Total Posts = 51 ===================================================================== Compile Post Summary ===================================================================== Day 9 (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati - 0934) (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - ACMO Dr. Wendy Kildare - 0935) (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0935.5) (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – Dr Alyss Sh’areh – 0940) (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0941) (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - ACMO Dr. Wendy Kildare - 0941.5) (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 0942.5) (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0946.5) (IWS Donatra - Observation Dome - Commander Rhian - 0950) (IWS Donatra - Observation Dome - Commander Rhian & Commander Lemar - 0955) (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Arboretum - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman - 1010) (Romulus - Survey Site One - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman - 1040) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1043) (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Courtyard - CSO Lt. Ardena Carrow - 1045) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge - OO Lieutenant Sara McInnis - 1052) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Senator Terrh – 1052) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1053) (IWS Donatra – Deck 23, Tertiary Computer Core – FO Commander Jonas Lemar – 1055) (Romulus – Capitol District Security Control – Sub-commander N’Lar – 1054) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1054) (USS Hades – Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1055) (USS Hades – Deck 10, Security Offices – SO Lieutenant Tarus Daban – 1056) (IWS Donatra - Deck 23, Tertiary Computer Core - Commander Rhian - 1056) (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Courtyard - Prefect Xerius - 1057) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1057) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1057) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1059) (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Hallway - Prefect Xerius - 1100) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Senator Terrh – 1100) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Ambassador Brianna Frazier – 1101) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1102) (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1103) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1104) (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1105) (USS Hades - Personal quarters - CEO Lt. Norman Harper - 1905) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACTO/ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1844) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1845) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1846) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1847) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1848) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1849) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1850) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - AOPS Ensign Apollo Stephens - 1852) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1852.5) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1853) (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1855) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1901) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1901.5) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - SciO Ensign Apollo Stephens - 1902) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1904) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1905) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1907) (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - Ensigns Lo'ren T'Vof & Yuri Abelev - 1908) ===================================================================== Begin Compile ===================================================================== Mission: Tribuo Senatus, Day 9 Stardate: 2408.01.07 ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati - 0934) "I'm going to use something we developed for the Angossian neural network. Think of it as a sort of inhibitor. It weakens the telepathic defenses of a patient to enable easier access to the neural net." (Reply Trommashere, Kildare, any) As she moved her hand-held device closer to the patient, she used it to directly scan his head. As the device beeped, there was a small click as a small part of the device detached from the side. Alyss took the detachment and moved to fix it to the patient's head. With a snap it fixed into place and a green light started to flash immediately. "Alright then Mister Nayati," said Dr Sh'areh. "Make your attempt again." Jon answered, "All right, Doctor." He continued his acupressure and tried again to merge telepathically with Sash's mind. Though there was a noticeable lessening of the Captain's mental resistance, he still couldn't make contact. "I still am encountering a lot of resistance, though its less," said Jon. (Posted by Jim McCrary) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - ACMO Dr. Wendy Kildare - 0935) Wendy stayed back, for the time being. She looked over at Angeni, who wasn't looking too steady herself. Wendy knew that the CMO blamed herself for not being able to do what this Romulan doctor was now attempting. She also blamed herself for the botched attempts prior. However, there was no way of knowing what to do with the wild physiology of genetically altered Angossian. There were so many tales of the famed Angossian healing process. Wendy wasn't even certain that Sash could die. Still, Angeni remained silent, so Wendy felt that it had fallen to her to be watchful of the procedure. Jon Nayati was equally frustrated at his lack of ability to enter the Captain's consciousness. Indeed, if Wendy didn't know better, she'd think that Sash was fighting back. Again, that famed resistance to psionic manipulation. It didn't need to be pointed out that Sash was a formidable creature. She was glad that he was on their side. Sh'areh seemed nonplussed by the lack of response to Nayati's abilities. “I’m going to use something we developed for the Angosian neural network. Think of it as a sort of inhibitor. It weakens the telepathic defences of a patient to enable easier access to the neural net.” The comments were directed to Angeni, but Wendy stepped into the line of sight. "Let me monitor the captain's synaptic activity." Wendy moved over to the bio bed controls and pressed a series of buttons. The panel behind them flashed on and a three dimensional picture of Devan Sash's neural pathways came to view. It was clear that there was a great deal of neural activity. Amiazing since he appeared to still be in a coma. "Go ahead doctor," Wendy said with a nod. Sh'areh then attached a device to Sash's head. The result was almost instantaneous. The activity of his brain reduced dramatically. It was almost as though light switches had been turned off. Wendy looked up at the Romulan, concerned, however, Sh'areh seemed to almost be smiling, as if it were the desired affect. “Alright then Mister Nayati,” Sh'areh said, “make your attempt again.” As Nayati moved forward a beep from her panel drew Wendy's attention. She looked at the readout and shook her head. This was wrong...very wrong. More and more of Sash's neural pathways began to shut down. It was going deeper and deeper, into his autonomic systems. "Wait!" Wendy called out, but she already knew that it was too late. She tried to move towards Sash but her feet wouldn't move. She looked at the others, her eyes imploring. "Can't you see... he's dying. His brain is actually shutting down. We have to stop." (posted by Al Muir) ===================================================================== (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0935.5) "I still am encountering a lot of resistance, though it's less," said Jon. Even as the words left Jon's mouth, he realized something was going terminally wrong. Looking down at Sash, Jon saw the Captain's aura pale and then darken. It was a sign that Jon knew death was imminent. "Wait!" Jon heard Dr. Kildare call out. "Can't you see... he's dying. His brain is actually shutting down. We have to stop." Telepathically, Jon felt his mind being sucked down into the void of a rapidly expiring consciousness. In a split second, Jon realized two things almost simultaneously. He realized that if he continued to stay linked, his own life would be forfeit. Secondly, he realized that the alien device the healer Sh'areh, now an assassin, had attached to Sash's head was killing him. With a wince of pain, Jon severed the telepathic link between himself and the Captain's dying mind. Spinning around in a near blur, Jon seized Dr Sh'areh roughly by the front of her clothing, and slammed her up against the nearest bulkhead, pinning her with one hand, pressing his body against her legs. Before she could react, Jon applied extreme acupressure to several of her nerve centers in her torso and shoulders to paralyze her from the neck down. He felt her muscles relax. Incensed, Jon snarled in her face, "You conniving cowardly murderer! What kind of doctor kills a defenseless patient? Make no mistake; if you cannot reverse this and the Captain dies, you will painfully join him." (Reply Alyss Sh'areh) "By encouraging me to link with the Captain, your device almost killed me. I have no sense of humor about that," hissed Jon. (Posted by Jim McCrary) ===================================================================== (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – Dr Alyss Sh’areh – 0940) As the Counsellor answered Alyss and moved to continue his acupressure, she smiled at the results. She noticed the drastic lowering of the synaptic energy waves, and although she knew it would not have much effect on the Counsellors attempts to contact the Captain telepathically, it was a large step down the road she had intended. After a moment or two, the counsellor looked up again and said, “I still am encountering a lot of resistance, though its less,” Alyss was quite impressed. She had not actually thought that this would have made such difference to the Counsellors telepathic abilities in such a short time. She made a mental note to include that in her notes when this was all over. “Wait!” called out Wendy Kildare from behind her as one of the consoles began to beep an alarm – something that Alyss had not foreseen. “Can't you see...he's dying. His brain is actually shutting down. We have to stop.” Alarm spread throughout Dr. Sh’areh’s body. She had not expected this sort of response at this stage. In fact, she had not even expected the Federation doctors to be this alert to notice such changes. “Don’t be so dramatic, Doctor Kildare.” Alyss tried to dismiss the claims from the assistant chief. “Your equipment is misreading the patient’s synaptic levels. I assure you, your Captain is in safe hands.” The next few movements were a blur, and so unexpected that Alyss was left completely defenceless. The once calm and gentle counsellor snapped instantly, and spinning around in a blur he grabbed her by the front of her tunic and slammed her up against the nearest bulkhead. As stars flashed in front of her eyes and she tried to comprehend what was happening to her, she soon found herself being pinned with one hand, her legs pressed against the wall by the counsellor’s own body. Luckily for her, acupressure was not so alien to her, and as the counsellor managed to score a number of hits on her torso and shoulders in an attempt to paralyse her, she managed to wriggle just enough to avoid the final few blows. Still, it did not stop the majority of her muscles falling limp. As they did so, Nayati spat at her, “You conniving cowardly murderer! What kind of doctor kills a defenceless patient? Make no mistake; if you cannot reverse this and the Captain dies, you will painfully join him.” At once, Alyss used her one good arm to land the palm of her hand squarely underneath the counsellor’s jaw, causing him to jolt back and release his hold on her. As her legs began to tingle as freedom returned to them, she thrust her fist hard at the man’s abdomen in an attempt to push him back further. “Imbecile!” she called out just before her body crumpled to the floor. Her paralysed muscles bore too much strain on her still functional ones, and she could no longer hold herself upright. “By encouraging me to link with the Captain, your device almost killed me. I have no sense of humour about that,” hissed the counsellor as he approached her again. She held up her hand in his direction, her head hanging low with the ache. She was already losing the feeling in the left side of her body, and the tingling numbness was slowly creeping to her right. “Just because you do not fully understand my methods, that does not mean they have ill intent,” She gasped for a breath before mustering her strength to raise her head, “but rest assured, Counsellor. If you do not return my muscles to capacity, your Captain will die a slow and excruciating death...unless of course you have someone else with knowledge of my procedures?” If her eyes had the power, she would have burned through this man’s head. Her gaze was full of loathing for such physical violence. She abhorred it absolutely. How any man of medical ethics could act in this way was far beyond her ... even by Romulan standards. (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0941) Jon was taken aback that the Romulan was able to partially shrug off his acupressure touch. He stepped back from her more from being surprised than from any hurt her blow could have inflicted on him. Her resistance could have been from the thick folds of her tunic and her alien physiology. The Romulan doctor ended up in a heap on the deck by the bulkhead. She held up her hand in his direction, her head hanging down. Her aura radiated rage and pain. "Just because you do not fully understand my methods, that does not mean they have ill intent." She gasped for a breath before mustering her strength to raise her head. "But rest assured, Counselor. If you do not return my muscles to capacity, your Captain will die a slow and excruciating death...unless of course you have someone else with knowledge of my procedures?" The Romulan glared at Jon with loathing and contempt. Her aura showed it as well. "How can we understand methods that you did not explain? You did not tell us that you would kill the Captain, unless of course you are an assassin. You killed the Captain as a 'treatment' and now you are holding his full recovery hostage. We wouldn't be having this conversation if you hadn't murdered our Captain. How can we trust you?" asked Jon, furious. (Reply Alyss Sh'areh, Angeni Windsong Trommashere, Wendy Kildare, Devon Sash, Any) "You also didn't tell me that your procedure could have killed me," said Jon. "You didn't tell us anything. The first thing you have murdered is our trust." (Posted by Jim McCrary) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - ACMO Dr. Wendy Kildare - 0941.5) The next few seconds were a blur. Nayati, without apparent provocation, launched an assault on the Romulan doctor that, she figured, would have done serious damage to most. But this Alyss Sh'areh was able to not only survive the attack, but give some back. Wendy wasn't sure if she were impressed or horrified at the display that was now occurring over their dying captain. Threats began to be shouted and the one thing that Wendy heard clearly was, "If you do not return my muscles to capacity, your Captain will die a slow and excruciating death...unless of course you have someone else with knowledge of my procedures?" Nayati still wanted to argue the fact. "How can we understand methods that you did not explain? You did not tell us that you would kill the Captain, unless of course you are an assassin. You killed the Captain as a 'treatment' and now you are holding his full recovery hostage. We wouldn't be having this conversation if you hadn't murdered our