Kansas_Jones

09.28.08 Excalibur Sim: Mission Brief: The AT is holding near what appears to be the primary base of the Auntie, while Excalibur prepares the offering for the Auntie. Meanwhile, the Boganary fleet is nearing. 090928_Excal_Chat_Log.txt

09.28.08 Excalibur Mission Update: TBS: 45 minutes to 1 Hour - Auntie Wort of the Thicket Clan was beamed up to the ship, and she and Captain Corizon entered into "negotiations". the exchange took place in the shuttle bay; we got Baby Zier back, and Wort got a stripped down shuttle and some torpedoes and shiny trinkets in exchange. - The clan leader would not part with the Crownstone however, so that seems to effectively end our original side mission in this sector. - The Away Team has been beamed up from the surface of the planet. Have fun in decon guys. - The Excalibur is “allowed” to break orbit from the planet, and the ship and her crew warps out of the Thicket system at slow warp; our destination is back to the Satarimi home world to inform them that the Crownstone mission was a no go. - Baby Julie will be checked out by the medical staff, and for right now her parents are not permitted to see her until after she is checked out by a doctor who is not so close to the situation and can be un-biased about her true medical condition after her captive ordeal with the Boganary clan. - Otherwise it is business as usual on the Excalibur: we have a pregnant Half-Klingon, a recovering Half-Romulan Engineer, a Caitian XO suffering from post traumatic stress, and a Tarantula living in a terrarium in the Science labs that wants to escape from her cage and go all bite Boo Yah on the first piece of flesh (or rock) that she can get her fangs into. - Victria, you totally should have bitten the spider when you had the chance.

An individual student, primarily in college/highschool, really needs to develop their own study habits. Now, when you get out in the working world, yes, you will need to co-operate with other office workers on projects, so I understand teachers or professors or what have you trying to impart the whole work group atmosphere on certain projects. Doesn't mean I liked it when it happened to me though. ::is not bitter either :-P:: This one guy who I had been paired with did not show up for a meeting. I had no clue what happened to him, so I spent four hours working on my last minute version of the paper that night. Then, he shows up the next day before the class with a completed paper and offers to turn it in for the both of us. Now, the gesture was nice, but I still wasted four hours of my study time working on the project solo, didn't I? Then, there was the Sociology class study group that I was paired in, and we had to do a presentation together. Everyone pulled their weight, no one was clueless, and the presentation went off really well. Overall, I preferred the In Class study groups where you brain stormed for twenty minutes with each other and then continued with the class. And, I always liked the regular study groups as well, no projects, just full on study for the course(s). I was saved my last semester by a fellow History student ( Chuck - I totally remember his name!) during a study session; he helped me out with one course project and kept me sane!

.... I will never, ever ever ever ever have a spider as a pet. These logs from an arachnids perspective are really cool, but my creepy factor goes off the charts. And why do I keep getting this mental image of the day when Citrus leaps to her freedom from the cage? Boo Yah Spider on the Prowl? Never. Ever.

