USS Soval Compile Part 1 The Lesser Evil ==================== Mission: The Lesser Evil Day 1-5 Stardate: 2414.11.23 to 2414.11.27 ==================== (Starbase 989, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 1, 1200) (Starbase 989, CO's Office, Matrix, Day 1, 1240) (Soval, Cargo Bay 1, Syuvik, Day 1, 1800) (Soval, Cargo Bay 1, Stone, Day 1, 1810) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1000) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1040) (Soval, CO's Office, Jackson, Day 2, 1043) (Soval, Ops Office, Jackson, Day 2, 1048) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1106) (Soval, CO's Office, Andersen, Day 2, 1109) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1110) (Soval, CO's Office, Noah, Day 2, 1111) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1112) (Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1114) (Soval, CO's Office, Corey, Day 2, 1117) (Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 2, 1119) (Soval, Bridge, C'Nell, Day 2, 1125) (Soval, Bridge, Jackson, Day 2, 1130) (Soval, Deck 22, Engineering Support Lab, Jackson, Day 2, 1334) (Soval, Personal Quarters, Andersen, Day 4, 0512) (Medical Station M-12, Docking Bay 14, Syuvik, Day 4, 0927) (Medical Station M-12, Docking Bay 14, Jackson, Day 4, 0930) (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Syuvik, Day 4, 0938) (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Syuvik, Day 4, 0945) (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Corey, Day 4, 0948) (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Jackson, Day 4, 0949) (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Giroht, Day 4, 0951) (Soval, Holodeck 1, Stone, Day 4, 1000) (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1051) (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1054) (Soval, Deck 10, Holodeck 2, M’Epak, Day 4, 1055) (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1057) (Soval, Sickbay, Noah, Day 4, 1100) (Soval, Sickbay, Andersen, Day 4, 1104) (Soval, Deck 15, Cargo Elevator, Matrix, Day 4, 1303) (Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 4, 1308) (Soval, FO Office, Jackson, Day 4, 1317) (Soval, CO Office, Syuvik & Bates, Day 4, 1329) (Soval, Observation Lounge, Syuvik, Day 4, 1500) (Soval, Observation Lounge, Corey, Day 4, 1509) (Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 4, 1540) (Soval, Observation Lounge, Noah, Day 4, 1542) (Quezal Capital, Shuttle, Taylor, Day 4, 1700) (Quezal, Jackson, Day 5, 1304) (Quezal, Engineering Shuttle, Corey, Day 5, 1305) (Quezal, Tunnel Entrance, Medical Shuttle, Noah, Day 5, 1310) (Quezal, Shuttle Archimedes, Jackson, Day 5, 1315) (Quezal, Underground City, Noah, Day 5, 1316) (Quezal, Underground City, Andersen, Day 5, 1317) (Quezal, Underground City, Jackson, Day 5, 1318) (Quezal, Undeground City, Corey, Day 5, 1324) (Quezal, Provisional Medical Facility, Andersen, Day 5, 1328) (Quezal, Provisional Engineering Facility, Andersen, Day 5, 1334) (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1419) (Quezal, Deployment LZ, Matrix, Day 5, 1434) (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1437) (Quezal, Underground City, Matrix, Day 5, 1440) (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1448) (Quezal, Underground City, Signos, Day 5, 1515) (Quezal, Underground City, Jackson, Day 5, 1518) ==================== (Starbase 989, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 1, 1200) Apparently, Starfleet’s investigation revealed nothing wrong with the way Syuvik handled the situation on Yaiosan III. It was a series of combined circumstances that led to the incident. However, that had little effect on Syuvik’s mind. The fact remained he lost close to a hundred comrades, and more honestly, the list would probably add up to approximately two to three hundreds. The loss of lives were always meaningful, even if it was part of the risks. Surprisingly though, the Commodore had seemed in a hurry to reactivate the ship despite what happened. A meeting had been convoked at the CO’s office on the Starbase, but Syuvik already knew what would be the announcement, since he had already discussed the subject with the Commodore for the last 48 hours. If his crew had been entirely composed of Vulcan, he would have agreed with every argument of the commodore. But they weren’t Vulcans, and he wondered how much sending a ship back so quickly after such tragedy would go on. Though, he had to admit, there was some sense to the decision. According to what the Commodore told him of their next mission, the quest for understanding one’s strategy could be excellent to motivate the search and understanding of someone else’s tragedy. How the crew would hold emotionally, that was another question. After he was denied request to give the crew some time off, he had requested a councillor on board, but unfortunately, none were available. Apparently, his own minor in the subject would have to do. So here he was, in the office, waiting to hear once again a decision he didn’t agree with. Commander Syuvik, Captain Sanok, Lieutenant Commander Steven Matrix and Lieutenant Ayehla Zyahn were called to the office of the Captain of the station. At everyone’s surprise, it wasn’t the newly promoted commodore, but a Lieutenant Commander who welcomed them, Kieto Sayoma. “Greetings Captain, Commanders, Lieutenant. I am Kieto Sayoma, a provisional captain of this starbase. Commodore Larsson has been temporarily assigned to another starbase for a very important mission. I’m sure you wonder why you have been asked in here. Let me start by explaining your separate misfortune. Commander Syuvik is the current FO of the USS Soval. Twenty two days ago, the crew felt prey to the Yaiosan Virus, a very contagious and deadly virus found on Yaiosan III against which we still have no cure. The inhabitant of the planet have developed a natural antibody against the virus, but the crew of the USS Soval had none. The virus laid dormant and undetectable until it propagated at an alarming speed. The deadly form is easily detectable and happen between approximately fourteen to thirty days, depending on the specie, after the virus is active. We only found ways to cure those at an early stage of the disease. After one week with the virus, it’s untreatable. Death does not necessarily follow though. We have case where the virus seems to have stopped naturally from spreading further in the body. There is still much we don’t know about the virus. I am sorry to report that 83 officers died from the virus, and another 312 are currently in a critical stage. Close to another 200 are under close supervision by our medical team. Captain Sanok and Lieutenant Commander Steven Matrix were on the USS Starfire. The ship was completing its very first mission, but unfortunately, our engineers detected a flaw in the construction of a series of Defiant-class ships. It had to be recalled and send back to the shipyard to correct the defect. Your two crews will become one. Admiral Beckett has decided to merge the two crews. Captain Sanok, you have requested to be assigned to a non-commanding position and we have honored your request. Commodore Larsson would like to address you personally.” Said the Lieutenant-Commander. The image of Commodore Larsson appears on the screen. “Greetings everyone. I am aware the circumstances are not ideal for promotions, but you deserve them nonetheless. Commander Syuvik. You have […] I therefore promote you to the rank of Captain and name you Commanding Officer of the USS Soval. Congratulation!” At the same time the Commodore had announced the promotion, Lieutenant-Commander Sayoma installed the fourth pin on Syuvik’s uniform. “Captain Syuvik has approved the promotion and positions I am giving to all of you. Nonetheless, you are free to decline if you do not want the promotion or the assignment... Lieutenant-Commander Matrix, you have […] I therefore promote you to the rank of Commander and to the position of First Officer of the USS Soval. Congratulation.” On those words, Lieutenant-Commander Sayoma remove the black pin from Matrix uniform and install a new gold pin. “Captain Sanok, we have accepted your request. You are being demoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander and assigned as Chief of Security of the USS Soval.” This time, the Lieutenant Commander Sayoma simply presenting his hand with a black pin waiting for Sanok to remove two golds pins himself and install the black one. “Lieutenant Zyahn, we recognize your services on the USS Titanic and USS Starfire. However, there is currently no command position available on the fleet. I’m thankful you have accepted your new responsibilities. You are promoted to the marine rank of Captain. You are also given the position of 3O of the USS Soval and Captain of the 531th Company which will be stationed on board the USS Soval.” The commodore waited for several seconds to see if anyone was going to decline the promotion. As no one spoke, he continued. “Good luck or may you live long and prosper!” said the commodore, before the communication ended. Syuvik resumed. “Following my discussion with the admiral, we have also addressed the leadership of each department. I have considered the importance that both ships are well represented in the important position. It has already led to my decision of choosing Commander Matrix as my first officer. However, many of the senior officers of the USS Soval are now either dead, or too sick to take active duty. It was a logical decision to rely more heavily on the USS Starfire valuable senior officers to compensate. It may create an uncomfortable position where the USS Starfire is very well represented as chief of department, whereas most of the officers and enlisted crew members will be coming from the USS Soval. This is a situation I'm confident we can manage well and, since it is a decision recommended by logic, I am sure everyone from both ships will understand and respect such decision. Lieutenant Commander Tom Jackson is given the position of Second Officer. Lieutenant Ayehla Zyahn is given the position of Third Officer. Lieutenant Commander Sanok is the Security Chief. […] (NRPG: Can’t name the Assistant Security officer yet), Lieutenant S’yes is the Chief of Operation. Lieutenant Tholax is the Tactical Chief, Ensign Jessica Signos is the Assistant Tactical Chief, Lieutenant Wane Corey is the Chief Engineer […], Lieutenant JG Arladra is the Science Chief, Ensign C’Nell is the Assistant-Chief, […] (can’t name the current CMO but I propose for the moment, we consider he is a Lieutenant who was on the USS Soval), Ensign Andersen is the Assistant Medical Officer, […] […] Captain Ayehla Zyahn is the Captain of the Marine Company. If you had any complain to formulate on any of those choices, we can address this to my temporary office on this starbase at C-234 on Deck 13.” Syuvik said. “As for our next mission, Admiral Beckett had given me some hint that we will be given one really soon. It is my understanding he is waiting for us to settle in and be ready before officially presenting the mission. Any question?” (PS : For Nathan and Matt…don’t worry, before a blink of an eye, you characters will be made chief of department). (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Starbase 989, CO's Office, Matrix, Day 1, 1240) Matrix expected many of the crew changes, but was surprised by Sanok stepping down as Captain. Still the Starfire was likely to be in dock for the foreseeable future if not mothballed. Perhaps it was the only way Sanok wanted to continue is career. Vulcan intellect wouldn't get in the way of ego and Sanok wasn't seeking adulation in a command role. He had known Sanok too long for him to doubt that conviction. Steve was more than pleased that his former captain would be among the crew of the Soval. Sanok's expertise, dedication and knowledge were needed and would likely bring some comfort to those transferring from the Starfire. Matrix shook a few hands while making his way out of the CO's office and proceeded to his interim office aboard the starbase. He had plenty of work to do before the Soval would depart on her next mission. The transition would be difficult especially given the circumstances of the crew changes. A great many of the Soval's crew perished and her replacements would be just that, replacements. Those coming aboard would have to earn the respect and admiration of the remaining crew. Matrix was included in that group. Taking over as FO would be a challenge, but he relished the work and opportunity. The nod as FO from Captain Syuvik came with adulation and trepidation both. Matrix was eager to tackle his new position and responsibilities, and earn the Captain's trust and confidence. That would, hopefully, come in time. (Reply none) (Posted by Steve) ----- (USS Soval, Cargo Bay 1, Syuvik, Day 1, 1800) It had been only 6 hours since the new crew of the USS Soval was officially announced, but Syuvik preferred wasting no time in getting everyone settled. Considering the situation, it was better to address the situation as soon as possible to prevent any potential conflict from arising. He had only a minor in counselling when he first joined Starfleet Academy a long time ago, but he still remembered his class on conflict management. Group identity is very important for individual self esteem and capacity to work. However, when two group identity form separately but become, by reason of circumstances, forced to work together, people from each group would have a natural tendency to continue identifying to their own group and see the other group as rival, especially when promotions and positions were in question. So, despite it wasn't a new ship being inaugurated, or anything, Syuvik had nevertheless decided to reunite everyone in cargo bay 1 to discuss the situation. He didn't liked speech. Vulcans weren't very good at it. Luckily, he had some friends that had always been very helpful had writing speeches for him. Once again, he was in Jennifer's debt. He had the Padd with him on which was the text Jennifer helped him wrote. Since Vulcans were not known for speech, it was already obvious he was helped. So it would have been illogical to try to hide it. Yet, it was also logical to try to do his best to emulate the intonation of humans, so that the speech would have its desired effect. "What happened on Yaiosan III cannot be forgotten. We were a crew of one thousand. We lost 89 crew members, and another 300 won't be returning with us. The circumstances made it happen that those who died or become extremely sick from the pathogen were those with the most experiences. It is a fact, we can't simply ignore. When we look at today and tomorrow, we cannot ignore that yesterday brought us here, and there is nothing we can do to change that yesterday. We must live with reality and the obstacles it had brought on our path, not dismiss or ignore it. Yet, we must also give ourselves time cause only time can heal such wound". "To continue our mission, our crew has been reconstituted. We are a crew formed from two. However, it would be wrong to believe we are still two crews. We are one. A team which need each other to carry out our shared objectives. Considering the circumstances, it is important we bring people with experiences and who have not lived what we lived so that they can help us through the process by their listening and by their support" he said...."We are still here for the same reason we were. We are on a mission of peace and exploration. The Federation and Starfleet need us to continue a mission that is bigger than any of us. Each day, someone in the Federation or in Starfleet is making an important gesture to help a specie, to make someone better. Someday, we are less fortunate. We lose people instead of finding new ones. But this sacrifice we made of being in the line of battle, and of going deep into the unknown, with the risks it involves is a noble one. If we were not ready to take such risk, and sometimes to make those sacrifices, we wouldn't be where we are now. If the Federation is so vast, with thousands of members shared by the same core values, it's because of what each of us is doing and have been doing and because of all the sacrifice we have made during the last 400 years." Syuvik said. "In a day such as this, we must not anger from their death, but honor their courage. In their honor, let's continue together to work toward this noble goal. I have trust in each of you and I know we will continue having a positive impact in this Quadrant." (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, Cargo Bay 1, Stone, Day 1, 1810) "What happened on Yaiosan III cannot be forgotten. We were a crew of one thousand. We lost 89 crew members, and another 300 won't be returning with us……” Issac stood in the cargo bay listening the words that were being spoken. they were good words, ones that he had, had to say once or twice in his career and a few time like this one where they had been said to him. he always nostalgic at these things as his mind drifted to all his comrades that he had survived through the years. From the years he flow Trojan Class Marine Drop-Shuttle providing close in air support for marines to the time he was part of operation blood of angels dancing around in his small Mako Fighter v.III . He had lost a good many friends that day and a few more since especially recently. "To continue our mission, our crew has been reconstituted. We are a crew formed from two. However, it would be wrong to believe we are still two crews. We are one….” He had managed to managed to speak to one or two of the crew that had been on the mission to Yaiosan III as well as a few of the Jarheads he had found. It was not a pleasant stories but it helped him to understand what had happened. "In a day such as this, we must not anger from their death, but honor their courage. In their honor, let's continue together to work toward this noble goal. I have trust in each of you and I know we will continue having a positive impact in this Quadrant." He listened as the speech went on wondering what was in store ahead for them and he hoped that whatever it was would bring the crew together. (Reply any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1000) Syuvik was in his office when the USS Soval is contacted via a priority one message. As he activate the screen, a 43 years-old blond human who has newly been promoted to a flag rank and who is well-known in Starfleet for his incredible records, and especially for his frequent diplomatic missions with the Romulans appears. The crew of the USS Soval knows him well for being the new commander of Starbase 989, Commodore Larsson. His face reveals he certainly hasn’t slept much during the last few days, but he hides it quite well, something Syuvik hadn't noticed the day before. “Greetings Captain. I must apologize but with everything that has been going here lately, I would prefer to forgo the formality. You have certainly heard of the tragedy that happened on the Quezal homeworld? “ the commodore asked. Syuvik tried to recall the reports he had read over the last few months. He did recall Quezal. “This is where there was this tragedy. The entire planet almost imploded because of a chain reaction within the planet crust. The casualties are by the millions. May I ask how is the survivors faring?” “The Relief Efforts is well under way. In the last two months, there is a lot we were able to accomplish. We have saved hundred thousands of them and helped the survivors relocate to the few areas on the planet that has not been destroyed by the explosion. We have brought a huge quantity of supplies: food, medical supplies... But rebuilding their world will take years. All the details are included in the introductory report.” The commodore took his breath, and resumed. “It is not directly for the Relief Effort I contact you, but the investigation. To make a long story short, we have been in that investigation for too long, and our hands are tied, so we need a fresh team whose hands won’t be tied as ours are.” the commodore answered. The comment caught Syuvik’s interest. “And you want the USS Soval to be those investigators? An intriguing mission, yet one I will need to know more about before I could make a judgement. If it isn’t going the way you have anticipated, I assume the political situation must be tense, especially with what happened?” “You are right. We, in Starfleet have tried to play it diplomatically and be the most cooperative possible, but with the latest evidences found, and the little cooperation we have with the local authority, we see no other choice now than to have our very own private investigators. Captain, without a complete description of what has been going on, you can only have the wrong idea of what is really happening. So I suggest I and Rear-Admiral Thinn will explain everything when you arrive. All you have to know for now is the fact your ship and expertise might be exactly what we need.” The Rear-Admiral said almost without taking a breath. Frustration was evident. For a man of his experience and reputation to have difficulty hiding it, it was a testimony of how the situation seemed to be a headache. “I want you to join me on the Medical Station M-12 in orbit of Quezal. I’m sending you the details.” He finished. Syuvik examined quickly the information. They were to pretend they were here for the relief effort. There wasn’t any complication on how to reach the station at first look. Syuvik nodded. