Season 15: Episode 3 - Restless Spirit

[Rayek trLhoell]

Cmdr. Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge]

[ ~ an hour earlier]

USS Discovery
Bridge

Vila nodded. "Yes, ma'am." She typed away, brown eyes scanning the screen in front of her.

The two Ops had the required briefing down in the time assigned and the brief was quickly sent off the boarding teams to study.
[presently]

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Main Bridge]

The USS Jupiter... that caught his attention.  The Captain stood up, looking as the Miranda-class vessel came into view.  She was tilted, powered off, and from the hull she had been adrift in this nebula for a long time.  Not surprisingly considering how old that ship was, and how long its been lost.

"The Jupiter... I know that ship... it was before I was an officer.  Pre-Dominion war.  That was one of the ships that the Jem'hadar never mentioned on their initial casualty list. It was en route to New Bajor right before we were introduced to the Dominion..." the Captain stated, as his XO spoke up behind him. He turned around.

"That ship has been lost for at least 20 years, and there is no telling if there is any power left in her.  Assume this is a recovery mission and not a rescue.  Get an away team together and see if you can get the computer core running.  Find out what happened to the Jupiter." he ordered, granting Rayek's request.  The Captain turned back and looked at the ship.  With the exception of the residue from the dark debris of the nebula, there didn't appear to be any sign of an attack at all.  Which only made things more confusing.

"Yes sir." The Romulan nodded opening up his PADD to review the current active roster to select out the individuals to make up the remainder of the Away.

"Interesting, science ship, huh?" She'd have pegged it for a heavy cruiser, being this far out in space.

"Sirs...It might be helpful to know...you probably already do...the docking ports are in the front, not in the rear. by the Nacelles." This might prove to be a problem if they had to tow it. "There are six whole transport pads, though, so they expected large away teams, which, I suppose, makes sense for it's intended purpose." She was reading the information as the computer spat it at her.

"As far as crew compliment, it can hold 220 crew, but can fit up to 500 if we need to." She sighed. "Just be aware that it boasts six type-7 phaser emitters, two pulse phaser cannons, and two photon torpedo launchers. Just in case it's been previously boarded by...unfriendlies." She was careful to watch her mouth and her words, choosing them carefully.

Rayek glanced over to the Bajoran ensign who had taken the initiative to pull up the Miranda-class specifications and read them out as she seemed to be preparing another, more accurate, brief.

"Thank you, Ensign.  Forward that information as well as the ship schematic to the two boarding teams as well as these individuals."  As he made each Away Team selection, the name was forwarded to Lorut's station for inclusion in the mail out.

For Science, that was clearly Lieutenant Commander Garrison.
For Engineering, clearly the best would be Lek but he rarely appreciated being taken off his ship.

"tr'Lhoell to Lek.  Rather than locating the Titan-A like we had hoped, we found a derelict Miranda-class.  Please assign a three-man engineering team to beam over with the Security to see if they can determine what happened to it and if possible, get it back up and running.  If not then it's likely we'll need to tow it like we did with Challenger"

While he waited on Lek's grumbled reply, Rayek continued his selection.   For Ops, Rayek already knew he was assigning Reid.  He was certain she would make quick work of access the computer core.   His dilemma was with Lorut.  Her previous insubordinate behaviour certainly hadn't earned her Away Team privilege; yet Rayek, still mindful of the bright and promising teen that Lorut's alternate-universe self had been, was reluctant to just leave her on the Bridge.

There were many human colloquialisms regarding idleness.  Rayek could see presently that being kept active seemed to improve the Bajoran's attitude.  He selected Vila's name on his PADD before contacting Dr. Thane to assign a medical officer to the Away Team.

Once that was done, he stood up.  "Ops, inform those selected for the Away Team to pass off their duties and to meet up in Transporter Room One in full EVA until we know what happened over there."

PO2 Helga Tragnar
[USS Discovery - Deck 6 - Transporter Room One]

[USS Discovery - Transporter Room One]

Dersch nodded after she finished and then said, "I don't Know, Must have a Good reason for keeping us." He was ready for whatever came next. Which seems to be boarding the USS Titan...Maybe...
But what did the Ship and Its Captain due if We are hunting them...

When she walked in he nodded to her. "Well Hello, Small World.." He said with a Laugh. This should Fun, But I kinda want this to be hard But not too Hard that we get hurt.

Helga gave an eyeroll to the higher ranked ensign.  "If you say so, sir."
Not long after that the Klingon hybrid was surprised to receive another briefing.   It seemed the ship they were gonna board wasn't the Titan-A after all but rather a derelict Miranda-class called the USS Jupiter.

"Wasn't the Jupiter listed as lost back around stardate 48649?" she asked.

When notification came shortly after thereafter that the teams were to be in full EVA gear, the security Petty officer groaned, but sought out the necessary gear and suited up.

[Meanwhile, earlier on Deck 10 - Auxiliary Cargo Bay]

"Thank you!" M'nia took her tools and opened up the man hatch to look inside. "Most of it looks like a standard probe. I think we need to check  the fine tuning on this thing. I am betting they rewired it to emit the titan's signature. HMm I do see some recircuting in here. Definitely looks like someone has been doing some work on here!"

Over the course of the next thirty minutes, what the two engineering officers found was that M'Nia had been absolutely correct.   The probe had been programmed and rewired to emit the Titan's specific ID signature.  There was no malware or malicious code, no explosives.   The probe had a single purpose - to ping on the new system and appear as the Titan-A.

