David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 8, 2019 22:21:52 GMT
Office of the Director of Intelligence Mezzanine - Level Eight Command Center SD: 2405.03.0607 - 08:30 hrs :: The heads of Starfleet Intelligence had gathered for their weekly briefing in Admiral Lemond's office .... "Things are pretty quiet." David was saying, hoping he wasn't tempting fate. "Nothing further from the dissident factions ?" Nia asked, helping herself to one of the cups of coffee supplied by her Adjutant. "We are keeping an eye on half a dozen of her lower echelon members ...." Elena answered, "But I thing whatever spark they had has well and truly fizzled out." "OK, well let's keep them under moderate surveillance for the time being, it's not like we're currently overrun with assignments." Lemond replied. "The Ferengi on Beta Promenade are up to their old tricks again." Elena de Luca added, "Security have had a number of complaints ... Rigged gaming tables, extortionate fees to book their holo-suits, nothing unusual there, but maybe someone could pay them a visit, warn them we're watching." "According to reports, Security have dragged the proprietor of the Ferengi bar, erm, Orpk ....." Nia began, looking up the relevant data before continuing, "..... Brought in several times for violations, maybe it's time we put our proverbial foot down, showed him he can't simply trade as he pleases with no regard for regulations ?" "He's kind of set himself up as the unofficial 'leader' of the Ferengi Community since we moved location. All but 'demanded' a place at the Command Council table at one point." Elena added. "Well that's not going to happen ... He can't do anything to hurt us or the Station. Let's give him a very public visit. Nothing heavy-handed, but speak with him in the bar, not in some back room where he can twist the conversation to his liking." Lemond ordered. She got up to refill her cup. She hadn't missed the fact that she was drinking more coffee of late, and wondered if it was all down to her new position, "OK, next item ?" "There's a rumour going around that we have discovered a means to get home ...." Captain Komin of the Intelligence vessel El Alamein said. "Oh ?" Nia replied. "Yes, one of my crew overheard two Technicians talking about the 'wormhole' to the Sol System." "Bloody hell, what happened to keeping secrets ?" Nia Lemond asked rhetorically, "We 'ARE' supposed to be keeping information on a need to know basis, or am I mistaken. Any idea as to 'where' this information originated ?" "It's obviously someone who had access to the data. You can't blame them Admiral, this is our third year out here and we've made practically zero progress on finding a means to get home." David commented. "Alright, let's try to put a lid on the rumours for the time being. With Section Admiral Gheskori and Admiral Savot out on mission, we don't want to stir up any disruption ....." Admiral Lemond ordered, glancing at Fleet Admiral Torek, "..... And whatever happens let's not let our friendly Ferengi get wind of the rumours, the last thing we need is him demanding access to the great Ferengi treasury so he can start charging for passage through this as yet unsubstantiated way home." The meeting went on for another hour before Nia allowed everyone to leave, Fleet Admiral Torek held back a little: "So how you settling in ?" he asked once the room had cleared, trying not to grin. "I don't suppose we gave come across any 'resurrection technology' on our travels ?" Nia asked with a sigh, as she looked at the ever-growing stack of PADD's on her rapidly vanishing desk. "You do know that Commander Paquin could keep most of this off your desk I suppose ?" Carl commented, nodding toward the pile, "Sato only got what he needed in front of him ...." he finished with a grin as he left. "Elise ....." Nia shouted as the ornate door closed. Her Adjutant entered from her office: "Admiral ?" "You really do need to relax a little when we're alone Elise. So, let's set some ground rules shall we .........." Nia said with a smile ..........
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Elena de Luca
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Dec 14, 2009 0:38:17 GMT
Posts: 266
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Post by Elena de Luca on Jun 8, 2019 23:25:25 GMT
O'Toole's Bar & Grill Alpha Promenade 19:40 hrs :: "So how is our new Director settling in ?" Sean asked as Elena dropped onto a stool at the bar. "Oh, she's doing fine ... I think it's a little bit daunting for her but there's no-one better to sit in that office, barring the Section Admiral, and Carl I suppose." she replied, rubbing the ache in her neck. "You need a drink." Sean decided, leaning over the bar to retrieve a couple of glasses and a dark amber bottle. He poured two generous shots and handed one to Elena, "You have doubts about your new boss then ?" "No, no, far from it ..... If anyone could sit in Sato's seat it would be her. I think the transition, not to mention her meteoric promotion just fazed her. She'll be fine. do you have anything for us, or is this on my bar bill ?" "On the house my dear, the first one anyways." Sean said with a cheeky grin. He drained his glass and refilled both before falling silent. Elena knew better than to press so she waited patiently, finally the owner of the most popular bar on the Station gave in, "I have to admit, I'm a little, unsettled, at the fact that you lot now know my history. Not that I would have used it for nefarious purposes of course." Elena couldn't help but laugh, but seeing the fake hurt look on Sean's face, she tried to become serious: "Oh c'mon Sean, you have to admit, managing to have all your files locked 'Eyes Only' was a bit of a giveaway. You have been on the Starbase for years, and as far as anyone knew you were the model of the congenial host. You served good drinks, good food, and excellent entertainment. Practically everything residents and visitors to the Starbase could want. Hell, to my knowledge, you've held at least a dozen weddings and two wakes here. Oh, and who could forget Lieutenant Javer's daughters' christening. I seem to remember you having to fly in their family priest to conduct the service, at your expense ... Your a big softy at heart Sean O'Toole, and you know it. Had certain information not been redacted 'E.O.' then no-one would have been the wiser." "They should have had a boy." Sean said wistfully, recalling the christening. "So they could call him 'Sean' I suppose." Elena said with a grin. ".... And why not may I ask ?" "They had a girl, named her erm, Genevieve if I recall. Besides, she was much too pretty to be a Sean." de Luca said, holding out her empty glass, "Look, given our location, I'm pretty sure Admiral Lemond isn't about to open those files, I think it's a given that whatever happened in the past to make you leave Intelligence is your concern and yours only. Your 'history' is of no concern to anyone." "Thank you Elena." Sean said as Kara approached them, "Ahh my favourite waitress." "I'll favourite you you bloody lazy sod. You might well own this place you know, but there are tables to be cleared and customers to be served. How about getting off that arse of yours and doing a little work ?" "You get him told Kara." Elena said with a cheer ... Sean bowed eloquently, waving his arm in a flourish as he took several paces backwards, bumping into a Klingon in the process, "Apologies good Sir." he said as he swept away to work. "I didn'y know you know." Kara said when they were alone. She looked at Elena for a long moment then continued, "You're not going to drag him back into his fo ......" "No !" Elena interrupted quickly, "We're not ..... You like him, that's obvious. We know about both of you and your interactions with Starfleet Intelligence Kara, but take my word for it, we'll not be conscripting either of you. You have both been through a lot and deserve to be left alone. granted, Sean and yourself 'will' have access to information we could use ...." "Information we will of course pass on." Kara confirmed quickly, helping herself to a shot from the bottle Sean had previously poured from, "I suppose he mentioned the Ferengi ?" "They came up in the Intel' briefing, yes." "Shifty little buggers if you're askin' me, which you wasn't ... Always going on about their ears of all things, all the while scheming ...." "Oh ?" Elena replied. "Yes, immoral sods they are, that one on Beta Promenade had the gal to offer me a job as his 'hostess' ... The money was good, but the fact he wanted me behind the bar, naked !" "That's Ferengi for you." Elena said as both of them burst into fits of laughter. Sean came over hearing the commotion: "Something I said ?" he asked. Kara and Elena could only laugh more, finally managing to control themselves as Sean waited patiently, "Joking aside though ?" he asked. "I was just mentioning that bloody Ferengi, Orpk, or whatever his name is." Kara said quietly, "That walking ear-lobe is up to no good I tell ya. He knows as much about 'Federation Law' as he does those 'Rules of Acquisition' he keeps sprouting about. He's a walking annoyance in my opinion, and someone who needs a good watchin." "I'll bring it up with the Director again. Maybe we could put someone in his establishment." Elena replied. "Well, in my humble opinion, I wouldn't be sending a woman in there. He'll have her half undressed before she could find a bloody seat." Kara said. "Oh, I think I have someone in mind." de Luca replied, wondering what Iorte Clancy was up to at the moment ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 10, 2019 23:17:29 GMT
Office of the Director of Intelligence Mezzanine - Level Eight Command Center SD: 2405.03.0609 - 15:40 hrs :: David and the other Senior Intelligence Officers were attending a briefing in Admiral Lemond's office ..... "So you think just going in there is the way to go ?" the Director asked. "Well, we could go the covert route, but I have the feeling Orpk would have us identified within minutes. He wouldn't do anything of course, he'd likely enjoy watching us watching him watching us." Elena commented. "I have to agree. So .... Go pay Mister Orpk a visit, make it loud and public, let's make sure he's aware that he is on our radar." Nia said, dismissing them ..... Beta Promenade Level one five five four Orpk's Emporium :: A micro-cam had been placed opposite Orpk's Emporium the night before to ensure Orpk's attendance prior to the raid ..... David and the others had split into two groups, either side of the establishment. Elena contacted everyone to ensure they were ready as on cue Iorte Clancy meandered along the Promenade, a slight sway to his gait as if already intoxicated. He would enter the bar and feign concern for Orpk's situation. The one thing no-one expected was to see the Raven's Executive Officer on the verge of leaving. =^= Hold positions ! =^= Tan said quickly into his concealed Comm badge before anyone could make a move. Clancy, either not seeing the Commander, or completely ignoring him, entered the bar. Unfortunately things began to go sour the moment Clancy entered. He was halted in his step by someone. =^= Go Go Go =^= Tan ordered .... Intelligence Officers piled into the Emporium each with one task, to detain the Ferengi Orpk. David saw Blakus begin to turn as he heard the commotion, Tan had no option but to intercept the Raven Exec' "Commander." he said, taking Blakus' arm and steering him away from the bar. "David, David Tan, wha ...." "Sorry commander but I needed to get you away from the bar before you could be associated with Orpk ..." Tan said, turning to see the chaos in the bar and knowing someone was going to receive a good chewing out for the debacle, "Andae, may I ask what you were doing in there ?" Blakus knew better than to be evasive: "I use Orpk's holo-suites sometimes. What's happening in there ?" "It's an Intel' Operation. I can't say more at this point in time, but I suggest you vacate the area. The last thing we need is for you to be associated with Orpk, however tenuous the link may be." "Understood, thanks David." Blakus said, walking away, but then he turned, "David ... It might be nothing, but just before you spoke to me, another of your Officers grabbed me, he seemed to be in something of a hurry. He asked who I was so naturally I returned the compliment." "Who was he ?" David asked, concerned that one of his Officers had taken it upon themselves to enter the bar before receiving orders to do so. "He said his name was 'Agent Tribecy' ... I almost stopped him as I know you don't normally refer to yourselves as Agents, but he was already walking away." "So he's in there now ?" "No, that was the other thing ... He was walking towards the bar, then at the last moment turned and walked away. Last I saw of him he was leaving." "He isn't one of ours." Tan said quietly. "He's gone into one of his holo-suites." Elena reported as she approached them both, "Commander ..." she said, acknowledging Andae's presence. David swore under his breath then stomped into the bar, de Luca and Blakus in tow. David walked over to where Clancy was standing: "He's in there ?" Tan asked, motioning towards the holo-suite door. "Yes." Iorte replied. "He's tampered with the control panel. I can't override the program he's running." de Luca informed them. "Cut the power ?" David suggested. "They have their own back-ups to ensure there are no injuries should there be a genuine power loss." Elena explained. "So we wait for him to come out ?" David asked, the frustration clean in his voice. "The door isn't sealed." Andae Blakus commented, everyone turned to look at him, then the door. Elena looked at the program data: "He's in the forest. We could flood the place with Officers and never come across him. We're talking almost three thousand square miles of dense woodland, and only he will know where to go to hide out. Another thing ..." de Luca said, pointing at the display, "The holo-suite safety protocols have been permanently disabled in there, so slipping down a fifteen meter ravine could easily kill you." "Surely we can disable the power from out here." Blakus commented. "I wouldn't advise it, even if we could find a workaround. It's likely he's set up sub-routines to ensure the program continues to run until he says so." Clancy said. David hit the door in frustration then turned around: "VICKERS ! ....." he shouted, one of the Intel' Officers turned at the mention of his name, "Lock everyone here up. I don't care who they are or what they were doing in here. You and two others are to remain outside this door, do it in shifts if you have to, Orpk's power can't last forever. No-one, and I do mean 'NO-ONE' leaves this holo-suite unless one of us is cuffed to him, understood ?" "Sir." Vickers replied, turning to bark orders before approaching the holo-suites. David took out a tricorder, but Clancy informed him that Orpk wore a 'life-sign mask' device, and while it didn't have the power of the holo-suite, it 'would' mask the Ferengi. "Brilliant !" David spat, "OK, lets go." he said, moving to the door which slid aside as Elena activated the control. The group entered, momentarily impressed with the scene before them, for here, in exquisite detail, was a replica of a place on Earth David was sure he'd visited before and knew quite well. The doors slid silently shut behind them then vanished to be replaced with more forestry. "I thought you said this was a forest." David commented taking a few step forward as he looked across the vista at the mountain range. Elena was looking back towards where the door had been a moment earlier. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I have to assume that Orpk could have been stood by the door the whole time, and simply stepped out of the holo-suite while we were taking in the sights ?" "He's still in here." Tan said, with slightly less conviction in his tone than he'd preferred ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 12, 2019 0:22:35 GMT
