Episode 8: The Changing of the Guard, Part II

Hawku Aug 9 2004, 12:12 PM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - Holo Arena 3 Sith sped his Vehicle down along the road, increasing his speed until a comm signal cut in. *Command Center to Rune Sith,* Karelia's voice came through. Sith slowed his car down and then screeched it to a halt. He tapped his commbadge in response, "Sith here." *There's an incoming message for you, from Vulcan.* "Understood. I'm on my way." He tapped an ultimate holoarena code into the floating console to his right and then jumped out the Land Vehicle. In two seconds the entire simulation dematerialized because of the code. Operations Command Center Sith with Zeta stepped off the Turbolift and approached the nearest holo-screen. Karelia nodded to Sith from the other side of the OCC as the screen flickered on. -"Mr. Sith,"- it was the Vulcan Master Shikel. "Master," Sith was shocked. "What are you doing on Vulcan? I thought you were here." -"I was relocated for the project between the Starfleet and Vulcan Academy's,"- he replied. "Why?" -"They needed someone here to oversee its production. We may begin courses in formal Vulcan study to Humans. Although there would be limits to what Humans can learn."- "I'm sorry to hear that. I never really took the time to see you when you were here." -"Alas, I must go where I'm needed."- They both remained silent for a second. The one thing on both of their minds that they had been avoiding to talk about was all they had left to converse. -"What did you see out there...?"- There was an unearthly pause between them, as Sith knew what Shikel was referring exactly. Maybe in some way Shikel could sense the evil that had passed through Sith... "What I saw-- It wasn't like anything I'd ever seen before. But I fought it. I outsmarted it!" He swallowed for a second, "Although I do have a question for you, Master," Sith began. He could see the Master getting comfortable on screen as he began to accept all that Sith was saying, even if all he could go on was the fact Sith encountered some kind of evil. Shikel's old Vulcan eyes continued to watch Sith speak, "Everything you taught us, all the meditating and all the techniques... All the focus for that one level we all were supposed to achieve... Is it true that its real form is power and not fighting?" Shikel remained silent at this question. Sith wasn't sure if Shikel was just regestering the question, or deciding the best way to withhold further pursuit into the subject. After a long silence, Shikel nodded at Sith. -"Its true form lies within all men who aim for it. What it really is, is for you to decide."- Just then, Shikel fixed his stance. He took one last look at Sith, -"Well, my pupil. Promise me you will come visit once in a while."- "I will." Shikel nodded, -"You have exceeded my expectations, Sith. But there is much more to learn. Shikel out."- Sith was left in awestruck and continued staring at the now transparent screen. There was something different about the old Vulcan. He was more mature and humble.  "I'll see you around."
Kelly Aug 10 2004, 02:26 AM	Captain Samantha Halliwell ~ Her Office Halliwell carried on reading on the ride in the turbolift. She stepped out and made her way to her office, Tanik was standing out of it and looked well. "Good Morning, Captain." Good, what's so bloody good about it? she thought. Instead she went for, "Good Morning." Quickly punching in the code, she was granted access, she quickly moved over to the desk and dumped the padds, she looked back to Tanik, "You can sit down," she said. "And relax..." He appeared to, but she knew him well enough. He weren't in the least. She glanced to the padd in his hand, "Crew rota?" "Yes," he handed it to her and Halliwell sat down and sank in the seat, reading it. "Looks fine," she signed it and gave it back to him. "And no need to worry, I didn't ask you here for anything bad. I just personally wanted to congratulate you on your promotion," Halliwell continued. "Thank you, sir." "And to lay down some ground rules," she said with a firmer voice. Tanik looked to her slightly nervous. "David always complained at me about not letting him go anywhere," Halliwell said with a hint of a smile. "Well regulations state..." she held up a hand. "I never saw his point," she said standing up and looking out to the stars, a sight that she could never get sick of. =/\= Captain Halliwell? =/\=  "Excuse me," she said to Tanik then tapped her badge, "Go ahead." =/\= We've got an incoming transmission for you from Earth =/\=  Halliwell knew who it was, she touched the side of her face where the bruise that her father had caused hadfaded. "Relay a message back, I am very busy and will get back to them as soon as I can." =/\= Aye sir =/\=  "Halliwell out." She turned back to Tanik, "Where was I?" "You never saw Captain Major's point," he said. She nodded thanks, "But then again, I wasn't in his position, so I'm just saying," she smiled brightly and walked over to him. "Just once in a while let me have some fun." "No promises," he said seriously. "Although, I will try." "Thanks," Halliwell said. "I'm sure you've got actual work to do." He nodded, he took that as dismissed. "Will you be alright sir?" "Yes, keep up the good work." She moved back over to admire the view.
Nightranger Aug 10 2004, 05:27 PM	Fleet Captain Drayson Strategic Command Director His office: Drayson stared at the console in front of him reading the reports of the current armament upgrades. The weapons platforms the Smuggalers had brought in were almost fully constructed, The Earths new defense grid and it' shield would be in place soon . As he read through the pad he made mental notes things to bring up at the first War Council meeting. Finishing the reports, his mind wandered over the events of last night and the kiss Sam had given him. They continued to be good friends since their agreement to split . Yet friendship had limits. When Sam kissed him on the Pollux after he had been injured, he had chalked it up to her being so afraid he wouldn't live. He wasn't sure what she was saying with that kiss last night but being an intell operative that he was he was going to find out. He gathered his padds and headed for Garrisons office his investigation would have to wait he had a meeting to get to.
Hawku Aug 12 2004, 07:41 AM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - The Deck, Security Offices Sith walked accross the large open area of The Deck. He slightly glanced at the above passing bridges over his head. There, people were crossing on upper levels to get to other shops. Why this place was remiscent of tetryon particles, he couldn't understand. As he came to his Office, formally K'Rak's, he was stopped by two of his Guards. "Report," Sith said. "We found the personal cloaking device on Deck 12. It wasn't around a person, it was around an Encoding Device," the one on the left, Montgomery Portman, replied. "It was just configured to relay any of the Station's internal Sensor readings. But since we re-protect our Internal Database every other day, the Encoding Device went obsolete in 48 Hours," the other, Desmond Cornell, finished. "When was it planted there?" Sith asked. "Two years ago, sir." Sith nodded, "Whoever put it there must be long gone now. I wonder why they didn't even try again?" "Too high of a risk, sir. With the Station Security beefed up back then, no one would have dared another attempt." "There's also the possibility that they did try again, and they did succeed," one of the two insisted. "Then there could be more cloaking devices on the station?" Sith speculated. "Yes, sir. I suggest a Level 20 Diagnostic on all floor and wall platforms." "Is that really necessary? We'd have to evacuate every room after every hallway," Sith desputed. "We could just as easily perform a Level 5 Diagnostic without having to do that." "We don't know how strong thier Cloaking Devices could be. Maybe someone has been able to break through our Database Protection using a more powerful Encryption Device---" "Look, I'll suggest a Starbase cleanup to the Captian for the near future. But for now I want you to run a Level 5 and begin a low-priority investigation on the source of that Device," Sith started to walk past them to his Office, but he was stopped. "There's also one more thing," Portman said. "We've noticed you spending a lot of time in the Holo Arena. We think your focus may be a little... off?" Sith looked back at them, "Whatever I do is my own business, gentlemen. I assure you my focus is exactly where it should be." "We just think, you know... After that whole being trapped in Alliance Territory thing, you really haven't had any time off." "To collect yourself, sir," the other added. "It's already inhibited your job. You completely missed the discovery of that Cloaking Device. If K'Rak were here, he'd be all over us!" Sith took a deep breath and addressed them one more time, "What I do in my own time is my own business. For your information, K'Rak is not here, and I expect you to do your duty just as well under my command. What happened to me is not your concern or anyone else's. Now I order you to start the Investigation on the source of that device and run that Level 5 Diagnostic." He stepped past them into his Office. The two just glanced at each other, a little nerve racked at this confrontation and then walked away in seperate directions to get straight to work.
