NRPG: Compile Index: Day 184 (USS Dennison - Phaser Range – 2L Leola Bracken - 0940) Day 185 (USS Dennison - Bridge/Ready Room - CMO Nymes - 1901) (USS Dennison - Bridge – CONN Night- 1916) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign jg Sanok, 1921) ( USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1930) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - MCPO Freeman - 1932) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - Crewman Morgan Randell- 1935) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - MCPO Freeman - 1936) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign jg Sanok, 1946) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Commander Trevan West, 1947) (Maltoria- Warehouse-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1948) (Maltoria- Warehouse-Commander Trevan West- 1949) (Maltoria- Warehouse-Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1950) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Roof, Ensign jg Sanok, 1950) (Maltoria- Warehouse – CSO/2O Dale Bracken - 1951) (Maltoria- Warehouse – Commander Trevan West - 1953) (Maltoria – Warehouse – CSO/2O Dale Bracken – 1954) (Maltoria- Warehouse – ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1955) (Maltoria ­ Warehouse ­ Ensign jg Sanok ­ 1956) (Maltoria- Warehouse – Commander Trevan West, 1958) (Maltoria- Warehouse – ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2046) (Maltorian, Warehouse, CSO/2O Bracken 2047) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign (jg) Sanok, 2048) (Maltorian, Alleyway, Commander Trevan West, 2049) ( Maltoria- Alley- ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2050) (Maltoria- Alley- Commander Trevan West- 2051) (Maltoria, Recreation ground, CSO/2O Bracken 2052) (Maltoria, Building, Commander Trevan West, 2054) (Maltoria - Citizen's Clinical Center - Asklar Th'ilonel - 2100) RPG: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Healer in the Tower Stardate: 2408.01.09 Day: 184 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< (USS Dennison - Phaser Range – 2L Leola Bracken - 0940) “Lieutenant.” Leola smiled, eager not to antagonise her, “We’ve all had some dealings with Fleet Intel at some time or other, I don’t know what yours is, if you want to tell me, fine, if not;” She shrugged. “Personally I’ve worked with them once or twice, but don’t mistake that as me trusting them completely, at all to be honest.” Leola paused, “Unfortunately, they are a necessary evil. I know as well as anyone, that they provide us with information that no one else has been able to. Anyway, I digress. Our current mission has the attention of Fleet Intel. Fleet Science originally issued the mission as a contact mission, follow the signal type. Sadly Intel became involved with assisting in decoding the signal, whereupon, they decided to...hint, rather strongly to West that we should use the opportunity to ‘get hold’ of some of the Maltorian technology. A suggestion that West has refused.” “The Captain...is more than concerned that Fleet Intel have operatives on board that will try and fulfill the mission that West has refused. Which is where you and I come in. Our orders are to investigate the possibilities of such operatives being on board, and to identify them wherever possible.” (Reply Shrekt) (Posted by Mark) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Healer in the Tower Stardate: 2408.01.10 Day: 185 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< (USS Dennison - Bridge/Ready Room - CMO Nymes - 1901) "Sir, reporting as requested." Nymes had said as he walked onto the bridge, noticing the bustle of activity as orders were given after the transit through, well, through whatever they had just traveled through. The Trill noticed that the bridge crew seemed to be suffering from some “whiplash-like” injuries in the main, with most of the people on deck rubbing their necks or arms where they had been thrown around, into bulkheads; with this observation he glanced at the Operations auxiliary display ahead of him, in front of the command chair, satisfied that the protocol was being followed and a department-by-department casualty report was being compiled. (reply Stakes) (posted by GC) (USS Dennison - Bridge – CONN Night- 1916) Ele tapped out a few more commands, cementing the high orbit, leaving the best operational profile for ground-ship communications available for any emergencies. The Away team had beamed down, and Ele was sitting there, her job, at the moment, reduced to watching out for the planet’s gravity and its effects on the ship itself. After a few moments, it was clear that something was not right; Lewis was still on the bridge for one thing – and the trill never liked to remain on the official hub of the vessel – and the TAC/SEC was concerned. “Captain, I’m not sure what to make of this. But it appears that the away team has disappeared. Ensign Spero can you confirm my readings?” Shrekt had said. Ele watched as the Ops officer double checked the sensors and resent the scan. It was professionally done, and the results came back quickly, but no luck. The Away team was, for the moment, MIA. (reply any on bridge) (posted by GC) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign jg Sanok, 1921) Sanok acknowledged West's order to go to the roof. With Crewman Nighy in tow, he headed for a small office complex he had discovered from his scans. In the office, there was a stairway that led to a door, that led to the roof. Carefully opening the door, Sanok moved onto the roof. "I'm not detecting anything other than plant life," said Sanok, after a few moments of scanning. "The range of my tricorder is also limited to approximately five hundred meters. I believe there is a dampening field." Sanok studied the skyscape. Nothing seemed out of order. The architecture was typical from what he had studied from the initial information they had received about the Maltorians. In fact, nothing seemed wrong, other than that there were no people. "Mr. Nighy, what are your conclusions here?" asked Sanok. (Reply Nighy) (Posted by Bob) ( USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1930) Morgan had been