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Leucohyle looks up from what must be her 756th diagnostic of the drive. Countless results are popping up on her wrist-mounted holodisplay, echoed in flickering images in the lenses of her holographic spectacles. Her expression is a mix of utter scientific focus and the occasional brow-furrow of worry and regret. She steps up onto Iota to check the tightness of a bolt higher up on the drive. "Optimal tension, point f-fifty-seven-B, check," she pipes, to anyone who's paying attention.
"Captain," Iseul greets politely of Porter as she walks in shortly after. Her gaze sweeps the area, focusing on Leu. "Is it time?" she asks.
"I can't believe I missed the best part of this," Faith remarks as she taps on her PDA. "Point fifty-seven-b, check," she repeats mildly, "Dimensional coupling alignment?"
Porter crosses his arms, watching as Faith and Leucohyle work together on the final checks. "Now or never, I think." He looks back toward the detective. "You ready to go home?"
"Alloy conductivity rating for dimensional coupler ninety-seven percent," Leu pipes in response, making a face. "-Honestly- w-wish I could have gotten it t-to one hundred percent," she huffs, hiking herself a little further up on the drive to rummage around with another diagnostic tool. Faith gets a wobbly, almost sad little smile. "I I -agree-," she pipes. "I I wish you'd been around f-for the entirety. It's been delightful just the same, however." Faith and Leu look like they are testing the hell out of the rift drive, and Iseul and Porter are nearby, discussing the impending... dun dun dunnn, trip back to Earth!
"There is a lot that we need to do when we get home," Iseul says, gesturing to Faith. "I want to see my family again. I don't know how so many people have just accepted staying here in Hiverspace and weren't struggling from day one to get back." She watches Leu with no small measure of amusement and appreciation. "What they've done here is nothing short of amazing."
Sharai Dravik rushes into the shuttle bay and looks at her clock, "Late late late." she mutters and strides over to Izzy, "What have I missed?"
Porter nods, turning his attention back to Leucohyle, Faith, and the riftdrive. "Wouldn't be possible without all the work you've done." A smile for Leucohyle then, as he says, "Of course, now you're going to be rich and famous in Hiverspace, right?"
"I'm sure it has been," Faith replies to Leu, "Ninety-seven percent is more than acceptable, perfection would be superfluous." She glances Izzy's way. "Some of us didn't leave much behind. My drive to return is for the job, no more and no less." She looks over her PDA and then nods to herself. "I believe we've achieved the best diagnostic results than we're going to without starting over entirely."
Leucohyle blinks up at Porter, her pupils wide and owlish as she absorbs howevermany channels of visual stimulus from the instruments she has plugged into the drive and the scuttling Limbics around it. "Oh, oh my, er, I I certainly hope not," she pipes. "While I I have never wanted for -anything-, Father saw to that and and I am happy to be able to repay him now, er. Well the fame thing is not terribly my er. Preference. But I am hoping to to help a few struggling roboticists make their own way, etcetera..." She trails off, as some more results come in, and then nods, sadly, at Faith. "Eryes... I think. Well. I I think it's time." Detatching the cables from her neural interface, she backs away from the drive, her little robotic entourage scuttling along with her.
Iseul smiles dryly in Faith's direction. "Well our drive to get back for the job is important. We have an important figurehead to bring down, after all." She nods in greeting to Sharai. "Shar," she greets. "You ready for this?"
Sharai Dravik nods and looks at all the activity, "Oh yes, very ready. So it is today I take it?"
A pilot waits with the Nocturn to take Leucohyle back to Comorro. The shuttle's hatch is open, with the ramp leading up. Porter extends a hand to Leucohyle and says, "It's been a pleasure to work with you. If all goes well, maybe you'll see the Minerva crew come back this way again."
Leucohyle flutters around for a bit and then shakes the offered hand, doing her best to make eye contact through the gesture and keeping her grip, tiny as it is, for more than two seconds. "I thank you greatly for the the opportunity to be of service and the additional live-experiences I have b-been able to acquire. I have confidence that I will be seeing you again, sir."
Iseul stands to the side with a grim smile and nods to Sharai. "Looks like we're ready to take the plunge and see where it takes us." She breathes out a heavy sigh. "Soon as we get back, we need to make contact with Devrees."
"I certainly hope we can return," Faith remarks, "It's been a pleasure working with you, Miss Hall. I hope we can meet again after matters back home have been settled." She doesn't offer a hand, a genuine and even /warm/ smile gracing her features instead. And then it's gone as she turns her attention to the detectives, "Iseul, Sharai, if and when we return home, use the 'Norm.exe' icons on your PDAs to return them to NormalSpace compatibility."
Sharai Dravik nods in agreement, "Yes, we will need to move very quickly I think." to Leu she says, "It was a pleasure to meet you Leu, I am sorry I cannot help that detective further with his case." she nods to Faith, "I will do, thanks."
The captain clips his own PDA to his belt, then clasps his hands behind his back and says, "Everyone making the trip, please proceed to the command center. We depart as soon as the Nocturn returns from delivering Miss Hall to Comorro." With that, he lets his hands fall to his sides and starts walking toward the cargo hold.
