Prospect 2016/01/03(Sun)12:46 No. 691531 ID: c8c9a6
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Onboard the Lotan tradeship The Right Price

"Begin recording. Trade record, opening period Hastl Nea. Venture-Trademaster Prospect speaking.

The ship. We found it.

Whatever name it once had, it has been known for some time as the Thunder Rising. Lost to the unknown, ages ago. A relic of a forgotten era, filled with lost technology and secrets. Wars were fought, bloody, interstellar, over hints of its location.

It came screaming into known space only moments ago. We do not intend to let it escape our reach.

Its crew? Accidental. Confused. And now, all they know is to never stop running. Like panicked headless shneps, they appear only to react without thought. We have only limited information on each member."

Prospect 2016/01/03(Sun)12:47 No. 691532 ID: c8c9a6
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"None of these species appear to exist in our records, so, pending a better correlation, I will take some liberties.

There are four specimens of species, hm, A. Assuming three males and one female given typical expectations for sexual dimorphism of the body type. One appears to be in some way altered beyond baseline capacity relative to the other three. There is one specimen each of species B and C. Altogether, six that we know of.

Species A appears to fit standard bipedal body structure type T. Species B is standard serpentine body structure, type L+. Species C, well. While it appears to fit standard bipedal type T, we suspect that it might be modal. We'll figure it out.

A shame. Any other ship, and I might be considering this eclectic gathering as customers. Right now, they're merchandise.

End recording."

IN19 2016/01/03(Sun)12:47 No. 691533 ID: c8c9a6
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Onboard the Thunder Rising

They don't know much, but they know the ship is a winding, labyrinthine mess. A flying, superadvanced maze. This is why, thinks IN19, he thought he told everyone not to stray too far from the bridge.

He wanders around the bridge, and it is completely empty. No one is at their posts. Given as he's somehow ended up as the designated captain, he thinks it's probably appropriate to find where everyone has gone. The bridge might then be completely vacant, but "fly as fast as you can in a straight line" is not a difficult concept for the autopilot to grasp.

He goes to grab a fresh stimulant patch, and briefly ponders how anyone can find sleep when forever on the run. After all, if he can spend a solid... however many days awake, surely everyone else can.

In trying to grab the patch, he overbalances and stumbles onto the wall.

Perhaps sleep would be a good idea. But first he needs someone else to be awake in his stead. Other than the bridge, he reliably knows how to get to the only functioning quarters segment, the engine core, the hydroponics bay, and that's it. Someone has to be in one of those places. He isn't entirely sure where he is right now in the bridge. Everything's a weird haze. He's pretty sure the viewscreen is behind him.

--- 2016/01/03(Sun)12:47 No. 691534 ID: c8c9a6
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[ GROUND RULES ]

[ So once again, this is another experimental Cirr quest, so prepare for confusion and things not making sense! Rather than have a specific individual protagonist to suggest for, as in every other quest going, you can suggest for any characters you like! It's worth noting incidental background characters are less likely to have any attention specifically devoted to them, but if there's enough interest, they probably aren't an incidental background character anymore.

And by any character, this includes antagonists. The only ground rule here is not to overtly get characters to fuck up -- the characters won't act on transparently bad ideas. However, if you feel like playing puppetmaster and giving every character a suggestion that, to their knowledge, seems like a good idea, while setting them up for ruin later, that's fine. ENJOY

Guided requests for characters to tell a little bit more about themselves and so on are fine too, but they might not all feature in the next update.

Oh, and it'd be appreciated if you could preface suggestions aimed at specific individuals or groups with "name of character: do this" style posts. As in, give the name of the group or character and put a colon afterwards. It helps scanning suggestions. Thanks! ]

>IN19
go to the functioning quarters segment, I mean someone should be there and you need to pass out so might as well make as few trips as possible

>Prospect
Ok so you're after the ship and it's crew. Why the crew and what do you have to work with to actually get the ship. Like how large is your crew, any weapons, things like that.

Venture-Trademaster Prospect: Got any more information on the Thunder Rising? If you're absolutely sure that this ship is the ship of legend, then I assume you have some pretty convincing evidence.