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1040) Syuvik had reviewed the summary of the data provided by the commodore. Judging by it, their mission would be a challenging one. Emotions and politics would be at the heart of it. A specie that went from millions to a few thousands was one of the biggest tragedy of the decade. He could understand now why Commodore Larsson was such in a hurry to send them on this mission. Larsson knew more about emotions than he did. Perhaps he was right. Having to deal with such tragedy, perhaps what happened to the Soval would seem much smaller. At the same time, wouldn't be overwhelming to have to deal with such tragedy when you are yourself trying to cope with one of your own. You can't get out of it... He remember a time when he would have been himself in a probable disarray having to deal with such situation. He preferred his current situation, with his emotions locked within a cage. But is also prevented him from really grasping the situation. But if he would let them go, like a Sehlat kept on leash who discover the wild since a long time, they would go havoc. It was better to remain logical and trust in his superior's understanding of emotions. Syuvik had asked Commander Matrix, Lieutenant Commander Jackson, and Lieutenant Commander Sanok to meet him in his office. "Commanders. I have been informed of our next mission. We are being asked to serve as investigators into the cause of the tragedy that lead to the almost destruction of the Quezal homeworld and its population. As you will see, it is not a simple investigation since politics is embedded with the situation." started Syuvik. He then gave each of them a Padd containing the information provided by the Commodore. "Commander Matrix and Lieutenant-Commander Jackson, you have 26 hours to become expert on the Quezalth. Learn everything you can on their culture, philosophy, history. Lieutenant-Commander Sanok, the Romulans may have something to do with the current situation. I want you to become expert on the Romulan's latest activities, and more importantly, their involvement and relation with the Quezalth. For the time of this mission, all senior staff have been granted special access to some of Starfleet Intelligence report on the Quezalth." (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Jackson, Day 2, 1043) Tom sat and listened as the Captain explained the mission to Sanok and himself. The Quezalht and the Federation had a long and interesting history. Initially each had supplied the other with a needed item. Tom puzzled why such a mutually advantageous agreement had been halted. It seemed within three months of the trade agreement the Quezalht had cancelled its UFOP membership and had become isolationist. Tom Jackson was a suspicious person having lived a lot of years in the Ferengi world. Those symbols of capitalism gad taught him to be wary of all things. He suspected there was an unknown agent involved. Had this unknown group been the cause of the destruction on the home world? If do? What was their motivation? Tom stole a glance at his old skipper. As usual Tom couldn't figure his Vulcan friend out. Sanok, to Tom, was as impassive as ever. He wondered about the change Sanok had undergone. Had heard from Ben Soma? Tom's mind turned to his part of the mission. The skipper hadn't named his team yet so he had a lot to do. (Reply: None) (Posted by: Bill West) ----- (USS Soval, Ops Office, Jackson, Day 2, 1048) Tom had arranged with the Soval's COPS Caitian Lieutenant named S'yes. Jackson had been a senior at the Academy when S'yes was a plebe. Tom had found the Caitain to be a good and worker. He mentored him and helped him through the rigors of being a first year cadet. S'yes stood as Tom entered. Jackson waved back down. "It's good to see you S'yes" Tom said. The Caitian smiled at his friend. "It's good to see you Commander. How's your family?" S'yes asked. "Dahlia said to tell you hello and stop by for a visit" Tom added. "What can I do for you?" S'yes asked. "First off, you will remain as COPS. I'm impressed with your service and glad to have you with us" Jackson added. "I'm glad to see and serve with you again Tom" S'yes replied. Tom got to the point of his visit. "We've been ordered to the planet Quezal. It had suffered a massive explosion destroying all but 100,000 of the population. The planet's cities were forced underground due a mineral deposit located in the crust" Tom stated. S'yes remained passive digesting the data and wondering where this would lead. Tom went on. "So I suspect we'll be tasked for supplies and aid. Can you handle this? " . S'yes nodded in the affirmative. "You'll also want to check on the measures to protect our surface teams from potential dangers. Ensign C'Nell might be a good source" Jackson added. S'yes growled a low forceful growl as he worked on the assigned problem. (No Reply) (Posted by; Bill West) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1106) Normally, he would have given the responsibility of meeting with the medical staff to his FO. But since he had just given him an important task to take care of, he considered better to meet them himself. It would also be an opportunity to meet ensign Andersen, the new assistant chief medical officer. "Welcome aboard Ensign Andersen." Syuvik said. "Lieutenant Commander Noah, Ensign Andersen, our next mission will be on Quezal. Six months ago, an important explosion happened that almost destroyed the entire planet. A population of several millions are now down to 100 000. Even after six months, as almost all cities are underground and are now buried, most bodies are still buried. Most of the Soval medical staff will be asked to help with finding those corpses, identifies them and notify the victims. And there could still be some people alive. Vice-Admiral Thinn from Starfleet Medical have given you access to the Quezal medical database. You should find all the information you need to complete such tasks." (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Andersen, Day 2, 1109) The new CO of a new ship called the medical staff to his office, and since she's been aching to know more of the mission that was soon to unfold itself, she wondered why the sudden change in ship and Commanding Officer. To an extent, Lieutenant Corey explained her what was really wrong with the ship and why was it called back, though she couldn't explain why the change in the leading staff member. It has been some time since she talked with a Commanding Officer, in fact most of the times she was allowed freedom to do her job. This was a blessing as she never truely really liked the long talks with those in charge. Looking back at her past, she started small, eventually gaining a rank and even attaining CMO position, of course due to her own problems and due to constantly having to report to General and all the strings attached that come packed with him left her gasping for sleeping, relaxation and peace of mind, so being so distraught most of the time resulted in her removal from the position. She minded not, however, that fact at all, since it left her out of the gaze of most of the people on board. A freedom is a life, well put by a certain Cardassian revolutionarist, she agreed. It did felt kind of awkward, however, having someone else as her chief above her, after being used to running the things around herself. But that was something she could live with. "Welcome aboard Ensign Andersen." the CO spoke looking towards her, at what she simply nodded her head - a long and boring almost-ritualistic welcomes weren't something most Vulcans enjoyed in, it would seem, luckily for her. "... our next mission will be on Quezal." she chuckled a bit, the name reminded her on that special chocolate cereal she loved when she was young, silly her. "Six months ago, an important explosion happened..." ~An important explosion... is there any other kind?~ she raised an eyebrow, she was really supposed to focus "that almost destroyed the entire planet. A population of several million are now down to one hundred thousand. Even after six months, as almost all cities are underground and are now buries, most bodies are still buried. Most of the Soval medical staff will be asked to help with finding those corpses, identifies them and notify the victims." The whole process sounded a little disheartening, it's going to be messy, dig in, pull out and identify. Sounded like a job for someone... well not someone that could've used the assets on the living. But even dirty jobs were part of the resume. "And there could still be some people alive." ~Well that part sounds awfully more important and interesting.~ she thought. "Vice-Admiral Thinn from Starfleet Medical have given you access to the Quezal medical database. You should find all the information you need to complete such tasks." "Captain, what about the planet-wide damage sustained during the explosion, is it even safe for these people to be on that planet? Is Starfleet... going to relocate these people if it comes down to that?" (Reply: Syuvik) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1110) "Captain, what about the planet-wide damage sustained during the explosion, is it even safe for these people to be on that planet? Is Starfleet... going to relocate these people if it comes down to that?" asked Ensign Andersen after Syuvik had quickly explained the situation on Quezal. "There are a few minor cities on the surface that remained mostly intact. The Quezalth living there have been authorized to resume their life. Those living in the underground cities have mostly been relocated to the Starbase in orbit of the planet or other capital ships. And, there are no risk of other explosions so our main priorities will be to help on the ground, and use the Galaxy emergency capacity to temporarily allow the Quezal refugees to live on board until Starfleet can find a suitable homes for their families." (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Noah, Day 2, 1111) Noah listened to what the captian had to say; it sounded that the people of Quezal had gone through a bad time and were still needing help. ~Several millism to 100,000 that’s hurrendus~ He thought about what had happened since he had arrived ont he Soval. He had managed to get a transfer from the Spectre and was looking forward to a different challenge and then the away team had returned form their mission and all hell had brocken out. He shivered mentally as he remembered the time. The crew fell ill and died including the captian and the cheif medical officer. there had been times where he a though that he would join them but he had servived along with the others. He paused from his thoughts pulling him self back to the moment. "Sir are we the only federation asset there? and do you know if there are other organisations.” (Reply Syuvik, Anderson) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1112) "Sir are we the only federation asset there? and do you know if there are other organisations.” asked the CMO. "We are not. I don't have the precise number for how many are there right now, but there has been between 6 to 12 Starfleet ships in the area for the last six months. As far as we know, we are the only two organisations here. However, considering the context, there may be more people than mentioned in the reports. If there is and Commodore Larsson has not mentioned them, then it is logical to assume they are irrelevant to our current mission." said Syuvik. Looking at the time, he realized the other senior staff would be arriving in a minute or two. They could still wait outside if necessary. (reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Syuvik, Day 2, 1114) Once the meeting with the medical staff completed, it was now time to Lieutenant Corey, [...] Lieutenant Alradra, Ensign C'Nell, Lieutenant Tholax, Ensign Signos to meet with the CO. "For those of you from the USS Starfire. Let me first welcome you aboard." Syuvik started. "Our next mission will be on Quezal. Six months ago, the planet suffered a terrible explosion that caused most of the underground cities to be buried alive. Of the millions of population, only a hundred thousand had survived. Our mission will be one of rescue and of investigation. I have asked you because logistically, this mission will be very demanding. The cities are so deep underground, it is impossible to beam there. Shuttles will have to be used. Moreover, to access the cities, we must find ways to get through all those rocks and insure security of our personnel while investigating those cities. I count on you to work together and device procedures and ways to carry our missions. This involve engineering, science, security, tactics, operations, so each of your department will need to work together to find solutions to these challenges. Lieutenant-Commander Jackson and Sanok have been given duties related to their position of command, but they will join you shortly to lead this tasks." (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, CO's Office, Corey, Day 2, 1117) Wane stood attentively infront of the CO, waiting to be briefed on the elements and the assets of the future mission. He thought being extracted on the planet, and then given objectives, with the rest of the away team would have been much more efficient but this would do as well. "For those of you from the USS Starfire. Let me first welcome you aboard." Syuvik started. "Our next mission will be on Quezal. Six months ago, the planet suffered a terrible explosion that caused most of the underground cities to be buried alive. Of the millions of population, only a hundred thousand had survived. Our mission will be one of rescue and of investigation. I have asked you because logistically, this mission will be very demanding. The cities are so deep underground, it is impossible to beam there. Shuttles will have to be used. Moreover, to access the cities, we must find ways to get through all those rocks and insure security of our personnel while investigating those cities. I count on you to work together and device procedures and ways to carry our missions. This involve engineering, science, security, tactics, operations, so each of your department will need to work together to find solutions to these challenges. Lieutenant-Commander Jackson and Sanok have been given duties related to their position of command, but they will join you shortly to lead this tasks." A simple gathering of information down on the planet was first thing he needed to do, then followed by analyzing. There could technicly be a way to transport chunks of the buried buildings, but it would require tons of parameters, material make up, thickness... time that perhaps they don't have. Wane was looking forward to the challenges the vulcan Commanding Officer mentioned, prolonged time out of duty, such as the time spent on Starbase 989, really made him out of himself. He needed to get back into action. (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (USS Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 2, 1119) Matrix had spend much of the morning reviewing personnel issues and sorting through the logistics of this new mission. Steve had read the CO's reports so far and their task was daunting and highly political. Syuvik was briefing the various departments personally while the senior staff poured through the available intelligence on the Quezalth. The Soval was to be placed as a liaison between the Quezalth and the Federation to determine the cause of the disaster. According to the reports he was privy,it was deemed a sensitive political issue. Just how puzzled Matrix. Perhaps a struggle for power within the remaining Quezalth parliament? The Federation reports detailed the Quezalth society as complex as any in the Federation. They were highly intelligent, organized in a centrally structured government with no less than four branches each with their own area of responsibility. The Quezalth government consisted of a parliamentary, directorate, juridical and a ministry bureau. Each bureau has overlapping authority and influence in all aspects of Quezalth society. Quezalth culture was rich in arts, humanities, sciences and a deep devotion to religious customs and values. Throughout their history, the Quezalth were a relatively peaceful culture devoting their resources and intellect toward enriching their society through the development of philosophical pursuits anchored in their religious convictions. The fact that they also pursued scientific endeavors was almost a contradiction in their pensive beliefs. The historical summary was vague. In fact, most of the information gathered so far was acquired through direct observation and summarily reviewed data from the initial survey teams. The bulk of the Quezalth historical documents, data sources and culture lay in soil tombs beneath the planet surface. One of the mission priorities would also have to include the retrieval and preservation their cultural and historical artifacts. (Reply None) (Posted by Steve) ----- (USS Soval, Bridge, C'Nell, Day 2, 1125) C'Nell stood irritably on Bridge duty. He disliked the demotion, he disliked change; just when he had the science department running as he wished, his staff organised. New staff and New commander, he didn't care much for the Lieutenant, it seemed that Signos had been made junior too. He wondered if this was to do with them... C'Nell had a lot on his mind as he stood on Bridge duty, even the mission was odd, just an explosion that big. He was going to find out the cause; he would re-earn the commission. He admired Sanok, always had; his ability to just go with demotion was something he hoped he could emulate. When this duty shift was over, they needed to resume the talks they had had when C'Nell was serving under him. (Reply any/none) (Posted by Nathan) ----- (USS Soval, Bridge, Jackson, Day 2, 1130) As they sped through space, Tom allowed a small corner of his to go reflective. His life had been a series of ups and downs. He was riding a new up - he was back on a ship! The changes had occurred like a driving rain on the Ferengi home world. His former CO had been seen back as a Lt. Cmdr? What did this mean he wondered. He also was aware if the other staffing changes on the Soval. C'Nell had gone from department head to an assistant. Tom didn't know him well but suspected he was hurt. Tom knew the two teams had not as yet been fleshed out. He decided, that of ok with the co/FO, he wanted C'Nell on his squad. He walked to C'Nell and asked him if he would be interested in working with him. "Mr C'Nell, pending CO and FO ok, I was wondering if you'd like to join my team?" Tom asked. (Reply: C'Nell) (Posted by: Bill W.) ----- (Soval, Deck 22, Engineering Support Lab, Jackson, Day 2, 1334) Tom was using a terminal in the Engineering Support Lab to research the Quezal planet and its society. What had started out as a mutually beneficial association with the Federation had suddenly turned into an almost isolationist mind set. Scanning the initial reports, his heart sank. Devastation was wide spread, deaths in the millions. Disease was wide spread and the engineering and