ST:UNI210 | "Eye of the Storm"

Stardate 100639.8

An ominous storm threatens the very existence of the first planetary reclamation, and with it the future of the whole program.

---

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Back on the Saturn's bridge, the survey analysis is ongoing

Wu, "Well that at least rules out any seismic concerns. Nothing unforeseen from the new data"

Mariel "That's a good sign for resettlement. Nothing unusual in the gravimetric readings either. Moving on to meteorological data..."

Wu: "That is quite reassuring. I admit I had concerns over gravimetrics when we first saw that debris ring around the planet"

Mariel taps through the data she is looking at, "I'm seeing an electrical storm building up that wasn't there in the initial surveys. Looks like it's been...ionized?" she glances to Wu

Wu hrms and steps over to examine the data with her, "It is definitely an anomaly, but the readings are within acceptable operational limits still" he moves to another terminal behind them, "I will assign a sensor crew to active monitoring to ensure it doesn't grow in magnitude"

Mariel "It looks like the storm has been ionized by the debris field, since it's built up in the thermosphere. Guess you were right about the debris ring having effects on the planet, just not gravimetric ones."

Wu, "So it is not a naturally occurring phenomena? hrmm... this may warrant further investigation, cadet. A naturally occurring ion storm is nothing new, but if this is not then we can not assume to apply the same known variables"

Mariel nods, tapping away at the console some more, "I'll take a closer look. It is still more or less a standard electrical storm. Shouldn't make the planet uninhabitable or anything. Might knock down a few trees from time to time. The colonists might want to consider lightning rods if they build structures that are too high. The ionization is being drawn through electrical conduction, and right now the metallic parts of surface ruins are attracting most of the lightning...oh no."

Wu looks over

Mariel looks to Wu, "Commander, the ground base cleared all the rubble in the area. And most of their structures are metallic units. They thought the atmosphere was safe, so there's no environmental countermeasures set up."

Wu looks over to the engineering officer, "Confirm, the deployed units are not configured for this?"

The Engineering officer checks his console and nods, "Confirmed. They're just regular metallic hab units. No shielding of any kind. They've got a comm relay that towers above the regular structures. It's not designed to be a lightning rod, but it could draw some hits away from the other buildings. That means their comms'll be the first thing to go down, though..."

Wu: "Commander, we may have a situation"

Meghan glances back from her seat, "What've you found, Commander?"

Wu: "An anomalous storm front seems to be building near the ground site. It's an electrical storm, but is being ionized by the debris field and the deployed modules are not configured for these conditions which could mean a threat to those on the ground"

Meghan: "Comms. Can we raise the ground base?"

The comms officer starts tapping away, "The storm is already interfering with the sites transmission tower, but our shuttle is still down there apparently and it has broader spectrum coverage. Patching in the channel now"

Meghan leans forward, "Shuttle team. This is Commander Suren. Do you read me?"

Tyss: "Commander? Boy it's good to hear your voice, we were just starting to get worried down here. There's a big old storm front rolling in and when we tried to raise the fleet at the comm station we found it was out"

Meghan: "We're concerned about the storm too. The ground base isn't built to handle it. Is everyone still alright down there?"

Tyss: "Yes Commander, they were all just taking shelter in- wait, what do you mean they're not built to handle it?"

Meghan: "The structures are metallic, they'll just draw the lightning. The shuttle's shielding might protect you, but I don't think everyone down there will fit inside. You might need to seek alternative shelter."

Tyss: "Alright, let me speak to the ground crew and see what we can do"

Meghan: "Get them out of the buildings to start. They'll be at more risk inside than outside."

Tyss: "Understood Commander"

—

Tyss ends the comm with the Saturn and gets back up from the shuttles pilot seat

Kayleigh stands further back in the shuttle, "So, we can not fly everyone out because the shuttle is at risk if flown through the storm. We can not fit everyone inside it for shelter either. And now we can not use the existing modules for protection. Did I miss anything?"

Through the viewscreen behind Tyss, the storm can be seen looming straight overhead now, with angry sheets of red lightning flashing wildly above the clouds

Tyss: "No, that more or less sums it up. What about extending our shields? How much ground can we manage to cover by doing that?"

Kayleigh shakes her head, "I've been running calculations based on what we have interpolated about this storm, and anything beyond standard range would exponentially weaken the array if it is struck. Honestly, the calculations do not suggest overly optimistic odds of the shields being able to withstand more than 1 or 2 strikes anyway"

Tyss: "Then it doesn't sound like we have any option other than finding some kind of natural cover, like a cave or something. Anything on sensors?"

The Tellarite from earlier barks out a laugh from the shuttle door, "You'll be lucky! The bigwigs picked this spot because it's in the middle of open plains - plenty of room for building and landing pads"

Kayleigh turns with a perked brow, "I am not aware of any senior officers wearing toupee's, much less that being a defining feature"

The Tellarite grumbles, "One thing worse than a Vulcan; a naive young Vulcan! It's a figure of speech you pointy eared brainiac... damn, good thing you've already shown yourself useful or I might get annoyed with you already!" he pauses then laughs

Kayleigh takes a moment, "I... see, yes. Apologies, but I do not believe myself sufficiently competent in the art of argument to be able to reciprocate in kind. But I do appreciate the consideration"

Tyss chuckles, "Anyways I'd prefer not to stand around and just hope the lightning hits the buildings and not us. What if we use the shuttle's phasers to dig some kind of tunnel to take shelter in?"

The Tellarite rolls his eyes and turns to Tyss, "Not a bad idea if we had more time, but I don't think we can get far enough with it already on top of us"

Kayleigh squeezes out past the Tellarite while they talk and looks for inspiration outside. She peers up at the red lightning sheets above the clouds, and holds out her hand almost like testing for rain

Tyss follows Kayleigh out, glancing around, "Things aren't looking great...any ideas, Cadet? We could use that Vulcan ingenuity."

While he notices her holding her hand out, he would note the unusual manner she is doing so, as in not palm up as one would normally do when checking for rain in this manner

Kayleigh in fact holds her hand much more straight out in front of her, palm down, and rolls back the sleeve of her tunic

Kayleigh "It is as I thought. But was it intuition or something less tangible...?" she mutters to herself, trying to logic it out. Whatever 'it' is...

Tyss gives Kayleigh a curious look, "Cadet?"

Kayleigh maintains focus on her forearm, "I believe I know how we can do this. But frustratingly, the logic of it escapes me still. Look" she holds her arm towards him and on closer inspection he can see what she was actually looking at; the fine hairs on her arm all standing on end

Tyss: "Umm...what am I supposed to be looking at?"

Kayleigh lowers her arm and turns to him proper, "I assume from when you took the assignment as my mentor that you were given access to my files"

Tyss: "That's right. Wait, your psionic abilities. They're electricity based..."

Kayleigh nods, "Yes, and it seems-" she glances down to her arm as she rolls her sleeve back, "-that I can connect with this storm. I have no scientific basis for it, just my limited knowledge of this psionic ability and what my body is telling me now. And that is that I can serve as a conductor"

Tyss: "Like a living lightning rod?"

Kayleigh "Yes, exactly"

Tyss: "Is that...safe?"

The Tellarite looks between the two, "I'm not sure who's crazier here; the Vulcan who thinks she's a lightning rod, or the Andorian who's actually listening to her!"

Kayleigh "As I said, I do not have any scientific basis for this therefore I can present no data to confirm that it is safe. But- eugh, I can't believe I'm actually saying this - I /feel/ safe in doing it"

Kayleigh almost visibly shudders at using the dreaded 'f' word

Tyss: "I don't want to put you in potential danger. I /am/ responsible for you after all. But our options are a little short right now..."

