Season 15: Episode 4 - Vox Populai

[Lek]

"Lt. M'nia here. I will keep an eye on things Ensign. Thanks for the heads up." She had seen the power fluctuation but it was relatively minor. If it happened again she would talk to Lt. cmdr lek about it. That sounded like nothing but still, she would keep an eye on it. Not unexpected with the new system.

[Engineering - USS Discovery]

Lek was peripherally aware of the power drain, it wasn't like there was much going on, so anything unusual was very pronounced at the moment, but Lieutenant M'Nia had a hand on the situation. The drain was minimal compared to the massive output of the warp core, thus it wasn't like it would interfere with any critical systems. Odds were, the fleet program was making adjustments in relationship to the number of ships it was interfacing with and as this number kept increasing, power demands shifted.

Not that Lek was paying much attention to any of it. The larger portion of his attention was his planned override of said program, since he couldn't write anything down, he had to go over the project in his head. He knew the ship intimately enough that he could visualize the details in his head, but it took more concentration than he liked.

"I will be glad when this idiotic parade is over with."

He thought as he focused on bypassing the ship's security protocols.

[Tekin Nevir]

((OOC: Youtube video for refresher, this is happening during this post.))

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Deck 1]

The Captain remained silent as talks of power surges and sensor readings went through the bridge.  The ship itself began to slow as it took its position near the main docking bay with the other ships assigned to escort duty.  He looked up at the mention of the reading near Jupiter and walked over to the science station.

"The entire fleet should be here if they are anywhere near this sector." he commented, looking at what Discovery found.  The readings were unusual in that there seemed to be a small warp signature with a Starfleet ID code with a large quantum signature.  It was only there for a moment before the readings were suddenly... gone.  Nevir frowned but shook his head.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves.  I don't want to be the reason why today goes wrong while we're broadcasted across all of Federation space. Log it for after the celebrations are over.  It looks like a Starfleet signature, and there are about 20 or so ships with the quantum slipspace drive. I wouldn't be surprised if they are testing more ships with it." he stated, taking his seat.

Ruthie turned from her seat after her father sat down.  "Captain, Spacedock is on an open channel for a final ready check."

"Patch us through," he responded.

The viewscreen didn't change, but he could hear the roll call of ships being done.  It seems they just started.  Oh boy did they have a lot of ships to go through.  Luckily for Discovery, their position meant they were a part of the first group.

"USS Discovery"

"Captain Tekin Nevir of the USS Discovery, ready and standing by." he stated, as Starbase moved on to the next ships in the list.  It took about twenty minutes to get through all of them, more than 300 ships, but finally, they received orders to stand by.

"Here we go, guys." Nevir stated, taking a breath.

The comms were still open, but for now they were a one way channel.  A broadcast channel.  At first it was the Federation anthem playing, the full song.  That was then followed by fireworks igniting around the ships and Spacedock, and Nevir had to adjust himself in his chair, as they looked at the doors of Spacedock.  From there, they could hear the broadcast from the bridge.

"Spacedock, this is NCC-1701-F ready for ceremonial departure.  Admiral Shelby in command."

"Copy that, Enterprise.  You are cleared for departure. Happy Frontier day."

The doors opened, and the Odyssey-class USS Enterprise-F slowly sailed out of Spacedock, and immediately started its round around it.  Nevir couldn't help but smirk as the ship sailed out, looking surprisingly whole.

"Amazing... you'd never know that the ship barely functioned when it was brought back.  To think so much work was done for a ship that is having its last flight, and only because its the Enterprise." Nevir stated, as the voice of Admiral Shelby finally came through, and their viewscreen changed to show the Admiral in the Captain's chair on the otherwise huge bridge of the Odyssey class. Her words were preceded with the standard whistle indicating an all-comm message from the command officer.

"250 years ago today, the Enterprise NX-01, the first warp five capable vessel to be constructed by Human hands, made its maiden voyage. With it, a crew of 83 souls embarked on a journey. One of bravery, perseverance, and sacrifice that would lead to the birth of what we know today as Starfleet." 

They waited as the Enterprise F finished its circle of spacedock, and the Captain nodded to the helm.  "Alright, that's our cue.  Take flanking escort position.  Miss Garrison, check the status of Fleet Formation mode." he stated, as the ship moved with the rest of the escort fleet.

"A quarter millenium after the NX-01 took that first vital step, we gather on Frontier Day to take another. As we demonstrate our newest advancement, Fleet Formation Mode."

"Maybe the system won't work..." Nevir started, when he got confirmation that it was.  There was no going back now.

"USS Discovery, synchronization online." he stated, hitting the fleet comm while he confirmed that his ship was ready.  As soon as he closed the channel, he crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Now that its out of the bag... I frankly agreed with Lek.  This is a stupid idea.  Especially hearing it announced." he stated, frowning. Admiral Shelby continued.

"Synchronistic technology that allows every ship in Starfleet to operate as one." 

There was a shudder throughout the ship and all the bridge stations turned red, with a message on screen locking them out.

There was a lurch as the ship's helm controls were suspended and the ship was now moving under formation control.  Nevir looked down at his chair and tried to tap on the all comm.  Even that no longer worked.

"First issue... no means of communicating with the lead ship." he muttered aloud, while the Admiral carried on.

"An impenetrable armada. Unity and defense. The ultimate safeguard. In case of the unthinkable, fleetwide incapacitation, this system will protect our crews and our continued exploration of what still remains... our final frontier."

"On the precipice of the decommissioning of the Enterprise F, here is a look at some of Starfleet's most prestigious ships..."

"And that is why we're here." the Captain stated with a smirk.  "They wanted to show off a Prometheus as part of the fleet formation, and what better than the ship that helped bring peace to the Romulan Free State. Or at least that is the public image.  I'm confident I pissed off an admiral somewhere.  A lot of us Captains were concerned about the Formation and it looks like most of us are being put here front and center. Almost makes you wish you were on the Challenger."

[Kinley Garrison]

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Science Station 2]

"Acknowledged, commencing full spectrum Sensor scan for possible sources of energy drain in the vicinity."

