Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Jan 6, 2015 18:12:14 GMT
Aly had had an enjoyable day, it was the first time that she had had a genuine day off in a very long time.
She spent some time checking up on the maintenance reports on the Excal. The ship was coming back together which was good. She slightly surprised that Karka was back on the ship and running tests. Some how that surprised her less than him being borrowed by SCE. She read his reports and then settled back to enjoy a glass of fresh mango juice that actually come from a fruit, might as well enjoy the benefits of being planetside. She was at a small café with a beautiful ocean view.
Recalling how little she had got from Dan earlier she tried to check in with him. He didn’t answer and she left a message. She wondered if she should be worried about him, she knew Dan could take care of himself better than pretty much anyone else she knew; but, she also knew he had enemies. Of course she wasn’t really supposed to know and he couldn’t talk about it.
“Commodore? Is this seat taken?"
Aly looked up, she was surprised to see Karka standing in front of her, she gestured towards the seat on the other side of the table. “No, feel free.”
Karka waved a waiter away, regarding his CO. "I'm sure you've heard, we have a lead on who has been hunting Commander Schirra. It seems he's at his residence downtown. The comms that've come from orbit to near the XO's house; they're coming from a freighter in the vicinity of Spacedock. They think they've probably gone undetected. It's registered as a Nausicaan merchant ship, but having checked the manifest of ships passing through the system in the last four days we found that information to be false, invented three weeks ago. It's unregistered, probably property of Starfleet Intelligence if they're after Schirra."
Aly bit her lip her mind was doing mental gymnastics, she hadn’t known that there were people actually hunting her XO. Karka finished updating her on the situation. She couldn't help but wonder how had it gotten that far without her knowing? How dare someone go after her people. Still, she was up to date now and it appeared that her people at least had each other’s backs.
Of course it was too much to think that she would actually get a complete day off.
"So..." he said, looking out over the glistening bay, "We mobilise towards Schirra's house?"
“Definitely, one stop on the way to collect some supplies, depending on what you have with you.”
Tag: Karka
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Jan 7, 2015 18:16:13 GMT
"The local Security munitions depot should be able to supply us with what we need. I only have this." He dropped the satchel he'd been carrying over his shoulder onto the table, letting some of the contents spill out.
"You don't need to see these..." he murmured, pushing the items back in, "This on the other hand..." He took out the projectile-disruptor carbine rifle he'd taken from the Keeluun mercenary on the beach in north California. Alyana gasped, prompting Karka to conceal the weapon back in the satchel, its silvery lines reflecting Sol's light, "... Should prove useful."
"Munitions depot... We're not preparing for a small war are we, Lieutenant?" she asked as they left the terrace of the restaurant. "After you," she nodded as they reached the exit; Karka meekly did as he was told. Somewhat foolish perhaps to bring the weapon into the establishment, especially at the heart of Starfleet, where security was at a maximum wherever you went, whether that was a Starfleet installation or no.
They headed south towards the city centre, the peaks of the bleached white stone and blue glass structures of Starfleet HQ receding into the distance. Evening had arrived over the city, long shadows cast in tangerine, shooting across the streets that undulated across Frisco's relief-dominated territory.
"This is it," Karka pointed his CO down a side street, to a building where banners of Starfleet Security were hung fluttering slightly in the breeze. Taking a phaser rifle he handed it to Alyana, while also collecting three stun grenades each and two photon grenades.
"Matter for Starfleet Security...!" one of the staff called after them as they departed with their gear. The Commodore had hastily explained that considering who they were after and who he was involved with, it was best this was kept under wraps.
* * * * *
Arriving at Schirra's house the sun had disappeared beneath the Pacific; gloom closed in around, seeming to cling to their skin and encapsulate them. They peered on their haunches from behind the privet hedge at the rear of Schirra's residence. The place was of modest size, with a large well kept garden.
Karka peered through the darkened windows using the enhanced binocs he'd also borrowed, immediately focussing on the dark figure just discernible against a light from deeper within the building. Ryat looked at him questioningly. "I can see someone in there... He's sitting down... Wait, there's movement." He made a sharp intake of breath, "Down!!"
Phaser fire lanced across the dim lawn towards the privet hedge. Panicked the two officers hurried along parallel to it, knowing it wouldn't provide much protection if one of these assailants hit their mark. Karka slid on his back into better cover behind a stone wall, aiming at the dark changing figure who was firing from the French Doors in the rear of the house. He zeroed the Keeluun projectile rifle's sight on the figure and fired, watched it crumple to the floor.
All was silent again for a moment before more phaser fire erupted from the upper floor. Karka watched the Commodore lob one of the photon grenades, it sailing on its ballistic trajectory through the open first floor window. A burst of orange light erupted from inside, disappearing in the night's haze. He nodded appreciatively.
Through the rear floor-length windows they found a sort of living room or study. They heard muted sounds from somewhere below, soon discovering a cellar. They stepped inside; it was musty. Schirra likes his art, Karka thought, appraising the room. Ryat, phaser raised, hurried over to the woman who was tied and gagged on a bench in the middle of the cellar.
Karka circled the room, taking in the artworks with a sparkling eye, "Barbaric," he murmured... "Barbaric." He reached the windows again, looking down at the man he'd shot with the Keeluun rifle: a Starfleet Intelligence operative, going by his fatigues. He'd killed him. Psonoir paused for a moment, lost in a reverie and only realising it when the Commodore's insistent voice cut through his senses.
"Karka!" He looked around and down, distracted. "Help me with her."
"Yes, sir," he lowered the rifle and descended the staircase again, approaching the tied-up woman; her presumed shouting was muffled by the smart-tape covering her mouth. "Who is she? Someone they had under guard, kidnapped?" He thought about the alternative; she could've been part of a trap laid for the two Excalibur officers, or whoever came to the house. But then why would they start shooting at them before they had a chance to make it inside and untie her? Why not wait concealed from sight in the house and then take Psonoir and Ryat at unawares?
He peeled away the tape from the woman's face and she gasped for breath, hair falling across her face. "At last," she moaned.
"Who are you?" Karka said. He started untying her hands, receiving an affirmative nod from Ryat who pointed a phaser at her from beyond arm's reach. "Do you know whose house this is? Do you know where you are?"
"Of course I know where I am... Daniel? Daniel, where are you?!?"
"Daniel Schirra," Karka said.
"Yes!" she cried, exasperated, "I'm his wife!"
Karka glanced at his CO, both of them suddenly embarrassed but still wary. Between them they lifted her to her feet. "I was unaware that Commander Schirra had family." Ryat shook her head, clearly indicating 'Nor I'. He was about to ask Schirra's apparent wife another question as they dragged her up the stairs and into the kitchen (she kept asking for water and saying her name was Kenna), but then phaser fire shot out in front of them from the street, accompanied by the blindness-inducing sensation - as if all reality was cracking apart from being overstretched - of lobbed stun grenades.
<Tag Ryat, Schirra>
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Jan 7, 2015 23:12:04 GMT
Leaving the Admiral to his drink, Dan walked into the street ... He was hoping that Trost would do as he asked, but knew that would never be the case, even if he didn't send Security to arrest him on numerous charges including threatening someone's life, he would somehow make sure Dan was involved in the Keeloon issue. He wondered if he should contact the Commodore and somehow try to explain the events of the last hours. Hell, it was almost unbelievable that so much had gone on in such a short time, he almost hoped the Excalibur would be sent out just to get the hell away from Earth ... It was early evening now, and the sun was beginning to set. Not quite low enough to cast those famous long shadows, but it would eventually drop below the horizon behind the Golden Gate bridge in a couple of hours or so ..... He pondered his next move again ..... So far he had pretty much fallen off the grid, not informing anyone but the duty Bridge Officer on the ship that he was coming down to the surface. He knew whatever happened Ryat wasn't going to be happy about being kept in the dark when one of her Senior Officer's had problems, let alone her Exec. If he could guarantee Trost was out of the proverbial picture, he'd go back to the ship and tell Psnoir and Ryat what had happened over a few drinks, but he had the distinct feeling that the Admiral's reach was much longer now than ever before, and the last thing he needed was those two in trouble. He'd been walking aimlessly for fifteen minutes to be sure he wasn't being followed, when he realized he was suddenly in need of a drink so stepped into the nearest bar. He'd seen the place a few times but had never gone in before. It was quite pleasant, one of those 'Family' places with a children's play area out the back and picnic tables scattered around the manicured garden. Taking his drink outside and sat at one of the vacant tables, watching a gaggle of children running around seemingly unattended. He'd been sat enjoying the setting sun for less than five minutes when he became aware of someone stood over him ..... He turned to see a young woman, she was holding a couple of coats, a bag, two pairs of shoes, a myriad of other bits and pieces, and a tall drink. "Mind if I drop these here for a moment ?" she asked, nodding at the table. "What, oh, yes, sorry ...." Dan said, half standing before the backs of his legs caught the bench seat attached to the table via a diagonal leg arrangement. The woman laughed at his predicament then put her stuff down before swinging her legs over the bench opposite him. She took a long slow drink from her glass then motioned towards the play area: "Which one's yours ?" she asked, smiling. Dan looked at the play area then back. "Oh, no, I've not got any children. I'm just enjoying a drink and watching the sunset." "Very poetic." she said as a young man stood beside her. Dan was about to comment when the woman looked up. "Sorry for the intrusion. If I could borrow the Commander for a moment, then I'll leave you to finish your drinks in peace." he could see instantly that although the man was making a polite request, it was anything but. "Excuse me." Dan apologized, before standing and moving a few feet away out of ear-shot: "I assume Trost sent you for me."
"Wrong team." the man said, grinning. Dan could see two of the children looking over, theelder, maybe six or seven, frowning at the table containing her mother and the two strangers.
"One of her children are about to come over here." Dan spat between clenched teeth, "If you hurt her or the children in any way, you will be dead before you can escape. Do you understand me !" The man just grinned as if making any move against them hadn't even crossed his mind. Oblivious to any problem's, the woman suddenly turned to look at the play area and waved at the two girls, she told the elder one to keep a close eye on her little sister then turned back to the table.
"You get around Commander." the man said, picking up an empty glass and waving it at one of the girls collecting empties, "Same again my dear, and I'll have one of your light ales."
"You said .... 'Wrong team' .... Can I take it you are, not working with the Admiral ?"
"You can indeed. I'm just here to warn you that you shouldn't become involved in our affairs this time around."
