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How did you find Shadow Fleet?
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["Certainly Commander. Unfortunately, because of the attack here, we departed Starbase 185 before the yard apes were finished with Challenger's upgrades. We've had ta finish the work on the fly while en route here. Our previous mission stressed the older isolinear chips throughout the ship ta hell and back and many have started ta fail, so we've been goin' through them like shyte through a goose, but worry not. We've got the replicator mass ta make whatever you need. Only shortage we have is Ops and Engineerin' is workin' double shifts already ta get us back in Bristol Fashion, so I nae have many personnel ta be lendin' you."]

[Commander Nira Said | Operations Center | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Senior officers were trickling back and everybody getting back to their duties when Nira came back, with her list to Captain Galloway. She smiled when she saw Ian and Don together; coupled between her and Torra, it was a reunion in terms of the Discovery.

"Glad to see you, Captain Galloway," Nira said. "I do have some things to show you. We're in especial need of some computer systems and isolinear chips to help with our systems, especially with the weapons; we're having to reset the weapons systems to factory settings so they can be updated more compatibly to modern systems. Not to mention we'll need a few relays and spare hull components to patch up our breaches. Department heads will be able to provide more information as to what's needed to fix things up again...

"...but on the more brighter note," Nira said, "you'll have to pardon me if I ask this, but if you'll be here temporarily, maybe you can have dinner with me and the Addamses tonight? And also, if you had been traveling with the Horizon for two weeks...well, as a former helm officer especially, how do you think she handled?"

[Ops - Outpost Solaere]

Ian winced at the request for isolinear chips because the demand for them had been so high on Challenger, but they had the replicator mass and could restock at Starbase 153, so he said.

"Certainly Commander. Unfortunately, because of the attack here, we departed Starbase 185 before the yard apes were finished with Challenger's upgrades. We've had ta finish the work on the fly while en route here. Our previous mission stressed the older isolinear chips throughout the ship ta hell and back and many have started ta fail, so we've been goin' through them like shyte through a goose, but worry not. We've got the replicator mass ta make whatever you need. Only shortage we have is Ops and Engineerin' is workin' double shifts already ta get us back in Bristol Fashion, so I nae have many personnel ta be lendin' you."

When asked about the Horizon, Ian looked wistful.

"While I had time ta go over her specs and take a tour, I've been so swamped with gettin' Challenger ship shape, I've never gotten ta fly the Horizon. Sorry Lass, I cannae tell you how she flies, but looks like she's got the right stuff on paper. However, dinner sounds spectacular. You, me, Don, and Torra it will be like we're back aboard the Discovery, or Don's rattletrap Martha again."

[USS Challenger - Romulan Free State Space]

It had been five days since the ship left Outpost Solaere. The majority of the systems that were unfinished due to the hurried departure from Starbase 185 were now operating. Ops and Engineering had tracked down the bulk of the older isolinear chips and replaced them by now and this had finally reduced malfunctions to within standards. Lieutenant Sunik was still telling anyone that would listen about the "point zero five four three percent differential in efficiency with the starboard power distribution system", but by now, not many people were listening.

Zhuk and Blackfeather had worn out every avenue of investigation on finding the ship thief. None of the standard procedures had worked. No one crew member was unaccounted for all of the thefts, not even a majority of them. It was possible that it was more than one person, but tracing crew movements failed to yield a suspect. Finally fed up, the two security officers went to the Science department to see if perhaps their knowledge of sensors and science might get them pointed in the right direction. Going over the sensor logs of every item reported stolen, especially Commander MacKenzie's treasured action figures and applying enhanced filtering of visible, infrared, and ultraviolet spectrums of light had finally yielded a clue. Whenever something went missing, the sensors noted a slight drop in ultraviolet light. When the sensors were adjusted for this drop, there was a faint shimmer present. It wasn't much, but when the sensors logs were rechecked with the new filtering, the shimmer was visible in every theft.

