NRPG:

Compile Index:

Day 184

(USS Dennison- Counselors Office- Lt. Alosar and Ensign Soma- 1900)

Day 185

(Maltoria- Warehouse-Counselor- Lt. Alosar- 1926)
(USS Dennison, Ten Forward, Lt. Haley Darsons- 1935)
(USS Dennison, Ten Forward,  Ensign Adams- 1936)
USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1937)
(USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1945)
(USS Dennison ­ Primary Engineering ­ MCPO Freeman - 1947)
(USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1949)
(Maltoria- Warehouse-Commander Trevan West- 2043)
(Maltoria- Alleyway-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2049)
(Maltoria- Recreation Ground- ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2052.5)
(Maltoria, Recreation ground, CSO/2O Bracken, 2055)
(Maltoria-Recreation ground-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2056)
(Maltoria, Recreation ground, Commander Trevan West, 2100)
(Maltoria- Recreation Area-Commander Trevan West- 2103)
(Maltoria- Recreation Area-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma-2106)
(Maltoria- Recreation Area/Power Station-Commander Trevan West- 2116)
(Maltoria- Recreation Area/Power Station-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma-2118)
(Maltoria- Power Station-Commander Trevan West -2119)

RPG:

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Healer in the Tower
Stardate: 2408.01.09
Day: 184
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

(USS Dennison- Counselors Office- Lt. Alosar and Ensign Soma- 1900)

Ben entered the counselor's office for the second time that day. He hoped that Lt. Alosar could help him find some of the answers he was looking for.  After all he had offered to help Ben find out what had happened to his parents. Ben thought back to what the Vulcan had said at their last meeting  "....knowing the full truth would not change anything about how you ... feel." Ben realized this as being true, it would not change how he felt but there was a part of him that needed the truth.

Ben rang the door chime to Lt. Alosar's office and waited to be called inside.

Alosar had been expecting the Ensign and his door opened at the chime. As Soma came in Alosar rose to greet him.

"Come in Ensign Soma," he began, "I trust your shift went well?"

Ben entered the office and nodded to Lt. Alosar. "The shift did go well, Sir. I had a tour of the Dennison's tactical systems, which was very informative. Ensign Sanok has thorough knowledge of those systems and gave a very good tour. How was your day?"

"My day was adequately busy," Alosar replied. "I presume that you are here to look into your parents demise. I have already started to do a general search for information, but have found a few road blocks. Some of the information has been classified. However I believe that we can easily bypass those with a little effort."

~ Classified, just what happened exactly~ Ben wondered before speaking.

"You presume correctly. Just how classified is the information?" Ben asked, "I assumed that any Starfleet officer would be able to access the information if they had adequate clearance. My own clearance level would not be enough, but a senior officer should have been." Ben realized he was rambling and said." Sorry, let's concentrate on what information we have.  The rest we can deal with a little later."

Alosar nodded, "Indeed, for the most part the information is relatively free of any blocks, and that would give you access to the information that you already have. However, if one is to delve deeper one must access information that is not quite easily obtained. And it is true that you are currently in the presence of such a senior officer. However, I believe that this is your search for the truth and not mine. I can help you gain access but I will not do it for you."

Ben nodded to the Vulcan and said, " Of course Sir, as you say this is my search and I appreciate any help you offer to help me find the answers I seek." Ben regarded Lt. Alosar for a moment and added,

"Sir I realize now that what you said earlier was the truth, what I learn now will not change my feelings about my parent's death." He paused briefly before continuing, " but I am hoping that learning the full details will enable me to finally put those feelings to rest once I completely understand what happened. Shall we begin?"

Ben walked over to a computer terminal and sat down, he brought the terminal to life and began a search for information regarding his parents. He entered his security code and the information began scrolling onto the screen, most of it read pretty much the same as it had when he received the report years ago. Now the information included a few sensor logs, logs that showed when and where the USS Galahad received the distress call and responded to it.  Ben scanned down through the info and spotted a section that was classified, he hoped the section held some answers for him. The time index indicated that it was shortly after the Galahad had reached the last known coordinates for his parents freighter, he turned to Lt. Alosar and said,

"Sir, it seems I have hit one of your so called road blocks. If you would enter your clearance code, maybe this locked block will hold a few answers." Ben slid back from the terminal so the Lt. would have access to the terminal without having to stretch over him to do it.

As Alosar sat at the terminal he began to enter a low level access code. If there was a reason for the road block, he didn't want to be responsible for a security breach.

"Ensign, tell me," Alosar said, "What is it that you hope to find on this search?"