Mozg Aug 13 2004, 04:51 AM	Lattrel Ottel - Corridors (living quarters) Ottel made his way through the corridor, an all too familiar path by now. It was unusually empty for the hour. On most days he would run into his neighbors - that word always made him smile in his mind. I don't even know the names of any one of them. A few more steps, and he knew he would come up to a turn, and just beyond it, the lift. And just as certain, there it was. He called for the lift and waited, looking at the clothes he managed to grab in haste. This won't do, he thought. He then thought about returning back to his quarters, but... too late. The doors to the lift slid open. As he turned to walk in, he saw that there were already people inside. Something familiar about them. Of course, he remembered. The mother and child. "Level 2, Deck," he said. They were silent for a while. "So, did you get your new toy?" he fianlly asked the little boy. Both the boy and his mother looked at him, surprised. Then, she recognized him. "Oh... no," she answered in the child's stead. "They did not have the pet we wanted." She straightened the boys sweater, while still talking to Ottel. "With all the fighting going on, the transportation of all animals has been..." She didn't even finish. Ottel understood. "Just to be clear," he said, "what exactly were you trying to buy? If you don't mind me asking." "I want an Andorian Pralla," the boy nearly shouted. It caught Ottel by surprise. "Mathew!" the mother looked at him, strict, "we don't shout." She then turned to Ottel, explaining, "It's a kind of a primate. Highly trainable." "Oh, I know," Ottel answered. He thought for a moment, then, "I tell you what, Mathew. Why don't you tell mommy to come by in a few days, and you can have your Pralla." He handed the mother a card, with the Double~Helix logo and address on it. "My cousin has a whole family of Prallas. I'm sure he won't mind giving one to you, if you promise to take good care of it." "I promise, I promise," Mathew said, excited. "We don't want to be a bother," the mother wasn't sure how to take Ottel's offer. "Don't worry," he dismissed her doubts. "Just come by any time you can." Seconds later the lift doors opened again, and Ottel walked out. He stolled past a few stores and came up to the taylor's shop. The green neon sign was still as annoying as the day he set eyes on it. He stepped in. "Ottel, how nice to see you again," it was Rachel. She came up to him. "Likewise, Rachel," he said, returning her unexpected hug. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got an important meeting, and as you can see...." he showed her his clothes. "No problem," she said, "your jacket is ready. I'll be right back with it." She disappeared into the back room and emerged half a minute later, holding a jacket in her hands. "Here you go," she handed it to him. Ottel tried it on. It fit nicely. "Can you send the bill to here?" he handed her another card. "Sure," she said, examining the card. Ottel walked out and headed back to the lift. Garrison would be waiting by now, he thought.
Hawku Aug 15 2004, 09:30 PM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - Security Office Sith sat back at his desk at the end of his morning shift. He'd been tapping his finger to the surface of the computer desk impatiently. Sith had purposely gotten all his scheduled work done as soon as possible. When he had enough of the waiting he got up and left the Office. Holo Arena 3 Sith with Zeta approached the enormus doors of the Holo Arena. Why they were so big, he never understood. Entering, Sith was met with the usual friendly-hovering console. He tapped at a few bottons on it until it disappeared and the arena materialized into the Auto Program. Sith jumped in his ready-and-waiting Land Vehicle. But when doing so he accidentally popped open a compartment under the dashboard. A map fell out to which he read immediately. "What is this?" Zeta scanned and memorized the data from Sith's shoulder immedaitely. On the map Sith had noticed a large circle labelled, 'The Civic.' *Click!?* "Maybe we should go there?" Sith asked. *Click! Go there!* He activated the Land Vehicle and slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The wheels screetched until friction shot them down the street. Huge 28th Century buildings flew by them until he began to hear sounds of crowds. Before Sith and Zeta knew it, they came to approach a complex Race-Track area. People and aliens of all kinds were everywhere! He slowed on approach until he was forced to stop. Sith got out and looked around. More Land Vehicles of different types where all over the place. People were either driving off with them, or working on the engines of some of them. "Hi!" A Human approached. He was wearing a Starfleet Uniform. "Um... Hello?" Sith responded a bit confused. "Are you new here?" The guy asked, "My name is Hertz." "Sith," Sith shook his hand, "and this is Zeta," he tilted his head to the android spider on his shoulder. "What is this place?" "Welcome to The Civic Indy! This is where everyone usually comes to meet, race, and talk about the latest Car's they've won. I'm telling you, the way some of Miyazaki's latest work is coming along, he might aswell install a Transwarp Engine on them!" "Did you just walk in the Arena or something? Because I was very sure I was alone when I entered ten minutes ago," Sith said. In the background there was a sudden loud bang, and two Land Vehicles accelerated off down a roadway with crowds cheering in excitement. "Not at all! Don't you get what's going on here?" Hertz laughed. "I'm Lieutenant Hertz from the Starship Akira. We're in the Argolis System at the moment." "How is that possible?" "This is a networked program. The Miyazaki Auto Simulation is practically running 24-7 throughout Holo Arenas in Federation Space. We all take part in racing for his latest work. I tell ya, the detail is amazing on some of these Cars." "Oh right. I heard of these Networked Simulations. But they never interested me before." Sith glanced over at the crowds of people. "To be honest with you, I do have an interest for these Vehicles, but this obsession everyone has is just scaring me. So I'm going to just go---" Hertz grabbed Sith's shoulder just as Sith was turning, "Wait a sec! Just give it a chance. You'll really love it here." Hertz began leading Sith through the crowd. "Here, I want to show you something. Where you from Lieutenant Commander?" "Starbase 001," Sith answered, dodging the flailing arms of a fan. "No kidding? Wow, I never would have thought I'd meet someone from there! You should really appreciate this Simulation considering how grim everything has been lately." "I saw your ship in the battle at Betazed. You guys did really good." Just talking about it, sounded grim. "Thanks," Hertz answered. "I'm one of thier Engineers." They came to approach a sleek Vehicle. It was smoothly curved and appeared just as attractive as Sith's car. "It's my Ferrari, 612 Scaglietti Alpha Edition. I aquired permission codes to get some custom alteration done to it... New filters, stuff like that." Sith's eyes widened at the sight of it, "This looks impressive. I had no idea how advanced we were all those Centuries ago." "So you staying in?" Hertz asked hopefully. Sith shrugged. There was a part of him that wanted to keep going, to at least see what more this virtual reality had to offer. "Alright, for now."
RMrulz Aug 18 2004, 08:35 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison - Office Tom looked up at the sound of the doorchime. "Come in," he called out. The doors opened and Ottel walked in wearing a very nice jacket. Tom motioned for him to sit down and turned back to his holoterminal. "I have to go, I have a meeting starting now," Tom said. From the way the terminal was angled, Ottel couldn't see who he was talking to. "I'll get in touch with you when I get a chance. Garrison out." Tom hit a button and turned to Ottel with a smile. "Hello Mr. Lattrel, how are you this morning? I hope that party didn't provide too much excitement for you last night" Tom asked. A faint smile flickered over Ottel's face as he thought about last night's 'excitement.' But he quickly dismissed that thought. "Oh no, I'm fine sir." Tom nodded. "Good." He looked down for a minute, trying to think of another way to stall for time. Finally he just decided to be honest. "I was expecting Captain Hardgrove to join us. He's never late, this isn't like him. I'll try calling him again." Before Tom could actually activate the comm channel the door opened and Hardgrove walked in. Tom blinked in surprise. Not only was he late, but he didn't even bother to signal. He just walked in. "Captain?" he called out in a questioning tone. Drayson dragged himself back to the present. He realized he had still been thinking about the kiss last night. He pushed it out of his mind, there was no room for mental lapses like that. "Admiral. Ottel," he said, acknowledging each man's presence. He sat down and pretended nothing was out of the ordinary, never losing his cool. Tom turned his thoughts to why they were there. "I'll get right to the point," he said while looking at Ottel. "A civilian tribunal has been meeting to decide the fates of Starfleet Command and the Federation Council. They've made their ruling." He passed a holoPadd over to Ottel. "You might want to read that." Ottel took the PADD and read it. Tom and Drayson both just sat there, saying nothing. After a few minutes Ottel finished and handed the PADD back to Tom, giving him a questioning look. "You're wondering why you just read this, and why you're here," Tom said. Ottel just nodded. "There was a section in there about a War Council. Captain Hardgrove and I are setting up a War Council to temporarily govern the Federation, at least until this crisis passes. He and I, along with Ambassador Larkin, will represent the Federation. The Bajorans, who have recently allied themselves with us, will have one representative. The Orion Syndicate, also allied with us, will have one as well. Which brings me to the Smugglers' Coalition." Ottel's eyes widened as he realized what he was being asked. "Are you asking me..." "Yes," Tom interrupted. "It was Captain Hardgrove's idea. He thinks you would make the best representative for the Coalition." "Yes, I do," Hardgrove spoke up. Ottel paused, collecting his thoughts. It would be a good opportunity to bring order to the Coalition, he knew that. But still... to sit on a Council with Admiral Garrison, currently the top Admiral in the fleet? Hardgrove seemed to know what he was thinking. "I know, asking you to sit on a Council alongside a Starfleet Admiral and Captain, a Federation Ambassador, a Bajoran, and a member of your rival, the Orion Syndicate, doesn't exactly leap out to you as a good idea. But you would be perfect for this. We need somebody to represet the Coalition. We need you." Garrison and Hardgrove sat there. The next move belonged to Ottel.
