Probably one of my best pieces. Written after Talynne's backstory, this describes the time when she bought her Eagle, and then discovered her name.
Note: I've never read any of the Elite: Dangerous official fiction. Please do not flame with tons of "this isn't right, this sucks". If I got something wrong, please be constructive about it. ^_^
Elite: Dangerous is owned by Frontier Developments. Settings, ships and descriptions are based off of Elite: Dangerous. Talynne Star as a character is my own.
Series: THE SHIP WHISPERER - #2
Story: "The Ship's Secret - Talyn's Naming"
Written By: Talynne Star
"The Ship's Secret"
Wohler Terminal, Kremainn
Jan 7, 3301
Commander Talynne Star growled as she walked, carrying two tool bags under her left arm, a third grasped in her left hand, a small clump of wires wrapped in plastic in her mouth and her right hand holding a data pad, her thumb scrolling through bits of information and news reports. Her golden eyes flicked over the screen, becoming annoyed. Nothing of interest, and these damn bags were heavy. Her black, layered, shoulder-length hair flopped about as she walked, the one longer red strand flying behind her shoulder. She was headed back to her hangar after a long day of being away. She was grateful for her suit's internal cooling system; had it not been for that, she might have died already of heat in the form-fitting suit that she had designed. She had mistakenly forgotten to grab a cooler and more comfortable change of clothing.
The paint crews had finally gotten her Eagle's paint job completed, and she had been authorized to return. She had been anxious all day, wanting to start the work on the wiring systems that she had discovered needed to be done. She had found the problems the day before while running diagnostics as the Outfitter techs were busy fitting her new ship with the upgraded components she had ordered. She had been getting overloading messages. Upon investigation, she found original wiring that was on the verge of breaking, tearing out...any major movements or a sudden surge while in a battle and it might have been over for them both. She immediately ran a full systems scan for any further problems, as well as going over all the components visually herself. She was dedicated. She didn't want to leave the station without this ship in the best condition she could possibly afford.
She rounded the corner to the doors of Hangar 16, pausing to stuff the data pad in her mouth with the wires, shifting the bags slightly as she leaned a bit, reaching out to enter her security code. The doors slid open, revealing a gorgeous sight to her. She stepped inside slowly, her eyes widening at the beautiful black, red and gold eagle before her.
"Oh wow...look what they did with you..." she said mumbled from behind the datapad and wires, taking a few steps in, not hearing the door slide closed behind her. Once she was close enough, she gently set her bags down and took the wiring out of her mouth, setting it on the bags. She reached up, tentatively touching her ship's hull, only to find the paint dry. She smiled, being more sure, and ran her hand gently along the hull. She felt the minor variations in texture as the paint faded from one color to another, or the sharp feel of the gold flames painted on top of the red and black.
"You're beautiful, my Eagle." she breathed, in total admiration for the work the paint crew had put in to make her Eagle absolutely amazing. She felt a twinge of guilt, though; she hadn't chosen a name yet. Anything she thought of, though, just felt...wrong. She sighed softly, then patted the hull gently. "I'll think of a name soon, don't worry." She said, turning around to pick up her bags and head up the ramp of the front landing strut. Again she balanced bags in one hand, wires and data pad in her mouth and entered her security code. The door slid open with a soft hum and hiss, a slight sound of metal against metal. She entered and set the bags on the floor, sliding to the floor as well. Her ship's bay doors closed as she sat. Home safe. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the bulkheads. It was late at night already, but this needed to get done. She was hoping to launch tomorrow. She opened her eyes, staring at the small kitchen-like area that had one tiny burner, a tiny cabinet that topped a thin but tall refrigeration unit to the right, and a small sink to the left of the burner. There really wasn't much room in an Eagle, but there were some small accommodations. Sometimes one had to stay in their ship for weeks at a time, depending on what was going on. She needed coffee.
Standing, she moved to start a small pot. She had learned how to brew coffee the old, traditional way. She found it tasted better and far fresher that way. While that was going, she began to dig out the parts she was going to need, and unwrapped the wires. The coffee would beep at her when it was ready. She sat next to a panel further back in the ship, reaching up to a higher panel and tapping on the screen, turning a few of the systems off where she was working. Returning her attention to the lower panel, she pried off the cover and gently took it off.
