we are not obligated to marry our betrothed. In fact, most take on multiple different partners before their promised mate," Renakir explained the Romulan Way™️. He looked back down at his console, studying the readings before looking at Sauk again. A deep sigh escaped his lips as he realised they were soon approaching the nebula. "Vulcans are a logical species. I am sure they would also deem a forced marriage as illogical. You are Vulcan, I do not believe Jack, a human, will be surprised to hear you have a betrothed. For a terran term, 'fork found in the kitchen', or something like that," Renakir furrowed his brows and adjusted his sunglasses. "You are honest and genuine. I am sure your boyfriend will understand the situation and T'kelio will respect your wishes. She is a very kind girl, she seems to only want the best for you, married or not. I have no reason to think she ever wanted to force a marriage on you."

Another romulan made his way in, looking around as he tried to get a bearing on his surroundings. He stretched his arm and noticed Renakir, brow rising. He moved over to a console near the side and simply stood, yawning as he pulled a small picture out of his pocket clearly drawn in crayon. It looked like a terribly drawn Satok in an operations uniform, a smaller boy next to him, and a happy word in English at the bottom: Rye + Dad.

And now this room had two Romulans. Forget Occam's Razor, this was indeed a plot. Maybe not a Tal Shiar plot, but a plot nonetheless. He did not move from his position and kept his eyes down at his console. He was not going to engage with the other, he was speaking with Sauk after all. He did take note of the other Romulan's movements, a picture? Hmm, well the other was earth raised, earthlings were oddly sentimental.

Avignon walked in holding a bag of fresh brownies he had just cooked that morning. They were tasty but he critiqued himself for using a bit too much chocolate. He recognized one of the romulans in the room and maybe the little Vulcan Cadet. Anyways he didn't say much, his lips simply moving along with his chewing.

2

He noted the arrival of the new person, then the bag of whatever was in there... but that smell, chocolate? Why was he bringing chocolate into a room of purely vulcanoids? Hmm... he craved it like hell but refused to indulge on duty, turning back to his console with a hum.

1

He took a large bite of his brownie infront of anyone and then looked around. "Oh, does anyone want one?" He said through a full mouth. "I know you guys are romulans and vulcans and all that but like it would be kinda rude for me to not offer." He pointed a brownie at everyone around him.

He was honestly just here minding his own business, watching his fellow frenchman (Renakir considered himself French even if he was an alien) munch his brownies. He breathed in a heavy sigh and stretched his arms behind his back. This would certainly be an interesting mission. "I appreciate the offer, but as you stated yes we are Vulcanoids and cannot indulge in such treats while on duty. Perhaps another time." He looked at Avignon and politely refused. He was thankful that he actually had a logical excuse to refuse this time. It was always awkward refusing food or drinks from others, especially aliens who were not as knowledgable about Romulan and Reman culture.

He simply shook his head, giving a slightly judgy look before looking back at his console.

He laughed along with the looks of the others. "I didn't expect any of you to say yes anyway." Why was he laughing? He may have had a bottle of wine while cooking before the mission... "Anyways its good to see you all again."

He closed his eyes and stood at his console, thankful his sunglasses were so opaque that no one could even tell. It was honestly the best part about wearing them everywhere. No one had to see him close his eyes or stare, it was perfect. He rested his hands on the side of the console, perfectly relaxed. He was a transporter operator so the likelyhood of him seeing real action was slip, especially on a mission like this. Avignon's laugh came as a bit of a surprise. Was he teasing them? Maybe this was all just a plot. A way to pick at the Vulcanoid crew. That was just a working theory though.... Unless? "It is good to see you too, ensign," He said with a steady tone, opening his eyes and looking at the Frenchman. "It quite a coincidence they put a human on a ship of Vulcanoids. Curious, isn't it?"

He raised his eyebrow. All vulcanoids? "Are you sure it's all vulcanoids? I think I saw the pilot here was a human... maybe someone else aswell." He shrugged. "But i suppose that is a bit of a fun coincidence."

"Huh? Hmm... fascinating. My son would call it a... uh... convergence of intergalactic timelines in his eloquent language. He doesn't even know what it means... how are you, Mister Avignon?" He asked in a polite tone, knowing the man well and wishing to get pleasant introductions done.

