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[USS Discovery - Main Shuttle Bay - Shuttle Allegany]

"Stand by all thrusters, we're within range." the Captain stated, watching on his monitor as the fight commenced.  Boy how much better it would have been if his access code could have disabled the buoys, but it was made clear that his access was to the facility; only a group with a name like Intelligence would act so dull as to give someone a key to the house but not the key to the alarm system.

"Allegheny to Beta Bridge, ready to launch.  I suggest you decompress the shuttlebay to give us speed." he called, turning to Grippen.

"I hope you're ready for evasive maneuvers." he said, as an alert sounded from the shuttlebay, and the protective forcefield deactivated.

"Now!" he ordered, as the landing struts were disengaged and the shuttle was pulled out into space.  The shuttle was reoriented back to the galactic plane, and right into the buoy field.  The focus remained on the bigger threats and the shots that did come towards them were lanced with phasers, either from the shuttle, or from the hulls.  As soon as they were 3/4 of the way through the field, Nevir hit the comms.

"Tekin to Discovery; break off your attack, we are-"

Suddenly static as the comm cut.  The shuttle shuddered as it was hit and Nevir tried to assess systems.  Except there was a code showing.  A carrier wave with a hidden message.  It was... familiar.  The Captain put in an algorithm from his early years and the code was revealed.

Ja'lat.

Hrafn... he thought, and he tried to figure out why he was getting a code from his wife.  But now was not the time, as a console in the back suddenly sparked, and the computer alerted them that lifesupport was failing.  "Patch that system!  Try to restore it!" he shouted, but the system was proving itself to not be repairable for an unknown reason.  He returned to the code and was about to reply when another message appeared.

Shields. Transport.

"We're abandoning the shuttle, drop the shields.  Prepare for transport." he stated, tapping the control again for Discovery.

"Tekin to Discovery, we have made contact with someone on the station.  We are beaming over due to life support failure. Tekin out."

Within a few moments, all of them started to transport, and then.... blackness. 

[[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge] (0830)

With their presence noted by the buoy's long range scans, he knew from experience that the buoys would automatically reposition themselves in a more defensive net wall from the vector of approach.  This meant that instead of encountering just a handful of buoys, the ship would be faced with dealing with them 'en masse'.

His thoughts on how to counter this were interrupted by Lieutenant Lorut's query regarding the comms personnel.   Comms were technically under his role of Operations Chief but since he was also going to be command of the ship during whatever attempt they made (since the Captain would be on the Away Team), he figured that having someone cover Lorut's position on the bridge would be the best.   "Yes, Lieutenant.  Do so."

"To my recollection, the 'friendly' designation is something that has to come from the station. However with no contact with the station, it is unlikely we will have that as an option.  But I suppose once nearer... it maybe possible to scan for what frequencies they are using between one another and attempt to falsify that signal."  Rayek mused.  He looked to the Captain.  "I don't see any harm in the attempt."

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]
(0830 hours)

At his first officer's suggestion, replying to Lachlyn's suggestion, the Captain couldn't help but shrug.  "Remember that these aren't typical Federation equipment.  Its almost assumed that they have failsafes to prevent being tricked, even by Starfleet.  That said... let's try it." he said, though he was sure he knew how it was going to turn out.

USS Discovery
Bridge

Vila tapped her foot, needing the input of the movement. Another round of breathing exercises. They were still in space, not yet that close to their target destination. She needed to calm down.

"Yes, sir," she said, maintain the Console and system at current levels.

Rayek then interrupted her internal strife.
She pressed some buttons.

"No reply, sirs, nothing..." she said. A few more buttons. "Opening a different channel." More silence. "Nothing still...." She sighed deeply. That was not a good sign.

She stood up when the Commander advised her to head to Shuttlebay and relay messages. She nodded. "Shall I call up Lt. T'Prith to take over on the way?" She asked. Comms couldn't be unmanned. While she thought she was the only one who could do it, she knew logically that wasn't true. She made her way to the Shuttlebay, where she connected with both Engineering and Medical. She arrived to find both department's reps.
"Hello, Ramort, Dr. Morita," she said. "I have made sure that the Allegheny has enough EV suits available for our team-fifteen, but since we will not have access to the Station's replicators, if we will need more, we will have to replicate them HERE," she said. "Please let me know if that number is enough," she said. "We will also, concievably, need one for any survivors. I will bring along five more," she said. "Dr. Morita, please ensure that your team is ready to receive any survivors. We have no idea if there are any, but it's good to be prepared."

She turned next to M'Nia, the Caitian. "Lt. M'Nia. Please advise if I need to prep anything for Engineering at the final destination. The Shuttle will be ready to go as soon as Captain gives his orders." She stepped aside then, and radioed back to Rayek.

"Commander, Science and Engineering assure me we're prepped for departure. I will bring along an extra five (5) EV suits, in case of survivors. Any further orders?

A bit later, the extra EV suits had been replicated and stowed away in the shuttle for safekeeping. She found the Captain.
"Captain Tekin. The Shuttle is fully prepped and awaiting your orders to launch," she said. She wanted to ask him, jokingly, if he'd managed to secure himself one of the Militia's rifles in their off time, but didn't.
Later, she boarded the shuttle, and prepped for takeoff.
The Comms from the Discovery came through.
"Captain, the Commander is on the line," she said, putting it through so the assembled team could hear.
She waited for Tekin to reply, her breath a bit baited. Maybe next time, she'd pick someone a little younger, and a little saner, for this kind of thing.

[Ensign Novi - Alpha Sickbay >>> Beta Hull]

"Okay everyone remember this is not a drill! We are moving to a combat zone! All systems are green!" Novi nodded to the 2 Damage control engineers standing by the CMO's office and they both gave her a smile of encouragement. One of them was even a lieutenant and so the move made her feel a little better having to move back into a combat situation. A thing she should be okay with on what is a warship but her experience with her first combat mission still kept her a little worried. But just like in that situation this is not the time to panic. Apparently the station has quite a few defenses so injuries would be inevitable. As she watched the crew prepare themselves she could feel her foot tapping the floor uncontrollably. A human habit she learned to help recognize stress and anxiety and know she is under elevated levels of cortisol.

