SubAccount: Lira Meval

Congratulations, was a really good post.

["Brilliant! Are you the clever one. This is pure latinum. I want you ta put that into a presentation that we can take ta Admirals Gillespie and Janeway. This has ta be held tight since those boogits are adaptive, we may only get ta use it once and when we do, we need ta make it count. Good work Lieutenant, dismissed."]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Lira and while no boffin himself, he understood enough of what she was saying to recognize the significance of what she'd discovered.

"Brilliant! Are you the clever one. This is pure latinum. I want you ta put that into a presentation that we can take ta Admirals Gillespie and Janeway. This has ta be held tight since those boogits are adaptive, we may only get ta use it once and when we do, we need ta make it count. Good work Lieutenant, dismissed."

This discovery lifted Ian's spirits from the malaise he felt since the battle, sure they won, but the cost had been too high for him to be pleased by the outcome. Reports from Engineering were very positive beyond the severe dent in the replicator mass from fabricating new parts to get the ship operational again. Even the news from sickbay was good, of the 29 that had serious injuries, only four were considered critical.

Ian's problem was he was still amped up from the battle. He had thought Challenger was facing her last stand and somehow, she'd survived. But now, this pause as the invaders pulled back and the two sides regrouped for the next engagement, all Ian had to do was stay out of the way when his whole body screamed to do something.

However, the reality was until the subspace field distortion generators were operational again, they were only fit for defensive actions. So doing something wasn't really an option. There was one thing he could do to help the crew and he tapped the command chair's commpanel.

"All hands, this is the Captain. Subject ta specific department needs, you are granted twelve hours of shore leave. Department heads will set the roster of who is available ta go and who has ta stay. Bridge out."

It wasn't much and not everyone would get to go, but it was something and Ian hoped it would improve morale as he couldn't be the only on feeling battered by the intense combat they'd been in.

[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Bridge → Main Science Lab]

"Thank you, sir." she replied to Captain Ian, trying to contain some of the emotion at having her idea taken seriously. After being dismissed, she simply left the bridge and returned to the science lab.

Back in the lab, she quickly reviewed the records, saved the data, and left instructions for the on-duty team. There were no signs of imminent danger, and the sensor readings remained stable. A short time later, the captain's voice announced the temporary leave.

There wasn't much discussion — with the science team having little to do, she accepted it gladly and headed to her quarters, intending to sleep for the next 12 hours.

["Welcome ta the bridge Lieutenant. Your Laird, Lieutenant Randall said you had a means ta bugger up those Drednok boggits. We were a bit busy kickin' Kazon and Hirogen arse at the time for me ta be able ta need that information. Now that we're in a bit of a lull, tell me what you've found and how it works?"]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian turned as the door to the turbolift opened and smiled to see Lira. When she reported, he said.

"Welcome ta the bridge Lieutenant. Your Laird, Lieutenant Randall said you had a means ta bugger up those Drednok boggits. We were a bit busy kickin' Kazon and Hirogen arse at the time for me ta be able ta need that information. Now that we're in a bit of a lull, tell me what you've found and how it works?"

[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Bridge]
She watched the captain attentively as he spoke and finally understood what it was about. After hearing what he had to say and being granted permission to speak, she began to explain her findings.

"Captain, after I was attacked by one of those robots, I kept wondering how it could have come back to life even though it appeared to be completely defeated — and headless, no less. So, I started studying its systems and subroutines."

She quickly explained her motivation but soon got straight to the point.

"During the tests and sensor readings, I noticed that the Drednoks aren't actually acting as separate individuals. There's a pattern repeating in micro-intervals, coordinating different units from a central pulse. It's like they're all connected through a neural network — something very similar to the Borg Collective, perhaps even inspired by it."

After explaining what she had discovered, she continued, now describing how to deactivate them.

"When I isolated this frequency, I realized it included a chain of regular pulses — something like a synchronization signal. From there, it was relatively easy to design a counter-pulse. With some adjustments, we can create a controlled overlay which, if transmitted correctly, causes instability in the shared command system... It's as if, for a short time, they lose connection to the central source."

She then remembered one last detail.

"The effect isn't permanent. I noticed the Drednoks are programmed with subroutines that allow the pulse to adapt and recalibrate itself. So, each time we need to scan, identify the current pulse, and generate the proper counter-pulse. Even so, the time they remain unresponsive may be enough to have them all neutralized."

Meval then fell silent, awaiting the captain's judgment, hoping he had something to say about her findings.