"It has obviously escaped your attention's here, but ALL I have been trying to do all day, is ... JUST THAT ! ... So, there's no need for all the theatrical's." Dan could see the man seemingly mulling over what he had said, he was about to continue when the drinks arrived and the man raised his eyebrows as if waiting for him to help the waitress. Taking the glasses he thanked the girl then placed them on the table. Dan fleetingly pondered the idea of sticking one of then in the man's face, but the distance, and obvious risk to an innocent by-stander ruled out anything.
"Keep out of it Commander." the man said, retrieving his glass and drinking it in one go before thanking the woman for her patience and walking away. Watching him go, Dan wished he had some means to follow, but he had the distinct impression that the man wasn't alone, and any attempt to detain or follow him could lead to problem's he didn't need at this point in time. He turned back to the table where the woman was watching with interest. It was obvious to him now that he needed to inform the Commodore of the situation. Both sides were following him, and both were determined to get their way ... Alas, there was no way to satisfy everyone from what he could see ...... Apologizing, he sat down, smiling, but obviously preoccupied. "You're a Commander ....." the woman said, pulling him out of his thoughts, "He addressed you as Commander ... Star Fleet ?" "Yes, sorry, yes I'm a member of Star Fleet. Nothing interesting I can assure you." he said, hoping she wouldn't decide to delve deeper, at least not today, but thankfully her children came running over. He watched as she skilfully referee'd some minor dispute between the two of them, brokering a peace treaty with promises of ice cream. Satisfied their ruse had worked out to their advantage, the girls looked at Dan as if weighing up a purchase, then ran off giggling. "They are lovely." he said. "Little monster's." the woman replied, then sat open-mouthed for a second as if realizing something, "Oh, wow ... I can't believe we're talking and I have no idea who you are." "Daniel ... Daniel Schirra." he said. "Lana Griffin ... Those two are Kendal, she's eight, and Mackenzie, five." They began to talk, Lana telling him about the girls' father, who had died three years earlier, They were interrupted now and then by the children and Daniel suddenly realized how much he was enjoying her company, and the girls had obviously found an ally in Dan as they played him off against their mother for favours. He found himself asking if she would like to get something to eat if she didn't have anything better to be doing, and if it wasn't too late for the children to be up. She accepted gladly and they began to discuss where they could eat, both realizing at the same time that this was as good a place as any ..... He couldn't help thinking that he may be putting this woman and her children in danger, not from Trost and his men, even the Admiral wouldn't go that far, but he couldn't say the same for the Syndicate, and if he had decided to look back over the bay, he may have seen the faint wisps of smoke rising from his home .......... OOC :: Don't destroy my house you two
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Jan 11, 2015 16:13:25 GMT
Karka and Alyana had crashed to the floor, the window smashed in front of them where the two stun grenades splintered the old-style glass. He'd barely had enough time to take shelter with the Commodore behind a partition in the kitchen, thus avoiding the worst effects of the stun.
He tried to clear his mind of the effect - that of a stinging pain at his temples, the sensation of reality breaking apart, a white luminesence pervading his senses - and scrambled out of cover to evaluate the state of the place. The muted explosion had shattered all the windows in the kitchen, fractal webs spread across the surfaces. Karka rose on his haunces to peer over the top of a counter facing the house's front - nothing was visible beyond the fractallised glass. He poked a hole through it with the end of the Keeluun rifle and promptly the whole weakened window fell away.
He cursed, ducking behind the counter. He'd prefer not to reveal to their attackers that he and Ryat were still very much conscious. Silence pervaded, Karka clutching the rifle. He wracked his brains, trying to recall the entry points of the grenades through the window and hence where the assailants had been and where they likely were now.
"Commodore..." She seemed less affected by the grenade as she scampered across the kitchen to the front door. Reassured as to his CO's health he turned to Kenna, unconscious in the corner of the kitchen. It seemed she'd borne the brunt of the grenade.
"Sir, I recommend we take the higher ground, the first floor. We eliminated the people up there."
"Those people are, or were, Starfleet Intelligence agents," Ryat reminded him pointedly.
"Yes, sir," Karka beckoned his CO up the staircase, "But it seems they have set a trap for us here. Why else would Schirra's apparent wife have made us come into the kitchen? This was a ruse, to drag any would-be saviours - likely Excalibur crew - into rescuing Schirra from his own house; they were fully aware that Schirra wasn't at the residence... He could well have been accosted simultaneously by Intel elsewhere."
"So Schirra doesn't have a wife?"
"I don't believe so, sir, no..." Karka said contritely as they hurried up the stairs. There were footsteps below - glass being ground into the floor, hushed voices among the people who'd entered the kitchen from the street out front.
Interminable seconds passed, ridden with tension. Neither side wanted to reveal their position. Karka and Alyana had retreated out of sight at the top of the stairs. The Intel agents below, or whoever was in their employ, were understandably hesitant to call out. Fortunately for the two Excalibur officers, they already had the approximate position of the attackers.
"Photon grenade? The last one." Karka pulled the explosive device from his equipment belt.
"No... We've caused enough destruction already." Ryat surveyed the bottom of the staircase. "Stun grenade should suffice. Then we storm the kitchen and take them while they're still disoriented. Hopefully though, they'll be rendered unconscious by the grenade."
Karka worked the idea through his mind, calculating the possibilities in a slightly accelerated real-time (not having the time or disposition to enter the neural 'hyperspace' of causal implications right now). "Makes sense," he replied, "I'll lead."
There could well just be two or three of the attackers but they couldn't take any chances. He glanced at Alyana - who gave him the affirmative go-ahead - and with a rapid calculation of the angles of deflection involved threw the active grenade down the stairwell; it bounced metallically off the walls straight into the kitchen.
They scampered down into the kitchen to find columns of coruscating golden light. A beam out had been in progress! Karka fired the Keeluun rifle instinctively, projectiles thudding into the wavering dematerialising forms. As far as he knew, projective devices could not be deactivated in the matter stream, while his weapon's disruptor function could.
Kenna was gone from the floor. Only one of the black-garbed Intel agents remained - his matter stream having been interrupted - groaning in agony at the projectile in his thigh. Karka stood over him. "How many more of you?"
The man coughed, spluttering, "None... That was all of us, I promise." He laughed shallowly, seeming disillusioned. "You think your weapon prevented me from my beam-out?" Psonoir blinked. "No... They left me here. They see me as a liability, an outcast... I stepped on the glass as we entered the residence, revealing our position. Intel... it's a ruthless..." the man slipped into unconsciousness.
"Het'Ress! Do you know Commander Het'Ress from SCE?"
The agent stirred, laughing, "Him? He's one of our prime targets. He's working with the Syndicate... Haven't been able to bring evidence against..." The man slipped out of consciousness again.
Karka rose, looking out the smashed windows to the darkness - intermittently lit by milky white halogen globes - of the street beyond. He opened his communicator, "With your permission, Commodore...? Excalibur. Lock on to our coordinates and beam the unconscious human in our vicinity to the brig."
He looked about him, "I recommend we head out to the street, sir. Track down the XO. If only he had his 'recognised' communicator we would find him rather quickly. Meanwhile, I think we should advise Captain Santos to contact Command and inform them of the 'Nausicaan' freighter... I believe that's where these attacks originated from."
The streets of the San Francisco night, their jewelled network led them southwards to near Schirra's location, having been informed of his likely location - to within 78% likelihood - by the Excalibur.
<Tag Ryat, Schirra>
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Jan 16, 2015 17:04:39 GMT
His obvious distraction throughout the meal was obvious to Lana, who had asked him several questions the children had to nudge him to reply he apologized for his behaviour making the girls giggle at his apparent awkwardness ... It was already dark when they had finished, and thankfully no-one had jumped out to attack him during the meal, that wasn't to say it wouldn't happen of course, and he felt it only right to tell Lana. The very last thing he wanted was for this woman to be in the middle of all that was going on, and he said it would be better if he was to have an auto-cab take them home. To his surprise, Lana not only disagreed with his opinion, but made it plain that chivalry demanded he escort a lady to her home.
He looked at the coy grin on her face, and he couldn't miss the snigger's from Kendal and Mackenzie ... Holding up his hands in submission he held out his arm:
"Madam." Grinning she rose and linked his arm, the girls following with a chorus of giggles and sniggers. As they made their way through the quiet streets he couldn't help sneaking the odd look over his shoulder, but thankfully, it seemed that both Admiral Trost, and the Syndicate were giving him the night off ...... They reached Lana's home in approximately twenty minutes and the girls ran ahead. At the gate he stopped and bade Lana goodnight, but again she surprised him by asking if he would like a nightcap. He was obviously reluctant to drag this woman any further into his problems, but he was beginning to enjoy her company, Kendal and Mackenzie seemed to like him, so after a moment's hesitation, he agreed, but he asked if he could use her Comm's in private first. Lana opened the gate wider to allow him to pass her then said t was in the study room off to the left, then smiling she went into the room opposite with the children ... Sitting at the table he opened a Comm to the Excalibur and requested the signal be masked from outside ... A moment later the Duty Officer appeared on screen.
=^= Commander ! .... We have been trying to contact you for the past twenty four hours .. Are you on a school console ? =^= the Lieutenant asked, frowning at his reading's of the source of the incoming transmission.
=^= Yes .. Can you double check that this comm is secure .. I'm not sure of the security protocols of a 'public' terminal =^=
=^= It's secure Commander .. I've also blocked any tracing for the Comm .. So your location cannot be tracked .. The Commodore and Lieutenant Psonoir went down to the surface some time ago and are trying to locate you .. Should I pass on your location ? =^=
=^= No .. Not at the moment Could you patch me through to the Commodore's communicator and keep tracking the secure line for signs of detection .. If anything untoward pops up close the Comm immediately =^=
=^= Yes Sir .. One moment ....... =^=
He sat in silence waiting for Ryat's image to appear. Lana poped her head in the door and waved a glass before mouthing 'whiskey ?' ... He nodded then held up one finger to signify one more minute. When he turned back to the screen Commodore Ryat was looking at him from the Comm unit.
=^= Commander .. I'm with lieutenant Psonoir .. Mind telling me where you have been ? =^=
=^= Sorry I've been out of touch Commodore ........ =^= Dan went on to explain what had happened with him being followed and almost blown up. Ryat seemed startled that he had been involved in the explosion given only one body was officially recovered from the rubble. He continued to explain Admiral Trost's insistence that he remain incommunicado, both for his safety and that of the Excalibur's Command Staff and crew ... he explained about the Keeloon Syndicate and he could see her looking at a second screen as he spoke and knew she was looking at the data he was supplying. He finally told her about the nurse sent to follow him and asked if she could send someone to his home to detain her for questioning. Alyana looked a little sheepish for a moment and spoke to someone off-screen before turning to look at him again ... She told him that they had been following up on his apparent disappearance after Karka had been attacked. they were suspecting that both incidents were connected and ad gone to his home hoping to find him there, but alas they were mistaken ... She informed him that the nurse, who had incidentally introduced herself as his 'wife' had subsequently disappeared in the fire-fight that ensued:
=^= Don't worry Commander .. The damage to your property was .. Minimal =^=
=^= Damage ! =^= he repeated.
