Star Trek: Starbase 777 - overgrown-park

The gray vegetation stood motionless and overgrown, a triumphant win over any signs of humanoid activity. The statues, all sorrowful and weeping in their body language, were ensnared by the vines. In the distance, in the center of the park, was a perfectly circular body of black water, with a gazebo on it - connected to the rest of the park via a bridge.

The Klingon followed Vovvi - she seemed to know what she was about - and found himself here, in this odd overgrown park. In front of them was a lake, with a gazebo in the middle and a rickety-looking bridge attaching it to the land. No, he did not want to cross it. He was feeling more uncomfortable as time passed in this realm, however they'd been transported or...if perhaps the fog was affecting them. "How did we get here? It does not make sense. Whoever has done this is playing dishonorable tricks on us!" He grumbled indignantly.

"Pay attention to your surroundings, everyone," Vovvi said over her shoulder, her gaze darting over and over the terrain with barely veiled worry and suspicion. "I don't think we could be anywhere but 777... We were on the entertainment promenade, and we were not transported. I know that much. We would have noticed. But at the same time.." Hmm..

Marrok looked at the park they had found themselves in, the statues were especially creepy, why were they all looking like they were weeping? And it looked like the park had been tended to in quite some time then he looked over to the water, black, and a gazebo in the middle, strange. He reckoned it would have been a beautiful park if they weren't in quite a pickle at the moment. "Well this is odd.. and creepy." He muttered as he cautiously looked around the place trying to find.. well something.

... Was there someone in the gazebo?

Was there? She held out a hand to halt the group, surveying cautiously. She didn't want to raise her voice, but instead waved to see if she could get their attention.

The longer she looked, the finer the details became - almost like the fog itself parted just enough to allow her to see. There, a figure - leaning against the rails of the gazebo, looking out at the park, their back turned towards the group. Dark hair, Starfleet uniform.

Marrok had looked around for a little while then returned to the group only to see Vovvi waving her hand, he was rather confused as to why, then he looked over to the gazebo.. Was there someone in the Gazebo? He thought as he squinted his eyes to make out the strange figure, he thought about shouting a hello but that would probably not be wise in case that dog-like thing with a tongue for eyes was lurking.

Vovvi took a few steps closer to the bridge, surveying its structural integrity if possible. "Are you alright?" she called out. If someone else was stuck here in the fog, it was better they knew someone was here to help. "Watch your step— the lake looks..diseased," she advised the group. Just in case.

Tal appreciated the heads up, given that he couldn't see. He figured he'd stick closely behind Vovvi, who both seemed like she knew what she was doing, and comfortable taking the lead. "Think of the eye-tongued beast, ma'am," he advised cautiously as she shouted at the new presence.

"I just wanted to get their attention for now, hopefully they take the hint and move in closer.. or we can.. try to cross." She did not trust this fuckass bridge.

Four nodded towards Vovvi as they stood protectively near their aunt. They waited for the being to respond. Four also attempted to scan it as they silently wondered to themselves. Everything around them, did each of them see what Four saw? It seemed rather improbable. Potentially even impossible. If so...there should be no threat posed. The dog before did not attack. It seemed only willing to cause fear. The motive seemed...strange. Fear is irrelevant.

The figure did not turn around. Instead, their head turned ever so slightly towards the group, their pointy eartip coming into the view: "The town has given you quite the scare, hasn't it?" it was a masculine voice that addressed them, a shadow of a chuckle in his question. "I can't blame you. Come on. The bridge is safe."

Vovvi would rather make sure of that, thank you very much. She took a tentative step forward onto the bridge to see if it creaked or swayed under her feet.

No creaking or swaying. The officer in the gazebo angled his head.

"Fear is irrelevant. We cannot be afraid." Four looked to their aunt as they took a tentative step. They were ready to grab her just in case something happened, or follow her across if she so chose.

Feeling like she was being made fun of just a little, Vovvi took another step, then another. It was fine. She glanced back to the group, focusing on the man directly behind her. "If you'd like, you can take my arm," she offered.

Marrok let out a sigh of relief when the figure spoke, speaking and in a Starfleet uniform can't be a beast, right? Marrok followed after Vovvi. "Who are you?" Marrok asked the officer in the gazebo.

"Thank you, but I'll manage," Tal said gently, following after Vovvi. His spatial awareness was fine, he could hear where shed gone and feel her presence receding from himself, and follow in her footsteps. His limited vision was really no help here, but he really would manage.

Fine by her. Across the bridge she went, to the gazebo.

