Shattered MIrror Pt. 1

Tom O'FlaghertyShattered Mirror Pt. 1'''Caloris Station Docking Bay 3''' The hull of the Vesta-class starship, USS Atlas gleamed under the light of the enclosed docking bay. All over its surface, workers in lightweight EVA suits scrambled over its surface making light repairs in the vacuum of the space dock. Nearby, worker drones prepped components to be used as replacement parts to repair the damage the ship had suffered after its rough mission to the Kodana system. For three days, the ship had sat at its moorings with no external activity while a team from the stations computer maintenance division scoured every quad of its computer core. Captain Tom O’Flagherty and his crew had been confined to the ship for the duration of the diagnostic tests, though he knew what was the real cause of the maintenance visit. Vice Admiral Kyla Farraday, the head of Starfleet Operations had wanted to make sure that the order she had given O’Flagherty to wipe the computer core had been carried out with precision. It was her failsafe to ensure that the sensitive data he and his crew had recovered was kept from the court of public opinion. What she didn’t know was that the captain had his own failsafe. In the safe, hidden in the desk in his quarters, an external memory storage device contained all of the research, sensor readings, and personal logs he had been ordered to destroy. While some of the personal logs would have been considered private, and therefore an invasion of privacy for him to have taken, the rest of the data was going to be put to some use. If only I can get the chance. Now, however, as his crew had been released from the Atlas, many were on their way to enjoy a little shore-leave aboard the station, but he was having to suffer the harangue of one of his senior staff. “What do you mean you’re not going to let me transfer? That was a legitimate request and after all the arguments we have had, I figured a welcome one.” Lt. Jackson Lebowski, O’Flagherty’s chief of security, was leaning against the transparisteel wall of the gangway over looking the internal docking by where the ship hung in weightless repose. “I figured you for an irritating asshole for sure, but not a sadistic one.” “Whoa there a second, Lieutenant,” O’Flagherty let out through an exasperated chuckle. “You might want to hear my reasoning before you go and lose your cool. I denied your request because I didn’t give you a fair shake during the Kodana mission. I rode you pretty hard, and for that I wanted to apologize.” “By denying my transfer?” Lebowski looked at the man incredulously. “If that’s an apology, then I do not accept.” O’Flagherty, for his part, remained calm. “No, the apology wasn’t keeping you aboard the Atlas, Mr. Lebowski. The apology was me saying, ‘I apologize.’ Keeping you aboard the ship was my attempt at showing you that I will give the situation a good white-washing and attempt to start over.” Lebowski stared at his captain for a minute before turning to look out the window toward the ship. Its smooth lines and rearward swept warp nacelles made it one of the most streamlined ships in the fleet. At that moment, Lebowski couldn’t help but be draw in by her looks, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. So, O’Flagherty broke the ice. “Everything about that mission was unfair to you and your department. You’ve lost some good people, both to the Kodana and transfers to other boats. I know most of that is my fault, but I promise I won’t let that happen again. I can’t be the chief of security; I learned that while we were at Kodana, but I can’t go out without a good one. What do you say?” “Do I get to have some say in the people I bring over to replace the eight I’ve lost?” “I don’t see why not,” the captain responded. “Then, you’ve got yourself a deal, sir.” Lebowski turned and extended his hand to the young captain who took it in a firm grip. “I’ll try to live up to your standard.”“Hopefully not the one I set while chewing your ass for a month straight.” “No, the one you set while kicking some ass during our escape from Tolain’s detention wing.” O’Flagherty smiled. “I’m sure surpassing that won’t take you long.” Checking the chrono on his wrist, he realized he needed to be at his next appointment. “If you’ll excuse me, Lieutenant. I’m supposed to be debriefed by the Admiral and then get our next set of orders. Go enjoy yourself on the station with your people and I’ll contact your commbadge if I need you.” “Aye, sir.” O’Flagherty watched the man move on down the gangway with the rest of the crew while a smile spread over his face. It had been the first time he had smiled in a few weeks. Getting back from Kodana had taken months, thanks to the loss of hull integrity forcing them to travel at standard warp. As they had gotten closer to the station, the paperwork for transfers started to pour in from many of the departments. Most had been for professional reasons, but some, specifically Lebowski’s had been for personal issues. The captain didn’t like it when failures in personal relationships drove people away from the ship. He was glad that this particular issue could be resolved. [I]Pity they can’t all be that easy to fix.[/B] His thoughts turned to the message he had gotten from Lisbet Ulrika, his former fiance, while they were deep in the middle of the Kodana crisis. The image of her and their son, who he had never met, had been stuck in his mind since the moment he saw it. Part of HIm had hoped that they would be waiting when the ship arrived, or at least when they had been allowed to leave the ship, but he hadn’t seen a sign of them. Since the arrival of Starfleet ships was announced at Federation starbases, he had no illusions that she was unaware of his presence. [I]Guess I’ll just have to make an appointment to get a physical. But after I see the Admiral.[/B]*03-24-2013, 08:05 AMAnahera Chernova '''U.S.S.S. Atlas Deck 8 Security Security Chief's Office''' Ana had been finishing up some duty reports when the Chief called her into his office."Cadet Chernova reporting as ordered, sir." "Thank you for punctuality." Lieutenant Lebowski said grimly. "Is there a problem, sir? Is it my duty reports? Because I was just finishing them up when you called." "This is not about the duty reports and for once my sour mood has nothing whatsoever to do with you. Great work on the insertion and demolition mission, by the way." "Thank you, sir, but I have a great team. Is that what you called me for, to commend my work? Because I believe that's what the debrief is for." "No, I called you here for this. As Chief Security Officer it is my great pleasure to bestow on you the rank of Ensign." He said replacing her cadet bars with a solid Ensign pip. Then he stepped back and saluted her. "Congratulations, Ensign." "Thank you, sir." She said returning his salute. "So, what are my first orders as Ensign Chernova?" "To remain here, because there's more. I'm sure you're aware that Lieutenant Banninga has been transferred off of the Atlas, leaving this department without a Head of the Rapid Response Division and after some discussion with the CO and the XO and partly due to a recommendation by Lieutenant Banninga herself, it has been decided that will be given that position." "Thank you, sir, I am honoured and I will endeavour to live up to the trust and faith you've all placed in me." Ana was sad that Kate was no longer around, but glad for the recommendation she gave. "I have every confidence you will, but not as an Ensign. It is my great pleasure as Chief Security Officer to confer on you the position of Head of the Rapid Response Division and bestow on you the rank of Lieutenant junior grade." This time he took to hollow pip and added it to the solid one on her uniform. Again he stepped back and saluted her. "Congratulations, Lieutenant." She returned his salute and said. "Thank you, sir." "Okay, now that's over with, get the hell out of her and enjoy your shore-leave, but not too much, I don't want to wake up and find that my new RRD head is in the station brig." He'd read her record and knew about the trouble she'd got into on the Emissary and didn't a repeat of it here. "Aye, sir, and I can assure you that won't happen." The newly minted Lieutenant jg. said honestly. "Very well, Lieutenant, but I'll hold you to that, dismissed." '''Promotions. A post featuring Lieutenant Jackson Lebowski, Chief of Security and The new Head of the Rapid Response Division''' '''::USS Atlas:: ::Deck ‘Zero’::''' Adina hummed a small tune to herself as she adjusted a few settings on the power transfer interface before her. Satisfied that the readings now matched what the computer was telling her they should be at she snapped the cover back on and tapped a few nearby buttons. A moment later the lights up and down the corridor she was in flickered into life, beaming a constant, steady light throughout the deck. “Does that mean we’re done?” Ravenor asked lightly, the Caitian hybrid sighing for comedic effect. “More or less.” Adina offered with a smile. “I’ll finish the last bits up and see you later.” Ravenor did a small double take, feeling a little guilty now she’d been offered a way out before the job was done.