=^= As I said Dan .. It was minimal .. Where are you now .. I'll have a shuttle pick you up and we can meet back on the Excalibur =^=
=^= I would rather not say at this point Commodore .. But I will requisition a communi ....... =^=
"C'mon Daniel, we're going to play games." Mackenzie said, grabbing his arm and looking pulling at him, before realizing there was a woman watching them. She looked at Ryat with a five year old girls' suspicion, "Who's she ?"
"She's my Boss sweetheart." Dan said, trying not to look as if he'd just been caught with his girlfriend in his room by his parents, "Go back in and I'll be with you in a moment, OK." Mackenzie made a point of throwing one last look in the direction of the woman interrupting their play time, gave Dan a kiss on the cheek, then ran off. After she left he turned back to the screen again.
=^= Another family member we were unaware of Commander .. My you do have a secret past don't you =^= Rayt said, a wry grin on her face.
=^= I'll erm .... Finish up here and return to the Excalibur at twenty three hundred .. If that is agreeable Ma'am ? =^=
=^= Take your time .. The Lieutenant and I have a few things we need to be looking into .. Ryat out =^= The communication closed before he could reply, and for the life of him he couldn't gauge the mood of the woman who closed it ... One thing was certain, he couldn't allow Lana and her children to become entangled in his issues. He would stay for a while and enjoy their company then take his leave. Something told him he wanted to see this family again, and that couldn't happen until he was rid of Trost and the damn Keeloon Syndicate once and for all ! ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Jan 19, 2015 11:15:34 GMT
Karka looked at the Commodore, "Now that's sorted, sir, I recommend we beam up to the Excalibur ourselves. There's little else we can do down here except perhaps call in maintenance teams to see to the property damage."
Ryat nodded in the dark streets of San Francisco's suburbs, pearlescent halogen globe lights illuminating both their faces. Karka turned to face the house as the beam-out commenced; the front looked fairly untouched, with the exception of the smashed windows and blackened walls of the kitchen in the lower left quarter.
They were deposited at the apex of the Excalibur, the Constitution class's bridge. Captain Santos turned around slightly, noting their presence with a nod before moving off to starboard - resuming his diplomatic attache duties while Ryat took the elevated centre chair. Karka was sure Santos missed command of the vessel; he'd seen him mentioned in archive databanks, had from the future witnessed his exploits and had also seen played out divergent timelines where he'd remained the CO.
"Spacedock has been made aware of the situation regarding the unregistered freighter, Commodore," Ops reported. "They want to know what we want to do about it."
"What we want?" Karka said, bewildered. "That vessel is falsely registered as a Nausicaan merchant. It's being used by Starfleet Intel as a base of operations for monitoring Commander Schirra."
"Starfleet Intelligence?" an officer near Psonoir said, turning in his seat, "How you can possibly know that?"
"It's the only explanation that makes sense." Karka wasn't sure how much he should reveal, however a reliable source with a somewhat unique perspective on things had given him this particular insight and he thought now was as good a time as any. He signalled to the Commodore, suggesting that what he had to say was best said in private.
Ryat sat behind her ready room desk, waiting for him to speak. Karka obliged - but he vowed that once he got back to the 29th century Lirwa would pay for having him reveal information to these time-dependent entities. "That freighter is definitely under control of Starfleet Intel, sir. Its 'jumpiness' at the warp test I conducted proved that much. It was the closest non-Starfleet ship to the Spacedock during the test; all other vessels around the Spacedock knew full well of the harmlessness of the warp test and stayed on their respective headings."
Karka took a deep breath, "It's meant to be classified information, but it's my understanding that a year ago our first officer was involved in some way in infiltrating an organisation called the Keeluun Syndicate. I don't know any of the specifics.
"You'll have my official report soon of course, but during the last twelve hours, myself and Lieutenant Hearan from tactical were attacked by Keeluun Syndicate members in the Amacayacu nature reserve in Colombia and then on a beach near a township called Fort Bragg north of San Francisco. It seems they wanted to remove all of Schirra's known associates or at least threaten them to force him to acquiesce. Whether they've revealed to him this attempted blackmail or not we can only speculate. Myself and Hearan disabled the Syndicate's local outpost that lay in land from Fort Bragg, in the process lifting a transporter scattering field that had put us on the beach in the first place. Two officers from SCE, Commodore Siraj and Commander Het'Ress, are working with the Syndicate; other officers may have been similarly corrupted. Intel were trying to prove their involvement as well as recruit Schirra for another operation."
His report given, Karka and the Commodore stepped back onto the bridge, the latter calling for the viewscreen to be centred on the 'Nausicaan' freighter. Karka peered closely at the small beige object in the middle of the screen - something wasn't right. "What the...? Full zoom," the second most senior under Ryat ordered. The freighter was listing, gaseous matter that looked like plasma venting from its ventral starboard nacelle.
Karka watched in silence, almost amused from his station on the port side of the bridge. It was possible the Intel officers in charge had already left the ship.
"Do we offer assistance?" the duty officer asked.
There was no need. A quick scan revealed no life signs aboard the freighter. Either Intel had left, or there had been an unlikely disaster.
<Tag All>
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Jan 21, 2015 13:37:19 GMT
He had met this woman and her family only hours earlier, but for some reason he felt comfortable in their company ... Following the communication with commodore ryat, he had gone back into the living room and enjoyed playing games with Mackenzie and Kendal while their mother prepared a late supper. Once the children were in bed he had sat enjoying a glass of wine ... He had told Lana more about himself in the last few hours than he had with anyone else, but he knew he needed to leave and somehow sort out the issue with Intelligence and the Keeloon Syndicate.
At the door he surreptitiously scanned the quiet avenue for signs that the house was being watched. Lana watched him and wondered if the man could ever fully relax ... She hoped so ......
After a few moments at the door he arranged to see her the following day, duty permitting of course he had said, and she too hoped to see him. He stood at the gate while she went in and closed the door, then satisfied they were safe he headed back to the city. he was in no hurry so didn't use transport but chose to walk the short distance to the outskirts and use a transport station there to get back to the Excalibur. He was thinking about Lana when a familiar voice intruded:
"Nice lady." sighing, he turned to see Admiral Trost, annoyed at the fact he had been preoccupied and not spotted the man earlier.
"I thought we had done with these meetings Admiral ...... What are you going to do now, threaten them to get me on your side ?"
"No. Things have gone too far for that, and to be honest, I doubt the leverage would make any real difference to your decision not to help ... I seriously thought of having you transferred back to Intel' but we both know what the outcome of that would be. You would do well to realize that you are a Star Fleet Officer Daniel, and as such, expected to follow orders, but in this case I am going to 'ask' you to be open-minded regarding our Keeloon issue. I know they have been in touch and ....."
"..... and I told them what I told you ... I'm not interested." Dan interrupted, making Trost hold his hands up in submission or exasperation, he couldn't quite tell which.
"I've spoken to Command regarding our friends. We are mounting a full investigation and will bring that Syndicate down. As for you, while I need your input, I am willing at allow you to return to the Excalibur ..... On the condition that should I require your services further down the line, you will make yourself available to us. As for your new-found lady friend, that is your concern and of no interest to Intelligence whatsoever ... She looks like a nice woman, nice kids, pity about her husband, but what can you do." Trost said, shrugging, but Schirra had had enough and spun the man around by the shoulder:
"Keep away from her Trost !" Dan spat as the Admiral raised one hand, obviously to stop anyone coming for him or maybe to prevent him from being shot where he stood, he didn't know, nor did he care, "She has 'NOTHING' to do with all this. I met her hours ago and despite my situation, I found myself liking her and her daughters. If you make any move towards her you and I will have another conversation, and regardless of how many of your people are watching, it will not end well ... For either of us !"
"Stop over-reacting Commander. I have no intentions of going anywhere near your lady friend or her charming children. She's a good woman, and you could do with someone like her in your life."
"Geez ! ... Marriage guidance counselling too. Whatever next." Dan said, stepping back from the Admiral, more for the observers benefit than his.
"Bare in mind Commander." Trost said, straightening his tunic and looking up and down the street, "We can, and will appropriate the Excalibur if the need arises. Command has already been informed on this, so, enjoy your new mission Commander. No doubt we will cross each other's paths again one day. Oh, would you like dropping somewhere ?"
"I'll walk. I don't suppose you have a spare communicator do you ?"
Grinning he waved to someone. The man stepped out of the shadows and Trost told him to give Schirra his communicator, then he turned and walked away leaving him stood in the middle of the road alone. Dan watched him go, then shook his head in frustration. He was of course right, Dan could be recalled at a moments' notice, and there would be nothing preventing the Admiral seconding the Excalibur and her crew if he decided it was needed. Intelligence had their own set of rules when it came to resources, and they tended to get what they wanted, despite objections of some people in high places ... With a look back towards the avenue where Lana and her children lived, he continued along the road to the nearest transportation center ........
Schirra home ~ Marina Boulevard ::
He was dog-tired, but the sight of the damage caused to his home by the confrontation between Ryat, Psonoir, and the Syndicate almost made him scream out loud. Star Fleet personnel were there, already making repairs to the infrastructure where the grenades had damaged internal walls, and most of his possessions were now on the once immaculate lawn. knowing he would need to replace most of his things, he wandered through the rooms watching the repair teams work. They told him it would be late the following day before they would be done and advised he go back to the ship for the time being, as apparently, he was 'in the way' ... Resigned to the fact he would at some point be re-decorating, he walked onto the lawn and sat in a scorched wing back chair, an antique left to him by his grandparents .... He hoped that Trost and the Syndicate would finally leave him the hell alone now. He knew the Admiral would no doubt be in touch if things began to go sour with his investigation and apprehension of their leaders. If they couldn't get their hands on the craylon gas derivative, thousands if not millions of people would suffer, and regardless of his feelings regarding Trost and the Intel community, he knew he would do as required to ensure a successful conclusion to the investigation ...... As he tired, his mind wondered to Lana and her children ...... It had been years since he had been in any kind of relationship, and that didn't end well, but he had the feeling, even though they had only met that day, that he may have found someone who he could spend serious time with, obviously only time would tell. He was almost asleep in the smouldering chair, when his comm chirped to life:
=^= Asleep yet ? =^= ..........
