Posted by Lieutenant Xam Ra’Ti (Tactical Officer) in MAIN SIM: Bridge

Posted by Captain Rende Asam (Commanding Officer) in MAIN SIM: Bridge

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek (Communications Officer) in MAIN SIM: Bridge
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Zaril would focus on the work that needed to be done, it was the only way the grief would not overtake him. [O] yes [C] he responded through the console,

The nebula answered almost immediately.

A clean 6 kHz return, stronger than before. Steadier.
Not mimicry this time — confirmation.

[O] Sorrow[C] ,

The violet haze dimmed, its light thinning like a cloud passing over a star. Pattern F swelled faintly, the echo stretching longer than its previous cycles.

[O]Pain[C] ,

A deep theta-wave rolled outward from the structure, slow and heavy. Several bridge officers felt pressure behind the eyes — not distress, just weight. Recognition.

[O]Anger [C] he responded as he focused on each of the emotions he was feeling.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

The response was immediate and sharp: a brief gamma spike flared through the nebula, then collapsed inward, tightly contained. The tendrils stiffened for a heartbeat… then relaxed.

The entity was not overwhelmed.
It was categorizing.

On Chandel’s board, the scattered consciousness reorganized itself — those once-chaotic patterns aligning into clearer separations, as if the being were learning emotional boundaries for the first time.

Then one final signal returned on Zaril’s console.
Not a word.
Not a frequency alone.

A compound pulse — sorrow overlaid with pain, but without anger.

Loneliness.

The ship remained still.
Not trapped.
Not released.

Simply… acknowledged.

Cpt. Asam, CO

Zaril felt sorry for the creature, he knew what it felt to be alone, even when he was not, I thought it clear. “Sir it’s lonely” he said not looking at the man.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

Kreed moved to stand next to Dovek and said “Exactly.” He looked at the view screen and the looked at Dovek. “Now I believe you need to help it with something else.” He was quiet a moment and then said “Hope. Acceptance. Help it understand that it isn’t alone anymore.”

“Should we answer Engineering?” Chandel said realizing that no one had.

Ensign Chandel Sci

Kreed, CMO

Ra’Ti tapped his comms and said [O] Bridge to Engineering. What’s your status now, Chief? [O]

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

[O] Karl here, Current status can only be conveyed in ungentlemanly language. The entity in my engine has resumed speaking with me, it conveyed to us the importance of not waking whatever entity is out there. That if it does wake, it will feed on us, according to it we’re being affected. I’m sending biometric readings shared with us: ‘Spikes in neural activity. Elevated cortisol. Empathic bleed-through. Subspace resonance synchronizing with biological rhythms.’” He read the information on the console “According to the entity in my engine, for lack of a better name, it’s warned me that interacting with whatever’s out there is dangerous, I’m inclined to listen to it until we can at least regroup.[O]

Master Chief Karl - CE

“Nurse Hart here as well,” she said into the open comm line. “The sentience that is communicating with us down here comes across as rather desperate. It’s hard to know without further information what’s actually going on here, but I feel strongly as well that we should heed its warning.”

~Leah Hart, NP

Post Holiday Bump for the Boards.

Dovek glares at Kreed, anger welling up inside him with a level that would have turned the bridge into a tavern brawl had he not been on a suppressant the effects of which were beginning to not mater as his hormone levels began to spike. He tried to relay emotionally what Kreed was asking but the only thing that was relayed was anger, frustration, and rage. “Sir, I don’t think,” he held his tongue his cheeks hot red and tears running down his face.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

Kreed moved to stand beside the young officer and, in a most un-Kreed- like movement, squatted next to Dovek. The large, pupil-less black eyes locked onto Dovek ‘s; and when the Doctor spoke to the Comms officer his voice was so low as to only be heard by Dovek. “Lieutenant, I do not know your history or your psychology. But right now we do not have the time or opportunity to delve into what weight you carry. We are in a most precarious and dangerous situation. The entity out there has already demonstrated the ability to cause us harm. It has also demonstrated the ability to communicate. And right now, that is the key to our survival. I cannot begin to know what this effort causes you to feel or think… so I would recommend doing as little of the latter as possible. There are over a hundred lives on this ship, and right now you are their best hope to make it through this encounter.” He stared at Dovek for a few long, silent moments. He then said “We are Star Fleet officers. Our entire purpose is to do what we can regardless of circumstance. And that is what you need to do now. Whatever you can… regardless of anything else.” He stood up slowly and turned, looking back at the scans and trying to get a clearer picture of what the entity was.

Zaril pulled all his control to answer the Lieutenant, he did not want to give the man charge to get him in trouble. Zaril would be filing a formal complaint once thing settled and the ship was safe. The man had been standing by his medical bed when he had released information about the tragic death of a close personal friend only months ago. He had wanted to put Zaril and suppressants and thread to if he could not control his emotions. “Aye Sir” he said replied calmly.
.
Chandel looked around the bridge, not sure now with what they should or shouldn’t do. She really wish a senior officer was here to guide them.