Going into a fight on Discovery is very different then Revenant. She made sure everything was okay before she quickly rushed to Beta Hull. Medical was going to be a little short but she had to run to the shuttlebay. She had her medkit, filled a little more full then standard and rushed to find her superiors already at the shuttlebay.

Novi's breathe was notably a little stressed. She tried but couldn't hide it. "Looking at our equipment it appears most things are here for me." The decontaminator, a few pieces of equipment to help set broken bones and purge any poisons along with some heavier equipment that can pick up more hidden biological damgers then a simple medical tricorder. Such equipment was Novi's bread and butter and anything else she had in her medkit already prepared. But a shuttlebay can unfortunately hold only so much for everyone and even though Novi knew it was impossible. She couldn't help but fret over all the other things she's knowingly leaving behind. But with the Captain and other high ranking officers here she did her best to sound in control as the ship rocked and entered MVA mode.

This wasn't Novi's first away mission. As CMO, and only solid medical crew, on the Revenant whenever they had to go down to a surface or station on a mission she had to go with the teams. She wasn't worried about that but still. As the ship seperated into MVA and she felt the slight bumps and motion of evasive maneuvers and hits to the ship she couldn't help but feel she was suffocating in this shuttlebay. Hell, it wasn't even her first time in a shuttle, getting shot at, with a high possibility of death! She should not feel this way! Sneaking her hands into her robe she grabbed a pocket hypospray that just contains one shot and stealthily injected it into her wrist. A few minutes later she felt herself calming down. She was still fully aware of herself but with the adrenaline lightly suppressing her adrenaline she could calm down and focus a lot better.

She waited for the order to launch...

[USS Discovery - Deck 10 - Main ShuttleBay]
(at present, 1035 hours)

He took the seat next to the helm and nodded to Vila's report.  "Thank you, keep everything primed and divert auxillary power to the shields once we launch.  I'm still trying to figure out if we needed more weapons." he said, shaking his head as the rest of the team boarded.

Soon enough, while they were on standby, the ship shuddered as it separated.  In an instant the shuttlebay sent from being in the middle of the main ship, to the lowest deck on their hull.  Things calmed down for a long moment, when the shaking started again... but this time it was different.  Weapons fire.

"Discovery has engaged.  Everyone strap in; we're likely going in hot." he stated.  "Stand by thrusters, override door controls and open them.  We'll launch when Beta gives the go ahead."

Another sharp shudder and the Captain frowned.  "I'm not even sure how well they are acting against the weapons platform... For all we know, they are in a completely different class."

[[USS Discovery, Gamma Bridge, Earlier]]

[USS Discovery, Gamma Bridge, Earlier]

Ah yes, the joys of juggling many priorities and tasks. "Permission granted, pull in off-duty science crewmen if you need to. This mission is a high priority. And we can do only what we can..."

[USS Discovery, Deck I, Bridge, 0800 hrs]

T'was the next day. Malik had enjoyed a peaceful rest dreaming of his medieval holodeck adventures in the Treustein Forest. The Risan was in the centre seat on bridge duty, a position a small few senior officers held on rotation with the CO & XO available on call at all times. Grippen spoke to the on duty helm officer, "Ensign Malloy, what's our current position?"

"We are now entering sensor range of the coordinates, sir."

"Excellent. Maintain course and speed. "Captain and Executive Officer to the bridge, we are now entering sensor range of the station."

To the on-duty science officer, Malik said "Commence long range scans of the arrival coordinates, let's see what we're getting into." Malik then awaited the arrival of the captain and first officer to hand over.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The Captain was silent, his mind trying to think of the multitude of possibilities that would explain the lack of contact.  None of them seemed particularly beneficial, and it was becoming clear that there was cause for Intelligence to be concerned.  At Rayek's question over hailing the station, he looked over at him and nodded, allowing the attempt to be made.  Not surprisingly, there was no answer.

The ship was still continuing, and Rayek gave the orders to form the away team.  His special treat.. the chance to be on the away team instead of on the bridge.  Somehow, this wasn't the type of mission he wanted. It seemed more dangerous.  Because it was.

With a disturbed sigh, the Captain stood up in his chair.  "Mr Rayek, you have the Bridge.  Alert me if there is any comms traffic from the station." he said, turning and getting ready to leave the bridge.

[[USS Discovery, Gamma Hull, Bridge]]

[USS Discovery, Gamma Hull, Bridge]

The MVA separation had been a success so far as he could tell, and the first Malik had actually been involved in. The Discovery tended to solve most of its issues through diplomacy rather than battle.

"Gamma bridge to captain and first officer. All systems within normal parameters, ready to reconnect."

Turning to Lorut, Malik responded "Suggestions? You can relax lieutenant, you performed the drill without error. Cut yourself some slack."

He then turned to Alvarez, his battle-bro of HangerBay-47. "How goes preparations for our arrival?"

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room] (10:30)

Rayek heard the irritation but chose to ignore.  He knew he was pushing her beyond her comfort zone, but that was necessary to see if she could handle a Department Head position.  As yet the role still lay with him but it was clear he
had her in mind.

"Thank you Lieutenant."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck 3 - s'Lhoell quarters] (12:15)

Busy as Rayek was, the Romulan made certain he set aside time to have his midday meal with his wife and son.  While Tess graciously prepared lunch, Rayek was sprawled out on the floor beside Fvienn who was playing with the set of tiny plastic dinosaurs that had been Benjin's latest gift to Fvienn for his third birthday.

Rayek smiled to his wife as she called the two of them to the dining table. Fvienn must be hungry, he noted in amusement, as his son dropped the toys to the ground and ran to the table eagerly. Rayek was left to pick up the toys and place them into the nearby toybox.  As he collected a few scattered velociraptors (Fvienn's favorite now that the ship had its very own hologram of one) from the table, Rayek noticed on his PADD an flashing indicator, noting that two messages had been sent to him.  Rayek had purposefully set his comm to mute all but the Captain or Lieutenant Commander Grippen. Family time was that important to him.

Still, the Romulan was curious, so he glanced at the message headers and noted that it was from Junior Lieutenant Ramort and Junior Lieutenant Lorut.   While Tess served up Fvienn a bowl of soup, Rayek quickly read through the messages.  He nodded. Lorut had selected herself - which honestly would have been his decision as well.  Ramort however had selected the Vulcan.  That was not at all whom Rayek would have chosen - the Romulan being fully aware of his own cultural bias.