"Alright...let's start getting you fixed up, shall we?" She said, leaning in to inspect the level of damage and what wires and conduits she might need. Several were burned. Whoever had this ship before her didn't take very good care of it, or someone was just damn careless. This SHOULD have been part of routine maintenance. She growled softly. "I swear I will keep up on this...Not gonna let you get so worn down like this. No wonder the techs said you had so many problems. They probably thought that because you were military, you were caught up. Dumbasses..." she mumbled, selecting a cutting tool to remove the damaged parts. She leaned in, managing to get two of the wires just fine. The third one was so badly burned it had melted to the outside of a larger power conduit. Talynne sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Juuuust wonderful." she grumbled, leaning in further to reach it. "It's a wonder you were still functioning..." she said, shifting her position to her knees so she could get in a tad further. Placing one hand on the frame of the panel, she felt her tool grasp the wire and she squeezed.
Her tool slipped just enough to clip the hot wires underneath. Above, a red light began flashing on the systems powerdown panel. One of the conduits had been missed.
Sparks flew as Talynne went flying backwards out of the console that she had been working on, hitting the wall and slumping to the ground. She never knew what had happened. Her hand, still clenching the tool; was burned and her face had a few burn marks.
"Commander. Systems Overload. Please reroute power." Came the voice of the ship's computer AI. No response from Talynne. "Commander." Still no response. "Commander. Please reply." Nothing. No movement. No sound.
It was as if something triggered within the ship. Several systems came on by themselves. The words 'Scan Initiated' appeared on a third nearby panel, followed shortly by 'All Life Signs Ceased'. Another system activated. A distress call. It was directed at Wohler Terminal, the station they were docked at. It contained the scan information as well as information on the Hangar Number and what other system scans the ship had obtained. Within mere moments, an announcement was made over the Station PA system.
"Emergency crews to Hangar 16. Code Red. Repeat. Emergency crews to Hangar 16. Code Red."
Red lights began flashing just outside the hangar doors while topside the normally orange holographic guides and numbers lit up and turned an angry red. This was a message for all craft to stay clear of the area.
It wouldn't take the medical crews very long at all. They rushed in, heading for the ship, whose bay doors opened instantly. No one needed to enter codes, or announce their presence...the doors just opened. The crews, which were two teams of two and three, ran up the ramp and into the ship, spotting Talynne's feet first. They rushed over, instantly starting on loosening her collar and unzipping the front. One felt her neck, then wrist, feeling no pulse. Another attached small electrical nodes to her chest, which lead to a small box. Their first priority was bringing her back. All around them, red lights flashed on and off. It was the ship's internal emergency lights. Almost as if...the ship were anxious or worried. Behind them, a soft beeping continued incessantly as the coffee brew that Talynne had started had finished. One tech reached behind him to shut it off; no sense in another emergency.
As the crews worked around her hurriedly but professionally, Talynne's closed, lifeless eyes remained still, but encountered a vision...
Nothingness. That was all she saw around her. She felt cold. Fear began to creep up into her heart. She remembered cutting the wire...and then nothing. Absolutely...nothing. She grasped at her arms, the fear increasing. Something bad had happened, and now...she feared the worst.
"Hello!?" she cried out, her voice strange to her. At first, nothing happened. Then, a small orb of gold light began to form right in front of her. A gentle whisper began to float through her mind, soft whispers that Talynne both understood and yet didn't. She raised her hands, cupping the small ball of light. It felt warm. Hope began to rise in her heart as she stared at this little ball of light. She smiled softly.
"Who are you...?" she asked, not really sure at all. The golden orb flickered brightly and danced a little in her hands. Talynne chuckled at the playful nature. More whispers ran through her mind, but these ones were clearer. A gentle feminine voice.
"I will protect you, Commander, as you have sworn to take care of me." came the voice, making it VERY clear who this little ball of light was. Talynne's eyes went wide, then a wave of sadness washed over her.
"But...something happened. I...-" she started, interrupted by the golden orb.
"You'll be okay. You must trust me."
Talynne silenced herself, biting her lip, then nodded.
"...What is your name...?" She asked, hoping her answer lay here.
"You will know soon." The orb spoke softly, then flared briefly. "Go. I'll be waiting."