Holo-suite Orpk's Emporium Beta Promenade :: "He could be anywhere." Clancy said, looking at the vast panorama before them. David was looking at the park from their location. They were in a heavily wooed area. He was convinced now that it was a representation of Yosimite National Park in California, Earth. Through the trees he could see the mountains off in the distance, possibly Mount Lyell, he could vaguely see the towering El Capitan, he'd free climbed that some years ago. From memory it looked like they were close to the east end of the valley, the falls would be to their North, mountains West and South, not to mention the countless massive redwoods, so .... "There's no way of locating him in here." Elena said, turning to locate the exit, but David grabbed her arm: "He won't have gone far. The hills are out, as is the falls, and unless he's managed to secret a couple of pack mules in here then he's not going to be running far." "Pack what ?" Elena asked. "They're mules, donkey's, used to ca .... Never mind." Tan said, again scanning the horizon, "I think we can limit our search to a couple of square miles at most. It's likely he's fabricated some kind of cabin or lodge. He wasn't keeping this program just as a bolt-hole, he picked Yosimite for a reason, it's sprawling vastness, he clearly enjoys it. Given the denseness of the forest, I think he'd be more prone to avoid moving down towards the valley floor." he was looking at the ground now, hoping to possibly see evidence of a well worn path, but that would have been much too easy, Orpk would keep his lair well concealed. "Comms are out." de Luca said after tapping her badge several times. She drew her phaser and pointed it out toward the valley before applying pressure, the beam of almost pure energy lanced away instantly removing approximately twenty feet from the top of what in the real world may well have been a two thousand year old sequoia. The uppermost section of the three hundred foot Redwood fell to the ground noisily. She looked at the weapon and frowned, "This was set on stun, now I can't change the setting from maximum." "He clearly doesn't want us firing at him." David said, almost admiring the Ferengi's ingenuity. "Well if he wasn't sure before, he knows we're here now." Clancy said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Tan was contemplating their next move: There were six of them in total, usually they would have split up, but he had the feeling that might prove detrimental .... Murdoch, Ogden and Higgins had been stood covering the other three, he was about to call them in when Higgins stepped out of sight. Seconds later there was a sound like a sword cutting through air then a yelp from the trees, everyone ran toward the sound and found the Intelligence Officer ! .... Higgins was at the food of one of the redwoods, one hand stepping the blood flowing from a gouge in his forehead. "What happened ?" David asked as Ogden began treating the injury. "I could have sworn I heard someone behind me ...." Higgins said, "Whoever, or whatever, it was, moved fast when I turned." "Orpk ?" "No way Sir, no Ferengi could have evaded my pursuit, if I hadn't knocked myself out cold that is." the man said, the embarrassment obvious in his tone as he got gingerly to his feet. Clancy was looking around: "What exactly 'did' you knock yourself out on ?" he asked. Unfortunately, neither Higgins or anyone else could see the culprit. "Is it just me, or do those marks look like claw marks ?" Elena asked, pointing to a nearby tree trunk. "Please don't tell me that bloody Ferengi has populated the park with bears !" Murdoch said, eyes scanning a quick three sixty. The four gouges certainly resembled claw marks, but surely they would have heard or even seen a bear running away, as far as Tan was concerned, bears were more prone to attacking rather than running at the first sight of a potential meal. So either Orpk had manipulated that element of the program, possibly to ensure his own safety, or it wasn't a bear ? ..... He heard Elena call for the arch, which unsurprisingly, didn't materialise, so without the Ferengi, they were stuck in here until they caught him, or someone on the outside figured a way to extradite them. "This reminds me of one of those old movies, were the sheriff and his posse ride out after a fugitive." Murdoch said. David looked at the man, his expression enough to silence the younger Intelligence Officer. "We're sticking together." David decided. "Sir, we could cover a lot more ground if we separated." Ogden suggested. "Whatever Higgins saw managed to knock him unconscious before vanishing. Given we are certain it wasn't our resident Ferengi, we can take it as read that we have company, how many, we have no way of knowing, nor can we be certain that any further attacks won't result in something worse than a cut on the head. Higgins was lucky, this time, who's to say given more time an attacker wouldn't complete the task at hand ? .... I would prefer we remain in one group, at least until we find anything worth investigating." David replied, knowing he was greatly limiting their effectiveness. "I'd propose going in two's, ten meters apart, keeping line-of-sight, at least that way we may spot something we could have missed going single file ?" Clancy suggested. "Agreed." Tan said, nodding. They had been moving forward for almost thirty minutes with no signs of the Ferengi when Ogden, walking with Clancy, yelped in shock ! ..... As the group merged she and Clancy were turning left and right, phasers arcing back and forth. "There's something else in here with us !" Ogden said decisively. "Iorte ?" David queried, but Clancy could only shrug. "We're all getting a little too twitchy." Tan said as Ogden began to relax and lower her phaser. Ten meters above their heads, eyes watched as the Human's continued their search ..........
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Elena de Luca
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Dec 14, 2009 0:38:17 GMT
Posts: 266
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Post by Elena de Luca on Jun 14, 2019 23:27:33 GMT
Holo-suite Orpk's Emporium Beta Promenade :: "..... There's something else in here with us !" Ogden said decisively. "Iorte ?" David queried, but Clancy could only shrug. "We're all getting a little too twitchy." Tan said as Ogden began to relax and lower her phaser. "With all due respect Sir, there's no way we can cover the area alone." Higgins ventured, seeing both Tan and Clancy turn in his direction, "If we can't make changes to the program or the holo-suite then wouldn't it be best to remain in the area of the door, let him come to us ?" "I think we've already gone through this." Elena said with a look that could have frozen molten lava. Higgins could only hold up his hands in obvious dismay before walking off ahead, the others followed, spreading out as best they could in the ever thickening foliage. They had been walking for approximately an hour when Ogden spoke quietly: "Cabin." she whispered, pointing off to her left with her phaser. Elena, Iorte, and David approached her with Murdoch and Higgins keeping watch around them. "Well there's something you don't usually see in a woods, a tad cliché even for a Ferengi." de Luca said, a hint of sarcasm whilst almost admiring the massive log cabin approximately thirty meters ahead through the trees. "Let's move around to the North, see what we're dealing with. Tan instructed ..... The cabin was built on the side of a steep drop, roughly eighty percent was suspended over the drop by six enormous wooden stanchions, each extending from the hillside to the underside of the structure at thirty degrees. The building itself was indeed large, Elena estimated that it could have as much as twenty rooms along with the large veranda which extended out over the canyon they could now see. It looked like it had been constructed on one level, but the section built on solid ground could easily conceal one or more room below ground level. They all made sure they had cover from the structure before Tan moved forward until he was beneath the building. They watched as he examined the underside as best he could by sight then he crawled back to report: "There doesn't seem to be any way of getting inside from there. The stanchions are climbable but there's nowhere to go once you reach the top, short of whittling yourself through the floor. for some reason the furthermost outside pylon has a small box attached at the top, possibly some monitoring device, I couldn't tell." "So we're looking at knocking on the front door then ?" Murdoch asked with a wry grin. "Going off how large that overhang is, the building must be close to forty, forty five meters wide, and at least eighty to one hundred in length, with the majority of that overhanging ..." Higgins speculated, "So there has to be a way of gaining entry 'before' we reach the cantilevered section." "We'll make our way round the other side." de Luca said, moving out first with the others following. They passe the sprawling frontage of the 'cabin' still keeping well into the woods to hopefully avoid detection. They were relying on the possibility that the Ferengi would have no need to install surveillance equipment in a holo-suite program only he had access to. Then again, there's was no saying he hadn't made such modifications if he knew they had entered after him. "There." Murdoch said, pointing towards long stack of cut logs, high enough to conceal the Intel Officers, then he pointed to a small out-building approximately five meters from the side of the building, "What do you suppose that's for ?" Ogden commented. Tan almost laughed, then explained the 'bathroom' facilities of older log cabins constructed prior to the invention of indoor plumbing. "You mean they ...." the woman asked in disbelief. "Yes." Tan said. "There are two small windows on this side, both before the overhang." Elena informed them, "If we can get behind the logs we should be able to ingress there." "OK, let's move around behind the logs." David said ... The group made their way through the thick woodland keeping well out of sight until they were parallel with the logs seen earlier, then began to approach cautiously. Once in place they discussed a means of entry. "Ogden, please feel free to use the, facilities before we go in." David said with a grin. Overhead, the watcher remained silent ..........
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Iorte Clancy
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Mar 9, 2016 17:58:55 GMT
Posts: 252
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Post by Iorte Clancy on Jun 17, 2019 17:42:41 GMT
Iorte crouched with the others under overhanging tree branches next to the stack of logs. From somewhere near he could hear an unusual clicking, but this was shunted from his mind as he returned to more pressing matters: immediately before them were the two high windows they'd espied from the treeline; along with being three metres off the ground, they were also quite small, perhaps only enough room for a person with slight or medium build to squeeze through, or a Ferengi...
They made arrangements to have Ogden ingress first, she now balanced on the shoulders of the towering Murdoch who himself stood on a cut-off stump that they'd carefully moved from near the log stack. With a sharp instrument Ogden punctured the artificial glass and - pushing off Murdoch's shoulders, making him wince and nearly fall from the stump - made through the window head-first. Her legs kicked in the smashed frame and the team heard a dull thud as she fell to the floor inside.
Luckily for them, no surveillance device was sounded, or at least was not sounded for them - Iorte found himself imagining Orpk sequestered in some control centre deep in the cabin with a wealth of surveillance screens at his disposal, watching with glee or perhaps apprehension as a screen alerted him to the Intel officers climbing through one of the land-side windows.
The clicking entered his consciousness once again, and he realised that it sounded very much like metallic cogs turning slowly past one another, like an old clock whose mechanisms ticked gradually over as the pendulum weight in the machine continued its movement. He narrowed his eyes and got an uncanny sensation; slowly, he turned about, still crouched from his position near the window, and regarded the lavatory outhouse. It exploded.
A fireball escaped skywards, fiery wreckage pounding away in all directions; a gust blew over the three of them (unfortunately for two of their number - Higgins and Murdoch - there'd been no way they might fit through the aperture; Clancy had hung back with them as the whole team had debated what to do), and Clancy and Higgins were blown off their feet and into the wooden wall; Murdoch held his ground in the sudden tempest.
"Tan! de Luca!" Clancy called up to the window, "In or out?!" He asked whether he should attempt to join them, whether it was wise to enter the cabin at all. Perhaps it was safer inside.
Debris fell upon Clancy, Murdoch and Higgins and the sound of the explosion faded to be replaced by that of a steady, fierce burning. Iorte looked again towards the lavatory - a fiery, blackened ruin had taken its place. It was certain: Orpk knew they were here now. That had been an attempt to take them out, or at least halt their progress with a loss or an injury. Whether or not he was himself in the cabin was another question, but he was surely in the general vicinity.
Iorte made his way in on the shoulders of the bruised Murdoch, who along with Higgins headed round the side to attempt an entry from the opposite side of their starting point - if they were unable to find one of appropriate size, they were to return and wait by the broken window.
"Ms Ogden, you'll be glad to have avoided the W.C. on this occasion," Iorte said, dusting off his hands as he dropped from the window. They reasoned for themselves that Orpk had set a bomb in said building, that it may be he had drawn them towards the cabin knowing the Intel officers would surmise he'd have such a retreat.
They'd dropped into a living area complete with couches and a woodburner fireplace of the old style. Four opened old-fashioned beer bottles sat on a table before the fire. The four of them took this in and regarded each other, blinking in astonishment.
=/\=Tan, this is Murdoch.=/\=
Clancy checked the corridor behind the hinged door while Tan raised his sleeve to his face, =/\=Go ahead.=/\= Iorte found it continually amusing that people occasionally contacted each other by comm on a holodeck when in reality they were situated mere metres from one another; it was unavoidable however.
=/\=Higgins is gone. He was with me, I turned around and he was being dragged into the forest - I caught sight only of his feet and lower legs as he was being pulled over the treeline. There was screaming, not all from a human, though.=/\=
<Tag Tan>
From the veranda on the overhang on the other side of the cabin, Agent Tribecy regarded the forest through a pair of infrared binocs. He'd lost sight of the approaching team; where had they gone? It was then he heard the explosion of the outbuilding. Old Orpk - the only other occupant of the suite before the team had arrived, or so Tribecy been led to believe - was up to his tricks again. He did think Orpk might be hiding something more, and hiding himself - where was he?