When Tess called to him a second time, Rayek nodded and moved to join his family at the table.  He quickly replied to Ramort's message with a brief acknowledgement of the selection, and sent it off before placing his PADD aside to enjoy the meal with his family.  Duty would call him away soon enough.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Beta Hull - Deck 6 - Battle Bridge]

" Beta Bridge to Commander Grippen, acknowledged.  tr'Lhoell to Tekin.  Beta Bridge is clear for re-assembly on your orders."

Rayek nodded at the science officer's suggestion.  "Yes, an excellent suggestion for those times when we do have access to the transporters. "

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Executive Officer Log  - 2300 hrs

We continue on course for the unnamed secret station, and should be within long range scan of it by 0800 hrs.  This will give us some better clarity of what we might be dealing with.  If all goes well, we should arrive at 1100hrs tomorrow.  I hope by then Engineering and Ops will have completed their check and repair of the ship's systems.

I've been provided names of those selected for the Away Team and have forwarded those names on to the Captain and Commander Grippen for any last minute mission details that the Captain might have been told to withhold.

Training of Security personnel has gone well and has prepared the team for any number of anti-boarding measures the station possesses - including variable gravity and anesthezine gas.

Lastly, the results of the second Multi-Vector Attack drill were improved greatly by the use of the transporters for key personnel.   Our time got down to 48 seconds with only a handful of personnel from secondary stations arriving after a minute.  I'll be looking at the reasons for their delay later.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The Captain nodded, and took a breath.  "Ops, begin reintegration sequence.  All departments submit your results to Commander Rayek within the hour." he said, closing the comm channel to the other hulls.

"Good work all.  Let Mr. Rayek know I am in my Ready Room." the Captain said, before turning around and leaving the bridge.  He sighed to himself as he entered the room, and locked it, before taking a seat at the desk.  As had been his routine, Nevir activated his computer, looking through as much information as he could about this station they were heading towards.  The words of the briefing still went through his head, and he frowned.

"Computer.... set up a secure channel to Bajor.  Tekin Residence." he ordered, waiting while the computer tried to set up the connection.  He was only met with a message that stated the family had departed for a vacation while his wife was on Earth.  Another sigh, and he closed the channel.

"Computer, set up a secure channel to Captain Galloway of the USS Challenger." he said, waiting for the channel to connect.  If he couldn't consult his wife, maybe he could consult a friend... one who shared the distrust of Starfleet that many of his own crew and himself had.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[USS Discovery, Gamma Bridge, Earlier]

Ah yes, the joys of juggling many priorities and tasks. "Permission granted, pull in off-duty science crewmen if you need to. This mission is a high priority. And we can do only what we can..."

[USS Discovery, Deck I, Bridge, 0800 hrs]

T'was the next day. Malik had enjoyed a peaceful rest dreaming of his medieval holodeck adventures in the Treustein Forest. The Risan was in the centre seat on bridge duty, a position a small few senior officers held on rotation with the CO & XO available on call at all times. Grippen spoke to the on duty helm officer, "Ensign Malloy, what's our current position?"

"We are now entering sensor range of the coordinates, sir."

"Excellent. Maintain course and speed. "Captain and Executive Officer to the bridge, we are now entering sensor range of the station."

To the on-duty science officer, Malik said "Commence long range scans of the arrival coordinates, let's see what we're getting into." Malik then awaited the arrival of the captain and first officer to hand over.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

As soon as he heard the call, the Captain left his Ready Room and re-entered that bridge.  And got there just in time for the first order.

"Belay that order.  Computer, initiate security protocol Tekin-Alph- Correction, Tekin-Omega-One. Starfleet Intelligence has strict requirements about our sensor data.  Alright... now you can resume scans." he said, heading for the big chair.

"Let me know when we are within visual range."

[[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery -  Deck One - Bridge] (1030hrs)

That Lek didn't respond back, either in argument or agreement, gave the Romulan a bit of heads up that the Ferengi was upset - and withdrawing into himself.  Rayek mentally reviewed his own reply.  Could he have worded it a more supportive way yet still got across the message to not make assumptions as to what they might be dealing with once they arrive?  Possibly but the Romulan didn't have time to mince words.

Oh well, perhaps it was time for he and Lek to have a Face-to-Face meeting as well...so that they could talk openly.

Rayek acknowledged each Department Head's response with a nod.  Then given the priority of the current mission suggested that department reports could be sent to him by the end of day.

The meeting wrapped up swiftly after that.  Rayek gave a slight gesture to the Captain indicating that he would like to speak to him discreetly afterwards.

Once alone in the conference room, Rayek posed a question that had been gnawing at him since the Captain first had the ship jump to warp 9.9.   "Captain, if there is such urgency with this mission.   Why are we not using slipstream to arrive that much sooner?"  Slipsteam could have shortened their travel travel by nearly a day.   Two hours versus twenty-six.  Twenty-three and a half now.  Was the delay imposed by Starfleet Command, or was the Captain giving his crew much needed time to get the feel of working together again?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~
[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Bridge  >>  Deck 6 - Battle Bridge] (16:00)

It was 8 hours into the ship's 26-hour journey, and Rayek was looking over several outpost schematics - apparently Starfleet Headquarters didn't feel they 'needed to know' the layout of the station in advance.  With the information provided, Rayek had selected out 3 mostly likely schematics and had passed these on to Tanner to have her security teams practice with in the holodecks, in case a boarding was necessary.  He'd already informed her that she would be assigned to the Away Team along with one of her teams.   He figured whichever station design they were dealing with could be the determining factor as to which Security team was selected to go.  Because of the mission priority, the teams searching for the missing commbadge were recalled and assigned to one of the holodeck scenarios.

A buzz on his PADD drew his attention from the schematic he'd been studying.  Earlier he'd set instructions for two  randomized timers.  The first had just sounded.

Rayek opened a ship-wide comm. "Attention All Hands.  Prepare for MVA.  Bridge Teams and support personnel head to your assigned location.  This is a timed drill. REPEAT - this is a timed drill.  Timer starts now.  tr'Lhoell out." Rayek said as he pressed the timer on his PADD.