Kayleigh "I prefer 'petite', but yes. And whilst I do acknowledge your position of responsibility for my safety, you also have a responsibility to recognize all of your available assets and use them to their fullest potential in order to complete your mission. Since there is no safer alternative, then logically I am in no greater danger either way. But if I do this, then the danger is reduced for everyone else. And as a wise man once said, the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few"

The Tellarite raises a finger in point and chimes in, "Or the one! See, even I know that one!"

Kayleigh doubletakes at the Tellarite, "Or that" she acknowledges, looking back to Tyss, "At least, that is what Professor Se'Lai teaches us about leadership at the academy. And it does seem logical"

Tyss: "And here I thought I was supposed to be teaching you about Command. But I guess you've got your Vulcan logic..."

Kayleigh "Well technically this one is the professor's Vulcan logic, but yes. The benefit of being fresh from classes is that the lessons are still in recent memory I suppose"

Tyss: "Well, I suppose it's worth a try. But I'm going to work on a way to safely grab you if things go wrong, just in case."

The Tellarite pinches the bridge of nose and grumbles some before speaking up, "So you're really doing this? Alright flyboy, so how are you going to do that? Transporters are dodgy enough here at the best of times"

Kayleigh "About that, I have already taken safety backups into consideration"

Tyss: "I was thinking a very long rubber hook, but I have a feeling her idea is a bit better."

Kayleigh "Actually Sir, it was your idea"

Tyss: "Oh. Well, I guess my idea is a good one, then!"

Kayleigh "I believe so" she looks to the larger main hab module where everyone is gathering to weather the storm, "If everybody takes shelter in there still as planned, you could move the shuttle on to the roof of the structure where I will be. From what I saw of your work in the hangar earlier, the shuttle systems can be remotely connected to through a hardwired diagnostics connection? Then that could be rooted down into the modules systems so that you can remotely monitor my condition through the shuttle and if needed, remotely activate it's shields which will be enough to encompass me"

The Tellarite thinks as he listens to her, stroking his chin, "There are system access ports up there meant for connecting sundry equipment. We could jury-rig a connection..."

Tyss: "A solid plan. I'll get the shuttle in position. Everyone back into the building!"

Kayleigh nods, "I will help get everyone into the building"

The Tellarite rushes off and starts shouting at people as well

—

After parking the shuttle into position, Tyss opens comms back to the Saturn to report on their situation and plan

Tyss sighs, "This is going to go down well..." and taps his combadge, "Shuttle to Saturn"

Captain Snow appears on his screen, "Saturn here. What's the situation down there, Lieutenant?"

Tyss: "Captain, we have a strategy to safeguard the ground team while the storm passes. Everything is being put into place now and we should be just about covered by the time it hits"

Snow: "Sounds promising. What's the plan?"

Tyss squirms a little, "Well... we're gathering everyone into one of the modules, and have found a way to temporarily implement a sort of lightning rod on the building which should make it serve a bit like a Farraday cage"

Snow: "A sort of lightning rod? Did you manage to improve something out of the supplies in the base, then?"

Tyss, "Not the supplies exactly, but yes. It's... well, the cadet, Sir"

Snow narrows his eyes, "What do you mean, it's the cadet?"

Tyss winces, "Exactly that, Captain. She's the lightning rod..."

Mari's voice sounds from somewhere out of view, "Captain, Cadet Kayleigh has electrical-based psionic abilities. Maybe they're using that to conduct the storm through her."

Meghan, seated next to Snow, smiles a little to herself at seeing the cadet take her earlier lessons to heart

Snow: "I can see the logic in that. But the Cadet's body is probably not used to channeling quite this level of electricity. Are you sure she can handle it?"

Tyss, "Not even a little, Captain. But... it is the only feasible possibility available to us, and she is confident in her abilities. There was a very... Vulcan thought process behind her proposal to me, and all said and done - I might not understand it, but it is the best option we have and I trust her own judgement in not being foolhardy"

Snow glances beside himself to Meghan, "You know more about psionics than anyone else here, Commander. What do you think about this plan?"

Meghan, "Honestly Sir? I'm mostly just curious to see this plan in action. I am not personally familiar with this cadet or the extent of her abilities, but if she is - as Cadet Tanglao says - electrical in nature, then it is certainly possible"

Snow nods, "I don't suppose there's any better alternatives?"

Tyss shakes his head, "Believe me Sir, we explored every option we could think of before she even dained to suggest this course"

Snow: "I thought as much. Well, I suppose the Cadet's going to be no safer if you don't do this, then. May as well give it a try."

Tyss smiles a little, "I believe that very sentiment was part of her annoyingly logical proposal. We'll do everything we can to safeguard her along with everyone else, Sir. Trust me, I have no intention of blemishing my lossless record, especially on a milk run like this"

Snow: "Glad to hear it. Good luck down there, Lieutenant."

Tyss, "Thank you Captain. We'll make contact as soon as the situation is clear"

—

With all the prep sorted, Tyss ducks into the hab module as the last one in, sealing the door behind him and taking a seat with the others at a makeshift control terminal the Tellarite has set up

Tellaraite, "Took you long enough, blueskin. Everything's all setup, got your shuttles computer interface rigged up to this unit here, and the shield bypass is routed directly to that control" he points to a big red 'do not push' button, "...don't ask, it's the only one we had lying around!"

Tyss: "Now I really want to know why you have a giant do not push button lying around..."

Tellarite, "It's for the control that unlocks the Klingon dishes to the replicators! Honestly..." he shakes his head, "I think there's more pressing matters right now" he motions to the screen which shows a feed from the shuttle where we can see Kayleigh kneeling meditatively on the roof

Tyss: "I really hope she can do this..."

Tellarite, "It's a bit late for doubt now"

They watch as Kay prepares..

Kayleigh slowly stands, having centered herself as best as she can and sensing the storms approach

Kayleigh looks skyward and reaches a hand straight up towards the angry storm

For a while, nothing happens. But then suddenly there is a flash on the camera feed. As it recovers, they see the red lightning striking down at her outstretched hand. But not directly making contact with her. Instead, it seems to flow around her in bubble-like effect similar to the barrier she subconsciously projected when the abilities first manifested

This light show continues for some time as the storm rages on, and it does reach a few points of heightened activity where she is struck multiple times in quick succession - almost like the storm is being drawn straight to her, rather than her simply absorbing any of it that struck to close to the building - and in these heavy hitting moments, she does look to falter and even gets staggered a couple of times. But she remains on her feet, and stretches her other hand up to help focus her efforts in response

Tyss watches closely, "She's really doing it...and we're not dead yet, so that's good."

It takes some time of fraught watching, but eventually the storm seems to pass by without Tyss having to use the shields to cut Kay off. They venture out to check on her

Tyss rushes up to Kayleigh, "Cadet! Are you alright?"

Kayleigh is now kneeling on one knee. She quickly throws up a hand, "Don't! I mean, yes... I am... alright, Sir. Just... please do not get too close"

Kayleigh stands with more stubborn resolve than anything and turns to him

Kayleigh 's uniform is charred and still smoldering in a few places, but more pertinently small streaks of red lightning dance across her flesh

Tyss steps back cautiously, "We should probably get you checked out. Once it's safe to bring you back into the shuttle for transport..."