Captain. How can we trust you?" Wendy moved over to Nayati and slapped him, hard, or at least, what she considered hard. In reality it probably wasn't that hard. "What in Gods name do you think your doing. This isn't Necron Red. This is a Federation Starship, and you will behave accordingly or I'll do something to you myself." She wielded a hypospray quite menacingly. She knew it was an idle threat, but she had to get their attention. This was all costing valuable time. "Now I don't care a damn about the whys and hows at this moment," she continued. "All I care is that right now Devan Sash is dying, and if Dr. Sh'areh can do something to change that then you better undo what you just did, or so help me I'll make your life a living hell. There is absolutely no proof that anyone has tried to murder anyone. Now fix him.... NOW!" Wendy glared at Nayati, waiting for him to move. Nayati still looked up Sh'areh with distrust. "You also didn't tell me that your procedure could have killed me," said Jon. "You didn't tell us anything. The first thing you have murdered is our trust." Wendy couldn't believe that Jon was still trying argue, but he did seem to be acquiescing a bit. If for no other reason that they had no choice but to continue with Sh'areh's treatment. (posted by Al Muir) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 10, Sickbay - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 0942.5) Angeni's eyes flew back and forth between the neural scans and the scene before her. Wielding a pocket-full of hypo-sprays she had pocketed just for this occasion, she stepped towards Captain Sash, whilest trying to move between the three whom were fighting. She looked at Jon, putting a hand on his shoulder, applying a ton of pressure, trying to deviate his attention from the Romulan doctor. "Look..." She said calmly, trying to keep herself as calm as possible, but also sounding as authoratatuve as possible, "We all went into this kind of blind. We all need to take a step back, take a deep breath, and go at this again. Arguing and bickering with the one person who can fix what they did is a very bad move." She glanced up at the computer screen, the smallest bead of sweat crawling down her temple. As she read the output, she furrowed her brow slightly "Now...can we all take a step back and continue, or do I need to start having security take people out of here and putting them in the brig." She narrowed her eyes at Jon, putting an emphasis on the word brig. She had no problems with putting him in a hole long enough to cool down. She looked back and forth around the scattered circle, trying to figure out how this went to hell in such a pretty hand-basket. "Do I make myself clear?" (Reply Any) She glanced at Dr. Sh'areh, her voice calm and steady. "Now...you will explain what you did do, and what you plan on doing so we can avoid any more...mis-understandings amongst those here...is that acceptable?" (Posted by Kari) ===================================================================== (USS Hades – Deck 10, Sickbay – CCOUNS Ensign Jon Nayati – 0946.5) Wendy moved over to Nayati and slapped him. "What in God's name do you think you're doing? This isn't Necron Red. This is a Federation Starship, and you will behave accordingly or I'll do something to you myself." She wielded a hypospray quite menacingly. "Now I don't care a damn about the whys and hows at this moment," she continued. "All I care is that right now Devan Sash is dying, and if Dr. Sh'areh can do something to change that then you better undo what you just did, or so help me I'll make your life a living hell. There is absolutely no proof that anyone has tried to murder anyone. Now fix him.... NOW!" Wendy glared at Nayati, waiting for him to move. Nayati still looked up Sh'areh with distrust. "You also didn't tell me that your procedure could have killed me," said Jon. "You didn't tell us anything. The first thing you have murdered is our trust." Jon was surprised by Dr. Kildare's reaction, considering she had she had acted so alarmed over the Captain's imminent demise, saying that the treatment should stop. He had tried to stop it and get answers out of Dr. Sh'areh, but all he had gotten so far was threats and blackmail regarding Sash's health and no explanations. He was aware of her slapping him, but compared to the love pat that Sh'areh gave him, he was so angry that it barely registered. Jon pasted on a mask-like smile and said, "Since Dr. Sh'areh has given us no choice other than that death of Sash, I will be ever so happy to accommodate you and her." Jon bent down and rapidly touching the appropriate spots, he stepped away quickly out of her reach. He told Dr Kildare, "She will be able to stand almost immediately." Jon stepped back to Captain Sash's side, watching every move the Romulan made all the while. ~I hope Dr. Sh'areh has enjoyed herself at our Captain's expense. Great Spirit, please heal Captain Sash in spite of her efforts to the contrary.~ (Posted by Jim McCrary) ===================================================================== (IWS Donatra - Observation Dome - Commander Rhian - 0950) Rhian looked out at the vastness of space that surrounded his homeworld. There are those who would say that Romulus was a far cry from a beautiful world, being over technicalized and over populated. Rhian would disagree. It is a world that has suffered much hardship, and through it all, it has survived. There were still vast areas of un developed land. However, the most prominent thing that one sees as a ship enters orbit is the citadel of the governmental hub. And that was a technological object to be admired, much as some still admire the Great Wall of China on Earth. "Are you sure this is wise?" Arrienye asked, for the fourth time. Rhian rolled his eyes, refusing to look at his First Officer and his lover. She was beginning to irritate him and he never liked looking at her when she did. He felt as though it softened him. And he had to remain hard right now. "I have already explained it to you Arri," he said, mentally exhausted already regarding the discussions they'd had all through the night, "if we are to garner their trust, we must first offer our own. There is little that we will show them that they most likely have not already had intelligence about. So why not be open about our ship? What can they do? If negotiations break down then we will simply destroy their ship and all of the information it carries. If they succeed then we can have honor in the knowledge that we were the first to offer our hands in trust." He heard the doors open and his guests approach, but Rhian still did not move. He wanted to recapture his moment of peace and hold it for as long as he could. "This is a stunning view commander," Lemar said, breaking his reverie. "It appears you have managed to out-do me." Rhian closed his eyes for a moment and then reopened. He was now ready to receive his guests. Turning, he did not return Commander Lemar's smile. He did not feel that it would be ... appropriate. Not in front of his crew. It was the Vulcan who was this Lemar that spoke next. "Indeed Commander, this is certainly an excellent feature of Romulan Starship Design. I am certain it can be quite...relaxing. Is this feature found on all Romulan ship's of this class or is it a unique feature of the Donatra?" "Indeed, Security Officer T'Sol," he finally replied, "I find it quite," he paused for the right word, "inspiring. And it is a feature that is unique to the Donatra Class Warships. It is... experimental." The Rhian bowed his head, as though finally coming out of a trance. "Gentlemen, Miss T'Sol, welcome to the Donatra. She is the first of her kind. I hope that the actual ship measures up to the hype of your tactical information that you may have acquired about her." (reply Lemar, T'Sol, Jackson) Rhian turned to the woman that had was standing beside him. "Allow me to introduce my first officer, Sub-Commander Arriennye." He then turned to Jackson and T'Sol. "I hope that you don't mind if I borrow your Commander for a moment, I have something of the utmost importance to discuss with him. Arrienye will begin your tour of the ship, and Commander Lemar and I will join you shortly." (posted by Al Muir) ===================================================================== (IWS Donatra - Observation Dome - Commander Rhian & Commander Lemar - 0955) Jonas had been a little surprised that the Romulan commander had asked to speak with him, but after he gave his approval to the rest of his team and they were led off into the corridor to begin their tour of the Romulan ship. Once the dome had been cleared with the exception of Rhian and Lemar, the Romulan Commander directed his Federation counterpart to a small table and chairs. "How does your Captain Sash fair?" Rhian asked, genuinely. As Jonas sat, he actually found himself quite comfortable in such a familiar situation with Rhian. It was quite strange to be sitting across from a Romulan, when war and battle is far from your mind. Jonas found himself considering his new mind-set as he answered the question. "The Captain has been in a stable condition for the past few days, although I hope that this will be looking up very soon. A Romulan doctor, by the name of Alyss Sh'areh, has come aboard to perform a procedure on the Captain. She believes it will greatly aid his final stage of recovery." There was obvious pleasure in Lemar's voice as he spoke. If only Rhian knew what a relief it would be for him to finally have his own mentor and friend, back in the world of the living and on his own two feet again. "What I have to say," Rhian went on, "to a degree, has to do with him, and with his condition. You saw that I took some readings of the explosion site. I took the liberty of copying those readings to a personal data storage device." He held up a hand, "Don't worry, I didn't scan anything I wasn't supposed to. What I did find was this." He flipped on the data pad on the table and showed the molecular decay rate of the duranium alloy at the explosion site. "It is clear that the device used had a delayed decay detonator, as well as used an explosive that had a molecular decay capacity that has continued to weaken that part of the wall of your corridor. As you might guess, this has all of the earmarks of a Romulan device." As Jonas took the device hesitantly, his eyes scanned over the results. The inner scientist in him rose to the surface, and at once began to analyse the results carefully. He found that what Rhian was saying appeared to be true, or at least as far as he could tell. Despite the evidence in front of him, he didn't want to believe it was true. "This is a chilling thought, Rhian. Are there really factions so desperate that they would attempt to destroy my ship?" Jonas knew it sounded like a stupid question. He was fully aware of the capabilities of the Tal'Shiar, and to a certain extent, the Military too. But given the military's dedication to the Praetor, who left the Tal'Shiar. Were they really so against these talks that they would make such a crippling strike? Again, Jonas found himself answering his own question with a resounding 'Yes!'. Rhian nodded. He didn't want to think of Lemar as a fool. But his question had led to an idealistic point of view, which a person in command should not have the luxury to subject themselves too. Fortunately he proved himself to be wiser in answering his own question. Rhian wondered how often Lemar had to distinguish between the ideal of the medical profession and the reality of command. "Indeed," Rhian replied, "there are such groups that fear such a change. I have looked into possible culprits, and my reach goes further than most would assume. I have not found any indication that any know government entities is responsible. Which means this goes much higher than I would have imagined." Placing the device on the table for a moment, Jonas thought about the greater ramifications of this. "For this type of device to have been fitted and activated, would there need to be an agent onboard?" The most alarming of his thoughts was that his ship was still at risk, and that a Romulan agent was still at large amongst his crew. Rhian nodded, "And now you see the reason I felt that we should meet, just the two of us. I have not yet reported my findings to anyone in my command. The results of that knowledge becoming public could be... unfortunate. For you as well as myself. For the moment, if there is a sabatouer on your vessel they have the luxury of feeling still conceled, to an extent. Where we take this information from here is up to you." It was indeed a conundrum, one that Jonas didn't relish the thought of getting into. The thought that one of his own crew could have betrayed not only him, but the entire crew, was hard for him to accept, but faced with this it was clear that accept it he must. It was yet another example of a difficult command decision that Jonas hoped never to have to make. "With your permission, I'd like to take any details you have on this type of detonator and explosive. It might lead to some vital clues that will help us track down this saboteur." Rhhian nodded again, handing Lemar a data storage chip, "I thought you might ask that. This has all of any pertinent information that you might have, as well as the readings I took and our analysis." Jonas knew that this alone was not really enough. He needed a way to trap the person, a way to draw them out of hiding. This was something he was going to have to discuss with T'Sol when they returned to the Hades. "Well," he continued, "I have to thank you for this. You have, no doubt, broken a number of protocols to inform me of this." For the first time Rhian smiled, "It would not be the first time I've, how do you call it, bucked the system. Besides, if we are to enter a new era of trust, how better to proceed than thusly." Jonas smiled at yet another affirmation of his growing friendship with the Romulan Commander. Recognising that they were finished here for the moment, he stood up from the chairs and picked up the data device. Slipping it into his side pocket, he started to make his way toward the exit. "So, show me some more of the magnificent ship of yours." "Absolutely," Rhian agreed, also standing. He led Lemar to catch up with the rest of his crew, content in the thought that, even if things go badly at these negotiations, that some good will have come from this exchange. (posted by Al Muir) ===================================================================== (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Arboretum - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman - 1010) "Ensign McKenzie, those white flower stalks poking up out of the shallow water are not true flowers," explained Shayhiloosh. "They appear to be an animal lure to aid in catching and then devouring insects. According to my tricorder scans, the amphibious animal appears to be an insect eater and is relatively small in relation to us. However, it has different defense mechanisms to protect itself from predators, most notably a poison that it exudes from its skin. The compound could be lethal to most life forms. Logically it might follow that such a potential prey animal might have a larger predator animal nearby, one resistant to its poison." A ripple appeared on the surface of the water much farther out in the lagoon. Something much larger was swimming noiselessly. "I'd say you're probably right sir." Harry added pointing at the forward most wave of the ripple. "I would suggest that we continue along our path which follows the shore of the lagoon for a short way before going back into the trees and be on the alert. Ensign McKenzie, as we go, see what scans you can take of the bluff, the waterfalls and the lagoon. I am curious to know how much of this was created by the Romulans and how much is natural." Harry tagged along, keeping his eyes open for anything else that might pose a potential threat in this otherwise beautiful biosphere. Eventually they completed their circuit and were called back together to transport to their predetermined field survey sites. (posted by Daniel