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Seasoned Ace

10 days ago

Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Four

IDIC, a Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Four Update

Brianna gazed out of the viewport, feeling the thrum of the engine beneath her booted feet. “It’s so dark,” she said as the space skiff landed ever so smoothly on the pad on the top of Mount Seleya, a knife gliding over butter. The only light, small circular lights set into the sand outlining the landing pad.

“Midnight,” Joseph Cantrell confirmed. “It’s essential nobody knows who you are, in order for the test to be valid. For now, you are strictly the Candidate.”

“Well, that’s not in the least bit impersonal. I do suppose it’s better than being known as the Anomaly, though.” As she watched out of the viewport, she noticed dark figures, barely seen, lining up in two rows, forming a corridor, of sorts.

“I’m sorry, honey. This entire road for you has been a hard one. I’m certain once this test is over things will become easier.”

“Easier? Daddy, you do know I’ve been accepted into the Starfleet Academy. It’s okay, I don’t expect easy. I’m unsure what God’s plans are for me, but there is a reason for all of this.”

Joseph smiled at his daughter, draping an arm over her shoulders. “Come, it’s time to debark.” Before taking the ramp Brianna pulled the headpiece, which looked very much like a Mediaeval hood, over her head. The headdress completely swathed her head, much like ones worn before a hanging, her bundled blonde hair also concealed. Joseph took her by the elbow to guide her down the ramp. The short line of dark figures moved toward them, a light wind rippling the hems of their floor-length black robes.

They were greeted by members of the High Council and Clergy. Joseph held his hand up in the Vulcan, split finger greeting, bowing his head in respect, glad and more at ease to see Ambassador Sarek and his consort, Amanda, was among the welcoming party.

“We shall take it from here,” T’Pran said, as she greeted father and daughter. She took Brianna’s arm, escorting her up to the chamber in the High Tower. The stairs wound ever upward. The coolness of the interior was refreshing. Finally, they reached the top. Brianna could hear the heavy door squeal on its hinges as her former Governess opened the door. Leading the teen inside the doorway, T’Pran guided her over to a chair. “You may wish to take a seat. Things won’t be underway for an hour or so.” Watching for only a moment as Brianna found the arms on the chair to guide herself into the seat, T’Pran lit the incense in the molten rock carving on the Dias.

The sweet, woody fragrance soon infused the room. Brianna had quite forgotten how calming it was. After a short time, T’Pran spoke, “You may remove the hood for now. It is time for you to change into appropriate clothing,” she said, opening a wardrobe and taking out a long, silken, white gown. “This should fit you well.” With a quick gesture, she bid Brianna come to her.

Dutifully, the teenager walked across the ancient stone flooring to the corner of the large room. Sweeping the hair out of her face as she removed the hood. Quickly, she changed out of her pants and top, folding them as she removed them. Carefully, pulling the garment on over her head. Turning to face the ancient floor mirror, she watched as T’Pran then assisted with the ornate head-covering. Once the girl was properly outfitted, T’Pran sat in a chair in the corner of the room. Brianna’s emotions were more than palpable, to her dismay. Outright fear the strongest of them all.

"If I fail," the girl began.

"Thee hast demonstrated thy ability many times," T'Pran assured her. "Thee shalt not fail."

Brianna chewed on her lower lip, her worries not so easily assuaged. Having been dubbed the Anomaly. Today would be the proof of that status.

"But" she protested and was sharply cut off by a look from her governess as the Vulcan woman slowly blinked her eyes in warning.

"Thee hast time in which to still thyself," T'Pran suggested evenly, holding her open hand out gesturing to the molten rock carving resting on a raised dais in the corner of the room. Incense billowed forth from it, inviting tranquility of mind. Dropping her gaze respectfully, Brianna nodded.

