ILLUMINARNRPG: The Pursuit mini-compile

[Charles Gatling]

And this is my ode to the old detective shows and books. A man who uses
guile, smarts and solid investigation techniques to run down his quarry.
Not dependent on technology to do his thinking for him he will pursue a
lead relentlessly. He has faced Roanoke before and thoroughly detests them.

We begin with THE event.


Mission: Death in the Shadows
Day: 2
Stardate: 2446.02.02

(USS Illuminar - Deck 5- CO- Captain Sekal -0805)

He had just come from a workout in the gym and was headed back to the
turbolift. In a day and a half Keung Lee would be interrogating the
operative once again in an effort to squeeze the information from him that
he was holding back. And he was holding something back, of that there was
no doubt. In the meanwhile there was a more immediate concern, that of a
leak of information from his ship.

 He passed a crewman in the hallway from Operations while giving a nod. It
was only a few steps later when he heard.

"Captain may I have a moment?"

He stopped and turned to address the owner of the voice. What happened next
passed in a blur.

He sensed rather than saw movement followed by the thud of impact to his
chest. Pain immediately radiated from the area. His eyes dropped to the
handle of the knife protruding from just off center to the human
breastbone. From there he looked up into the eyes of his assailant which
were self-satisfied and gloating. The eyes were misinformed. To a human it
was a killing blow causing near instantaneous death. But the CO was not
human and his heart was low on his right side. It had been a trained strike
done on instinct ... without thought. Still the Vulcan knew that shock
would follow quickly.

 The gloating eyes soon closed as Sekal's right hand lashed out in a chop
to the temple of the assailant. His strike was heavily pulled in order to
not crush the others skull causing death. Sekal needed information and not
a corpse. The other crumpled to the deck as the Vulcan's knees nearly
folded. His eyes returned to the knife handle, radiating outward from the
area was a green stain on his uniform. He took a short and careful step to
the side then turned his back to the wall and leaned heavily against it. He
didn't attempt to remove the knife as this would cause a free flow of his
life's fluid.

He steadied his breathing against the throbbing ache and reached carefully
with his left hand to activate the comm.

His voice was less than robust. "Captain to sickbay. Medical Emergency on
deck 5. Security to deck ... to deck..."

He slid down the wall to a sitting position as his eyes closed. His head
slumped forward and he became still. His breathing was slow but regular.
------------------------------------------

NRPG: Note that Tim and I did not conspire on the timing. I was writing
this while he sent out his bug out post.
RPG:

(USS Illuminar - Deck 5 - SecO- PO1 Steven Hammons  - 0935)

Hammons hadn't cooled down much from finding out that Roanoke might be
aboard yesterday. Then today the CO had been blatantly attacked. He was
aware that the boss was in medical to see if there was anything to be done
while he waited for them to retrieve the knife from the Captain's chest
without killing him. Security teams had been scanning the deck since the
time the alert had been sounded but there had been no lingering trace of a
transporter beam. The turbolift logs were being sifted to find out if the
perp had fled from the scene by using them and the entire deck sans medical
itself were in the process of being searched with a fine toothed comb. So
far there had been nothing found that was out of the ordinary. No person
had ducked into ongoing operations if the crewmen inside were to be
believed. No Jeffries tube access had been used since yesterday as far as
the scans showed (and they would have picked up lingering thermal traces).
And the isolated crewmen who had been found had been elbow deep in their
jobs. They would be questioned, grilled actually; everybody would. Still he
couldn't help but feel uneasy as though they had missed something.

He had already spoken with some of the guys who had been in the gym, no
sooner had the Captain called than they had tumbled out to the scene. The
attack had taken place within sight of the recreation area and within quick
reach of medical. Whoever had stabbed the CO had counted on a quick, silent
kill and the location showed it. Almost anyone but a Vulcan would have died
instantly, there would have been no bringing them back. But the erstwhile
killer had flubbed the job, either unaware of the differing Vulcan anatomy
or more likely forgetting in the heat of the moment, their strike long and
arduously practiced to kill humanoid beings. Their mistake had hopefully
saved the Captain's life.

He walked down the hall to the spot which had been cordoned off. One
security grunt was still scanning the area for clues. Steven ducked under
the marking line and stepped inside. "Run me through this one more time
James. Where are the initial traces of blood?"

The man rose from his crouch. "Close to the wall sir. Right here."

Hammons stood back and looked from there to the spot where the Captain had
been found hunkered down against that same wall and within a couple of feet
of the comm unit that showed a drop of green blood. "He wouldn't have moved
far with that knife stuck in his chest." Indeed from the first traces of
blood to his sitting position was less than five feet which is half again
the length of a human stride. Even shuffling his feet the CO wouldn't have
taken more than a few steps. So the attack couldn't have taken place far
from that spot. In Hammons mind not more than 4 or five feet.

"And the crewman?"

"He was lying prone here sir."

Hammons noted the location and nodded. "Do you have everything at the scene
recorded yet"

"Yes sir, I was just finishing up my double-down check. Give me just a
minute."