Also, who are you, and how is it that you ended up stumbling upon this situation? Sheer luck?

IN19: See if you can figure out how to use the viewscreen to figure out where anybody is. Try not to pass out.

At least one other character on the Thunder Rising: Feel guilty about straying from the bridge and maybe try to make your way back to the bridge.

Any character aboard the Thunder Rising who has an actual long-term plan at the moment: What is your long-term plan??

All characters aboard the Thunder Rising (there are only six of you so I can't imagine this would be overly onerous): In brief, who are you, how did you get here, and what are you trying to do now?

IN19: Check the viewscreen to make sure you're not going to crash into a star or something while you're leaving the bridge unattended. Then head to the quarters, I'm sure there's somebody there.

Prospect: What sort of things are safe to assume about this ship? Will the ship be able to properly repel you in an overt attack given its current crew? Will the crew be able to defend itself against whatever you have if they're boarded?

Venture-Trademaster Prospect: What are your options / strategy for securing the ship you're hunting? What confidence do you have your methods won't be countered by the target's defenses? I assume you have little hard data on what it's actually capable of.

What steps are you taking to make sure word doesn't get out, and you suddenly find yourself dealing with opportunistic vultures swooping in after you?

>>691533
IN19: How often is your species supposed to sleep? Did you even read what the sage dosage on those stim packs is? Is at least one member of your crew a medic or doctor, because you're probably going to need one soon.

Other members of thunder rising crew: sound off. Where are you, who are you, what are you doing?

> Prospect:
The TR is faster than your ship, right? You'd best fire some weapons before they get out of range. Preferably, something that'll disable the engines (fully or partially) without damaging the rest of the ship. Got anything like that? Our actually, better yet would be a tether that'll let you keep up with it without creating an opportunity for other seekers.

>IN19:
Make sure you check the long-range radar for threats before you leave the bridge. There's probably nothing, but it doesn't hurt to be careful.

--- 2016/01/03(Sun)18:11 No. 691569 ID: c8c9a6
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The current crew of the Thunder Rising is six individuals that have no recollection of arriving to the ship and little recollection of what they were doing prior to their ship arrival.

IN19, the designated captain, is technically the most experienced and probably the oldest of the four creatures like himself. None of them are aware of any particular species name. He is confused by but dedicated to his role as captain and leader.
Currently, he's in the bridge, swaying gently.

MI33 is the second in command, chief security and military officer in so far as the titles mean anything, and has seen combat before. He is a distant, quiet type, loathe to enter into any fight without purpose. He has some mild internal augmentations to provide strength and support to his body in states of injury.
Currently, he's struggling to sleep in the one functioning quarters segment.

IN43 is the navigator and, in dire emergencies, pilot for the ship, having picked up on the ship's controls apparently through sheer lucky guesses alone. He is a curious explorer and also the youngest of the group. For a group with an age range of something not much greater than two or three years, this does not mean a whole lot.
Currently, he's fast asleep in the one functioning quarters segment.

FC37 is the sole female of the group of four and, unable to recall any specific skills or specialisations, has become responsible for hydroponics working, maintenance and repair work, and the delegation thereof.
Currently, she's in the hydroponics bay, tending to the plants.

The remaining two crew members, Coralvortex and Mu, are different species. Coralvortex has a natural affinity towards the processing of data and has also ended up in charge of what limited engineering tasks the crew understand.
Currently, she's asleep in the one functioning quarters segment, or at least pretending to be.

Mu is less understood by the other five, does not talk about itself often and appears to be calm and collected in almost any situation. Mu appears to be capable of considerable shapeshifting, but it does not seem to do this often.
Currently, it's in the engine core, pondering.

Prospect 2016/01/03(Sun)18:11 No. 691570 ID: c8c9a6
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Prospect could be on the most lucrative venture of her entire life. After many many years as a respected Trademaster, she raised funds to begin a low-cost, low-risk, high-reward venture to locate the ancient ship of dreams, the Thunder Rising. She never expected to be quite this successful. But here it is. The Thunder Rising, down to every described detail. Admittedly, the details are vague and ancient, but if she thinks it's the Thunder Rising, then someone else in the wide, wide universe will also think it's the Thunder Rising, and the price she could charge for the Thunder Rising..?

