Conflux, Pt. 11
Conflux, Pt. 11
The women were gathered in the small room – the “transporter room,” the Commander had called it – and exchange final goodbyes. All had been a giggling mess of nerves since they woke up that morning, though Stormy seemed a bit worse for wear; claimed she had an “accelerated metabolism” that allowed her to drink copious amounts of a drink they called “tequila,” she had woken with a splitting headache. A quick visit to the sickbay had helped relieve the pain, and the blue girl had spent a tender moment with Doctor Dubois, sharing stories of a woman who they both knew a version of. The Commander just watched the exchange silently, but Ana knew the expression was melancholic, as she and her Doctor remembered their fallen lover while talking about Stormy’s alive one. Stormy and the Doctor parted with a soft kiss, and then the trio had gone on one last tour of the ship before arriving at the transporter room.
Inside, a low din of activity greeted them as many of the Commander’s officers worked to finalize the calculations that would send them home. “It’s funny,” the Commander remarked, watching them before turning to Anafenza. “How strange this must seem to you. All this technology, science, generations ahead of your world.”
Anafenza nodded. “We have technology – the Garleans make full use of it – but this…is almost…”
“Indistinguishable from magic?” Stormy smirked, winking at the Commander.
Anafenza shrugged and nodded. “That would…be a good way to describe it, yes. But I’ve seen magic,” she continued with a wink. “If you can call down a meteor from the heavens, then I’ll believe it.”
Stormy chuckled, but the Commander winced for a moment, her eyes going distant to some memory she didn’t want to think of. She shook her head to clear it, before smiling again.
The “Trill” woman, Sano, cleared her throat behind the Commander, and all three turned to look at her. She nodded, almost sadly, clearly not wanting to break up their group. “Ma’am, it’s time. If we want a shot at getting them home before the window closes…” She trailed off, leaving the implications hanging in the air.
The three woman took in a deep breath, turning back to one another. They smiled, before moving in to embrace one another together.
“This was…quite an experience,” the Commander remarked.
“It will certainly be a story to tell,” Anafenza continued on with a small nod.
“No one will believe us,” Stormy countered with a small laugh, and all three laughed together. They hugged again, Stormy turning her head to plant a kiss on first the Commander’s cheek, then turning to Anafenza to do the same. Then, Stormy and Anafenza stepped up onto the illuminated pad. Ana gave the blue woman’s hand a quick squeeze, before they parted, standing on opposite sides of the device.
Commander St. Peter smiled at them both. “Good luck, and whatever gods you believe in protect you. I am so blessed to know you both.” She winked at Stormy playfully, but gave Anafenza a genuine smile. “You’re going to do great things, Anafenza of the Ejinn.”
There was a long pause, as the three just stared at one another for another moment. Then, the Commander turned her head to her crew. “Energize!”
The light on the pad began to brighten, and a chiming filled the air as swirling motes of light enveloped the two women. Anafenza giggled a little, feeling ticklish.
There was an alert on the panel, and Sano began shouting to her team. “Engage the chronometric navigational sensors!”
“They can’t get a positive lock! Something is throwing the entire equation out of sorts, and the transport can’t engage.”
“It’s not that ‘aether,’ is it?”
“No, we have a positive fix on that. But there is a quantum imbalance in her signal and the other St. Peter’s. The buffer is having a hard time maintaining their patterns, like another variable is missing…”
The lights died down, and the chiming subsided. Stormy and Ana looked at each other, then at the crew working.
The Commander frowned, shaking her head. “Something is missing…but the numbers all check? We have good locks in both time and space?” Her crew was nodding and agreeing as she rattled off things Anafenza could not comprehend.
Stormy snapped her fingers, looking at Anafenza. “Something isn’t missing. Someone is…”
The Commander paused, blinking, then smacked her forehead. “Of course…the computer can’t make a firm lock on either of you…”
“Unless you can serve as an anchor,” Anafenza finished. “And a beacon.”
“Just like in the pocket dimension.”
The Commander hopped onto the pad and took the center spot. “Alright Nizeri, try now.” She nodded. “Energize!”
Sano turned to the controls as the officer there worked the panel, and the lights and chimes began anew. She smiled, continuing to direct the officers. “Positive lock engaged, they can make it to the pattern buffer! Engage the scanners!”
The light overtook Ana’s vision, and the chiming deafened her.
“I’ll always…remember you…both! May you walk…in the light…of the Crystal!”
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Dream Journal 4
I am not sure if I should be reading more books about Allag, or any of the fictions that are in our stores concerning allag technology.
