S1E1 - Testing Boundaries

[Lindsey]

[ The red haired one |  Later that day | in the Bar on the Prominade ]

Lindsey sat in a corner, feet up on on the chair across the table with a cup of something yellow in front of her.  he was cheerfully partaking in her favourite pastime - people watching.

The eclectic parade of individuals passed by. The low hum of conversation and the clinking of glasses created a lively backdrop as the diverse denizens of the station went about their business.

A Starfleet officer, insignia gleaming on their uniform, strode purposefully past, their gaze fixed on a PADD filled with reports. They seemed burdened with the weight of duty, yet determination marked each step. Starfleet, always on the job.

Following closely, a Bajoran Vedek moved with a measured grace, the traditional earring glinting in the ambient light. The Vedek's serene demeanor and the rhythmic chanting of a silent prayer indicated a moment of reflection amidst the station's constant hustle.

A pair of Ferengi traders sauntered by, engaged in animated conversation about the latest market trends. Their eyes gleamed with the prospect of profit, and the vibrant colours of their attire added a splash of flamboyance to the sea of uniforms. It was evident that commerce flowed through the veins of Outpost Solaere, linking it to the broader currents of interstellar trade.

A group of Klingon warriors, their foreheads adorned with fierce ridges, made a boisterous entrance, laughter echoing through the promenade. Their robust camaraderie contrasted with the more subdued atmosphere of the bar, attracting curious glances from both patrons and passers-by.

A civilian, clad in a worn leather jacket and exuding an air of quiet mystery, weaved through the crowd. Their eyes flickered with a hint of nostalgia as they surveyed the station, perhaps carrying memories of adventures and encounters in the far reaches of the galaxy.

A young human couple, hand in hand, strolled past with bright eyes filled with wonder. It was evident that this outpost, held a unique allure for those seeking to experience the tapestry of alien worlds.

As the shifting tableau unfolded before her, she marvelled at the diversity that converged on this floating crossroads. Outpost Solaere, with its vibrant mix of species and stories, served as a nexus where destinies intertwined, and the pulse of the galaxy reverberated through the promenade. The bar at which she sat became a front-row seat to the cosmic theatre, where the everyday dramas of life in the vastness of space played out in the footsteps of those who traversed its corridors.

"Barmy, every one of them"

She smiled and took a drink

[Nira Said]

It was a simple letter. Wishing him well on his first few days and updating on the family buisness. Apparently a cousin of his in the first house managed to get a Federation commendation for the houses work in helping out with Starship production which he was pleased about. He was about to move to the next paragraph when a priority message arrived on his screen and he was forced to close the message to read it. His eyes went wide for a moment and quickly sent it over to all the senior officers as priority.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but there's a priority message from the USS Scott"

Nelois quickly worked to close off one of the stations airlocks so the Scott could dock and requested that damage repair and medical officials prepare for the Scotts arrival. The senior officers were still in their debrief but with the standard things done he awaited further orders.

[lt. Sven Aune| Hotwash meeting participant | staff conference room | Deck 1 | Outpost Solarere]

Sven closed his eyes, and took a deep calming breath, but for a split second, his anger flashed when his body tensed. And for a moment it looked as his the sleeves of his uniform where going burst. But the moment passed.

"œTha's not good. Any word on Rabolon?" He was more concerned about the giant turtle man. He didn't get to know him at all, but in the few moments they did meet, he seemed like a very level headed and kind individual.

Domititan had slipped away. All they could hope for is some receiving some triangulation data from the Scott, in which they could get a bearing, but escape ships rarely went in a straight line. Especially those that cloak.

[Lt. JG JB Dersch | Staff Briefing Room | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Dersch sat and listened as Nira spoke with the rest. He also knew about Aune getting the Chief Spot. Was he pissed? Yea, But he ain't gonna let it show. And Yea he had more time in the Chief Spot than JB did, But JB was a Former Patrol Sargeant and Knew what is was like in the Chief or Similar spot. Whatever Dersch then perked up at the sound of ops contacting them.

"What the Hell, Why the hell is a Klingon Ship coming to pick up Romulans?! Ah, This is gonna be one hell of a Duty Station. Commander Said, Did they ever mention a Duty ship possibly being assigned out here? Cause right now, We could really use one."