"I beg forgiveness for my emotional display," the girl solemnly replied. She did not move until T'Pran left the small chamber, nor attend to her meditation right away preferring to gaze out of the high, tower window, momentarily losing herself in the activity in the courtyard below, seen now as the sun lazily rose. Vulcans, dressed in formal garb of ornately decorated headdresses signifying their individual Houses and long, flowing dark robes denoting their station, am-bled about the cracked, parched grounds forming small groups. Soon they would be lining up to begin the procession. Brianna felt her stomach twist itself into knots. In her nearly seventeen Earth years, she had never experienced excitement, nor anxiety, quite like this.

Her telepathic powers alone were not requirement enough, she had come to realize; An even, controlled temperament, brought about through training, was essential. At the moment, however, Brianna certainly had her doubts about that, her mind swimming, drowning in a tide of emotion. Where was her control, just now? Strangely, she had been rather anxious all week, brushing it off as anticipation, yet it was more than mere nerves, she felt . . .

Brianna drew in a deep, calming breath, attempting once again to gain control over herself. In this frenzied state it would only be too easy to give into the tumult inside of her, choking off the flow of her psychic signal, in turn rendering her quite blind, metaphysically speaking. She feared she would fail if she couldn't get herself back under control, bringing dishonor not only to herself and her family, but to T'Pran as well; such a failure lending itself to the notion she was merely mocking the ways of the Vulcan people, as some had purported. It was a thought she could not bear.

Training in the Vulcan Way for Brianna had been particularly grueling, a regular war of wills; hers against T'Pran's. The governess sought to harness the power of the child's mind, indeed her very soul, forcing Brianna to be more Vulcan in nature, at times, than the human she was. It had been an arduous task taking them both on a fifteen-and-a-half-year odyssey against a backdrop of mockery and bias. Brianna had proved to be incredibly human; stubborn, willful, impulsive.

There were those, not a few of them Ruling House members, who contended a human could never achieve the Discipline. Some even suggested T'Pran must be senile to consider it, and some who felt Outworlders should be kept apart from things Vulcan. These were known as purists, afraid all the contact with other planets and cultures would eventually strip Vulcan of its own culture, or at the very least dilute it beyond recognition, as if they hadn't fully accepted the tenants of IDIC. Despite these protests, and after more tears, ranting and anguish on Brianna’s part, the journey was at last at an end. T'Pran had slowly won out, teaching the girl at first to refrain from doing that which came so very easily to her and then how to control it.

Today, fully schooled if not a bit anxious, Brianna Cantrell stood ready for the Test. The K'Matra, her Rite of Passage. It would be threefold in nature. First, she would be judged by how well she could shield her thoughts from others. Secondly, by her ability to mindmeld, being asked to form a mental-linking with another where they would literally become one mind able to feel each other's thoughts. The third test was shrouded in mystery, the conditions of which having been carefully shielded from her, set up covertly by the Vulcan Council of Elders. It was this test she feared the most, being judged in secret; not knowing what was expected of her.

Author's Note: This is an adaptation from my published work, Night Whispers. Forgive the lack of pictures, until EA gets the problem sorted out you get text, alone. When possible, I will add pictures. Thank you for your indulgence.

GalacticGal
Seasoned Ace
19 hours ago
The Incident, a Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Four Update

T’Lar straightened in her chair, alerted. Monitoring the Secret Test, she felt a disturbance along the relay. Easing out of her meditative state, she picked up the hammer from the nearby table and struck a single note on the miniature gong standing in the corner. A temple maiden was quick to respond, entering the chamber. “How may I serve thee?” she asked with a respectful bow.
“I need an assessment of the situation. Bring the Candidate and her governess directly to me, I must know what has happened to create such a stir.” T’Lar said, her impassive features shrouded in the shadows of predawn. “Speak to no one in passing.”

“I hear and I obey,” the maiden uttered and again, with a bowing of her head, left the small chamber.
T’Lar rose from her seat, let out a breath and stood at the window gazing out. Colorful fingers of light streaked the awakening sky and somewhere in the distance a T’ay’at’ma glided across the barren desert expanse, silhouetted against the jagged mountain range in the distance. Another sandstorm was brewing. Every time we have dealings with the human girl . . . “So,” she said aloud, “it has happened.”
Signs abounded this morning and, in the days, leading up to this moment. Yet, she remained unmoved. Since the time of the Enlightenment, it fell to the Clerics to erect that careful balance between Logic and Vulcan Mysticism. The reading of such Signs took diligence and care. She dare not give them more sway than warranted.