She shivers and continues pondering. No reason to celebrate just yet. Her ship, The Right Price, was designed for trade and self-defense. She wasn't expecting to end up chasing the ship, but it's a testament to the quality of Lotan technology that it can even keep the pace with this ancient ship of the gods. It would be, she surmises, trivial to overpower six individuals in a large vessel with the right boarding party. Prospect isn't the greatest fighter in the world, but she has drones enough to outnumber them by orders of magnitude. Quality Lotan technology also. If the Lotan culture has done one thing right, it's automation.

She could capture the crew alive and sell them back to wherever they came from. Without any of the individuals being registered species, the only possibilities would be slave species or artificial species. Primitives wouldn't be posing this much of a challenge to capture.

She considers firing the weapons, but without a better angle it would be a costly gamble. All she has to do is wait for them to make one mistake. She doesn't have any competition, and why should she? Who else would possibly--

Narcis Prime 2016/01/03(Sun)18:11 No. 691571 ID: c8c9a6
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"Attention all vessels. This is Narcis Prime of the Narcis Accordance. Do not make efforts to fire upon the Thunder Rising. This ship now belongs to us. Crew of the Thunder Rising, cease your escape efforts and power down your weapons. We will now take the vessel."

Narcis Prime, of the Narcis Accordance, passes his handset to Narcis 117. A much younger iteration, with more of his young blooded desire to impress his superiors. He reflects on the follies of his youth spent bending over backwards to please his elders, and how little has changed.

It doesn't matter. If he sought significant variety in his contemporaries, the Accordance would never have been forged.

"Narcis 62."
"Yes, Prime Hierarch?"
"Prepare for a pre-emptive strike against the Lotan trade vessel. We cannot, under any circumstances, allow for the Thunder Rising to fall into the wrong hands."
"Whose hands, Prime Hierarch?"

Narcis Prime gives his younger duplicate a full, customary six seconds of silent glare. "Anyone's hands but our own, 62. They cannot be trusted to possess such technology. Only we can."
"Yes. I see." 62 displays the appropriate amount of shame and embarassment, within two standard deviations. "Our wisdom improves with age, I see."
"There is a strike you have to prepare. Begone."

As he watches 62 leave, Narcis Prime thinks to himself of how much more embarassing a figure he was in his youth.

IN19 2016/01/03(Sun)18:12 No. 691572 ID: c8c9a6
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IN19 is pretty sure he should probably sleep once a night. Whatever a night is now. He's also pretty sure he's fine. FC37 is probably the doctor or the nurse, seeing as she pretty much takes whatever job needs doing the most. Maybe she'd have an idea of what she was doing. Maybe.

He checks the viewscreen through bleary vision to make sure that the ship isn't on course with a star. Nope. All clear. White line is not too near the nearest star. He tries to figure out how to use it to check where other people are before nearly tumbling onto a console.

He decides to head to the quarters.

FC37 2016/01/03(Sun)18:12 No. 691573 ID: c8c9a6
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FC37 heads to the bridge. The plants have all been put back on the standard watering cycle, after somehow being reset to no action. Safe in the knowledge that the crew isn't going to starve, she decides to go see what the next thing to do is.

She comes across IN19 passed out and covered in patches in the corridor.

She doesn't know if the ship even has a medical bay. They never really had a chance to explore it very well before things went bad.

Maybe she should drag him to the quarters segment, or to the bridge.

FC37: Drag him to the quarters, I guess. ... Your team appears to lack anyone designated as a medic, so, uh, good luck.

Narcis Prime: Is Narcis seriously your for real name? Also, was it necessarily the best idea to have informed everyone of your presence here? What are you going to do if something besides that Lotan ship turns out to be in the area, possibly concealing their presence?

Prospect: You familiar with these Narcis guys who apparently just hailed everyone in the area asserting ownership of the ship you're trying to assert ownership over? Should you be seeing them as a threat, and if so, have you considered any tactics beyond just waiting for the supposedly-hapless creatures on the Thunder Rising to mess up?

