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Messages - Taurik

#1
Master Taurik - Charlie 0-2-2 Crash Site

Taurik approached his compatriots of the Council. In a quiet voice, he stated, "We must continue toward the Citadel, but the others cannot accompany us. The fighting will be too intense."

Legudon nodded. "They are brave, but are also just foolhardy enough to think they can come with us. They must remain here at the transport, and wait for our return."

Techerakh piped in. "They won't like that, I'm sure." Unfortunately, Admiral Karelia was close enough to pick up on the Templar's last comment. "Won't like what?" he asked.

Taurik stepped toward the admiral. "Admiral, the councillors and I must continue, our battle is ahead. However, the combat will be far beyond the range of your abilities, as well as the rest of your officers here. I'm afraid I must ask you all to remain here."

"And I'm afraid I'm going to have to deny your request, captain," Karelia stated very matter-of-factly. "After all, I'm still your commanding officer, and I'm not leaving anyone here. We're all going."

"In this matter," Taurik said, "I am outside your jurisdiction. I am no longer on this mission as a Starfleet captain, but as a member of the Gallifreyan council, one that has the authority to order you to remain here."

Karelia's face became hot. "Captain, you're on very unsteady ground. I won't tolerate insubordination from one of my officers. We're coming with you, and that's final. Am I understood?"

"I understand your order perfectly, I simply refuse to abide by it. This battle won't be won by soldiers and phasers, admiral. This is a battle of psionics. Warriors trained to perfection in the art of both telepathic and melee combat. With all due respect, admiral, you and your officers have extremely poor chances of survival, and will only serve to slow us down. However, the four of us may have the ability to stop Ar'Krakh, and we must do what we can to achieve just that. I need your cooperation on this, Admiral."

Karelia hesitated for a moment. "Fine," he said shortly. "We'll do it your way. But I don't like it. And if you ever disobey an order like that again, captain, you'll probably lose your command of the Rivendell. Is that understood?"

Just as Taurik was about to say "perfectly", one of the functional scanners from inside the Pelican began to beep loudly. As Taurik and Karelia checked the readings, it showed two unidentified groups of contacts closing on their position at a steady rate. Taurik surmised they had about two minutes until the first group made contact. "As humans would say," he said, "it looks like we're 'not out of the woods yet'."
#2
Captain Taurik - Cockpit, Cardinal Virtue

Taurik expertly piloted the Cardinal Virtue through the titanic space doors and made way around the inner circumference of the station, toward it's assigned docking slip. Before he could reach it, however, he felt the thoughts of Master Legudon. He immediately docked the ship as quickly as possible, and performed the most abbreviated post-flight routine he could get away with, before making a beeline for the turbolift.
#3
Master Taurik - Citadel of Adun

The battle between Taurik, the embodiment of Gallifrey; and Ar'Krakh, the embodiment of the Na'jigat, was a fierce one. The two warriors fought with speed and vigor beyond the range of any single being. Most of the battle was a blur, no outside observer would be able to track a specific movement. This was only on the surface, however, as the psionic battle between the two continued.

To the two warriors-turned-avatars, moments passed as if they were millenia. The combat seemed unending, and the neurogenic radiation caused by their telepathic output was enough to render even the remaining active members of the strike team unconscious. And although the advantage was hard fought, the wrath of the Gallifreyans began to win out against the Na'jigat.

On the outside, energy blades were flying wildly, the center of the antechamber brightly lit by flares of impact between the weapons. Taurik had since drawn his second khala and was beginning to press Ar'Krakh into a desperate defense. The warmaster could not keep up with the twin weapons, disadvantaged by his single energy bracer and constant distraction of the Gallifreyan's mental attack. Taurik saw his opening and smashed against the bracer with one weapon, using the other to sever the Heraan's arm.