["Thank you Captain. You covered my flank brilliantly durin' the Thatch Weave and your fight with those Hirogen corvettes was epic. I don't ken if'n they've told you about your ship, but she looks spent I'm sorry ta say. BuShips may salvage her, but, ta be honest, she looks worse than you do."]

[Sickbay --> Cargo Bay Three --> Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian took his time and visited every one of the 29 casualties from the fight. As much as it pained him to see members of his crew hurting, he knew that Jess would make them whole and they would live to see another day. After checking in on every member of Challenger's crew, he took the turbolift to see the Hispaniola's crew.

The first person he had to talk to was her Captain James Dawson. He couldn't help but wince on seeing him as he was in a bad way, but he steeled himself and said.

"Thank you Captain. You covered my flank brilliantly durin' the Thatch Weave and your fight with those Hirogen corvettes was epic. I don't ken if'n they've told you about your ship, but she looks spent I'm sorry ta say. BuShips may salvage her, but, ta be honest, she looks worse than you do."

As hoped, Dawson managed a small chuckle.

"Well, we are a couple I suppose. One day, I need you to tell me where you learned those maneuvers. The Academy doesn't teach anything like that."

"Aye Lad, I'll tell you all about them over a bottle of single malt."

"I will hold you to that."

"I have no doubts. You rest up. I will see you soon."

After visiting every member of Hispaniola's crew, Ian made his way back to the bridge. There he could see the recovery effort was in full swing. As Solaere was only an outpost, it didn't have spacedocks like a starbase, so there were limits on what the station could do for a ship as large as Challenger. However, all critical systems were functional. Neva's crews were hard at work rebuilding the Subspace field distortion generators and promised the ship would be warp capable in two hours.

One thing had been nagging at him and now he finally had time to put some thought to it, he activated the comm system on the command chair.

"Lieutenant Meval, report ta the bridge."

If she had a way to deactivate those monstrous Drednoks, then that was something the fleet needed to know. He wanted to hear her plan in full before he relayed her discovery to the fleet.

[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab → Bridge]
There wasn't much more to do at that moment other than keeping a close eye on the panels, trying to interpret and make sense of the long-range readings coming through. At that point, all Meval could do was remain vigilant, while other members of the crew carried out their own tasks. The lab wasn't empty, but silence prevailed—broken only by the occasional command and the soft hum of panels being adjusted. Every scan that ended without a sign of threat brought quiet relief, yet she refused to let her guard down. She had read enough stories to know that problems usually struck the moment people began to relax.

While still focused on the screen, the captain's voice came through the comm—she was being called to the bridge. Meval exchanged a brief glance with the other officers in the lab, gave a confirming nod, stood up in a calm motion, powered down her console, and made her way to the bridge. When the turbolift doors opened, she crossed the room with steady steps until she stood before the captain, back straight:

"Lieutenant Meval reporting, sir."

[[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]

After the end of the battle, the USS Challenger was quieter than ever. There was mourning in every corridor, and the once lively hum of conversations had been replaced by the steady humming of the ship itself. Meval remained with the science team—she was one of those who chose to stay aboard, doing everything she could to keep things running.

Now, with the ship in orbit above Ciden, the officers who had been sent to the planet in escape pods were slowly returning, and the wounded were being divided among the medbays of all the ships still operational. In the main science lab, a few officers had been assigned a simple task: to carry out long-range real-time scans to ensure no one would be caught off guard by another attack.

"Try filtering for residual theta radiation—I'll recalibrate the scan pulse triangulation." Meval suggested, exchanging a glance with an ensign beside her.

The displays shifted constantly between tactical projections, particle spectrums, and 3D maps of the previous battlefield.

"Anything on the consoles?" someone asked from the other side of the lab.

"No, sir... And that's a very good sign." Meval replied, knowing that the absence of any signal, at that moment, meant more time for the wounded to recover—and for the fleet to regroup after everything that had happened.

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]
No response came after Meval's last suggestion about using Outpost Solaere as a transmitter. She took it as a sign that the idea wouldn't be feasible under current conditions, and so she began searching for another solution.

Outside, the battle was growing worse by the minute. New readings reaching the science lab indicated the arrival of Hirogen cruisers.

"Computer... show me the structural schematics of Hirogen vessels in your database... We're looking for a breach in their structure for an effective strike."

The computer quickly brought up the requested data. The schematics were a mix of Hirogen ships—older scans from the USS Voyager combined with current live readings. The ships were brutal, resilient, clearly designed for hunting. She compared energy points, cross-referenced thermal signatures, and searched for any irregularity—and she seemed to find one.

A slight deviation in the heat dissipation logs, almost imperceptible, but present in both cruisers: ventral curvature, 23 degrees below the propulsion line. Meval magnified the image, applied a tactical filter, and overlaid it with impact data from previous models. There it was.

