S5: E: 8 Echos of a Tattered Past.

[Ian Galloway]

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Transporter Room One | Deck Ten | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira arrived first and awaited everybody else. Savar had come with his usual scientific equipment. Lahr, of course, arrived with a grumpy expression, which surprised Nira, given his friendly attitude from before. But then, when Davis had arrived...Nira was taken aback by the emotions she felt. Those and the expressions indicated...those two were a couple who had broken up.

Nira decided to start briefing. "Okay, people, now that we're all here," she said, "I will begin. There's a suspected Romulan listening post at the planet below, and I mean suspected. Could be a hostile faction, not at all in harmony with the Free State. But there's a further complication: Sensors detected several villages within ten kilometers of the signal, stone or bronze age inhabitants. There's a potential chance that the Romulans could be playing god here, or that the post could be worshiped as an inert idol. Either way, stealth is essential here, but there's a chance these villagers would be in with the Romulans, but the potential for hostilities is why we're going in heavy.

"Mister ch'Verret," she said to Lahr, "your expertise is going to be essential when we get to the listening post and shut it off. You'll be helping Mister Savar with that," she added, nodding at Savar. "And I trust there won't be a problem, especially with Doctor Davis?"

She looked at the two in an aside manner, hoping whatever issues and differences they have will be set aside for the mission. Although when informed that Davis wasn't a doctor, Nira blinked in befuddlement, and then she checked the crew roster.

"My apologies, Head Nurse," she said. "The damn roster never gives titles other than those of Starfleet rank.

"Now, Mister Zhuk and Mister Blackfeather will be our protection," continued Nira, "and Davis will be on hand medically in the event of injury. Again, hostilities are to be expected below, especially from the Romulans. Now arm yourselves and position on the pads."

Once the team gathered their armaments, she turned to the transporter officer on duty, a Vulcan named Grelek. "Alright, Mister Grelek, find a place as close as possible to the source of that signal. Energize the moment there's a break in the solar winds in that area."

And thus, rifle on hand (and Allah-awfully heavier than her favored compression rifle, but it'll have to do), she took her position, ready to beam down.

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

The area containing the unknown signals was in a large inland lake basin filled with small islands. A large, ancient mountain rose near the center of the lake, almost precisely on top of the coordinates the ship discovered. Sensors failed to detect anything incriminating - no modern buildings, no Romulans waving disruptor pistols or playing rugby - but both the subspace signal and a large and extensive network of caves were detected leading into the mountainside.

When the annular confinement beams released the away team, they immediately found their surroundings were warm, humid, and verdant. The first smells they sensed were much like that of fresh-mown grass. The landing site was on a rough outcropping of bare rock, surrounded on three sides by the jungle. A hundred meter drop bordered the fourth side, leading to hungry waves pounding on the rocks below.

Savar made a quick scan with his tricorder and confirmed that there were no immediate threats to the health and welfare of the party - though the surrounding jungle was packed with animal life forms based on the variety of strange hoots, cries, and other noises emanating from the surrounding lush foliage. The tricorder further established that this area of the planet was seismically stable and that the planet had clearly been subjected to levels of heat and radiation lethal to most humanoid life. Carbon dating suggested that the damage was done roughly 200,000 years ago. One other thing was also clear, the terrain and topography in the direction of the signal source was extremely rough and it would make for very slow going.

[Nira Said]

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

The area containing the unknown signals was in a large inland lake basin filled with small islands. A large, ancient mountain rose near the center of the lake, almost precisely on top of the coordinates the ship discovered. Sensors failed to detect anything incriminating - no modern buildings, no Romulans waving disruptor pistols or playing rugby - but both the subspace signal and a large and extensive network of caves were detected leading into the mountainside.

When the annular confinement beams released the away team, they immediately found their surroundings were warm, humid, and verdant. The first smells they sensed were much like that of fresh-mown grass. The landing site was on a rough outcropping of bare rock, surrounded on three sides by the jungle. A hundred meter drop bordered the fourth side, leading to hungry waves pounding on the rocks below.

Savar made a quick scan with his tricorder and confirmed that there were no immediate threats to the health and welfare of the party - though the surrounding jungle was packed with animal life forms based on the variety of strange hoots, cries, and other noises emanating from the surrounding lush foliage. The tricorder further established that this area of the planet was seismically stable and that the planet had clearly been subjected to levels of heat and radiation lethal to most humanoid life. Carbon dating suggested that the damage was done roughly 200,000 years ago. One other thing was also clear, the terrain and topography in the direction of the signal source was extremely rough and it would make for very slow going.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

After a while, the chance finally came for a beam-down. And Nira was very taken by the surroundings. She felt strangely drawn to the jungle, despite having been raised in a desert; even along the Arabian coast, it still felt dry. Here, it was very humid, but a lot more humid than the other jungle planets Nira remembered: Carraya and Risa. In addition, it seemed a lot more wild and rugged than either planets. Maybe even more so than Betazed (which explained why Nira felt drawn to the jungle; she remembered looking up Betazed and found it was as much a tropical paradise as Risa, except it had real weather).

Then she looked over at the lake basin...it was bigger than usual. It was like looking at a jungle version of one of the American Great Lakes, or even Hudson Bay; she remembered flying over the Northern Hemisphere on the way to the Academy and was struck by the huge bodies of water. Except, of course, there were plenty of islands and a big damn mountain in the middle.

"Okay, team," said Nira. "According to the sensors, the source of that signal is originating from that mountain. Looks can be deceiving; just because it looks normal doesn't mean there's nothing there. The subspace signal's not the only thing that's detected; sensors indicated that there's a cave network in that mountain. Extensive, too; looks of things, if there aren't villages around those islands, there will be villages in that mountain."

"That'll be fascinating," said Savar. "A city in a mountain's cave network."

Nira kept studying the mountain and furrowed her brow. "Getting to that mountain's going to be tricky," she said. "And chances are, we'll be spotted easily trying to get there by boat...assuming we can make a boat...if we could somehow disguise it like a big piece of driftwood..."

She shrugged it off; the inquisitive investigator in her was overthinking, it happened sometimes.

"One step at a time," she said. "We'll need to get to some better shorelines, first. We're definitely in for a tricky jungle hike, but as long as we can keep the shoreline visible, we won't lose it. Just watch any footing, however. Savar? Scan."

Savar nodded at got to work. Both the Imzadi were thinking the same thing: Would the fauna pose a danger to the team? They have heard plenty of animal cries from the foliage as they studied their surroundings and their destination.

After a quick scan, Savar replied, "Nothing immediately threatening from the fauna, Commander. Topographically, this area is seismically stable, compared to the rest of the planet...interesting, there's been indications of heat and radiation, carbon dated at two hundred thousand years in the past."

"That is interesting, Savar," said Nira ponderingly. "Good thing that was in the past; then again, at least a million years back, and the planet would've easily barely left its Age of the Dinosaurs."

"And at least a billion years, barely out of its Hadean period," said Savar with intrigue.

"Do you geeks need a room?" asked Blackfeather.

Nira and Savar looked his way, then looked back at each other, then stared at each other with ghosts of smirks, the way a couple on duty would.

"Not at the moment, Mister Blackfeather," said Nira. "For now, let's see if we can find a better shoreline, maybe something more beachlike."

She studied the shoreline more to determine which way to go, and how far it'll be.

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

NPC Lieutenant JG Chloe Davies, Head Nurse  and  PO1 ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Deck 10 - Transporter Room One]

[Ensign Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A | Deck 10 - Transporter Room One]

Zhukdra'shar would shortly arrive after Lahr, followed closely by Chief Petty Officer Blackfeather, as each carried three of the requested phaser rifles. He offered a nod of acknowledgment to Lahr and then one towards Head Nurse Davies, as he wondered momentarily if some short conversation would be a good idea while they waited for the rest of the instructions to be provided, and the remaining members of the potential away team to arrive. He hesitated, however, as he felt a certain rift within the room he couldn't really explain.

Maybe it would be a good idea to diffuse what he considered to be a tense situation of some sort by speaking up. And so, after a moment, he offered a small smile as he cleared his throat.

"Greetings. I hope the two are well. I will provide you with your assigned Type-3A Rifles shortly, but first I shalt await the instruction of Lieutenant Commander Said." He made a short pause, as he gauged their reactions for a bit "Have any of you been incorporated within an away team before? This is my first time since becoming a part of the USS Challenger, and I must admit I am both eager, if somewhat nervous about what we may find on the surface."

Lahr and Chloe both looked towards the Caitian as the Transporter room door opened.   They both gave a nod back and Lahr even offered an easy-going smile, trying to ignore the fact that his ex was present and giving him an icy stare.
At the Caitian Sec/Tac officer's question, Lahr tried not to laugh... nor cry.

"Yeah, I'm quite familiar with away teams.  Used to be Team Leader of a Security team years back but I think this might be Nurse Davies first time out. Go easy with her." Lahr drawled before noting the arrival /presence of their new XO and her Vulcan side-kick.  Rumor was that the two were a couple.  Lahr loved gossip.  Even more than that, Lahr was rather known for being a match-maker so he found the couple rather interesting.  He doubted he would have matched them together so he was curious as to what made their relationship work.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Transporter Room One | Deck Ten | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira arrived first and awaited everybody else. Savar had come with his usual scientific equipment. Lahr, of course, arrived with a grumpy expression, which surprised Nira, given his friendly attitude from before. But then, when Davis had arrived...Nira was taken aback by the emotions she felt. Those and the expressions indicated...those two were a couple who had broken up.

Nira decided to start briefing. "Okay, people, now that we're all here," she said, "I will begin. There's a suspected Romulan listening post at the planet below, and I mean suspected. Could be a hostile faction, not at all in harmony with the Free State. But there's a further complication: Sensors detected several villages within ten kilometers of the signal, stone or bronze age inhabitants. There's a potential chance that the Romulans could be playing god here, or that the post could be worshiped as an inert idol. Either way, stealth is essential here, but there's a chance these villagers would be in with the Romulans, but the potential for hostilities is why we're going in heavy.

"Mister ch'Verret," she said to Lahr, "your expertise is going to be essential when we get to the listening post and shut it off. You'll be helping Mister Savar with that," she added, nodding at Savar. "And I trust there won't be a problem, especially with Doctor Davis?"

She looked at the two in an aside manner, hoping whatever issues and differences they have will be set aside for the mission. Although when informed that Davis wasn't a doctor, Nira blinked in befuddlement, and then she checked the crew roster.

"My apologies, Head Nurse," she said. "The damn roster never gives titles other than those of Starfleet rank.

"Now, Mister Zhuk and Mister Blackfeather will be our protection," continued Nira, "and Davies will be on hand medically in the event of injury. Again, hostilities are to be expected below, especially from the Romulans. Now arm yourselves and position on the pads."

Once the team gathered their armaments, she turned to the transporter officer on duty, a Vulcan named Grelek. "Alright, Mister Grelek, find a place as close as possible to the source of that signal. Energize the moment there's a break in the solar winds in that area."