Just as they were wrapping up and putting the unit back together when Rayek's call to Lek came in.

[Sydney Reid]

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 13 | Cryptology Lab > Personal Quarters]

"œIt looks like we've found the Jupiter, Sir. It's been missing for years."

"Permission to send the awaiting boarding teams and a more rounded Away team to check it out, Sir?"

"The Jupiter.... I know that ship... it was before I was an officer.  Pre-Dominion war.  That was one of the ships that the Jem'hadar never mentioned on their initial casualty list. It was en route to New Bajor right before we were introduced to the Dominion"¦" the Captain stated, as his XO spoke up behind him. He turned around.

"That ship has been lost for at least 20 years, and there is no telling if there is any power left in her.  Assume this is a recovery mission and not a rescue.  Get an away team together and see if you can get the computer core running.  Find out what happened to the Jupiter." he ordered, granting Rayek's request.

"Yes sir."

"Sirs...It might be helpful to know...you probably already do...the docking ports are in the front, not in the rear. by the Nacelles. There are six whole transport pads, though, so they expected large away teams, which, I suppose, makes sense for its intended purpose."

"As far as crew compliment, it can hold 220 crew, but can fit up to 500 if we need to." She sighed. "Just be aware that it boasts six type-7 phaser emitters, two pulse phaser cannons, and two photon torpedo launchers. Just in case it's been previously boarded by...unfriendlies."

"Thank you, Ensign.  Forward that information as well as the ship schematic to the two boarding teams as well as these individuals."

"¦

"Ops, inform those selected for the Away Team to pass off their duties and to meet up in Transporter Room One in full EVA until we know what happened over there."

The worst things about handling Comms Duties from her lab meant that Sydney could only hear what was going on in the bridge in open chatter, and didn't have the luxury of a view, including technical data and emotional cues from the crew, that one would normally have. Listening intently, she was initially confused at what was said to have been found by Kinley, then momentarily concerned by Rayek's desire to assemble an Away Team. That concern only grew worse as the Captain spoke up, giving the briefest of history on the Jupiter, but it was the specific order to 'get the computer core running' that sent a chill down her spine. Vila didn't make anything better by reading out the armaments the vessel contained, despite the ship being a relic in comparison to the Discovery. Still, if there would be a fire-fight, based on the state she'd initially seen the ship back on Deep Space Nine, Sydney had to wonder how it would go.

The moment her PADD pinged following the XO's order, a drawn out, "#%!&," escaped the Ops Officer's mouth, already knowing what that meant. Slouching back in her chair limp before cautiously reaching up to pick up her PADD and look at the received message, it was precisely what Sydney knew it would be. Letting out a long moan, the woman had not expected to be going on an Away Mission at all, given her position on the ship, especially this soon into her service. There was a litany of things to do before she could even make her way to the Transporter Room to gather with the rest of the names on the list, and she was already dreading them. It was best to start with the easiest and work her way down to the most uncomfortable.

"Ensign Reid to Lieutenant Addams. I'm transferring Comms Control to your console." Waiting for the expected acknowledgment, Sydney entered the few commands needed to transfer the duties back to the Bridge before moving on to her next order of business, which she already knew she was going to regret.

"Ensign Reid to Petty Officer Kohler. Hey"¦So, I know I told you you were off duty for the rest of the shift, but I'm going to need you to come back on duty and take over. I've been selected for an Away Mission, and"¦" Even if she couldn't see the man, she could hear the heavy sigh of disappointment that had escaped him. Rolling her eyes and exhaling a heavy breath, Sydney immediately went into damage control. "I'm sorry, Anton. I promise I will make it up to you. I'll cover a couple of your shifts or get you extra holodeck time or a pass next time we make port or something. I promise. Again, I'm sorry."

Despite all that she had to say, the Petty Officer had much more experience in Starfleet and seemed to almost find amusement in having his impromptu free time interrupted, especially with how his Commanding Officer was speaking to him. The man chuckled as he answered back, "Don't worry about it, Sir. It's part of the job. I'll be there as soon as I can. Kohler out."

Another heavy sigh escaped Sydney as she realized there was really only one thing left to do before joining up with the others. While having to go back on her word with Kohler had been uncomfortable enough, she dreaded the next step even more. Ever since the Academy, the woman had absolutely loathed wearing EVA suits. Besides being terribly uncomfortable, it made it impossible for her to use her implants, and she'd probably become entirely too reliant on them during her Starfleet career, especially.

Given the nature of the newest model of EV suits, each member of the crew had been assigned a personal one, though there were always extra, generic-fitting suits conveniently stored throughout the ship. Given that the crew usually stored them in their quarters, Sydney slid open the closet containing hers and stared at it in disappointment for probably a full minute before finally relenting and reaching in to pull it out. It probably took her twice as long as anyone else to yank it up and around her body. After ensuring that all of the seals were secured and the suit's display panel was properly synced with her PADD, which would be unreachable within the suit, Sydney had given thought to affixing the helmet but decided against it given the trek ahead of her.

It was a long, awkward walk down Deck 13's corridor to the turbolift. Sydney tried her best not to react to any of the looks she got, but as the turbolift doors opened, she came face to face with none other than her relief; Petty Officer Kohler. The man immediately grinned at her, causing Sydney to frown before muttering, "Don't say a word."

