Snip
Once his work has been determined by that protocol, the 21 year old officer stepped back from helm to catch a breather of his own. Perhaps get a glass of water and sit down to clear his own mind from all noises which had once proven to be overwhelming. He was used to work under pressure after having spent three years working as a pilot in training for the Merrimack. The mentor before him had stepped aside and let the young Canidin step up.

“Do it.” Rynak spoke before turning to the ensign with a slight nod of his head, pelt shaken to the side hoping the tight muscles around his shoulders and back would eventually loosen due to the tension while they had remained hard at work. He wasn’t too sure what other input he could provide necessarily beside geographical coordinates.

But there was one advantage to the young helmsman’s training. His sense of direction and a nose that had never betrayed him before. ch’Sorel came back around the helm before eventually sitting down on his chair, tail tightly curled around his body. In a way childish but it had become a source for comfort for the Canidin.

Lieutenant JG. Rynak ch’Sorel
Helm Officer
U.S.S. Merrimack - NCC-2346 (Mariner Class)

The coordinated analysis continued across the Merrimack as each department attacked the harmonic network from a different direction.

In Engineering, Ensign Talia Mercer completed the independent calibration requested by the bridge. She ran the incoming harmonic data through secondary sensor channels before comparing it against diagnostic readings from the ship’s power distribution, impulse systems, warp machinery, hull structure, and communications equipment.

=^= Engineering to Bridge. Calibration complete. We’re detecting minor resonance through the hull and sensor housings, but nothing sufficient to account for the harmonic patterns you’re receiving. More importantly, the same relationships remain when we compensate for Merrimack-generated interference. Whatever we’re detecting is external to the ship. =^=

At Science, Ensign Mara Venn incorporated Engineering’s corrections into the developing model. The seven identified nodes remained intact, as did the pathways connecting them.

=^= Venn to Bridge. Engineering’s calibration actually strengthens our confidence in the model. The nodes aren’t sensor ghosts, and the intersections Lieutenant ch’Sorel identified remain consistent after compensation. =^=

Ward leaned closer to her Communications console as MAJEL reapplied the linguistic analysis. “Interesting.”

Several of the sequences associated with individual nodes repeated, but their arrangement changed depending upon which pathways intersected.

“These aren’t seven transmitters broadcasting the same message,” Ward said. “Each node appears to contribute something different. When their harmonics overlap, the combined pattern becomes more complex.”

She instructed MAJEL to isolate several intersections before opening the departmental channel.

=^= Ward to Science and Engineering. I’m beginning to think we’re listening to pieces of a conversation rather than individual transmissions. Science, identify which intersections produce the greatest increase in harmonic complexity. Engineering, keep monitoring for any physical changes aboard Merrimack when those intersections occur. =^=

MAJEL continued plotting the growing web across the main viewer. Seven nodes remained visible, connected by pathways that stretched well beyond Vey’lan and into the surrounding region.

Whatever the Shiarians had created—or learned to communicate through—was not confined to the crystalline city.

The Merrimack was beginning to see the edges of a much larger network.

Seeing just how far, beyond Merrimack’s sensors were able to track those soundwaves had surprised the 21 year old Canidin. In order to investigate further, rather than remaining confined to that docking port in which they had landed would require permission from their captain to launch a shuttle. Some of that information would need fieldwork research before all pieces to the puzzle could be assembled. There were layers to this song, each of them correlated to a different message. Some of them flashing red and blue, while some others wore the command division. Dressed in gold the same way he was. Engineering, Operations, Science and Command had come together in order to solve an ancient mystery.

“Perhaps if we were to launch one of the shuttles, more detailed scans could provide precise information for MAJEL’s algorithm to understand.” Rynak interjected through all three ensigns talking through internal communication channels. His head tilted toward one side while looking at the screen, just like an onion the complicity layers were certainly there. But there was something that all of them had failed to see. Perhaps communicating with those who stood on the planetside could provide further clues in understanding what this harmonic network was trying to show them. The canidin remained certainly lost on what route to take next, finally standing up and heading towards the back of the bridge where the communication bay was mounted on the wall. =/\= “Captain, this is the bridge.” =/\= he stated. =/\= “We require assistance with a set of localized harmonics near Merrimack’s docking bay.” =/\=_

White claws tapped against the bulkhead for a couple instances, keeping his eyes glued on one of the screens from which he could barely read any data. His tail flicking from one side to the other, attempting to maintain his composure while waiting for a response that could bring any new evidence to the table. He had been the only member who had made the decision to remain behind and monitor shipwide functions. Given his rank as a junior officer, there were multiple pieces from the vessel’s database which Rynak could not access. Providing them with limited decoding algorithms. For many, one could say Canidins matured so much slower than other Federation allied humanoid species. Making his patience appear to be that from an early teenager.