He smiled at Satok. "Oh I've been quite well as of recently and I'm very glad to have come along on this mission. I uncorked quite a good bottle of wine to celebrate beforehand. It was... quite delicous." He laughed slightly again... he probably shouldn't have admitted to drinking before the mission.

3

He smiled as the other spoke, smile disappearing after the admission. He cleared his throat and sighed softly. "You shouldn't drink close to a mission for the chance of... uhm... it's against protocol and dangerous, Ensign," he said, tagging Avignon's rank on the end. He was serious.

3

He looked back and forth and decided to lie through his teeth, something he was well acquainted to do after all the drinking he got up to. "Oh don't worry Lieutenant, all I had was a glass and it wasn't all that strong anyhow. I'm a doctor, I know how to keep myself under control."

This conversation was raising all sorts of red flags for him. Maybe this wasn't a Tal Shiar plot or any plot, however an ensign was eating brownies in front of a bunch of Vulcanoids, said ensign also admitted to consuming mind altering substances before the mission. The one cadet had his emotional support cat, the earthling Romulan was reminiscing about his family (too much emotion in public in Renakir's eyes). Honestly, he would be surprised if this mission didn't end up like Final Destination™️, that earth movie. Renakir's eyes darted around the room before returning to his console and looking down. He hid his anxieties well, but inside he was screaming. (edited)

"... okay." He simply replied, noticing Renakir's darty eye movements. He looked at the reman fleetingly, the hairs on the back of his neck rising up. "Perhaps I should go and check up on the bridge?"

He turned to Satok and then looked at Avignon. Maybe it was a good idea, one less Vulcanoid in the room wouldn't hurt anyone, especially when that Vulcanoid was a Romulan. "It would seem like a good idea," He had the inkling suspicioun that Satok probably noticed his very subtle jitteriness. Despite being once a human, Satok was still in a Romulan body. Paranoia was a way of life, it was instinctual, muscle memory. He pushed his sunglasses back up on his face, Renakir.jpg mode.

He shrugged. "Engineering probably isn't my section anyways. If you do want a brownie though, you know who to call. I didn't used to be the best chef in Paris for nothing." He smiled devilishly.

"Perhaps when I am off duty, Ensign," Renakir nodded, doing his best to sound friendly. He spoke casually but he really meant it. He would like to try a brownie as long as he could eat it in the privacy of his quarters alone.

He felt the ship was slowing down-- were they are their destination? Renakir couldn't see anything so he just stayed at his console, waiting for any orders. It was a bit strange to have a transporter operator to explore a nebula, but it was protocol You never knew what was out there.

A set of orders came in. Engineers was to attempt to scan and get a loose update one what technological level the inhabitants if they were alive had reached.

"We've got an order in. Attempt to scan and get an update on what technological level the inhabitants are at- if they are alive. Scanning now," He said, initiating a scan as asked. He hoped that he could have someone else review the information with him, Renakir the perfect person present.

Seeing how there was no transporting that needed to be done, Renakir did indeed step next to Satok to offer his assistance. He offered what he could, reviewing and relaying data was pretty easy. Plus as an added bonus, communicating with Satok in Rihannsu made things go a lot faster.

Avignon narrowed his eyes at them a little confused. Was his hearing just being terrible... no after a couple seconds he figured out they were speaking a different language. He frowned slightly but then jokingly said to himself. "Eh bien, je peux aussi parler d'autres langues." He laughed but didn't expect anyone to actually understand him.

On the last starfleet checkup the planet had hardly began to figure out computer technology. Now some of the buildings left standing would show signs of much more developed technology then they were on pace to have. Now though many of the people left only had stone age technology at their disposal.

Renakir looked up at the ensign, pushing his sunglasses back up on his face. "You have your universal translator, right? We are speaking Romulan," He replied in fluent French. Did he forget that Renakir was also very much a French alien? His console beeped and he turned his attention back to what he was doing, reading out the information, this time speaking Standard for the benefit of the rest of the people in the room.

He continued to reply in Rihan, sighing softly as he did so. English came harder to him than Rihan did so he did the simple thing. "Many have stone age technologies though there are signs of much more developed areas beyond their pacing. Shall we do another scan to make sure?"

He nodded. "You are the highest ranking man here... I think. However if you want my opinion I think you should do it. Those results on their own are quite concerning."

He did another scan a few seconds after to verify the results he previously got, focusing on the technological aspects moreso. "Looking... what do you think of the results we have. Lieutenant?"