He rose from his seat and gave the Captain a slight nod in parting before his long strides took him to the turbolift.   Once in the lift, Rayek called out:  "Executive officer override.  Deck 6."

"Voiceprint recognized.  Acknowledged. Deck 6."

By this method, Rayek had sole use of the lift.  And had calculated a time of 45 seconds to arrive at his destination.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

Of all the officers he dismissed, the one he kept his eyes on was Lek.  It was difficult for him to admit, being both a product of and a voice of the very system that the Ferengi was not happy about, that he too agreed with his Chief Engineer.  There was some resistance he had found out from Starfleet Intelligence asking for this assignment to be assigned to someone else, and watching his Engineer leave he could understand why.  But at the end, SI was as tied up as Starfleet itself; they didn't have the luxury of picking and choosing.

As a result of his thinking, he nearly missed the question from his first officer.  He sighed, giving a frown, as he looked over at the Romulan.  "The slipstream technology is derived from research done on USS Voyager, but it is based on Borg tech.  Both Admiral Janeway, Captain Tuvok, and Captain Seven, all three of which were part of the crew of Voyager, recommended research and testing to see if the Borg signal had any lasting effects on Borg systems.  Discovery was going to be part of that testing, but Starfleet needed their ships out there.  USS Melenche was nearly destroyed and they lost their command crew, so that ship is being rebuilt for slipstream testing.  We're limited to conventional warp power until they are confident using the slipstream won't reactivate any Borg signals."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Hours Later... near 1600 hours]

They still had some time, but not as much as they wanted.  Lek was a miracle worker as usual, and after the drill the Captain planned to go down to Main Engineering.  It was getting close to time, and Nevir tapped his comm.

"Bridge to Engineering, status on Alpha and Gamma warp cores?"

After he got the confirmation, he looked at the chronometer.  As the timer neared 1600 hours, he turned to Rayek and nodded, starting the drill.  After his announcement, as Rayek was leaving, the Captain called out to him.

"I'm keeping it on auto for now... we're just testing crew response right now." he stated, as the Romulan left.  He waited for the alotted time he estimated for Rayek and Malik to get to their position, and then stood up, stepping forward a bit.

"Computer, initiate Multi-Vector Assault Mode, authorization Tekin-two-pi-alpha."

The klaxon went off throughout the ship as the blue hues of Blue Alert lit up.  There was a very, very small window of time for the crew to make it to their stations, but most should have already been near if not in their positions.

Initiationg Decoupling Sequence.  Auto separation in 10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Separation Sequence in progress.

There was a shudder throughout the ship as the three hulls separated and flew in formation still at cruising warp.  The Captain waited for a moment, even as the computer asked for an attack pattern.

"And time... Bridge to Beta Bridge." he called out, and the viewscreen changed to show the interior of the first of two battle bridges.

"Rayek, how did we do?"

[Shadow Fleet Vision for 2024]

Good day all, as last year's Distinguished Commander, it is my honor and pleasure to announce the vision for Shadowfleet in this coming year:

Shadow Fleet Vision for 2024

A new year brings new possibilities for our roleplay community. Throughout the second half of 2023 we expanded our recruitment efforts and brought in a host of talented and wonderful players, enabling us to bring a third SIMM online. We want to continue the expansion and drive Shadow Fleet forward to even bigger things.

As such, we aim to achieve the following goals by the end of 2024.

Our primary goal by the end of 2024, is to expand into a fourth SIMM and have all SIMMS fully populated and posting daily. It's a big ask, but one we will work hard towards achieving. We will require the help of all our players in achieving this goal. If you have experience in the areas of social media management, graphic design or web development/html and have time to spare, let us know!

We will publish and act on the feedback you have given us in the Annual Survey 2023, to ensure we make our community the best place it possibly can be. Further posts will be coming on how we are acting on your feedback
We will undertake an exercise to refresh all the forum's Help Files, stickied posts and other reference information up to 2402 standards. We will vet all information on the forum for accuracy and consistency.
We will continue to uphold the core Shadow Fleet values of collaboration, community and creativity. It's our tight-knit and welcoming players that sets us apart from other roleplays. We will foster cooperation and continue to provide a safe-space for lovers of Star Trek and Roleplaying.
Above all, Shadow Fleet will remain the internet's premier destination for Star Trek roleplaying through thrilling new missions, story arcs and exciting featured events. We aim for Shadow Fleet to be the best possible place to roleplay your characters' journey through the cosmos and grow, live, and experience their lives to the fullest.
Thank you to all our players, and let's make 2024 the best year yet!

Special thanks to Malik Grippen for formatting and wording this vision.

[[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]]

[USS Discovery-Bridge- Deck One]

(Pre Time Jump)

For a brief moment, Tanner had drawn a blank on her next move regarding the department meeting. She'd almost hilariously let out an audible, 'Duh' as her gears began turning again.

Replacement. She needed to call in a replacement while she was away.

Within moments after that, Tanner had sent a message to Dranik, requesting he set another to lead the combadge search as he was to be replacing her on the bridge when it was time. They'd worked together long enough for her to know he'd pick someone capable to take over in his stead.

(Post Time Jump)

Taking the chair next to Ramort, Tanner swivelled in it gently. She'd been promoted right before Frontier Day, and this was technically her first department head meeting occurring while not in repair mode.

"Do we know what kind of sensitive research?" Tanner asked, looking at the rest at the table, "That's a very broad term to plan for."

[Doctor Betaika - USS Discovery Main Conference Room]

Doctor Betaika entered the conference and made no comments to the other crew members. No one was from his department and he could tell that Commander Rayek is only present virtually. A shame, the prescence of the only other Romulan on this vessel would've eased his apprehension a little but he knew his duty and his orders and so took a seat. Taking a few minutes of lull time before the Captain formally began to give out orders that once he returns from the meeting the medical are permitted to return to standard shifts and rotations. Before turning his full attention to the Captain.
Upon the Commanders entrance into the room Dr. Betaika greets him with a small nod of his head.

