Season 16: Episode 1: Perfect Replicas

[James Ramort]

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

[...]

"For the Away Team, I recommend Lieutenant Commander Malik accompany you, as well as Lieutenant Lachlyn, and a team of Security.  In addition, I'd like one member each of the other departments -Science, Ops, Engineering and Medical - for a team prepared for anything.  Individuals to be named at the respective department head's discretion.". Rayek looked pointedly to Ramort, Lek, Betaika, and Lorut, who was technically filling in for the Ops Chief.  He found it amusing - know he would select her.  He wondered what her choice would be.

[...]

[USS Discovery | Deck 1 | Briefing Room]

While the other Senior Officers got assigned further Tasks, Ramort stayed quiet and listened. He could learn from today. To the outside, the Senior Officers always projected an aura of calm seriousness. They always knew what they were doing and issued the necessary orders without hesitation. They were the pillars this crew rested on. In this room they admitted to uncertainties. Orders were questioned and this impression came down. Fundamentally they were much alike to the groups of scientists he knew, focused on a problem with everyone bringing in their unique set of skills. But none of them knew beforehand what would be needed in the end to actually make the mission safe and a success. He also understood that he himself would have to project this image later to the other Members of the Science Department. Even if the mission was full of uncertainties and they couldn't know if the strategies they decided on today would be the best or safest, in the end they would have to collect all available information and made the best possible informed decision on the available data. Then he would have to present the information necessary to the Science Department and see to them doing their part. All while not letting show through any of the uncertainty he himself might still be feeling.
This really had been an informative incident.

And he would have to come up with a name for the away team. Turning to the Commander:

"You will have a name from me for the away team in the hour."

[Rayek trLhoell]

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

[Conference Room - Deck 1 - USS Discovery]

Lek remained silent as Rayek replied. In fact, he remained silent and waited to be dismissed as he thought.

"Now, not even my one time friend is listening. I've said my piece it is no longer my responsibility to prevent another fiasco. When did Starfleet turn into whatever it is now? Afraid to make hard decision and hiding behind the regulations instead of leading the way."

Lek was deeply saddened to know his opinion meant so little, but even sadder that what he was saying wasn't obvious to others to begin with.

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

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

[USS Discovery | Deck 1 | Briefing Room]

While the other Senior Officers got assigned further Tasks, Ramort stayed quiet and listened. He could learn from today. To the outside, the Senior Officers always projected an aura of calm seriousness. They always knew what they were doing and issued the necessary orders without hesitation. They were the pillars this crew rested on. In this room they admitted to uncertainties. Orders were questioned and this impression came down. Fundamentally they were much alike to the groups of scientists he knew, focused on a problem with everyone bringing in their unique set of skills. But none of them knew beforehand what would be needed in the end to actually make the mission safe and a success. He also understood that he himself would have to project this image later to the other Members of the Science Department. Even if the mission was full of uncertainties and they couldn't know if the strategies they decided on today would be the best or safest, in the end they would have to collect all available information and made the best possible informed decision on the available data. Then he would have to present the information necessary to the Science Department and see to them doing their part. All while not letting show through any of the uncertainty he himself might still be feeling.
This really had been an informative incident.

And he would have to come up with a name for the away team. Turning to the Commander:

"You will have a name from me for the away team in the hour."

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Voiceprint recognized.  Acknowledged. Deck 6."

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

[James Ramort]

"Ensign Alvarez to Ensign Rajagopalan, Engineering and Bridge are aware of the issue and looking into it.  For now stay the course, I assume once this meeting is over we'll be busy.  Alvarez out."

[As Ensign Vinod Rajagopalan]

"Acknowledged"=/\=

It concerned him that there were power fluctuation across other systems as well but if the Bridge was aware of it, it was only a matter of time till it would be fixed.

For now he had to do with other means. He walked over to the Replicators and ordered 2 portable power cells for his experiments stasis units.

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

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

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

[...]