Ben looked at Alosar and responded without emotion, just the plain facts, something he was certain the Vulcan Counselor would appreciate. "I would just like to know if my parents and their crew put up a fight before the Borg overcame them. The Soma's Pride was not heavily armed but my father would have taken defensive measures against even the Borg."

Ben paused for a moment and let Alosar take in his statement. The Vulcan did not react to his statement with any emotion that any human would have betrayed. Ben felt comfortable conversing with Lt. Alosar, no emotional outbursts lead to more peaceful and less stressful conversations. Ben added, "I find it very hard to believe my parents would have given up without some sort of fight, it was not their way."

Alosar nodded, "As would I. Here are the sensor logs of the Gallahad." He raised an eyebrow. "I believe that this is what you are looking for."

Alosar stepped away from the terminal and left Soma to peruse the reports that he had pulled up.

Ben sat at the terminal again, he read the information on the screen with interest. While he was reading he tried to visualize what had happened to his parent's freighter, the picture he saw in his mind was not pleasant. The records showed that there was a brief conflict.  His father was no doubt trying to defend his ship and crew for as long as possible. A few volleys of phaser fire were exchanged before the Borg over came their defenses.  Continuing to read Ben felt as though a weight was being lifted, a very heavy weight that he had carried for a long time.

His parents had not been taken without a fight as he had hoped, he felt relieved as the information began to sink into his mind. After all this time the truth was finally being revealed, enough of it to set him at ease.  Digging further would only bring trouble to himself and Lt. Alosar and he was unwilling to push his luck. The Vulcan was helpful enough to have gotten the information on display and Ben would not ask him to go further.

After he sent a few minutes reviewing the reports he eased back from the terminal and turned to face Lt. Alosar. Ben looked Alosar in the eye and said, "Thank you Sir. I have found what I was seeking, I appreciate your help more than I could express. "

Ben then stood and bowed slightly, a gesture of respect that he learned from many martial arts classes back through the years. Now that he knew what happened he could come to terms with the incident more easily, the blanks had been filled in and his questions had been answered. Lt. Alosar had been a great help in his search, without him Ben would have had to try other methods which probably wouldn't have yielded the answers he received today.

Alosar was a bit surprised by the bowing gesture.  It was rare for someone to do so outside of the martial arts arena.  Still he accepted the gesture as a sign of respect.

"I am gratified to have been of service," Alosar told him.  "I believe that this will be a good start for your healing process.  I really don't think that you found anything that was really a surprise to you, although gratifying to find that you were right.  However, if you need my services further I am here for you."

With that Alosar left his office and Ben Soma with his thoughts of his family.

(reply none)
(posted by Al Muir and Milo Young)

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Healer in the Tower
Stardate: 2408.01.10
Day: 185
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

(Maltoria- Warehouse-Counselor- Lt. Alosar- 1926)

The announcement of the Maltorian government was a little disturbing, since Alosar was under the understanding that they had been invited to Maltoria.  Why would the government be looking for them with such concern if they were expected.  Suddenly a thought formulated.  What if they had not been diverted?  What if they were exactly where they were supposed to be?  It just wasn't where they thought they were supposed to be.

Then West’s voice caught his attention.  "I still plan to move out at darkness, which seems to be all the better now. But we need supplies. Food and water, I know you Vulcans can go for awhile without it but I can't. If we can't get food, water will do."

Alosar raised an eyebrow.  Why would West take the time to point out what was already well known about Vulcans, and tie it in to their situation now.  He has never implied or, for that matter, stated in any way, that he would expect anyone to go without sustenance.  Why would West rebuke him in such a manner.  However the course of action West suggested was, at least, logical.

"Yeoman, you will go with Alosar and Crewman Morris. They will look for food and water, but you will be needed to translate anything they come across.  You will leave the moment the sun sets, which looks to be in about thirty minutes or so. I don't want you gone more than twenty minutes, and maintain an open channel at all times."

"Of course Commander," Alosar replied.  "We will endeavor to procure your needs."

Three men surveyed the compound with their tricorders as they waited.  Once the sky was sufficiently dark they began to move around the perimeter towards the other buildings.  It didn't take long for Alosar to be completely unconcerned about being detected.  There was no person there to detect them and no signs of any scanning devices or even intruder alerts in the buildings.  The complete lack of security, for what he had expected of the Maltorians, was, to say the least, disturbing.

But then again, what would they be scanning for.  It was apparent that this entire town seemed to be deserted, and had been for some time.  The layers of dust made that clear.

After searching several buildings for food, they came up empty handed.  In Alosar's opinion, that was probably a good thing since any food that they might find would, most likely, be spoiled.  However, they were more fortunate to find a water source.  The down side to that was that there was nothing to store the water in.  They had not prepared themselves for having to survive at this level.

