Compile#4 May 07-10 (USS Rosenante & USS Boudicca Joint) --------------------------------------------------------------------- Mission: Once More Into the Breach Day:1 Stardate: 2414.01.15 Compile Summary (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - aFO - Cmdr Josh Caskie - Day 1 - 2209) ======================================================= Mission: Once More Into the Breach Day 2 Stardate: 2414.01.16 Compile Summary (USS Boudicca - Main Engineering - aFO - Cmdr Josh Caskie - Day 2 - 0050) (USS Boudicca – Observation Lounge – CO Captain Durand – 0057) (USS Rosenante - Observation Lounge - FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0058) (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0059*) (USS Rosenante, CSec Quarters, Ensign Marta Nunez, Day 2 0117) (USS Rosenante, Ready Room, Captain Ahmed Ibn Salid, Day 2 0120) (USS Rosenante, Main Armory, Lieutenant jg Sanok, 0123) (USS Rosenante,Phaser Control Room, CTAC/SEC Lt. jg Ben Soma, 0124) (USS Rosenante - Captain's Ready Room - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0125*) (USS Rosenante - Turbolift - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0126) (USS Boudicca – Transporter Room One – AOPS Lt(jg) Roberts – 0138) (USS Boudicca - Transporter Room 1 - ROSE FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0139) (USS Rosenante, Security Offices, SO Ensign Mike Rosenbauer, Day 2 0140) (USS Boudicca – Bridge – CO Captain Durand – 0143) (USS Boudicca – Ready Room – CO Captain Durand – 0146) (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - ROSE FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0149) (USS Boudicca - Security Offices - ATAC/SC Jessica Signos - Day 2 - 0155) (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - CO Captain Durand - 0156*) (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - Rose FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0157) (USS Boudicca -Bridge - ATAC/SC Jessica Signos - Day 2 - 0158) (USS Boudicca – Potential Triage/Sickbay – Storage Bay - Dr Candle – 0207) (USS Rosenante, Ready Room, Captain Ahmed Ibn Salid, Day 2 0220) (USS Rosenante - Ready Room - 2O/COPS - Lt Tom Jackson- 0225) (USS Rosenante, Engineering Support Lab - ATT Lt Cmdr Matthew McLaren - Day 2 0245) (USS Boudicca – Dr Candle’s Personal quarters - Dr Candle – 0543) (USS Boudicca - Tactical/Security Office - CO Captain Durand - 0550) (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0552) (USS Boudicca - Trei's Office - TAC/SC Lieutenant(SG) Detron Trei - 0555) (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0601) (USS Rosenante - Deck 8, Mess - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0605) (USS Rosenante - Deck 4, Personal Quarters - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0610) ======================================================= Mission Once More Into the Breach Day 3 Stardate 2414 01.17 Compile Summary (Private Shuttle Bloodwing - Lt (jg) Ael Harkonnen T'Rillian - Day 3 - 2356) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - aFO - Cmdr Josh Caskie - Day 1 - 2209) The Captain hit a button and Josh sat in silence watching the whole of Admiral Richardson's briefing play out in full. When it was finished Captain Durand turned to her. “That’s the deal commander... all of it. We’re not sure what the Hell they are up to, but I can guarantee you that its not good. Captain Salid will be in overall command, and we will be briefing the senior staffs simultaneously at 2400. I'd like to hear any thoughts you have. Now is the time to be completely frank.” Josh took a long steadying breath and finally looking up at him, began speaking. "I've never dealt with the Borg before sir and I'm pretty sure the majority of our crew haven't either. To be honest I think part of their tactics are to cause panic because they are supposed to be so unstoppable. But to be honest that is not true, they have been stopped before." He cleared his throat quietly after she was done speaking. “In the interest of full disclosure, I think I should tell you that I have encountered them before, fourteen years ago.” He went on to briefly relate the encounter, leaving out many of the details that he had shared with Salid. They simply didn't have time for his full maudlin recollections. He did, however, give the salient facts in detail. After he finished, he brought up the next important point. “You can see now why I took the almost unprecedented step of evacuating all the civilians from the ship. That includes pets as well. I'm truly sorry to separate folks from them, but there is no other choice. I trust you understand. Do you have pets yourself?” Josh nodded. "I do sir. A dog and a cat. I will make arrangements to house them on the Starbase before we leave. I'd like you to coordinate the efforts of all departments. Whatever Salid orders us to do, we still must make all our preparations. I'm hoping to avoid conflict, but realistically you know that is very unlikely given the Borg’s normal behaviour. If... *when* the shooting starts, we need to be as ready as we can possibly be. I'm sure you understand that the overall mission goals are more important than any of us, our crews, or the ships. We *must* find out what they are doing, and stop it at any costs. Now... let’s hear your thoughts. I want to know whatever you may be thinking, no matter how wild or unorthodox. On second thought... the wilder and more unorthodox the better. If we are going to defeat them, it will be by using means and methods that they have never seen before. We have to retain the advantage, and beat the bastards before they can adapt. We *must* keep them off balance. If we play the game by their rules... then I'm afraid we are lost before we begin.” Josh smiled. "I do indeed have an idea, but to be honest it is so dangerous that this almost needs to be a "We are all about to die, lets just take the Borg with us idea. Can you give me some time to check up on it and then I will let you know whether I think it will work or not. I will brief you on it as soon as I can." (Reply Durand) (posted by Marilyn) ======================================================= (USS Boudicca - Main Engineering - aFO - Cmdr Josh Caskie - Day 2 - 0050) “Yes sir, I was just about to contact Lieutenant Matrix. If you need a readiness report than I can tell you right now that we are operating at our peak at the moment and are running battle ready drills. Was there anything else you wished for me to report on?” Josh shook her head. "No Ensign, however please keep me informed regarding any changes or updates and remember I still need a full report in six hours so that I can give Captain Salid the status update he requested. As far as I can see you obviously have everything in hand here so I wont take up anymore of your valuable time. Thank you." (No reply needed, at present) (Posted by Marilyn) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Observation Lounge – CO Captain Durand – 0057) =^=Captain, I would not presume to even imply that the senior officer should come to the junior, I will report to you on your vessel.