[As Lt. Jg. James Ramort]
[USS Discovery | Deck 1 | Briefing Room]
[~10:30]

With the briefing concluded and everyone assigned their tasks, Ramort stood up from his chair as well. He would have some busy hours before him.
Before that an item of coordination had to be addressed though. Stopping him before he could exit the room, he addressed the current Chief Medical Officer.

"On a word for a second please, Doctor. We should coordinate for the preparations. I would suggest we form a dedicated team to review the possible countermeasures and technical protection measures. I will assemble my people in Science Lab 1, from there we can easily access the scientific Database and speculate what kind of experiments were run on the Station. Since we have some bio-type experiments running there anyhow, we also have some of the necessary Protection Gear already replicated there."

--

After having planned their strategy with the Medical Officer, he left the briefing room. A strange feeling. Coming Back onto the Bridge and looking into the faces of the people out there. Anticipating any hint from him, maybe expecting him as the most junior of the meetings participants to let something slip about their upcoming mission.
He was focused on setting in motion his part of the great machine though, and there would be no distractions till he was finished. Crossing the Bridge, he approached the Science Station.

"Ensign Alvarez, I relieve you, Report to Science Lab 1, I will join you shortly."
"Ensign Rajagopalan, report to Science Lab 1"=/\=

Thinking a second about the Alpha Shifts Crew roster and who else was currently serving on Board in the Science Department.

"Ensign TÁªine, report to the Bridge and take over Science as soon as possible."=/\=, then sitting down at the station to await the other Scientist's arrival to take over the station while he would be busy preparing countermeasures for a biobreach he wasn't even sure it was incoming. He had to use the Bridge Station anyway though, as it was the primary Access Point for the Science Systems. He ordered the Computer to lock down all component storages in unused Science Labs, the last thing they could need today was a wild, potentially catastrophic, cross-reaction between whatever was on that station and what they had on board already.

[USS Discovery | Deck 10 | Science Lab 1]
[~10:40]

Looking over the Officers faces assembled before him, he knew none of them would be getting much sleep in the coming hours. Too many factors had to be considered. Too many programs be run to simulate all possible vectors of attack from all sorts of organisms.

"I will get right to the matter at hand. Our mission might be time-critical, so we will have to work overtime if we want to finish before we arrive at our destination. I can't reveal what we could find there, but we have to prepare for it. To do this, Science will work closely with Medical. We will project all possible vectors of a biological contamination with an unknown agent and all possible ways to A. Prevent it, and B. Counteract it. Please pair up with someone from the other Department respectively and have reports ready within the next 3 Hours on preliminary risks assessments and countermeasures. Ensign Alvarez, you will coordinate macroscopic contaminations, Ensign Rajagopalan, you will coordinate microscopic intrusion. Let's get to work."

Seeing them all heading to their stations and falling into discussion immediately as to what could be possible ways to breach Discoveries Systems.

He himself turned to his station as well and set up his own way of approaching the Problem. He instructed the computer to essential wargame the problem out. Generating a thousand different threads, each handling a lesser category of Contaminants and testing them against the biofilters, life support systems, replicator mass storage and whatever else could possibly be infected, having the system flag every success and log it for review. Then he began to think about who would be best suited to go off to the Station along the Away Team.

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

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

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

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

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

"Voiceprint recognized.  Acknowledged. Deck 6."

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

[USS Discovery | Deck 10 | Science Lab 1]
[16:00:10]

Ramort was still busy having the Computer produce all results of known bio agents and their interactions with the ships current configuration when the call came. Locking out the Station with a single button press to let the Simulation itself continue running in the Background, he hurried out of the Lab.
The Turbolift designated to head to Battlebridge Beta was the furthest from the Labs, so he found himself running to catch it in the first round, but still made it in time. It was filled with other Officers heading to their Station in case of a MVA. After all three times the Officers would be required to man all Stations.

Around him, he could hear the increased hum of dozens of Lift Pods being moved out of their Resting positions to quickly connect all decks of the ships one last time before being cut off for the time being.