Defeated, Ar'Krakh fell to the ground, and screamed as the Na'jigat desperately launched a psionic barrage against Taurik, one the Gallifreyan's focus could finally render useless. And as Taurik stood over the injured warmaster, he spoke in a collective voice that would bring pause to even the Borg. "You are vanquished. All that have fallen to your hunger are avenged. And your evil - the evil that doomed Scion to destruction - has come to an end." Taurik stepped forward in his own mind, as if emerging from a crowd, and took full control of his body. Locking eyes with the warmaster, he saw a glint of fear just before swinging his khala.

With the warmaster defeated, Taurik fell to his knees, and the collective of Gallifreyan minds slowly unraveled, leaving Taurik on the floor, alive but appearing as dead as Ar'Krakh. He remained on the floor for several minutes, simply breathing and rediscovering the feeling on being alone in one's mind. It was as he remembered, but he also felt changed, incomplete. And as he got to his feet, he felt a presence, one that seemed to welcome him. It was without words, simply a feeling. It was unfamiliar, but almost felt warm.
#4
Captain Taurik - Bridge, Hybrid Starship Radiant Thunder

Taurik grasped the arms of the Thunder's bridge chair, marveling at the comfort of the Gallifreyan fabric used to upholster it. He had commanded this vessel once before, but was still impressed by the way the ship managed to meld both Gallifreyan and Federation architecture, and still seem as natural as either one alone.

He tapped a button on the panel that hovered next to the command seat. "Captain Taurik to all Rivendell crew," he beckoned. "Report to the Radiant Thunder at once." Once the message was sent, he called up the specs on the ship, bypassing the inefficient use of a command panel and linking his mind with that of the ship's central processing core. In addition to the Gallifreyan's knowledge of telepathic technologies, they were also well adept at the art of bio-mechanical engineering, and managed to create vessels that were controllable by mere telepathic contact alone, and this allowed Taurik to not only request the data telepathically, but have it sent directly to his brain as well.

After reviewing the tactical specifications of the ship for a few moments, he was availed to a moment to sit and think about his last conversation with Techerakh. In effect, the master had told him, he was now the de facto leader of the Gallifreyan Order. Perhaps not in title, but he had been informed that every Gallifreyan would willingly fight and die by his word. Even Techerakh himself had expressed his readiness to take orders from Taurik.

Somehow, Taurik had doubts about whether he was ready to accept such a position.
#5
Master Taurik - Citadel of Adun

Despite his greatly expanded power and almost limitless perception, Taurik was being forced onto the defensive. The Na'jigat, in direct possession of Ar'Krakh's body, were easily more than a match for him. It took every strand of concentration in order to just barely escape every attack by the creature. And that was just the physical aspect of the battle, for the Na'jigat were launching a psychic attack on him as well, furthering their advantage. Ar'Krakh was now simply faster, stronger, and more powerful.

"Your time is at an end," their collective consciousness screamed in his mind. "You will falter, and you will die. And then, our victory will be complete, and Gallifrey will be crushed." Taurik deflected two near simultaneous blows, his blade moving so fast that a normal human eye would see only a blur of pale blue energy. He was forced to employ his abilities to augment his natural speed, only to keep up with Ar'Krakh's enhanced skill. The other Gallifreyans were progressing well enoug in their own conflicts, but by the time they might be able to render any assistance, Taurik knew he would already be dead.

"Taurik," cried a voice that Taurik identified as that of Techerakh. "The Chalice!" And then it struck him. The only way Taurik was ever going to have a chance at defeating Ar'Krakh now was to even the playing field. And that required employing a technique that had only been used once, and unsuccessfully at that. It required the usage of the Chalice of Adun, the psionic unification of the entire Gallifreyan race.

Taurik was able to disengage from Ar'Krakh - with a swift and unexpected kick to the torso - long enough to pull the strange crystal from his robe. The crystal, dark when he first acquired it over a year ago, was now glowing the most vibrant purple that Taurik had ever seen. He forced all of his psionic will into the stone, and it began to glow even brighter, with an intensity that gave even the embodied Na'jigat pause. And then, all at once, it began. The crystal began to reach out, invisibly to bystanders, and touched the minds of every Gallifreyan, from the ones in the room with him, to the ones on the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Their consciousnesses, thoughts, feelings, and power all rushed to Taurik, indifferent to distance or isolation, and flooded him. He felt their presences so strongly that he began to lose himself in the torrent of thought that was cascading though his mind.