Kayleigh "Agreed, Sir. Now I just need to figure out how to discharge this energy, a minor oversight that I put down to the expediency with which we needed to act. But there is a solution, if you would not mind, could you please ask the ship to send Kittiah down here"

Tyss: "Kittiah? Right..." He steps back into the shuttle to contact the ship

Kayleigh calls after him, "She is my companion. My fellow cadets will know of her and where she will be"

Tyss: "I'll be sure to let the Captain know if he's not aware!"

Kayleigh stands awkwardly with her arms slightly out from her sides, looking around and knowing that she pretty much can't do anything else or even move for now. Just stand there like an awkward scarecrow her skin tickles with the sizzling electricity...

—

A short while later, Mari and Meghan materialize in the base below the building, with Mari holding Kittiah in her arms. She gives a little wave up at Kayleigh

Kayleigh returns a tentative wave, overly conscious of any movement still

The two make their way into the building and appear on the roof a short while later

Mariel "You look pretty supercharged, Kay..."

Tyss and the Tellarite are up there as well, just sort of keeping Kay company really

Kayleigh "That... is actually rather an accurate description I believe"

Mariel sets Kit down, "So, anything special you need me to do with Kit, or?"

Kayleigh "No, I am more just hoping that she has as much a taste for this as she does my normal energy..."

Kayleigh looks to Kit and slowly kneels, extending a hand

Kit bounds over and gives a curious sniff

Kayleigh "Yes, you dolt it's still me. I am quite certain you can tell that much so stop playing around"

Kit yips in response

Kayleigh "I am quite aware of the difference which is why Mariel brought you here"

Seeing Kay converse with Kit as so many pet owners do, Meghan can easily see that this is far more of an actual two way conversation

Meghan watches, fascinated by the exchange and addressing Mari at her side while not taking her eyes from the spectacle, "So is this... normal?"

Mariel nods, "They do that a lot. And Kit seems to actually be able to understand her. I think it has something to do with the connection they have. It's like a kind of psionic bond, you've probably seen those before, right?"

Meghan nods, "And in other Vulcans at that, so it is no surprise I suppose. I have never witnessed it with a lower lifeform such as this... what is it exactly?"

Mariel "Oh she's much more than a pet. Apparently they're called Tiahs, it's a species that was found on a planet in this region by the Valley Forge. They're sentient, this one is still very young, though."

Meghan, "Truly? This warrants further investigation, it seems quite fascinating"

Kayleigh picks up on their conversation, "I am afraid I can not explain much of our connection, or how we communicate. I know that she understands me when I speak, I am somehow able to comprehend her meaning when she speaks to me, though it is more like a form of telepathic communication from her I think"

Meghan, "Perhaps, but please don't let me distract you from more pressing matters right now"

Kayleigh glances back and nods, turning again to Kit, "Alright then, are you quite certain now?"

Kit yips and bounds around excitedly

Kayleigh stands, "Very well" and extends her hand, hurling a psionic ball into the air which Kit promptly jumps after and noms on

Kayleigh "A promising test"

Kit hops around yipping at her

Mariel "Yes, and she seems to be able to absorb the electrical energy that Kayleigh produces. They certainly have an interesting connection."

Kayleigh "You want more, good because there is a lot more to come" she extends her hands and starts launching multiple balls of energy one of the after

Kit has the time of her life chasing them all down as quickly as she can

Meghan, "That is quite the understatement" she chuckles as they watch

Kayleigh meanwhile builds up confidence with Kit and discharges a much larger ball of energy crackling with the red lightning

Kit focuses sharply on it, hunkering back and wiggling her rear end ready to pounce

Mariel "I hope that isn't too much for her..."

But instead of pouncing, Kit extends her tails which then all arch forwards to release a projectile of her own psionic energy, which notably also crackles with the same red lightning effect. It impacts Kay's and the two cancel each other out

Kayleigh slowly exhales, looking down herself, "I believe that was the last of the absorbed energy"

Meghan, "The danger has passed?"

Kayleigh "As far as I can tell Commander, there was no danger to myself in this. Just to anyone getting too close as it was a lot of energy and my control over it was limited. But in that regard; yes, it has"

Meghan looks to Mari, "Well she certainly seems well enough, but since you're here and science has some crossover with medical why don't you take this opportunity to perform a cursory assessment"

Mariel "Good call, Commander," she takes out a tricorder and cautiously steps up to Kay. "Let's hope I don't get zapped..."

Kit skips over and yips up at Mari

Kayleigh "She says not to worry. And I concur, I no longer feel... supercharged, so any remaining energy is within my ability to control. Not that I feel an over abundance of energy at all right now"

Kayleigh does indeed seem rather exhausted

Mariel nods, opening the tricorder and starts running a scan on Kayleigh, "What about Kit? Is it safe to pet her?"

Kayleigh kneels down and picks her up, rewarding her with a fuss, "Very much so, yes"

Mariel "I wonder what she does with all that energy..."

Kayleigh "I have thought long on this too, but have no definitive answer. The most likely is that it serves as a form of sustenance for her"

Mariel smiles, "I guess she's just had a feast then!" She looks down to check the results of her scan

Mariel finds nothing untoward in her scans of Kay & Kit

Mariel "Looks like everything's normal. And I haven't been shocked yet. It should be safe to take her back to the Saturn."

Meghan nods, "Thank you Cadet, then let us return. The Captain will be eager for a full report" she looks to Tyss, "You should bring the shuttle back and then report for debriefing"

Tyss: "I'll fly her back safe now that the storm is gone, Commander." He heads back to the shuttle

Kayleigh back on the Saturn, Meghan and the cadets are already in with Snow when Tyss catches up and joins them

Snow:"Welcome back, Lieutenant."

Tyss: "Thank you, Captain. That was a lot more exciting than I expected from the routine cargo run," he nods to Kay. "Guess you were right, Cadet."

Kayleigh "Regrettably. It was one thing I would have been contentdly proved wrong in"

Tyss: "You and me both..."

Meghan, "I have just about done catching the Captain up on events from my side. Is there anything you wish to add from your side, Lieutenant?"

Tyss: "Just that the Cadet made a very good argument for risking her as a lightning rod. And we considered every alternative beforehand, but there wasn't a better solution we could use."

Snow nods, "You don't have to worry about getting into trouble for using the Cadet's abilities. I greenlit the decision too, remember? It was a good call. Risky, but what we do out here often has a high degree of risk. Otherwise we wouldn't need all this training and preparation these cadets are doing now."

Meghan nods, "And as I understand it, you ensured that adequate safety measures were put in place to further protect her in case things did get out of hand"

Snow:"Exactly," he looks to Kay. "And thank you for risking yourself out there to protect everyone else, Cadet."

Kayleigh "It was simply the most logical course of action, Captain. But I should add for the record that everyone else contributed and put themselves at some risk in helping make preparations too. The Lieutenant and ground crew all worked on that while the storm was imminent"

Snow:smiles, "As a good Starfleet crew should. You all did excellent work today, especially you two cadets. You'll make fine officers once you graduate."

Kayleigh "Thank you Captain"

Meghan, "But now, we still have the concern over this anomalous storm front and what it could mean for the repopulation efforts here"

Snow:"Yes, there's still a lot of work to be done. We're going to have to study these storms and adjust our plans for resettlement accordingly before we can proceed with things here."

Meghan, "That will come later though. Wu is still working on his initial analysis. For now, you three are dismissed"

Kayleigh nods, "Commander, Captain" and heads out with the others

Snow looks to Meghan, "I feel like Starfleet Academy is going to have to include courses to make use of psionics abilities going forward. If you ever consider a teaching job..."