With a little more scavenging they came up with several containers that would hold an adequate amount of water, with out it all spilling out, and headed back to the others.

Alosar soon found West and reported in to him.  "Sorry Commander, the food situation was as I would have surmised.  I believe that the medical bags may have some emergency survival rations, but that will be it for our food.  Perhaps we can find some edible vegetation once we get moving.  However, we did find water."

He handed the container to West so that he could take a drink.

(reply West, Stakes, Morris)
(posted by Al Muir)

(USS Dennison, Ten Forward, Lt. Haley Darsons- 1935)

Haley had walked into Ten Forward, but could not find anyone there that she knew. Resolving to sit at a table by herself, she ordered something to drink, but it wasn't long before she had company beside her.

It was a man from the Planetary Survey Team that had come aboard at Geneva, he had commented on the strange view outside the window.

Indeed, it was strange to have an almost all white background and in what looked like a standard orbit, but there was no planet. (Indeed there was, but as to the naked eye without the aid of sensors, the planet was invisible to her)

"Can I help you," she eyed the collar of the man, "Ensign," she said coldly.

The man, about five years old than her, and starting to go grey at the side of his hair, was slightly taken aback by the formal tone of the young lady.

"I saw you sitting here, and wondered if you would like some company seeing as you are alone, as am I." he said to Haley.

She looked at him with absolute fire in her eyes, "Why would I want YOUR company? Is it because you are a man and need to dominate any pretty little thing in your view? Hmm, is it?" she spouted without giving him time to answer.

Standing out of her seat and coming almost eye level with the man, she poked him right in the chest several times, "I. Don't. Need. Your. Help." she said poking him at every word. However, on the last poke the Ensign, instinctively gently grabbed her arm as to prevent her from poking him again.

In a quick flash, she managed to put him into a submission hold by twisting his own arm around and placing her hand on his left shoulder and her knee into his back, "Touch me again, and I swear I will break it so bad you will need a replacement arm to move in on your next victim."

And with that, she released him and shoved him hard into the edge of the table before heading back out into the corridor, her destination unknown.

(reply any)
(Posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(USS Dennison, Ten Forward,  Ensign Adams- 1936)

The young Ensign was helped to his feet by two waiters. As he touched his hand to his forehead he felt blood and winced at the pain, "Medical to Ten Forward please," said one of the waiters, "Security, Lt Darsons just assaulted one of my patrons. She just left."

(Reply any)
(posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1937)

"Good work Mister Randell... I'm pleased that you were able to winnow that tidbit out of the mass of data. Good thinking indeed." Freeman said placing a hand on Morgan's 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."

Morgan felt a sense of pride as Freeman commented him on his findings. He had been considering his next step when he called Freeman over to his terminal. " I am about to run an analysis of the signal's carrier wave, when that is finished I will attempt to trace it back to it's origin. I should be able to trace the signature and determine where it came from and hopefully where it was diverted to."

(reply Freeman iyw)

Freeman glanced at Morgan and said, "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'." Then he flashed a quick grin and Morgan knew the response was not meant as an offence. Morgan was used to referring to his Superior's as "Sir" and always did until told otherwise. He smiled back and nodded in understanding. Enlisted personal tended to act differently then people who went through Starfleet academy.

" I'll keep that in mind, Chief." Morgan replied.

(reply any)
(posted by Milo Young)

(USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1945)

Morgan waited patiently as the computer ran its analysis of the signal. Other engineers were working on other tasks all around him, Engineering was still abuzz with activity but it was silent. The occasional beep from various terminals was all that could be heard in the section. He wished he could speed up the process a little but knew he could not, the computer was doing its work so he would have to wait until it signalled that it was finished. While he waited he resumed checking the logs for any other anomalous readings, everything else appeared random with no rhyme or reason.

A beep from his terminal caught his attention, the computer had finished analyzing the signal. Morgan brought up the results on the display in front of him. He studied the display for a few moments as his mind began to process and make sense of the readings. The signal was indeed artificially generated and directed, this was the cause of the missing away team. The power output was quite high for the duration that the signal appeared, but it had intercepted the annular confinement beam and redirected it to another location. Morgan then began the task of tracking the signal back to its source. Creating a couple computer models he began to simulate the signal to see how it would match with the results of his scan.

After a few moments he had narrowed the search down to a region in the northern hemisphere of the planet. Running a few more simulations narrowed the results down to a large continent and then to an urban area. Morgan concentrated the scans in this area but found a dampening field in effect. He tried various filters but at this distance he was unable to get an exact fix on the location, without that fix he was unable to locate the relay station that received and redirected the signal.