Greene) ===================================================================== (Romulus - Survey Site One - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman - 1040) The Romulan transporters made a distinctly different sound from their federation counterpart. The completed process also left a slight tingle on the skin almost as if to reaffirm that you had survived the destruction and reconstruction of your core molecules. Survey site one was a semi volcanic region, filled with all sorts of interesting land marks. To the west roughly a half a kilometer away was an active volcanic eruption. The region was close to the easternmost edge of the mountains which contained the famous file falls, and consisted of a wonderful variety of hardened volcanic flows, large chunks of pyroclastic materials and pumice. There were a variety of hardy plants breaking through the cracks in the basalt flows. These included a few species of flowering shrubs, a few stunted growth trees and some hardy red and orange colored grasses. The most amazing feature for harry though was the gem garden. This area was adjacent ton the beam in point and was simply amazing to behold. A variety of large crystal formations created a virtual ankle high forest of glittering goodness. There were sodium crystals, quartz, dolomite and ferrite crystals, as well as at least a half dozen others that Harry's limited geological knowledge could not identify. There must have been a virtual shallow lake of dissolved minerals and heavy salts here at some point to seed such growths. In all his explorations Harry had never seen, let alone heard of, anything even remotely like this. There was a slight rumbling and them suddenly six hundred meters away a small geothermal geyser sent a pressurized squirt of heated and mineral rich water skyward. A few moments later it rained down on the away team as a heavy mist. This at least explained the crystal formations that he was seeing. "Can we take a few samples?" he had asked and was pleased to find the answer was a resounding "certainly." So while the others were listening to a small lecture or asking questions of a few of their Romulan counterparts, Harry was busy collecting a few different samples of crystals, stones and soil for Maraht. Despite the fact that he was the Chief of Operations, Harry knew that he had started as a scientist and specifically a geologist. Samples and scans. He had not received a request for data from Maraht, but harry suspected that the Horta would probably be overjoyed to get anything that Harry could bring him. Just like Harry was certain that he had been somewhat disappointed that he could not participate in the away team. (posted by Daniel Greene) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1043) The first thing that registered in Baylon's mind was the ragged sound of his breathing against the floor. He was laying face down on a slightly uneven stone floor, carved from some sort of hard native stone. He forced his eyes open and forced himself to roll over onto his back. The rough stone had obviously been unforgiving, since the palms of his hands were raw from where he had been dropped here. The light was relatively dim and originated outside the doorway to the cell. It was a dull orange-red color which gave the otherwise neutral grayish stone a sinister red look. Every muscle in his body ached and he felt like he had been beaten by a pair of large men wielding sledgehammers. He placed his arms to his side and eventually levered himself up into a seated position. With a little effort, he took some stock of his surroundings. The room was small maybe three meters deep by two meters wide. The ceiling was roughly three and a half meters away. There was a small flat stone slab, just slightly raised on the left side of the room. This he supposed was the bed. In the opposite rear corner was an open pit roughly eight inches in diameter, which he supposed was the head. One wall was completely open, but Baylon could hear the constant insect-like buzz that denoted the sound of an active forcefield. There would be no way to simply walk out. It was apparent that these cells were ancient, carved from the bedrock of the region and with a slight addition of the forcefield, they were probably just as effective as they had been eons ago. He was along in his cell, so he had no idea where the others were. His spotty memory fantasized that he remembered hands dragging him from the room after the grenade had exploded. His ears were still ringing with the sound of the explosion and he was still seeing spots, which told him he'd been out of it for less than 30 minutes. He'd been hit with stun grenades before and was well aware of the physiological effects that they caused. There was a slight fragrance in the air, it was a scent that Baylon had caught wind when they had first arrived at the senate building. He surmised that they may not be very far from the room where the Praetor had invited them to breakfast. Using the slab for support, Baylon forced himself to his feet. His stomach twisted itself into knots and inside a few steps, he was leaning heavily against the corner wall, bracing himself with both hands, throwing up his breakfast. This nausea was a result of the sonic aspect of the explosion. It threw off the equilibrium of anyone caught inside the blast. It made it twice as hard for anyone to fight back even if they didn’t pass out from sensory overload. It like the ringing in his ears and the random flashes of colors caused by the retina burn would dissipate in a few more minutes. His head was throbbing, and Baylon tried to extend his sense beyond the confines of his cell. The more he tried, the more painful it became, until finally, nose bleeding he had to give up on the effort. He wiped the leaking blood on the back of his hand, spreading the streak across his face in the process. He took a deep breath and tried to center himself, if only for a moment. He dug through his pockets looking for his commbadge and was not surprised to find it missing. At least he was still wearing the same clothes that he had arrived in, which meant that the ship should be able to pinpoint them provided that they weren't too heavily shielded or too deep underground. "Prophet's I hate it when I'm right." he said after he had emptied the contents of his stomach into the disposal hole. He straightened up into a full standing position and shifted his weight from side to side on the balls of his feet. His balance was getting better and already the loudness of the ringing was becoming tolerable. He turned and walked over towards the opening, where the forcefield buzzed with energy. Moving to either side of the door way he could tell that there were other cells on either side of him. There was a slim chance that the other members of the away team were incarcerated there. Gingerly he reached out a hand to touch the energy field. The power caused his fingers to tingle at first, then as he applied more pressure in an attempt to push through, the field compensated, causing a painful shock to the muscles in his hand and lower arm. He withdrew his hand and shook it vigorously. ~So much for that hope. I suppose that would have been too easy.~ he thought. "Anybody else here? Frazier, Grem, Kolar?" he called softly from the door. He didn't want the guards, assuming that there were any to come running just yet. (posted by Daniel Greene) ===================================================================== (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Courtyard - CSO Lt. Ardena Carrow - 1045) Administrator Reyeul had given her an antinausea pill and a painkiller. She'd wanted to scan it at first and check the woman hadn't intended to poison her, but you had to start trusting at some point and this was probably a good point. It seemed the woman had smuggled in pills as more easy to pass in hiding than a hypospray - or whatever Romulans used. Fifteen minutes later and she was enjoying her tour much more. They'd looked in on classrooms, they'd seen experiments, they'd discussed non-humanoid intelligence, and the Mirri of the depths of the Romulan oceans that seemed to use tools and shelter, but were much in the shape of the rays of Terran's ocean. They refused to communicate. Reyeul had expressed a wish they'd be able to get a telepath down there. Ardena had smile and said if all went well, the paths of science and the paths of peace might join. It was awfully artistic and dramatic for Ardena, she suspected Suri still haunted the back of her mind, even if her kattra was elsewhere. They were standing in what Ardena could only call a temple. The Prefect was near the pulpit, once again communicating with another being elsewhere on the planet. Ardena couldn't decide if the man really was that important, that big a control freak or if he just wanted to represent himself as such. "What are these walls made of?" Ardena asked, wishing she could take pictures like the away teams were. "They are brick. Crushed marble, cement." Reyeul said, with a smile. Ardena looked at her with disbelief. The walls didn't look like they were created from such earthly origins. "Scan if you wish." Reyeul said, her smile almost reaching human sizes. Ardena could only wish they'd met somewhere else, somewhen else, when they could spend days at a bar hashing out scientific theories and drinking way too much. She felt Reyeul could be the friend and colleague that she'd missed so far in her far reaching travels. "Can I take pictures?" Ardena asked, digging out her tricorder. Reyeul laughed. It was the first laugh Ardena had ever heard from a Romulan that didn't have a tinge of cruelty or victory to it. "Of course, I would be taking pictures madly if I were at your home." Her communicator chirped. "Excuse me." Her dark, almost black, eyes were dancing as she strode away to answer the call. Ardena shook her head, refusing to be embarrassed at her childlike wonder. It was really like she'd been let into the forbidden font of knowledge. She was going to get her scans and pictures in before the Prefect stopped being distracted and forbid her of it. Sweeping the tricorder through the room, not noticing that she was moving as she was absorbing the data, her heart skipped beats at the pure joy of learning, experiencing, and feeling the unknown. Her tricorder suddenly let out a squawk. A minor power fluctuation was suddenly ripening as she had gotten closer to the altar. It wasn't an actual altar, but her subconscious didn't know what else to call it. A burst of Vulcan language her father didn't approve of and she dropped the beeping tricorder as she took three running strides towards the oblivious Prefect and his aide. Shove him, and the aide would follow. A flying tackle towards the bigot as she could feel the warmth erupting from whatever device was hidden in the dais. Corporal Houseman had once mentioned within her hearing on the Spectre that in times of great stress seconds became minutes. She'd thought him overdramatizing for the cute private he was trying to get intoxicated, but she found him right. With her right hand, she slapped away the telepathic disrupter on the man's belt. She was falling, even after giving him a shove that would send him meters from the blast. If she was lucky, she'd tuck, roll, and reclaim. If she wasn't.. Her mental shields were weak and unreliable at the best of times, and this was far from the best of times. Most of the preparation was in releasing the soul's connection to the body; most of her time was spent trying to keep her mind and soul within her body. It really wasn't that hard to give it the slight nudge needed for it to travel down her left arm and into the Prefect. Awareness left her as the lectern finished its blossoming and the heat, radiation and debris seared her body from the mortal plane. The Prefect landed on his knees, shaken from the apparent attack of the half-breed, and then the discovery that she'd been saving his life. He was suffering from radiation burns but would probably recover with immediate medical care, his aide, bleeding from burns of radiation and heat, with shrapnel sticking out of his armour, may or may not live. The half-breed.. He could only see the outline of what had once been her body, lying across the steps to the sanctum. She was gone and he wasn't quite sure what to feel. ~Not gone, not yet.~ A voice breathed in his soul. ~Take me to Vulcan, release me here, or live with me in your soul, your choice.~ The voice told him, before it seemed to just dissipate, leaving him with vague feelings and memories not his own. He'd either have to step foot on the ancient homeworld, leave a Vulcan kattra in the sanctuary, or live with her ghost the rest of his life. None of the choices made him a happy man, he was even less happy when medical showed up in full Haz-Mat gear with security *behind* them. (Posted by Lorna) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge - OO Lieutenant Sara McInnis - 1052) Sara's usual gig was down in the brig. Her desk sat at the entrance and she processed the prisoners as they came in or went. She oversaw their meals, their drinks, their exercise breaks and their visitors. And when she had nothing in her brig, she did paper work for other security officers. Most security officers loathed paperwork, she didn't mind it. When she was crunching paper, it meant nothing bad was happening. If it meant she wasn't outside the brig, nothing Very Bad was happening. She could happily live with paperwork if it meant no bad things, or very bad things, were happening. However, nothing bad was happening today. She was just covering the bridge while the on duty officer had lunch. She had the training, seniority and experience, she just didn't normally come up to the bridge. But, a shortage of security personnel with the relevant clearance, ability and willingness to play body guard on the planet left a few holes in the roster. She was probably going to get stuck guarding the next Romulan tour that came on board. Guarding Romulans was always fun, you not only had to protect your own people, but you had to protect the Romulans from each other. She missed the days when the Klingons fought, in all honesty. You could always count on them for direct action. She was playing Sodoku on the side panel of her console, happy to be bored, when every alarm on her panel started screaming. The lifesigns of Carrow flashed red and then disappeared. "Son of a -" she cursed as she hit the emergency commlink. It would put her in contact with every senior crew member. "This is McInnis," there was only one of her clan on the ship, and it wasn't that large a ship, they'd know who she was. "There has been a class 5-e explosion at the Institute on Romulas. Carrow's lifesigns are off-line." She was feeding the data she was getting straight to Maraht's console at command. She was no expert, but the data readings looks suspiciously like the one that had rocked the Hades so recently. Communications were incoming from the planet, "Sirs, the Romulans are allowing three of our medical and three of our security personnel on site if we so wish." She wished she had answers for anyone, she knew the questions were about to start pouring in. (Posted by Lorna) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Senator Terrh – 1052) Senator Terrh had already been on his way to the security holding centre when the sub-commander in charge of the temporary cells had signalled him to tell him one of the Federation aggressors was awake. ~A little sooner than I expected~ he had thought, expecting the team to have been out cold for at least the rest of the hour. As he stepped into a small darkened enclosure, the door closed behind him and took away the only light that remained. Seconds later, as Terrh stood in the pitch black room, there was a tingling sensation as the site-to-site transporter took hold of him and brought him to the entrance to the holding area. This new room was darkened still, to make the adjustment from pitch black easier for the traveller, but Terrh didn’t waste time allowing for his sight to compensate and marched right out of the room and into the bright corridor beyond. A few