Discoveries
Posted on Wed May 27th, 2015 @ 3:51am by Ensign Moriloth & Captain Elijah Michaels & Commander Cor Cordale & Commander Bertrand Cuprum & Lieutenant & Lieutenant Valeria Mordin
Mission:
Debts to be settled......
Location: Voletaan Resarch Outpost
[ON]
"Cor, I think we might have it." The Commander said as he pressed something on the Console. "Try it now and see what happens." He said to the Thux Engineer. The Console was being a pain in the arse when being reconnected.
"Almost.... almost..." Cordale muttered while up to his shoulder in the wireworks of the console's panel. There was a spark, which didn't even phase Cor in the least, and then the Console booted up to life. After a short self-check, the console was active. Cor got to his feet and brushed off his hands, "There... Nothing to it."
"Let's just hope there's something for us to find." Cordale mentioned while he and the Commander started to sift through what they restored.
Bertrand led the rest of the team into the science wing. It comprised of a long central corridor with many small labs off to the side. Some were connected direct to the spine, while others were removed and had been set up on a particular location of interest, connected by an umbilical corridor.
It was at the mouth of one of these that Valeria first detected movement.
"Motion," the rabbitess whispered as she paused, and motioned towards the source of movement with her tricorder. "Down the umbilicus." Her tricorder was set for silent alerts, so her whispered reports were more to help keep a low profile.
Signalling silence and caution, Bertrand led the team down the short corridor. Unlike the plas-steel of the main structure this was a thin translucent fabric over a metal frame. It was stretched tight to resist the elements, but the sound of wind on the other side could be heard.
The science lab had a dirt floor and looked like it had been set up around a number of bushes growing out of the natural soil. Numerous amounts of monitoring equipment were scattered around in various states of destruction and the plants themselves were now bare branches striped of all foliage. There did not seem to be any one or anything in this room apart from the equipment and the crates they originally came in.
Valeria gave a quick scan of the room visually before bringing her tricorder to bear. Were they here to destroy the bushes? That seemed odd, since they could have just burned them. Perhaps a check of the crates and equipment would yield better answers, but that would wait until the room was cleared of potential threats.
"I'll check for recent footprints." she offered when she turned her attention to the dirt floor. A quick scan for recent disturbances, while being careful not to leave too much of a trail herself. If this was some form of strike team, they'd certainly leave deeper footprints than the lightweight science crew. Though, all that she found was a cornucopia of evidence that this was a high traffic area. Boots of all sizes and depths, along with tracks from wheeled instrument panels. Most of which corresponded to the standard equipment racks used by the Federation. Some of the remaining were either custom rigs, or multiple rigs in tandem. Nothing like a weapon platform.
"Stay sharp. Some of these prints are deep enough to wager a strike team. No evidence of a mobile weapon rig." The Rabbitess gave Antos and Bertrand a smirk, "I have eight siblings. My second eldest brother was the king of hide and seek. That's how."
Bertrand was impressed with Valeria's approach. He might not have been as thorough himself.
"Antos, see if you can find out what those plant were, or any sign of the research being done here. It looks like they took stuff, not just destroyed it."
Antos started to scan with his tricorder and attempted to look at the notes on odd data padds and optical data chips. along with written forms of information on paper as well. Someone had done a thorough job of removing any intelligible data.
Bertrand moved over to the crates. He lifted the lid off one to reveal an empty place for a piece of equipment lying destroyed next to it. The next crate however was not empty.
"DON'T KILL ME PLEASE!" the cowering occupant screamed in terror. He was wearing blue/teal starfleet uniform covered in a white lab coat and was cowering in a ball.
"Doctor," Bertrand called urgently.
Antos moved over quickly but calmly towards the new discovery. "SHH! calm yourself I am here to help" He said in a soft and soothing voice. Antos spoke almost in a hypnotic tone that helped calm the man. "I am Antos I am the Chief Medical Officer. Please try and tell me what happened?" Antos asked the man calmly.
Valeria said nothing, not wanting to risk confusing the man with multiple points to focus on. However, she did lower her phaser and her tricorder, and just did what came naturally to her: She looked cute. Harmless, even vulnerable herself. With only the slowest of motions would she nod whenever Antos said something positive or encouraging. Technically she was also a Doctor, but Antos had already taken charge. If he dropped the ball, though, the rabbit was ready to move.
"We were attacked! They came out of nowhere......" The Teal Wearing Officer said before looking at the Console. "You must get away from here!!"
Antos helped the man out of the crate wherer he was hiding. The man is Terapid, with a four lobed brain, making him immune to Betazoid telepathy. He felt a bit uncomfortable with the lack of not being able to read his mind. He did his best not to show it. "Come lets get you to safety." He said calmly to the man. not expecting a reply from him.
"This sounds like a conversation we can have on the move." Valeria suggested. She gave her comm badge a tap, =^= "Mordin to Michaels. We've located a survivor, who stresses our departure." =^=
=^= Understood proceed back to the Control Room and keep your eyes open. =^= Michaels said over the Comm.
=^= "Understood. Mordin out." =^=
The rabbitess turned to Bertrand and gave a nod. Her comm wasn't muted so he easily heard the Commander as well. She turned to the Terapid officer and gave him a slow nod, "We'll be leaving presently. Do you know of any survivors?" it seemed prudent, since he seemed much calmer, to ask him directly. Antos had done a fantastic job.
Bertrand had been watching the man closely since his emergence. The guys eyes flicked constantly to the empty screen and missing spaces that had contained information.
"Let's not abandon the scene yet," he cautioned. The attackers have cleaned this room thoroughly and are not likely to return."