Morgan was not pleased with the outcome of his search and his inability to locate the away team as he hoped. He did not like the idea of crew being lost in an unknown situation. He stared at the terminal and felt like hitting it, but he knew it would do no good. Maybe if the Dennison slipped into a lower orbit he would be able to get a more accurate scan. He looked around for Freeman, when he located him he walked over and stood beside him.

" Chief, I have narrowed the search area to an Urban centre of a large continent in the northern hemisphere of the planet." Morgan said to the Master Chief, " A dampening field is interfering with the scan, preventing me from locating the station that sent and redirected the signal. As a result I am unable to locate our missing people from this altitude. A lower orbit may yield better results."

(reply Freeman)
(posted by Milo Young)

(USS Dennison ­ Primary Engineering ­ MCPO Freeman -1947)

Butch was refining his calculations when he noticed Crewman Randell heading in his direction. When he arrived at Butch’s station, Randell wasted no time getting to the point.

"Chief, I have narrowed the search area to an Urban centre of a large continent in the northern hemisphere of the planet." Morgan said to the Master Chief, " A dampening field is interfering with the scan, preventing me from locating the station that sent and redirected the signal. As a result I am unable to locate our missing people from this altitude. A lower orbit may yield better results."

Freeman looked at the crewman with enthusiasm. “Again, well done Mister Randell. If you haven’t already tried it, what about boosting the gain on the sensor array? Try using overload power if you need to. My next step would be engaging frequency agility, see if we can shift up or downscale to penetrate that damping field.”

(Reply Randell iyw)

Freeman considered the options for pressing on. Fortunately, they had several. “We could try beaming a transporter test object to the original coordinates. We can then rule out any natural phenomenon… if the transport does not get redirected, then we’ll be certain that is was a willful act on someone’s part. We’ll need permission from the bridge. Changing orbit as you suggested is also an option, but we’ll need to coordinate that with the bridge as well.”

Butch paused a moment considering what else they might try. “We might try launching a Class III Probe. Chances are it would be undetectable, unless they have exceedingly sophisticated sensor capability. We can use its onboard sensors to try and pierce the damping field, and possibly a comm relay to establish contact with the away team… now that you have narrowed down their location. Any thoughts Mister Randell?”

(Reply Randell)

“Alright… lets keep the command staff in the loop.”

He tapped his commbadge. “Bridge, this is Freeman. We have a working theory, along with some options for your consideration.”

(Reply any on bridge, any)
(Posted by Russ)

(USS Dennison- Primary Engineering- Crewman Morgan Randell- 1949)

Freeman looked at the crewman with enthusiasm. "Again, well done Mister Randell. If you haven't already tried it, what about boosting the gain on the sensor array? Try using overload power if you need to. My next step would be engaging frequency agility, see if we can shift up or downscale to penetrate that damping field."

Morgan felt a little silly not having thought of boosting the sensor gain himself, guess that's why he wasn't a chief petty officer and Freeman was. He still had a few things to learn and felt he was in a good place to learn them. " Boosting the gain may help to cut through the dampening field, I will try that."

Morgan was about to return to his station when Freeman began to explain a few more solutions that could help in the situation. He listened intently as the Master Chief laid out his plan.

"We could try beaming a transporter test object to the original coordinates. We can then rule out any natural phenomena if the transport does not get redirected, then we'll be certain that is was a willful act on someone's part. We'll need permission from the bridge. Changing orbit as you suggested is also an option, but we'll need to coordinate that with the bridge as well."

A transporter test sounded like a very good idea, if they could successfully place an object on the original coordinates they would know that the away teams disappearance was intentional. If the test was also redirected they would have to focus on another plan of action which Freeman was already planning as he said,

"We might try launching a Class III Probe. Chances are it would be undetectable, unless they have exceedingly sophisticated sensor capability. We can use its onboard sensors to try and pierce the damping field, and possibly a comm relay to establish contact with the away team now that you have narrowed down their location. Any thoughts Mister Randell?"

Morgan knew he had a long way to go before he reached Freeman's level of reasoning, many years to learn what was necessary to make a great engineering officer. He was glad Freeman was here so he could learn from him.

" A class III probe might just do the trick, hopefully who ever engineered this scenario will not be on the look out for a probe. If we can punch through the dampening field with its sensors it is possible we will be able to contact the away team and get an idea of what is going on. At the very least we'll know if they're alright. The transporter test would confirm whether or not this was accidental or intentional, we should give it a try." Morgan said with enthusiasm, it was possible the away team was in no condition to respond but he did not let that dampen his mood.