Steven folded his arms and his eyes surveyed the scene restlessly until the
crewman was done.

"Scans complete. All evidence has been entered and I can make a complete
three dimensional map from it. Every drop of blood, hair and fiber."

"Good. That means I won't spoil any evidence." He moved to the wall where
the blood droplets had already dried and turned his back to it then slid to
the marked spot where Sekal had sat on the deck and stopped. He reached out
with his left hand and though the Vulcan's arms were longer it was within
reach.

"What are you doing sir?"

Hammons gave him a disbelieving look. "I'm reconstructing events. You know
back before sensors kept an eye on everything the authorities had to do
actual work to gather evidence and solve a case." His eyes dropped to the
spot the other crewman had occupied and he frowned. A couple of steps from
the wall and he would be almost atop him. So Hammons slid back to the spot
with the blood and looked around. "That's peculiar." He stepped out from
the wall and turned back toward the gym, he could have reached out and
touched the guy. James Merriweather watched him with interest.

On impulse Hammons turned and took 3 normal steps which put him not far
from the cordon. "Merriweather come over here and face me." His eyes were
hooded as the crewman came around and stood before him.

"The CO was leaving the gym so facing the way I am. Pretend you are driving
a knife into my heart."

Merriweather took a step back to position himself then sidestepped to
Hammons right. Thrusting his hand forward he stopped it at Hammons chest
and held it there.

"All right. Now you hear someone behind me running down the corridor and
shouting. Can you see him?"

James repositioned his body. "The CO is a lot taller than you but I can see
around you without any problem."

"Do it with your left hand." The man repositioned himself, due to the
placement of the wound the offset was larger.

"The same except I have an even wider view."

The wheels in Hammons head were turning. "And if you wanted to take that
guy out too?"

James pantomimed withdrawing the knife with a swift jerk then stepped
around Hammons.

"So you would take the weapon with you and not leave it in the CO?"

"Absolutely. The knife gives me an advantage."

"Yet he was taken down by hand." Steven kept his position and looked down
the hall. "Now I've got nine inches of steel in my chest. What do I do?" He
looked around for a comm unit, it was halfway down the hall to his left.
"That comm is too far away for a short and life threatening walk. Did the
CO have his combadge on?"

"Yeah, the guys saw him put it back on before he left the gym. It was still
on when they found him."

Hammons gritted his teeth. "In this case I would use my combadge rather
that the comm. And the way he was sitting he would have used his left hand
to activate that comm."

He had turned the other direction and was facing back toward the gym. "The
comm from here looks painfully far away. Better to use the combadge." He
stepped forward until he was parallel to the blood marks on the wall. The
comm looked within easy reach. He looked down and the hair at the back of
his neck bristled. Only two feet away from him was where the crewman had
fallen.

"Step over here and don't look down. Pretend you're going for my heart
again."

Merriweather stepped in front of him and pantomimed the thrust again. When
his hand was at his chest Hammons barked. "Hold your position." He then
made a fist and pantomimed a right uppercut to the jaw. The fist stopped at
rest there. "Now go down."

Merriweather dropped and Hammons cursed. He then stepped to the wall and
turned his back to it then slid to the point he could activate the comm
with his left hand. There was cold fury in his eyes.

"What?" Merriweather was taken aback by the look.

"Look where you are Merriweather."

"Jesus H! I'm in the same spot the crewman was." The man's eyes got big.
"You don't think!"

"That the man who got sent to medical was the same one who tried to murder
him. You bet your life I do."

Hammons turned and began to run toward sickbay
‐----------------------------------------

(USS Illuminar - Deck 5 - Sickbay- SecO- PO1 Steven Hammons  - 0945)

He swept into medical like a gale before a storm with his eyes on swivels
looking for his quarry. He saw Counselor Trei in the midst of the chaos
moving about from one station to another verifying that all was in order,
calming where necessary and answering in a low soothing voice when asked a
question. The Captain it seemed was in surgery and his life hung in the
balance, she made it seem like another day at the office.

 Hammons didn't have time to think about what this portends going forward.
The CO had already been attacked once before during the mission to Kal'Shar
but had dispatched the deranged crewman with such ease it had made him seem
invincible according to one witness. That someone who was so well versed in
combat could be taken down with ease was chilling. Not that the attacker
had gotten away unscathed if Hammons was correct but still ... all evidence
pointed to a swift, savage attack. He could only conclude that Sekal had
been caught unawares, perhaps while turning back toward the gym.

 Would the Captain and Commander of his ship require a bodyguard at all
times in the future? On a Federation starship? This wasn't the Klingon
Empire where upward mobility depended on ones ability to kill your
commanding officer. Mutinuous crews were nearly unheard of and in almost
every instance were caused by some outside and unforseen factor like the
radiation emitted by the Sharlayans damaged nuclear reactor.

 And if Hammons knew the Captain he wouldn't be buying into any such
bodyguard. The decision to present it to him wasn't in his pay grade and
Steven wished Lieutenant Lee luck in trying to sell it to him.