And thus, rifle on hand (and Allah-awfully heavier than her favored compression rifle, but it'll have to do), she took her position, ready to beam down.

When the Commander after briefing them, asked if there would be a problem between him and 'Doctor Davis'... for a moment Lahr internally debated using this as an excuse to get out of away team duty... but that thought lasted only a second.  He knew the moment he claimed he couldn't work with someone he'd be blacklisted, and given all the crap jobs thereafter.  No way would he chance that!   He'd take the away team duty rather than another waste recycle system maintenance check.

"No ma'am." Lahr answered crisply, drawing himself to his full height trying to be all serious.  "Nurse Davies and I are long-time associates - and both professionals when it comes to our work.  We have no problem working together.  Ain't that right, Chloe?"

When Lahr answered, he put emphasis on the pronunciation of Chloe's last name: DavIES.  He glanced her way and gave her an encouraging look, hoping she backed him up

Chloe for her part, wondered if the Commander knew of Lahr's history with PTSD.  As First Officer, of course Commander Said would have access to Lahr's file.  Chloe just couldn't be sure if the woman had read through it yet or not.  His presence on the away team suggested that no she hadn't.

While Chloe knew Lahr had once had an agreement with Commander Sigurdsdottir that kept him off of Away Team rotation, in the past several months he'd been out on quite a few.  Maybe his sessions with the counselor had helped him come to terms with his PTSD?  Chloe, even as Head Nurse, wasn't privy to the counselor's notes.  She looked towards Lahr, his expression and antennae mannerism were both clearly prompting for agreement.

"Petty officer ch'Verret is correct.   We are able to set aside past differences."

When the Commander apologized for the mistaken name and title, Chloe just shrugged it off.  "It's an easy mistake to make.  No need for apologies, Commander."

Chloe had some concerns about the mission, especially when the Commander stated that it was stealth mission.   She wondered why there were no attempts made to have the away team appear like the inhabitants.   She considered asking the Commander about this. But since everyone other than herself was already assembled on the Transporter pad, she figured now was bad timing to bring it up.

Soon the Chloe as well as the rest of the away team, were handed their phaser rifles.  Lahr held his with a practiced ease born of hours of training.  None of those hours had been recently but it was as the saying goes 'like riding a bike' - not that Lahr had ever ridden bike in his life.  Chloe, however, felt very uncomfortable with the weapon.  She disliked the fact that in order to carry the weapon (which required two hands) she needed to put her medkit in a backpack making it that much less accessible in an emergency.

Lahr had been right in his statement that this was her first real away mission - and not a holodeck simulation.  She hoped she was ready for this.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

"Okay, team," said Nira. "According to the sensors, the source of that signal is originating from that mountain. Looks can be deceiving; just because it looks normal doesn't mean there's nothing there. The subspace signal's not the only thing that's detected; sensors indicated that there's a cave network in that mountain. Extensive, too; looks of things, if there aren't villages around those islands, there will be villages in that mountain."

"That'll be fascinating," said Savar. "A city in a mountain's cave network."

Nira kept studying the mountain and furrowed her brow. "Getting to that mountain's going to be tricky," she said. "And chances are, we'll be spotted easily trying to get there by boat...assuming we can make a boat...if we could somehow disguise it like a big piece of driftwood..."

She shrugged it off; the inquisitive investigator in her was overthinking, it happened sometimes.

"One step at a time," she said. "We'll need to get to some better shorelines, first. We're definitely in for a tricky jungle hike, but as long as we can keep the shoreline visible, we won't lose it. Just watch any footing, however. Savar? Scan."

Savar nodded at got to work. Both the Imzadi were thinking the same thing: Would the fauna pose a danger to the team? They have heard plenty of animal cries from the foliage as they studied their surroundings and their destination.

After a quick scan, Savar replied, "Nothing immediately threatening from the fauna, Commander. Topographically, this area is seismically stable, compared to the rest of the planet...interesting, there's been indications of heat and radiation, carbon dated at two hundred thousand years in the past."

"That is interesting, Savar," said Nira ponderingly. "Good thing that was in the past; then again, at least a million years back, and the planet would've easily barely left its Age of the Dinosaurs."

"And at least a billion years, barely out of its Hadean period," said Savar with intrigue.

"Do you geeks need a room?" asked Blackfeather.

Nira and Savar looked his way, then looked back at each other, then stared at each other with ghosts of smirks, the way a couple on duty would.

"Not at the moment, Mister Blackfeather," said Nira. "For now, let's see if we can find a better shoreline, maybe something more beachlike."

She studied the shoreline more to determine which way to go, and how far it'll be.

Not being a scientist with a tricorder handy, Lahr played the role of extra security while the Commander and the Vulcan determined which way to go.  He kept watch on the nearby jungle alertly.  Chloe on the other hand seemed to be at a loss as to what to do.  Her yearly firearms training had her at least holding phaser rifle correctly but that was about it.  Her attention seemed to be on the sights and things the Commander and Savar were talking about, as if she might be able to add to their conversation but she said nothing - leaving it to them to direct their route.

[Ian Galloway]

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

After two grueling hours of climbing over, under, and around obstacles, the entire away team was  chafed, bruised, and abraded from tree bark, thorns, and vines. Worst part about the trek was in those two hours, they had only covered four kilometers from their beam down point. Pausing briefly in what passed for a clearing in the thick jungle, a creature, roughly the size of a brown bear and looking something like a cross between a demon-hound and a flying fox, swooped down from the trees via a heavy fold of thick, leathery skin that stretched from its wrist to its ankle to land on Zhuk's back, driving the surprised Caitian into the abundant moss of the jungle floor and leaving him winded. The thing roared and slashed Chloe across her abdomen, bowling her over in shock and pain. The creature then locked eyes on Savar and charged.

[Nira Said]

NPC Lieutenant JG Chloe Davies, Head Nurse  and  PO1 ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Deck 10 - Transporter Room One]

Lahr and Chloe both looked towards the Caitian as the Transporter room door opened.   They both gave a nod back and Lahr even offered an easy-going smile, trying to ignore the fact that his ex was present and giving him an icy stare.
At the Caitian Sec/Tac officer's question, Lahr tried not to laugh... nor cry.

"Yeah, I'm quite familiar with away teams.  Used to be Team Leader of a Security team years back but I think this might be Nurse Davies first time out. Go easy with her." Lahr drawled before noting the arrival /presence of their new XO and her Vulcan side-kick.  Rumor was that the two were a couple.  Lahr loved gossip.  Even more than that, Lahr was rather known for being a match-maker so he found the couple rather interesting.  He doubted he would have matched them together so he was curious as to what made their relationship work.

When the Commander after briefing them, asked if there would be a problem between him and 'Doctor Davis'... for a moment Lahr internally debated using this as an excuse to get out of away team duty... but that thought lasted only a second.  He knew the moment he claimed he couldn't work with someone he'd be blacklisted, and given all the crap jobs thereafter.  No way would he chance that!   He'd take the away team duty rather than another waste recycle system maintenance check.

"No ma'am." Lahr answered crisply, drawing himself to his full height trying to be all serious.  "Nurse Davies and I are long-time associates - and both professionals when it comes to our work.  We have no problem working together.  Ain't that right, Chloe?"

When Lahr answered, he put emphasis on the pronunciation of Chloe's last name: DavIES.  He glanced her way and gave her an encouraging look, hoping she backed him up

Chloe for her part, wondered if the Commander knew of Lahr's history with PTSD.  As First Officer, of course Commander Said would have access to Lahr's file.  Chloe just couldn't be sure if the woman had read through it yet or not.  His presence on the away team suggested that no she hadn't.

While Chloe knew Lahr had once had an agreement with Commander Sigurdsdottir that kept him off of Away Team rotation, in the past several months he'd been out on quite a few.  Maybe his sessions with the counselor had helped him come to terms with his PTSD?  Chloe, even as Head Nurse, wasn't privy to the counselor's notes.  She looked towards Lahr, his expression and antennae mannerism were both clearly prompting for agreement.

"Petty officer ch'Verret is correct.   We are able to set aside past differences."

When the Commander apologized for the mistaken name and title, Chloe just shrugged it off.  "It's an easy mistake to make.  No need for apologies, Commander."

Chloe had some concerns about the mission, especially when the Commander stated that it was stealth mission.   She wondered why there were no attempts made to have the away team appear like the inhabitants.   She considered asking the Commander about this. But since everyone other than herself was already assembled on the Transporter pad, she figured now was bad timing to bring it up.

Soon the Chloe as well as the rest of the away team, were handed their phaser rifles.  Lahr held his with a practiced ease born of hours of training.  None of those hours had been recently but it was as the saying goes 'like riding a bike' - not that Lahr had ever ridden bike in his life.  Chloe, however, felt very uncomfortable with the weapon.  She disliked the fact that in order to carry the weapon (which required two hands) she needed to put her medkit in a backpack making it that much less accessible in an emergency.

Lahr had been right in his statement that this was her first real away mission - and not a holodeck simulation.  She hoped she was ready for this.

Not being a scientist with a tricorder handy, Lahr played the role of extra security while the Commander and the Vulcan determined which way to go.  He kept watch on the nearby jungle alertly.  Chloe on the other hand seemed to be at a loss as to what to do.  Her yearly firearms training had her at least holding phaser rifle correctly but that was about it.  Her attention seemed to be on the sights and things the Commander and Savar were talking about, as if she might be able to add to their conversation but she said nothing - leaving it to them to direct their route.

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

After two grueling hours of climbing over, under, and around obstacles, the entire away team was  chafed, bruised, and abraded from tree bark, thorns, and vines. Worst part about the trek was in those two hours, they had only covered four kilometers from their beam down point. Pausing briefly in what passed for a clearing in the thick jungle, a creature, roughly the size of a brown bear and looking something like a cross between a demon-hound and a flying fox, swooped down from the trees via a heavy fold of thick, leathery skin that stretched from its wrist to its ankle to land on Zhuk's back, driving the surprised Caitian into the abundant moss of the jungle floor and leaving him winded. The thing roared and slashed Chloe across her abdomen, bowling her over in shock and pain. The creature then locked eyes on Savar and charged.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

As she studied the landscape, Nira reflected to remember to refer to Head Nurse Davies by proper pronunciation. She realized that she hadn't inspected the medical department, and what was more, she had forgotten her new-officer physical. She figured maybe after the away mission.

After a while, Nira made her decision. "Okay, team," she said, "I don't see a good beach as of yet. I think it may be best to circumnavigate the lake until they could find a beach or more flatter means to cross that lake to get to that mountain. Let's be sure we have the shoreline in view. Two or three meters at most, so that we can know where to go. Though chances are, that mountain will be able to enable us to know where to go. Alright, let's go."

Within a few dozen meters, it had become apparent to Nira that this was no simple jungle trek. This was a lot more wild and rugged than Carraya and Risa. But Nira recalled her security combat obstacle course, as all Security officers went through. She decided it was going to be an interesting challenge.