" I'll try boasting the sensor gain, if that does not work I'll start on the probe." Morgan added.

( reply Freeman iyw)

"Alright, let’s keep the command staff in the loop."

Freeman tapped his commbadge. "Bridge, this is Freeman. We have a working
theory, along with some options for your consideration."

Morgan was glad they had a working theory now, they had a couple options open to them now which was more then they previously had. An hour ago they had nothing, all they knew was the away team was missing with no explanation. The signal had given him a direction to head in and he followed it. If they could get through the dampening field and at least contact the away team they would have made great progress.

(reply any)
(posted by Milo Young)

(Maltoria- Warehouse-Commander Trevan West- 2043)

Alosar soon found West and reported in to him.  "Sorry Commander, the food
situation was as I would have surmised.  I believe that the medical bags may
have some emergency survival rations, but that will be it for our food.
Perhaps we can find some edible vegetation once we get moving.  However, we
did find water."

He handed the container to West so that he could take a drink.

Trevan thanked him for it before taking the lid off and swallowing a small amount of the life giving liquid. It was cold, fresh and soon Trevan had downed at least a quarter of the container. It rejuvenated him slightly and got the dry, dusty taste out of his mouth.

"Excellent, distribute it to the team and make sure they ration it. We don't know when we will be able to get more. Good job," he added.

Looking into the medical bags, of which for some reason always looked the same no matter what world they were on, he could see the emergency rations. What they tasted like was another story, and it was one Trevan didn't want to find out the end to. They will find proper food, he was resolved to find it.

"Consider it your main task at the moment to find anything edible along the way. Rest up, we move soon." he said to Alosar, "Dale and the others have found something interesting while you were gone," he said explaining the situation that had arisen since he had left, and that they would be separated into two different teams as per Ben Soma's plans.

"That's about it so far," said West.

(reply Alosar)
(Posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(Maltoria- Alleyway-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2049)

Ben listened as Lt. Bracken explained the situation to Commander West. When she had finished the team began to move out of the alley with Ben in the lead as ordered. He kept himself low to the ground and slowly crept into the park, quickly doing a visual scan for anything that could be used as cover. There was not much that could be considered as cover in the area, there were a few low bushes ans shrubs that would conceal them from sight but would not offer much in protection from weapons fire. Pulling out his tricorder he did a quick scan for any life forms, which came back negative within the five hundred meter range.

Ben decided to remain close to the path they were on, it was the most direct route through the park. Gradually they were nearing the centre of the area, the last few moments had seemed like hours.

(Maltoria- Recreation Ground- ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2052.5)

=/\=Dale,=/\= West’s voice came over the communicator, =/\=Movement spotted. Take cover and check your readings, do you have anything?=/\=

Ben froze in his tracks and dropped to the ground pulling out his tricorder again, he scanned the area but to no avail. There was nothing registering as a life form within the area at first, then a faint reading began to show up on his display. Lt. Bracken was also scanning while she responded to Commander West, “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!”

Ben dove from the path along with the rest of the team, then he settled down on the ground as best he could. The dim light and the haze would help shield them from view as they waited for the target to pass, or stumble on them. The sound of approaching footprints could be easily heard now as the male grew closer to the team. Ben tensed as he prepared himself for a possible conflict with the approaching male, if necessary he would incapacitate the individual with a few quick punches. The approaching footsteps had risen in volume and Ben was ready to launch himself at the male but then they began to fade off, the team had not been detected. Ben relaxed and watched as the lone male continued across the recreation grounds.

“Oh dear god he’s headed for the other team.” Lt. Bracken announced. Ben watched as the figure began to fade in the darkness and came to the same conclusion, he was headed for the alley and the second team.

“Trev, get out the alley, he’s headed right for your position.” Lt. Bracken said quickly but clearly as she hit her comm badge. Ben waited for a reply but none came, seconds passed and Ben grew concerned for the team in the alley. Had they been caught, were they engaged with the lone male. He hated being here and not being able to do anything. Without knowing for sure he could not break cover and risk his team, he would just have to wait.

"Team one," Commander West said softly, "Team two held down in building, proceed to the safe area, we will follow when able."

At least they are OK Ben thought as relief swept over him. The second team had also escaped detection by the lone male. Ben glanced around at his own team making sure everyone was OK and still together, satisfied that no one got separated he looked at Lt. Bracken for approval to move.

" Lieutenant, I think it would now be safe for us to continue across." Ben kept his voice low just in case their were others that would hear, sound carried well here as they had witnessed earlier. " Recommend that we run a continuous active scan for anymore company."