logistics issues staggering. Sighing, Jackson turned back to work. S’yes had asked him to contact the SF Corps of Engineers to work out a plan to get to the tunnels and redistribute the rubble. Jackson was determined to be on any team entering the tunnels to the underground cities. Tom was curious on what leads Sanok had developed. He was sure there was something rotten in Denmark and others were behind this mess. Jackson also wanted to speak to his friend and former commander about the sudden change in his fortunes. (Reply: None) (Posted: Bill W.) ----- (USS Soval, Personal Quarters, Andersen, Day 4, 0512) This often felt like a dejavu, she would punch in the codes to establish a connection with the General's HQ, but this time... she figured, she'd have an ace in her sleeve. She stayed awake all night, reading about different ways to pinpoint the location of the subspace carrier wave and follow the proxy satellites and beacons bouncing the subspace signal throughout. Being on the new ship helped in ways she couldn't imagine further. For example, she staged a malfunction in one of the southern jefferies tube of the port nacelle to push the Chief Engineer and his assistant team out of the Main Engineering. She then went inside, acting as if everything's normal, freeing up listening devices on the frequencies she would use, knowing that Corey would more then likely sniff the exact nature of the talks she was having - for one reason or another, the man didn't really believe the story Ailyn told him, he though she's working for S31, in fact he said so in his personal log, adding "I'll get to the bottom of this". Luckily, he forgot to put the limits for medical staff on his personal log, so it was relatively easy getting to it. She didn't really have enough time to present the proofs to Corey, but if she would pinpoint the origin signal, maybe she could just show him, and other Starfleet, what she had to go through. She was greatly helped in her endeavours by the fact that the new ship had the facilities to monitor the subspace transmission and follow it, unlike the Defiant class that was somehow limited in that field. Now, she couldn't really be sure exactly how accurate it's going to be, since she didn't really know what relay stations the signal goes through. "General, I've..." she started as she saw someone answered her signal, the person was turned backwards, and slowly turned around on General's chair. "General is not here. I was told to be briefed and relay the information." said the bald, large and by the looks of him, an old man that was supposedly acting on behalf of General. Ailyn knew that keeping him talking, and thus channel opened, is her best way to give the tracer enough time to analyze the wave and follow it through the relays to the origin. In fact, the luck might have smiled to her today, since she would be hard pressed to fool General himself, who would, more the likely, figure something's wrong. "Uhm, I was told not to talk with anyone aside the General of the mission." "I assure you, I'm here on behalf of the General, I was briefed in your current mission and status so far and only need to relay the information, please continue Agent." "You'll have to excuse me, but I require a certain proof you're just not someone interfering with the signal and acting as if you're an envoy to the General." "I was told you're difficult to deal with. Very well. I'm sending you encrypted authorization signal. You will see everything's in order when you read it and compare it to your own. I hold higher authorization level." "Just a moment, it's not getting here." Ailyn said although the authorization did in fact end up on her screen, and the man was telling the truth, but of course, she already knew that. After several moments, the man started moving in his chair, he was getting agitated. "It isn't supposed to be taking that long." "I'm sorry, we're very far. I've just received it, I'm going to compare it now. Yes, it seems everything's in order." "Of course it is, Agent." "You never know, you will agree in the nature of our jobs, certainty is something very valuable." "Your report, Agent." "Yeah, well we've just established a channel with the Quezalth government." "Excellent. Do they or the crew of the Soval suspects any known race that would have wanted to hurt these people?" "No, in fact, it would seem they're the ones to be blamed themselves. Most of their race have been wiped out..." "Uh, tragic I'm sure, but isn't there any indications it might have been done by a more sinister element?" "No, in fact, I came to possession of the Chief Engineer's personal log. He went over preliminary data by the earlier Federation teams sent to help, and there were heavy indications that the tragedy was caused... by overmining." Of course, this wasn't truth at all, Corey never really wrote something like this, it was false data. "Most interesting. Further, you are to..." "Excuse me, sir, but I'd still like to try to find proofs of the cause, just so we can be sure." "Yes, you're doing a great service to humanity. Now, if you would..." "I mean, I'm sure it was the same as Chief Engineer said, but I'm also sure there could be valuable technology on the planet." "Yes, yes, you are allowed to gather alien technology for study." the man seemed lost, like he forgot what he wanted to ask, originally. "Thank you sir. I hope the virus I've sent was useful." "Uh, no, it's an advanced pathogen that, while extremely deadly to humans, is nothing more then a flu to the local sentient life. It was like you said, and as you know, General had the best minds working on an vaccine, which we delivered..." "Two weeks late." "Humanity won't suffer from it anymore. Our sacrifice may be unknown and hidden, which is our nature for a fact, but we still did more then you would like to admit to yourself." "I'd rather, if possible, not think about the past tragedies right now." "What is the status with subject alpha and subject theta?" "Alpha has been engaged in a romantical relationship, but so far hasn't exhibited anything that wasn't well documented before." "Surely, something like that wasn't supposed to be allowed on the pretty Federation ships." the man grinned in self ego boost. "Humans aren't machines. We can't just turn off our emotions." "Not yet anyway." the man smiled again, obviously thinking of General and the fact he's mostly machine. He continued, "When I was still in Starfleet, being an officer came with the burden and some sacrifices, running after my own hormone-induced ecstasy was one of them." "When you were in Starfleet, we were still battling the Klingons..." "Brief me on subject Theta, Agent." "There's no indication that the subject is a sleeper agent. The medical tests show normal cognitive function, no traces of memory erasion or hidden micro-devices or nanoprobes inside either." "Thus there is no evidence subject Theta is a sleeper agent?" "No direct evidence, no." "I see. Continue monitoring both subjects and report back." "Yes, sir." "That is all agent." "Sir, if I may... any news on agent Taylor?" "Anything concerning Ms Adams is considered a classified information." "So, Adams is her actual surname." "You didn't hear anything Agent, this is well above your authorization grade." The silence, and the need for secrecy meant that either Taylor has been caught - and eliminated, or she got away. In fact, the look on the man's face was telling a different story - he had as much information as she did. Being caught was unlikely, Taylor was General's top agent, and an expert in survival and infiltration. All the indications were basically telling her that Taylor listened to her, and escaped the organization. Now, Ailyn had to find a way to do the same, and maybe even... meet with the person she would never think could inspire her so much. "Yes, sir." The man turned off the channel, but it was too late. The tracer picked the transmission relays, going through several Federation beacons, amplified by an old, thought-to-be deserted Klingon facility - no doubt, one of the General's facility he acquired from the Klingons, the transmission further went through several relaying stations until it hit sector E4A56, or as Borg would call it, Sector 001 -- the signal hit Earth, before bouncing to Mars. The origin of the signal seemed to be eminating from the north pole, some seventeen miles bellow the surface cities. But this made no sense, the station she was brought into looked like old Cold War Russian nuclear underground stations, reverbated by the clear old cyrilic markings on the walls that the age still didn't washed off. How would an old Cold War station end up on Mars? She recorded the exact position of the base, scraching her head, and then listing all the relay stations. There were few of the officially non-working ones, and also one that wasn't even supposed to be there. The day has just begun, and she was tired already. (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Docking Bay 14, Syuvik, Day 4, 0927) At their arrival, the USS Soval could see how busy it was in the area. There were no less than 13 Starfleet ships in the sector, as well as a Medical Station in orbit. Dozens of transports were circulating between the planet and the station. The communication between the ships or station and the planet was horrific. They could be counted in the hundred. Each ship was positioned over a specific area over the planet, and the communication seemed to always be between the planet and the ships. Probably each one was given a specific area to take care of. Still, it was rather confusing. Making their way through the traffic, the USS Soval arrived on the Medical Station as ordered. At their arrival, Vice-Admiral Zahrin Giroht awaited them. From his figure, he seemed to have slept even less than Commodore Larsson. “I am in charge of walking you to Rear-Admiral Thinn office. This way…“ said the Vice-Admiral. “Rear-Admiral Thinn? I believe you are mistaken admiral. We are the crew of the USS Soval and are supposed to meet Commodore Larsson” said Syuvik. The Vice-Admiral smiled. “They are working together. You are getting your orders from Commodore Larsson, but he is working with Rear-Admiral Thinn from Starfleet Intelligence. So I am not mistaken. Now, please follow me.” As they made their way through the long corridors of the station, the Vice-Admiral started explaining the situation. He make them stop at a huge residential areas where several Quezal refugees were living. No one was talking, or moving. The silence was heavier than noise. Some of the crew stomach started to hurt. They felt like it was rusting inside them. But they were neither hungry, nor thirsty. What was it with this room? They had barely walked into it, they felt already sick. They couldn't speak, couldn't hear. In their throat, it felt so heavy they couldn’t swallow...and had difficulty breathing. Syuvik examined every Quezal refugee one by one. There was an obvious similarity with what Syuvik had lived in sickbay a few weeks earlier, crowded with his crew, either dead or terribly sick. But 89 crew members dead couldn’t be compared to millions. Thinking back at what happened on Yaiosan III, there had been an image that had stayed in his mind for very long after the pathogen spread out. Back on the surface, there was a tree alone there in the middle of nowhere. The leaves had all fell out. On the ground, the dirt around it had a grey color. It looked as if it hadn’t rained for months. Yet, as he had examined the dying tree more closely, he saw a droplet slowly moving down the tree. As it moved, it left behind a trail which was quickly drying and disappearing. He followed the droplet back to its source. He recognized the eyes of a Quezalth woman. Back to the room, Syuvik was now focusing on the woman eyes. But for the next five to ten seconds he fixed her, no more tear fell from those eyes. He had seen the last of them. He started looking at every other face in the room, but none were crying or even showing trace of having cried. They were as dry as their face. There wasn't even an attempt to make sense of this. No attempt to say their farewell. There was no point to it. You cry the loss of a love one.... you cry the void his or her death has left in your life. You try hardly to cope with the lost...burrying yourself in your sorrow. But that was not how they felt. In those eyes, there was no lost....no coping...there was simply no life left. A Starfleet officer was with them. You could hear their discussion : “I know it’s been a long time, but we never know. You must keep faith.” Said the officer. “Keep faith…. We are way past this time...... For weeks...... for weeks..... we had kept faith........ hoping they hid all this time in a shelter somewhere, waiting to be rescued.......... How long have we hang to this hope… foolish hope? There is nothing here for us…. only bones and sadness............................ I appreciate what you are doing, but it’s useless. We know we are no more. We are a dead specie.” Said one of the Quezalth. “Don’t…..” the officer stopped, probably realizing it was indeed useless. He left the room, crossing Syuvik regard for a second or two. Syuvik could feel the powerlessness in his eyes. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Docking Bay 14, Jackson, Day 4, 0930) They had docked amidst the many ships aiding the effort. He stood back as they entered the orbiting facility. Tom was older than the others with the exception of Sanok. The survivors of the Que explosion were mute. Tom had fought in the war against the Doetnirz forces and seen cruelty on a massive scale. The sight before him shook the seasoned vet to his core. The silence was deafening. Each resident had what veterans called '1,000 yard' stare. Adults and kids simply stared. They didn't even acknowledge their presence. Then and there Tom Jackson made a silent vow that who ever did this was going to pay dearly. If he had to, he'd use Pez to equip his plan. Tom watched the admiral from SF Intel closely,Vice-Admiral Zahrin Giroht. Tom had no great love for intel folks - he lumped them with section 31 which left a bad taste in his mouth. Not too far from Tom a SF officer was trying to encourage a survivor. What the man said next shook Tom. The man had given up - he admitted his race was doomed. That made Jackson all the more determined to bring those that caused this to justice. (No Reply) (posted by Bill West) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Syuvik, Day 4, 0938) After having answered a few questions, the Vice-Admiral continued. “Each part of the station has been assigned a specific role. The five main decks of the main section are our triage center. Every Quezalth found is beamed directly there. We have a group of thousand of medical officers there whose jobs consist on diagnosing their injuries and assign them to the right operation section. We have sections for every medical operations: hemorrhages, body part replacements, brain injuries... They are spread along the outer section of the station, as well as the eight decks below the main decks and the ten decks above it. “ The Vice-Admiral was forced to stop when his voice his overshadowed by a discussion in a neighboring room. "My Husband...my kids, my sisters, my brothers....all dead. My people all dead. My civilization is no more." Said one. In the room just beside : “You are perfectly healthy… only sorrow you will have from staying here. You should leave this place. Go elsewhere far away, to change your mind.” Said one of the councillor in the room. “I can’t believe it. Everything is alright. You are leaving a simple life and suddenly… Your world fall apart. All those you have known are dead. Everyone you have cared for are gone. There is nothing left…nothing but desolation. Our entire planet is now a cemetery. But why would I go…either I mourn here are there, I will still mourn. I don’t want to move. I’ve been spending the last eight weeks here, and I will past the next forty years of my life here as well…. This is where I died, this is my tomb. Leave me die in peace!” The so-far placid Vice-Admiral showed a first sign of emotions. “I will be honest. I thought I would never see a tragedy like this again. The explosion was such that most of the bodies had completely...” the Vice-Admiral stopped. His eyes were closed and he was holding his breath. After a few seconds, he opened them again. His faced seemed to have changed completely. His look was almost cold. In a very different and almost indifferent tone, he resumed : “we still find survivors, even two months after the tragedy. They have been buried so deep our transporter can’t get a lock on them, so that make the job quite hard. So we are trying to locate every one of them, dead or alive, reach them and bring them back on the station or on one the ships we have. When it’s corpse we find, we also need to identify them and warn their family. The Quezalth authority has been kind enough to provide us with complete details of all their population, DNA, current location. But we still find each day about ten thousand people, so that is almost ten thousand calls we have to make every day, when we do find a relative alive. We have a total of six ships to complement on the long term our work on the station. The USS Asclepius (Galaxy Class), USS Constitution (galaxy class), USS Pasteur (Hospital Ship), USS Hypocrate (Oberth class), USS Wolverton (Oberth class), USS Hornet (Norway Class). We had about 17 ships two weeks ago, and we are supposed to have 4 new ships arriving this week. We are still hoping you could lay a hand as well, even if I understand your special mission will necessarily impose lot of restriction on your whereabouts” said the Bolian, without any tear shed. “We are here to lay a hand. Send me how many personnel you need and I’m sure I can find volunteers.” Syuvik said. The Vice-Admiral nodded and they continued their walk. (reply any) (posted by Nick) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Syuvik, Day 4, 0945) The Vice-Admiral continued. "The five lower decks before the engineering decks have been transformed into a huge morgue. Every Quezalth remain is sent there to be identified and stored. Yes stored. We can find a leg one day and an arm five days later, so to store and archive the remains is the only way to process the remains we find. The upper deck is where the officers’ quarters are as well as the different offices. The bigger decks of the lower part of the station are the recovery quarters. As soon as a Quezalth is out of dangers and there are no more operations to be done, they are transferred there for the time of their recovery. We have several hundred medical officers watching over them, but at least, that allow us to free up room for the new injuries. Maybe a good sign, lately, we have had to transform a whole deck we used for Medical Operations into recovery quarters. We have fewer serious injuries...but we still find a lot of dead bodies... or what is left of them.” "It is logical to assume the Quezalth we have met so far are representative of the population who have survived. It must make for a very difficult situation?" asked Syuvik. “The Quezalth are still deeply affected by the tragedy. Angriness is considerable, especially considering it is unexplained. Some are already pointing the fingers at us. Our diplomats are doing a nice work to calm the population, but we still have a huge difficulty getting the Quezalth trust. The situation is very tough, but I know we will succeed." answered the admiral. (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Corey, Day 4, 0948) They were showed around the station, but it was a sad sight throughout. The people were looking hopeless. The Quezalth managed to accomplish much in the terms of advanced engineering, but were unable to prevent the disaster that befall them. It was as much as interesting as a sad thing as well. On the flip side, they were surviving as a race and the crew of the Soval were here to see to that continuing. Though something personally bugged him, why was the search, help and relief effort from the previous expeditions yielded so little results? Corey thought there was something he wasn't being told. He didn't like that feeling. There was this particular instance... of similar happenings. Although, he