After two hours, they had climbed over, under, and around various obstacles of foliage. Nira felt chafed and bruised from having to grab tree bark and vines. She was scraped from brushing against thorns, and so were the rest of the away team. The only thing that kept Nira from going insane was that her keen observational skills saw very interesting indications of animals, generally in the form of tracks or scratches.

"Big animal must've made these," Nira would often say, or often "some birds were fluttering here." She remembered her time in the Officer Exchange Program serving on a Klingon ship and recalled that she informed Klingons that she'd use her observational skills for hunting or tracking. In a way, her attention to detail made her realize she was making aside notations of tracking, in a way, but she wasn't interested in following animal tracks. She wasn't sure what kind of animals they were, and how dangerous they could be.

She could see how well Zhuk, Blackfeather and Lahr were holding up. Nira wondered if Lahr had security training in the past. Savar seemed to fare worse despite his strength, with so many nicks and scratches, he looked like he had green stripes drawn on him. Then again, he often parted with the team briefly to check how close they were to the shoreline and came back. The one she felt were the most fatigued was Davies. But all the same, she felt they were all tired from the trek so far.

"Okay, people, let's rest a moment, we need to get recover our strength before we continue," called Nira, holding up a hand to call for a stop when she stepped into a clearing. "Good as place as any." She proceeded to unzip her uniform, wet with sweat. She reflected that she never got this sweaty on Carraya and Risa. Well...she probably wasn't wearing so much ninety percent of the time she went to Risa. She wondered if she'd ever get used to Betazed's humidity, or if she was better off somewhere dry like in her adopted home of Arabia.

Savar came in first after Nira, prompting Nira to ask, while she shed her outer uniform from the sweat, "How far have we gone, Savar?"

"Approximately four kilometers within the past two hours," said Savar.

"Good Allah!" said Nira, loud enough to be a shout, but upon realizing she was overreacting, she calmed a tad. "Sorry, Imzadi, it's..."

"...not easy, that is obvious," retorted Savar dryly.

"Obviously," agreed Nira. "How far is the shoreline?"

"A couple of meters past that foliage," said Savar, pointing a certain direction.

Nira followed the direction Savar pointed as the rest of the away team sauntered into the clearing, and one or two, Nira was sure, were lurching with fatigue. She pursed her lips. She was beginning to wonder if it was going to be more worthwhile to make a raft in the clearing and use the vines to lower the raft down...but she momentarily looked up and saw how the branches seemed to make some kind of particular pattern - maybe too particular - when something like a leathery-skinned bear with huge claws and "wings" like a flying fox dove on Zhuk and slashed Davies.

Nira whirled at the noise and stared in horror at the huge winged monster. Savar, meanwhile, in typical Vulcan behavior, raised a scanner and looked in fascination. Then the monster locked its eyes on Savar. That was enough to break Nira from her shocked stupor. The moment it charged, Nira raised her rifle fast and shot at the monster. And she kept on firing just in case it was strong enough that a simple phaser bolt wouldn't drop it.

"BlackfeatherZhukLahr!" hissed Nira at the two security officers and to Lahr, who she was sure had combat exprtise, though she had noticed Zhuk was winded, but she was sure she'll need help to bring the monster down.

Savar managed to get out of the way as Nira got in the beast's way and slipped to Davies to see how well she was, getting out her medkit, and watched with fascination, in perhaps the same sort of fascination as somebody in a bull ring audience watching a matador brandish his sword at a bull, and if the matador was armed with an Arabic scimitar as big as a bat'leth instead of a rapier, and he had seen bullfights in the holodeck before, wondering why humans in the past often have a fascination for morbidity.

"Now that's something to impress a Klingon," he said. "Given it was charging, I'd call it an honorable fight, though it's a lot bigger than a targ. If it weren't for the weather," he added, looking up, "I'd hope the natives think that thing was struck by lightning. Okay, Head Nurse, can you walk me through on how to treat your wound?"

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ruth willed herself to sit in the Science 1 position and just monitor systems rather than wearing a hole in the decking plates pacing back and forth.

"Should they have checked in by now?  Have I missed a check in? I know I get rather engrossed in Science stuff at times...Having said that, sensor scans show extremely powerful flares and periods of radically increased solar emissions. Did they have radiation jabs before they went down, I am having difficulty determining the levels of EMFs...  larger RF electromagnetic fields ranging from 100 KHz (kilohertz) to 300 GH (gigahertz) could be possible, and they are dangerous."

The CSO paused, took two large steadying breaths.  Her beloved, a dear friend (Nira) and her other colleagues were down there.  It was up to her to keep a level head and do her job.

"Guidelines currently specify that humans at least, shouldn't be exposed to current electric densities in the body's head, neck and trunk of greater than 10 mA m-2, for non-boffins,.." she said using the Captain's favourite word for Scientists, " that's known as the 'basic restriction. 'A lower limit of 2 mA m-2 is given for the general population to account for children and people who may be more sensitive, so we may need to be careful as we have a range of species in our away team and while I know Nurse Davies is capable, I'm not sure how well versed she is in radiation."

Continuing, Ruth knew she'd probably lost the Captain with the technojargon but hopefully enough got through to express her concern. "The expression 10 mA m-2 represents a measurement of electric current density. It translates as "œ10 milliamperes per meter squared." A milliampere is one 1/1000th of an ampere. It's the level above which electric and magnetic fields have been shown to have effects on bodily tissue and cognitive brain function."

'Make Lahr a bit more wacky, why don't you..?!' she thought to herself.

"I'm having difficulty with the sensors, but the inner system is crowded with debris and high solar winds, which is creating tons of sensor ghosts and likely responsible for the less-than-reliable sensor readings so we are to an extent flying blind on this one."

The Commander knew that Ian was aware that the more she talked, the more nervous she was.  It was a habit of hers.  Granted all the information she'd given was relevant, but it was covering the fact that she was worried.

"The flares are a bit erratic too, Helm, so while I'll do my best with keeping you aware... I can't always tell when one will occur so keep your eye out and take evasive action as necessary... ah with your permission Captain." she added realising she was issuing orders, albeit for the safety of the ship and crew but Ian was in command after all.

[Ian Galloway]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ruth willed herself to sit in the Science 1 position and just monitor systems rather than wearing a hole in the decking plates pacing back and forth.

"Should they have checked in by now?  Have I missed a check in? I know I get rather engrossed in Science stuff at times...Having said that, sensor scans show extremely powerful flares and periods of radically increased solar emissions. Did they have radiation jabs before they went down, I am having difficulty determining the levels of EMFs...  larger RF electromagnetic fields ranging from 100 KHz (kilohertz) to 300 GH (gigahertz) could be possible, and they are dangerous."

The CSO paused, took two large steadying breaths.  Her beloved, a dear friend (Nira) and her other colleagues were down there.  It was up to her to keep a level head and do her job.

"Guidelines currently specify that humans at least, shouldn't be exposed to current electric densities in the body's head, neck and trunk of greater than 10 mA m-2, for non-boffins,.." she said using the Captain's favourite word for Scientists, " that's known as the 'basic restriction. 'A lower limit of 2 mA m-2 is given for the general population to account for children and people who may be more sensitive, so we may need to be careful as we have a range of species in our away team and while I know Nurse Davies is capable, I'm not sure how well versed she is in radiation."

Continuing, Ruth knew she'd probably lost the Captain with the technojargon but hopefully enough got through to express her concern. "The expression 10 mA m-2 represents a measurement of electric current density. It translates as "œ10 milliamperes per meter squared." A milliampere is one 1/1000th of an ampere. It's the level above which electric and magnetic fields have been shown to have effects on bodily tissue and cognitive brain function."

'Make Lahr a bit more wacky, why don't you..?!' she thought to herself.

"I'm having difficulty with the sensors, but the inner system is crowded with debris and high solar winds, which is creating tons of sensor ghosts and likely responsible for the less-than-reliable sensor readings so we are to an extent flying blind on this one."

The Commander knew that Ian was aware that the more she talked, the more nervous she was.  It was a habit of hers.  Granted all the information she'd given was relevant, but it was covering the fact that she was worried.

"The flares are a bit erratic too, Helm, so while I'll do my best with keeping you aware... I can't always tell when one will occur so keep your eye out and take evasive action as necessary... ah with your permission Captain." she added realising she was issuing orders, albeit for the safety of the ship and crew but Ian was in command after all.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Ruth's report with minimal interest as she wasn't adding much to what he already knew. When she finished speaking he replied in a firm steady tone.

"He's goin' ta be fine Commander, as will the rest of the away team. If'n anything goes seriously wrong, we'll beam them out."

[Kaimo IV - Surface]

When the sound of the phaser died off, after several seconds, the incessant sounds of the insects and other inhabitants of the jungle returned to their never ending chatter. Taking an assessment of the injuries suffered by Zhuk and Chloe were deep, but not life threatening. A few minutes with a dermal regenerator and the wounds were closed.

Moving on from the corpse of the flying bear-thing, roughly 300 meters further into the jungle, the away team came across a large crevasse in the stone, which dropped nearly a hundred meters to a rush of white water below. Thirty meters above that, however, Savar detected traces of refined duranium and a barely functioning power source. The rock face was studded with handholds, so it was within the realm of the possible to reach whatever was generating the power signature, but it was clearly not going to be an easy climb.

[Nira Said]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Ruth's report with minimal interest as she wasn't adding much to what he already knew. When she finished speaking he replied in a firm steady tone.

"He's goin' ta be fine Commander, as will the rest of the away team. If'n anything goes seriously wrong, we'll beam them out."

[Kaimo IV - Surface]

When the sound of the phaser died off, after several seconds, the incessant sounds of the insects and other inhabitants of the jungle returned to their never ending chatter. Taking an assessment of the injuries suffered by Zhuk and Chloe were deep, but not life threatening. A few minutes with a dermal regenerator and the wounds were closed.

Moving on from the corpse of the flying bear-thing, roughly 300 meters further into the jungle, the away team came across a large crevasse in the stone, which dropped nearly a hundred meters to a rush of white water below. Thirty meters above that, however, Savar detected traces of refined duranium and a barely functioning power source. The rock face was studded with handholds, so it was within the realm of the possible to reach whatever was generating the power signature, but it was clearly not going to be an easy climb.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Clearing >- Crevasse | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

It didn't matter at this point whether Nira had help or not. By the time she finished, the flying bear was a smoldering cadaver.

"Nobody hurts my Imzadi," said Nira with quiet malice to the dead bear, her black eyes gleaming menacingly. "Nobody."

Savar nodded when instructed just to get out a dermal generator and set to work on the injury. Then he went to Zhuk. Once he was finished, Nira approached him, feeling calmer now, though the heightened emotional hostility she displayed felt like she was spewing heat like an open oven, enough for the whole team to feel, but now the heat had lifted.

"Report?"

"Davies and Zhuk will be fine," said Savar. "Their injuries are deep, but not life-threatening. I did as much as I could."

"You did great," she said. "Frankly, that was quite a scare," she added, looking at the bear. "I don't think we'll need further rest; we have enough adrenaline kicked in more than a gallon of coffee."