He looked at Satok's scans and then at his own console. They honestly didn't have many answers from what they gathered, he hoped the other ship was doing better. Renakir switched back to his native Rihannsu, speaking to Satok comfortably as he read off the results. "But I don't know if we can really get the full picture from where we are, maybe the Viola has more insight," He concluded, his eyes darting from his console to Satok.

"I shall send the information we have to the bridge with a note to send it to the other vessel so we can collaborate on scans," he said. Satok wished to be perfectly abiding by protocol to the letter and let the bridge send the scan information over lest there be a situation where sending information over would be bad. You never know.

He nodded to Satok and then looked towards Avignon, wondering if his fellow Frenchman had any input. The man was a doctor so maybe he wouldn't have much to contribute, but still, he wanted to make him feel included. After all Renakir was just a transporter operator, he was in no way equipped to do any crazy engineering stuff. "Do you have any ideas or input, ensign?" He asked in French, hoping to make the man feel more comfortable. If he was going to speak Rihannsu with Satok he could speak French with Avignon.

He shrugged. "Non, I don't really have any input I can give. I could run it up to the bridge for you all if you want though." He slouched down a little bit in his chair. "It is all up to you guys, you all are the operations folks after all."

He nodded at Avignon's response and then looked at his console. "That wouldn't be a bad idea actually. Hmm, I am just a transport operator," Honestly he was still wondering what to do on this mission. He then looked towards the young cadet who had been oddly silent this whole time. Was it the Romulan chatter? Maybe he had insilled too much paranoia in the kid. "And what about you, Tral? Is everything alright?" He asked, genuinely concerned for the young communications cadet.

Sauk looked up. "Hmm? Oh, I'm fine. I don't think my input matters that much...plus, Lieutenant Aylek is senior staff, so I'm sure whatever he's doing is fine," He said awkwardly. * "Sorry." *Truth be told, Sauk had dissociated the last conversation, and much of the information was lost on him. He looked at the console to try and catch up.

He ran over to command so he could COMM the other ship.

Eshen entered the Engineering room to see what was Hip and Happening.

3

Sauk looked up and saw Eshen walk in. He gave him a small wave, and Shoe meowed in greeting.

Eshen waved back. "Sauk, my friend! And Shoe, diligent worker! Suddenly, I feel doubly emotionally supported."

Sauk laughed. "She's just doing her job. You never know when a panic attack will strike, I've learned,"

"Well, I'm glad she's with us, then!" Not that Eshen, man of no fear response, could relate. He had whatever the opposite of anxiety is. "I'm just here to listen to what's going on in here while Avignon's in the other room. We might end up switching back and forth with one another like we're getting passed between cups in Liar's Dice. Speaking of, you don't happen to know what the heck is going on, do you?"

"Um...well, you can look at my PADD, if you like," Sauk offered, holding out the device for Eshen. "That's basically got everything." This was done because the roleplayer doesn't know how to describe what had happened.

Eshen took the PADD and beamed the information directly into his mind. Wow! He understood everything now, even the meaning of life.

5

He tried to run through engineering in an attempt.to make it to the bathroom but he didn't make hit. He stumbled into the center of the room and threw up all over the floor. "Jesus... outside... oh god..." He fell to his knees on the floor as he prepared for a second run of vomit.

Eshen wrinkled his nose as his keen Klingon olfactory senses caught the smell, then pushed past the sensory overload and approached the man. "Are you okay? Do you need help to the bathroom?" He asked, with a look of concern. Obviously he was curious about what exactly made the man react in this way, but he could deal with that when the man was okay, or if it turned out there was an imminent emergency he had to pay attention to instead. (edited)

He gulped down anouther attempt to vomit and then paused as he figured out what to say. When he finally spoke, he spoke fast and with little coherence. "No... I'm fine but there's people outside... it's horrible."

"Oh? Well, if you're sure. I'll go have a look, then." Eshen walked to the bridge, tense with anticipation.

Eshen walked back in from the bridge, determination and concern furrowing his brow. "Well, that wasn't good. Sauk, don't go in there. How're you holding up, Lieutenant?"

Sauk frowned, furrowing his brows. “But- I want to help!” He called, standing up and moving to follow Eshen. “I’m not a child…I can help,”

"I know you're not a child, Sauk." Eshen sighed. "At least let me warn you there's bodies floating around outside so you don't go in completely unprepared for what you'll see. Besides, I'm not sure your skillset is really suited for this, nor is mine; perhaps our doctor could help, if I go get him?"