pouring over sensor logs trying to figure out what had happened over the past few hours. The Dennison had been tractored to a region of subspace and the transition had reeked havoc on her systems, the most troubling being the loss of reserve power. And now it seemed that they had misplaced an away team, Morgan tried to figure out just what had happened. Transporter logs had indicated that the away team had been beamed to the correct coordinates but yet they were not there, this troubled Morgan. MCPO Freeman had determined that the transporter had been feed false information and that the confinement beam was intercepted or possibly redirected by someone, but why would someone what to redirect the beam? Morgan joined in to help a team that had been assigned to figure out the puzzle, Engineering was a buzz with people running diagnostics, checking and rechecking subsystems and every relay and data shunt in between. Some how they were going to figure it out and find their missing people if Morgan had to personally examine every sensor log from the transport himself. Morgan decided to bring up the transporter subsystems on his console to see if he could determine where and when the confinement beam had been intercepted. After reviewing the information a few minutes he determined that his task was not going to be an easy one, who ever had done this had covered their tracks well, all safety protocols had been fooled as well as the targeting scanners. This was a mystery that Morgan did not like. Morgan handed the task over to another engineer while he accessed the sensor logs, hoping to find a signal that would lead him to an answer of some kind. What he saw on his screen was mostly background noise, nothing seemed coherent enough to have interfered with the transport. He focused his attention on the time of transport, and slowed the playback speed to one quarter of normal. Again he saw nothing that could have interfered. Morgan reset the display again and slowed the playback to ten percent of normal, and there he saw something. A momentary energy spike about five micro seconds in duration, at normal speed he had missed it. This may be what they were looking for, he called Freeman over as he paused the playback, " Sir, I believe I may have found something." ( reply Freeman) ( posted by Milo Young) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - MCPO Freeman - 1932) Butch had come to think of them as 'his' calculations, even though the ship's computer was handling the heavy work. Still, he was handling the refinements, a great deal of the data mining and all of the input adjustments. So... they could easily be called his. The background hum of the engineering section was subdued, despite the high activity level. Mostly, there was an air of quiet concentration as the engineers worked to discover just what had happened to the away team. Freeman had just started another run of spatial interphase calculations when he heard someone calling out to him. It was crewman Randell, one of the engineers he was just getting to know in his brief time aboard. " Sir, I believe I may have found something." Freeman hurried over to where Randell was working. Butch noted that he was examining transporter subsystems, and had 'time expanded' the event log, no doubt checking for details otherwise easily missed. ~Fine idea kid... now let's see what you found!~ He stood next to Randell and cast a glance at the displays. "What do you have for us, Mister Randell?" (Reply Randell, Any) (Posted by Russ) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - Crewman Morgan Randell- 1935) Morgan moved back from the display as Freeman came over beside him, they did not know each other well as both of them had joined the Dennison recently. Morgan was gradually getting to know most of the engineering crew as the days passed. Today he had been to involved with trying to figure out what happened to the away team to get to know any of the crew he was working with now. Freeman glanced at the display and said, "What do you have for us, Mister Randell?" " There was a momentary energy spike that occurred mid transport. At first glanced at normal speed I had missed it. I expanded the log and found the spike." Morgan explained. " The timing could not have been an accidental occurrence. The frequency and amplitude of the signature suggests to me that it was artificially generated, this does not appear to be a random energy burst. If we can trace the signal back to it's origin we may be able to determine where the away team was sent." Morgan paused to allow Freeman to absorb the information for himself and then continued. " Sir whoever sent that signal knew that our sensors would have registered it as a cause for concern. The duration of the signal was not long enough to trigger any alarms, and therefore it was overlooked as random noise." Morgan waited for Freeman's response to his finding's hoping that he had indeed stumbled onto a piece of the puzzle that would finally give them a direction to follow. The fact that someone on the planet below them had intentionally diverted their transport bothered Morgan to no end, he tried to comprehend why anyone would want to do that. The mission had got of to a very rocky start, and he hoped that the away team was alive somewhere on Maltoria. ( reply Freeman) ( posted by Milo Young) (USS Dennison - Primary Engineering - MCPO Freeman - 1936) Butch listened with interest to what Day had uncovered. ~He's tripped onto it alright... that’s nearly certain. But it doesn't solve the who or why of it... Not our problem, not yet anyway. Let's work on the where and how first right?