Lieutenant JG. Rynak ch’Sorel
Helm Officer
U.S.S. Merrimack - NCC-2346 (Mariner Class)

=/\= Captain Glen here=/\= Glen answered. =/\= Sorry, but what do you mean by localised harmonics near the docking bay? is the ship’s physical structure vibrating or the are our shields vibrating? Are they out of sync with the Vey’lan’s structural force fields perhaps? Or, is the Warp engine field causing it? =/\=

=/\= Can we power down whatever is the cause? We’ve had a discussion with the Shiarians here and they have no control over the Vey’lan. It does pretty much whatever it likes! However, it allowed us to come here, and didn’t harm us when it could have. =/\=

The canid looking individual’s brow furrowed in confusion at the words which came through ceiling speakers. He turned towards both ensigns currently present on the bridge alongside him. Rynak stuttered to find the right word choice in order to explain the complex procedure running through his mind as some sort of black and white, earthen movie.

A white paw was about to reach for the panel before lowering back down to his side. Hoping whether their communications specialist or science officer would be able to provide some insight regarding the situation. =/\=“We had considered some field work to be performed planetside in order to understand where Merrimack’s sensors won’t reach. The network appears to have an extension running beyond this planet.” =/\= He wasn’t entirely certain whether their words that come out from his mouth were in fact true, but he’d at least need to give it a try.

Lieutenant JG. Rynak ch’Sorel
Helm Officer
U.S.S. Merrimack - NCC-2346 (Mariner Class)

=/\= Sorry, but I meant to power down the shields or the warp reactor to some lower level, not to go out and find the crystal network off-switch, but that’s useful to know that it stretches beyond our sensor range. We suspect that it may be interconnected across the whole of the Expanse. If it isn’t doing any harm, I suggest you just monitor it and wait and see. Keep us updated. Glen Out! =/\=

Glen, CO

For a minute, his ears had lowered in disappointment from not being allowed to disembark. Rynak let go of the button just as soon as he had gotten there before directing his attention towards the ensigns. While the Canidin didn’t expect an answer from either of them, now was a good time to step off the bridge and clear his head from all the ongoing commotion. There was a sole flick from his tail, walking towards the turbolift closest to him. Both doors slid open, there wasn’t much left for him to do rather than supervise data through a smaller sized PADD. He had hoped someone would interrupt him from walking away, but perhaps a couple of hours in the crew lounge would allow his mind to eventually clear.

“So much for proving useful on the command track.” A white furred digit reached for one of the buttons as the doors closed before him. By now the only presence happened to be Lt. JG. ch’Sorel alone with his thoughts and a small PADD being carried on his opposing hand. The silence surrounding him by then had become deafening, as though through some miracle, the 21 year old hadn’t come up with some crazy ideas to investigate their current mystery any further. But that gold colored uniform had started to weigh down on the young Canidin rather than providing reassurance. He was the first of his kind to be known to the Federation itself. Yet, Rynak’s origin remained unknown.

Once he walked out from that small space, bright lights had scattered beyond what his eye could see through one of the viewports extending past that hallway on one of the lower decks. ch’Sorel had been headed for the crew lounge, but it had been the sights which had grabbed his attention. He was about to lift the PADD in order to review bridge readings, but there was more than actually met the eye beyond those Aurora Borealis looking streaks of crimson light extending past some rocky hills.

Lieutenant JG. Rynak ch’Sorel
Helm Officer
U.S.S. Merrimack - NCC-2346 (Mariner Class)

The corridor remained relatively quiet as the Merrimack continued its station near Vey’lan. Beyond the viewport, the strange crimson illumination stretched across the landscape below, shifting almost imperceptibly against the distant rocky formations.

Lt. ch’Sorel remained standing in the silence, white paws being held behind his back the same way a soldier guarding some monarch’s palace would, the only difference being that one of his paws was holding a silver colored device with a large screen. Only a soft breath interrupted the quiet of a spinning mind trying to understand a mystery beyond their comprehension. But the curiosity of a young, Starfleet officer learning to understand the universe still remained, even if he had never met another individual of his kind. An ear flicking to the side as the sound of footsteps interrupted whatever solitude moment the helmsman had been living.

Rynak was not, however, the only person observing it. Several meters farther along the corridor stood one of the Shiarian officers who had remained aboard the Merrimack while the Starfleet delegation descended to Vey’lan. Vreth’kan Taruun had identified him earlier as Sareth Vel, one of the vessel’s harmonic specialists. Unlike the Over-Captain and Weapons Master, Vel’s role appeared to concern the interpretation and maintenance of the complex harmonic systems upon which Shiarian technology depended.