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Jan 21, 2015 23:33:39 GMT
It had been a while since Aly had handled a phaser rifle but she slipped back in to it easily enough. It had been an interesting trip to Commander Schirra’s house, first the shooting and the woman who had pretended to be Dan’s wife. Then the grenades. Aly did not like grenades, oh she could understand the purpose of them and even appreciate their use on occasion, like the stun grenade Karka had used. However, if she was that close to another grenade her ears might never forgive her.
Anyway, after the grenades had come the conversation with Dan. There was so much More she wished she could have said. If she had had a few more minutes she might have been able to say more, but it was what it was.
Then they had returned to the Excal. Aly had debated going back to quarters planet side but, somehow she felt better on her ship
************
She and Karka had only just returned to the bridge when she saw the red blossoming down the ship’s nacelle
"What the...? Full zoom," the duty officer ordered. The freighter was listing, gaseous matter that looked like plasma venting from its ventral starboard nacelle.
Aly watched in silence, once again things were spiraling.
"Do we offer assistance?" the duty officer asked.
“Full scans for lifesigns and life pods. Try to trace any emergency transports. Standard protocols.” She doubted that there had been anyone on the ship but she had to be sure.
She left her crew doing their duty and went in to her office.
She wanted to have a link to Dan. She had a wild idea how to trace him, she had no idea if it was going to work. Being a Starfleet Commodore and a former comms officer meant that certain things were possible. She spent some time working out her plan and received a report that there had been no biological debris from the Narscian freighter and no sign of any evacuees. Maybe Dan would know what was happening. She hated not knowing even if there were times when she might not want to know. However she thought she would start with the obvious. There was a communicator active in Dan’s house and there was one lifesign present which matched Dan. She took a chance and opened a communications link, bouncing the signal through multiple rely points including ones on Luna, Mars and the space dock as she did so. If there was no security risk on the call she would pass it over to Jenni as a test later.
=/\= Are you asleep yet?=/\= she asked knowing it was very late local time although suspecting her XO had been hopping timezones.
Tag: Dan
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Jan 22, 2015 1:32:17 GMT
=^= Asleep yet ? =^=
Dan looked at the communicator, then out over the bay ... Why would his Commanding Officer be contacting him at this time ? ... A little disappointed that it wasn't actually Lana, he picked up the device and flicked it open:
=^= Commodore .. Yes .. I'm awake .. I'm sat watching the Star Fleet Corps of Engineers rebuilding my home .... Am I needed on the ship ? =^=
=^= No .. I'm sorry if I disturbed you but I needed to ask if you knew anything about the Nausicaan freighter that has been shadowing us ? =^=
=^= It's not the Nausicaan's then ? =^= he asked, already knowing the answer, and the Commodore confirmed his query.
=^= It's been abandoned .. Tugs are pulling it away from the space dock as we speak .. Scans show it is unoccupied but there have definitely been people over there and we have logs saying they scanned the Excalibur on numerous occasions .. My main worry given what has been happening with Lieutenant Psonoir and yourself is that it was being used as some sort of 'covert' transit point .. Command will be going over it with a fine toothed comb as soon as we can stabilize it .. Anything you can tell me without having to come back up here and make a detailed report ? =^=
Daniel started to tell her what had been going on since he had been contacted by Admiral Trost .... Ryat knew of Trost, and his Intelligence affiliations. he continued to tell her about the Keeloon Syndicate and their experimentation with the Craylon gas derivative. She asked if Trost was the reason he hadn't informed her sooner of the situation he had found himself in, but answered the question herself, saying it was obvious that the Admiral had put pressure on him to remain incognito and not report in regarding his situation ... He sat watching the engineers as they dragged out the ancient AGA range he had purchased when he bought the house, wondering vaguely if he would be able to replace it or not.
=^= Did you manage to track anyone from the ship ? =^=
=^= Nothing yet .. We are trying to ascertain if any of the escape pods were used and if so where they went .... So you think the ship was being used by Intel ? =^=
=^= Almost certainly .. Though to be honest Admiral Trost never mentioned he had anything in orbit let alone disguised as a Nausicaan freighter .. But I wouldn't put it past him =^=
=^= I think it's about time I had a conversation with 'Admiral Trost' to see if he can shed any light on matters =^=
=^= With all due respect Ma'am .. You won't get anything out of him .. In fact all you'll do is put the Excalibur on his radar =^=
=^= Understood Commander .. I'll cede to you're better knowledge this time around .. But I'll want a full report as soon as practical =^=
=^= Ma'am .. If we are not due to depart I would like to follow-up on a few leads before I return to the ship .. Trost has us well me over the proverbial =^=
=^= Very well .. I'm going to chase up that freighter .. I'll take a team to the freighter before Trost or any of his people can get over there and wipe it clean .. Maybe someone left us a clue to help us =^=
=^= I doubt that but it can't do any harm .. My advice though is get over there now before the tugs can dock that ship .. The 'second' Trost knows we have it he will lock it down =^=
=^= Thank you Commander .. I will leave you to your rest .. Report to the ship at zero eight hundred .. We'll go from there .. Goodnight =^=
He dropped the communicator on the grass and turned back to the house. He hadn't planned on going back to the ship just yet, and he would decide in the morning if he was going to do as ordered. He wondered vaguely if Lana was still awake. For some reason he had the distinct feeling that he was still being watched, be it Trost's people, or the Syndicate he didn't know, but something else was on his mind ... He contacted the ship again: He told the Duty Bridge Officer to keep a two hundred meter sensor lock on Lana's home in Kirby Cove. If anyone was seen approaching the residence he was to be informed immediately and Security personnel sent to the area. The young Lieutenant wasn't sure it was strictly protocol to be using the ship's sensor's in such a manner, but he wasn't about to argue with the Executive Officer.
Satisfied, Dan looked out over the bay and under the golden gate Bridge. He couldn't 'see' Kirby Cove from where he was obviously, but he could see the headland out beyond Star Fleet Headquarters, and knew that Lana was there, hopefully safe ..........
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Jan 26, 2015 23:41:12 GMT
Karka and a trio of engineers formed part of the away team to be sent over to the supposed Nausicaan freighter. In light of Schirra's comments to the Commodore, it was thought important to see the freighter from the inside before it could be docked by the tugs.
He understood making arrangements with Command to allow the Excalibur to seize the freighter, release it from the tugs and thereby prevent it from docking with the station hadn't been easy. Karka wondered if it wasn't better to allow the freighter to dock after the Excalibur's inspection; whoever had abandoned the craft would surely expect it to subsequently be docked to the station... it would be what this Admiral Trost expected.
"Unwin, Yelski, Lovell, form up," Karka stood on the transporter pad, amongst the second of the two groups to board the freighter. It was currently sitting off the Excalibur's port side, released by the tugs and set into the same frame of reference as the Excalibur and its enclosing drydock - it was thought locking a tractor beam would likely rouse suspicion.
They materialised in the engine section. Smoke filtered through a glowing scarlet haze towards them from down the corridor, the entrance to the main engine room and the area of the ruptured nacelle.
Karka looked back at his engineers, redshirt security officers in support. The ship was supposed to be abandoned but it was prudent not to take any chances. "First task, stop that plasma leak... We can concern ourselves with whether it was a genuine accident or not after."
The room was full of dead Nausicaans. Barely visible through the haze of the plasma fire coming from the far end of the darkened space, their bodies lined the walls and were splayed on the floor, some seemingly unscathed - merely dead - and some burnt beyond recognition as belonging to the species.
"Radiation levels climbing, sir... We really shouldn't be getting this close to the plasma."
"It's fine," Karka replied, stepping around the bodies towards the rupture point at the far end. The engineers looked at each other in surprise; they called out to Karka but he waved, telling them to keep back. He knew he could be harmed, but some physical reparation mechanism had been implanted in his spinal cord during his time in the 27th century. Those 200 years had streamed by - a data passage through time - and the mechanism had integrated itself into the cord... While he'd retaken a human body, the undetectable 'self repair' device remained in place.
He pushed his way past the Nausicaans, moving one aside who was propped against the conduit near its breach point. The unfortunate alien slumped to the floor, it immediately apparent that his back was thoroughly eroded by the plasma discharge, the main venting of which was vectored away from the engine room. Karka reached through the breach, entering a combination on a barely discernible panel to disengage the PTC from the freighter's virtually obsolete warp core.
Alarms sounded, indicating PTC flow reduction. Karka waited 'til the flux was near zero then turned to the engineers. The haze about them was dissipating. "It appears to be genuine," he said. "Some disaster..." most unlike him he trailed off. He blinked, his eyes stinging with the cooling gas particles suspended in the air. He was confused; he'd been so sure that this had been the work of Starfleet Intel, that they'd been using the ship as a staging point or base of operations for attacks on Excalibur's and other ships' personnel on Earth, had abandoned it and set it adrift. But then this was Intelligence, he thought, they were adept at covering their tracks...
"Sir..." Lovell turned a Nausicaan over, the alien's face partially burned. "This isn't a Nausicaan..." Grimacing the Ensign pulled away a layer of the Nausicaan's withered epidermis, revealing human skin beneath. Karka at first horrified quickly melded this with realisation... It had been a cover up, and a surprisingly badly concealed one.
"Lieutenant Psonoir, this is Lieutenant Korso... We're on the bridge. The place is deserted... Not a Nausicaan in sight." None here either, Karka thought, looking at the disguised human. "There's damage to the control surfaces... it seems genuine. We're returning to the mid-decks to search for other bodies. Seems like an accident."
"Korso, we've found bodies of humans disguised as Nausicaans. Expect to find others throughout the ship... No accident, this was a cover up. Suspect that Starfleet Intel had something to do with it; they may have been using the vessel for covert operations."
Karka closed the comm and looked towards the exit, "We should let this vessel be taken into Spacedock... If Intel are involved they would expect it to be recovered by tugs; if they find out the Excalibur's been involved things could become worse for Commander Schirra... all of us."
The vessel rattled around them, struck as it would seem by some great chord of resonance. Something that sounded worryingly like a countdown started, ~ Eeka... Yota... Malin... Heris... ~ Renewed scarlet lights flashed everywhere around the engineers, cutting through the darkness. They cast about, confused.
"Lieutenant..." Unwin began. "You're an expert in languages, right? Vulcan, Klingon, other Alpha Quadrant races... What's it saying?"