~ " Sir whoever sent that signal knew that our sensors would have registered it as a cause for concern. The duration of the signal was not long enough to trigger any alarms, and therefore it was overlooked as random noise." Butch nodded his head in silent assent, mulling the possibilities for a moment. "Good work Mister Randell... I'm pleased that you were able to winnow that tidbit out of the mass of data. Good thinking indeed." He paused and clapped Day lightly on the shoulder. "Let's see what else we can find, shall we? I want to make certain that is the only unusual element, then we can track it down... we need to find the where and how this was done. The folks on the bridge can work on the why, but we need to get them accurate analysis, and just as soon as we can. What's our next step? You found the anomaly... I'm asking you to run with it." (Reply Morgan, Any) Freeman cast a glance at the crewman, and spoke to him in response. "By the way Mister Randell... remember I am not a sir... I work for a living, just like you! It's 'Chief' or 'Master Chief'." He gave a quick flash of a grin, to rob any offense from his words. He was quite pleased with the work, and wanted to encourage creative thinking. Problems get solved that way. (Reply Any) (Posted by Russ) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign jg Sanok, 1946) Sanok received a message through his comm badge. =^=West to Sanok. What is the status on gaining roof access? I want it before we head out, so we can get a clear look around.=^= "Crewman Nighy and I are on the roof now, Commander. However, we have nothing additional to add. Our scans have shown nothing Maltorian or animal life, only plants. Our scans are still limited, due to a dampening field. "We heard a government broadcast about us landing somewhere on Maltoria. It appears someone isn't happy about us being here. I recorded the message, and I believe I know from which direction the broadcast was generated. Do you wish for us to return to your location now?" (Reply West, Nighy) (Posted by Bob) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Commander Trevan West, 1947) =/\=Crewman Nighy and I are on the roof now, Commander. However, we have nothing additional to add. Our scans have shown nothing Maltorian or animal life, only plants. Our scans are still limited, due to a dampening field. "We heard a government broadcast about us landing somewhere on Maltoria. It appears someone isn't happy about us being here. I recorded the message, and I believe I know from which direction the broadcast was generated. Do you wish for us to return to your location now?"=/\= "Yes, come on back down. Can you see anything from up there?" he asked, "Anything that could indicate what is going on?" Trevan mentioned that he could use the extra help in planning their movements through the area and to talk to Ben about possible ideas on how to stay concealed. (Reply any) (Posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria- Warehouse-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1948) Ben looked over as Commander West called out to him, "Ben, can you come here for a moment please?" Ben closed his tricorder and placed it back in its holder on his side and walked over to Commander West. When he reached West he said, "Do you have any suggestions on how we can keep out of sight while still moving towards our intended destination?" Ben had considered that exact question himself, the shadows would be their greatest asset. " We would have to wait for the shadows to thicken enough for us to move easily, one or two people could move around with little risk of being spotted but the amount of people we have to move is going to make it more difficult. The team will have to be broken down into several small groups so we would be able to leap frog from shadow to shadow." Ben paused briefly before continuing, the dust in the warehouse was sticking to the back of his throat making it a little difficult to speak. He wanted a drink but had no water as of yet. He swallowed in an attempt to clear his throat. " In case the patrols have scanning devices similar to our tricorders I recommend that every other tricorder be reconfigured to mask our bio signs. The shadows will hide us from sight and the tricorders will block their scanners, giving us a little more protection." ( reply West) Ben waited for the Commanders response to his suggestion. Ben would be relieved when they moved out of the warehouse and away from all the dust, but he also knew they would be giving up their cover. They had to reach some place where they could contact the president or someone from his office, or in the least clear the dampening field and contact the Dennison. ( reply West, any on Maltoria) ( posted by Milo Young) (Maltoria- Warehouse-Commander Trevan West- 1949) " We would have to wait for the shadows to thicken enough for us to move easily, one or two people could move around with little risk of being spotted but the amount of people we have to move is going to make it more difficult. The team will have to be broken down into several small groups so we would be able to leap frog from shadow to shadow." " In case the patrols have scanning devices similar to our tricorders I recommend that every other tricorder be reconfigured to mask our bio signs. The shadows will hide us from sight and the tricorders will block their scanners, giving us a little more protection." ~Well that beats a kick in the head~ he thought and laughed inwardly, "Agreed. The less profile the better. I suggest 2 teams though, I don't want us scattered about." he said and gave quite a large hacking cough. The breeze had stopped and unfortunately the dust had already begun to settle slowly, still hanging in the thick air. "I can't rest," he said getting up, "I want to get some air, the roof may be a good place. Come, we can take a look and see what kind of maze these people have for us rats." (reply all) (Posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria- Warehouse-Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1950) "Agreed. The less profile the better. I suggest 2 teams though, I don't want us scattered about." West said and gave quite a large hacking cough. Ben understood how the Commander was feeling, a breeze had stirred up some of the dust in the warehouse. Everyone inside must be feeling the same. The air was dry and the dust was not helping any in the least. They would have to find a source of water soon. "I can't rest," West said getting up, "I want to get some air, the roof may be a good place. Come, we can take a look and see what kind of maze these people have for us rats." That statement almost brought a