He set the Sensors for a full sweep of the surrounding space.

The surrounding space was filled with ionized particles, earths atmosphere was constantly bleeding gases and solar radiation charged them up. The presence of thousands of ship in orbit was doing the whole affair no favors. The movement of so many ships was causing subspace to ripple at the edges of the sensor range. In the higher energy bands the reactors of the ships around them were clearly visible. No shields had been activated to mask their distinct energy signatures. Starfleet wanted to be seen today. Nearly 100 Ships had begun to take their final positions in the grand formation that now was taking shape over earth equator. In a wider formation around them thousands of smaller civilian crafts formed their own starlight sky of small reactors, powering shuttle craft, freighters and any other kind of ship capable of taking off. The Formation really attracted attention.

There were also the official ship. Delegations from all major powers had sent their own ships to carry their delegates, ordered to bring good wishes from their respective governments, secretly sent to take scans of Starfleets newest technological leap. It was an open secret and one that could not be avoided unless the Federation Council wanted to risk diplomatic fallout.

The Sensors read hundreds of energy signatures but none where none was supposed to be. The security area around the formation was unbroken. No form of directed energy weapon or other possible source of interference showed up on the scanners. He changed scanning mode from a wide area active scan to a close field passive scanner and directed it at the other Starfleet Vessels around them. Here some fluctuations showed up, hinting at not only Discovery being affected, but no cause was appearent. It had to be some internal issue nestled in the energy systems of all Ships. Maybe it was something Starfleet had installed along with the modifications.

Suddenly the long range scanners had a spring of activity. Some kind of gravitational flux and tachyon emissions were detected somewhere around Jupiter. He checked against the astrophysical data of the solar observatories but there were no scheduled events or measured phenomena around Jupiter that could explain the readings.
This seemed like something he should report:

"Commander Garrison, I was not able to definitely determine the source of the energy drain but it has to be something onboard our own ships. It seems to also affect the other ships in the fleet. There are some strange readings around Jupiter though."

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Deck 1]

The Captain remained silent as talks of power surges and sensor readings went through the bridge.  The ship itself began to slow as it took its position near the main docking bay with the other ships assigned to escort duty.  He looked up at the mention of the reading near Jupiter and walked over to the science station.

"The entire fleet should be here if they are anywhere near this sector." he commented, looking at what Discovery found.  The readings were unusual in that there seemed to be a small warp signature with a Starfleet ID code with a large quantum signature.  It was only there for a moment before the readings were suddenly... gone.  Nevir frowned but shook his head.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves.  I don't want to be the reason why today goes wrong while we're broadcasted across all of Federation space. Log it for after the celebrations are over.  It looks like a Starfleet signature, and there are about 20 or so ships with the quantum slipspace drive. I wouldn't be surprised if they are testing more ships with it." he stated, taking his seat.

Ruthie turned from her seat after her father sat down.  "Captain, Spacedock is on an open channel for a final ready check."

"Patch us through," he responded.

The viewscreen didn't change, but he could hear the roll call of ships being done.  It seems they just started.  Oh boy did they have a lot of ships to go through.  Luckily for Discovery, their position meant they were a part of the first group.

"USS Discovery"

"Captain Tekin Nevir of the USS Discovery, ready and standing by." he stated, as Starbase moved on to the next ships in the list.  It took about twenty minutes to get through all of them, more than 300 ships, but finally, they received orders to stand by.

"Here we go, guys." Nevir stated, taking a breath.

The comms were still open, but for now they were a one way channel.  A broadcast channel.  At first it was the Federation anthem playing, the full song.  That was then followed by fireworks igniting around the ships and Spacedock, and Nevir had to adjust himself in his chair, as they looked at the doors of Spacedock.  From there, they could hear the broadcast from the bridge.

"Spacedock, this is NCC-1701-F ready for ceremonial departure.  Admiral Shelby in command."

"Copy that, Enterprise.  You are cleared for departure. Happy Frontier day."

The doors opened, and the Odyssey-class USS Enterprise-F slowly sailed out of Spacedock, and immediately started its round around it.  Nevir couldn't help but smirk as the ship sailed out, looking surprisingly whole.

"Amazing... you'd never know that the ship barely functioned when it was brought back.  To think so much work was done for a ship that is having its last flight, and only because its the Enterprise." Nevir stated, as the voice of Admiral Shelby finally came through, and their viewscreen changed to show the Admiral in the Captain's chair on the otherwise huge bridge of the Odyssey class. Her words were preceded with the standard whistle indicating an all-comm message from the command officer.

"250 years ago today, the Enterprise NX-01, the first warp five capable vessel to be constructed by Human hands, made its maiden voyage. With it, a crew of 83 souls embarked on a journey. One of bravery, perseverance, and sacrifice that would lead to the birth of what we know today as Starfleet." 

They waited as the Enterprise F finished its circle of spacedock, and the Captain nodded to the helm.  "Alright, that's our cue.  Take flanking escort position.  Miss Garrison, check the status of Fleet Formation mode." he stated, as the ship moved with the rest of the escort fleet.

"A quarter millenium after the NX-01 took that first vital step, we gather on Frontier Day to take another. As we demonstrate our newest advancement, Fleet Formation Mode."

"Maybe the system won't work..." Nevir started, when he got confirmation that it was.  There was no going back now.

"USS Discovery, synchronization online." he stated, hitting the fleet comm while he confirmed that his ship was ready.  As soon as he closed the channel, he crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Now that its out of the bag... I frankly agreed with Lek.  This is a stupid idea.  Especially hearing it announced." he stated, frowning. Admiral Shelby continued.

"Synchronistic technology that allows every ship in Starfleet to operate as one." 

There was a shudder throughout the ship and all the bridge stations turned red, with a message on screen locking them out.

There was a lurch as the ship's helm controls were suspended and the ship was now moving under formation control.  Nevir looked down at his chair and tried to tap on the all comm.  Even that no longer worked.

