Cards on the Table - The Ts'usugi

Posted on Thu Jun 22nd, 2017 @ 5:39am by Commander Cor Cordale & Lieutenant Valeria Mordin & Captain Elijah Michaels & Commander Bertrand Cuprum & Lieutenant Commander Christopher Evans & Lieutenant Commander Ziyal Tajor & Lieutenant Hel Samedi & Captain Allen Jones & Lieutenant JG Scotty Kayne & Lieutenant JG Elliot Keller

Mission: Awakening
Location: Meeting Room One
Timeline: After "Thinktank"

Valeria didn't look nervous in the slightest as she gathered her thoughts. A few well placed taps on the screen of her PaDD to organize the notes for the briefing, perhaps a motion to remove some hair from her field of vision. She looked calm. She looked composed.

"Nervous?" the resident Thux asked from his seat at the table. Valeria shook her head, "No. Not over this." she replied, "Though perhaps a little over the outcome of this. One way or another, we'll have a conclusion."

"Before the others get here, I wanted to say thank you. You all did a marvelous job." the rabbitess looked over at Christopher, at Hel, at Cordale, and at Elliot in turn. "I cannot imagine things will get easier from here, but tackling data about two separate races entirely in such a short time frame is commendable."

"Wouldn't be where I am today if I let challenges get in the way of moving forward." Hel smirked, folding her hands behind her head and leaning back. "In all honesty Lieutenant, I'm happy for the opportunity to learn."

That made the rabbitess actually give a full, albeit soft, smile. "I attended schools outside of my district, outside of my range, to better educate myself. You and I share that appetite to learn."

"It's almost time. We should be getting the rest of the crew soon." and Valeria turned to the main door, like any good host, to welcome her guests.

Kevin entered the room and quietly took a seat.

Ziyal arrived with four padds in her hands, she sat down next to Hel and spread them out in front of her so that she could reference them during the briefing.

Cordale offered Ziyal a nod, having taken the seat on the other side of Hel.

The Captain arrived almost as soon as Ziyal did and took his usual seat at the table. Elijah nodded towards Val and then towards the others.

As each arrival filed in, Valeria offered then a nod in greeting.

AJ strode into the room. He didn't know if his marines would be needed sounded like this was going to be more diplomatic than anything. He wanted to make sure the Greens where in the loop.

Chris walked into the room quickly offering a nod to several of the crew and saying "hi" as he sat next to Ziyal.

Scotty walked in and immediately went for the coffee, for it was sorely needed. He had a late night studying flight protocol and visiting with his parents, he sat down and sipped away at the nice, hot drink.

Bertrand is the last to arrive, having maintained Bridge duty in the interim. He took a seat next to the Captain and watched the presentation silently for the most part.

Once everyone was settled, Valeria gave a nod to those present, "Thank you all for coming. Due to the amount of information to process I cannot promise that this will be brief. I can say, that it will be informative. Before we begin, I have been in contact with the Empire, and have been given clearance to discuss almost anything concerning Ts'usugi technology, society, and such. There are perhaps three, maybe four topics that I am not allowed to discuss. Should any of those topics be asked about, understand that I will politely decline or give whatever answer I can, and understand that I cannot speak of those topics at this time." she paused, "I can assure everyone here, that none of those topics are mission critical to the situation at hand." she paused, to allow that to sink in.

"We'll begin with a description of the races involved." and the screens changed to a visual of two rabbit-like humanoid figures: one male and one female. "The Ts'usugi. Standard bipedal design, lengthy ears for higher frequency range of hearing. Ocular sensitivity higher than baseline Earthling, dislikes bright lights but can cope after adjusting. The eyes do not reflect light, a design of the membrane that covers the organ."

"A full disclosure of Ts'usugi biology will be made available to Medical." she nodded to the resident medical officer. "Pay attention to the skeletal structure. Ts'usugi bones carry a crystalline composition, especially in the cranial region. Our bones are harder to break, but take longer to mend when they do. Check any break sites for bone shards. No such thing as a simple crack in regards to our bones." she cautioned. "We're also resistant to ambient empathy and telepathy, so relying on those senses in a casual sense to get a 'feel' for how many Ts'usugi are under rubble or behind a door will not grant any results."