Ullii Aug 19 2004, 01:02 AM	Doctor Ullii Lauren - Infirmary "Just calm down! It's only a Veraxin Virus. The worst it could do to you is--" "Doctor, I am shocked! Don't you even know what the Veraxin Virus IS???" The patient had come in a few minutes ago worried out of his skin about his symptoms being those exibited by people with Wenava Syndrome: a deadly and brutal bacterial infection that slowly eats away your brain. After Ullii reasured him that it was merely Veraxin Virus, a harmless cold that lasts no more than a week, he began to get paranoid about that. "The early symptoms are innocent looking enough, to be sure! Headache, nausea, runny nose... but then..." "Lieutenant--" "But THEN... you wake up one morning to find your pillow covered in blood! Because your pores have become permiable to red blood cells! And you know what comes after that?!" "Lieutenant!--" "Death!!!" "Calm down lieutenant! Poral bleeding in the case of Veraxin Virus is extremely rare! And only found in cases that also have an extremely low amount of water in their system! Like, people living very close to the sun without protection. and--" "Doct--" "And... it has certainly Never been a cause of death in Any circumstance!--" "But--" "So Relax! I've given you the proper medication. You won't even need to miss a shift." "But... but the...." they stared each other for a moment "fine..... but if I die, Doctor, it will be on You!" Ullii shook her head as he stormed out of the Infirmary. Just as the man was leaving, Doctor Sevrith, Ullii's Vulcan instructor and mentor, walked into the room. A wide grin appeared on both of their faces, and they gave each other a big hug. "Doctor Sevrith! What are you doing onboard? Why didn't you say you were comming?" "Come now, my dear girl. It is unbecomming to behave in such a way in front of your staff." She looked over and saw a nurse pretending she hadn't noticed. "Oh well. Common, answer my question." "I'm here on business, actually... but that can come later. How about we go for a drink?" "Well you'll have to wait 'till my shift ends. Pick me up at my quarters at 18:00?" "Perfect. I need to get a new suit anyway. I've heard of a good tailor on the station." The doors slid open and the same paranoid patient entered once again. "Doctor! I need surgery immediatly!!!" "What is it now? Barclay Syndrome?!" "How dare you insult me at a time like this! It's much worse than Barclay Syndrome, I'll have you know! I've just been looking through the Medical Database, and I've discovered that I don't have a silly cold at all! It's... it's..." "Well?" "Advanced Moncholitus! If I don't have surgery soon, my endorphines will explode, and I will die a slow, painfull, excruciating, terrable--" "Lieutenant," it was Sevrith who spoke this time. "Ah... yes?" "Let me have a look at you, shall I?" "Ah, a Doctor are you? Hopefully you're better than, than... This pathetic excuse for one!" Ullii smiled and handed Sevrith her tricorder. "Ahh.... ahh yes... oh my." "You see? You see?! I told you! My god... will I live?" He was looking around the room quizically, as though mentally taking note of every detail he saw. He seemed to be almost mad, in a strange sort of... way... "Now now, you have nothing to be worried about." "Honestly!!! How can you say that?!?" "You do not have Advanced Moncholitus, my boy. Apart from the mild case of Veraxin Virus... which is being handled very well by the present anti-body I'm assuming Doctor Lauren injected into you... All I can tell is that... in a short period of time, not more than five minutes... you will feel an overcomming need to excrete." "Oh I see what this is..." he was obviously very embarassed "You two are in league! You think this is some kind of funny game?! My life is at steak here!" he suddenly paused and put his hand over his gut. "Seems as though my estimate was a little... forgiving." Sevrith smiled. The two of them laughed as the man ran out of the Infirmary, promptly toward the nearest public facilities. "Well done." "There are people like that, even on Vulcan." he shook his head. "Alas, a devining universal constant." Another patient with what looked like a broken arm came limping in held up by two other crewmembers. "Well, looks like I've got work to do." "Indeed. I'll see you at 18:00" With that, the Vulcan Doctor left, and Ullii saw to her new patient.
Nightranger Aug 19 2004, 03:22 AM	Lattrel Ottel - Admiral Garrison's Office Ottel sat in the chair, contemplating on his next move. Garrison was in front of him, sitting in his calm manner, holding the PADD, yet still expecting some kind of a response from him. Next to him sat Hardgrove, the same cool and collected character everpresent. "Well, gentlemen," Ottel finally broke the short silence, "this is good news," he seemed to show genuine excitement, "this is really good news." "So?" Hardgrove turned his chair around, completely facing Ottel, and moved in a little closer, "are you up for it?" "Captain, you know I'm not the type of a man to throw an opportunity like this away." "I'm glad you feel that way," Garrison sat back in his chair. "We are all going to need to co-ordinate our efforts from now on if we are to survive this fight with the Alliance. This includes the smugglers, and..." "...And we don't think there's a better person to do this for them than you," Hardgrove finished the admiral's sentence. "Thanks for the flattery, gentlemen," Ottel said, "or should I say 'fellow councilors'?" A smile appeared on everyone's face. "The reality is that this was due. I realize that there is so much to do, and we simply do not have the luxury of time." His face now completely serious, Ottel now went for the opportunity, "With your permission, admiral, I'd like to call an emergency meeting of the Smugglers' Council aboard the station to discuss the current matters." This was definitely unexpected for Garrison. He thought for a moment. "Mr. Lattrel, I agree with you, and a meeting of the... Smugglers' Council," Garrison looked at Hardgrove, searching for information. Ottel noticed that look. "Yes, a meeting of the Smugglers' Council seems like a reasonable idea," Tom continued, "but, if you don't mind, there are more pressing matters at hand." He motioned at the PADD. "Of course, admiral," Ottel said. "I'm in no particular hurry at this exact point either." The athmosphere changed completely as a chime sounded, and they heard the voice of ambassador Larkin. "Admiral, it's Michael" "Come in, Michael," Garrison stood up and approached the doors, to greet the incoming ambassador. "Gentlemen," he nodded at everyone present, then turned to Tom, "so, are we heading down or what?" "Um, I can see that you are in a rush," Ottel said, "I'll leave you men of state to take care of matters of state. For now I have the freedom of being a simple bartender." "Not for too long," Hardgrove reminded him. Ottel threw an angry snare at him, then followed it with a smile. "Too bad," he said. "You know where to find me," he walked out the doors that closed right behind him. "It looks like we have crossed the Roubikon," he murmured, walking away from Garrison's office.
RMrulz Aug 19 2004, 05:30 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison - Office The doors closed as Ottel walked out. Tom looked up at Larkin, who was standing just inside the doorway. "Come in, Michael. Take a seat." He gestured to the chair recently vacated by Ottel. Michael walked over and sat down, nodding politely to Hardgrove as he did. "Have you read the verdict yet," Tom asked. He wasn't sure if Larkin had the security clearance to access it. Larkin nodded. "I read it this morning." Tom set down the holoPADD he was prepared to hand over. "Very well, then. We're going to leave in a few minutes. But first I wanted to talk to you about something - The Dominion." Larkin said nothing, so Tom continued. "Drayson and I plan to bring this up before the War Council, but we should all talk about it first. A few months ago you found evidence linking the Alliance to the Dominion, but soon after all hell broke loss with the battle at Starfleet Medical, the rebellion, the Battle of Betazed, and the kidnapping, so we haven't really addressed it." Larkin nodded again. "I know, I've been thinking about it recently." Drayson spoke up. "Do you think what you found was conclusive?" he asked. Michael thought about that for a moment. "Honestly, I don't know. There's nothing else that I know of to link the Alliance to the Dominion, and the evidence I did find was pretty circumstantial. But still, we can't ignore it." Tom nodded in agreement. "I agree. We've pushed it aside for awhile, but I don't think we can ignore it either. Especially with the recent info Commander Sith brought back about a possible involvement of the Pah Wraiths." "Pah Wraiths. The Dominion," Larkin mused out loud. "Just who exactly isn't controlling the Alliance these days." Tom laughed. "Good question. Well I don't think there's much we can do now, it will have to be one of the first things we bring up once the War Council meets. Maybe we'll try and launch some sort of investigation then, I don't know. I just wanted to see what you thought about it, since we haven't talked about it in so long." Tom glanced at Drayson while he was talking to see if he could tell what he was thinking, but the Captain looked lost in thought. "Well," he continued. "I guess we can't put this off any longer." He stood up, and Larkin and Hardgrove stood up as well. Tom picked up a few holoPADDs off his desk and handed one to each man. "Here's a copy of the verdict." "I already have one," Drayson said. Tom looked and realized he was holding a PADD of his own. Where the hell did that come from, he thought to himself. He didn't remember seeing Drayson walk in with one. Shaking it off, he walked around the desk. "Gentlemen, after you," he said while gesturing towards the door. The two men walked out of the office, followed by Tom.