"Weak spot. Unstable subspace flow junction... if overloaded, it could destabilize their navigation systems."

She didn't waste time. She tapped her communicator firmly, her voice now more urgent than before.

"Lieutenant Meval to the bridge. I've identified a structural vulnerability in the Hirogen cruisers. Ventral curvature, 23 degrees below the propulsion line — scans indicate an unstable subspace junction."

As she spoke, she activated an attack simulation. She plotted a direct vector, calculating a high-speed impact with forward shields fully concentrated. The projection flickered for a moment, then stabilized. The collision would be violent—but it could work.

"If we concentrate shields at the front and execute a direct collision vector at that junction, it could disrupt internal systems and leave them exposed. I'm uploading a tactical overlay now."

She finalized the calculations and sent the projection. Looking at the screen, she knew the risk was massive. But she also knew that, at this moment, it might be the only real way to bring down a Hirogen cruiser.

"It all has to be precise and fast... According to my calculations, impulse power alone might not be enough. But that would leave us without shields... It's a suicide run."

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]
The bluish glow of the main science lab flickered gently, alternating with the red alert lighting caused by the massive battle underway. She watched the data scroll across the screens. Outside the ship, the fight was escalating—crossed signals, gravitational detonations, tactical pulses. Inside, despite the pressure, she still felt there was work to be done.

The oscillation of the Drednok frequencies was clear now. The pattern repeated in micro-intervals, coordinating different units through a central pulse. It was a neural network, or something close to one. Not like the Borg Collective—but perhaps inspired by it. "These are fragments, protocols stitched together from different species... a hive cobbled together in haste," she thought.

Her console gave a soft beep. Meval had managed to stabilize a mirror frequency—something capable of simulating an "error" in the command chain. A type of pulse that would overload the Drednok synchronization system for a time. Long enough to suppress the waves of attack. Alone, the Kazon had no chance against the Federation.

Her fingers raced across the console. She opened three new windows. One would handle signal replication. Another simulated propagation in an environment with multiple Drednoks. The third... was a map of the Ciden system, focused on Outpost Solaere.

"I need an antenna. No... a massive transmitter." She frowned. The station was surrounded by enemy ships, but it was also the structure with the highest broadcasting capacity nearby.

She tapped her communicator.

"Meval to Lieutenant Randall." She kept her voice steady, though her heart was racing.

"Lieutenant, we're going to use Outpost Solaere as an antenna..."

She began to explain the plan.

"I've isolated an erratic frequency capable of phasing with the Drednoks' own signals... It's possible to make the station transmit it through ion pulses..."

As she spoke, her hands flew across the controls. The console projected a model of the station, simulating the broadcast. Waves of energy rippled outward from the center like concentric rings in water.

"If the ships coordinate and pretend to be suppressed by enemy power, the Kazon will believe they're winning. At that moment, all Federation ships should pull back—then, when they reach the optimal distance and trigger the pulses from the station... It'll shield our ships while interfering with the Drednoks. And with a bit of effort, we could emit a secondary wave capable of frying the Kazon systems... Then we strike with full force and end this invasion."

She entered the final parameter. If her idea was taken seriously, the next few minutes would be crucial. She'd have to coordinate somehow with the station to turn it into a massive wave emitter.

Meval looked at the screen. For a moment, her own reflection stared back at her as the communicator fell silent, awaiting a response.

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]

Shortly after the robot attack, Meval was back to work, her time blending into a sequence of reports, protocol reevaluations, and cups of coffee. The robot had been destroyed and thrown into space, but the questions it left behind continued to pile up. Meval spent hours reviewing the incident data, trying to understand how something seemingly inactive could reanimate with such brutality. What haunted her wasn't the attack itself—but the failure to predict it.

Even so, scientific routine didn't wait, and she found herself pulled back into the workflow. With the Challenger approaching Outpost Solaere and a large-scale battle unfolding, the ship's sensors were overloaded with readings from multiple targets. Meval returned to the main science lab after a brief pause to assist with the scans and support the team.

It was while filtering the Drednok signals, trying to understand how so many of them moved in unison, that something unusual caught her attention. A repetitive, abnormal oscillation pattern was appearing in their communications.

"This isn't simple coordination... it's mutual interference," she murmured, her eyes focused on the scans. With quick fingers, she isolated the frequencies and cross-referenced data from several sources. She needed to confirm with someone on the bridge—and she knew exactly who to contact.