Of course, Anton wasn't going to do such as he made an exaggerated shuffle past the suited-up Ensign, holding back a chuckle as he wished her, "Good luck, Sir. I'll keep the lab safe." Sydney's head dropped before she stepped into the turbolift and turned to see Kohler glancing back at her as he was making his way toward the Crypto Lab. While she could have called out something, all the Ensign could do was stick her tongue out at the man as the lift's doors whoosed closed.

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 6 | Turbolift > Transporter Room One]

Nine decks up, the turbolift doors opened again. Walking out, anyone with any experience could see just how awkward the Ops officer moved in the suit as she made her way down the hall to shuffle into Transporter Room One. There seemed to already be a number of personnel waiting, mostly consisting of the Security Team members who all seemed much more comfortable and confident compared to Sydney.

Glancing around for the highest ranking officer, Sydney shuffled towards them, helmet carried under her arm pinned to her hip, to announce, "Ensign Reid reporting for Away Team Duty." She really didn't know if that was the proper way to handle the situation. It was her first Away Team, and all of her training in such procedures at the Academy had seemingly been replaced with nothing but anxiety and ignorance. While she had a general idea of what they would be doing, the numerous unknown aspects, and the dangers they may face, were at the forefront of her thoughts.

[Lek]

"Thank you!" M'nia took her tools and opened up the man hatch to look inside. "Most of it looks like a standard probe. I think we need to check  the fine tuning on this thing. I am betting they rewired it to emit the titan's signature. HMm I do see some recircuting in here. Definitely looks like someone has been doing some work on here!"

Cmdr. Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge]

[presently]
"Yes sir." The Romulan nodded opening up his PADD to review the current active roster to select out the individuals to make up the remainder of the Away.

Rayek glanced over to the Bajoran ensign who had taken the initiative to pull up the Miranda-class specifications and read them out as she seemed to be preparing another, more accurate, brief.

"Thank you, Ensign.  Forward that information as well as the ship schematic to the two boarding teams as well as these individuals."  As he made each Away Team selection, the name was forwarded to Lorut's station for inclusion in the mail out.

For Science, that was clearly Lieutenant Commander Garrison.
For Engineering, clearly the best would be Lek but he rarely appreciated being taken off his ship.

"tr'Lhoell to Lek.  Rather than locating the Titan-A like we had hoped, we found a derelict Miranda-class.  Please assign a three-man engineering team to beam over with the Security to see if they can determine what happened to it and if possible, get it back up and running.  If not then it's likely we'll need to tow it like we did with Challenger"

[Meanwhile, earlier on Deck 10 - Auxiliary Cargo Bay]

Over the course of the next thirty minutes, what the two engineering officers found was that M'Nia had been absolutely correct.   The probe had been programmed and rewired to emit the Titan's specific ID signature.  There was no malware or malicious code, no explosives.   The probe had a single purpose - to ping on the new system and appear as the Titan-A.

Just as they were wrapping up and putting the unit back together when Rayek's call to Lek came in.

[Auxiliary Cargo Bay - USS Discovery]

Having thoroughly checked the probe along side M'nia, Lek was satisfied with their assessment and he nodded to the Caitian.

"Fine bit of trickery. I'm going to have to remember to use this one should we get ourselves in a bind one day. However, we've learned all we're going to learn from this thing."

It was at that moment that the call from Rayek came in for an engineer team. In EVA suits no less.

"Well Ensign, I think you've earned a reward. If you see it as a reward, some people aren't fond of away teams, I'm one of them. However, in reading the after action reports of the last mission, I feel it's my duty as Chief to go on this one. You have a slot if you want it. You think about it while I contact the third member."

Lek then tapped his combadge.

"Lek to Ensign Gohun, report for away team in EVA. Lek out"

He then turned back to M'nia.

"So what's your decision Ensign?"

[M'Nia]

[Auxiliary Cargo Bay - USS Discovery]

Having thoroughly checked the probe along side M'nia, Lek was satisfied with their assessment and he nodded to the Caitian.

"Fine bit of trickery. I'm going to have to remember to use this one should we get ourselves in a bind one day. However, we've learned all we're going to learn from this thing."

It was at that moment that the call from Rayek came in for an engineer team. In EVA suits no less.

"Well Ensign, I think you've earned a reward. If you see it as a reward, some people aren't fond of away teams, I'm one of them. However, in reading the after action reports of the last mission, I feel it's my duty as Chief to go on this one. You have a slot if you want it. You think about it while I contact the third member."

Lek then tapped his combadge.

"Lek to Ensign Gohun, report for away team in EVA. Lek out"

He then turned back to M'nia.

"So what's your decision Ensign?"

"Commander, I say let me at it! I would love to go! it sound like a great opportunity! Let me start the upload to ensign Reid as she requested." M'nia quickly arranged for the upload. "M'nia to ens reid, sidney, I've started the load of the data from the probe. Got an away mission to go on so I will leave it running for you."

turning back to Lek. "Ok Lead the way lt. cmdr. I am looking forward to it."

[Tanner Lachlyn]

[USS Discovery - Transporter Room One]

EVA suits were the most awkward things to move in, but Tanner acknowledged their value when investigating a decades old ship and begrudgingly wiggled her way into one. She was grateful to have the engineers tagging along. If they could figure out what happened to the Jupiter, maybe they could get it powered up which would remove the requirement for their extra layer of clothing.