“Everything Goes to Hell In Five” " ... you should be co-ordinating with the Damage Control Teams and the Marines, not comming me constantly, Matthews." Commander Kansas “Will” JoNs was trying to be patient with Marine Captain Owen "Buddha" Matthews, but the feline’s moody temper was rapidly coming to the forefront. The man had been comming her incessantly for the past few minutes with this comment or that comment about what should be done or what the on site teams should be doing. It was true that as the XO one of the responsibilities that the feline commander had was to co-ordinate with the various Damage Control Teams, Engineering, and support personnel such as Matthews who had rallied to assist with any evacuation and repairs to the compromised Deck 2. So to be fair, there were quite a bit of comm line reports coming into the bridge and her personal comm badge frequency as the crew did just that - report in, just like Matthews. Owen's tone betrayed him though; there was no longer any coolness under pressure there, only a hot temper threatening to overtake his cautionary drives. "The deck circulators need to vent the smoke and atmosphere before any rescue personnel can move in Captain, and the venting program hasn't completed the cycle yet. Hold your position." JoNs had managed to keep the growl out of her voice. Owen couldn't believe JoNs was telling him what he should be doing. He had a hard time keeping his temper under control. "I am co-ordinating with Damage Control teams and the rest. The problem is that we can't get in!" He slammed a fist into the bulkhead. Buddha hated not being able to do anything and even more so now...after all that had happened. Leaning a head against the bulkhead Owen took a few deep, calming breaths. During his training he had learned to keep his emotions in check and concentrate on the problem at hand and above all to do what he was told. Usually he didn't question orders. You didn't get far in the corps if you did. But things had changed. The Gideon blowing up was one thing. Everyone aboard the ship had known the risk though it still wasn't easy to lose most of your friends. What had happened on Earth, however, had had a far greater impact on Owen than he cared to admit. All those dead people, civilians, many of them children, his sister, his nephew. It seemed that finally life had dealt Matthews a blow that almost knocked him down. The worst was that, despite all his training, there had been nothing he could have done to protect his family. Now this, he was standing mere feet from people who had been injured in an explosion. The cause was unknown but that wasn't what mattered right now. What did matter was the fact that there was a stupid emergency bulkhead between the rescue teams and the injured crewmen. Owen's patience was wearing thin. "Let me know if I should come back later, Commander." Owen wasn't quite as successful to keep his anger and frustration out of his voice and he was almost sure he had just gotten himself into some real trouble. And this sure-ness would be highly accurate. It had taken less then a minute - along with an executive grade transporter override command code, a call to the transporter technician on duty, and a quick "I will be right back. Business. Must not claw crew, yes. Explain later." explanation to Colonel Harper up on the bridge - until the familiar chimes of the transporter beam were heard on the air of the auxiliary corridor where Matthews was now located. JoNs appeared about halfway along the corridor after authorizing the site to site transport from the main bridge to the corridor. With a good portion of the shipboard systems compromised as the result of the explosion, the only way the stunt had worked was because the payload had been for one individuals transport bio signature. anything more would have been way too risky. "Make a hole and clear the corridor." The Damage Control personnel who had been on standby and also shared the small corridor area with Captain Matthews quickly dispersed off to a side auxiliary section, leaving the marine alone and in the golden furred feline commanders direct line of and pissed off sight. Owen looked up as he heard JoNs' voice. It didn't take a telepath to tell that she was not happy. Good, Owen thought. He wasn't happy either. What surprised him a little was the prompt reaction. This should have been warning enough of just how much trouble he was in. Unfortunately Buddha didn't care. Straightening up, Buddha met JoNs' gaze head on. Not being one to run or give in he was getting ready for confrontation. "If you've come to give me hell for my attitude, I guess this is not the time." He jabbed a thumb at the wall. "The bulkheads are still in place and we can't get in!" The Caitian commander started toward the bigger human, and every muscle was wire tight on her athletic furred body frame. Her tail was lashing, and while her ears hadn’t gone completely flat, they were pretty well swept back. Her muzzle was covered by the re-breather mouthpiece and small conversion pods set to either side of the apparatus, but her mouth was stretched in a silent snarl and visible through the clear plastic breather unit. She knew she should keep her temper. She knew this. Officer protocol must be maintained. But, her instincts were nagging, telling her to go the other way. Is this right? How can I tell…am I wrong? Is a firm paw too much for a crisis? What if I don’t be firm and he gets himself killed … “No sh*t the bulkheads are down Buddha. Again, as I mentioned, we need to wait for the venting programs to finish clearing most of the sealed deck plan. The cycle will now be done in another four minutes. You would have spent this same amount of time anyway strapping on an EV suit. We hope that anyone still alive after the initial blasts and atmo breach managed to get a re-breather unit on and hunkered down under some cover. Four minutes. Then, the emergency protocols kick off and the control teams can go in." She jabbed a paw in the air toward the senior marine officer. “If you want to go in with guns blazing, breathe in superheated gases and chemicals or whatever was stored in those labs or be exposed to the coolant that was stored in the sensor array wire junctions or whatever, then by all means do so Captain Matthews. Then, we can admit you to medical for fried lungs and lack of oxygen to the brain. Then, you can rotate out of the marines on a medical pension and drink your dinner out of a straw for the rest of your natural life.” Owen ignored the last bit JoNs said. He was aware of the risks and he certainly didn't need her to remind him. "Yeah, right the emergency teams go in and then what? I've seen enough friggin' charred bodies back on Earth to last me a lifetime and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Four minutes may be too long for some of them." Buddha's temper was flaring and he glared at the Commander. It was the first time he had lost control like this. Kansas glared right back and a low growl filled the corridor air. “Four minutes has already been too long Captain … I’m repeating myself here, but if someone wasn’t caught in the flash fire then they got exposed to the vacuum before the shielding kicked in. Our priority is any