Tripping The Rift

Bridge -  ===< Area Level: 1 >==============================================< Indoors >=== The bridge is arranged to permit operation by a single person, but additional stations are available to delegate ship's functions if needed. A main operations console is situated underneath the forward window, with a single seat. On either side of the primary console are two secondary consoles, each with a universal design so that they can accept operations transferred to them from the primary console. Each is equipped with a single seat. Behind the forward section, the bridge is arranged to be comfortable for those who are not involved with flying the ship. A pair of comfortably padded couches line the walls, and the floor has a rectangular area that can raise up to provide a small table if needed. The aft hatchway is situated on the rear wall, between a pair of light fixtures that provide soft lighting for the sitting area. Sam Gideon, Marina, and Alexandra are here. There is also a Navcomp, some Viewscreen - Tharsis, some Engineering - Tharsis and some Helm - Tharsis here. Obvious Exits: Out  ==============================================================< ISS Tharsis >===

Tharsis' console screens are lit up with several diagrams and charts as he crunches data from the past few days. "Almost there... I just need to resolve this waver pattern.." he voice says from the intercom speaker.

Alexandra looks up from the screen she's looking at, nodding. "Hopefully what I was able to do last night helped a bit," she offers. "I'm no computer... but I'm close." She chuckles at that, and adjusts the link on her datajack -- it seems to be more a nervous gesture than anything.

Loken is strapped into the pilot's seat, "Have we figured out what we're going to do when we /find/ him?" Erik asks.

"About the only thing we can do." Tharsis says. "Attempt to follow him. If I can lock down these patterns, we may be able to determine which timestream drew him along, and follow it."

"Getting him back seems like a good idea, hm?" Lex replies, and glances over Loken's way, a faint smile given. A nod is offered at Tharsis' comment. "Having all of us in the same place and time is still vastly superior to us not knowing when he is." A shrug. "Getting stuck elsewhen is a distinct possibility, but realistically speaking, it's a possibility whether we go after him, or whether we just sit here."

Loken nods, "We're going after him. If there's a way to stay in this when and this where, that'd be the better option. Do what you two can though, I don't entirely know what's possible and what's not," he says from his seat.

"I think I have it.... yes, I believe I have got it." Tharsis says as he brings up a diagram on the main viewscreen. "This rift is full of millions upon millions of timestreams, flowing from all parts of the universe and through different times. After analyzing the field that sent the Captain into parts unknown, I've located the timestream that he became a part of. The trick is adjusting the shield harmonics to match the timestream, and hopefully 'surf' it to where he went."

Alexandra grins over at Loken. "Nobody -really- knows what's possible. This thing is bending the laws of nature all to hell and back. It's like learning the rules as you play the game. And the rules change every so often..." She nods then, and turns back to her screen. "Did you get that feedback loop taken care of? No more chroniton fields allowed on the bridge."

"Right," Erik replies with a touch of a nod to Lex, before a look to Tharsis's image, "So...can we surf back here, then?" he asks.

"In theory." Tharsis says. "I can't be definite. However, after analysis of last night's circuit failures, I believe I have developed an algorithm that will prevent the feedback loop from occuring and allow the system to correct for destabilizing energies. I'm adjusting the shields now, and I'm plotting a course to ride the timestream."

"Brilliant," Lex comments, just watching the data scroll by. She looks over at Loken. "Are you holding up alright? All of your scans looked good, for the record."

"Fine, just fine, thank you," Erik replies, nodding to Tharsis, "Do it. And let's hope we get back."

"Adjustments complete... course set." Tharsis says. "It's now or never..." A low rumble fills the ship as his engines power up and he adjusts course towards one of the microrifts.

Alexandra gives a dry little chuckle. "Here's hoping that it's the former rather than the latter," she comments. As the ship starts to move, Lex settles back in her seat. Again, she fiddles with the connection on her datajack. Definitely a nervous gesture.

"Contact in 5...4...3...2...1..." Tharsis says as the ship moves into sync with the identified time stream. "and... convergeance!" The ship is suddenly accelerated forward at incredible speed, and the view of space beyond shifts into a kaleidoscope of patterns and colors. "About 45 seconds should do it..."

"Good heavens," Lex mutters, clinging to the armrests, and slouching down into the seat a bit despite herself. "On the bright side, this is something nobody's ever seen before. Well, I hope they're satisfied with the visual data when we get back..." There's a note of irony in there, to be sure.

The patterns flow by as Tharsis counts down the last few moments... "5....4....3....2....1....shutdown!" His engines cut out and he alters his shield frequency to return to 'normal' space... and before them appears Earth... looking very much intact and free from plasma bomb damage. In orbit around it is a series of warships and fighters, locked in a deadly dance around each other, all locked in combat with a series of massive battlecruisers. Nearby, a huge spherical ship is attempting to flee the area. "What the hell!?" Tharsis blurts out. "This can't be right... we must have jumped track to a different stream!" Over the intercom, a voice speaks, "The Kretonians claim this world under the name of the grand Kretonian Empire. You will all surrender your vessels if you value your lives!"

Alexandra sinks back even further into the seat, as if she could disappear into it and escape the Kretonians that way. "I don't suppose you know how long we'll be here," she squeaks. "Maybe... maybe they won't notice us." She bites her lip. "Of all the whens to get derailed to..."

Tharsis' alert klaxon blares as the radar shows a fighter approaching. "Too late... hang on!" he shouts as he fires his engines and acclerates to speed. "I'm going to try to out run him... I don't want to risk firing on it.. for all we know that could change history." he says as he diverts full power to his shields. "Dad mentioned the Kretonians to me.. but I never expected to have one on my ass!" he says as the fighter opens fire, sending beams of plasma energy sailing past Tharsis as he attempts to evade.

