EXETERRPG: (16 - 1210, 1212) - MS - FO Lt(sg) Ailynn Bracken and Entity Host Trentin Jost

[Mark Howard]

NRPG: Gaps for replies previously requested.



Mission: The flames of purity

Day: 16

Stardate: 2445:09:16



(Gamma Quadrant Planet - Temple interior – Entity Host Trentin Jost and FO
Lt(sg) Ailynn Bracken – 1210)



Ailynn watched, powerless for a moment as the Jost Wraith took care of the
remains of the away team, her brain working fully, whilst her body kept up
the calm front. ~calm?~ It was a genuine surprise, even to herself, but she
was in fact, utterly calm, and in control of all her emotions.



“Oh, really? This is not the end, but it can be yours.” He brought his
right hand up which was now immolated with flame ready to strike the final
blow.



“ENOUGH. RELEASE THEM.” She snapped.



“Little canary you protest?” He addressed Bracken ignoring the security
officer’s reaction to pain.



Ailynn’s voice was furious, not just a tone of command, it was the whole
orchestra, it wasn’t a hint of steel, it was the whole foundry. “Don’t
patronise me. You haven’t killed me yet.”



“Lieutenant, I quite think we should take this outside.” He said, still
gripping the security officer’s side. He now gave him a telekinetic shove
pushing over three pews before he vaulted over the last one falling between
the fourth and fifth set of benches. “Lead the way.”



“Offering me out? Fighting in the playground? Are you twelve?” However, she
turned, and picking up her tricorder, tucking it into the belt that she was
wearing, stepped outside.



Plastered on the former priest’s face was the biggest broadest grin his
body could accomplish. As Jost’s eyes took in what was wrought, all this
destruction, the Wraith, feeding off the darkness and pain was finally
strong enough to take over. In his own mind Jost was pushed aside. The
ancient evil had now taken over.


(Gamma Quadrant Planet - Temple exterior – Entity Host Trentin Jost and FO
Lt(sg) Ailynn Bracken – 1212)



“I’m assuming that by now," Ailynn said as they stepped outside onto the
plaza out the side of the temple. "That I’m talking to the wraith? You’ve
made a grotesque number of mistakes.” Ailynn paced, waving her finger at
the Jost Wraith. “You used him, that was mean. The translations that you
gave him were horribly vague. He traded his soul in for power that you knew
wouldn’t last beyond you switching this on, because you were always going
to kill him anyway.”



“I used Jost?” He said still grinning ear to ear. “No, my little canary, I
used all of you.”



He continued, moving forward, “Starfleet, the Bajoran Government including
your vaunted “Vedek Assembly”. Heh, a collection of old, self serving
fools.”



“You used the remnants of the old Starfleet.” She snapped back, stepping
around, “sycophants and traitors. All of whom were cast aside in the purge.
As to the Vedek assembly. Self serving is one thing they’re not. You’ve
badly miscalculated if you’re mistaking devotion of service for lining
one’s own nest; and as to fools...I only see one.”



The being laughed.



“The interdimensional being that can’t keep one annoying stupid little girl
in a cage. Canary? You do not want to hear me sing.”



“Enough,” he said menacingly, “time to end you.”



With a back hand the being shoved the Lieutenant another 7 meters across
the ground.


“I am not afraid of you.”


“You will be,” He said and pulled a large 40 kg rock off of a nearby talus
field. He threw it striking the ground near her feet. He stepped forward.


She knew that she should be afraid, terrified to the core, but actually the
unnerving thing was that she wasn’t. Of course, turning that into a battle
plan while she was dodging rocks was something that was alluding her at the
moment.


“Best shot? All that time in your timeless prison, and you can’t hit me
with that? I wonder if the encroaching time is eating away at your senses
as well of what remains of your putriescent soul.”


“So, you wish to be struck?” He asked, glaring at her. “Your, wish..”


He levitated countless dime sized pebbles and jagged stones from the
mountain side. Sending them hurtling toward her at amazing speeds, like
hail coming in sideways.


“..granted.”


Standing her ground, but bracing to be cut to ribbons by the stones, she
raised her left arm, the one that had been marked by the azure tattoo from
the Prophets themselves, and swiped it to her left, managing to deflect
most of the stones. A good number of them inflicted dozens of cuts to her
body and face.


Laughing, she turned back to the Jost Wraith. “Wasn’t sure that was going
to work…”


“So they have chosen…” he remarked. “SO HAVE YOU FINALLY NOTICED ME?” He
screamed to the heavens, yelling at those who now lived in his former home.
“No matter it will just make my victory sweeter.” He waived his hand toward
himself calling the large stone from before striking her in the back.


Ailynn felt ribs creak, and crack. ~So there are limitations. That seems
unfair.~. Spitting blood, Ailynn pulled herself back up, and stepped toward
him, “No, they noticed ME. I’ll concur that you’re the stronger, maybe just
maybe you CAN kill me, but I’ll take up as much of your time. Time that
you’re running out of, because that’s something that you have no
understanding of, and you still haven’t gloated about my unworthiness, I
wonder if it’s because you can’t see it.”


He stepped forward again advancing, grinning sadistically. He was now
between the Lieutenant and the large tachyon array. “I see the darkness in
things, like tinted lenses they color all I see. Just because they’ve
shielded you and I can’t see your Pah, doesn’t mean I can’t kill you just
the same.” His hands were now wreathed in flames.


Swallowing deeply as she looked at the flames, Ailynn pulled herself up to
her full height, and nodded. “THEN TRY.” She stared him deep in the eyes in
defiance. She knew that he could at any second, but she also knew that the
more she pulled his attention away from everything and toward her, the more
likely it was that she’d get to him somehow.