First, it was a room this time; smaller than my apartment by far, but not cramped. There was a couch off to one side, next to a window. On the other side of that was a small desk. The desk had
It was thin and rectangular. It had words and pictures on it, that kept changing, rewriting I guess. I didn’t recognize the words – whatever language it was, I didn’t know it. There were similar glass rectangles with words and pictures flashing and rewriting on the far wall as well, next to a door that I assume led out to another room. The window showed a vast night sky, with stars far more immeasurable than any sky I’ve ever seen.
There was a small hiss, and the doors opened. A woman walked in, face down and studying what looked like one of those allagan tomestones, though it was larger than ones I’ve seen. She was wearing black pants, and a top that was black but with white shoulders and a red stripe separating the black from the white. There was a arrowhead pinned on her chest, silver. She had blue skin, and short blue hair and piercing blue eyes – I didn’t think it was possible for anyone to have that much blue on them naturally
She rounded the corner of the desk and sat down. After a moment of reading the device she dropped it on the desk and reached for a white ball that she had sitting on it. She tossed it into the air and then, as it came back down, bumped it back up with both hands. She did this a few times, oblivious to me – I think I was a ghost, watching this dream.
And then she dropped the ball, and stared right at me. Her eyes blinked a few times, her mouth hanging open. I didn’t know what to do either. We just stared at one another. And then she laughed a little and said the oddest thing.
“It’s you!”
I woke up then. I don’t know what that dream was, and I certainly didn’t recognize her. Who was she? What was that place?
Was I even dreaming?
Another Journal Entry
Wicked white, even after five turns this thing is still here. Guess it’s only been a moon, proper, here, though. But I was gone for so much longer...time passed me by and no one is the wiser. I couldn’t be alone. I’d been alone for five bloody years with that maddening pixie and now that I was home...I thought I could belong again. After tonight I don’t belong anywhere again. He didn’t love me, and I couldn’t just stop. Now his...fiancé is angry with me again, Suzume won’t speak or look at me again (I don’t think she even knows what is happening, just that her Khala hates me). And Mercer... I didn’t know he saw me. I didn’t know it was killing him. He kept opening up to me. Kept making me feel safe. That’s why I loved him. It’s why I wanted to be with him. I don’t. Not now. Not anymore. I’m not part of that family. And I don’t want to be in the Tower family as long as... I will not take the oath. I thought I would. I was ready to, before Sasari returned. I don’t want to be in this family anymore. Hells...I want to go back to Eo Aenc now. At least I had fun in Il Mheg No more. I just want to be done.
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🌕 An RP experience.
So, a rant about an RP experience from me, the mun…hmmm…I dunno, most of my experiences have been alright. I’ve had a few that haven’t been great…but in truth, I’m more frustrated/angry/guilty of being the one to be ranting about. I know I’ve made a mess of a few RP situations and burned a lot of bridges. The biggest issue with me is when depression sinks in and I have this feeling that…no one wants to play with me anyway…so what’s the point? That’s when I’m the worst…and all I can offer is that, if you happen to find yourself the target of my ire…just please be patient with me. I’ll come around in a day or two…I promise…
This is an amazing and awesome take on this character
Why Lolorito despite being a Ruthless Ammoral Capitalist is actually still a better person than a modern day CEO.
He actually pays those under his employ fairly well from what I can gather considering the kind of loyalty they seem to have for Lolorito. Money is a powerful motivator.
The thing Lolorito cares about above his own wealth, is Ul’dah.
He still has standards as to what he will and will not do for profit.
What does a Modern CEO care about more than profit? Their own Wallet, to the detriment of everyone around them so long as they have fat stacks of cash.
♥ - What does ‘love’ mean to them?
♠ - What are they afraid of?
♦ - What is one thing about them that they are most proud of?
♣ - What is one thing that they find embarrassing? (About them, others, things in general)
★ - Do they prefer daytime or nighttime and why?
☾- Are they prone to nightmares or dreamless sleep?
☼ - Something that/Someone who makes them happy.
☁ - If they’re caught out in the rain how do they react?
♪ - Are they musically inclined?
♫ - What kind of music do they enjoy?
✓ - How do they react to praise?
✕ - How do they handle rejection?
☺ - Do they prefer sour or sweet treats?
❄ - Favourite season and why?
☮ - Do they have an idol or someone they look up to?
❤ - Do they have a love interest?
✖ - Who is someone they just cannot stand?
