Protection (Ten Forward Lounge)

[morphitudinous]

There were two ways to gauge Billy's stress level: as he worked later and later into the night, the pages of discarded notes would build up around him, and his hair would start to stand on end. Considering his frizzy-haired and paper-surrounded appearance at the moment, he'd clearly been at whatever he was doing for a while.

What was he doing, exactly? At the moment, he was kneeling on the floor in front of a round table. There was a doll standing in the center, a stuffed bear wearing a belt with a button next to the buckle. He reached over and pressed the button, producing a blue bubble around the bear. Billy tried to pass his hand through the bubble, and he met solid resistance.

Excellent. He then picked up a screwdriver and tried to pierce the bubble at varying speeds---it blocked most of his hits with a solid bounce, but the light still broke too soon, sending the bear tumbling to the ground. Billy scooted to the other side of the table to pick it up, frowning. "All right, we'll need to prioritize upholding the integrity of the shield. Nothing I haven't done before."

He gave the bear a quick squeeze before removing the belt, picking up his screwdriver and wire cutters for another go. He was getting closer to producing an acceptable defense, surely? He hoped so.

Comments

[stark_spangled]

Billy's appearance could be likened to that of a few scientists Steve's known. The look is one he recognizes, and not to be rude, but the demonstration is too interesting to avoid watching from his own table. If what he was working on was top secret, Steve figures he'd be doing it in a more private place.

"Looks like you're getting close," he offers from a few feet away, trying to be encouraging. He smiles, and gives him a friendly nod of greeting. Billy's a nice kid. Steve really should make more of an effort to get to know him. "Those were some pretty solid hits for a soft teddy bear like this little guy to absorb."

[morphitudinous]

Billy looks just a little embarrassed. He'd gone and gotten himself so absorbed that he forgot just where he was. But he quickly smiles and pats the bear on the head, picking up his notes again.

"I certainly hope so," he admits. "I need to perfect at least one before we land in any kind of combat situation again. I can't risk a repeat of last time...and if all goes well, maybe I can mass produce the device."

[stark_spangled]

"Are you thinking about contracting with Starfleet?" Steve asks, interest piqued. "Or just offering this device to the captain?"

It sounds like the kind of thing the Enterprise could use. Steve's aware that the ship itself has shields he assumes work the way this thing does, but that still leaves everyone vulnerable when they disembark. Like on Alemar III. He nods a little, almost to himself. He remembers seeing Billy there, and Adam. And Andros, of course. "I'm glad to see you're all right, by the way. That was some mess down there."

[morphitudinous]

"I'm starting small at first," Billy clarifies. "Just for the ship's crew. I need to prove myself far more before I can get any more assistance than that...but just seeing that my friends are safe will be enough."

Not that 'friends' is an all-encompassing term these days, but it's enough. He shakes his head. "Thanks, but that's what this is about. I can't let them get hurt that badly again. And I can't drop my guard to such an extent that they have to risk themselves to rescue me."

He seems bitter about this, folding his arms and gazing at his feet.

[heirtothechair]

Marika leans in over her cup of (strong, black) tea.

Personal forcefields for protection? Yes please.

"When you get it working, I'll take two hundred and a manual the next time I can get at my credit accounts."

Not teasing, this is her polite captain's voice. Anything that keeps her crew in one piece is something to look at purchasing. Anything that should be impossible, doubly so.

[morphitudinous]

Billy gives her a weak smile---startled, but he's proud here. This is important to him.

"I'd love to have the resources for that. If it works the way I hope, and I hold a successful demonstration? That day might not be far off."

But for now he's snacking on his pile of replicated crackers and sipping his coffee, determined to do this right. "You've got a lot on your plate as a commander, huh?"

[heirtothechair]

"My crew, especially the senior crew, are great, but yeah. There's a lot of things that have to be confirmed by me as the Captain."

She leans on the back of one of the other chairs.

"Schnitzer, my tactical and security head would love to have this sort of thing as an option. Or however they make the shields for this ship too. We just have armor."

[morphitudinous]

Billy silently agrees, gently plucking the miniature device from the bear to show her its more versatile features.

"It can also be deployed in midair. Given the compact shell, it's not the greatest radius in the world, but..."

He gently tosses it in front of the bear, and it then creates a plasma wall about the bear's height that shimmers for a few seconds.

[heirtothechair]

"But sometimes all you need is a tiny edge," agrees Marika, "And any edge is better than none."

"You've been working hard at this."

It's not the hardest thing to tell from how rumpled Billy is, but it's also how the people she knows do things. No one around the Academy or the Bentenmaru goes at anything less than 100% when they want something done.
Possibly more than 100%, depending on who else can be convinced to help you along.

[morphitudinous]

Billy looks at her sheepishly. "Maybe I've overdone it again, but...when I want to protect something important, I can't stop. It's an obsession. Have you ever felt that way?"

It's an awkward personal question, but it comes out before he can fully stop himself.

[heirtothechair]

"I have," admits Marika. In the face of honesty, she is honest in return.

"I've pulled all nighters for it too, working out plans and that sort of thing not inventing new tech though."

[morphitudinous]

"And in the end you feel ground down to the bone...but it's always worth it, because some people are just that important."

Billy gives her an honest smile. "I still don't know everyone here as well as I'd like, but I'm hoping to keep you all safe too."

[heirtothechair]

Marika's smile is a little more shadowed. She doesn't always win, and even when she does, they aren't painless successes.