"The visuals here depict a standard male and female Ts'usugi. We're not so different once you get beyond the obvious. Single heart, two lungs, liver, kidneys, single brain, endoskeletal composition, intestines both large and small. We have a vestigial organ similar to the Earth appendix, and at the age of six all Ts'usugi children have it removed. At the age of sixteen, Ts'usugi enter into military service for a period of three years. After this, they can choose to remain or return to their previous lives." a pause, "Which means everyone on that Ts'usugi cruiser either wants to be there, or is part of their required service. We don't see it as a requirement or a compulsion. We see it as a service. Something we do because it is needed." a bit of insight into Ts'usugi society.

"I'll be covering the basics of Ts'usugi technology, weapons, defenses, and tactical next. Are there any questions about Ts'usugi biology before I continue?"

"Are the Ts'usugi susceptible to either cold or heat?" Kevin asked.

Our comfort zone of temperature is shifted slightly lower due to our retention of our fur." She rolled up her uniform's sleeve to demonstrate. "While we have technology to compensate, it usually either takes the form of temperature regulators for buildings or specific encounter suits for personnel. We don't melt in the sun." She gave a smirk, "Though if it gets over 33 Celcius, I believe, most workers are given the option to come back after night fall."

"We prefer the colder temperature range, as it's easier to deal with. More layers, warm beverages, heat sources."

"One other question" Kevin said "Are there any medical files that you're aware of on the Dalacari?"

"Quite extensive. Dalacari medical technology is far beyond our own, which puts it in a category above the Federation's. I'll touch on that and more details of the Dalacari during the next section of the briefing."

"Thank you Lieutenant" Kevin replied, appreciative of the information.

"Ts'usugi food has a very high mineral content but low caloric value," Bertrand put in suddenly. "Their metabolism is generally slower than most mammalian races, hence the need for the retention of fur as an augmentation to caloric warming. The minerals are important for proper bone growth, much like young humans require Calcium. Their crystalline bone structure means they are better able to regulate temperature as well in the short term, but prolonged exposure can be complicated. Their ears are their main vulnerability. As well as their major sensory organ they use them as heat exchange regulators. Sonic concussion grenades are particularly damaging to them, according to initial reports."

He looked at Valeria and gave a stiff smile, "I have been doing my own research as well, from a purely Tactical perspective.

Val's ears actually twitched at the mention of them being a primary vulnerability. If they could, they'd probably roll up and recoil to be honest, but she fielded the mention well. "We try to supplement our food stocks, grant some variety though on long cruises it eventually comes down to what the Insipp can manage." she pointed out, "I'm rather impressed."

Ziyal listened carefully, taking notes from time to time on her PADD.

"Moving on to what some have been waiting for, the technology and tactics of the Ts'usugi." she brought up a schematic of a ship. Designed for war, built for war, with no other purpose than to enter into a region and leave on its own terms. "This is the Ts'usugi Cruiser. She's as wide and as high as the Victory, but half as long. She's armed to the teeth, and as well defended as any ship of the class." Valeria gave a moment for everyone to get an eyefull.

"She's armed with charged pulse cannons, which rank accordingly with Federation firepower. Charged Pulse Cannons have no trouble hitting ground installations from orbit, so we prefer to use them over torpedoes for orbital bombardment should the need arise. The cruiser class has a high-capacity shield generator, so she can take a pounding disproportionate to her size. Underestimate her in a fight, and she will destroy you." a pause to let the moment settle. "Ts'usugi find the prospect of transporting via 'beaming' to be somewhat taboo. We use transmat technology for industrial use though in emergencies we have moved people. We rely on shuttlecraft to transport the majority of our people, though in a moment I'll touch upon the technology we use for our shuttles. I believe you will be impressed."

"Her reactor type is classified." she said, in a firm tone. "We do not use the same power generation method that the Federation does. Our reactor type is one of the few things that I currently cannot speak on." she gave the engineers in the room a nod, "Apologies. I was expressly informed to keep the Federation dark on this matter."

"She's warp capable, but in a chase the Victory will easily outpace her." she continued the brief. "She carries a full compliment of anti-matter based warheads on torpedo chassis delivery systems. Very similar to your proton and quantum torpedo theories. In a skirmish, assume they're about seventy five to eighty percent as dangerous as a quantum torpedo, and react accordingly.