"I concur," said Savar. "And the sooner we leave, the better. Have you taken a good look at the clearing, and the timing of that flying bear?"

Nira looked around. Now that she had calmed down, she was noticing more details with the clearing. Claw shapes and imprints, like something big settled around, but from the wing imprints, it would've had to have had an equally big wingspan...something exactly like...

"Mating grounds?" said Nira uneasily. "Or a nest?"

"Wouldn't be surprised if it was both," said Savar. "Still, fascinating creature. Look at the coloration; those mottled patches much change from season to season, probably to match the native foliage, handy in camouflage, and with those hands and feet, it could grapple its prey and dismember it..."

"Remind me to take you on a targ hunt if Klingons invite me," said Nira. "But as you said, the sooner we get out of here, the better. We don't want to be here when Mama Bear comes home."

"How do you know that creature's male?" asked Savar, puzzled, his tricorder on. "I'm sure you didn't even get into my head."

"Female bears have that reputation," said Nira. "Especially with cubs. But whether or not that thing is a cub or a mate, if she finds us, we're screwed."

Savar nodded as Nira directed the team to moving. After a while, they came to a crevasse. Nira followed the rapids with her eyes and saw that further down, the rapids calmed and emptied into the lake.

"We're further away from the shoreline than expected," said Nira. "We're going to need to find a way to cross, and when we do, we follow this river back to the shoreline.

"At the bottom, preferably," said Blackfeather. "Hopefully there will be more beach at the mouth."

"Hopefully," said Nira.

"It won't be easy," replied Savar. "It's a hundred meter drop...that's odd," he added, furrowing his brow at the tricorder.

"What is it?" asked Nira in curiosity.

"My tricorder's detected traces of refined duranium," he replied. "There's also a faint power source. It's thirty meters above the water, however."

"Where is it?"

Savar pointed and Nira peered down. A moment's study and her observational skills spotted something.

"Look at those," she said. "They don't look natural...those rocks are patterned in a particular way...they must be hand- and footholds for climbing."

"So if there are any Romulans here," said Blackfeather, "they've found a good place to hide, and they would need a means of going up and down."

"I wouldn't even be surprised if they made these to even get all the way to the shore," said Nira, pointing to the rapids. "It won't be an easy climb."

In point of fact, it had been years since she had been on an actual rock climbing course. But looking at it, it would be no different than climbing ladders in a turbolift shaft. One of her practice runs even looked like a rock climbing course, but it was just simply a matter of working ways from one place to grip a hand to another in climbing a turbolift shaft when a ladder was out.

"Well," said Nira, "who wants to climb down first?"

[Zhukdrashar Mrekrerhas]

[Ensign Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Surface - Kaimo IV]

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

The area containing the unknown signals was in a large inland lake basin filled with small islands. A large, ancient mountain rose near the center of the lake, almost precisely on top of the coordinates the ship discovered. Sensors failed to detect anything incriminating - no modern buildings, no Romulans waving disruptor pistols or playing rugby - but both the subspace signal and a large and extensive network of caves were detected leading into the mountainside.

When the annular confinement beams released the away team, they immediately found their surroundings were warm, humid, and verdant. The first smells they sensed were much like that of fresh-mown grass. The landing site was on a rough outcropping of bare rock, surrounded on three sides by the jungle. A hundred meter drop bordered the fourth side, leading to hungry waves pounding on the rocks below.

Savar made a quick scan with his tricorder and confirmed that there were no immediate threats to the health and welfare of the party - though the surrounding jungle was packed with animal life forms based on the variety of strange hoots, cries, and other noises emanating from the surrounding lush foliage. The tricorder further established that this area of the planet was seismically stable and that the planet had clearly been subjected to levels of heat and radiation lethal to most humanoid life. Carbon dating suggested that the damage was done roughly 200,000 years ago. One other thing was also clear, the terrain and topography in the direction of the signal source was extremely rough and it would make for very slow going.

When the away team beamed down, Zhukdra'shar found himself close to a sweltering, thick jungle, while the other side showcased a large inland lake with many islands, the most significant of which was a massive mountain in the center of the lake. Curiously, Zhuk took a look down the hundred or so meter drop, to gaze at the waves below. From his time on Earth, he could remember visiting the jungles and cenotes of Yucatan, MÁ©xico after being invited by a friend at the Academy. And he had to admit, that it had been quite the meaningful experience, absolutely adoring each second of his exploration in such a place. This was no different to him.

Well, perhaps the planet and situation were, but he couldn't help but find enjoyment in the setting he had found himself in. He took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the jungle, as he turned himself around, tail swishing rapidly for a few seconds in excitement before he noticed and stopped it. Still, a noticeable smile was still present on his face. He was happy to be here, and he couldn't deny it. Maybe it was his Caitian heritage that made him be so in love with tropical climates, even with such an amount of vegetation and heat, or maybe it was just a personal preference. Whatever the case, he decided to focus back on the mission.

Listening to both Lieutenant Nira's instructions and Savar's comments about his scan results, which he too found interesting, he decided to get a move on, trying to find that elusive beachhead the away team was after, to make the cross towards the mountain within the center. He wondered if they would be able to construct a boat. He certainly was eager to try, though.

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

After two grueling hours of climbing over, under, and around obstacles, the entire away team was  chafed, bruised, and abraded from tree bark, thorns, and vines. Worst part about the trek was in those two hours, they had only covered four kilometers from their beam down point. Pausing briefly in what passed for a clearing in the thick jungle, a creature, roughly the size of a brown bear and looking something like a cross between a demon-hound and a flying fox, swooped down from the trees via a heavy fold of thick, leathery skin that stretched from its wrist to its ankle to land on Zhuk's back, driving the surprised Caitian into the abundant moss of the jungle floor and leaving him winded. The thing roared and slashed Chloe across her abdomen, bowling her over in shock and pain. The creature then locked eyes on Savar and charged.

After a couple of hours of walking, and having to endure cuts and bruises from having to pass over tightly packed vegetation, vines, and especially thorns, Zhukdra'shar had seen the error of his ways. This was certainly much more difficult to traverse than the jungle over at Yucatan. Though he panted occasionally, both his training and his dexterity made for a relatively easier movement through the jungle. His eyes and ears remained peeled, rifle kept close by in case danger appeared.

He welcomed the chance to rest over at a clearing, however, deciding to take in the sights that he could see. There was a certain beauty that he could admire within, that with the beautiful flowers that could be found, or the occasional bright-colored insect with a shiny caparace that flew lazily a few feet around. The vocalizations from unknown creatures also took his attention. All stopped, however, as one of his ears pivoted towards a source of branches and leaves creaking just overhead. As he turned and attempted to raise his rifle, however, he was much too late, as a huge bear-like creature with what seemed to be folds of skin that went from its wrists to its ankles smashed over him, completely knocking the air of his lungs as he was sent into the soft moss below. The pain from the claws wrecked him, leaving him bewildered and unable to react as the creature moved over to attack Savar.

He took a moment to recover, taking deep, painful breaths as he reached once more for his fallen phaser rifle, and tried to aim towards the creature, being subdued now by Nira. However, his injuries proved to be much harder for him to ignore, and so he was unable to even lift his rifle from the floor, as he fell once more upon it. Utterly shameful, he chastised himself. He tried once more, however, it all proved for naught, as the Lieutenant proved to be more than capable of dispatching it.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Ruth's report with minimal interest as she wasn't adding much to what he already knew. When she finished speaking he replied in a firm steady tone.

"He's goin' ta be fine Commander, as will the rest of the away team. If'n anything goes seriously wrong, we'll beam them out."

[Kaimo IV - Surface]

When the sound of the phaser died off, after several seconds, the incessant sounds of the insects and other inhabitants of the jungle returned to their never ending chatter. Taking an assessment of the injuries suffered by Zhuk and Chloe were deep, but not life threatening. A few minutes with a dermal regenerator and the wounds were closed.

Moving on from the corpse of the flying bear-thing, roughly 300 meters further into the jungle, the away team came across a large crevasse in the stone, which dropped nearly a hundred meters to a rush of white water below. Thirty meters above that, however, Savar detected traces of refined duranium and a barely functioning power source. The rock face was studded with handholds, so it was within the realm of the possible to reach whatever was generating the power signature, but it was clearly not going to be an easy climb.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Clearing >- Crevasse | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

It didn't matter at this point whether Nira had help or not. By the time she finished, the flying bear was a smoldering cadaver.

"Nobody hurts my Imzadi," said Nira with quiet malice to the dead bear, her black eyes gleaming menacingly. "Nobody."

Savar nodded when instructed just to get out a dermal generator and set to work on the injury. Then he went to Zhuk. Once he was finished, Nira approached him, feeling calmer now, though the heightened emotional hostility she displayed felt like she was spewing heat like an open oven, enough for the whole team to feel, but now the heat had lifted.

"Report?"

"Davies and Zhuk will be fine," said Savar. "Their injuries are deep, but not life-threatening. I did as much as I could."

"You did great," she said. "Frankly, that was quite a scare," she added, looking at the bear. "I don't think we'll need further rest; we have enough adrenaline kicked in more than a gallon of coffee."

"I concur," said Savar. "And the sooner we leave, the better. Have you taken a good look at the clearing, and the timing of that flying bear?"

Nira looked around. Now that she had calmed down, she was noticing more details with the clearing. Claw shapes and imprints, like something big settled around, but from the wing imprints, it would've had to have had an equally big wingspan...something exactly like...

"Mating grounds?" said Nira uneasily. "Or a nest?"

"Wouldn't be surprised if it was both," said Savar. "Still, fascinating creature. Look at the coloration; those mottled patches much change from season to season, probably to match the native foliage, handy in camouflage, and with those hands and feet, it could grapple its prey and dismember it..."

"Remind me to take you on a targ hunt if Klingons invite me," said Nira. "But as you said, the sooner we get out of here, the better. We don't want to be here when Mama Bear comes home."

"How do you know that creature's male?" asked Savar, puzzled, his tricorder on. "I'm sure you didn't even get into my head."

"Female bears have that reputation," said Nira. "Especially with cubs. But whether or not that thing is a cub or a mate, if she finds us, we're screwed."

Savar nodded as Nira directed the team to moving. After a while, they came to a crevasse. Nira followed the rapids with her eyes and saw that further down, the rapids calmed and emptied into the lake.

"We're further away from the shoreline than expected," said Nira. "We're going to need to find a way to cross, and when we do, we follow this river back to the shoreline.

"At the bottom, preferably," said Blackfeather. "Hopefully there will be more beach at the mouth."

"Hopefully," said Nira.

"It won't be easy," replied Savar. "It's a hundred meter drop...that's odd," he added, furrowing his brow at the tricorder.

"What is it?" asked Nira in curiosity.

"My tricorder's detected traces of refined duranium," he replied. "There's also a faint power source. It's thirty meters above the water, however."

"Where is it?"

Savar pointed and Nira peered down. A moment's study and her observational skills spotted something.

"Look at those," she said. "They don't look natural...those rocks are patterned in a particular way...they must be hand- and footholds for climbing."