RMrulz Aug 21 2004, 03:49 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison - Executive Suite Tom, Drayson, and Michael left Tom's office and walked down the suite of executive offices toward the large glass doors at the end of the hallway. The doors opened onto the OCC, where they would get on a turbolift and head down to the transporter room. They walked past Drayson's office, than Michael's, than Commander Tanik's. They were just walking past Captain Halliwell's office when they heard a loud cry come from inside. "God dammit!" The three men paused and looked at each other. Drayson raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you two go ahead," Tom said. "I'll meet you in the transporter room." They nodded and continued on, leaving Tom behind. He pushed the door signal and waited for a response. "Enter," came a rather exasperated-sounding response. Tom walked into the office and found Captain Halliwell sitting at her desk, staring at something on her holoterminal. She looked up to see Tom standing there and a look of surprise flashed over her face. "Admiral, how can I help you?" she asked. "Actually, I just wanted to ask if everything is all right. I was walking by and heard you yelling at something." She looked embarrased. "Uhh," she stammered. "Yes, sir. Sorry about that. It's just these duty rosters..." She looked up to see if he knew what she was talking about. And he did, Tom immediately knew what she was referring to. There weren't enough people to fill out the duty rosters on the station. He nodded sympathetically as he walked over and sat down on the other side of her desk. "There aren't enough officers," he said. She just nodded. "I know, Captain. Believe me, I know. It isn't just 001 that is facing these shortages, I've got requests from almost every ship in the fleet for more officers. And I fear it's only going to get worse the longer this war with the Alliance drags on." "Is there nothing I can do? Sitting here worrying over it doesn't seem to be getting me any closer to a solution." Tom laughed out loud. Her words rang very true to him. "Welcome to the world of command, Captain. But to answer your question, all you can really do is try to make the best of what you have. I know, that's not much help. But the thing that separates the good Captains from the great Captains is the ability to roll with the punches, to take what you have and make the best of it." Sam nodded. "I'll do my best, sir," she said. "That's all anyone can ask. And from I've seen of your command ability so far, Captain, Starbase 001 is in good hands." Sam fidgeted in her seat. "Thank you, sir," she said, uncomfortable with the compliment. Tom got up to leave her office. Just before he reached the door he turned to look at her. "Captain. This shortage of personnel is going to become a real problem over the coming months. But try not to let it get the best of you, we have to keep fighting. We have to believe we can win if we're ever going to beat the Alliance. Don't ever forget that." He then walked out of her office. The Deck Tom made his way through The Deck, on his way to the transporter room. "Admiral Garrison," he heard someone cry out. He turned around and saw Dr. Lauren heading towards him. He paused and waited for her to catch up. "Admiral, do you have a moment?" she asked as she approached. "I'm due in the transporter room, actually," he said. "But it can wait another minute. What's on your mind?" "I was wondering if Commander Tanik had a chance to talk to you yet?" "Ahh, you mean about the message from Romulus. Yes, he spoke to me last night." She looked at him expectantly, but didn't say anything. "It will be one of the first things brought up when the War Council meets, Doctor. But I don't think we should do anything until then." Lauren looked disappointed. "I understand, sir," she mumbled. "Thank you, sir." She started to turn to walk away. "Hold on a minute," Tom called out. What's the point of waiting? What will discussing it with the War Council accomplish? There really isn't anything to lose here. "I'll tell you what, Doctor. Go ahead and access that frequency. But I want the entire thing to be monitored and the recording of whatever happens sent to my office immediately. Understood?" Lauren nodded, a smile on her face. "Yes sir. Thank you, sir." she said. Tom smiled in return. "You're welcome. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to the transporter room." He turned and made his way to meet the others.
Mozg Aug 21 2004, 07:11 PM	Lattrel Ottel - outside his quarters Ottel stood outside his quarters, holding a bag of sandwiches he managed to grab on his way back from Garrison's office. I hope she likes it, he thought, walking in. The room was virtually unchanged, with the exception of Shani's yet unpacked bags sitting next to the large couch. He walked up to the coffee table and put the bag down. "Shani," he called out her name and took a step closer to the bedroom, leaning right to look in. She did not respond, but Ottel heard the sound of water coming from the shower. He stepped into the bedroom and approached the doors of the shower. "You know," he said, his tone dumbed down, "I believe there is a little invention called a sonic shower." "I have to feel the water on my skin, or I don't feel clean," she replied. "Welcome back." "I got some sandwiches in the other room," Ottel said. He sat down on the bed, took off his shoes and pulled his socks off his feet. "There are a lot of things we need to do. After all, you were assigned to the station for a specific task." Ottel said that last bit louder, making sure she heard him. "ASS!" he heard her shout from the shower. He couldn't help but chuckle. Then, "Seriously, though," he stood up from the bed and walked back to the shower door, "Garison offered me a seat on the War Council, which means our position as Federation allies is now official." "That's if you take the seat," she said. "Well, what do you think I'm going to do?" he asked. She didn't reply. The sound of the running water stopped, and a few moments later Shani stepped out. "Can you get me a towel?" she asked. Ottel reached for the nearest towel and threw it at her. She said, "There really is no other choice but to take it, I suppose. However, this is a serious matter." "I know, that's why I told the admiral that I want to call an emergency session of the Council," Ottel said, looking at her, wanting for her approval. "You've been with those old geezers longer than I have, what do you think." "I think they'll jump at the opportunity to visit the starbase as official delegates," she said, wrapping the towel around her. "Now, were are those sandwiches, 'cause I'm starving." They walked through the bedroom and sat down on the large couch.
k4m4caZ1 Aug 21 2004, 08:48 PM	Lieutenant Commander Daniel Clark – Personal Quarters Clark walked through the doors of his quarters, rubbing his eyes in fatigue. “Computer. Couch.” He kept walking forward as his bed dematerialized and was instantly replaced by a white sofa. He dropped the stack of PADDs on the coffee table that appeared in front of the couch as the room finished reconfiguring itself, and sat down with thud. He tilted his head back, stopped rubbing his eyes, but kept his hands over his face. It had been a long day… too long, but that was too be expected of him. Another [/I]bloody thing I suppose I have to get used to.[/I] He had worked countless long shifts before this, but few, if any had consisted of this much paperwork. His hands slowly slid down his face revealing his eyes, tilting his head slightly as he peered down at the pile of work. He quickly plopped his head back on the cushion and let his hands drop to his side. He waited for a bit… and a bit more… A second of rest wont kill me… “Computer.” He said finally rising to get up, “Give me a fresh uniform.” His dirty uniform for the day was instantly changed on his body as he strolled for the opening doors. One of the perks of being an engineer, one with connections mind-you, was the cool new stuff you got before anyone else. Besides, he had no time to change; and he lived in his uniform anyway. Holodeck 6 A quick scan with his Station-Monitoring Neural Interface – another perk of the job – told him Holodeck 6 was empty, and the doors slid closed behind him as he walked into the center of the room. He accessed holodeck controls with his interface, and executed a personal program. He hadn’t hesitated for a second when word reached him that Starfleet Medical was looking for Engineering personnel to experiment with this new form of holo-neural interfacing. A four-legged stand appeared in front of him, with a sword on top of it. He walked onto firm matting, gripped the sword by the hilt, and lifted a couple of inches above the stand. The sword itself was long with two sharpened edges, and a hilt just long enough for two hands to grip it. It was surprisingly light for its appearance, but strong. He had begun training just before he arrived on the station, looking for a new hobby, but it had given him more then that. All the stress of everyday life, of the war, new responsibilities, they all seemed to vanish when he was holding it. Perhaps it was more mental then real, but still, it was an escape. The stand vanished after he picked it up, and he began spinning the blade from hand to hand to get a feel for the weight. In the beginning he had tried different styles of fighting with different blades, but he favored this one by far. He stood in a ready stance as the program began.
Captain Archer Aug 21 2004, 09:40 PM	Ambassador Michael Larkin-Transporter Room Michael and Hardgrove stood in the transporter room awaiting Admiral Garrison's arrival. Michael took the oppurtunity to get some advice. "Drayson, can I ask you a personal question?" Hardgrove turned to Michael "Of course, what's on your mind?" Michael wasn't sure how to word it. "Well, it's more like I need a little advice. I've been thinking of Jen's new promotion, and how soon she'll be given a ship of her own. In all reality she won't be stationed close. I guess what i'm asking is have you ever been involved in a long distance relationship?" Drayson smiled "Once or twice." "Did it work out?" "Michael the only thing I can tell you is that if the two of you are in love distance and even time itself doesn't matter." Michael nodded just as the doors slid open revealing Admiral Garrison "Are we ready folks?" They both stepped up onto the pad followed by the Admiral who gave the order to energize. The transporter room disappeared and the three men found themselves outside the grounds of Starfleet Headquarters, they began to walk down a long pathway lined with trees and bushes. They approached the main complex and exchanged looks before stepping inside. They passed a few officers inside the lobby and approached what would soon become the War Council Chamber. "All right, let's get to this then." Michael said, and with that Admiral Garrison hit the control to open the door.