minutes later he had traversed the overly elaborate corridor layout and stepped into the section that housed the temporary cells. The security facility itself was several hundred metres below the Capitol District, and apart from the site to site transporter it was completely isolated. The Tal’Shiar were famed for their high security facilities, and to most, the location of this one was unknown. It could only be detected by the most advanced of sensor systems, and it came with the most advanced jamming and transporter scrambling equipment available to the empire. The sub-commander, who had met Terrh at his entrance to this section, led the Senator silently toward the right area, and as they both came to a stop the sub-commander indicated with a pointing hand as to which cell house the conscious prisoner. With a nod, Terrh quickly dismissed the cell guard, and as he moved ff Terrh began to approach the cell slowly. He peered into the other stone cells to see crumpled bodies lain in various different positions in each of the adjacent cells. It seemed that the three females had not been so resilient, and were still motionless. Terrh finally stepped in front of his destination cell. “So I see you are awake, Baylon Trinin, son of Tania Trinin and Kamden Borastal.” Terrh made sure to pronounce the names very carefully to make it clear that he had done is homework before coming here. (reply: Trinin) “Would you like to explain to me, why an officer of such decoration, and of such prolific skill, came to be assigned on a diplomatic mission?” Terrh laughed at the suggestion and then added, “And to a breakfast with our Praetor no less...” Terrh’s smile soon faded as he laid a stony glare on Baylon Trinin, inside the cell. (reply: Trinin) As Terrh listened to the reply from the security officer, he really wondered why he had even asked the question. The response was really of no consequence. Instead he shrugged off the thought and said sternly, “As of this moment, you are a prisoner of the Romulan Star Empire. You are no longer protected by the Diplomatic Immunity given to you previously, and are now subject to the full force of the Romulan judicial system.” Terrh snapped his fingers over his right shoulder, and a split second later two Centurions appeared at either side of him, their disruptors drawn, and clear charged to fire. Terrh deactivated the forcefield on the cell and took a step back. “Now, we can do this the hard way, or the easy way. Which will it be?” (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1053) The readings displayed for the Science team's implants were fine until one of them suddenly flashed red and disappeared. =/\= This is McInnis. There has been a class 5-e explosion at the Institute on Romulus. Carrow's lifesigns are offline. =/\= Maraht felt horrified and he wanted to chew his way down to the transporter room as fast as possible, but he held his ground and remained on the Bridge. He felt proud of the fact that he leaked no acid on the deck. Lt. McInnis continued, =/\= Sirs, the Romulans are allowing three of our medical and three of our security personnel on site if we so wish.=/\= "Thank you Lt. McInnis. We can take it from here," said Maraht. He activated his Vox. "Maraht to Sickbay. Get a med team of three together to go planetside right away. There could be injured and wounded from our science teams. Coordinate with Security." (Reply any in Sickbay) "Lt. Ammon, call the Donatra and insist on speaking to Commander Lemar. Inform him of what has happened and that we will relay more information if he wishes and when we have it." (Reply Ammon Ranae) He continued snapping out orders. "Ensign Fredericks, open a channel to the Romulan Institute." "Aye Sir," said Fredericks. His fingers deftly set up the communications between the ship and the planet. Maraht shifted impatiently beside the Captain's empty command chair. Before long they had a Romulan face looking at them. "This is Lt. Maraht currently commanding the USS Hades. We detected a class 5-e explosion at the Institute," said Maraht. "Is everyone all right? Has there been some sort of accident?" (Reply Romulan) "I would like to know the status of our two science teams." (Posted by Sheila) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Capitol District Security Control – Sub-commander N’Lar – 1054) The morning had already been one of high alert. Since Sub-commander N’Lar had come on duty at 0800, there had been numerous petty infractions in the district centre, not to mention another riot in a public eatery on the southern provinces. It seemed that word of the Federation diplomats on the planet had begun to spread, and certain factions of the general populace weren’t happy about it. What N’Lar really didn’t understand was why it was down to him to keep the peace in situations like this? These were all matters for internal security, and should have been handled by the Tal’Shiar. Normally, uprisings such as this were shot down weeks before they even came to fruition, thanks to the advanced intelligence networks of the division. But for some reason, the Tal’Shiar was slacking in its diligence. Either that or they were deliberately allowing such things to occur. Whatever the reason, N’Lar severely disliked it, although he was far too careful to say anything openly, lest the Tal’Shiar were indeed still watching. On top of that, he had an emergency in the Capitol Building to deal with. An apparent explosion in the Praetor’s private dining quarters had left their leader badly injured, although surprisingly the Federation diplomats that had been dining with him had escaped relatively unscathed. It all sounded very suspicious to him, but as he had tried to raise the Proconsul and his vice to inform them, a malfunctioning communications relay had meant they were both out of reach. Luckily, Senator Terrh had contacted him directly to take charge of the situation, so he could leave the matter to him for now. “We have an emergency communication incoming. There has been an incident at the courtyard.” A Centurion called out the report from the tertiary surveillance controls. This was the central operations room for the Capitol District Security. From here, N’Lar and his men had eyes and ears to nearly every nook and cranny in the district. “Elaborate! What sort of incident?” N’Lar barked his order. He hated generalisation with a passion. He needed details if he was going to run his department efficiently. He got out of his seat and took a few steps away from his desk. As he did, another Centurion from the primary surveillance controls handed him a data device. “Some kind of incendiary device” came the Centurion’s report. “There has been an explosion, with at least one fatality. It is one of the Federation’s scientists.” He read the incoming data with speed, replaying all details back to the watch commander. He had already begun to feed specifics about the explosion through to the main interface controls. N’Lar cursed in Romulan. The officers around him did not flinch, nor did they dare look up at him. “Signal the Federation ship. Tell them to send a team if they so chose. I want no more than 3 medical and 3 personnel present. Is that understood?” He did not like the idea of having a 3rd party involved, but considering the circumstances he didn’t see how anything else was possible. “Aye sir, I will tell them right away. Our own emergency response teams are already being mobilised.” As N’Lar moved over to the main console, he looked over the data about the explosion. ~Strange~ he thought as he looked at the residual energy signature of the explosion. He had seen it before, and according to initial reports, the device that had exploded was a piece of Romulan technology. In fact, it was one of the telepathic inhibitors that had been distributed specifically for the visit of the Federation people. Again, quite suspicious. “Sir, the Federation ship is hailing us.” This time it was an Uhlan from the communication console. “It’s being routed through from Central Command.” N’Lar nodded sharply and raised his hand to beckon the call. The Uhlan interpreted this correctly, and fed the message through. =^= This is Lt. Maraht currently commanding the USS Hades. We detected a class 5-e explosion at the Institute, is everyone all right? Has there been some sort of accident? =^= “Information is not clear, Lieutenant. We know there has been an explosion, and that there is a fatality. I am sorry to report that it is one of your own.” The Romulan sighed heavily. This was not great news for him to deliver, and it was likely that the Praetor would punish him dearly for this, assuming he recovered. It was sure to affect the talks, although to what extent he really couldn’t tell. “Exactly whom, I am not yet certain. My emergency response team is on route as we speak. You do still have science teams at varying survey sites. To my knowledge, they are safe from harm.” (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1054) Tactical was, as usual, on standby with scans being run constantly. When in enemy territory, even friendly enemy territory, it was always prudent not to be to trusting. Ranae was happy that nothing adverse had cropped up so far but she should have knocked on wood, (not that there was any around to knock on), because things took a turn for the worse just as she had thought that everything was going to be fine, and they'd all be on their way out of Romulan space very soon. =/\= This is McInnis. There has been a class 5-e explosion at the Institute on Romulus. Carrow's lifesigns are offline. =/\= That sounded very ominous to Ranae, most of the time when that happened it meant one of three things, that the lifesigns were offline because the person was dead, or the scanners weren't working properly, or there was a dampener on the planet affecting the scans. It couldn't be the second or the third because the other lifesigns were still showing, therefore it meant that Carrow had died. The CTAC couldn't help but feel that it had been inevitable that something dire would happen and then she reproached herself for thinking so, after all, it didn't mean that the Romulans had killed Carrow, it was just as likely it had been accidental. Somehow she found that hard to convince herself. Lt. McInnis continued, =/\= Sirs, the Romulans are allowing three of our medical and three of our security personnel on site if we so wish.=/\= ~ Well hopefully that means it wasn't any malicious intent to harm our people, on the Rommies' part. ~ Ranae figured. "Thank you Lt. McInnis. We can take it from here," said Maraht. He activated his Vox. "Maraht to Sickbay. Get a med team of three together to go planet-side right away. There could be injured and wounded from our science teams. Coordinate with Security." (Reply any in Sickbay) "Lt. Ammon, call the Donatra and insist on speaking to Commander Lemar. Inform him of what has happened and that we will relay more information if he wishes and when we have it." "Aye sir!" Ranae responded and immediately proceeded to do what was required of her while watching her data output closely, while Maraht continued giving out orders. ~ Rocky's taken to commanding like a fish to water. ~ She couldn't help thinking as she listened to him. "Lt. Ammon to Romulan ship IWS Donatra, it is imperative I speak with Commander Lemar STAT." She informed their communications officer who promptly told her that she couldn't. "Then you must inform him that we need him back on the Hades immediately on a matter of urgency." This time she didn't wait for a reply to say that wasn't possible, she cut the communication. ~ They'd better pass the message along or I'll go there myself to get him! ~ He continued snapping out orders. "Ensign Fredericks, open a channel to the Romulan Institute." Ranae's thoughts turned to Baylon and she prayed silently to the Prophets that the rest of the away teams were okay. "Aye Sir," said Fredericks. His fingers deftly set up the communications between the ship and the planet. Maraht shifted impatiently beside the Captain's empty command chair. Before long they had a Romulan face looking at them. "This is Lt. Maraht currently commanding the USS Hades. We detected a class 5-e explosion at the Institute," said Maraht. "Is everyone all right? Has there been some sort of accident?" (Reply Romulan) "I would like to know the status of our two science teams." Time seemed to slow as Ranae waited to hear about the status of their teams. (Posted by Sal) ===================================================================== (USS Hades – Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1055) "Information is not clear, Lieutenant. We know there has been an explosion, and that there is a fatality. I am sorry to report that it is one of your own." The Romulan sighed heavily. "Exactly whom, I am not yet certain. My emergency response team is on route as we speak. You do still have science teams at varying survey sites. To my knowledge, they are safe from harm." Maraht felt as if someone had peeled off his carapace and stabbed him; he was horrified at the news. They had lost another valued colleague and friend. Shoving those feelings away for now, Maraht knew this was not the time to grieve. He was in command of the Hades right now and had to concentrate on other issues. This was sure to put a serious kink in the negotiations. It seemed there was someone or even a group on Romulus who did not wish the talks to succeed. Could it be the members of the suspicious Tal-Shiar? Would these explosions never end? Maraht's finer phalange did not betray much other than a slight tremor or two. He began to get seriously exasperated. Every time he shifted, it seemed there was another explosion. He hoped to find out who was doing their best to sabotage the talks. He suspected that these explosions could be related, judging by the data scans Lt. McInnis had called to his attention. "We will be sending down some security officers to identify the body and do what we can to help investigate. We will also want to bring the body back to the Hades. I strongly urge you to cordon off the area and let in as few of your own people as possible so as to not disturb any evidence. Any minor detail could be important. In the meantime, I would like to hear from all of the Science team members myself. We will be ascertaining where they are and making sure they remain safe." (Reply N'Lar IYW) "I will contact you again if necessary. Thank you for your assistance. Lt. Maraht out." (Posted by Sheila) ===================================================================== (IWS Donatra – Deck 23, Tertiary Computer Core – FO Commander Jonas Lemar – 1055) Since their escort to the observation dome just over an hour ago, Commander Rhian had led them an what Jonas considered to be an extremely informative and interesting tour of the Romulan vessel. The tour itself had been far more informative that Jonas had expected, and in many ways he was a little shamed that he hadn’t wished to be so open with the Romulans about the Hades and its capabilities, as the Rhian had done with his own ship. Of course, there was always the thought that it was just an element of bragging, but Jonas felt that there was a genuine leap of faith being made by this single Romulan military commander. “...and it is from here that we run our primary and secondary calculations for the compensation of the cloaking device during warp speed.” The Romulan Uhlan had offered this piece of information with the commander’s blessing. As she did so, she stepped away to show the small group her workstation layout. ~That s quite a valuable piece of tactical information~ thought Jonas, far more impressed by the fact he was being told the fact, rather than the fact itself. “So there is an element of manual input during these calculations?” Jonas asked, wondering why the computers did not handle the whole process. The Uhlan looked to commander Rhian for a moment, to spy any objections that he might have in his face, but then stepped forward again to answer the query. “Although our computers are advanced, we prefer to have experts on hand to adjust and calculate variables that the computer cannot predict. As I am sure you are aware, sentient interaction is notoriously hard to predict.” Jonas smiled and offered a nod in response, then looked over at T’Sol and Travis to see if they had any questions such as his. At that particular time, it seemed that neither of them did. Perhaps, given their fields of expertise, the answer to that question had been obvious to them. That thought made Jonas feel a little bit silly. Just then, to save Jonas from his own embarrassment, there was a chime, and a voice from seemingly all around them. =^= Commander, there is a message coming from the Human ship. Commander Lemar is being recalled to his ship. =^= Jonas looked at Rhian questioningly. ~Recalled? What on earth for?