[USS Discovery | Beta Hull | Deck 6 | Battle Bridge]

Being part of the initial wave of officers, he quickly went over to the Science Station that still laid dormant in the dedicated Battle Bridge. Its placement to the side revealed it was of lesser importance in case of a Battle, but you could never know what might happen in an actual emergency.

[Lek]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Bridge  >>  Deck 6 - Battle Bridge] (16:00)

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

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

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

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

"Voiceprint recognized.  Acknowledged. Deck 6."

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

[Main Engineering - USS Discovery]

Lek was aware that battle drills, including MVA were scheduled, but just because he knew about them, it didn't mean he agreed with them. He knew it was important to train and test the crew, but the drills cut into repair time which was a problem for a ship still experiencing post yard glitches.

The engineering department had been fully committed to tracking down the small faults that were causing ship wide power fluctuations and would continue to do so until they reached their destination. He had also assigned one of his best damage control teams to configure the Allegheny to be as hermetically sealed as possible. He still thought the mission was folly, but he no longer voiced his concerns as no one was listening. His only role now was to be the best engineer he knew how to be

"I may not be a Ramblin' Wreck from Georgia Tech, but I am a hell of an engineer."

He muttered and waited for the ship to separate.

[Tekin Nevir]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Voiceprint recognized.  Acknowledged. Deck 6."

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

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

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

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

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

[Hours Later... near 1600 hours]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Rayek, how did we do?"

[Novi]

[Doctor Betaika - USS Discovery]

Dr. Betaika kept silent throughout the rest of the meeting. With his questions answered the best that could be done he felt no need to add his voice unnessecarily to this conversation. His mind instead wandered off to who to send on the away team. His mind wandered as he thought about who the other officers would send. He never got super close to anyone here, except maybe the Captain and XO. But he could assume from some things. Looking at what little information that's been released as well the biological risks seemed standard enough so no information there but it would keep most of his crew busy synthesizing things and prepping countermeasures. The administration of such things along with intimate knowledge on whatever biological devices and research was being used would be important in his eyes, which helped him reach his decision. Upon the meetings closure he bid his farewells to the other senior officers and quickly returned to Sickbay. The Medical department had returned to standard shifts and thus Alpha Sickbay was much less busy then earlier. If anyone missed any required checkups or equipment drop off it would have to be at the standard scheduled times now. Which made him happy, such chaos and noise did not suit Dr. Betaika's Sickbay. He took a report of the days happenings from Sluchaynyy and dismissed him to go off-duty and rest before heading to his office and sending a message to Ensign Novi to report to his office as he went to work.

[M'Nia]

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

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

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

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

[Hours Later... near 1600 hours]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Rayek, how did we do?"

MVA mode always made M'nia nervous. Somehow it didn't seem right to split up the ship like this. Still, she was sure she would get over it in time. She was manning the bridge station. So far, so good. She knew it was a drill and that there was no real threat at the moment. Still, with all the malfunctions, she was a little extra nervous about going into MVA mode.
Still this was good experience for her. She really didn't mind being on the bridge. Someone had to do it and lek would take care of engineering and she would watch over things here on the bridge. Her tail flicked back in forth as she awaited for whatever came next.

[Vadok Alvarez]

[USS Discovery | Deck 10 | Science Lab 1]
[~10:40]

Looking over the Officers faces assembled before him, he knew none of them would be getting much sleep in the coming hours. Too many factors had to be considered. Too many programs be run to simulate all possible vectors of attack from all sorts of organisms.

"I will get right to the matter at hand. Our mission might be time-critical, so we will have to work overtime if we want to finish before we arrive at our destination. I can't reveal what we could find there, but we have to prepare for it. To do this, Science will work closely with Medical. We will project all possible vectors of a biological contamination with an unknown agent and all possible ways to A. Prevent it, and B. Counteract it. Please pair up with someone from the other Department respectively and have reports ready within the next 3 Hours on preliminary risks assessments and countermeasures. Ensign Alvarez, you will coordinate macroscopic contaminations, Ensign Rajagopalan, you will coordinate microscopic intrusion. Let's get to work."