Ullii Aug 21 2004, 10:25 PM	Doctor Ullii Lauren - The Deck Lauren nodded, a smile on her face. "Yes sir. Thank you, sir." she said. Tom smiled in return. "You're welcome. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to the transporter room." Ullii was glad he gave her permission to access the frequency. She was going to do it anyway, but this meant she didn't have to break any rules. She headed straight for her Quarters. If she used her office, someone might overhear. She walked through the doors and went straight to her desk. "Computer. Chocolate Milk. Cold." A cold glass of chocolate milk materialized on her desk, and she took a sip. She placed her hand on an area of the table, and a holo-display lit up. She quickly accessed the long-range communication array, and input the frequency that Tanik had found in her message. Here goes... She looked down at the 'Initialize' button for a few seconds before pressing it. Immediatly, an old Romulan appeared on her display. "It's about time!" He turned to his left and shouted at the top of his weak lungs, "YASHAAAAAA!!!" He then turned back at analyzed Ullii. "You're not what I expected..." "What do you mean?" Ullii heard the voice of a young woman in the background. "I'm comming uncle! And don't embarass me!" He turned his head to the left again, shouting once more, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, EMB... oh." He noticed that she was right in front of him, "Well... I'll leave you two alone... but remember, she's not to be tru--" "Uncle!" With that, the old Romulan left, and Yasha took his place in the chair. Ullii was awestruck at the resemblance to herself. It it weren't for the cranial ridges, they'd look like identical twins! "Ullii... it's nice to finally meet you." "Likewise..." They both seemed at a loss for something to say. "Ullii, there'll be more time to talk about family matters later. Right now I need to talk to you about larger affairs." "Larger affairs?" "Yes. My foster-family and I are lead figures in the Romulan rebellion agains the Alliance. We wish to take this oprotunity to formally request a meeting onboard Starbase 001." "Well I'll have to pass it on to my superiors, but... a Romulan rebellion??" Yasha looked curiously at Ullii. "Yes... why does it seem like you don't quite believe me?" "It's just that... our father, before he died..." Ullii took note of an expression of hatred that came over Yasha's face for a moment when she mentioned their father, "before he died, he lied to me about a lot of things... one of the things he told me was that he was a part of a Romulan Rebellion. Everything else he said turned out to be a lie. Forgive me but... how do I know I can trust you?" "Listen, I know the deep-seeded distrust between our two races has been a big issue in the past, but you should know better than anyone that Romulan blood does not equal Romulan deception... look into my eyes, Sister. You know these eyes! We share the same blood! Look into my eyes and tell my I am deceiving you!" She called me Sister... My heart tells me she's telling the truth... but my heart said the same thing about my Father... "I want to trust you, Yasha! More than anything, I want to have a sister! Unfortunately, my experience with trust tells me to be careful about how easily I give it out... Listen... I'll talk to my superiors. I'm sure we can arrange a meeting, especially if it's on this station. There will probably be high security, but it would give us both the change to earn each other's trust." Yahsa smiled, "Well said. Tell your Admiral that I will be the Representitive. I will bring information and technology with me to prove our sinserity." "You? You'll be the representitive?" "That's right." she smiled, "I'll be awaiting your next transmition." "I look forward to it. Oh, and Yasha..." "Yes?" "How did you know it would be me?" She smiled in a very cunningly Romulan way "Lucky guess." "Right... well I'll contact you again as soon as I know anything further." "Very well.... I'm glad we've finally met, Ullii. I hope we can become friends." "As do I.... Lauren out." The display changed back into the Federation logo, and Ullii tapped some more buttons. "Computer, send entire last communication, encrypted, to Admiral Garrison, High Priority." "Communication sent." *beep* "Ullii, it's me, Doctor Sevrith." "Come on in." She deactivated her holo-panel as the Doctor walked in. "Sorry I'm not ready yet. I've just been talking with my sister." Ullii grinned from ear to ear. "Sister?" he raised an eyebrow, "And I thought I knew everything about you." "Do you mind if I have a quick shower before we go?" "Not at all." Ullii went into her bathroom, got undressed and stepped into the sonic shower. When she was finished, she dried herself up, and put on some Vulcan civilian clothes. She still had her entire wardrobe from her long stay on Vulcan. The two of them walked to The Deck. "What about this place?" Sevrith said, pointing to the Double~Helix. "Uhh, no. Last time I was in there, my friends got me drunk, and I ended up puking off the side of the platform, generously drenching a kissing couple all the way at the bottom." "Oh..." "Yea... what's this place?" She pointed to a new shop called 'Nick's Nacks'. "Lets find out, shall we?" They walked inside to find a plethera of gizmoz and gadgets, the likes of which neither of them had ever seen! Some of them were for pure entertainment purposes, like a life-like robotic dog that turns into a cat, remote control models of famous starships that fly in the air, and a small hovering sphere that follows people around repeating everything they say, but at ten times the volume. And there were hundreds of other things, whose purpose Ullii couldn't even take a guess at. Soon, a very tall man with a full beard and head of red hair, probably in his late twenties, ran up to them. "Hello there! My name's Nick! Welcome to Nick's Nacks! Nick is my name, and knick knacks are my game! Whether you're nick'n for a nack, or snick'n for a snack, Nick has all your knick-knack needs!" There was an odd moment of silence as Nick stood there smiling like an idiot, and Ullii and Sevrith stood there wide-eyed and mouths open. "Too much? I practised for hours! I dunno, maybe... maybe I should take out the whole 'snick'n for a snack' part... I mean, I don't really have any snacks....... waddaya think?" "Ummm... I uh... I thought it was great!" "Really?? Wow thank you soo--" "That was terrable." "Please excuse my Old Coleague here. He sometimes talks before he Thinks." She gave him a threatening stare. "Vulcans do not lie. That was the cheesiest sales pitch I have ever heard." "Well then... I'll keep practising... Anyway, this is my grand opening! You care to see some of Nick's knick-knacks?" he smiled bigger than Ullii thought was possible, and kept nodding. "Umm, maybe another time. We're going out for coffee, actually." "I see... well here." He handed them each a small metal sphere with a red glowing circle on it. "Puch the red button. Go ahead." Ullii noted he seemed far too enthusiastic than should be healthy for him. She pushed the red button and a gigantic holo-banner appeared. It had every colour of the rainbow dancing around the huge words 'Nick's Nacks!' acompanied by a very loud booming voice of Nick's saying "Come to Nick's Nacks! And say hello to all my little friends!" After the hologram finally ended, the two of them left the store and sat down at a Coffee Shop called 'Earthly Delights'. "I must say, I sure have met my share of crazy people aboard this station. You saw the man in Sickbay." "Haha, that I did." He took a sip of his coffee. "Hopefully you won't need to double as the Station's councellor." They both chuckled. After they had some more coffee, Dr. Sevrith started to look more solemn. "Now..." he looked gravely at Ullii, "It's time to tell you why I'm here."