"First issue... no means of communicating with the lead ship." he muttered aloud, while the Admiral carried on.

"An impenetrable armada. Unity and defense. The ultimate safeguard. In case of the unthinkable, fleetwide incapacitation, this system will protect our crews and our continued exploration of what still remains... our final frontier."

"On the precipice of the decommissioning of the Enterprise F, here is a look at some of Starfleet's most prestigious ships..."

"And that is why we're here." the Captain stated with a smirk.  "They wanted to show off a Prometheus as part of the fleet formation, and what better than the ship that helped bring peace to the Romulan Free State. Or at least that is the public image.  I'm confident I pissed off an admiral somewhere.  A lot of us Captains were concerned about the Formation and it looks like most of us are being put here front and center. Almost makes you wish you were on the Challenger."

[Bridge]

"œStrange readings around Jupiter?  asked Kinley as she moved closer to James's console to look at it herself. Yup, some strange tachyonic emissions and gravitational flux.   The captain mentioned that it was probably other Starfleet signatures, but something did feel off about it all. Maybe it's just my misgivings about this whole thing. I just"¦. I don't know.   It might be mild disobedience, but she made sure to keep the scanners fixed on the mysterious signal.  It might be nothing for all she knew, but she didn't want to take chances. They probably wouldn't be able to do much in terms of investigating until after the party anyway, but it would keep her mind at ease to have an eye on whatever made that strange reading. However, as soon as she programmed it, the Fleet took over, turning down any sensor readings they were seeing. They couldn't at least keep that up for them? Sighing, Kinley nodded and moved back to where she was stationed, standing near the console by the Captain's chair.

At the request of the Captain, Kinley nodded. Tapping on the console, Kinley brought up the stats for the Fleet Formation, a brilliant-looking pattern of ships on the layout shaped like the Starfleet Delta, how fitting.    "œThe Fleet Formation mode is running at full efficiency, sir. We're in full synchronicity with all the ships in our flank, and the ships Meridian, Resolute, and the Anning  are reporting within acceptable parameters too." she said, noting how uncannily close they all were to the other ships.

[J.B Dersch]

((OOC: Youtube video for refresher, this is happening during this post.))

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Deck 1]

The Captain remained silent as talks of power surges and sensor readings went through the bridge.  The ship itself began to slow as it took its position near the main docking bay with the other ships assigned to escort duty.  He looked up at the mention of the reading near Jupiter and walked over to the science station.

"The entire fleet should be here if they are anywhere near this sector." he commented, looking at what Discovery found.  The readings were unusual in that there seemed to be a small warp signature with a Starfleet ID code with a large quantum signature.  It was only there for a moment before the readings were suddenly... gone.  Nevir frowned but shook his head.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves.  I don't want to be the reason why today goes wrong while we're broadcasted across all of Federation space. Log it for after the celebrations are over.  It looks like a Starfleet signature, and there are about 20 or so ships with the quantum slipspace drive. I wouldn't be surprised if they are testing more ships with it." he stated, taking his seat.

Ruthie turned from her seat after her father sat down.  "Captain, Spacedock is on an open channel for a final ready check."

"Patch us through," he responded.

The viewscreen didn't change, but he could hear the roll call of ships being done.  It seems they just started.  Oh boy did they have a lot of ships to go through.  Luckily for Discovery, their position meant they were a part of the first group.

"USS Discovery"

"Captain Tekin Nevir of the USS Discovery, ready and standing by." he stated, as Starbase moved on to the next ships in the list.  It took about twenty minutes to get through all of them, more than 300 ships, but finally, they received orders to stand by.

"Here we go, guys." Nevir stated, taking a breath.

The comms were still open, but for now they were a one way channel.  A broadcast channel.  At first it was the Federation anthem playing, the full song.  That was then followed by fireworks igniting around the ships and Spacedock, and Nevir had to adjust himself in his chair, as they looked at the doors of Spacedock.  From there, they could hear the broadcast from the bridge.

"Spacedock, this is NCC-1701-F ready for ceremonial departure.  Admiral Shelby in command."

"Copy that, Enterprise.  You are cleared for departure. Happy Frontier day."

The doors opened, and the Odyssey-class USS Enterprise-F slowly sailed out of Spacedock, and immediately started its round around it.  Nevir couldn't help but smirk as the ship sailed out, looking surprisingly whole.

"Amazing... you'd never know that the ship barely functioned when it was brought back.  To think so much work was done for a ship that is having its last flight, and only because its the Enterprise." Nevir stated, as the voice of Admiral Shelby finally came through, and their viewscreen changed to show the Admiral in the Captain's chair on the otherwise huge bridge of the Odyssey class. Her words were preceded with the standard whistle indicating an all-comm message from the command officer.

"250 years ago today, the Enterprise NX-01, the first warp five capable vessel to be constructed by Human hands, made its maiden voyage. With it, a crew of 83 souls embarked on a journey. One of bravery, perseverance, and sacrifice that would lead to the birth of what we know today as Starfleet." 

They waited as the Enterprise F finished its circle of spacedock, and the Captain nodded to the helm.  "Alright, that's our cue.  Take flanking escort position.  Miss Garrison, check the status of Fleet Formation mode." he stated, as the ship moved with the rest of the escort fleet.

"A quarter millenium after the NX-01 took that first vital step, we gather on Frontier Day to take another. As we demonstrate our newest advancement, Fleet Formation Mode."

"Maybe the system won't work..." Nevir started, when he got confirmation that it was.  There was no going back now.

"USS Discovery, synchronization online." he stated, hitting the fleet comm while he confirmed that his ship was ready.  As soon as he closed the channel, he crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Now that its out of the bag... I frankly agreed with Lek.  This is a stupid idea.  Especially hearing it announced." he stated, frowning. Admiral Shelby continued.

"Synchronistic technology that allows every ship in Starfleet to operate as one." 

There was a shudder throughout the ship and all the bridge stations turned red, with a message on screen locking them out.

There was a lurch as the ship's helm controls were suspended and the ship was now moving under formation control.  Nevir looked down at his chair and tried to tap on the all comm.  Even that no longer worked.