Only when the first footsteps crossed the gazebo's entrance, did the stranger finally turn around, resting both of his hands on the railing and regarding the group with a small smile on his face. It was a Romulan man, his dark hair wavy, his features on the sharper side. "You're an awfully paranoid individual, miss Rei'nak..." he tutted, voice playful. "Though, again, I can't really blame you - this place does have the tendency to bring out the worst out of people." The grey eyes that gazed upon them lacked any light in them, and the uniform didn't have the stripe of division color on it's chest. The redhead's question, for some reason, elicited a laugh out of the man: "I run by many names, but S'harien will do just fine."

Tal really regretted moving to a place where he couldn't keep any weapons on him.

"If you'd seen half the things I have, you would have more than enough right to be cautious." Vovvi's eyes narrowed at her name being the first on his tongue, laced with a lighthearted jab. Not only that— there was a warped sort of familiarity there, someone she knew, surely, but there was just something ever so slightly wrong. Not wrong, she corrected herself, different. He was nearly identical to Lieutenant tr'Lareth, Rojin's nephew. A nice young man she'd met once or twice. S'harien was a little older, a little more... smug, almost, and the blank division stripe was pinging all sorts of red flags up in her mind, but she did not bombard him with questions, or turn and march right back across the bridge as she so terribly wanted to. "S'harien.." Even his name.. She sighed, resigned. She was likely overthinking. "Very well." (edited)

Well, that answered the question of whether Vovvi was a Rei'Nak or not. At least to a varying degree of potential validity. If this were all a part of a collective psychological event caused by an entity that controlled the smoke, potentially from the epicenter of whatever happened... Four continued their attempted scans of the individual infront of them. Now that they were facing the group. Their implants focused entirely on him. "Individual encountered, Name: S'harien. Species: Vulcanoid, Indeterminate Spread. Description: Grey Eyes, wearing Starfleet Uniform, no color to denote division, no pips to denote rank. Advise caution regarding individual until further information is obtained." Four typically would have said this internally, but wondered the beings reaction, if at all. Were they a physical being? If so, what were they comprised of? Was this all an illusion? Four needed to determine this for the safety and protection of the life forms around them. "What are your intentions?" Four asked simply. They weren't sure how else to phrase without the possibility of vagueness being introduced.

Okay.. this was weird, who was this man? He seemed to know an awful lot about this place and he couldn't really be a Starfleet officer, could he? Well what else to do than ask he supposed. "You seem to know an awful lot about this "town" how come? Why are you here why are we here?" Marrok however decided to bombard this S'harien with question though he had a lot more questions than the ones he asked.

Amusement danced on his features at the Borg's analysis - something that would look warm on another man's face, here it had something subtle poisoning it. Malice? Cold calculation? Perhaps. "What an astute observation. As for my intentions... they depend on what are yours." His glee didn't end there. S'harien's gaze shifted back to McGuire, as he angled his head at the man and lifted his eyebrows in an expression resembling surprise, movement slow, fluid: "Oh, I did create such an impression, didn't I? Forgive me, I'm not that good at playing the part of a scared little Starfleet officer. Your question has an answer so simple I feel a bit silly replying, but... I am here, because you are here. Because of things that hide in the darkest crevices of the multi-colored brains in those little heads of yours."

The unfortunate taste in Tal's mouth right now had nothing to do with the mist he'd been breathing in. "So you're a mass hallucination?"

Four nodded. Their suspicions seemed to be validated. They looked back over to Tal-terrh and nodded. "Our perceptions of current events seemingly are being controlled by the smoke, which in turn are being controlled by a presumed entity who from what we can gather wishes to instill fear in its occupants. Most likely for either pleasure, greater gains of control, or other various forms of aims not privy to us." Four then turned back to the man as they silently glared as per usual. "We were about to say the exact same thing. We believe now there is no real threat. As all of this is fake, or created from information within our minds construed to elicit reactions suitable for the purposes of fulfilling a goal. The smoke within our bodies can create pain, and other stimuli can be inflicted as we have seen before. However, that is only temporary, and therefore irrelevant. It is to attempt to control our actions and garner a response to elicit such an opening for said control. So, all we must do is make sure others do not succumb to the illusion. Thereby endangering themselves and those around them, which is contradictory to our primary functions." Four then looked down at the lake and then back at S'harien. They relaxed as they now knew at least in their mind what was going on. Their functions could take over more readily and they could stop thinking. Which swiftly started as they began their shift to functions only protocols.

The Romulan chuckled, sound low and hollow, "Sure, sure. If that conviction makes it easier for you."