Karka looked at a point above their heads, in the corridor beyond. "I have no idea."
Communicators started chirping rapidly, "Excalibur to away teams, a desperate voice burst over the channel, "The freighter's self destruct sequence has been activated! You have fifteen seconds to make it to beam out point, Lieutenants..."
Karka closed the communicator calmly. The duty officer sounded distraught. He tilted his head, a thought occurring to him quite unrelated to the situation, Why not?
"Sir!" Unwin shouted from the corridor, ducking so he could see Karka through the still dissipating gas. Karka wandered about the compartment, looking over the still active warp core. "Karka?! For chr..."
The light expanded from the core about them, saturating all, dissolving from sight the features of Karka's face.
OOC: No, they're not dead lol
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Jan 31, 2015 16:11:26 GMT
Roughly an hour after sunset one of the Engineers walked into the garden to speak to him.
"Commander, we're knocking off for the night. The residence is safe to enter, although there's still a mess. It's structurally sound so nothing's going to drop on you during the night. We'll be back here at zero eight hundred to finish off."
"Thank you Lieutenant. I may not be here so just let yourself in." Daniel replied, looking at the gaping hole where his patio doors once hung.
He got up and entered the house. The Lieutenant hadn't been wrong, the place was a mess. Moving from room to room he wondered what sort of war Ryat had fought in here. He decided he would need to go back to the ship after all. He was heading back into the garden to retrieve the communicator when he felt the tell-tale grip of a transport in progress .....
~~~~~
"Commander. Apologies for the un-notified transport, but you are required on the Bridge immediately." the Chief informed him. Nodding he left the transporter room.
Entering the pristine Bridge of the Excalibur he wondered why everyone seemed to be in such a rush ... 'We are in space-dock for heavens sake' he thought as he looked at the view-screen and realized the emergency ! ... The Naucinaan vessel, or what was left of it after it apparently suffered some form of catastrophic explosion, was rolling to port and falling in an almost lazy arc towards the outer atmosphere. The Excalibur had backed out from under the dock gantry and was attempting to lock tractor beams onto the falling debris, with little or no success.
"Lock phaser's onto the engineering section and prepare to fire. Try to get a tractor lock on the section our team was in, let the rest burn up on entry." Ryat was saying calmly. He moved around to the Command area and caught the Commanding Officers' eye:
"What's going on ?"
"We sent a team over to the Naucicaan ship. They found numerous, bodies, Human disguised as Naucicaan's mainly, but no-one alive. Lieutenant Psonoir and a team were attempting to access the ships' computer when a self-destruct countdown began."
Dan looked around the Bridge, suddenly realizing that the Chief Engineer was nowhere to be seen. A cold shiver ran the length of his spine:
"You got them off." it wasn't a question, more a statement.
"We don't know ......" was Ryat's reply.
Dan watched the crew working then stepped up to the weapons console. He began locking onto various larger pieces of the hull and destroying them in sequence. The Engineering section was now rolling over and falling towards Earth freed from the other pieces of the ship that were hanging from it. He established a lock on that section and told the duty Weapon's Officer to keep it there, before he went back to the Command area. He was about to make a suggestion regarding the falling section when it vanished from sight in a spectacular explosion which must have looked nothing short of amazing from the ground ...
"SIR !" ... the Helm Officer suddenly said, "There's a vessel approaching the Naucicaan wreckage from below us."
"On screen !" Ryat ordered instantly.
They watched as a second, smaller ship fired on the remaining section's of the ship until nothing remained. It passed the beneath Excalibur and began to move away.
"Contact that ship ... NOW !"
"I've been trying to Commodore" the communications Officer said, "They are receiving our hail but are not answering our request .... Sir, 'THEY' are hailing us now." Alyana nodded and looked at the screen. Dan wasn't surprised to see Admiral Trost ...
=^= Sorry for interrupting your party Commodore .. But it seemed you needed a little help .. Ahh Commander Schirra .. Back on board I see =^=
=^= We had people over there 'ADMIRAL' .. .. =^=
=^= Indeed ? .. .. .. Well alas .. Preventing a one hundred thousand tonne radiation hazard falling into the atmosphere took precedence over a couple of inquisitive Officers I'm afraid =^= Trost said, trying hard not to shrug on screen and failing miserably.
=^= We had the situation under control Admiral .. I would not have allo .. .. =^=
=^= Be that as it may Commodore .. We were in the area and assisted in what we defined as a major catastrophic situation .. You should be thanking me for my help =^= Trost admonished before closing the communication.
"Did we get them off in time ? =^= Dan asked, looking at Alyana ..........
< tag : Ryat / Psonoir >
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Feb 4, 2015 23:20:12 GMT
The saturation of Karka's face faded to reveal his astonished features; he was sure he'd been instants from removal from this world. Having identified this warp core as a nodal marker he'd stood over it to ensure his escape back into a future century, a doorway that opened on star-studded blackness, from which he'd be picked up by a Hybrudean craft in time transit or be sent along the recondite avenues back to the 29th century.
The warp core was pulsating, jumping to frightening luminescence and then fading to a dull pitted orange glow. How much of the countdown remained?
"Karka. Now, damn it," Unwin called from the entrance, starting to think about edging his way back through the bodies to grab his CEO and drag him towards the beam-out coordinates. "I thought we were dead then."
"We may still be." Karka seemed hesitant to move. Eventually however, he saw the quite justifiable sense in heeding his assistant's wishes and remaining in this time a while longer. The future would always wait, suspended, the matter of future reality frozen in its particular instants of time; he could return to whatever time whenever he wanted.
He stumbled towards the engine room's exit, falling over disguised human bodies - intelligence operatives? - and in doing so found the vessel vibrating, rattling mightily around him. Karka, Unwin and the remaining engineers who hadn't already been beamed off, left the deck.
They plunged towards the ceiling, frightening moments from impact before the artificial gravity compensated and made the ceiling and part of a wall section the newly designated 'downwards'. They found the system was constantly having to recompensate, as they stumbled across the new 'deck' swaying with motion sickness. Another problem, Karka realised: the inertial dampeners were crippled if not offline completely; the craft's spin was quite evident, as they had to press themselves to the ever-changing walls to prevent being flung about the compartment at the whim of inertia.
"The ship's splintered into pieces!" Karka cried over to Unwin over the howling of the duranium chassis as it was subjected to stresses well beyond its ability to cope with. What would get them first: the ship's fragility, the self destruct mechanism or their bodies' own frailties as they crashed into the bulkheads?
As the loose engineering section tumbled towards the upper atmosphere, sparks and burning at its torn edges, artificial gravity gradually brought them around such that - for a moment - the floor was the true floor again. "Close in to the warp core," Psonoir ordered.
A security officer stood back, seemingly ready to bolt for the corridor, away from this spiralling mass of Starfleet redshirts and dead disguised humans being tossed about in the engine room.
"With a strong enough energy source to lock onto, the transporter operator can beam us out even if the source's coordinates don't match the beam out coordinates. This is one such energy source, my friends." Karka crowded them around. It would be death, or the transporter room; or being thrown against the ceiling again.
* * *
They didn't know how close they'd been to annihilation. Not from the core's explosion as part of the self destruct, but from a torpedo launched by an unidentified ship, which now streaked by the disintegrating fragments of the freighter and out-of-range of the phaser banks of the approaching Excalibur - a silver goliath that now presided over the remnants of the appropriated Nausicaan craft, before seeing them being neatly being picked off by the unidentified vessel.
"Mr Psonoir, are you there?"
Karka rubbed his neck, standing on the transporter pad with the other dazed engineers. They'd all been stood in an inward facing circle when they'd materialised.
"He's here, sir," the transporter operator smiled as she replied to the bridge. She looked at Karka as he stepped down off the pad, "Nice trick, Lieutenant. I locked on to you using the power source my console supplied me with... What was that?"
"The vessel's warp core," Unwin muttered, carting his equipment out of the transporter room. The others, while stunned, approved of Karka's actions. The transporter operator seemed distraught, if not however mildly impressed.
Karka smiled before he turned quickly away and pressed the wall companel, opening a line to the bridge, "Sirs, it very much seems that Intel were involved in this operation."
"We know, Lieutenant... We've just had a visit from Admiral Trost. He destroyed the rest of the freighter."
"The head of Starfleet Intel destroys it himself?" That was a close one, he thought. It was in a way not the fate he'd hoped for; but it was perhaps the only feasible one, the one that guaranteed his survival. If the warp core had been allowed to detonate he'd have escaped to the future, but that may not have been option if Trost's ship had destroyed the engine section before the self destruct had a chance to activate.
<Tag All>
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Feb 8, 2015 22:10:47 GMT
Aly was not a politician, Ryat however had experience in that direction. Which was probably a good thing as it had stopped her doing various things in the last half hour that would have drastically affected her future in Starfleet. She really didn’t like ‘Admiral’ Trost, she wasn’t sure what secrets he keeping. Many undoubtedly, but there was something they were very close to. Aly didn’t want to put the Excal on his radar but he had definitely put himself on hers, you didn’t mess with members of her crew. Aly knew that Dan was Intelligence trained, it had actually been one of the reasons she had selected him to be her permanent XO. However, if Starfleet Intelligence wanted to borrow him, or indeed any of the Excal’s crew, they should at least notify her.
His lack of concern about the possible deaths of her crewmembers had been very revealing. People should not be like that. It was just wrong.
She walked over to the terminal in her office. She started going through service records. She had no doubt that Trost had tagged his to let him know when anyone accessed it, she guessed that a lot would be missing from the file.
She also went through the files of the senior staff she had had dinner with, and refreshed her memory of he XO’s file and her own. She was hardly in a position to cast aspersions for having things missing from her personnel file, not to mention fabrications in her file. Although, of course, those hadn’t been her idea.
‘Know your enemy’ Aly didn’t think that Trost was actually her enemy but he was certainly on the opposite side of something to her. And she would like to know what that was.