“Avignon? Yeah, yeah…that’s…that’s a good idea. Um, but…aren’t they already…you know…dead?” He whispered the last part. “What good would a doctor do?” As he spoke, Shoe bonked his leg for comfort.

"He might have input on cause of death, or anything else weird." Besides, if anyone could handle seeing a bunch of cadavers, it was a doctor. "Do you want to come with? Also, er, I don't know how we're going to clean up all this..." Eshen gestured to the puke carpeting the floor.

“Yeah, uh…yikes. I think we should let the man responsible deal with that. Let’s go find Avignon,” He nodded, picking Shoe up and holding her close to his chest.

Eshen cast the Lieutenant a sympathetic look. Poor guy. He sees a bunch of bodies and then has to clean up his own vomit? Oof. Eshen hoped he checked right into therapy after this. "Well, perhaps some of the others in here can help him out? Anyway, let's go."

21:42

He walked into #command-module.

Sauk followed with Shoe in his arms.

He watched the scene unfold in front of him, listening to all the noises happening around him. Once the power cut, he blinked s few times and then took his sunglasses off. He still had his contacts on but at least he didn't have to wear his glasses. He looked back down at his console before realising it was off. Everything was disabled. He didn't panic, he wasn't scared. In fact, if anything he felt more at home. On a dark ship floating adrift, but this was no Reman warbird. He closed his eyes and dropped his hands to his side. "Is everyone alright?" He asked to the remaining people in the room (was it just Satok?). His bright silver irises glowing in the darkness as he looked around. This was the one time it was actually beneficial to be Reman. The room was silent, eerily silent. Should he have moved to the bridge with Eshen and Sauk? Truth be told Renakir was actually pretty curious to see what was happening. (edited)

The doctor just kinda slumped over on the floor in engineering, he couldn't see any thing and he was feeling a little bit scared so he decided just to start eating his brownies.

4

The sounds of hurried footsteps could be heard outside engineering before the doors hummed and the tall Romulan-Reman man entered. Two beady silver eyes shined bright against the pitch blackness of engineering as Renakir made his way to one of the side consoles to try and jump start the engine. He tugged one of the wall panels off and began his work. It was just like fixing a turbolift, right? The room echoed with whispers and echos of movement as people were scrambling to makes heads or tails of their current predicament. Sometimes he wished Starfleet would design a dark ship, one like this or based off of Reman design. He blinked a few times to try and help himself focus, but his contacts were itchy. He switched wire after wire, doing whatever he could to get the ship functional again.

This poor Romulan-Reman boy had done it! Power was restored and with the others' help they had established communications with the Eventide. Now all he needed to do is keep the power on until help arrived. They had power! Then they didn't-- the lights flickered a little, but stayed on. Renakir put his sunglasses back on, blinking a few times before returning to playing with da wires. (edited)

The system display was operational enough to lightly show was functioning. Lights - Partially Functional Comms -Partially Functional Flight Systems - Offline Navigation Equipment - Offline Science Equipment- Partially Functional Life Support - Online

The Sebastion wobbled slightly as it was seemingly locked onto by a tractor beam.

The wobbling threw him off balance and before he had any time to react his head hit the side of the wall. He didn't scream, but his patience was at its end. The poor Romulan-Reman man stepped away from the opening in the wall to rub his head and silently curse to himself. Were they hit by something? He tapped his comm badge.

2

The Sebastion began moving in an unknown direction, dragged by the tractor beam. It was only a matter of time before multiple shuttlecraft showed up and began helping to push it towards its destination, the Eventide.

Guess no one was going to tell him what was going on, or was the comms down? Either way, Renakir sighed and leaned up against the wall to steady himself. His body was aching still from the punch to the gut, the bite on his arm, and now this bang to his head. If he had known the suffering from the crew on the surface he probably wouldn't be as annoyed, but this was hardly the easy and fun away mission he was promised. For the love of Tenakruvek, he thought.

3

The Sebastion was soon forcefully docked to one of the Eventide's evacuation corridors, and damage control teams were quick to cut open its airlock so the crew could leave. The occupants of the Sebastion were greeted by Medical officers to check them over, and were quickly evacuated onto the Eventide via #ship-airlocks.