blast and vacuum survivors who managed to grab a re-breather. If you don’t want to see anymore casualties like the injured and dead from the attack on Earth then why are you standing by for Deck 2 search and rescue deployment?” The glare softened a bit, but a stern gaze remained. “If you don’t have your head in the game then we need to know that now so we can get a competent point man down here to assist with the evacuation. We now have three minutes to make a decision.” Now she's gone too far, Owen thought. He walked up to the Caitian, his face mere inches from hers. "If you think I should be relieved of duty then please feel free to do so otherwise all I'm asking is for you to let me do my job. And it's not my job to wait here while people are dying in there." The word insubordination briefly crossed Owen's mind but he didn't care. He knew he was way out of line questioning the XO's orders. Don’t crowd me bud. The feline commander’s tail was really lashing back and forth now, and her fur had finally flared out to show her level of displeasure with the marine officer. She looked right in the taller humans eyes, which seemed to be filled with a dark edge that made her a bit concerned. Burn out case? The security training teaches an officer to look for the outward signs. But, burn out? Matthews? “Captain, this has gone way beyond you needing to do your job. I don’t know what set you off, or why, but you are blatantly taking me on for whatever reason. You may have started this, but you’ve also served with me long enough to know that I’ll finish this and boot your skinny ass. Buddha, you really need to back away right now, both literally and figuratively … you understand me, right?” The executive officer managed to keep her stern tone level as she tried to infuse basic “talk the jumper down” security procedures. Will hoped that Buddha would take the opportunity she gave him to get a handle on himself and the situation and back away from this general cluster frag with some grace; if not she’d have to make some real hard decisions. Owen took a deep breath and backed off a few steps but he kept glaring at JoNs. "Yes, ma'am," was all he managed to say. He respected the XO. She'd made it through Marine basic and during their sparring fights he had learned not to underestimate her. Now he had no reason whatsoever to doubt she would stay true to her word and boot his ass so badly he wouldn't forget anytime soon. Suddenly Buddha started to wonder what exactly he was doing. Whether or not he liked his orders he had always followed them and now he was standing in a corridor, having a shouting match with a superior officer. He took a deep breath, averted his eyes and leaned back against the bulkhead. "Damn!" A tense silence settled over the corridor area, hanging in the air almost as thick as the wisps of smoke that circulated at intervals between Matthews and JoNs. The female monotone voice of the ships computer spoke into the silence, the calm digital tone at odds with the tense conversation that had just taken place. The computer announcements kept playing in a muted tone over and over in the background. “The air filtration cycle will be complete in one minute. The compromised section of Deck 2 will be clear for entry in one minute. Emergency shielding is holding. Vacuum levels are non-existent. The emergency cycle will be complete in one minute, oxygen levels have returned to normal … “ With a clarity that only came with either years of service experience, experience gained in the mainstream command track, or the benefit of observing and working in close quarters with competent marine officers who tended to rely on a no nonsense efficiency when it came down to the wire, Will JoNs knew that she still had to make a couple of hard decisions. The Caitian Fleet officer had always liked Marine officer Matthews; sure, Matthews had been a complete hard case just like all the other leathernecks during her reprimanded marine basic training, but like Troll and Hair, Buddha had also been efficient and open with the training sessions and the feline had picked up a few new things in the process. The feline executive officer also relaxed her own wire tight posture and leaned against the opposite bulkhead so she could face the man across the corridor. Her posture may have relaxed, and her fur had smoothed down, but her ears were still swept back and she crossed her arms over her chest. Her face still held an edge of tense displeasure, causing her feline features to be sharper then normal. She really wasn’t happy at all with this situation that had rapidly gotten out of hand. “Okay Buddha, here’s the deal and here’s what we are going to do. I’m really not thrilled with your going bat sh*t act right now. Not the time and the place. You realize this right? Would you let one of your men continue after something like this? Not with your attitude set at where it is right now. I know you look tired, and I also don’t like that look in your eyes … battle fatigue or burnout is my clinical security assessment right now.” With that blunt statement hanging, the feline shifted her posture and got closer to Matthews’ personal space; her manner was still non-threatening, but the positioning change was an obvious tactical maneuver intended to brook no argument. “Marine Captain Owen Matthews. You are on probation, removed from the duty rotation, barred from the Deck 2 search and rescue operations, and are to report to the medical bay for a full physical and psychological evaluation.” “If you choose to further frag with me on this decision, then I will take this to the next level, and then have you forcibly escorted there.” ”Fifty seconds to clearance … fifty seconds to clearance …please standby …,” the computer continued its litany in the background. Owen had already given up. He didn't have the heart to fight back anymore. Somehow he was glad he was relieved of duty. Shaking his head he replied, "It's alright, no need to have me escorted anywhere." He straightened up and looked at JoNs. "While we're at it, I request a leave of absence to be able to attend my sister's and nephew's funerals as well as...take care of some personal stuff, ma'am" Kansas mentally sighed and relaxed her tense shoulders. She silently thanked the gods that this all hadn’t gone down during a joint ground engagement in the middle of a firefight. Her expressive ears flipped forward again, showing that the golden cat’s aggressive nature had also been backed off in every sense of the word and her facial expression was now torn somewhere between stern and concern, wishing that the situation hadn’t played itself out at all. She ran a paw – the only outward sign of the tense feelings that she still felt – through her short copper colored mane and kept her sharp green eyes on Matthews. “Leave granted. And don’t worry about any paperwork … I can handle all of that …. I’ll speak to the Chief Shark and the Acting Chief Shark as well if you’d like me too. I think paying your respects as well as taking care of your personal concerns is exactly where you need to be right now Buddha. Now let’s make a hole before we get trampled by the rescue teams … “ Written by: Marine Capt. Owen “Buddha” Matthews and Commander Kansas “Will” JoNs