Betaika had no words on the matter. Secret bases are no secret so this was hardly a surprise. His old training from his time in the Romulan military crept back as he went through his head if the Romulans knew of this station, as far as he was aware this was one they didn't know about. Fair enough, its in the opposite direction of Romulan space after all. As a medical officer onboard a federation vessel though the "Secret base" and "Biological research" gave him pause. In his experience such a combination is never a good thing. No matter how noble the Federation percieves itself. His mind went to Crewman Savyn, he had good experience as an Epidemiologist. He should assign him with Dr. Sluchaynyy so they can both refresh themselves on various dieseases and conditions. Betaika's opinions on Vulcans were culturally complex but for a Romulan he was quite amicable with their cousin species.

"I would be interested in this information as well. As the Chief Medical Officer of this vessel I would like my department to be prepared for any eventuality with this biological research station."

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery -  Deck One - Bridge] (1000hrs)

Though the lack of reaction should have been expected - it being typical of a Vulcan, the science officer's composed and stoic reply seemed to hold Rayek's attention far longer than any on the bridge might have expected.  A long silence followed as the Romulan stared silently at Vadok.

Rayek watched the Vulcan move away to take position at the main science console. The Romulan still struck by how much the man - so physically different -  could remind him of another Vulcan he had worked with in the past.  The potent similarity drew a frown from the executive officer who, for a moment, reassessed his own reaction to the Vulcan's tardiness.  Was he doing it again it?  Letting his animosity for the Vulcan species as a whole override his professionalism and acceptance of the individual under his command?

Rayek didn't want to believe so.  He'd learned from the last time - hadn't he?

His self-assessing thoughts were interrupted as the Captain called to him.

With his being called to the Conference Room, Rayek was put on the spot as to who to give conn to.  Limited officers and far more limited bridge experience - didn't give the Romulan many good options to choose from.  He glanced over the Bridge and for a moment dreaded that he might have to hand conn to the Vulcan ensign he'd just chastised.  Then sound a behind him at the engineering panels, reminded Rayek of the officer there.

"Lieutenant M'Nia, you have the conn."  He rose from his seat and ensured he had his weapon and his PADD.  In the boardroom the holographic Romulan also stood.

Not having yet turned off the holo-commlink, Rayek heard Lorut's question to the Captain.
"Captain, I would request she stay - as the Operations representative."  He then cut the comm and strode over to the briefing room, then sat where moments before his holographic double had been.  He returned the CMO's nod with one of his own before fixing his attention to the Captain who rose to secure the door.

Rayek glanced over towards Lachlyn at her question, and then Ramort at his, while valid questions in a typical mission, the Romulan was far more versed with the secretive nature of 'need to know'.  He was however surprised at Betaika's request - having thought the other Romulan would know not to expect access to sensitive information unless 'needed'.  At present, until they knew the situation they faced, no other information was needed.

It would be irresponsible to give out sensitive biological research information if the problem the research station faced was mechanical in nature.

"I would suspect we will have to determine the answers to those questions ourselves, once we arrive."

He looked to the Captain. "Do you have a contact within Intelligence should we need addition information or support? or are we on our own and considered expendable assets?" Not a pleasant thought but one that the Romulan had long familiarity with from his time prior to his defection.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

"Request approved.  I need you here as First Officer, Miss Lorut can represent Ops."

The response was... expected.  Confusion, apprehension, and distrust.  Nevir couldn't blame them.

"The need to know is that there is biological research going on.  They gave us a list of countermeasures to prepare for, but even that was like pulling teeth.  They stressed multiple times that they didn't want us going, but they had no choice." he said, shaking his head.

"I will be candid here.  I don't trust this. So soon after the idiocracy of Fleet Mode, the infiltration of Changelings, and the near extermination of Starfleet less than a year ago... anything that comes from Starfleet Intelligence is lacking in that very thing. For all I know we are flying into a trap.  But at the same time... we have a responsibility to follow orders, and a responsibility to the well-being of all personnel. This is very much a case of we are the only available vessel in range.  I may not have faith in Starfleet Intelligence, but I do have faith in all of you.  We have handled the worst already, and even though we have sustained losses, especially last year, we are still here, together."

"Mr. Lek, I know you are going to be busy with anything the dry dock tech missed or messed up, but I want you to work on securing our power systems and protecting the warp cores.  Miss Lorut, keep an open sensor scan around us and see how much power you can get to boost them.  Mr. Ramort, Science will work with Medical to see what we are dealing with.  Make sure these countermeasures are in adequet supply and ready to go. Mr. Grippen, work with the new flight officers and get some flight training for this type of vessel. Miss Lachlyn, Mr Reyak, I want us on heightened alert, and lets get at least two MVA drills before we arrive.  Also, this is a case where I will have to be with the away team, as I have to use my command codes just to gain entry... Captain level and above."

"Any questions?"

[[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery -  Deck One - Bridge] (earlier - 0830 hrs)

As several bridge personnel left, Malik, Lorut, Ramort - Rayek watched the seemless transition as junior personnel took over.  Rayek had called in Petty Officer Forscher to take over for Lorut.  She had arrived promptly, seemingly before Lorut had fully wrapped her head around the fact that Rayek had called on her to attend as his proxy for Operations.

Rayek was still awaiting the Captain's permission to virtually attend the briefing from the Bridge, when Ramort's relief finally arrived.  Not knowing that the ensign had only been called to take over the science station AFTER Ramort had left the Bridge, the Romulan was judging the Vulcan's timing tardiness on the assumption that he had been called for relief prior.   "Good of you to finally arrive, Ensign.  Do try to not dawdle next time. Or I'll have Ramort run drills to improve response times for the entire science department." the Romulan remarked with an unimpressed frown.  He'd expected better from a species that were known far and wide for their impeccable timeliness..   unless of course it was to deliver red matter to a star going nova.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

The Captain silently walked into the room and took his place at the head of the table.  He glanced over at the officers there, noting the abscence of familiar faces, until he finally looked over at Rayek.  It was nearly seamless, but it was easy to tell that Rayek had decided to remain on the bridge.

"Commander, the information here is not to leave this room.  Please come in physically." he stated calmly, waiting for the real Rayek to arrive.  Afterwards, once all departments were there, he closed the doors to the conference room.

"As I said, information is not to leave this room except on a need-to-know basis, and I mean NEED to know." he said, bringing up a deep space station that looked like a large array with a thick base in view in the center of the table.