Closing her eyes again, the High Priestess let her thoughts drift outward, reconnecting with the minds that formed the Corridor. Continuing her observations, T’Lar sensed the rumblings among the participants comprising the metaphysical chain. Others had felt the same commotion and were unwisely drawing conclusions in the matter. This would not do.

=/\=

The heavy wooden door scraped against the rock flooring. Jarring her concentration, Brianna Cantrell didn’t look up. She sensed the presence of others in the room, refusing to respond. To do so would mean breaking away from him, something she didn’t want to do. So close, so close, who art thee?
“Come, child, it is time,” T'Pran said.

In another moment she felt a hand on her shoulder. Her attention was shattered and in that nanosecond she could feel the tendrils of his mind pulling away from hers. No! Panicking, Brianna cried out as the probing abruptly ceased, “Wait! No, wait. Don’t go!”
She continued to reach for him but by the time she renewed her focus, it was too late. The tenuous link had been shattered, and he was gone. She had lost all contact with him. She glanced about her, confused, her eyes briefly meeting those of the temple maiden. “Wh-what, who?”
The maiden at once leaned over, reaching for the sides of Brianna’s face to initiate the mindmeld, her long hair falling over her shoulders with the movement.

Brianna shrugged her off, pulling back. She began to reach for him again, but all that was left was an emptiness; a bitter, unassuaged loneliness she had never understood before, coupled with an overpowering longing to be One with him again."Who are thee? Where are thee? She pondered, knowing all too well there was no time to seek him out, to reestablish contact, nor any guarantee she could find him again if she had the time. He was gone. Hot tears stabbed at her eyes.

“Alone. So alone,” she whispered, straining around the lump in her throat.

“What is it, child? Where have you been?” T'Pran gently asked, from her position by the door. She ventured a few steps forward, but it was not her place to interfere. The acolyte T’Lar had sent would do the assessment.

Brianna stared at the wispy remnant of incense wafting up from the lava rock. Taking in the dregs of its sweet, woody perfume, she grappled for self-control, overflowing with the memory of an encounter too intense to ignore.

“For a moment I was with . . . he . . .” she stammered. Words were a hopeless commodity, she decided, particularly when mixed with guilt for having so arrogantly forsaken the Discipline. What had possessed her to Wander like that, on her testing day, too? she lamented. Secretly, she was delighted to learn she still claimed the ability — and not just in her sleep, but it showed she still had much to learn. Was she even ready for today’s test? Or was she already in the midst of it?She glanced at T’Pran, then back at the temple maiden who stood solemnly observing. She could feel T’Pran’s questions, knew her former nurse was scrutinizing her with a highly trained eye. It was the acolyte she had to fear, however. At once T’Lar’s assistant put her fingertips to the side of Brianna’s face, this time insisting on the mind probe. “Give me thy thoughts,” she said. Brianna was powerless, nodding her assent as the woman gently probed her psyche. Is this where I’m supposed to shield my thoughts?
The mind-link was brief. To Brianna’s shame the encounter was still so prevalent in her thoughts she couldn’t conceal it. She steeled herself against chastisement, but none came, which left her puzzled. The woman broke off the mindmeld and stood up. “Kiftiri!” she murmured, barely able to disguise her sense of awe as she gazed at Brianna.

“Child?” T’Pran prompted, drawing nearer to the girl. She glanced at Brianna, then at the temple maiden and back at her charge. “Where have you been?”

“It is done. Follow me,” the acolyte ordered, recovering her non-emotional state, cutting off any further discussion before she left the room.