"First issue... no means of communicating with the lead ship." he muttered aloud, while the Admiral carried on.

"An impenetrable armada. Unity and defense. The ultimate safeguard. In case of the unthinkable, fleetwide incapacitation, this system will protect our crews and our continued exploration of what still remains... our final frontier."

"On the precipice of the decommissioning of the Enterprise F, here is a look at some of Starfleet's most prestigious ships..."

"And that is why we're here." the Captain stated with a smirk.  "They wanted to show off a Prometheus as part of the fleet formation, and what better than the ship that helped bring peace to the Romulan Free State. Or at least that is the public image.  I'm confident I pissed off an admiral somewhere.  A lot of us Captains were concerned about the Formation and it looks like most of us are being put here front and center. Almost makes you wish you were on the Challenger."

| Lt. JG JB Dersch | Weapons Armoy | USS Discovery |

As soon as Dersch realized the lock out, Dersch had a gut feeling. He moved to back to the weapons lockers. he also laughed as the Admiral said "impenetrable armada." yea, That's what we thought at Wolf 359, and we seen how that went He did like that how they brought up Enterprise NX-01, He loved that ship, He won't mind heading back into the past to serve on the vessel. Then Dersch got a question. Will we still be able to keep in contact with other fleet

[James Ramort]

There was a lurch as the ship's helm controls were suspended and the ship was now moving under formation control.  Nevir looked down at his chair and tried to tap on the all comm.  Even that no longer worked.

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Science Station 2]

As Fleet Formation activated, Sensor Control went into lockout mode as any other station onboard the Ship. For a second the screens just went red with errors and warnings, crowned by a Symbol indicating Starfleet Commands Formation order was now in effect. Then Unified Fleet Sensor Grid was marked on the screen and its true workings became more clear. The sensors were still working but not reporting to the Bridge anymore. Most diagnostics had been locked out right with along primary control but some of the very rudimentary functions at least still reported their status. Power to all sensors had been reduced but there now was an active connection between Sensors and Communication, most likely part of the link.

He began to understand the feeling the captain had expressed. If the sensors malfunctioned now or their baseline values were somehow corrupted there was virtually no way to fix it. If something went wrong they were at the mercy of the main ship. He was not part of Tactical but that sounded dangerous at best.
He at least had to try restoring his own station then.

"Computer, can you restore sensor access?" 

"Access denied, all primary functions have been locked out."

Not a good sign. If functions could not be restored from the responsible Bridge station..... there still was a chance the Captain had a way to regain ship control, he simply had to have a way. If not the ship had been rendered not more than a probe under remote control from somewhere else which awoke bad memories from their Class on the Delta Quadrant and his teenage years reading the reports from the journeys of Voyager.

[Zavrol Gohun]

Engineering
Gohun looked at the sensor readings at the pool table and noted a power drain. As he stood there he hoped that no one asked the holodeck to make an adversary capable of defeating someone again. Looking around Gohun was almost positive that the surge was nothing to worry about but just in case he tapped his com badge. "Gohun to Lek I'm noticing a power drain that I have been unable to account for. Should I pursue it" Gohun said that and suddenly the ship shifted to Red Alert.

[Lek]

Engineering
Gohun looked at the sensor readings at the pool table and noted a power drain. As he stood there he hoped that no one asked the holodeck to make an adversary capable of defeating someone again. Looking around Gohun was almost positive that the surge was nothing to worry about but just in case he tapped his com badge. "Gohun to Lek I'm noticing a power drain that I have been unable to account for. Should I pursue it" Gohun said that and suddenly the ship shifted to Red Alert.

[Engineering - USS Discovery]

Gohun's call jolted Lek out of his tracing of the ship's command functions and he had to blink a couple times to reorient himself to where he actually was as opposed to tracing deeper into the main computer than he'd ever attempted to do without schematics or any electronic record. He tapped his combadge to reply.

"Lek here, as near as I can tell, the fluctuations are being caused by this new program. You are welcome to try to track the source, but this fleet maneuver nonsense has us locked out of everything. Let me know if you succeed."

[Lorut Vila]

USS Discovery
Ops Console
Bridge

"Lt. M'nia here. I will keep an eye on things Ensign. Thanks for the heads up."

Vila cut comms. At least someone on this godforsaken ship had their head attached to their torso instead of up their rear ends.

The Fleet formation began, and she fought the urge to simply leave the Bridge. She had no time or interest for any of this pomp and circumstance tomfoolery. Particularly when it was causing power drains. And the new system in Engineering was sending everything haywire, and she was powerless to DO anything about it-not only wasn't it her department (not that that would stop her, per se), but it was also understood that the system was meant to be here to stay.

She let out a noisy sigh. Now what?! Idleness wasn't her strong suit.

She tapped her foot against the metal panels of the console base.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge] Stardate 78288.5  (April 16, 2401)

[earlier...]

[Bridge | USS Discovery]
Dem gave a slight nod of the head toward Rayek, before sitting down on his visitor chair.

Over the next few minutes, Dem sat in quiet contemplation, just observing the sights of the energised bridge. Feeling numb to the visible excitement, Dem used all his energy to remain present, trying to cast all his unsavoury thoughts out of his mind. He hoped that he could sit back, and enjoy the show that was the culmination of years of hard work from countless engineers.

Rayek watched Broadshire sit down in the VIP seat, and wondering if he should speak to Thane about the younger doctor's mental state.  While medically Dem had the right to privacy, if his condition affected his work then the Command Team needed to know.

Another task to do after this celebration was over.

USS Discovery
Bridge
~April, 2401

Just as quickly as the anomaly appeared on her screen, it went away. Perhaps it was just because the rest of the battle group was in close proximity and she was picking up those signals, too.

She glanced up at Commander trLhoell as he replied.

She nodded. "That makes sense, sir, thank you," she said. She tapped her comms badge.

Engineering, please keep the Bridge alert to the power fluctuations from the rest of the Battle Group. She said. I got a momentary dip in your power supply, but it's righted itself. She clicked off, not waiting for a response. One wasn't necessary, she just needed fresh eyes on it.