::looks at Atragon:: Shouldn't we be getting a bonus check for this weekly Board Whoop *** Patrol thing? Only when the political comments go from informative into stupid personal ranting territory so people can just hear themselves type. This doesn't happen often on these boards, thank goodness, and most people have a clue to keep a conversation interesting rather then rant. A Moon Colony? I don't think so, not in this century at least (just my opinion): - The technology really isn't at the high level point for the NASA administration to attempt any sort of Moon Base; as it stands now, the astronauts on the space station have to return every few months so their muscles don't go into full on atrophy. The body just can't take the conditions of space, and the survival and colonization technology needs to move into the more advanced stages before a Mars mission or Base is attempted. - Money? Resources? Major Moola Moola! - By some tech miracle if a moon colony was formed within the next fifty years or so, it would at least need to be staffed in the initial launch stage and set up stage by trained astronauts or military personnel. Forget civilians going, because a civvy would not have the mindset to be stuck on a ball of rock sealed inside a flimsy plastic steel barrier or whatever. The civilians would need to be trained in order to colonize, so you're looking at some pretty high level training that would cost money and resources that could probably be better used if routed elsewhere. - Chances are this fictional base colonization program would be looking for single participants in the initial stages. An entire colonization family on the moon base? I don't think so. If five year old Sally May accidentally gets exposed to vacuum or sucked into an intake valve, there goes the back fund money to deal with the lawsuit.