smile to Ben's face. "Rats in a maze" was an expression used by many people who found themselves in an unfamiliar area. Ben tried to swallow again to clear his throat but it didn't help much. He took out his tricorder as they began to head towards the roof, still no life forms other than plants. Ben was puzzled by this, either they had completely eliminated all pests or some thing had happened to kill them off, there was no indication of radiation that could be detected in the tricorders limited range. ~ Maybe when we get on the roof we'll be able to get a clearer picture. At least the fresh air will do some good, no dust to breath in~ Ben thought as he began to climb the steps to the roof. More dust was stirred up and Ben coughed a few times and cursed to himself about making the noise, but the tricorder assured him that there was no one within five hundred meters to hear. ( reply any on Maltoria) ( posted by Milo Young) (Maltoria, Warehouse, Roof, Ensign jg Sanok, 1950) West said, "Yes, come on back down. Can you see anything from up there? Anything that could indicate what is going on?" "Nothing that will help, sir," said Sanok. "Still no life signs, other than plants. There's a haze over the city, and scanning range is still limited to five hundred meters. A most illogical situation." Sanok motioned for Nighy to return to the stairs so they could rejoin the rest of the team in the warehouse. Nighy opened the door, but Sanok grabbed his shoulder. "Someone is coming up," said Sanok. The two men darted to the sides, each of them on one side of the door. Waiting patiently, Sanok concentrated on listening to who it could be. "It is our people," he said. Nighy was visibly relieved. Commander West and Ensign Soma stepped onto the roof. Sanok watched curiously, as the two men basically did the same things he and Nighy had done. They discussed leaving the warehouse via an alley that was below and to their right. Once finished, they went back down the stairs. Sanok motioned for Nighy to go first, and Sanok came last. Just before joining the others, Sanok heard West talking to Bracken about scanning for the source of the government broadcast. Since Sanok had recorded the broadcast, and since he had an idea from where it originated, he waited for Bracken at the base of the stairs. "Lieutenant, I would like to join you on the roof," said Sanok. "I believe I am able to assist with your search for the origin of the broadcast." (Reply West, Bracken, Any) (Posted by Bob) (Maltoria- Warehouse – CSO/2O Dale Bracken - 1951) Trevan was by himself using his finger in the thick layer of dust on the floor, he traced out several pictures when an idea came to him. If he connected the two figures with a line it made a connection, "Dale!" he shouted in a whisper, "take a look at this." Trevan showed the diagram to her, saying that the larger circle represented the outdoor speaker that the broadcast had come from and the two lower lines connecting to it could be a power relay of some sort, "It's got to be powered by something no?" "Well then, why don't we just follow the power signature. It should lead us to a relay station, or some sort of public utility building. They should have a computer we could access and find out what's what." Dale looked at the dust sketch, nodding as she did so, “You’re right, it has to go somewhere.” She moved toward the window, twisting her head, craning her neck to see the speaker that had broadcast the transmission.” As she did so, she was aware of the conversation that was going on in the background. "Yes, come on back down. Can you see anything from up there?" West asked, "Anything that could indicate what is going on?" Dale turned away from the window that she had been looking through, as Sanok answered. “Bracken to Nighy, stay up there please, I’m on my way up, need your help with something.” (Reply Nighy) She turned to West, “Sir I’ll head up to the roof, and check on that power line, see if we can’t figure where it goes. With your permission?” (Reply West. Nighy as above) (Posted by Mark) (Maltoria- Warehouse – Commander Trevan West - 1953) Dale turned to West, “Sir I'll head up to the roof, and check on that power line, see if we can’t figure where it goes. With your permission?” Trevan thought about that for a moment, did he really want all of them collecting on the roof at once. No, better to have smaller groups he thought to himself, "Permission granted, but wait for Ben and I first. I don't want all of us up there at once." Trevan gestured towards the faded blue metal staircase, and asked Ben Soma to join him, "Won't be long. Besides, Ben is having trouble with all this dust he could use the air." Trevan apologized about three times to Dale. He knew she needed to get up there, but waiting a few moments so a medical issue would not arise was more important. An ill security officer was not something he wanted. After climbing the staircase for what seemed like years, he arrived at a partially open door trickling what was left of the sun on the dusty floor. ~Hmm dust is even thicker up here~ Trevan thought. Stepping out to the roof proved refreshing. Instantly he took a deep breath in, followed by another one. After a few seconds he was already breathing better. Quickly taking a peek out at the horizon, he could only see a short distance. A layer of grey-brown haze obscured most of his view, but what he could see were a few building similar to the one they were standing on next to smaller shops and a few buildings that looked like habitats. An eerie feeling crept into his mind as he saw that they all looked abandoned for years, but everything left in place. Looking east, as it was directly opposite of the setting sun, or what he decided to call east as they couldn't get a solid magnetic reading on the tricorder, Trevan tried to figure out where they were in relation to anything that looked like a public or government building. Again, with the thick haze limiting his view for only a scant few kilometers, he decided to make a few mental notes on some landmarks before heading back into the stairwell letting Ben take in the view, and fresh air a little longer and