Tapping her communicator, she said:

"Meval to Lieutenant Randall... I think I found something, sir. The robots... when they're together, they behave like a single entity. As if they were truly Borgs..."

After saying that, everything started to make even more sense, and she continued:

"Maybe... if we apply a pulse synchronized with their command frequency, we could disable several of them at once. I still can't guarantee how long it would work—maybe just a few seconds—but it might be enough."

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

[Science Lab - USS Challenger]

Blackfeather finished waiting his tune on the damaged robot untill it stopped moving. At that point he tapped his combadge. "Transporter room, lock onto my signal and beam this monster into deep space." He said as he slapped his combadge onto the robot, which shimmered and the threat was gone. Sighing in relief he turned to Lira and asked.

"You okay Lieutenant?"

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]

Meval watched in complete silence as Blackfeather struck the robot repeatedly, still recovering from the shock. "This must be what Victor felt," she thought to herself, recalling an old Earth horror story she had read as a child.

The silence that fell over the lab after the robot was beamed away felt as heavy as the metallic sound of the fight that had just ended. Meval was still breathless, her heart pounding wildly as her eyes scanned the room. The monster was gone—but its shadow remained.

"What just happened here..." she whispered, more to herself than to the Master Chief.

She turned at the sound of Blackfeather's voice. He looked exhausted, yet calm, like someone who had faced horrors before. Meval forced herself to take a deep breath and gave him a nod in response.
"I'm... I'm fine. Physically, at least. Thank you for arriving in time, sir."

There was gratitude in her voice, but also weariness. The kind that didn't stem from the body, but from the soul—the kind that comes when the unknown slams its way in too violently.

She slowly crouched to retrieve the PADD she had dropped during the chase. Her hands still trembled slightly, but her gaze was steady.
"That wasn't supposed to happen. The power source had been removed. The systems were offline. Maybe... there were hidden subroutines, redundancy layers that our scans missed."

She paused, staring at the spot where the robot had stood just moments ago.
"I need to understand how it came back to life. Whether there was an external activation signal, or if it was... something more than just a robot."

Fear still lingered at the edge of her thoughts, but scientific curiosity was beginning to take hold. Because if there was more to this thing—Meval had to find out. Before it was too late again.

"What's going on here? I heard more running and shouting..." she asked softly, a trace of concern in her voice.

[[USS Challenger, Main Science Lab]]

[USS Challenger, Main Science Lab]
With the proximity of one of its comrades, the decapitated and one-armed assault bot Meval had been studying suddenly came to life. With frightening strength it yanked free from its restraints and grabbed the poor science crewman who had been keeping watch. With the ruthlessness only a AI could perform, the crewman's neck snapped like a twig under the bot's grip.
It leaped up then and dashed towards Lira with murderous intent and disturbing speed.

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]
Lira was completely focused on trying to understand what was happening — or what exactly the robot in front of her was. So focused, in fact, that she almost reacted too late when the thing came to life. The sound of metal shifting reached her ears just in time for the horror to register. The sharp crack when the creature snapped the crewman's neck was more terrifying than any alarm. Meval spun around, eyes wide, just in time to see the crewman's body collapse like a broken puppet. The robot — the thing — was now moving, alive with cold fury, charging at her like a shadow made of metal and hatred.

She stumbled back with an instinctive leap, her padd falling to the floor. With a trembling hand, she slapped her commbadge.
Meval to Security! We have an emergency in the main science lab! One of the robots has reactivated and is attacking — repeat, it's attacking!

She didn't wait for a response. Her eyes scanned the room as she darted back and forth, trying to place one of the worktables between her and the creature.
"It shouldn't be functioning. This makes no sense... the power core was removed, the neural system was deactivated." Her thoughts raced, frantic but unwilling to stop.

She considered how to stop the creature. Maybe an EMP, but how could she rig one in the middle of this chaos? Right now, more than ever, Meval needed help — and she needed to survive long enough for it to arrive.

[[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Main Science Lab]

After the rescue operation involving the USS Mariposa, Meval was assigned a new task alongside the USS Challenger's science and engineering teams: analyzing a robot that had been found among the wreckage. In a joint effort, both teams worked to understand how the robot was constructed — and possibly, how it functioned.

The external structure was rudimentary yet functional — a combination of known metals such as duranium and tritanium, interwoven with a high-resistance ceramic alloy that didn't match anything in Starfleet's database. The initial circuit analysis revealed chaotic, yet curiously redundant programming, featuring recalibration subroutines that adapted to structural damage.

Meval's research became increasingly complicated. After analyzing all the data they had managed to gather so far, she still had no idea what it could be. She had never seen anything like it before.