"Aside from the weaponry compliment, the Cruiser class carries a small compliment of fighter craft, a tactic we employed as a response to the Borg. Target saturation seems to disrupt their overall performance, allowing survivors to escape if needed." a pause, as she motioned to the display. "I'll be moving onto shuttles, fighters, and associated technologies therein. Are there any questions pertaining to the Cruiser-Class warship before I continue?"

"The bow looks reinforced. Is that a part of passive defense or active offense?" Hel asked. "Looking at her turret locations, it seems to me she's optimized for same plane combat. Nice arcs on them though." she mused, furrowing her brows. "I can't figure out where her bridge is, is it behind armor? Speaking of which, is she armored, or does she rely solely on shields to keep weapons fire out?"

"The bridge is located here..." she motioned to the front of the bump behind the first major turret mount, "Beneath about a full deck of armor. We use holography to represent the view outside the ship, and sensor readings for target acquisition. We didn't feel it prudent to put the bridge anyplace open to the outside." she commended. "Your assessment of the cruiser's firepower is correct. Standard tactics involve aligning to a singular plane and firing. Broadsides, I believe was the term."

"Should the plane shift, the cruiser can simply bank. As for the bow, the front of the ship seems to be the one most often fired upon, we thickened the armor there. Inertial suppressors are doubled in that region, in the event of a ramming event."

Kevin waited till Valeria answered the Engineers question before asking "You are a Starfleet Officer are you not Lt Mordin?"

"Yes, I am." she answered. "That doesn't discount me as a daughter of Ts'usu, though."

"The latter is as may be, however Lieutenant, here and now in this briefing, you're a Starfleet Officer first and foremost, so can we please stick to 'they', they'll' or they're' instead of using 'we', 'you' and 'you're' as if you're not a member of this Starfleet crew" Kevin said.

Hel quirked a brow. "That hardly matters, as long as we know who she's talking about, does it? We've got bigger things on the table than pronouns and grammar."

"On the contrary Lieutenant, it matters a great deal, it's a reminder of which side we're a part of" Kevin replied at the snipe.

Ziyal's brow furrowed at that. She glanced at Valeria and silently prayed that things would not go that way. "We are never only starfleet officers. I'm a Cardassian, a citizen of the Federation, a painter, and a citizen of my homeworld as well. You, Lord Kilbane, have Sanquhar as your holding. If we were dealing with Gemulon V or Sanquhar, we would still have attachments to our homes. The Federation embraces diversity of thought, heritage, and biology. We are Starfleet officers, but that is not all we are. Asking us to ignore our heritage is insulting to us personally and to the principles of the Federation we represent." Ziyal said calmly, but mentally her shields went up a notch. She did not know how he did it, but Kevin seemed to know how to hit her hot buttons.

Elliot agreed with Ziyal and Hel. "With respect, Lieutenant Mordin is conducting the briefing and as such is well within her rights to use whatever vocabulary she chooses." The young Diplomat smiled towards the Rabbitess. "She knows where her loyalties lie."

"Actually, before you all go off half cocked, it was meant to be a way of showing how such things can tilt a conversation or a discussion" Kevin replied to each of the officers who had spoken up in turn.

"'If' we do go over to these ships, we're going to be armed with the information we're getting, and the Dalacari and Ts'usugi will want to know where it came from. Now, because this is going to be more of a diplomatic situation than a lot of us may have come across, it's going to be a case of 'softly softly', as one side will quite possibly blame the other if things go awry. The only way I could think of seeing how this could play out was to pretend to question Lt Mordin's 'taking of sides' and see how people would react. I may be a Security Officer, but I come from a diplomatic background and if I'm completely honest, this situation feels like if could be a little bit of a powder keg for all sides, so we have to be prepared for any eventuality."

He turned to Valeria "I'm sorry you felt I've questioned your loyalty there Lieutenant, please accept my absolute apology, I wouldn't ever be so presumptuous, I just felt we needed to see how easily things could go off track."

To those that came to her aid, even in a controlled environment, she gave a slight nod. A show of faith from them would be remembered.