Giving a nod of acknowledgement to Sydney, she made her way over to the second team leader. They needed to figure out their plan of action before everyone arrived and they were set to beam over.

"œEnsign Dersch," Tanner said as she picked up her helmet, "œWe're going to need to keep the extra teams safe as we don't know what's over there. I suggest we escort the engineers to engineering first, then we can sweep the rest of the ship and make our way to the bridge. We can leave some security in Engineering."

[Lek]

"Commander, I say let me at it! I would love to go! it sound like a great opportunity! Let me start the upload to ensign Reid as she requested." M'nia quickly arranged for the upload. "M'nia to ens reid, sidney, I've started the load of the data from the probe. Got an away mission to go on so I will leave it running for you."

turning back to Lek. "Ok Lead the way lt. cmdr. I am looking forward to it."

[Auxiliary Cargo Bay --> Quarters - USS Discovery]

Lek finished gathering up his tools and headed for the turbolift. It was nice not to almost have to trot to keep up, because the Caitian woman had roughly the same stride as he did.

"Just a quick stop to grab my EVA suit, have you had yours custom fitted? If not, you can take one from stores, but I'm sure how well a generic suit will fit a Caitian. I will meet you in the transporter room in ten minutes."

[Transporter Room - USS Discovery]

As promised, Lek strolled into the transporter room with his tool kit in one hand and his helmet under his other arm. He attempted to project an air of nonchalance, but truth be told, he didn't like away missions. He was here because he was embarrassed he hadn't gone on the last away team. Even though the last mission was hard with many casualties, it bothered him that it fell to junior engineers to accomplish something so important.

This away team was clearly not as dangerous as the last one, so it meant, at least in his mind, he'd have to do several more away missions to regain a loss of...self-respect he supposed he'd lost. He'd let others do something he himself would not do and no one worth the title of leader should be able to do that and live with themselves. He found he could not and even though he knew Ferengi were thought of as shifty, Lek always paid his debts, even if it was only to himself for a debt no one else knew about.

So, he waited with a friendly smile for the others to arrive and hoped they'd be able to recover the Jupiter. He hated the idea of scuttling the ship, even if she ended her life in the breaker's yard, she deserved better than being destroyed in place.

[M'Nia]

[Auxiliary Cargo Bay --> Quarters - USS Discovery]

Lek finished gathering up his tools and headed for the turbolift. It was nice not to almost have to trot to keep up, because the Caitian woman had roughly the same stride as he did.

"Just a quick stop to grab my EVA suit, have you had yours custom fitted? If not, you can take one from stores, but I'm sure how well a generic suit will fit a Caitian. I will meet you in the transporter room in ten minutes."

"Yes I did. I will see you there lt cmdr." she went off to retrieve her suit. One of the things she learned early on at the academy was to get things custom fitted for her caitian body. Regular stuff just didn't fit right on a tailed species. It would work but it was rather uncomfortable. She slipped into it with practiced ease as she had indeed practiced a lot at the academy

[Transporter Room - USS Discovery]

As promised, Lek strolled into the transporter room with his tool kit in one hand and his helmet under his other arm. He attempted to project an air of nonchalance, but truth be told, he didn't like away missions. He was here because he was embarrassed he hadn't gone on the last away team. Even though the last mission was hard with many casualties, it bothered him that it fell to junior engineers to accomplish something so important.

M'nia joined Lek in the transporter room, where to her surprise, a very familiar face was there. "Sidney? wow! this is a nice surprise. I didn't expect you to be here." her eyes shone with excitement of being there and of seeing Sydney again!

[Kinley Garrison]

[Bridge -> transporter room]

Kinley nodded to the Captain and XO as she got her assignment and handed over the scanners to Rajagopalan before she excused herself and got suited up to go explore this old ship. She had heard of these ships being super prevalent during the Dominion War, and the chance to see one preserved like this honestly stoked her. Odds are this could easily be a mass grave, but it would all be worth it to piece together what happened here, and perhaps bring the ship back home.

Making her way to the transporter room, suited up, helmet in hand, she nodded to the awaiting away team and security attachment, trying to ignore the fact that the standard suit was a bit too big for her and she had to fold the legs a bit in her boots.  "œSorry to be a bit late. Didn't have time to really replicate a proper-sized suit.  Are we all here?

[Sydney Reid]

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 13 | Personal Quarters] (Previous to Arriving at Transporter Room One)

"M'Nia to Ensign Reid. Sidney, I've started the load of the data from the probe. Got an away mission to go on so I will leave it running for you."

With one arm already squeezed into the form-fitting EV suit, Sydney's head snapped her gaze to the small table in her quarters where she'd set down her commbadge as she heard it go off. Looking quickly down at herself, already feeling the restriction of the suit not even fully enveloped in it, the decision was made and the Ensign bunny-hopped across the short distance before reaching down to accept the message. Hearing the engineer's voice, and both the expected and unexpected news given, the woman wasn't sure how to answer, but finally managed to get out:

"Acknowledged, M'Nia. Thank you, again."

She could have told her new friend that she was also going to be part of the Away Mission, but instead, Sydney was left wondering how the Caitian was going to react when she saw her up there once the teams were staging. When the commlink blipped closed, the decision had been made for her. She was sure M'Nia would be surprised, but certainly not as surprised as the cryptologist was that she had been assigned to the mission.