Meghan smiles, "Trying to get rid of me already? But yes, at the very least I think there will need to be some degree of basic familiarization and comprehension teaching for everyone. Maybe with some night classes for the rest of us to keep up too" she chuckles

Snow chuckles, "Might be a good idea too."

—

After finishing their debriefing, the cadets head to a lounge to take stock

Mariel sits down with Kayleigh, "You alright after that lightning business? The scans say you're fine, but do you feel anything off?"

Kayleigh "I appreciate the concern, but you need not worry. It was... draining, yes. But once I have rested I believe I will be back to full strength"

Mariel "Just tired, nothing else?"

Kayleigh hiccups and cute little flicker of miniature red lightning comes out, "Well, maybe a little residual supercharge. But nothing I cannot handle"

Mariel chuckles, "As long as you don't zap anyone by accident! I am a little concerned about the storm though. Theoretically with the right environmental protection in place, it wouldn't be a threat to any modern city, our base just wasn't expecting it..."

Kayleigh "An understandable oversight given the circumstances. But then why the concern?"

Mariel "I don't know, there's something about the storm that just doesn't feel right to me. I think maybe the artificial nature of how it's being ionized by the debris field, which wasn't originally there."

Kayleigh hrms, "That does make it somewhat more of an unknown. I assume that is what the Commander was talking about with futher investigation"

Mariel nods, "I expect so. The debris field isn't naturally there, so the effects it can have could be unpredictable. Right now it doesn't look like anything too bad, but it's hard to say if there's something else in the equation we failed to factor in, you know? Having missed this storm already."

Kayleigh "When we were on the surface, I got to talking with one of the NCO's who was setting things up there. He told me how the civilization being resettled here is actually indigenous to this world. If we have questions about the planetary conditions, and the nature of this storm, it would be logical to first consult with them"

Mariel "Are the settlers...resettlers? I assume they're here with us right now?"

Kayleigh "On that, he was not clear. So I do not know. But I am certain the senior staff will take care of everything on that front. But if you want to make sure, you can always raise the point with the Commander during your next shift together"

Mariel "True. I'll ask if I don't find out from someone else before that! You might want to talk to the Commander sometime too, since she knows quite a bit about psionics."

Kayleigh "That would be prudent" she nods, "Although something tells me that conversation will result in more questions than answers"

Mariel chuckles, "That's certainly possible. And as knowledgeable as she is, she didn't seem familiar with the Tiah or your connection to Kit, so even she doesn't know /everything/."

Kayleigh "But she is clearly driven by her search for knowledge. I take it your day was largely filled with the same from her?"

Mariel "Yup! She was quite curious about my abilities, but she had some helpful suggestions too. What about your day with the pilot? Well, before the whole lightning stuff happened. I know piloting's not really your area of expertise or anything."

Kayleigh "He does seem a capable officer. But honestly I still have reservations as to if he actually has the experience to be mentoring in command as his own exposure is rather minimal"

Mariel "Maybe, but he is still an officer with plenty of field experience, so I'm sure you can pick up a thing or two from him! But I guess you come from a family where your parents are officers too, so maybe it's not quite as much of a learning experience."

Kayleigh "That much is certain, I am simply wondering how much of that will actually be relevant experience to me"

Mariel "It's a valid concern, but as we've seen today and plenty of times in the Heart too, it's hard to know what you might get into on a Starfleet mission. Who knows, maybe someday you'll end up on a planet and have to escape on a shuttle or something, and what you learn here could save your life."

Kayleigh "A valid point. All experience is good experience"

Mariel nods, "And I think he mentioned you'll still get bridge shifts too, right? Since that's a separate thing from accompanying our buddies."

Kayleigh "Correct, so I am sure you are correct in your assertion"

Mariel smiles, "Plenty of experience for you to get on this cruise then! And plenty of scientific studying for me too with this storm."

Kayleigh "And this is just the first stop still"

Mariel "And we've already run into an unexpected adventure! Just our luck," she chuckles

Kayleigh "I am not certain a little storm constitutes an adventure, expected or otherwise"

Mariel "Well your psionics there certainly does! Unexpected science phenomenon to study for me, adventure for you."

Kayleigh "I suppose you are right. Have you seen the others at all yet, do you know if they have faired well so far?"

Mariel "I talked to Kerafar, he's certainly in his element on this ship," she chuckles. "Not sure about everyone else though. I'm curious how Miklos and the Chief are getting on, myself."

Kayleigh "I suspect he may need to hear your words of wisdom more than I"

Mariel "Good point. Better hunt him down, then! You're completely sure everything will be alright with your lightning and stuff?"

Kayleigh "I assure you I will be quite fine. See, even the hiccups have stopped now"

Mariel "Maybe keep close to Kit tonight, juuuust in case."

Kayleigh "A sound strategy, I will endeavour to do so"

Mariel "I'll see if I can find Miklos then. Stay safe and don't zap anyone!"

Kayleigh "If you insist"

—

The following day, Snow gathers with his senior staff to review the situation on the planet

Snow:"So, we all know what happened yesterday by now. We should have the appropriate measures implemented to make sure ground teams won't be at that kind of risk again. But now that we can be up and running, there's still the question of /how/ we go ahead with everything. Commander Wu, have you learned anything new about the storm?"

Wu taps and brings up a display on main screen, "It is in fact quite curious, Captain. From what we can tell here, it does not seem to dissipate at all and is in fact self-perpetuating. It seems to essentially orbit the planet in the thermosphere following an equatorial path"

Snow:"Is it just gathering up enough electrical energy to sustain itself, or is it actively growing, with a risk of overrunning the whole planet eventually?"

Wu: "I'm afraid we don't have sufficient information to gauge that much yet"

Snow:"Do we know if there no sign of the storm in the preliminary surveys because they missed it, or was it not on our intel because the storm didn't exist back then?"

Meghan, "I've been back over the data from the long range probe that scanned the world initially. From the duration of it's pass of the planet, I'm afraid it is possible that the storm was simply out of view during that time"

Snow:"Which makes it impossible to tell if the storm could build up more, or if it's remained consistent this whole time. Normally, we'd station a science ship around orbit and keep observing the planet over a period of time. But we've already got the whole fleet here and a whole lot of preparation done to resettle the place. Any ideas on how we could learn more about this storm without spending several months observing it? And don't say time travel."

Meghan chuckles, "Well there goes my plan. What about the local species, couldn't we just ask them since I'm sure they would remember such a thing"

Snow nods, "That's certainly an option. We've got some representatives from the species with the fleet on board the USS Matsuo Basho and it might be worth paying them a visit. The problem is, as I understand it," he looks to Wu. "The storm's being affected by the debris field ring around the planet. A formation that obviously didn't exist before the Horde's destruction. Any information we can get about the planet's climate before the Horde arrived would be helpful, but it's also probably a little out of date."

Wu nods, "That much is certainly true. But still, even if it is only from third hand information passed down through generations of refugees, it might tell us more. At the very least, it could help us determine if the storm is a result of the debris field, or if the debris field formed around the storm"

Meghan, "There is another possibility, albeit a slim one, that we could explore"

Snow:"And that is?"

Meghan, "Cadet Tanglao's psionic ability"

Snow:"If she can see the past, it'll be like travelling back in time to watch the storm in the past, without actually having to time travel. It's worth looking into."

Meghan, "We should try to located a relatively safe equatorial ruin to focus on then. I think a region like that would be the most likely to let her trigger something"

Snow nods, "Sounds like we have some avenues to investigate going forward, then. Commander Wu, you'll be heading over to the Matsuo Basho to speak with the native species here. Have your department look into a way to dissipate the storm in the meantime, just in case it's not natural at all and we need it completely gone."