“You sure?” Adina chuckled. “Definite. Now scoot before I change my mind and leave you to it.” “Aye Ma’am.” Ravenor saluted humorously and quickly made a beeline for the turbolift. Adina shook her head with a smile and made her way to the next job on the list, strolling through a nearby open door and starting up a newly installed LCARS interface in the centre of the room. Twenty minutes and several software installations later the now infamous ‘Deck Zero’ was finally fully integrated into the ships internal sensor network. Adina allowed herself a small smile as she exited the room, gazing up and down the curved corridor to either side of her. What before had been little more than hull plating and empty space was a fully installed and operational deck of a starship, practically indistinguishable from the other seventeen habitable decks aboard the Atlas. The young engineer cast her mind back to the start of it all. It’d been a few weeks after the mess of Kodona, the many funerals and memorial services that had been held for the crew lost whilst helping settle the planet after its change in government had taken their toll on the crew as a whole, doubly so in Security and Engineering who had taken the brunt of the losses. The working environment in Main Engineering, usually a hub of conversation and the swapping of everything from technical specs to inventive new ideas was little more than a silent room of Engineers just doing the work assigned before leaving to rest and starting the same again the next day. Cressida had confined in Adina that she was worried about the state of things after the third week, admitting herself that she was going stir crazy with so little to do. All the repairs that could be done to the ship inside and out without materials from Caloris had already been done, leaving the entire department with little more than to twirl their thumbs and maintain the ship.The Lieutenant conceded that whilst that was pretty much what Engineering usually did until the next ‘ship breaking moment’, she felt that the department needed something else to do, to reignite the exchange of ideas and to take the department’s collective minds away from the dark thoughts they were clearly mired in. That was when the pair of them stumbled into the idea of completing ‘Deck Zero’. Deck Zero was the nickname for the ‘missing deck’ that the CO and XO had stumbled across at exactly the wrong moment a few months back, and although the MSD had been quickly updated to incorporate the deck properly into the ships schematics, there hadn't been much time to do much else with it before the next crisis appeared. The entire deck was still little more than an empty shell... And so, after the thumbs up from the CO, the full force of Engineering had fallen upon the ‘Lost Deck’, everything from sensors to electrics to the warp plasma network was reworked and re routed throughout the ship to enable the deck to be of us to the crew. Ideas for the usage of the new space and the allocation of it to each department had quickly ignited interest in the other departments as well and soon the ‘Deck Zero planning committee’ comprised of crew from across the ship. Eventually spaces were shared out and the plan approved by all involved, leaving the task of putting it all together once again in the hands of Engineering. Now, a few months later, the deck was all but done, the last few details to be completed left to Adina and a cheerfully reluctant Ravenor, the rest of the crew having already headed off as soon as word of shore leave had reached their wanting ears. As the young Ensign took one last look at the deck on a newly installed interface in the corridor she smiled, and headed for the turbolift and a hard, long rest... '''Caloris Station Fleet Command Offices''' It was a quiet morning in the office complex that housed the command authority of the Megiddo Fleet. The usual hustle and bustle was at its ebb. Most of the ships assigned to the Gamma Quadrant were out on assignment and the Atlas was under repairs which had already started. O’Flagherty sat in one of the many chairs that filled the waiting area trying to pass the time when the aide to Admiral Andy Maddigan told him it was time for his meeting. The Captain stood and straightened out the wrinkles in his uniform before approaching the doors to the office that slid open as he approached the sensors. Inside, things hadn’t changed since the last time he had been there. The few personal possessions that had been placed around the room were still there, and the few furnishings had not been rearranged. The admiral was seated at his desk, and the new gray hairs that showed through the shorter cut he had chosen marked the only change in the room. Andy rose from his desk and extended his hand to Captain O’Flagherty. “Good to see you again Captain. Please take a seat.” After the exchange of pleasantries Admiral Maddigan got down to business. “Captain I realise that the Atlas is still in for repairs but as soon as they are completed I have a mission for you. I also know that you and your crew have been through a difficult period lately in the aftermath of the Kodana Mission,however Starfleet Command has decided to increase our covert capabilities to monitor Xul Space. This will mean a long term mission to the outer reaches of this region of space to construct a listening post. The Atlas will provide security to the flotilla of construction vessels which are being readied to leave from Caloris. This mission has major security implications for the Federation not only in this region but this Quadrant.” Obviously, the admiral wasn’t wasting any time these days. With Megiddo III severing ties with the Federation, which even after over a year was still an unsettling issue, Starfleet had its hands full trying to keep up with the flow of new traffic to through the region. Which meant strategic positions and possible threats were still on the top of the list, if not more important than before the power shift. None of this surprised O’Flagherty, but sending the Atlas on a deep covert mission wasn’t something the captain had seen coming. “Sir, I’m sure you and your people have thought of this, but the Atlas isn’t a combat cruiser. We were supposed to be a ship of exploration, though Admiral Farraday’s little errand would tell you otherwise. And how are we supposed to connect to this new listening post? That’s a long way for subspace.” “Yes it is Captain but you do have an advantage with the Slipstearm Drive. In essence the Atlas is being tasked with two functions. The construction of the listening post and long range exploration of deep space which is part of the remit of all Starfleet Vessels. As part of the initial setup for the new installation a series of subspace relay buoys will be dropped by the Atlas at intervals to establish a communications network. Given the sensitive nature of the mission the buoys you will be launching will each be fitted with a cloaking device to prevent them being detected and interfered with. Not exactly kosher I know but we will not be in breach of the Treaty of Algeron with the Romulans as our Klingon friends have supplied the technology for the buoys and as it is not in use on a Federation Starship, Starfleet Command has authorised me to sanction their use for this mission." The Admiral sat back for a moment as Captain O'Flagherty looked aghast at him. To say he was completely stunned would have been an understatement, but he did his best not to let his jaw drop. “That’s pretty incredible, Admiral,” the captain finally managed to get out. “It sounds like one of those missions from back in the 23rd century where the ships would go out for 5 years at a time.” O’Flagherty stood absent-mindedly and started to pace with his arms behind his back. “If we were to cut and run straight back for Caloris, that would put us here in a week. If we were to try and travel that distance at standard warp, it would take us the rest of our lives, almost.” His pacing stopped abruptly and turned toward Maddigan. “I’m guessing this could take us almost six months to a year, if our primary mission is to get that relay operational. Would that be a good estimate?” The Admiral turned to the LCARS wall behind him which after a couple of inputs from Maddigan displayed the latest long range Stellar Cartography for the region. "Given the locations of the buoys and the construction location for the listening post I would envisage this mission to last a bit longer than six months. We can use the Gateway to get the Construction Ships out there to build our listening post in a short period of time. I would agree with your estimate of a week. However once those ships finish their mission you still have the buoys to deploy and also monitor the status of the region. In many ways this is an "old school" mission just like the days of Kirk, Decker and Mitchell but this mission is not a foray into nostalgia. We need this listening post and the buoys operational sooner rather than later. That being said I expect your mission to last up to a year and because of this I have ordered a series of upgrades for Atlas. One of your Cargo Bays will be reconfigured for additional industrial replicators with ODN upgrades and a tune up of your Warp Drive. You need to be self sufficient during this mission and so I want to be sure you have what you need. You have one week to ready your crew and complete any outstanding repairs." Maddigan return to his seat and handed Captain O'Flagherty a PADD with his mission orders. "Any questions Captain?" "Do I get to be as vague as Kirk in my reports?" A wry grin spread across O'Flagherty's face. He knew there was no way he would get that luxury. He also knew that there was another dimension to this mission the admiral wasn't mentioning. While on the surface it was a blessing in disguise, underneath it was a way for him and the Atlas to be out of the way from whatever Farraday had planned. Either way, he was glad for the chance to really get out there and see what was shaking in the far reaches of the Gamma Quadrant. "Don't embellish too much," was all the admiral said before dismissing him. A JP with the always-welcome and much-appreciated Andy Maddigan Draka sat at the desk in his quarters, his computer console opened to the crew to crew messaging system, pondering. Things had been hectic since the power facility sabotage mission. He'd seen Anahera a few times in the intervening period but with the ship docked at the station, Draka figured they could get together again for some rest and recreation. "Computer, record message for Anahera Chernova on my mark, and end end it at my second mark. Mark. Hello Ana, it's Draka. I was wondering if you wanted to get together for dinner and to do something on the station, perhaps a beach simulation or a film. I have a bridge shift to do to help go over the tactical systems but I'd be available after sixteen hundred hours, if you're free. Get back to me, Draka, out. Mark.", he said, stretching out some before pushing to his feet, his uniform laid out already. Shore leave was usually the oddest time for him. Not one to have an easy time making friends, usually about when he did, he ended up being shipped off to a new vessel. He had done his best on the Atlas, having quite a few acquaintances amongst the crew. Most from Security given their similar backgrounds, and with some of the lower ranked officers that tended to fill the odd late hour shifts on the bridge. "Wonder what they'd got in store for us next... the Koldana mission turned out to be a horrible storm of refuse.", he said. Even months later he was still angered over how the mission went down. He couldn't help but feel the Atlas was set up, though he shook his head with a disgusted snort,"Its the Captain's problem... if he doesn't bring it to us, we can't really get involved. Hrm... I need to set up a meeting with him, let him know I've got his back no matter what goes down.", he continued to muse to himself as he dressed, a soft chime sounding, indicating his maintenance shift was starting in ten minutes. Looking his quarters over he hit the light panel to shut down the lights, stepping out to head to the bridge. The trip to the bridge was uneventful, a mere skeleton crew on the proud vessel currently. Between the transfers and shore leave, only those actively involved in repairs and testing were on the ship for the most part. He stepped off the turbolift onto the bridge, nodding to the officers on the bridge, going through their own tasks. Moving to the tactical console he starting hitting keys to bring up diagnostics, allowing himself a small smile as he started to read the information brought up, in his element as he implemented small changes and fixes. "Ahhh.. home...", he thought to himself, losing himself in his work. '''U.S.S. Atlas Deck 3 Chernova/Ward Quarters''' "Computer recorded the following message; Hi, Draka, it's Ana, dinner sounds great, I'll bring something to drink and some dessert. See ya at 1700. Computer end message and send to Draka Ren Colok." =/\="Message sent."