"This is Midas Array Gamma.  Officially it does not exist.  And under regular circumstances, we would not know about it either.  From what I am able to be told, it is a biological research site for sensitive research.  The reason why we are going is because Intelligence recently lost contact with the station, and they are dispatching us to check up on the station."

[[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery -  Deck One - Bridge] (earlier - 0830 hrs)

Rayek lifted his head up from his monitoring of the on-boarding of the crew, to acknowledge the information provided by Vila.  The Romulan nodded towards the Bajoran woman.  "Thank you, Lieutenant Lorut.".  Things like this always occurred shortly after time spent at spacedock for extensive repairs. Which was why ships typically had a shakedown cruise.  To locate and correct such errors.  Though minor at present, if not corrected, they could lead to other more serious issues.

However with a ticket sent to Engineering, Rayek knew his Ferengi friend, Lek - the Chief Engineer of the ship, would have teams checking on and dealing with of all these minor 'kinks' as they cropped up.

As the discussion turned to Lieutenant Addams, and shortly afterwards to surfing, Rayek marveled at the changes to the Operations officer.   Where once Vila had been adamant that she didn't want to get to know others, she now was smiling and making friendly banter with the other bridge officers.  Quite the change.

"As vast as the galaxy is, I suspect we will meet up with her again."

[earlier - approaching 0900 hrs]

Reports came in from Engineering and then Medical each stating that the departments and systems were good to go.

"Excellent. Thank you Junior Lieutenant M'Nia."
"Rhuissa Betaika. Mnek iuyaelluoiil''ufvaidl"

Just a few last crew to board...

[0900 hrs]
Rayek, and a perhaps some of the Bridge crew, were a little caught by surprise at the Captain's announcement and flurry of orders; but surprise didn't keep the crew from acknowledging and acting on those orders.  For his part, Rayek had the ship go to blue alert - the alert coding for docking/undocking maneuvers, then as Chief of Ops he contacted Spacedock Operations to seek departure clearance.

Keen Vulcanoid (or rather Romulanoid) hearing picked up on the murmured comment by Lorut.  Given her earlier notice about the refrigeration system,  Rayek understood why she chose to not the change - but he was a bit baffled by the quietness of her comment.   "Good work, Lieutenant Lorut."

He paused a moment as Spacedock responded back to his request with "Permission granted. Fair winds Discovery!"  Rayek felt a stir of anticipation begin. He'd been planet bound for far too long now.

"Lieutenant Lorut, continue departure procedures with Spacedock.  Confirm all hatches secure.  Disengage the umbilical, and release the docking clamps."

It was just about time to fly.

Rayek paid close attention to the discussion regarding the unexpected deceleration.  The Romulan frowned.  While the Caitian engineer seemed to think that was minor and compensated for it immediately.   Such a variance could put the ship off of schedule by hours depending on the distance they needed to travel.   Rayek flagged the deceleration to the Chief Engineer to look into.

Glancing over to the Captain, Rayek wondered at their ultimate destination.  He'd mentally done the math and to his knowledge, there was nothing along the route of 245 mark 72.    Curious.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The Captain frowned at the report of the deceleration.  It was still within schedule, though that was known only to him.  But a slight variance in speed could affect the timetable... or indicate a growing problem.  There was still concern about the recent issues with Starfleet, even with the new security measures it wasn't foolproof.  Nevir stood up, shaking his head.

"Mr Rayek, at present speed it should take us 26 hours to reach our destination.  See to it that we don't lose any more speed.  I'll be in my ready room, you have the conn." he stated, not waiting for a response as he went to his ready room and opened the door, walking in and letting it shut.

Inside he went for his chair and interfaced with the computer console on a secure network.  First step was looking at the latest security updates from Starfleet.  Then the mission.

[many?]

Vila sighed, squeezing one eye shut to have a better view.

She nodded. "Excellent," she said. She waited for him to return, firing away. She was determined, serious. Also covered in dust and debris as the landscape around them exploded from the land of phaser fire. She winced as she took some back. Damn. Her aim wasn't what it once was-she was having to work harder to make a kill.

Vila hopped to her feet. "Be careful," she shouted, shaking her head. She followed him, firing as she did, as more Cardassians appeared. Why were there so many?
She nodded. "Yeah...thanks." she replied, watching the skies for more shuttles. "This is supposed to be relaxing?" She asked, an eyebrow cocked. "But no. I don't dislike science officers, in general. Just Ben," she said.

Nevir laughed.  "To be honest, I created this program in my younger years as a junior officer.  I was plenty more hot-headed than now.  Use to use this program every day once I was off duty.  Only cut back after I met the woman who ended up becoming my wife.  But dealing with your record and the incident in Engineering reminded me of me, so I dusted this thing off. Obviously you can tell I've run this program so many times I know what the stages are."

"Glad to hear about the science officers... it would be very awkward considering you are serving on a ship led by a science officer.  And trust me, I've had my fair share of distasteful Federation types. Someday maybe we can have drinks and I'll tell you the time I was framed for espionage and nearly sent to a penal colony because of some humans."

There was a sound of shuttle whine, and from the horizon there were a couple of shuttles coming back.  "Let's get inside quickly... better weapons." he stated, running up to the door of a building that would eventually be restored to an apartment complex.  Inside he made a beeline for one of the rooms where there was a pretty nice selection of heavy equipment.

"Alright... so tell me about your commanding officers.  What were their problems?"

[[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck One - Bridge]

"Excellent to hear, Lieutenant." The Romulan acknowledged with a nod.  Then recalling a notification that had come across his PADD earlier that morning, he changed subjects. "Please organize a team to do a deck by deck search.  One of the civilian engineers contracted to assist with the repairs has misplaced a comm badge lent to him during his work aboard the Discovery last week.  It's been missing since then.  Starbase Security is understandably concerned.  They've checked the ship once themselves but weren't able to find it, and it's not showing as being aboard by the sensors but have a team do a check of all the nooks and crannies an engineer can get into, just to be sure."   If nothing else, it would get the new security member familiar with every part of the ship swiftly.

The Romulan then looked towards Junior Lieutenant Ramort as the Science officer reported for duty.  Rayek offered a slight nod towards the man accepting the PADD offered him.   "Thank you, Mr. Ramort.  Welcome back."   His attention then turned to the report the man had handed him, looking it over for pertinent details, before forwarding it to the Captain.