Mu: You're awake right now. What's up?

> FC37
quickly check if anyone else is in the bridge and if there is anything you need to worry about before dragging the caption back to bed

> Prospect
Who the fuck do those assholes think they are!? They could ruin everything by interfering. Prep weapons and get ready to blow them out of the stars if they even try to fuck this up. I wouldn't recommend firing on the Thunder Rising unless you have no other choice as it's worth more whole then in pieces.

>Narcis Prime
remove the other ship by any means necessary, it might come back and bite you in the ass to attack another ship that hasn't threatened you or your ship in any way but if you can claim the Thunder Rising then that would outweigh any price. also before you fire see how likely it is you can shoot the Thunder Rising. If you can knock out it's engines you can claim the whole ship.

FC37: Drag him to the bridge. If he ran out this way and collapsed he might have had something important to say. He was the only one on the bridge, right?

Narcis Prime: If the Thunder Rising is just aimlessly flying around it probably isn't crewed by people capable of defending themselves. Assuming you can follow it, don't bother attacking it and focus on taking out the other ship. It's presumably better totally intact.

Prospect: You get that message? How good are your defenses on that ship, because it sounds like it's not built for a real fight. If you can't hold off a real warship you might want to think about escape plans. With something this important these guys aren't just going to take it and let you go; you probably won't be allowed to escape knowing the location. Do you have backup or anything? If you can't protect yourself, in the worst case scenario, you could try to intercept the Thunder Rising immediately and abandon ship to board it. These guys might blow your ship up but they certainly won't try to blow up their goal. If your drones can board a ship then they can also defend a ship from boarding.

Mu: ponder ponderously.

Coralvortex: stop pretending to sleep, resolve to get up and find something to do to distract yourself.

FC37: Check that IN19 has a pulse and that they're still breathing. Then check the bridge. Maybe there's a directory or map that could lead to medical? Or if there's communication equipment, you could contact one of the others for help moving the captain. Or finding medical. (If there's no obvious directory, Coralvortex might be able to discern something from the ship's data, or power usage?).

IN19: have confusing dreams.

Narcis 117: experience resentment for your older iterations.

Prospect: paranoia-scan the system again. Need to make sure there are no surprises if you're going to execute your capture correctly. Don't open fire, no point in taking foolish risks.

Mu 2016/01/09(Sat)18:09 No. 692558 ID: 587951
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Deep within the Thunder Rising

Mu stares at the energy core of the ship, a giant that the railing does not approach directly. A brilliant ball of light to blind most senses, but Mu has no issue adjusting its sensory thresholds with adequate warning. Gyroscopic rings swivel around it, tremendous and slow, keeping it contained.

Mu has little need for rest. It has little need for many things.

One thing, however. A minor itch, initially. Aggravated by questions and conversations of the others. It found them, one by one, on this vessel, all on the same day. They were confused. Not just about how they had arrived, but as to who and what they were. Traces remained, recollections were fast, but only the darker green male and the worm seemed to fully recall everything. And the more they could recall, the less they spoke of their past to anyone.

Mu could understand. It shed the burden of its own past long ago. No backup, no archive, no more than the necessary remnants to keep the ship functioning.

But that itch. It wonders what memories it chose to forget so thoroughly.

Mu basks in the energy shed by the core, filling its internal reserves while feeling nothing but emptiness.

FC37 2016/01/09(Sat)18:09 No. 692559 ID: 587951
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FC37 checks IN19 for a pulse, and he groans and tries to turn over. She frowns and begins to drag him back to the bridge.

It takes a little longer than she'd like. She isn't unfit, and she knows this, but she's rapidly finding out just how heavy a full grown male is when not co-operating with being moved. With something halfway between a drag and slinging him over her, she reaches the bridge.

IN19 has strange dreams about falling down a gentle slope next to a river.

She sees the viewscreen depicting three ships chasing the Thunder Rising. This isn't unusual. What is unusual is that all three are getting closer.

She puts the captain on the floor, and races up to one of the stations and hits an intercom button.