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 9, 2015 0:16:43 GMT
It had been almost two hours since Lieutenant Psonoir and Unwin had suddenly reappeared on the Excalibur ..... Daniel had mulled over what action he should, or could, take against Admiral Trost for his reckless action's in destroying the 'so called' Naucicaan vessel on which the Engineer was situated. He needed to bring Commodore Ryat up tp date regarding the situation he felt responsible for. He opened a Comm link and spoke: =^= Commodore .. Would it be possible to speak to you when you have a moment ? =^= =^= No time like the present Commander .. .. .. I'm in my ready room when you are ready =^= He heard the tell-tale 'click' as the Comm closed and he handed the Con to the duty Navigation Officer with instructions to return the Excalibur to one of the open orbital gantries rather than the Space Dock. Once satisfied he was complying with the instructions, Dan headed for the Commodore's office ... "We were lucky Daniel." Alyana said as she motioned to the chair opposite, "We could have lost people today." "I think it's about time I brought you up to speed regarding our, my, involvement." Dan said, accepting the offered drink from his Commanding Officer, who then sat patiently waiting for him to continue ..... "OK ... I imagine you have reviewed my file, and began to question your decision to confirm me as your Exec' .... To be honest I wouldn't be annoyed if you had already chosen to boot me off the Excalibur." "Let's see what you have to say first shall we." Ryat said, a wry smile on her face signifying she wasn't about to take up his 'suggestion' but still wanted to hear what was going on and how they had been dragged into it .. Dan emptied his glass and glanced at the ornate bar Alyana had had installed. She handed him her glass then sat back. Waiting ..... I was recruited early in my career. I met Admiral Trost at some official function, where he immediately began to 'quiz' me on all manner of topics. I wasn't aware it was his way of interviewing potential recruits obviously, and had pretty much forgotten about the conversation ... Then, out of the blue, I got an invite to an informal gathering which my former Commanding Officer seemed unable to deny. Trost was there and we got into conversation again, but this time it was different, and a month later I was suddenly transferred. A year of intensive training and god-knows how many broken bones later, I was sent out on my first assignment as a so-called fully fledged member of the Intelligence Division ... To say it went badly would be an understatement ! .....
In the following years I honed my 'talent' to the point of, I don't know, I had a 'knack' of getting results, by whatever means I deemed necessary and Trost quickly realized my value. Within another year I was not only running my own operations, but I had a large team of people under me to do the leg-work, while I did what was necessary to ensure a successful conclusion to the task at hand, regardless of how or how many people lost their lives in the process. I don't regret my former 'activity' Commodore, in my opinion every action I took was one hundred percent justified to achieve an acceptable outcome for the safety of both those not directly involved, but for the Federation .....
But ... My initial enthusiasm, shall we say, soured, very quickly after that .... Trost was expecting more and more, and didn't care how many moral or legal issues he had to circumvent to achieve his goal ... It was then that I decided I should leave Intelligence, and I requested a transfer. Alas, much like the 'Foreign Legion' leaving isn't something they appreciate. Kinda 'once a spy, always a spy' if you like.
My last assignment was connected to the Keeloon Syndicate. They had developed a derivative of Craylon gas, and intended to decimate whole planets to get what they needed. You have been cleared to access what little information we had on the Keeloon, not that it will do you any good. To say things went badly wasyet another of those 'understatements' we all hate, but badly it went, and we lost all contact with the Syndicate. Eventually, all out leads dried up or suddenly met with 'accidents' so Trost had no option but to close the file, or at least put it on the back burner .....
Eventually, he allowed me to leave Intel' and even made arrangements for me to take up a position on a Star Ship, 'this' Star Ship, to be precise. No doubt to be able to keep tabs on one of his own. I had to practically lay down on the job to get the hell out from under his thumb, in fact I likely put more of his own people in danger, and he finally weighed up the odds and showed me the door, so to speak .... I need to tell you Commodore, you need to be wary of that man ! .... While I am grateful that you chose to appoint me as your Executive Officer, I wouldn't have any issue with you deciding to relieve my of that position. While I'm on this ship Trost will always have a tag on my whereabouts, and given he's the type of person who would sacrifice a civilization to achieve his goal, you should be very very wary of attracting any more attention than you already have. My departing the Excalibur would at least get you off his radar. Alyana listened in complete silence as Daniel told his story. Once he fell silent she got up and refreshed their glasses before sitting back behind her desk: "I don't react favourably to threats Commander, regardless of how veiled they may be ... I appointed you my Executive Officer on what I know of you ..... So I thin ....." "My being on this ship in any capacity could keep you and the ship in Trost's eye-line." he interupted, but the Commodore just stared at him in contemplation before replying: < tag : Commodore >
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Feb 15, 2015 23:59:29 GMT
OOC: Sorry if this reads badly. We experienced a power cut and I lost the majority of the post, I had planned to insert some new ideas at the end. This is my somewhat successful attempt at piecing back together from scratch what I'd written plus a curtailed conclusion. Has added a couple hours on to my evening! :S
Karka was in the primary maintenance tube parallel to the warp core, up against the constrictor assembly. Engineering was positioned above the core, the caps of the magnetic constrictors protruding out of the floor of engineering where direct work on the core could be carried out. It was extremely rare for engineering personnel to come down here let alone regular Excalibur crewmembers, however with such a misalignment in the constrictors one had no choice but to head below.
"This shouldn't pose too many problems." The sound of Karka's voice echoed up and down the tube and he was made to wonder that he'd talked to himself.
He tapped into the deuterium flow regulators, configuring the software for manual adjustment; an interface rose in the panel before him. Through his switching of the input valves, his engineers would be able to monitor the M/AM intermix and constrictor alignment and tell him of any changes. A quirk of the mechanics of plasma transfer unexpectedly channelled energy into the surveillance systems, via a security protocol in the Excalibur's computer core. Karka had unwittingly tapped into the passive surveillance in the Commodore's ready room.
"didn't care how many moral or legal issues he had to circumvent to achieve his goal ... It was then that I" the interface squeaked.
What was that? He frowned, leaning in to the interface. A high-pitched and vibrating squeal emanated from the interface; he'd had no idea it could be configured to emit audial signals. He began adjusting dials on the interface, in much the same way as one would search for a particular radio frequency on an old-fashioned transistor.
"-lon gas, and intended to decimate whole planets to get what they needed. You have been cleared to access what little information we had on the Keeloon, not that"
"Come on..." he whispered, fine-adjusting the dials to find the changing frequency. He'd detected two segments of highly accelerated speech, not capturing all of the dialogue. Scanning back through the fragments that he'd heard, he stepped down the tonal levels 'til the voice's owner became recognisable. It was Commander Schirra. It was unclear however whether it was a conversation or, Hybrudea forbid a personal log. A persistent part of his mind reminded him it was improper or even illegal to eavesdrop in this manner, but he thought the decimate whole planets part legitimately piqued his interest, and as a vigilante it was his duty - he thought with a certain imperative air - to explore all spatial dimensions within this temporal frame, even if did have an obligation to the Starfleet that he had landed himself in. Ah, there it was...
"this ship Trost will always have a tag on my whereabouts, and given he's the type of person who would sacrifice a civilization to achieve his goal, you should be very very wary of attracting any more attention than you al-"
"Damn." The link to the probable conversation was broken; gone. The power flow was normalising itself, no longer tapping into the ship's internal audio. With the adrenaline rush from the eavesdropping fading, Karka lifted his fingers from the dials, ruminating on what'd been said. If Admiral Trost could sacrifice a whole planet to achieve his aims then Starfleet and the Federation's leaders - should they be aware of it - should be very cautious about who they appointed to their senior positions. But what had been the context of the conversation? What could Trost be planning that might lead him to such a heinous act? "Damn!"
"Chief?" Unwin called from engineering, having picked up on the first audible word from Karka over the open comm channel, "We're not reading any change in alignment... you can't have done anything that wrong."
"Nothing to worry about, Lieutenant." He peered up at the maintenance hatch at the top of the tube, beyond which lay engineering. "In fact I haven't done anything, Lieutenant." Karka winced; subjectively there was guilt in his voice.
"Right..." He heard scattered laughter in the background, the staff's reaction to their excellent if eccentric Chief Engineer, amused and bemused in equal measure.
Psonoir sighed and started climbing the ladder, deciding the misalignment fix could wait. He needed time to evaluate this, and also to allow his conscience room to breathe, to ponder the ethics of what he'd just done. He hadn't so much as inadvertently caught snippets of a likely confidential conversation as he had actively searched to establish a permanent link to it.
He wondered what consequences if any there might be had if it could be traced back to him. Or should he not concern himself with that and simply present himself to the Commodore and first officer, telling them what he'd heard?
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Feb 23, 2015 22:22:29 GMT
Aly had thought she had known her XO and now that he had enlightened her she was actually even more sure of her decision than she had been previously. She was pleased that he had willingly chosen to share what he had with her. She had no doubt that Admiral Trost would not be happy if he knew what had transpired here and he wouldn’t unless one of them told him.
"I don't react favourably to threats Commander, regardless of how veiled they may be ... I appointed you my Executive Officer on what I know of you ..... So I thin ....."
"My being on this ship in any capacity could keep you and the ship in Trost's eye-line." he interrupted, but Aly stared at him for a long moment before replying. She understood his concerns, at least she thought she did, to a degree.
There were only three Trill in Starfleet and she was the only one who commanded a ship much less held flag rank and there were those who said that her entire career progression had occurred as a result of someone’s political whims. She hadn’t been surprised when an Intelligence Officer had ended up on her ship.
“Starfleet vessels are always in someone’s eye. Much as we may hate it politics is as much a part of Starfleet as exploration. I know how flag officers are supposed to behave, yes there are difficult decisions but, abandoning you is the option someone like Trost would take. That on its own, would be enough for me to keep you aboard. Even if I hadn’t maintained that conclusion.”
She dropped her voice. “We’ve all got things in our pasts that we would rather stay there. You just got unlucky and one of them came back to bite, it happens. If you want to leave Dan, I won’t stop you but I would rather you stay aboard and stayed as my XO.”
Tag: Dan
“So what have we got on the Keeloon?” She asked.