Somehow, the thief was scrambling the internal sensors of the ship to move about at will. Once aware of this shimmer, it was simple to set the sensors to track and log every time it appeared, and now, they had a pattern. The shimmer led to a specific Jefferies tube near the kitchen on Deck 8. With this information, it was now possible to plan a course of action to stop the thief.

["I'd be honored ta do so. When would you like ta have this ceremony?"]

[Bridge]

Ardy nodded, trying to figure a way to broach the topic."So, you've probably heard from the chatter around the ship that we're engaged. We'd like you to officiate, simply put." She said nonchalantly. 'It's not going to be anything too crazy, but would you be alright with that?

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian blinked in surprise as he didn't know Jaeger and Wu that well. Sure, as captain, he had the authority to officiate a wedding, it was the request coming from them.

"I'd be honored ta do so. When would you like ta have this ceremony?"

[As Maddy}

Maddy looked at the dolphins with glee as she was suited up with Mo, much to the collective jealousy  of all the other kids. "Oh! you mean how I can hear people's feelings?" she asked as she got dressed in the wetsuit and tried to put on the cool headset. "Woah! this is SO COOL!, she said, heading into the pool with her classmate and the dolphins.

The pool was really deep, and while she was pretty good at swimming, she was still  a little scared and held on to one of the Dolphin's slippery, smooth fins.  It took a minute to get used to the headset, but when she did, she giggled and splashed some water onto Mo. "That's how dolphins see? And they help steer the spaceship like that?"

[Cetacean Lab - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

Ruth was paired with Maddy and found the little human's exuberance contagious as they swam. Once the head set was in place and the link established, Ruth spoke to Maddy through the link.

"Yes Little Swimmer, this is how we see our world. Either in water or in space. We swim without restriction and can see things even your sensors cannot see."

[[Little Mo | Deck Eight | Cetacean Lab | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]]

[Little Mo | Deck Eight | Cetacean Lab | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Mo couldn't help but grasp at his chest as he felt the strange sensation suddenly reaching his body, wondering why he felt this way. It did not hurt, but he couldn't say he liked it. He glanced around, in confusion, looking over at Mirriam, Maddy, and finally his teacher, until it finally stopped. The little Ferengi looked shaken by the experience overall, though the offer of joining the cetaceans perked him up significantly, making him momentarily forget the strange sensation in lieu of something fun to do,

"Eeeeh?! Can I teacher, pthlease?! Can I?!"

He pleaded, looking at her with large, excited eyes that resembled a Terran puppy in adorableness.

"Oh, yeah! I know how to swim!" Mo reassured Maddy, a big smile on his face as he turned to look at her. It made him feel even more excited to have his friend along for the experience. Swimming with the doll-pheens sounded fun, after all!

He became slightly worried when they mentioned that they needed to do maths and swim, however. He had never done both things at the same time. But she trusted that Maddy and him were smart enough to figure it out,

"Y-Yeah! Maddie can do it! She is super, duper smart!"

He vouched for his human friend, hoping that she would be allowed in without issue. He liked the words he had used, 'super' and 'duper'. They were fun hooman words that other classmates had taught him. And he hoped the 'dol-pheens' would like them too.
Mo let out a squeak of happiness when he was given the wet suit, and dressed himself on it as quickly as he could. After figuring out how to place it on, of course. When he reached the water's edge, though, he felt some hesitation building up in his body. The water was deep, and he was not that used to it. Still, he took a deep breath and jumped in nonetheless. Fortunately, Sarah, one of the cetaceans, moved in closer to assist him with the swimming, and soon enough, he felt comfortable enough to swim alongside her.

His fear quickly turned into curiosity as he was questioned, his mind quick and happy to answer any queries. Even those related to math problems. It turned out, that making calculations in the water wasn't so difficult for him! After a while, though, the doll-pheens seemed to have a little reunion of their own, before they announced that Maddy and Mo would join them. He celebrated by splashing on the water, smiling at Maddy, before realizing that the Andorian boy would not be joining them.