Tribecy smirked and shook his head, ducking back inside to the 30 metre extended lounge with its haphazardly arranged furniture. He hung up his fur hat and picked up from beside the hat-stand a Winchester hunting rifle, year 1965; it was his belief that if the Intel officers had not been incapacitated, they would've now entered the building. Still, deciding he should be prepared for their having feinted and not made entry, he picked up from the nearby couch and a lumberjack jacket and donned it over his Intel officer fatigues. He made for the interior door.
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 17, 2019 22:32:24 GMT
David watched the forest as Ogden was lifted up towards the small window, he was about to say something when he was blown off his feet !
The aged outhouse had for some unknown reason exploded ... Maybe it had been designed to do so all along, Tan wasn't sure. All he knew was that whatever element of surprise had vanished in that explosion ...... They had little option now but to get inside before Orpk could set off any further deterrents. One by one the team scrambled up the logs and jumped for the window, dropping into a wooden floor backs against the wall of the cabin. First impressions said it was every bit your more expensive log cabin, wood burner, long low couches, a bar:
=^= Tan .. This is Murdoch =^=
=^= Go ahead =^= Tan replied, seeing Clancy glance at him before continuing to surveil the large area.
=^= Higgins is gone .. He was with me .. I turned around and he was being dragged into the forest .. I caught sight only of his feet and lower legs as he was being pulled over the treeline .. There was screaming not all from a human though =^=
=^= Go after him .. Keep your eyes open .. Get back here the moment you have him .. Tan out =^=
The four of them: Tan, Clancy, de Luca, and Ogden, took in the room.It hadn't gone unnoticed that despite all the commotion, no-one had sprung out to greet them. David instructed them to check the room before they made a decision on their next action ... There were two large exits, one presumably leading to the front of the cabin, one leading deeper into the structure. This room resembled more reception than living or sitting room, given the size of the cabin it made sense that this wouldn't be the main living area, that, he assumed, would be further into the building itself.
"We could separate." Elena suggested, moving slowly towards the back of the room, "It's a given that Orpk would be further into the structure, possibly in a sub-level."
"Ogden, you'll remain here, make sure anyone coming from there is stopped." David said, pointing towards the large open-plan doorway Elena was stood beside, "We'll clear this level and then, if needed, look for any possible sub-level."
"What about Murdoch and Higgins ?" Ogden asked.
"Check the front entrance, if it's clear contact Murdoch, let him know he can use the front door." Tan ordered, moving out of the room, Clancy and de Luca close behind ..... The next room was almost identical to the first, but this one had more doors, three along each wall, a window separating them. Elena walked to one of the windows:
"We're at the overhang point." she informed the others.
"OK, so at least we only have one level to search from here on in." Tan said with a hint of sarcasm. Elena opened the first door cautiously, her phaser sweeping through a precise arc before she spoke.
"Not one to be a little finicky here, but has anyone noticed a glaring inconsistency with this cabin ?" the other two looked at her with blank faces so she continued, "Doors ... Windows ... All on the same wall ?" Tan and Clancy continued to look at her so she pushed the door open and stood aside. Only then did the two Senior Intel' Officers realise what she was referring to !
David approached the door and looked into what appeared to be a music room, a grand piano stood in the middle of the floor, a cello on a stand close by, several metal music stands were along the right wall, some holding sheet music. Large floor to ceiling windows ran the length of the opposite wall. he took several steps back, eyes fixed on the piano, then he glanced left and right at the tall windows set into the log wall. moving to the left window he looked out and could see the steep slope of the hillside. Returning to the room he again looked at the piano.
"Bloody hell." was all he could come up with, "Why would he set the cabin out like this ?" as Iorte too did the double-take at the seemingly impossible room.
"That Ferengi certainly has a vivid imagination ....." Elena said, moving to the next door, stopping short of opening it, "Hell, there could be hundreds of rooms secreted within the outer parameters of the cabin. We could search for days, weeks, months, without entering the same room twice." something had occurred to Tan while de Luca was speaking, he put one foot into the music room and peered along the walls, no other exits, that at least was something.
Cautiously, they moved from room to room, each one different, a Gymnasium, Swimming Pool, Library, Ornate dining Room, complete with classical chandeliers adorning the twenty four place table. The last room on the right was a Study, but this room differed from the others, this one had a door on the opposite wall !
"Well ?" Elena asked as the three stood in the main room.
"We don't have any option." Tan said, entering the Study, Clancy followed, as did de Luca. The room look more like something from an eighteenth century mansion than a log cabin in the woods, each wall had shelves full of books, the long windows looked out on the valley. He looked at the door situated behind the ornate desk.
"Sugges ......" he stopped speaking, eyes fixed on the wall. Where they had entered the room, the wall behind them was now bare, no shelves containing unknown volumes, just four large portraits. But more worryingly, no door !
"We just walked thro ......" Elena said as she too realised the door had vanished.
"There's a long corridor through here." Clancy said, stood beside the now open second door ..........
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Iorte Clancy
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Mar 9, 2016 17:58:55 GMT
Posts: 252
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Post by Iorte Clancy on Jun 22, 2019 19:51:43 GMT
Clancy had to think that Orpk had surveillance equipment in place around and probably inside the log cabin, it would explain why the bathroom outhouse had exploded while the team had been in reasonably close proximity (Orpk had seen them on his screens, had triggered the bomb), however, so would an automated detonator programmed by Orpk before the program was run, or perhaps the Ferengi had been standing upon a height watching their activity from hundreds of metres away. He could've started away from the cabin around the time the Intel officers had entered, or may have been absent from the cabin this whole time.
Iorte disregarded the portraits on the now-sealed wall behind them - not noticing that they presented likenesses of the four officers who'd entered: Tan, de Luca, Ogden and himself - and moved through the open doorway.
Heading down the corridor, he found there were doors either side at irregular intervals. The three officers opened different doors, hoping to find through at least one of them another corridor, or a room with a door - anything that would allow them to continue through the cabin. Through one door, Iorte found another smaller door set close to the first within a two inch wooden frame; opening it, he found another door, smaller still, and so on telescopically until he was pulling the tiny handle of a two inch by one inch door, behind which was a small space containing nothing. Grunting, he extricated his upper half from the sequence of doors. The next door along opened out onto the interior of a Dyson Sphere - presumably an illusion, the kind of holosuite available to Orpk would have trouble storing enough information to map anything larger than, say, the planet Mars.
They continued in this - at first - seemingly futile exercise for 30 minutes. "At least the corridors seem fairly regular," he commented. The others knew well of his eidetic memory. "I've been building a mental picture of the passageway layout; it approximates a diamond lattice structure as seen from one side."
"There wouldn't be enough space for all those corridors, hardly enough to recognise a pattern let alone a diamond lattice."
"It's not just the rooms, the cabin in its passageways alone is larger on the inside than on the out... But it doesn't repeat forever. Recall the two instances in which we were confronted with blank walls - no doors and no windows - on one side. At no point did we see doors or windows materialising or dematerialising... Thus, since after entry, we've found the edges of the cabin."
"Thankfully it's all on one floor. Let's stay on the land-side, find a way down to the subterranean level." The three made their way to what they believed to be the land-side. As they entered a white and black chequered space roughly the size of a typical starship conference room, Murdoch made contact; he'd found Higgins badly maimed, unable to walk and severely concussed; speech was apparently affected, and thus Murdoch had been unable to learn anything about the unfortunate officer's assailant, other than what he could garner from the man's wounds.
From Murdoch's description, Iorte thought he recognised some of the wounds and a possible cause, he looked at the others, "That sounds like a Phorx-ku attack, or something distinctly like it." Like many others on the base, he had read the mission reports of the USS Raven and USS Maracanda transmitted during their respective, staggered returns to Starbase.
"No Phorx could've made it here. Wait... Orpk knows a few people... The Ferengi who was part of the crew of the escaped Bajoran ship returned to the base by the Enzio -"
Iorte nodded, "The profile we built of him stated he was familiar with Orpk. They were commercial competitors on Beta Promenade before the Betreka event. Orpk's success drove him out of business, and they've had contact - not all friendly - since, several times since the Enzio returned him to the Starbase."
"Is it possible that Bajoran ship brought something back with it?"
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 22, 2019 23:22:55 GMT
If nothing else, David was thankful that comms still appeared to be working within the holo-suite .... They had spoken to Murdoch who had informed them about Higgins:
=^= Can you get him back to the lodge ? =^= Elena asked.
=^= I could .. Not sure how he'll fare with his injuries =^= Murdoch replied.
=^= Do what you can .. .. Get to the lodge and come through the front door .. Do not under any circumstances move from the entrance until contacted =^= Tan instructed the man.
The Comm closed and David again shook his head, if Orpk was indeed watching their every move, there was no telling what could be behind the next door, or the next, or the one after that ! ..... At least they were now aware that any plain wall was in fact the 'outer' parimeter of the lodge, what good it would do them was yet to be seen. He was about to speak when de Luca spun around, phaser leveled at the doorway.
"Elena ?" he asked quietly, aiming his own weapon through the still open door.
"I could have sworn ....." she said, inching towards the darkened opening. Tentatively she peered left and right, her vision limited by the door frame. Inching further forward she reached the threshold and gingerly looked beyond the door, "..... Everything has moved, again ... The corridor only goes to our left now."
"Well if this is the outer wall, then left would be about right, right ?" Ogden commented, the others could only shrug in unison.
"We can't remain here, so it's go out into the corridor or burn through the wall." de Luca said.
David moved to hid left until he reached the only window. Looking out he confirmed that they were still oved solid ground, or at least, as solid as it appeared given their location. he agreed that they needed to back-track and find any access to the sub-level. How they were going to manage that was yet to be seen. They moved out, finally coming to yet another door, Clancy opened it and then looked at the others:
"Two doors." he informed them.
"As if things wearn't complicated enough." Ogden said, moving up to stand beside clancy before leaning into the room, "Well, if Clancy is correct, which he undoubtedly is, then going right takes us further from the front door, so I'd suggest we take the left opt ......" she stopped speaking as a low, gutral growl suddenly periated the air. Everyone spun, trying to cover a full three sixty degrees. Ogden looked at the right hand door in the room, a moment ago it was closed, now it was ajar, darkness oozing through the small opening between door and frame.
"Great, not only the worlds most annoying maze, now it's got wildlife." de Luca muttered.
"Could it be whatever attacked Higgins ?" Clancy asked.
"How did it get inside ?" David countered, "I say we go left, before our 'friend' out there decides to visit." he whispered as the Comm chirped to life, he held his hand over the 'badge as the Intell Officer began to speak:
=^= Murdoch to Tan .. I'm outside with Higgins .. I've stabilised the bleeding but he needs medical help before he looses too much blood .. .. .. Tan .. de Luca .. Anyone ? .. .. .. .. =^=
=^= Understood .. Get inside when you can .. Tan out =^= David whispered into his jacket. He motioned with his phaser towards the left-hand doorway. Ogden, followed by de Luca and clancy shuffled along the wall until they were through the door, Clancy then aimed his own phaser at the opposite door and nodded. David looked at the darkness beyond the door then moved left. As he passed through Iorte closed the door firmly. The room fell into utter and complete darkness ! .... For several seconds no-one spoke, then Elena asked if anyne was in physical contact with anyone else. Hands fumbled in the darkness until the four could confirm they were all in contact with at least one of the others. Clancy, still with his back to the door, said he would take the lead across the room. Resembling some bizarre conga line, each with one hand on the shoulder of the person in front, the four shuffled across the room, now and them bumping into one piece of furniture or another. Finally, Clancy said he had a hand on the wall, hopefully the one they were aiming for.
He took the hand of Ogden, who was behind him, and placed it against the wall, she did likewise with de Luca and Tan.
"Feel along the wll, there must be a handle of some discri ....." Tan was saying as a unholy boom assaulted their hearing, seconds later it was repeated, like the largest fist slamming into a solid door, it sounded yet again, each time louder than the first. Had they been able to see, he had no doubt that the door opposite would be rattling on it's hinges as whatever was on the other side slammed into it repeatedly.
"I've found it !" de Luca said suddenly. Turning the cold metallic lever quickly she pulled on the door with no effect, then pushed on it. It swung open silently revealing a white on white rectangle of light. Without hesitation they all entered the new room.
"Bloody hell." Elena said ... The room was a nursery of some sort, old fashioned rocking chair, a train set, jack-in-a-box slowly swaying from left to right, dolls in long dresses, soldiers in uniform, plus a miriad of other playthings.
"Is it just me, or are all these things looking at us ?" Ogden said nervously.
"It's your imagination." Clancy said a little more sturnly than he had intended.
"Orpk couldn't have come up with this scenario, I'm not having it !" de Luca said defiantly.
"Hardly matters at this point Elena." David said, silently agreeing with her observation, "Let's get to the front of this menagerie and find the sub-level."
A room away, Agent Tribecy glanced down at his companion, and smiled ..........