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 6 | Transporter Room One]

"œEnsign Dersch," Tanner said as she picked up her helmet, "œWe're going to need to keep the extra teams safe as we don't know what's over there. I suggest we escort the engineers to engineering first, then we can sweep the rest of the ship and make our way to the bridge. We can leave some security in Engineering."

Nodding in return to Tanner, Sydney wasn't entirely sure what she should be doing as it seemed most of the Security teams had been assembled, yet there were still a few missing people from the list of names for the Away Team. Feeling as if she was left standing awkwardly once again at a grade-school dance, her ears picked up the conversation the Security Lieutenant initiated with her subordinate. Between what she'd heard before from the previous talk on the Bridge and now the conversation happening not more than a meter or two from her in the somewhat tight space of the Transporter Room, the Ops Ensign was starting to wonder why she'd been selected for this assignment.

It was about that moment Sydney realized she'd forgotten her standard-issue Type-2 Phaser, not that she'd ever considered she'd have the need to strap on the weapon. Glancing about in mild, momentary panic, the Ops Officer was wondering if anyone would notice, for she knew she didn't have the time to run all the way back to her quarters to grab it. With the number of Security personnel being deployed, all she could do was hope this mission wasn't going to be as hazardous as it was appearing to be.

M'nia joined Lek in the transporter room, where to her surprise, a very familiar face was there. "Sidney? Wow! This is a nice surprise. I didn't expect you to be here." Her eyes shone with excitement of being there and of seeing Sydney again!

It wasn't hard to take notice of Commander Lek strolling into the Transporter Room. Due in part to his size, and the size of his helmet, he wasn't one easily overlooked, especially when everyone was wearing EV suits. Turning reflexively to use her body to shield her naked hip, Sydney already knew that she hadn't put herself in the Chief Engineer's good graces, and could only assume he would love the chance to report her for failing to bring a piece of required equipment, even if the woman had never been one for weapons. Thankfully, M'Nia's almost-expected surprise drew her attention away from the crotchety Ferengi.

Smiling back at the Caitian as she pinned her helmet against the spot her Phaser should be, Sydney tried to play it smooth. Feigning a chuckle, "Yeah"¦I didn't expect to be here, either. Normally they don't call for someone like me for an Away Team, but I guess Command wants us to get the data off the computer, so"¦Here I am!" As much as she tried to sound excited, the human was sure it didn't sound anywhere as genuine as M'Nia's true excitement at seeing her friend suited up as well. If one thing was certain, it was that Sydney Reid was very much not smooth.

Making her way to the transporter room, suited up, helmet in hand, she nodded to the awaiting away team and security attachment, trying to ignore the fact that the standard suit was a bit too big for her and she had to fold the legs a bit in her boots.  "œSorry to be a bit late. Didn't have time to really replicate a proper-sized suit.  Are we all here?

A familiar voice drew the cryptologist's attention to the friendly face she'd secretly chosen as the Senior Officer to model herself after. Smiling at Kinley, Sydney called out, "Not sure, Commander, but I'm sure we wouldn't be leaving without you, so there's no way you could be considered 'late'." It was then that the Ops Officer took in the appearance of the Science Commander in the ill-fitting EV suit.

Sydney's face scrunched up in confusion before she stepped forward to close the distance between the two to allow her to ask in a hushed tone, "Didn't Logistics issue you one as part of your Standard Equipment?" The Ops officer didn't even really give the Commander time to answer before she assured her, "Once we get back, I'll make sure you get one that fits you. I can pull your measurements from the pattern buffer records. Offering Kinley a reassuring smile, it was clear that Sydney felt like she was helping the Science Officer, which certainly seemed to make her forget her anxieties about the mission ahead momentarily.

Taking a step back to give Kinley some more space to be comfortable, Sydney glanced around, taking inventory of all of the officers and personnel present before addressing Garrison's question. "I think we're still waiting on a couple of others," she answered, noticing that Ensign Lorut had yet to arrive as well as the representative from Medical, at the very least. She wasn't as up to date on who all made up each Security Team but assumed they were all present, given they'd gotten the alert to prepare a bit ahead of the Away Team selections.

[M'Nia]

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 13 | Personal Quarters] (Previous to Arriving at Transporter Room One)

With one arm already squeezed into the form-fitting EV suit, Sydney's head snapped her gaze to the small table in her quarters where she'd set down her commbadge as she heard it go off. Looking quickly down at herself, already feeling the restriction of the suit not even fully enveloped in it, the decision was made and the Ensign bunny-hopped across the short distance before reaching down to accept the message. Hearing the engineer's voice, and both the expected and unexpected news given, the woman wasn't sure how to answer, but finally managed to get out:

"Acknowledged, M'Nia. Thank you, again."

She could have told her new friend that she was also going to be part of the Away Mission, but instead, Sydney was left wondering how the Caitian was going to react when she saw her up there once the teams were staging. When the commlink blipped closed, the decision had been made for her. She was sure M'Nia would be surprised, but certainly not as surprised as the cryptologist was that she had been assigned to the mission.