"H-hey, everyone! Everyone to the bridge! Three hostiles approaching! We need a pilot! We need scans! Anything! Anyone! The captain's down, come on, I need help!"

In the quarters, three sleepers stir.

Narcis Prime 2016/01/09(Sat)18:09 No. 692560 ID: 587951
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Onboard the Hand of Accordance

Narcis Prime considers the Thunder Rising. The legendary ship of dreams. The flying host to a forbidden, ancient power.

In his younger folly, before he took the name once used to insult him as his title of pride, he thought using it could make him a god. Now, he seeks it for the answers to the questions he failed to answer, and that plague him even now.

The Thunder Rising is beyond value to him. It is his ultimate goal. The culmination of everything he has worked for and sought to find. It is not a [i]trinket[/b] for a bloated, greedy trade empire to pass around to the highest bidder.

And he would sooner see it fall into the wrong hands than mark it himself with wanton weapon fire. But, better to not let that come to pass at all.

"62! Launch the strike. The Lotan vessel must be not be permitted to take the Thunder Rising."

In the dim fog of the bridge, Narcis 117 sighs. Violence so soon, with not even a token effort to negotiate? He had expected better from, well, himself.

Prospect 2016/01/09(Sat)18:09 No. 692561 ID: 587951
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Onboard The Right Price

Prospect has never heard of anything calling itself a Narcis Accordance. She can't believe she was so focused on the prize she neglected to run even a partial scan of the surrounding space.

"Engage weapon systems. Target source of broadcast. Dispatch 40% of boarding drone swarm, priority is to disable. Apprehend source of broadcast if applicable."

The gold dust motes in the air flash and chime their acknowledgement, and the order is dispersed through the ship.

"Wait. No. Stop. Scan for other ships."

Another chime. With a lurching panic, she waits for the answer. The motes stir themselves into frenzies, and the room becomes dustier and dustier. If she didn't know better, she'd worry about choking on them.

"There are two cruiser-sized objects and one fighter-sized object in medium range scan distance. All unidentified."

Three. Three?! She leaps to her hindlegs. The Thunder Rising, this new affront, and one other?! Her ship was designed for self-defence against pirates using co-opted existing designs, not against unidentified mystery ships! Sure, she thinks to herself, the third one may be small, but that doesn't account for much when so little is known.

Her heart races. She supposes this may be some form of karmic retribution for her plan to exploit a handful of scared servitors on the run. She weighs up the benefit of capturing the ship versus the risk of losing her life today. And the lives of all of her-- but no, she didn't elect to recruit anyone for this mission. It was to be a secret victory, one she could claim sole credit and sole profit over. A way to immortalise her name and deeds for all eternity. Now, so soon, it already all seems to have been something of a costly mistake.

"Full defence protocol! Burn anything that comes within close proximity! Indiscriminately! Highest priority!"

She tries to regain her composure, but deep down, she knows anything else after the Thunder Rising is a force that could end her in an instant. If she can get the ship. If she can get the ship, it will all be worth it.

Freya 2016/01/09(Sat)18:10 No. 692562 ID: 587951
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Onboard the Third Vessel, Nameless

Freya stirs to life, hibernation stasis ending. She hangs in the centre of the chamber, gravity more a suggestion than a requirement.

With a thought, the craft's automatic report flashes before her eyes. The universal nexus point, as expected. A smaller vessel, swarming in golden forms like bees around a hive. A vessel smaller still. Neither of them familiar. But the nexus point, that universal singleton, that shining focus. She's never seen it before and it feels like she's staring at the face of an old friend.

Her ship is the smallest of all the vessels, and it was only pure luck that brought her to the nexus point. Of course, she channeled the archetype of the hunter, the seeker, the quester. The protagonist. A straightforward tale, now reaching the end of the journey and a way back home. She made sure to let all she could know her tale, and she knows how the story goes now. Obstacles. Deterrents. At the very last moment, it will seem that all hope has been lost, but she will triumph, as the hero always does.