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Elena de Luca
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Dec 14, 2009 0:38:17 GMT
Posts: 266
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Post by Elena de Luca on Jun 27, 2019 0:08:44 GMT
They had been moving along the wall in an attempt to find an exit when further along a rectangle of light appeared ....
"Sir ?" Murdoch said from the doorway.
Everyone headed toward the open door, Murdoch moving aside to allow them into the corridor.
"How did you find us ?" Elena asked.
"I managed to get Higgins inside, Whatever attacked him was nowhere in sight. I managed to stem the blood flow from the gnawing in his leg, he needs medical assistance but he's awake and stable for the time being. When you didn't get back to the front of the lodge Higgins suggested I go looking for you."
"Did you find any access to the sub-level ?" Tan asked as they made their way back to the foyer of the lodge.
"There are two doors, both appear to lead downwards, given your instructions I didn't want to risk investigating until we were all back together." Murdoch explained. Elena walked over to where Higgins was laying on a long settee, blood had seeped from the wounds in his leg and arm until it stained the white fabric.She checked the makeshift dressing and decided she couldn't improve on it. Higgins asked where the thing was that had dragged him off, but no-one could answer.
"I don't suppose this Ferengi thought to stash phasers around the place ?" Higgins asked.
Tan had moved over to the door to the left ... Glancing through the nearby window he could see the smoldering remains of the outhouse, the thick wood beyond. Looking to his right, where he would have normally seen the wall encompassing the stairway, there was nothing. He approached the door and tentatively turned the handle before pushing on the door. It swung inwards revealing a dark corridor beyond.
"It's likely that both doors lead down to the sub-level." de Luca said from behind David, "Given what's happening in here I'd be reluctant to split us up again."
"Agreed ....." Tan said, returning to the others, "..... Ogden, with us. Murdoch, you stay up here with Higgins, try to find a way to contact the outside. There has to be at least one auxiliary interface behind one of these walls ... Those outside will undoubtedyl be trying everything to gain access. We'll take this door down. If it doesn't pan out we'll come back up the same way."
"Understood." Murdoch confirmed.
Elena, David, and Iorte passed through the door and began down the corridor. Behind them, Ogden found a poker beside the ornate fireplace and jammed it into the door-frame, effectively stopping the door closing unexpectedly. He could hardly see the three Senior Intelligence Officers now as they turned and began to decend the stone stairs to the sub-level .....
The staircase turned in a lazy curve until they suspected they were well below ground level. It ended in a dimmly lit corridor.
"Great." Elena muttered, her exhasperation clear to the other three ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jun 30, 2019 16:03:58 GMT
"Not that I'm trying to sound pessamistic you understand ...." Elena comtinued, ".... But isn't this 'corridor' thing wearing a little thin."
"Maybe Orpk's imagination has wained." Ogden said as he peered down the gloomy corridor.
"Well, we have little option but to go on." David said, looking back up the stairway shrouded in semidarkness, "I doubt the Ferengi will have peppered this level with ucless chambers. He hid this wel, so maybe heassumed he didn't need the myriad or surplus rooms ... Let's go."
The four of them began moving into the ever-growing darkness. Tan couldn't quite understand why Orpk would keep it so dark down here, after all, this sub-level wasn't supposed to be visited by anyone but him .... They came across two doors opposite each other, Tan took the left, Clancy the right - With a nod from Tan they opened the doors simultaneously, no light illuminated the rooms, It was clear that both were bereft of everything but a couple of chairs and a table in each. Sighing, David closed his door, Iorte doing likewise. As they moved on, they heard something, a scraping sound, coming from behind them.
Everyone put their backs to the walls, eyes straining into the inpenatrable darkness. They couldn't even see the sparce illumination that had been comming from the stairs ... Again they heard the sound, as if something was trying to negotiate the stone stairs. Seconds later the scraping came again.
"Another one of Orpk's tricks no doubt." Ogden whispered.
"Any chance it could be whatever attacked Higgins ?" David asked, but they agreed that the thing outside couldn't have gained access without one of the two Intel Officers raising the alarm.
"I'll hold back. Raise the alarm if whatever it is comes this way." Ogden whispered. Reluctantly Tan agreed. He, de Luca, and Clancy began to move forward, in the gloom they could see what appeared to be another pair of rooms. As Tan put his hand on the handle of the one on his left a terrible shreek eminated from the other end of the corridor. Everyone was frozen for a second as they took in the horrific scream, then there was complete silence ! .... Do they press on, or go back ? .... Tan made a decision:
"Elena, stay here, Iorte, with me." Before de Luca could object the two moved back along the corridor intil they reached the staircase. Ogden was nowhere to be seen. David wasn't one hundred percent sure, but he couldn't help but think that the substance beneath his feet was blood.
"Do we go back up ?" Clancy whispered.
"No. Whatever snatched Ogden has a means of getting down here without using the door we came through, that's obvious. We'll go back." The two once again retraced their steps until they met up with Elena.
"Where's Ogden ?"
"Gone." Clancy said, not elaborating on his reply. Elena looked at them both.
"What I wouldn't give for a working phaser." David said, looking at the doors.
Taking hold of the handle, again he opened the door to the room, which remained in complete darkness. He was about to close it when he heard something ... Not the same as before, this was more subtle, he glarred into the darkness of the windowless room trying to pick out anything but it was too dark. Stepping over the threshold he reached along the wall to his left, sliding his foot along the floor as he did so.
"There's someone in here ..... Right far corner !" de Luca whispered urgently. David changed direction, moving cautiously in the direction indicated. His foot met something and he stopped, crouching down he felt from his boot outwards and contacted something moving. In the complete darkness there was no way to identify what or who they had discovered, David took a firm hold of what he realised was a boot, and pulled backwards. Clancy, seeing Tan struggle reached forward to help, seconds later they looked down on a bound and gagged Ferengi. Eye almost burting from their sockets the Ferengi was trying to communicate his plight, but Tan, de Luca, and Clancy were cautious .... After a brief discussion it was agreed they would remove the gag.
David reashed forward, the Ferengi tried to shuffle back, away from his hand. Elena knelt, putting her finger to her lips, whispering that they were going to remove the gag, but he must remain completely silent. The Ferengi nodded and David untied the knot,the second it was removed the Ferengi tried to scream, but Elena had been expecting it and had thrust her hand over his mouth before a sound was uttered.
"You want the gag back ?" she whispered, the Ferengi shook his head vigerously. Tentatively, she released the pressure, "You are Orpk, right ?"
"Yes." the Ferengi confirmed.
"Who did this to you ?"
"There is no need to whisper, sound cannot travel more than a few meters down here. As to who did this, I do not know ..... Untie me you ingrates ! ....." realising no-one was about to do his bidding, he hesitently continued, "I came in here to escape capture, this holosuite has had many modifications since installation, some of which, as you have discovered, cannot be manipulated from beyond these walls. Had things gone to plan I would have escaped while you continued to roam arond my maze until you died of starvation .... Alas ...."
"Who was with you ?" Clancy asked, eyes still flicking around the room nervously.
"I, I do not know." Orpk shouted, eyes flicking from the Intelligence Officers, to the open door, and back rapidly.
"You expecting someone ?" David asked, "There is someone else in here, someone you allowed in with you ... You can tell us who that is, or we will leave you to your friend ..... Well ?"
Unseen, outside the door, Agent Tribey glanced at the rugged fur of his companion, and smiled ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jul 9, 2019 22:12:48 GMT
"..... You expecting someone ?" David asked, "There is someone else in here, someone you allowed in with you ... You can tell us who that is, or we will leave you to your friend ..... Well ?"
"You need to get me out of here." the Ferengi said shakily.
"Well, that depends on you Orpk ...." David said, glancing at the doorway as if expecting someone to walk in on them, "As you can imagine, there are people trying to disable the protocols you set in place to avoid capture ... Same in here, we've been trying to find an exit since entering, it seems only you can provide us with a way out."
Orpk almost smiled, clearly thinking he somehow had the upper hand once more.
"Whenever you are ready." Elena said.
"Had there not been Starfleet outside I would have left you roaming endlessly around my labyrinth and left long before now." Orpk stood up and moved along the wall before reaching into a corner to activate a panel. He turned to grin at the Intelligence Officers then lowered his hand from the controls, "I believe we have an agreement to finalise before I open the door ?" Iorte strode forward to push the Ferengi away, he reached into the illuminated panel and began to activate controls. Frowning he tried once more, before turning to the smiling Orpk.
"You think I didn't encrypt the control panel ?" the Ferengi said, waving a finger in admonishment, "Now, shall we discuss my continued freedom once out of this holo-suite, along with ample recompense, shall we say, twenty bars of .... ?"
"Recompense !" Elena repeated, striding forward to grab the Ferengi by the throat.
"You will remove 'ALL' Security from my establishment ...." Orpk replied, suddenly finding the nerve, ".... You will recompense me for loss of business, and hardship ... Or we shall remain in here !" he sat down defiantly, his demands made.
"I'm assuming that your 'friend' will be asking for the same considerations ?" David asked.
"You are dealing with me." Orpk replied, his nervousness returning.
"Open the holo-suite up to my Officers and we will cede to your, requests." Tan said, his patience running thin. Orpk looked at him for a lokg moment as if weighing up his obviously limited options, then he got up and approached the panel again. Reaching in he entered a code, then stood back, eyeing the panel as if it were the first time he'd seen it. He moved forward to try again then turned to the others:
"I ... I ..." he stammered, eyes wide as he looked around the dark room, "My, access, my code, it ....."
"You can't get us out." Elena said with an exasperated sigh.
"The main panel !" Orpk said suddenly, "The main panel is at the front door of the cabin."
"..... and you think that because you've been locked out of this one you'll have better luck with the main panel ?" Tan asked, again glancing at the darkened doorway.
"Yes ... Well, possibly." Orpk said, clearly uncertain.
"Then lets go." Clancy decided, grabbing the collar of Orpk's jacket, "I assume you know the way ?" he asked the Ferengi.
"We'll back-track." David said, heading for the doorway, hesitating for a fraction of a second before stepping over the threshold into the dark corridor. 'Spooking myself too much' he thought irrationally as he realised the corridor was clear. With Tan taking the lead, fingers running along the wall as they walked, the group made their way back through the darkness until he finally stopped and turned to the others:
"Is it just me, or should we have reached the stairway by now ?" he was about to back-track when the sound of his foot-fall changed substantially. Elena, hearing the change, reached down in the darkness.
"The floor is wet." she stated simply, reaching down once again to confirm her finding, she placed the tip of one wet finger on her tongue, "It's water .... and it's rising." ..........
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Calli Valente
Starfleet Intelligence
"Don't get in my way."