"So if there are any Romulans here," said Blackfeather, "they've found a good place to hide, and they would need a means of going up and down."

"I wouldn't even be surprised if they made these to even get all the way to the shore," said Nira, pointing to the rapids. "It won't be an easy climb."

In point of fact, it had been years since she had been on an actual rock climbing course. But looking at it, it would be no different than climbing ladders in a turbolift shaft. One of her practice runs even looked like a rock climbing course, but it was just simply a matter of working ways from one place to grip a hand to another in climbing a turbolift shaft when a ladder was out.

"Well," said Nira, "who wants to climb down first?"

"T-Thank you, Savar. I appreciate your medical assistance."

Came the purr-like words from Zhukdra'shar as he stood up once more once his wounds had been patched up through the dermal regenerator by the Vulcan. He gripped his rifle tightly, and decided to continue alongside the rest, ears pulled close to his body, and tail close to his legs. He felt ashamed of having been ambushed like that, and the thought of his teammates being mauled by the creature, and in the case of Head Nurse Davies, actually did get injured. At least, she was in a state similar to himself.

"I apologize, Lieutenant Nira, and especially Head Nurse Davies, for being unable to spot the dangerous organism in time to counterattack." He glanced over at Davies' zone of injury, hoping that no one would have to go through something like that again while they continued with their journey.

He made sure to remain more alert this time, forgoing the memories of his masters berating him when he did a poor job, to instead made sure that he remained peeled for any and all danger that might arise from the sweltering jungle once more. It was a significant relief for him, however, when they reached the crevasse and a drop with rapids below. He sighed softly, as the beachhead was still nowhere in sight. However, his ear swished as he heard Savar speaking about something odd in the rock.

As he turned towards him, he walked closer to better gaze at the outcroppings that had been placed upon the rocky wall, meant to be employed as an aid for climbing. He examined them for a moment once he had located them, humming softly to himself as he wondered if climbing with them would be a good idea. When the question was raised from Nira about whom would go first, Zhukdra'shar almost immediately raised his hand.

"I shalt volunteer." And without further ado, he made sure to strap down his phaser rifle to his back, and began to head down employing the hand and foot-holds created from duranium, towards the power-source. His climbing skills proved to be quite useful, as he found himself making a good pace with his abilities. And, his claws were there to provide extra grip, in case the surface got slippery, or he lost his footing.

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

NPC Lieutenant JG Chloe Davies, Head Nurse  and  PO1 ShranLahr ch'Verret
[Planet surface]

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

After two grueling hours of climbing over, under, and around obstacles, the entire away team was chafed, bruised, and abraded from tree bark, thorns, and vines. Worst part about the trek was in those two hours, they had only covered four kilometers from their beam down point. Pausing briefly in what passed for a clearing in the thick jungle, a creature, roughly the size of a brown bear and looking something like a cross between a demon-hound and a flying fox, swooped down from the trees via a heavy fold of thick, leathery skin that stretched from its wrist to its ankle to land on Zhuk's back, driving the surprised Caitian into the abundant moss of the jungle floor and leaving him winded. The thing roared and slashed Chloe across her abdomen, bowling her over in shock and pain. The creature then locked eyes on Savar and charged.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

As she studied the landscape, Nira reflected to remember to refer to Head Nurse Davies by proper pronunciation. She realized that she hadn't inspected the medical department, and what was more, she had forgotten her new-officer physical. She figured maybe after the away mission.

After a while, Nira made her decision. "Okay, team," she said, "I don't see a good beach as of yet. I think it may be best to circumnavigate the lake until they could find a beach or more flatter means to cross that lake to get to that mountain. Let's be sure we have the shoreline in view. Two or three meters at most, so that we can know where to go. Though chances are, that mountain will be able to enable us to know where to go. Alright, let's go."

Within a few dozen meters, it had become apparent to Nira that this was no simple jungle trek. This was a lot more wild and rugged than Carraya and Risa. But Nira recalled her security combat obstacle course, as all Security officers went through. She decided it was going to be an interesting challenge.

After two hours, they had climbed over, under, and around various obstacles of foliage. Nira felt chafed and bruised from having to grab tree bark and vines. She was scraped from brushing against thorns, and so were the rest of the away team. The only thing that kept Nira from going insane was that her keen observational skills saw very interesting indications of animals, generally in the form of tracks or scratches.

"Big animal must've made these," Nira would often say, or often "some birds were fluttering here." She remembered her time in the Officer Exchange Program serving on a Klingon ship and recalled that she informed Klingons that she'd use her observational skills for hunting or tracking. In a way, her attention to detail made her realize she was making aside notations of tracking, in a way, but she wasn't interested in following animal tracks. She wasn't sure what kind of animals they were, and how dangerous they could be.

She could see how well Zhuk, Blackfeather and Lahr were holding up. Nira wondered if Lahr had security training in the past. Savar seemed to fare worse despite his strength, with so many nicks and scratches, he looked like he had green stripes drawn on him. Then again, he often parted with the team briefly to check how close they were to the shoreline and came back. The one she felt were the most fatigued was Davies. But all the same, she felt they were all tired from the trek so far.

"Okay, people, let's rest a moment, we need to get recover our strength before we continue," called Nira, holding up a hand to call for a stop when she stepped into a clearing. "Good as place as any." She proceeded to unzip her uniform, wet with sweat. She reflected that she never got this sweaty on Carraya and Risa. Well...she probably wasn't wearing so much ninety percent of the time she went to Risa. She wondered if she'd ever get used to Betazed's humidity, or if she was better off somewhere dry like in her adopted home of Arabia.

Savar came in first after Nira, prompting Nira to ask, while she shed her outer uniform from the sweat, "How far have we gone, Savar?"

"Approximately four kilometers within the past two hours," said Savar.

"Good Allah!" said Nira, loud enough to be a shout, but upon realizing she was overreacting, she calmed a tad. "Sorry, Imzadi, it's..."

"...not easy, that is obvious," retorted Savar dryly.

"Obviously," agreed Nira. "How far is the shoreline?"

"A couple of meters past that foliage," said Savar, pointing a certain direction.

Nira followed the direction Savar pointed as the rest of the away team sauntered into the clearing, and one or two, Nira was sure, were lurching with fatigue. She pursed her lips. She was beginning to wonder if it was going to be more worthwhile to make a raft in the clearing and use the vines to lower the raft down...but she momentarily looked up and saw how the branches seemed to make some kind of particular pattern - maybe too particular - when something like a leathery-skinned bear with huge claws and "wings" like a flying fox dove on Zhuk and slashed Davies.

[Ensign Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Surface - Kaimo IV]

After a couple of hours of walking, and having to endure cuts and bruises from having to pass over tightly packed vegetation, vines, and especially thorns, Zhukdra'shar had seen the error of his ways. This was certainly much more difficult to traverse than the jungle over at Yucatan. Though he panted occasionally, both his training and his dexterity made for a relatively easier movement through the jungle. His eyes and ears remained peeled, rifle kept close by in case danger appeared.

He welcomed the chance to rest over at a clearing, however, deciding to take in the sights that he could see. There was a certain beauty that he could admire within, that with the beautiful flowers that could be found, or the occasional bright-colored insect with a shiny caparace that flew lazily a few feet around. The vocalizations from unknown creatures also took his attention. All stopped, however, as one of his ears pivoted towards a source of branches and leaves creaking just overhead. As he turned and attempted to raise his rifle, however, he was much too late, as a huge bear-like creature with what seemed to be folds of skin that went from its wrists to its ankles smashed over him, completely knocking the air of his lungs as he was sent into the soft moss below. The pain from the claws wrecked him, leaving him bewildered and unable to react as the creature moved over to attack Savar.

It was odd for Lahr to be on an away team mission that he was not at either the front or the rear of.   Thinking back, he couldn't recall anytime that he'd be the 'protected' center.  It was a placement reserved for those of specific skills - medical or ... engineering. Hmph.  It still felt odd.

His placement at the center put him paired with Chloe, and he found that when the going got tough with obstacles to climb he was offering assistance to her quite a bit.  At first, she glared at him and pushed on through all on her own, but by the second hour, Chloe was accepting the helping hand that he offered.  His helping Chloe didn't mean the path was a walk in the park for Lahr.  Far from it.   Though he wasn't unfit, he'd dropped from his peak form since leaving Security - reducing his workouts to every couple days rather than daily.   At the moment, huffing breathlessly as they came to a stop in a clearing, Lahr regretted that decision.

Chloe was even worse off than him and he watched her almost collapse from exhaustion as Commander Nira called a brief halt to get their bearings.  She was doubled over breathing hard and dripping sweat.  It seemed she needed to workout more often too.  Lahr shouldered his weapon to search his pack for a canteen of water to offer her.   It was a that moment that the creature attacked.

Nira whirled at the noise and stared in horror at the huge winged monster. Savar, meanwhile, in typical Vulcan behavior, raised a scanner and looked in fascination. Then the monster locked its eyes on Savar. That was enough to break Nira from her shocked stupor. The moment it charged, Nira raised her rifle fast and shot at the monster. And she kept on firing just in case it was strong enough that a simple phaser bolt wouldn't drop it.

"BlackfeatherZhukLahr!" hissed Nira at the two security officers and to Lahr, who she was sure had combat expertise, though she had noticed Zhuk was winded, but she was sure she'll need help to bring the monster down.

Savar managed to get out of the way as Nira got in the beast's way and slipped to Davies to see how well she was, getting out her medkit, and watched with fascination, in perhaps the same sort of fascination as somebody in a bull ring audience watching a matador brandish his sword at a bull, and if the matador was armed with an Arabic scimitar as big as a bat'leth instead of a rapier, and he had seen bullfights in the holodeck before, wondering why humans in the past often have a fascination for morbidity.

"Now that's something to impress a Klingon," he said. "Given it was charging, I'd call it an honorable fight, though it's a lot bigger than a targ. If it weren't for the weather," he added, looking up, "I'd hope the natives think that thing was struck by lightning. Okay, Head Nurse, can you walk me through on how to treat your wound?"

It took a moment for Lahr with his attention buried in his pack to realize what was going on.  He dropped his pack and pulled his phaser rifle around and into his hands once more.    By this time, the Commander had already fired on the creature, but the creature was huge, easily the size of three Klingons.  There was no guarantee her phaser shot alone would drop it.  Lahr didn't know what setting the Commander had but he was aware that multiple hits at maximum stun could be lethal.  While he didn't want to kill the creature, Lahr had to be sure it would not attack anyone else.  He set his phaser to maximum stun, took aim on the creature and fired, keeping it in his beam until it dropped.

~ ~ ~
The sound of a creature roaring behind her caused Chloe to turn about in surprise.  It was that surprise that gave it opportunity to claw at her abdomen before she could even think to raise her weapon.   The medical officer fell back and on instinct curled into a ball to protect her vulnerable center.   There was the sound of weapons fire and then another then moment coming towards her.   Chloe flinched when Savar knelt beside her... but his calm voice had her uncurling and daring to look at her own injury.