♔ - Do they value loyalty?
♕ - Do they trust easily?
☠ - How do they react to death?
Conflux, Pt. 6
“Is that…is that your starship?” Stormy asked, her voice giddy as she clapped her hands despite their circumstances.
The Commander nodded with a small smirk. “Yeah, she can hear us. That’s good…”
Anafenza tilted her head in confusion at this. While the Commander tried her communicator again, she turned to Stormy. “’She’ can hear us? That sounded like a man on the other side?”
“She meant the ship can hear us. Ships are always girls.”
“Ships…are always girls.” Anafenza blinked a few times but shrugged. “I assume this is an Earth thing?”
Stormy shrugged. “I suppose it is. Sorry if that’s confusing.”
The Commander groaned in frustration. “There’s too much interference here, and we can’t get far enough away from the tree to cut through.”
The other two women turned to look. Sure enough, as the Commander had implied, the cavern was smaller now, an odd gray nothingness taking the place of the stone walls around them.
Stormy snapped her fingers, then beckoned for the badge. “Gimme.” The Commander and Anafenza hesitated, not understanding what she meant. Stormy huffed, beckoning for the device again. “It’s simple, right? How do you cut through interference if you can’t build a better transmitter?”
The Commander squinted, her thoughts racing. “Change the frequency?” When the other woman simply nodded, as if coaxing her to keep trying, the Commander shrugged and shook her head. “Um, more power? I don’t –“
Stormy snapped her fingers again and grinned, interrupting. “More power!” She held the device in her hand, and Anafenza saw threads of electricity start to wrap around her arm, snapping and crackling as the woman manipulated the environment around them. As she watched, a thick fog began to form above them.
Stormy looked up to the Commander. “Ready?” When the other woman nodded, Stormy grinned. “Here we go!” She concentrated a burst of electricity right into the device, then tapped it, eliciting the chirp again.
The Commander practically leapt forward, enthralled by the woman’s powers and forgetting for a moment to speak once the device was activated. “St. Peter to Rafale! How do you hear us now?”
There was a curse on the other end of the transmission. “Prophets! LOUD and clear, Commander, how do you read?”
“Same, Rafale! I’m trapped in a collapsing pocket dimension with two other people, are you able to locate us with the signal from my commbadge and my tricorder?”
“Standby…” There were more voices in the background now, as more people began to talk over one another. Anafenza struggled to hear them all, until finally the first man came back onto the channel. “We’re locked onto the tricorder now, but there is still a large amount of interference. Whatever you labeled it when you scanned it – ‘aether?’ – it’s masking your signal. Sensors are picking up three faint life signs but they’re all registering as you.”
The Commander shook her head. “Yeah, it’s a long story, but you’re picking the three of us up just fine. You can’t transport through the interference?”
“We’re having trouble getting a positive lock…”
Anafenza shrieked then, pointing. “Jess, look!”
Both women looked up, then to where the auri was pointing. The Commander gasped. “Rafale, we have a problem! The dimension is collapsing faster than before!”
A female voice broke through then. “I just picked up a massive disturbance in your tricorder readings, Commander! The link we created here is punching a hole through your dimension and causing it to destabilize at an exponentially faster rate.”
“You can’t get a lock, Nizeri?”
“Negative; M’Ral is coming up with a plan but we can’t make it happen in the next ten seconds. Cut power; use your tricorder to send data bursts. We’ll send you a message when we have a good idea what to do on our end. I’m sorry, ma’am!”
The Commander looked at Stormy, then swatted the communicator badge out of her sparking hand.
The grey Nothingness slowed its progress consuming the cavern, and the women all let out the collective breath they’d been holding. Stormy shook her head. “Now what?”
Anafenza spoke up instead, certain of the answer. “We come up with a way to get out of here.”
The Commander nodded. “Boosting the signal definitely helped, but we need a quick solution. While they work on a way to lock onto us, it would help to make it easier for them.”
“A beacon of some sort,” Stormy said, and the Commander nodded.
Anafenza looked at the other women. “If the aether is causing the interference, what if we gave your ship a way to better navigate the flow of it to find us?”
“Not just a beacon, but a map?” The Commander tapped her chin and nodded. “How would we do that?”
“My linkpearl.” Anafenza brought her hand up to her horn, feeling for the small jewel embedded there. “It uses the flow of aether to communicate; your ship could use the flow the linkpearl uses to break through the conflicting aether here and find us easier.”
“That just might work,” the Commander said. “Alright…let’s get to work, ladies.”
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