"I never thought I'd see one outside a history lesson," Lex replies, giving a nervous laugh. A -very- nervous laugh. "I... right. I'll just... sit here and not... go... anywhere." She glances toward the console in front of her, but can't seem to keep her eyes off the radar for too long.

Tharsis lurches violently as the fighter succeeds in landing a hit, sending Loken sailing out of his seat to whack his head against the forward console. "DAMN... that thing packs a punch!" he shouts. "My shields can't take too many hits like that... allright you bastard... let's see how good you can /really/ fly..." Tharsis heads straight for Earth's atmosphere at top speed...

Alexandra cries out as the ship lurches, clinging to her seat. As Loken goes flying, she simply growls, "Damn it all..." Obviously, getting over there is out of the question, so she settles for activating a small scanner on her cybernetic arm and pointing it in the pilot's general direction, the ship's course ignored for the moment. "I -think- he's alright. He's breathing, in any case..." Right. Yay for distracting oneself.

The range to the Earth counts down at an alarming pace as the fighter maintains position behind Tharsis, firing bolt after bolt of plasma that Tharsis jinks from one side to another to avoid them as he maintains course towards the Earth. "Just a few more seconds... NOW!" he shouts as he pulls back hard on his sticks and flies straight up, his shields just brushing the atmosphere. Completely unprepared for the sudden move, the Kretonian fighter slams straight into the atmoshere and vanishes in the clouds. "Whoops.. you blew it." he says as he reverses course and tries to get out of range of the battle. "I'm going to start scanning for a timestream.. see if we can ride one back to where we were."

Cue more clinging to the seat at the sudden change in course, the Sivadian squeezing her eyes shut and avoiding watching the viewscreen. "...Not going to be sick. No. Not going to..." After a few moments of this, Lex takes a deep breath and gives a weak nod. "...Let me know if I can do anything. It... helps, sometimes."

"Can you do a quick check of my systems?" Tharsis asks. "I've got my mind on other things at the moment.." he says as he manages to pull out of range of the battle, almost to where Sanctuary is. Bringing himself to a stop, he pulls around to bring the battle and the ship on his screen. "It's.. freaky. I know dad's on Sanctuary... but... I can't talk to him..."

Alexandra slowly starts to pull herself straight in the seat. "Pulling up the diagnostics now..." A slow nod is given. "I can't imagine how hard that is. But... it might change history. Just like shooting that fighter." She shakes her head, almost as if cleraing it. "Structural integrity looks fine. Shields are down fifteen percent, which isn't too surprising. Engines are in normal parameters..." She keeps on like that, going down the list.

"I think I've locked onto the timestream..." Tharsis says. "Adjusting parameters. Let's hope I can stay on the track this time." he mutters as his screen shows his calculations in progress. On the screen, one of the Terran carriers turns on a suicide run towards one of the Kretonian battlecruisers. "Oh my.. is that ship going to do what I think it's going to do!?"

"...Yes," Lex replies, nodding, and watching the viewscreen. "Yes, I believe it is." She frowns just a bit. "They were horribly outmatched, if I'm remembering my history right. I suppose when you know you're going to die anyway, all you can really hope to do is to take as many of them with you as you possibly can."

The ship completes its death run, slamming into the battlecruiser and causing considerable damage. Just as this takes place, Sanctuary vanishes in a tremendous flash of light as its Otherspace drive takes it to its destiny. "I guess that's true.." he says sadly. "Adjustments complete.. let's get out of here before another one of those Kretonians spots us again." Throttling up, he heads towards their original entry point. "Bringing shield adjustments on line... convergence in 5....4....3....2....1" With another lurch, they're off into the timestream.

Alexandra nods. "It's... not a school of thought I approve of, but then, I've never been in a situation that desperate. I don't know what I'd do if I was." She sits back in the seat again during the countdown, and watches the viewscreen. "...I wonder what we're really seeing. My poor brain probably isn't equipped to translate it properly."

"If I were to guess, visual snapshots of billions of scenes from across time and space." Tharsis says. "Or we're experiencing something that used to be called 'tripping out'. Another 20 seconds... I hope."

"...Mmmmm. I wonder if they could be sorted out later, if it's the former," Lex comments, thoughtfully. "When we're -not- poking at a tear in space-time, I mean." A glance goes over toward where the acting commander lies, and she nods. "Good. I need to check on him more closely. My scanner isn't meant to work at range."

Another lurch as Tharsis drops out of the timestream, and the view of the rift, either a good thing or bad thing, returns in the viewscreen. "Thank goodness.." he says with a sigh of relief. "I dunno if that was fate, or just pure dumb luck, but I don't think we should try that again until we're sure we can stay on track."

Alexandra nods. "On the brighter side of things, we have the data from this trip -- maybe that can help tell you how to keep yourself in the right timestream." She smiles just a bit, even as she's unfastening herself and getting up. "Well. It might be good that we popped in where we did. With as many ships as were hopping about there, one more wouldn't be noticed."

"Thank goodness for small favors." Tharsis says. "With luck, we'll just be a footnote in the battle that will be easily dismissed. I think that if we had altered the timeline in any way, we wouldn't be chatting." he says as he resumes the original coordinates. "It's going to take time to analyze this. I don't want to make any more attempts until we're sure we won't end up somewhere even worse."

"You do that, I'll check on him," Lex says, nodding. "I'll go back to helping you out when I'm sure he's alright." She makes her way over to the pilot, albeit rather shakily, crouches down beside him, and activates her scanner again.