Leucohyle beams a steady little smile at Faith, offering a little bow instead of a hand. "A-absolutely. You are always welcome at at my laboratory, Miss-Faith." She nods to Sharai. "W-well you'll just have to come back once you've completed your mission at home, then." She inclines her head to Iseul, and then everyone else gathered as well. "I I suppose here would be the appropriate time to offer you luck, but alas I I hold very little faith in such things, so I will merely wish you the best possible probability for the best possible outcome and never forget to to check your references." With a wobbly salute, she and her robots head for the Nocturn.
Iseul chuckles, "To you as well, Ms. Hall," she offers the woman before nodding. "Thank you, Faith. For everything that you've done while we've been here." She takes in a deep breath and nods to both SAPDers. "Let's get back home," she muses and turns to follow Porter out.
Command Center <VES Minerva>
The central operations facility of this Wasp-class destroyer is a blunted trapezoid that angles from the 15-foot-wide forward bulkhead and graduates to 30-feet-wide at the aft end of the command hull.
A holographic viewscreen provides amplified visuals of the surrounding cosmos, while square portholes can be found to starboard and port on the bulkheads until reaching the elevated console station "U" that cradles the command chair and the navigation console.
A pair of steps can be seen port, starboard and aft, leading from the command well to the rail-encircled "U" that houses the science, communications, atmospheric monitoring and cargo management consoles.
The "U"-deck and the top of the encircling rail are covered with navy blue impact cushioning. The lower command well, forward to the prow, has uncarpeted gray metal plates - some marked as AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY - BREACH CONTAINMENT RISK.
Directly aft from the command chair, at the bottom of the "U," is the hatch that leads to the rest of the vessel.
Porter walks down toward the center of the chamber, in the vicinity of Newt's post at the navigation console. "All right, Newt, point us toward coordinates 400, 400. Let's get moving."
Sharai Dravik enters and moves out of the way
Iseul nibbles on her lower lip as she waits with Sharai. Her fingers flex at her sides but for now, she is patient and still.
Newt's at the nav console already, quietly tapping away and only looking up when people begin to enter. Looking back at Porter as he speaks he nods and says, "Yes, sir." and turns back to the console, tapping away, "About to jump..."
DS-3633 steps into the Command Center, having been working on the Rift Detection Systems, or RDS. It hazards a glance around the bridge, and takes a spot at an empty console quietly.
Faith picks a place to wait in, crosses her arms, and adds, "I'll contact Devrees. We don't want to tip off Volstov to our return any sooner than possible, I'll attempt to hide the transmission."
"Estimated time to arrival at our waypoint?" Porter inquires.
Sharai Dravik stands patiently next to Izzy though she has stuck her hands in her pockets and nods to Faith, "A good idea."
Newt replies, "19 minutes till we get there."
Iseul nods, "Please do," she says. "Though if our entrance causes any form of ruckus then he may know we're back before we've even had a chance to collect our bearings." She frowns. "When we get back. Watch yourselves. We can do a lot to incriminate him. A whole lot more than we could before. He's going to want to get rid of us."
DS-3633 turns towards the pasters. "I am Phyrrian Tasker Unit DS-3633. I have not made your acquaintance yet." Its eyes dimly flash as it looks at each in turn.
Faith considers for a moment before adding, "While we're on the topic, we'll also want to check the news. We'll need to know how much time has passed, and what's been happening while we were gone." She looks to DS and nods, "I am designated as Faith Fairbreeze. Refer to me as Faith."
Porter nods at Newt, then looks toward the San Angeles personnel. "I wouldn't plan on going back to Earth right away. It might not even be a good idea to contact your superior in the police department. If Volstov is leading the intelligence division, you can probably assume that he is monitoring all transmissions arriving there. I have a plan for you, assuming we survive the rift transition and make it to where we want to go." A faint smile as he adds, "If the drive fails and we implode or wind up in an alien universe composed entirely of gelatin and shaving foam, we may need to think of something else."
Sharai Dravik blinks at Porters' words then looks to DS, "I am Sharai Dravik, though just Sharai is fine." she considers Porter, "What is your idea?"
"Koh Iseul," the detective says distractedly. "I suppose I have just been thinking best case scenario," she says with a faint smile. "We are all ears for what you suggest."
DS-3633 nods once at each name, then turns back to the console.
Newt looks up from his console and watches everyone for a bit before saying, "Hey. I'm Newt."
Mert hops onto the bridge, happy as a lark, and blissfully unaware of anything that is going on. "Hi everybody! Is this a party? Oh boy!!"
Porter shrugs. "I was wondering about the weather on Tomin Kora this time of year. Seems like a good place to lay low." He crosses his arms. "Assuming we make a little noise on our arrival and people come looking, we'll probably have enough time for someone to take the Nocturn from the shuttle bay and jump to Tomin Kora. I'd remain with the Minerva and proceed toward Earth. Give your friend Volstov a distraction." He looks toward Mert. "Don't hit any big red buttons."
Sharai Dravik looks even more surprised, "Oh." she seems to think on that and goes quiet.