09.24.08 Agincourt Mission *BOOM*: TBS: Five (5) Minutes - *BOOM* - The data gathering mission to Vorana Six takes secondary priority when Deck Two is compromised by an explosion of unknown origin. - The Secondary Science Lab (s), Environmental Controls, and Dorsal Sensor Array are all taken out or partially damaged by the blast. - Science personnel, along with any other personnel on the deck at the time, are either dead, badly burned, or are caught in the space vacuum before emergency shielding snapped in place. - Engineering and Damage Control Teams are on the scene. - The IKS VaKang stands by to assist the USS Agincourt in this time of need.

09.21.08 Excalibur: MISSION BRIEF: Three hours have passed, the away team has managed to extradite themselves from the caves of death, but aren't out of the woods yet. Aboard the Excalibur, Corizon is deciding if it's time to say hello, whilst the Boganary fleet is nearing. 080921_Excal_Chat_Log.txt

Note: takes place during the 8 hour TBS 09.20.08 USS Agincourt NCC-81762 “Where’s My Sock?” A low toned yowl pierced through the corridor, which caused Master Chief Petty Officer Keltex to swing around in the general direction of the sound. Commander Kansas JoNs came bounding on all four paws down the narrow auxiliary corridor toward the big Klingon and skidded to a halt as she reached him. The golden furred felinoid stood upright on her hind legs and gazed at Keltex expectantly. Like Keltex, she wore the leather and mesh baldric denoting her blood membership to House Lokan, the house into which Keltex had invited the feline to be a part of. The chief petty officer also made mental note of the fact that the Caitian feline also wore the Klingon dagger strapped to a simple mesh belt that she had procured during her civilian cargo service a few years ago. Kansas made a short purring trill. “I need backup. Main transporter room. We need to greet a straggler from the VaKang, namely First Officer Azet. I’d thought it’d be polite if I met her, rank meets rank thing, guide her to where the tour is at currently, and I’d like you to accompany me Master Chief.” A toothy grin spread across the silver haired Klingons features as he answered the young first officer. “I’d be happy to. And I see you are dressed in your Klingon finery.” A powerful hand indicated her dagger more so then the baldric; the metallic sash had become an everyday uniform accompaniment. The dagger was not something that the cat wore regularly. “Aye. It would seem appropriate, under the circumstances. It isn’t every day that we entertain our fellow Klingon officers of the Imperial Fleet. I figure I should look my best.” She indicated the way that the two of them should walk with a flick of her paw. Keeping in stride with the Caitian, Keltex continued with the conversation. “I have done some checking on this Captain BQar and Commander Azet. They have seen quite a bit of service together and their ships battle record is equally impressive. I also recall Captain BQars name from my own service days as a bekk within the Klingon Defense Force; he is a noble warrior.” “Good. We need more of ‘em during these unsure times.” Klingon enlisted officer and Caitian commissioned officer arrived at the main transporter room, and the moment they entered the area, Kansas nodded for the transporter technician on duty to signal to the VaKang that the ‘Court was ready to receive the final attendee of the meet and greet hoopla. Within seconds, Technician Ibanez had entered the proper coding into his control console and the familiar whine of the transporter beam sounded and the air swirled on the transporter platform. The imposing figure of the olive skinned, dark haired and sharp eyed executive officer of the VaKang shimmered into existence on the far left transporter marker pad. The Klingon female had a prominent forehead crest, and wore the typical gray and black leather metallic armor of the Klingon Defense Force. Like some officers, both male and female, she kept her arms bare, opting instead to just wear the uniform tunic and breeches. Like most Klingons, who had no use for diplomacy and instead chose the direct route, Azet promptly stepped down from the raised dais and spoke to the two officers who had arrived to meet her. “Commander Azet of House Kortach, first officer of the VaKang.” Her hawk like eyes took in the Klingon accessories the cat wore, as well as the enlisted officer uniform worn by the stately elder Klingon that accompanied the shorter feline. JoNs nodded once and picked up the conversation ball. “Commander Mrrett JoNs, first officer of the Agincourt. I’d like to welcome you aboard. May I present Master Chief Petty Officer Keltex of House Lokan.” Keltex nodded once, decisively. “Commander Azet. Qapla.” Azet nodded at the elder Klingon. “Lokan. I have heard of this House. The Lokan ties are strong with service to the Defense Force. You yourself have quite an impressive record before transferring to the Starfleet. I am honored to meet you Master Chief.” Keltex merely offered a silent nod of respect in acknowledgement of the compliment before speaking. "You honor House Lokan with your words." JoNs easily jumped in again. “Commander Azet, if you’ll accompany us … “ Azet interrupted the feline officer. “So. You are the ninety day wonder.” The statement was rhetorical, not a question. An ear flipped backward. “Pardon me?” “For what? I have read your personnel file. You have completed the Starfleet command officer training. This course takes no longer then ninety standard Terran days, if my understanding of the practice of the course is correct. That makes you a ninety day wonder. Then, instead of the typical training cruise, you deploy for two years with a civilian tramp freighter and the only reason that you were eventually able to re-apply to the training cruise portion of your training was because of your family influence and connections. Then, after several security squad assignments, you were posted to your first true assignment, the A-gin-Kort.” Kansas inwardly winced at the harsh gutturals of the female Klingons pronunciation of the ships name. Azet sniffed. “ … now, you find yourself as the first officer of a warship. Your Starfleet has been forced to make concessions such as your posting due to the toDSaH Soltan attack. Any disaster always causes the shift of power from those qualified to mere whelps.” Bitch. Kansas felt a metaphorical fire form in her belly, and her ears went flat in anger. But, just as quickly the hot fire was replaced with cold fire. She glanced at Keltex, and the look in the old Klingons eyes told her all she needed to know: do what you must. “First off, I prefer to consider the Agincourt an exploratory warship. She explores more so then conquers, but she can more then defend herself if provoked. Like myself actually. Not that I need to explain myself to you Commander, I came by my career and postings honestly and with hard work. Now, please abide by our protocols and go with the Master Chief. He will take you to the main tour group. Master Chief, please inform the Colonel I will be along momentarily.” Azet slowly nodded, and her smirk broadened ever so slightly. “As you wish Commander JoNs.” JoNs watched, paws on hips, as the Klingon first officer and her escort left the confines of the transporter room, leaving the Caitian commander alone with the transporter technician, Ibanez, who looked profoundly relieved that there had not been some sort of physical confrontation. Suddenly, the feline commander turned to Ibanez, and her facial expression and bright green eyes were alight with a downright manic and suicidal mischief. “Ibanez, can you beam Azet back to the VaKang minus her clothing? Let’s say a creative clothing reconfiguration, like losing a sock but different? I’ll make it worth your while …” JoNs was kidding … right?

09.17.08 Agincourt Mission Update: - The Agincourt arrived at Vorana Six to begin the data collection; the Soltan were last at this planet to kidnap Doctor Senok from his lab. - The IKS VaKang, assigned as a security backup for this mission and in station keeping orbit at the planet, contacted the bridge. Executive Officer JoNs and Acting Marine Commander Day exchanged greetings with an old war targ of a Klingon Captain (B’Qar) and his younger female First Officer (Azet). - Engineering: Lt. Commander Kairi handed out engineering assignments to junior officers Karrigan and TLak while senior Lieutenant Murray was ordered by JoNs to do laps around the Marine concourse for a mildly insubordinate attitude. - Science: Mister Shadow got into his work, literally, when he visited engineering and absorbed himself into the Soltan warp drive component(s) for a closer look. - Marine: Mister Troll continues his quest for some tricked out offensive/defensive medical Runabouts. - There will be an informal dinner and ship tour to welcome our fellow Klingon officers. Senior officers/department heads will attend the dinner.