Ensign Chandel Sci

[O] “Security to Bridge, Dr Sovack is not answers his door, overriding stand by” [C] he said

Commander Thraz sh’Kellirathras,
Executive Officer, USS Sentinel

Chandel glanced over at Dovek as she wondered what new crisis was occurring.

Ensign Chandel Sci

Bump

Chandel glanced up as the XO contacted the bridge. “What should we do now? We have had two different recommendations, one to stand back and the other to help. I have no idea which to recommend, we really don’t have enough data either way yet.” She said looking around at the other bridge crew and addressed whoever could offer an opinion.

Ensign Chandel Sci

USS Sentinel — Main Bridge Summary (Maw of Chronos)

Upon arrival in Sagan’s Veil, the Sentinel encountered a massive, partially obscured structure embedded within the nebula. Sensor readings were inconsistent: the object appeared and vanished across different scans, behaving as though it were actively resisting observation.

The ship began experiencing a non-gravitational pull toward the structure. Helm attempts to evade revealed that space itself was being subtly altered; thrusters could not overcome the effect.

A distress signal was detected from within the Veil. Communications analysis by Lt. JG Zaril Dovek revealed the signal consisted of multiple overlapping frequencies and temporal layers, including childlike tones and fragmented phrases. The signal appeared reactive to the ship and crew rather than static.

Ensign Chandel’s sensor work determined the pulling force did not register as physical energy but instead resonated on brainwave-like frequencies, mirroring humanoid neural activity. Emotional states aboard the Sentinel directly influenced the strength and character of the interaction.

Chief Tactical Officer Ra’Ti electrically modulated the shields using a phaser feedback loop powered by auxiliary systems. This temporarily disrupted the tendrils reaching for the ship, granting limited maneuvering room. However, the nebula absorbed and reacted to the energy, suggesting it could learn from or adapt to such stimuli.

Dr. Kreed analyzed the neural signatures and identified multiple distinct consciousness patterns:
Several mirrored specific crew members, notably Commander Alden, Lieutenant Dovek, and Captain Asam (the latter as a fragmented distress imprint).
A large, non-humanoid distributed consciousness centered within the structure.
A faint, recurring neural “echo” with a 28-minute cycle, interpreted as a memory rather than a living mind.

Kreed hypothesized that the entity was lonely, and that the echo represented the loss of someone or something long gone. He intentionally elicited an emotional response from Zaril to test resonance.

Zaril’s grief triggered a measurable response from the nebula. The entity did not feed on the emotion but matched it, indicating empathy or recognition rather than predation. Zaril established rudimentary communication using frequency–emotion pairings (yes/no, sorrow, pain, anger). The entity successfully differentiated and responded to these emotional concepts.

The entity demonstrated understanding of sorrow and pain, but reacted cautiously to anger, suppressing its response rather than escalating.
The final confirmed exchange conveyed a composite emotional state from the entity: loneliness — sorrow and pain without anger.

Current Bridge Status

The Sentinel is no longer being actively pulled but remains held in a delicate equilibrium.
The entity is not hostile and appears to be learning emotional and communicative structure through Zaril.
First meaningful contact has been established — not through language, but through shared emotional states.
The crew understands they are dealing with a sentient, non-humanoid, distributed consciousness embedded within the Veil, capable of empathy and memory.

Cpt. Asam, CO

Kreed, CMO

Ra’Ti spoke through the open comms. [O] Well, we have a bit of a conundrum then. This… thing, whatever it is, is sentient and we are communicating with it. It’s already shown the capacity to learn, differentiate emotions, and empathy.” He then cursed under his breath, but the words carried through the comms. “It’s that classic logic problem. You got a door, two guards. One always lies, one always tells the truth. One says the door is trapped, one says it’s not. So who do you believe?”

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

Chandel shook her head, “I have no idea how to tell. I can think of no way to create a scientific test or program to try to figure that out.” She checked the sensors again to see if there were any changes.

Ensign Chandel Sci

While the bridge crew contemplated how to resolve the riddle, Chandel’s console unexpectedly chimed—sharp, insistent.

The sensors showed that the neural field was reorganizing.

Cpt. Asam, CO

The officer took to the hall and opened a channel. [o] security team to the bridge, Dr. Sovak, is in contact with a mind that is trying to take him or others over, he is ok for now, but said we may need to take action should he fail [c]

Commander Thraz sh’Kellirathras,
Executive Officer, USS Sentinel

[o] Commander, we have contradicting information. One from Engineering saying that we are in danger and need to stop and another psychically from the bridge offering friendship. We cannot tell if it is one minds or two. My sensors indicate a neural field reintegrating. What should we do?[c]

Ensign Chandel Sci

NE masterson blinked. [O] I’m not sure, the commander is unable to talk at the moment sir, Is there not someone on the bridge that can make that call. [C] Commander Thraz had his communicator on silent at the moment not wanting to distract the doctor.