did a slingshot maneuver around the specific star with his Bird of Prey, ending up in the past. Since technicly he wasn't part of the Federation then... he didn't need to abide to the Temporal Directive nor any other minor Temporal Laws, but he tried his best not to change anything drastically. In fact, it was the undoing of his own crew that brought the destruction to a certain star, so he remedied that by manipulating the computer to set up a warning to his other self before he set up to charge and test the newly found torpedoes he acquired. While a thought of meeting with his dashling copy, or rather, well, himself, was inviting, he knew the terrible thing that would happen in that case. Getting back was perhaps something he should think about some other time. He had no idea how could he help this people, however, he went over preliminary data he was sent by the Federation. He had an idea of getting industrial heavy transporters and moving the parts of the buried cities, but the simulations sadly proved the idea - or rather the planet, too unstable, with an possibility of added quakes or similar phenomenons due to excessive hollow parts of space these would left underground. While Mr Jackson saw to ask a question about the prior Federation teams, he was looking outside from one of the windows in the long corridor, trying to catch a glimpse of what's it like outside at the moment, but the only thing he could see was hopelesness, sorrow and misery. Their whole world - everything they knew, everything they loved and had - changed and lost forever. He certainly could understand what they were feeling. However, behind these strong feelings, they were confused. Corey was no genious but he could spot a man behind his eyes. They had no idea what and why happened. More to add to the mystery. (Reply None) (Posted by Lani) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Jackson, Day 4, 0949) The crew walked along behind the VADM as they were led along the station. The sadness was ever present and oppressive.People sat and were without any hope. The admiral paused and Tom took a shot. "Admiral, what progress has the Corps of Engineers made in getting to the cities?" Jackson asked. Reply: Vice Admiral Tom made some notes on his padd. He needed to work with S'yes without stepping into the Caitian's area. The Soval's specific part in the recovery wasn't yet defined. Lots of work was ahead! (reply admiral, any) (posted by Bill West) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Corridor, Giroht, Day 4, 0951) "Admiral, what progress has the Corps of Engineers made in getting to the cities?" Jackson asked once the admiral had answered Syuvik's question. "We have reached most of the important cities. There are still several smaller cities and a few important cities but it's already more than 70% of the Quezalth population before the incident. The longest is not actually reaching those cities but rather finding all the bodies. There are hundred thousands for every city. It take times to find them all. One of the most important task was to reach the city where the explosion happened. Now that we have and you are here, you have without a doubt the most important task of us all. Only you can bring light to six months of misunderstanding and sorrow." the Vice-Admiral replied. (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (USS Soval, Holodeck 1, Stone, Day 4, 1000) Stone looked at the console in front of him and sighed. He placed his fingers on the console and gently tapped a few commands. He felt the ship move to his commands slowly at first as he got the feel for the Soval. “Okay nice and slow. Gently no quick moves.” His fingers moved quicker as he turned the Soval into harder and faster maneuvers. Going from pattern beta four to gamma and delta patterns as he finished the last sequence he brought the Soval back level and paused. “Okay lets try something a bit harder.” A smile crossed his face, he had wanted to give this a try for a while. He use to do this when he flew fighters and shuttle craft but had not tried it with anything the size of the Soval. He increased speed until he was traveling at half impulse. He then cut the main engines and slammed on the maneuvering thrusters sending the Soval into a flat spin. The alarms sounded as the stress on the Soval’s structural integrity dramatically increased and he felt himself being pushed into his chair. As he spun round to his original course he fired the maneuvering thrusters to stop the spin and then increased the impulse drive to give forward thrust. He grinned to himself as he finished the maneuver as he powered down the impulse drive and began the replay. (Reply any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1051) They completed the station visit. Before bringing the crew back to their ship, the Vice-Admiral stopped to the Command Offices deck. The crew was welcomed inside a conference room but the Rear-Admiral wasn’t present. It was rather the Starfleet Commodore that had contacted them, Larsson. “Greetings, officers of the USS Soval” He said. Then looking at the Vice Admiral : “Thank you Admiral for welcoming the Soval's senior staff and brief them on the situation in here.” The Commodore then turned towards the Soval crew. “I am afraid that, despite our best efforts, the report we have sent you on the situation is quite insufficient. I’m sure you understand there are simply too many things happening to keep up”. said Larsson. "I expected as much sir." simply replied Syuvik. “If you excuse me Admiral Giroht, it is urgent they be sent on their mission” said the Commodore, slightly nodding towards his superior. “I understand Commodore Larsson. “ the admiral looked at Syuvik and nodded. “I wish we could have met in better circumstances. I hope your mission will go well.” "This is out of our control, but we will do our best nonetheless." Syuvik replied. As the Vice-Admiral was leaving, Syuvik and Matrix exchanged a few words. They decided Syuvik would alone attend this meeting with the admiral while the commander was to prepare the crew for the away mission. Syuvik would join the meeting as soon as this meeting would be over. Once everyone left, what was a very crowded room became almost silent. Only Syuvik and Larsson were left in the room. “I apologize for my current state. You may think it is inappropriate for a Starfleet admiral to look this way. We are supposed to keep composure. But I assure you, the situation is so bad, not even a Vulcan would stand unaffected. We haven’t slept much lately and it has less to do with being busy. I have to say, it is not only a tragedy, but also a nightmare. We, in Starfleet, have worked very hard for years for the relations with the Quezalth to go well." said the admiral. Contrary to Vice-Admiral Giroht, it seemed the tragedy here was still affecting the Commodore significantly. Syuvik concluded it was logical, since his promotion to Commodore was quite recent. He had been on Quezal probably for a very short time. "Sir, with what I have seen here so far, even I, a Vulcan, with all the technics I have learned to keep my emotions under control, must admit I have difficulty keeping such self control. There is no need to apologize. But may I ask what exactly make this situation a...nightmare?" Why is everything going so badly’ is out of understanding.” said the Commodore instinctively. Taking a few seconds to get a better composure, the commodore resumed. “Our relations with the Quezalth are now back again to hostile. Over the top, this has even created issues within Starfleet itself.” Larsson stopped and looked behind him, as if to check if someone was coming. He moved closer to the Starfire officers as to whisper. “I am sorry to put you in this situation, but you must know Starfleet Admiralty and Starfleet Intelligence do not share the same vision and understanding of why this has happened. Rear-Admiral Thinn is my superior, and I do respect his opinion and the fact he is defending the Federation. But being at the top of Starfleet intelligence certainly affects your judgment. His suspicions are sound, but they are not proved. I won’t ask you to choose a side. All I ask is to keep an open mind and report any new information you will get.” The Commodore checked once again behind him, and resumed as if nothing had happened. Syuvik didn't say a word. The confidence was unexpected. He had too little information right now to make a judgement. However, it was now clear the situation was getting much more complicated than he had anticipated. If his superiors were disagreeing on what to do, this could means contradictory orders and more. He would be asked to carry out orders, but if they were contradictory, which one will he follows. Logically, without proper information to make a decision, it was better to simply follow the chain of command. But eventually, he would have to get enough information to form his own opinion and have an idea what was going on. “Before the incident, our priority had been to convince them to join the Federation. It’s not just because of Mensilium and Aeghon. They are such an ingenious people. They would have made a nice addition to the Federation. The Federation has kept very close relations with the Quezalth during the last few years. But there are more pressing matters than membership, now. All we can think of now is to make sure they can rebuild their society. We are ready to provide that help, but there are so much work to do...and it’s become more and more difficult to help them. The explanation is part of the reason why you are here. So where should I start.” The commodore said.... He seemed to be lost in his mind. Syuvik sat still, waiting for the commodore to make his mind. “I don’t understand what happened. They changed their mind so quickly, sometimes it is very difficult to follow their path of thinking. I understand the Federation could be considered suspect in this. We had so much to gain from stopping Romulans to get their hands on Aeghon. But there is absolutely no evidence the Federation has anything to do with what happened. From what we know, it is a malfunction in one of the city's reactor. So there radical changes of attitude towards us is surprising. Some from Starfleet Intelligence believe the Romulans are behind it. It is sound, but unproven and I am not the kind to speculate. I really don’t like the position we are in... The Quezalth are accusing us of something but we don’t know what. In a trial, at least you know what the people in front of you are accusing you of. Here, I have no idea. We don’t know what to expect. I would prefer to be here and just focus on helping them, and help them rebuild. But there is now a real danger that things get out of hands without us having any idea why. We could even be accused of genocide. There is no evidence supporting such claim, yet just the rumors is damaging. According to the Federation President, rumors have already spread in the quadrant and some species are questioning their membership in the Federation. It’s that bad. I don’t like to say that, but we need to know what is going on. Since the Quezalht won’t share the information they are gathering in the investigation with us anymore, I don’t think we have any other choice. We need to have our own private investigators to gather information and eventually prove them we are not responsible. We are also here to help with the rebuilding efforts." Syuvik reflected on what the commodore said. "I have to concur we are indeed the most to gain from the tragedy. I don't know who the Quezalth are, but if they are logical, without proof, it is farfetched to accuse us of anything. It would be illogical to take action against us before having a better idea what led to the explosion. However, it is also possible they know something we don't. Something that would incriminate us. This is something, I assume, we will have to investigate." The Commodore replied. “But you must understand who the Quezalth are. I have been discussing their membership to the Federation for several years now so I can understand their reaction. It is specie not used to other species. They are very secretive, and it is very hard to win their trust. Goods doesn't really matter....relation matters. You have to build a relation before being able to discuss anything. I can also assure you our intentions were pure. At first, we didn’t even know they had Aeghon on their planet, so that prove our intention were good. We thought we could help each other. So the discussion had been slow but progressive. They were starting to trust us and they were really about to accept to apply for membership when, we believe, the Romulan showed up. We didn’t know at the time, but based on our latest discovery, it would explain the sudden change of position back then of not joining the Federation despite all was already in motion. They had said we were trying to exploit them. That’s also when we discovered there was Aeghon on their planet. We tried to improve our relations and convince them to join the Federation, but they were now rather decided not to, probably because the Romulan convinced them not to.” At that moment, Rear-Admiral Thinn entered the room. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1054) At that moment, Rear-Admiral Thinn entered the room. He was a tall and slim Andorian, with a way of looking at you as if he could see right through you, like an open book. “Hello Commodore, captain. I see you have already started, commodore. Please continue.” Said the rear-admiral. The Commodore didn’t, at first, resume…but as the silence seemed to weigh on everyone, he resumed. “It is now proven the Quezalth and the Romulan have traded mensilium and they may have traded Aeghon.” Said the commodore. He then looked at the rear-admiral as if he hoped he would jump in, which he did. “The USS Hermes, has detected several days ago a Xepolite transport heading towards Romulus. The transport was apprehended by the crew, for an incident on a starbase...but what is important is the fact we discovered Aeghon on it. The transport crew was arrested, as for his cargo, we decided to keep it. The Romulan weren’t too happy about it saying by confiscating legal goods, we were violating the Treaty. I do believe some of you crew members have experienced their anger first hand.” explained the Rear-Admiral. Syuvik had no idea what he was referring to. "I was not informed." he simply said. "The USS Rosenante was attacked by Romulans in Federation space several days ago. It was the day following the confiscation of the cargo. The situation with the Romulan has returned to peaceful, but they have certainly not turned the page with their dealings with the Quezalth. We suspect they have operative here right now, I will get to that later. It is not known but we believe Aeghon is the only crystal that is able to achieve a level of photon concentration high enough to produce the kind of High energy necessary, among other things, to produce Thalaran radiation. Our scientists have not been able to produce it, but with our current knowledge, Aeghon does seem the key. So, we believe the Romulan are building Thalaran weapon, and perhaps new Scimetar ships. You know, we had always wondered why the Romulan never built any more scimitar after Shinzon. We didn’t believed the construction technique just died with him. This would make more sense. They hadn’t because they didn’t had any Aeghon left. It is incredibly rare and we know for a fact the Romulan does not have any colony that can produce it. So, having a lasting source of Aeghon, could have been very dangerous.” The rear-admiral said. “This is a possibility, but also a speculative one, if I may say. The Romulan could had been using Aeghon for the same reason we do, to build better phasers and disruptors, as well as better medical equipements.” Said the commodore. “But they wouldn’t go into such troubles to get Aeghon if it was only to boost fire output by 20%.” Added the Rear-Admiral. “Admiral, don’t get me wrong. The evidence are compelling that the Romulans are behind the Quezalth turning down unexpectedly the process of joining the Federation. But we both know Aeghon is now out of the equation, so I am not certain it is useful to tell the Starfire crew about that. Even with the fact they were involved one year ago, it is still very unlikely they are responsible now for the new hostility the Quezalth have towards us.” the Commodore added. “Wouldn’t you say Commodore that there is a new advantage to be involved ? Millions Quezalths have been killed and we are the prime suspect. It is a great opportunity for them to damage our reputation galaxy wide. After all, isn’t it what is happening right now with all the complains and demands for disclosure the Federation President is receiving? ” Retorked the admiral. “And if the evidence were to suggest someone else is responsible, then the Romulans would have a huge interest in creating false evidence to inculpate us. And for all we know, there might still be some Aeghon left that hasn’t be ignited during the explosion. They may want to get back on the colony.” “Sir, with all due respect. It is still only a hypothesis. There is no proof to back your theory.” The commodore replied back. The Rear-Admiral smiled. “Commodore, I’m sure we can discuss it privately, when the captain is not here. His time his precious and seeing us debating and disagreeing doesn’t look very good.” He said, looking at the Commodore. Then turning to the captain, “Excuse us captain. This is a very tense situation where we have little information, so all we have are hypothesis, which is in fact why you are here. Despite what this conversation may suggest, I and the Commodore are agreeing on most of the debate. Our challenging discussion are very informative and help us see the situation better. Finding more information, as you can imagine now, is a top priority. But, we shouldn’t have done it in front of you and I apologize. We should resume our discussion.” The Admiral said, “Aeghon is pretty much gone now so the danger is now being greatly reduced. The explosion on Quezal was due to the cascade reaction caused by the Aeghon crystal in the planet crust. Their might still be minor crystal there, but not in sufficient quantity for large scale. I least we hope. It is probably not even sufficient for building a single scimitar. But what is important, is the fact the Quezalth authority have lately become once more very secretive. We believe the Romulans are behind it. They are probably trying to convince the Quezalth that we are behind the explosion...that we are behind a genocide, and from the look of it, they are succeeding. You know how devious the Romulans are. There is also another possibility which I have hinted previously. Perhaps they have found an area where Aeghon is in decent quantity” Syuvik took several seconds to reflect on what had been said. The situation was already confusing....and with the disagreement of his two superior officers, it was hard to determine what part was based on fact and which weren't. "I do understand your search for more evidence to support your claims. We, Vulcan, do not speculate. We prefer to have sufficient information before making any statement, and if I may say so, it does seems it is the case. I understand my mission. However, I consider important to be honest. My allegiance is to the truth, whatever it is. I will not be seeking to prove any hypothesis. The fact and evidence themselves should impose what really happened." "Of course captain." said the Rear-Admiral, "We didn't expected less of you. I want you to find the truth, not prove my hypothesis, so we are in perfect agreement." "If I may ask a question. You have suggested that the Quezalth are hostile towards us. However, it is logical to assume not all Quezalth speak in a common voice. What is exactly the situation?" Syuvik asked. “You are right. Not all of them are hostile. Actually, they are much divided on the subject. Some knows Starfleet or the Federation is incapable of such atrocity...well, not anymore. But others are using Doenitz example to say we haven’t changed and to accuse us of being murderers.” The rear-admiral said. “So you are starting to understand what kind of difficult position we are in”. the commodore said. “At first, we convinced them