Seeing them all heading to their stations and falling into discussion immediately as to what could be possible ways to breach Discoveries Systems.

He himself turned to his station as well and set up his own way of approaching the Problem. He instructed the computer to essential wargame the problem out. Generating a thousand different threads, each handling a lesser category of Contaminants and testing them against the biofilters, life support systems, replicator mass storage and whatever else could possibly be infected, having the system flag every success and log it for review. Then he began to think about who would be best suited to go off to the Station along the Away Team.

[USS Discovery | Deck 10 | Science Lab 1]
[~10:40]

Vadok listened attentively to the commanding officer's briefing, his stoic Vulcan demeanor concealing the quiet intensity of focus within. The mention of a time-critical mission resonated with the logical part of his mind, urging him to approach the impending challenge with efficiency and precision.

As the officers dispersed to their respective stations, Vadok took a moment to coordinate his thoughts. The directive was clear: science and medical teams were to collaborate in projecting all possible vectors of a biological contamination with an unknown agent. The goal""to strategize preventive measures and countermeasures. The scope of his responsibility became evident as the commanding officer assigned him to coordinate macroscopic contaminations.

Walking purposefully to his station, Vadok initiated a series of complex commands to the ship's computer. His fingers danced over the console, instructing it to generate a multitude of scenarios, each representing a different category of contaminants. These virtual threads would test the ship's biofilters, life support systems, replicator mass storage, and various other critical components against potential breaches.

The hum of the USS Discovery's systems provided a backdrop as Vadok delved into the intricacies of the simulation. His analytical mind worked tirelessly, evaluating potential risks and formulating responses. The computer whirred to life, crunching data and simulating outcomes, each success and failure meticulously flagged for later review.

In the midst of this calculated chaos, Vadok considered the composition of the Away Team, a crucial element in the mission. Who among the crew would be best suited to navigate the potential hazards awaiting them at the destination? As he pondered, the quiet hum of the ship's systems seemed to synchronize with the rhythm of his thoughts, creating a focused atmosphere in the science lab.

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

[USS Discovery | Deck 10 | Science Lab 1]
[16:00:10]

Vadok, deeply immersed in the intricacies of his work in the science lab, was interrupted by the commanding voice echoing through the ship's intercom. The call for a shipwide drill reverberated, prompting him to swiftly acknowledge the message and conclude his ongoing simulations.

He stood up from his station and made his way to the Gamma Hull. The quiet hum of the ship's systems accompanied him as he traversed the corridors. As he walked, his mind transitioned from the complexities of biological simulations to the practicalities of ship operations.

Upon reaching the entrance to the Gamma Hull, Vadok passed through the bulkhead doors and stepped onto the bridge. The atmosphere on Gamma Bridge was focused and purposeful, the crew members efficiently preparing for the drill.  Taking his assigned position at the science station on Gamma Bridge, Vadok interfaced with the ship's controls. The console responded to his touch, displaying the relevant data for the Gamma Hull's systems. As the crew around him prepared for the drill, Vadok ran through the checklist in his mind, ensuring that the Gamma Hull was ready to function independently and seamlessly as part of the split configuration.

[Tanner Lachlyn]

[USS Discovery - Bridge - Deck One]

As overwhelming as it had been prepping the Discovery for four months, she'd been practically alone with the command staff and repair teams. As they finished the command meeting, where she left with little information, Tanner realized how little time she'd spent being an active leader. Now that she had unknown variables arising regularly, she felt like she was treading water in a large ocean.

Heading over to Dranik, who was manning the security station, Tanner eased beside him, "Hey." She said, "I wanted to ask if you'd come with me on the away mission once we reach our destination. However, it will be dangerous, and I know you have a family to think of, so don't say anything till I get you what information I have so you can make an informed decision."

She continued, "We're also going to have to run some drills, which I was hoping you could take the lead on. Since we don't know what we're in for, the drills are...going to be a wide array of practically anything that could go wrong." Tanner smirked, "But that's what we do, right?" 