=^= Because he didn’t know Commander Sullivan all that well (not at all, really) he refrained from smiling. One never could tell just how receptive or tolerant an individual Vulcan might be to emotional displays. Let her be free to form an opinion without the distracting veneer of emotion. “Formality certainly has it’s place, Commander. However given our situation time is of the essence, so I’d be more than willing to meet you for the discussion if it were more time efficient.” =^=0145 if you are available.=^= she said, cutting to the chase. “Very well Commander, I shall arrange my schedule accordingly. I’ll have an escort meet you in transporter room one and bring you to wherever I happen to be at that time.” (Reply Sullivan iyw, Any) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Observation Lounge - FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0058) T'Larah thought that the two ship holographic meeting would take some getting used to. Other then the lack of emotional output, the same kind she would occasionally catch evaporating off of other people like a perfume, her other senses other then smell couldn't tell the difference. “Very well Commander, I shall arrange my schedule accordingly. I’ll have an escort meet you in transporter room one and bring you to wherever I happen to be at that time.” the holographic representation of Captain Durand responded. "See you then Captain." she said. She gave one quick glance around ensuring no one else needed to talk to her. (Reply any) She then left to attend to other matters before leaving for the Boudicca. (Reply any) (Reply Captain Durand) (Posted by Todd) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0059*) The Commander walked through the doors spotted Basil and crossed over to him gesturing towards the CMO's office and asked him for a minute of his time. “Of course Commander", he said following her into the officer, " what can I do for you?” he said once the door was closed. She reminded him to work closely with his counterparts on the Rose and told him that she expected a full report on Sickbay's readiness within six and a half hours. ~Six and a half hours .. not too bad~ “Not a problem“ he replied "One final thing Doctor. I would suggest that we do not set up any auxiliary sickbays or triage points aboard ship since if we do get into a situation where we are boarded by the Borg that would simply make it easier for them to assimilate our personnel." ~That may be true but just having one sickbay also makes it a target. I still want to have one planned out anyway closer to the shuttle bays for quick removal~ he thought to himself and deciding not to mention it to her. She wished him the best of luck and headed out of sickbay. (Reply None) (Posted by Warren Simkins) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, CSec Quarters, Ensign Marta Nunez, Day 2 0117) Marta was working on the general day-to day reports for her small little piece of the galaxy when the doors to the compartment slid open discharging Lieutenant Raschen into their midst. Marta's face took on a broad smile and she immediately stopped what she was doing to bound across the room and give Chance a great big hug and a quick peck on the cheek. 'Speak of the Devil and he sends his messenger." She exclaimed. "How've you been Nun?" He asked her happily. "Much better now sir. How about you?" She inquired as several of the junior staff began to congregate to wish Chance back to the department. "Well I'm once again the sheriff of this here town.". He said in an exaggerated southern accent with a smile on his face. Marta just chuckled at the joke as Chance went on to introduce himself tot he new faces in the department. "I am the new Chief of Security (Again), LT Chance Raschen; and I need to know were we stand on weapons mods, plans to repel boarders, and everything else this department is responsible for." Everyone froze for a second. Marta voiced the obvious confusion. "Sorry Sir, weapons mods? Counterboarding plans are standard and everything is running smoothly. What sort of weapon's mods?" (reply Chance) Daniel Greene --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, Ready Room, Captain Ahmed Ibn Salid, Day 2 0120) Ahmed glanced up as the door chime sounded to his ready room door. The door slid open of it's own accord, just as it was programmed to do and Ahmed noticed that O'Neill seemed a bit anxious as he stepped into the room. The captain placed the PADD he had been studying on the desk and gestured for the young officer to have a seat. "Have a seat Lieutenant, what is it you need assistance with?" "Sir," he said once he stepped inside and the door closed behind him, "A thought occurred to me while I was writing up my report on the holo-emitter technology I mentioned in the briefing." "Go ahead." The captain prompted. The engineer went on to explain how a fusion of his own holographic technology if combined with Quol Nor's program might be potentially useful to their present situation. "...We would need to be able to beam holo-emitters over before we had our holograms 'transport' in, because otherwise they of course wouldn't show up. And the only two main issues I see with this, Sir, are the obvious legal ramifications of using this technology outside of a holodeck, and the risk of the technology somehow falling into the Borg's hands." Eian concluded. Ahmed considered the idea thoroughly. He could see a great many benefits but even more drawbacks to using such a tech. After a few moments the captain shook his head. "It's too risky." Ahmed stated. "First the risk of assimilation of the technology could be disastrous. Secondly, I can not authorize the use of the Assassin program technology, besides which, I was under the belief that the code was destroyed. Was it in fact destroyed, as you were ordered Ensign?" (reply O'Neill) "In that case then it's not available for use at any rate. Another factor is the utilization of an Antimatter mine in the first place. *IF* deployed, they will not be used directly aboard a Borg ship. The dangers of handing them a powerful weapon of that sort, losing personnel to deliver it or of the potential destruction to subspace that may result from such a detonation is too great. Captain Durand and I are not discounting the use of such a weapon, just how it may be used. When that proves to be an option, the need for a holographic delivery team will not be necessary." (reply O'Neill) Daniel Greene --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, Main Armory, Lieutenant jg Sanok, 0123) Sanok and a team of security personnel were in the main armory, working to adjust as many phasers as they possibly could, setting them to fire at random frequencies different from each other, in the hope they would make it more difficult for the Borg to lock in on their phasers and adapt. In theory, it should work, but when it came to the Borg, one never knew. Sanok had been quiet most of the time, choosing to concentrate his mind on meditation techniques to discipline and prepare himself for the coming task. The others had spoken amongst themselves, worried at what was to come. What were the Borg after? Would there be a fight? How bad would it be? Would anyone survive? Sanok considered telling them to stop such talk, but he had learned that with many races, it helped to talk about a bad situation they would be facing together. Besides, it helped pass the time while they were doing the mundane task. =^=Soma to Sanok. How are the adjustments coming with the hand phasers?