His eyes found one of the security men posted inside Sickbay and he stomped
toward him. "Lincoln what are you doing out in the general population? I
thought Lieutenant Gregory ordered you to watch Sanchez. What room is he in
by the way?"

The hatchet faced man gave him a guarded look. "Sanchez was released."

"Released? What the... Why did you release him and where is he now?"

Lincoln looked offended. "We took his statement after he woke up as ordered
and he was escorted back to his bunk with a guard placed outside to make
sure no one tried to take out a potential witness."

"Potential witness? What did he see?"

"Nothing. He saw no one else in the hallway."

"No one? He saw no one in the hallway with him and the Captain when he was
attacked? And this didn't set off any alarm bells? Did he see the attack
take place?"

"He didn't see anything."

Hammons face had gone beet red. "And you didn't find this strange? Am I
supposed to believe the boogeyman knocked him out while he stuck a knife in
the Captain? Were you born yesterday crewman? Did your mama drop you on
your head? Do you have to listen to audio reminding you to breathe while
you sleep?" Hammons voice was a roar by the time his tirade was complete
and everyone in general population heard it. Hammons didn't care and by
this point he had advanced on the green numbskull until his back was flat
to the wall.

 "You were there when medical arrived. You saw his proximity to the
Captain. And then you released a guy who was too stupid to even lie and say
he tried to stop the attack. What does that say about your intelligence
Lincoln?"

 He was shouting into Lincoln's face by the end, so close the guy could
smell his minty fresh breath.

(Reply: Trey iyw)

"I apologize Counselor. I have a low tolerance for stupidity." Hammons
voice was a growl. He turned and stomped out of medical at full speed then
broke into a run for the turbolift.

"Luma." His voice was a shout. "What deck and room for crewman Sanchez?"

(Reply: Luma)

Hammons slid sideways into the lift as the door slid open.
-----------------------------------------------

(USS Illuminar - Deck 6- SecO- PO1 Steven Hammons  - 0948)

He stepped out of the lift at a more sedate pace as he tapped his combadge.
While his tirade at Lincoln had been warranted in his estimation he also
needed to get clearance for what he was about to do.

"Chief Lee this is Hammons. I've been over the scene of the attack sir and
reconstructed events to the best of my ability. In my estimation sir
Sanchez was the one who tried to murder the CO and he was sent back to his
room after giving the lousiest possible statement. With your permission I'd
like to bring him to Security for an interrogation."

(Reply: Lee, room for as much as you want)

If his suspicions were correct then Sanchez was a flight risk. Not that he
could go far on a shielded ship running at warp but for the imaginative
there were places to attempt to hide until Illuminar was forced to drop
those shields.

He spoke aloud knowing the Lenai could hear him as he walked briskly down
the hallway. "Luma can you confirm that Sanchez is in his quarters?
Combadge and life signs please."

Her voice came through the speakers. =^= Luma will do so. Luma reads the
combadge signal but there is no one in the room. But someone is in the
Jeffries tube adjacent to the room. =^= There was a pause. =^= They are
moving away. Luma does not know this Maxwell Smart. =^=

Steven swore. "He's trying to flee the area. Lock onto that other combadge
signal and follow him wherever he goes. Please report it to both Chief Lee
and myself. What direction is he going? Up or down?"

=^= He is making the down. =^=

Another tap. "Ensign Galk are you available?"

=^= This is Galk. I was just leaving the security office. What do you need?
=^=

"Our suspect has been located. Most probable destination at this time is
the shuttlebay. Could you please watch that area to see if Ensign Sanchez
shows up please? Suggest you watch only and don't try to intercept. He may
lead us to something of value."

=^= I am going there now. Out. =^=

"Chief Lee, Hammons again. Sanchez is bugging out using a Jeffries tube.
Probable targets are the shuttlebay or the emergency transporters on the
engineering deck. I've already asked Ensign Galk to station himself at the
shuttlebay to observe only at this time. Recommend caution, he may be
monitoring the general security channel."

(Reply: Lee)

The emergency transporters weren't the likeliest target though they could
be used for intraship beaming. Hammons was convinced the shuttlebay was his
target so had put one of their best men there. He left it to the chief to
allocate other resources. "One other favor Luma. Seal the emergency
transporters off with a force field would you?"

=^= Luma can seal the malignant small one in the Jeffries tube so that her
Hammons can fetch him and make him pay for hurting our Sekal. Luma can also
beam him into space. =^=

The Lenai's voice was full of fury and he knew she was considering it. The
attack had debilitated her for a while emotionally and she was on a roller
coaster. "No Luma. If he has a destination he most likely has a good reason
for it. We want to find out what it is. I'm fed up with Roanoke and their
secrets and I'd like to get some more intel."

=^= Very well. Luma has sealed off the emergency transporters. When the
Hammons is done with the small bad one Luma wishes to dispose of him. =^=

"I'd love it but it's not my call Luma."

Steven then headed for the turbolift at full stride. Luma would keep him
updated. In the meantime he was headed for deck ten.




Charles Gatling
Commanding Officer
USS Illuminar
NCC 61240


"The light shines brightest amidst the deepest darkness."
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