"Lt. M'nia here. I will keep an eye on things Ensign. Thanks for the heads up."

[Bridge]
"œIndeed. Mr. Ramort, would you scan for any external anomalies? I'm betting that this is just a bit of a glitch with those new systems, but just to be on the safe side. Anyhow, I think they should be playing the broadcast soon, so we might want to open our hailing frequencies."

Rayek acknowledged Lorut's nod, then listened to her contact Engineering.  What he heard had him stifling a sigh.  Though Lorut had done what he requested, something in her tone or perhaps her word choices, made her request to Engineering sound rather bossy, and as if the request was her own and not his.

On the plus side, Lorut had used the word 'please'.  It was a start.

His attention then turned to the Science department who were also attempting to track down the source of the drain.

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Science Station 2]

"Acknowledged, commencing full spectrum Sensor scan for possible sources of energy drain in the vicinity."

The Sensors read hundreds of energy signatures but none where none was supposed to be. The security area around the formation was unbroken. No form of directed energy weapon or other possible source of interference showed up on the scanners. He changed scanning mode from a wide area active scan to a close field passive scanner and directed it at the other Starfleet Vessels around them. Here some fluctuations showed up, hinting at not only Discovery being affected, but no cause was apparent. It had to be some internal issue nestled in the energy systems of all Ships. Maybe it was something Starfleet had installed along with the modifications.

Suddenly the long range scanners had a spring of activity. Some kind of gravitational flux and tachyon emissions were detected somewhere around Jupiter. He checked against the astrophysical data of the solar observatories but there were no scheduled events or measured phenomena around Jupiter that could explain the readings.
This seemed like something he should report:

"Commander Garrison, I was not able to definitely determine the source of the energy drain but it has to be something onboard our own ships. It seems to also affect the other ships in the fleet. There are some strange readings around Jupiter though."

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Deck 1]

The Captain remained silent as talks of power surges and sensor readings went through the bridge.  The ship itself began to slow as it took its position near the main docking bay with the other ships assigned to escort duty.  He looked up at the mention of the reading near Jupiter and walked over to the science station.

"The entire fleet should be here if they are anywhere near this sector." he commented, looking at what Discovery found.  The readings were unusual in that there seemed to be a small warp signature with a Starfleet ID code with a large quantum signature.  It was only there for a moment before the readings were suddenly... gone.  Nevir frowned but shook his head.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves.  I don't want to be the reason why today goes wrong while we're broadcasted across all of Federation space. Log it for after the celebrations are over.  It looks like a Starfleet signature, and there are about 20 or so ships with the quantum slipspace drive. I wouldn't be surprised if they are testing more ships with it." he stated, taking his seat.

[Bridge]

"œStrange readings around Jupiter?  asked Kinley as she moved closer to James's console to look at it herself. Yup, some strange tachyonic emissions and gravitational flux.   The captain mentioned that it was probably other Starfleet signatures, but something did feel off about it all. Maybe it's just my misgivings about this whole thing. I just"¦. I don't know.   It might be mild disobedience, but she made sure to keep the scanners fixed on the mysterious signal.  It might be nothing for all she knew, but she didn't want to take chances. They probably wouldn't be able to do much in terms of investigating until after the party anyway, but it would keep her mind at ease to have an eye on whatever made that strange reading. However, as soon as she programmed it, the Fleet took over, turning down any sensor readings they were seeing. They couldn't at least keep that up for them? Sighing, Kinley nodded and moved back to where she was stationed, standing near the console by the Captain's chair.

Ensign Ramort's remark about the readings by Jupiter were of note - and not just to the Captain.  Rayek used his PADD to look over the readings mentioned by the science officer, even as the Captain looked at them from Science station.   It did appear to be a Starfleet signature - like the Captain suggested, but the paranoid Romulan was less reassured by that information.   The Titan was still at large, and Rayek was certain that there were enemies - like the Thinkers -  that had the ability to fake a Starfleet signature easily enough.    Perhaps if he compared readings from various ships he might be able to determine at least the what class of ship the readings had come from.

Ruthie turned from her seat after her father sat down.  "Captain, Spacedock is on an open channel for a final ready check."

"Patch us through," he responded.

The viewscreen didn't change, but he could hear the roll call of ships being done.  It seems they just started.  Oh boy did they have a lot of ships to go through.  Luckily for Discovery, their position meant they were a part of the first group.

"USS Discovery"

"Captain Tekin Nevir of the USS Discovery, ready and standing by." he stated, as Starbase moved on to the next ships in the list.

At the request of the Captain, Kinley nodded. Tapping on the console, Kinley brought up the stats for the Fleet Formation, a brilliant-looking pattern of ships on the layout shaped like the Starfleet Delta, how fitting.    "œThe Fleet Formation mode is running at full efficiency, sir. We're in full synchronicity with all the ships in our flank, and the ships Meridian, Resolute, and the Anning  are reporting within acceptable parameters too." she said, noting how uncannily close they all were to the other ships.

[USS Discovery - Main Bridge - Science Station 2]

As Fleet Formation activated, Sensor Control went into lockout mode as any other station onboard the Ship. For a second the screens just went red with errors and warnings, crowned by a Symbol indicating Starfleet Commands Formation order was now in effect. Then Unified Fleet Sensor Grid was marked on the screen and its true workings became more clear. The sensors were still working but not reporting to the Bridge anymore. Most diagnostics had been locked out right with along primary control but some of the very rudimentary functions at least still reported their status. Power to all sensors had been reduced but there now was an active connection between Sensors and Communication, most likely part of the link.

He began to understand the feeling the captain had expressed. If the sensors malfunctioned now or their baseline values were somehow corrupted there was virtually no way to fix it. If something went wrong they were at the mercy of the main ship. He was not part of Tactical but that sounded dangerous at best.
He at least had to try restoring his own station then.

"Computer, can you restore sensor access?" 

"Access denied, all primary functions have been locked out."