Author’s note: With few changes to the text to adapt it to the game, this is chapter six from Night Whispers, Volume 1: The Incident written by myself. I left it mostly intact so that the reader will have a sense of just went down during the Secret Test. Thank you.
- Ellupelluellu
  Hero
  7 minutes ago
  Got enough curious, downloaded all 3, The Incident, The Deception and The Confrontation.
  I like the cover art of the second the best.
  Will read during holidays.
- oolonglong
  Seasoned Hotshot
  5 hours ago
  I’m on pins and needles to see what happens next!
- rosemow
  Hero
  17 hours ago
  I am wondering what will happen now, and what this means for Brianna’s future. I will wait to see 🙂
GalacticGal
Seasoned Ace
8 days ago
IDIC, Part Two, a Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Four Update

Brianna threw herself heavily upon her knees in front of the molten rock. Hiding her face in her hands seeking a quick way into a higher consciousness. By doing so, she hoped to put the distraction of her fears behind her, to focus her energy on the moment at hand. Her Test. It simply would not do at the moment, her concentration was fractured, serenity not to be found. Her tiny hands were clammy and cold, a telltale sign of her panic. “Why do I do this?” she sighed aloud, raising her hands in supplication.

She should know better than to make such a foolish attempt, leaving out essential calming steps as if short-cuts existed. She could hear T’Pran’s constant admonitions, “Stop pushing, T’Bree. Let it come naturally.” Brianna ripped her hands away from her face and stared into the flame set beneath the rock, drinking deeply of the incense that engulfed her.

Slowly, she began the spiral climb inward to her own place of peace, calming her mind. Tranquility rippled through her as she centered herself. She could feel her fears melt away, all of her cares drifting aloft, shrinking, disappearing altogether. At last, she was floating and all was well again.

Then rather impulsively, as if she were suddenly being called to do so, she shot her consciousness upwards. Higher and higher she allowed her essence to rise, much like smoke out of a chimney, lifting out of her body until she hovered over the chamber and the human form in the kneeling by the dais. Suffering a chill as she did so.

The poor little girl, she thought. The poor, poor little human girl, momentarily lamenting the rigors of a lifestyle not entirely of her choosing. Shaking herself free again of such self-absorption to continue on until she was quite beyond herself. Brianna hovered briefly over the temple, over the city, hesitant,

and then finding her courage soared up through the reddish strata of Vulcan
to the blackness of space.
On and on she rose, exhilarated by the complete and necessary freedom of it. Having to be so controlled all the time, holding everything in, containing her emotions against her nature was difficult. Streaking through space like this, the atmosphere breaking over her like water in a wave, she was able to shrug off the shackles and just let go. Just be. A safety valve, of sorts, that even Vulcans employed from time to time, keeping them sane in the face of such strictures, this was good.
This is what she needed at this moment in order to release her frustrations, feeling herself expanding, becoming one with God's universe. She was humbled by the vastness of His creation as she went, continuing on passed planets and stars to another part of the galaxy, sailing further and further away than she had ever gone before . . .

Until she was no longer alone!

Gasping in her surprise, this sort of mind-exercise was generally a solitary practice; Her, God and the universe. A form of meditation. A prayer, if you will, not necessarily to be shared with the masses. And yet, suddenly this other soul was just there, beckoning and forbidding all at once, sending her reeling on her own shock waves. His presence was quite overwhelming. She could feel the colors of him, the bright oranges, reds and blues of his aura, the lavenders, greens and pinks, detecting a distinctly masculine orientation about him, the warmth emanating from his very soul.

Trembling, she could not breathe. Just how far out beyond herself had she reached? How much farther could she go? To quite literally bump into another entity, another being --- who or . . . what?

Certainly, this was a created being such as herself, one of God's own. That much she could sense, though little else. He, too, was so tightly contained. Perhaps, he was here meditating? Brianna felt a sudden grabbing, tickling sensation deep in the pit of her stomach. She shouldn't be here it was . . . wrong. She let the thought dangle. Frightened, uncertain of what she should do she tried to hold herself at bay, treading air, struggling to depart to some other plane lest she inadvertently intrude upon the other's thoughts.