To Kevin, she gave a smirk, "For someone with such an arsenal of words, you seem most well armed in silence." She paused, then gave a nod, "I accept your apology." then turned back to the briefing. Though she hid it well, even a simulated attack on her character must have left a proverbial mark.

Bertrand watched the exchange. He was pleased Kevin had noticed the language and even more impressed that he brought it up in, what he felt, was a tactful manner. For all the faith he had in Lt. Mordin, he had seen more experienced officers shift allegiances.

"I have another Tactical question I was not able to find an answer two," he spoke aloud. "Your cruiser seems adapted to two distinct types of fighting. On the one hand you have a variety of point-defense, anti-fighter weaponry. You also have significant plasma casting ability. However, I am not sure if your ship has the capacity and infrastructure to use both in tandem, or if you need to re-divert power form one to the other, as I imagine each would be a significant drain."

"They manage." she said with a smirk, "We have the personnel and the power to handle both point-defense and primary weapons at power. I don't mean half power, or balancing power, or some sliding arbitrary scale." she paused, perhaps recomposing herself, "Their core is sufficient. She was built for war."

"Additionally, your point-defenses; are they independently targeted? Is that done manually by a control crew or as part of a computer based tactical system?"

"Gunnery controllers are assigned banks to oversee. Incoming targets are identified by sensors and fired upon. There is some automation, but Ts'usugi prefer to handle combat with a living hand. We don't like leaving life or death decisions up to a machine."

Bertrand tucked that gem away without comment.

Evans was certainly impressed with the technology. He wondered what the failure rate was on the system, it would be amazing to get his hands on some reports on how the system operated. He was sure there was no way he was getting his hands on the information.

"The next subjects are fighter craft, shuttle craft, and technologies associated with. Before we achieved faster than light travel, we relied heavily on what were called Blink Drives. Together with inertial nullifier systems, Blink Drives allowed a craft to move exceptionally fast for an incredibly short amount of time."

"87% the speed of light, for a fraction of a second. Each pulse of the Blink Drive could move a craft the size of a large shuttle upwards of four hundred thousand kilometers. It wasn't until the invention of the Dark Drive that we knew of anything faster."

"Shuttles and fighters are too small to house all the systems necessary for a Dark Drive, but already housed all the systems needed for the Blink Drive, so the drives remained." A pause, "Ts'usugi fighters and shuttles use Blink Drives to either dominate the battlefield, or escape with high value persons intact. Though, these systems are useless in any form of concentrated atmosphere."

"Fighters are capable of Mach 4 in an atmosphere, and are armed with scaled down variants of pulse cannons. They can carry a multitude of secondary munitions, as per mission profiles, and are invisible to radio based detection systems." She brought up a picture of the schematics of the Blink Fighter on the display.

"They seat one. No passengers. Powered by heavy muon decay. Thin armor, but well shielded." She listed off. "Shuttles can carry twenty comfortably." a pause, "The Blink Drives take upwards of 5 seconds to charge, though the capacitors are charged by the launching craft at the time of launch. The moment a support craft clears the bay, it typically deploys the charge to gain battlefield superiority."

"If the inertial nullifier is damaged the Blink Drive will not operate. If that protocol is overridden, the drive will operate, but doing so will kill the pilot and destroy the craft."

She fell silent. "There are a few more points to touch upon, but are there questions about Ts'usugi support craft?"

"That blink technology is fascinating." Hel mused. "Wouldn't mind pouring over the schematics to one of those drives. Better yet, some hands-on time."

"It's showy, but useless in battle," Bertrand offered. "Starfleet vessels are also capable of speeds up to 0.8 C under impulse drives but full impulse is limited to 0.25 C due to the effects of time dilation at relativistic speeds. The ships can make a short, predetermined jump, but they are incapable of maneuvering at those speeds since time dilation actually slows everything, including computer operations. It makes an excellent ability to move forces into position quickly, or escape in an emergency, but as soon as combat is joined it is unmanageable, particularly when coordinating squads of small ships."

"I cannot promise anything, Miss Samedi. While it may be difficult to arrange such an exposure at the start of our operation, it's not outside the realm of potential for such to be asked at the end." Ts'usugi had such a flowery way of saying 'We'll See'. "But, thank you for your compliment. Blink Technology dominated the entirety of Ts'usugi life until the Emperor asked a question."