Not a good sign. If functions could not be restored from the responsible Bridge station..... there still was a chance the Captain had a way to regain ship control, he simply had to have a way. If not the ship had been rendered not more than a probe under remote control from somewhere else which awoke bad memories from their Class on the Delta Quadrant and his teenage years reading the reports from the journeys of Voyager.

[current time]
During the rollcall, Rayek had been actively trying to trace the class of ship that had been noted briefly in the vicinity of Jupiter but nothing seemed to match and his time to search discreetly ran out, when the Fleet Formation began.  Even Rayek's PADD, which he had synced to the ship's database, locked down on him.  Fvadt! He groused internally before setting his PADD aside and turned his attention to official communication about to start.

It took about twenty minutes to get through all of them, more than 300 ships, but finally, they received orders to stand by.

"Here we go, guys." Nevir stated, taking a breath.

The comms were still open, but for now they were a one way channel.  A broadcast channel.  At first it was the Federation anthem playing, the full song.  That was then followed by fireworks igniting around the ships and Spacedock, and Nevir had to adjust himself in his chair, as they looked at the doors of Spacedock.  From there, they could hear the broadcast from the bridge.

"Spacedock, this is NCC-1701-F ready for ceremonial departure.  Admiral Shelby in command."

"Copy that, Enterprise.  You are cleared for departure. Happy Frontier day."

The doors opened, and the Odyssey-class USS Enterprise-F slowly sailed out of Spacedock, and immediately started its round around it.  Nevir couldn't help but smirk as the ship sailed out, looking surprisingly whole.

"Amazing... you'd never know that the ship barely functioned when it was brought back.  To think so much work was done for a ship that is having its last flight, and only because its the Enterprise." Nevir stated, as the voice of Admiral Shelby finally came through, and their viewscreen changed to show the Admiral in the Captain's chair on the otherwise huge bridge of the Odyssey class. Her words were preceded with the standard whistle indicating an all-comm message from the command officer.

"250 years ago today, the Enterprise NX-01, the first warp five capable vessel to be constructed by Human hands, made its maiden voyage. With it, a crew of 83 souls embarked on a journey. One of bravery, perseverance, and sacrifice that would lead to the birth of what we know today as Starfleet." 

They waited as the Enterprise F finished its circle of spacedock, and the Captain nodded to the helm.  "Alright, that's our cue.  Take flanking escort position.  Miss Garrison, check the status of Fleet Formation mode." he stated, as the ship moved with the rest of the escort fleet.

"A quarter millennium after the NX-01 took that first vital step, we gather on Frontier Day to take another. As we demonstrate our newest advancement, Fleet Formation Mode."

"Maybe the system won't work..." Nevir started, when he got confirmation that it was.  There was no going back now.

"USS Discovery, synchronization online." he stated, hitting the fleet comm while he confirmed that his ship was ready.  As soon as he closed the channel, he crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Now that its out of the bag... I frankly agreed with Lek.  This is a stupid idea.  Especially hearing it announced." he stated, frowning. Admiral Shelby continued.

"Synchronistic technology that allows every ship in Starfleet to operate as one." 

There was a shudder throughout the ship and all the bridge stations turned red, with a message on screen locking them out.

There was a lurch as the ship's helm controls were suspended and the ship was now moving under formation control.  Nevir looked down at his chair and tried to tap on the all comm.  Even that no longer worked.

"First issue... no means of communicating with the lead ship." he muttered aloud, while the Admiral carried on.

"An impenetrable armada. Unity and defense. The ultimate safeguard. In case of the unthinkable, fleetwide incapacitation, this system will protect our crews and our continued exploration of what still remains... our final frontier."

"On the precipice of the decommissioning of the Enterprise F, here is a look at some of Starfleet's most prestigious ships..."

"And that is why we're here." the Captain stated with a smirk.  "They wanted to show off a Prometheus as part of the fleet formation, and what better than the ship that helped bring peace to the Romulan Free State. Or at least that is the public image.  I'm confident I pissed off an admiral somewhere.  A lot of us Captains were concerned about the Formation and it looks like most of us are being put here front and center. Almost makes you wish you were on the Challenger."

The Captain's commentary during the Admiral's speech was a bit amusing.  It was a good thing the comms were only one-way.  For he was certain the Admiral wouldn't have been appreciative of some of the remarks.   Tekin's insight as to why the Discovery had been granted such an 'honour' to escort the Enterprise-F did however fill in a few gaps.

USS Discovery
Ops Console
Bridge

She let out a noisy sigh. Now what?! Idleness wasn't her strong suit.

She tapped her foot against the metal panels of the console base.

The tapping stood out noticeably during the Admiral's speech and Rayek felt compelled to deal with it before the Captain did.

He moved to stand beside the Ensign's console and looked over to the Grazerite sitting passively at the environmental controls station.  "Lieutenant Addams," he spoke quietly so as not to disturb others on the bridge trying to pay attention to the Admiral's speech. "Please take over main Ops.  Miss Lorut, you may take your break early and watch the parade from the Observation Lounge." he said.

Depending on the listener, his orders could be considered a perk or a punishment.

[Malik Grippen]

[Bridge]

Now that Helm control was locked out, Malik and Alex had been made redundant at the flick of a switch. With nothing immediate to do, Malik simply stood stoically and watched the viewscreen awaiting further orders. He felt about as useful as a chocolate teapot. With a smirk he spoke up, "What do you think Starfleet will do with all the pilots suddenly out of a job?"

[Zhukdrashar Mrekrerhas]

[NPC Doctor Meelar Phlome | Deck 5 | Alpha Hull Medical Facilities | USS Discovery NCC 78393-B]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge] Stardate 78288.5  (April 16, 2401)

[earlier...]
Rayek watched Broadshire sit down in the VIP seat, and wondering if he should speak to Thane about the younger doctor's mental state.  While medically Dem had the right to privacy, if his condition affected his work then the Command Team needed to know.

Another task to do after this celebration was over.