"There was a CIS agent who worked off of TK," Iseul says with a frown. "She could still ID us and report it back to Volstov. But that sounds like it is our best bet at the moment. We'll just have to see where we come through, if we come through at all."
DS-3633 turns back to Porter, "Querry: Why would Tomin Kora, known for its criminal element, be a better choice than other planets in the Consortium?"
"Cops hiding on TK," Faith remarks, raising an eyebrow. She checks to make sure she has her stunner and nightstick - of course she does - and then looks herself over. She pulls a screwdriver out of a pocket and starts scratching the SAPD markings off of her gear. "Someone remind me to reimburse Devrees for department property damage," she remarks, "As for the choice of TK, CIS stands for Consortium Intelligence Service. Anywhere in the consortium is in their realm of control."
Porter nods in agreement with Faith, then watches as the screen shifts toward a starfield again. "Newt, see anything on the sensors?"
Sharai Dravik sighs and nods, "If it means we can take Volstov down then it is worth it, we should keep our heads down while there though."
Newt taps on his console a bit and says, "Hey. We're here. Ummm..." He begins to tap away some more...
Iseul nods and falls silent, waiting with a tense silence.
Mert looks around at alll the buttons, trying to find a shiny red one. "I don't see any red ones, boss!" he says, hopping around the room. "Can I push any that aren't red?"
Newt finally adds, "Right. Coooool. We've got one rift nearby. That what we were looking for?"
Porter leans over the console to look, tapping at the display to magnify the image of a rippling seam of blue-white energy. He checks his PDA, which fluctuates - one moment, it believes that it's 2654, and the next, it's 2651. "Looks pretty good. Yes, that should be our rift."
DS-3633 waits quietly for now.
Sharai Dravik watches silently, if nervously
Faith falls silent and hefts a nervous sigh.
Newt looks up at Mert, "Not any on MY console." and then to the viewscreen "Cool."
The captain watches the rift on the display quietly for several moments, his eyes reflecting the shimmering glow of the space-time rip before he finally looks around the command center and says, "Time to see if this works. If it doesn't, well..." He frowns. "Sorry in advance." Then he places a hand on Newt's shoulder and says, "Go ahead, Newt. Take us through."
Mert looks at the viewscreen curiously which gets his attention. "Oooh... pretty...."
Sharai Dravik swallows heavily and tenses in anticipation.
Iseul braces a hand against the wall, her eyes focused on the rift. Just in case.
Newt sighs, fidgeting a little, "Hope it's jelly and cream and stuff at least. I like jelly." He begins to tap away slowly and the ship begins to move, "We're off for the rift and stuff."
DS-3633 says, "While traveling through the rift, this unit wonders if we will be able to attain data regarding that nature of the beings known as Riftwalkers..."
The a low whine the rift modulator activates the FTL drive and begins to modulate the ship's subspace field. With a flash the ship seems enveloped in a field of shimmering blue energy, and then with another flash, the blackness of space returns, dotted with different stars.
Porter blinks as the ship makes the transition, then looks to see that he still has the obvious appendages in the right places. He observes the crew, notes that they don't look at all dead. Then he prods Newt's shoulder and asks, "Status?"
Faith tenses as they go through the rift, but they come out relatively unharmed! After a nervous look around, the woman whips out her PDA, flicks it back to normal, and tries to see if there's a compatible network.
Mert hops happily as the ship goes through the rift. "Wow, that was a pretty tunnel!"
Iseul's eyes squeeze shut at the last possible moment and then reopen seconds later. "Did it work?" she asks. "Are we back?" She looks over to Faith with an anxious look.
DS-3633 looks at the viewport, trying to place the stars to its astronomical database.
Newt slumps slightly, relaxed now, "No jelly, gelatin, shaving cream or any other kind of cream in sensor range. Looks normal. I think.... yeah. We're right near TK. That was WAY cool."
Porter nods. "Okay," the captain says, "Newt, take everyone aboard the Nocturn and get them to Tomin Kora. I'll do what I can with the Minerva to keep their attention diverted. We won't have long before they catch wind of our arrival, I think."
"By all appearances," Faith starts, nearly breathless as she looks up, "Yes. We're home, or at least in a close approximation. The technology is right, and-" Bing! The woman checks her news app. "That was fast. Consortium picked up the anomaly, we need to split up now before people start snooping and find a ship in the middle of it."
DS-3633 turns to Porter, "Do you expect the Minerva to be attacked? Would you like this unit to remain aboard? Leucohyle informed me that there would be an attempt to bring the Minerva back into the Hiverspace space-time location."
Iseul nods and gestures. "Time to get a move on then, party people," she says. A pause to look at Porter. "Captain... thank you for everything. I can't really express.." She shakes her head. "Now isn't the time for this. We will speak again." And she turns to head back toward the docking bay.
Newt takes a deep breath and lets it up, beginning to stand, "Ok. Man, TK sucks, though."
Porter nods at Iseul. "Indeed we will. I'll see you all back on Earth soon." He turns toward the Phyrrian and says, "That plan changed just a little. Or, at the very least, got delayed. I don't know if we'll be attacked, but this close to Tomin Kora, we're liable to have Fagin's people showing up ahead of the Consortium. Get going. I'll be fine."