=^= When the call came in from Ben, everyone in the armory abruptly stopped talking. He wasn't sure why, but it seemed odd to him that they would. "Sanok here. We are progressing steadily. If everyone maintains their current pace, we shall be finished before we arrive at our destination." (reply Soma) (posted by Bob) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante,Phaser Control Room, CTAC/SEC Lt. jg Ben Soma, 0124) =/\=Sanok here. We are progressing steadily. If everyone maintains their current pace, we shall be finished before we arrive at our destination.=/\= "That's good to hear, Lieutenant Jackson was just looking for an update." Ben replied. "I'm just finishing up with the ships phasers and then I'm moving on to the shields." They all had a lot of work to do in a short time, no one was looking forward to the confrontation with the Borg. Everyone hoped that there wouldn't be a fight but Ben had learned a long time ago that conflict was unavoidable. You hoped for the best but planned for the worst. "Keep me posted." He added after a moment. When he and Sanok had finished speaking he tapped his commbadge again. "Soma to O'Neill." He waited for a reply. "I'm ready to make some adjustments to the shields and I was wondering if there was a way we could set up an automodulation sequence." (reply Sanok, O'Neill, any) (posted by Milo Young) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Captain's Ready Room - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0125*) "It's too risky." Salid stated in response to Eian's suggestion. "First the risk of assimilation of the technology could be disastrous. Secondly, I can not authorize the use of the Assassin program technology, besides which, I was under the belief that the code was destroyed. Was it in fact destroyed, as you were ordered Lieutenant?" "Of course, Sir," Eian said, and was about to mention that the code was incredibly similar to his own holoprogram, and could easily be replicated. But Salid continued, "In that case then it's not available for use at any rate. Another factor is the utilization of an Antimatter mine in the first place. *IF* deployed, they will not be used directly aboard a Borg ship. The dangers of handing them a powerful weapon of that sort, losing personnel to deliver it or of the potential destruction to subspace that may result from such a detonation is too great. Captain Durand and I are not discounting the use of such a weapon, just how it may be used. When that proves to be an option, the need for a holographic delivery team will not be necessary." "Yes, Sir, I understand," he said. He suspected that there would be major legal issues and strategic risks involved in using the holoprogramming. "In that case, I'll just inform you, Sir, that I've revised my recommendations for weapons modifications and sent them to the senior engineering staff on the Boudicca as well as our own department." (reply Salid) "Yes, Sir," Eian said, and turned to leave. (no reply necessary but not discouraged) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Turbolift - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0126) =^=Soma to O'Neill.=^= "Go ahead," Eian answered. =^=I'm ready to make some adjustments to the shields and I was wondering if there was a way we could set up an automodulation sequence.=^= "I can definitely help you with that. Are you in engineering?" Eian asked. He was planning on working on an automodulation sequence anyway. Plus, he thought he remembered Ben saying something about an experience with the Borg before, if indirectly. He had yet to talk to anyone who had actual contact with them. (reply Soma) (posted by Morgan G) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Transporter Room One – AOPS Lt(jg) Roberts – 0138) Roberts sent the person most available – himself – on the Captain’s errand to escort Commander Sullivan from the Rosenante. He had seen her before of course – during the recent briefing – but he hadn’t had the pleasure in person until now. “Permission granted Commander. Welcome to the Boudicca, I’m Lieutenant Roberts, AOPS.” "Thank you, but please time is imperative, please show me to Captain Durand." she said. “Right away Commander. If you require anything during your time aboard, please ask.” (Reply Sullivan iyw) “Now… please follow me to the Bridge.” (Reply Sullivan iyw) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Transporter Room 1 - ROSE FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0139) “Right away Commander. If you require anything during your time aboard, please ask.” "No Lieutenant I don't require anything at this time." she responded as she stepped off of the transporter pad. “Now… please follow me to the Bridge.” he said and then did just that. (Reply None needed, Roberts if you wish.) (Posted by Todd) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, Security Offices, SO Ensign Mike Rosenbauer, Day 2 0140) "Do we have any idea how many?" Cooper asked after a moment. Mike just shook his head. "No. Borg Tactical Cubes are sent to assimilate starships and heavily fortified worlds. There could be a hundred thousand drones in that thing." "And God Only knows how many in the Pyramid." Eva added. "Brog!" Mosh exclaimed allowing himself to slip into his native Bolian tongue. "How does fleet expect the captain to fight off two Borg ships, with only us and the Boudicca?" "The same way they expected us to hold the line on Sokan XIV. Unrealistically." Mike replied. "It is possible that we could achieve our goal. The odds are not in our favor, but they are not impossible." T'Vyr added. "And what pray tell ARE the odds."Tyrone asked. "I estimate that our odds are approximately 986,214:1 against our success." "986,214:1 against?" Mosh replied with a snort. "How can you be so certain?" There was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "I am not. I was forced to make several educated suppositions concerning the capability of the Borg. I then factored in the number of times that both the Boudicca and the Rosenante have managed to beat the statistical odds working against them in a wide variety of situations. I then considered the general composition of both crews, considering time in