Posted by Gamemaster CockRoach (GM) in Main Sim - 1 Week Later - The Abyssal Grasp
[snip]

With their course finally set the Sentinel moved ahead at a leisurely warp 1 into the Abyss. Their ETA till arrival should be about a half an hour. As the Abyss engulfed them there was the natural expected dimming of sensors and shields going offline as well as a passing shudder as the deflection systems moved heavier debris and gases out of their way. But soon it was mostly smooth sailing into the gaseous Abyss.

GM CockRoach

Rand stood out of the way and watched the colors and shapes the gasses took swirl across the screen. She’d never seen anything like it, and though she’d heard people talking about ‘the Abyss’ all week and their concerns and even telling creepy stories about it, she was curious. The colors and patterns had a kind of beauty to them. Rand stood out of the way on the bridge watching, until the captain needed her. She placed a hand against the wall at a particularly strong shudder rocked the ship a bit more than the others. Once the ride seemed to smooth out she left the bridge for the galley and returned shortly after with drinks for the bridge crew. Usually open cups, but she’d taken the time to help the cook put everything into sealed thermoses. With all the shuddering she figured that would be safer on the equipment. She passed them out, everyone’s preferred drink, and then resumed her spot, out of the way watching the swirling mass of colored gas on the view screen.

Yeoman Rand

E’usah turned and picked up her PaDD and made a few calculations then entered the course correction into the Nav computer, then rechecked her calculations. “Ma’am, new course is entered and up on the main view screen, helm is responding.” E’usah watched as the blue blip which was them slowly turned and began to follow the green line, which was their new course. There was no sense of turning or motion, inertial dampeners and stabilizers took care of that. She unscrewed the top off the thermos of mint tea and took a sip, somehow Rand always knew just how much cream to add, it was hot and delicious. She glanced over to where Rand was standing unobtrusively out of the way and held up the thermos while giving a thumbs up with the other hand.

E’usah - NAV

Sure enough a half hour later they were within sight of the first system. Or least thats what their sensors said. On visual (aka looking out a window!) an NE in science cued into things down below happened to call up to the bridge on comms =/\= Uh, bridge? NE Vorn down in general sciences, I got reports from sensors we were nearing our destination and so I began readying to proceed with data gathering, but uh....well, if you look out a window you’ll see it seems we’re not within the system. Just mucking around surrounded by this Abyss.=/\= He reported.

A check on sensors did indeed show that the system from before was just ahead, that they had indeed dropped from warp and were by sensor scans at the border of the system’s solar wake. The fifth planet they though they had seen earlier wasn’t there, just a reflection off some stellar gases it seems. But yet if they dropped the view screen to peer out visually with the naked eye the system was utterly lacking in evidence, just swirling murky orange-green-grey tones of the Abyss. Yet another check on travel time did show they had moved at warp and were obviously deep in the abyss, but concerning on sensors too was their own warp trail died off about 1,000 meters aft of where they had come from!

Could it be they somehow were.....lost?

GM CockRoach

E’usah heard the comment on the comm and quickly checked the Nav computer and then checked her plot calculations for the third time. She turned toward the command chair behind her. “Ma’am the Nav computer shows we were exactly on course and speed, and my plot was spot on, we should be right where we are supposed to be.” E’usah had no explanation for the oddity that had just occurred. Her world was one of absolutes, 1 + 1 = 2, always, there was no room for maybe or pretty close, she unscrewed the cap off the thermos of mint tea, and for once wished that it held something a bit stronger, maybe.

E’usah - NAV