During Jump to Fornice...

(as NPC)
When LC and Decherrek come up the grav-lift and into the passageway....

"I was just about to comm-call you. You'd best take a look. This is some weird.... I don't know what."

"Captain, I have never seen the likes of this. I think she is using some skill here though."

To 'Terry': "Is your mate an Engineer? Has she studied starship power and propulsion systems?"

LC
Thanks Said-Ma.
"Thank you, will and Kayla go and check on Ms. Ting, I am sure she is bored to tears to Tharroks conversation "

Looking at Terry,
"Yes she is" a slight head nod to Leilani
"What are your thoughts on this Leilani?"

Bronz woke restless, the kind of unease that never let him sleep long. A quick glance into Engineering showed Tamm in his hammock, keeping half an eye on the boards. Everything read steady or as steady as it could with a forged part humming along mid-jump.

That wasn’t the source of the itch between his shoulders. He stood in the quiet a moment longer, listening past the thrum of the drives. Faint sounds carried up from the passenger decks movement, voices edged with tension.

Bronz frowned, rubbing at the scar on his jaw. Engineering was fine. Which meant the trouble was elsewhere. He left Tamm to his watch and started down toward the staterooms, boots ringing soft on the deck, already bracing for whatever mess was waiting.

LC Rains:
[After hearing enough from the team and seeing Adriana still deep in whatever trance she's operating under, LC gives a small, sharp exhale — not quite a sigh, more a signal to move the conversation back into structure. He straightens up and turns slightly to address the gathered cluster.]

"All right. We’ve observed. We’ve speculated. And unless she bursts into song or vaporizes the bulkhead, there’s nothing more we can do standing here like tourists at a shrine."

[Before stepping away, LC turns his attention to Mister LeFrontaine — still lingering near the open hatch with wide eyes and too few answers. LC's tone softens, but only slightly — the softness of a man offering you a lifeline just before the tribunal starts.]

"Mister Kavan."
[He pauses for clarity.]
"If either you or Adriana learn anything — anything — that could affect the safety of this ship, its crew, or your fellow passengers, I expect to be informed. Immediately. No exceptions, no delays, no embarrassment. Safety trumps discretion aboard the Miss Fortune."

[LC offers him a faint nod, not unkind.]
"Now — as I imagine this has been distressing for both of you — Steward Hong will be delivering a bottle of champagne to your stateroom. Complimentary. Call it a toast to calm weather and better hours ahead."

[And with that, LC turns on his heel and resumes his slow orbit of command — trusting Kayla to deliver the bubbles, and fate to keep the cork from hitting anything explosive.]

[He gives Said-Ma a subtle nod — the kind that means [i]you’ve done your part, now get some rack time while you can. Then his gaze flicks to Tharrok. The voice that follows is firm, professional — the Captain in full.][/i]

"Tharrok. Your show now. As of this moment, you’re the First Officer. I want the corridor cleared and Jump Watch rotations reestablished — one body on alert every six hours, no exceptions."
[He holds up a hand before anyone can protest.]

"You can assign post as you see fit — bridge, stateroom, or engineering. The terminals are fully integrated, so I’ll trust your judgment. Engineering’s still a fallback for Tamm or Bronz if they want to hole up down there — but the roster’s yours."

[He gives the door to Adriana’s stateroom one last glance — unreadable. Then he looks back to the others.]

"I’ll monitor this for now. But the rest of you have duties — and I’d like this ship to arrive at its destination with its sanity intact. Let’s keep the circuits clean and the corridors clear."

[LC lingers near Decherrek as the small crowd begins to disperse and ship life resumes its semi-organized orbit. He lowers his voice just enough to mark this conversation as private — not secret, just personal. The words are careful, precise.]

"Decherrek — I’d like you to join the crew for dinner. Nothing formal, just a shared table, some decent food, and perhaps a bit of conversation worth having."
[He leans just slightly closer, the tone still quiet.]
"If you have any recollection or theory — even instinct — related to psi-influenced engineering capabilities, or anything along those lines… I’d be grateful if you were willing to share it. No obligation. Just… if it comes to you."

[LC steps back, giving the Droyne space to accept or refuse, then adds with a wry grin.]

"You’re our guest of honor tonight. Consider it a small thanks — from a very grateful ship."

[Once Decherrek is seen off or accepted the invitation, LC sends a private crew-only channel message — tagged priority.]

TO: Tharrok, Said-Ma — PRIORITY
"We’ll be hosting a crew dinner for Decherrek — informal, just off-duty personnel. Purpose is part courtesy, part opportunity. He’s helped us, and he may yet help us more. We’ll discuss Adriana’s state and the Santanocheev cargo — carefully. I want both of you prepped. Keep it light, keep it respectful, but stay sharp."

[A final addendum to Tharrok, appended separately:]

"First Officer — Don't stick me with the 'Balls to Four Watch' I can still make notes to your performance log"

LC:Once out of easy hearing from others, Decherrek replies:

"Captain I am honored. You are a most interesting crew of sophonts and I learn much of value from you. You have an unusual knack for attracting strange circumstances...

"As for passenger Adriana... Clearly she is manipulating energies at a very primal level. I think the holo-projection must be part of the Power Plant. I have never known a Psion who could work at such a level. Telekinesis...lift a rock and move it. That I have seen. Moving or re-routing energy flow? This I have never heard of."