Mo felt sad for him, but he found no words to say when he left. He just hoped he wasn't too hurt about it...

[Cetacean Lab - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

Once Mo was in the water and Sarah was certain the Lobling was steady in the water, in as much as a land dweller could be given their hopelessly poorly designed bodies allowed, she swam over to a locker mounted just inside her aquarium that opened above the water. Miriam and Maddy joined him along with Ruth and a Denoblian girl Phenna.

"Open the box Lobling."

Sarah encouraged.

Mo did and inside were a half dozen odd looking half helmet looking sort of things. CPO McNeal helped the three children adjust them to the size of their head, which was a challenge for Mo's ears. Once they were set, each child, with their dolphin guide, steered them to separate parts of the aquarium.

There Sarah got real close to Mo and said.

"I am with you Lobling, do not be afraid, the neural link can be disorienting at first. When you are ready, push the button on the front of the helmet."

When he pushed the button, there was a brief burst of colors and then the aquarium began to fade away and the next thing he knew, he was in space! He could see the dolphins and the other children, but they were swimming through the open blackness of the void. That was a little scary, but it wasn't cold like Mo had been told it was in space and he could breathe just fine. Once he got used to the idea that he was still safe, swimming with the dolphins like they experienced space was more amazing than he had words to describe. He swam like he would in a pool and never wanted this feeling to end.

[USS Challenger - Romulan Space]

As the Challenger and her Romulan escort cruised along at a steady warp eight, the crews of both ships went about their assigned tasks and enjoyed what off duty time they managed to wrangle out of their day. Despite the less than optimal condition the Starfleet ship departed from Starbase 185 in, both ships were on track to reach their destination in the predicted eight days.

If there was anything untoward occurring aboard the Romulan ship, it was unknown, but the thefts on Challenger had made an impact. Not over the value of the items taken, but more the fact that they were occurring at all. That a member of Starfleet could act in such a way called the trust in which every member of the crew relied on into question. Especially when trust was a pivotal part of relying on people on which your life depended.

What made the situation so hard to understand was how whoever the thief was choosing his targets and how they were remaining undetected in the face of so many sophisticated sensors. Thus while the ship sailed on blissfully unaware, all was not well on the Challenger.

["I'll be right over. I need ta talk ta your Ops chief ta coordinate whatever you need replicated. We're half-arsed out of the yard, but we're bound for Starbase 153 and can restock our replicator mass there. Galloway out."]

[Commander Nira Said | Operations Center | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Nira heard the comm from Feeva and she had to chuckle. "Runabout? It's actually a corvette, but yes, it did arrive," she said in a chuckle. Why Kinley had to ask for another runabout when they already had some...? Well....maybe they were due for a replacement of the South Platte, but a new runabout wasn't enough. An Aquarian-class corvette, however...

She shook herself from the amusement when a call came in from none other than Ian Galloway. She smiled at the sight of him. It had definitely been a long time.

"Captain Galloway," she said, looking very relieved. "It's good to see you and Admiral Gillespie came bearing gifts. It's the best thing we've had yet, after two months. You have permission to come aboard and we can discuss materials that Chief ch'Verret or Ensign Corden or...well, chances are, Commander Tharn will have been needed elsewhere, so whoever's filling for her...for providing. I'll be down at the Hangar Module, we're to have a kind of welcome ceremony for the ship. Said out."

[Bridge - USS Challenger --> Ops Outpost Solaere]

Ian smiled to see Nira, she was looking well in her new assignment. Kyan, Maker bless him, had his own set of skills, but he missed Nira's steady presence on Challenger. Solaere was lucky to have her.

"I'll be right over. I need ta talk ta your Ops chief ta coordinate whatever you need replicated. We're half-arsed out of the yard, but we're bound for Starbase 153 and can restock our replicator mass there. Galloway out."