Tanner let out a nervous breath, "I'm going to run to my office to pull a few things and then I'll relieve you. It's going to be a busy few hours."

*Six hours into the Journey*

Tanner was back on the bridge, chilling at her station with a mug of hot chocolate. Dranik had been briefed and was making his decision, but while he did as Rayek had sent her possible station schematics, they were running drills. With the time left on their journey, they could dedicate at least six hours to each station and the myriad of things that could go wrong.

*Eight hours into the Journey*

The alert from Rayek came first, and Tanner hoped that the teams in the holodeck would be able to scatter as needed. Dranik was set to go to the beta bridge, and she was set to stay put. It was a standard drill. What wasn't standard was that when the klaxons went off, Tanner panicked. The mere sound of it made her stomach knot, and she felt her knuckles turn white.  The last time she'd been on the bridge and heard that sound was burned into her nightmares. Forcing a breath she focused on the computer in front of her while attempting to release her grip on the console.

[Lorut Vila]

USS Discovery
Conference Room

The Bajoran cast looks around the room. The information was sobering, especially after the trauma and things they'd just seen a few short months ago. While the ship herself was ready to fight, Vila wasn't sure if the crew was. And that included herself. Things had changed. Some for the worse, and some for the better. She still had her spiciness, she just had more tools now to direct it to better places.
It surprised her a moment when Lek nodded in the affirmative.

I will gladly accept any help Ops can provide. We have 30 hours before we reach the outpost, we can get a lot done in that time. Modifying the Allegheny is fairly simple, but I will suggest whoever goes on the away team do so in full EVA.

She simply nodded once. "I will come by and see you when we're dismissed," she said. "For further instruction."

For the Away Team, I recommend Lieutenant Commander Malik accompany you, as well as Lieutenant Lachlyn, and a team of Security.  In addition, I'd like one member each of the other departments -Science, Ops, Engineering and Medical - for a team prepared for anything. Individuals to be named at the respective department head's discretion.

Who was even LEFT of Ops?! She ran through her head quickly-herself and T'Prith, and an enlisted woman she'd not met yet-Forscher. She decided that it could be T'Prith, if the woman was willing. While she really wanted to be on a team and have the opportunity to blow things up, she was also still a bit possessive of her systems and machines and preferred to remain on the ship, to watch them carefully. She knew why Torra had left, but wished she was still here. She trusted her with the computers. Now, she didn't know-T'Prith was probably capable but they had yet to work together for any length of time. This was Vila's lifeblood, the only thing she really knew how to do well outside of killing Cardassians for the Resistance. Those skills weren't needed anymore, so her next thing was computers-thirty years she'd done it, and she'd do it thirty more if she could.

I would suggest that you ask for volunteers for the away team. Given the nature of the mission, the risk of death is so high, everyone going needs to understand that they might not or might not be allowed to return to the ship.

She simply nodded. "Actually, that'd make it easier for me, as well," she said. Let someone else make the call-Vila believed that all leaders should be willing to do what they would ask of their subordinates. And for that reason, she really was torn.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
USS Discovery
Gamma Hull Battle Bridge

Vila was at her station when Rayek's Comms came through.

Attention All Hands.  Prepare for MVA.  Bridge Teams and support personnel head to your assigned location.  This is a timed drill. REPEAT - this is a timed drill.  Timer starts now.  tr'Lhoell out.

She fought an urge to roll her eyes, but got herself prepared for it. Mentally, she opened the box in her head that stored the "this is survival time" button in her brain, and got it ready. After, she clicked her screen to a more secure screen, and prepped herself to work. Her head was clear, but her fingers were ready to hit that "launch torpedos" button if she needed to.

[Dranik]

Dranik
USS Discovery
Beta Bridge
Eight Hours into the Journey

Dranik had already made the decision to join the away team and had let his commanding officer know. He had quickly made his way to the beta-bridge as soon as the announcement had came through.

"Attention All Hands.  Prepare for MVA.  Bridge Teams and support personnel head to your assigned location.  This is a timed drill. REPEAT - this is a timed drill.  Timer starts now.  tr'Lhoell out."