Wu nods, "We'll get right to work on it"

Snow looks to Meghan, "Commander Suren, accompany Cadet Tanglao to the surface and see if you can help her pick up on anything we can use."

Meghan nods, "As a precaution, I would like to take Cadet Kayleigh as well. Even if the storm is on the other side of the planet, there is no telling what sort of abandoned equipment might hold residual charge"

Snow:"Good idea. Be careful down there."

LT Tezzo chimes in, "I will arrange an additional security detail to accompany you down there Commander"

Meghan smiles, "Appreciate it"

—

Later that day, Mari & Kay are returning to their quarters having concluded another uneventful duty shift and maintained their traditional catch up afterwards

As they walk along, Mari's PADD beeps out a notification

Mariel takes out her PADD and checks

It's a notification informing her of a change to her duty shift, and to report to transporter room 3 for away mission assignment at 0800 the following morning

Mariel "Huh. Looks like I've been assigned to an away mission..."

Kayleigh "Some experience with the setting up of the ground operation perhaps?"

Mariel "Maybe, or firsthand data collection on the storm?"

Kayleigh "A possibility, although if it were the storm I would imagine a shuttle being deployed"

Before she can respond, Kay's PADD also beeps

Mariel glances over curiously

Kayleigh pulls it out to check and perks a brow, "Curious. I too have received an assignment to an away mission. Transporter room 3 at 0800?" she looks to Mari to confirm it's the same one

Mariel nods, "That's what I have, too. What would have us assigned to an away mission together? Maybe they heard about how we work together at the Academy? But what would the mission be..."

Kayleigh "I find that doubtful, if such a thing were a consideration it would have likely been applied to our base assignments. The most logical is still basic experience with the ground operation. Perhaps all of the cadets are being taken down for a tour"

Mariel "Could be. Guess we'll have to go there to see!"

Kayleigh nods, "I am still recovering my strength from the other day, so will be taking an evening of rest with Kit. I guess I will see you in the transporter room in the morning then"

Mariel "You definitely could use the rest. Sleep well and I'll see you there tomorrow!"

—

The next morning, both cadets arrive at the transporter room in quick succession. Meghan is already there of course, along with their security detail

Meghan smiles, "Good morning ladies. I hope you are ready for some fresh air"

Mariel looks around as she steps in, "Well I don't see any other cadets...guess this is something else then." She steps up to Meghan, "Reporting for duty, Commander. It's just us two cadets?"

Kayleigh joins her, equally curious

Meghan nods, "Just you two. Why did you think...? Oh I see, speculating about the nature of today's mission were we?"

Mariel chuckles, "Yeah...we were wondering why we got called for an away mission. Kayleigh thought it might be a special field experience thing for all the cadets."

Meghan looks to Kay, "A reasonable deduction, but sadly I don't think things are quite stable enough for that yet. Maybe once they are though" she winks

Kayleigh doesn't get the winking and seems more confused by it than anything

Meghan, "No, today's mission is a special one for you in fact Cadet" she addresses to Mari

Mariel "For me?" she looks to Kayleigh, "But Kay's the one with the lightning powers..."

Meghan, "And you are the one with the precognitive ones"

Kayleigh hrms, "You wish to use Cadet Tanglao's abilities on the surface then. An attempt to learn something of the past from this world? Historical curiosity? But that would not explain my presence"

Meghan, "Close. We are attempting to learn more about the storm. Commander Wu is consulting with the local representatives who came here with us. Before he does, I thought it would be a good opportunity to see Ms. Tanglao's abilities in action for myself"

Mariel "And...what exactly do you want me to try and see?"

Meghan, "My hope is to see some evidence of the storm being present here when the planet was populated, and if so if it is still of the same magnitude or not"

Kayleigh looks to Mari and back to Meghan, "That still does not explain my role here"

Meghan, "True, it does not. I requested your presence cadet, since we will be travelling to one of the larger ruined population centres along the storms path. It is not a risk of returning while we are there, but this was a reasonably advanced civilization before and so there could be all sorts of technology down there which may hold residual energy from the storms last pass"

Kayleigh thinks a moment and nods, "A logical precaution given my now proven capacity to tether that energy"

Meghan smiles, "High praise from a Vulcan! Alright girls, any questions before we head down there?"

Mariel "I'll try my best! You know my retrocognition usually triggers from moments of strongest emotion, and it superimposes visions around me so I don't often get the full background. I'm not sure how much use it would be for storm watching..."

Meghan, "Don't worry, we're not pinning the success of the mission on this or anything. Consider the goal to simply put your abilities to use in the field, we will most likely learn of things in detail elsewhere. As to what you see, well, if the storm was always as immense and unusual as it is now then there is every chance that it caused a lot of distress to people living in it's path. Maybe it was simply a way of life for them, or they have a natural immunity to it's unusual effects. But regardless, if it was present then it is entirely possible that you may see something related to it"

Mariel nods, "It's worth a try, and if nothing else, you'll probably still get to see my abilities in use."

Meghan smiles, "Which is why we're really here after all! And who knows, maybe not just yours"

Mariel "Maybe! Although I hope we won't have to use Kay as a lightning rod again," she chuckles

Kayleigh "As do I. Though I have a feeling it is my connection with Kit that is of greater interest anyway"

Mariel "Oh yeah, should we bring Kit? In case she needs to eat more lightning..."

Meghan, "That won't be necessary. And if it is, we can bring her down later again. I would rather focus on Ms. Kayleigh's electrical abilities for now as they are still quite unusual"

Kayleigh "They are?"

Meghan, "Well they seem it to me at least. I've met a few electromancers in my years, but I can't say I've ever known one to channel an ion storm... and then play catch with it"

Kayleigh "That was simply an amenable outlet for Kit to-"

Meghan raises a hand to cut her off and smiles, "I am teasing you cadet, the channeling of the storm is the key thing! I reviewed the visual records and you did more than act as a lightning rod there. The storms energy was drawn directly to you, and that is quite interesting"

Kayleigh "Well it is all very new to me still so I have no real context for what constitutes 'unusual' in this measure. I have no further questions though, Commander"

Mariel "Me neither, Commander."

Meghan steps up to the pad, "Alright then ladies, on me"

Mariel steps up to the pad as well

Kayleigh follows and takes her place, and the security detail join them as well

Operator, "Coordinates are set Commander"

Meghan, "Energize"

The team disappear...

—

... and reappear in the midst of a ruined city on the surface. The security detail quickly go about securing the area

Mariel looks around, taking a moment to take in their surroundings, "So, this ruin is in the path of the storm as it is today?"

Meghan nods, "Yes, the storm follows an equatorial orbit, but we don't have enough data to know if it always did, assuming it always existed"

Mariel "But now it's just constantly moving across the planet along the equator?"

Meghan, "Exactly, yes. From what we can tell it seems to be self-perpetuating, meaning it will never dissipate"

Kayleigh "Or never has"

Meghan smiles, "Indeed! That is what we hope to learn"

Mariel looks around again for a good spot before moving over to kneel down, "I'll see what I can, well, see..."

Meghan stays close to observe, "Let me know if I can assist at all"

Kayleigh meanwhile, explores the immediate area with the security detail

Mariel nods, "Will do, Commander." She sits and closes her eyes, focusing for the time being

Mariel opens her eyes after a few moments and starts looking around again, "I see...something." She stands, taking a few steps forward

Kayleigh turns back and joins them at hearing this

Meghan, "What can you see, Cadet? Try to focus on the details in your explanation, it should help strengthen your focus on the vision"

Mariel "Looks like a war. Modern times, I think. Lots of soldiers with phasers, or some other kind of directed energy weapon. And armoured vehicles firing some kind of energy mortar."