Ian nodded to Alex to close the channel and then added.

"Straight to Ops Mister Wu. Energize."

Ian found himself in a familiar scene. The frantic repairs reminded him of the Challenger when it was stricken by the Landser Temporal Pulse. When he was free of the annular confinement beam, he said.

"Good day ta you. How can Challenger help?"

["How may I be of service Lieutenant?"]

[USS Challenger - Bridge]

"Much appreciated, skipper, I'll send the requisitions through Commander Mackenzie." Alex gave Ardyn a sidelong glance, and then a quick look around the bridge to see who else was present. They still didn't know too many people well onboard, at least any more than working relationships, and some of those they had befriended, like Neva, had been transferred out. Even after a month, Alex still wasn't overly familiar with some of the senior crew, Galloway included. Musing whether it'd be better to wait until after they went off duty, Alex decided the worst he could say was no. And chances were he'd have a harder time saying no to Ardy. "Well, so long as you're in a giving mood, Captain, Ardyn and I would like to ask you for a favour."

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian canted his head is surprise as he hadn't known the two all that long. Both seemed to be solid officers and it was Wu and Randall that had saved the ship by coming up with the means to protect them from the impact of the Landser temporal pulse. He figured, the entire crew owed them at least one favor.

"How may I be of service Lieutenant?"

["Maker I miss Dashlish right now. Crusty as a shipwrecks hull she was, but she kenned when ta fudge and when ta make do."]

[USS Challenger - Bridge]

Hey yourself, Alex couldn't help but smile as he felt Ardyn's warmth spread through his mind. "Well, just give me a few minutes warning before you set off the auto-destruct, I've got a few things on the list to do first." Scanning the secondary navigation terminal's relays, he quickly narrowed down the issue, something that was recently becoming all too common. "Those bloody Landsers..." Alex muttered, pulling out a half dozen isolinear chips. For a reason they still couldn't explain, the temporal pulse which 'tripped' every chip on Challenger had also caused lasting damage to a minority of them, with batches slowly failing over the past few weeks. The only commonality thus far was their age, with older chips seemingly more susceptible to corruption or short-circuits. Challenger wasn't exactly the newest ship in the fleet, which meant many of the damaged modules were in areas least accessible and thus not previously modernized. The faults weren't enough to stop them in their tracks, but were still annoyingly noticeable, especially next to a skippy little corvette like Horizon.

"If we hadn't wasted all that time on 185 with the investigation, alot of this could've been done then." Alex complained, re-scanning the open circuitry to ensure he didn't miss anything. The maintenance techs had spent their entire trip to Solaere troubleshooting why many of Challenger's upgrades installed on the Starbase weren't interacting with or enhancing their systems as designed. More often than not, it came down to a faulty isolinear chip, the tiniest wrench in the workings which required laborious and exhaustive attention to diagnose.  He was more than willing to bet that Sunik's point zero five whatever difference in performance would be found in one out of hundreds of isolinear chips installed within the starboard power distribution system.

"I'll have a technician reprogram some new chips and reinstall them. You'll just have to rely on the primary system till then. Maybe astrometrics can help with correlating our position and course if you'd like a backup." Alex got back on his feet, brushing some specks of dust off his pants. "Captain, between the unexpected maintenance and what we left on Solaere, we've already hit our annual allotment limit on some critical components. The next supply requisition will need your signature and notarized justification. I was going to bring it up in the next briefing, but if you wouldn't mind signing it early, I can send it off to Starbase 153 before we arrive. Hopefully the supplies will be ready and waiting when we dock to save some time."

Oh, and did you ask him yet? Alex glanced over to Ardyn, a quizzed expression crossing his face as he picked his coffee mug up.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian sighed at Wu's request, not that it was unreasonable or unwarranted, it was just a reminder of how rushed their departure from Starbase 185 had been. Between the temporal pulse and the half finished upgrades done by the yard, the Challenger was not in top condition. Something the new Vulcan Chief Engineer had made abundantly clear to him on many occasions.