MISSION BRIEF: The AT has found itself in a labyrinth of twisted roots, swamps, quick sand, awful creatures and booby-traps. Aboard Excalibur, Corizon is waiting till the AT is closer to begin negotiations -- assuming that we haven't been discovered. Also, the Boganary fleet might be returning from their little hunting expedition. Also, Marius may or may not be 'done' yet, Corizon is wondering if they remebered to put the apple in his mouth befor they inserted the spit... chatlog2008_09_14.txt

That's fine, as I answer to many names here already on these boards: KJ, Jonsey, Cat, Kitty, Kitteh, and it seems KayJay can now be added. Just as long as you here pilgrims type 'em with a smile. :-P

Welcome and have fun Rook. This IS a wicked cool Trek site to RPG and have fun on.

Not that I want the community at large to get a glimpse into my warped (I prefer eclectic :-P) movie viewing habits, but here are three mini reviews of a few movies I've seen lately: Traitor (starring Don Cheadle) (currently out in theater): Okay, if you are looking for the Bourne movies, don't look here. This movie detracts from the super spy genre and takes a look at the terrorist community and supposedly how this community operates. Not a bad film, but definitely lacks some teeth as in it kept jumping all over the world, literally, and while suspenseful, it kept stopping and starting, stopping and starting. The reviews and hype surrounding the movie (at least what I have read) seem to give it thumbs up, but I'd go with the half thumb up. Crazy Eights (starring Dina Meyer, about the only actor I recognized) (Pay Per View, and thank God it was free): Yikes. Bad. Just bad. I *love* creepy movies. Haunted house? Werewolves? Vampires? Zombies? Boom, bring it on baby. Seven childhood friends trapped in an old asylum type of building who are of course systematically hunted down? And don't get me started on the ending. Blah. This movie could have been so much more, especially if the producers took it into a more traditional mystery format. Doomsday (Malcolm McDowel) (DVD/Pay Per View Release): Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome meets Escape from New York with a good old viral outbreak thrown in for good measure. This is not Oscar material of course, but Doomsday was not the typical science fiction I was expecting, more like a blend of genres, and it was pretty darn cool. Set in Scotland which rocks out because I am really tired of all this stuff going down in third world countries or a post apocalyptic USA or an unnamed country/province. The violence is a wee bit over the top, but if you hang on, check your brain at the door, and go along for the ride, you'll have fun, etc. I certainly had a blast, pun intended even.

A co-worker of mine is on the hunt for Trek sound bytes for use in a power point office presentation. Specifically, the Astrometric Lab sound bytes featured in VOY or Nemesis, and primarily, the sound when the view was shifting between the grids and visuals. As the third resident office Trekkie, I was asked to aid with said search, and I promptly replied I'll get the STSF posse right on it. Since it is a bit of an obscure sound byte, if anyone is into this sort of thing and does know of a site that has this particular byte, please let me know. Thanks, - Kansas >^..^<

w00t! We are good to go - the link worked. I'm not one hundred percent sure that that is the sound my co-worker is JoNz-ing for, so I will direct them to this topic and they can further investigate. Thanks Sam!

To further add to the unable to access mystery: I tried connecting to your space Sam through my home PC, and ran into some issues. At first all I got was dead space/slow connection. Then, the only thing that popped up on the screen was a gray/white audio interface, on a white background. I clicked on the Play, the interface showed the clip playing, and I didn't hear a thing. I really could not get the site or what have you to come up or work. Thanks again for the effort Sam. ;-) To echo Grom, yep, VOY was so insanely priced (most I saw was $160.00), it's no wonder the sound bytes aren't out there on the 'Net for access. The prices have now been dropped dramatically (someone in CBS marketing or what have you got a clue I'd guess. Just because the Star Trek sci fi property isn't in weekly TV production anymore, doesn't mean the existing DVDs of the past shows produced should be priced so no one will buy them). For example, Barnes and Noble sells the discs for $41.00 bucks (membership) now.

09.10.08 Agincourt Mission Update: - Colonel Harper paid a visit to the Sciences department to discuss the Soltan subspace ether warp drive with Lt. Commander Condacin and Shadow, and the Soltans themselves were talked about. Is it possible the Soltan do not realize the full destructive potential of the warp drives that they employ to zoom through the subspace ether? - Meanwhile, the new executive officer visited the Engineering department at the request of CENG Lieutenant Commander Kassem for a pop inspection. Several cat jokes were made by a certain senior grease monkey by the name of Lieutenant Murray; remember, I know where you sleep and have access to command codes. - Troll Merril and Doctor Socom talked some medical shop; Merrill also paid a visit to engineering to speak with Kassem. - The Agincourt entered the Vorana Six sector, and transponder signals confirmed that the IKS VaKang, the Klingon ship assigned for added security, is also traveling to the Vorana planet as well.