~ He then moved to tap his own comm. badge, and after an agreeable nod from Commander Rhian he tapped it sharply and said, “Lemar to Hades. Report!” (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (USS Hades – Deck 10, Security Offices – SO Lieutenant Tarus Daban – 1056) Tarus had been working frantically for the past 20 minutes, ever since he had first noticed the dip in the life-sign signals of the away team meeting with the Praetor. The enhanced sensors that had been modified by Scientist Harry Doorman, and A/COPS Tom Jackson, had detected some kind of disturbance, although even with the modifications, Tarus was still unsure exactly what it was. Whatever it had been, it had managed to deactivate the small devices they were using to track the life-sign signals of the away team. Right now, all he had was general life-signs. He had no way to tell if they were injured or in distress. The only thing he would be able to tell, is if they died, and he prayed to the Prophets that he wouldn’t have to make that discovery. Since then, he had been making numerous attempts to contact the surface, in an attempt to get through to the team, or get some sort of information on the Praetor. Of course, the usual bureaucracy had stepped in and made his task difficult, so he had given up with his attempts. After all, if they truly wanted to harm the Ambassador and her team, how could he really stop them? =^= This is McInnis, there has been a class 5-e explosion at the Institute on Romulas. Carrow's lifesigns are off-line =^= ~Prophets no!~ A large lump had formed in Tarus’s throat as he instantly felt like he had failed. With Trinin on the planet, and with T’Sol over on the Donatra, he was the closest things to n ASEC they had right now. That really wasn’t a thought that Tarus relished kindly, but facts were facts, and someone had to be responsible for this. =^= Sirs, the Romulans are allowing three of our medical and three of our security personnel on site if we so wish =^= Tarus did not recognise the voice over the comm. system, but it didn’t matter. He was being offered an opportunity to get a team down there, and he was going to take it. At once, and without hesitation, he hit his comm. badge and headed out into the corridor. “Tarus to Fletcher and Morris. Suit up and meet me in the transporter room on the double. Lives are at risk, so get there stat!” Both officers acknowledged Tarus as he broke into a jog to get to the armoury. With another tap of his comm. badge he said, “Lieutenant Maraht, I’m heading to the transporter room with my team. Do we have any information of what’s happened?” (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (IWS Donatra - Deck 23, Tertiary Computer Core - Commander Rhian - 1056) Rhian had enjoyed showing off his ship to Lemar and his people. He had been most thorough in his explanations of technologies, and had masterfully avoided more sensitive parts of the ship by showing redundant systems. Although it was much on such a modern ship. He had allowed the Uhlan manning the cloaking station to give a report on the process. It was interesting to see his own officers take a pride in their work that most Romulan commanders are not privileged to. Suddenly a voice came over the ship comm system. . =^= Commander, there is a message coming from the Human ship. Commander Lemar is being recalled to his ship. =^= He looked at Lemar, who was looking back at him. They both seemed to subconsciously shrug. Lemar turned to tap his comm badge. =^=Commander, there is also a priority message coming in from the Senate.=^= ~Intriguing! ~ Moving to a computer station he said, "Put it through down here." The computer screen flashed and a stern face of a senator that Rhian did not recognize came on. Still, Rhian decided to show respect. "Senator." =^=Commander Rhian, what is the status of the visitors from the hades?=^= Rhian raised an eyebrow. "Status, Senator?" =^=Yes, status you fool. Are they still there? =^= Rhian looked over at Lemar, who was looking concerned. "No, Senator. The Commander and his team just got called back to his ship." =^=Kripshnel! Idiot! The Federation ambassador has just tried to kill the Praetor. =^= Rhian did not believe what he was hearing. "What?! Senator, that doesn't make sense. Why would they commit such an act without the possibility of getting away? Even in their trivector mode, the Hades is no match for 6 warbirds, especially when on is the Donatra. It would be suicide." =^=Who knows why these scum would do anything? I want you to take command of the squadron and train every weapon we have on that ship. I want the heads of the command officers of that ship. =^= "But Senator....," he tried to argue that Lemar had been with him all morning and he doubted that he would have anything to do with such a plan. =^=No buts, Commander Rhian. If you wish to maintain command of your ship you will follow orders for a change. =^= With that the screen flashed to the emblem of the RSE. Rhian turned from the screen back to Lemar. "It appears, Commander," Rhian said gently, "that I am supposed to demand your surrender for you crimes of attempting to kill our Praetor." (reply Lemar) "Unfortunately, you have just returned to your ship and I was unable to do so," Rhian informed him. "If I were you I would prepare for some hard times ahead." (reply Lemar) With that Rhian turned, and with Arrienye in tow, headed to his own bridge. (posted by Al Muir) ===================================================================== (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Courtyard - Prefect Xerius - 1057) Xerius could still hear screaming as he turned with a start and the smell of scorched flesh hung in the courtyard depite the light wind that had sprung up, his memory of the last half hour was foggy, as though his brain were wrapped in gauze. He fought aside the hand that was on his left shoulder which caused pain to sear along his right side, from shoulder to calf and back again. Gritting his teeth he grabbed the collar of the medic who was standing over him with his left hand, the man had been ministering to his wounds and was caught completely off balance. Xerius' vision had been effected as well, he hoped only temporarily, the light from the sun high overhead was causing him to squint and limited his vision to straight before him. "Where is Tellus?" ~Da** the man! This was what he was supposed to be protecting me against!~ The medic had to use both hands in an attempt to ward off the Prefect, dropping his hypo as he did so. "Security Chief Tellus is being tended to Prefect, his wounds are grave." Xerius hand was strong despite his wounds, he pulled the man down until his face was near his own. "Who else was injured?" "Eight who had been sitting near the front are in serious condition, another dozen are being treated for abrasions and cuts caused by flying debris." "NO!" Xerius snarled. "Da** Your eyes! What about the Federation scientists?" The man looked startled. "A bit shaken up Prefect except for the one Vulcan." He noted the Prefect shaking his head as though in disbelief. "The Lieutenant is dead, Tellus was unable to stop her I was told when she attacked you... and then the bomb went off...." "Idiot!" Xerius shouted as he shoved him away. "Who is in charge of security? Whoever it is send him over NOW!" Pain flared along his right side again though not as badly this time, he heard the man calling for Centurion Donesh, in an instant another man was beside him and together the two medics held him down as gently as possible, the man on his right side with his hands on his chest to avoid excaberating his wounds as the original medic held his left shoulder down and pressed a hypo against his neck. A whisper of compressed air and a cool kiss of medicine which began to spread slowly throughout his body. Xerius forced his breathing to slow and looked to his right around the second mans hand to see if he could discern the extent of the injuries. His armor had been removed of course and he was clad in a light undershirt which had been ripped aside, he rolled his head back with a sigh, he noted as he did so that his vision was clearing up some which was good to know, in relief he closed them. "Your injuries are not severe Prefect." The medic was talking. "Your armor protected you from the worst of the blast and your burns are superficial, hardly more than third degree, the dosage of radiation you took however was serious, I have given you medications to stabilize you and have treated the burns. I would recommend several hours in a decontamination chamber immediately." "I don't have the time right now." He snapped."Perhaps tonight, the stabilization serum will last that long won't it?" He knew it would of course. "Yes Prefect.." The man began but was interrupted. "Prefect Xerius are you well?" Xerius opened his eyes again. "Donesh what happened here?" He looked at the medics and made a shooing motion with his hands. Donesh watched as one of them fetched a chair, the prefect refused to allow them to help him further however but sat slowly. Xerius looked slowly about at the destruction, noting Federation security and medical had arrived on the scene then turned his attention back to Donesh. "Well go on." Donesh folded his arms and turned slightly so that he could watch the choreographed chaos going on in the room while being on alert for any other untoward happenings. "The room was swept for explosives and any abberrant energy readings according to routine before the conference. Sensor logs are being accessed now but I'll be surprised if they show anything, if anything was there to show up it would have triggered an alert.... but there was no alert, no alarms, nothing!" Xerius noted the snarl from the other man as he punctuated his observation by slamming his right fist into his left palm. Had anything been detected it would have triggered an energy dampening field similar to an EMP discharge that would have snuffed out the device along with any other electronic equipment in the room followed by a directed energy field around the explosive. Together the two precautions should have sufficed to render it harmless. "And what about the Vulcan?" He slowly stood to his feet as he spoke, turning to the dais where Lt. Carrow lay, his face registered confusion, doubt, possibly even fear. "Dead, I'm told she sacrificed herself for you." He looked closely at Xerius as he spoke. Xerius blanched. "Wh would she do such a thing?" He snapped his head toward Donesh then. "More importantly why was this done? While I support the Praetor implicitely I have made no secret of my displeasure at the peace talks, I should not have been a target! The Praetor might be a target but myself... it makes no sense." ~Illogical.~ He looked at Donesh who was nodding. "It is illogical Prefect, it makes no sense." Xerius felt a chill. "Did I say illogical?" Donesh turned a suspicious glance toward him. "Yes you did. Is anything wrong?" Xerius shook his head. "And if the Federation was in on the attack on the Praetor why would one of their personnel sacrifice herself to save me?" Donesh shook his head. "Perhaps she miscalculated, perhaps it was set up for her to save you to deflect suspicion from the Federation party but she acted too slowly and was caught in the blast. That would make sense, Senator Terrh is convinced they are guilty and as acting head of the government he has taken the diplomatic party into custody and is holding them for the attack on Vrih. We will get to the bottom of this I assure you." ~We did not do this.~ Popped into Xerius mind. "Of course we didn't do this." Donesh turned slightly to glance at Xerius, the man had gone pale. "Prefect I believe we should beam you to the infirmary, you are not well." Xerius shook his head and backed away. "No, I have too much to do today, there are questions that need to be answered. Inform me when you know the results of the scan logs." He turned and walked away as Donesh shook his head behind him. "Strange." (Posted by Charles) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1057) Baylon felt, well better than he had just a few minutes earlier. The nausea was gone as were the spots and the ringing in his ears. The only effect that remained was the terrible headache that was beating on the back of his eyeballs. Baylon had turned to stretch his slightly aching muscles and failed to hear the soft shuffle of feet at the entrance to his cell. “So I see you are awake, Baylon Trinin, son of Tania Trinin and Kamden Borastal.” he heard from behind him. The security chief turned slowly to regard Senator Terrh. The Romulan was almost gleeful with delight. His mini coup-d'etat must be going well for the moment. "I'm glad you're eyesight isn't failing you Senator." Baylon replied cryptically, ~Because if I could get my hands around your fat little throat, my face would be the last thing you'd see.~ " I have to commend you. I didn't think you were such a well-trained minion for Chairman Vaebn." “Would you like to explain to me, why an officer of such decoration, and of such prolific skill, came to be assigned on a diplomatic mission?” Terrh laughed and then added, “And to a breakfast with our Praetor no less...” Terrh’s smile soon faded and he took on a stony countenance. "I could, but if I did that you'd have nothing to look forward to when you interrogate me." Baylon answered. “As of this moment, you are a prisoner of the Romulan Star Empire. You are no longer protected by the Diplomatic Immunity given to you previously, and are now subject to the full force of the Romulan judicial system.” "I thought it might be something like that." Baylon answered practically. "Before you take the next step though, ask yourself if you really believe that Vaebn will honor his agreements with you. Ask yourself if you'll be safe once he has control of the Senate, Office of the Praetor and the Chair of the Tal'Shair. Then ask yourself who is going to really be blamed as an accomplice to the assassination or attack against the Praetor. Because while you may think you are in control right now, Senator… You are a much smaller fish and very much in Vaebn's way. Mark my words when this is all over, there will be transcripts from each of the Federation prisoners naming you as their contact to assassinate the Praetor and place yourself in control of the RSE. These statements will only be a small part and they'll come from irrefutable Tal'Shair sources, it will be the investigation that follows that will see you packed in a cell much like this one, wishing you'd listened to me when you had the chance. You have the uniquee opportunity right now to become a hero of the RSE or go down in history as a power hungry despot who forced the empire into another civil war and who destroyed his family and district for the unforeseeable future, long after you are gone." Baylon had obviously not made an impression on the Senator. Certainly he'd heard better rhetoric on the floor of the Senate. Terrh snapped his fingers over his right shoulder, and a split second later two Centurions appeared at either side of him, their disruptors drawn, and clear charged to fire. Terrh deactivated the forcefield on the cell and took a step back. “Now, we can do this the hard way, or the easy way. Which will it be?” "Might as well do this the easy way, I'll need my strength for the interrogators. It's not like I can go anywhere anyway. " Baylon stated. He put his hands up palm out as the first Centurion motioned him to move out into the hallway. It was a clear indication that he did not intend to cause any trouble. Baylon relaxed his shoulders and allowed them to slump somewhat, this further gave the Centurions the indication that he was a beaten man. He stepped through the doorway and the second Centurion stepped in close behind him. The Hallway was narrow and Baylon turned his head to see Frazier sprawled out on the floor of the adjacent cell. He guessed that the other two envoys were close as well. "Move." the centurion ordered him. Baylon nodded and shoulders still deflated took a step forward. His hands were still in an a position palm up, slightly off to either side and palms open. ~It's now or never.