Hawku Aug 4 2004, 01:46 AM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - Holo Arena 3 Sith had stepped through the crowds of people, just looking around at Vehicles everywhere. There were even some people in the stands, cheering for a race that was just finishing. Taking one last look, Sith turned to leave... but was suddenly stopped by Hertz. "Hey! Don't leave just yet!" Sith turned to glance at him. "I arranged a Race for you." "A race?" Sith replied uncertain. "Yeah!" Sith stood there in two or three seconds to think about it. He revved up his Bugatti, which sat next to a sweedish Koenigsegg CC 8S Omega. The guy in that car was completely focused and ready to race. Sith, sitting in his car, clenched the primitive steering-wheel before him and then looked out at the track even further ahead. If there was one thing he was at a major disadvantage, it was the course of this track. - THREE - TWO - ONE - GO!! - A gun was shot and both men pressed down on thier pedals. Sith's Bugatti began closing the convertible opening above him while he pulled a stick to his right into the next gear. He and the Koenigsegg sped down the road away from the crowds of cheering race-goers. VVVVvvvvrrrmm!!!! Both cars took a wide-left as the track dictated, with speeding buildings passing on all sides. During the left-turn the Koenigsegg passed Sith and moved ahead of him. "Urgh!" Zeta remained on the dashboard watching as Sith stepped on the gas, in realization that the car wouldn't go any faster. It was like his Bugatti was slower than the Koenigsegg.That can't be! Sith thought. It was the turn, I know it! As they sped down a straightaway, Sith was becoming more and more into the simulation, one, for the technicalities and, two, the fact he was racing a real person. They came to a right-turn and Sith led his land vehicle on the inside as the Koenigsegg took it wider. Sith closed in on the Koenigsegg and remained in its blind-spot down the next straightaway. "Arugh!" Sith blurted. Both land-vehicles then came to another right turn. But this turn was even tighter... forcing the guy in the Koenigsegg to slow down in order to take it without hitting the far, striped girder. Sith was a little too late and instead jerked his vehicle inwards to the turn... this resulted in a drift to the whole Bugatti. He clenched the wheel tightly, so he wouldn't lose it, and the entire Bugatti screeched around on all four tires, past the Koenigsegg from the outside of the turn, on an angle. When they left the turn into the straightaway, Sith's Bugatti straightened and was gaining speed away from the Koenigsegg. "Haahaha!!" Sith screamed in excitement and having just figured out how to beat the Koenigsegg. It accelerated and eventually caught up to Sith, but after quickly studying the turn ahead of them, Sith braked into another drift around the corner. The guy in Koenigsegg yelled in astonishment, having never seen someone drive like that before. They came off the turn, the Bugatti ahead of the Koenigsegg, driving down the long stretch towards the Finish line... but the stretch was long enough for the Koenigsegg to have a chance at catching up. Sith kept his eye on his rear-view mirror, not even caring about the road ahead of him. The Koenigsegg was catching up, and catching up fast... "Urggghh!!" He then eyed the finish-line ahead of him until he passed it. The Koengsegg was 0.73 seconds behind the Bugatti when they roared over the checkered pavement. Sith slowed his car and then screeched it to a stop. The top pulled open and he and Zeta lept out in excitement. "Yes!!" The crowds cheered around him, as a group of people ran over. Hertz was one of them, and approached Sith. "Whoa!! What the hell were you doing out there?? I have never seen anyone drive like that before!" "Like what?" Sith asked confused. "Like the way you took those turns. No one in the two month history of this simulation has ever done that!" Hertz said. "Really?" Sith said surprised. As Hertz was pulled away by friends, Sith suddenly received a comm-signal. *Lieutenant Karelia to Commander Sith,* the voice said. "Sith here," he tapped his commbadge. *We have a problem with the Brig. One of the Cells' controls are being messed with.* "On my way." Sith then turned to Hertz, "Well now I really have to go." "I understand," Hertz replied as he came over. "I hope I'll see you around." "Maybe you will," Sith nodded. He then turned to a computer terminal nearby and tapped in the code to deactivate the Holo Arena. Everything then disappeared around him and he left the Arena.
RMrulz Aug 22 2004, 06:14 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison, Earth, Starfleet Command "All right, let's get to this then." Michael said, and with that Tom hit the control to open the door. Or at least he was about to. "Admiral! Captains," came a voice from behind them. All three men turned around to find Admiral Connar Blair walking towards them. Tom glanced at Hardgrove before turning back to face the head of Starfleet Intelligence. "Admiral Blair," he said while stepping forward and offering his hand. "I'm glad you could join us for this." He had a smile on his face, but inside Tom wasn't really quite so happy. He still wasn't convinced Blair was on their side, but Drayson had insisted that the Admiral had provided him with all sorts of intelligence in recent weeks and that he could indeed be trusted. Blair took his hand. "Tom, good to see you again," he said with a smile of his own. Each man carefully eyed the other for a minute. There had always been a slight rivalry between them. As Fleet Admiral Tom technically outranked him, but as head of Starfleet Intelligence Blair had a considerable amount of power, much of it not outrightly stated. "Are we ready to do this?" Blair asked. Drayson stepped forward. "We are. Are they all gathered?" Blair nodded. "They are. They haven't been told why but most of them probably suspect it. I don't think we'll be delivering any surprises when we announce what the tribunal decided." "Well we don't deliver anything standing around outside," Tom said impatiently. It would take him time to get used to working alongside Blair, and he didn't feel like thinking about it today. He just wanted to do this and be done with it. "Let's get this over with." He turned and pushed the button to open the doors. The other men followed him into the room.
Hawku Aug 26 2004, 08:38 PM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - Brig Sith entered the two-deck high room, where a row of cell's sat above another row of cell's on each wall. Fortunately, the problem-causer of this situation remained on one of the lower cell's; a specially reinforced one at that. The Commander went over to James' Cell where two Security Guards stood. "Sir," one of them nodded, "He somehow activated a personal holo-panel from within his confinement." Sith squinted his eye indisbelief, "How the hell--?" He stepped over to address James, "How did you do that?"  But the prisoner remained silent at this question. Sith checked the nearby control panel. The specially re-configured cell was supposed to keep everything out. It was so strong that they had begun to consider re-inforcing all the cells in the Brig the same way. "Ensign, is it possible James contacted his Moblie HQ and altered the power-output to the Cells?" The Officer next to him just shrugged in a loss for words. Sith shook his head in still disbelief. "You know, Lieutenant Commander, if you hadn't been in the Holo Arena you could have caught this before it happened," the other Officer said. Sith looked over and noticed it was Portman. "Alright, you two are dismissed," Sith ordered, mostly due to the fact he wanted to interrogate James on this. "Not a very trusting team we have here," James said as the two left. "Just tell me how you did that," Sith started. "--Or what? You'll break my nose?" James sat up. "I know about your fighting skills, Commander. I dare you to release this forcefield and show me an example of the latest martial arts." "Is small-talk another part of Section 31's directive? Because you need a little work." James remained silent for a second. He then started up again on another angle, "I heard of your exploits throughout Alliance Space. What did you see out there?" This time Sith was at a loss for words. There was too much emotion connected to then and now. "None of your business," he managed. "I know," James smiled, "Something to do with whom the Bajorans once were very aquainted with? ...Actually, it is known fact that there are a growing number of Bajorans nowadays who are rekindling their faith with the Prophets... and some the Pah'Wraith's." Sith gritted his teeth in anger, and then turned to leave immedaitely. "Where are you going?" James asked. "Is my small-talk not as up to standards as I hoped?" Sith paused just before stepping out the Brig, "No it isn't..." He then left to examine the status of the Moble HQ one more time. It seemed all James was really after was a way to get under the skin of his captor. If he could do that, then there could have been a way to manipulate him. Unfortunately Sith had now gone and James was left to his book. Oh well, he thought. It won't be long now.
RMrulz Aug 26 2004, 10:26 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison - Earth, Starfleet Command Tom walked into the room, Hardgrove, Blair, and Larkin right behind him, and let the doors close behind him. All of the admirals making up Starfleet Command were gathered in the room, and as soon as Tom entered a hush came over them all. They stopped their conversations and looked at him. For a long moment the room was draped in silence. Tom looked around the room making eye contact with each Admiral, his eyes finally coming to rest on Miasha Jenco, who was sitting in a chair at the large conference table. The two men stared at each other for a minute before Miasha rose and slowly walked over to Tom. "No security guards," Miasha spoke at last. Tom said nothing. "We know the tribunal has reached a verdict, and we know you've come to deliver that verdict," Miasha continued. "If they had ruled in your favor and found us guilty of these ridiculous charges you would have come in here with a squad of security troops. You like to feel powerful, you proved that much with the shoot-out in Starfleet Medical." Miasha was trying to get a reaction out of Tom, and Tom knew it. He simply said nothing and continued to stand there. Realizing this, Miasha continued. "So I can only assume that the tribunal had more sense than you or your lackeys." He glanced at Hardgrove with disgust as he said that. He looked back at Tom. "I guess it's finally over. At least you're gracious enough to hand back power." Tom thought he would enjoy this moment, but he wasn't feeling anything. Not even apprehension. If there was anything, it was just a bit of sadness. "You're right, old friend. It is over." Tom tapped his commbadge. "You can come in now." The door opened and a few armed guards entered. Just enough to restore order if trouble broke out. Tom watched them enter and then looked back at Miasha's face, trying to read him. He saw a quick flash of surprise and then the mask was replaced and he saw nothing. Tom turned and looked at Larkin. "Go ahead, Michael." Larkin held the holoPADD up, pushed a button, and began to read.