Talynne never got a chance to reply.
Talynne's eyes flew open wide, her lungs clenching and gasping for air. At first her vision spun wildly; a mix of flashing red, greys, whites and blues. Voices began to fill her ears and the smell of coffee overloaded her senses. She began to try to look around, terror filling her. Her heart felt so damn tight and her chest was burning. Slowly her vision began to steady and she blinked a few times, her breath still ragged but getting more regular by the moment. She began to recognize the shape of people wearing the blues and whites around her, as well as the beeping of medical equipment.
"What...where...?" she tried to ask, looking around.
"Commander, don't move around too much. We need you to relax." one of the medical personnel said, placing a hand on her shoulder gently. "Do you know your name?" he asked as another attended to giving her an injection of sorts. No longer like the needles of old earth, they were more like a spray that shot through the skin and entered into the bloodstream that way. No visible wounds were created. Talynne looked at the other tech for a moment, then nodded.
"C...Commander...T-Talynne Star..." she stuttered out. The person asking her nodded.
"Good. Do you know what year you were born?"
"I..." she started, blinked, then tried again. "A-August twenty-third, thirty-two eighty-one." she managed to say, noticing that it was hard at first to remember some of this information. That scared her a bit. "What happened..?" She asked, a little more coherent now. The room had stopped spinning, and she recognized the interior of her newly-bought ship. She began to feel pain in her face and her right hand.
"Just relax, Comman-"
"TELL me...what happened." Talynne said, her golden eyes looking over at the medical tech, her voice, while still slightly unsteady, was firm. The tech blinked, then sighed.
"You were officially dead, Commander. We managed to bring you back within the time limit," he started. Talynne's eyes went wide, but let him continue. "We received a distress call from your ship. From the sensor logs, there was a surge in the navigation array. It also included a report of your life signs." He said, leaning forward to check her eyes, making sure they were responding properly to stimuli. "However you figure it...your ship saved your life." He said, sitting back, satisfied with the response her eyes had given him. Another medical tech was working on her right hand and he lifted it up, preparing to clean it and put a bandage around it. She stared at the back of her hand, seeing something odd in the shape of one of the burns. It was curved, wide on one side and curving to a point on the other. Something began to stir within her as she stared at it.
"That looks like..." she started, remembering old photos from earth. The birds of prey had long, sharp talons. Particularly... "an Eagle's talon..."
"I will protect you, Commander, as you have sworn to take care of me..."
The voice of that golden orb shot through her heart and she knew in that instant. Not Talon, but Talyn. Like her name. A combination of the both of them. A sudden wave of peace and happiness flowed through her and a smile crossed her face.
"Talyn..."
The red emergency lights stopped flashing in that moment, causing the medical techs to look up, confused.
"What...?" asked the head tech, a little bewildered.
"Nothing," Talynne said, her smile turning to a weary smirk, her eyes focusing on the ceiling of her ship. Above her, a soft yellow-gold light in the ceiling held steady, as if watching down over her. In that moment, an unbreakable bond between pilot and ship was formed.
The medical techs stayed there long enough to ensure that she would be alright, and made sure that she was patched up and had given her instructions to not launch for twelve Earth hours. She had been also instructed to have someone else do the repairs. Reluctantly she agreed, but watched over the repairs like a hawk. She refused to let anyone screw up anything on Talyn.
No one would ever truly know what happened that day. Most would say it was just a protocol that was run when Commander Talynne didn't respond. But there are some who speculate that their ships are more than just metal and wires. Some that believe their ships have a soul. Those same few who believe this explain it through odd happenings...things that normally wouldn't happen. A trick of a sensor, an impossible maneuver that the pilot would have never accomplished alone, shields or hull lasting longer than they should. Doors opening inexplicably when needed. Weapons managing that last squeeze of power that shouldn't have been there. There were so many things that pilots whispered about to others...things that just...should not have happened. Talynne's story of her ship saving her life would spread throughout the populated section of the galaxy, adding to the whispered rumors of a ship's secret, their soul.
There was but one who would know the truth. The talon-shaped scar on her right hand would forever be a reminder of the encounter she had whilst legally dead. An encounter that, in her mind, heart and soul, put the rumors to rest and made them rise as truth.