As Marrok had thought, he was not a Starfleet officer and the answers Marrok got did not satisfy him the slightest it only left him with more questions but he chose to remain silent since he believed this entity S'harien would only answer more cryptically. Then he listened to Four it took him a moment to understand what he had actually say and it did sound logical, the creature they encountered before had not attacked and this might actually just all be a trick, a mass hallucination. To not succumb to the illusion, sounded easy enough though it'd probably be harder done than said. "Why show yourself to us?" He wondered out loud.

Four nodded to the Romulan. "It does." Four said before they stood still beside Vovvi. They were done entertaining the hallucination. They just made sure to keep their eyes on their allies to ensure they were ok.

K'tehka's eyes narrowed. Talk, it was just talk. Cheap, boring, lying, manipulative talk. He dealt better with actions. So he stood to the side and waited, just in case anything happened.

"If it's a hallucination, it doesn't have a choice in being here," Tal pointed out. Not like a figment of one's imagination could control its own existence.

S'harien blinked, "Show myself? As I said, I am here because of people here. Fear, apprehension, hatred, sorrow, guilt... Just one of many possible manifestations of feelings as old as existence itself. Mind you, not yours specifically, Lieutenant Commander. But I will not point fingers." His fingers tapped absent-mindedly over the wooden fencing, sound hollow and artificial. "Well? What you lot are going to do about this now? Because as far as I'm aware, unlike mine, your time is not infinite." There was a subtle note of warning in his tone. What did he mean by that?..

"Well this doesn't feel like a hallucination.. But I suppose hallucinations don't feel like hallucinations." Marrok shrugged with a sigh, he wasn't completely sure this was a hallucination but what else could it be? None of this made sense and they couldn't have been transported since they'd know if they were. "Because people are here" He rehearsed it in his thoughts, well that would make sense if it was a hallucination. Marrok was unsure on what to do next, he hadn't been this clueless for years.

"It's clearly a hallucination, and one we shouldn't entertain if he's only going to give us cryptic answers." This place was making her antsy. She wanted to leave. Badly.

Four nodded to their aunt and offered their arm. In case they had to escape through the smoke it wouldn't do well to get separated.

tw // violence Like a shark smelling spilt blood, his attention zeroed-in on the Intel officer. (Strange. Did the uniform appear dark and checkered to her?..) "Very well," he noted evenly, coldly, the warning note now at a screaming crescendo. "Let me demonstrate." The knife came out of nowhere. A bloodthirsty thing, it's tooth jagged and it's handle in the shape of an eagle, it made the side of her stomach blossom with green as it got plunged there, turning a body into a corpse in a matter of a moment. ~~The agent~~ S'harien watched it drop on the floorboards with a mild expression, ignoring the green specks on his uniform. "Are you still confident that this place cannot harm you?" he inquired, cleaning the knife with his sleeve. "She is alive, wherever she is right now. But as time goes on, that can change too. And as soon as that dog, or the lurkers, or the darkness realizes it can keep you here forever - mark my words, no callback whistle will save you." The manifestation of oppression and his nation's imperialism glared up at his public, eyes devoid of any life: "So let me ask you again - what is it that you want to accomplish?"

"I don't like you." Hello, Way of Absolute Candor. "What is the way out?"

Four's eyes widened as they watched their aunt fall to the floor. It had to be a hallucination...right? It could simulate tactile, occular, olfactory, or any number of stimuli. This could all be an illusion. However, the lifeless body...it dug into Four. Their mind screamed as their function left unfulfilled. Their failure evident and the core of what they were supposed to do and who they were was in inexplicable pain. "It...it isn't real...a-any stimuli can be manufactured...any condition can be created." Fear is irrelevant. Emotions are irrelevant. However, whatever this being was, it had hostile intentions. That wasn't irrelevant. It got into station. Infected it, and the smoke could at best be contained or at worst encompass more of the station by the moment. Their eyes darkened as the lights on their Borg implants turned red. TW// Violence "We do not want. We only fulfill our functions. Entity known as S'harien is acknowledged as a hostile threat. Countermeasures must be engaged, while potentially futile, our functions dictate it so." Four's implants quickly focused on the man as all the red lights centered on the man's neck. "Combat Protocol #02, Engage. Data retrieval and Apprehension of Unknown Subject Addendum. Mixed Fighting Style Addendum, engage. Nano-Machine Defense Protocol, Addendum." Four then would quickly attempt to grab the Romulan's neck with both hands and have their extraction tubules quickly enter his neck to extract data on the target. "Resistance is futile. Move and perhaps more than just a sample will be taken. We advice that you end hostilities or we will end them for you." Four's function focused on subduing the target as their golden eyes glared into the empty grey ones. They hoped to keep the man still so that potentially any other issue would be resolved. They recognized they weren't being rational...but their function must be fulfilled.