Kayleigh "The Horde invasion? That seems the most likely to leave an emotional scar on the landscape"

Mariel "No, I don't think it was the Horde invasion, at least not directly. Both sides are the native species. But if I remember right, most Horde invasions are preceded by civil wars. The Horde don't so much invade as they just come and take over. The actual fighting usually happens between the species itself, usually caused by people affected but not directly controlled by the Horde."

Kayleigh nods, "That's true, it could well be that conflict then"

Mariel "It's hard to tell if there is a storm with all this bombardment, though. I need to try and trigger a vision from a different time period. But if this is the one I'm getting, it probably has the strongest imprint like you said Kay. So I'm probably more likely to get more visions from around this time," she glances to Meghan. "Any tips on how to get something different?"

Meghan ponders, "A good question, and one I don't have a real answer to. We could investigate options from our previous discussion about catalysts. Maybe find something, or some place here that holds a deeper imprint of it's own. The challenge however would be finding such a thing without any prior knowledge here"

Mariel "Maybe we should've gotten an archaeology team instead of a security team," she chuckles

Meghan, "And if this more of a critical mission path then we would have. Remember, there is no pressure for results here"

Kayleigh "Perhaps if we explore within some of the ruins we might leads in salvageable data"

Meghan, "It's as good an idea as any right now. Alright, let's explore around and see what we happen across"

Mariel nods, "It's possible if we find something, it could trigger some memories connected to it, and open a window into a different era."

Meghan starts leading the way, just following her nose and seeing what they find

Mariel follows along, looking around as they go

As they search through the ruins, Kayleigh steps on something that crunches. Looking down, she notices that she has stepped on a piece of bone half-buried in the dirt...

Kayleigh kneels down to investigate, pulling out her tricorder

The tricorder picks up a partial match for the DNA of the bone, but it is not with the native species. Instead, it picks up a species Kayleigh isn't familiar with

Kayleigh "Commander, what do you make of this? I am not familiar with the species, and it is not native"

Meghan steps over, looking at the tricorder readings, "Me neither. It's only around a 40% DNA match though. Could just be getting confused."

Mariel "Or it's a Horde thrall. They're known to have a large amount of hybridization, and most of them aren't identifiable as any single species."

Meghan: "That might be likely given where we are."

Kayleigh stands, "An excellent point. I will have to study the nature of the variance to help identify Horde remains in the future as I am confident that we will come across more such sites"

Meghan: "You and me both. Might be good mandatory training to arrange for anyone likely to go on an away mission, now that I think of it."

Kayleigh "If we can figure out the exact signs to look for at least"

Mariel "Let me take a look," she kneels down and takes out her own tricorder, giving it a scan

Mariel gives the tricorders a few taps, "I think it's most likely a Horde thrall. The one species it's a closest match to is listed as endangered by the Horde in our databases."

Kayleigh "A logical deduction"

Mariel "I don't think Horde remains are going to be helpful for seeing whether there was a storm here, though. Let's keep looking."

Kayleigh nods and continues exploring

As they continue, Meghan leans over, picking up what looks like a dusty and damaged child's doll, "Try this, Cadet." She tosses it to Mari

Mariel catches the doll. She stands and focuses for a moment, then starts looking around again

Mariel "There's a crowd of people. Pushing, shoving, shouting. Armed soldiers keeping order. Someone trying to scale a wall gets stunned by one of their phasers."

Mariel starts walking about to get a better look

Kayleigh follows, keeping an eye out for hazards she might not see right now, "Sounds like the evacuation"

Mariel nods, "I think you're right, Kay. It looks like they're trying to get to shuttles. No sign of a storm, though."

Meghan: "At least we know our plan of using items to trigger visions is working. Look for things like what I just found, objects that are likely to hold some personal, sentimental value. These will have the strongest emotions attached to it and are most likely to bring on a vision."

Kayleigh starts looking around for anything she thinks might hold a strong emotional connection

Digging through the ruins, Kay finds a number of items, including tools, PADDs, old phasers, a medkit and even a physical photograph and book

Kayleigh considers suggesting the PADD like device, knowing how important hers is, but thinks better of it at the last moment

Meghan steps over to Kay, "What've you found, Cadet?"

Kayleigh "A number things Commander, though I don't think many of these are likely to be a fit for what we are looking for. Possibly this book or the photograph?"

Meghan: "Good thinking. The photograph is definitely personal, and knowing the level of technology the locals are at, a physical book like this probably has some sentimental value too."

Kayleigh turns and offers them to Mari, without the tossing, "Perhaps one of these will be worth your efforts"

Mariel "Nice finds, Kay!" She takes them, setting down the book and trying the photograph first

Mariel shakes her head after a moment, "No, that's just the war again."

Mariel picks up the book and tries again, "Is that...okay, I should not describe what I am seeing here...wait. That's a storm in the background!"

Kayleigh perks a brow, "You have already described some rather harrowing sights. What makes this one the exception?"

Kayleigh of course picks up on that first

Mariel "It's not quite...nevermind. The storm, it's a big dark stormcloud, but I'm not seeing the red lightning you absorbed that you were tossing to Kit. Just regular lightning here. Still a pretty intense storm, though."

Kayleigh hrms, "Could it just be an ordinary storm and not the same one then?"

Mariel "Maybe...no, I think it's the same storm. I'm seeing special shielding flicker when the lightning strikes in the city and...hang on..."

Mariel sets down the book and picks up the photograph again, "Right there. One of the mortar shots clips and knocks down what looks like a huge lightning rod...oh right, you can't see it."

Kayleigh "I will take your word for it. So it appears to be the same storm, but also different?" she looks to Meghan for insight

Meghan: "It's possible that the storm was a pre-existing phenomenon, but it was still altered by the effects of the Horde occupation and destruction."

Kayleigh "That could certainly explain why it was not flagged as a hazard of this level by the natives"

Mariel nods, "I remember from the scans, it was being ionized by the debris ring. I'm not sure if the ring was formed when the Horde took over or when they self-destructed, but it probably wasn't there before the Horde arrived. So the storm's definitely being affected by the impacts of the Horde takeover."

Kayleigh "If I am not mistaken now, this completes the criteria for our mission here"

Meghan: "Yes, we have what we came for. I do wish we could explore these ruins some more, but archaeology can wait. We have other priorities at the moment."

Mariel "If we have time after, I'd be happy to lend my abilities to an archaeological expedition!"

Kayleigh "I too would not object to further field trips"

Meghan: "Hopefully we'll have the opportunity for just that when we've decided what to do about the storm and our teams are proceeding with the resettlement efforts again. For now, let's get back to the Saturn and report our findings."

Kayleigh replaces the other items she had gathered and stands ready to beam out

Mariel stands ready as well while Meghan gathers the security personnel

Meghan taps her combadge once they are all assembled, "Commander Suren to Saturn. Away team is ready to transport back."

They all disappear into the transporter beam

—

After returning to the ship, Meghan and the Cadets head up to the bridge, where they approach Captain Snow's ready room to report to him

Meghan chimes the door

Snow:"Come in."

Meghan leads the way in with the cadets following

Meghan takes a seat, "Well, we're back from the surface"

Snow:"I take it since you came here and didn't just file a report or comm me, means you found something interesting on your trip?"