Commander Thraz sh’Kellirathras,
Executive Officer, USS Sentinel

On the main viewer, Ra’Ti and the bridge crew watched, the calm spiral within the Veil tightened. The central light elongated, resolving into angular lines—structure, not haze. A vast ringed framework began to de-cloak itself, not by vanishing distortion but by phasing into coherence, as if the nebula were finally allowing it to be seen.

Cpt. Asam, CO

“Well there’s something you don’t see everyday…” Ra’Ti said softly. “What do you make of that?” he ask no one in particular.

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

OOC: Krystal has had to step down, so continuing with an NE.
IC:
Sensors flooded with returns. “Lt. Ra’Ti, Sensors read the structure is artificial. Enormous. Ancient. Power signatures are flickering deep within it—weak, intermittent, but undeniably active,” NL Franks reported.

Kreed watched for a moment and then set a taloned, three digit hand on Dovek ‘s shoulder. “Well done, Lieutenant… well done indeed.”

Kreed, CMO

Then the distress signal on Dovek’s console changed.

Dovek’s shoulder dipped away from his hand shrugging it away.

Dovek –

Gone was the childlike cadence. In its place came a clear, narrowband transmission—still fractured, still unstable, but now directional. The signal locked onto the Sentinel with intent.

Zaril’s algorithms decoded a partial phrase before the harmonics collapsed: “…still… here…”

At the same moment, Helm called out, voice tight. “Lieutenant —something’s forming ahead of us. A localized subspace aperture. Not large… but it’s stabilizing.”

The entity hadn’t ended the conversation. The aperture continued to form—perfectly aligned with the structure’s inner ring and the Sentinel’s forward arc.

Cpt. Asam, CO

That tactical analysis part of Xam’s brain kicked in. He stared at the screen, overlayed the power readings and last few hours of events, assessed and reassessed the conditions required for a successful engagement- both peaceful and violent, and projected damage and potential casualties for the ship and crew. In a matter of a few heartbeats his mind went through the possibilities several times… and it always came out the same.

He stood up and said “Red Alet.” and the claims began to sound through the ship. “Helm, all power to the engines, full reverse. Science, prepare warning buoys for launch. Folks, we are not the ship for this. Comms, contact Fleet Command. Inform them we have initiated containment protocols for this region and to immediately divert any and all traffic around the coordinates of that thing for at least 100 light years.” He tapped the arm of the command chair and opened a ship-wide comm channel. “All hands, this is the Chief Tactical Officer. We are vacating this position immediately. All hands prepare for evasive manuevers.” He sat down and looked at the helm officer. “Get us the hell out of here. NOW.“

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

As the Tactical Chief spoke, Kreed turned his head and looked at him. As the bridge crew began to act, he simply nodded in agreement.

Kreed, CMO

“I sir ” he said relaying the information to Fleet command , his inhibitor was staring to ware off he was glad but it meant he would need to keep his emotions in check, it was hard with kreed standing next to him, his unease was felt nearby.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

“Aye Sir,” the helmsman responded and initiated their course.

The red alert klaxons cut through the Veil like a blade. For half a second, nothing happened. Then the nebula reacted. The subspace aperture ahead of the Sentinel faltered—its edges rippling violently as the ship’s engines surged to full reverse. The structure’s inner ring flared with sudden light, not aggressive—but urgent.

Helm engaged. The stars streaked—and space bent–and nothing. “Engines responding, but we’re only making one-quarter thrust!” Helm called out.

The tendrils reached out for the Sentinel.

At comms and science:
Pattern E surged across Science’s display—massive theta waves spiking in amplitude. Pattern B (Zaril’s mirror) flared brightly in response, almost pleading.

Zaril’s console lit up with overlapping signals. Fleet Command acknowledgments began transmitting—but their replies distorted as they passed through the Veil. Long-range communications were degrading by the second.

Then the viewer changed. The structure fully resolved. An immense ringed station, ancient and fractured, suspended inside the nebula’s heart. Power flickered within it. And from its core, the aperture surged again—stronger. Opening toward them. One final narrowband transmission broke through the static:

“…don’t… go…” The pull increased.

Cpt. Asam, CO

“Sir, the entity does not want us to leave!” He said trying to get a sense of hostility or fear of being alone. “I’m not sure withdraw is wise” he noted as he continued to try and feel what what going on

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

When Zaril reached outward the contact was harder, like a punch in the gut.

He did not find anger or aggression. He found panic and hunger, but no the sharp devouring hunger he had felt days ago in Sickbay. This was deeper, older, emptier. It layered over the panic like a second pulse beneath the first—an ache that had lasted far longer than their presence in the Veil.