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Main Science]

In the days since departing Starbase 153, Meval had maintained a balanced routine of work, rest, and study. She revisited the scientific reports from the previous mission, participated in a few holodeck exercises, ran simulations of advanced mission scenarios, and used her free hours to draft articles she might one day submit for publication.

That morning, she walked through the Challenger's corridors, her uniform already neatly in place and a small mug of hot coffee in her hands. The strong aroma of the drink helped keep her mind alert. It was nearly time for her shift in the science lab, and she made her way there with calm steps, having arrived a few minutes early.

As she entered the lab, she noticed the displays were partially active and the data from the previous mission had been neatly organized, awaiting continuation. Meval settled in at one of the stations and began reviewing the pending tasks.

[[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Bridge]]

[Lieutenant JG Lira • USS Challenger • Bridge]

Meval stood firm as she listened to Captain Galloway's words, but inside, she was still processing the surprise. The promotion had been unexpected, but it was still an important milestone. When he pinned the new insignia onto her uniform, she felt a mix of pride and a bit of the weight of responsibility.

After Ian's handshake, Meval shook Malik's hand, offering a small smile at his words. She waited as Alhanjhu spoke, listening to his remarks and thanking him when he acknowledged that she deserved the promotion. When it was her turn to speak, her voice remained steady, though there was a lightness to it that revealed her satisfaction with the moment.

"Thank you, Captain. Commander. I didn't expect this to happen so soon... But I truly appreciate the recognition. I see this promotion as a reminder that our work should always be done to the best of our abilities, so I will continue working hard and giving my best under your supervision."

She then turned to Alhanjhu, offering him a brief nod of respect.

"And congratulations to you as well, Lieutenant Jei'Jendak. Your promotion is more than well deserved. You have shown great courage and a strong sense of duty in every mission we've shared!"

Having nothing more to add, she turned her attention back to her superiors, waiting for further instructions.

[[USS Challenger, Bridge]]

[USS Challenger, Bridge]

"Couldn't agree more, Captain."

Malik stood and moved to a nearby storage unit retrieving two small containers. He returned to his seat in time to see Ensign Lira report in.

His face didn't give anything away. "It is good to see punctuality is important to you, ensign. I wish I could say the same for Lieutenant Jei'Jendak."

Malik had always been impressed by Lira, ever since the mission on the Toren homeworld. She was definitely one to watch for the future.

[Ensign Lira • USS Challenger • Bridge]

As soon as she heard Malik's words, Lira felt her face heat up slightly at the unexpected compliment. She took a few seconds to think about how to proceed before finally responding.

"In his defense, Commander. I had just finished my shift and was relatively close, still in uniform. Maybe he wasn't as lucky and got caught up in something more complicated."

She offered this as an alternative explanation for Al's possible lack of punctuality. Lira didn't know him very well yet, but she was certain he was a dedicated officer.

["It was a close run thing. I still have nightmares about it. However, I am deeply honored ta officiate. Second time this year, they must be puttin' summat in the replicator mass."]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian smiled in gratitude at Malik's compliment and said with a deep sigh.

"It was a close run thing. I still have nightmares about it. However, I am deeply honored ta officiate. Second time this year, they must be puttin' summat in the replicator mass."

He laughed and added.

"In regards ta those promotions, no time like now ta get them official."

He activated the command chair's comm panel.

"Lieutenant Jei'Jendak and Ensign Meval report ta the bridge."

[Ensign Lira Meval • USS Challenger • Luigi's → Bridge]

Meval let out a satisfied sigh after the first sip of her beer. The rich, familiar flavor contrasted perfectly with the taste of the pizza she had ordered. After finishing the first slice, she prepared herself to face the challenge of trying the pineapple pizza... The idea still hadn't fully settled in her mind, and just as she was about to take a bite, she heard the captain's call.

She froze for a moment and then smiled. "Saved by the bell, I guess," she thought to herself. Quickly, she discarded what she hadn't eaten and hurried toward the bridge. The walk to the location filled Meval with a mix of anxiety, curiosity, and hope. She didn't have much direct contact with the captain, having crossed paths with him only a few times, and this would also be her first time on the bridge. She held onto the hope that she was being called to be informed that she would be allowed to attend the science conference panels at Solaere.

As she stepped into the turbolift, she whispered a small prayer to the Prophets before finally arriving at her destination and stepping onto the bridge. The Challenger's bridge was magnificent, each station perfectly designed and positioned. She ignored her curiosity and walked straight toward the captain, who was seated next to Commander Grippen.

"Ensign Meval reporting as ordered, sir." she said, keeping her voice firm as she looked at the captain.