=/\= Said the familiar female voice. '''Caloris Station Le café de nuit''' Ana walked into the store and took a seat at the appointed table. A waitress came by to take her order, and she ordered a raktajino and a slice of black forest gateau.She was early, but her 'guest' would be here shortly, he was nothing if not punctual.Sure enough just as her order arrived, so did her 'guest'. "Good day, Ms Chernova." He said as he took the seat opposite her. "And to you, Mr. Black. Would you like something to drink? The raktajino's fresh." "Thank you, no. Shall we get started?" "By all means." Ana said. "Okay, then, you hired me to find one 'Anzhelina Walker' and as I informed you in my last communication, I believe I have finally located this person." "Where is she?" Anahera asked, trying not to get her hopes up. She'd heard similar announcements from others she'd hired to find her over the last 30 years, and her hopes had been dashed, when she found out it wasn't her. "According to my sources, she is currently going by the name Angela Martens and is working as a freighter captain, her vessel is the SS Nichnytsia out of Andoria." Ana smiled to herself, Nichnytsia was Russian for dark spirit. This definitely sounded promising."How reliable are these sources of yours." "Very." Black said. "This is a full record of their methods and findings." He added handing her a PADD. Accepting it the Security officer skimmed the data. "This looks in order. When will your people approach her?" If the investigator was impressed with the speed at which she read, he didn't let on. "I have a team in Andorian space, ready to make contact as soon as you give the word." "A team?" Ana inquired. "Yes, a three person team consisting of a first contact specialist, a counselor and a technical support person." "Okay then, give them the order." "Very well." He said handed her a PADD confirming the course of action. She placed her thumb on the reader and then handed back. "Thank you, Mr. Black." "You are quite welcome, Ms Chernova. I will contact you as soon as I have some news. Good bye, for now." That said he stood up to go. "Bye, Mr. Black." When he was gone, she checked the public chronometer. She just had time to finish her coffee and cake before she had to go and meet Draka. As she drank her coffee and ate her cake, she couldn't stop smiling at the prospected of seeing her granddaughter again. '''Lost Angel found? A post featuring the mysterious Mr. Black and''' '''U.S.S Atlas Cargo Bay''' Roger was supervising the transport of supplies from Caloris Station into the Atlas; This task was his last orders in the Operation division after receiving approval of switching to Security. It seems, the recommendation of his Team Leader in the last mission on the planet give him the push needed to get the approval, but still he need to prove him self worthy being in the division. The taste of the cake was still in his mouth after the farewell party his friends arranged 2 days ago; it wasn't a big one with only the peoples who used to work with came. "Hey Roger, this crate will be the last one" one of his colleague yelled to him. Working his fingers over the buttons, the transporter start working and a big box is now filling the space area near the end of the room. Roger checked the list to see if everything was transported and start logging off his access while his colleague approached him. "We will miss you her man, this area wont be the same without you". Roger smiled and after shaking his hand, he exit the cargo bay heading toward his quarter. The quarter was a small one and Roger was lucky enough to get one with no roommates; the screen near his bed was blinking announcing that he has a message waiting for him to read. The Ensign went near the screen, sat on his bed and opened the message. The message was sent from the Security Department head welcoming him and informing him that he need to report for duty in 15 days. "At least i have some free time to do before reporting" Roger talked to him self; He went to take a fast bath and after 2 hour, he was standing in the end of one of the Caloris Station corridors looking at the shops and bars with peoples all around. Roger chooses one of the bars and went inside to get a drink while thinking on what to do next. '''Caloris Station Holosuite 3''' "Why am I doing this?" Reena asked as she crawled through another narrow tunnel between two chambers. "I crawl through narrow spaces every day as part of my daily duties, it's the last thing I want to do in my off-hours." Up ahead she could see the reason she was doing this, Ensign McDaniels, Heath. They'd worked together when he'd helped her catalogue the ship's torpedo magazine. When they'd finished, he'd invited her to join him spelunking when they had shore leave. Liking the word 'spelunking' as well as the young ensign she'd readily agreed. "This must be why Ana smiled wickedly when I told her about this date, she's probably off somewhere laughing her head off." "Are you doing okay there, Chief?" McDaniels asked from ahead. "I'm fine, and call me Reena, we're not on duty." "Okay, Reena, and of course, you can me Heath." "Lead on, then Heath." A few minutes later they came to a large chamber, McDaniels stopped again. "Reena, you're not enjoying yourself, are you?" He asked. "I'm I really that transparent?" She inquired, sitting down to rest. "Yes, when we worked together in a magazine, you almost talked my ear off, which, I enjoyed, but today, you haven't said a thing since we started the program." "It's not the company, it's just this is too much like what I do for a living." "Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking, You told me about the crawling through the phaser bank maintenance tunnels and it completely slipped my mind. So what would you rather doing?" "I know what I'd really rather be doing," Giving him a wink. "But we don’t know each other that well, so I'll settle for a swim." The young ensign blushed and said. "Computer, end program and initiate program McDaniels-Lambda-three-six." The rock chamber vanished to be replaced by a white sand beach and a clear blue sea.Reena smiled, the sun warming her as she surveyed the scene. Then wasting no time, she stripped down to her underwear and ran for the water.Heath smiled too, as he watched her, glad that he'd brought a smile to her face. She seemed so sad most of the time. When it got deep enough, the tactical engineer, stopped running and dived beneath the surface. The water felt wonderful and she felt her stress and worries get washed away. The Ark's decommission, her break up with Zelon and the ease with which he moved on, and then there was joining a new crew and being reunited with Ana after so many years and lastly the losses of their most recent mission. Bursting out of the water, she saw Heath standing on the shore watching her. "Come on in, Heath, the water's great." The damage control specialist didn't need much encouragement, he took off his climbing boots and his shirt and ran into the water, himself.Reena was correct, the great and Heath felt refreshed. He wished he'd thought of this instead of spelunking, not least because he got to see the beautiful Reena in her underwear. Later After enjoying the water for a while, they both returned to the sand to dry off.Lying side by side, enjoying the sun and the gentle lapping of the waves, Reena said. "So Heath, tell me about yourself." "Okay, what do you want to know?" "Oh, the usual, where were you born? what do you parents do for a living? do you have any brothers or sisters? what made you want to join Starfleet? "Well, I was born on New Virginia colony, my parents are farmers and they still live on our family farm. I have an older sister named Marissa, and she's the local GP. I decided early on that a farming life wasn't for me, I was always more interested in fixing stuff, so when I graduated high school, I went to the local starbase and sat the Academy entrance test, I past, completed my four years at the Academy and here I am." “What did your parents think of your job choice?” “My father was angry, he felt I was letting the family down, but my mother understood that I had to find my own way.” “I’m glad you had your mother to support you.” Heath smiled. “Me too, my father has calmed down a bit, but family gathering a still tense, it’s usually him and Marissa against me and Mom. But enough about me, I’m sure you’re a lot more interesting, so tell me about you, same questions." "Well, I was born on Bajor, in a city called Sareen, my father was a civilian engineer and my mother was a social worker, I had an older sister, Tela, who worked as a school teacher, they all died during the Occupation.My only family now is my other sister, Anahera, who serves in security aboard the Atlas. She got off of Bajor, and helped me get settled on Earth. As for Starfleet, I was looking for a way to help people that weren’t as fortunate as me, so when I was old enough I enlisted in Starfleet as an engineer in honour of my father.” “I’m sorry to hear about your family, and I'm sure your father is proud of you, you must think me ungrateful, to have a family and complain about them.” Heath’s brow furrowed in puzzlement. “Anahera, do you mean Cadet Chernova? I’ve met her, tall, boisterous redhead in her twenties? She’s not Bajoran and wouldn’t old enough to help you get off world.” “Thank you, and I don’t think you ungrateful, just because I’ve lost most of my family, doesn't mean I forget how annoying families can be sometimes.” the Bajoran smiled at his confusion. “When it comes to Anahera, appearances can be deceptive, true she’s not a blood relative, though a truer sister I could never have our bond was forged from mutual loss and revenge. I might tell you the story sometime, but for now know that Anahera has an El-Aurian mother and is over two centuries