Captain Archer Aug 27 2004, 06:33 PM	Ambassador Michael Larkin-Starfleet Command, Earth Michael stepped forward to face the gathered Admirals. "Gentlemen, i'll cut straight to it." He tapped the padd and cleared his throat. "The following charges pertain to the case People of the Federation vs. Starfleet Command: "On the charge of breaking their oath to protect the Federation the Civilian Tribunal finds all parties involved guilty as charged." Michael looked each of the Admirals in the eye as he read the charge. He went back to his padd. "On the charge of dereliction of duty, the Civilian Tribunal finds all parties involved guilty as charged, and the final charge of plotting to overthrow the Federation, the civilian Tribunal finds all involved parties innocent." Admiral Jenco rose to his feet, "This is outrageous I demand...." Michael saw Tom about to move forward, before he could Michael interrupted Jenco "Are you challenging the validity of this verdict Admiral?" Jenco looked outraged at being interrupted, but sat back in his chair. "I demand that the entire list of charges read and their sentences....for the record." Michael looked over to Tom who nodded his approval. "Very well." Michael scrolled down the padd in his hand. "The following sentence to be carried out against Starfleet Command: "All members of Starfleet Command are to be stripped of their ranks and shall be dishonorably discharged from Starfleet. They will forgo all accumulated Federation pension plans, and be barred from serving in any branch of Starfleet for the remainder of their lives. All parties except Admiral Miasha Jenco will be sentence to ten years on the Lunar Penal Colony." Michael saw a smile make it's way across Jenco's face, he looked at Garrison, who obviously caught the Admiral's smile, and let a smile come to his face as Michael continued to read the sentence. "Because of his position as the most senior Admiral in Starfleet, Admiral Miasha Jenco shares a special responsibility to uphold the oath to protect the Federation. Because he broke this, our most sacred oath, he is sentenced......to live out the remainder of his days on the Lunar Penal Colony." The smiled dropped from Jenco's face and he slumped back in his chair, with a dumbfounded look on his face. Jenco swallowed hard "Continue Ambassador." Michael nodded. "The following charges pertain to the Federation Council: "The Civilian Tribunal finds that all parties involved are innocent on all charges. It is the judgment of the Tribunal that they were not involved on the same level. They allowed themselves to be manipulated by Starfleet Command, but they held no intent to commit a crime." "The sentence for the Federation Council reads as follows: While the Tribunal finds them innocent of any formal wrong-doing, they did not do their duty. They did not act in the best interest of the Federation. It is our finding that the Federation Council shall be disbanded. All members shall be returned to their homeworlds, to be dealt with however their respective governments see fit. New elections shall be called, to take place one year from this date." Jenco sat back up in his chair and cleared his throat "And in the meantime, we leave Earth defenseless?" Michael shook his head. "No, the Tribunal has authorized Admiral Tom Garrison, now the most senior Admiral in the service to set up a War Council, which will serve as the governing body until such time as a new Federation Council is established, or such time as the crisis situation involving the Alliance has eased and a safe transfer of power may take place." Jenco sat back down and Michael stepped back to join Hardgrove and Garrison as he shut off his padd.
Nightranger Aug 28 2004, 04:39 PM	Fleet Captian : Drayson Hardgrove Star FleetCommand Earth Hardgrove stood silent as he watched the reading of the verdict. Along side him Admiral Conor Blair grinned like the cat that swallowed the carnary.  Hardgrove glanced at his superior as he beamed with pride, and half smiled back at him. Drayson returned his attention to Larkin as he finished reading the verdict and the reactions it created. As Larkin rejoined the group and the people rose form their chairs, Hardgrove felt a hand claps his shoulder.  "The war may not be over, but we now have one less enemy to fight." He turned to see Blair beaming at him and frowned.  "Yes , perhaps you're right. We have one less enemy with command being taken care of. Maybe the Federation will be protected from themselves. But who is going to protect us from you?" Drayson drew his phaser and pointed it Blair.  Blair scowled at Hardgrove. "Drayson, what are you doing? I aided you in this little rebellion . I supplied you with all your intelligence?" "Oh, yes, Conor, you might have, but you also provided Command with my every motion, every plan, every action. The verdict said Starfleet command and last I checked you were the head of Starfleet Intelligence." Drayson nodded to a security officer and three men came to Blairs side. "By the order of the Fedeartion Citizen's Tribunal, I hereby place you under arrest." Blair smirked and then nodded as he was taken away along with the other members of command.
RMrulz Aug 28 2004, 06:44 PM	Admiral Tom Garrison - Earth, Starfleet Command Tom watched the exchange between Hardgrove and Blair. After they started to take Blair away, Tom walked over to Drayson. "What was that all about? I thought you told me he's been helping us ever since the rebellion started?" "He has been. But ever since all this started Starfleet Command has known exactly what we were up to. They've known our plans, our positions, and our movements. It was obvious we had a leak..." "Wait a minute," Tom cut him off. "Why didn't you ever tell me any of this?" "It's not your job. I'm the intelligence officer," he responded matter-of-factly. Tom was about to protest but let it go for now. "Continue," Tom sighed. "I didn't figure it out until just now, as were standing here and Michael was reading the verdict, that it was Blair. It makes perfect sense. He doesn't care which side wins, as long as he's on that side. To him, the protection of the Federation is all that matters. What has to be done to protect it, and more importantly who he sides with in his desire to protect it, don't matter to him." "It's that sort of attitude that could make for a very dangerous man," Tom mused. "Sometimes," Drayson agreed. "But sometimes that attitude is necessary. It just wasn't appropriate in this case." Before Tom could question him on what he meant, he noticed Jenco being led out of the room. "Wait!" he called out. The security officer escorting him out stopped and looked at Tom. "Take everyone else out of the room and wait outside, but leave him here. I want to talk to him alone for a minute." The guard nodded and Tom waited as everyone else was escorted out. Pretty soon all that was left was Tom, Drayson, and Miasha. "If you'll excuse us," Tom said to Drayson. Drayson shot Tom a look that told him to be careful, and then he left the room. Miasha and Tom stood on opposite ends of the room eyeing each other. Eventually Miasha sat down at the table. "So this is it," he said. "You won, I lost." Tom walked over and sat down across from him. "I don't see it that way," he replied. "You're in charge of the entire Federation. I'm being sent to prison for the rest of my life. How exactly do you see it, Tom?" Miasha spoke slowly. There was no sarcasm in his voice, just sadness in his eyes. "If anybody won, it's the Federation." "Oh how very noble sounding, Tom. But how can you say that? Billions have died at the hands of the Alliance over the centuries, and billions more will probably still die. If you had let us do what we planned none of that would have ever happened." "And what exactly did you plan? You were going to go back and stop the Alliance from becoming as powerful as it did. But how were you going to do that? What were you going to do? Who was going to die as a result of your actions? Who was never going to be born because of what you were going to do? Whose lives were going to be affected? What worlds would sink into poverty? Can you answer any of those questions? Did you even give any thought to those questions?" Miasha looked at Tom with amazement in his eyes. "I first met you when you were an 18 year old freshman sitting in my Ethics course. That was 35 years ago. In that time we've become best friends. I served as best man when you married Anika, and I was there alongside you when she died. You were named godfather to my only child. You were a pallbearer at his funeral. In all that time you should have come to know me enough so that you don't even have to ask that question." "Of course I considered those questions," he continued. "I can't tell you how many hours Command spent, in this very room, arguing about whether or not it was a fair tradeoff. I can't tell you how many hours and nights of sleep I lost trying to figure out what the best thing to do was. Did I even give any thought to those questions? More than you can ever know." Tom was taken aback. With all that had happened between himself and Miasha in recent months he had de-humanized Miasha in his mind. It made it easier to deal with the feelings of betrayal. He didn't know what to say. Jenco noticed his silence and picked up on it. "My god, Tom. What kind of man did you think I'd become? I haven't changed, I'm no different than I've always been." "No. You're wrong about that. The Miasha Jenco that I called a friend all these years would never have lied to me about Utopia Planetia simply to get me to do something illegal that you were too afraid to do." "You're still stuck on that? My god, Tom, that was months ago now. It was the right thing to do, it saved Utopia Planetia." "Maybe. But you never came to me about it. We could have worked together to save it. Instead you were so concered about your job that you used me to do your dirty work. And the worst part is, you still don't see why it bothered me so much." "My first duty is to protect the Federation, not to protect the feelings of my friends. You should understand that, Tom. The way I saw it, that was the best way to ensure the survive of the shipyards. You claim it was based on selfish motivation, and you can believe that if you want to. But I did it to carry out my first duty." "That same first duty you violated with this time travel plan?" Tom asked sarcastically. A look of hurt came over Miasha's eyes. "Everything I ever did was for the good of the Federation." "You might believe that. Before today I didn't think you did, but now I think you honestly do believe that. But it was still wrong." "Says who? You claim I don't have the right to play God and decide who lives and who dies. Well isn't that exactly what you're doing? You're condemning billions to death. Hell, you've already been responsible for so many deaths. Starfleet Medical, the battle of Betazed, and all the battles to come. They're on your shoulders, Tom." Tom thought about his words for a minute. There was a time when they would have bothered him, but they didn't anymore. "No. You could have acted years ago to stop the Alliance. But instead you holed yourselves up making these time travel plans. If we'd acted sooner, while we were still stronger, so much life could have been spared. All these deaths aren't on my shoulders. They're on yours." Miasha didn't respond. He just sat there absorbing what Tom had said. He started to wonder if Tom was right, this was the first time in a long time he had felt any doubts about their plans. He wondered if he was indeed responsible. Eventually he stood up. Tom stood up as well. "You might be right, Tom. I don't know anymore. I'm not a bad man, you know. You've managed to convince yourself that I am, but I'm not." Tom looked deep into his eyes and saw a sadness he had never seen there before. "I'm just an old man who tried to do whatever he could to save lives. And now I'm just an old man who will sit in prison until he dies someday." Miasha walked around the table until he stood inches from Tom. He slowly reached up and pulled his commbadge off his uniform. He set it on the table. He then pulled off his rank pips and, one by one, set them on the table next to the commbadge. "It was all for the Federation," he muttered, barely loud enough for Tom to hear him. He turned his back and slowly walked towards the door. Just as he was about to leave, he turned and faced Tom. "Do one favor for me?" he asked. Tom nodded. "What?" "Tell Tania I'm sorry, and that I love her." Tom blinked in surprise. "Tania? I thought you hadn't spoken to her since your son died. That was ... " Tom thought in his head. " ... almost 15 years ago." "She's still my wife, Tom. I always figured there would be time to tell her that. But now I guess there won't be. Just tell her for me." Miasha Jenco, formerly the most senior Admiral in Starfleet and now another prisoner about to be sent off to jail, turned and walked out of the Starfleet Command briefing room for the last time and into the custody of the security officers standing outside. Tom stood there by himself, alone in the empty room, thinking. Just thinking.