He took his position at the tactical console and immediately began checking over the tactical console to make sure everything was operating at optimal levels.

[Malik Grippen]

[USS Discovery, Gamma Bridge]

Malik looked to the gathered bridge officers assigned to the butt hull, otherwise known as Gamma. They had all arrived within time of the separation, which had by now occurred. It was all very exciting.

Malik had the privilege of sitting in the centre seat, even 1/3 of a ship it was still good.

"Great work people, how's the Gamma-ship holding up? All stations report in."

[Novi]

[Ensign Novi - USS Discovery Before MVA drill]

Ensign Novi entered Alpha Sickbay just a little nervous. She was technically still off-duty but if her superior officer summoned her it must be important. Thankfully she hadn't removed her uniform yet and so just needed to quickly get to Sickbay. Entering she said a little hello to the active crew before walking into Dr. Betaika's office.

"You wanted to see me sir?" she asked trying to hide her nervousness.

"I did Ensign. Please take a seat."

That can't be good.

Dr. Betaika continued, "I have just returned from our meeting. Unfortunately the information revealed there is heavily classified. Solely on a need to know basis. You understand any words said from this point out is considered heavily classified under threat of a court marshall?"

Novi nodded her head, her nervousness barely contained

Dr. Betaika seemed satisfied enough, "All I can say is we will soon arrive at a Biological research station. The Captain has ordered us to prepare an away team and I have decided to send you on it. Your variety of skills will prove useful there."

Novi didn't know what to say. A secret facility? Her on an away team? It was alot, "I'm sorry sir, a secret facility? What is happening there?"

"Remember Ensign. That is on a need to know basis. Perhaps if I inform the Captain of your participation he will reveal more but you are not at liberty to ask for that."

Novi quickly nodded, of course she couldn't know. That was orders. After a moment she raised her head again, "I understand sir. I will do my best on this mission."

"I expect nothing less Ensign. So far your experience has been noteworthy. I hope you continue to do good work on this vessel."

Novi nodded, she was still reeling from the news, there was no way she could on an away mission! To some secret facility she knew nothing about! How could she prepare? What if something happened? What if she got into a fight again? She could feel her heart rate start increasing. She had to calm down. She could hear Betaika's voice but couldn't tell what it was saying. Was it English? Was it Romulan being translated to Trill by the universal translator? She couldn't tell she had to calm down! She took a deep breathe and focused on the sound of Betaika's voice only his voice. His voice was firm but not harsh. Like a smooth rock. She could feel the oppressive weight of her chest still pushing on her but when Betaika switched his tone to a more lighter one she suddenly was able to listen in.

"...The Revanent was a good one. You learned much during your time I presume. We have a scheduled MVA practice for later. Normally the heads of each sickbay would be the Medical departments senior officers. Unfortunately its just two of us at the moment so un lieu of a full CMO to take over Alpha Sickbay I am making you head of Alpha Sickbay in the interim. It is just practice so you will just have to report in to the main Bridge but if something does happen your experience already as a Medical senior officer will be good."

Novi was a little too overwhelmed by everything. Maybe he was trying to help her by giving her good news but she was still processing everything. In her mind, all she could do was a respectful bow, "th-thank you sir. I am grateful for the opportunity to head this practice run."

Betaika nodded, his thoughts a mystery to Novi as he said a few other words then dismissed her. Novi left the room and felt dizzy. Returning to her quarters she threw up and ate her favorite homemade Trill dish to calm down. She had a few hours and she would ready by then.

[Rayek trLhoell]

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

USS Discovery
Conference Room

The Bajoran cast looks around the room. The information was sobering, especially after the trauma and things they'd just seen a few short months ago. While the ship herself was ready to fight, Vila wasn't sure if the crew was. And that included herself. Things had changed. Some for the worse, and some for the better. She still had her spiciness, she just had more tools now to direct it to better places.

It surprised her a moment when Lek nodded in the affirmative.
She simply nodded once. "I will come by and see you when we're dismissed," she said. "For further instruction."