old, also her boisterousness is a facade, she can be quite calm and calculating.” “I look forward to hearing that story and meeting Anahera properly.” “Good, now let’s have another swim.” She said standing. “Last one in the water, buys dinner.” Then she ran towards the water before he was even on his feet. Heath smiled as he watched her, she was beautiful and so strong. She’d experienced so much pain and loss, but she hadn’t let it leave her jaded or emotionally distant. He admired her for that and doubted he’d have the strength to go on, if he were in her place. '''Getting to know you. A post featuring ''' Chief Petty Officer Jol Reena, Tactical Engineerhttp://i1003.photobucket.com/albums/...inus276/t2.jpg and Ensign Heath McDaniels, Damage Controlhttp://i1003.photobucket.com/albums/.../DCochrane.jpg '''Caloris Station Transporter Room''' Anger, frustration, and shame all roiled together in O’Flagherty’s mind. As he rematerialized on the pad of the station, it radiated off of him enough to silence the greeting from the transporter operator before it came out. His intention had been to go down and try and see Lisbet, his former fiancee and the mother of his son. The captain had never met the child that she had kept secret from him while mourning the death of her father. However, while he waited for the Lisbet to get out of an examination, he panicked. His fear was so palpable that he didn’t realized what he had been doing until he was standing on the transporter pad asking to return to the orbiting Caloris station. Now that he was standing there, he felt ashamed and angry with himself. It was because he was so consumed by his own thoughts that he hadn’t heard the voice calling his name the first time. “Captain O’Flagherty!” The Irishman stopped and turned to see a younger human weaving through the crowd, trying to catch him. The man had dark hair coiffed over his head and a civilian suit whose jacket was open, giving him a rather relaxed look. As he drew closer, and subsequently caught his breath from the short dash, he resumed his call. “Captain O’Flagherty, I was told by the computer I could find you here.” “Well,” the starship captain began. “You’ve found me. What can I do for you?” “My name is Scott Pena. I’m with the Federation News Service. I was hoping I might be able to have a moment of your time for an interview concerning the incidents at Kodana.” The younger man had a pleading look in his eyes that told O’Flagherty he wasn’t going to be brushed off easy. “Pena.... You wouldn’t be the Scott Pena that did the write-up for the Berengaria Cup would you?” “Guilty as charged, I’m afraid.” Pena’s face blushed for an instant at the recognition. “I’m surprised to find out you read my piece.” “Well, I was following the outcome fairly closely. I had some friends playing in that tournament.” O’Flagherty had remembered the piece which hadn’t made it to him on the ship until about a month ago. He had silently chastised himself for not keeping a closer eye on the rugby tournament, but he was a long way from Berengaria VII. “That’s right, you played Hooker on the Academy team. What did you think of my write-up? It was a tough loss for the Huskers from Sherman’s Planet.” Pena’s face was beginning to beam. It looked as though he was getting a glimmer of pride from this little interchange. “Hardly. I read your write-up, then I watched the match in my ready room.” The man’s face began to falter as the captain went on. “The Huskers lost that match because Tan Deegan over-committed his team to attacking the Dragons. His backs didn’t have a chance.” “But Deegan is a Zakdorn.” The reporter’s brow furrowed as he attempted to fight back. “He wouldn’t, couldn’t make that kind of mistake.” “I’m so sick of hearing about how tactically superior the Zakdorn mind is.” O’Flagherty took a breath as he looked away to think. In a way, this conversation was taking his mind off of the troubles he was having over not seeing Lisbet. “Thoughout the history of athletics, people who should succeed easily because of some kind of advantage, but that doesn’t always mean that they do, but that’s not why you are looking for me.” “No, sir.” Pena took a second to regain his composure and then took a pad from the inside of his jacket. “I’ve come to ask some questions about what happened on Kodana. There hasn’t been a lot of information about the recovery effort, and the press was asked to leave by the new government.” “And what does a sports writer want to know about Kodana? “Truthfully, captain, I got into sports writing as a way to tell the news.” Pena looked away, frustration was starting to build on the younger man’s face. Though O’Flagherty wasn’t significantly older, time in the center seat had tempered his emotions to a degree, and that was an advantage Pena didn’t have. “I’ve already spoken with some of your crew, and while they can’t give me specifics, it seems there may be a cover-up involved.” Unfortunately, that was the line that broke through the captain’s defenses. Instantly, all the frustration, anger, and outrage over what was happening on Kodana came back in a rush. “Listen, mister. I don’t care what you think you might have gotten from my crew, but the fact of the matter is, Kodana is a hostile environment. The Atlas is no longer on station there and it means I will not give you something you can then sensationalize and spread to the rest of the galaxy.” “Captain, is it true that members of your crew died there? The official report made to Starfleet says twelve people lost their lives.” The captain’s eyes narrowed and his voice grew cold. “If that’s what the report says, then that is what the report says.” O’Flagherty didn’t wait for a follow-up, he turned and walked away without another word, leaving the reporter standing there trying to figure out if he had a scoop or if he was about to be in deep trouble. -- Instead of going back to the ship, O’Flagherty decided he had another stop to make. He just hoped who he was looking for was there. It took almost twenty minutes for the captain to make the walk through the habitat area for the residents of the station before boarding another turbolift back toward the administration level. By the time he reached the intelligence offices, he had lost all of his anger and was instead working with cool thinking. The captain considered it an advantage for him to have taken the long way to the office. Inside, a lone ensign in the black uniform of Starfleet Intelligence sat behind a desk working on a computer interface. As the captain approached, he looked up with wide, young eyes that seemed to beg for information. “Can I help you, sir?” The captain gave his most professional demeanor as a response. “Yes, Ensign. I’d like to speak with Lieutenant Upham, please. Tell him Captain O’Flagherty is here to see him.” “Aye, sir.” The ensign turned away to send the message leaving O’Flagherty to himself. The captain remained standing and clasped his hands behind his back, a motion more to keep them from swinging under the influence of his simmering temper. Farraday was pushing around the entire Federation, it seemed and no one was doing anything about it. Admiral Maddigan seemed to know nothing about it, which really didn’t surprise the captain. It seemed everything was going on high in the ether of command, and that was a world few were privy too. While the Atlas may not be in the midst of the issue at present, the captain had gotten enough of a glimpse to tell him that things could not be allowed to continue as they were. It was during these latest musings that Lt. Stephen Upham walked around the corner. He was a lanky man with sandy blonde hair that was a little longer than regulation. He had an easy smile, but it never quite reached his eyes. “Well, as I live and breathe. If it isn’t one of the heroes of the Xul War, Captain Thomas David O’Flagherty. How ya doin’, Irishmen?” “Hero?” O’Flagherty smiled. “I barely survived. Also, I wouldn’t call it much of a war. There was only one fleet involved and the rest of the Federation didn’t see fit to send us much in the way of reinforcements.” A small chuckle escaped his lips as he continued the banter. “It wasn’t much of a war.” “Oh come on. The fact that you survived two of the worst engagements should be proof enough.” Upham turned and motioned for the captain to follow him into his office. As they entered the sparsely decorated room, he went directly to the small replicator in the wall and ordered a cup of coffee for himself and looked to the captain to see if he wanted anything. When he said no, he activated the replication sequence, took the cup from the slot and then sat at his desk. “So, what brings the captain of the Atlas to my humble office, Tommy?” “No one calls me, Tommy, anymore, Steve.” O’Flagherty took a seat in the only chair opposite from Upham’s desk. “I came here to see a friend who just got to the Gamma Quadrant.” “Oh really?” The intelligence officer chuckled before he took a sip of his coffee. “While I am definitely glad to see you, Tom, I doubt you came down here to see me. How’s life on one of the newest ships in the ‘Fleet?” “It’s pretty good. We’ve had a rough go of it lately, but things look like they are about to get a lot better for us.” “Yeah, I heard about the beating you took on Kodana.” Upham leaned forward in his chair to impart some support to his old friend. “Don’t worry about that one, Tom. One ship can’t fight a planet-wide insurgency. You more than just about anyone else would have.” “Then,” O’Flagherty began. “Why do I get the feeling that no one cares about Kodana?” “You know that’s not true. If Kodana were not a priority then why are there four starships as well as three cargo and transport vessels in orbit of that planet right now?” The captain responded just as quickly and there was rebuke in his tone. “Then why is the press being kept off the planet as we speak?” Looking down the edge of his desk he continued. “There’s a total blackout of everything that’s going on there.” “Tell me about it.” Upham stood from his desk and paced toward the narrow window that looked out into deep space. “Even my office is being blacked out. I know which ships have been sent, and I know they face some resistance still, but I don’t get anything else. Neither does Admiral Maddigan.” O’Flagherty took that as his cue. “What if I had a way to shed some light on Kodana?” Upham snapped back around like a whip, suspicion in his eyes. “What have you got, and where the hell did you get it?” “I was ordered to perform a General Order 17.” The captain looked away again and shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t have anything. Even if I did, there is nothing that could be used as real