And when he was finally able to make sense of it all, his own individuality lost among the union, he opened his eyes once more. Techerakh and Raszagal had slumped to the floor, but before their attackers could take advantage of the situation, Taurik glanced at the once fearsome Heraani elites, and with the ease of a breath, reached into their mind and terminated them. The dead Heraan fell to the floor, as still as the Gallifreyans. Knowing that the two companions were safe, Taurik returned his attention to the Na'jigat.
#6
Master Taurik - Citadel of Adun

Steadily and swiftly, the Heraani elites closed in and formed a line behind them, as if to be leading convicts to the electric chair. Taurik kept a psionic eye on them at all times. The Gallifreyans moved just as swiftly, and the procession moved quickly through the grand hall and toward the main chamber. Taurik remembered the chamber as if it were only the day before, as it was in this very chamber that he was first inducted into the Gallifreyan Order, as the first non-Gallifreyan to do so. This planet and it's structures were almost too familiar, he felt as if he had spent several lifetimes here, even though it had only been several years since he joined the Order. Although he would never forget his homeworld, somehow, Taurik regarded himself as a son of Gallifrey above all else. These people had a fire about them, a passion, long lost to his own people. He had read the ancient texts, seen how the Vulcans of old nearly tore themselves apart with their uncontrollable emotions, and was glad that his species had chosen the way of Surak. But he also longed for that passion, one that hinted at him occasionally but remained mostly dormant, and wished his people were capable of controlling themselves without complete emotional detachment.

The procession stopped, and the rear guard made their way around the strike team and flanked a fifth Heraan, taller but much more sparsely dressed. Where most Heraan wore the brilliant golden armor that had become feared and hated within Starfleet, this one wore only the most essential combat adornments, and was wrapped in much more plebeian clothing. Despite his outward appearance, his position, stance, and much more ornate weapon denoted him immediately as Ar'Krakh, warmaster and leader of the Heraan, and their emissary to the Na'jigat themselves.

The tall, slender alien stepped forward, his telepathic voice booming in the minds of everyone present. "So," he said, "I spend my time hunting you down, and you finally come to me. I applaud your efforts, all of you. The Gallifreyan Order has proven quite a capable and extremely bothersome enemy. I commend you on your successes, but I also feel compelled to inform you that it is all over. Gallifrey is mine. And you, my dear masters, whom I've grown so close to over the many decades, will not be leaving this Citadel alive."

Techerakh, the most passionate among them, was about to retort, when he noticed Taurik summoning a response, and deferred. "Warmaster Ar'Krakh," Taurik said aloud, in spite of Ar'Krakh who, as a Heraan, had no vocal chords. "I am Taurik of Vulcan, Senior Master of the Gallifreyan Order, and captain of the Federation starship Rivendell." He waited while Ar'Krakh sized him up; the unlikely, impromptu leader of the Order that he was. "I feel compelled, in return, to inform you that Gallifrey will not be lost without considerable bloodshed. Each and every one of us will fight to the death to keep this world from you."

"It does not need to come to that, young Taurik. I know how much you order cares for it's world, but I also know it cares for it's people. All we ask is that you submit to the will of the Na'jigat, and they will allow us to serve side by side. Taurik, our people could be brothers in our faith!"

"Slaves," Taurik replied sternly. "Your people are slaves to the Na'jigat, and you do not even see it. There is no future in the galaxy the Na'jigat desire. They will consume the lives and worlds and stars of anyone who stands in their way, and when there is no one left, they will turn to their own slaves for sustenance. And when the galaxy finally dies, darkened and drained, they will move to the next. As they did with Scion."

Ar'Krakh's blue eyes burned brightly in his anger. "You spew the lies of a heretic!" he screamed in their minds, painfully to those unprepared. "And if that is your creed, then you shall die the death of every other heretic before you! I will say it once more: submit to the will of the Gods, or suffer the dire consequences of defiance." Taurik searched for an appropriate answer as he and the others drew their weapons. He found only one suitable reply, in the annals of old Terran slang.