service and general service served for each of the crew members and then..." "Good enough Mister T'Vyr." Mike finally stated, silencing the Vulcan before he could continue. "We get the point." The Vulcan officer gave him a brief nod, as he went silent. Mike shrugged. He looked at his crew. "We've handled worse." "Actually," T'Vyr added, "we have not." "What about Degas IX?" Eva replied. "128,306: 1 against." T'Vyr replied. "The Nolan Raid?" Mosh asked. "365,011: 1 against" The Vulcan replied. "The Hypatia Boarding action?" Cooper added questioningly. "Considerably more tame, 56,845:1 against" "Midas IV?" Mike asked. "736,114:1 against. It is the closest to our current predicament in terms of long-shot odds." Mike was about to argue when the door to the office suddenly slid open. (reply La Croix) Daniel Greene --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Bridge – CO Captain Durand – 0143) Doug Roberts escorted the Rosenante’s First Officer onto the bridge, allowing her to precede him out of the turbolift, then announcing her presence aboard. Wasting no time, Durand rose from his chair and smiled at Doug. “Very well Mister Roberts, that will be all for now, thank you.” “Aye aye sir.” “Commander Sullivan, please join me in the ready room. Commander Caskie, you have the conn.” (Reply Caskie iyw) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Ready Room – CO Captain Durand – 0146) Stopping only to get a cup of coffee from the replicator, he turned to Sullivan and gestured with his mug. “Care for anything Commander?” (Reply Sullivan iyw) “Alright,” he began, taking his seat behind the desk. “I’ve collated all available data – even what classified reports I was able to access – on past Borg encounters with Starfleet and any of our allies that opted to share data.” He selected out two PADDs with the information that he prepared for Sullivan and slid them slowly across the desk, then called up some charts on the wall display. “Sadly with the limited time I’ve had to work, I couldn’t completely filter it, however, there is obvious commonality of behavior in all the encounters. Virtually without exception, if the Borg objective could be ascertained and thwarted, they would abandon their operation and retreat. Well… move on. I’m not certain ‘retreat’ is an operative term with them, but you get the idea.” He called up another set of displays, which summarized the tactical data (declassified only) that the ‘Borg Task Force’ had developed before Starfleet had disbanded them. He zoomed in on several recommendations that he felt were particularly relevant. “Given their capacity to adapt, our best clear chance is to hit them with something… preferably a series of situations and tactics that they haven’t seen before. If we can keep them off balance and reacting to us… In fact, perhaps we can use that to our advantage? Turn their supposed strength into a weakness? What if we could present a situation where they were *forced* to adapt, and then make an entirely different tactical move?” (Reply Sullivan, Room for much more) (Posted by Russ) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - ROSE FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0149) “Care for anything Commander?” he said standing at the replicator. "Any blend of tea will be fine, sir." she said. (Reply Captain Durand) “Alright,” he began, taking his seat behind the desk. “I’ve collated all available data – even what classified reports I was able to access – on past Borg encounters with Starfleet and any of our allies that opted to share data.” Captain Durand passed two PADDs across his desk to her, T'Larah picked them up and began thumbing through their contents as he spoke. “Sadly with the limited time I’ve had to work, I couldn’t completely filter it, however, there is obvious commonality of behavior in all the encounters. Virtually without exception, if the Borg objective could be ascertained and thwarted, they would abandon their operation and retreat. Well… move on. I’m not certain ‘retreat’ is an operative term with them, but you get the idea.” ~Then we need to ascertain what that Borg cube is doing.~ He brought up a graphic illustrating his point as he spoke, “Given their capacity to adapt, our best clear chance is to hit them with something… preferably a series of situations and tactics that they haven’t seen before. If we can keep them off balance and reacting to us… In fact, perhaps we can use that to our advantage? Turn their supposed strength into a weakness? What if we could present a situation where they were *forced* to adapt, and then make an entirely different tactical move?” "I can see where you are coming from. We can prepare many different tactics and weapons tricks, but we need to place a priority on what that new configuration of Borg vessel is and what it's main function is. I think it's obvious that it has something to do with why this pair of vessels is in this system." she said. (Reply Captain Durand) (Posted by Todd) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Security Offices - ATAC/SC Jessica Signos - Day 2 - 0155) "Yes that is troubling to think about a Borg planet. We will beat them somehow. We have to. It is your place now to give the information to CDR Caskie since I am on probation. Good work." Trei stated It was all she could do was nod before speaking, "Well before I go, I should take her a report on all the rest of the work going on down here, she might like the status update." Jessica was out of the door in a few short minutes after downloading the rest of the security information to another PADD. She hit her Commbadge "Signos to Commander Caskie, I have found something I think you should take a look at." Jessica had a good feeling she knew where to find the commander and she trusted her instinct not letting time go to waste. She made her way to the bridge. (reply Caskie.) (posted by Matthew Locke) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - CO Captain Durand - 0156*) "I can see where you are coming from. We can prepare many different tactics and weapons tricks, but we need to place a priority on what that new configuration of Borg vessel is and what it's main function is. I think it's obvious that it has something to do with why this pair of vessels is in this system," Sullivan said in reply to his initial statements. “That is *a* key, if not *the* key, isn’t it? As a famous Vulcan once said, ‘It is difficult to answer when one does not understand the question,’ he ventured without humor. (Reply Sullivan iyw) Durand rubbed his fingertips over the end of his chin as he once again mused aloud. “Based on the ‘established’ Borg pattern, do you think it reasonable to presume that we might get a close scan or even a brief long range one, provided they don’t classify us a ‘threat’ to their objective, whatever that is? I ask because I concur with you completely commander. We *must* find out all we can, just as quickly as we can about