evidence.” The intelligence officer’s face went white, and his eyes widened in dread. “I don’t think I like what you’re telling me. The hope I had a minute ago is now dead, Tom. Please, tell me no more.” “Steve, I’m telling you that I have information that can blow this wide open.” Tom jumped up from his chair and faced his friend while keeping his voice down. “I copied everything we had right down to the personal logs. I’ve got more than I can go through and I don’t really have definitive proof, but I know I’ve got the answers.” “Then, give it to Maddigan and let him handle it.” “What are you so afraid of, Steve?” “I’m a damn lieutenant stuck on a starbase at the ass-end of Federation space and in charge of a whole quadrant. There are maybe a dozen intelligence officers out here.” He started to slowly pace his office and then turned suddenly back around. “You think this was a promotion?” “I heard about what happened. That wasn’t your fault. You had good evidence that Breen freighter was carrying explosives into Federation space.” “Yeah, but when your direct subordinate turns out to be a Breen agent, who in turn has alerted their case officers of the impending boarding, the intelligence community tends to push you out. Especially when your miscalculations almost spark an international incident.” “Yes, but you caught her before she could escape.” O’Flagherty could see that the weight of what happened was heavy on his old friend. “It doesn’t matter.” Upham turned away again, and when he continued, he couldn’t look his friend in the eyes. “While I was exonerated on all official charges, I was done in SI. This is meant to be a place for me to be forgotten. I can’t get out, the stop-lost me. This promotion as section chief was meant to be a way to keep me out of the core worlds so I could be forgotten. It was meant to protect the assets I had worked so they couldn’t be connected to me.” “Listen, Steve,” The captain started slowly, with his voice low, but built the intensity as he went. “I know what it’s like to lose your confidence in your skills, but I can’t trust anyone else. If Farraday is behind this, Maddigan’s reports to his superiors will end up on her desk. I’ll get brought up on charges of violating lawful orders before anyone has a chance to prove that there is something she’s hiding. I need a friend to help me, and I need it to be off the books. You are the one who can do that for me. You’re still a good intelligence officer, and you’re my friend. I need this, Steve.” Upham released a heavy sigh. “Fine. I suppose it’s on a data module. Make me a copy and keep the original in a safe place. I’ll make sure to look at it on a private network and see what I can find.” “Won’t your making a private network arouse some suspicion?” O’Flagherty’s former Academy roommate smiled wanly. “I’m an intelligence officer. I do weird things with computers all the time. No one will notice another partitioned network that only I have access to. I’ll watch my back.” Upham turned and clapped a hand on the captain’s shoulder. “Just make sure you watch yours.” [B]Introducing a new friend to the Atlas Lt. Steven Upham of Starfleet Intelligence.[/I] '''USS Atlas Deck 4 Draka Ren Colok's Quarters''' Ana felt happier than she had in quite some time. Her mind was her own, she'd just received a promotion, found her sister and her long lost granddaughter, and started a relationship with a man she had fun with and was perhaps beginning to care for. Speaking of which she was now dressed to the nines, standing outside his quarters, ready to accompany him to dinner on the station. Wasting no more time she pressed the call button near the door. Draka came to the door, wearing a nicely cut suit and leather shoes, smiling broadly when he saw her. "Hello Ana, looking simply stunning, my dear. Shall we?", he said, stepping out of his quarters, offering her his arm to walk with her to the airlock to cross over onto the station. "You too, handsome." She said accepting his arm. "So where are we going, for dinner?" "A restaurant on the station... Blackstar Lounge or something to that effect... it's supposed to be pretty good.", he said, walking beside her, glancing over her as they walked. "So.. keep sexy dresses on hand, just in case, or did you have this specially made?" "You know me, I can make anything look sexy." She teased sidestepping the question. "Alright alright.. that's true. I'll have to test that theory on the holodeck sometime.. see how slinky latex looks on you.", he said, winking to her, keying the airlock door, smiling happily. So far this is the first stretch of time thoughts of Kodana haven't ruled his mind. Focusing wholly on the beautiful and vivacious young woman beside himself. "So what exactly will my role be in the holo-sim? Some femme fatale spy, turned superhero?" She asked with a laugh. "That could work... plenty of moving around in it. Though you'd have to be careful, in the movies and novels beautiful superspies sometimes get tied up.", he said, grinning impishly to her, with a wink. “Indeed they do.” She said returning his wink. Then changing the subject. “Did I ever tell you about my granddaughter?” She asked. He peered at her, pausing a moment, before continuing to walk with her,”You certainly don’t look old enough to even have a daughter... let alone a granddaughter.” “That’s nice of you to say, I’m definitely keeping you around.” She said with a wicked smile. “Well, my granddaughter, Anzhelina was taken away from me by Earth’s government. I haven’t seen her in nearly 30 years, but today, I finally found out where she is, I’m so excited.” “Why was she taken away from you? That seems... unusual to me.”, he said, squeezing her gently to his side as they made their way towards the restaurant. “It was a few days after her parents had died, and the government didn’t believe an ex-mercenary and smuggler was a fit guardian for a 6 year old girl.” “Oh... I see. Lived a colorful life, have you Ana?”, he says, smiling warmly to her. “When do you think you’ll be able to meet her. Assuming, of course, she wants to meet.” “Colorful, yes, though mostly red. As for meeting Anzhelina, she works out of Andoria, so it will be awhile before we can get face to face.” “I see. Well, I do hope you get to meet her, sooner rather than later. Something to look forward to, perhaps? Ahh, here we are.”, he said, as they approached the restaurant. He stepped forward from her, reaching to open the door for her. “After you, beautiful.” “My aren’t you the gentleman.” Ana said kissing him lightly before entering the restaurant. It was a fancy place, with dark wood panelling, deep red curtains and intimate lighting. Draka smiled to her, kissing her back, slipping in after her,”I do try, from time to time.”, he said, speaking to the hostess to have them shown to their seats. “Some wine to start with, or would you prefer something else?” “Wine’s fine, red, a Gamzian cabernet, 2375, I think.” Ana said. “Excellent choice, I’ll have a waitress bring it right away, ma’am, sir.” the hostess informed them and left to do just that. “So Draka, do you mind telling me about your family?”Ana asked when the hostess was gone. “There’s not a whole lot to tell. My parents were devoted to one another and their careers, and loved me immensely. They were scientists, the top of their field on my world. They were the forerunners in the invention of warp drive technology among my people. When my world’s government sent soldiers to find and kill me, they sacrificed themselves to ensure I escaped. I think you would’ve liked them.”, he said, a bit sadly, though he offered Ana a brave smile. “Oh, I so sorry.” Ana said taking his hand in hers and squeezing it gently. Then she smiled. “I’m sure I would have, they brought you into the universe and kept you safe, what’s not to like?” She thought about her own parents, who had abandoned her any could help feeling a little envious of Draka, despite the circumstances. Draka squeezed her hand back gently, smiling to the waitress who approached the table with the wine and two glasses, pouring for each of them before leaving the bottle in a bucket of ice. “Give us a few minutes and we’ll be ready to order.”, he told the waitress who nodded and slipped off. “Being hunted for something I couldn’t control was terrible.. losing my parents like that was terrible but I think, ultimately, fate worked out. I came to the Federation and have helped out plenty of folks, after all. So, what would you like to order?” Ana was heartened by the way Draka looked at things. She also felt a kinship with him, they’d both done bad in the past and have tried to make up for it by helping others. “You ever tried Paella?” She asked feeling in a mood for Spanish food. “I admit I’ve never heard of it. What is it?”, he said, idly stroking his thumb along her knuckles, having not relinquished her hand. “Well it’s a rice dish from Spain on Earth, a kind of broth which contains chicken, tomatoes, vegetables and spices, cooked and served in a large shallow pan. It’s delicious, you’ll love it.” Then she called over the waitress. “Paella for two." She said.” “Yes, ma’am, It will take awhile to prepare, can I get you anything as a starter?” The waitress asked. “That does sound good. Wouldn’t want to spoil our appetites, so how about some bread and a salad? Does that sound fine, Ana?”, he asked, sipping his wine. “Sounds great.” Ana said taking a large sip of her wine and letting the taste play across her tongue before swallowing it. Then she leaned over the table, wrapped her free hand around Draka’s neck, pulling him towards her, so their lips met and kissed him hungrily. Draka grinned as she pulled him close, kissing her back just as hungrily, his hand moved to caress her cheek, kissing across the small, intimate table. Ana could feel the eyes of the staff and the other patrons on her but she didn’t care, she and Draka were enjoying themselves and the Gods knew they deserved to have a little fun after what they and the rest of the Atlas crew had been through. '''Out on the Town (Station). A JP featuring''' http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...s/Sigdraka.jpg and '''Risean Sunsets Spa Caloris Station''' Shore leave was a pleasant experience and long overdue for Zara and the rest of the crew. The last time she had been on Caloris Station she had been leaving her old life as a Starfleet Marine behind and beginning her new life as a Starfleet Officer onboard the Atlas and other than a few teething problems and her initially butting heads with the Captain, she had settled in nicely. Zara had spent a few days catching up with her old comrades in the SFMC, having a few drinks, listening to the gossip and reviving