"Maker I miss Dashlish right now. Crusty as a shipwrecks hull she was, but she kenned when ta fudge and when ta make do."

He thought. To Alex he said.

"Certainly Lieutenant. You need it, you get it. If'n some pillock in Starfleet logistics says so much as boo, I'll be ta slappin' his arse around his ears."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Cetacean Lab - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

It took a few minutes for CPO Andrew McNeil who was assigned to the lab to replicate smaller wet suits for Mo, Maddy, and an Andorian boy named Okal Th'rhyllahr. It took several more minutes to get the children into the unfamiliar suits and, after a bit of hesitation, into the water.

The dolphins patiently guided the 'little swimmers' as they got the feel for the water and to gauge not only how well they swam, but if they 'took to the water'. Being suitable to connect to the dolphin's neural link to the ship took much more than being a strong swimmer. For the dolphins, it was seeing if the person had a connection to the water that they were looking for that would tell them if their charge was truly of the sea or not.

Thus as they swam with the children, they quizzed them, and darted around them to see how well they tracked things moving in 3D. They also discretely scanning them with their sonar to decide if any would be allowed to join them in their link.

"The Lobling is a curious one and is as good with maths as he claimed." Sarah said as the three dolphins spoke together with their vocorders off, which sounded like chirps, clicks, and squeals.

"The human has the gift, her mind touched mine, she is of the sea."
Miriam said of Maddy.

"The blue boy is a strong swimmer and is passionate, but shows an aggressiveness that is ill suited for the link." Ruth added.

"Then it is decided?" Sarah asked and the others nodded in agreement.

"We have come to a decision, the little swimmers known as Mo and Maddy will join us in the link."

Miriam announced.

"Cee. Pee. Oh. Mack Kneel, will fit them with the neural headset. Be prepared for the adventure of life time little swimmers."

["Good ta see you Commander. I come bearin' gifts, well the Admiral is, I'm just along for window dressin'. We're unable ta stay long and have a lot of things we need ta work on as well, but whatever we have or can replicate is yours for the askin'. With your leave, I would like ta beam directly ta you in your Ops. So, permission ta come aboard Commander."]

[Commander Nira Said | Operations Center | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Nira was puzzled that the Challenger was mentioned as one of two starships with Starfleet signatures that have just arrived. She wondered who the extra was. Upon being informed that the ships have entered visual range, Nira said, "On screen."

Nira saw the Challenger on approach and at first reaction, she felt gladdened to see the old barge again, good to see it after a year. Then she frowned in befuddlement. The report was there for two starships.

"You said two starships, right?" Nira asked. "Where's the second?"

Just then, something emerged from on the star drive of the Challenger, reversed and drew itself alongside before coming on closer approach, putting itself in front of the Challenger, almost as if it was leading it. It was small enough that Nira didn't recognize it at first...but when it drew closer, Nira gasped; she recognized the corvette - or rather, its class - instantly.

"I don't believe it!" Nira said. "Torra...! Sorry...Lieutenant Addams," she said, correcting herself, looking particularly at Torra, "Do you see that? It's an Aquarian class corvette, like the Revenant!"

Then a hail came in from Admiral Gillespie. When he appeared on the viewscreen, he smiled.

"Hullo, lassies and laddies," he said warmly. "Glad we can make it to Solaere. I hope yeh will like yehr new attachment vessel..."

"We're...getting that corvette the Challenger came with?" asked Nira in surprised delight; after a gloomy four days, it was a piece of good news that topped all other good news.

"That the Challenger has escorted, but precisely," Gillespie said. "And I think the Horizon here will find a good home here."

