"Real Illusions"
[Previous post: "This Is The Way Things Were meant to Be"]
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Setting: USS HATHOR, Bridge
The rapid exit of the HATHOR's ExO and of the MCO had caused an exodus
of sort of the members of the senior staff of the ANUBIS. Uxtar had
claimed to need to go work on the lateral stabilizers of the ship and
Nico had been quick to offer his aid, not that the Hirogen would have
needed any. Learning about the new Ops officer had seemed less
important than finding an excuse to not remain near Lt. Cmdr. Serenna
for fear that she might ask about last night.
While the Nausicaan Sec/Tac had gone to check first-hand on the status
of the weapon systems, Uxtar had done just as he had said he would.
The lateral stabilizers had needed only a minor adjustment, something that
the VIPER pilot could have done in his sleep. Now that the task had
been done, Uxtar could move forward with a little project that he had
been playing with since he had learned of his appointment as the
HATHOR's FCO.
Using the holodeck onboard the ANUBIS to get better acquainted with the
systems of the HATHOR had been all nice and dandy, but there was no
substitute for working on the real thing, and the Hirogen knew this to
be a fact. Since the ship was still docked inside NEW ALEXANDRIA there
would have been no way for the FCO to test the systems prior to their
departure, at least not without using a little hunter ingenuity.
When Nico returned onto the bridge instead of seeing the inside of the
NEW ALEXANDRIA base being displayed on the main view screen the
Nausicaan saw stars, and not the standing still type either.
"When did we leave?" The Sec/Tac demanded in a panic as he rushed to
the tactical station and confirmed that the HATHOR had indeed left the
secret Intel base. "And more important how come I didn't hear anything
about it?"
"Relax," Uxtar said through a loud echoing laughter. "The ship itself
is still docked at NEW ALEXANDRIA, but the computer is running a full
simulation of all the systems. The image on the view screen is nothing
more than a holographic recreation to make the simulation that much
more realistic."
"That makes more sense," Nico grumbled. "I could not imagine our CO
allowing you to take the ship out without supervision."
With the touch of a single button the ship was made to bank to one side
sending the unprepared Sec/Tac officer flying against the station and
wall next to him. "How the heck did you do that?" The Nausicaan
demanded. Had there not been several feet and a few obstacles standing
between them, Nico would have likely sent the Hirogen flying across the
room for what he had done.
"Nothing that a little manipulation of the internal gravity fields
could not be responsible for," the FCO replied. "It would not be a real
simulation if the ship did not respond to commands we give it."
"Is that right," the Nausicaan said through clenched teeth as he
imputed a short series of command into the tactical station. Within seconds
the result of what Nico had done became evident to the HATHOR's FCO.
"WOAH," Uxtar screamed as he sent the ship banking hard in the opposite
direction. "How the heck did that Jem'Hadar cruiser come out of
nowhere like that?"
"Nothing that a minor modification of the holographic matrix could be
responsible for," the Sec/Tac replied. "You might want to keep your
eyes on the screen though, sensors are picking up two more cruiser
directly behind us and catching up fast."
Although Uxtar had been ready to smack his friend around for what he
had done, the Hirogen had quickly recognized the potential of the exercise
that Nico had placed them in the middle of. "Three against one, this
hardly seems fair. We should be finished with this in no time," the
Hirogen confidently said, already entering a dizzying flight plan that
he hoped would not only give them the advantage but also test the
limits of the HATHOR's flight interface.
###
And
Flight Control Officer 2005 post #506
Stardate: 60329.1000
Mark Hutchings {h172mark16@fastmail.us}
Ensign Uxtar
VIPER Pilot
USS ANUBIS
USS HATHOR