Typically, a Captain was not the head of any one department, unfortunately the promotion and transfer of Commander Kinley had left the Discovery without their senior science officer, and at present time there was no one available to fill the role.   It had been suggested by Command that Rayek act as the Science Department Head but Rayek was already covering for Operations and had been quite honest to the Captain about his lack of qualifications when it came to science.  Tekin was quick to take up the mantle in place of Rayek.  The Bajoran Captain looked rather eager for the opportunity while they were discussing the idea of it in his office a few days back in fact,

"No, that should be all for now Lieutenant." Rayek answered Lorut's query if there were anything else to do.

Rayek shifted position in his seat.  He wasn't one for sitting, preferring instead to pace the Bridge as he oversaw the officers preparations. He didn't do so now however, as it had been pointed out to him that it gave the crew an impression that he didn't trust them to do their work properly.

At Lorut's second query, Rayek looked towards the Bajoran officer and shook his head.  "No.  Lieutenant Addams has been transferred to the Solaere outpost along with a few others such as Dersch and Gohun, under Commander Garrison's command.  With her position vacant, I'll be relying on you as the ranking Operations officer to assume additional duties and responsibilities when I am busy."
.
.

The arrival of M'Nia on the Bridge shortly after Malik's call was not surprising.  Lek had delegated the task yet again.

"Lieutenant M'Nia, what is the status of the Engineering Department?"

While he listened to her response, noting details down on his PADD for his own report to the Captain and Starfleet Command, he realized as yet no one had reported in from the Medical Department.

Dr. Thane, like so many others, had been transferred off and acting in his place was the Romulan, Dr. Betaika.  That the man was still working within Starfleet, months after the Exchange Program with the Free State had been rescinded was rather telling.  It seemed that the Federation had a new skilled immigrant.

"Mr. Grippen, please contact Sickbay and remind Dr. Betaika that we need his department's status report."

~ ~ ~ ~
As the two hour deadline approached, Rayek continued to follow the crew report-in's over his PADD. Ninety-nine percent of the crew and civilians had already reported in, including his wife and son.  Only two individuals were outstanding.  The Captain and a crewman engineer.  A ping on his PADD alerted Rayek to the fact that they were only down to one absence now.

The moment the Captain stepped onto the Bridge, a youthful voice called out "Captain on the Bridge!"

Rayek had stood up from his chair the moment he heard the call that the Captain was on the Bridge.  His reaction was mainly automatic - engrained in him at the Starfleet Technical Services Academy where he took his first training with Starfleet.  The youthful voice belonged to a new security crewmember standing 'guard' at the lift doors.   Rayek turned to face Captain Tekin, but the Bajoran seemed pre-occupied and strode into his Ready Room.  "Captain Below Deck" was called.  Curious.  Rayek sat back.  Only to rise again a minute later when the Captain-on-the-Bridge call happened again.

The Romulan was surprised to see the Captain actually lockout his Ready Room.  Afterwards, the Captain moved to the Command Chair and sat down.  Rayek however remained standing at having been addressed by Tekin. (Any excuse to be out of his seat).

"We are waiting for one last crewmem... he began. The familiar ping sounded and Rayek glanced to his PADD.

"Correction, sir.  All crew are accounted for; and stations stand ready for disembarkation on your orders. Sir."

That Lorut was eager to be doing something was evident, as even before they had orders to disembark she was chafing at the bit to get the process underway. "Not quite yet Lieutenant, but stand ready to do so."

Rayek looked to the Captain, trying to anticipate what the Captain might need at that moment.  "Do you wish to address the crew prior to undocking?"

[USS Discovery - Deck One - Main Bridge]

He nodded at the confirmation of the crew being on board and didn't waste a moment.  "All hands prepare for immediate departure.  Ops, get clearance and blow the hatches.  Helm, once we clear the outer doors set course 245 mark 72 and go to maximum warp.  All stations secure immediately." he said, walking over Rayek's question about addressing the crew.

Luckily the bridge started with action, and the Captain's focus seemed to go from the bridge to a point light years away, so that he perked up at Rayek as if he didn't hear him the first time. This was not the same Captain who was more contented only a few days ago.

"Oh... right." he stated, tapping at the controls of his chair and hitting the all comm.

"All hands, this is the Captain.  I apologize for the sudden recall and launch, but as you may have noticed Starfleet is a bit short on ships and crew.  Discovery won't be getting the fanfare she deserves, nor a shakedown cruise.  We'll be working in the kinks en route.  Starfleet had given us an important mission, and I expect you all to perform at your best, even after being off for nearly a year.  Department Heads should expect a briefing in two hours, including the senior most officers for Operations and Science. Captain out."

[And finally, it ends with me. And my favorite award:]

And finally, it ends with me.  And my favorite award:

Captain's Personal Merit Award

Awarded by the Commanding Officer of a SIMM to a player.

For this award, I went with someone who stood out to me in these last six months through our missions, and in this case she definitely made waves.  Someone who came on board feet first with a character that wasn't an expected bright eyed cadet, but an older officer with a chip on her shoulder and one foot already out of the door from Starfleet.
This player used the lore of her race to craft a flawed character, opening the way for a personal story of overcoming trauma and letting go of the past.  Whether that happens is up to her, but I completely enjoy reading and engaging with this player.  The Captain's Personal Merit, and last award of this period, goes to:

Lieutenant JG Lorut Vila

Congratulations to all who received recognition, and good luck to those looking to gain one of these honors in July.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Bridge/Captain's Ready Room]

Nevir walked through the turbolift doors and paid no heed to the Bridge as he crossed quickly to his ready room, PADD in hand.  He was only in there for a minute or so before he stepped back out and into the Main Bridge itself.  He pressed a button on the control door by the door and locked it.

Finally, he turned to the Bridge itself.  It was familiar and different all at once.  His daughter was no longer on board.  She was off on Bajor with her mother.  He honestly didn't know if she would stay in Starfleet.  He looked at the crew, some new faces, some old, a lot of ghosts. Shaking his head for a moment, he walked forward and took a seat in his chair.

"Mister Rayek, what is the status of our crew?"