"At his call, the Emperor of Ts'usu has a branch of scientists known as the Imaginary Sciences Division. Their sole task is to answer any question posed by the Emperor. He asked 'Is the Blink Ship the fastest there is?' and after several years, the Imaginary Sciences Division presented the first Dark Ship, and answered his question, 'No.'."

"Dark Ships are ships with a Dark Drive. The equivalent of Federation Warp Drive." she explained, "When a Federation craft goes to warp speeds, the view is full of lights and color. When a Ts'usugi ship goes to warp speeds, it is dark and hollow, with violent flashes of purple."

"As for our Blink fighters themselves, they seem to do well in a combat situation." Valeria fielded Bertrand's commentary. "I'd enjoy the chance to go over your sources. They're marvelous at attempting to understand our technology by comparing it to their own."

"What of the Ts'usugi personnel? You have said everyone is expected to have some military service experience, but now what that might look like, or the armaments."

"Should it come to hostilities, expect every Ts'usugi on the Cruiser to be armed with a projectile pulse bolter and a knife of some form for close combat. The Pulse Bolter is comparable to the Federation Phasor in every way that matters: Energy projection devices that can either incapacitate or kill. There's nothing special or fantastic about the knives the average Ts'usugi will use. Synthetic polyalloy, rust resistant, microscopic edge." she stated. "Military forces will box you into a key area, raise security force fields, and then declare you sufficiently pacified. If you resist, or pose a threat to the craft, there's no compulsion against rendering you unconscious by introducing an airborne anesthetic into the area. There's no division between Security and Marine forces on a Ts'usugi ship. They're all military forces."

"Additionally I would be very interested in two things. One, how advanced are Ts'usugi AI; is it possible that a Ts'usugi has tampered with the Delacari system, and two, why was the banning of AI a requirement of the peace in the first place?"

"We don't utilize AI, and avoid the prospect of a synthetic consciousness whenever we can. Aside from a cultural taboo, we have reservations about unrestricted artificial intelligences. War and conflict should be more than just math. There should be consequences, and a machine consciousness might not feel that about organic life. Therefore, the craft in the Ts'usugi fleet have computer systems that are about as aware as the main computer system here on the Victory."

"As for the treaty, the restriction on Artificial Intelligence was placed for mutual protection. The Dalacari use an entirely artificial drone army, commanded by tactics fed to them by a central point that updates those tactics constantly. Prorating success and trimming failure. Were a system like that, completely in charge of the defense of another species, to wake up and realize exactly how little it actually needs that race..."

"What if the Thinking Engine started thinking, and decided it didn't need the Dalacari as much as they needed it? How do you stop a machine that adapts to the tactics used against it? What if that intelligence caught the eye of the Borg?" she drove that point home. Her glance slid right to Bertrand as she continued. If her glance narrowed a little, she'd never know it did. "What if it tried to solve the Borg problem and failed? What if it tried and succeeded?"

"They were restricted so that no one could benefit from what they accidentally may bring to the universe. Because treaties limit the threat that everyone poses, and the Dalacari with an aware drone army is a threat."

Valeria was quiet for a moment, "As for your other point, the possibility of a Ts'usugi AI interfering with the Dalacari systems is logistically impossible. For the reasons stated."

Bertrand nodded in acceptance. He heard the fear of AI and the distrust in Val's comments, even if she and her people did not view it as such. If this computer had indeed reached any form of sentience... things would get ugly for everyone.

After a pause, the rabbitess started again, "For the record, if my use of key pronouns or terms is troublesome, forgive me for being unable to fully distance myself from my home." she offered in apology. Every word she spoke potentially betrayed her people's tactical efficiency.

There was something about displaying her loyalty to a symbol by betraying her blood that she found immediately distasteful. She had hoped that starting with her own people, and then switching to the Dalacari would celebrate the diversity between the two people. Now, she looked forward to the Dalacari section of this briefing as an escape from committing borderline treason. Every question she fielded could potentially put one of her own kind in the sights of a Federation phasor, but every question she didn't answer potentially put her own head on the proverbial chopping block.