~ Once they really started moving Baylon's chances of escape would drop dramatically. He wouldn't get another chance to act. He started counting his steps, and listening to the count of the centurion's steps immediately behind him. It quickly became apparent that the Romulan officer put too much faith in his ability to pull the trigger on his disruptor. He wasn't opening the gap between himself and his prisoner. One of the first things that Baylon had learned during his time in the Kimdan Civil War was prisoner control. It was a skill that he had worked hard to perfect and always remain conscious of. On his fourth step he suddenly sprung backwards, raising his right arm only slightly, before dropping back down beside his hip, trapping the now extending arm of the centurion between his arm and his hip. The hold was a simple one, and relied on momentum. He twisted his body quickly, to the right, locking the centurions elbow and throwing him off balance. He immediately completed the spin released the Centurion into the forcefield blocking off Frazier's cell. The soldier immediately felt the full wrath of the field as the emitters pumped power into the field to prevent it's collapse. The centurions muscles spasmed, releasing and contracting spasmodically, and the disruptor crashed to the floor. The second centurion almost had his disruptor arm extended, so Baylon took two steps forward and dropped himself into a crab walk position, his left leg fully extended and acting in a counterbalancing motion. His shin crossed the plane of the second soldiers legs rising up to strike him in the crotch. The soldier was smart and was wearing protection and so the impact was lessened somewhat, but Baylon twisted sideways dropping onto his hip and hooked his extended leg back against the back of the Centurions knee. It buckled somewhat and the centurion shifted his weight to catch his balance, throwing both hands out instinctively to grab the wall for support. Senator Terrh hadn't yet moved. Perhaps he hadn't yet registered that Baylon would come out of this scrape with the advantage. Baylon just noted his position, tucked his extended leg into his chest and then shot it out will all the force he could muster. It struck the second Centurion in the chest and he flipped backwards into the stone floor. There was a dull thud as the second man's head slammed into the floor. Even with the helmet on, he was out for a while. Baylon reached out and grabbed the disruptor dropped by the first centurion. In a split second he had pulled the power supply and pocketed it. He sprung up to his feet, kicked the first soldier who was twitching on the floor in the face. He then advanced on the Senator quickly, his left hand extended. He pressed his finger tips against the Senator's forehead. "One thing about telepathy Senator, it's a great deal easier when you make contact even with your dampener...And I'm a very powerful telepath." He stepped in close forcing the senator backwards against the wall. "Have you ever seen a telekinetically induced aneurism? They're very messy. And I could have you suffer one at the speed of thought, so I'd think twice about moving or calling any other guards. I think they're going to interfere and it's all over for you. So to quote you, 'Now, we can do this the hard way, or the easy way. Which will it be?'" (posted by Daniel Greene) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1057) =/\= Lemar to Hades. Report! =/\= ~ Holy Prophets, he sounds irritated!~ Ranae thought, gently pushing a key that would allow her to communicate with him, what should she tell him? Should she tell him of the explosion and loss of a life down on the planet? If it was some kind of trap the Romulans had set for the CO of the Hades to invite him to their ship only to take him prisoner at some time, wouldn't the news force their hand? She would try to avoid saying outright what the emergency was but if he insisted she would have to tell him. "Sir, this is Lt. Ammon, an emergency has arisen that requires your presence back aboard the Hades." (posted by Sal) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1059) Maraht recognized the voice of Lt. Taurus Daban over the commbadge system. =/\= Lieutenant Maraht, I'm heading to the transporter room with my team. Do we have any information of what's happened? =/\= "Its sketchy. They are telling us our other science team members are safe, but it wouldn't hurt for you and your team to check on them. They do indicate that one of our science officers has been killed. Our monitoring signals confirm that it is Lt. Carrow." (Reply Taurus Daban) "I would also like for you to check on the Ambassador and her group in the Capital City and inform them of what has happened. They left earlier today for some sort of breakfast meeting with the Praetor. We still are getting life signs signals from them but I want you to confirm their status yourself if you would." (Reply Taurus Daban) "Those dampening fields may have been increased," said Maraht. "We haven't been able to get through to the Ambassador for a while now and they are trying to put me off due to security reasons. Report back as you confirm the science teams and Ambassador's group status. Do what you can to gather any evidence possible at the explosion site. Three medical team members will be joining you shortly to beam down with you. They will be collecting the body for transport back to the ship. Set your phasers to stun. Keep them and yourselves safe." (Reply Taurus Daban) "Very good Lt. Taurus. Maraht out." (Posted by Sheila) ===================================================================== (Romulus - Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies, Hallway - Prefect Xerius - 1100) Once in the hallway Xerius walked a few paces and suddenly walked to the wall and leaned against it, his undershirt was torn but the pain from the burns had faded. ~Pain is a thing of the mind...~ A chill washed over him again as that alien thought rolled through his mind. ~Why did you do this to me da** you? Why save me? Why choose me for your conciousness?~ ~Because we are not like you think~ He brought up his fists to slam them against the walll but held them back. ~We did not sabotage our own ship, you know of it. We didn't attack your Praetor, we are on a peaceful mission and we didn't attack you. How could an explosive go undetected do you think? The only logical explanation is that it was planted by someone with the clearance to do so. The scans were sabotaged, had I not been scanning at the time you would have died, I was barely in time.~ He shook his head. ~ What you mean is another civil war is brewing, it can't be.~ ~The first art of war is deception, the attack on our ship was a feint, a ruse to deflect the attention to an attack on the peace conference itself, the Praetor must have been the primary target.~ "No" He grated aloud, turning he sagged back against the wall. "Who would do such a thing?" ~Who is acting in Vrih's stead now?~ "Terrh of course." He whispered, looking around to make sure no one was around to overhear him. ~And Terrh has ambitions, you are highly ranked and support the Praetor, you are also involved in the peace talks scientifically although unwillingly, that makes you a logical target. At once you are another attack on your civilization and a foe who has been disposed of.~ "There's nothing I can do about it if it were true, there's no way to prove it." ~I can get you that proof if you will go to him.~ ~But how?~ ~You will see, get cleaned up and set up a meeting. I'll get you all the proof you need.~ A sound came from around the corner from the direction of the door, Xerius straightened up and calmed himself, taking a deep breath as he stepped around it in case he was challenged. (Posted by Charles) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Senator Terrh – 1100) The blurred movements of the last few minutes impressed Senator Terrh, but when he found himself at the mercy of his own prisoner, to say he was left at a disadvantage was putting it lightly. In a matter of seconds, Baylon Trinin had managed to disable the guard closest to him, throw him against an energy field, and react quickly enough to disarm the second guard before he had even had chance to aim his disruptor and fire. Terrh had been surprised by the initial manoeuvre, but the thought that his own life might become endangered hadn’t even entered his head – otherwise he might backed away to safety before Baylon had chance to reach him. He was now paying for that over-confidence, and was being held at finger-point by the Betazoid. “Have you ever seen a telekinetically induced aneurism? They're very messy. And I could have you suffer one at the speed of thought, so I'd think twice about moving or calling any other guards. I think they're going to interfere and it's all over for you. So to quote you, 'Now, we can do this the hard way, or the easy way. Which will it be?'” Trinin had Terrh up against the wall, but did not hold him there by any physical means, apart from the pressed fingers against his left temple. Surprising himself, Terrh actually managed to remain calm. Many years in service to the Tal’Shiar will do that to you. But he had an advantage, in that not only had he completed that service, but he had also taken his turn in office. Anyone who could survive that and remain strong was an unshakable type of character that was not easily broken. “What exactly is it you intend to do, Baylon Trinin?” Terrh asked calmly, looking the Betazoid male in the eyes. They were strangely mesmerising, not dissimilarly to the eyes of Romulan females. Dark wells that told a thousand different stories. Terrh, averted his own eyes and looked up to a small device fixed to the roof of this small walkway, used to visually monitor the entrance to the cells. Terrh had no doubt that it was trained directly on them, and he wanted Trinin to notice it was there too. “Even if you killed me now, do you think you would be able to escape here alive?” Terrh offered a smile. “And even if you didn’t kill me, do you think that you might use me as a hostage for your escape?” At this he laughed lightly. “I think you know as well as I do; that in particular would be as useful to you as if you had no hostage at all.” Terrh was no fool. He knew of his own unpopularity, and that both Vaebn and Vrih would happily see him killed by just this sort of situation. It was then that a voice came from a small distance down the walkway, a voice that Terrh had not expected. “Baylon...what...what’s happening?” The voice was female, and as Terrh slowly moved his head to see, he noticed that the familiar figure of Ambassador Frazier was standing frailly behind a now deactivated security cell, the lifeless body of the first guard lying crumpled at her feet. The energy field that had at first held its own against the full force of the Romulan body being thrown at it, had eventually collapsed under the strain, and the field emitters had been destroyed in the process. (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – Ambassador Brianna Frazier – 1101) The first thing that led Bree to become lucid was the shower of tiny sparks that landed on her skin. ~What’s that~ she had thought, her eyes closed tightly, heavily and weighed down by what felt like kilogram weights on her eyelids. ~That’s hot~ she had continued to tell herself, and she tried with all her might to move her aching limbs. Slowly, she moved he arms into herself, instinctively moving into the foetal position to protect herself, but when the hot speckles began to spatter her face she moved a little more sharply in an effort to shield against them. She groggily opened her eyes, and although blurred, she could just make out what appeared to be a stone wall. She crawled toward it as her legs began to tingle wildly, as if they had gone to sleep and only now was blood rushing back to them. She heard voices, familiar voices, but she couldn’t make out exactly what was being said, so as she struggled to comprehend her surrounding, she struggled to get to her feet and support herself on her legs that felt like jelly. “...could have you suffer one at the speed of thought, so I'd think twice about moving or calling any other guards....” There was that familiar voice again. ~Who is that?~ she pondered, turning toward the brightly light end of her small room and using the wall to support her. She noticed that the room was barely big enough for herself and a large stone tablet, and at the edges to small room is where the hot shower was coming from. She noticed sparks of light, and it was a few moments later that she understood that they electrical sparks, coming from something that was damaged. “...I think they're going to interfere and it's all over for you....” ~I know it...it’s someone close to me~ She clearly recognised the voice and now decided to move toward it. Her vision was beginning to clear now, and she could make out more clearly her surroundings. She was clearly inside a cell of some kind, although it looked to be carved out of solid stone. On the floor, near to the exit, she could make out a body. Instantly she hoped it was not someone she knew, not that she condoned any loss of life, but the life of a friend was still more precious to her. She had already lost one friend this week. “...Even if you killed me now, do you think you would be able to escape here alive?” This voice was different, one still familiar, but not so much so as the first. He hearing was returning to her now, and she could hear the sparks at the edge of her cell. She presumed an energy field had once been active and somehow the field emitters had been destroyed, or at least put temporarily off-line. ~No doubt thanks to that poor soul~ she thought and she edged along the wall, using it to keep herself upright. “And even if you didn’t kill me, do you think that you might use me as a hostage for your escape?” There was a short bout of laughter before the voice continued, “I think you know as well as I do; that in particular would be as useful to you as if you had no hostage at all.” Bree finally reached the edge of the cell and could see out into the corridor beyond to look at the scene that she had so far only been able to hear. Her sight was almost normal now, although still a little starry, but it was good enough for her to recognise Baylon Trinin, chief of security from the Hades. With a frown that seemed to ache her heard, she starred at him as he seemed to hold something to the head of another. “Baylon...what...what’s happening?” she asked, quite surprised that her voice was so croaky. She cleared her throat at once, and blinked a few more times. It was then that she noticed that the other being was none other than Senator Terrh. She waited in keen anticipation for Baylon to explain their current situation. (posted by Dave) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1102) Maraht hated standing around and waiting. It was one reason why he never wanted to be in command. The time seemed to drag endlessly while one brooded, waiting for results. No amount of Vulcan meditation or flavors of granite ever seemed to alleviate enough tension for Maraht in this kind of situation. He found his rocky self precariously balanced on the tightrope between needing to actively do something like run some benighted deserving fool over and allowing the crew to do their jobs while he waited for results. But now enough was enough. "I have had my fill of this. Ensign Fredericks, open a channel to the Capitol City. Let's try this again, but this time, I am not going to be so easily pushed aside." Maraht's finer phalangi rippled with his irritation and impatience and he didn't care if anyone could see it or not. "Communication channel established Sir," responded Ensign Fredericks. "This is Uhlan Kael." "Onscreen," ordered Maraht. He made his way with as much grace as possible down the steps of the command dais and propelled himself forward, closer to the wall size screen. By the time he reached his destination in front of the screen, a rumpled looking Romulan with a harassed look on his face stared out at the Bridge. "This is the USS Hades. I am Lt. Maraht. I would like to speak with Ambassador Frazier." "Ambassador Frazier is meeting with the Praetor and is perfectly fine, I assure you," answered the Romulan. "If Ambassador Frazier is perfectly fine, then it should be perfectly fine for her to speak with me, Praetor or no. I have vital information for her than will affect the talks. She needs to know of it." "Ambassador Frazier has been informed of the explosion at the Institute for Scientific Studies. She is well aware of it," snapped the Romulan. ~This one lies. I may not be a humanoid, but I have gotten better at detecting when someone is lying to me. She is all but screaming it, running around and waving placards.