Rayek acknowledged Lorut's nod, then listened to her contact Engineering.  What he heard had him stifling a sigh.  Though Lorut had done what he requested, something in her tone or perhaps her word choices, made her request to Engineering sound rather bossy, and as if the request was her own and not his.

On the plus side, Lorut had used the word 'please'.  It was a start.

His attention then turned to the Science department who were also attempting to track down the source of the drain.

Ensign Ramort's remark about the readings by Jupiter were of note - and not just to the Captain.  Rayek used his PADD to look over the readings mentioned by the science officer, even as the Captain looked at them from Science station.   It did appear to be a Starfleet signature - like the Captain suggested, but the paranoid Romulan was less reassured by that information.   The Titan was still at large, and Rayek was certain that there were enemies - like the Thinkers -  that had the ability to fake a Starfleet signature easily enough.    Perhaps if he compared readings from various ships he might be able to determine at least the what class of ship the readings had come from.
[current time]
During the rollcall, Rayek had been actively trying to trace the class of ship that had been noted briefly in the vicinity of Jupiter but nothing seemed to match and his time to search discreetly ran out, when the Fleet Formation began.  Even Rayek's PADD, which he had synced to the ship's database, locked down on him.  Fvadt! He groused internally before setting his PADD aside and turned his attention to official communication about to start.
The Captain's commentary during the Admiral's speech was a bit amusing.  It was a good thing the comms were only one-way.  For he was certain the Admiral wouldn't have been appreciative of some of the remarks.   Tekin's insight as to why the Discovery had been granted such an 'honour' to escort the Enterprise-F did however fill in a few gaps.
The tapping stood out noticeably during the Admiral's speech and Rayek felt compelled to deal with it before the Captain did.

He moved to stand beside the Ensign's console and looked over to the Grazerite sitting passively at the environmental controls station.  "Lieutenant Addams," he spoke quietly so as not to disturb others on the bridge trying to pay attention to the Admiral's speech. "Please take over main Ops.  Miss Lorut, you may take your break early and watch the parade from the Observation Lounge." he said.

Depending on the listener, his orders could be considered a perk or a punishment.

Doctor Meelar Phlome listened to the grand maiden flight of the Enterprise-F being announced through the communication systems. At this moment, though, she was pretty torn. On the one hand, she really, truly wanted to join the rest of the crew in observing this celebration by herself, and not just hearing it. Denobulans like herself were social creatures, and at this moment, she truly, deeply craved interacting with others, especially if it was within such a special moment.

On the other hand, her work had consumed her. She was about to make a significant discovery that could greatly benefit the medical world, she felt. She had acquired these spores from Veridian III, which when exposed to plain ol' H₂O, proceeded to mature into amoeba organisms which were usually obligate carnivores. However, under rather specific circumstances, it had been reported that they could instead acquire photosynthetic capabilities. But more than that, they produced a substance that was a rather effective antibiotic against many of the bacteria that caused disease. Enterobacteriaceae of the class Gammaproteobacteria, Phylum Firmicutes, Pseudomonadales, and genera such as Clostridium, Legionella, Lysteria, Mycobacterium, Vibrio, and Yersina, to name a few.

The compound still had to be tested to be safe for all species, though it at least seemed to leave her cells unaffected, thus making it safe for Denobulans. She hoped that when she figured out if it was fully safe for all, that the amoeba could be sent to far-away colonies, where it could serve as medicine in case all other options were unavailable. The spores were highly resistant to adverse conditions and could remain in that state for many years. Thus, there would be no issues with the medicine degrading over time. And the cultive upkeep was relatively easy. Of course, there was a question if these could be damaging to ecosystems, but she supposed that would have to be another avenue of research.

Her observation on the microscope was interrupted as the ship lurched suddenly, telling her that this... 'synchronization' she had heard about was now working. She sighed, as she glanced at her samples, and then decided to return them to the incubator, to keep them safe. She made sure to place the microscope slide alongside them too, hoping that she would not be too long and be able to return to her experiments soon. But she wanted to see the ships flying in formation. Maybe make some conversation with the others. She had determined that the antibiotic was produced by exposing the amoeba to ultraviolet light, so she deserved a break, right?

She just hoped that her egoistic delay would not involve any loss in life in the future.

[Tanner Lachlyn]

[USS Discover- Deck 1 Bridge]

"As if Starfleet could ever remove such a valued position," Tanner said with a shake of her head as Malik expressed his woe, "Computers have been known to calculate the best course but not always the right one. This is just a show for the ceremonies. I highly doubt in future this technology will be used regularly."

Or so she hoped. The thought of the tech being used regularly made her uncomfortable. As if the higher-ups were looking at a map of the fleet and merely using them like a point-and-click style game to command around the galaxy.

[Zavrol Gohun]

With the go ahead to pursue the ever increasing energy drain, Gohun gets a tricorder and an engineering kit. With that Gohun enters the inner working of the ship where the chips for command codes ensure the ship functions. Looking around the whole area felt wrong. Maybe it was his days of security making Gohun feel paranoid maybe it was common sense. Whatever the case Gohun started scanning the area and found the energy drain followed it then it moved. Confused but not detered Gohun just went to the next area the reading shows and the drain moved. This was going to be a long day. It

[Lek]

[Engineering - USS Discovery]

Lek was uncomfortable. This was worth noting as he was in main engineering at the time and he always felt completely at home when he was near a warp core. Being an engineer was all that had ever interested him and, in addition to taking great pride in being a fixer, it brought him tremendous comfort.

But today, it didn't. It was unknown to anyone in the crew, to include the Captain, but Lek had buried several emergency commands inside the computer. A sort of insurance against things going very, very bad. The commands didn't give him special access to anything or allow him to take control of any systems, no, they were simple point to point transporter orders. One took him to his quarters, one to each of the bridges, and one to each of the hanger bays.

They were a way he could get out of serious trouble and give him time to come up with a plan. Unfortunately, this fleet system was not only a resource hog, it was locking the crew out of critical systems, thus his ability to beam out at a moment's notice was likely compromised.