Registered: Aug 4, 2010 21:19:10 GMT
Posts: 534
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Post by Calli Valente on Jul 10, 2019 0:46:47 GMT
Office of the Director of Intelligence Mezzanine - Level Eight Command Center - 17:10 hrs :: "Thank you for coming Calli." Admiral Lemond said as she was shown into the Directors office. "Admiral ?" "How are repairs going on the Raven ?" Lemond asked. "We should be ready to depart in a few days." Calli answered, suddenly wondering what this meeting was about. "OK, well as you know, David Tan, Elena de Luca, and Iorte Clancy are all working on this 'Orpk' issue, which is leaving me short of Senior Intel Officers ....." "Yes." Calli replied as Elise, the Admiral's Adjutant, handed her a cup of tea, "Thank you." "If you have time, how would you feel about helping out here until the Raven is ready to depart, I'm sure Admiral Torek will be OK with it, but if you are busy over there ....." Nia said, leaving the query open. "I'm pretty much useless over there to be honest, I'm sure it'll be fine. Anything interesting ?" "Before the Ferengi, Orpk, did his vanishing trick, we had received information that he may have met with someone ... Someone from this region." Nia said, sipping at the hot beverage before continuing, "One of our people, who gives us tidbits of actionable information now and then, said he saw Orpk in his bar with an Intelligence Officer who he couldn't identify." "You've made enquiries as to who it was I assume ?" Calli asked. "Yes ... From what we can gather he wasn't one of ours. Had we only arrived inthe region a week ago I could have forgiven the man for not reporting to either Admiral Tetsutaro or myself, but he didn't, and that has now become somewhat of a concern, given the current situation in Orpk's Emporium." "You think he could still be roaming around the Starbase ?" "Well, apart from a brief sighting: One of our Junior Officers mentioned in passing that the man spoke, however briefly, with Iorte Clancy prior to their entering the holo-suite, no-one seems to know who or where, the man is." "From what I hear we haven't been abale to gain access to the holo-suite, Orpk must be using something special." Valente said, enjoying her tea. Nia motioned to her Adjutant, who activated the large screen opposite her desk, she motioned for Calli to take a look: "For some unfathomable reason, this is the only image we have of this mysterious Intel' Officer. It's a little blurred, despite efforts to clear it up." Calli placed her cup on the Admiral's desk and got up, walking over to the screen, "Do you recognise him at all ?" "No, I don't, we haven't been able to make an identification then, strange." Calli said, squinting at the screen, "What's that, the shadow ?" she asked, pointing at an obscure outline beside the man. "We're not sure." Lemond said, getting up and walking around her desk, "Despite all our technology we can't even decide if someing is a shabow of something else." she said, more than a little annoyed. "Is it possible the man entered the holo-suite along with our Orpk ?" "It's possible, plausible. Despite our security systems there is no sign of the man apart from his brief appearance on Beta Promenade." Lemond replied. "I'm not sure what help I can be to be honest." "There 'has' to be some proof, some information, regarding this man ...." Nia said, asking Elise to refil their cups, "I can't believe that an organisation such as ours can be completely blind." Calli had sat back down now, her seat turned to face the screen. For a long moment she remained silent, deep in thought. "I know this is a long shot, but do you remember the issues we had when the El Alamein was first assigned to Intelligence, I seem to remember Admiral Tetsutaro having some problem with one of the assigned Officers over there ?" "Section Ninety Nine if I remember rightly." Lemond replied, asking her Adjutant to bring up all the relevant data, "He was connected to some arms manefacturer on Earth if I remember rightly, Section Ninety Nine was loking to acquire hardware ..... You can't think it's him can you ?" "No, he was taken off the Starbase well before our, departure. Last we heard he was serving and the President's pleasure." Calli said with a shrug. "So another dead end then." Nia said, enjoying the aroma off her hot drink, she thought for a moment, skimming through the Broski information scrolling on the screen opposite, then continued, "We've been out here over two years Calli, you don't think one of Section Ninety Nine could have remained aboard as a sleeper all this time do you ?" "To what end ?" Calli answered, Nia could only sit silently pondering. "With the Enzio out, Admiral Gheskori's office is free. I've commendeered one of our Tech's to assist you ...." Nia was saying as she saw the expression on Calli's face, "Don't worry, I'll clear it with Admiral Torek ...... I want you to try to find out who our mystery Officer, and his friend, if indeed he has one, are." "With respect Admiral ... Nia ... There are others better suited to this ....." "You mean better offices." Lemond replied with a grin, "OK, we'll shield the offices next door, they are ours anyway but a little more security can't hurt." "If I may, do you think the Section Admiral and Fleet Admiral Torek should be make aware ?" "Admiral Torek is on his way up here, I intend to disguss informing the Section Admiral when he arrives." Nia said with a smile, "It might be a long shot Calli, but I may as well make use of you while I can." "Understood." Valente said, getting up. Commander Paquin accompanied her to the office next door and introduced the Lieutenant assigned to assist her. "I'm next door commander, shout if you need anything." Elise said, leaving the room. Calli looked around the sparce room then sat at the large desk: "OK Lieutenant ....." Kli'st Ma'am, the young Officer confirmed, "OK, Lieutenant Kli'st, let's look at the surveillance from outside Orpk's Emporium when the man passed Commander Clancy." ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jul 17, 2019 22:32:12 GMT
"Water !" David said, not doubting Elena for a second ... He back-tracked down the almost pitch dark corridor but the room they had come from also seemed to have disappeared, "COME BACK THIS WAY." he shouted.
"Wasn't there a ....." Elena began.
"He's ... He's changing the parameters." Orpk sputtered.
"Oh ?" David replied, moving to stand only inches from the Ferengi, ".... and just 'how' is he doing that ?" realising that the water, still rising, was already above his ankles.
"I, we ..... He came to me with a proposition. One that would be very profitable for both of us." Orpk began explaining, "He had made contact with someone from this region, I don't know how. He said that we should work together, he would supply the money, while all I needed to do was set up the holo-suite to his very exacting specifications. There were, modifications I could not undertake, and told him so. He arranged for the work to be carried out while the Emporium was closed at night, I was to stay away, nor was I to enquire about the other one."
"The other one ?" Clancy asked, splashing his way across the corridor.
"Can this wait, I have the feeling we are going to be seriously wet if we don't find a way up." de Luca said.
"I can show you a way up ...." Orpk said quietly, "But you may be in more danger up there than down here."
"Up it is then." Tan said, pulling the Ferengi off the wall, "Lead the way."
They continued along the corridor, turning to the left, then right, before going along a narrow corridor. At the end was an old wooden door, Orpk reached up feeling along the wall and finally retrieved what he had been looking for. He put the key in the door and turned it slowly, everyone felt the water rushing away through the opening .... Climbing the stairs they reached a second door much like the one below, the Ferengi again used the key and they stepped into a bright hallway. Clancy took the 'key' off Orpk realising it was more electronic rather than metallic, obviously programmed to open the two doors.
"Will this work to get us out ?" he asked.
"No, only the two doors it opened. Despite being watched closely, I managed to put a few 'keys' around the simulation."
"Who is the man you were working with ?" Tan asked.
"I .... He said he was working for you, for Starfleet .... Intelligence." Orpk replied. The three Intel' Officers looked at each other puzzled.
"We need to find the others." David said, "Which way ?" Orpk looked at him for a long moment, then realised he hadn't explained:
"You cannot, at least, not without a long walk." the Ferengi said, seemingly pleased with himself.
"What do you mean ?" Elena asked, looking up and down the corridor. Orpk pointed to a window further along from where they were stood, she moved towards it then looked out, "David, Iorte." Leaving Orpk slumped against the wall the others walked over to where Elena was stood. She stepped back, allowing them access to the window.
"That, could be a problem." David commented needlessly as he looked out on the vast desert outside the window ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Jul 28, 2019 16:32:09 GMT
Moving back down the corridor, the water now at their waists, David snatched Orpk by the collar and shook him violently. The others, knowing the frustration going through their friends' mind, stood aside allowing him to vent his anger. Finally, he released the Ferengi, turning away more annoyed with himself than their situation ...
"Desert ?" Elena commented, Orpk just managed not to shrug as he eyed Tan, "I am going to assume there is a way out of the holo-suite if we go out there ?"
"There is, but finding it may prove troublesome."
"Oh ?" Clancy said, wading closer to the man, "Well it looks like it's go out there or drown in here."
With no other options open to them, they filed out into the glaring sun and sand .... Orpk indicated a direction and they began to walk single file towards the dunes in the distance .... Two hours of walking they approached the foot of a large dune, the sand shifting as they began the exhausting climb. David had noticed that the Ferengi was constantly looking in the direction they had come from, even though the cabin and the surrounding forest had disappeared the second they had passed through the door. He was clearly fearful of their being followed !
The Sun was still overhead, in fact as far as Tan could tell it hadn't moved one degree since they entered the desert, which was going to be a very serious problem sooner than later.
"Where are we going ?" Elena asked, turning to Orpk in time to see him sit facing down the slope.
"There is a, structure, beyond these dunes, one that will afford us shelter and water if my memory serves." the Ferengi said, wiping his brow and almost squeezing the dampness into his dry mouth, but the look from Elena stopped him, "I believe my, associate may have tampered with the parameters of my program much more than I had first thought."
He could see the other's looking at him, the scour returning to Tan's face.
"Climb to the top ... If you see anything then all well and good, if not, then ......" Orpk said before he began studying his hands intently. Tan had no option but to climb the rest of the way, almost laughing as he looked out toward the distant horizon. Orpk shouted up to him, saying he should look within the dunes and not out towards the rim. David did as instructed, eyes straining against the incessant glare overhead, then he thought he spotted something. Shielding his eyes with both hands he peered into the distance, yes, there was something, the haze making it impossible to identify, but there was definitely something ahead. He called to the others and Orpk warily climbed to his feet and began the climb ...
"What is it ?" Iorte asked.
The Ferengi didn't answer .... Taking one last look the way they had come, he began to make his way to the floor of the valley .... Another hour saw them closer to their goal.
"That's looks like a ....." Elena began.
"Ship." Clancy completed her comment for her. They turned to Orpk, who could only grin.
"Unusual, is it not." the Ferengi commented as he walked ahead of them towards the rusted husk. As they reached the ship it was clear it was a vessel used in Earths twenty first century, to carry crude or bulk oil, a fossil fuel used around that period. David looked at the vessel somewhat in awe of it's shear size.
"Jahre Viking." Elena read the name on the hull high above the sand, "Damn, this thing was probably as large as an Intrepid Class."
As they moved into the shadow of the behemoth, David realised that the simulation was in fact quite accurate. As he looked towards the Bow he could see that over time, sand had been blown against the hull almost two thirds of the way to the deck, corrosion had taken it's toll as gaping maws could be seen along the hull. He was about to ask Orpk where they could gain entry when the Ferengi spun to face the way they had come. For a moment he stood in complete silence then turned and headed for the hull almost at a run.
"Orpk ?" Tan said.
"We must get inside ..... It will be dark soon, the desert is not kind to those caught without shelter." David caught up to him, grasping his shoulder before spinning him around, Clancy and de Luca were both looking in the direction the Ferengi had been seconds earlier.
"Who is behind us, your friend, partner ... Who !?"
"We must get inside." Orpk said as somehow the previously stationary Sun was now setting behind the dunes. Tan could already feel the drop in temperature, reluctantly he released Orpk, who grasping David's arm, ran towards what Tan thought was a solid section of the hull, but as the Ferengi approached he didn't break his stride, both men passed through the metal as if it wasn't there, seconds later Iorte and Elena appeared within the rusted hull. The Ferengi grinned at their surprise as he stroked a small lapel pin on his tunic, "Without this, the shield will be solid to anyone investigating the hull closely."
"You said there was a way out from here." de Luca said, ignoring the mans boast. Orpk was about to reply when, from beyond the hull, a blood-curdling growl filled the air ..........
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Carl Torek
Command Staff ..
Site Executive Officer Ranks Officer
Fleet Admiral
"UTRINQUE PARATUS"
Registered: Jun 17, 2006 22:34:35 GMT
Posts: 6,164
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Post by Carl Torek on Aug 1, 2019 14:25:45 GMT
OOC : Posting as Vice Admiral Nia Lemond ...Admiral Lemond's Office Mezzanine Level Command Center ::
Lemond, now one of the higher-ranking Flag Officers on the Starbase had chaired the daily briefing and was now back in her office .....
"So you still have no means to access the holosuite ?" Nia asked those present, the frustration clear.
"There is still the option suggested yesterday." one of the Senior Engineers present suggested.
"You said there was no way to accomplish a transport, are you now saying it's possible ?" the Director of Intelligence asked.
"Well, we know that whatever is shielding the holosuite is plausibly powering it too given we have isolated the structure completely from the starbase ....." Commander Larok said, picking up one of the PADD's before continuing, "We've been looking at the readings from the holosuite on the El Alamein, Lieutenant Demik thinks if we alter the reconstitution matrix to allow for the variation within the 'suite, we could, should, be able to successfully re-materialise someone inside the program. As for weapons, we wouldn't know until they were inside."
".... and how would you know if you were successful may I ask ?" Nia replied.
"We would not, at least, not until they were able to contact us from, inside the holosuite." the Vulcan Engineer answered.
"Just 'who' do you plan to test your theory on may I ask ?" Doctor Adama asked.
"Myself and Commander Massa will attempt the transport." Larok said.
"How long before you can try this out ?" Lemond asked.
"We can adapt one of the emergency transporters on Level Fourteen, fifteen minutes should suffice." Mass answered.
Emergency Transporters Level Fourteen ::
Armed with a phaser each, along with an adapted hand-held communicator, Massa and Larok stepped onto the platform. Lemond stood meters away eyeing the two men nervously, she, like them, knew that if their calculations were a fraction off, or if despite their efforts, transporting into the holosuite simply wasn't possible, then both men could die whilst materialising !
"We are ready." Larok stated. Lemond turned to the Transporter Officer and nodded. She almost wished them 'good luck' as the two disappeared. Moments passed with no means to confirm they had been successful, all they could do was wait .... Suddenly the Comm chirped to life:
=^= Larok to Admiral Lemond .. We appear to have been successful .. .. .. =^=
=^= Understood Commander .. Any signs of our perso .. .. .. =^= she began but then the Comm was replaced by heavy static.
"What's happened ?" she asked.
=^= .. .. .. Larok to Starbase .. We appear to have lost your signal momentarily .. We are approaching a large wooden structure .. Report will follow .. Out =^=
Before Nia could reply, the El Alamein's Chief Engineer had severed the Comm link. All she could do now was wait for them to make contact once more. Sighing, she told the Transporter Officer she would be in her office if there were any developments. Leaving the Transporter Room with her Adjutant, she stepped into the turbo-lift and requested 'Command Center' ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Aug 7, 2019 15:46:41 GMT
Everyone froze to the spot as the howl rang out .....
"What the 'HELL' was that !?" Elena asked in the following silence.
"There are, what you may call 'safety protocols' embedded within the program." Orpk said shakily, he looked around him as if expecting to be pounced upon any moment, then he walked to Tan placing hands on the Intelligence Officers' shoulders, "You have to get us out of here, you have to get us out of here now !"
".... and why would that be ?" Clancy asked.
