Capture

Posted on Fri Sep 11th, 2026 @ 8:36pm by Lieutenant Kael Ryo

447 words; about a 2 minute read

Mission: The Love Boat
Location: SS Pacific Princess, [USS Myogi (NCC-65918), Holodeck One, Deck 4]

The cruise director, Julie McCoy checked her clipboard.

"The science-fiction convention isn't until November."

"Huh" Kael rubbed his chin, the last thing he expected was for the holographic characters to acknowledge his uniform. "A thunderclap from a clear sky...Very well miss McCoy." He picked up a drink from a passing tray.

---

Kael Ryo entered the dining room, dressed in third century scholarly robes, the feather fan was not only an accessory but a necessity in this heat. He brought his arms together to retrieve a small padd from inside his sleeve containing the itinerary of the holographic cruise.

"A chess tournament? Well that won't do, Computer." The computer acknowledged with the familiar chime. "Could we make this, a Go tournament?"

With a noise from the light emitters the chess boards were instantly replaced heavy wooden Go tables. Kael's opponent seemed to appear just as he was getting situated with a slight wave of his fan. A woman with a copper-red bobcut, dressed like any other passenger on the Pacific Princess. Her face brightened in amusement upon seeing Kael's costume.

"Oh wow, I see you really want to get into character, does it help?"

"Victory does lie in the preparation!"

A single white stone was placed with a soft click and the game was on.

The next hour was a blur of frantic action. Click. Click. CLICK-CLICK. The pace accelerated. The board was now a battlefield. Kael's opponent was fighting on three fronts at once, her stones a whirlwind of chaotic energy. She was sacrificing stones in one area to create a threat in another. She was playing moves that shouldn't work.

But they did.

Each of Kael's "correct" responses was just a fraction too slow. Each of his methodical attacks left a tiny, unforeseen weakness. Moving around the intricate constellation that formed in the center and turning increasingly complex. He grabbed another drink from a passing tray.

"You really should have a strategy when playing Go." She said.

He placed a stone far away on the very edge of the board. To complete the capture she would have to ignore the constellation altogether.

"Or maybe my strategy was to be surprised." he waved the fan.

She went after the faraway stone. "Is that why you entered the holodeck in your uniform?"

The rhythmic waving of the fan stopped.

Huh?

He dropped his last stone slightly off center.

"Well-" The game did not seem as exciting anymore. "-you cannot force a river to flow uphill."

There were no moves left.

"You can stay." She smiled "I’m sure we can invent a reason."

---
A Mission Post by

Lieutenant Kael Ryo
Chief Medical Officer
USS Myogi

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