Lieutenant Danjar-Torra Addams
[Outpost Solaere -  Deck One - Operations Center]

Those included in the debrief were more that just department heads, but other like Ensign Fawkes and Lieutenant's Dersch and Aune, those crew who had helped deal with the crates and capturing those involved in their illegal distribution.

When Nira called on her to locate the nearest Federation starship on long-range sensor, it didn't take long for the Grazerite to do so and then to arrange for the USS Scott to divert to their location.

[Outpost Solaere - Deck One - Staff Briefing Room]

Torra had quietly taken her place beside Nira - not out of any sense of rank or authority but rather because the Grazerite wanted to show her friend that there were no hard feelings over their misunderstanding earlier.  She couldn't imagine how difficult and stressful it must be to be responsible for so much and for so many lives.

The Ops chief listened quietly as the others gave their reports, before offering a report of her own on the comings and goings of various vessels - including that of the USS Scott who had arrived to take possession of the Praetor.

Savar spoke after her provided even yet more details on the crates and their location.  It seemed after she left, he and Fawkes had done even more precise tracking of the crates.   Torra smiled towards the woman and gave her a slight head nod.

When Ensign Nelois called down, however, with news of the attack on the USS Scott and the escape of the Praetor, Torra smile faded.   It worried her that the ship, which was capable of defending itself had been subdued.   What might have happened if those responsible for the attack had come to the station?   Torra's large almond ears sank a bit at that thought.

The station wasn't very well defended.  They were understaffed, with equipment that was 30 years out of date.

Commander Garrison's prompt had Torra raising a hand slightly before speaking.   "I would think that the next step would be retrieving the crates and their contents.   We can't leave such dangerous weapons in the hands of criminals or civilians."

Despite the danger that doing so would realistically present, it was the right thing to do.

[Briefing room]

Kinley looked to everyone involved as Nira gave her reports. The  news was troubling to say the least. what with the guns, and the praetor slipping away.  "œWell then.  We'll hav to take care of the ship as it comes home. Does anyone have any thoughts on where we should go from here?

[Commander Nira Said | Staff Briefing Room | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Nira appreciated Torra being at her side. She took in her reports before the other department heads did. Amidst the report from Ops, she whirled at the sound of Dersch's question...for want of a better word. She can understand if he was acting as a guard; she remembered in her early days on the Athena when she worked similarly like that. Although it meant one of the other security officers was manning station instead of Dersch back in Ops...

"It's actually a Romulan Bird of Prey, Mister Dersch," she said. "Like those raiders at Iquilon we fought on the Revenant?"

Stryker's question regarding Rabolon made her turn back and look for details... "It's okay, he's still alive. He's still stabilized, thanks to Taja and Feeva..."

She nodded in gratitude at Taja and Feeva before looking back at Dersch. "I had asked Starfleet Command about a duty ship before I came here. They said we need to get things fixed and making the station operational, but it'll only depend on the situation in the system. Anyway, things don't look too bad for us to get a duty ship....not yet, anyway."

At Torra's words regarding the captured crates, Nira said, "The ones we have confiscated will be easy enough, and the refugees at Oaish'le will certainly return us any crates with drugs in it. The ones Savar and Fawkes found in New Jericho, however..."

"Logical as it is," Savar said, "the problem is getting the New Jericho authorities willing to turn them over. They're too deep in the colonial facilities and that bunker has powerful shielding; we won't be able to beam them away."

"And given their attitude and their corrupt behavior," said Nira, "they're only going to deny the presence of the crates, and they'll only tighten security. If we try to take them by force, Starfleet in New Jericho will be about as unwelcome as a non-Muslim in Mecca. We shouldn't let them know that we know, and let things quiet down; chances are, news of what's been going on will spread down to New Jericho, if it hasn't already, given how much is going on. We should keep quiet for the time being, but keep a watch out on those weapons, give enough time to make these corrupt officials comfortable before we spirit the crates away."