"The 'protocols' were set to, dissuade any interlopers from moving further into the program, Once they heard the hound they would, hopefully, retreat, calling for the exit before going further." the Ferengi explained, pausing again to look around them. The fear in his expression was clear, "My 'associate' has taken it upon himself to make changes, as you are already aware, the beasts were nothing more than vocalisations, directed to urge anyone to turn around, but now ...."
"Now ?" David asked, removing the Ferengi's hands.
"You do not understand .... I had amassed numerous items prior to our unexpected relocation. I had planned to sell off my, inventory, and return to Ferenginar to take my rightfu ...."
"What have you got hidden in here Ferengi ...?" Clancy asked dangerously, "... and why the need for all this secrecy ?"
"I have a, small amount of, Bio-mimetic gel." everyone stood in stunned silence at the mans declaration. The substance, outlawed by every sentient race throughout the known Galaxy, was tantamount to holding a means to end all life. How the Ferengi had come about such a substance was unknown. That he had it at all was a crime punishable by death on some worlds, the fact that it was on the Starbase may have made them a target for any ruthless entrepreneur hoping to benefit from owning the substance.
"I'm going to assume that your 'associate' learned of your acquisition ?"
"He said he was from a clandestine division of Intelligence ...." the Ferengi said, pulling away from Clancy and the others, ".... He 'knew' things, things about me, my dealings, my vault !"
"That vault of yours, it's inside the holosuite ...?" Elena asked, Orpk nodded, "... But that can't be. All this is fake, it has no substance outside the program." she finished, shaking her head in disbelief.
"As you are aware by now, this 'program' has some unique properties. I spent a lot of money having this particular suite modified, but Agent Tribecy said he could guarantee it's impregnability as he called it, for a cost ... He wanted an equal share of the profits from the sale of the Bio-mimetic gel. Prior to our little 'adventure' I had a buyer lined up in the Talerian Republic. Tribecy said he knew someone who would pay more. He said he would introduce me to someone very interested in my commodity. The alternative was for him to take all of it for himself. Of course, I would meet with some unfortunate accident in the process, so I had little option but to, agree."
"But that no longer matters, given our location." Tan commented.
"I had the distinct feeling that the purchaser wasn't Telerian ...." Orpk said quietly.
"Oh ?" Clancy urged, "Why would that be ?"
"Because I had never set eyes on the man until approximately two months ago." the man replied. Everyone looked at each other, no-one wanting to voice what was going through their minds. Their thoughts, however ominous, were interrupted as the air was filled with another deep growl.
"You never did say what that was." Elena commented.
"I'm sure you are familiar with the Klingon pet, the targ ....?" Orpk replied nervously, watching everyone nod in unison, ".... Well, these are their less stable kin. Agent Tribecy reprogrammed my vocalised deterrent, he thought it quite amusing to populate the program with these, beasts. I strongly suggest you do not come face to face with one, believe me. They have been programmed to be somewhat larger than their cousins, feral doesn't come close to them. They have been programmed purely to kill and devour their prey without hesitation."
"THEY !" de Luca spat.
"How do we avoid them ?" David asked.
"You don't .... They have been tracking us from the moment we left the cabin. Oh, your 'Agent' was very specific in his re-programming. He didn't want them sat waiting for anyone coming through the door, oh no, he wanted those unfortunates to suffer, so he made sure anyone entering without his permission would have time to contemplate their upcoming demise. There are six of them by the way." he finished, glancing at de Luca as he answered her question.
"We have to find a way out of here." Clancy commented needlessly.
"Oh I'm afraid that unless my associate returns, there is no chance of our making an escape. Those things will hunt us down without mercy. I thought that if I could reach one of the auxiliary panels, there may be a chance. I had mistakenly believed that I would be safe inside being in league with the Agent, but it seems I too was betrayed." he dropped his head, beginning to sob ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Aug 15, 2019 22:47:06 GMT
Holo-suite Approaching Log Cabin :: Milo Van and Nate Massa had been moving through the forest for over three hours .... They had realized within minutes that they were in here for the duration, not having found a means to activate the exit or close down the program. "There." Van said, pointing through the trees to an elaborate log cabin structure. The two approached, wary of the fact that several people had already vanished within the program .... They couldn't circumnavigate the structure as a large portion was overhanging a steep drop, so had little option but to check out what they could before risking entering. Moving past the front of the cabin they came across the destroyed structure adjacent to the main building, it was clear that it had been destroyed by an explosion. "OK, we enter ?" Van said, looking over at his Chief Security Officer. "Doesn't look like we have much option." Massa conceded as the two made their way around to the large double doors .... Nate approached, gingerly leaning forward before placing an ear against the door. He could see Milo shaking his head, a wry grin on his face. "You know that door is likely to be solid." Van commented as he reached for the handle. drawing the phasers they still didn't realise were useless, he tentatively he turned the ornate brass knob clockwise until he heard the click signifying the latch or bolt had slid beyond the strike plate. Nodding to Massa he applied pressure, the door swinging silently on it's hinges. Releasing it he allowed it to swing aside he panned his phaser in an arc to cover the large room beyond ... He stepped inside, eyes darting left and right, Massa was a meter behind as they moved forward. "Looks empt ....." Milo began as he felt something being pushed into his lower back. "Hands, now !" someone said. Nate spun, coming face to face with a woman. She was holding what looked like a poker from the large stone hearth. Reluctantly both lowered their weapons. "Commander Van. Commander Massa ...." Milo said, ".... and you would be ?" "Starfleet Intelligence." the woman answered cryptically. "Sarcasm doesn't become you." Nate said, moving past the weapon being pushed against his side. He sat down, eyeing the three who were apparently under the assumption that they were prisoners, "You are clearly new at all this, so I'm going to let your nervousness account for your actions. We're from the El Alamein, Captain Komin Commanding. We were assigned to Intel' some time ago ... Now, names ...... Please." Murdoch, Higgin's, I'm Ogden." the woman said, dropping into one of the settee's. "Where are the others ?" "We, don't know." Ogden admitted, "Higgins was hurt, attacked by, something. Tan, Clancy, and de Luca went after the Ferengi ... They went through the door on the left, there ....." she pointed to a room at the other end of the vestibule. Milo got up and walked across the room, then turned back to the others: "No door." he said simply. "Yes, they went through it down into the cellar !" Murdoch insisted, getting up to approach Van, he stood staring at the wooden paneling trying and failing to find the door he knew had been there hours earlier. He turned to Van, his confusion evident, "This place is always bloody changing, the door was there, I stood at the top of the stone steps watching them go down after Orpk. I shut that door myself before going back to the others." So how do we follow them ?" Nate asked ..........
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Elena de Luca
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Dec 14, 2009 0:38:17 GMT
Posts: 266
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Post by Elena de Luca on Aug 24, 2019 23:41:36 GMT
Supertanker Desert Region :: "We have to find a way out of here." Clancy commented needlessly. "Oh I'm afraid that unless my associate returns, there is no chance of our making an escape. Those things will hunt us down without mercy. I thought that if I could reach one of the auxiliary panels, there may be a chance. I had mistakenly believed that I would be safe inside being in league with the Agent, but it seems I too was betrayed." he dropped his head, beginning to sob. Alas, Elena had had enough of the Ferengi's whining and strode over, slapping the man hard across the face, Orpk recoiled from the attack screaming in frustration and possibly embarrassment. "Get the hell onto your feet and start to think Ferengi, or a smack in the mouth is going to be the least of your worries." de Luca spat. "Orpk, there has got to be some way of deactivating the phase discriminator, surely your 'colleague' let you know how to activate and deactivate the device ?" Clancy said quietly, playing the 'good cop' ... "Yes, and he indeed did, but I have the feeling that any good will or agreement we previously have he has nullified, thus the hounds." the Ferengi said, flinching as Elena turned her attention to him once more. "These 'hounds' as you are so cutely calling them ....." Tan began, pausing to think before continuing, ".... you said they were holographic ?" "Yes, but with the safeti ....." "Yes, yes, we know. Safeties off and they are as real and deadly as the real thing, we get it." David interrupted the man, "Am I right in thinking that given their 'state' they would need to obey the rules in here as much as we do ?" "I .... I on't underst ....." "We can't walk through walls in here right, so can they !?" de Luca asked. "No, of course not." the Ferengi said, suddenly emboldened with his knowledge of the holosuite, "Throw a rock at the wall and it would bounce off. Throw one of those things against the wall, and as well as getting extremely annoyed, it would bounce off too. Though I would not want to be in the room when it landed." he finished, attempting to inject humour into their dire situation and failing miserably. "OK, so if we could ''trap' them in one of the rooms, they would have to stay put !" Tan said, the spark of an idea forming, "Right, all we need to do is have someone to stand and make some noise, when the 'hounds' come to investi ....." "Won't work." Orpk interjected, shying away as all eyes fell upon him, "They are hunters .... If we split up, then so will they, you would trap one, maybe two at most." he finished as Elena clicked her fingers. "What about the holds ?" she asked, "This ship is based on an old twenty first century bulk carrier, oil, gas, who knows, but it would have had compartmentalised holds with access from the keel for inspections, servicing or the like. They used to have ladders too, up to the deck if my memory serves." "How do you know this ?" Orpk asked, admittedly as surprised as the rest. "I saw one once, in the old Smithsonian. One of the holds had been converted into a visitor center type thing, one was a Café .... Hey, I used to visit these places, once." she said by way of explanation. "OK, so we head for one of the holds, make a fuss and hope are keen to get at out collective throats." Tan said getting up and heading for the door. "WAIT !" the Ferengi said, the fear in his tone obvious, "I can't climb up some ladder !" "You have hands and feet, you'll climb." Clancy said, grasping his shoulder and pushing him towards the door ..... Supertanker Bulk Hold Four :: As they pushed the rusted door aside, David risked peeking inside. he was surprised by the vastness of the space, realising these vessels must have transported many tonnes of fuel cargo across the Earths oceans in their time. They had been sure to open every bulkhead door on their route while trying to be as quiet as possible given the last thing they wanted was their predators to come hunting before they were ready ... Stepping inside, the others following suit, he looked up at the sky visible through the semidarkness, toward a seemingly tiny opening atop the ladder on the opposite bulkhead. "Any thoughts on how we invite our friends ?" Elena asked. "We could throw him in the corridor ....." Iorte said with a wry grin, "..... Pretty sure his screeching will get their attention." Orpk had been backing away while they spoke, but as everyone turned in his direction he froze to the spot shaking his head vigorously. "No, they would be on him before he got across the hold." David reluctantly admitted. "One of us then." Elena said with a shrug ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Aug 26, 2019 17:18:12 GMT
Orpk began to run across the hold, fear, an acute sense of self-preservation dictating his actions ... David shook his head as he looked back at the hatch they had entered through ... The ship was resting at an angle of approximately fifteen degrees, likely some quirk of Orpk's to make it look realistic he supposed but it would hinder climbing somewhat. The climb, from the floor of the hold, up to the deck level, was almost eighty feet, something not lightly attempted ..... He could hear the hunters now, systematically making their way towards their prey if all went well they were going to be disappointed. Glancing back he could see the Ferengi, a quarter of the way up and already struggling. "Start up, there's no point in us all being stood at the foot of that ladder when they arrive." Tan ordered. One by one they began to climb, watching as Tan stood in the doorway, hands on the steel door, the ladder was on the opposite side of the hold and in the opposite corner, roughly three hundred thirty feet, so both would have ample time to start up before they were reached, he hoped. "They're here ...." he said almost under his breath as he saw the first of the hounds round the corner some seventy meters away, and he was beginning to ponder the validity of the idea. Backing behind the bulkhead door he banged hard on the wall ..... Through the gap between the door and bulkhead he could see the targ's all shoot their heads around and begin running. He looked at the climbers, surprised at the Ferengi's turn of speed as the others began to catch up. He looked back at the animals, they barrelled through the door into the vast open space of the cargo hold, skidding to a stop as they sought their victims. They located what they were here for and began to run ... David waited for a second then stepped around the door, with one last look at the massive beasts, he slammed the door home and snapped the latches into place. So unless these animals could open the door, or climb a rung ladder, they were going nowhere ! Running the length of the corridor he began to sprint up the flights of stairs leading to the deck ..... As he burst into the sunshine he could see two of them had already reached the deck level and were talking. It was only as he began to approach them that he realised something was amiss. The metal hatch that protected the hold from seawater was no longer open ! ... He could see the Ferengi speaking with someone but couldn't recognise who it was from their group. The man was laughing, almost taunting Orpk as he turned to see Tan still almost a hundred meters away. Grinning he slammed a fist into Orpk's temple and began to walk away as the Ferengi dropped like a stone. David increased his run rate but the other man didn't seen in any hurry, in fact he had slowed down, almost backing away from them as he watched proceedings. Grasping at the handles that secured the hatch, he realised why the man wasn't running. Elena and Iorte were still in the hold ! ... He looked up at the man, still stood some way off but making no attempt to escape, David realised he couldn't go after him while his friends were trapped, so he concentrated on the hatch. "Iorte ... Elena ... Can you hear me ?" he shouted as he pulled on the first handle without success. "He shut us in here." came Clancy's muffled reply. "It wasn't him ... His friend paid us a visit ... It was him ... Orpk is unconscious." "Can you release the hatch ?" de Luca asked. "I'm trying." he replied as the two trapped Intelligence Officers looked down at the bottom of the ladder where four of the targ's were watching them expectantly. "You might want to hurry ... David ... You need to be aware ... Only 'FOUR' of the hounds are in here with us !" Tan's head spun trying to cover a three sixty degree view as he looked for the animal. Thankfully it wasn't on deck with them, at least not at the moment. He got up, stepping over the prone Ferengi as he searched for something to use a leverage. Finding a metal rod he ran back and smacked it against the first handle, thankful that it moved slightly under the impact. He redoubled his efforts and the first of the latches gave way. Encouraged be began on the second when he heard the low, guttural grown. Looking up he could see the remaining targ, it was stood approximately fifty meters away, eyes locked onto him ..... The animal began to approach, an almost leisurely stride belaying it's intent. David kicked out at the Ferengi, then again, harder, until Orpk finally opened his eyes. "Get up !" he hissed, eyes on the targ. Orpk got to his feet then saw the animal, he gave a screech which made the targ halt as he looked from one prey to the other. Clearly realising the Ferengi was the weaker, it turned it's attention to him while glancing at Tan every other step. Looking round terrified, Orpk began to step backwards, the animal matching each stride yet closing the distance with each step. David saw the opening in the next cargo hold and shouted a warning to Orpk, but the man was petrified as the targ began it's run. He threw the metal rod, hitting the animal a glancing blow on it's skull as it passed, then it leapt from the deck at the petrified Orpk ... At that instant, the Ferengi stepped back one last time as his heel encountered the lip of the open hatch and he began to tumble backwards. The Targ clamped it's jaws around the Ferengi's throat as it and it's prey tumbled from sight. Two seconds later there was a sickening 'thud' as both impacted the floor of the hold ..... David knew he could do nothing for the man. He retrieved the bar and continued to work on the handles, finally releasing the last one he pulled open the cover to a much relieved Clancy and de Luca. He looked down at the clearly frustrated animals, now denied their feast, then slammed the cover back hard. "Where's Orpk ?" de Luca asked. He could only motion in the direction of the open hatch as he lowered his head. Both Officers looked into the hold then returned. There was nothing to be said .... "This has now become a murder hunt." Tan muttered as Iorte and Elena looked across the massive tanker ..........