This was a mistake.

"We'll be covering general technology next, and then that will conclude the Ts'usugi portion of the briefing. Any further questions on support craft, tactical expectations, or the such?" Keep it together, Valeria. You've studied for harder tests, and you aced them casually.

Kevin raised his hand and said "Yes, I have a question. I've listened to what you've said Lieutenant, and the Ts'usugi ships sound, in both defense and attack, as though they're unbeatable as do those who serve aboard them. From a Starfleet Officers view point, can you suggest ways in which we can defeat them 'should' the need arise?"

Valeria was quiet for a moment as she seemed to think, "First, you'll forgive me a sense of pride in the accomplishments of my people. If our navy sounds vast and impressive, it's pride. Believe me, the Ts'usugi Navy has suffered loses." a pause, "As for how to defeat them, I imagine the most efficient way to defeat a Ts'usugi cruiser would be to outmaneuver it and target major system junctions. Disable weapons, render the shield generators offline, and then hail them and await their surrender."

"Ultimately the same way the Federation has defeated countless foes prior: Superior tactics and firepower."

"You've talked about how potent the shields and the weapons are and briefly elaborated on the armor, but can you tell us anything about her maneuverability? She's a very compact design, what kind of performance envelope does she have compared to, say, a Sovereign?" Hel mused, steepling her fingers. "And what about her sensor array? How does that compare to a Sovereign's?"

"I'd almost say that the Sovereign can outpace and outmaneuver her. The primary turret arrays help cover blind flanks and ensure constant pressure, which covers her slow turning radius. One of the other reasons for the fighter swarm approach to combat is to box the opponent into the parent ship's firing arcs while pressuring them out of places the parent ship doesn't want them to be." she paused to collect her thoughts, "The fighters will only truly pose a threat to the Victory if they are ignored. The weaponry aboard each fighter alone isn't a high threat, but it won't take long for the pilots to realize that to harass the Victory they'd need to coordinate."

"Sensor wise, alone the cruiser has an impressive suite but ultimately inferior to the Sovereign's. Advance scouts and active fighter patrols improve the range and accuracy, but ultimately provide a much larger sensor image for anyone looking that way. I feel confident that the Victory would detect the advance scouts before the scouts would detect the Victory."

"That's good to know, but let's hope it doesn't come to that. Shouldn't, really." Unless they pulled some underhanded trick that threatened the Victory, Hel thought. "Both the Ts'usugi and Dalacari want to enter our cozy little federation family, right?"

The rabbitess gave a nod, "We do. In a cosmos full of strife and doubt, allies are in short supply in our region of space. Our 'neck of the woods' I believe is the expression."

Elijah sat back and nodded. "Their technological advances are of benefit to the Federation, though of course such an agreement works both ways." The Captain paused as he gazed towards Valeria. "Both species become and ally in a vast organisation and develop an understanding of other cultures, in turn Starfleet and the Federation sets out to fulfill its primary mandate and also gain knowledge of unexplored space."

"With respects, sir, there's going to be someone far more shrewd then a farmer's daughter at that negotiating table." she said, a smirk creasing her features for the first time in minutes. "Anything I say on that matter may sound like either a threat or an acquiescence, but all I can suggest is not backing the negotiator into a corner. Give them room to breathe, and remember that no matter what ideals they hold, their family and their people are among their most important ideals."

"Negotiators don't have ideals" Kevin said quietly "they have certain parameters, or, a defined framework from which they can work. They can't afford to make it personal with an ideal, otherwise it clouds their judgement. Negotiators, no matter how calm or friendly they appear at first, are scrupulous, they have to be in order to fulfil their objective."

Hel made a face. "I've always trusted politicians as far as I could throw them, and negotiators are just sneaky politicians."

Valeria allowed herself a soft smile, "I'm just a farmer's daughter. I stay out politics whenever possible. Bad for the heart."

Ziyal was not sure she agreed with Kevin and Hel about negotiators. While it was not her line of work, she knew all to well that while a negotiator must be savvy to reach their objectives. However, those objectives were informed by ideals. Ziyal nodded sympathetically, "Some are born political, some become political, and some have politics thrust upon them."