Meghan smiles, "Thanks to Cadet Tanglao's abilities, we were able to find evidence of the storm being present prior to the Horde conflict here"

Mariel  "But it was different, too?"

Snow:"Different? You're sure it was the same storm?"

Mariel nods, "Pretty sure. I also saw that the city back before it was ruined seemed to have some anti-storm countermeasures. So the locals must've been prepared for regular storms, suggesting we're looking at the same thing circling around the planet now. It's possible that they just had enough frequent high-intensity storms that they built specific protection against lightning strikes, but I think that would be quite a coincidence."

Meghan, "So it would seem that the storm was pre-existing, but just not in it's current ionized state"

Snow:"You can tell this from a vision?"

Mariel  "Well, I saw that the lightning was different. The lightning I saw was just regular lightning, not red like it is now. And I think it's most likely the ionization, since the debris ring wouldn't have existed today."

Snow nods, "A logical deduction. It's not solid scientific evidence, but it's better than what we have. But chances are Commander Wu wouldn't be getting scientific data from the locals either, so it's good to have something to corroborate with the accounts he receives from the locals. Speaking of which..."

Meghan, "News on that front already?"

Snow:"Not quite. Commander Wu wanted someone who saw the storm firsthand, since he figures the accounts he'll get will likely be more visual than data based. And we've got two cadets here, one who’s been in the storm as it is today and one who's seen it in the past."

Meghan smiles and looks to the pair, "Well ladies, it might not be that archaeological survey just yet. But seems like we've got another job for the two of you"

Mariel  "We'll be happy to help!"

Kayleigh nods, "Of course"

Snow:"He'll be heading out in a little over an hour. You'll just be visiting another Starfleet ship, so I hope it won't be too tiring."

Kayleigh "I do not foresee any issue there"

Mariel  "Me neither. We'll meet up with the Commander in an hour."

Snow:"Perfect. Dismissed, and good work, Cadets."

Kayleigh "Thank you Captain" she turns to head out

Mari turns and follows Kayleigh out as well

—

An hour later, Mari and Kayleigh heads to one of the transporters again, this time with Commander Wu awaiting them and no security detail

Wu: "There you are, cadets. Captain tells me you just came back from an away mission from the surface. We're not working you too hard, I hope?"

Kayleigh "I do not believe so, Sir. My function on the lst mission was not called in to play so there was no real exertion"

Wu: "Well, this'll probably be more intensive on the mind than the body. And that's something you can handle given your Vulcan heritage, I imagine."

Kayleigh "Indeed"

Wu looks to Mari, "And you saw a vision of the storm on the surface as it was in the past?"

Mariel nods, "That's right."

Wu: "Just the people I need, then. Come on." He steps onto the transporter pad

Kayleigh follows

Mariel follows onto the pad as well

Wu: "Energize."

The three disappear into transporter beams, materializing into the transporter room of another Starfleet ship. However, from this one room of the ship alone it is clear that the vessel they arrived on is quite different from the Saturn. The decor is less utilitarian than the Saturn's, more so resembling the comfortable exploration cruisers that Starfleet is most known for

A Bajoran LCDR in an Ops uniform stands to greet them, "Welcome to the Matsuo Basho. I'm Commander Ideer."

Wu: "Commander Wu, with Cadets Tanglao and Kayleigh."

Ideer: "Follow me to the lounge. The representatives of the indigenous species are waiting there."

LCDR Ideer leads the way out of the transporter room and into the rest of the ship, which features a similar interior design aesthetic

Kayleigh follows the Commanders

The group step out of a lift, arriving on a different deck just outside the lounge. Ideer leads the way in and as they enter, they can see that the lounge of the Matsuo Basho is much smaller than the Saturn's, but like the transporter room, seems decorated to be more welcoming and comfortable

Ideer gestures to the aliens sitting on some sofas on the edge of the lounge, "There they are."

Wu nods, "Thank you Commander. He steps over towards the locals

Wu: "Hello there. I'm Commander Wu from the Saturn."

The three aliens - rather typical Children species with ridged noses and ears - look to the group, with the middle one speaking, "I am Hishte, you are the ones we were told wished to speak about conditions on the planet?"

Wu: "That's right. Have you been informed about what the ground team ran into down there yet?"

Hishte, "We were told they had some difficulty in the face of Talys, but do not understand why"

Wu: "In the face of Talys? What's that?"

Another of the aliens speaks up, "Apologies. Talys is the name of our ancient mystical protector; he who carries the cycle of life and rebirth. At least, that is how it came to be known through our ancient history"

Hishte nods, "We now know of course that it is a perpetual storm which orbits our world"

Wu: "So Talys is what you call the storm now, due to your ancient traditions?"

Hishte, "Yes, exactly"

Wu: "And it's always orbited around the equator of your world, for as long as you can remember?"

Hishte, "For as long as our records tell!"

Mariel speaks up, "What about the lightning? It didn't use to be red, right?"

Hishte looks at her confused, "Red?" and looks to his colleagues, both of whom seem equally perplexed

Mariel "That's how it looked on the surface," she looks to Kayleigh. "She saw it firsthand."

Kayleigh nods, "The storm was unusually violent, and had sheets of red lightning streaking above the clouds. When the forks struck me, they too were red"

Hishte, "They- what? Struck you?"

Kayleigh "Yes, the ground operations base was ill-prepared for a storm of that nature and so I channeled it's energy away from the buildings"

Hishte looks to Wu, worried that they misunderstood or something got lost in translation

Wu: "Did your species have members who started developing psionic powers after the Horde was destroyed? Most Children species have at least a few by now."

Hishte, "Why yes, if you mean the strong empaths who have emerged"

Wu: "Exactly. Cadet Kayleigh here just developed more potent, electricity-based abilities that allowed her to safely channel the lightning."

Hishte turns wide eyes towards Kay, "Are you telling me you have touched Talys...?"

Mariel "Is that...special in some way?"

Kayleigh perks a brow, "Well, technically I suppose..."

Hishte: "Is it special? We may well know that it is simply a meteorological phenomena. But it is one that has been representative of our deity throughout history, as revered as it is feared and respected. None who have felt Talys' rage have ever lived. Ever! And by that of course, I mean any who have been struck by lightning strikes from the storm. If our people learned that someone did just that, well, I almost dare not think of the impact it might have. Especially now in this time of rebirth for our people. Many would see it as a sign of a miracle blessing a bright future for us. But I fear there to be plenty who would fear the omen of Talys' rage failing to strike someone down"

Kayleigh "Well this is unexpected..."

Mariel "Well, I think Talys' rage might be a bit stronger than before. Your stories and legends don't tell of the lightning being red, or have any data on it being ionized, do you?"

Hishte shakes his head, "No... nothing like that"

Mariel "I thought as much. So as far as you know, it's a large storm that orbits your planet along the equator and hits every once in a while?"

Hishte, "From a matter of perspective. The storm is continuous you see, so it is always hitting somewhere. It's orbit brings it around to the same location in fixed periods, that's how our calendar was formed in fact"

Wu: "So you formed your calender around the storm? I suppose it would've been very important in your ancient days for agriculture."

Hishte nods, "Yes, very much so. Our ancestors entire way of life evolved around it, which is why we still regard it so seriously now. But what does this ionization mean, and this red hue?"

Wu: "We're not entirely sure yet. It seems to be making the storm more dangerous. But don't worry, Starfleet's working on a way to bring things back to the way they used to be."

Mariel nods, "We're fairly sure about the cause of it. We just have to figure out how exactly to deal with it."

Hishte: "Oh? So what is causing it?"