old acquaintances, but it surprised Zara just how little she missed that life. She found herself the butt of a few lighthearted jokes due in no small part to her attire; the Starfleet Teal uniform standing out among the sea of marine green, but she laughed off the jibes and rallied back with a few of her own for good measure. She had settled into her temporary quarters on Caloris, but had hardly spent any time there and today was no exception. Zara had booked herself a full body massage in the station’s Risean spa and she had been looking forward to it all day. It was a rare occurrence for Zara to actually have some time to truly indulge and pamper herself but while there was nothing else to do and because access to the Atlas had been restricted, she decided to have a little ‘me time’ The skilled fingers of the masseuse rubbed, kneaded and manipulated the muscles of her neck, shoulders and torso and Zara felt so relaxed and at peace that she almost drifted off to sleep right there on the massage table. The session had been booked for a full three hours and before she knew it, her time was up. She reluctantly rose from the table, her body wrapped in a fluffy, white towel and she followed the masseuse through a side door to where a sauna and steam room sat alongside a deep plunge pool. The pool was empty and as Zara looked inside the glass doors of both the sauna and steam room she noted that they too were void of other occupants. “Please avail yourself of the facilities Miss.” The masseuse said; an inviting smile on his lips as he looked at Zara. “If there is anything you require...anything at all, please do not hesitate to call for me. I will be in the outer salon." He surprised Zara by suggestively raising an eyebrow at her but she kept a noncommittal yet amiable expression, thanked him for his offer and assured him that if she needed him she wouldn’t hesitate to call on him. He smiled then turned his back on her, exited through the same door, closed it behind him and left Zara to chuckle at his brazen offer of ‘extras’. Knowing that she was in complete privacy, Zara shed her towel and strode over to the sauna door. She opened it and was momentarily taken aback by the rush of hot, dry, pine fragranced air that greeted her. She stepped inside, took a seat on the nearest bench, then reached for the long handled ladle which rested in a small bucket of water. Next to the bucket was a grate filled with red hot coals and it was onto these that she poured the water. The moment the water made contact with the coals a furious hiss rent the air as a cloud of steam billowed upwards and filled the sauna, completely enveloping Zara in the process. The strongly scented water made her gasp as her lungs took in a breath and she could detect elements of pine, camphor and eucalyptus in the dry air. She sat, her back against the warm wooden panels and closed her eyes; breathing slowly and deeply, savouring the heat and the peace and tranquility of her surroundings. Boy did I ever need this. After a while of sitting in one position for so long, Zara decided to head into the steam room. She’d paid good money for use of the facilities so she figured she may as well use all of them and she left the pine sauna and stepped back out into the main pool area. The change of temperature made her skin immediately break out into gooseflesh and she moved quickly to the steam room, opened the door and stepped inside. The change in temperature and the humidity of the room was pleasant at first, but it didn’t take long for the steamy heat to overpower her and Zara shook her head and thought it was time to try out the plunge pool. Still as naked as the day she was born, she dived head first into the deep water; not realising how very cold the temperature would feel to her overheated body. She felt her fingers brush the tiles at the bottom of the pool, so she turned and pushed off with her legs. Her arms broke the surface of the water first, quickly followed by her head and shoulders. She gasped as she began to tread water, her teeth chattering and she pushed her hair away from her face. As she freed her face from the last of her dark, soaking tresses, she heard the distinct sound of a male's throaty chuckle from somewhere nearby. She scanned the poolside and her gaze fell on a man she didn't recognise who was dressed in a formal three piece, dove grey suit. “Something funny?” She asked, looking up at the stranger. “Oh yes indeed!” The observer replied. Zara waited for him to speak again, but he remained silent. He wasn’t familiar to her, he made no attempt to introduce himself or explain why he was invading her privacy and something about him was a little off. “Are you here for any particular reason?” Zara pressed, wanting him to cut to the chase and tell her why he was there. “Yes.” Came the noncommittal, yet cryptic reply. “And...” Zara said; a hint of exasperation in her voice. The stranger merely smiled and remained standing as still as ever. This is too weird... Zara thought, beginning to wish she’d decided on wearing a bikini. “Yes...I can see why you’d find this...odd.” The stranger answered, his smile widening. “I didn’t say anything.” Zara retorted, alarmed at how he answered her mental assessment. “That doesn’t mean I didn’t hear it.” He replied, taking a single step forward toward the edge of the pool... ''Maintenance reports. I always love maintenance reports. Of all the things about being a captain, the chair, the pips, the exploration, first contact, or even the hell of battle, I would rather be doing maintenance reports. This was the whole reason I went to the Academy.'' At least, O’Flagherty was trying to tell himself that as he looked over the last report from the Station’s maintenance crews. It was amazing what engineers could do when they were forced to get to work. Though the captain had never been much more of an engineer than someone who could follow instructions and put things where they needed to be in order for something to work, the shear amount of what these talented people could accomplish was really amazing. The padd in his hand, one that was a part of a larger stack from his yeoman, had all the information about how the Atlas was finally getting the runabout landing pad installed. However, the runabout itself wouldn’t be arriving for another week from the Alpha Quadrant. Apparently, the ship was traveling under its own power instead of being ferried by another faster ship. On another padd, there was a note from Admiral Maddigan saying that newly installed Fleet Captain Salla on the Integrity wanted to have the task force deploying the listening array deploy a day early. Meanwhile, three ships, other than the Atlas, were still being repaired or upgraded for their trip through the Gateway. It seems the Fleet Captain wanted her ships ready faster than the station was willing to accommodate. Now there were double-shifts going on throughout the station. When O’Flagherty found the order on his desk to have his engineering crew returned to the ship in order to help out, he had “lost” it in the piles of other paperwork. If he could give his people another day of free time before putting them back to work, then he would take a hit for it and be happy with himself. His people had been working hard just to keep the ship at high warp as they traveled back to Caloris, especially since it was in Kendrassi and no longer at Megiddo. Their hard work would not be overlooked as long as he could help it. The hard part was going to be telling Lt. Cressida, the new chief engineer, that she would have to call her people back to work sooner than expected. Looking up at his computer monitor, the captain noticed that the indicator that would tell him if Commander Vaughn had changed his communicator back over from divert was still red. The irishman hadn’t seen his friend since they had released the crew for shore leave, and was worried that something was going on. Most likely, he was talking to his investors about the deteriorating situation on Megiddo III. The extremely wealthy lawyer and investor had left behind some of his former life to become a Starfleet officer, and in the process, O’Flagherty’s closest friend. However, when they were first posted to the Megiddo Fleet, Vaughn had wasted no time in pulling his investments together and starting a hotel. Then, when the colony seceded from the Federation, a notice showed up on the hotel claiming that it would be repossessed for some shady legal reason. It didn’t take a private investigator to see that someone had taken issue with a Starfleet officer being the majority shareholder in a lucrative venture on Megiddo III. From there, the wiley lawyer side of his XO came out, who then activated his legal team to start the process of battling this issue. Couple that with the appearance of a shadowy entity attempting to purchase huge shares in Vaughn Industries on Earth, and it was easy to see why the man had been secluded from everyone. It was first evident when O’Flagherty had attempted to contact him via his communicator and instead gotten his yeoman, who was new and so the captain didn’t know her name. Ensign Zachary, which was how she introduced herself, had been given instructions to kick all of his duties either up to the captain or down to the department heads depending on who had sent the order. While that was technically against the idea of a chain of command, O’Flagherty understood that sometimes his XO needed time to look at other things. While Vaughn was his best friend, and the best XO he could ever conceive though he would never tell him that, the man was immensely complex to the point of driving the captain insane at times. There was so much going on in his life that at times he had to put one thing down to straighten out another. The only thing that kept the captain calm was the realization that Vaughn pissed off his board as much as he pissed off his CO. All that didn’t matter as much as O’Flagherty flung the padd on his desk and rubbed his forehead with his left hand. Right now, all the young captain wanted to do was go and talk with his friend. Though at times Vaughn could be rather flippant about the more emotional side of life, the man was his best friend and so would listen. It was better than the counseling sessions or the times where he was supposed to be cathartically working out his pain. Not being able to follow-through on seeing Lisbet was upsetting, and he was beating himself up over it. Right now, a good Scotch and a cigar would go a long way. Pining for Christ Vaughn...how revolting!!!! 