[Posting Ability]

And now its time to get into the awards for the different categories.  Please give a congrats to the following:

Posting Ability

Posting Excellence Award

This award goes to a player who has demonstrated consistent high quality posting skills.

Lieutenant Tanner Lachlyn

Descriptive Combat Award

Awarded to those who demonstrate an ability to convey the action of combat.

Lieutenant junior grade Lorut Vila

Technical Precision Award

Awarded to those who demonstrate great knowledge of their profession.

Lieutenant Jettis Jyur

Best Newcomer Award

Awarded to the new arrival who displays the most effort and ability.

Ensign Novi

Most Improved Player Award

Awarded to the player who has greatly improved in their posts since the last awards ceremony.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Jayden B. Dersch

Most Engaging Member Award

Awarded to the player who writes the most emotionally engaging, scene-setting posts.

Lieutenant Commander Malik Grippen

Best Duo Award

Awarded to the two players who have shown the highest levels of cooperation.

Lieutenant Tanner Lachlyn and Lieutenant Jettis Jyur

Rib Tickler Award

Awarded to the player with the most humorous posts.

Lieutenant Commander Malik Grippen

Extra Contribution

Fleet Service Ribbon

Awarded to players who guest star in another SIMM or in a Joint Mission.

Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas as NPC Ensign Meelar Phlome (USS Challenger crew)

Crew Choice Award

This is the award voted on by you, the crew of the Discovery.

Lieutenant Tanner Lachlyn

[Captain's Log, Stardate 79005.2]

Captain's Log, Stardate 79005.2

Eight months.  It had taken eight months for Discovery and her crew to recover, and to be honest, I don't think the crew is fully healed.  Unfortunately, there is a large hole in our healing caused by a sizeable loss of crew.  The most that I have personally ever lost under my command.  Any other Captain might have taken that as a hint to retire, were it not the fact that I am not the only one, or even the one with the most.

Nearly 35% of our youngest officers lost their lives, and more than 60% of the older officers.  Starfleet command brass wasn't spared from the massive loss of life, but luckily the highest ranking and influential officers who had been impersonated by the changelings were kept alive. And that is the personnel.  The fleet's readiness level was down to 20% or less according to Starfleet Intelligence; that remaining 20% coming from the few ships that were kept on patrol like the Challenger, or the Titan.  My temporary assignment with the Enterprise-D has recently ended while the ship travels with her original command crew to her final resting place at the fleet museum.

Whether by the Prophets or just good timing, the Discovery is one of the first ships of the line restored and ready for service.  The benefit of having an older Prometheus class meant the disintegration of the fleet mode systems was much easier than the newer classes that had the foundation built into their structure. The truth is, however, that Discovery, as resilient as she is, has been going through more repairs and refits than was expected, even as a warship, and as a result, her days in service are likely numbered. The priority is low, but I have been made acutely aware that there may come a time when my orders are to bring her to decomissioning. I just hope I get a few more years out of her at least before that happens.

Luckily, my recall to Discovery is a little more heartwarming, as we prepare for a shakedown cruise plus priority mission, one that currently has some of the highest levels of secrecy.  Which is why I did not expect to cross through Spacedock's ops so soon....

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Earth Spacedock - Operations to Temporary Starfleet Headquarters]

The lower half of Spacedock was still under repairs and reconstruction, but luckily there was no risk of debris re-entering the atmosphere.  Most of the docking rings were still either mission or under construction, which meant very few ships were able to be stationed inside.  Discovery was one of those ships, but it was because she was the first group of 5 ships ready for launch. Which is why Captain Tekin Nevir found himself crossing through the familiar Ops station towards the Admiral's office, which was currently the temporary headquarters for Starfleet's top brass.

The Bajoran had already contacted his XO and put into motion the recall of his crew.  Now it was just finding out his mission.  They couldn't afford to waste time on shakedowns, so their first outing would have to do.  That part he expected.  What he didn't expect was to be told that he had to physically see the Admirals to receive his mission.  He had only made it two steps in when he was stopped.

"Hold it, this will only take a second Captain." stated the now familiar voice.  Nevir looked up to see the older face of Starfleet's newest admiral. It didn't take long for Nevir to suddenly be bathed in bluish lights that traveled up and down his body.

"Dr Crusher, this is unexpected-" he began, but was then shushed.

"He's him.  Tekin Nevir, Captain of the Discovery."

"Thank you, Doctor." spoke another familiar voice, as the Admiral he saved stepped into view and took a seat.  "Sorry for the delay, we are testing a new sensor sweep for the changelings based on Dr. Crusher's transporter scanners.  Better than energizing every single person who walks through that door."

"Fair enough, thank you Doctor." Nevir added, taking a seat.  There were other top brass too, but many chose to stick to the shadows.  Maybe to avoid having their faces seen by a possible threat.

"Captain, we are about to send you on an important mission of a sensitive nature.  Everything here is for Security Level 10, is that understood?"

"Yes sir.. but 10... thats reserved for Omega isn't it?  Is that what we are dealing with?"

"Luckily no, the difference between that directive and this one is that you are allowed to share information on a need-to-know basis only... Senior staff only.  Starfleet Intelligence has a research station not on the charts.  It is apparently classified as a so-called 'black site'."  There was a throat clearing in the shadows, and Nevir's attention went to the person responsible before the admiral continued.

"Normally Starfleet Intelligence would be handling this, but they are as crippled as the general fleet. So we are sending you out there.  The purpose of the site is classified, but prepare for biological hazards.  What you are doing is doing a check on the site.  We've recently lost contact with them following reports of unrest.  Without the ability to send a ship, we are fearing the worst."

As if reading his mind, one of the SI officers spoke up and took a small step forward.  They were still in shadow, but he could see the uniform.  He couldn't be sure, but he could have sworn the comm badge was... black.

"The site was too far away to be affected by the Borg. Whatever happened there is of an unknown cause. Find out what you can, provide aid where available, and then leave the site.  Here is the information you are cleared for."

Nevir took the PADD in his hand and looked it over.  There was no access for the data to come onto or off of the PADD, it was basically as useful as a book.  There were several things that he wanted to ask, or state.  The most stupid of which is commenting that every time there is a secret site, its always something horrible and objectionable, but the Bajoran kept his mouth shut.

Here we go again...