(reply Bracken/any)
(posted by Milo Young)

(Maltoria, Recreation ground, CSO/2O Bracken, 2055)

=/\=Team one, =/\= Commander West said softly, =/\=Team two held down in building, proceed to the safe area, we will follow when able.=/\=

Dale looked round the group, Soma looked back, perhaps sharing the same thought. ~ They’re okay, but i don’t like it.~

" Lieutenant, I think it would now be safe for us to continue across." Ben kept his voice low just in case there were others that would hear, sound carried well here as they had witnessed earlier.  "Recommend that we run a continuous active scan for anymore company."

Dale paused, looking round what could be seen of the recreation area, her mind slightly detached from what was going on around her.

“I don’t like it. Belay that order Mr Soma.”

(Reply soma/any in group A)

She turned to the speaker. “I will not let the two teams get separated, I will take full responsibility for disobeying an order. However, at the moment, the Commander aside - I - am in command. It is my responsibility.”

(Reply any)

She paused, looking round once more, her brain running through several options.

“Okay, wierd idea. Soma, I want you to broadcast a bio sign, similar to ours at a point about 40 metres to the right of the other teams location. On my mark.”

(Reply Soma/any)

Dale smiled slightly, she could feel the nervous begin to affect her adrenal glands again, the familiar tingle was beginning to reach her fingertips, she really was her mother’s daughter she thought randomly. “watch and learn. Sometimes, the weirdest and simplest idea is the best.”

(Reply Soma/any)

Quickly Dale scouted round the grassed area around them, looking for something heavy enough to be of use. Thankfully, fate was smiling on her as she all but tripped over a palm sized stone. She hastily picked it up and moved back to the location of the rest of the team. Then turned back to Soma, “Okay, go.”

(Reply Soma)

She heard the beep of the tricorder next to her and Soma’s word, then threw the stone as hard as she could toward the housed area, hoping beyond hope that it would create enough noise so that the Maltorian Male would hear, and be drawn away from the position of the second team.

“Now,” she spoke to the rest, “Now we wait, and hope.”

(Reply West/Any
(Posted by Mark)

(Maltoria-Recreation ground-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma- 2056)

“I don’t like it. Belay that order Mr Soma.” Came Lt. Bracken's reply, Ben didn't like the idea of leaving the other team behind anyway. He was glad that Bracken seemed to be developing a plan as she glanced towards the speaker and added, “I will not let the two teams get separated, I will take full responsibility for disobeying an order. However, at the moment, the Commander aside - I - am in command. It is my responsibility.”

Ben knew she was right, she was in command of the group and he would follow her orders as long as he didn't think it was putting the team at too much of a risk. He would relay that concern when the time came, if it came. Ben gradually and slowly shifted his position, the way he was poised was gradually putting his right leg asleep. Lt. Bracken took another look around and he tried to figure out what she was planning, when she said,

“Okay, weird idea. Soma, I want you to broadcast a bio sign, similar to ours at a point about 40 metres to the right of the other teams location. On my mark.”

Ben understood what Bracken was doing now, she planned to draw the Maltorian away from team 2 and give them some time to escape the building they were now trapped in. He made the appropriate modifications to his tricorder and held his finger slightly above the key that would activate the signal. Ben assumed that Commander West must be going just a little stir crazy in there by now. From the corner of his eye he noticed Bracken pick something up from the ground, and made her way back to join the remainder of the team. When she stopped she turned to him and said,  “Okay, go.”

Ben punched the command and the tricorder responded with a beep, the signal had been sent on his way, He said, " Now", and Bracken released her projectile in the direction of the houses,and said

“Now,” she spoke to the rest, “Now we wait, and hope.”

Seconds later a satisfying noise was heard that brought the Maltorian running to investigate. The plan had worked buying the second team a few moments to escape their captivity.

From the alley Ben could see that the team had begun their escape, they were progressing across the field staying low. Ben once again tense in anticipation of a fight that would come if the Maltorian gave up his search and resumed looking for the team that was slowly making it's way across the recreation grounds.

(reply any)
(posted by Milo Young)

(Maltoria, Recreation ground, Commander Trevan West, 2100)

Trevan was constantly watching the Maltorian Male near them, hoping that he would expose a weakness in his patrol or simply give up and walk away. After a few moments, Trevan began to give up hope, ~persistent bugger~ he thought to himself.

Again, the Maltorian was walking slowly towards them, occasionally stopping to check out other nearby windows and doors to see if they were locked. With darkness now fully upon them, it was getting much harder to see him when he stepped into the shadows. It was fortunate he kept walking into the little bit of street light that was filling the end of the alleyway, otherwise he could have just walked up to the window where Trevan was, and no one would have seen him coming.