"Tools are a big part of that, and there's enough training - from what I've seen and who I've met - to take care of the rest of just about anything that comes up."

There's a beat of silence.

"I still want enough to outfit my crew back home as soon as I can get in touch with them though."

[morphitudinous]

"I'd never dream of getting you anything less," Billy promised her, smiling wide. "But I'm not sure I'd want to be paid the traditional way..." he trailed off mysteriously.

[heirtothechair]

"Oh?"

One of Marika's eyebrows ticks up and she leans in a little.

"What sort of pay would you be interested in then?"

[raavashing]

Wan wandered over with a tea cup and a teappot he'd managed to get off the City-Ship's replicators once he'd managed to get the City-Ship's Spirit to understand what he wanted. It really shouldn't have been that hard to get a simple stone teapot, but it was. At least that struggle was over.

He walked around the table to another that was close by and sat down on top of that second table, legs up and crossed under him, to watch, "How did you do that?"

[morphitudinous]

Billy does his best to give the man a welcoming smile, though it might look slightly off. He is not at his most presentable right now. But that's all right---the important thing is sticking together.

"It's only possible on a miniature scale for now, but I have a net of magnets containing a plasma shield that can be shaped in a few ways. I still need to work on visibility through the shield and upscaling it, but it's coming along better than I expected."

He looks a little embarrassed by it. "I've been concerned about our battles off-ship, so I hoped to help out."

[raavashing]

Most of that went right over Wan's head. He understood 'shield', 'visibility', 'battles off-ship', and the bit about wanting to help out. But as Wan had arrived after that whole stuck in a cave ordeal, he wasn't actually aware of fighting having gone on.

"Battles off-ship? You fight outside the City-Ship?" he asked, eyebrows raising in concern. "Is there a war I haven't been told about? I thought the City-Ship was one of peace and learning."

In his hands, the teapot he was holding began to let off steam and there was the soft sound of water boiling inside. As if the teapot was self-heated despite being made of stone. Wan seemed rather oblivious to it doing this.

[morphitudinous]

"You're right, it's mostly a peaceful existence here," Billy is quick to reassure him. "But there was a conflict when we visited a planet and accidentally ran afoul of its inhabitants. There were battles for three days before we could figure it out."

He scratched the back of his neck. "And then there are political considerations. This ship's an exploratory vessel of the United Federation of Planets. They've largely achieved peace, but with so many species and so many worlds with conflicting interests...another conflict almost seems inevitable someday. I just want to be more prepared."

He watches Wan's teapot with mild interest, lapsing again into his thoughts. How was that happening? Ahim would love to hear about this, he was sure.

[raavashing]

"Conflicts don't have to be inevitable. This City-Ship and the space between stars that it roams is filled with different groups of people living together. Getting along. It's what I hope to bring about on my world," he said, smiling softly. "If they're as dedicated to working through problems with talk and trying to stop fights before they begin as I am, then there's no reason peace cannot be maintained. I am sorry for you and the others caught in that battle. And I'm glad it was figured out. From the way you speak, I hope that means it ended peacefully."

Wan followed Billy's eyes to his teapot and then looked back up with a smile, "Would you like some?"

[morphitudinous]

"Everyone got out alive and well. Starfleet's negotiations usually go well, and hopefully our presence will be for the better if it has to happen again." Billy grinned.

That offer caught his attention, and he was quick to nod. "Sure! But I admit I'm puzzled by how you're boiling the water. I don't see a flame...do you have another heat source?"

[raavashing]

Wan picked up his teacup and poured the tea, then offered the cup to Billy. "I used the power of fire to heat it," he said with all the casualness of someone who was so used to something being true that wan hardly considered remarkable to him anymore. Which wasn't entirely true. Wan was constantly amazed and excited about just how connected to the elements he was now. And never having to drink cold tea again was beyond wonderful for him. But that didn't make the fact that it was hardly any effort (for him) any less true, either.

"How did you make the shield appear and disapear like that?" Because Wan's initial interest in coming over still lay in that little trick of Billy's.

[morphitudinous]

"It's simple. I use the core to activate an electrical pulse in the middle, and I activate a different mode to shut it off. That's going to be one of the trickier parts on the larger-scale version, but working with things the size of the head of a pin isn't easy either."

He accepted his tea with a thoughtful look. "But you control the power of fire?"

It seemed they were both more interested in asking questions. Hmm.

[raavashing]

That wasn't simple at all. And Wan's look of blank faced confusion said as much. And he still didn't understand the how. Maybe it would be easier to get the other guy to talk -more- if he did some explaining of his own.

"Yeah. I do," Wan said back as he put his teapot in his lap so he could have both hands free. He curled them into fists, like he was holding something, turned them palm up and held them out toward Billy. His eyes shut, he took a deep breath, focused himself so he wasn't putting too much energy into it, and then opened his hands and his eyes. Two small candle-sized flames hovered over his open palms. He was obviously trying not to bring too much attention to it from anyone else that might be in Ten Forward.

After a couple moments, the fires went out and Wan's breathing returned to normal, "I can make them a lot bigger, but I don't want to alarm anyone."

[morphitudinous]

Well, that caught his attention. Billy wasn't the type of person to make loud noise about it, he would keep his surprise to himself, but he did share a private smile with him.

"Wow, that's amazing," he whispered. "You'll be safe even if there's trouble again, right? I mean. I'm going to try to provide tools for all of us regardless, but. You can apply that power in so many ways."