to organize a neutral investigation, with both Federation and Quezal being part of it. Despite the tensions, we managed to make some discovery and work together.” “But not for long. Those who accused us of genocide decided to end the investigation and start their own. We have continued the investigation, but our efforts are undermined by those Quezal who believes we are at fault. The neutral investigation is going nowhere, and if we don’t act quickly, we will be found guilty of a crime we did not commit. I know we normally go by the rule of a society, but with the Romulan probably behind it, I don’t think we can call it a fair investigation. This is why we asked you to come here. We need our own private investigators. We need a team who could work secretly and who would put some light into this. We need someone who could lead the neutral investigation to where the proofs really are.” Syuvik reflected once more. "Working behind someone's back is against the Federation principle. We are violating our principles by doing this. It is logical to assume that if I decline the mission, you will ask another ship?" "I'm afraid you are right captain. Starfleet Admiralty has agreed on this matter. This will be done, either it be the USS Soval or another ship. However, considering what happened to your crew, and the expertise the crew of the USS Rosenante gained in such mission, you are our first choice for the mission." the Rear-Admiral said. Syuvik reflected. Whatever he declined or not, the outcome would be the same. There would be an investigation team. Starfleet principles would be violated. In his young time, Syuvik was used to be quite idealistic. Truth was, today he was more of a pragmatist. Circumstances mattered. In this case, with the Admiralty agreeing to violating their own principle because they believed the Quezalth were being manipulated was a good reason. Without a fair trial, the need to respect someone's law was not an obligation anymore. Moreover, Syuvik wouldn't be taking responsibility for the decision. The decision was already taken. He would only take responsibility for the outcome. Which was also to be considered. Considering the extent and importance of the matter, was it not best to take care of this himself so that they be sure the investigation was neutral. He had the advantage he was not favoring any side....neither Larsson side, nor Thinn side. He was Vulcan, his allegiance was to the truth...and the truth he would find. "I accept." he said. "Thank you captain." said the Commodore. "Do you have any question?" asked the Rear-Admiral? "I do." started Syuvik. "What do you know so far about the explosion?" “We know what is its source. The main antimatter reactor of the Capital City, Quozal, exploded. When it exploded, it reacted with the aeghon in the rock causing a chain reaction that almost entirely destroyed the planet. All the cities buried in the explosion that we have been able to investigate lead to that conclusion. However, neither we nor the Quezalth can explain why the reactor exploded. Based on the latest report from the Quezalth engineers before the explosion, there was no mention of the slightest rupture or default. The Quezalth are a very meticuluous and hard-working people. Negligence, or failing to report a problem seem very uncharacteristic. So we can't exclude the possibility the explosion was caused on purpose.” The admiral said in a very cold voice, but that was now deprived of any emotion. The number of time he had to repeat it certainly contributed to the inhibition. “It doesn’t make sense for the Romulan to be behind this explosion. They wouldn’t have destroyed their only chance of rebuilding scimetars. The possibility of a mistake by one of the employee, or a malfunction, or a incident still seems the most and only likely explanation, but we can't be certain. I'm sorry if we are not much help.” the Rear-Admiral said. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Soval, Deck 10, Holodeck 2, M’Epak, Day 4, 1055) M’Epak stood on the large mat in the middle of the room. The walls was dark wood paneling as would be found in any training room on the home world or in martial arts dojos on earth. She flexed her toes feeling the slight give in the mat as she gripped her toes to strengthen her connection with the ground. She moved her stance so that her thighs were in position and her pelvis turned forward solidifying stance. She breathed easily, deep and regularly as she tried to find a quiet and peaceful center that her mind could focus on as she closed her eyes. The only other sound in the room apart from her breathing was the soft swish, swoosh of the bat’leth as it spun in a circular from hand to hand. It was an exercise her father had taught her from when she was a small child and now it was second nature. Although her favorite weapon was a pair of mek'leth her father had given to her on graduating from the Klingon Defence Force a Klingon warrior is a master with all her weapons and to favor one over another is to hand the enemy a victory. She smiled at the fraze her father would use when she complained about the hour of endless bat’leth practice. In a fluid motion she shifted her stance and her grip on the bat’leth using its up swing to bring in into a over the strike that would have slicked a head in two. With the opening strick performed she went into the well practiced drills as she moved around the mat attacking and defending blow from imaginary enemies. (Reply any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (Medical Station M-12, Command Offices Deck, Syuvik, Day 4, 1057) The Rear-Admiral continued. "We have found no proof to reinforce that hypothesis, and we are running out of time. The Quezalth authority that has been formed after the explosion are supposed to meet with their own investigators and take a decision about our presence in two weeks. If we don’t find anything conclusive before that time, not only is it very likely we will be expelled from their world, but we believe they will press charges. According to their law, there is such thing as collective responsibility. They could charge all those in Starfleet that have been in contact with them of genocides. Of course, we couldn’t allow our officers to be unfairly sentenced, but you know Starfleet and the Federation consider it a directive to respect each specie justice system. The best would be to avoid having to decide what we are going to do if we were prosecuted. So that gives you two weeks to show we are innocent.” Syuvik examined the situation and truth be told, the chance of proving their innocence in two weeks were rather small. It would probably take more than that just to remove the rocks to reach the antimatter reactor. "Realistically, it is unlikely we will discover such proofs in time. Even if we were to work 24 hours a day, there is so much work, I don't apprehend to have reached the antimatter reactor in time, even less having done a complete analysis of it. Logic would dictate to already prepare for the very likely scenario of what we are going to do in two weeks without any proof." The Rear-Admiral stopped. He exchanged a long look with the Commodore, as if Syuvik had caught them off guard. Finally, the Commodore was the first to speak. “Starfleet Command has been debating the right course of action for days now. Ethical issues have been rose about what we should do. We have always been honor-bound to respect species’ culture and values perfectly. But we feel that in this case, we may have to bend the rules a little. The Quezal culture isn’t one that forgives. If you commit any crime...or betrayal, even a minor one, you lose everything. Their justice system is based on the same policy. They do not believe in rehabilitation. They believe in the purity of their morality. If someone cannot uphold their moral principles, he does not deserve to be a citizen and his freedom his taken away for a very long time. Friends and family are also responsible for moral teaching, so if one member of the family is guilty of a crime, the entire family is considered responsible for his or her behaviour. Therefore, they have a strong sense of collective responsibility. We, in Starfleet, believe that if we let the Quezal authority an opportunity to judge us, things will start getting out of control really fast. It has already started to happen and, if my hypothesis is right that the Romulan are behind this and could be tempering with the evidences, even more reason to be proactive. Sometimes, non-interference means letting the carpet slip under your feet. I have no intention to let it happen. I’m not the kind of person who sit and wait hoping things will turn out for the best when everything suggest otherwise. We must prevent this from happening even if it means bending a few rules. So we decided we needed to act before that, even if it meant investigating secretly, which in itself might raise even more suspicions. We are taking the huge risk that we can investigate without being detected, and can find proof that would show we are not responsible. While you lead your investigation, we will be working closely with the authority to extend us some more times to search and prove we are not responsible. I am confident that, with the city being delivered from the rock, this will give incentive to wait for more thorough analysis of the site before making a decision. But if we fail....or should I say if you fail, this would have a shockwave in the entire Federation. We may lose members, and have difficulty getting new ones. But the other alternative would be to let thousands of good officers been incarcerated for a crime they did not commit and let the Federation bear the responsibility for a fabrication.” The Rear-Admiral took over. “The mission is a very special one, a risky one. You will need to find more evidence of what happened, without raising suspicions. I can't insist enough on the importance of your covert story being well done. Most of your crew will have to lend a hand to the efforts to really make it look that way. Yet, you will have to find ways to get to those critical areas without being detected and make your investigation there.” The Rear-Admiral stood less rigidly. “It is important we remain faithful to the truth, so we must do whatever we can to find it, whatever it is. We need to discover who or what are responsible for the explosion and soon. If they don’t trust us enough to share their investigation with us, then let’s find the truth by ourselves.... They already know our men, and our current investigators are closely monitored. I need a team from the exterior, a team that could investigate in secret without having the Quezal authority to watch over them. The USS Rosenante wass the best ship in the fleet for infiltration mission, and most of its crew are now your crew. You have all the expertise necessary to complete such mission. It won’t be an easy one, but I need you and your crew to complete such mission. "I have a question sir. As soon as we will move within the antimatter reactor, they will take a close look at us and knows we are not the investigation team, that we are the rescue team and will suspect us. Have you already prepared for the eventually the reactor could be closed to us?" asked Syuvik “The Quezalth authority does not have the name of each Starfleet officer working here. In critical situations, you have the authorisation and credentials to pretend you are part of the investigation team working with the Quezalth authority if they don't want to give you access to some of the area. But you may also need to sneak in by yourself. The more often you use the investigation card, the more likely you will be discovered. I don’t need to tell you to be careful, do I?” said the Rear-Admiral. "No. Another question. I assume you will be assigning a liaison officer who is well informed of the situation and will keep you updated on our progress ?" asked Syuvik. The Rear-Admiral smiled. "I was wondering if you would ask the question. Yes you will. And I believe presentation won't be necessary." The Rear-Admiral pressed on his combadge "You can come in." he said. As he pronounced the words, a relatively small and young looking blond officer, with the red color of the Intelligence department, and the pin indicating "Lieutenant" entered the conference room. The choice of officer was a surprise. Syuvik didn't believed in coincidence. The probability that she was the most competent officer to be assigned to such task was almost inexistent. The only reason he could see for her assignation on the USS Soval was the proximity she had with him. Jennifer Bates....Lieutenant Jennifer Bates. They had graduated together at the academy and become very good friends. They then served together on the USS Mithrandir. It was illogical to name someone based on previous relations for such important mission. There was another reason behind it. As much as he was pleased to see her, he was also displeased. What were they hiding?. "Captain, you don't seem happy to see me." said the Lieutenant. "Happy is an emotion, so you are correct, I am not happy to see you. But I am please to see you, Lieutenant." Syuvik said. "I'm sure you wonder why they have assigned me to your ship?" she asked. "I'm sure there is a logical explanation. I don't know which it is, so I would welcome any insight or factual knowledge you have on the reason." Syuvik added. Jennifer looked at the Rear-Admiral, as if to have his approbation before continuing. "I'm one of the specialist on Romulan politics in Starfleet intelligence. So when Starfleet Intelligence learned the Quezalth wouldn't join the Federation probably because of Romulan involvement, I was assigned by Starfleet Intelligence to work here. This has been my assignment for the last five months. And since we already know each other, among all the Starfleet intelligence officers on Quezalth available, I was certainly the most logical choice." she explained, the two last words being a way of saying she learned to say because of all her time spent with Syuvik. Somehow, Syuvik believed it was too good to be true. But showing it wouldn't help his cause so he faked he found the explanation satisfying. "Interesting." he simply said. Syuvik then looked at the Rear-Admiral, as if expecting him to say something. "I have nothing else to tell you for now. I assume you want to be brief in more details by Lieutenant Bates. So you are both dismissed." the Rear-Admiral said. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Soval, Sickbay, Noah, Day 4, 1100) Noah looked around the sickbay. It was nice to be on the move again especially after what had happened before. ~Now I’m CMO again~ He sighed and smiled to himself. It was easier when he was the assistant CMO but then he really did not go for the easy option in his life. He now had the medical responsibility of over 1000 crew on board. He looked at the sickbay crew that was working around him. ~At least I am not on my own~ He looked over at Anderson and sh'Solom'aa. “Ailyn, Tesha how are things going with the preparation? Do was have enough equipment to handle a protracted deployment? What are the times for a mass casualty drills of they are we may need to run them again while we are in transit. Also if there is anything that you think we need for main stores that we don't have give me a list and I will try and get it before we leave." (Reply Anderson and sh'Solom'aa, any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (Soval, Sickbay, Andersen, Day 4, 1104) Ailyn was getting ready, going through last checks of the equipment she was carrying. The current issue was she felt helpless with the Quezal. It seemed whatever she could come up with, came too late, and there's nothing they can done about them. The Chief Medical Officer Noah was also in sickbay, as was Tesha. "Allyn, Tesha how are things going with the preparation? Do was have enough equipment to handle a protracted deployment? What are the times for a mass casualty drills of they are we may need to run them again while we are in transit. Also if there is anything that you think we need for main stores that we don't have give me a list and I will try and get it before we leave." "Preparations went fine, sir, the major problem I'm seeing is... we don't really exactly know how we're gonna deal with the people we'll find underneath. Tragically, the preliminary scans indeed show most of Quezal underneath to be deceased, but we cannot be certain. I fear we don't nearly have enough manpower to cover so much ground. The crew are ready, though I fear lack of more complex knowledge of the Quezal organs might be an issue if we find the need for new organs, since there's very little available for donating. I'm sure, though, with the ability to regenerate the tissue of the organs in most of the cases, it won't prove to be a large issue." Ailyn explained, packing her last few things, she felt better carrying the extra things she felt the need to have with her, herself, then adding them on the list and having them brought down. Sometimes, she was just conscious how defensive she could be towards the things she would get used to. (Reply Noah iyw) (Posted by Lani) ----- (Soval, Deck 15, Cargo Elevator, Matrix, Day 4, 1303) Matrix observed the 'package' as it was loaded into the cargo elevator. Four technicians carefully orchestrated its movement into the elevator and adjusted the Federation of Planets cargo blanket to fully shield the contents from prying eyes. Master chief J'aki handed Matrix a purple PADD for authorization and review. "Very good Chief. Please put this aboard the shuttle Andromeda right away. No one sees it...understood?" asked Matrix. "Aye sir. We'll make sure." replied the chief. With that Matrix watched the cargo bay doors close and the elevator disappear in the swirl and buzz of the large capacity tubro lift to its destination. Matrix had already ordered shuttle Andromeda sealed. Only the technical crews would have access to it for the time being. =^= Commander Sanok and Commander Jackson please report to my office immediately.