Tag
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Feb 28, 2015 0:54:19 GMT
He had basically opened up to the Commodore, fully expecting to be given his proverbial marching order's and a free pass off the ship, but she surprised him with her next comment: "So, what have we got on the Keeloon ?" He sat in silence, running through the information he had from their last confrontation, and what he suspected Admiral Trost had been holding back ... In all honesty, he had felt that Trost's interest was more than his 'official' involvement in the case at hand, but it was only a suspicion on his part, and he had never actually managed to gather one iota of information to confirm his thoughts. But that hadn't stopped him storing the concern at the back of his mind for future consideration ... he wondered vaguely how much he could safely tell his Commanding Officer without signing her death warrant in the process, but the look on her face, one of patience mingled with the fact she fully 'expected' him to reply, made his mind up: So he began telling her what he knew ....... "You are obviously aware of what Craylon gas, released in a confined area could do. Well, almost a year ago, we, Star Fleet Intelligence, began to follow-up on information received by reliable sources that a faction had acquired a massive amount of the gas following a raid on a remote research facility in the G'leyron System ... It was never confirmed, officially, and the results of the following investigation were never released. In fact they were sealed by Star Fleet Intelligence, for obvious reasons ...." he stopped talking and got up to refresh his drink, then sat back down, knowing the Commodore was waiting for him to continue, "Well ... we received Intel regarding a moon in a remote system off the Leemain Corridor, one of those no-go places out towards the Percii Epsilon System ... I was assigned to infiltrate the people we suspected of initially supplying the gas to the syndicate. I spent six months with them and to be totally honest, I got nowhere !" "Six months ?" Alyana asked, keeping her query as neutral as possible. "Yes ..... Six full months ..... In that time I did manage to rise through whatever rank system they had in place, and was eventually given a role that I thought would allow me access to the upper echelons of the syndicate ..... But every time I tried to make that small step forward, there was an issue. Nothing big enough to blow my cover, otherwise I wouldn't be her talking to you, but ..... It seemed that every time I found some 'snippet' of Intel that would allow me to penetrate further, I was blocked. I never did figure out how it was happening, and how the syndicate didn't simply 'remove' me if they found out I was looking a little too close."
He took a moment to refill his glass and that of the woman patiently listening to his tale.
"This gas ......" he continued, "If the development has gone as planned, and it is actually released on a planetary scale, we could be looking at genocide on an incalculable scale. And I can't help feel Trost either knows more than he is willing to divulge, or he is involved directly with the Keeloon Syndicate." "OK ......." Alyana said in reply to his somewhat accusation filled briefing. Dan had the distinct feeling he had said too much .......... < tag : Commodore / All >
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Mar 8, 2015 21:12:43 GMT
"If the development has gone as planned, and it is actually released on a planetary scale, we could be looking at genocide on an incalculable scale. And I can't help feel Trost either knows more than he is willing to divulge, or he is involved directly with the Keeloon Syndicate."
"OK ......." Alyana said in reply to his somewhat accusation filled briefing.
It was an awful lot for her to get her head around.
Dan was a good intelligence operative she was certain of that, for a mission to go as he had described suggested that someone was working against him. Obviously that was to be expected in the world of intelligence but if they hadn’t had Dan eliminated then it suggested that his suspicions were correct.
“We can’t confront him directly so we will need evidence and that may well take some time.”
Tag: Dan
“As for the gas, do you know if anyone’s been doing any work on antidotes or immunisations?” She assumed that no one had cracked it yet or it wouldn’t be such a threat but if there was work being done then that might be a useful place to start seeking information.
Tag:
Aly was wondering what she had gotten herself into but she was as certain as she had ever been that this was the right thing to do.
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Mar 9, 2015 11:25:02 GMT
"We can’t confront him directly, so we will need evidence and that may well take some time." the Commodore mused, "As for the gas, do you know if anyone’s been doing any work on antidotes or immunisations ? .... Hold on, I want Lieutenant Psonoir to hear this, he may have some insights as another outsider." she opened a Comm link and asked the Chief Engineer to join them. When Karka arrived she waved to the replicator and told him to help himself, then asked Daniel to continue: Dan nodded to the Engineer when he entered. "There is every chance that the Keeloon have manufactured an immunisation, they would be stupid not to ..... As for an antidote, I seriously doubt it ..... The Keeloon had only one thing in mind when they began development of the gas derivative, and that was to cause as much wide-spread extermination as possible. In their minds there would be no need to any sort of antidote." Dan shrugged as if the answer was obvious, but he realized that Alyana hadn't had first hand interaction with the Keeloon or any of their operatives. If she had she may not have asked the question in the first place. He sat wondering where to take the conversation next ... "You think they are still credible threat Daniel, despite what's happened so far ?" Karka asked. "More so now if I'm honest. The fact that Trost has even taken the time to 'poach' me back is evidence the Keeloon are back in operation and closer to their goal ... Once they have made their final changes to the formula, we will be in serious trouble. Even in it's present state, the gas is capable of decimation on one hell of a scale." again he hesitated, wondering how close they actually were to their ultimate goal, "Once fully refined, I would say as little as one hundred metric tonnes, dispersed from low orbit above let's say, Earth ... Would cause a genocide far greater than anything the planet has suffered since the extinction of the dinosaurs." "We need to act then." the Engineer said instantly. "With all due respect." Dan said, looking from one to the other then at his Commanding Officer, "We are on shore leave, the ship is still undergoing upgrades to numerous systems, and half the crew are away. I don't think this is something we can go at. My suggestion, given our 'association' with the Keeloon operatives, Trost and his people, we should take this to Command and let them deal with it." The three Officer's seemingly chose this moment to enjoy their drinks and the room was silent for a long moment. "If .... And I do mean 'if' here ...." Ryat said over the rim of her glass, "If we were to decide to follow-up ourselves, how long before the ship could be ready to depart Lieutenant ?" < tag : Karka >"Ma'am ....." Schirra said, cautiously. "What have I told you about that Commander." the Commodore admonished with a wry grin. "Sorry." Dan said, grinning at Psonoir, "What I'm saying is, You will still need to take this to Command, and given our current status 'they' may well assign another ship to investigate the Keeloon." They sat waiting for the Commodore to reply .......... OOC :: Alyana ... I'm not sure if you have a mission outlined for when we finish Shore leave, thus the post. Hopefully the way I have worded things it will leave the option open to follow up on the Keeloon issue, or hand it over to Command in favour of the new mission you have ready. It is of course you're call as Commanding Officer.
Regards,
Steve.
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Mar 10, 2015 23:47:20 GMT
Karka nodded to the Commodore and Commander as he entered the ready room, receiving a nod he was permitted to head first to the replicator. "Water, 5 degrees centigrade," he ordered. Stepping up to the desk - where the two senior officers were engaged in intense discussion (that to his considerable guilt he'd been privy to courtesy of a miswired circuit panel) he asked courteously why his presence had been required (although he already knew, having been part of the comlink between himself, Ryat and Schirra for the latter part of their conversation).
"Ah, the Keeluun's immunising agent... Indeed," he placed his glass on the desk, "It makes sense that they'd wish to immunise their own operatives, officials, mercenaries against accidental exposure... An antidote to the gas's effects on the other hand - as Commander Schirra suggested over the comlink - it seems unlikely they would've produced it. If the Keeluun intend to use this weapon - whatever it is - I imagine they had little time or inclination to develop a cure for it."
"More so now if I'm honest. The fact that Trost has even taken the time to 'poach' me back is evidence the Keeloon are back in operation and -"
"Wait. Admiral Trost, the head of Starfleet Intelligence?" Karka was momentarily stunned - despite his knowledge of this phase of history, and how SF Intel's head had become involved in some rather unsavoury dealings. "You think he's personally involved with the Syndicate?"
Once Schirra had responded and continued his rationalisation, Karka debated internally on the Keeluun. He had heard of them. His mind whirled, turning inwards to the partitions supplying spacetime's dataflow.
"Remember, Karka... not all's well in that supposed paradise of theirs... Take my experience in the Bastille... Personal adviser to Louis XV of France and banished from his court for espousing an idea they termed 'anarchy'. Granted humanity's progressed a long way, but methinks they'll never be satisfied, even with an utopia."
Lirwa: Karka's expert on this period. The words echoed through Karka's mind, channelled across centuries, yet, in truth, already supplanted there before his epochal journey into the past and forth again, to land in this mechanised utopian vision with its teething problems owing to humanity and its flawed nature.
"Five hours," Psonoir answered Ryat. "Four at a push, though my assistant Unwin won't be happy."
<Tag Ryat, Schirra>
Karka remembered gazing across the plains of Deneb IX. The year was 1905. Prairie grasses rippled in fractal patterns across the plain, ruffling his mid-length hair. The Keeluun were yet to come into being; their Craylon gas derivative would centuries from now be excised from archives of dangerous biological weapons. Yet the details of the operation in which he'd partook with the USS Excalibur remained fresh in his mind.
He descended the outcrop, striding through the prairies 'til he came to a rock sufficiently sheltered from the wind. He ruminated over the events those centuries hence: the Keeluun... the agency that supplied them the Craylon... how Daniel Schirra had been unable to penetrate their upper echelons... Still, something about the whole affair was opaque to him: had Admiral Trost worked with the suppliers of the Craylon gas to limit the Keeluun's access to it (justifiably so)? Or had he supplied the Keeluun with it directly (a frightening prospect)? Had Trost limited Schirra's access to the upper levels of the Keeluun hierarchy and its suppliers, worried what his star operative might discover?
He wound his way down an overgrown path to a turquoise-lit river at its end. The rapids were strong, too strong to swim across. He considered making the jump across, but decided caution was the better part of valour on this occasion. Finding a place to cross the thundering cerulean, he came across a foot path. Standing at the other end of the bridge - before an entrance to a cave - was a figure he recognised.
"Lirwa," he hugged his friend. "How goes it in the 29th?" The man seemed withdrawn, dark rims under his eyes, a dour, near empty expression.
"You must come back, friend." Without another word he led Karka into the cave behind. "The Keeluun Syndicate's plague has decimated Hybrudea. Yes, the archives remain unaffected... Many have fled to them, but they bring the plague."
The two roamed further into the sepulchral chasm. Lirwa's voice echoed from ahead, "Craylon gas... Be warned, friend... Technology of how to avert its effects have been long forgotten. Get back aboard your Fed vessel, this time not for them, but for ourselves."
<Tag All>
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Mar 27, 2015 5:29:13 GMT
In between the constant work to ready the Excalibur for departure from ESD's attendant drydock - four hours, Karka had promised to the Commodore and XO Schirra, although he imagined he'd be hard pressed to meet that deadline with the non too infrequent diversions presented to him.
He felt Chief Assistant Unwin more than capable of handling preparations for departure from drydock - particularly pertaining to the warp core (the lifeblood of the ship) and the other drive systems - and in periods where Psonoir's presence in engineeering was required, again, not too infrequently, he knew himself well able to assume Unwin's tasks quite seamlessly.
The Hybrudean used these welcome and unexpected distractions to visit San Francisco again, particularly Haight Ashbury where he'd kept his old apartment: one item in his manufactured history as a Starfleet engineering officer of the 23rd century. The grey dilapidated building was in need of renovation, that cemented itself in his mind more than ever now, as he surveyed its bleached white, broken orthogonal peaks below the bright azure sky.
Removal workers were apparently prospecting the site and surveying the land, for anything of worth and estimating total value respectively. They, as Karka understood it, were proposing lifting the top apartment - Karka's - off the top of the building replacing it with a pad incorporating newest fashions in New Age interior design - or what passed for it in this phase of human/pan-humanoid/Federation development.