Who was even LEFT of Ops?! She ran through her head quickly-herself and T'Prith, and an enlisted woman she'd not met yet-Forscher. She decided that it could be T'Prith, if the woman was willing. While she really wanted to be on a team and have the opportunity to blow things up, she was also still a bit possessive of her systems and machines and preferred to remain on the ship, to watch them carefully. She knew why Torra had left, but wished she was still here. She trusted her with the computers. Now, she didn't know-T'Prith was probably capable but they had yet to work together for any length of time. This was Vila's lifeblood, the only thing she really knew how to do well outside of killing Cardassians for the Resistance. Those skills weren't needed anymore, so her next thing was computers-thirty years she'd done it, and she'd do it thirty more if she could.

She simply nodded. "Actually, that'd make it easier for me, as well," she said. Let someone else make the call-Vila believed that all leaders should be willing to do what they would ask of their subordinates. And for that reason, she really was torn.

Rayek had to refrain from showing his displeasure that Lorut was neither willing to assign the task to herself as most experienced officer or delegate it to someone else but instead preferred to leave it to a chance volunteer. For a moment he considered going back on his earlier statement that Lorut could decide who to assign from the Ops department- but he restrained himself.  He supposed choosing to select from a pool of volunteers was still a decision.  Unfortunately, those volunteering would be doing so 'in the dark' as no details could be provided to them until they accepted the task, a point that he reminded the Department Heads of prior to the dismissal of the meeting.   "I remind those of you considering seeking volunteers for the Away Team.  Details of the mission and base are not allowed to be shared at large.  Your staff will be going in 'blind' as it were."
.
.
.

[USS Discovery - Deck 1 - Conference Room]

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

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

The explanation that Tekin provided made a lot of sense and Rayek was troubled that he hadn't considered that option when he was pondering the subject earlier.   "Understood Captain.  It is fortunate as well, as it does give us some time to work together again."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
[USS Discovery-B - Beta Hull - Deck 6 - Battle Bridge]

[USS Discovery | Beta Hull | Deck 6 | Battle Bridge] [16:01]

Being part of the initial wave of officers, he quickly went over to the Science Station that still laid dormant in the dedicated Battle Bridge. Its placement to the side revealed it was of lesser importance in case of a Battle, but you could never know what might happen in an actual emergency.

[Main Engineering - USS Discovery]

Lek was aware that battle drills, including MVA were scheduled, but just because he knew about them, it didn't mean he agreed with them. He knew it was important to train and test the crew, but the drills cut into repair time which was a problem for a ship still experiencing post yard glitches.

The engineering department had been fully committed to tracking down the small faults that were causing ship wide power fluctuations and would continue to do so until they reached their destination. He had also assigned one of his best damage control teams to configure the Allegheny to be as hermetically sealed as possible. He still thought the mission was folly, but he no longer voiced his concerns as no one was listening. His only role now was to be the best engineer he knew how to be

"I may not be a Ramblin' Wreck from Georgia Tech, but I am a hell of an engineer."

He muttered and waited for the ship to separate.

Dranik
USS Discovery
Beta Bridge
Eight Hours into the Journey

Dranik had already made the decision to join the away team and had let his commanding officer know. He had quickly made his way to the beta-bridge as soon as the announcement had came through.

"Attention All Hands.  Prepare for MVA.  Bridge Teams and support personnel head to your assigned location.  This is a timed drill. REPEAT - this is a timed drill.  Timer starts now.  tr'Lhoell out."

He took his position at the tactical console and immediately began checking over the tactical console to make sure everything was operating at optimal levels.

[Hours Later... near 1600 hours]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Rayek, how did we do?"

Rayek arrived at the battle bridge at exactly a minute.  This was longer than he had anticipated as there had been unexpected congestion in the hallways as other crew were making their way to their own battle-stations.  He noted the presence of others who had arrived from closer decks.  Something to improve upon.  He strode to the command seat and sat down calling for each stations status reports.