The vast Pattern E surged in long, overlapping theta waves, disorganized, and falling apart at the edges now. Pattern B—the mirror of Zaril’s own mind—spiked erratically, struggling to stabilize. The emotional overlay pressing against him was unmistakable:

Fear of abandonment.

On the science console, the distributed consciousness began fragmenting at its outer edges as the Sentinel pushed harder against the Veil’s resistance. “Lt. it’s not attacking— it’s destabilizing. The deeper we reverse, the more turbulent the neural lattice is becoming. Energy levels inside the structure are climbing incrementally. Dormant systems are stirring. It looks like the power nodes are in a start up sequence.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Ra’Ti watched as the ship tried to pull free, only for the entity to reach out a tendril and pop the warp bubble like a party balloon each time. After three such instances, he stood up and said “Keep going, everyone. If we get free, call me. I’ll be back in ten minutes. If you need me, I’ll be in the shuttle bay. Lt. Kreed, you have the conn.” Xam turned and walked to the door and stepped off the bridge.

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

Vertical eyelids blink once, then twice. The blinking was then followed by horizontal eyelids blinking once, and then twice. The chief medical officer looked around the bridge and looked at everyone as they looked back at him. Three talon fingered hands straightened his uniform by pulling down on his tunic, and he calmly walked to the captain’s chair and slowly took a seat. ” Continue all efforts to maneuver away from the entity.” Kreed said calmly.

Kreed, CMO

Zaril shook his head, “something is not right Sir” he said too kreed, “It’s like it’s pushing my own insecurities back at me, but not as empathy but as if it’s trying to convince me that that’s what it’s feeling too. ” he paused. “Only there is an undertone , small, almost not detectable, my by people feel everything not just the surface. It feels like a con, like maybe it’s baiting us”

Lieutenant Junior Grade Zaril Dovek
Communication Officer U.S.S Sentinel

The warp field flared again—and shattered. On the viewer, a translucent tendril brushed the Sentinel’s nacelle arc and the warp bubble collapsed in a spray of subspace distortion, dumping the ship back to impulse with a violent shudder. Structural integrity alarms flickered, then steadied. The nebula did not tighten its grip; it simply denied departure, each attempt met with precise, almost surgical interference. Inside the Veil, the ringed station brightened incrementally, power nodes stabilizing in sequence. Chandel’s board showed Pattern E oscillating wildly at the edges, while the deeper core rhythm—slow, cavernous—remained steady. The 28-minute echo spiked early this cycle.

When Zaril reached again, the emotional field shifted. The surface layer still radiated hunger and fear of abandonment—but beneath it, faint and razor-thin, ran a colder current: calculation. The mirroring of his insecurities sharpened, too exact now, too tailored, as if sampled and replayed with intent. Gamma activity flickered—not in panic, but in timing, coinciding with each warp collapse. Then a harmonic slid across his console, smoother than before: “…hungry…” followed by a softer undertone that did not match loneliness at all. It felt like patience.

The inter-ship comms buzzed to life. [O]Sickbay to Lt Kreed. Medical Emergency Code Blue. Repeat Code Blue, Lt Kreed to Sickbay. It’s Captain Asam.[C]

Cpt. Asam, CO

The doors to the bridge slid open and Lt. Ra’Ti walked back onto the beidge as the call from Medical came in. Xam’s face went pale as he heard the message from Sickbay, and he set a hand on the back of the closest station’s chair: that of Lt. Dovek. Even through the onslaught from the nebula, the comms officer would feel the panic and heartache the message caused in the Chief Tactical Officer. Ra’Ti ‘s hand squeezed the back of the chair hard and his jaw set. He looked at Kreed and said “Go. You’re relieved, Doc.” His voice was steady, and no one other than Dovek would sense the concern and fear of loss that he felt.

Kreed didn’t pause or acknowledge, he just moved to his feet with a surprising speed and was at the turbo lift doors in a few steps, disappearing as soon as they opened.

Ra’Ti moved to the command chair and took a seat. On the main view screen, an odd black mass moved away from the ship and towards the nebula. “Ok, everybody. This is either gonna work or we are about to have a very close encounter with that thing out there.” He looked at the helm and said “Full power to the engines, Warp 4., on my mark.” He then turned and looked at the Security officer Manning the Tactical station. “Target that package. Phasers only, full power. Do NOT fire until you see that tentacle thing reaching out to break the warp field again. But as soon as it reaches out and gets close to the target… you fire. Got it?” The ensign swallowed hard but nodded. “Got it, Lieutenant.” Xam nodded at the woman and then turned back to the Helm officer. “Ok, helm. Hit it.” and he took a deep breath and hoped.

Ra’Ti, Chief Tactical Officer

Kreed, CMO