I'll have to double check on a home PC as the office network won't let me access the above site. I second that: there really isn't a whole lot of VOY clips out there. Capt. Lo: Then again, what do we expect with Cardassian station design. :-P

I can't be any more specific other then what my co-worker told me - apparently VOY was pretty much the first series to use the Astrometric lab, and then Nemesis cashed in on the concept. Let me see if I can get specific episodes or what not. Thanks for trying to help out Sam.

Oh yeah, I was totally all nervous and stuff. Really, if the planet were to be torn apart as a result of some test .... I really don't think we'd realize it due to the moment of instantaneous POOF! :-P

So, basically, we are all in good company? Excellent! What is the color of the sky in our world?

09.07.08 Excalibur Mission Update: TBS: Five Minutes - The transporter beam was initiated, but there were some tense moments as the individual away team signals got lost in the pattern buffers due to a cascade energy surge that went through out the ship thanks to the Boganary cloaking device. Eventually, the away team (Garrison, Dougt, Victria, Marine officers) shimmered, whole, on the surface of the Wort clan’s home world. They are about twenty plus kilometers away from the Wort base. - Meanwhile, all heck broke loose throughout Excalibur: the cloaking device had a few malfunctions, exposing certain sections of the ship. The power surge tore through the internal systems, blowing out consoles all over the departments. The ships orbit also temporarily decayed as the ship bucked and rocked before the systems stabilized. The Damage Control teams will no doubt be kept busy; eventually, the shipboard situation stabilized somewhat. - The injured Lieutenant Commander Tr’Lorin and Doctor Patterson were temporarily trapped in a malfunctioning turbo lift. Commander Admiran talked Doctor Wydown through some repair maneuvers. - Second Officer Commander Laarell was the senior bridge officer on duty as this lovely little Hell in a Handbasket situation commenced. This is why Starfleet pays us the big bucks - Lieutenant Victria picked up an underground network of caves. Plot Logs to consider reading: The Raid Mother, Part Two and Chief Guard Flegm http://www.stsf.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=16771 http://www.stsf.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=16796