the function and purpose of those two ships... the ‘pyramid’ in particular. I think it quite likely that since it is a design we haven’t seen before, that it might be the key to their plan... or perhaps even purpose built to achieve a specific goal.” (Reply Sullivan, Room for more again) As he listened, he called up several new screens of information for review. “Commander, I know we are tasked with formulating tactical plans for engaging the Borg if need be -- and I’m nearly certain it *will* come to that -- but I submit that its rather difficult working blindly as we are. We can presume that the tactical cube is as capable... at *least* as capable... as any of its design that we have previously encountered. That would be a safe starting point at any rate. Before I go on, do you have anything you’d like to add?” (Reply Sullivan, Any, Room for more, More to come) (Posted by Russ) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Ready Room - Rose FO - Commander T'Larah Sullivan - 0157) “That is *a* key, if not *the* key, isn’t it? As a famous Vulcan once said, ‘It is difficult to answer when one does not understand the question,’ he ventured without humor. "Established Borg behavioral patterns indicate that this is so." she re-iterated agreeing with his assessment. Durand rubbed his fingertips over the end of his chin as he once again mused aloud. “Based on the ‘established’ Borg pattern, do you think it reasonable to presume that we might get a close scan or even a brief long range one, provided they don’t classify us a ‘threat’ to their objective, whatever that is? I ask because I concur with you completely commander. We *must* find out all we can, just as quickly as we can about the function and purpose of those two ships... the ‘pyramid’ in particular. I think it quite likely that since it is a design we haven’t seen before, that it might be the key to their plan... or perhaps even purpose built to achieve a specific goal.” She thought and responded. "Simple geometry would suggest that the pyramid shape is some sort of focusing element, and what ever it is that they are channeling is lethal or at least harmful to Borg or their systems, or that the presence of such systems or Borg circuitry will be detrimental to what ever it is that they are focusing, or the calibration of the device." she continued, "I believe the presence of the Tactical cube re-enforces either point. It is there for protection of the pyramid." As he listened, he called up several new screens of information for review. “Commander, I know we are tasked with formulating tactical plans for engaging the Borg if need be -- and I’m nearly certain it *will* come to that -- but I submit that its rather difficult working blindly as we are. We can presume that the tactical cube is as capable... at *least* as capable... as any of its design that we have previously encountered. That would be a safe starting point at any rate. Before I go on, do you have anything you’d like to add?” "I have a few ideas, as I've only personally encountered a Borg scout vessel when I was assigned to the Champlain, I'd like to hear what you have to say before going further." (Reply Captain Durand) (posted by Todd) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca -Bridge - ATAC/SC Jessica Signos - Day 2 - 0158) She entered the bridge of the Boudicca, scanning the command chairs to make sure her quarry was still in fact there. Seeing Caskie, Jessica made her way to the aFO's side. "Excuse me Commander." she said in a tone just loud enough to get Caskie's attention. After which she handed her both PADD. "The first, is a status report on the modification's made to the ship and security points, and other tactical locations being raised throughout the ship. The second is a good deal more... " Jessica searched for the right word. "disturbing, It's someting I stumbled across while comparing the known Tkon technologies with what we know of the Borg. I hope I am wrong about this, but given the sources...." Jessica stopped herself, deciding not to ramble on, and let her report speak of itself. If the Commander had any questions Jessica knew that she would ask them. (reply Caskie) (posted by Matthew Locke) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Potential Triage/Sickbay – Storage Bay - Dr Candle – 0207) Basil lay in the Priority 1 triage centre, well at least where it was going to be. He had mapped out the area after the meeting but in the darkness surrounding Basil it couldn’t be seen. He was alone but wouldn’t be for long, his team would be heading down to begin preparing the triage centre. It wouldn’t take them too long to set one up, fortunately, if that was the case, they have had a lot of experience recently. His mind drifted back to the meeting “These images came from the Darson Deep Space Array. For those of you unfamiliar with it, that’s an extremely sophisticated sensor platform which is tasked with border surveillance. Occasionally it catches things like this. I suspect most if not all of you recognize the image to the right... that’s a Borg Tactical Cube. For those that don’t, it’s an upgraded, specialized for killing starships version of the ‘ordinary’ Borg Cube” “The *worse* news, is that pyramid shaped vessel that is with it. We have no idea what exactly that is... beyond the fact that it is a Borg vessel. No one in Starfleet, nor any of our allies have ever encountered this design before. Command is rather imaginatively calling it a ‘Borg Pyramid’. Let’s not ever say that command lacks creativity.” ~Why?~ thought Basil. It was the only question that came to his head as the others were devising ways to stop the Borg. ~Simple~ he replied to his question ~they are searching for something, the key is the T’kon Empire.~ He knew that others would be looking at that and he was tempted to go and ask but another thought had crossed his mind, how. Borg were not known for their bookish nature so how did they know of the T’kon? Admittedly they have travelled to many more places that any of the Federation or their allies but the T’kon were, allegedly, unknown until recently to many races across the quadrant. ~What do the Borg do best?~ he asked himself ~Assimilate~ An idea was forming in Basil’s head. “Computer lights” The lights came on, Basil got to his feet, smoothed his uniform and waited for his crew. --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, Ready Room, Captain Ahmed Ibn Salid, Day 2 0220) Ahmed glanced up at the chronometer for a third time in the last ten minutes. His irritation was beginning to get the better of him despite his attempt to remain relaxed and unobtrusive. ~Ten minutes.