Preparing to jump out the window and knock the man out, Trevan readied himself by getting into a squatting position.

Just before he was ready to strike, a large noise from up ahead startled the Maltorian making him jump and then run towards the noise.

~Whatever that was, it's a break~ thought Trevan.

"Move, now!" he whispered to his team, "Move move move!"

Jumping out the window and coming to a complete stop at the edge of the alleyway, Trevan took a quick peek around the corner of the building to see if anyone was there. Off in the distance he could still see the Maltorian running towards the noise. Hoping he wouldn't get caught, Trevan made a break for the park area with the rest of his team.

The moment they were covered by the small hedge line, Trevan dove face first into the grass, kicking up a small amount of dirt into his nose. He resisted the urge to cough, afraid that the noise would attract their Maltorian friend again.

Team A was probably a good bit away from Trevan's point of view, but he resolved to crawl on his belly slowly and trying not to rush their escape to safety.

As he managed to crawl about six meters, he spotted a shadow against the brush and froze instantly in position. It was uncomfortable since his hand was directly beneath his body and was starting to hurt.

There wasn't any movement, nor could he hear anything, but remained still for at least a minute or two before moving at a snail's pace again.

As the team moved ever closer to the edge, the shadow started to become more detailed and he could see not one, but four people. It was Team A, still waiting.

Before he said anything he crawled up to a leg that was in front of him and slowly tapped it as a sign of friendliness. Trevan wasn't sure who the boot belonged too, but it was Starfleet issue.

The moment he looked up, he could see the long hair of Dale Bracken and was never so happy and angry at the same time. Gesturing with his hands he indicated they needed to move quickly and quietly away from where they were and to continue on to their destination.

(reply any)
(posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(Maltoria- Recreation Area-Commander Trevan West- 2103)

Trevan crawled closer to their destination, following team one being led by Ben Soma and commanded by Dale Bracken. The darkness seemed to envelop them as the neared the edge of the grassy area. The trees, or what passed for them on this planet were much taller and thicker here than their cousins at the other end from which they had just come from.

Trevan's tricorder was still not picking anything up, but his ears did pick up the sound of footfalls echoing though the dark passages between buildings. How far away they were he could not tell, but they seemed to be normal footfalls, they were not running, and no commotion was heard so he assured himself that it was possibly a few passerby's on their way home from some sort of function. That is, he hoped that it was a few passerby's and not an entire legion of soldiers readying themselves to shoot them dead.

That little thought quickened his pulse, and made him move a tad faster towards the tree line where team one was waiting for them.

As he entered the dense brush, he made his way towards the rest of the group, "Mister Bracken," he whispered to her, "how far to our destination?"

(reply Bracken)

Moving towards a thin spot in the trees and brush, Trevan saw something quite amazing, something he was not expecting to see at all.

Lights from nearby buildings were lit, and the buildings themselves seemed to glow with the light from within. People were in the streets walking about, not many as it seemed to be a late hour, but still enough of them to possibly cause a problem or two if they weren't careful. Checking his tricorder, Trevan still couldn't pick up any life signs but since he saw them with his own eyes, agreed to himself that there was still a dampening field affecting it.

"Well?" he said in general to the away team.

(reply Bracken, any)
(Posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(Maltoria- Recreation Area-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma-2106)

Ben looked at his tricorder and felt like hitting it, it was not registering any life forms yet he could see people wandering around the streets. They did not appear to be military but he could not be sure as they were yst to encounter any military personnel. The recent intruder may have been connected to the military but again he was uncertain. This development was not helping matters in the least, it was bad enough when a single individual stumbled upon them they now had alot more to deal with. Remaining undetected while moving was going to be a major concern now with all the movement Ben was seeing before him.

Ben made a slight adjustment to the tricorder trying to boost its gain but it had no effect, the dampening field was still active in this area. He closed the tricorder and placed it in its holder and began figuring out a path they could take without putting them in contact with people in the street. The lights from the buildings deepened some shadows while decreasing others, the path would not be an easy one to follow.

" Well?" Commander West said in general.

Ben knew West was looking for options and was ready with his small plan, it wasn't much but it was better than nothing.

" Commander, " Ben said in a low tone, not wanting to attract any attention, " the shadows to our right appear to be the darkest as well as furthest from the main street. If we keep a tight formation and hug the buildings there we may be able to get by with little risk of exposure." He said pointing in the direction he was talking about. " That is if no one comes out of their back door while we're sneaking around."

