Coming Full Circle

Posted on Sun Oct 23rd, 2022 @ 9:33pm by Captain Shran dh'Klar & Lieutenant Ayana Hillis & Commander Jonathan Grayson & Lieutenant Commander Shoniara T’ghann-Travis Dr & Ensign T'Plana-hath & Lieutenant JG James Phoenix

Mission: Time Bandits

The Washington dashed across space at dizzying speeds, slowing for nothing. Shran sat on the bridge of his ship, concern evident on his face as they raced to their destination, a planet just inside the Neutral Zone.

"Coming up on the Neutral Zone" L'Rissa said from the conn.

"Continue in, full speed" Shran replied forcefully. "How long until we reach the planet?" he questioned.

"ETA 25 minutes" replied L'Rissa.

Shran hit his comm badge, =^=Jon, we'll be there in less than half an hour. Are you prepared to transport?"

=^=We're ready sir. Just waiting for the word.=^=

On the planet, the Romulans had begun the ancient ritual, though the ultimate goal was still unknown to anyone outside their own ranks. Shon, T'Plana, Lodzahl, and Tomalak were now locked into a group meld via the strange device, encircled by fire and incense.

As it was in ancient times, when we were one people, our emotions raw, and battles raged, so let we focus our minds on such again Tomalak said within the meld.

Shon’s mind was ordered for the first time in a long while. She knew that Lodzhal was dying yet felt, in essence that this was how it should be. She felt a sense of quiet like being in the eye of a storm and seeing the beauty of it. She felt sorry for Sela and Tomalak who were about to loose all they had fought for. The Duv Katra was also still in her mind but it was diminishing. She reached out to Seth but the meld was too strong and the ‘eye’ was passing out of reach. It would not be long now before the end.

"Very soon human, you will see something unlike anything you imagined possible" Sela said with a smugness about her.

"It is quite possible that you too will see something you have never imagined." Seth said with implacable certainty.

Sela scoffed. She was far more aware of what was to come than the human realized. Despite that, she kept a close eye on him and their surroundings. StarFleet had an annoying habit of showing up at the most inopportune times.

T’Plana-hath placed her hands on the strange device, by being forced by one of the Romulan Centurions. She Fought mentally to block her mind from the forced meld. Let me step in, I recognize and can deal with this replied the Duv katra. No, you just want to use me as a vessel for your Gu'gelik katra. The Duv katra just chuckled in her mind.

Lodzahl was aware of the ancient temple and its writings, she had even read about such ancient devices and knew that she would need to bid her time and strike at the right moment to attempt and disrupt the Rihansu. She knew instinctively that she would not be able to stop all of their plans, but she also knew she could and would be able to destroy the two most senior Rihansu; Tomalak and Sela. Neither had the mind or discipline to control the Duv katra’s, which she would let lose on them as she took the place of them in the ritual. The Duv katra’s would consume and overcome their katra’s and weaken them, allowing T’Plana-hath and her shipmates to overpower them. Meanwhile her own katra could turn the ritual over to a beneficial goal, not the perverted and power hungry goals of the Rihansu; a worthy death she thought to herself.

Shon’s mind reached for Lodzahl trying to communicate her thanks for all that she had done for her. She knew her body would once again be strong and her mind clear but she would no longer have Lodzahl’s ancient mind within hers. ‘goodbye’ she whispered.

Tomalak felt the surge of mental energy and slowly began to take hold as he entered the Vulcan minds. Lodzahl's mind was everything he expected, sharp, disciplined, and she seemed to be trying to wrangle the ancient katra. Shon and T;Plana's minds were strong, but he could feel where they had been reinforced, especially Shon who despite her discipline, had many holds on her control because of the foreign katra. Tomalak began to focus his energy towards the ancient katra, feeling its rage.

On the bridge of the Washington, Shran was sitting near the edge of his chair. "In range?"

"Not yet sir" L'Rissa replied.

"C'mon, c'mon" Shran grumbled.

"We are going as fast as possible sir. She'll fly apart if we push it any more" L'Rissa chimed back.

"Fly her apart then" Shran retorted, the stress of the situation obvious.

"Transporter range in 3 minutes" Celes said, trying to ease the tension.

In the transporter room, Jon, Phoenix and a security team of four officers waited on the pad. "Our priority is to get our people back safely. Put your phasers on heavy stun.. Move fast and quick."

"Romulans are typically fair shots, but they try to aim before firing often. Use that hesitation to your benefit" Ayana added.