Rynak skipped a step the moment someone showed up from behind, black and white fur standing on end just like a terrified kitten. Brown and blue eyes had grown slightly wide after being startled by whom he could only assume were a Shirian delegation. Straightening his posture, that fur began to settle on his neck. It was clear that his attempts at remaining professional were about to fall out miserably. The canine looking individual somehow was still lost in thought trying to understand how harmonics could be proven to have a power source upon which almost the entirety of the planet relied. Instead he just nodded in recognition.

The Shiarian turned his head toward the approaching Canidin. For several seconds, Vel said nothing. His attention moved from Rynak to the PADD in his hand, then toward the gold uniform he wore. =/= You are the one who listens. =/=

The Universal Translator rendered the words only after the harmonic undertones accompanying them had faded.

Once MAJEL concluded the translation, that harmonics field surrounding the ship had grown much stronger. Almost as though the officers themselves were somehow tied to the situation which he and three other ensigns had been struggling to understand for so long. The 21 year old finally seemed to fully acknowledge Vel’s presence beside him. Shock was immediate, but the officer dressed in gold happened to perfectly capture a mask that perfectly resembled a Vulcan. “It’s part of my duty to help the crew understand how this power source came to be.” His words remaining dry, almost voided from emotion. This was unlike him at all.

Vel gestured toward the viewport. =/= On your bridge, you listened to Vey’lan when others searched only for what they expected to find. You recognized that its harmonics extended beyond the city. =/=

Turning his head back at the transparent aluminum, thoughts about his childhood friends…his family had fronted clearly enough for Rynak’s jawline to tighten. Crimson patterns illuminated both mismatched eyes at the pace a heartbeat would run, a sound too familiar to the officer who had once been a young pup found buried in the snow from an unknown crash site. He had been the only survivor without any bodies found amongst the craft’s debris field. Those words circled his brain a few times, making the Canidin open his mouth to reply, but nothing came before Rynak’s jaw closed shut.

The Shiarian stepped closer to the transparent aluminum, watching the crimson patterns beyond the ship.

=/= Among my people, one who perceives the shape of something before understanding its meaning would not be considered useless. =/= There was another subtle harmonic vibration beneath his next words, one that MAJEL required an additional moment to translate. =/= Your people place great importance upon knowing where they came from. Family. World. Species. History. =/=

Dagger shaped teeth began gritting against each other before the shivering on that white muzzle began to show. Butterfly shaped ears pinned against the back of his skull. A white tipped tail was held still, vertebrae inside tense. There was some instinct screaming at him to just end the situation. Canidins had evolved through human experimentation on domestic dogs a couple of centuries before they were able to achieve an upright posture or the ability of Federation Standard speech. His grip on the PADD tightening. If he were human, his knuckles would’ve turned white already. “Those people are gone, a long time ago.” He finally spoke, his voice still flat despite it’s high pitch.

Vel’s attention returned to the Canidin. =/= Yet you do not know these things about yourself. =/=

It was not spoken as an accusation. To the Shiarian, it appeared simply to be an observation.

The canid’s ears seemed to flatten even further once the observation was made, attempting to walk away from the topic that somehow seemed to bother him more than the Sharians themselves. “I was raised by loving parents. There isn’t some kind of mystery to be solved.” he shot Vel some kind of glare, but held himself back from actually snapping at their hosts. ‘Bold of them to assume they know anything about my life, people or story. They’re truly gone.’

=/= Perhaps that is why you hear patterns others overlook. You have spent your life searching for an origin. =/= Vel indicated the PADD. =/= Tell me, Rynak ch’Sorel. When you were listening to Vey’lan… were you attempting to understand it? =/=

The Shiarian paused.

=/= Or were you hoping that, somewhere within its song, something might finally understand you? =/=

He began backing up when the final question hit the air through Merrimack’s speakers, but the questions had begun to cloud his judgement. Rynak dropped himself to the floor with both knees drawn up to his chest, tail curled around his boots with a shepherd’s lantern covering that black leather. His muzzle was buried underneath, without enough clarity to answer that pair of questions being asked. If only there was a way to reach his homeworld, his parents-

GM Nosferatu
Your Darkest Nightmare

OOC: When there is a conversation like this, feel free to post in between any of the statements or questions about your characters response:)

GM Nosferatu

Rynak’s voice claim

Lieutenant JG. Rynak ch’Sorel
Helm Officer
U.S.S. Merrimack - NCC-2346 (Mariner Class)