Just as the report finished, when Rayek was about to report full readiness to the Captain, the computer announced Auto-separation and began a countdown throughout the ship.  Rayek hoped Malik had made it to the Gamma Bridge in time.

The ship's auto-separation feature went smoothly, with no mechanical or electrical issues thankfully, and took less than 10 seconds overall.

He noted the timer paused on his PADD at a minute thirty.

At the Captain's call, Rayek looked about at those present before answering.

"A minute-thirty, Captain. Definite room for improvement.  I recommend holding the next drill in three hours time."

Afterwards, while Rayek waited for the Captain to order the reconnection of the three hulls, the Romulan stood up from his 'command' seat and looked at those gathered.

"A fine first drill.  Good work everyone.  Are there any comments or suggestions on how we can improve our time?"

[Lorut Vila]

USS Discovery
Conference Room

"I remind those of you considering seeking volunteers for the Away Team.  Details of the mission and base are not allowed to be shared at large.  Your staff will be going in 'blind' as it were.

Vila nodded her understanding. Still, it was too soon-if, indeed, this was as serious a situation as the two COs were insinuating, she wouldn't want the blood on her hands. She had made zero secret of the fact that she wasn't seeking a leadership position, but had accepted it as she could see that the Fleet was in dire straights, and while she was still working through her anger and indignation at the Federation's inaction during the occupation, she HAD managed to learn that she did like the work, and the associations she'd gained as a civilian aboard Fleet vessels and stations throughout her adult life.
Still. If she chose someone to die for the cause, it made her no better, in her mind, than the people she hated. And she wouldn't do that. She was there to speak for the forgotten and ignored, not perpetuate violence and nonsense. She looked pointedly at the Commander, but then acquiesced.

"Fine. I will make the call myself," she said, a hint of irritation in her voice. She was about to say something more-about how she thought he'd be more up to the task-but stopped herself, did a quick round of the dumb box breathing again, and collected herself. "I will have an answer to you in an hour," she said. It would be her. It had to be. The others had things to live for-now that Ben was dead, and her mother was ill, she did not.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LATER

USS Discovery
War Bridge

Vila clicked the final buttons over to complete the decoupling of the saucer from the rest of the ship. She watched on the view screen as it gently floated, perfectly done. She sighed, and shut her eyes a moment. "Saucer released. Awaiting recall orders," she said. She glanced around the room. It had been quiet, but now there was an air of relief that could be felt.
Two hours?! Dang. Would it really take that long to reach their target? She supposed so. After the Commander spoke, she shook her head.

A fine first drill.  Good work everyone.  Are there any comments or suggestions on how we can improve our time?

"I will reroute nonessential power to the main core," she offered. She needed to radio down to Engineering in a moment, and after the rest had spoken, she did just that.

=/\=Lt. Lorut to Commander Lek. Please advise of what you need from me. 

She waited quietly for the man to respond, ready to assist as necessary. She made one more communication.

=/\=T'Prith to the Bridge, please. This is Lt. Lorut. I need a moment of your time.

As the acting Chief, she was doing her very best to set the example for the newly assigned Ensigns and those who had been reassigned from various other ships and such. It wasn't in her nature to be so...nice, and the effort put forth was exhausting. She was looking forward, then, to off-ship time where she could shoot at things in peace. The Counselors allowed her a bit of phaser training-it had all been Holodeck time in the past eight-ish months, but she felt rusty anyway. It was a part of her that wouldn't ever rest, even though she'd now learned how and why she liked it-it wasn't sociopathy, as some had suggested, but had been her first time at independence and self-sufficiency. With her phaser, she wasn't a victim anymore. She was able to protect herself and others-something she'd failed to recognize at seventeen. And now, at fifty-five, she was having to face the hard facts that some people she'd killed had been as innocent as she, but that's the spoils of war.

She sat back, quietly, to listen to the others' conversations, careful to not get too far back into her own ruminations. She was supposed to retrain her thoughts when things like this came up, so she tried to do that. She looked back at Malik.

"Do you have any suggestions for me?" She ventured. It was her try at "small talk."