"The Horizon?" said Nira, her surprise increasing. "That ship is the Horizon?!? You mean we're getting what was formerly the yacht of the Enterprise?" She said so because she remembered the briefing from Gillespie when she took acting command of the Revenant; at that time, there were only three Aquarian-class corvettes, the prototype, the yacht of the Hornet - the Revenant - and the yacht of the Enterprise, the Horizon itself, all three converted to corvettes in light of their Odyssey class attachments being retired.

"Precisely," Gillespie replied with a wider smile. "And if yeh were wondering aboot the engines...well, they had to be adjusted in a refit, given the flaws you and your staff then of the Revenant pointed oot during your assignment there."

Now that he mentioned it, Nira realized the engines were different; the Revenant had exposed nacelles, whereas the Horizon - and, Nira realized, so would the Revenant - now had engines that made it a corvette on par with an Adamant, Vigilant, or even a Defiant class.

"Well, if yeh lot want to see a more interesting show...assemble yeh senior staff and as many available to the hangar module," Gillespie ordered. "We're making a landing approach now. And yeh can expect Captain Galloway soon, too. Gillespie out."

And he cut off the comm frequency. Nira looked around. She had looked to Torra, since she was the only other person in the room who had served on an Aquarian class ship. Dersch was sent back to Starfleet Security as part of his remedial studies, and Kinley was in Sickbay...

"Ops to Sickbay,"  Nira called.   "As soon as you issue Commander Garrison a clean bill of health, if she's scheduled to be released today, please let her know that we're going to be seeing our new attachment starship arriving at the Hangar Module." 

She looked around and said, "All Ops officers, summon junior officers to relieve you for the time being at your stations. We're going to meet our new attachment starship."

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian's jaw was clenched tight as he saw the damage to the station with his own eyes. That pirates would be so bold really made it clear why the Romulan Free State was up in arms about them. As the Horizon launched, Ian had Ops hail Solaere, he was pleased to see Nira reply.

"Good ta see you Commander. I come bearin' gifts, well the Admiral is, I'm just along for window dressin'. We're unable ta stay long and have a lot of things we need ta work on as well, but whatever we have or can replicate is yours for the askin'. With your leave, I would like ta beam directly ta you in your Ops. So, permission ta come aboard Commander."

[Cetacean labs]

Maddy wasn't sure what Miriam the dolphin was talking about, but she was definitely interested in swimming with the dolphins! She was really good at it too, even, as she had learned to swim in the lake when she was really little. "Ooh! I can! I can!" she said, already jumping ahead of the other kids and leaving the teacher behind.  Looking at Mo,  she grinned. " Can you swim, Mo?"

[Cetacean Labs - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

Two other heads poked out of the water and all three listened to Maddy. After chittering between themselves for a bit, Ruth asked.

"It is good you can swim little swimmer, but are you good at maths? Being a Navigator for humans is very hard, they can't see in three dimensions like a dolphin and don't have sonar, I honestly don't see how most of you can get around without walking into walls all the time."

"Ruth, be nice." Sarah chided. "Humans are limited, but they manage. Now the question is, who thinks they are brave enough to swim through the stars?"

At this point Miriam spoke and addressed the teacher.

"I know it seems like this is just a pool, but this is our home, we cannot have all of you in the water at one time. We will accept three, that way each of us can look after the little swimmer that joins us."

[[Little Mo | Deck Eight | Cetacean Lab | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]]

[Little Mo | Deck Eight | Cetacean Lab | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

"Oooh~" Came the impressed voice of Mo as Mirriam explained that she indeed was a dol-pheen. He was surprised to be called a 'Lobling', as it was a Ferengi word for a child, not used often by his teacher or friends. The explanation of the swimming creatures fully captured his attention, even though he still did not understand a few things, like 'Dee-Ene-A', or 'sai-bert-netic'.

A soft 'Eep!' was produced when he was splashed with water, though he began to laugh afterward, clapping his hands together. He hardly minded getting wet, and so, it was an amusing experience.