[USS Discovery-B | Deck 6 | Transporter Room One]

It wasn't hard to take notice of Commander Lek strolling into the Transporter Room. Due in part to his size, and the size of his helmet, he wasn't one easily overlooked, especially when everyone was wearing EV suits. Turning reflexively to use her body to shield her naked hip, Sydney already knew that she hadn't put herself in the Chief Engineer's good graces, and could only assume he would love the chance to report her for failing to bring a piece of required equipment, even if the woman had never been one for weapons. Thankfully, M'Nia's almost-expected surprise drew her attention away from the crotchety Ferengi.

Smiling back at the Caitian as she pinned her helmet against the spot her Phaser should be, Sydney tried to play it smooth. Feigning a chuckle, "Yeah"¦I didn't expect to be here, either. Normally they don't call for someone like me for an Away Team, but I guess Command wants us to get the data off the computer, so"¦Here I am!" As much as she tried to sound excited, the human was sure it didn't sound anywhere as genuine as M'Nia's true excitement at seeing her friend suited up as well. If one thing was certain, it was that Sydney Reid was very much not smooth.

"Well maybe they wanted the best so they select you my dear Sydney!" She said with a big smile. She was always happy to see sydney!

A familiar voice drew the cryptologist's attention to the friendly face she'd secretly chosen as the Senior Officer to model herself after. Smiling at Kinley, Sydney called out, "Not sure, Commander, but I'm sure we wouldn't be leaving without you, so there's no way you could be considered 'late'." It was then that the Ops Officer took in the appearance of the Science Commander in the ill-fitting EV suit.

Sydney's face scrunched up in confusion before she stepped forward to close the distance between the two to allow her to ask in a hushed tone, "Didn't Logistics issue you one as part of your Standard Equipment?" The Ops officer didn't even really give the Commander time to answer before she assured her, "Once we get back, I'll make sure you get one that fits you. I can pull your measurements from the pattern buffer records. Offering Kinley a reassuring smile, it was clear that Sydney felt like she was helping the Science Officer, which certainly seemed to make her forget her anxieties about the mission ahead momentarily.

Taking a step back to give Kinley some more space to be comfortable, Sydney glanced around, taking inventory of all of the officers and personnel present before addressing Garrison's question. "I think we're still waiting on a couple of others," she answered, noticing that Ensign Lorut had yet to arrive as well as the representative from Medical, at the very least. She wasn't as up to date on who all made up each Security Team but assumed they were all present, given they'd gotten the alert to prepare a bit ahead of the Away Team selections.

M'nia saw this as an opportunity to meet someone new. She spent most of her time in engineering so didn't really get to meet most of the crew. She went over to kinely and introduced herself. "Commander, I'm ensign M'nia. Engineering. It's nice nice to meet you!"

[Lorut Vila]

USS Discovery
Bridge
MD01

Thank you, Ensign. Forward that information as well as the ship schematic to the two boarding teams as well as these individuals.

She nodded.

"Yes, sir. Anything else I need to send?" She pressed a button, and, with luck, PADDs all over the ship should light up.

Ops, inform those selected for the Away Team to pass off their duties and to meet up in Transporter Room One in full EVA until we know what happened over there.

She nodded again, but tapped her Comms badge.

==^==Away Team, pass off your duties and report to Transporter Room 1. Full EVA gear. Any questions can be forwarded to your Department Chiefs.==^== She killed the channel without any further niceties. She saw her name on the list, and looked back at the Romulan.

"Are you sure?" She shrugged, but stood up. "Here, hold this," she said, passing the man her contraband phaser, and heading out to the office to suit up. Finally! Some action-it was sure to keep her out of trouble. For at least a while, she hoped. The man didn't know-and WOULDN'T, hopefully-that her Bajoran Militia phaser was tucked safely into her cleavage.

Back in the office, she saw Sydney Reid getting ready. "Hey. I am sorry about earlier. I was still annoyed at the Ferengi," she said, stepping into the suit and gearing up. "Let's go." She hurried to the Transporter room-it wouldn't look good to be late, as she was already in a world of trouble.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Cmdr. Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck One - Bridge]

USS Discovery
Bridge
MD01

==^==Away Team, pass off your duties and report to Transporter Room 1. Full EVA gear. Any questions can be forwarded to your Department Chiefs.==^== She killed the channel without any further niceties. She saw her name on the list, and looked back at the Romulan.

"Are you sure?" She shrugged, but stood up. "Here, hold this," she said, passing the man her contraband phaser, and heading out to the office to suit up. Finally! Some action-it was sure to keep her out of trouble. For at least a while, she hoped. The man didn't know-and WOULDN'T, hopefully-that her Bajoran Militia phaser was tucked safely into her cleavage.

At the question of if he was sure, Rayek did what he thought was a good imitate of a Vulcan, by raising one eyebrow.  The look was meant to convey that she was the one with the doubts, not he.  But from her lack of reaction he wondered if he had actually attained the expression he was going for.

Once more the Bajoran woman suddenly handed him something; and just like last time the Romulan instinctively took.  This time instead of her PADD, she handed him her unauthorized phaser.   Fvadt!  In the aftermath of Breen mission, Rayek had neglected to seize it from her possession.

"Ensign, only members of the Security/Tactical department are permitted to have weapons on their person on the ship - the Bridge especially -  unless authorized by their Department Head, and the Chief of Security, me.  I will have to confiscate this.  A proper Starfleet issue phaser will be supplied to you for this Away Team mission.  It will have to be signed back in upon your return."

He spoke quietly as he walked along with her to the lift.   But she didn't seem like she was paying him much attention.  He hoped he wasn't going to regret assigning her.