Phoenix held up his phaser and switched back to heavy stun. Once he confirmed it was ready, he lowered it but kept it ready. He took in what Ayana said and accepted it. "Got it. So aim and fire first" he said out loud partly to himself.

Tomalak continued the ritual, having finally linked all of the minds together. Our minds are one. Remember the horrors of the past, the damage and loss it caused, your desire for revenge. Millions killed, loved ones lost, entire worlds destroyed, and we can avenge it all now. No longer are emotions denied, we share our memories, our pain, and from it we gain strength and clarity, from it we grow powerful.

Lodzhal drew deep on what was left of her psychic strength, in the very ancient tongue of Vulcan she sent out a subtle psychic message that could only be heard by the two Duv katra. ”Bes-tor k'fai nash-veh ni ik nash-veh lau kharik du tor ish-veh yeht nemut {Draw through me so that I may direct you to your true enemies}.” With this she projected an image of both Tomalak and Sela ”Aifa dahkuh istaya tor is-tor ish-veh katra's na' ish-veh ek'rasah design. Ish-veh orfik-kel vesh' responsible na' wuh vashaya t' ish-veh kahr, ik isha nem-tor ish-veh ha-tor fa' ish-veh wak {These two wish to use your katra's for their evil design. Their ancestors were responsible for the destruction of your city, which also took your lives before your time.}” Again she sent a mental image of Tomalak and Sela ”Ish-veh kashkau nam-tor kobat. Olau uf kobat heh wehk gad wuh veh ik tor leading wuh ho-rah tor. Au profanes nash t'kahr ho-rah. Tevan-tor uf kobat wuh veh ik zahal-tor ish-veh. She reeks t' restlessness heh vet. Taflau au. Overcome ish-veh kashkau heh subsume ish-veh katra's {Their minds are weak. Feel how feeble and week the one who is leading the ritual is. He profanes this ancient ritual. Fell how weak the one who follows him. She reeks of restlessness and doubt. Punish them. Overcome their minds and subsume their katra's.}” Lodzhal sent one last image of Tomalak and Sela ”Nash-veh dungi sacrifice t'nash-veh katra tor wuh ho-rah, ni du lau faikaik ish-veh kim-shah revenge. Gluvaya au wuh yeht lau t' wuh yeht Vuhlkansu {I will sacrifice my Katra to the ritual, so you may exact your final revenge. Show them the true might of a True Vulcan.}” With that’ she could sense the anger rising in the Duv katras, could sense the very hatred they had for Tomalak and Sela. Lodzhal waited for the right point in the ritual to strike.

T'Plana-hath felt an overwhelming anger coming from the Duv katra, then as if a supernova had went off in her mind she no longer felt the Duv katra. Her mind returned to a sea of tranquility. She no longer could feel another presence in her mind. She heard Tomalak drone on in a very pathetic attempt to keep a group mind meld together. She wondered if he even realized that even now her mind was free and she was only partially linked to the ritual. He was foolish to even attempt this ritual T’Plana-hath realized, his mind was not on par with a High Mind Master of Vulcan. His training was severely flawed. T’Plana-hath suddenly felt a bit of concern, if he was not adequately trained for this ritual, then what would truly happen? Curious, I wonder if my mind and those all involved will survive this pathetic fool’s hubris?” she wondered. All she could do was wait, perhaps Lodzhal had a trick to play.

Celes was giving details audibly as they dropped from warp. "Transporter range in 30 seconds. Scanning the planet. Detecting ruins of some sort. I am detecting Vulcan and Romulan signatures, but I can't differentiate between them at this time. I also read one human on the surface. Sending optimum transporter coordinates to the chief. Transporter range in 10 seconds."

In the transporter room, Jon could hear the bridge conversation. "Alright, stay frosty, do your jobs and let's bring our people home, safe and in one piece. Have your phasers ready." As Jon double checked his phaser, the oddest feeling came over him, like he didn't belong, and he was out of step with his surroundings. He tried to shake off the feeling, but it still nagged at him.

James looked over his phaser once more to make sure it was in the right setting and in working order. He got made sure he was in the correct position for transport. He noticed that Jon appeared to be feeling uneasy. However, there wasn't really any time to say anything about it just yet, as they were about to transport into what could be a hot zone for combat. James brushed his concerns aside and began to focus on the objective at hand.

Shon suddenly felt her mind flow freely as though, for a while it had been kept in a cage. She could feel Seth near her and she knew he felt no fear. She knew this little ritual the Romulans had planned so well for was not going to work and she knew that once they knew that their lives would be forfeit.