The creature's claws had managed to tear through her uniform, and rake across her abdomen leaving lacerations that cut through the dermal layer, completely through the fatty layer and into the muscle.   Fortunately, however its claws hadn't cut through the muscle layer completely or Chloe would be needing Savar to repack in her intestines.

Though the three lacerations were bleeding freely, they were not arterial bleeds so there was little danger of her bleeding out before Savar could apply treatment.

She weakly motioned towards the compartment where she kept the medication.   "5 cc's triptacederine, an analgesic,  and 5.. no, 10 cc's of Amoxicillin/clavulanate - which will prevention infection." she instructed in a voice strained with pain.  "Then get the dermal regenerator.  Set to level three... and focus the beam on the lacerated muscle tissue only.   Change to level two for the fatty tissue and then finally level one for the dermal layer."

If he used the wrong setting on any of the layers, it would leave a scar.

Once her own wounds were taken care of to the best of Savar's ability, though still very sore Chloe moved with Savar and guided him on his treatment of Zhuk whose wounds at his back had been staunched by Lahr after the creature was down.

[Kaimo IV - Surface]

When the sound of the phaser died off, after several seconds, the incessant sounds of the insects and other inhabitants of the jungle returned to their never ending chatter. Taking an assessment of the injuries suffered by Zhuk and Chloe were deep, but not life threatening. A few minutes with a dermal regenerator and the wounds were closed.

Moving on from the corpse of the flying bear-thing, roughly 300 meters further into the jungle, the away team came across a large crevasse in the stone, which dropped nearly a hundred meters to a rush of white water below. Thirty meters above that, however, Savar detected traces of refined duranium and a barely functioning power source. The rock face was studded with handholds, so it was within the realm of the possible to reach whatever was generating the power signature, but it was clearly not going to be an easy climb.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Clearing >- Crevasse | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

It didn't matter at this point whether Nira had help or not. By the time she finished, the flying bear was a smoldering cadaver.

"Nobody hurts my Imzadi," said Nira with quiet malice to the dead bear, her black eyes gleaming menacingly. "Nobody."

Savar nodded when instructed just to get out a dermal generator and set to work on the injury. Then he went to Zhuk. Once he was finished, Nira approached him, feeling calmer now, though the heightened emotional hostility she displayed felt like she was spewing heat like an open oven, enough for the whole team to feel, but now the heat had lifted.

"Report?"

"Davies and Zhuk will be fine," said Savar. "Their injuries are deep, but not life-threatening. I did as much as I could."

"You did great," she said. "Frankly, that was quite a scare," she added, looking at the bear. "I don't think we'll need further rest; we have enough adrenaline kicked in more than a gallon of coffee."

"I concur," said Savar. "And the sooner we leave, the better. Have you taken a good look at the clearing, and the timing of that flying bear?"

Nira looked around. Now that she had calmed down, she was noticing more details with the clearing. Claw shapes and imprints, like something big settled around, but from the wing imprints, it would've had to have had an equally big wingspan...something exactly like...

"Mating grounds?" said Nira uneasily. "Or a nest?"

"Wouldn't be surprised if it was both," said Savar. "Still, fascinating creature. Look at the coloration; those mottled patches much change from season to season, probably to match the native foliage, handy in camouflage, and with those hands and feet, it could grapple its prey and dismember it..."

"Remind me to take you on a targ hunt if Klingons invite me," said Nira. "But as you said, the sooner we get out of here, the better. We don't want to be here when Mama Bear comes home."

"How do you know that creature's male?" asked Savar, puzzled, his tricorder on. "I'm sure you didn't even get into my head."

"Female bears have that reputation," said Nira. "Especially with cubs. But whether or not that thing is a cub or a mate, if she finds us, we're screwed."

Savar nodded as Nira directed the team to moving. After a while, they came to a crevasse. Nira followed the rapids with her eyes and saw that further down, the rapids calmed and emptied into the lake.

"We're further away from the shoreline than expected," said Nira. "We're going to need to find a way to cross, and when we do, we follow this river back to the shoreline.

"At the bottom, preferably," said Blackfeather. "Hopefully there will be more beach at the mouth."

"Hopefully," said Nira.

"It won't be easy," replied Savar. "It's a hundred meter drop...that's odd," he added, furrowing his brow at the tricorder.

"What is it?" asked Nira in curiosity.

"My tricorder's detected traces of refined duranium," he replied. "There's also a faint power source. It's thirty meters above the water, however."

"Where is it?"

Savar pointed and Nira peered down. A moment's study and her observational skills spotted something.

"Look at those," she said. "They don't look natural...those rocks are patterned in a particular way...they must be hand- and footholds for climbing."

"So if there are any Romulans here," said Blackfeather, "they've found a good place to hide, and they would need a means of going up and down."

"I wouldn't even be surprised if they made these to even get all the way to the shore," said Nira, pointing to the rapids. "It won't be an easy climb."

In point of fact, it had been years since she had been on an actual rock climbing course. But looking at it, it would be no different than climbing ladders in a turbolift shaft. One of her practice runs even looked like a rock climbing course, but it was just simply a matter of working ways from one place to grip a hand to another in climbing a turbolift shaft when a ladder was out.

"Well," said Nira, "who wants to climb down first?"

As they continued on Lahr, feeling guilty for not having noticed the creature before its attack, was doubly alert now.  He constantly was checking in with Chloe to be sure she was okay and that the trek wasn't straining the newly regenerated tissue.   His antennae swayed in concern.

He took a moment to recover, taking deep, painful breaths as he reached once more for his fallen phaser rifle, and tried to aim towards the creature, being subdued now by Nira. However, his injuries proved to be much harder for him to ignore, and so he was unable to even lift his rifle from the floor, as he fell once more upon it. Utterly shameful, he chastised himself. He tried once more, however, it all proved for naught, as the Lieutenant proved to be more than capable of dispatching it. [/color]

"T-Thank you, Savar. I appreciate your medical assistance."

Came the purr-like words from Zhukdra'shar as he stood up once more once his wounds had been patched up through the dermal regenerator by the Vulcan. He gripped his rifle tightly, and decided to continue alongside the rest, ears pulled close to his body, and tail close to his legs. He felt ashamed of having been ambushed like that, and the thought of his teammates being mauled by the creature, and in the case of Head Nurse Davies, actually did get injured. At least, she was in a state similar to himself.

"I apologize, Lieutenant Nira, and especially Head Nurse Davies, for being unable to spot the dangerous organism in time to counterattack." He glanced over at Davies' zone of injury, hoping that no one would have to go through something like that again while they continued with their journey.

He made sure to remain more alert this time, forgoing the memories of his masters berating him when he did a poor job, to instead made sure that he remained peeled for any and all danger that might arise from the sweltering jungle once more. It was a significant relief for him, however, when they reached the crevasse and a drop with rapids below. He sighed softly, as the beachhead was still nowhere in sight. However, his ear swished as he heard Savar speaking about something odd in the rock.

As he turned towards him, he walked closer to better gaze at the outcroppings that had been placed upon the rocky wall, meant to be employed as an aid for climbing. He examined them for a moment once he had located them, humming softly to himself as he wondered if climbing with them would be a good idea. When the question was raised from Nira about whom would go first, Zhukdra'shar almost immediately raised his hand.

"I shalt volunteer." And without further ado, he made sure to strap down his phaser rifle to his back, and began to head down employing the hand and foot-holds created from duranium, towards the power-source. His climbing skills proved to be quite useful, as he found himself making a good pace with his abilities. And, his claws were there to provide extra grip, in case the surface got slippery, or he lost his footing.

When Zhukdra'shar apologized to Chloe, she was quiet a moment.  She knew it wasn't the Caitian's fault.  He wasn't the only one who had missed the signs of it's presence - they all had; but in a way Chloe had sort of expected the Caitian to be far more aware of jungle dangers than someone like herself.

She eventually nodded.  "There's no need to apologize. I trust you'll be more alert from now on.  While I'm glad Savar was proficient with a dermal regenerator, I'd prefer not to have to rely on his emergency training again."

A little later, after they had traveled another 300m, they arrived at a cliff.  At the opportunity to volunteer, Lahr kept silent.  He wasn't here as a back-up security - he was the team's engineer and as such was not supposed to endanger himself unnecessarily.

Before the Caitian began his descent Lahr, asked the Caitian to hold up a moment and dug through his engineering kit for something that could be used to assist their descent.   He pulled out a 50-meter roll of fiber optic cable.  "We can use this as a safely line maybe?"  he offered.

Tying off everyone might be more of a hassle and slow their descent but it would help ensure that those that might be tired... or say injured earlier weren't left to free fall to their death if they happened to miss a foot or hand hold.

..

Zhukdra'shar started his descent, and Lahr remained alert for any sign of attack from more of those flying bear-creatures.  When it came time for Chloe to descend, she took Lahr up on the offer to be tied off.  The medical officer knew her limits and right now she was working on her last reserves of energy.  She was physically tired and sore, and mentally still reeling from having had to talk Savar through her own treatment.  It had been sheer luck that the creature's claws hadn't disemboweled her.   That thought kept playing in her mind and she found that she was constantly scanning the canopy for any sign of more of the creatures.

Tied off, Chloe began her descent while Lahr following shortly after her.   He talked her through the descent, having her climb down 10 m while he ensured a firm grip on the rockface... then she held on while he descended to just above her; moving again only once Lahr was stopped.  The cable had enough for at least two others to tie in and join them but Lahr had the odd feeling none of the others would.  Had he been still in security and doing daily training - this would be a cinch for, especially for an Andorian... and from what he knew Vulcan's were just as physically capable.

[Nira Said]

[Ensign Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Surface - Kaimo IV]

When the away team beamed down, Zhukdra'shar found himself close to a sweltering, thick jungle, while the other side showcased a large inland lake with many islands, the most significant of which was a massive mountain in the center of the lake. Curiously, Zhuk took a look down the hundred or so meter drop, to gaze at the waves below. From his time on Earth, he could remember visiting the jungles and cenotes of Yucatan, MÁ©xico after being invited by a friend at the Academy. And he had to admit, that it had been quite the meaningful experience, absolutely adoring each second of his exploration in such a place. This was no different to him.

Well, perhaps the planet and situation were, but he couldn't help but find enjoyment in the setting he had found himself in. He took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the jungle, as he turned himself around, tail swishing rapidly for a few seconds in excitement before he noticed and stopped it. Still, a noticeable smile was still present on his face. He was happy to be here, and he couldn't deny it. Maybe it was his Caitian heritage that made him be so in love with tropical climates, even with such an amount of vegetation and heat, or maybe it was just a personal preference. Whatever the case, he decided to focus back on the mission.

Listening to both Lieutenant Nira's instructions and Savar's comments about his scan results, which he too found interesting, he decided to get a move on, trying to find that elusive beachhead the away team was after, to make the cross towards the mountain within the center. He wondered if they would be able to construct a boat. He certainly was eager to try, though.