She simply didn’t know what to do. T'Pran had taught her always to keep her thoughts to herself, to shield them from unintentional psychic scrutiny and to never pry her way into another person's mind. Entering the thoughts of another without express permission was a heinous crime every bit as invasive as **bleep**. Indeed, it was a form of invasion, kae’at k’lasa, subject to strict penalty under the Law. It was of no use, however. She could not pull away, nor did he seem able to resist what could only be likened to a gravitative pull. Somehow, she had gotten too close. Her fault again, she sighed. This day was fraught with mistakes!

Immediately, both she and this other being were caught in what felt like a whirlpool, seemingly of their own creation, born not merely out of a resistance to each other but to the artificial natures thrust on them by training. Their collective thoughts and emotions, once released, had collided forming a maelstrom of sensation swirling rapidly around them.

The more they struggled to get away the faster the whirlpool rushed until, quite helplessly, the two spiraled toward one another, contact inevitable. Brianna felt a roaring, burning sensation jetting upwards from her toes throughout her body as closer and closer they drew to each other. He was quite close now, dangerously so. “I'm sorry. I'm sorry,” she whispered, certain this was of her doing. After all, she was always pushing.

Suddenly her ears burned and even the roots of her hair tingled. She was aflame, melting, losing herself as the colors of their separate beings mingled, blending into new shades. Wary and yet undeniably curious she felt herself acquiesce granting permission as, for only a brief moment, the two minds became one . . .

Author's Note: Please forgive the non-Sim images. There just was no way to get these kinds of shots in the game. Even aiming the camera at the sky was a bust.
- gidget1234
  Seasoned Veteran
  7 days ago
  I am all caught up now and love how both Eric's and Brianna's stories are unfolding ❤️
  - GalacticGal
    Seasoned Ace
    7 days ago
    Thank you so much. I hold both of these characters deep in my heart. Your words mean a great deal to me. 🤗
- oolonglong
  Seasoned Hotshot
  8 days ago
  Such a strong episode! Brianna is so hard on herself and yet is so strong and unique.
  - GalacticGal
    Seasoned Ace
    7 days ago
    Thank you. Many of us, I believe, tend to doubt ourselves, rightly or wrongly. She wants very much to be Vulcan, and when she perceives she's failed at the simplest task, it proves to herself how she'll never really be Vulcan. I enjoy your feedback.
- Ellupelluellu
  Hero
  8 days ago
  I'm curious now who is she having mindmeld with 🙃 If making a wild guess, son of Sarek? 😉
  - GalacticGal
    Seasoned Ace
    6 days ago
    Oh, my goodness, how did I miss replying to your post? I am so sorry. That remains to be seen. . . Working on it. I hope to have something in a day or so.
oolonglong
Seasoned Hotshot
9 days ago
Brianna’s voice is getting so much clearer in this revision of the Cantrell story. Prior ones were great but focused on Eric. I am feeling more connected to Kayleigh and now with Brianna. Thank you for sharing your story with us!
- GalacticGal
  Seasoned Ace
  8 days ago
  Thank you for reading and responding to it. Since I have a three-novel story about Brianna, I focused on Erik, who has such a tiny role in the mini-series. This time, rather than give flashback information, I decided to let it flow from their childhood, forward. This meant more information on Bree was necessary. I am currently working on the next update. Pictures are tricky, but I had an inspiration, now if I can only capture it . . .
  As for Kayleigh, I needed to explain, somehow, the strained relationship Erik and Drake have. And to also show that Erik, with all of his genius, also has foibles. He is human.
GalacticGal
Seasoned Ace
9 days ago
Thank you for responding. I hope to post what is essentially part two. I have to work on pictures for it, since it's difficult to illustrate, beyond words.
rosemow
Hero
10 days ago
I hope that she goes well in the three parts of the test 🙂
Ellupelluellu
Hero
10 days ago
Infinite diversity in infinite combinations , as a Star Trek fan myself (whole, not only TOS) it's always nice to see these two worlds combined.
All the best for Brianna in the test.
- GalacticGal
  Seasoned Ace
  9 days ago
  Thank you. I may have to write it out for those who aren't privy to what it means, don't know for sure. I adapted my fanfiction for this. No reason to write it all over again. Plus, I had to snip parts that don't pertain to the Sim version of the story. Happy you responded.