~ "Well then let me speak to Lt. Baylon Trinin. Where is he?" asked Maraht amiably. "He was asked to wait outside of the conference room during the talks. He will have plenty of time to talk to me and report on the status of the Ambassador's group." The Romulan's mouth opened and shut. She looked furious. "I am done speaking with a filthy looking rock. I cannot help it if you do not believe me when I tell you the truth." Glaring out at him, the Romulan scowled and then the communication signal was abruptly terminated. The Bridge was silent. "Ensign Fredericks, get that signal reestablished right away." Maraht's finer phalangi shook and rippled showing his outrage and tension. "Aye sir," gulped the Ensign, looking nervous. He glanced over at Lt. Ammon and then moved his attention back to his console. He began to press buttons; they emitted soft beeps. Maraht rumbled his way ominously back beside the command chair. ~I don't want to have to go down there if I can help it in anger at betrayal. This was not the way I had in mind of getting onto Romulus to explore.~ Maraht again checked the science teams' signals and placement on the planet and hoped they were indeed safe. He wondered if they could be of help in some sort of rescue and thought they might do well if needed in that capacity. "Keep a transporter lock on the Science teams life signs at all times, Lt Ammon. I don't want something suddenly happening to them. There are too many coincidences going on here for us to ignore any more," said Maraht. (Reply Ammon Ranae) "Sir, I can establish the signal. But they are not answering," reported Ensign Fredericks. He looked toward his Chief and raised his eyebrows. "Do what you can to keep trying," answered Maraht. He turned his attention to his tactical officer. "Report on Commander Lemar's status on the Donatra, Lt. Ammon. I sincerely hope you were not denied the chance to speak with him," said Maraht dryly. (Posted by Sheila) ===================================================================== (Romulus – Tal’Shiar Secure Facility, Temporary Cells – CSEC Lt. Baylon Trinin – 1103) “What exactly is it you intend to do, Baylon Trinin?” Terrh asked calmly, looking Baylon in the eyes. Terrh, averted his own eyes and looked up to a small device fixed to the roof of this small walkway, used to visually monitor the entrance to the cells. Terrh had no doubt that it was trained directly on them, “Even if you killed me now, do you think you would be able to escape here alive?” Terrh offered a smile. “And even if you didn’t kill me, do you think that you might use me as a hostage for your escape?” At this he laughed lightly. “I think you know as well as I do; that in particular would be as useful to you as if you had no hostage at all.” "You're absolutely correct Senator on every count." Baylon replied, "As you've pointed out, You are of no use to me as a hostage. But you are a threat to me while you remain alive." "So where does that leave us?" Baylon added rhetorically, "If you are of no benefit to me, then I can see no good reason that I should allow you to remain alive to threaten me further. Perhaps I could garner some satisfaction from killing the man who ruined my career by making it appear that I am an assassin trying to kill the Praetor of the Romulan Star Empire. You've done you're homework on me, tell me what would you do in my situation?" There was a slight flicker of worry in the Senator's eyes, but it was very fleeting. "You know what the outcome is going to be unless you can convince me that you might have some worth to me." (reply Terrh) “Baylon...what...what’s happening?” came a raspy voice. Even as disheveled as it sounded, Baylon recognized it as belonging to Ambassador Frazier. "It seems Ambassador that we've been framed for the attempted murder of the Praetor, assuming he is still alive. If he is not, then I am assuming the charges are for his assassination. The explosion was caused by a Federation Mark II Tactical Stun Grenade. We were brought here for holding and our diplomatic immunities revoked. I was just discussing the nature of our relationship with the Senator, here. We are trying to define exactly how he can be of use to us at this point." (posted by Daniel Greene) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – CTAC Lt. Ammon Ranae - 1104) It was good to hear that the rest of the science away teams were fine, that is if the Rommies were being honest with them. Ranae wasn't surprised that Maraht's attempt to speak with Frazier had been circumvented just as her own to speak with Lemar had been, but it was slightly more understandable if Frazier was in talks, however when he asked to speak to Baylon instead and that caused the Romulan female to become verbally abusive, Ranae was offended by her words and angrily took a step forward to reply with a few choice words of her own. Fortunately for her the Romulan cut the communication signal. Ranae stood, glaring at the blank screen while the rest of the Bridge crew appeared to be slightly stunned by the Rommie's outburst. "Ensign Fredericks, get that signal reestablished right away." Maraht's finer phalangi shook and rippled showing Ranae that he also was feeling outraged, (who being close to him and having made Oona the holographic horta for him as a companion), had become quite adept at reading Maraht's body language. "Aye sir," gulped the Ensign, looking nervous. He glanced over at Lt. Ammon and then moved his attention back to his console. "Keep a transporter lock on the Science teams life signs at all times, Lt Ammon. I don't want something suddenly happening to them. There are too many coincidences going on here for us to ignore any more," said Maraht. "Aye, Sir." Ranae replied and turned back to her station to make sure the transporters were locked on to the away teams. "Sir, I can establish the signal. But they are not answering," reported Fredericks. "They are beginning to show their true colors." Ranae stated, more to herself than anyone else. "Do what you can to keep trying," answered Maraht. He turned his attention to his tactical officer. "Report on Commander Lemar's status on the Donatra, Lt. Ammon. I sincerely hope you were not denied the chance to speak with him." "Actually I was, so I requested they give the Commander a message that we needed him back on the Hades stat. They must have done that because he then spoke directly to me." Ranae didn't tell Maraht that she at a touch of a few buttons she would have weapons locked and ready to fire both on the Donatra, and on the capital city of Romulus, merely as a precaution of course. (Posted by Sal) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Deck 1, Main Bridge – COPS Lt. Maraht - 1105) "Actually I was, so I requested they give the Commander a message that we needed him back on the Hades stat," reported Lt. Ammon. "They must have done that because he then spoke directly to me." Maraht felt immensely relieved. "Thank the Great Lava for that. Well done, Lt. Ammon. I hope he will be back very soon and that he will not be otherwise detained for any reason. At what point will the Commander return?" (Reply Ammon Ranae) "Ensign Fredericks, keep trying to hail the Capital City. I sincerely hope that we will not have to resort to using force." Maraht's finer phalangi rippled slowly in helpless frustration. ~I don't want to find myself in an away team having to go down there to kick some booty, though that might be preferable to standing around here waiting.~ "Aye Sir," said Fredericks, perspiring gently. He shook his blond head, an errant curl sticking to his forehead. "They are refusing to acknowledge us." "Keep trying anyway until they decide to shut us up by answering our hails," insisted the Horta. Maraht began thinking very hard. ~Will we have to get into some sort of battle out here in orbit with all of these Romulan ships surrounding us?~ He wasn't sure that they might be outmatched by sheer numbers as opposed to outright firepower. "Analysis Lt. Ammon. If things come down to it, and this is a possibility I pray to the Great Lava we will avoid, in a potential ship to ship battle, how would the Hades do against six Romulan warbirds?" asked Maraht. "What might be our chances?" (Reply Ammon Ranae) "I see." Maraht shifted his bulk back down the dais steps over to the Tactical Station in an effort to speak a little more privately. In a soft low voice he asked, "Ranae, you and Lt. Trinin have a special bond of some sort, don't you? Can you sense anything from him in anyway? Surely his ideation has not…..ceased." (Posted by Sheila) ===================================================================== (USS Hades - Personal quarters - CEO Lt. Norman Harper - 1905) Snow covered the computer screen for an instant before it was replaced by the bright face of Bertoni Lozzatto. "Norman!" From anyone else, it would have been concidered a yell, but from Toni, it was a relatively calm greeting. Norm was leaning back on his bed, still in his uniform, sucking a chocolate milk shake up through a straw that was too small for proper suction. " I got your letter, Toni," He said without removing the straw from between his teeth. The young Italian raised an eyebrow, indicating that Norm should continue. "I don't know. I have so much I have to do on the ship and I-" "They have no ACEO?" Toni interrupted, his eyebrow still raised and inching closer to his hairline. Norm rolled his eyes, "Two... But it isn't that simple. I worked to get up to Cheif, Toni. I can't just leave because a science vessel has the unfortunate lack of an engineer." "So when our engines stall and we starve to death, or the life support fails and we all smuther ... we can blame Star Fleet?" "There are engineers all over the stars looking for an opportunity to get on a ship - any ship. Even a science vessel. You could have any one of them." Norm argued before going back to his shake. "And we will, but we don't have the time to screen all of them for the position at this point either. I know you, Norm. I'm not asking you to leave your ship forever. I'm asking you to help out a bunch of science geeks." Norm was about to say no again, but froze. No matter how much he wanted to tell Toni to find somebody else, he know he owed him heavily. All the times Toni lied for him, took punches from him, and broke up his blind brawls... There was no way Norm could say no. "I'll ask, but I can't make any promises." Toni's face brightened with a wide smile. He knew he had won. "Please do," he nodded and reached out to turn off his computer, "I shall see you soon, yes?" "Maybe." Norm put his cup firmly on his bed-side table and reached up and ended the communication before Toni could guilt trip him further. (posted by Justine) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1844) Ensign T'Vof made her way to a lounge at Starbase Geneva. She knew the Hades was away on a mission and was out there somewhere. She checked the PADD in her hands and looked out to the stars, imagining the Prometheus class ship cruising around a planet, possibly separating into tri-vector mode to defend a landing party or fledgling species from atmospheric bombardment. Lo'ren tugged a little at her new uniform, still not quite used to the sleek black outfit and unfamiliar roundness of her now solitary rank pip. Turning away from the view port, Lo'ren wandered to a table and ordered a Raktijino from the attendant that came around. She settled in to read about the ship and her tactical specs. Her left hand floated just above her knee and played out Surak's Heart, a song she had written while on Vulcan studying Kohlinar. "Tri-vector... Tactical holo-interface... that's new, better see if there's a training program set up... Devan Sash, hhmmm Angosian, better brush up on that." Lo'ren muttered to herself and made some notes as she went over spec after spec, praying to the Prophets that she wouldn't embarass herself when she finally did get to report in. Lo'ren paused a moment, ~I wonder where my classmates are? I know Eoin made it through, but where did he get assigned? I'd like to practice Gaelic with him again.~ (Posted by Lori Winterhoff) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1845) Eoin had heard that his friend T'Vof had been assigned to the Hades, and had actually arrived a little while ago. He thought maybe he would find her in the Main Lounge. After all, that's where she spent most of her free time at the Academy. When he walked in, he saw that he had guessed right. "Dia dhuit, a Th'Vof, mo chara. Conas ta tú?"* (reply T'Vof) "Ta me go maith fosta. Sannta me do dtí an Hades. Agus tú?"** (reply T'Vof) "Fíor mhaith! Beimid le chéile arís!"*** NRPG: The translations! *God be with you, T'Vof, my friend. How are you? **I am fine as well. I've been assigned to the Hades. And you? ***Very good! We'll be together again! (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1846) Deeply involved in the specs for the Hades, Lo'ren was startled when she heard Eoin. She looked up and saw the lanky Irishman standing before her. She grinned, happy that she knew one face on the base. After taking a second to translate his words, she launched into her awkward Gaelic, "Dia duit, Eoin! Ta me go maith, agús tu?" * Eoin replied that he was stationed to the Hades and Lo'ren perked up even more. "Sannta me do dtí an Hades fosta."