"I'll wrap up this half of the briefing, then we can break for tea before the next part. Or coffee, as preferred." She seemed to get her mojo back, "The general tech level of Ts'usu and her many colonies peaks at comfort. Adequate shelter, comfort, communications, and entertainment. We try to balance the natural surroundings with our needs, so until an advancement is required by a settlement, generally it is not present. There are staples: air purification, environmental, communications hubs, and such. We generally don't give every colony a starport until it's necessary." she paused, "My home village back on the moons didn't even have powered lighting on the streets. It wasn't necessary and the village didn't feel it necessary."

"If you walk a hundred kilometers, you'll go from the technological marvel of a city to the rustic simplicity of a village. That is Ts'usu."

"Any final questions on the Ts'usugi? If not, let's break for tea, and I'll continue with the next species: The Dalacari."

Ziyal spoke up, "One thing that I'm not clear on is the Ts'usugi reaction if the engine is sentient, regardless of how it got that way. Would you mind addressing that?" She asked.

"It would be hard to directly gauge. I imagine if there are signs of an emergent sentience, the Ts'usugi would conduct an investigation as to the events leading up to this. Was this a direct result of Dalacari research? Was this a designed event disguised as an emergence, or rather was this something beyond the Dalacari's control. They more than likely will order the Thinking Engine to be destroyed, or overwritten to a pre-emergence backup." a pause, "It's hard to gauge, but one thing is certain, they will not be pleased."

"An emergence will put pressure on the Ts'usugi to more closely monitor the research of the Dalacari."

"Yes, I have another question" Kevin replied "But it comes in..." and he slowly counted out on his fingers "...seven parts."

For a brief moment, Valeria struggled to keep her gentle face. She pushed some dark intentions to the side, and muttered something that sure sounded like a prayer to those who came before her. Ancestor worship, perhaps.

"Yes?" when she deemed to give Kevin the tone of day, it was cheerful as any of her other question answering sessions were.

"Nah, I don't actually, I'm just messing with your head" Kevin smiled.

"I believe my head had been 'messed with' enough today." She chided, but with a smirk.

Bertrand spoke, "There has been a lot of talk about getting past the Ts'usugi defenses and looking for weaknesses. I want to emphasize that this is NOT a combat operation where we are expecting to be fighting Valeria's people. There is a reason we need to know another's weakness though.."

He turned to the Chief Engineer, "Cor, if you and I were in a bar room fight, would you stand to my left or right?"

"I may be your right hand man..." the Thux chuckled, ".. but in a brawl, I'm standing on your left."

Bertrand nodded, "Given my right arm is my strongest, you stand at my left as a support of my weak side and to make the most of your own strength. By understanding the Ts'usugi and Delacari weakness, we are better able to support them, should the need arise. I hope that has put you at some ease, Lt Mordin. You are not betraying secrets to an adversary; you are advising a potential ally of where they will be most needed."

"Now, I need coffee."

Hel smiled. "Well put, commander." For her it'd mostly been curiosity that had fueled her questions.

"With the exception of one person, I trust no-one" Kevin said as he rose from his seat to go and fetch his beverage "instinctually every situation we come across that involves us on this ship, which can't be explained, has the potential to become a combat situation, and I feel that's how Security should approach it Commander, because it's part of our job. Yes, we are looking to help facilitate the possible entry into the Federation of either or both the Ts'usugi and Dalacari, but we also have to be wary that we find ourselves in unusual circumstance that have yet to be explained. I'm not talking about having security teams all over both ships, I'm just meaning we have to be as prepared as we can with all the information we can gather from the sources we have Sir."

Ziyal headed for coffee with the rest of the officers.

AJ had taken it all in and as he remained quiet he had no need for beverage he just observed everyone as they got up and got stuff. He really didn't think his team would be needed but he enjoyed sitting in just to learn his still new crewmates.

Evans made his way over for a coffee as well. This was very interesting, but was a long briefing already.

OOC: Ts'usugi Cruiser (Yes I know it says Destroyer.) - http://wiki.pegasusfleet.net/uploads/d/d5/Ts'usugi_Destroyer.jpg

OOC: Blink Fighter - http://wiki.pegasusfleet.net/uploads/c/c8/Ts'usugi_Fighter.jpg