"Burn in hell."
#7
Master Taurik - Cardinal Virtue crash site

Taurik ensured everyone was uninjured after the Cardinal Virtue's crash landing, and then followed everyone outside. Admiral Karelia was visibly shaken by the loss of his vessel, but Taurik knew he'd put the distress aside for the time being.

"We need to call for evac," Karelia said. "The city--"

"No," Taurik said abruptly, noticing the admiral start a bit at being interrupted by his inferior. "The Heraan will notice any dropship sent for us, and will reach us first. Antioch is only a few kilometers away, we will have a better chance on foot."

"I agree," came Techerakh's input. "We know this world more intimately than any Heraan. I am confident we can evade them on foot. Via transport, I cannot make the same guarantee."

Without waiting for Karelia's response, Taurik continued. "Then it is settled. We will make for Antioch. Admiral, I suggest you gather any essential supplies from your ship, but we must travel lightly."


Lieutenant Stevens - Bridge, Radiant Thunder

Stevens gripped the arms of the command chair tight as the Thunder rocked hard under enemy fire. "Target all torpedoes on that destroyer!" he yelled.

The Thunder, battleship that she was, made a banked turn around the attacking destroyer, and two quantum torpedo turrets swiveled to meet the enemy's broadside. With a speed that astounded Stevens, each turret unleashed three torpedoes, and the salvo struck the Heraan's already weakened shields. The warheads found their mark, and the ship's superstructure began to glow as the chain reaction spread throughout it. And after a moment's hesitation, the ship burst into dozens of golden shards, with several thousand microfragments scattered in the midst.

The ship was graceful, yet possessed a power that even the Rivendell would be hard pressed to match. It made Stevens almost disappointed that he would eventually transfer back to that ship, because as beautiful as the ship was, and as at home as it made him feel, there would always be that envy of the Radiant Thunder in his mind.
#8
Acting Commodore Taurik - Bridge, Flagship Radiant Thunder

"Captain," came the cool, synthetic voice of the Gallifreyan computer core, "you are receiving a transmission from the Starfleet vessel Normandy."

"Route it to my office," Taurik replied. He got up from his chair, into which a lieutenant commander occupied in his absence. He stepped into the office, and sat down at the beautiful desk, from which a completely holographic screen, with no physical frame, extended. The Federation logo could be seen on the screen, and Taurik "touched" the screen to activate the commlink. The face of Captain Rajnus appeared on the screen, sitting at what appeared to be his own ready room desk.

"This is Taurik. What can I assist you with, Captain?"
#9
Master Taurik - Jungles of Gallifrey

Taurik and the rest of the Gallifreyan strike team were moving swiftly but stealthily through the jungles, the two Federation admirals close behind. The Vulcan feared that they may be heavily fatigued at this point, struggling to keep up with the Gallifreyans' superior speed and physique.

It was only as they exited the jungles that they could make out the skyline of Antioch, and could see the pinpricks that were the allied entrenchments just within the borders of the city. To Taurik's horror, he saw a large Heraani detachment, complete with artillery, between them and Antioch. By the looks of it, the Heraan were preparing to catch the Federation and Gallifreyan forces off-guard, with an attack on their weakened rear flank.

"They won't survive that assault," said Legudon succinctly. Taurik turned his head to look at his master-turned-colleague. "They must," he replied, "or we've no chance of retaking Antioch, and Gallifrey will be lost."

Techerakh lit his twin khalai. "Then it is up to us to carve a bloody swatch in the Heraan's wretched numbers!"

Taurik placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Patience, Techerakh. I would like nothing better than to wipe them rom this world with a swing of my blade, but strategy is in order here. Are there many elites among them? Any that could detect our stealth approach?"

"I doubt it," came Legudon's answer. "Only a Field Commander can reliably detect the presence of a stealth operative."