Wu: "The debris ring in orbit is responsible for ionizing the storm. But like I said, we'll find a solution to bring Talys back to normal. Even if it means removing every last piece of debris, although preferably we'll find a simpler method. At least one to stabilize things until all the debris can be dealt with."

Hishte, "I see. Well, you do have the Channeller with you so I'm confident that you can do it!"

Mariel smirks and looks to Kayleigh, "The Channeller. I think I like that name."

Kayleigh "Well it is far from insulting. Still, I am not quite so certain that such blind faith should be placed on any one person's presence. It is far more conceivable that the fleet will determine a safe method for dispersing the ionizing debris as the Commander stated"

Mariel "Yeah, but I'm still going to call you the Channeler from time to time."

Kayleigh "I really wish you would refrain"

—

Once his party returned to the Saturn, Wu joined the senior staff for an update and planning session

Snow:"Welcome back, Commander Wu. I hope your trip to the Matsuo Basho was fruitful?"

Wu takes his seat, "I believe so Captain, yes. I am confident that we now have a firm picture of the situation here"

Snow:"And it all aligns with that vision Cadet Tanglao had on the surface?"

Wu nods, "It was as we theorized; these people have coexisted with the storm throughout their history, and their ancient ancestors once revered it as a deity - Talys. But they knew nothing of the ionization so we must conclude that to be a result of the debris' presence"

Snow:"So the storm was always here, but it's been altered by the debris into something more dangerous."

Wu, "Exactly, yes"

Snow:"Now the question is, from what we've seen so far, do we think these people can deal with this more dangerous storm if the Coalition provides them the appropriate technological support, or if we need to look at returning the storm to normal. Or a mixture of both- begin the resettlement process first, and slowly remove the debris from orbit as we go."

Meghan, "From what we saw on the surface, they seem to have the technological knowledge to be able to handle it"

Wu: "And despite it only presenting a threat around the equator, the more spiritual side of these people will almost certainly drive them to settle in it's path regardless of the danger"

Snow nods, "And with the proper precautions, we should be able to make sure they're protected from even the ionized storm, right?"

Wu: "In theory, yes. But as you know storms of this nature can be highly unpredictable. There could be unforeseen impacts of any failings in those precautionary measures"

Snow:"Is there any way we could stop the ionization without having to remove all the debris from orbit?"

Wu: "it is most likely being driven by elements of a certain nature. But it would require extensive study to isolate those, and may be no more time consuming than clearing the whole field"

Snow:"So clearing the field's definitely going to be on the long-term plans for this planet. We just have to determine how to settle them safely now. From what you've seen, do you think we could persuade them to settle away from the equator just for now, until we can make the storm safe?"

Wu shakes his head, "Highly doubtful. Even their representative I spoke with seemed to harbour a deep-seeded spiritual connection, despite constantly correcting himself with scientific terminology. That said, they are not an unreasonable people by any measure. Perhaps you would have more success in persuading them"

Snow:"I'll see what I can do. We don't want to delay the efforts until after the debris can be removed. Everything's already in place, not to mention we'll have to ask the locals to wait for quite a while longer. But I'm not comfortable letting them go in the path of the storm as it is now."

Meghan, "And such a delay would have repercusions back at the Heart where the refugees are currently residing"

Snow:"Exactly. Let me talk to the locals then and try and work out a compromise."

—

Following the debrief with his staff, Snow waits in his ready room for the representative to arrive for discussions

It is not long before his comm chimes

Snow taps his combadge, "Snow here."

Shavi - working with the comms officer on the bridge it seems, "Captain, the representatives are here to see you now. Should I send them in?"

He gets the sense that she is stifling a snicker, but has no context to question it

Snow gives a curious quirk of his brow but says nothing of it, "Go ahead."

Shavi, still fights back the snickers, "U-understood Sir!"

A moment later the door chimes and Hishte enters with his companions. Looking exactly as they did earlier, only now all three have bright pink hair...

—

Having seen through quite the eventful day in the end, Kay and Mari unwind in the lounge

Mariel "Well, that was certainly a more eventful first mission than what I expected. I suppose I should have expected it given our record so far..."

Kayleigh "You do seem to be quite the magnet for these circumstances"

Mariel "Says the one who attracted all the lightning..."

Kayleigh "Your influence must waring off on me" she sips her drink, totally not teasing. Nope

Mariel smirks, "Maybe. Hey, was that a..."

Kayleigh lowers her drink and turns with a perked brow and a deadpan expression, "A...?"

Mariel "Nevermind. You'll just deny it," she chuckles

Kayleigh takes another sip victoriously

Kayleigh "All said and done, there is no denying that we have once again found ourselves experiencing quite the unusual set of circumstances"

Mariel "As usual for us now..."

Kayleigh "It is not as if we hold any exclusivity to such things, just that one thing inevitably leads to another"

Mariel "I guess so. Like us being the ones to encounter the alternate universes first, which led us to being on the ship when another rift was opened. Also the whole psionics business."

Kayleigh "Exactly yes, and plenty of others have been involved at each juncture as well. Not to mention their own escapades, everybody knows that Miklos-"

Shavi and Miklos walk in, Shavi pausing and double takes, brinking a hand to her mouth in an exaggerated gasp, "Do my eyes decieve me? Could that be...? Oh Goddess, it /is/, it's the Channeler!"

Kayleigh groans

Mariel looks to Kayleigh, "I promise, I wasn't the one who told her that name..."

Kayleigh looks to Mari and back to Shavi, "Well she clearly got it from somewhere"

Shavi joins them, giggling to herself, "I'm guessing you two haven't seen those aliens who came over to speak with the Captain yet, right? Those ones you visited earlier with Commander Wu?"

Mariel "We've seen them, we were with Commander Wu on the visit."

Mariel looks to Kayleigh again, "It's clearly them she got it from, see?"

Shavi raises a finger, "Ahahah, but have you seen them since they came over here?"

Mariel gives Shavi a confused look, "No...why?"

Kayleigh "That much is evident" she nods to Mari, "And for what it is worth I did not doubt your integrity"

Shavi grins, leaning over and ruffling Kay's hair, "Because now they're all sporting a very distinct hue in their hair and won't stop going on about 'The Channeler'!"

Mariel looks to Kayleigh, then back to Shavi, "You don't mean..."

Shavi snickers, "Yep! All three now as pink as our Kay here!"

Mariel laughs, "So that's what you're so amused about!"

Kayleigh sighs, "It may have been an err in judgement letting slip to them that I interacted with that storm..."

Mariel "I'm sure if you didn't mention it, Commander Wu or I would've brought it up at some point in the discussion!"

Miklos joins them, bringing Shavi a drink and taking a seat at the table, "Yeah, who'd have thought? Revealing to a bunch of religious fanatics that you performed a miracle!"

Kayleigh "I still fail to see the relevance. It is not as if I did anything profound"

Cue flashback clip of Kay standing on the roof of the building mid-storm, arms outstretched as an endless torrent of red lightning streaked down from an angry sky at her

Mariel "Not in Vulcan traditions, maybe..."

Miklos, "Well, logical or not, these folks see it as kind of a big deal"

Mariel "At least they're warp capable, so it's not like you're breaking the Prime Directive or anything!"

Kayleigh hrms, "If nothing else then, at least you all seem to be finding plenty of entertainment in this situation"

Mariel "It /is/ pretty entertaining, I have to admit. Sorry Kay, but it looks like the Channeler name is gonna stick!"

Miklos grins, "Every cloud has it's silver lining after all!"

Shavi laughs, "Or rather, a red one!"

They all enjoy a good laugh at that