The petition of Mirriam, however, did confuse him for a moment. He did want to join them because he thought it would be cool, but he wasn't sure he could impress them. So he thought for a moment. Maddy's and his fellow classmates gave him a few ideas, and so, he was one of the last to answer,

"I am Mo! And I am very good at maths. All maths. Even divisions. My sister also tells me I have a 'buzziness mind'! Uhm... a-and my sister is a Security officer hethe!"

[Cetacean Lab - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

Miriam tossed her head back which was how a dolphin expressed amusement as Mo explained his skills. Miriam gave Mo a hard stare and he could feel a sort of vibration rattle through his body, it wasn't a good sensation, but it didn't hurt. Mo had no way of knowing the Miriam had just used in innate sonar on him, it was the dolphin equivalent of scanning someone with a tricorder.

"Well Lobling, this is your lucky day as humans would say. If your teacher allows, you can get fitted with a wet suit and join us in our home. If you are able to tolerate the water, then you can be fitted with one of our cyber-links and see space how we see it. If you are brave enough."

[Excelsior!]

Everyone, let's welcome Lieutenant jg Aarwendil Cheizex back to Challenger after a school induced absence. We are happy to have him back in the Operations Department.

Excelsior!

[[USS Challenger - Mess Hall]

Kyan entered the mess hall in time to hear the tail end of Galloway's speech. He walked over and appraised the apparent combatants without comment. He noticed Tora being seen to by Jones from Damage Control and frowned. She wasn't a fighter, so either she'd been targeted for whatever reason, or she'd paid the price for being a good Samaritan.

"Koltar, when he drowned in the swamp" Jeyshon nodded. Then, "Erhmm.. Yes captain."

Given his darker skin tone and bony cranial ridges, the Tamarian appeared to have taken less damage than Crewman Rala, who had instigated the fight and was sporting a swollen eye for his trouble. Yet the Tamarian appeared chastened while the Bajoran glared at everyone through his one good eye, but said nothing for a moment. Then ne nodded. "Aye sir." he grumbled finally. "But my earring is still missing."

"Aye an yer after thinking he took it?" Kyan asked with a laugh pointing to Jeyshon. "How's he tae wear it without ears?"

"He's the only one who could have!" Rala growled, staring daggers at the diminutive First Officer. "Who else could it have been?"

Kyan liked this one. He had some fire in him. Most Bajorans did though. But he knew it wouldn't be a good look to overlook his attitude in front of the crew, let alone the Captain. Even though he didn't care about a little snark, the grups did. And if he let it go, it'd just be a hassle later.

"I dinnae ken who took yer earring so I don't. But I do ken the now dat yer attitude is shite, an no mistake so when yer done wi' yer chores the Captain gave to ye, you can come an see me. I got just the thing tae help ye sort that out so I do." He grinned as he sized the Bajoran up. He wasn't small, but he wasn't huge either. And he couldn't have been more than twenty.

Since he'd been hurt on the Landser mission, Kyan hadn't been able to do any proper sparring. Rala would be a good partner to knock the rust off, and they'd fix that attitude. 2 birds with the same rock.

"Is it ok with you den boss?" he asked, peerinng up at Ian.

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Mess Hall

Subduing Rala had been rather easy, and the fight was over before Galloway, Blackfeather or the four Sec/Tac needed to do anything other than claim that they'd done a good job.  Lahr, being found with Rala in an arm-lock was lined up with the other two and and given the 'scrub the hull with a toothbrush' spiel; it being the go-to punishment of the Captain's. The Andorian had been tasked with it more than once... back when Lahr was more familiar with Ruth's less strict style of command... but not recently.  He really didn't want to go through the punishment again.

Rather than acknowledge the Captain's words with a verbal response, which Lahr felt might accidentally get him lumped into the 'combantants' category, Lahr instead gave a slight nod before looking to Blackfeather.  "Bystander.. I called you just before a superior officer said I should intervene."