hopefully planning something. "Suggestions?" he asked Ben. After hearing what his lead security officer had to say, Trevan headed back down to the main level where Dale was standing, "Sorry about that Dale, all clear. Well, you won't get much of a view," he said to her explaining about the haze and what limited view they had up there. "I'm sure you will have more luck scanning from up there with a tricorder then with your eyes." Before she departed he suggested that she only remain up there for no longer than ten minutes. Trevan didn't want them to be exposed too long in the open. "When you return, you and Ben need to come up with a proper plan of action. I will allow thirty minutes to eat and drink when the other return, then we move out of here promptly." (reply Soma, Bracken, any) (posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria – Warehouse – CSO/2O Dale Bracken – 1954) "Lieutenant, I would like to join you on the roof," said Sanok. "I believe I am able to assist with your search for the origin of the broadcast." Dale turned to the Ensign, pausing briefly as she did so. “Thank-you for your offer Ensign, however, I feel that your talents will be more useful working with Ensign Soma, try and come up with some plan for getting us out of here quickly, and safely. I don’t want any hint of doubt about what we need to do. Its best that only the minimum amount of people are outside at any one time, we don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.” (Reply Sanok) Dale nodded and made her way up the stairs, a short time later she stepped out onto the roof, where Crewman Nighy was waiting. The view was pretty much as other’s had described it, the local architecture expanded across the limited view. The dust was like nothing she’d seen before. (Reply Nighy) Dale motioned toward the edge of the building, pointing toward the speaker that had put out the broadcast some time earlier. “We’re going to need access to one of their computers, that’s going to mean finding one of the terminals, somewhere that we can... use. Now, we think that that speaker there, is going to have to hook up to a terminal somewhere. Seems to head off in that direction.” Dale pointed off toward one end of the marketplace, where the rapidly disappearing cable seemed to head. “Your thoughts?” (Reply Nighy) (Posted by Mark) (Maltoria- Warehouse – ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 1955) Ben stepped out onto the roof with Commander West, There was a mist that made his visibility low. He scanned his surroundings as he took in a few deep breaths of the fresh air, after a few moments his head began to clear and the headache that was creeping up behind his eyes began to dissipate. In the fading light it was difficult to get a clear view of the abandoned streets, but why were the streets abandoned? The buildings were not in a state of disrepair and the market booths looked like all they needed was someone to open them up to resume business. It seemed strange that the city had been abandoned as it was, everything was left as is like something had eliminated all the life but not the structures. The architecture struck Ben as breath taking, large spires and smooth graceful lines made up the majority of the surrounding buildings that could be seen in the fading light and the haze. Clearly aesthetics was an important aspect of the Maltorian society. The craftsman of this planet had taken great pride in the planning and building of this city. Every building had a beauty all its own and it seemed that no two buildings were exactly alike. There was nothing haphazard about the construction, every building was carefully constructed by very skilled hands. Slightly off to the right Ben saw an alley that ran parallel to the main street, after dark the team would be able to move through there with a small risk of being seen. They would be able to stay out of sight most of the time, only entering into an onlookers view as they passed between a few buildings. Ben took in a couple more deep breaths, the fresh air felt really good, his head was clear now and he felt a lot better. He heard Commander West moving beside him, it sounded like he was heading back inside. After a few steps West stopped as Ben turned to follow him and said, "Suggestions?" "I saw an alley down there, about one hundred meters from the warehouse. I believe that it would be our best route to take. The darkness in the narrow alley will hide us from anyone who would be looking for us.” Ben said as another thought entered his mind." Commander do you think that someone is waiting to ambush us when we leave the warehouse? All the time we were here we have not detected anyone within five hundred meters. It might be possible that there is group waiting outside of our scanning radius, just waiting for us to move out so they can attack us in the open." (reply West, iyw) Commander West headed back down with Ben following close behind. As they reached the main floor West spoke with Lt. Bracken, "Sorry about that Dale, all clear. Well, you won't get much of a view," he said to her explaining about the haze and what limited view they had up there. "I'm sure you will have more luck scanning from up there with a tricorder then with your eyes." Ben was refreshed and ready to begin planning their movements for when the time came. When darkness fell he wanted to be ready, he wanted to have a plan of action that minimized the away teams risks and exposure. As this was his first away mission he did not want anything going wrong because he had over looked some small detail, or dismissed something prematurely. As Lt. Bracken began to leave for the roof Commander West said, "When you return, you and Ben need to come up with a proper plan of action. I will allow thirty minutes to eat and drink when the other return, then we move out of here promptly." Ben sat down on his crate again and began drawing a crude map of what he had seen from the roof. A large rectangle, which represented the warehouse, was placed in the centre. Next he drew a bunch of smaller rectangles and squares depicting the various out lying buildings and shops. Drawing a broken line next he traced the teams path from the warehouse down through the alley. The team would have to move in two groups so they would not get bunched up, in case they encountered some one the whole team would not get caught in a crossfire at the same time. He sat and studied the map and thought about possible ambush points along their route. ( reply any on Maltoria) ( posted by Milo Young) (Maltoria ­ Warehouse ­ Ensign jg Sanok ­ 1956) "Thank you for your offer, Ensign. However, I feel that your talents will be more useful working with Ensign Soma. Try and come up with some plan for getting us out of here quickly and safely. I don’t want any hint of doubt about what we need to do. It's best that only the minimum amount of people are outside at any one time. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves." Sanok didn't expect Bracken to refuse his offer to help. It was most illogical. She would be trying to locate the source of the broadcast, but Sanok had already recorded it, and was almost certain where it originated. Why would she want to try to do something he had already done? It was also illogical to be concerned about too many people being outside on the roof. He and Nighy had been there, then West and Soma joined them. Perhaps when he was a member of the command staff, he would understand their reasoning. "Yes, sir," said Sanok. He watched for a moment as Bracken ascended the steps, before joining the others. Reply None) (Posted by Bob) (Maltoria- Warehouse – Commander Trevan West, 1958) "I saw an alley down there, about one hundred meters from the warehouse. I believe that it would be our best route to take. The darkness in the narrow alley will hide us from anyone who would be looking for us." Ben said as another thought entered his mind." Commander do you think that someone is waiting to ambush us when we leave the warehouse? All the time we were here we have not detected anyone within five hundred meters. It might be possible that there is group waiting outside of our scanning radius, just waiting for us to move out so they can attack us in the open." It was a thought Trevan had had several times in the last hour, but couldn't for the life of him think why they would ambush them as opposed to just storming the building, "Possible yes," he said, "but I think unlikely. We should however prepare for all possibilities, but the fact remains we can not stay here. We must move." (Maltorian, Warehouse, Commander Trevan West 2044) With the return of Alosar and the rest of the team they were now complete again. With only water and a very tiny amount of food, if you could call it that, in their bellies, it was time to move out of the thick dust infested building and into the open. Trevan addressed his team, "We will move out in two groups. Stay close, keep your comms open," The first group was going to be Dale Bracken, Sanok and Esme with Ben Soma leading for security reasons, while Alosar, Abu and Crewman Morris and himself followed close behind. It was now just past twilight on Maltoria, the streets were lit dimly which was good for their own sake, and the buildings were dark with the odd light probably still left on from whatever happened before they arrived. Opening the door to the side of the building Trevan took a quick peek around and then let Ben Soma take the lead. (Reply any) (Posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria- Warehouse – ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2046) Ben assembled his team and explained how he wanted to proceed to the alley, he would take the point position with Lt. Bracken and Esme behind him and side by side with Sanok providing cover from the rear. It was a basic diamond formation that kept the group tight together with all points covered. Ben then suggested that Esme reconfigure her tricorder to dampen their bio signs. Sanok and Bracken had scanned for the signal source of the broadcast so they would have the necessary bearings. When everyone was prepped Ben lead them to the door as commander West opened it and took a quick peak before allowing them to exit the warehouse. Ben nodded to the Commander as he stepped out into the darkness, the air was cool and refreshing after being stuck inside the warehouse. He motioned for his team to follow him as he lead the way toward the alley, glancing occasionally at his tricorder to see if anything was alive out there but nothing was. As the entered the shadow of the alley he motioned for them to stop, he then looked down to his communicator and said, " Soma to Commander West, all clear." ( reply West iyw) Ben then turned to Lt. Bracken and Sanok and asked, " What bearing are we heading on, will the alley provide us with a path to the signal source?" He hoped they could remain in the alley until they reached their destination but he would not be surprised if they had to break cover and locate another alley along the way. (reply Bracken/Sanok) Ben then glanced behind them to note the progress of the Commanders team, they were almost half way to the alley. He would allow them to proceed a few more meters before getting his own team moving, he did not want the away team to become separated by to great a distance. If trouble arose they may become cut off from each other, he did not like that idea and would do what he could to avoid it if possible. The city looked different from ground level, the beauty of the architecture was not as apparent as it had been on the roof. Here and there the odd light glowed from within a couple buildings that lined the alley, the city was not well lit which suited Ben. The other team was nearing their position so Ben stirred his own team into movement again, they would move approximately one hundred meters and pause briefly allowing for rest and maintaining a safe distance between the groups. They had not eaten much before they left so Ben did not want anyone to become exhausted from their trek, water was in short supply as well which was good in a way at least no one would cramp up from drinking too much. ( reply as above) ( posted by Milo Young) (Maltorian, Warehouse, CSO/2O Bracken 2047) As Dale’s group left the warehouse, she became more aware of the semi-oppressive surroundings as she had been before, the dust laden sky hid them to some degree, and that was some small blessing. Dale only wished that they could have full use of the scanners. "What bearing are we heading on, will the alley provide us with a path to the signal source?" Soma asked against the darkness "No, this alley will not give us cover all the way to the source of the broadcast. We'll need to cross a large, open area, a park or a commons, I believe. After that, we'll be able to move between buildings." Sanok replied. " Commander we have an open area to deal with up ahead, we'll need to break from the alley to cross it. I recommend that everyone stay low and move slowly so they do not attract attention." =/\=Any other way around?