~ he thought as he tapped the commbadge on his chest and focused on keeping his voice level and concise. "Salid to Jackson, Report to my ready room immediately." (reply Jackson) The captain didn't have long to wait before the door chime announced the arrival of his second officer. Ahmed gestured him inside as soon as the door slid open. He waited for the door to close before getting to the reason for the call. "Mister Jackson, are you currently aware of ship's time?" (reply Jackson) "Can you tell me then why it is that I do not yet have the status update that I requested on the progress for the changes made to the Rosenante's shields and weapons?" (reply Jackson) Daniel Greene --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Ready Room - 2O/COPS - Lt Tom Jackson- 0225) Tom stood somewhat nervously outside the Ready Room entrance. He had allowed some areas more time to submit their reports in spite of the CO;s one hour limitation. Sighing, Tom sounded the entry chime and awaited the CO's summons. (reply: CO) Jackson entered and reported in. Captain Salid got to the point " Mr Jackson are you aware of the ship's time?"Can you tell me then why it is that I do not yet have the status update that I requested on the progress for the changes made to the Rosenante's shields and weapons?" " Tom bristled slightly and resumed a rigid attention and replied "Yes Sir. I delayed coming as I was checking up on your requests. After speaking to Lt's Raschen and Soma, I felt they needed more time to reply. I gave them an additional hour to prepare thier reports.To be be frank Captain they have a lot to do and were not given a lot of time to give you and the FO a decentt report. I wsa about to contact you when you called" Tom closed with. (reply Captain) Tom braced for a possible tounge lashing. Jackson as well as the CO both knew the CO was all powerful on his ship. Tom also knew that you had to trust your people to get the job done correctly the first time. Jackson, while nervous, believed he had acted properly. (reply: CO IYW) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante, Engineering Support Lab - ATT Lt Cmdr Matthew McLaren - Day 2 0245) Clutter was the sign of either genius or insanity. Matthew certainly hoped that the clutter of his assigned work area was a sign of the former rather than the latter. Stacks of PADD detailing concepts and partially finished projects were littered everywhere, many of them in standby as Matthew considered a solution to some particularly vexing problem. When that happened he'd simply set it aside and work on the next idea until he had a mental breakthrough. Some of the projects had been sitting for well on eight months. But he wasn't interested in any of them at the moment. Instead his attentions were firmly fixed on the image and data feed that he had been given by the captain. The images were a video loop of the two Borg ships, the pyramid in the foreground and the tactical cube behind it, but farther away. He was presently filtering the images of the stars passing behind the two ships, to get a better determination of their energy fields, since such fields almost always caused a distinct, although subtle shift in the energy spectrums of stellar bodies when the energy from them passed through such a field. He had one PADD in his left hand detailing the extrapolations that he had surmised, while with his right he would occasionally make an adjustment to the scanned data provided by the Darson Array. =^=Lorimar tae Commander McLaren.=^= The hail was sudden enough and so unexpected, and Matthew's attention so firmly riveted to the display that he jumped in surprise, knocking his USS Boudicca coffee mug from the desk and clamoring onto the deck. The engineer gave it a harsh look, determined that it had survived the impact intact and then tapped his commbadge to reply. "Matthew here. What can I do for you Bob?" =^=Matt, ah’ve verra sorry tae bother ye at this hour, but ah need yer help. Ah’ve gotten mah skipper’s permission tae beam over. May ah meet ye somewhere... ah need your expertise?=^= Matthew raised a single eyebrow at the request. He couldn't possibly imagine what field of expertise that he would have that Bob would not. Still the Chief engineer of the Bouddica wouldn't have called unless there was a real need. "Certainly Bob. I'm going over some scans and data on the two ships, care to come aboard the Rosenante?" he asked. (reply Lorimar) "Excellent. I'll meet you in the transporter room. I'll head that way now." (reply Lorimar) Daniel Greene --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Dr Candle’s Personal quarters - Dr Candle – 0543) Basil had taken time out from the preparations of the Triage centre. He had gone back to his room. “Computer is there information on the T’kon Empire?” [Affirmative] “Is there any research going on at the moment about this empire?” [Negative] “Bring up as list of the last known research projects over the last twenty years” There were only two, one was named “Theoretical dynamics of Language Ideologies in the Colonisation Redaction of the T’kon Maya Cosmological Text” by Grackis Thonn the other “Extrapolating galactic motionary star time charts for the T’kon Empire, a seventh Age of Tkon?” by Xer Na Cullodnal The second one intrigued Basil. “Computer bring up the details of the second research project” One single file appeared, from the looks of it, the file was very small. “Computer is this the research?” [Negative] Confused Basil decided to run the file, it was a recorded message. First the symbol of the Federation Archaeology Council appeared followed by a human face. It said [This message is to record the disappearance of archaeological researcher Xer Na Cullodnal and his team whilst conducting his research into a potential new seventh age of T’kon. There has been no contact with the team after their last one from Delta Tau IV. Until we hear otherwise this research will be halted.] “Computer where is Delta Tau IV” [Delta Tau IV is in the Delta Tau star system, Beta Quadrant] Basil brought it up on his screen. The fourth planet was a planet inhabited by over 4 billion souls, out of Federation space and Romulan, it served as a buffer planet, a sort of neutral planet. How it managed that could be manifold, Basil had a few ideas. As he was scanning the details he saw something that made him pause. The current planet’s population, it was zero. Hesitating, briefly, before he selected the details of why he could feel that sickening feeling grow in his stomach. He selected it and his worse fears were confirmed, One word stood out amongst the details, Assimilated. Basil needed to tell the Captain but was wary that he could be wrong. He decided to send a message to the Captain’s terminal. Thinking about it the message read, “Captain, I’ve been thinking about the Borg’s motivations as I am sure have you. Why there? Why now? Hopefully you have realised that the Borg are searching for something left by the T’kon Empire. What? I do not know but I thought of finding someone that might. The only known research into the T’kon are two projects, please see the attached details. The second wasn’t truly started as far as the computer was aware as the researcher vanished years