[Mess Hall --> Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Kyan and Lahr's input and tying together clues gleaned from the Senior Chief unusual appearance and report to Zhuk, there was just enough information to deduce there had been a theft and the implication was that there had been more than one. One of the most unacceptable behaviors in any service was that of a 'barracks thief'. That one member of the crew could think so little of the rest of the crew and the service that they would steal from their shipmates was something that made Ian's blood boil. However, figuring out who was the theft was not his purview. Zhuk was his security chief and he trusted him completely. He would not usurp his authority.

"I believe Mister Mrekrerhas is aware of the theft issue Kyan. Let him do his job and track down whoever has been nickin' things. Once we ken that, if'n you still wish ta engage in some wall ta wall counselin', as First Officer, that is your business."

He replied quietly to Kyan.

"I will leave this theft issue ta you and Zhuk. I need ta return ta the bridge. Good huntin'."

Ian exited the mess hall and took the short ride back to the bridge. On arrival, he replaced Zhuk in the command chair.

"I believe you have a situation Mister Mrekrerhas. Report back when you have more information.

[[USS Challenger - Mess Hall]

[Cetacean Labs]

[As Maddy]

Maddy giggled as she and Mo got splashed by the dolphin. Being so close to the tank, she got pretty solidly soggy, and she absolutely loved it. And hearing the dolphins talk about their jobs, she grinned. She had read books about dolphins with her dad and they were just as cool as she had thought.  "You really help the ship to find where to go My mommy helps fly the ship!" she asked, genuinely excited as she talked with the dolphins. "I'm Maddy! I love spaceships and Dinosaurs!" she blurted, as the other kids in the class gave their answers.

[Cetacean Lab - Deck 8 - USS Challenger]

Mirriam tossed her head and laughed in the way of the dolphins before getting as close to Maddy as she could as she stage whispered.

"If not for us, the ship would take twice as long to get anywhere. Honestly, I don't see how the first human starships got anywhere."

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Mess Hall

Lahr shook his head when the science officer left their table to  try and break up the fight.  Yeah, that was gonna end badly he predicted, and he was right.

The moment Rala swung hitting Tora, Kasey was standing.  "We need to stop them." she urged Lahr.

The Andorian reached out a hand to grab at her jacket hem.  "You're an engineer.  What are you gonna do?" he tried to reason with her.

"Well, we can't just sit back and watch. You were security once, surely you know how to break up fights."

Lahr let out a soft groan. "Yeah but I don't have the authority I used to as Sec/Tac to stun dumbasses like Rala anymore." which was the truth, he didn't. Even if he had a phaser on him, which he didn't, he'd be the one facing charges if he stunned an officer.

"Lahr why are you being an ass? Too much of a bother because of your hangover?!" Kasey huffed and pulled away from him to go help Tora to her feet.

Lahr grimaced.  Why was he the bad guy?!

"Fine..but I'm telling Security I was given an order to get involved."

The Andorian got up from his table with a long-suffering look and moved in behind Rala, the instigator, and used his Sec/Tac training to try and get him into an arm-lock.

"Fun is over sir.  Sec/Tac is on its way."

[Mess Hall - USS Challenger]

Ian, Blackfeather, and four security officers arrived at this point to break up the fight. Once everyone was standing in a single rank at the position of attention, Ian gazed down the line with a basilisk-like stare. When he spoke, it was in an icy tone.

"I'm nae goin' ta bother with askin' who threw the first punch. I'm nae even goin' ta ask why. What am goin' ta do is have the Senior Chief sort out the combatants from the bystanders who tried ta stop the fight. Those involved in actual brawlin' clearly have too much unused energy on your hands. While we are at warp, you will, as a team, work together ta scrub the carbon filters. The next time we drop out of warp, you will, under the supervision of the Senior Chief discover the joy of scrubbin' the outer hull with a toothbrush for a whole shift. I hear anything else about brawlin' and havin' a space suit may nae be an option. I do hope I've made myself understood."