After a couple of hours of walking, and having to endure cuts and bruises from having to pass over tightly packed vegetation, vines, and especially thorns, Zhukdra'shar had seen the error of his ways. This was certainly much more difficult to traverse than the jungle over at Yucatan. Though he panted occasionally, both his training and his dexterity made for a relatively easier movement through the jungle. His eyes and ears remained peeled, rifle kept close by in case danger appeared.

He welcomed the chance to rest over at a clearing, however, deciding to take in the sights that he could see. There was a certain beauty that he could admire within, that with the beautiful flowers that could be found, or the occasional bright-colored insect with a shiny caparace that flew lazily a few feet around. The vocalizations from unknown creatures also took his attention. All stopped, however, as one of his ears pivoted towards a source of branches and leaves creaking just overhead. As he turned and attempted to raise his rifle, however, he was much too late, as a huge bear-like creature with what seemed to be folds of skin that went from its wrists to its ankles smashed over him, completely knocking the air of his lungs as he was sent into the soft moss below. The pain from the claws wrecked him, leaving him bewildered and unable to react as the creature moved over to attack Savar.

He took a moment to recover, taking deep, painful breaths as he reached once more for his fallen phaser rifle, and tried to aim towards the creature, being subdued now by Nira. However, his injuries proved to be much harder for him to ignore, and so he was unable to even lift his rifle from the floor, as he fell once more upon it. Utterly shameful, he chastised himself. He tried once more, however, it all proved for naught, as the Lieutenant proved to be more than capable of dispatching it.

"T-Thank you, Savar. I appreciate your medical assistance."

Came the purr-like words from Zhukdra'shar as he stood up once more once his wounds had been patched up through the dermal regenerator by the Vulcan. He gripped his rifle tightly, and decided to continue alongside the rest, ears pulled close to his body, and tail close to his legs. He felt ashamed of having been ambushed like that, and the thought of his teammates being mauled by the creature, and in the case of Head Nurse Davies, actually did get injured. At least, she was in a state similar to himself.

"I apologize, Lieutenant Nira, and especially Head Nurse Davies, for being unable to spot the dangerous organism in time to counterattack." He glanced over at Davies' zone of injury, hoping that no one would have to go through something like that again while they continued with their journey.

He made sure to remain more alert this time, forgoing the memories of his masters berating him when he did a poor job, to instead made sure that he remained peeled for any and all danger that might arise from the sweltering jungle once more. It was a significant relief for him, however, when they reached the crevasse and a drop with rapids below. He sighed softly, as the beachhead was still nowhere in sight. However, his ear swished as he heard Savar speaking about something odd in the rock.

As he turned towards him, he walked closer to better gaze at the outcroppings that had been placed upon the rocky wall, meant to be employed as an aid for climbing. He examined them for a moment once he had located them, humming softly to himself as he wondered if climbing with them would be a good idea. When the question was raised from Nira about whom would go first, Zhukdra'shar almost immediately raised his hand.

"I shalt volunteer." And without further ado, he made sure to strap down his phaser rifle to his back, and began to head down employing the hand and foot-holds created from duranium, towards the power-source. His climbing skills proved to be quite useful, as he found himself making a good pace with his abilities. And, his claws were there to provide extra grip, in case the surface got slippery, or he lost his footing.

NPC Lieutenant JG Chloe Davies, Head Nurse  and  PO1 ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Deck 10 - Transporter Room One]

It was odd for Lahr to be on an away team mission that he was not at either the front or the rear of.   Thinking back, he couldn't recall anytime that he'd be the 'protected' center.  It was a placement reserved for those of specific skills - medical or ... engineering. Hmph.  It still felt odd.

His placement at the center put him paired with Chloe, and he found that when the going got tough with obstacles to climb he was offering assistance to her quite a bit.  At first, she glared at him and pushed on through all on her own, but by the second hour, Chloe was accepting the helping hand that he offered.  His helping Chloe didn't mean the path was a walk in the park for Lahr.  Far from it.   Though he wasn't unfit, he'd dropped from his peak form since leaving Security - reducing his workouts to every couple days rather than daily.   At the moment, huffing breathlessly as they came to a stop in a clearing, Lahr regretted that decision.

Chloe was even worse off than him and he watched her almost collapse from exhaustion as Commander Nira called a brief halt to get their bearings.  She was doubled over breathing hard and dripping sweat.  It seemed she needed to workout more often too.  Lahr shouldered his weapon to search his pack for a canteen of water to offer her.   It was a that moment that the creature attacked.

It took a moment for Lahr with his attention buried in his pack to realize what was going on.  He dropped his pack and pulled his phaser rifle around and into his hands once more.    By this time, the Commander had already fired on the creature, but the creature was huge, easily the size of three Klingons.  There was no guarantee her phaser shot alone would drop it.  Lahr didn't know what setting the Commander had but he was aware that multiple hits at maximum stun could be lethal.  While he didn't want to kill the creature, Lahr had to be sure it would not attack anyone else.  He set his phaser to maximum stun, took aim on the creature and fired, keeping it in his beam until it dropped.

~ ~ ~
The sound of a creature roaring behind her caused Chloe to turn about in surprise.  It was that surprise that gave it opportunity to claw at her abdomen before she could even think to raise her weapon.   The medical officer fell back and on instinct curled into a ball to protect her vulnerable center.   There was the sound of weapons fire and then another then moment coming towards her.   Chloe flinched when Savar knelt beside her... but his calm voice had her uncurling and daring to look at her own injury.

The creature's claws had managed to tear through her uniform, and rake across her abdomen leaving lacerations that cut through the dermal layer, completely through the fatty layer and into the muscle.   Fortunately, however its claws hadn't cut through the muscle layer completely or Chloe would be needing Savar to repack in her intestines.

Though the three lacerations were bleeding freely, they were not arterial bleeds so there was little danger of her bleeding out before Savar could apply treatment.

She weakly motioned towards the compartment where she kept the medication.   "5 cc's triptacederine, an analgesic,  and 5.. no, 10 cc's of Amoxicillin/clavulanate - which will prevention infection." she instructed in a voice strained with pain.  "Then get the dermal regenerator.  Set to level three... and focus the beam on the lacerated muscle tissue only.   Change to level two for the fatty tissue and then finally level one for the dermal layer."

If he used the wrong setting on any of the layers, it would leave a scar.

Once her own wounds were taken care of to the best of Savar's ability, though still very sore Chloe moved with Savar and guided him on his treatment of Zhuk whose wounds at his back had been staunched by Lahr after the creature was down.

As they continued on Lahr, feeling guilty for not having noticed the creature before its attack, was doubly alert now.  He constantly was checking in with Chloe to be sure she was okay and that the trek wasn't straining the newly regenerated tissue.   His antennae swayed in concern.

When Zhukdra'shar apologized to Chloe, she was quiet a moment.  She knew it wasn't the Caitian's fault.  He wasn't the only one who had missed the signs of it's presence - they all had; but in a way Chloe had sort of expected the Caitian to be far more aware of jungle dangers than someone like herself.

She eventually nodded.  "There's no need to apologize. I trust you'll be more alert from now on.  While I'm glad Savar was proficient with a dermal regenerator, I'd prefer not to have to rely on his emergency training again."

A little later, after they had traveled another 300m, they arrived at a cliff.  At the opportunity to volunteer, Lahr kept silent.  He wasn't here as a back-up security - he was the team's engineer and as such was not supposed to endanger himself unnecessarily.

Before the Caitian began his descent Lahr asked the Caitian to hold up a moment and dug through his engineering kit for something that could be used to assist their descent.   He pulled out a 50-meter roll of fiber optic cable.  "We can use this as a safely line maybe?"  he offered.

Tying off everyone might be more of a hassle and slow their descent but it would help ensure that those that might be tired... or say injured earlier weren't left to free fall to their death if they happened to miss a foot or hand hold.

..

Zhukdra'shar started his descent, and Lahr remained alert for any sign of attack from more of those flying bear-creatures.  When it came time for Chloe to descend, she took Lahr up on the offer to be tied off.  The medical officer knew her limits and right now she was working on her last reserves of energy.  She was physically tired and sore, and mentally still reeling from having had to talk Savar through her own treatment.  It had been sheer luck that the creature's claws hadn't disemboweled her.   That thought kept playing in her mind and she found that she was constantly scanning the canopy for any sign of more of the creatures.

Tied off, Chloe began her descent while Lahr following shortly after her.   He talked her through the descent, having her climb down 10 m while he ensured a firm grip on the rockface... then she held on while he descended to just above her; moving again only once Lahr was stopped.  The cable had enough for at least two others to tie in and join them but Lahr had the odd feeling none of the others would.  Had he been still in security and doing daily training - this would be a cinch for, especially for an Andorian... and from what he knew Vulcan's were just as physically capable.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Clearing >- Crevasse | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

"That's okay, Zhuk," said Nira. "There was nothing we could've done, it caught us by so much surprise. It's probably going to mean some heightened alertness."

Zhuk volunteered to make the descent but then Lahr pulled out a long cord from his kit to use as a safety rope. "That's a good idea, Lahr," she said. "It'll definitely ensure some safety, regardless of how excellent a grip we have."

So Nira followed behind Zhuk on the descent down to the power source. She realized she was grateful for the safety rope, acting like the railing of a staircase of sorts, only a downright vertical staircase. The grips of the rocks for the climb, however, were fashioned in a way to ensure good grips, and Nira was impressed with the craftsmanship on it.

Finally, thirty meters above the rapids, Nira and Zhuk got to a ledge that surprised them and the rest of the team that gathered eventually gathered. The ledge, while big enough for seven or eight people, was not easily seen from the top of the cliff. However, Nira took a good look up and could see why. Savar also looked up.

"Don't like the look of those clouds," he said, noting clouds coming in.

"Interesting...well, not the clouds," Nira said. "See how that crag is jutting out? No wonder we could see the ledge and the door..."

She looked back over at the door at the center of the ledge, which was more surprising than the unseen ledge. It was not easily seen, but Nira's keen observation spotted an outright vertical line in the cliff face. Taking out her mek'leth, Nira tapped it on it. Instead of sounding a soft chink, the blade sunk a centimeter and hit something with a metallic clang. With a part of her uniform, Nira wiped away the accumulated moss and dirt to reveal a door.

"So, that certainly looks like it doesn't belong," said Nira. "Least of all within proximity to a stone or bronze age civilization. If there are Romulans here...maybe a safehouse or a duck blind that they've long since forgotten?"

Savar was already at work with the scanners and he replied, "It certainly doesn't look Romulan; no sign of the bird of prey symbol of theirs holding Romulus and Remus aloft. In any case, the door is roughly two thousand years old."

Nira looked at Savar with surprise before turning back to the door. Two thousand years old? Hundreds of hypotheses flooded her head, as usual: A sign of one of the first Romulan colonies? Or perhaps there were no Romulans to begin with, and the natives could be more advanced than they look...but it would be a stretch to assume they'd be warp capable...

"Can we get in, Savar?" asked Nira.

"Not easily," the V'tosh Ka'tur replied. "The door's been sealed, but given its age, it should be easy enough to open with brute force."