Marrok had stood there completely shocked and a bit terrified. Was he losing his mind? Had they all lost their mind? Well he sure as hell felt like he had lost his mind, it took him a moment to register what had happened to the Lieutenant Commander, his shock and terror slowly turning into rage but he managed to control his rage otherwise he would have done something stupid like try to disarm S'harien, disarm someone with a knife was probably a bad idea. Oh well fuck it, his control went out of the window when he saw Four lash out at S'harien, he couldn't just stand there and let Four do this alone. "I'll help." Marrok muttered as he crept up to S'harien trying to carefully grab the knife from him from behind while trying to hold him down for Four to do his thing, not the smartest tactic but he was just a simple engineer not a combat expert.

tw // double murder, because what did you expect really? He was about to reply, really, he was - but despite a clear warning, the display of discipline, two of the meatsacks still decided to rebel, their incessant rambling an annoying buzz in his ears. He stood still as the Tactical officer's arms reached for his neck... and passed right through it. "Idiotic fucking tin can," the hallucination commented idly, letting his knife kiss the Borg's neck, severing it, and heaving the body over the railings into the murky, dark waters of the still lake. "I wonder how Hegemony hasn't found you yet. Now get out of my sight." McGuire ended up with a stab through his temples, and was sent overboard as well. Now properly covered in colors both red and green, he calmly dropped his weapon, which lodged itself into bloodied floorboards with a melodic twang, meanwhile wiping his mouth with the other sleeve. "Impressive hubris," he murmured with a smile. His attention returned to the remaining group, regarding them with an almost serene expression. "The fog has a source. If you locate it and prevent it from spewing out more, as well as find a way to filter it out, you will be saved. Leave through the park gates and go straight - you've irritated me enough."

"Thank you for your help. I hope we never meet again," Tal said sincerely, before following the instructions given. He walked back, sweeping his hands out to find the bridge, and then following that way out of the park they were in. Find the source of the fog and contain it, filter the fog out, try not to get killed in the meantime. He spoke over his shoulder to K'tehka, the only other person still present. "There's our plan," he simply said, hoping the Klingon would follow.

K'tehka couldn't help a growl escaping his lips, though he did not move forward. He watched as the others were felled and listened as the Romulan hallucination spoke. It gave them instructions. He would follow them, maybe give them to any Starfleet officer he could find on the way. He walked up to the other man, the only one left, and let him know he was there. "Hello, there. I am K'tehka. It seems we are the only two that survived. Shall we travel together?" (edited)

"We will," he simply replied, standing in the entrance of the gazebo like a guard, watching the two leave for the entrance. The fog behind their backs grew thicker, as if pushing - or guiding? - the Town's prisoners out.

Well, he didn't like that. "Yes, it seems that is our only option. I am... Galankir." The hesitation in mentioning his own name was not unnoticeable. "Can I trust your vision? I will do my part by feeling around us for more presences." Tal didn't feel the need to explain that particular thought, hoping K'tehka would simply accept what he was saying.

K'tehka simply raised a curious eyebrow. But there were quite a few things to be uncomfortable about at this time. He could not blame the man. "Yes. I may be old, but I have quite good eyesight." He said earnestly. "You are free to take my arm if you would like, or simply stand close. I find that my footsteps are usually heavy enough to hear, if you prefer a distance." It was true. He was a big man with heavy Klingon style leather boots. Thick soles and a lot of weight when he stepped. "Thank you," he said, almost softly, his voice raspy. "These shades are making me angry, but it appears fighting them is useless."

"I will simply keep close, thank you. I can feel your mind, too, so I will not lose you." Telepathy for the win, and Tal's compensated for his eyesight very well, most of the time at least. Right now, he felt like there were things to fear that he couldn't parse quite as well as others, and only because he couldn't see what others could. "It's not productive to feel anger," he told K'tehka, his own footsteps silent, and especially unnoticeable as he fell into step with the other. To his mind, he had felt the discomfort, anger, disgust, and pain from the others, before they simply disappeared. Whatever it took to not engage with these "shades", as K'tehka called them, he was willing to do it. "Let's stay as quiet as possible, and find whatever is causing the fog. Leave through the park gates and go straight; no distractions can be allowed."

The street that lead them out of the park was short; for it ended in ruin. To the right of said ruin, however, was an opening into another old, yet nowhere as ruined, house. An entrance into the #first-haven.