Reply to Terry

LC Rains:
[LC regards Terry with that quiet, steady look — the one that says he’s filing away both words and silences in the same ledger. His voice stays even, polite, but with just enough edge to note the deflection.]

"Mr. Kavan, I respect your wish to keep this between you and Adriana. A crewmember may drop by and when they do I will make sure you are aware, and we will be discrete. I have to remind you that we are sealed in a tin can in a bubble of unreality, and thus in a hundred and fourty plus hours left of Jump we will not make this a circus."

[LC shifts, softening the tone a fraction.]
"That said — hospitality is not optional aboard the Miss Fortune. Our steward has just pulled a fresh tray of cookies from the oven. Complimentary, as part of the fare. Do pass by the lounge when you’re able. I recommend them highly — and I assure you, we are very glad to have her as part of the crew."

[He inclines his head faintly, the matter set aside — at least for now — and lets Terry continue on his way.]

Reply to Decherrek

LC Rains
[LC nods slowly, weighing the Droyne’s words with more seriousness than he usually grants anyone. ]

"Your observations are noted, Decherrek — and appreciated. If Adriana is indeed sensing something at the level you describe, that complicates matters… though it may also prove useful."

[He straightens, brushing imaginary dust from his cuff.]
"Come. Let’s stroll to the passenger lounge. I believe Kayla has finished another batch of her famous Cookies."[pulls out his datapad and taps out a message to the crew.]
Ship's crew message
Crew lets be discreet with the LeFrontaine Cabin. Since Decherrek believes she is telepathically seeing a Power Plant I am unsure if it is ours or some memory from her past.
Tamm and Bronz - check with Leilani as she has seen Adriana's hologram projection, so talk to her and see if it is related to our ship or something from her distant memory. Then let me know your thoughts at dinner or sooner if the cat is trying to get out of the box.
---end message----

The low fluctuations in Engineering still gnawed at Bronz, a reminder of how close the ship had come to trouble. But the boards were quiet, and the noise below wouldn’t wait.

Ignoring LeFontaine in the passage he leaned inside and stopped. A holographic display bloomed inside the stateroom was an unexpected surprise.

His gaze locked on it, trying to trace the patterns, to make sense of what subsystem was being mapped. The unease in his gut sharpened; whatever this was, it shouldn't be here.

Context: After witnessing Andraina's unexplained "display," LC reflects on what he saw and opens the floor for crew insights. Decherrek suspects psionics, but lacks confirmation. LC honors Terry LeFrontaine’s request for privacy, but leans on the crew's discretion and analysis.

LC Rains – Crew Common Area, Aboard the Miss Fortune

Notes and a half-drunk cups of Kaffe lay strewn across the galley table. LC sits hunched in his usual spot, datapad in one hand, stylus tapping absently against his temple.

LC thumbs through his notes with the same vague irritation he reserves for planetary tax codes and unpaid docking fees. The LeFrontaine stateroom had been... illuminating. Not in the sense of clarity, but in the way a malfunctioning jump-grid sometimes lights up just before it explodes.

He’d promised Terry he’d respect the sanctity of the room, and he had. No poking, no prodding, no recordings — not even a snide remark about the ambiance. But he had told the crew they might want to drop by. Quietly. Respectfully. With their eyes open and their mouths shut — at least until they were out of earshot.

Andraina’s "display," if one wanted to call it that, still lingered in his mind: a blooming holographic blossom, flickering and shifting with no clear emitter. Decherrek thought it was psionics, some kind of telekinetic projection, though he'd admitted — in typical Droyne fashion — that he was "not attuned." Which, in legal terms, meant completely guessing.

LC didn’t like guessing. He liked precedent. Paper trails. Statutory ambiguity he could weaponize. But this thing? It moved like thought. Like emotion. Like poetry, and poetry made him nervous.

He makes a note to ask Kayla her thoughts at dinner. She has a way of seeing things sideways — which in this case might be the only valid angle.

He doesn't want to lead the crew on this. He wants to listen. That was rarer, and infinitely more useful. Whatever this was — psi, tech, or a hallucination they’d all politely shared — it was worth parsing. Decherrek thought it was a powerplant, and LC wondered what Bronz, Tamm and Leilani thought of that, since they were the trained engineers.

Quietly. Respectfully. With the full backing of the Miss Fortune’s discretion protocols — which, as always, were enforced more in spirit than in letter.

Bronz stood in the passage, eyes fixed on the shifting images spilling out of Adriana’s stateroom. None of it fit anything he knew.

Too much had happened this trip: medical cargo too clean, almost misjump, possibly due to questionable parts and now this. Always a step behind. He was missing something.

Terry’s voice cut through his thoughts. The words "she can’t keep this up" made Bronz’s gut tighten. On his old ship he would have kept any comments to himself but these were paying passengers. He forced the faintest curve of a smile, the kind that didn’t reach his eyes.

"We’re fine. Trip’s running fine."

That was all he gave. He turned on his heel, boots whispering against the deck, and headed for the main deck. Out of sight of the passengers he pulled his comm pad and thumbed a short message to LC:

Crew meeting - now.

LC in the Crew's Galley
receives a short message from Bronz, he taps back a quick PM reply
Already here.

He then replies to Bronz's message and hits the 'reply to all crew' in the addressee line
Meeting in the galley, priority