As Tomalak was now deep into the ritual, Sela was beginning to get twitchy. She knew it was only a matter of time before some sort of StarFleet intervention came up against them, likely from the Washington itself. They had gone with a plan of delaying the Washington rather than destroying the ship, a choice she didn't agree with, but the temporal mechanics dictated not messing with things that didn't have to be altered. A Vulcan was going to die here, and if she had a choice, more than one. She looked around the perimeter once again and then took a long moment to stare at Seth.

Seth met Sela's gaze unflinchingly. "Something on your mind Commander? You look uneasy. Could it be you know your time is almost up? That the Washington and her crew are going to stop your mad plan? Why don't you run away now while you can before you die or taken prisoner by the Washington crew. You know you want to leave." He looked at her feet, moving restlessly. "See? You have happy feet." He taunted her.

Sela smirked. "In no variation of the timeline do I get caught. I die 46.7% of the time, I am captured, 3.3% of the time, and we completely succeed and return to our time 50% of the time. The time to determine which is going to happen is fast approaching. You should be happy, your fate is soon to be realized as well. Of course, you don't survive in a vast majority of the timelines."

Seth shrugged his shoulders, "If I die and it stops your plans, I call that a win.''

Tomalak continued the ritual, well aware of the tricks Lodzahl was trying. Shon and T'Plana were only connected in the meld still ever so slightly, but this was as he had planned it. Lodzahl had done everything he had wanted her to do, forcing the ancient katra out of the others and now it tried to attack Tomalak to no avail. It was at this point in the ritual that Tomalak made it clear how powerful he actually was to Lodzahl, he was her equal in mental discipline, and while she knew certain secrets of the Vulcan mind, he knew secrets of the Romulan mind, and many of her secrets were known to him, even if she didn't realize it. He began to focus energy on the ancient katra, as he began to transform it into pure energy and focus that energy into the device. He also began to pull at Lodzahl's katra, the two in a mental mortal combat.

From the vantage point of those outside the ritual, the flames that encircled them went from orange to blue and white. The device began to glow an eerie black as it appeared like large particles were being sucked into it. Sela looked up at the sky and saw the star was nearly in alignment. She looked at Seth, "Very soon, destiny will be fulfilled."

Seth looked at the flames as they change color. Then as the device began to glow an eerie black. "I wouldn't be so sure about that Commander. You haven't won yet."

Just outside the ancient building the Washington away team materialized. Ayana quickly surveyed the area and not seeing anyone moved into the tactical lead. "Ready to go Commander."

Jon nodded to Ayana. "Let's do this, grab our people and get them back to the Washington. We do it quick and fast."

Ayana took point, with Jon and Phoenix behind her, and a pair of ensigns in the rear. They quickly made their way into the ancient temple, seeking out their people and ready to fight the Romulans.

James kept his eyes peeled on his surroundings, but maintained a focus in front of him. He wanted to ensure that he, or anyone else wasn't ambushed or missed something important.

The mental battle continued between Tomalak and Lodzahl. She was a formidable mind and as she had taken noticed of what was happening had begun to fight him. Neither seemed able to get an advantage.

Lodzhal smiled inwardly the fool actually thinks he is mastering the ritual, he is unaware their are two Duv katra in this mix as well as my own. She then sent out a message to the two Duv katra's, as she sensed a weakness open in Tomalak's mind; one a Duv katra could attack, she also sensed it was time for her to make her sacrifice, the crew of the Washington was close. "Wuh wak tor siyah neigh. Vokau wuh tan nash-veh providing du tor nem-tor ish-veh revenge" {The time is almost neigh. Remember the gift I am providing you to take your revenge.}

Ayana caught a glimpse of the area and stopped to signal Jon and the others. She began to slowly approach the area tactically, staying low as and behind cover as available. Only one visible entrance was in view, and the walls, while ancient like the rest of the ruins, looked quite thick and sturdy.

Jon stopped the instant he saw Ayana signal Phoenix and himself to stop. He could see Seth guarded by Sela and a few other Romulans. His eyes then shifted to where the other Washington crew members were along with Tomalak all standing inside a flaming circle. He was ready to act, take the Romulans by surprise and end their mad plan.

Doing the exact same, Phoenix crouched down slightly but kept a view of the Romulans and the Washington crewmembers. He was also ready to act. He was just waiting for Jon or Ayana's order.

Ayana took aim at the group of Romulans that were surrounding Seth. It wasn't clear what was going on with everyone inside the flaming circle, though it looked like some sort of strange mind meld, so the goal would be to deal with the Romulans not inside that flaming circle first, which would free Seth, and then deal with whatever was going on inside the circle. She nodded to Jon to signal she was ready to fire. It came in handy to have a marksman like her at times.