=/\= came the Commander’s reply, =/\=Dale, is there an alternate route?=/\= Dale ran a quick scan, her brow furrowed with concentration, trying to read something, anything in the area. “Negative, not without heading towards areas which are far more likely to contain people Sir. It goes a little against the grain, but I think the best cause of action here is to use cover of darkness and head straight over. Recommend as high a stealth level as possible our biosigns are being dampened enough to fool electronic measures, but won’t hide us from the mark 1 eyeball.” (Reply West) “Agreed sir. Keep us in visual, but well back enough that we’re not bunching up.” (Reply West IYW) Dale turned to the rest of her group. “Okay, slow steady, no sudden moves. If it takes us an hour to go 5 metres, then so long as we stay undetected fine, so be it.” Perhaps not totally randomly, she remembered some things her mother had taught her when she was younger, before she’d disappeared. “Soma, take the lead, Sanok, help him. Esme, stick in the middle, I want you in front of me at all times without fail, I’ll take the rear point. No more than 5 metres between front and rear man, but I don’t want you bunching either, is that clear everyone.” (Reply any in group) Dale nodded, “move out, Ben you have the lead.” Slowly, they edged out from the alley, out into the large open area that she already thought of as the park. Undoubtedly, this assessment was vastly inaccurate, but the thought of them all sneaking marine-style across the local recreation ground made her smile slightly. (Maltoria, Warehouse, Ensign (jg) Sanok, 2048) Soma said, "What bearing are we heading on? Will the alley provide us with a path to the signal source?" Sanok took another scan. "No, this alley will not give us cover all the way to the source of the broadcast. We'll need to cross a large, open area, a park or a commons, I believe. After that, we'll be able to move between buildings." Sanok looked at Soma, his face dispassionate. "We'll need to be extremely cautious crossing that area." (Reply Soma, Any) (Posted by Bob) (Maltorian, Alleyway, Commander Trevan West, 2049) =/\= “Negative, not without heading towards areas which are far more likely to contain people Sir. It goes a little against the grain, but I think the best cause of action here is to use cover of darkness and head straight over. Recommend as high a stealth level as possible our biosigns are being dampened enough to fool electronic measures, but won’t hide us from the mark 1 eyeball.”=/\= Trevan had to smile at that, the girl had guts to have a sense of humour in this kind of situation, "True enough, stay as low as you can," he said to Dale, although he knew the channel was open that Soma could hear. =/\=Agreed sir. Keep us in visual, but well back enough that we’re not bunching up=/\= "Of course," he said, but couldn't resist adding, "I hate being bunched up, makes me cranky." ( Maltoria- Alley- ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2050) Sanok took another scan. "No, this alley will not give us cover all the way to the source of the broadcast. We'll need to cross a large, open area, a park or a commons, I believe. After that, we'll be able to move between buildings." Ben did not like the idea of moving over open ground, it would lead them vulnerable to attack. With a little luck the teams would be able to traverse the park or commons without any trouble, but he wanted to be sure that they would present as low a profile as possible while crossing it. Once across they would be sheltered by the cover of buildings once again. Ben began forming a plan of action for the crossing when Sanok added, "We'll need to be extremely cautious crossing that area." Ben agreed with the Vulcan, they would have to be very careful when the crossed the open ground and he said as much. " Agreed, when we reach the open I want you all to keep an eye out for anything that we could use as cover. I don't want to be caught in the open and exposed if trouble should arise. Hedges, trees, benches, anything that will offer some protection against an attack. We'll move slowly and keep low as we cross, that way the noise will not give away our position and hopefully no one will notice our movements." (reply any) Ben spoke into his communicator again, " Commander we have an open area to deal with up ahead, we'll need to break from the alley to cross it. I recommend that everyone stay low and move slowly so they do not attract attention." (reply West) (posted by Milo Young) (Maltoria- Alley- Commander Trevan West- 2051) Trevan saw the group ahead stop next to a building at the end of the alley. There was a faint smell here, one that registered in his mind but he couldn't put his finger on it. It had an almost sweetness to it. Ben spoke into his communicator again, =/\= Commander we have an open area to deal with up ahead, we'll need to break from the alley to cross it. I recommend that everyone stay low and move slowly so they do not attract attention.