"Then we will sneak upon them, and rid them of their artillery before they have a chance to use it."

The four Gallifreyans resumed their psionic camouflage technique, dashing at full speed until they were within earshot of the Heraan, then reducing their speed to a light-footed walk. They crept up behind the Heraani lines, each targeting one of the heavy artillery tanks the Heraan used to bombard enemy positions. They were able to actually climb aboard the tank, and locate it's pilot. Then, with the force of his mind and will alone, Taurik violently entered the mind of the Heraani pilot, blocking off all telepathic communication, and willingly destroying the mental mechanics of it's mind. The Heraan, he could feel, was trying with all of it's might to scream it's pain outward to it's comrades, but Taurik's attack rendered it telepathically silent and physically immobile. He wreaked havoc upon the alien's mind, until it's head rolled back and it's face actually began to bleed in places from the extreme cranial pressure.

It was an attack that Taurik wished to never perform again, but he would do so again and again if it were required of him. He noticed the same look on his compatriots' faces, after they followed suit. With the four artillery tanks disabled, Taurik nodded to the others, and slid into the controls of the tank. He reversed it's forward motion, much to the surprise of the troops ahead. As soon as they turned to investigate, the four plasma tanks unleashed a deadly barrage into their own lines, decimating over half of the soldiers immediately. Taurik knew they would be easy prey in the confines of the tank's control seat, so he jumped upward and backward, flipping in midair an landing on his feet, fully visible.

While drawing his khala, he projected a short message to the allied forces within Antioch:

"Assist."
#10
(OFF: Sorry for my apparent absence. I've been here, just never quite enough time to finish a post.)

Master Taurik - Primary Antechamber, Citadel of Adun

While each of his companions engaged one of the Heraani elites, Taurik and Ar'Krakh stared one another down for a few moments. Ar'Krakh's tattered cloak waved slowly in the subtle breeze making it's way through the Citadel. The leader of the entire Heraani armada was a tall, lithe figure, his eyes glowing a hot blue with his rage and zealotry. Taurik regarded his talent with respect, and somehow, he knew Ar'Krakh held the same respect, despite their animosity.

"I must admit," Taurik projected, his khala glowing with nearly the same blue as that of Ar'Krakh's eyes, "it will bring me great honor to battle the leader of our most hated enemy." Ar'Krakh would have cracked a devious grin, had he a mouth to grin with. "And it will bring me great pleasure to kill the leader of ours," he replied.

At nearly the exact same moment, the two warriors leaped into one another, their blades raised and their attentions focused. Ar'Krakh was a legendary psionic, infamous for both his psychic power and his skill with an energy blade. Taurik was aware of his own power, but never having faced a Heraan of such ability, he was taken a bit off guard.
#11
Lieutenant Jeff Stevens - Bridge, Flagship Radiant Thunder

Stevens plied the helm controls of the Gallifreyan/Starfleet hybrid vessel, still amazed at the efficiency and complexity of her systems. Even the most rudimentary quantum slipstream drive was decades beyond Starfleet, and this ship had the most efficient and well-tuned drive core he could imagine. The ship was a joy to pilot.

Therefore, he was almost disappointed when the captain yielded the bridge to him. He would enjoy commanding the ship for a while, sure, but there was something about flying a ship himself that he always loved. Stevens stood from the helm seat, and moved aft to occupy the command seat, as the captain entered the lift. Which, he mused, was a bad name for them, as the "turbolifts" aboard the Thunder were actually site-to-site teleporters, which transported one or more crewmen to a corresponding unit on another deck. As the captain entered it, Stevens could make out the word "transporter room". Apparently, the captain was going somewhere...


Master Taurik - Hangar Deck, Gallifreyan flagship Prodigal Son

Taurik materialized within the cavernous hangar of the Gallifreyan capital ship, already aware of the crisis on the planet's surface. He had heard the Chronicler's plea for help as well as Techerakh, or the others gathered there.