He'd glanced cursorily, with a certain morbid curiosity, over the plans for the new top-floor apartment (contained within the bulky sable padds to which he'd had to grow accustomed in this century) surveying its postmodern design: the outjutting balconies that looked over Haight towards the east, downtown and SF Bay beyond; the sweeping interior decor that appeared to come out of a sketchbook of a 20th century artist's fanciful depiction of the future of space travel... the geometry too streamlined, conceptually perfect, it would barely function as a serving starship... But Karka supposed, it might not be out of place a century from now.
The bubble holophoto, spherical and adorned with kaleidoscopic areas of surface tension - whatever cleaning fluid had been laid in the bath - bobbed in the cold water. The grainy pictures of his false son floated before him, spinning and rotating beneath the water level and emerging again, a different expression on the happy child's face each time it passed into view.
Perhaps... the engineer thought, pursing his lips and tapping his fingers against them, Perhaps he would rejuvenate the family... Even ask permission of the Commodore to have them accompany him on the next Excal outing - bearing in mind that the Excal like all Constitution classes were strictly military/scientific/explorative ships... meant for Starfleet crew, in essence.
Now the Excal's officers had only to wait; one, for news from himself about the ship's readiness; two, from the command team regarding their departure time and assignment. He stepped out of the bathroom and looked hopefully through the balcony window towards the skies, watching the vapour trails of a shuttle as it barrelled on a hyperbolic trajectory that would eventually lead to its insertion into terrestrial orbit. He waited, expecting someone, from somewhere, to say something - something from inside him, yet not mental reasoning, no internal monologue - but nothing was forthcoming. Silence fell like wrecking balls in on his grey apartment.
<Tag Ryat/Schirra>
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Daniel Schirra
Captain
Registered: Apr 8, 2013 21:02:47 GMT
Posts: 468
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Post by Daniel Schirra on Mar 27, 2015 17:29:59 GMT
"If .... And I do mean 'if' here ...." Ryat had asked during the meeting, "If we were to decide to follow-up ourselves, how long before the ship could be ready to depart Lieutenant ?"
"Five hours ...... Four at a push, though my assistant Unwin won't be happy."
That had been almost three hours ago now, and he was beginning to be a little concerned. He knew that the Commodore had still not been in to see Command regarding the Excalibur's next assignment. He knew this because after trying to contact her directly, he had opened a link to Star Fleet Headquarters and asked if she was there. The reply was more curious than informative, he decided, after being told that she was in the building but incommunicado. Having asked what that was supposed to mean, he was told she was 'busy' and would contact him in due course ... Slightly annoyed, he considered using his primary role to ascertain her whereabouts, but decided better of it and shrugged. He made his way to Engineering to speak to the Chief Engineer .....
~~~~~
Entering the massive space, encompassing several decks, he sought out Karka and approached him, listening in as the Engineer passed on instructions to members of his staff. Once free, Karka turned to face him:
"Checking up already ?" he said, handing a PADD to a passing Officer.
"No ... In fact, I've come down to tell you not to break your back getting the ship ready for departure. I can't see us having to leave on a moments' notice at this point." he said, moving away to a more discrete distance from those working nearby, Karka followed, a slight frown forming, "But if you and your teams weren't running around like the proverbial 'headless chickens' how long to completion ?" the Engineer shrugged:
"Well, we'd be looking at six, maybe eight hours, that would allow for all the required checks before departure ... Why, what's going on ?" it was Dan's turn to shrug.
"Not a clue to be honest. I was under the impression that the Commodore had left the ship to go directly to Command, but apparently, she didn't arrive there until about thirty minutes ago, and is somewhere in the building out of communication. At this point I don't think it's worth barrelling head-long into the refit schedule on the off chance we'll be sent out. Six hours isn't going to make any difference and I'd much prefer you have the time while we can afford it." Daniel said, looking around the cavernous space, "If Alyana comes back and says we're a go, then you can adjust the schedule accordingly.
"Whatever you say." Karka said.
"I'll leave you to it." Dan said before leaving Engineering. On his way to the Bridge he wondered just what was going on ... It wasn't like Star Fleet to hold someone out of contact, and especially a Flag-ranked Officer. He decided he would give it another two hours then he would make a few calls. Loosing a Commanding Officer was frowned upon at the best of times. Loosing one while in Space Dock wouldn't go down well at all ..........
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Alyana Ryat
Commodore
Registered: Sept 5, 2007 16:34:56 GMT
Posts: 347
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Post by Alyana Ryat on Apr 2, 2015 22:46:28 GMT
"If .... And I do mean 'if' here ...." Aly had asked during the meeting, "If we were to decide to follow-up ourselves, how long before the ship could be ready to depart Lieutenant ?"
"Five hours ...... Four at a push, though my assistant Unwin won't be happy."
Aly smiled. “You’ll certainly have your five hours Commander” Aly said. She did not know quite how long it would take to get things sorted the way she wanted them. She wasn’t going to drag her crew in to this, even if they were all ready involved.
After the meeting she walked briskly to the transporter room and beamed down in to San Francisco.
**************************************************************
Two and a half hours later
It had taken more than two hours to find the information she was after and that was she had sent her request a head of time. The archivists had been a little surprised that she had actually come down to talk and help collate the information she was after.
Still, she had proved her suspicions correct. Dan’s had not been the only investigation into the Keeloon to have hit a dead end. There had been a previous intelligence investigation that had ended with the agent dead. There had also been two more overt investigations in the last fifteen years that had also got precisely nowhere.
Aly knew her self imposed task was only half done but she couldn’t help smiling as she walked though the sunlit afternoon to Starfleet Command. Rear Admiral Martin Travis was someone she had known since they were both ensigns. He had once been in security on the Excalibur but had since transferred off the ship, and back to Earth and in to Starfleet IA department. It wasn’t the most popular area of Starfleet and Aly had joked that she was probably the first starship commander to come here voluntarily, the look on Martin’s face as he escorted her to one of the secure chambers, suggested that it might not be much of a joke. After all, most of IA’s usual work was the investigation of starship commanders who went a bit too far.
She settled at the table and accepted the offer of a drink asking for a glass of mango juice. She laid the PADD she had brought from the archive on the table between them and started to tell her story. Yes she was taking a risk but this was bigger than just her.
OOC: I am calling this the end of the shoreleave thread. please see the new mission thread.
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Karka Psonoir
Commander
Registered: Apr 9, 2013 19:55:13 GMT
Posts: 422
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Post by Karka Psonoir on Apr 2, 2015 23:53:07 GMT
Karka had agreed to Schirra's recommendation to relax the preparations for departure. With the ship apparently grounded until Commodore Ryat's whereabouts at Starfleet Command could be ascertained, he'd relaxed the repair schedule, proposed to the drydock's refit and maintenance officer that their deadlines could be set back, and set a schedule for completion of repairs in 8.5 hours. He would adjust accordingly once the Commodore returned.
With little else to do except entertain his recently revived family - his spacetime-manipulated and engineered wife playing with their son in the next compartment - Karka lay on the bed, flicking through holographs of the family, of San Francisco, of the Amacayacu nature reserve and of his old colleague (now verifiable but impossible to locate traitor) Commander Het'Ress of SCE.
The Benzite Starfleet officer Het'Ress was working with the Syndicate, that much was determined. On his flight from the scientific laboratory and observatory on the top of the rise looking over the Amazon, Karka and Lieutenant Hearan had come under fire from Keeluun Syndicate members on the opposite and northern bank of the river. Darting through the undergrowth while phaser beams and projectile shot singed their way across the valley, they'd barely made it back to the transporter pad that took them - inadvertently, due to a misalignment in the Heisenberg compensators - to a beach far north of San Francisco, their desired destination. From there they'd headed east, in land, to a small village where the Syndicate had established a secret communications base for operations around California. After disabling that, the two Excalibur officers had arrived back on ship to find significantly reduced irregular comm activity in and around Starfleet Corps of Engineers HQ.
The deorbiting and subsequent destruction by an unmarked scout craft - which as it turned out, was a Starfleet Intel vessel under command of Admiral Trost - of a disguised Nausicaan freighter that, too, was revealed to be the property of Starfleet Intel, put an end to the unusual comm traffic from orbit to San Francisco, and in the process freed the Excalibur's senior staff (who had been enjoying their shore leave) from the predations of the Syndicate - or whoever had truly been hunting them.
Karka had theorised that it was a tactic of Starfleet Intel to blackmail Commander Schirra into offering his services to Intel again, the engineer having some knowledge of the Excalibur first officer's background by some, rather unorthodox means. As for Commander Het'Ress, he'd vanished in the dissolving light of the transporter as it'd whisked Psonoir and Hearan away to a stony beach south of a township called Fort Bragg, upon which the marram grass-coated dunes were forced back, eroded by the sea of the Pacific.
He'd appreciated the subsequent intrusion: an accomplice from the 29th century, transmission crackling, face fading within an assemblage of pixels like a still montage. She had delivered to him stupefying news of events in the 29th. Something he hadn't discovered the full truth of until 1905 - some 350 years ago, on a different plane of reality, a different world-line.
The truth was too painful to contemplate now, sent him in circles of useless partitioned thought, as he regarded the outlines of his well-again son and false wife through the translucent glass separating bedroom from sitting area. The Hybrudeans of the 29th had been struck by a disease.
The first in living memory; the first in recorded history! Since they'd corrected the overall world-line and made quantum level adjustments - a painstaking century long process - to one end of the one-dimensional Standing Wave in order that their collective world-line might be preserved.
The Craylon gas that the Keeluun Syndicate had appropriated, somehow during this outing it would contaminate the future. Was Karka to be the carrier? Should he stay clear of Hybrudea in the 29th until the disease could be dispersed from their utopia? Lirwa himself had retreated to the 31st, after informing Karka of it 350 years ago, and that Karka had peered at the golden horizon on Deneb IX, contemplating, reflecting with an abstract grin that he already knew every detail of what was to play out in the 23rd century debacle of the Keeluun Syndicate and its use of Craylon gas.
On this outing he had only to protect his family - now that he'd chosen to elevate them to levels of extraordinary importance in his own life again in spite of, he held the conviction, their disposable nature - and ensure that whatever moves he made in the coming campaign, he would trace the exact same footsteps he had all those years ago... Like on the beach in north California - he'd been reminded of this coming mission then - when he'd looked back across the sands at his bare soles' imprints in the kaleidoscope shallows, and the microscopic infinities that lay therein.
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