=^= ordered Matrix. (Reply Sanok, Jackson) (Posted by Steve) ----- (Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 4, 1308) Matrix awaited for Commanders Sanok and Jackson to arrive while he finished preparing the presentation. He pondered the effectiveness of the the item in the cargo hold and hoped it would help ensure success in the mission ahead. If it were discovered by anyone other than that of the Soval crew it could prove detrimental to the already distressed relationship between the Federation and the Quezalth. Matrix stood as the two senior officers entered his office. He greeted them and took a seat behind his desk. "Gentlemen, please have a seat and make yourself comfortable." Matrix continued. "I wanted to get you up to speed on a new technology that Star Fleet has made available to us for this mission." said Matrix as the large display screen illuminated to the right of his desk. "This technology is a derivative of the short range scanners you'd find any any star ship, but its intended use is for penetration in areas of heavy iron or even kelbonite ore. It should be helpful in gathering the necessary information on what and who caused this horrible destruction on Quezal. I've secured two scanning devices which have been expertly disguised as portable water desalination and air particulate monitors by our own personnel. In fact these units will operate as disguised. Telemetry links to these units can be established through a standard tricorder or PADD and are encrypted via a multiphase communication channel. The main units should be placed in proximity of the area of interest and will relay telemetry to any coded PADD or tricorder up to approximately 1 kilometer. The Mark ICX's sensor penetration will depend on a number of environmental factors, but expect it to map out an area of between four and six kilometers. The level of detail the Mark ICX can record could be equated to literally finding a needle in a haystack...a planet wide haystack. Having said that the labyrinth of metal deposits on Quezal might prove the Mark ICX ineffective or at least with reduced capabilities. Use with caution of you so chose." Matrix let that information simmer with the two officers briefly, "Bishop and the Knight will be piloted aboard another shuttle to the surface. There you can decide where you want them distributed, if at all." continued Matrix. "Any questions?" asked Matrix. (Reply Sanok, Jackson) (Posted by Steve) ----- (Soval, FO Office, Jackson, Day 4, 1317) Tom and Sanok had arrived at the same time at the FO's office. Jackson still had not brought up the subject of Sanok's sudden change of fortune. Sanok, as usual, was mute on the subject. The two friends soon entered their friend's office and took the offered seats. "Gentlemen, please have a seat and make yourself comfortable." Matrix said. Steve Matrix explained the reason for their summons. There was a very unique device about to be unveiled to the two men. "I wanted to get you up to speed on a new technology that Star Fleet has made available to us for this mission." said Matrix as the large display screen illuminated to the right of his desk. Tom leaned forward to take a closer lol at the display. Steve Matrix went further in his explanation. "This technology is a derivative of the short range scanners you'd find any any star ship, but its intended use is for penetration in areas of heavy iron or even kelbonite ore. It should be helpful in gathering the necessary information on what and who caused this horrible destruction on Quezal.I've secured two scanning devices which have been expertly disguised as portable water desalination and air particulate monitors by our own personnel. In fact these units will operate as disguised. Telemetry links to these units can be established through a standard tricorder or PADD and are encrypted via a multiphase communication channel. The main units should be placed in proximity of the area of interest and will relay telemetry to any coded PADD or tricorder up to approximately 1 kilometer. The Mark ICX's sensor penetration will depend on a number of environmental factors, but expect it to map out an area of between four and six kilometers. The level of detail the Mark ICX can record could be equated to literally finding a needle in a haystack...a planet wide haystack. Having said that the labyrinth of metal deposits on Quezal might prove the Mark ICX ineffective or at least with reduced capabilities. Use with caution if you so chose. " Tom's brow furrowed in deep thought. He held back awaiting to see what Sanok had to say. After a bit he asked for the man's thoughts. "Sanok, what do you think?" Jackson asked. (Reply: Sanok) (Posted by; Bill W.) ----- (Soval, CO Office, Syuvik & Bates, Day 4, 1329) With the meeting with the admiralty over, Syuvik was back on the USS Soval with Lieutenant Jennifer Bates. They had so much to discuss with so little time. Even if she knew the feeling wasn't mutual - how could a Vulcan reciprocate a feeling - Jennifer was happy to see Syuvik. He was one of his greatest friend. During the academy, he had always been a confident, someone who would advise her and be there for her no matter what. "Now that the admirals are fare away, there is no need to hide. Are you happy to see me?" If she was expecting a reaction, she got none. Syuvik remained in his natural Vulcan composure. "I am pleased to see you. It is always good to see a friend. Especially one such as yours. The years we have passed together and the friendship we have established are durable. Despite the circumstances kept as away during the last year, it had no effect on my opinion or the way I valorized our friendship." "I'm glad to hear it." she said, walking around his office. "That's a nice office you got." "What good is size if most of it is not actually used. I have no need of so much space. A smaller office would have been sufficient and would have cost less space." Syuvik said, purposedly roleplaying the annoyance of taking the words too literally. Jennifer examined the painting on the wall. "Then why do you have a painting? I never knew you have a taste for arts." Syuvik examined the painting a second. "Logic and arts aren't incompatible. But it is not a painting I have chosen to place there. I have kept most of the decoration the previous CO had installed." Jennifer remembered the emotions she had when she had read the report of what had happened to the crew on Anohesia. "I'm sorry for what happened. It must be difficult." The memory of those he lost and those having difficulty to cope with the situation came in his mind. "It is difficult. I know most of my crew can't contain their emotions like I do and remain deeply affected by the losses. It will take time to get over it. I've lost many valuable crew members and those who have survived are barely keeping it up together. I'm trying to help them as much as I can but I'm afraid a Vulcan is greatly limited in terms of empathy." "If you need someone to talk to, I'm always available." she said. "Thanks, but it is not necessary. I am not the one needing an attentive ear. Now, if you mind, I would prefer we discuss the mission." Syuvik said. Jennifer wanted to discuss private matters in more length. So much had happened since they both left the USS Mithrandir. She became a Intelligence officer while he left for another ship. There weren't much occasions to keep contact. But she knew he was right. "You never told me you were an intelligence officer." Syuvik started. The reaction on Jennifer face changed. "It's not something you scream on the roof." she replied, a bit defensively. "I wouldn't have mind telling you, but the opportunity never really presented itself. And to be honest, I still don't understand why they have recruited me. I don't have what it takes to be a good intelligence officer. I'm still wondering each day when they are going to realize the mistake they have made by choosing me." Syuvik looked at Jennifer as a scientist look at an experiment. "What?" she asked. Syuvik showed a hint of a smile. "Despite all those years, you still doubt yourself? Do you really believe Starfleet Intelligence do not know who you are and have chosen lightly who they recruited?" Jennifer didn't replied. She knew he was right, but it was more complicated than that. You cannot not know everything about a person. Even Starfleet Intelligence could recruit officers that did not met their expectations. "Have they recruited you for this specific mission?" Syuvik asked, seeing Jennifer wasn't saying anything. "No, they recruited me before the explosion. They recruited me not long after the Mithrandir was recalled and you were reassigned." she said. But then, knowing Syuvik, he wasn't asking that just to make the conversation. What was he looking for? "Why do you ask?" "It is logical to try understanding the circumstances of your recruitment. You are assigned to my ship and therefore you are part of my crew." Syuvik simply explained. "There is more to it than that, is it?" she asked. "A valid interrogation... You must understand the situation is unusual. Despite I have vowed to obey my superior orders, does not mean I have to do it blindly. It is always preferable to know more than less. I'm simply trying to understand the reasoning and motives of my superiors. This may give me more insights about their intentions and apprehension than what has been said and therefore place me in a better situation to accomplish the mission." Syuvik explained. Jennifer almost showed frustration or irritation. "As always, I have no idea what's in your mind. But I assure you the admiralty told you everything there is to know or if they haven't, it's because I have the information and authorization to give them to you." "Then what else can you tell me?" Syuvik asked. "Eeh.....I don't know... what do you need to know?" she asked. "Jennifer, I am not asking you to tell me what I know I don't know but what I don't know I don't know....and therefore, I cannot ask you what it is. You only can tell me what it is." Syuvik replied. "Syuvik......"....she realized Syuvik was looking at her "Sir, Vice-Admiral Thinn and Commodore Larsson told you everything they judged was important you know. Right now, I don't think of anything else that you don't know and could be essential to your mission. But I'm sure, as the mission progress, they are valuable information I will think of and will tell you then." Jennifer didn't liked it one bit. Never Syuvik had behaved like this before. She felt like he was suspecting something. There was some distance between them, a distance she never had before. However, she also knew that despite his best efforts, Syuvik never suppressed his emotions entirely. From what she understood, it was impossible for someone raised as V'tosh'katur to ever succeed to complete the kolinahr. She had never saw Syuvik emotional, but in the circumstances, loosing half of his crew and being put into a weird situation where he had to betray some of Starfleet principles to save their reputation, that could affect even a Vulcan, she thought. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Soval, Observation Lounge, Syuvik, Day 4, 1500) The meeting with the admiralty was completed. Commander Matrix had discussed the mission with the crew several hours before and it was now time to give the official directives. On the screen of the observation lounge, Syuvik activated the display of the map showing the City they have been tasked to investigate. It was the city were the explosion happened. "So far, Starfleet managed to dig as far as the downtown entrance, but everything north of it is still under the rocks. We are going to install our base of operations in the open area in front of what was before the city astroport. Until Lieutenant Corey and the engineering team has completed the installation of the temporary bases, we are going to use the three runabout as bases of operations. Runabout 01 will serve as the command area, runabout 2 as the medical base, and runabout 3 as the engineering base. Forcefields will also be installed over those installations and runabouts in case the upper part of the cavern was to collapse. Lieutenant Corey, I've read your recommendation on the subject and I approve it." said Syuvik. "In order to better understand what is to be done, we have decided to separate our tasks into three different time. Part 1 of the mission is to get our installations ready on the surface and start give ourselves access to the city. Part 2 will be to free the residential sectors from the rocks and start both the investigation and retrieving the Quezal and Federation bodies there. Based on the latest Federation report, the Federation embassy in the city had at least a hundred personnel unaccounted for that was probably still there when the explosion occurred. Part 3 will be when the city will be entirely free from rock. This is when we will be able to focus mainly on the investigation." explained Syuvik. "The instructions and objectives for part 2 and 3 will be provided later on, during the course of the mission. What follows are the objectives for part 1 of this mission." "So first, we need to prepare the perimeter around the astroport. The most important is to insure the security of the crew, which means installing the forcefields. Once done, the engineering teams can start installing the facilities, tactical and sciences will start removing the rocks, and security and medical will start recovering the bodies." Syuvik explained. "Ensign Signos and Ensign C'Nell, your recommendation on the way to proceed to remove the rocks safely is very well thought and solve many problems we could have faced. You are right that moving rocks are not really different from repairing a ship, so your use of tugs was a clever analysis." Syuvik added. "Lieutenant-Commander Sanok, as soon as the operation of moving the rocks away have started, we are ready to proceed to the investigation itself. You are in charge of the search. I want you to compose a small away team with medical officers to start searching the residential areas. It is logical to assume only once we will have reached the government building, industrial sector and power reactors will we find information pertinent for our investigation. So at first, our covert mission will be our real mission : searching for bodies and survivors." said Syuvik. "Lieutenant S'yes.... Ensign Signos and C'Nell's proposition does solve the problem of how to move the rocks away from the city, but I'm seeing problem of logistics. We will be needing shuttles to transport the bodies and finding from our base of operation to the Medical station in orbit, as well as to transport the rocks moved by the tug out of the tunnel. We only have 8 shuttles available. Also, equipment from the USS Soval may be needed. You are responsible on that aspect of the mission." Syuvik said. "Lieutenant-Commander Jackson, while Commander Matrix will be in command of the away team, there are a lot of different tasks to coordinate. Choosing which area to start moving rock away, evaluating the risk of those 'freed zones', giving the go ahead to the security and medical team to investigate the freed zone, making sure their findings are transported back to our operation bases are all examples of such tasks. The Commander alone cannot both know what is happening in every team at every moment and give orders. Down there, you will be like a First Officer. You will be in direct contact with each team to coordinate their efforts, get the information from each different working group and provide it to Commander Matrix, as well as making sure Matrix's orders are followed. Your assessment of the situation and recommendation to Commander Matrix will be critical to our success and efficiency. Consider also this a test of your command skills." said Syuvik. "Lieutenant-Commander Noah, while you are in charge of the medical aspect of the mission and will be working closely with security, I do need personnel to land a hand on the Medical Station here, on the request of Vice-Admiral Giroht. Before you leave to the surface, I want you to assemble such team. (NRPG : Andersen will be needed on the surface for something special I have for her so I propose either M'epak or Tesha or both be assigned to such task). RPG: Syuvik said. "So, these are the general objectives for each of you. I know Commander Matrix want to address some of those objectives in more depth, but before he does, I want to address one last thing. I still have several meetings to attend. Since the situation on the ground can be quite different from theory, we need to work fast and I may be impossible to contact, I'm giving him all the latitude to change these objectives, add new ones, lower the level of priority of these objectives based on his own assessment of the situation. In short, down there, he is in total command." Syuvik explained, while looking at the Commander to show his total confidence in the man. (Reply any) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Soval, Observation Lounge, Corey, Day 4, 1509) The meeting with the senior crew was going fine, in fact, just as Corey was expecting it, Captain was about to give the official directives, despite the crew already more or less knew what had to be done. With the move of his hand, Syuvik activated the image of the city the crew was tasked to investigate on the large screen in the observation lounge. "(...) Until Lieutenant Corey and the engineering team has completed the installation of the temporary bases, we are going to use the three runabout as bases of operations. Runabout 01 will serve as the command area, runabout 2 as the medical base, and runabout 3 as the engineering base. Forcefields will also be installed over those installations and runabouts in case the upper part of the cavern was to collapse. Lieutenant Corey, I've read your recommendation on the subject and I approve it." said Syuvik. Corey nodded in approving fashion towards Syuvik. He knew that his ideas and suggestions were often thought to be crazy and over the top, and unpopular choices. He was happy Syuvik decided to give it a shot. Although, that, of course, meant the Engineering teams would have to do a heavy job. It would seem the perimeter around the City's Astroport was to be cleared out. Corey had engineering teams split into smaller groups, dedicated in loudout and knowledge to be able to install the provisional facilities as soon and as efficient as possible. The key here was working as a team, and he was feeling rusty, he haven't been working in a Starfleet system with others for some time. A capable Commander, and also a First Officer, Matrix was tasked to oversee the whole mission, a good choice, Corey thought, the man had extensive knowledge in Engineering and construction and could very well help with the efforts of Corey and the Engineering team. He just couldn't stand the political types, it was a good thing more field experienced and tougher officer was running the show. Corey, however, did not have any kinds of questions or comments. He was just eager to go out there and do his job. He inspected the engineering cadre he had at his disposal, and he was happy with what he had, confident in his own men, he knew engineering won't fail. Now he just needed to get on with it. (Reply None) (Posted by Lani) ----- (Soval, FO Office, Matrix, Day 4, 1540) Matrix regarded the man for several minutes and continued to read the personnel report on Admiral Larsson. Larsson's record was nearly impeccable, but there was a history of disagreement with past Starfleet directives and superiors. Nothing that would hinder a career, nor create suspect, but noted nonetheless. Matrix also reviewed the records of the other high ranking officers that were tired directly or indirectly with the Quezalth and their admission to the Federation. There seemed to be a pattern developing within the higher ranks of the federation with regard to the Quezalth but Matrix needed, wanted more information. Unfortunately high ranking Federation officer profiles were all but sealed from prying eyes. Even for a first officer, he could not easily gain the access he desired. Perhaps that could come through unofficial channels? Matrix reviewed the official personnel records on Syuvik and himself just for grins. Finding some of the entries amusing in his own personnel record. Reflecting on his stint after the Paladin was retired and losing contact with Alena made him emotional. He had almost forgotten about Alena. ~I wonder...~ Composing himself he refocused on the mission at hand. Matrix tapped the display off and sat back in his chair and pondered the reports briefly. Something puzzled him about the information contained within, but he couldn't quite figure it out. ~Interesting.~ Now that the mission was basically underway and the Soval crew were starting to adjust to their new ship and to each other, there were a few personnel changes Matrix had to finalize. Matrix tapped his command code into his red PADD and made the notation in the personnel logs and recorded the stardate. ~Formality completed. Now to make it official to the crew.