** As Eoin exclaimed his approval of having a fellow classmate with the same assignment, Lo'ren grinned and indicated the seat across from her, inviting her classmate to sit. "So, Eoin, any guesses as to the ETA of our ship?" NRPG: The translations! * "Hello, Eoin! I'm well, and you? ** "I have been stationed to the Hades also." (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1847) "So, Eoin, any guesses as to the ETA of our ship?" "Not as of yet. All I've heard is that they're somewhere in the Romulan Empire at the moment. So, there's no telling when they'll be back," Eoin said as he sat. "But no worries, Lo'ren. I'm sure they'll be here in their own good time. But in the mean time, we've got a good amount of shore leave on this station here. And I don't intend to waste it. So what do you say we go have some fun?" (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1848) Lo'ren grinned at the green eyes that twinned her own. Pictures ran through her mind of some narrow escapes they had made at the Academy. She remembered fondly the clipper Eoin had programmed for his recreation time and the time she fell off the boat as Eoin had turned the ship sharply, she wasn't used to sea legs back then. "Oh, I'm betting there's a holodeck around good for some sailing. Brashtanti Ale on the Dulcinea?" She took a sip of her Raktijino as Eoin replied (reply Eoin) "Have you found out anything else about our current home?" She enquired, guessing that Eoin had been on Geneva slightly longer than she had. (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1849) "Oh, I'm betting there's a holodeck around good for some sailing. Brashtanti Ale on the Dulcinea?" "Great. And you know what else, I bet on a station this big there's bound to be at least one holodeck free." "Have you found out anything else about our current home?" "Not much else. All I know is that the captain's name is Devan Sash, and that they're on a mission to Romulus. What have you heard?" (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1850) "What have you heard?" Eoin asked Lo'ren what she had learned so far about their new assignment. She almost went into a dissertation of the Tactical systems on the ship, but decided to leave that for later and chose to follow something she knew Eoin could connect with. "She's got a diverse crew for sure... Horta, Arborian, Angosian - That would be Captain Sash - a Cherokee Indian from earth, Vulcan, Betazoid..." Lo'ren had almost memorized the senior crew already but knew that most weren't as keen as she to get everything all at once. She curbed her enthusiasm lest she bore her friend. "I'm interested in learning and practicing the diverse languages on board... "They've got a good crew in Engineering, Tactical is a bit sparse for officers. I guess that's typical though, front lines and all." Lo'ren signalled the server and ordered a plate of sushi and a mug of Deka Tea, extra sweet. She noted to herself for a second that she always seemed to be eating. When she had that done she turned back to Eoin, "But, back to here and now," she leaned over the table and a look of eagerness flashed in her eyes, "we're stuck on Geneva until the Hades docks and I've missed the late night parties on the Dulcinea." (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - AOPS Ensign Apollo Stephens - 1852) Apollo finally had located his temporary quarters and settled in . His vessel, a small science ship of the Oberth class. He was excited and slightly disappointed at the same time. Seems his class mates, Ensigns Eoin Mac Liam and Lo'ren T'Vof, managed to get assignments to the Hades. She was on some top secret mission to who knows where. Entering the lounge, Apollo greeted Eoin and Lo'ren. He didn't have a lot of friends but these two were the closest he had to friends. "Hello Strangers" Apollo called to the other two. (reply: any) "What is up with you two?" Apllo asked - he was curious about what had happened since the three had graduated. (reply: any) Apllo told them about his assignment to the sccience vessel U.S.S. Einstein. The Einstein was on its way to pick up some cargo (himself included). (posted by: Bill West) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1852.5) "Hello Strangers" Lo'ren turned around as she heard a familiar voice/ She faced Apollo, another of the most recent graduating class of the Academy. She smiled warmly, "Hello Apollo, it's good to see you again." "What is up with you two?" Apllo asked, apparently wanting to be aware of current events. Lo'ren knew Apollo to be a bit quieter on the whole and had always tried to invite him along so she replied, "Eoin and I are stuck waiting for the Hades, so we're going to have some fun on the Dulcinea. You're welcom to come if you want. How' are things with you?" Lo'ren listened as her classmate spoke briefly about his new assignment. "That's great Apollo, I hope you can join us in Holodeck 8, Eoin and I are headed there now. Bring food and drink, Yuri's coming too." (posted by: Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1853) Eoin listened intently as Lo'ren went over what she knew of their new assignment, not at all surprised at the datapad quality of the answer. "But, back to here and now," she leaned over the table and a look of eagerness flashed in her eyes, "we're stuck on Geneva until the Hades docks and I've missed the late night parties on the Dulcinea." "Who says we can't? Come on, we'll find an empty holodeck. I've got the program right here." He patted his right breast, more specifically the internal pocket of his uniform. "We can invite some of our new Geneva friends." He took Lo'ren's hand. "Come on, you can bring your sushi with you. How do you feel about the Au Au Channel at sunset?" (reply Lo'ren, assuming a yes) "Great. Let's go." (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Lounge - ACEO Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1855) Eoin grabbed Lo'ren by the hand, "Come on, you can bring your sushi with you. How do you feel about the Au Au Channel at sunset?" Lo'ren beamed, "You know that's one of my favourite spots Eoin. Sounds great!" "Great. Let's go." Eoin seemed eager to get going and Lo'ren was of the same mind. She got up from her chair, ready to leave when she spotted Yuri Abelev, a classmate who had left the campus shortly before Lo'ren and Eoin. She waved at the stocky Russian and jogged over to him. As she stopped in front of him she asked "Hey Bear! Au'au Channel party, you coming?". The quiet man grinned and replied, "Ve ken have some ale, yes?" Lo'ren laughed and asked him: "You got any of that home recipe floating around?" Yuri's face lit up as he nodded, "I hev yes a bottle vit me." Lo'ren nodded approval, "Great, I'll comm you when we find a free holodeck." The dark, muscled ensign lumbered of, showing the whole lounge how he had earned the nickname 'Bear'. Lo'ren watched him go and then went to a wall panel. Tapping the access pad she queried the computer, "Computer, show all available holodecks and current schedules of use - further query - closest location with longest period of unbooked time, also booking limits for junior officers on leave or awaiting transfer." The computer came up with the answer almost instantly, [There are three holodecks currently available: Holodeck 4 - available currently until 21:00 stardate 2408.01.07, Holodeck 7 - available currently until 03:00 stardate 2408.01.08, Holodeck 8 - available currently until 9:00 stardate 2408.01.08. Junior officers may book holodecks for a total of 3 hours daily.] Lo'ren made some quick calculations and tapped in some commands booking Holodeck 8 from 17:00 to 20:00 today. She waved Eoin over so she could get him to book in three hours today and then tapped her commbadge. "Yuri, I've booked Holodeck 8, on your way over book it yourself for 23:00 today to 02:00 tomorrow. Oh, and specify to keep the program running, same arrangment we had for our late nights on Campus." =/\=Ja, I vill do this. See you der, Abalev out.=/\= Lo'ren looked way up at the Irishman towering over her, bouncing on the balls of her feet she asked him to book in for 20:00 hours to 23:00. (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1901) Eoin and Lo'ren reached the holodeck just a minute after Lo'ren's reservation time began. He smiled at her. "Just like old times, eh?" (reply T'Vof) "And Yuri's on his way now, good. Let's get started." He walked over to the arch, pulled out an isolinear chip from his right breast pocket, and inserted it into the arch interface. "Computer, access Program Mac Liam Alpha 1. Run program, Earth, Hawaiian Archipelago, Au Au Channel, sunset." The computer chirped, and Eoin found himself once again at the helm of the Dulcinea, watching the sun set over the distant island of Lanai. He breathed in the warm salty air. He was home. "Computer, appropriate clothing for me." The computer chirped again, and his uniform was replaced with an open Hawaiian loud shirt and swimming trunks. He went to the bow, and sat down, letting the waves splash over his bare feet. (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1901.5) Lo'ren watched Eoin's face widen in a smile as he said, "Just like old times, eh?" Lo'ren smiled back, extremely pleased to be with her best friend. "Absolutely Eoin." "And Yuri's on his way now, good. Let's get started." She watched as the red-head went over to the archand slotted in his Iso-chip."Computer, access Program Mac Liam Alpha 1. Run program, Earth, Hawaiian Archipelago, Au Au Channel, sunset." Lo'ren breathed deeply of the sea air when the tropical channel materialized. She looked over to starboard and saw a school of brightly coloured fish dancing in the water, she had always thought they looked as much. She heard Eoin ask the computer for the proper Hawai'ian clothing and suddenly felt out of place in her uniform. putting her plate of sushi near the bow she signalled the computer. "Computer, I would like an emerald green bathing suit, one piece, and a sheer white wrap-around." The computer materialized the correct clothing for her and she relaxed visibly. sitting next to Eoin. "I hope Apollo can join us." She heard the holodeck door swish open to admit someone. "Vell? Vat are you sitting der for? Ve hev a perty to be starting!" (reply Eoin iyw) Lo'ren grinned and got up, she turned to see Yuri, already in an obnoxiously loud pair of shorts and white Bahama style shirt flapping in the slight breeze, wearing those strange 'flip-flop' shoes he so liked. Lo'ren preferred no shoes herself, but everyone has a style she supposed. Yuri stepped out of the doorway and brandished his bottle of home grown whiskey, he also waggled a bottle of unknown type, "For you, Lo'ren, I make just for you." He proudly held out the bottle towards the sligh woman. Curiously Lo'ren came closer and examined the bottle. It had no label and appeared to be full. She glanced at Yuri as she opened the bottle. She laughed as she smelled the aroma of jumja. "Yuri, jumja schnapps?" Yuri nodded, "Ja, you challenged me in second year and I never hev forgotten. So for you, from de Russian Bear!" "Thank you." She replied simply. "Computer, glasses, appropriate for liqueurs, several." The computer chirruped and provided half a dozen small, stemmed glasses, she poured some for herself and Yuri. Turning towards the bow she waved the bottle at Eoin. "Wanna try some?" (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - SciO Ensign Apollo Stephens - 1902) Apollo stood outside the holodeck and debated going in. He had made the required costume and dressed as a surfer dude - loud Hawaiian shirt and sandals. His longish blond hair added to the overall effect. "Hello All" Apollo said to his friends. (reply: any present) Apollo smiled as he looked at the others - he thought a lot of Yuri and was glad to see that he had come to the party. He took a seat near the stern and marveled in the level of detail the program contained. (posted by: Bill West) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1904) "Vell? Vat are you sitting der for? Ve hev a perty to be starting!" Eoin looked back and saw Yuri coming up from below. "Just putting my feet in the water. It's really nice if anyone wants to go for a swim." Eoin got up and came back aft. "For you, Lo'ren, I make just for you." Yuri proudly held out the bottle. "Yuri, jumja schnapps?" Yuri nodded, "Ja, you challenged me in second year and I never hev forgotten. So for you, from de Russian Bear!" "Thank you. Computer, glasses, appropriate for liqueurs, several." The computer chirped and provided half a dozen small, stemmed glasses, she poured some for herself and Yuri. Turning towards the bow she waved the bottle at Eoin. "Wanna try some?" "Just a little. After all, I'm the one who has to get us back to Molokai after the party." Eoin reached out and took a glass. "Hello All" Apollo said to his friends. "Nice to see you were able to make it, Apollo. Good for us to all together again, eh? Even if only for a little while." (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ATAC Ensign Lo'ren T'Vof - 1905) Lo'ren smiled at Apollo as he popped his head out from below decks and made his way aft. "Apollo, glad you could come." She poured another glass of jumja schnapps and set the bottle down. Picking up two of the glasses she went over to him and held out a glass. "Would you like some jumja schnapps? Yuri made it for me." (reply Apollo) She took took a sip of the amber liquid for herself and nearly melted with pleasure, "Yuri! This is wonderful!" She exclaimed, setting the stocky Russian to beaming. "Thank you so much, did you only make one bottle though?" Yuri shook his head, "No, Lo'ren, I make many bottles for you. I vill hev de crate marked for you to trunsfer to your ship ven she arrives." Lo'ren smiled again and sipped her drink, jumja always reminded her of home and the music lessons her mother taught her. She always got a sweet jumja stick if she did well. She also remembered her father looking on, not smiling but she knew he approved of her good work. ~Father, I hope you and Mum are doing well.~ She thought to herself, recalling with deep feeling the times he smuggled first aid supplies out of the Medic Station when she was injured in the mines. She blinked and brought herself back to the party atmosphere. Standing again she raised her glass, "Here's to all our classmates, may they excel in their new posts, and to our new crewmates, may we work well with them." (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - ACEO Ensign Eoin Mac Liam - 1907) Lo'ren made a toast soon after Apollo arrived. "Here's to all our classmates, may they excel in their new posts, and to our new crewmates, may we work well with them." Eoin raised his glass, adding in a "Hear hear!' and drank. He was surprised at how sweet is was. But he knew better than to have too much. "As good as ever, Yuri. But I shouldn't have too much. After all, you remember what happened last Federation Day when I had too much of your moonshine." (reply Yuri) Eoin laughed. He went below decks for a minute, and came back up with a platter full of coconut milk, served in what else but coconut halves. "Not as good as Yuri's schnapps, but it's definitely appropriate for Hawaii." (posted by Spencer) ===================================================================== (Starbase Geneva - Holodeck 8 - Ensigns Lo'ren T'Vof & Yuri Abelev - 1908) Yuri laughed heartily and slapped Eoin on the shoulder. "Ja, de Irishman vas very tipsy dat night. But vhy remember our mistakes. Ve learn, dat is all ve need to know. I learned to give you less for drinking after dat time." Yuri winked at Eoin and picked a coconut milk of the tray Eoin had brought up, sniffing it to see if it was worthy to mix with alchohol. Yuri decided the coconut milk was best left alone. He smiled to himself as he watched his classmates and sipped his own whiskey, which he called Moon Blast, and quite appropriately. ~De schnapps will be a good chaser for my Moon Blast. Perhaps I vill develop a drink vit mixing dem. Mebe sveet jumja vhiskey~ Lo'ren grinned at the two old friends as they affably teased each other. She had always loved watching the goings on as much as she enjoyed being part of them. Communications in all forms were always a fascination to her. Music and Linguistics, even Weapons and Combat were forms of communications when you wanted them to be - feelings, warnings, a touch here, a word or thought there. Lo'ren's thoughts turned to their old friends and classmates. She called out to the three other ensigns on the boat. "Has anyone seen any of our other classmates? We should maybe comm them and see if they can join us." Even as she thought of that her mind switched to wanting to jump over the side for a swim in the water she had always found to be so deliciously warm. She saw the school of fish dancing again and longed to join them for a short while, they always seemed to be communicating among themselves and she wanted to know what it was. "Computer, one re-breather please." A small device materialized at her side, she picked up the equipment and hooked it over her ears adjusting it for a perfect fit before she briught the mouthpiece to he lips. "I'm going swimming guys." She shot over her shoulder as she stepped to the side of the boat. Slipping off her wraparound she dove in and stroked back to the surface to float near the Dulcinea. (posted by Lori) ===================================================================== End Compile =====================================================================