Tomalak continued his mental battle with Lodzahl, and he was beginning to win, siphoning her katra and converting it to energy as part of the ritual. But things were not going as smoothly as hoped, as Shon and T'Plana were now actively fighting him as well. The problem was that Tomalak was far more powerful than any of them had expected, and his conversion of the katras was draining the life from Lodzahl. The ancient katra was all but gone now, nearly completely converted as the artifact glowed deeply.

Lodzhal could now sense the time was upon her, "Tend to me now T'Plana-hath, tend to me Duv katra T'Kojo, tend to me Duv katra Onvan. I know thy names and I know thy desires. Kwul wuh Rihansu tomalak duv katra t'kojo, strikethe Rihansu sela duv katra onvan. Prah thy revenge fi' wuh Rihansu. T'plana-hath kharik nahp tor etek, tanilau thy karik'es tor etek u' etek shaht thy ho-rah" {Strike the Romulan Tomalak Duv katra T'Kojo, Strikethe Romulan Sela Duv katra Onvan. Get thy revenge on the Romulans. T'Plana-hath direct your thoughts to us, provide thy strength to us as we finish thy ritual.}

T'Plana-hath heard Lodzhal's call. She also felt both Duv katra's thoughts and images. for just a moment she felt pity for Tomalak and Sela; the Duv katra's where full of hatred toward the two Romulans. She pushed aside the feeling and began pushing her strength and thoughts of revenge to the Duv katra's and Lodzhal.

The plan was simple; Ayana would fire first, downing a Romulan, and the others would then follow suit, hopefully getting several before they could return fire. It was a bit haphazard, but that was the only option they had. The element of surprise was all they had at this point. Ayana took one last deep breath, and then she fired, hitting a centurion.

The centurion fell in front of Sela. Phaser fire rang out as two more centurions fell, while additional phaser fire streamed across. Sela knew this was the moment of truth. She fired her disruptor, hitting Seth in his leg and dropping him, blood gushing. "Hold them off. This is about to finish." The other centurions began firing towards Jon and the others almost erratically.

Tomalak felt the presence of the second ancient katra. You wish to kill me, to take revenge. She has sent you to seek revenge. That is expected. Come, take your revenge. For the glory of Romulus.

As the fire fight continued, the star came to its apex in the sky and the black light from the artifact pulsed before firing a blast directly at the star. As the energy blast left the artifact, Shon, T'Plana, and Lodzahl fell to the ground, though only two of them were still alive. Tomalak began to shake and shutter, his skin becoming ashy and his hair growing long and white. Suddenly he began to fade away like a deactivating hologram.

Several of the Romulans lay on the ground, Sela still firing. Suddenly the flame circle evaporated as if the flame lost all fuel and air, and Sela looked to Seth, "We win. For the glory of Romulus." Suddenly she began to fade away, as did the other Romulans.

"What the hell?" Ayana mused aloud.

Phoenix's eyes were wide at the scene. Gone. Just like that. Could it have been a transporter signature? James whipped out his tricorder from his utility belt and began scanning for a transport signature or anything.

Jon looked at Seth who was looking at Shon and the other Vulcans. "What did we just see?"

A message came through the comm, =^=Shran to Jon. Tell me you have our people. We need to get you all up here now. Some strange energy blast came from the planet and hit the star and we have a supernova imminent. =^=

=^= We have them sir, all safe. Beam all of us aboard, so we can leave this place.=^=

Ayana raced towards Seth, seeing the blood. He was growing quite pale from the blood loss. She ripped a sleeve from her uniform and tied around his leg above the wound to act as a tourniquet. She looked back at Jon, "Seth is severely injured. He needs immediate medical attention."

The other two ensigns went to check on Shon, T'Plana, and Lodzahl. Ensign Byers checked on Shon, "Dr. Travis has no visible injuries, but she is unconscious" he yelled out.

The other ensign, a Vulcan female, checked on T'Plana first. She checked her and though she saw no injuries, she sensed something. She placed her hand on T'Plana's face and then looked to Jon, "Ensign T'Plana has suffered severe mental trauma. She will require medical attention." The Vulcan then moved to Lodzahl. She looked and felt for life signs but found none. She pulled out a tricorder to scan, and again got the same information. "I must report that High Priestess Lodzahl is dead." As she completed her report, before anyone could say anything, everyone dematerialized in a blue hue.