~ (Reply none) (Posted by Steve) ----- (Soval, Observation Lounge, Noah, Day 4, 1542) "Lieutenant-Commander Noah, while you are in charge of the medical aspect of the mission and will be working closely with security, I do need personnel to lend a hand on the Medical Station here, on the request of Vice-Admiral Giroht. Before you leave to the surface, I want you to assemble such team.” Noah thought for a moment as the names and specialities of the members of his department went through his mind. ~Looks like two teams on the ground. Me and EMpak as leads in one team and Ailyn and Tesha as leads in the other. I can also take parts of alpha and bravo shifts and keep charle shift on board~ Noah concentrated on what Syuvik was saying as he closed the meeting. (Reply any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (Quezal Capital, Shuttle, Taylor, Day 4, 1700) As convened, Taylor was reporting back to her superior. The communication console of her shuttle was programmed so that the signal could never been detected by anyone. Apparently, such devices came from the Tal Shiar, so she had no reason to doubt it efficiency. As she made contact, the image of a Romulan appeared on the screen.. "The USS Soval crew is here, just like I expected. You did not trust my words, but you have to see it for yourself now." she said. "I apologize for having doubted you, but you were not the most trustworthy source. You have been away from the Empire for so long, we wondered if you had still the Romulan Empire in your heart. But you have showed you had, and everything you have done so far is making us proud. You must not forget what the Romulan Empire stand for. You are a Romulan." said the Romulan contact. "I have not forgotten. I may have a Human appearance, but how dare you say I am not Romulan. I have my own reason to have done what I have done, so far from the Romulan Empire all those years, yet all I ever did was for the Romulan Empire. For once I hope you are not doubting it." she replied. "Since what you have told us so far is right, then you must proceed with what we have discussed. Your position is giving you a unique perspective. We cannot trust this mission to anyone but you. Yet you must understand the importance of such mission. The future of the Romulan Empire and what it stand for depends on it. You know who the Federation really are. You've seen it yourself. If not anything else, this at least should be motives enough to carry out your mission and make sure it succeeds. If you do, the Romulan Empire will not ignore what you have done. Your future within the Empire would be insured. You would get what you have always wanted." said the contact. Taylor nodded and ended the communication. She felt a huge weigh on her shoulder. She was used to stress, but nothing compared to the kind of stress she was living now. So much was at stake. Would she be up to it? Her encounter with Andersen troubled her. Not long ago, they had been good friends, despite the circumstances. She knew...or at least expected the USS Soval would be there. The contrary would have been surprising. She had gained enough valuable information to know the USS Soval would be chosen for that mission. Everything was getting into place. The presence of the USS Soval, the 'Investigation team', Andersen presence... it was all happening like she apprehended. What she was about to do though wasn't her cup of tea. She had never really felt a spy or like a Tal Shiar agent, despite she had always hidden her true identity to the organisation. From the eyes of the Federation or the organisation, they would have seen her first as a Romulan before anything else. Didn't matter her personality...didn't matter her values. She was a Romulan, and therefore she was not to be trusted. Now, acting like a human was like a second nature. She had been used to pretend and hide her true motives. However, when weighing what she was about to do, she wondered which came first. Was she doing what she was doing because they do not trust her....or what is true...that because she was Romulan, she was going to do what she was about to do, like any Romulan would have, which is why the Federation did not trusted them. In any case, she couldn't hesitate. If she flinched, if she did not do what she was here to do, the Romulan Empire could be affected for years to come. She had to do it. For the Romulan Empire, she had to do it. The Federation had shown many times what they were capable of. Behind those nobles values and principles, in truth, they were cowards. Doenitz had showed that...but it would be false to believe Doenitz was an exception. He was in truth the rule. If he was an exception, it was because he was one of the rare to be coward enough to commit such atrocities, yet not coward enough to hide his cowardice. Most of the Federation were even more cowards, willing to kill millions to save their own life, but they would never admit it...lying until they did the deed and showed who they really were. Taylor's mind wondered back to Ailyn. Was she still a friend or was she an enemy? She had thought she had known her, but humans were hiding so much behind that friendly face. They said Romulans were covert... Who was Ailyn really? Was she an exception or the rule. She had difficulty believing she was the rule, with all that friendliness and naivety... but what if she was, like her, just pretending. What if she was like the others. Everything she was planning to do could be in jeopardy if she judged wrongly. Yet, at the same time, she knew that pretending to be part of Starfleet Investigation team had its limit. She would never be given access to the antimatter reactor....not at least in time to be there before the USS Soval crew. Andersen could help her....but would she believe her. Would she be able to convince her to work for the Romulan? That was unlikely. But perhaps she could make her do it using other means. She knew Andersen had feelings for her.Could those feelings be used to get her to act against her own crew? But if she was wrong about her? She could not failed....too much was at stake. Her contact in the Romulan Empire was adamant, she had to succeed. They trusted her only because of her unique position yet, if she wanted to live....or at least have a future, she had to be up to it.....and Andersen was the key....either she wanted it or not. (Reply none) (Posted by Nick) ----- (Quezal, Jackson, Day 5, 1304) Jackson and his team materialized on the planet’s surface. Devastation was everywhere. Each member of Tom’s team was horrified. Tom steeled himself and began to issue instructions. “Ok, we need to hook up with the SF Corps of Engineers team. They’ve agreed to have an initial update of what they have accomplished to date” Tom explained. He paused to allow for any questions. Seeing none, he went further. “Remember we are here to determine what happened and then to assist. Will we see bodies? – I suspect so. I can only suggest you steel yourselves and remember why we are here. I’ve made arrangements with a few friends to provide counseling if you need it” Jackson added. “Lt. S’yes is taking over, I am hitching a ride on a shuttle that is heading to the worksite and I want to eyeball the area before we enter. While I’m gone, T\the Lieutenant has several tasks for you to work on” Tom stated. (posted by Bill West) ----- (Quezal, Engineering Shuttle, Corey, Day 5, 1305) The runabout was set to land a little outside of the city, the ride was a little bumpy as there was a storm gathering, and the runabout had to pass through it - the ride itself was silent. No one spoke anything, so as soon as the runabout touched the land, before opening the gates, Corey decided to touch on some finer points to his crew. "Okay, engineering team, listen up. I've given you rough plans and commands, to each of you but now I need you to concentrate. We don't have complete knowledge of the stability of this region, or of the whole damn planet, as a matter of fact, we only know there won't be any immediate geothermal activity in the next couple of hours, we have a window right there, and I intent to use it. We need to load out our heavy machinery, we need to move it north-west into the designated area, and proceed with our plans. We will be using Burrowers because, well, we can't really guarantee if we use phasers, we won't have the whole apocalypse on our backs. We are here to install the provisional facilities, then move the Burrowers further, the usage of them depends on the need in the given situation. We are to give tech support to the other teams, and then provide the backbone of the system for clearing up the debris. Anything you do today, you do cleanly, efficiently and do it with caution. It's not only your lives, it's not only the lives of the crewmates around you, it's the lives of the whole damn planet." "This seems like running a ghost chase." an often too-smart mouthed Cardassian engineering petty officer Melek made a fine loud note of the thought no doubt most of the engineering crew had, at one point or the other. "Even if there's a single living soul buried deep down and we get to pull that soul out, our mission was a success." "Lieutenant", the Cardassian woman started in an deeper, almost whisper-volumed voice, "do you know something more about what exactly happened?", which was a fine question. Corey, however, wanted to reflect on it with an answer that was loud to everyone. "I know only as much as you all know about the current mission. I do not understand the possible secrecy myself, but I believe the reason for it is the fact that the other local military powers would see this planet available for the taking, should they find out what exactly happened.", he spoke what he thought. He also heard the rumors on the ship that there's something happening behind the curtains, and if it was, he was definitely not a part of it, nor he wanted to be. The crew started getting out, the runabout had to go back to the USS Soval two more times to bring back everything that was in order, in the meantime, the crew was supposed to travel to the city, leaving only two behind, guarding the runabout's landing point (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Tunnel Entrance, Medical Shuttle, Noah, Day 5, 1310) Noah stepped out of the medical shuttle as it touched down and the door opened. He had prepared himself for what he was going face but it was still a shock. ~I thought the work on Continuum was bad but this is going to be worse~ He pulled his thoughts from his time on Continuum back to the present. He stepped out of the way to let the teams from the Soval get to work and turned towards them. “Okay everyone. we know why we are here. We will split into the search teams and attach ourselves to the teams already working here. Remember these people have seen a lot and are probably suffering from post traumatic stress so go carefully when working with them. Are there any questions?” (Reply Andersen, Tesha, E’Mpak, any) (Posted by Robbie Gray) ----- (Quezal, Shuttle Archimedes, Jackson, Day 5, 1315) Tom seated himself and thought about all he had experienced so far. The sense that someone, or something, was up to no good plagued him. As the shuttle began its trip, Tom watched the going’s on as they moved forward. The first few moments weren’t bad – nothing bizarre was seen. As they went deeper into the tunnel things changed. Tom saw several covered gurneys. More unfortunates had met their fates. Feeling a slight thump, the shuttle landed and they began to filter out. Tom waited and exited last. He walked around observing and making mental notes. One thing was there were too many folks there who had no business being there as far as Tom could tell. No one had asked who he was or what he was doing there. That worried Tom. He would make sure that he would talk to Sanok about that. It made sense to treat the area like a crime scene. Potential clues were probably lost by now. Jackson’s anger was growing by the minute. He saw an old acquaintance up ahead. It was an older Lt. Cmdr. named Dave Dodge. He and Tom had roomed together during Tom’s academy days. Dave Dodge was a good, solid type. If he knew anything considered ‘back channel’ he might tell Tom. Jackson had saved Doge’s behind more than once. Tom walked over rubble and hailed Dave Dodge. (Reply None) (Posted by Bill West) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Noah, Day 5, 1316) Noah glanced around the area that he was in all the ruins and damage that had been caused before he continued. “Okay We need to get started. Anderson, Tesha, M’Epak, Tholax and Arladra. I want you all to attach yourself to the medical teams. I will head to the medical center to coordinate with the Quezal medical staff Peterson and Munjes will come with me to help off load the supplies.” He paused for a moment before carrying on. “I want regular checks while you are out this place it like a maze so don’t wander off. If you need anything when you are out just shout.” (Reply Anderson, Tesha, M’Epak,Tholax and Arladra) He nodded as they left with other medical staff as he turned and headed for the medical center. He looked at his surroundings as he walked through the ruins leaving his footprints in the dust. He realised that the people of this world had a rough time but it would get alot worse then it would get better. He heard the patients before he saw them as he arrived at the medical center. There were stretches as far as the he could see with patient’s in different degrees of treatment and medication. He looked over at Peterson and Munjers. “Peterson and Munjes see what you can do here I’ll tell them we have arrived and that we can lend help if they want it.” He saw Peterson and Munjes nod as they headed over to the patients as he entered the medical center. He saw a few Quezal’s standing around a large screen which had a map of the city depicting the different teams and medical posts and their positions. Some of them turned to face him as he entered. “Hallo. My name is Lieutenant Commander Noah I am the Chief Medical Officer from the USS Soval. We have personal and equipment where would you like us?” A male Quezalian stepped forward. “I am the person in charge of the medical teams and facilities in the city. You do realise that we don’t need you here.” ~Nice and friendly~ Noah shrugged “I am here because my Captain has been asked to assist. The Soval is a galaxy class starship and I have medicine and equipment as well as personal to assist you in what ever medical capacity you need.” There was a pause before the Quezalian nodded and spoke again. “Okay give me a list of when you have available and we can see what we can do with you.” Noah nodded and gave him the PADD. “I am just going to check in with superior and I’ll be ready to get started.” The Quezalian took the PADD and turned back to the screen. Noah stepped back outside and tapped his comm badge. “Noah to Commander Matrix.” (Reply Matrix) “Medical teams are on the ground and deployed. I am in the medical center communicating with the senior medical person in charge for the city.” (Reply Matrix, Anderson, Tesha, M’Epak,Tholax, Arladra, any) (Posted by Robbie) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Andersen, Day 5, 1317) Ailyn stepped out the medical shuttle second, grabbing the handle, the pavement underneath the shuttle was broken and there was sand over it, on which she almost fell. The city was in a pretty bad shape, it sort of reminded her of the post-industrial Federation building decay she saw on few of the abandoned cities and outposts on the verges of the Federation, and deep space, and while in most of their cases, the reason for the hollow and painful looks was unknown, here, something else was at work. When everyone was out of the runabout, they turned towards CMO Noah for the last touch-up on instructions. "Okay everyone. We know why we are here. We will split into the search teams and attach ourselves to the teams already working here. Remember these people have seen a lot and are probably suffering from post traumatic stress so go carefully when working with them. Are there any questions?" Ailyn had no questions, she knew what was she supposed to do. What bugged her a little, was the fact there simply wasn't enough medical crew capable of handling that large number of people in need. It was a common case of having to choose between two patients because there wasn't enough medical personnel for all. (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Jackson, Day 5, 1318) Tom had completed a quick review of the efforts to clear the path to the underground city. The scene in and under the area was a scene of utter devastation and hopelessness. Jackson was moving to where Lt Corey and the Engineer based team where assembling. Tom wanted to brief them on what he had seen and heard. Their job was a difficult one but he was sure they’d overcome and adapt to any obstacles. He had been paced in a supervisory role – a first for him on an Away mission. He was used to heading a team. The CO and FO seemed to be training him to become a future FO. It was nice to assume more of a command based role. He walked slowly taking in the scene around him as he mused on his new role. The more he saw and experienced the more determined he became. Tom soon arrived when Corey and his team were. He stood back and waited for Corey to finish speaking. “Lieutenant Corey, I’d like address your team?” Tom asked. “I’ve just come from the excavation site. You have a big task on your hands. The major problem is the integrity of the entrance tunnel and debris removal” Tom paused to allow for questions. Tom turned to Lieutenant Corey and said “Please feel free to contact me with any needs or questions’. (Reply: Corey) (Posted by: Bill West) ----- (Quezal, Undeground City, Corey, Day 5, 1324) Corey was leading a smaller team of Engineers to the second phase of their objectives, the core engineering team was made out of himself and his best petty officers, at first giving a shot to check out the entrance of the excavation site, while he left the bulk of his men behind putting up the facilities that an task of this size would require. "Lieutenant Corey," Jackson said while turning towards Corey, "I'd like to address your team?" Tom Jackson obviously meant the gang of four that were standing in front of him. "I've just come from the excavation site. You have a big task on your hands. The major problem is the integrity of the entrance tunnel and debris removal." "We were just headed there ourselves once again to sweep the local area's stability. We started to build the facilities as well, a rough estimates are in several hours time, they should be done before 1900, as we're working at our full capacity. As for the excavation site... I don't think the debris itself is going to pose an issue. The integrity of the entrance might, however I've went over the ideas with the rest of the team, sharing the foundings, and I've come to conclusion the answer to this is simple, we fortify and then burrow. We brought some burrowers with us, we can dig in several dozen of holes, putting down the local SIF generators, these aren't your highest powered units, but they should hold the ceilings of the entrance. The tricky part is to burrow at the point that won't destabilize the area, and that's something we will be able to do once we get an deep detailed topographic images of the local area after we sweep it with our sensors. Once that's done... it's all hard work. We remove the debris, push further, and if the site is closed up further, we can go out, burrow a new set of holes, install the SIF generators into those, go in deeper." Corey agreed with Tom's initial assesment, it's going to be a big task. Naturally as they had things to do, Corey excused himself. Tom turned to Corey, saying "Please feel free to contant me with any needs or questions." "Will do, sir. Once we get the first set of SIFs in place, it's going to go smooth." saying it like he meant it, although he wasn't completely sure it's going to go problem-free. (Reply: None, Jackson iyw) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Provisional Medical Facility, Andersen, Day 5, 1328) It's really been a while since she saw the destruction and misery of this level. In fact, Andersen couldn't recall a sight like this happening to the Federation at all in her lifespan. And while she wasn't terribly old, she knew that something like this, last time, was happening to Federation planets during the Dominion War, and to be fair, rarely if ever looked as dread as this. Too much of heaven? Well, thinking clearly about it, the Federation certainly got used to comfortable, safe reality. She was fascinated, from an professional's point of view, how much it takes to break a person. The people of Quezal, most of them anyway, lost their homes - but above all, they lost the hope... they were broken. And as sad as a sight as it was, the more she was thinking about it, the more became appereant that it's easier repurposing those broken, giving them a goal, and thus creating soldiers out of them. In fact, to create a soldier, you first have to take everything from a man, break it, and then give it a new purpose, and make him or her believe that purpose is their life. These were easier, since the first two things were already done. The mixture of extremely strong emotions, coupled with low hope - thus low resistance, creates an easy target for manipulation. Actually, it just happens to be what happened to her, when she was young, and first time approached by agents of the General. It took her so many years, to witness the purpose of the indoctrination process of these organizations, yet, she didn't see any such organization at work here. Interesting thing was, that she wasn't aware of any away teams except those belonging to the Federation. And while this planet, and people on it, were under the shield of the Federation, it never stopped the enemies of the Federation before. She took a long glance into the hills south of her. She remembered - when she was a kid, she loved playing a doctor with the dolls. Rather oldfashioned, as her parents thought at the time, but she didn't really like the holodeck. It somehow felt... too realistic and too wrong. Little did she know that one day, she will be a doctor herself. She remembered one time, though, she did enter the holodeck, but her parents didn't know, and she started out a program she didn't really understand. She could remember a hill - just like this one, but she was on top of it and all bellow, monsters armed with weapons, firing at her, trying to get to her to catch her... she screamed and cried, thinking they want to eat her alive, the monsters. She was such a silly girl. Later many years, she ran the same program... a program of a single honorable warrior against many unworthy Klingons at the entrance of Gre'thor. Indeed, it didn't felt as horrorful as it did the first time. In fact, it felt silly. But there was something else about this hill that drew her attention, and she lost it in her trail of thoughts. She caught a glimpse of a shadow, a familiar face... but it was gone now. Did the suffering of these people struck her so bad she started seeing things now? Or perhaps she wasn't going crazy at all? She had to know. She made a run to it, climbing the small hill eventually reaching the top. A clear trail of footprints led further away from the site. This meant there was someone here. But it still meant she could've saw what she wanted to see. For a second, she battled herself there, to follow or to fall back to the site. It was only for a second, though, and she didn't really surprise herself by choosing to follow. This eventually led around ruins of few buildings, and right after the corner, the trail went cold. ~Damn it, did I went here just to...