( reply West/any)

(Maltoria- Recreation Area/Power Station-Commander Trevan West- 2116)

With their destination only a kilometer away, it should have been an easy stroll however with a general population to worry about their stroll turned into a nightmare of complex turns, double backs and being almost caught twice by random locals stepping out of doors as they rounded a corner. If the tricorder had been fully functional, this would not have happened.

Trevan was cursing under his breath about that fact, and that there seemed to be at least a ton of loose dirt in the bottom of his left boot that was making walking evenly a giant task.

Approaching a smaller block of buildings that looked more professional than residential, Trevan assumed that one of them was their intended destination.

It was a large green glass building with smaller junctions at the side, which he assumed were power relays that sent power to the rest of the area. A closer look revealed a four storey building, looking empty and automated which was a good thing for the away team. The last thing they wanted was to be held down, again.

A small security fence was in their way however, blocking the most direct access road into the building.

"Anyway around it?" he asked the group in general, "I'd hate to come all this way to be stopped by a fence." he said smiling but it was hard to tell as it was quite dark on the side of the roadway.

Hoping the place was the one they were looking for, Trevan took a step back and let his group bypass whatever security systems were in place, he wasn't taking any chances.

Glancing at his own tricorder, the power level readings were off the chart. Not only was he not able to get  a clear scan inside the building, but the building itself was barely registering.

(reply ALL)
(Posted by Kerry Fletcher)

(Maltoria- Recreation Area/Power Station-ATac Ensign (jg) Ben Soma-2118)

The last kilometre had not been easy to cover, the team had a few close encounters almost being seen as they rounded a few corners. The dampening field was showing no sign of any weakness that they could possibly detect anything. Dirt was also becoming a problem, it was clogging up the tread on their boots causing the odd stumble or near stumble. Ben himself almost fell back on his butt when he rocked on the heels of his boots to avoid being seen.

Now their destination was insight but might as well be another kilometre away, a security fence was guarding its perimeter. A scan showed that the fence was powered and as such likely to severely shock trespassers as well as alert authorities to the area in a hurry.

  "Anyway around it?" Commander West asked the group in general, "I'd hate to come all this way to be stopped by a fence."

" The fence is electrified, can't get a clear reading as to the extent of its power, but I would not recommend grabbing it to see what kind of a kick it has." Ben said with a slight smile remembering having dared a friend to do just that when he was a child, the force of the shock sent the poor lad ten feet. luckily there were no major side effects and his friend made a full recovery and found a new respect for electricity.

" There has to be a way to bypass the circuit and gain entry, but without accurate scanning we'll have no idea we tripped any alarm until the cavalry comes running."

( reply West/any)

Ben continued scanning anyway hoping that he would find some way to break through the fence and reach the building inside. They had to contact the Dennison to see what went wrong with their transport and try to get the mission back on track. He frowned as the tricorder failed to reveal any new information.

~ Should have brought some wire cutters and a few yards of wire as well as a few clamps. We could probably bypass the circuit pretty easy that way.~ He thought as he began looking around for something to help, anything that would help. Frustration was beginning to build and it was not what he wanted, it would lead to a mistake and the team could not afford mistakes at this point.

" We need cutters, clamps and wire," Ben said to the group, no one in particular just voicing a course of action." we could then fashion a crude bypass without disturbing the main function of the fence. Put the bypass in place and then cut the fence allowing us a space to get through without setting off any alarms."

(reply any)
(posted by Milo Young)

(Maltoria- Power Station-Commander Trevan West -2119)

"Anyway around it?" Commander West asked the group in general, "I'd hate to come all this way to be stopped by a fence."

" The fence is electrified, can't get a clear reading as to the extent of its power, but I would not recommend grabbing it to see what kind of a kick it has." Ben said with a slight smile remembering having dared a friend to do just that when he was a child, the force of the shock sent the poor lad ten feet. luckily there were no major side effects and his friend made a full recovery and found a new respect for electricity.

" There has to be a way to bypass the circuit and gain entry, but without accurate scanning we'll have no idea we tripped any alarm until the cavalry comes running."

Trevan agreed. He was looking around for an alternate route when Soma had a course of action.

"We need cutters, clamps and wire," Ben said to the group, no one in particular just voicing a course of action." we could then fashion a crude bypass without disturbing the main function of the fence. Put the bypass in place and then cut the fence allowing us a space to get through without setting off any alarms."

"That would be great, you three," said West indicating to Soma, Sanok and Bracken, "work on it, but fast. The rest of us will keep watch," he said wishing for an engineer with a proper tool kit.

(reply ALL)
(Posted by Kerry Fletcher)


-USS Dennison
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