"It looks like my 'Plan C' is going to have to be upgraded to my go to option."

He thought. Some might call having multiple emergency contingencies a form of paranoia. Lek, just thought of it as being prudent. To that end, he'd hidden food, water, and tools in several caches in the various Jeffries tubes. Plan C was simple, use his lobes to hear trouble coming, and then take advantage of his small size and agility to duck into the nearest tube. Once there, he could hold out for several days at the minimum, a couple weeks if he really stretched his supplies.

There was something fundamentally flawed with the entire concept of the fleet maneuver system and, as it was so obvious, there was something going on behind the scenes that he didn't know. All he could do was keep his ears open and the first sign of trouble, make his move.

[Tekin Nevir]

[Bridge]

Now that Helm control was locked out, Malik and Alex had been made redundant at the flick of a switch. With nothing immediate to do, Malik simply stood stoically and watched the viewscreen awaiting further orders. He felt about as useful as a chocolate teapot. With a smirk he spoke up, "What do you think Starfleet will do with all the pilots suddenly out of a job?"

[USS Discover- Deck 1 Bridge]

"As if Starfleet could ever remove such a valued position," Tanner said with a shake of her head as Malik expressed his woe, "Computers have been known to calculate the best course but not always the right one. This is just a show for the ceremonies. I highly doubt in future this technology will be used regularly."

Or so she hoped. The thought of the tech being used regularly made her uncomfortable. As if the higher-ups were looking at a map of the fleet and merely using them like a point-and-click style game to command around the galaxy.

For reference:

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The Captain smirked and shook his head.  "I believe Miss Tanner is correct.  At least for now.  It would cause waves if they started trying to phase out Starfleet officers.  Then again... a group of us Captains also said this would cause waves, and we were overruled.  We did have some Admirals agreeing with us... and strongly worded objections from a certain Commodore LaForge, but when the Admirals who agreed with us suddenly flipped and sided with the rest of the brass, this thing was going to keep going." the Captain stated, while Admiral Shelby was still giving details.  He couldn't help but notice that even she started to sound like she was trying to convince people... or convinced herself.

"Our next demonstration is the summation of decades of technological advancements..."

The fleet was just about in position, and the ships all moved at once, sailing from point alpha towards the Spacedock for a Fleet formation flyover.  There was nothing anyone could do, except watch the viewscreen, or watch the data coming in from the stations.  The displays were still active, just the controls were locked.  Which was good, since the ops Console suddenly beeped an alert... a proximity alert.  A ship was just warping in.  Once the signal was confirmed, Nevir stood up.

"Onscreen!" he ordered... but of course nothing happened.  They didn't even have control of what was being displayed; command functions were also locked out.  But the fleet formation mode also meant that not only could they see the ship that just warped in, but they could communicate with it.

"The... Titan?" he repeated, a bit dumbfounded.  Of all the possible places the Titan could run, it decided to join the rest of the fleet at Earth?!  By now the Captain understood that Captain Shaw wasn't the problem.  It was formerly decorated officers... some of the most famous of the modern era... that had suddenly decided to turn rogue.

"Well, there is one good thing about this mode... Titan is now under our control.  Or at least under the Enterprise's control.  Those people aren't going anywhere." he said, crossing his arms.  Thats when Admiral Shelby's broadcast was hijacked.  Not the visual, just the audio.

"Captain, there is a hail coming from the Titan on all channels.  All emergency channels." Ruthie stated, turning back to monitor her station as it came in.  Not that she could do anything more than inform her father.

"This is Admiral Jean-Luc Picard.  I come to you with a warning!"

"What the hell is he doing?  Right in the middle of Frontier Day?" Nevir practically shouted, actually looking annoyed if not upset.  The Bajoran was coming out.

"Changeling infiltration of Starfleet has made us vulnerable to our greatest enemy... the Borg!"

The Captain stood stunned.  Shelby on screen seemed to be doing a private transmission on her chair, leaving the rest of the fleet to hear the other activity on the Enterprise's bridge.  He shook his head, but then Shelby decided to do something unexpected... listen to him.

"Admiral Shelby, I know this message may seem desperate, even impossible, but you must trust us.  I hope you can see-"

The message finally cut off as the Titan locked out its own comms and joined the fleet formation.  Shelby looked like she was trying to allow Titan to transmit again when even the viewscreen cut out, with a message that communications were lost.

"What just-" the Captain was never able to finish his statement as a sudden, loud shrill tone seemed to echo through the ship, catching him completely off guard. It lasted for what seemed like hours, but was only seconds, before it seemed to fade to a less shrill but consistent tone.  The science station put up a notification of a massive energy spike coming from far in the solar system... and by pure luck it seemed to be emanating from the direction of Jupiter, but without being able to access sensor controls it was only an alert reading.

Nevir took a step forward when the tone changed pitch again, and the screens around them flickered with faint shapes of green.  There was a surge of resonance coming directly from the quantum slipstream systems that heralded what was about to happen.

The Captain looked around the bridge.  The eerie green sent a shiver down his spine.  And the panel shapes were starting to look familiar.  Not first-hand knowledge, but something from his Captain briefings.  Something that chilled him to the bone.

"Ruthie... try to send a message to the Enterprise." he ordered.  That was followed by silence.  A long pause of silence.

"Ruthie?" he asked again, this time turning towards where his daughter sat, with her back to the rest of the bridge.  She seemed to be frozen as a statue, with just slight twitches.  But she wasn't responding to him, neither as the Captain, nor as her father.

"Ruthie?" he asked again, now with a twinge of concern and almost fear in his voice.  She still didn't respond.  And she wasn't the only one.  Some of his bridge officers seemed to freeze as well, silent, with an almost imperceptible sound of attempts to breathe.  All throughout the ship, and indeed the fleet, some of the officers, specifically all of the younger officers, suddenly froze as well, as they were... changed.

((Alright all, this is where things get tricky.  Any being under the age of full development (for a human, that is 25 years of age, so it would be species equivalent), is now being assimilated.  If you are unsure where you stand, ask Rayek, they have the list.))