"I assume you all heard the message as well?" Techerakh asked. "In the panic of their thoughts, I was able to glean from the historians an idea of who we're against down there. I saw the Heraani warmaster, Ar'Krakh. He is leading an assault on Antioch itself, one that seems to be succeeding. I needn't remind you of the threat we face. Both the Spire and the Citadel are under siege, and all reports say that Ar'Krakh will seize Antioch within the hour, given his current pace."

Taurik spoke up. "I assume you have a plan, Techerakh?" The master Templar nodded. "I do. I have already signaled Admiral Karelia. His vessel will be our ingress method. In the chaos of this battle, none of us could center ourselves, to teleport ourselves there, and our ships are caught in battle. Only his ship, the Cardinal Virtue, stands a chance of making it to the surface alive if the Heraan detect it."
#12
Acting Commodore Taurik - Bridge, Flagship Radiant Thunder

Taurik pressed a comm-button on the hovering console next to his command seat. "All ships, this is Captain Taurik. Plot your courses; heading 348 by 016. Engage at maximum cohesive speed."

Taurik was slightly annoyed to be slowed down by some of the slower ships in the fleet, knowing that to maintain that cohesive speed he mentioned, the faster ships like the Thunder would need to keep pace with the lesser ships. The Radiant Thunder could outrun any ship in Starfleet pretty easily, as could the Gallifreyan cruisers, but leaving them behind would leave them vulnerable to Heraani flank attacks.

Taurik spun to face the viewer. "Helm," he said, "set course to the aforementioned heading and adjust slipspeed to match the fleet."
#13
Master Taurik - Outer Courtyard, Citadel of Adun

Taurik and the strike team made their way unhindered to the very base of the majestic Citadel. The captain had expected more resistance to their approach, considering the amount of enemy infantry that had entered the city. However, as he had expected, Taurik saw four elite guards at the entrance to the Citadel itself, and all of them had their eyes trained on the Gallifreyans.

Taurik and the other psionics began approaching the Heraan, weapons at the ready, when the Heraan surprised them by leaving their weapons deactivated. The sentinel thought it was surely a ruse, until the lead guard spoke directly into the minds of all of them. "Lower your weapons," it demanded. "The warmaster wishes to see you."

When the four guards stood aside, framing the entrance to the Citadel with two to a side, Taurik deactivated his weapons reluctantly and led the team into the Citadel itself.
#14
Acting Commodore Taurik - CO's Office, Flagship Radiant Thunder

Taurik looked at the screen with the neutral, emotionless stare of a Vulcan. "You are here," he said, "because Gallifrey's defense will require every ship and every soldier we can muster. Sadly, captain, the primary responsibility of every captain in this fleet, to protect the lives of their crew, is now secondary. I know humans will find this difficult to accept, but individual lives are unimportant here. The fate of the entire galaxy hinges on the salvation of the Gallifreyan Order. If they are destroyed, the Na'jigat will be unchecked, and our doom will be inevitable."

Taurik sighed, something uncharacteristic of his people. "It's not an idea I prefer myself, but it could prove necessary. So you are here, captain, because you or any member of your crew may be the one to tip the scale in our favor. And if you are not, frankly, you might die to protect the one that does."
#15
Commodore Taurik - Bridge, Flagship Radiant Thunder

Taurik nodded silently, in a fashion that made it obvious his mind was elsewhere. He gazed at the viewer as the Thunder, leading a Federation fleet thirty-seven ships strong, dropped from FTL speeds. The main viewer depicted a titanic battle in the opening stages. The Heraan fleet had arrived, but by the look of the battle, minimal damage had been caused on either side. A combined fleet of Gallifreyan battlecruisers, Romulan warbirds, and Cardassian destroyers held their own against the pounding of a large line of Heraani warships.

A communication came in from the lead Gallifreyan vessel. "This is Master Temlaa, Mundokiir of the First Defense Fleet of Gallifrey. By Adun, you've arrived just in time!"

Taurik opened a channel to the entire combined Federation and Alliance fleets, as well as the Gallifreyan flagships accompanying them. "All ships, move into formation and target Heraani attackers. Fire at will."