Commander Azet of House Kortach entered the combat ready room, and her sharp light brown eyes immediately fixated on her commanding officer. The first officer of the Imperial Klingon Ship Va’Kang wore the typical metal and leather uniform black and grays of the Klingon Defense force, and her black mane of hair was done in the latest style of Klingon dreadlocks. She held a data storage spike in one black gauntleted hand. Her forehead crest was prominent, and the raised ridge pattern spoke of a past royal bloodline. The passion of a warrior burned deep within her eyes, but she offset her generally feral look with a small smile of greeting. “Hod B’Qar, I bring news of our assignment.” The House Head of Kerla offered a fanged smile to his first officer. “Good Azet. What is the state of the crew?” Like his officer, he wore the same leather and metal uniform tunic and pants, as well as boots and gauntlets. The only difference between the two commanding officers was that his shoulders where adorned with a long charcoal black floor length coat vest that denoted his rank as ships captain and was also adorned with his various medals and metallic achievements of merit. His own crest was not as prominent as Azet's, but the smoother ridge pattern could still be recognized as the well established Kerla bloodline. “They are impatient and are anxious to enter new conquests into our Battle Record … as am I. Although, I am not very sure about a conquest, as we will be babysitting a Starfleet ship.” B’Qar chuckled. “That ship we will be babysitting has indeed earned their battle record Commander. I’d say both the Va’Kang and the A-gin-Kort are on equal footing when it comes to stripes earned in our battles.” The gray haired ships captain motioned for the spike, at which point his first officer chucked it through the air toward him. The elder Klingon easily intercepted the data spike and plucked it from the air as it whizzed towards him. He inserted the small rectangular device into the computer terminal set on his desktop and proceeded to visually scan the mission and background information that had been sent from Klingon Imperial Command. Azet casually leaned a hip against his desk and spoke as he read. “I find this all highly amusing. One hundred years ago, Imperial Command would never have sent a ship of the warship line to assist a ship of the Federation fleet, let alone be given access to this sort of intelligence.” B’Qar grunted as he read, not taking his sharp gray eyes from the terminal console screen in front of him. “The Khitomer Accords changed much about the galactic landscape those years ago.” “I assume that sending the Va’Kang, the ship captained by the descendant of one who attended the Federation and Klingon peace talks, is no coincidence. It would seem that Imperial Intelligence has done – how do the Earthers say it? – their homework. At least, I gather that II has some stake in this mission as well.” Hod B’Qar hocked and spat a wad of phlegm down onto the dark steel deck plating at the mention of Imperial Intelligence. “Those shadow wraiths love this sort of skullduggery and game play. Yes, this assignment is at it’s core a mission of aid proposed by High Command, but make no mistake; the II wraiths are also watching from the shadows that they so love to skulk in, to see how these new events unfold. Besides, if B’Qar, son of Kerla, was not available, Command would have merely gone down the bloodlines and found another descendant of a Khitomer attendee to send to the Federation quadrant for this mission of aid.” Azet nodded her understanding. “This mission of assistance will no doubt be considered a parallel to the Praxis and Khitomer events – the Klingon Empire is now offering our assistance to the Federation just as assistance was offered by the Federation to our empire following the destruction of the Praxis moon.” B’Qar raised an inquisitive eyebrow and grunted at a section of the data that now lit his monitor screen. “Our destination is Vorana Six. Apparently, the Soltan invaded a research facility on this moon to abduct a Doctor Ktorem Senok, the vaunted subspace researcher. The A-gin-Kort conducted the initial after action investigation at the base. It would seem the intent now is to revisit the area to gather even more intelligence.”” The Klingon female first officer offered a snort in response before speaking. “It would seem that this crew cannot get away from the Soltan. Their paths are intertwined.” “Indeed. Speaking of which, what of the crew?” A finger jabbed at the monitor control padd and he scrolled the device to the necessary section containing the crew biographies. Commander Azet carried on the monologue while B’Qar perused the data. “There has been the recent changeover expected after a long mission and subsequent battle duty, as you would expect, Captain; replacement crew, departing crew, and a new executive officer. The commander of the vessel is one Colonel Charlotte Elizabeth Harper, of the Federation Marine forces. She may have a soft name, but her profile does not read as one who has a thin skin. The colonel has much command experience and practical combat experience.” “Excellent! Marines are known to understand what it means to be a warrior. Perhaps this mission will not be as painful as we fear it will be.” “The department heads, bridge personnel, and marine contingent personnel are typical of those who serve on the exploratory warships of the Federation fleet. Diversified, competent, and we would do well not to underestimate them. The new executive officer however is former security, lacks upper command level experience, and is young. She is also a beast.” “A beast? So you are saying she is unattractive?” “Apologies, my Hod. I meant that she is a beast.” Thoroughly confused now, Captain B’Qar scrolled to the officer in question. “Ah! Caitian. Now I see. Interesting … typically the feline beasts stay to the non-command operations or communications divisions … ” “Remember your own advice to me my Hod. Do not take the typical path as that road will be watched by the sniper?” B’Qar finished his study of the data and terminated the program, popping the data spike from the interface holder. With his gray eyes alight with enthusiasm and a wide grin plastered across his craggy features, he turned to face his first officer. “Oh, I am of the opinion that this babysitting mission will not be typical, Commander, and this crew of the A-gin-Kort is not typical as well. And, I am sure the galaxy at large has not seen the end of those cowardly toDSaH Soltans as well. Regardless, I look forward to testing this Fleeter crew. Have the Helm bekk set course, 22.1 point 5, warp four. We move out immediately.” Commander Azet’s own grin matched that of her captains. “Aye captain. Qapla and we go to the hunt!” = = = = Klingon Terms: Bekk – Enlisted Soldier Hod – Captain toDSah – general derogatory term

09.03.08 Agincourt Mission Update: TBS: Eight Hours - The Agincourt is to depart Vulcan with a new mission: survey all the Alpha Quadrant planets attacked by the raiders now known to be the Soltan. The previous and new data on these worlds and the space around the planets will help create the early warning defensive system to be utilized against any further Soltan attacks (we hope). Sciences will be kept busy during the initial data collecting. - The Klingon High Council and Fleet will be assisting the Federation in this time of need as the devastated Alpha Quadrant rebuilds; a Klingon ship is set to rendezvous with the Agincourt to assist with the planet mapping, data gathering and general quadrant patrol. - Tentative plans regarding a meet and greet dinner once the ship rendezvous with the Klingon crew are discussed between the CO and her new First Officer. Klingon food will of course be served. Pepto Bismol, Alka Seltzer and Bean-o will be offered in place of the after dinner mints. - The first planet scheduled for the data gathering, patrol, and general recon is Vorana Six (the crew has been to this planet before; check the 'Court website and boards for full details). - Major Hanna-Beth "Hair" Rieve is re-deployed to the USS Union Pacific. Her orders? Classified. Our guess is it has to do with some Soltan hunting. Godspeed Major.