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Nia Lemond
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Aug 11, 2019 20:06:27 GMT
Posts: 238
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Post by Nia Lemond on Aug 28, 2019 16:11:15 GMT
Level One Three One Five Unoccupied Level Section Delta Two - 14:15 hrs :: Sat in the darkened room, he watched the monitors closely ... The three Intelligence Officers in the cabin had been joined by two Officers from the USS El Alamein, the ship assigned to Intel. He had needed to act quickly to ensure those outside couldn't repeat the ingress, but he was satisfied no further breaches could be made without his knowledge. He had already decided he would throw those in the cabin the proverbial bone and allow them to 'discover' a way into the remainder of the simulation. 'Besides, there is no fun to be had watching five people walk around a room in circles' he thought ...
The three searching for him, or more likely, a way out of the holosuite, had met with the augmented targ's ... Alas, they had managed to trap all but one in the oil tanker, something he would need to rectify if they were to continue hunting the Humans. He had initially reentered the simulation in order to speak to Orpk, but the man was inconsolable and demanding, something he himself had little time for. They argued briefly until he saw one of the Intelligence Officers approaching along the massive deck. He had hit the Ferengi and ran, using his personal transporter to remove himself from the holosuite. The fifth targ had been on the deck only seconds behind the Intelligence Officer. It had sensed opportunity and had attacked his erstwhile partner, unfortunately, the Ferengi chose that moment to trip and fall into one of the holds, and both he and the targ perished ..... It was becoming clear now that he needed to rethink his future actions if he were to continue to thrive unopposed.
He reached down to stroke the semi-comatose targ-like beast lay at his feet, the template for the fearsome animals he he'd produced as deterrents to those attempting to usurp his activities. Sighing he stood, he needed to go back into the simulation to free his animals. As he walked across the room to the door, he glanced with almost a sense of regret at the corpse lay against the wall ...... 21:00 hrs approx :: "Who reported this ? Nia asked as she approached the door. "Maintenance and Engineering were working on the Level above this one ...." the Security Officer informed her, ".... They thought there was an issue with the plumbing down here and came to make sure, sewage, or anything else wasn't flooding the quarters. They were surprised when they realised it had power, but then they found the body." Nia instructed two of her Officers to accompany her then entered: The room was dank, musty, in semi-darkness. Understandable given these Levels had yet to be made safe for habitation following the disaster. She moved through what would be the living area to one of the bedrooms. Monitors lined one wall, a console before them ... She took an involuntary step back as she spotted the animal. "It's OK Admiral, the dog has been severely drugged, we have someone coming to remove it but it's safe to continue inside." the Security Officer already in the room advised. Nia looked at the monitors, eyes flicking to the targ every few seconds. It was clear that someone was monitoring the holosuite from here, but that wasn't why she had been called, that was against the opposite wall. "Identification ?" she asked. "Your man here has it." the Doctor said still kneeling beside the body. "We managed to identify him ...." one of her Officers said, "Though I have the feeling you are not going to like it .... Meet Agent Tribecy." "Tribecy. Isn't he the man we've been looking for in the Orpk issue ?" she said, moving a little closer, "That cannot be, this man has been dead days, if not longer." "He's been dead a month or more Admiral. I'll have an exact time and date after autopsy." the Doctor interjected, "May we remove the body ?" he asked, Nia nodded consent and stepped aside to allow the Medics to work. "This 'is' Tribecy, or at least that was one name he had on his file, we had to dig deep, but once we knew where to look ..... The only Tribecy found thus far was an Ensign on the Potomac, he died in a fire before we left Betreka." her Officer continued, watching the corpse being taken out on a mag-lev, "This guy apparently came aboard just before the disaster under the name of Atkins, trader. We're looking into him now and should have more by the time you get back to your office." she had a distinct feeling of foreboding as the man spoke: "Bloody hell, do you think he was 'Section Thirty One' ?" she asked, feeling the chill run down her spine, but the man could only shrug, "Hold on ... If 'this' is the mysterious Tribecy, then who the hell is running around using his name !?" Her Officer could only repeat the shrug. "You really should see the CMO about that shoulder twitch of yours Heaton." she said, heading for the door, "Set up ops, I want to know the second our enigmatic murderer returns." ..........
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Nia Lemond
Starfleet Intelligence
Registered: Aug 11, 2019 20:06:27 GMT
Posts: 238
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Post by Nia Lemond on Aug 29, 2019 22:14:50 GMT
OOC : Posting as Agent Tribecy ...Level one six six two Decommissioned Cargo Bay ::
Leaving his quarters he entered the turbo-lift and requested his desired Level, one six six two ..... The 'lift stopped three Levels above, something he had become accustomed to given the Cargo Bay he was heading for was supposed to be open to space. Stepping out he waited while the 'lift vanished toward it's next Level, then entered the Jeffries Tube to climb down the three Levels. He had managed to bypass controls to activate a force field and moderate atmosphere. It was dank, but he wasn't down here for the comfort, far from it !
The ship was overdue. He had been waiting for three days now, with no sign of the Alien ... He had risked too much to be double-crossed, and if the Alien didn't return with his goods then he would need to make alternate arrangements. He had never considered remaining aboard the Starbase, alas, fate had taken a hand in his plans, so now, almost sixteen thousand light years from anything resembling home, he was trying to make do. Checking the chronometer, he realised he needed to get back to the holosuite. With Orpk now dead, it was only a matter of time before the Intelligence Officers began to realise what was happening ... He needed to ensure they didn't survive their time in his simulation, but he also needed to make sure that any signs of his tampering was removed.
Truth be told, he had planned on using the holosuite for as long as his association with the Alien was fruitful, but between the meddling Ferengi, and the Alien's no-show, his plans needed to change.
Irritation was getting the better of him now as he paced a mere meter from the force field holding the atmosphere in the Cargo Bay, but eventually he realised the Alien wasn't coming ... Screaming in frustration he walked to the bulkhead and called for the turbo-lift, glaring at the massive opening to space as if willing his confederate to appear. The door slid open and he stepped inside ....
Level one fiver five four Beta Promenade ::
He sauntered past Orpk's Emporium, the establishment closed since Orpk fled into the holosuite mistakenly believing that Intelligence had discovered his association with the man posing as Agent Tribecy. Three shops down was a disused plot, it was from here that he could gain access to the holosuite ... He again passed, pausing outside a small vendors to wait for the right moment. When he was assured no-one was in sight he stepped into the small alcove separating establishments and pulled the sheet metal covering the passageway aside. Slipping inside he returned the sheet to cover his activity, then he moved along the service passageway running behind each establishment until he reached the closed shop.
Suddenly the small device, always in his possession, began to vibrate !
Taking the device from his jacket, he moved to the monitor on the wall and connected them both, the screen immediately showed views inside and outside the quarters he had been using. His eyes flicked from screen to screen as he watched Security and Intelligence moving from room to room ... How the hell had they found him ?
It mattered not now, they had found the monitors showing the interior of the holosuite, though they had no means of using the data to help those inside. They had also found the body of Agent Tribecy, that too was unfortunate but not terminal, he could still use the identification as it surpassed most levels of Security. It would be deactivated of course, but that was a given, but maybe not right away but when they realised he still had it, then these people had other things on their minds.
"Unfortunate ....." he said almost regrettably as he watched the woman giving orders. He took the device from the table and entered a code ... On screen, the Intelligence and Security Officers were following the woman into the corridor. After a moments contemplation he made his decision, "Now or never I suppose." he said to himself as he activated the device ..... Two hundred and thirty nine Levels above him, the room erupted in a ball of fire !
The bulkhead containing two large windows disappeared into space, the scant furniture following close behind. The door, still only half closed, buckled under the strain of the escaping atmosphere before force-fields and emergency bulkheads slammed into place, but not before five Officers had been pulled into the room and thrust into space. Nia Lemond, was almost at the turbo-lift when the explosion occurred, she and the others were dragged off their feet and pulled along the corridor with the escaping atmosphere until the loss was stemmed. Gasping for breath, bruised and battered, she clambered shakily to her feet, the realisation of what had happened dawning on her by the second.