=/\= Trevan tapped his badge, "Any other way around?" he asked, "Dale, is there an alternate route?" he asked over the communicator. As he approached the end of the alley, he stopped before heading for the open space. The other group had just started their way across, and Trevan had gestured to his team that he will go once they are safe. As he did so, he spotted movement in an upper window of a building a block away. Checking his tricorder, it still did not show anything in the area. Either it was sensor masked, or he was just seeing things in the darkness. "Dale," he said into his communicator, "Movement spotted. Take cover and check your readings, do you have anything?" Turning to Alsosar and the rest of the team, Trevan explained the situation to them. Turing his attention back to the open area, he could see the away team faintly illuminated against the ground but not quite visible enough for him to identify who was who. "Alosar, what are your suggestions?" he asked the Vulcan. (reply all) (posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria, Recreation ground, CSO/2O Bracken 2052) =/\=Dale,=/\= West’s voice came over the communicator, =/\=Movement spotted. Take cover and check your readings, do you have anything?=/\= Dale froze where she stood, reacting instantly sweeping the scanner over the surrounding area. “Negative, I’ve got nothing...wait, here it comes, 1 target, lone male, moving toward our current position. Radio silence recommended as of now, until my further notice.” She turned to the group. “We got company, leave the path now keep it in visual, then hit the ground, do not separate, go!” She spoke in a firm tone, the command in her voice unwavering. She hoped it said what she wanted it to. ‘This is my order....you WILL Do it NOW’. It was a voice Dale didn’t use very often. (reply any in group) The minutes passed, Dale listened to the slow, measured footsteps of the unknown Male, she could feel herself tense, and hold her breath. Oddly, she found herself becoming aware of the sound of the Doppler shift that the footsteps made as the man approached their position, at their height, her pulse hammered across her chest. Fortunately, slowly they began to pass, their tone once more lowering as they receded. Slowly, she let out the breath that she hadn’t realised that she was holding. Lifting herself up, she looked at the male figure, already disappearing into the darkness. “Oh dear god he’s headed for the other team.” She hit her Commbadge immediately, and spoke quickly, but clearly. “Trev, get out the alley, he’s headed right for your position.” (Reply West/any) (posted by Mark) (Maltoria, Building, Commander Trevan West, 2054) =/\=Trev, get out the alley, he’s headed right for your position.=/\= Trevan took a quick look to the left and right, there was only one possible way out of the alley and that was through an open window. Indicating to the others on his team that he wanted them to go first through, Trevan kept an eye out on the stranger coming towards their position. When the last member of the team was through, Trevan dove head first through the open window and did a tuck and roll on the hard ground. Trying not to make a sound, he gathered himself up and moved his head to his eyes were just level with the bottom of the window ledge. His tricorder still not picking anything up, and he hoped whatever scanning device the stranger had it was not working either. The stranger came to a stop about twenty meters from their location, and was looking around like he lost what he was tracking. Then, a moment later, it seemed to Trevan that the stranger was looking right into his eyes. That couldn't be possible since he was hidden, but it still worried him. The stranger took his sweet time looking around the alleyway they occupied only a short while ago, he was checking the area quite well. Checking the ground for tracks and the upper ledges at the top of the buildings, perhaps thinking they were up there and not on the ground floor. Why the stranger thought that baffled Trevan. Trevan did notice however that the stranger was not using any light source to check the area, either their eyes were adapted for the dark or he was using some sort of non-visible light to the naked eye. Trevan had to risk breaking radio silence, "Team one," he said in the softest voice, "Team two held down in building, proceed to the safe area, we will follow when able." ~Great, another dusty building. Hope he leaves soon~ thought Trevan. (reply any) (posted by Kerry Fletcher) (Maltoria - Citizen's Clinical Center - Asklar Th'ilonel - 2100) It had been about an hour and a half since that imbecile had caused unparalleled xenophobia and paranoia in the streets of Maltoria. Since the announcement, the entire market-district had been a ghost town, the citizens retreating to the life-district and to their homes under the watchful city state. Th’ilonel doubted that such aliens existed in the here and now sense, and it was just another ruse to control the masses, restoring a curfew in all but name. The Asklar’s robes were blowing in the dust-laden wind, but her job was far from over – those that needed help from herself as a healer still needed it, and those that were too ill to flee remained in the Triple-C. Th’ilonel’s status as a primary was always one of polite suspicion, the population treating the diminutive Asklar with a mixture of reverence and fear. She knew that she represented a horrific past to the others in the slums, but also a racial memory of hope, and power; almost of a religious quality. It was, however, her actions that redeemed her in her fellow Maltorians’ eyes – she had worked tirelessly to treat and heal the sick, striving to undo the horrific injuries that the flight-drones, or “Intelligences” of the central district’s security system, had inflicted without qualm or hesitation. The Triple-C was situated in a potentially beautiful area of the Market district; bordered as it was by the Global Park, the view from the single story building was idyllic, with the river bisecting the park flowing right past the triple-C’s doors. The atrium was light and airy, the wards beyond were organised chaos, with 17 patients all needing immediate care; burns, electrocutions, fractures… all of them serious. A few hundred metres away to the north, beyond the bridge over the river, was the familiar drone of the flying intelligences, the border patrol protecting the Primaries. (reply any) (posted by GC) -USS Dennison Star Trek: Freedom - http://www.startrekfreedom.com