"Okay, then," said Nira. "Zhuk, you and me, beam pattern. We'll cut along the edges; you take one half, I'll take the other."

Setting her rifle to shoot a continuous beam, Nira aimed at the edges and said, "Begin cutting fire."

After the beams cut on the edges, the door came loose and toppled inwardly into the chamber in the rockface. Turning on a flashlight, Nira gestured for Zhuk to do the same, and for the team to follow behind, and they went inside. They didn't go far when the light became more prominent and everybody was able to see more inside. Nira was so surprised, she let her jaw drop, particularly as she looked around.

"Well, if it's not Romulans, than the natives are definitely more advanced than we expected," she said, gobsmacked.

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian listened to Ruth's report with minimal interest as she wasn't adding much to what he already knew. When she finished speaking he replied in a firm steady tone.

"He's goin' ta be fine Commander, as will the rest of the away team. If'n anything goes seriously wrong, we'll beam them out."

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ruth smiled gratefully at Ian.  "I know, I worry about all of them.  And it's not because it's Nira's first time out as command.  I know, or least I'm pretty sure, she's led away teams before, albeit not as an Executive Officer. She's more than capable, in fact I feel less worried because she is there it's just... well you know, if Jess was there.  I'm sorry I'm being so transparent!"

She focussed her attention on her scans seeing if there was anything which would flag her attention. As CSO it was actually pretty routine stuff for her, and she could monitor with half an eye.  She was however concerned that she had missed a check in.

"Forgive me asking, have they checked in yet? I'm only asking because we have absolutely no idea what they're going into really down there.  I assume Ops have both commbadge and biosign locks on them and all showing green?  I get anxious when it's too quiet!"

[Ian Galloway]

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Jungle Clearing >- Crevasse | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

"That's okay, Zhuk," said Nira. "There was nothing we could've done, it caught us by so much surprise. It's probably going to mean some heightened alertness."

Zhuk volunteered to make the descent but then Lahr pulled out a long cord from his kit to use as a safety rope. "That's a good idea, Lahr," she said. "It'll definitely ensure some safety, regardless of how excellent a grip we have."

So Nira followed behind Zhuk on the descent down to the power source. She realized she was grateful for the safety rope, acting like the railing of a staircase of sorts, only a downright vertical staircase. The grips of the rocks for the climb, however, were fashioned in a way to ensure good grips, and Nira was impressed with the craftsmanship on it.

Finally, thirty meters above the rapids, Nira and Zhuk got to a ledge that surprised them and the rest of the team that gathered eventually gathered. The ledge, while big enough for seven or eight people, was not easily seen from the top of the cliff. However, Nira took a good look up and could see why. Savar also looked up.

"Don't like the look of those clouds," he said, noting clouds coming in.

"Interesting...well, not the clouds," Nira said. "See how that crag is jutting out? No wonder we could see the ledge and the door..."

She looked back over at the door at the center of the ledge, which was more surprising than the unseen ledge. It was not easily seen, but Nira's keen observation spotted an outright vertical line in the cliff face. Taking out her mek'leth, Nira tapped it on it. Instead of sounding a soft chink, the blade sunk a centimeter and hit something with a metallic clang. With a part of her uniform, Nira wiped away the accumulated moss and dirt to reveal a door.

"So, that certainly looks like it doesn't belong," said Nira. "Least of all within proximity to a stone or bronze age civilization. If there are Romulans here...maybe a safehouse or a duck blind that they've long since forgotten?"

Savar was already at work with the scanners and he replied, "It certainly doesn't look Romulan; no sign of the bird of prey symbol of theirs holding Romulus and Remus aloft. In any case, the door is roughly two thousand years old."

Nira looked at Savar with surprise before turning back to the door. Two thousand years old? Hundreds of hypotheses flooded her head, as usual: A sign of one of the first Romulan colonies? Or perhaps there were no Romulans to begin with, and the natives could be more advanced than they look...but it would be a stretch to assume they'd be warp capable...

"Can we get in, Savar?" asked Nira.

"Not easily," the V'tosh Ka'tur replied. "The door's been sealed, but given its age, it should be easy enough to open with brute force."

"Okay, then," said Nira. "Zhuk, you and me, beam pattern. We'll cut along the edges; you take one half, I'll take the other."

Setting her rifle to shoot a continuous beam, Nira aimed at the edges and said, "Begin cutting fire."

After the beams cut on the edges, the door came loose and toppled inwardly into the chamber in the rockface. Turning on a flashlight, Nira gestured for Zhuk to do the same, and for the team to follow behind, and they went inside. They didn't go far when the light became more prominent and everybody was able to see more inside. Nira was so surprised, she let her jaw drop, particularly as she looked around.

"Well, if it's not Romulans, than the natives are definitely more advanced than we expected," she said, gobsmacked.

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

On breaking into the chamber which was choked by several thousand years of accumulated rime and rust, the away team found the remains of what could best be described as a small waiting room. At least that's the impression one took from the configuration of the couches, facing a single chair and desk gave. Everything was made of a plastic composite material that, despite it's near indestructibility was decayed to uselessness from the long passage of time. A closer scan which had indicated that the door was almost two thousand years old turned out to have been incorrect for the age of the chamber. The dating of the detritus encrusting the door was correct to that age, but now that the chamber itself could be scanned, revealed the contents to be much older, perhaps as much as two hundred thousand years old.

Further scans revealed that the power source came from a barely functioning nano-crystal visual display on the desk. However, after so long, the power cell was failing and it would require a deft hand to keep it functioning long enough to get a clear image of what was on the screen.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ruth smiled gratefully at Ian.  "I know, I worry about all of them.  And it's not because it's Nira's first time out as command.  I know, or least I'm pretty sure, she's led away teams before, albeit not as an Executive Officer. She's more than capable, in fact I feel less worried because she is there it's just... well you know, if Jess was there.  I'm sorry I'm being so transparent!"

She focussed her attention on her scans seeing if there was anything which would flag her attention. As CSO it was actually pretty routine stuff for her, and she could monitor with half an eye.  She was however concerned that she had missed a check in.

"Forgive me asking, have they checked in yet? I'm only asking because we have absolutely no idea what they're going into really down there.  I assume Ops have both commbadge and biosign locks on them and all showing green?  I get anxious when it's too quiet!"

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian could sympathize with Ruth's concern to a degree, especially if Jess were on the away team, but he was beginning to get a bit irritated as he knew from personal experience how annoying it was when the ship asked for updates.

"Commander. No they have not reported in. I'm sure they will when they have summat worth reportin'. Until then, we will sit tight and wait. Because Mister CatalÁ¡n is a competent officer, if'n summat was other than fine, he would have informed me of a loss of lock on their combadges. I will concede that if'n they do not report in the next half hour, I'll have Ops contact them. Now Ruth, I suggest you take a deep breath and remember your role as a senior officer is ta be a non-anxious presence. I do hope that will nae be a difficult task for ye."

[Buck McNair]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ruth smiled gratefully at Ian.  "I know, I worry about all of them.  And it's not because it's Nira's first time out as command.  I know, or least I'm pretty sure, she's led away teams before, albeit not as an Executive Officer. She's more than capable, in fact I feel less worried because she is there it's just... well you know, if Jess was there.  I'm sorry I'm being so transparent!"

She focussed her attention on her scans seeing if there was anything which would flag her attention. As CSO it was actually pretty routine stuff for her, and she could monitor with half an eye.  She was however concerned that she had missed a check in.

"Forgive me asking, have they checked in yet? I'm only asking because we have absolutely no idea what they're going into really down there.  I assume Ops have both commbadge and biosign locks on them and all showing green?  I get anxious when it's too quiet!"

[Bridge | USS Challenger]

At that moment, Buck looked up from his observations and scans that were being made to hear Ruth, the Challenger's Commander and CSO mention that she continued to worry about everyone. As far as the scans were showing, everything looked green across the board and their biosign lock scans seemed to be stable. The planet itself hadn't interfered with that, which was a blessing. Of course it was not to say that Buck was not worried about the status of the away team - he firmly believed that no news was good news in this scenario.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian could sympathize with Ruth's concern to a degree, especially if Jess were on the away team, but he was beginning to get a bit irritated as he knew from personal experience how annoying it was when the ship asked for updates.

"Commander. No they have not reported in. I'm sure they will when they have summat worth reportin'. Until then, we will sit tight and wait. Because Mister CatalÁ¡n is a competent officer, if'n summat was other than fine, he would have informed me of a loss of lock on their combadges. I will concede that if'n they do not report in the next half hour, I'll have Ops contact them. Now Ruth, I suggest you take a deep breath and remember your role as a senior officer is ta be a non-anxious presence. I do hope that will nae be a difficult task for ye."

Buck had been about to answer when Ian had stepped in, and opted to remain quiet for the time being - checking on their inventory loads and filing what had been taken with the away teams should they come asking for a check. It made it easier if anything got lost that they had record that it had been taken off ship. Buck glanced over to the Captain briefly, checking whether the man needed a verbal confirmation that everything was still seeing green across the board from Ops' perspective. He checked the time on the screen and set himself a small reminder to check in half an hour.

"Anything in the meantime, sir?" He inquired, feeling it was best as representing junior officer on the bridge to make sure he covered all needs of the ship and take a load from his departmental head if necessary.

[Nira Said]

[Surface - Kaimo IV]

On breaking into the chamber which was choked by several thousand years of accumulated rime and rust, the away team found the remains of what could best be described as a small waiting room. At least that's the impression one took from the configuration of the couches, facing a single chair and desk gave. Everything was made of a plastic composite material that, despite it's near indestructibility was decayed to uselessness from the long passage of time. A closer scan which had indicated that the door was almost two thousand years old turned out to have been incorrect for the age of the chamber. The dating of the detritus encrusting the door was correct to that age, but now that the chamber itself could be scanned, revealed the contents to be much older, perhaps as much as two hundred thousand years old.

Further scans revealed that the power source came from a barely functioning nano-crystal visual display on the desk. However, after so long, the power cell was failing and it would require a deft hand to keep it functioning long enough to get a clear image of what was on the screen.

[Lieutenant Commander Nira Said | Crevasse >- Ancient Waiting Room | Jungle Lake Basin | Kaimo IV]

The more Nira looked at what was in the room, the more surprised she was. This was definitely more advanced-looking than something from a stone- or bronze-age civilization. Couches of the kind found in a waiting room? A desk and chair to further indicate a waiting room?

Nira's eyes kept coming back to the thing that certainly was the most out of place: The visual display on the desk. Savar pointed it out with the scanners, but Nira's keen observation spotted it first, even if the device wasn't on.

"I think we'll rest here for the time being," said Nira to the team. "Savar, continue scanning this...room. Zhuk, Blackfeather, take turns guarding the doors, rotate every ten minutes. Lahr, with me."

She gestured for Lahr to come over to get a better look at the visual display.

"What can you make of this, Lahr?" she said, staring at the display alongside the Andorian, her brow furrowed with befuddlement.