"I think, Kinley," said Nira to Kinley, "we ought to retrieve as many crates as we can, though wait on the New Jericho ones, make sure New Jericho will feel more comfortable before we retrieve the ones they have. In the long term, we need to update all systems, refit others, improve and enhance our defenses. In terms of manpower, we ought to reach out to the Officer Exchange Programs between the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Free State, see if they can provide officers here can help with our being so understaffed.

"As for the Scott, we'd best send supplies and equipment, as much as we can spare, to help in their repairs," Nira finished. "As much as we can spare..."

[Nira Said]

[ The red haired one |  Later that day | in the Bar on the Prominade ]

Lindsey sat in a corner, feet up on on the chair across the table with a cup of something yellow in front of her.  he was cheerfully partaking in her favourite pastime - people watching.

The eclectic parade of individuals passed by. The low hum of conversation and the clinking of glasses created a lively backdrop as the diverse denizens of the station went about their business.

As the shifting tableau unfolded before her, she marvelled at the diversity that converged on this floating crossroads. Outpost Solaere, with its vibrant mix of species and stories, served as a nexus where destinies intertwined, and the pulse of the galaxy reverberated through the promenade. The bar at which she sat became a front-row seat to the cosmic theatre, where the everyday dramas of life in the vastness of space played out in the footsteps of those who traversed its corridors.

"Barmy, every one of them"

She smiled and took a drink

[Deej Cloten | The Jackal | Promenade | Deck Ten | Outpost Solaere]

The tables outside the bar had been well enough made to look like real tables by that point, and work was progressing that it was looking like a real bar. Cloten had to admit, with a full coordinated crew, they were really working things up. He was estimating he'll have a real establishment by next week.

He looked up and saw one of his boys serving his first customer...of all people, it happened to be Lindsay Aubrey. Ah well. A customer was a customer, no matter the trouble.

He had just approached Aubrey whens he muttered something. He looked up and saw the crowd of passersby, all the traders setting up a temporary bazaar.

"Yep, they sure are," he said. "They got their tents for now, but there will be real businesses soon. Still....damn, that's  a hodgepodge out there."

[Danjar-Torra Addams]

Lieutenant Danjar-Torra Addams
[Outpost Solaere - Deck One - Staff Briefing Room]

[Commander Nira Said | Staff Briefing Room | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Nira appreciated Torra being at her side. She took in her reports before the other department heads did. Amidst the report from Ops, she whirled at the sound of Dersch's question...for want of a better word. She can understand if he was acting as a guard; she remembered in her early days on the Athena when she worked similarly like that. Although it meant one of the other security officers was manning station instead of Dersch back in Ops...

"It's actually a Romulan Bird of Prey, Mister Dersch," she said. "Like those raiders at Iquilon we fought on the Revenant?"

Stryker's question regarding Rabolon made her turn back and look for details... "It's okay, he's still alive. He's still stabilized, thanks to Taja and Feeva..."

She nodded in gratitude at Taja and Feeva before looking back at Dersch. "I had asked Starfleet Command about a duty ship before I came here. They said we need to get things fixed and making the station operational, but it'll only depend on the situation in the system. Anyway, things don't look too bad for us to get a duty ship....not yet, anyway."

At Torra's words regarding the captured crates, Nira said, "The ones we have confiscated will be easy enough, and the refugees at Oaish'le will certainly return us any crates with drugs in it. The ones Savar and Fawkes found in New Jericho, however..."

"Logical as it is," Savar said, "the problem is getting the New Jericho authorities willing to turn them over. They're too deep in the colonial facilities and that bunker has powerful shielding; we won't be able to beam them away."

"And given their attitude and their corrupt behavior," said Nira, "they're only going to deny the presence of the crates, and they'll only tighten security. If we try to take them by force, Starfleet in New Jericho will be about as unwelcome as a non-Muslim in Mecca. We shouldn't let them know that we know, and let things quiet down; chances are, news of what's been going on will spread down to New Jericho, if it hasn't already, given how much is going on. We should keep quiet for the time being, but keep a watch out on those weapons, give enough time to make these corrupt officials comfortable before we spirit the crates away."