[USS Discovery-B - Deck Three - s'Lhoell quarters]

After leaving the Bridge, Rayek made his way down two decks to his family's quarters.  He was dreading having to inform Tess that he was heading up another Away Mission.  He'd promised he would limit those, but the first opportunity that came about and the Romulan had automatically included himself on the roster.   What was he thinking?!

Tess seemed to take the news better than he would have expected.  Of course, he knew she was worried about him but she tried to hide it and helped him get into his EV suit.  However, it was only during their heartfelt goodbye kiss that he realized just how much this was affecting her.  Because of their tendency to be completely open with one another, he had slipped his mind into hers automatically to caress and offer assurances of his safety one last time before he left; but at discovering her thoughts - Rayek's plans changed drastically.

He leaned away to look at Tess for a long moment before he tapped his EV suits comm.

"Commander Garrison, you are now in charge of the Away mission.  I'll be remaining aboard. I'll forward your mission goals momentarily. tr'Lhoell out."

[Sydney Reid]

[USS Discovery-B | Turbolift] (During Travel to Alpha Hull Deck 6 en route to Transporter Room One)

Sydney was still adjusting the fit of her EV suit as she rode the turbolift, taking advantage of the fact she had it to herself so that no one would see her struggling with it. She never liked the suits, and especially the memories associated with them, but it was part of the job and she wanted to be sure she appeared as she was expected to. This was all going to plan until the Turbolift suddenly stopped and the doors opened to have none other than her fellow Operations Officer, Ensign Lorut Vila, stepping in with her. Having seen the same list as everyone else who had been selected for the Away Mission, Sydney knew they were both headed to the same place.

After stepping in and the doors closing behind her to have the Turbolift continue its ride, Vila suddenly spoke up to break the silence between the two Ensigns"¦

"Hey. I am sorry about earlier. I was still annoyed at the Ferengi," she said...

Almost immediately Sydney's head began to shake before she suddenly called out, "Computer. Halt Turbolift." This was neither the time nor the place to have this conversation, but if it was where Vila wanted to have it, her fellow Ensign was happy to oblige.

Turning to square her shoulders to Lorut, there was clear seriousness and determination in Reid's voice. "No. No. I do not accept your apology. Not like that. Not with you acting like Commander Lek was responsible for how you treated Me, how you treated M'Nia, and, from whatever you did after, to those on the Bridge that had me handling Comms Duties from Deck Thirteen. If you want to squash this, and I really hope that's what that crappy attempt at an apology was, then let's do it, but you are going to listen to me first." It was clear that Vila had struck a nerve, but the woman standing before her surely wasn't the same Sydney Reid most others had experienced during her time on Discovery.

"I don't know what got into your head, but you had no right going in there and talking to him like you did. To that point, Commander Lek shouldn't have reacted the way he did, either, but I'm not going to get into that. If you'd been paying attention then, you'd know where I stand on that whole, stupid encounter. What you need to know is that that was certainly Not how you should have treated me when all I was trying to do was save your ass from whatever fury that Senior Officer could bring down on you.

"Since we haven't had time to talk, really, you should know that, when I'm not on duty, I'm studying. Hell, I've always spent my free time studying. I've read up on all of the crew I might interact with. I've read up on all of the Senior Officers. I've read up on You. I have some idea of what you went through and how you came to be here, but you need to understand. This is Starfleet, Not the Bajoran Militia. Not everyone you meet with ridges is a Cardassian looking to take your home away or enslave you. You are past those years. You are here now, on this ship, in Starfleet. Whatever stuff you have in your past, you need to leave it there and stop using it as a crutch to be a bitch to everyone you feel like. That's not how things are done here. That's not what Starfleet is about."

Sydney paused for a moment, huffing breaths that seemed to be more labored thanks to the EV suit she hated wearing, but quickly spoke up, "Computer. Where are we located?" When the Computer answered back that they were located just short of Beta Deck Six, Sydney huffed out a, "Good," before turning her attention back to Vila.

"When I came into that Main Engineering, I was trying to help you, as a fellow Ensign, as a fellow Ops Officer, and as a fellow member of Starfleet. I've seen spats like that before, and there was no need for it. I figure Commander Lek has already sent a report to Command about your behavior, which he is completely in his right to do, especially after the way you handled yourself upon leaving. It's clear you have some stuff you need to work through, but you will not do that by being rude to your crew. We are not here to be your punching bag. If you want someone to talk to, go see a Counselor. There are several available aboard. For now"¦"

Sydney paused as she commanded the Computer to continue and halt on Beta Deck Six, opening the Turbolift doors. Stepping out into between them, she glanced down the adjoining corridors, seeing them empty, before turning her gaze back to Ensign Lorut.

"The corridor that connects Alpha and Beta hulls is down this hall. You can take it to get to Transporter Room One. You are going to get out here and take that extra few minutes to decide if you really want to be Here, both as a member of the crew on Discovery as well as an officer in Starfleet. I've worked too hard to get here and I will not try to save you again. Your future is your choice. If you want to be part of this crew, I will see you in a few minutes in Transporter Room One where the Away Teams are staging. If you don't, I suggest you call the turbolift back, head to your quarters, and write up your resignation to send to Command. If you can't keep yourself together as what is expected of an Officer in Starfleet, then get out before you get one of us killed. Got it?"