Answering the persistent Comm from Command, she confirmed she was alive but there had been losses. She ordered emergency Medical and Maintenance then sat down on the deck plates ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Aug 31, 2019 23:35:08 GMT
Aboard Supertanker Holosuite :: The three of them sat in silence for long moments until Elena finally stood .... "We should do something about his body, we can't leave him down there." she said. "Just what do you suggest ?" David asked, knowing he was being heartless, unfeeling, but given their circumstances he felt justified in asking the question. "We could at least get him away from that, animal." de Luca replied, already realising anything they did would be moot. "We need to prioritise." Iorte said, looking into the hold at the body of Orpk, "Getting out of here should be top of the list." "Hold on ...." Tan said, almost jumping to his feet, ".... When I came onto the deck Orpk was talking to someone .... With what happened I had completely forgotten about the man. I'm pretty sure he hasn't been in here for the duration, so it begs the question 'How is he coming and going' !" he walked to the rusted railing, eyes scanning the distance, in no hurry he moved to the other side and did likewise, there was sand as far as the eye could see, but that meant nothing in here, for all they knew, they could walk five meters and come across the next scenario Orpk had set up. "You think he has a means of getting out of the holosuite ?" Elena commented. "Unless he's bloody good, he has to have. Regardless of our 'surroundings' he couldn't have remained concealed since we entered." he said defiantly, "Lets go." He began to backtrack to the entrance to the deck level he had come through previously, Iorte and Elena close behind ... As they began moving down into the bowels of the enormous leviathan they discussed options, it was in a lull in the conversation that he could have sworn he heard something below them. He stopped dead, turning he put a finger to his lips then pointed downwards. The other two listened intently but heard nothing, Elena whispered with a wry grin that he was 'on edge' and imagining things, but David was convinced. After a moment he continued on, but he was stepping as lightly as possible. Below them, 'Tribecy' was listening too ..... Log Cabin Holosuite :: "Hey, was this here before ?" Milo van asked, pointing at a small wooden door set into the stone surround beside the island fireplace which was set in the middle of the large room. Murdoch and the others got up to move to where Van was stood. He, Higgins, and Ogden said they couldn't honestly remember there being a door there previously, but then they hadn't actually looked they admitted, thinking a way out would be on the outer wall and not in the apparent middle of the room with seemingly nowhere to go. Milo reached out and grasped the handle tentatively, relaxing when he didn't receive a shock of some kind on contact. He turned the brass knob and heard the distinctive 'click' as the latch released. Pulling the door open he could see a dark corridor leading downwards ... Confused, he moved to stand in front of the burning log fire, then went back to the door. The corridor, clearly tens of meters in length, passed right through where the log fire was burning away contentedly. "OK, well that's unusual." he said as the others mimicked his curiosity, "I'm going to assume that no-one is too keen on sitting around here any longer ?" everyone nodded. Without another word he entered the corridor. "Corridors." they heard Ogden mutter. Moving without incident for approximately one hundred meters they finally came across a second door, this one locked ... Nate Massa tried examining the door, the surroundings tunnel, but to no avail until Ogden pointed something out, there, hung on a frayed piece of string, was an old key, almost fifteen centimeters long and heavy. Massa took the key and looked for a corresponding key-hole in the door. Finding what he was looking for he pushed the key home then turned. As he pulled the door towards him, light flooded in, temporarily forcing everyone to cover their eyes for a second or two, then once accustomed they walked through the door .... They were in a valley ... A large lake with crystal clear blue water before them, in the distance, snow-capped mountains. "Nice view." Higgins said. It was cooler here, not unpleasantly, but Tan couldn't help wonder if, like with most mountainous regions, it would get a lot colder as the Sun set, if so, they they could be in trouble ! ... Hardly surprisingly, the door they had come through moments earlier, had vanished, so going back to the warm fire was out of the question. David walked down towards the shoreline, scanning the horizon for anything that may look like it could be useful. The others had followed, spreading out along the shore then eventually converging once again. "So, left or right ?" Elena asked. The consensus was to head left, so in single file they began walking ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Sept 11, 2019 23:36:21 GMT
Desert region Holosuite :: They had left the Supertanker far behind ..... "This is really beginning to get on my last bloody nerve !" Elena said as they sat in the shade of one of the dunes to rest. "There 'has' to be a way out of this." Clancy said, scanning the horizon for seemingly the millionth time without success. For the last few hours, they had been acutely aware that they were being followed, by whom, or what, they had no idea, but it was a given that they were not alone in the holosuite, but if it was the man who had killed Orpk, then why wait ? .... surely if he wanted the Intelligence Officers dead he could accomplish that easily. David stood, trying the stretch the annoying ache he had in his back. As he looked out into the distance he thought for a second he had seen someone atop one of the distant dunes. Trying to concentrate, despite the searing heat, he focused on the area he thought he had seen someone, but after minutes of wind-swept sand he gave up. As they stood to continue Iorte looked back the way they had come: "Maybe one of us should double back, see if we can't surprise whoever is entertaining themselves behind us ?" David had considered the same thing, but it was clear now that whoever it was, was more than capable of killing, and having them separate wasn't the best idea in his opinion. "No, we stick together." he said, getting no argument from the other two. With little option, they continued on .... An hour later Clancy suddenly pulled David off his feet, finger to his lips, Elena had dropped to her knees as Iorte had rushed forward to Tan ... He looked at them both, finger still on his lips, he pointed to his own eyes, signifying he had possibly seen something ahead, them pointed ahead of them over the lip of the dune, he held up three, then four, then five fingers, making a 'walking' motion with two fingers pointing ahead then to his right ... David and Elena understood he was telling them he had seem three or more, possibly five people ahead, moving left to right of their position. Iorte crawled on his stomach until he was almost at the rim of the dune, trying to listen for voices, but all he could hear was the wind. Annoyed he crawled back to the others: "Hunters ?" Elena mouthed. "Possibly." Clancy silently replied. David motioned that they traverse the dune going left, this would hopefully let them pass behind the unknowns. On their knees they began to move ... After five minutes they began to climb the dune, unfortunately the unknowns had chosen that moment to stop and rest. As Clancy, de Luca and Tan crested the dune they could see the five people sat in a line on the back side of the dune obviously sheltering as they had .... They watched, knowing they couldn't detour further, but eventually one broke from the group, presumably to get their bearings, hopefully not to answer the call of nature. David pointed at the man then followed in a circular route trying to get close to the unknown. The man was almost one hundred meters away now and Tan felt he could rise and close the distance. Unfortunately, the man had clearly been a decoy as without warning someone landed on Tan, slamming a fist into his temple almost knocking him out cold. The two tumbled down the side of the dune, sand getting in both persons eyes as they fought blindly to overcome the other. Two more blows landed on Tan's head and he found himself wondering if this was it. Luckily he managed to land several blows of his own, to the mans head and rib cage, his attacker stumbled and David scrambled to his feet, hoping to prevent the attacker from alerting his friends, but then the man spoke: "Wait ... Wait !" he hissed, choking from the sand in his mouth, "Sir, it's me ... Murdoch." David rubbed his eyes, trying to get something approaching normal vision back finally recognising the Intel' Officer. "How the heel did you find us ?" Tan asked. "To be honest Sir we wasn't actually looking for you, well, we were but our priority since the other two turned up was to find a way out." "Other two ?" David asked, confused. "We're over this way Sir, if you would ...." he motioned for David to head in the direction indicated then fell into step .... As they cleared the rim of the dune he could see the group that had been left in the cabin, plus two others who he immediately recognised as Nate Massa and Milo Van from the El Alamein. "Welcome back." Elena said, handing him a flack of extremely cool water, "They found us minutes after you went off." she said by way of explanation. "I don't suppose you found a way out ?" David asked, between gulps of the refreshing liquid. "No, but someone is following us, we know that much." Massa said. "Hold on ...." Elena said, a frown forming, ".... If someone has been following you, then who has been following us ?" ..........
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David Tan
Starfleet Intelligence
Suum Cuique ...
Registered: Dec 11, 2006 10:56:04 GMT
Posts: 792
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Post by David Tan on Sept 17, 2019 23:00:00 GMT
Holosuite ::
"We need to make some decisions, we'll fry under this damn Sun ...." Elena was saying as she paced back and forth in the hot sand, ".... With Orpk dead we pretty much have no means of getting out of this holosuite unless his mysterious 'partner' has a change of heart and decides to show us the door." "So why don't we snatch him ?" Milo Van asked the group. "You've seen the area this simulation covers Commander." David commented needlessly. "Well, maybe we have more chance now there are more of us ...." Van insisted, ".... Look, we know full well that someone was following us when we left the cabin, whoever that was is going to be somewhere close by. So, we head for those dunes, once over the crest two, or three of us will skirt around the dune until we get back to our own tracks. With luck, our 'follower' will have already passed that point and he'll be trapped between us. You continue for half an hour then turn back, We'll be tracking behind you about thirty to forty meters apart, more if we can retain line-of-sight to each other. We're bound to catch the man between us." "What about the person who was following us ?" de Luca asked, but Van was seemingly ready for the question: "We only need one of them." he said with a shrug. "We're hardly bursting with alternative ideas." Iorte said from half way up one of the dunes. "You'll need to disguise your tracks on the far side of the dune. If our follower spots tracks going off from the group there's no telling how he may react ...." Tan said, realising there wasn't as much as a scorched branch to use to erase the foot-falls, ".... You'll need to use your jackets to smooth out the sand. OK, let's head off, no time like the present." They got up as a group, an hour later they crested the dune. Without looking back they started down the far side, David noticed several small rock outcrops, nowhere near large enough to conceal yourself behind, but enough to allow Milo Van and Nate Massa to split from the group. Taking off their jackets they began to put distance between them and the others, treading as lightly as possible in the fine sand they walked backwards to ensure they were covering their track. Both of them constantly scanned the ridge of the dune, hoping to be out of sight before their pursuer crested the dune. After five minutes they turned and began to backtrack ..... They had agreed on fifteen minutes, then each would turn to meet up, hopefully on the track they had already made, but Milo was beginning to worry that the idea wasn't as sensible as first thought. Thankfully, he saw Massa approaching, and within ten minutes they had both returned to their previous track. "There's no way to tell if anyone else stepped onto these tracks." Massa said, frustrated. "hmm, it was a little too much to expect the man to oblige us by making a second track paralleling ours." Van said, looking up and along the track, "Well, shall we ?" he asked, setting off before his colleague could reply. ~~~~~~~~~~As Van and Massa reached the top of the third dune Milo suddenly grabbed Nate's arm and pulled him down. "Fifty meters ahead. One man." he whispered. Nate pointed past Milo then over his own shoulder, as agreed they separated until they were confident they could snatch the man without him getting past them. Nate waved and they set off .... The man had stopped, he was looking down at the tracks made by the others, twice he looked back in the direction he'd come, but Van and Massa had managed to drop out of sight both times and remained undiscovered. They were less than thirty meters from the man when his head suddenly shot up looking in the direction of the tracks. Had he realised that the group had doubled-back, they didn't know, nor did they care. With a wave from Massa both got up and moved to the unknown follower. It was clear he was concentrating thoroughly on the group that was now coming towards him, and he didn't even realise anyone was behind until both men piled him to the sand, Massa landing heavily on his back ! Milo ripped the sleeve off his jacket and bound the mans hands, then they dragged him to his feet ... Milo went through his pockets, finding only two items, he handed both to Nate then unceremoniously dumped the man on his behind. "Who are you ?" Van asked, but the man simply smiled almost in sympathy, "I've seen you before, I'm sure. Nate ?" "Can't say I know him." the El Alamein Security Chief said as he turned the devices over in his hands then dropped both to the sand a few meters away, "That's not to say I won't know him in a few moments." he finished, kneeling. Without warning he landed a blow to the mans jaw, blood flowed as the man lay on his side in the sand. Massa pulled him back into a seated position and raised his hand again, the man didn't even flinch as the second blow landed and he was pulled up yet again. Much to Massa's annoyance he spat blood at his feet then grinned. "What are these ?" Van asked, having retrieved the two small devices, "Not willing to talk eh, well that's your prerogative." he said as Massa slammed another blow to the mans head, his frustration growing exponentially. Milo had been studying the devices without success, with their owner unwilling to expand on their use, he had little option but to begin pressing .... Only one had any indicators signifying it was active so after trying to active the dormant one and getting no response other than a single 'beep' he concentrated on the one first one. He knelt before the unknown man and waved the device, getting nothing, he placed a finger on one of the illuminated pads and applied pressure. Almost instantly the desert around then vanished, replaced by a barren ice-filled landscape ! .... He instantly applied pressure again, and again, then again, harder. Thankfully, whatever change to the program he had made was finally reversed. Before he could try again he heard voices and looked over to where the others were rounding the dune into the clearing, each was covered in a rapidly melting film of snow and ice. "Wha .... What the hell happened ?" Murdoch asked the shivering finally subsiding. "Who's your friend ?" David asked as they reached the El Alamein Officers. "He's not saying .... He had these on him ...." Milo said, handing the two devices to the Senior Intelligence Officer, "I would be a little careful with that one ...." he said. "Did he fall over ?" David asked, eyeing the blood flowing from the mans mouth. "A couple of times." Massa replied neutrally. "You killed Orpk, I remember you from the tanker." Tan said to the irritatingly silent man, "Look, you need to start talking, we 'will' find a way out of here at some point, and when we do ....." the man simply continued to smile ....... Orpk's Emporium Outside holosuite :: "WHAT !" Commander El Sayed asked. "It just snapped off Commander, I've no explanation for it, we certainly didn't do it." the Technician said completely confused. "So we can get inside ?" "Yes, I don't see why not." the Technician shrugged. El Sayed slapped his Comm badge: =^= Commander El Sayed to Admiral Lemond =^= =^= Lemond .. You have news Commander ? =^= =^= Indeed so Admiral .. Whatever they were using in the holosuite to keep it out of phase just deactivated .. The program is still running =^= =^= You can't deactivate it ? =^= =^= We are endeavouring to do so as we speak Admiral =^= the Egyptian Officer confirmed. =^= Destroy the power couplings .. I want a Level Ten Security force field erected around that holosuite .. I want it out of commission before whoever generously indulged us decides to reinstate their phase variance =^= =^= Understood Admiral =^= Closing the Comm, El Sayed ordered Security and Marine Personnel to enter the holosuite. All were heavily armed. Seconds later the force field snapped into place and the holosuite went completely dark apart from small emergency lighting situated throughout the facility. With the force field in place, nothing could get in or out of the holosuite, that unfortunately included Communications, so while those outside knew the 'suite was now deactivated, they had no way of knowing what was happening inside. Hopefully the additional Security and Marine contingent would be more than enough to subdue anyone they needed to. Arriving at the Emporium, Nia Lemond and her Adjutant entered ... "Commander." Nia said as she approached the Senior Security Officer in charge. "They are still in there Admiral." El Sayed confirmed. "Have provisions been made to circumvent any transport attempts once we drop the force field ?" "They have Admiral." El Sayed confirmed. "OK, let's open it up and see what we have." Nia ordered, sitting a safe distance from the doorway, she and Elise waited. El Sayed positioned further Security between the Admiral and the holosuite, then instructed the Technician to open the door .... All was quiet for almost a full minute, then four marine Officers exited, followed by four Security Personnel between then was a bound unknown man. David Tan, iorte clancy and Elana de Luca came out next, followed by the other Intel Officers and the two from the El Alamein. Nia got up, instructing the Security Officers surrounding the man to halt. They took a pace away from the man as Lemond approached. "I don't believe we have been introduced ....." she said casually ..........
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