"I think, Kinley," said Nira to Kinley, "we ought to retrieve as many crates as we can, though wait on the New Jericho ones, make sure New Jericho will feel more comfortable before we retrieve the ones they have. In the long term, we need to update all systems, refit others, improve and enhance our defenses. In terms of manpower, we ought to reach out to the Officer Exchange Programs between the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Free State, see if they can provide officers here can help with our being so understaffed.

"As for the Scott, we'd best send supplies and equipment, as much as we can spare, to help in their repairs," Nira finished. "As much as we can spare..."

At Nira and Savar's joint explanation on the difficulties inherent with retrieving the crates from New Jericho, Torra grew silent.  She understood their reasoning, but still felt it was irresponsible to leave the weapons where they were.   Each person that would be harmed by the use of those weapons, was blood on their hands for not preventing it.

Perhaps there was a way... but before she brought the suggestion up, Torra needed to do a bit of research, to be sure it would work.  For the rest of the meeting, Torra seemed little distracted, her thoughts obviously elsewhere. 

[Kela Nelois]

[Ensign Nelois - Station Quarters - later time]

Kela couldn't be more happy in this moment to have the station be understaffed then when he returned to his quarters after his shift and it was empty. Quickly changing into civilian clothes as he was now off-duty he opened his console and saw the message from his wife. Opening it he was glad to see her words and her thoughts on his station. He was glad how happy she was he volunteered to help Starfleet after the tragedy of Frontier Day and she was excited for the day they could see each other again. He moved on with the note and when he reached the final paragraph actively groaned. Apparently she did some research on a few of the stations senior officers to help him better work with them(because of course he wouldn't do that) and she found out his XO is a member of the First House.

Quickly turning and reading the file he saw why he didn't recognize the name. Apparently her past was a little controversial in terms of lineage but she was first house alright. And technically of a higher rank then his family. He really didn't like that. He was happy the crew roster had other Betazoids but while he didn't get the feeling she was a politics person he was loathed to have a higher ranking cousin be his XO. Sighing he finished the letter and sent a subspace call to his wife. She would appreciate the call rather then a message back.

-a few minutes later-

"-oh Imzadi don't be so dramatic!" Mara said slyly. "It was a simple misunderstanding and I know how you get when things don't go your way!"

Nelois groaned a little. He always felt awkward whenever his wife used Imzadi for him. While their marriage was arranged the love that came from it was very real. But despite that Kela always felt a little childish saying and hearing it. "It doesn't change the fact that a Grazerite, who I am 10x older then, and my superior officer now thinks of me as some upstart officer with a superiority complex." he said flatly.

"If you really think that way Kela you know what you must do then."

"No. That will just make things worse."

"The only way it will make things worse is that you'll keep having those thoughts in your head and inevitably it will make things worse! I've known you nearly 20 years my dear. Even when we are a galaxy apart I can still help you." his wife said sternly.

Kela sighed, he hated it but it was worth a shot. He didn't say anything though and simply continued talking about his and her time apart. At the end of their conversation they wished each other farewell and Kela sat back. This would definitely be an interesting time on this station. He just hoped it would end up being a good one...

[J.B Dersch]

[Commander Nira Said | Staff Briefing Room | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Nira appreciated Torra being at her side. She took in her reports before the other department heads did. Amidst the report from Ops, she whirled at the sound of Dersch's question...for want of a better word. She can understand if he was acting as a guard; she remembered in her early days on the Athena when she worked similarly like that. Although it meant one of the other security officers was manning station instead of Dersch back in Ops...

"It's actually a Romulan Bird of Prey, Mister Dersch," she said. "Like those raiders at Iquilon we fought on the Revenant?"

Stryker's question regarding Rabolon made her turn back and look for details... "It's okay, he's still alive. He's still stabilized, thanks to Taja and Feeva..."

She nodded in gratitude at Taja and Feeva before looking back at Dersch. "I had asked Starfleet Command about a duty ship before I came here. They said we need to get things fixed and making the station operational, but it'll only depend on the situation in the system. Anyway, things don't look too bad for us to get a duty ship....not yet, anyway."

At Torra's words regarding the captured crates, Nira said, "The ones we have confiscated will be easy enough, and the refugees at Oaish'le will certainly return us any crates with drugs in it. The ones Savar and Fawkes found in New Jericho, however..."