She chides herself. Aligning to narrative does her no favours when alone. Only in the presence of an audience. She is a bubble in the ocean, the cold, harsh reality of this universe's physics threatening to burst the thin film protecting her. Only her own conviction keeps her safe in the bubble of her remnant, original physical laws. Only her refusal to accept this reality keeps her safe. Other creatures. Thinkers. Witnesses. They threaten the bubble.

And so, she must play to the roles. Play to the narrative structures they understand. If they anticipate her actions, they make them easier to perform. If she loses their understanding, they begin to doubt. Loathe. Against strong enough will, her bubble will collapse, and Freya, a thing that should not be within this universe, will succumb to the forceful interaction of a set of physical laws hostile to her very existence.

She has to get to the nexus. She has to get out of this universe and back home. She can't keep living like this forever. She needs the nexus, and to hell if some maniac built a ship around it. She's the hero. She's at the end of her journey. She has to succeed. She has to.

Mu: So, nothing to go on at all from back then, then? ... If you heard that message, maybe you have better things to think about right now anyway.

FC37: Try not to freak out, realize you're already freaking out, freak out a little more.

MI33, IN43, Coralvortex: Figure out who is most suited to this situation, and/or bicker about it.

Narcis whichever-one-of-you: Somehow be caught off-guard that the situation probably hasn't resolved itself as simply as "blow up other ship and call it a day".

Prospect: Try not to panic. What are the odds of you being able to talk your way onto the Thunder Rising under the pretense of being able to bail out its current occupants through taking control of the ship?

Freya: Wait, you're after the ship's power supply...? And you're in a tiny-ass ship to boot? Uh, you've got some kind of trick you can pull out, right?

>Mu
It seems there's a problem on the bridge, you should collect the rest of the crew and see what the problem is.

>FC37
well if you don't know what to do you could always tell what you see over the intercom to the rest of the crew to get them to move there asses a little quicker.

>Narcis Prime
remove the other ship and close in before the thunder rising escapes. You're so close, so close.

>Prospect
try and keep your distance and use your sensors to keep an eye on both ships. If you can last until your boarding drones hit the Narcis Accordance you might be able disable the ship and get close enough to the Thunder Rising. If you can get your drones on the thunder Rising then the smaller ship probably won't be able to take the ship since it's so small. Just focus on staying alive until you can reach the Thunder Rising.

>Freya
try to stay unnoticed and get to the nexus. If no one spots you it makes your job easier to get to the nexus.

Sounds like we're the "audience". Or the nexus. Getting kindof meta in here.

Freya, take the role of the Precursor, come to reclaim what is theirs. That should give you power enough to survive confrontation. It might even get you on the side of the crew currently in the nexus ship. Or if you can transmit private communication to the Thunder Rising, tell them you are here to help. With them you can take a different role, like... the Unexpected Ally.

Prospect: Re-evaluate risk-reward ratio. Don't fall for the sunken cost fallacy.

Prospect: Use the Thunder Rising as a shield, they probably won't shoot at it, at least not with the same ferocity as they would at you. Attempt to forcibly dock with the Thunder Rising and board it, including with yourself. Taking it over is probably your only chance of making it through this.

Freya: Attempt to hail the ship built around the nexus to try to get a better idea of what's going on. Maybe if you convince them they'll just let you in?

Narcis 117: Is your chain of command so strict that you really don't have the option to voice your concerns? Those who are older are wiser, but also more set in their ways. Surely your insights are still meaningful.

Thunder Rising crew: Panic. Just a little though. The limited kind of panic that forces you to get things done.

Freya: If your survival depends on others understanding and reinforcing the narrative you will inevitably follow, it seems to me you need to communicate with your audience. You need to announce your intentions to other vessels, such that their crew buoy you, even as / if they try to oppose you.

Do you need to destroy the ship to access the nexus inside it, or do you just need to board it and get access to the nexus?

Prospect: Close distance with your target. The others won't dare fire on you in close proximity to the prize, and the crew are too disorganized to attack you themselves (you hope). The Thunder Rising is everything, it might as well be your lifeline as well.

FC37: Desperately start going over the control panels in front of you. Evasive maneuvers, defensive systems, shields, emergency speed boost... there must be something you can use!