~ she thought while looking up, but a person was right in front of her. She couldn't really speak, she just stood there for few moments, breathless, waiting - waiting for something. The other person obviously didn't mind her there, but spoke of nothing as well. "T-Taylor. Oh my... is that really you? H-how did you... where have you..." she stuttered badly, looking at the beautiful woman in front of her, she felt as if her legs were cut, she couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't even blink. But the person on the other side said nothing, just looked at Ailyn's eyes, then looked something on her tricorder. She eventually walked away few seconds later, looking as if she's walking towards one of the other provisional sites. This might have been for the fact few of patrols were walking near, or it might have been something else... But Ailyn had no idea why she wasn't pursuing, perhaps it all felt like a dream, and she walked in the middle of nowhere just to talk with herself... maybe she was loosing it after all. Why, how, why now... so many questions troubled her, if what she was seeing was real... ~Am I dreaming?~ (Reply: None, Taylor iyw) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Provisional Engineering Facility, Andersen, Day 5, 1334) After she came to her senses, she did follow Taylor, she was certain by now she wasn't seeing things, because Taylor was near the Engineering Facility site and talking with one of the local Quezalth supervisors. Surely, if someone else can see her, she's real. As she got close, Taylor undobtedly heard her heavy feet and Ailyn could hear her whispering "I apologize but I need to go. Thank you for the information." Taylor started moving away from Ailyn and the Quezalth supervisor, her feet moving as fast as she could, without running. Ailyn followed her, trying hard to keep up, and as soon as she got near enough, Taylor suddenly turned towards Ailyn to face her. "Go away. I don't want to talk to you. You disgust me." she said before moving away once again. Ailyn opened her mouths wide, she couldn't believe her ears. Taylor then stopped, waiting there for few seconds, and then finally turned. There was so much frustration on her face and tears on her cheeks, "I know what you're up to and I swear.. I'll do everything in my power to stop you... I trusted you!" she sobbed. "I even considered you a friend... how could you? I am so ashamed of myself, to have let someone like you win my trust... my heart. You cheated me. You cheated.. us all. You just stole everything, anything that you could. You're a spy... a traitor... You're a monster. People like you don't deserve to li..." Taylor was trying to find something in her pocket with her right hand while watching around. As she saw other crew members from the USS Soval move towards Ailyn, she removed her hand, turned and walked away. Ailyn watched as Taylor turned away from her, and walked away... As she saw Lieutenant Corey walking back with his three Petty Officers, she quickly smeared the tears from her cheeks with her hands, and tried to face the other way. She just... couldn't understand what she did wrong. (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1419) After getting data about the structure of the debris, he made quick calculations on his tricorder at what points he'd have to burrow down. Of course, the scanners couldn't really penetrate that deep so he could only really know where's the thickest, and thus where's the perfect place to install his portable structural integrity fields. Moreover, he didn't know if that's going to be enough, he needed a better way to see through it, since this was going to be a long job. But if it would at least start, that was something, he hated just doing calculations and not actually doing anything. Eventually, he was forced into a decision, continue doing calculations, understanding the very nature of the issue here - not being able to see deep enough, or just take what he had and run with it. He had a team of six prepare the burrowers, which was a fancy call for a device that was conviniently burrowing the surface to a designated depth. These devices, unlike phasers, used tritanium blades and had an diamond coating, and as such were incredibly well made, and were incredibly sharp. They were also precise. While not a standard issue, he ordered these himself, since he worked with the older models before. The positive aspects of these is that they don't require complex calculations as laser or phaser based devices do, these are simpler devices that can be run even manually. They also have virtually zero destructive power transfer on the surfaces around the place where they burrow, so in this particular situation, Corey came to conclusion they're simply the better choice. The six petty officers had each a device in their hands, and Corey had the devices programed from his own tricorder. He activated them in the right order, and the burrowers went down only to come back up virtually a second later, when they were picked back up by the petty officers and moved away from the holes. Putting them down and picking up SIF generators. The crew went back to the holes, and started lifting down a small SIF devices. After all six were done, Corey activated them. The screen on his tricorder showed high level of structural stability in twelve feet radius above the entrance. Whether that was going to be enough or not, was something entirely different, but he achieved the start. He ordered all of his men to start digging the debris, by hand, to be on the safe side. At the same time, he punched his commbadge. "Corey to Jackson." he chose not to mention ranks too much, that was the way he was used to. "We fortified the stability of the entrance, and we're currently removing debris. It will take us some time, afterwards we will be able to tell if we need to continue with the process or not, and if it's safe. If you want, sir, I can call you in once that's done." (Reply: Jackson iyw) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Deployment LZ, Matrix, Day 5, 1434) Matrix was monitoring communications between the Soval crews working on the surface as the Andromeda shuttle crews were unloading the third supply run of the day. The 'package' had been unloaded and was being prepped to be moved to two separate locations where the burrowing crews had been working. The Soval crews were making good progress determining where and how to unearth the caverns, tunnels and underground structures, more so than he had anticipated. Other Star Fleet personnel were blanketing the planet with relief efforts rendering the shuttle and transport activity a nightmare. The trip from the Soval to the surface would have normally taken less than 20 minutes, but the crowded airspace made the trip nearly an hour long. Stepping out of the Andromeda for the third time Matrix opened the loading platform and started to roll out the shuttle's contents. "Master chief...you know the drill." said Matrix. "Yes sir...all to well." replied Olsen. "Commander." said a voice off a short distance. Matrix turned to greet the unfamiliar Star Fleet officer. "I am Lieutenant Selva from the USS Lakota. Do you have a moment Commander?" asked the young officer. "Of course, what can I do for you?" replied Matrix. "Sir I have to inquire why you are here? I see no manifest for a shuttle craft Andromeda...what ship are you from?" asked Selva. "I am Commander Steven Matrix, first officer of the USS Soval. We're here to assist in the relief and rescue efforts Lieutenant." replied Matrix. Looking over her yellow PADD, "Sir..I am the ground supply officer and I have no information about you or the USS Soval. This is most unusual. I will have to discuss this with my commanding officer." continued Selva. "Lieutenant Selva I assure you we're here under orders like you. The Soval has been deploying supplies for the past few days. Now will that be all?" replied Matrix. "Most unusual...I must inspect the supplies you have and are deploying ." continued Selva. "Lieutenant, you are boarding on being rude. Do you really want to hold up these supplies and track down the several metric tonnes we have already distributed? The Quezalth need these supplies and we have no time to waste. Now if you would excuse me I have work to do." snarled Matrix hoping the attitude and rank would satisfy the young officer's curiosity. "...but sir..." "Dismissed Lieutenant!" ordered Matrix. Matrix watched the officer's face turn to embarrassment as the young officer turned and moved quickly away from the Andromeda. Chief Olsen smiled, "That was interesting...good thing she didn't press things further." "Indeed, but I suspect that won't be the last time we'll see Lieutenant Selva...she scanned our containers. I only hope she didn't notice the scanners." replied Matrix. (Reply none) (Posted by Steve) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1437) The engineering cadre started removing the debris, first by hand, eventually resorting to air lifters, whereever they could. His idea seemed to work fine. He was there, with the rest of his men, working hard with his sleeves rolled - it was going faster then he anticipated. "Petty Officer 3rd class Jael, how is the stability of the field up there?" he said after pressing his commbadge. =/\= Going fine, sir, at 94% of integrity. =/\= "Alright, lemme know if we goes lower then 85, it might need further field generators." He thought he won't really need them, however, at all, since they were near the finish. It seemed the entrance wasn't covered all that bad as it was anticipated. It was practicly begging to be removed. "We just punched through the next part and, I see the light inside, sir!" Weir yelled. "Great job, but I don't think it's supposed to be light inside." Corey yelled back, making big steps to get to the point Weir was. "Well, supposed to or not, there's light." "Damn, there's still power inside." he said when he eventually got to the opening. He planned no power source of any kind inside, this could further complicate his plans, since he didn't really know what kind of generator was powering the artificial lightning, and how did the system survived so far. "Okay people, I know you're tired but let's move this one on the double." After several minutes, there was a hole big enough to fit a human that led inside. The integrity of the entrance was still in 90s percent, so there was very little fear of it collapsing, of course, without further earthquakes. "Corey to Matrix. Sir, we've finally broken through. We can go inside." he said with a heavy breath. (Reply: Matrix) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Matrix, Day 5, 1440) Matrix and Olsen had delivered the 'package' contents the north rim and were coming up on the section Corey was working in when the comm link came in. "Corey to Matrix. Sir, we've finally broken through. We can go inside." said Corey. =^= Almost to your location Lieutenant. I don't want anyone going in alone. Stand by until I get there. Understood?" Ordered Matrix. Withing a few moments Matrix and Chief Olsen arrived a the mouth of the entrance. "Lieutenant Corey...nice work. I would like to see this entrance expanded and shored up before any Star Fleet personnel enter. Preferably in groups of four. Chief Olsen and I have brought additional tools for you and your crew. This unit will work as a distillation and energy unit for you efforts here. Commander Jackson can fill you in on the details. Under no circumstances should you allow anyone outside of the Soval crew to use this equipment. Not even other Star Fleet personnel. Understood?" ordered Matrix. Looking around and taking a tactical scan Matrix continued, "Wait for the security team to arrive and brief you before entering. You will abide by security officer Grun's requirements and that of Commander Jackson before entering. Commander Jackson has overall authority on who enters and when. Understood?" asked Matrix. Matrix turned and addressed Chief Olsen..."Chief...continue setting up this unit and report back to the Soval once Commander Jackson arrives." ordered Matrix. "Aye sir...will do!" replied Olsen. Matrix again addressed Corey." Lieutenant...this distillation unit has many functions, one of which is enhanced scan telemetry and communication through these surface deposits. I am returning to the staging LZ for the moment, please keep me apprised of your progress. Above all, be careful and alert." ordered Matrix. (Reply Grun, Jackson, Corey) (Posted by Steve) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Corey, Day 5, 1448) =/\= Almost to your location Lieutenant. I don't want anyone going in alone. Stand by until I get there. Understood? =/\= "Yes sir, it'll be done." When they arrived at the entrance, Matrix continued. "Lieutenant Corey...nice work. I would like to see this entrance expanded and shored up before any Star Fleet personnel enter. Preferably in groups of four. Chief Olsen and I have brought additional tools for you and your crew. This unit will work as a distillation and energy unit for you efforts here. Commander Jackson can fill you in on the details. Under no circumstances should you allow anyone outside of the Soval crew to use this equipment. Not even other Star Fleet personnel. Understood?" "Aye." he said, wondering what's all the secrecy's about. "Wait for the security team to arrive and brief you before entering. You will abide by security officer Grun's requirements and that of Commander Jackson before entering. Commander Jackson has overall authority on who enter and when. Understood?" "Yes." he was bothered by the fact Grun's have a saying and his own Engineering team doesn't, it felt like the Commander Matrix does not believe in his personnel, and that was disheartening, specially after something they did so hard. He did not see the tools he had at his disposal, before. He couldn't really understand why other Starfleet personnel weren't allowed near it. "Lieutenant...this distillation unit has many functions, one of which is enhanced scan telemetry and communication through these surface deposits. I am returning to the staging LZ for the moment, please keep me apprised of your progress. Above all, be careful and alert." ~I wonder where did we got this unit...~ "Yes, sir." Corey spoke, turning in towards his Engineers. "Alright, you heard the man. We continue where we stopped. Weir, get yourself to me, I have a special assignment for you." (Reply: None) (Posted by: Lani) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Signos, Day 5, 1515) She looked at the gate and the mountainous wall that separated the residential area and the the govermental complex. The moretime was wasted the more needed intel was lost as to what actually happened on this planet. This planet had become the focus for two major powers and now would not be cleaned up neatly. Jessica already knew S31 operatives were on the planet and on the ships above. It took time but now she was sure of the fact that she had seen the admril in charge some place in her past. He was the one, he was the one who authorized the children of eden project. He was the one of allowed for her to be reborn into the weapon she was today. She moved back away from the wall and walkef back into the crowd of people she had to find someone and fast before any more time was wasted. She enters the command shuttle to she Commander Jackson, "Excuse me sir, but can I speak with you" She spoke her tone was even has her eyes scan the rest of the crew in the shuttle. "In private." (Reply Jackson) She waited till they had cleared the shuttle and were away from prying ears. "You know I can breach the wall... I have the training... and I have done these missions in the past. You know what I am and what I am capable of. " She sighed. "I've been doing tactical scans of the wall for a few hours now, under the pretense of scanning it to make sure it was structurally sound and not a danger to us. What I have found is a small hole in the wall. It high close to five hundred feet up a mostly sheer cliff face but its a start. What I plan is once I make it though the wall I will set up transponder that a shuttle teleporters can lock onto allowing a team to teleport into the space beyond." She allowed Tom a moment to digest her plan. It had risk, every plan in these type of missions did. "It is the quickest if not only way, and every moment we waste here is more closer we come to not knowing..." (Reply Jackson) (Posted by Matthew Locke) ----- (Quezal, Underground City, Jackson, Day 5, 1518) Jessica Signos entered the command shuttle to she Commander Jackson, "Excuse me sir, but can I speak with you" She spoke her tone was even has her eyes scan the rest of the crew in the shuttle. "In private." Jackson looked at the young woman and said "Of course Ensign" and moved out of the shuttle a bit to give them some distance from others. Signs continued: "You know I can breach the wall... I have the training... and I have done these missions in the past. You know what I am and what I am capable of. " She sighed. Tom Jackson nodded. He was well aware of her 'unique' skill set as she continued. "I've been doing tactical scans of the wall for a few hours now, under the pretense of scanning it to make sure it was structurally sound and not a danger to us. What I have found is a small hole in the wall. It was high close to five hundred feet up a mostly sheer cliff face but its a start. What I plan is once I make it though the wall I will set up transponder that a shuttle teleporters can lock onto allowing a team to teleport into the space beyond." She allowed Tom a moment to digest her plan. It had risk, every plan in these type of missions did. "It is the quickest if not only way, and every moment we waste here is more closer . Tom sighed. This was one of those times that in command training he had been told required a hard decision. "Jessica, plan it out and be ready to go at a moments notice" he replied. (Signos:Reply) Tom wanted to act but he felt it needed Matrix to ok it. Diplomacy wasn't Tom's best skill. Maybe Tom reasoned that was why he wasn't a First Officer or Skipper. He tapped his badge and a asked for Matrix to reply. (Reply: Matrix) (posted by Bill)