Grinning he brought both flaming hands together and pulled them back,
drawing energy from some interdimensional spring. The flames built on each
other growing in size and heat. He pushed forward with both hands base of
palms touching but both hands open and pushed the ball of fire towards the
taller woman.


This time, Ailynn raised both her hands, stepping forward and wincing in
preparation for the blast. She knew that she could limit it, but she also
knew that this one was going to take her.
~PLease not this easily...Prophets if I die now...I’m sorry.~


The blast was indeed reduced once more in its power, but still a sizeable
proportion caught her, searing the skin on her arms and scorching her
clothes, the blast wave itself sent her flying back, her left hand side
crashing into the boulder that Jost had nearly hit her with earlier. The
medic in her knew she didn’t dare even think about the broken bones she had
already gained. Adrenaline was thankfully stopping her from feeling the
pain, but her time was limited.


Dragging herself back to him, pain beginning to happen.
“That...wasn’t...kind.” She slapped him round the face, knowing it was a
stupid, pointless move, but she felt fetter as she stared him in the eyes
once more. She knew that his next move would overpower her, but she would
stand here to the last, wasting his time, knowing that the moment that he
was waiting for was virtually at hand, and that he needed to act now.


“Impressive resilience. Do you want more pain? Or should I end it now?” He
teased her.


“Do what you need.” She snapped back defiantly, literally nose to nose.
“Either way, you’re out of time. GO TO HELL.” She found herself laughing in
his face.


“Very well.” He said. His joviality gone and now stern faced he threw her
across the plateau landing some meters away. With his other hand he caused
flames to erupt in a small circle around her. “Back into your gilded cage.”


Looking up to the sky without the aid of any instruments he sighted in his
objective. He walked to the panel and pressed the activation sequence.


Ailynn picked herself up, excruciating pain ran down her right hand side.
It hurt to breath, her ribs creaked and she knew that some were broken.
Judging by the pattern of her breath, a punctured lung, as well as the
telltale high-pitched stridor, and deep sooty coloured tint to the phlegm
that indicated serious burns to her airway. All this on top of probable
pelvic injuries. ~that’s even before the small matter of…~


She looked up, suppressing a tingle of excitement as she watched Jost
initiate the machine. The flames around her were not an illusion, she could
feel the heat on the burns that her skin had already sustained.


The machine began a warning klaxon. Buzzing of some internal problem. The
screen showed a build up beyond the machine’s ability to contain. The
Wraith could tell it was set to overload but didn’t know how to shut it
off. This was Jost’s creation; he needed Jost to help fix it.


~This is your creation, fix it!~ The Wraith commanded and pleaded with the
being whose body he inhabited.


:: You betrayed me. As the Lieutenant said: Go to hell!:: Jost thought back
laughing.


The machine’s build up finally reached past the recommended and theoretical
limits of it’s design. The explosion wasn’t a physical one, as the machine
simply lost containment of all the chronitons it was collecting. A
blue/white wave issued out from the machine in all directions.


For a brief moment multiple images could be seen of the two of them. All
existing at once. A visual chronicle of the past few minutes from them
walking out into the yard and all the blows that were struck. Just as
quickly the images all coalesced into the present time.


“Wha…” The being staggered for a moment his arms flailing and his legs felt
like a semi-solid substance. The ring of fire holding the Lieutenant
disappeared.


Stepping forward, her right leg dragging painfully behind her Ailynn
grinned. “I DID NOT THINK THAT WAS GOING TO WORK!” She grinned, knowing
that the Wraith had an eternity in the fire caves to remember her face. “I
told you...TOLD YOU!” She coughed, a deep wracking cough that spat up
bloody, sooty phlegm. “Sure, I’m not sure I’ll survive my injuries; but
here’s the thing. I outsmarted an ancient godlike being. I DID. A bloody
mortal, and you get to think about that.”


The wraith, weakened, was now struggling to maintain control.


“Jost! This is all on you. Now reap the consequences.” She continued to
approach, and was once more nose to nose. “Never let it be said a Bracken
isn’t a fighter, even if she’s a healer. I am Paladin.” she spoke through
gritted determined teeth.


Jost had control of one side as the Wraith maintained control of the other.
Jost’s right arm punched the Lieutenant in the side, as the Wraith pushed
what control he had to vanquish his foe.


Excruciating pain erupted through her body, she could feel her strength and
her lifeforce begin to fade.


Jost struggled to maintain control of the other side, forcing the words
out. “I accept….my….fate.” He pulled the dagger out attempting to end his
own life. It was caught by the Wraith controlled arm gripped at the wrist.
“Kill me.” Jost pleaded as he reversed the grip that the wraith had on his
own hand pulling the Wraith arm up exposing his torso.


Ailynn coughed horribly once more, struggling for strength of breath.
Grabbing the dagger she drew on what remained of her strength, and plunged
the dagger into Jost’s chest with innate, surgical precision. Speaking in
ancient Bajoran, a tongue that she’d never known, Ailynn whispered; “I damn
thee both, thy souls shall burn in fire eternal, thy pain, neverending.”
She looked into the eyes of the body that she held, “Jost. I know you’re
still there. For what it’s worth…” She coughed deeply, and struggled to
draw breath. “I’m sorry. But you opened the door to him, it has to close
behind you.” She pulled out the dagger, and tucking it into her belt; her
own light fading rapidly spoke to him. “The metal of Bajor, delivered by
the mettle of Bajor. I damn thee both.”


Moments after she pulled the dagger out flames erupted from the now
lifeless body of Trentin Jost. The Wraith and Jost sunk into the caves of
damnation, where they began their eternal fate.


Ailynn collapsed to her knees, her consciousness fading to zero, the vista
in front of her fading to blackness, and the blackness itself fading even
further into…


(reply Any, None)

(posted by Mark and Todd)
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