ago. He vanished from a planetary system that was attacked by the Borg around the same time. This may just be a coincidence but thought I would let you know. Dr Candle” (Reply Durand, any) (Posted by Warren Simkins) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Tactical/Security Office - CO Captain Durand - 0550) Durand had needed to get off the bridge for a few moments. He needed to move, to act, to *do* something, as he had been spending far too much time sitting and thinking. A necessary thing, to be sure, but for his mental health (and that of the bridge crew) he needed to make the rounds. It was coming up on the six hour mark, nearing the eight hour deadline that Captain Salid had put forth. He had several things he wanted to discuss with the tactical and security troops, so he had made his way down to their offices. He nodded a greeting to those present and put the operative question. “How are the preparations coming? I realize Commander Caskie is heading that up but there were a few things I wanted to discuss in person.” (Reply Trei and/or Signos, Room for more) Alan was about to start the discussion when his commbadge chirruped. It wasn’t the standard voice comm hail, but rather a much less frequently used ‘trilling’ sound, that indicated something else entirely. ~A text message in the system for me? From *whom*?~ He tapped the commbadge and asked the computer that very question. [The message originates from Doctor Candle.] “Alright... play it please.” The computer obediently did so, and he listened intently. He carefully hid his irritation at some of the phrasing for two reasons. First, it was important information. Secondly, he really didn’t know Candle that well, and it might be the typical aloof physician thing. *That* he was well and truly familiar with, his own father did it almost routinely. Time enough to check that later... assuming there is a later of course... “Doctor Candle, this is the Captain.” (Reply Candle) “Doctor we are all aware of the potential connection to the Tkon empire, that’s a fair portion of the reason that Starfleet is giving this such a high priority. However, I was not personally aware of these research projects, nor their progress or lack thereof. That certainly adds another potential piece to our puzzle, thank you.” (Reply Candle, Room for more iyw) “Very well Doctor. I’d like you to coordinate your research efforts through Commander Caskie, she is our point person. Dig up anything that you can find on the topic, get it to her, and she will forward it up the chain.” (Reply Candle) He turned back to the others in the office. “Pardon the interruption. Now, I want to see whatever you have developed in terms of a tactical and security plan so far. Remember I’m playing ‘Devil’s advocate’ so I’ll be trying to shoot holes in your plans. Let’s hear it.” (Reply Trei, Signos -- whomever is in the office -- , Any) (Posted by Russ) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0552) Basil had returned to sickbay to finish off the preparations when his communicator went off “Doctor Candle, this is the Captain.” Basil responded, “Sir?” =^=Doctor we are all aware of the potential connection to the Tkon empire, that’s a fair portion of the reason that Starfleet is giving this such a high priority. However, I was not personally aware of these research projects, nor their progress or lack thereof. That certainly adds another potential piece to our puzzle, thank you.=^= “Potential is the right word, sir. Unsure if it helps or confuses the issue but it does make me consider that the need to understand the Borg’s motivations is needed more than ever in this case. Are you aware of any conclusions made from the Rosenante?” (Reply Durand, room for more iyw) “Very well Doctor. I’d like you to coordinate your research efforts through Commander Caskie, she is our point person. Dig up anything that you can find on the topic, get it to her, and she will forward it up the chain.” “Acknowledged, sir, I’ll see what I can find.” --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca - Trei's Office - TAC/SC Lieutenant(SG) Detron Trei - 0555) Detron saw Captain Durand walk into his office looking to talk to him or Signos. He didn't know where Signos was. Detron walked up to CPT Durand. "What can I do for you Captain? ENS Signos is relaying the current information we have for the Borg engagement to CDR Caskie. Do you have anything new that can help us plan?" (Reply Durand) (Posted by Edward) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Boudicca – Main Sickbay - ACMO – Dr Candle - 0601) Before Basil wanted to delve deeper into the research he felt he needed to think about offensive and defensive options from the medical side of things. Whilst he was away from sickbay he had set the computer to do a search specifically for immunities to Borg technology. He felt he would start with the extreme then go from there. “Computer display results from search” Basil wasn’t expecting an answer but he got one, the computer displayed two words, Opthidian species. Basil had never heard of them and was curious, “Computer what contact has been made with this species.” … There has only been one known contact with the species … “When and with whom?” Basil asked … First contact with the Opthidian species was with the USS Rosenante in 2408… Basil blinked then asked the computer to show him the details. As Basil was scanning through the report he saw a familiar name, he blinked again Aware that the Commander may be sleeping he sent a message to her terminal. “Commander, there are a couple of things I need to talk to you about as well as update you to the progress of sickbay. First I have uncovered a little bit of information in regards to potential motivations of the Borg. I would like to share but perhaps we should include crew members of the Rosenante to compare notes? Second I would like to ask you about a particular mission you had whilst on the Rosenante, something involving the Opthidian species. Perhaps a meeting at a later date should be arranged? Dr Candle” (Reply Caskie, Any) (Posted by Warren Simkins) --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Deck 8, Mess - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0605) Eian was taking a fifteen minute break to eat 'breakfast'. While most people who had been up since this time yesterday were dog tired and would gladly take a power nap for fifteen minutes, Eian was wide awake. ADHD was a curious thing. When things were boring, he would fall asleep while others could stay awake. He remembered his doctor's words to him when he was a little boy. ~"Your body is going to do one of three things when it's bored. It's going to make you eat, it's going to make you play, or it's going to make you sleep. Your goal is to turn school into play so your body's happy."