"Logical as it is," Savar said, "the problem is getting the New Jericho authorities willing to turn them over. They're too deep in the colonial facilities and that bunker has powerful shielding; we won't be able to beam them away."

"And given their attitude and their corrupt behavior," said Nira, "they're only going to deny the presence of the crates, and they'll only tighten security. If we try to take them by force, Starfleet in New Jericho will be about as unwelcome as a non-Muslim in Mecca. We shouldn't let them know that we know, and let things quiet down; chances are, news of what's been going on will spread down to New Jericho, if it hasn't already, given how much is going on. We should keep quiet for the time being, but keep a watch out on those weapons, give enough time to make these corrupt officials comfortable before we spirit the crates away."

"I think, Kinley," said Nira to Kinley, "we ought to retrieve as many crates as we can, though wait on the New Jericho ones, make sure New Jericho will feel more comfortable before we retrieve the ones they have. In the long term, we need to update all systems, refit others, improve and enhance our defenses. In terms of manpower, we ought to reach out to the Officer Exchange Programs between the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Free State, see if they can provide officers here can help with our being so understaffed.

"As for the Scott, we'd best send supplies and equipment, as much as we can spare, to help in their repairs," Nira finished. "As much as we can spare..."

[Lt. JG JB Dersch - Outpost Solaere - Deck One - Staff Briefing Room]

"It's actually a Romulan Bird of Prey, Mister Dersch," she said. "Like those raiders at Iquilon we fought on the Revenant?"

"Interesting, The ships that Got me sent to Medical? Ah, Its so good to remember those bastreds." Dersch said Sarcasitcly, Which quickly changed as Nira brought up the injuired Chief.

"It's okay, he's still alive. He's still stabilized, thanks to Taja and Feeva..."

Dersch looked to Taja and Nodded to her. So far they had all proven them selfs capable of operating this station, Even if we were short staffed. JB was quickly brought back as Nira spoke again, This time to Dersch again.

"I had asked Starfleet Command about a duty ship before I came here. They said we need to get things fixed and making the station operational, but it'll only depend on the situation in the system. Anyway, things don't look too bad for us to get a duty ship....not yet, anyway."

"Well As Long as we get one here before something like this happens again, We should be good. Otherwise we are in for a very long haul" JB said as he moved to get his now sleeping leg awake. Damn, Why dose it have to always fall alseep!

"The ones we have confiscated will be easy enough, and the refugees at Oaish'le will certainly return us any crates with drugs in it. The ones Savar and Fawkes found in New Jericho, however..."

"I don't think they will give it with Open hands..." JB quickly said as she paused. So far the Colonist didn't seem like the type to just GIVE away items like the ones they now had.

"Logical as it is," Savar said, "the problem is getting the New Jericho authorities willing to turn them over. They're too deep in the colonial facilities and that bunker has powerful shielding; we won't be able to beam them away."

JB nodded as Savar spoke. "I agree with Mr. Savar, Even if we can't beam them away, And We try to beam ourselves in, We could be attacked, Or more like mobbed by the colonist who support the current leaders." JB didn't like the sound of what he just said but it had to be said.

"And given their attitude and their corrupt behavior," said Nira, "they're only going to deny the presence of the crates, and they'll only tighten security. If we try to take them by force, Starfleet in New Jericho will be about as unwelcome as a non-Muslim in Mecca. We shouldn't let them know that we know, and let things quiet down; chances are, news of what's been going on will spread down to New Jericho, if it hasn't already, given how much is going on. We should keep quiet for the time being, but keep a watch out on those weapons, give enough time to make these corrupt officials comfortable before we spirit the crates away."

"I Most Certainly agree Commander Said, But what if the Pale Romulan sends back something that gives it away to the Colonists? Like a Message of sorts?" Dersch asked, He made a point, But did it have merit? He was about to find out

"we ought to retrieve as many crates as we can, though wait on the New Jericho ones, make sure New Jericho will feel more comfortable before we retrieve the ones they have. In the long term, we need to update all systems, refit others, improve and enhance our defenses. In terms of manpower, we ought to reach out to the Officer Exchange Programs between the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Free State, see if they can provide officers here can help with our being so understaffed.