Sydney didn't move. It was clear she was not going to take 'No' or any other excuses from the Bajoran. She seemed determined and unmovable in that determination for Vila to step out of the Turbolift and do as her fellow Ops Officer had told her to. It was clear, though, that this wasn't a matter of being angry or upset with Vila, but of wanting to make sure that everyone on the crew, especially her fellow officer, understood what it meant to be part of Starfleet and part of One Crew.

Once Ensign Lorut stepped out, Sydney, whose tone had settled to one much calmer; much more in line with the respectful, modest tone she used with all, said lastly, "I do hope I see you in a few minutes, Vila," before stepping back into the Turbolift to have it finish its journey across the interior space of the ship's hull to bring her just outside of Transporter Room One.

[End Scene]

[Lek]

[Transporter Room - USS Discovery]

Lek noted first the Reid feemale and then the Lorut feemale enter and he rolled his eyes in annoyance and thought.

"Well, so much for this away team being peaceful. I think I'd rather have to face Jem'Hadar and Cardassians."

He said nothing, making small talk with M'Nia. She was young, but seemed a highly motivated engineer.

[Lorut Vila]

USS Discovery
Turbolift

No. No. I do not accept your apology. Not like that. Not with you acting like Commander Lek was responsible for how you treated Me, how you treated M'Nia, and, from whatever you did after, to those on the Bridge that had me handling Comms Duties from Deck Thirteen. If you want to squash this, and I really hope that's what that crappy attempt at an apology was, then let's do it, but you are going to listen to me first.

Vila simply shrugged. IF she wasn't going to accept it, that was her choice. Vila could only offer it.

She sighed deeply when the woman stopped the turbolift.

I don't know what got into your head, but you had no right going in there and talking to him like you did. To that point, Commander Lek shouldn't have reacted the way he did, either, but I'm not going to get into that. If you'd been paying attention then, you'd know where I stand on that whole, stupid encounter. What you need to know is that that was certainly Not how you should have treated me when all I was trying to do was save your ass from whatever fury that Senior Officer could bring down on you.

"Since we haven't had time to talk, really, you should know that, when I'm not on duty, I'm studying. Hell, I've always spent my free time studying. I've read up on all of the crew I might interact with. I've read up on all of the Senior Officers. I've read up on You. I have some idea of what you went through and how you came to be here, but you need to understand. This is Starfleet, Not the Bajoran Militia. Not everyone you meet with ridges is a Cardassian looking to take your home away or enslave you. You are past those years. You are here now, on this ship, in Starfleet. Whatever stuff you have in your past, you need to leave it there and stop using it as a crutch to be a bitch to everyone you feel like. That's not how things are done here. That's not what Starfleet is about.

"I don't know what gave you the impression that I care about what Starfleet is about. It's not really, and you'll learn that in time. Where was Starfleet when the Cardassians took away my ability to be a mother? Trying to decide if it was the RIGHT THING TO DO. If you did more research, you'd have found out that my ex-husband is in the Fleet, and I have a really good idea of how they operate. Protect from within, and everyone else be damned, Ensign. Trust me, I KNOW," she said, her face poker flat. "HE could step out, and HE could have a good time with no consequences from the Fleet, but as a Civilian-I speak up about it? I am shunned. THAT'S what Starfleet is about. When I was "rescued" when I was twelve? I was put on a hospital ship and forced to undergo MORE tests. That'swhat Starfleet is about." Arms crossed over her chest. Her gaze would've driven a hole through the woman if it were a laser.

When I came into that Main Engineering, I was trying to help you, as a fellow Ensign, as a fellow Ops Officer, and as a fellow member of Starfleet. I've seen spats like that before, and there was no need for it. I figure Commander Lek has already sent a report to Command about your behavior, which he is completely in his right to do, especially after the way you handled yourself upon leaving. It's clear you have some stuff you need to work through, but you will not do that by being rude to your crew. We are not here to be your punching bag. If you want someone to talk to, go see a Counselor. There are several available aboard. For now"¦The corridor that connects Alpha and Beta hulls is down this hall. You can take it to get to Transporter Room One. You are going to get out here and take that extra few minutes to decide if you really want to be Here, both as a member of the crew on Discovery as well as an officer in Starfleet. I've worked too hard to get here and I will not try to save you again. Your future is your choice. If you want to be part of this crew, I will see you in a few minutes in Transporter Room One where the Away Teams are staging. If you don't, I suggest you call the turbolift back, head to your quarters, and write up your resignation to send to Command. If you can't keep yourself together as what is expected of an Officer in Starfleet, then get out before you get one of us killed. Got it?

Vila opened the door without a word, overriding the computer with her own codes. Before the door closed, though, she turned around. "I will save YOUR life...wether you deserve it or not. And Lek's, too. And by the way, I'd learn to respect your elders. I know fifteen ways to kill you and everyone on this ship, and the only thing stopping me is that I still have an iota of a conscious. Counselors can't help me. They read my file and pass it on. That's how it's been for twenty-five years. So. Good day, ENSIGN. I'll see you later." With that, she turned to make it down the corridor to the other turbolift.

Once she arrived at the Transport room, the last to arrive, she smiled at Lek "We meet again, Commander. I hope that you're keeping my Latinum safe!" She said. "I am ready." She radioed back to tr'Lhoell. ==^==Sir, myself and Ensign Reid have reported to the Transporter room.==^==