~ From that moment forward, with the help of his coach, Eian turned school into interactive adventures. He had learned to do the same with staff meetings. It was embarrassing to fall asleep when one wasn't even tired, and it was outright inappropriate to do it as a Starfleet Officer. But now the tables were turned, and he was the one awake while everyone else was having a hard time. To get everyone battle-ready, he expected a shift change to take place soon so people would have time to catch a few hours of sleep before it was all hands on deck. But he intended to stay on. One thing he needed to do just like everyone else, though, was eat. And that was why he now sat in front of a bowl of Cheerios, a timeless breakfast treat his mother had given him as a child, and a tall glass of milk. He read a PADD with updates from the Engineering department of the Boudicca and simultaneously watched a Federation news channel, which was streaming real-time news on a screen in the Mess. Suddenly, his PADD beeped and notified him that he had a subspace message in his inbox. He finished up his Cheerios, drank the rest of his milk, and left the Mess for his quarters. He had to take his stimulant, anyway, or he'd be bouncing off the walls in a few hours. --------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Rosenante - Deck 4, Personal Quarters - ACEO Lt JG Eian O'Neill - Day 2 - 0610) When Eian entered, he immediately missed the sound of Murphy's high-pitched bark that had greeted him faithfully for the past three weeks. He looked at the empty pen at the corner of the room and thought about how his puppy was doing on Starbase 989, and whether the Rose would survive this encounter and he'd be able to see Murphy again. He tossed the PADD on an end-table and entered his dining area, tapped a drawer that subsequently opened with a hiss, and then extracted a hypospray. He loaded one of many identical cartridges into it and injected it into his arm. He wouldn't feel the effects of the stimulant for another twenty minutes or so. That done, he put his medication away and approached his desk. He sat down and opened up the subspace message. It required a high security code, and was heavily encrypted. Puzzled, Eian entered his code and leaned back as he saw the USS Kelman's logo pop up on the screen, followed by his father's face. [ENCRYPTED SUBSPACE MESSAGE FROM COMMANDER LIAM O'NEILL, FO, USS KELMAN] His dad looked tired. Eian could see the bags under Liam's eyes, and he thought he saw some new wrinkles forming on his face. And he also looked intensely worried. "Hi, Eian," the elder O'Neill said, and feigned a smile. "I wanted to send this message to you to let you know of some things that are happening back here. I realize you're probably very busy, so I won't take long. The Kelman docked at 901 a few hours ago, and we dropped your brother off." ~901...that's not that far from 989...and the only reason they would have dropped Glenn off is if...~ "We're heading out not far from the Rose and the Boud," he continued, 'but we're going to hang back when we get a little closer. We're coming as backup, just in case. We're still a few days out from you guys, so it's doubtful we'll get there in time." Liam pursed his lips, and Eian felt his stomach do a little flip. He hated seeing his father this worried. Why would Starfleet tell the Kelman to head to their location? Especially if they were a few days behind? "We're the closest, but there are others coming. We're an insurance plan." ~So that's why.~ "Eian, I don't have to tell you I'm worried about you. Be careful. Now, I know the last time we did this was for your senior project at the Academy, and we're not speaking live, but I think it'll mean just as much, maybe more. I'd like you to say the 23rd Psalm with me." Eian nodded, as if his father could see him. Liam closed his eyes and bowed his head, and then began to recite the ancient, comforting psalm. "The Lord is my shepherd," he said, and Eian recited the words in perfect time. "I shall not want..." When they got to the part about walking through the valley of the shadow of death, Eian and Liam both happened to look up at the same time, and Eian saw his father's eyes urging him to believe the words. "I fear no evil," Liam told him firmly, and Eian nodded. "For He is at my side." They finished the prayer and Liam paused. "You take care of yourself, Son," he said finally. Eian wondered if his father and mother had a similar conversation before she entered the battle that had killed her. Although this wasn't a conversation, Eian could feel not only his father's presence, but also God's. "Hopefully I'll see you in a few days," Liam ended. "Godspeed." [END OF MESSAGE] Eian sat back. Surprisingly enough, his first thought was of Jessica. He was sad she wouldn't receive a similar message from her parents, and he resolved to do something about it. He pressed the 'record' button on his screen, and leaned forward. [INTERSHIP MESSAGE FROM LT (JG) EIAN O'NEILL, ACEO USS ROSENANTE] "Hey, Jessica. I know you're busy so I recorded this instead of trying to catch you during a break. Just wanted to let you know I love you, and well..." he chuckled. "There's this tradition my dad and I have...it actually started with my mom and me, while she was gone on a mission and I had a major test while she was gone. We pray together over subspace. Now, it's not live, and I know we're not the same religion, but I think it'll mean just as much. This prayer is for courage and strength...and I hope fills your spirit with both, if nothing else because I'm willing you to have courage and strength." He went on to recite the 23rd Psalm, and when he was done, he smiled. "I love you. I'll see you soon. Good luck." [END OF MESSAGE] He signed off, balked at the time on the chronometer, and jogged out of his quarters, ready to get back to work. (reply none necessary) (posted by Morgan G) ======================================================= (Private Shuttle Bloodwing - Lt (jg) Ael Harkonnen T'Rillian - Day 3 - 2356) Ael had been sitting here for hours waiting for the Starfleet ships to show up. She was camped way back at the edge of this solar system where hopefully the Borg would not see her since they were so totally concerned with the planet. Her little Romulan scout did have a cloaking system, but Ael didn't want to employ it since once the Starfleet ships came out of warp they would be more likely to shoot first and end up asking most of their questions much much later. And Ael didn't plan on being a casualty in the wrong place at the wrong time. Eventually her console bleeped and Ael crossed over to it. Picking a channel that was not normally used by the Borg Ael opened a channel. "This is Lt Ael T'Rillian, in command of RSS Bloodwing. I have been ordered to offer you any assistance I can. How may I help you?. (Reply any ship) (Posted by Marilyn) Lt (jg) Ael Harkonnen T'Rillian --------------------------------------------------------------------- End Compile ---------------------------------------------------------------------