"Agreed Commander, May I suggest we add those Disrupters to Our, Umm, Lerts say secret stock pile in case of Emergeceny? If need be I can train those who don't know how to use the Disprupters myself." It wasn't a bad idea.

"As for the Scott, we'd best send supplies and equipment, as much as we can spare, to help in their repairs," Nira finished. "As much as we can spare..."

"I Will get a list of items we can spare, and get those ready for when Scott arrives, Mrs. Grippen, Would you care to compile a Medical List together and get those sent over so Secuirty can get those moved down there? And Torra could you and ops assist with getting some room cleared out on the Scotts Docking bay So we can fit the Spare Items in there so We aren't taking up cargo space?" Dersch didn't really order them too, Only asked, They could completely ignore him, He wouldn't care he would do their list himself if he had too,.

[Stryker]

[lt. Sven Aune | Staff Briefing Room | Deck One | Outpost Solaere]

Sven was a little preoccupied with his thoughts. Now that he knew that Rabolon would be okay, his mind turned to the Varion-T weapons that were lost. This was a serious problem. It would be up to ops to figure out how to deal with the lost crates. His problem was how to stop the weapons from, one, being brought back on board, and two, neutralizing them if they were used on the station.

He knew enough engineering on how to dismantle them, but that was practically worthless in a firefight if they were being used against the station population.

Perhaps he could work with science and ops to come up with a passive strategy to scan for them on the station.

Maybe some sort of forcefield that could be erected to protect people from the disintegrating beams and blasts? Was that even possible.

The other issue was the station itself. It wasn't beyond the realm of possibility that a large model could be mounted on a ship and used for orbital bombardment, or against the station proper.

Dersch had come up with a working plan to help the Scott. That was a new issue. A new strain on the already limited resources. But that was the nice thing about the Federation. They would gladly give the shirt off their own back to help. He would, and was thinking about how to best help those injured.

He didn't speak, but rather listened.

[Kinley Garrison]

[Conference room]

Kinley nodded at the suggestions everyone gave. They still had a lot to do now that the shakedown was over, but  It was definitely worth a start. "Sounds like a plan then.  Let's do it. "

Commander's log -  Supplimentary]

It's been one crazy day, to say the least.  However, despite everything, the crew has performed admirably, even with everything practically falling apart since this place was last cleaned up. (If  it ever was cleaned up, I have my doubts.) If this shakedown has told me anything, we've got a lot to fix here, and that Captain who told me that this place was empty and ready to go has a lot to explain to me since it was certainly not that.

I've made it my personal goal to have us find and get all of these crates cataloged and destroyed. If the stuff can be useful, they'll be confiscated and sent to some appropriate places we'll determine.  I'm sure our new neighbors will like the gift of all the Romulan Ale.  There's easily about 200 crates in total we've found so far, and we still have a lot left to go.

Our security Chief, Rabolon, has been relieved of duty while he heals from that injury he received. I've heard he's heading home for a while since he's on leave. In his stead, Lieutenant Aune will be the Chief of that department. I wish him all the best for that.

As for the diplomatic messes, we still have yet to catch up with the Administrators after we sent them home. They're still not too happy about our neutrality, but that can't really be helped.  Part of me wishes that the interaction could have gone better,  but it's in their court if they want to talk.

On a positive note, we've finally dealt with all the goons clogging up our brig, A few have taken my deal to go legit and help run that bar - The Jackal.  It's still sketchy, and the food... Well, it needs to be inspected properly before it should be open to the public, but I guess it's better than before.  Some time in the Brig must have done Cloten some good since he actually seems to be going along with that plan. (Albeit, I think Nira's helping a lot with that. She can be kind of scary when she wants to be)

In some not-so-good news, I've unfortunately gotten reports that Praetor Domitian has escaped. We sent him back to the Federation to get tried for real by the justice system, but it seems like somewhere along the line, the prison convoy was ambushed and he escaped, probably back to the  Syndicate.  I think this won't be the last time we'll see him, unfortunately.

After a day like this, I think we all deserve a break, at least for a bit.  Well, as much of a break one can get out here in the middle of nowhere. Wish us luck.

[FIN]