Ullii Aug 28 2004, 07:14 PM	Yasha Lauren - Secret Romulan Rebellion Headquarters "Do you really think it's wise, to go yourself? You are a figurehead in this rebellion, Yasha. People listen to you! Only you can show them that we can be strong enough to win!" Yasha put down her glass of water and thought about what had just been said. Just then her Uncle Meshal stepped into the briefing room, and took his place among Yasha and then eleven other members of the Council. "Who better to send than I, Commander Tavon? If I am as persuasive as you say, than itshould be I that represents us to the Federation! We cannot win without them as an ally, and you know that as well as I. If we truely wish to raise the Star Empire from out of the ashes, and truely gain the trust of our Federation neighbours, then you must send me!" "We appreciate your passion on the subject, young Miss Lauren, but we would have alsoappreciated it if you had brought this decission upon the Council, instead of taking it upon yoursef." Meshal Lauren, Yasha's Uncle, and the brother of her and Ullii's father, then spoke up, "I agree... but we all know she's right. Ullii will be contacting us again within the next few days. Yasha, I think you--" "Ullii..." A female member of the council took her turn to speak, "I still oppose the idea of involving her... she's too unpredictable... too much like her father." This made Yasha angry, and she stood up and shouted, "Our father may have betrayed us, Senitor Shana, but if we expect trust, and not to mention help, from Ullii and from the Federation, then we must first show Our trust!" She sat back down and lowered her voice, "We cannot afford to take risks, and play silly games... not this time." She analyzed the faces of each member of the council, and could tell that they all agreed with her. "Should our request be granted, I shall represent us to the Federation. As a token of good faith, I will devulge All of my knoledge to their leaders. Should my mission fail, and the Federation choose not to help us, the information I give them will still be used against our enemy." All of the members of the council noded. Yasha was not the leader of the Rebellion, but she was favored by the people, and respected by her superiors. The Council represents the wishes of the people, and votes on matters of state. There is a leader, but this role is mostly that of a figurehead, and has an equal vote among the council. The leader is called the Magistrate. "Members of the council... I ask for your blessing." Meshal spoke up once again, "All in favour of appointing Yasha Lauren as Embassidor to the Federation, say Aye." All but one of them said Aye. The one who did not was Commander Hyrol T'Loras; a double-agent for the Rebellion, and trusted advisor to Praetor Hirotus. "And how do you suggest we get you there? Hirotus has many spies in the Federation... he will find out about us! For months now have we kept our existance a secret! We cannot afford to loose that edge!" "It is worth the risk, Hyrol!" Myla N'vek, the leader of the Rebellion, finally spoke. "as the rest of us have already agreed. We must secure the Federation as an ally." "Yes Magistrate." Hyrol sat back down, and Myla spoke again. "We are agreed then. This council is dismissed."
Hawku Aug 28 2004, 09:50 PM	Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith - The Deck, Security Office Zeta lept against the door outside and made it open. He then lept inside just as Sith approached the doors and walked through. Inside, Sith met up with Tanik and Clark. "Gentlemen," he nodded. "We went over the HQ and found that James did in fact make a transmission," Clark said. "To who?" Sith asked. "That we don't know," Tanik replied. "But we can only assume the worst." Sith shook his head, "Damn!" There was a slight understanding pause between Tanik and Clark before Tanik spoke again. "Well, we'd better get out of here," he suggested. "Aye sir," Sith replied. When they turned to leave, Tanik stopped suddenly and handed over a holoPadd, "Oh I almost forgot. One of your men dropped off this report before you came. I told them to just leave it with me and I'd give it to you personally." Sith took the holoPadd in curiosity, "Oh you didn't have to--" "Actually, it's about that old scanning device you found? It was traced back to technology resembling that of what we found in the HQ." Clark stopped just between the opened doors, glancing back at Tanik and Sith. Sith was shaking his head in disbelief as they all now knew that the device was planted by Section 31. "Well that solves that mystery," Clark said. "Did they just forget about it?" Sith wondered. "It would've been very sloppy of them." "No," Tanik interrupted, "It was too high of a risk to beam it out while cloaked. They did the right thing on thier part by leaving it there, or we'd detect thier activity and start a full investigation. It wasn't until recently that thier cloaking device started deteriorating." "This Station just seems to let up more surprises everyday," Clark said. Sith nodded to them and they left. Taking a deep breath, he decided to leave his Office aswell. Zeta crawled along the floor and then extended his legs bringing him as tall enough as Sith. He then sucked his legs back in while clamping onto Sith's arm. The Deck Sith was standing at the edge of the crowded traffic. It'd been a while since he staked out the Deck; only this time someone could be coming for James. Suddenly he was approached by an old man. "Lieutenant Commander Rune Sith..." the old man reached out to shake his hand. "Um, yes...?" Sith shook back politely and confused. "I'm sorry, my name is Miyazaki. I was hoping to run into you on this Station," he smiled hopefully. Then it hit him, "Oh yeah. You're the guy who wrote the Land Vehicle Simulation." "Yes," the old man nodded. "I had heard of your race recently, and I just had to meet you." "My race?" "Yes. Your racing style is the most impressive I have seen to date." "I have to say; your program is really great. We may use the odd land-vehicle on Earth, but those are usually automated. When I drove your cars manually for the first time, I felt a connection to the ground below me. It's the same connection I've learned to have with nature." "That is most excellent. I have always thought that fighters make the best drivers." Sith shook his head, "Umm, I'd say that pilots would make the best drivers." "No, no. Take my word for it." He then took out a small chip for Sith. "This is the Vehicle you won. You forgot to claim it after your race." "Oh, thanks," Sith said while Zeta grabbed it and began scanning it. "It's actually not the one you were racing for. It's my latest work, and I want you to have it!" They began walking along the Deck, talking. "I can't just believe you being so generous over a race all of a sudden," Sith started. "You're right," Miyazaki said. "There is something I wanted to ask you. If I set up a special race event, will you partake?" Sith glanced at him curiously for a second, "Well--" "His name is Gaines Hudson, and he is the best racer in the Federation next to what I've seen you do. His car also equals that of what I just handed you. --Before you say anything, I wanted to let you know that I have created a special track for this race in Civic City. It's beyond anything you have ever seen!" Sith was overwhelmed by this offer, but had to level with this holomorph genius for just a second, "Look, I really appreciate this. I really do. But I can't," he took a deep breath, "I just have way too much work." They stopped just outside the Double~Helix. "You know, your program has actually helped me. It wasn't long ago when I was involved in a simulation that actually threatened my life. This whole land-vehicle simulation has really let me be comfortable again. But I have to focus on the Station. We're the biggest and one of the most important Stations left in the Federation, and if it's not protected right then what'll be left of us? Every person plays a definitive role now, and the Alliance is starting to realize how much of a threat we are. I can't lose focus... not now." "You are right," Miyazaki replied, "But every man needs to race." "Yeah, but---" "I'll see you there," Miyazaki smiled and gave Zeta another chip. On it was information on the upcoming Event. "Wait a second, I just said n---" But Sith was left as the old man continued walking into the confusion of the crowd. Rune Sith shook his head in disbelief. *Click!?*