Cleaned thoroughly, but not looked in the one crate this guy was hiding in, Bertrand thought to himself, but kept it masked.
"Who was it who attacked?" he asked the officer.
"I... I don't know," the frightened scientist responded. "I heard the fighting and I hid."
Again something didn't add up to Bertrand, but he filed it away. "They seem to have done a proper number on this room in particular. What were you researching here?"
"I... plants... we were looking at some of the local flora's ability to resist the high energy levels of this atmosphere."
"All right," Bertrand allowed. "We move to the regroup and then back to the Runabout. That will be the most secure spot on this rock. Mordrin, take the lead. Antos, stay with our victim here. I'll stay at our back."
As the group left Bertrand ran another critical eye over the scene. He was itching again. He followed the group, watching the Terapid carefully.
Valeria gave a nod, and then with a smirk she gave the good doctor Antos a nudge with her hip, "Stay close."
Teasing aside, she took up a point position. Phaser up and tricorder out, though rather then the standard civilian mistake of holding her phaser out at arm's length where it could easily be knocked out she held it slightly back. Possibly now that this installation's assailant was still here, she exercised a larger margin of caution.
Elijah skimmed through the Security Logs of the Research Post and then came across something highly unexpected. "No, this can't be right at all......."
Well, they were expecting something amiss, by the very nature that they were here. Though... "You know, just once, I want to hear 'Yup, all good here. Call in the Risa All-Star Bikini Rescue Squad'." the Thux expressed, while skimming over the logs. "Wha'cha got, chief?"
"The Outpost?" Elijah said pulling up a log for Cor. "It was attacked by Jem'Hadar......."
Cordale peered over at the log, and skimmed through it before reading it in more detail, "Wait what? My missing left armpit has more tactical advantage than this place." Cor was nothing if not direct. Cor gave the console a few taps to bring up some of the more recent system commands, "Well, let's see if they took anything." the Thux offered.
"Jem'Hadar.... shit..." Cor muttered as he waited for the system to compile the list.
Elijah paused for a moment. "What in the hell would the Dominion want with a remote Research post?" He asked out loud, it only seemed to strengthen the mystery even further.
"Well it ain't the weather, and it ain't the view." Cor mentioned as he confirmed the log again. "Okay, I think we need to have a chat with that survivor. Maybe they didn't want the post, but rather what they were researching," the Thux offered.
Elijah nodded. "Download what we can, hopefully it can help our investigation."
"Will do." and with a few taps, the download to the shuttle's computer system began. The Thux gave a tap of his comm badge, =^= "Cordale to the Danube. We're sending the contents of the outpost's computer lots and sensor readings your way. Local storage, then we'll move them to the Victory's computer once we get home." =^=
The Thux didn't want that pilot thinking it was some unwanted download. Source knows the last thing the Victory needed was a subscription to some deep space rag mag. Or more toolbars.
He needn't have worried. Moriloth took the procedure as a secure precaution against the high atmosphere e-storm corruption. =^=Burning to non-volatile media now, Lieutenant.=^=
Cor gave an appreciation over the comm before cutting the feed. He looked to the Commander. "See? Now that there is a professional. Get the data, get the confirm, make it happen." he gave a smirk. "My kinda pilot."
The Commander then pressed his Commbadge. "Moriloth, spool her up and get ready to depart."
The apprehensive pilot needn't be told twice. With a flurry, she activated controls. The runabout's engines echoed with a stabilizing rumble. Computer confirmed, ==PHASERS... PRIMED. TORPEDOES... PRIMED.== Helmet now donned, Moriloth displayed the egress path on her HUD.
Bertrand's team arrived with the scientist as the download was completing.
"Sir, we have located a single survivor and taken some readings of the area. Whoever the attackers were, they did a right number on the lab."
"According to the logs, that 'Whoever' were the Jem'Hadar." Cor said while monitoring the upload. "Though why they would want an installation with the strategic value of a boot, you got me."
"Jem... " Bertrand started as the news sank in. That would explain the wild shots form the colonists who could not see their attackers, and why they were so completely overpowered. "Sir, I doubt the JH are still in the area or we would have met their ship in orbit. However, I recommend you, Lt Mordrin and the Science officer here withdraw to the runabout while Anton, Cor and I do a sweep for further survivors. 14 crew are still unaccounted for."
"They might be survivors from a crash, hence the lack of orbiting craft." Valeria pointed out, "Though, with a possible unknown number of aggressors, Lieutenant Bertrand puts forth an excellent strategy."
Elijah nodded. "Agreed, but as soon as you are done get back to the Ship." The Commander commented cautiously. "We need to establish the events and inform the Staff, if the Jem'Hadar do come back then we could have a problem." He was right to be concerned, with little information from the Dominion these days it could be the catalyst to something much more serious.
Bertrand mused, "If it was a crashed ship, that may explain taking the prisoners; a repair force. Starfleet Engineers have a reputation of turning rocks into replicators, even among the Dominion. We wouldn't have seen it on the surface amid the atmospheric scattering. Knowing what to look for now we might have a better chance. We'll do a sweep of the facility and outlying buildings, and be back to you within a half hour, pending incidents."
Something about Bertrand's generalization rubbed Cor the wrong way, and he knew he didn't mean it, but it just made him bristle a touch. Truthfully, it wasn't an undue reputation, but just something got his irk up. Though, irk or not, the Thux nodded in agreement with the planned sweep.
[OFF]
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Commander Elijah Michaels
Lieutenant Cor Cordale
Lieutenant Bertrand Cuprum
Lieutenant Antos Rittan .............Still here
Lieutenant JG Valeria Mordin
Ensign Moriloth
USS Victory
Pegasus Fleet