3 weeks has passed since Roger has been transferred to the Security department on board of the USS Atlas and during this time, the Ensign was performing jobs assigned to him from his commanding officer and assisting security teams with their missions. “How was your score today Roger” The officer responsible of maintaining the armory asked Roger while taking the rifle from. He helped Roger put a training program that will introduce him to weapons that were used by the security teams on the Atlas. “Not bad, I start to get better in sniping too” Roger replied smiling; he is getting back his skills that gave him first place in shooting while he was in the academy. “Well, it is time for my daily run, see you later” Roger turned and exit the armory heading toward his new quarter that was assigned to when he transferred to security. The room was on the same floor and in 30 minutes he was wearing his running clothes standing waiting to get out when he heard the sound of incoming message on the panel exist in the room. He approached the small desk and clicked to see that this message was sent from his mother. Roger sat in front of the screen and ordered the computer to play the message. The message was not that long, his mother was talking about how much she missed him and that they are all in good health back at home and she was sad that Roger didn’t kept in touch after graduating from the academy. In the end, his mother hoped and wished if he can reply back or contact her as soon as possible. Roger relaxed his back to the chair, he remembered the last time he contact his family months ago. He had a fight with his father about the path he wanted to choose after graduation; his father wanted him to be back home to manage the farming business of the family but Roger wanted to be away. In the end, he joined the Atlas and went as far as he can without having any relation with his family. Suddenly, Roger noticed that his mother never mentioned his father in her message, although he had a fight with him, he wanted to know if his father was doing well. “Computer, prepare reply to the current message”, Roger took a deep breath and start dictating. “Dear mom, I am happy to hear that you and my sisters are doing fine. I miss you all, how is dad, is he still mad about me not taking his place as head of the family business? I will contact you as soon as I have the time. Love you all”. Roger took a final check over the message then ordered the computer to send it; He knew that it will sometime to get a reply if he will get any so he stood up, opened the door of his room and went outside heading toward the holodeck, he was late on his daily running program and don’t want to break the training schedule. That’s good, Tom. Have there been anymore nightmares?” Lieutenant JG Theresa Rowland sat calmly with her hands in her lap as she waited for the captain to answer. She had been assigned to the Atlas as a junior counselor when the boat shipped out for Kodana, and when O’Flagherty had been ordered to counseling by CMO Zara Cooper, he had chosen the young, bright-eyed lieutenant over her department head because of the flash in her eyes. Now, as she sat looking at him with those same almond shaped, chestnut colored eyes, ones whose warmth and compassion radiated to anyone in the position of patient, the captain wanted to jump down her throat. He had been going through these sessions for over a month, and there had been noticeable improvement. He was able to sleep at night, he was less irritable, and most importantly, he wasn’t obsessed with failure. However, her preternatural calm while in the middle of a session drove him insane. For over a week she had picked at his psychological scabs and suffered his outbursts of pure anger with the placid, soothing calm of a monk. The only thing that kept her from appearing like a Vulcan was the amount of pure empathy that dripped from her countenance. So, despite his apprehension, and downright anger at her lack of response to his posturing, he had gotten to work looking into his own soul instead of projecting it on her. “A few. I’m averaging about 5 hours of sleep a night, if you don’t count what comes with the responsibilities of being a ship’s captain.” “Is it a recurring scene, or different images each night,” the ebony skinned counselor leaned forward and pressed the writing stylus against her lips. “Well,” O’Flagherty started. “I’m not the most vivid dreamer. When I was a kid, and even when I was a junior officer, I didn’t remember a lot of my dreams. When they became recurrent nightmares, it was a different story. Last night, it was flashes of images, as best I can remember. Some of it was about the Xul, and I also remember seeing Lisbet...” It was the first time he had said her name during a session. In fact, he was sure that Rowland didn’t know anything about his former fiancee, which meant he was going to be starting another area of analysis. “Who is Lisbet? You’ve never mentioned her before.” Telling her was hard. Other than talking with Chris Vaughn about what had happened, O’Flagherty had never discussed his former romance. “She’s my former fiancee. W met when I was a cadet on the Gettysburg. She came here as the Atlas’ first CMO. I proposed to her right before I took the posting as captain here, but we started to fight a lot towards the end.” “And what were you fighting about?” Patiently, Rowland sat and waited for O’Flagherty to reply. When he didn’t, she continued. “I can imagine its extremely painful. You obviously cared about her a great deal, enough to do whatever it took to bring her to the ship with you.” “I got a ‘Dear John’ letter. The ship was at Caloris Station, undergoing its last outfitting, and when I came out of a meeting with the stations engineering team, there was padd sitting on our bed.” For a moment, O’Flagherty almost lost his composure, but, after a couple of seconds, he was able to rally. “It didn’t say much. She said she felt like she was under too much pressure to be handling it by herself. It said she needed to get away, and that I wasn’t able to help her.” For the first time, Rowland was shocked. Her stylus hit the floor with an audible thump, and the young woman scrambled to recover. It was more than she was prepared to hear. Over the month they had been meeting, the captain had been rather closed off, but this was shared freely. It took her off guard. “That’s...that seems like a very traumatic event.” When O’Flagherty looked at her sideways, she reformed her question. “Okay, okay, it’s horrible. You were probably destroyed by that. What pushed this along?” The captain stood from his chair and looked away from the counselor. The room was interior to the ship, so there was no window, but there was some artwork that Rowland had chosen from a few different forms. He chose an impressionist painting of Tellarite origin and took a long look. “She was wanting me to come to counseling. I told her I could handle what was going on, but over time, I was sleeping less and less. At first, I would only miss a little bit of time. Often I would wake up with a start, and then go back to bed. One night, I woke up and Lisbet was staring down at me. There was as much fear on her face as mine...” “I don’t understand.” Rowland was on the edge of her seat. Though she would never admit it, the story of a romance put through tragic circumstances was compelling. “Were you violent in your sleep? Did you strike at her, or something worse?” “No,” the captain responded. “Lisbet is from Betazed. When we started living together, we built a relationship that connected on a psychic level.” O’Flagherty sighed heavily before continuing. “She finally told me that night, that she was experiencing my nightmares just like me. She had never told me before that night. From then on, I did everything I could to shield her from that. I learned how to block her from feeling my emotions or sensing my thoughts. I pushed her away psychically while trying to embrace her physically. It didn’t work, so I started to go days without sleep, or sleep in the ready room.” “So, she started encouraging you to go to counseling,” Rowland picked up the slight pause to keep the captain going. “Yes,” he responded. “We argued about it often. I’m a pretty private person, inherently, so I didn’t want to talk about it. I had a feeling that it was not good for the CO to be in the counselor’s office every week. The crew would respond negatively, in my mind, but she was persistent. She started not sleeping either, and then we had a huge fight. Then, she was gone.” “Was not hearing from her again part of what brought you into the office?” “I’ve heard from her. She messaged me while we were at Kodana. She’s on the medical staff of Jericho Station.” Tom turned back slowly to look at the young counselor as she jotted notes on her padd. “Did that shock you? “A little. She showed me our son.” “Your son? “Yes,” Tom returned to his chair and slouched into the chair opposite the counselor. “She never told me she was pregnant. Apparently, that on top of the sudden death of her father, with the added pressure of my problems. was too much. Now, she’s back here, and just below us.” “Have you contacted her?” At that the captain stiffened in his chair. From the way his story had built, and the way he had added that she was back in the Gamma Quadrant, Rowland could tell it was a question he was not going to want to be asked. “You don’t have to answer. It’s got to be difficult. She was a big piece of your life, and you have had to make changes. Now, when she comes back, her presence rips those wounds open again.” O’Flagherty leaned forward in his char, resting his elbows in his knees as he looked her straight in the eye. “Lieutenant, I wanted to meet with you because I saw something in your eyes. While I couldn’t explain what it is that I saw, it told me that you wouldn’t shovel me bullshit. If I wanted to read a psychology book, I would download one on PTSD or grief management. I do have a Ph.D. I can do my own research.” “OK, you got me.” Rowland held her hands up in mock surrender. The padd on her lap was flashing, which meant that the appointment was over. “We can talk more about it later. You’re appointment for today is over.” They both stood and started for the door. Just before they reached the sensor that would activate the portal into the reception area, Rowland reached up and stopped the captain by placing her hand on his bicep. “Now, when we get back next week, I’ll nail your ass to the wall if you try and duck my question again.” O’Flagherty shot the junior counselor a sly smile. He knew she had caught him, but in truth, he felt like it was more of a game at this point than anything. “Deal, Lieutenant.” A post featuring Lt. JG Theresa Rowland. '''Caloris Station Risean Sunsets Spa''' Zara began to move slowly toward the opposite side of the plunge pool, not that it gave her much of an advantage. The pool was only about fifteen feet square and there was but one ladder with which to use to climb out. Unfortunately for her, the stranger was now stepping closer to that point and she knew that if she was to have a fighting chance against him, she would have to get out of the pool at speed, run around its perimeter and then begin her assault on him. All these thoughts raced through her mind in only a few seconds, but as she attempted to propel herself in the water without being noticed she heard the stranger chuckling once more. She couldn’t see a weapon on him; his well cut suit was form fitting and any concealed arms would have ruined the clean lines by creating lumps and bumps where there should be none so that gave her a small amount of reassurance. I could really do without the ‘Fleeter caught in the altogether...’ headlines. “Since when were you afraid of a little publicity?” He said; interrupting her thoughts and smiling at her in a charming, yet unsettling way. “Surely Zara Cooper isn’t camera shy? Things cannot be so very different...after all...you still have your tattoos.” It was the most he had said and the way he spoke about her gave her the distinct impression he knew her already. She always thought herself good with names and faces; especially faces that were appealing, but no matter how hard she tried she was certain that she had never encountered this man before. “You know my name...” She replied, her tone laced with suspicion and doubt. “and you know I have a tattoo; those things are easy enough to find out, you just have to know where to look.” She watched him for signs of a tell; some indication of what his next move might be, but there was nothing...nada. “You have issues with trust Zara, it’s understandable but as you can plainly see,” He took another step forwards and unbuttoned his jacket and exposed his shirt, lifting the garment away from his body and up so that she could get as good a look as was possible from her angle. “I am unarmed...well...that’s discounting my razor sharp wit and devilishly good looks.” “You’re a telepath.” She answered; her words almost a statement of fact rather than a supposition. She remained in the one place she thought was safest for a naked, unarmed woman and that was the dead centre of the pool. “If, as you say, you know me...then you should know the only only person I like inside my head...is me.” Zara gazed up at him steadfastly. She refused to show weakness or fear and though she was clearly at a disadvantage, she did not believe in backing down. “Oh, your facts are in error too. I only have one tattoo.” He looked at her and for a fraction of a second she thought she caught a look of surprise cross his features. “Perhaps things are more different than I anticipated...” “Perhaps you’d better stop talking in riddles and tell me who you are and why you’re here.” Came her response. “I just might do that.” He answered with a wry smile; reaching the spot where Zara’s towel lay. He bent down and took hold of the fabric, picking it up and holding the fabric to his face for a moment. His eyes closed momentarily and he inhaled the scent but soon he felt her quizzical gaze upon him and could hear her voiceless questions in his head. He held out the towel; opening it wide and giving her a mischievous grin. “You going to stay there all day?” “If you think I’m going to climb out of this pool while a complete stranger holds out my towel you’ve got to be joking.” She retorted. “Put it on the ladder, step back and turn around first and if you try anything I’ll have you know I can snap your neck if needs be. It’s only my good manners and sense of curiosity that’s indulging you so far.” He laughed heartily and nodded. “That’s what I’ve missed. Your no nonsense, straight to the crux attitude.” He placed the towel down as per her instructions and took four strides backwards. His back was almost against the wall and he made a big show of turning around to face away from her. “Be shy no more Zara, I promise not to peek.” Zara was already making her way across the pool so it took no time at all for her to ascend the short ladder and wrap her towel securely around her. “So are you going to tell me your name and how you think you know me or do I have to beat it out of you?” She asked; leaning on the side of the ladder and still eyeing him warily, though not quite on red alert. He turned around, frowned in mock disappointment and gave a theatrical sigh. “Ah...I think I preferred you in the pool. You know, that water didn’t obscure your body at all. That towel really doesn’t do you justice.” “Thanks for the compliment, but stop dodging the question.” She replied; her tone conversational, but she folded her arms and stared hard at him. “I’m starting to lose patience.” “Very well.” He answered. “My name is Hal, and as you’ve no doubt already guessed, I’m able to hear your thoughts.” He pointed to his eyes, but she had already noticed the characteristic black irises that revealed his birthright. “I’m Betazoid and yes...I know you....intimately.” Hal paused for a second, listening to the rush of thoughts, ideas and emotions from the woman standing before him. “So, will that do for starters, or would you like to begin beating a full confession out of me?” Zara narrowed her eyes as she rifled through her memories to find an image that fit Hal but there was definitely nothing there. She had certainly never met the man before so he had to be lying... “Hal...” She began, “I can assure you we have never met and though I’m sure you could charm the birds from the trees with that gallant talk I say you’re hiding something and the only way you might have seen me is in whatever intelligence you have gathered about me.” She gave him a hard look again. “Unless you’re stalking me and have fabricated a perceived connection between the two of us.” Hal watched her with open amusement. From the minute he had found out she was alive he had made it his mission to find her and no matter the personal cost, he wanted to at least look her in the face once more, even if she didn’t know him as he knew her... “I can see you don’t believe me and okay, if that’s what you want to think I can understand your point.” He took a couple of tentative steps towards her, smiling,his palms out to show he meant no harm. “You’re my wife Zara...we’re married.” Zara certainly hadn’t expected those words and after she recovered from the surprise she said the first thing that came into her head... “Bullshit!”
 * 03-27-2013, 02:53 PMD'Rel
 * 03-30-2013, 06:11 AMTom O'Flagherty
 * 03-30-2013, 06:07 PMDraka
 * 03-31-2013, 06:54 AMAnahera Chernova
 * 03-31-2013, 01:45 PMJamil Mrad
 * 03-31-2013, 04:04 PMAnahera Chernova
 * 04-05-2013, 10:40 AMTom O'Flagherty
 * 04-13-2013, 05:13 AMAnahera Chernova
 * 04-13-2013, 12:06 PMZara Cooper
 * 04-14-2013, 09:34 AMTom O'Flagherty
 * 04-16-2013, 08:29 AMJamil Mrad
 * 04-20-2013, 11:35 AMTom O'Flagherty
 * 04-22-2013, 03:24 AMZara Cooper
 * 04-22-2013, 11:08 PMChristopher Vaughn
 * Planetside::: Chris kicked his feet up on the dash of the parked Ferrari. It’s leather-covered steering wheel rubbing against his canvas boating shoes rhythmically while he relit his cigar. The flashing smoke curled over his head into the night. The roof of the car was retracted allowing the neon lights of a near by casino to cover him in splashes of color and light. A perfect smoke ring he exhaled twisted into a small vortex in the cool night breeze before disappearing into the haze. After the lengthy Kaldona mission it was nice to be near civilization again. A night like this was perfect for a relaxing smoke in the city lights. He had been looking for a nice place to park all evening. He reclined the seat slightly and took a deep pull from a flask of gin & tonic, chasing it with a healthy drag from the well ages cigar. Life was good. Hectic sometimes but full of enjoyment. He had to try and remember that, especially after what had happened with the last mission. Forcing the dark thoughts from his mind he focus instead on the flavors of his smoke and drink. Even when he closed his eyes he could see splashes of color from the lights and hear the noises of the city all around him. The custom-made Italian sports car seemed to sway slightly, no doubt from the drink he figured. “Well could be worse.” He said. Taking another long puff. Soon the Atlas would be repair and they would be shipped off to another backward edge of the universe for the glory of Starfleet. Or something like that. But as long as shore leave lasted he had every intention of enjoying the night and the car and the smokes and the drinks. “You can’t park you car here!” and angry voice shouted into Chris’s calm bubble. “Mmm?” he said opening his eyes and looking around slowly. “Pardon…who’s speaking?” “You can’t park your car here!” the angry man shouted again. Chris wondered for a moment if it was real. After all…those Razeen Illumination Crystals had…surely worn off by now… “What did you say?” he asked again, struggling to focus through the drunken haze on the short balding and clearly upset man. “YOUR CAR – YOU CAN'T PARK YOUR CAR HERE!!!!” he screamed. Chris looked around, the cigar clenched in his teeth dropped down, “What are you blathering about? Is this not a reasonable place to park? Just what I’ve been looking for all night. Plenty of room, no other cars to nick the door and it’s close to the entrance to the casino. It’s perfect.” “Close to the entrance?!” the bald short man replied. “You parked half way in the foyer!” Chris looked around again. It was true. He had – very neatly – backed the Ferrari half way through the double doors of the casinos main lobby. Directly under the blazing neon sign over the door. “I thought the sign was a bit bright.” Chris mumbled. At this point a pair of uniformed men jogged over, “Sir, we are going to be placing you under arrest and impounding this car. Step out of the vehicle.” Chris took a long moment to consider his options. Well, there were two cops, and he was drunk. A fight was ill advised then. Hanging his head low he stepped out of the car. They proceeded to pad him down. “Where is your identification?” “I don’t know.” Chris replied. “I’ve hit something like twenty bars tonight and allegedly parked inside a casino. Probably be a miracle if I don’t vomit down your back on the drive to the clink.” “What’s your name son?” the lead officer asked as he cuffed him. “Nebuchadnezzar O’Farraday.” He replied with a shrug. “Vice-Admiral Nebuchadnezzar O’Farraday.”

'''Kendrassa Municipal Jail''' His uniform was neatly pressed, and everything was inspection perfect. In the midst of the local constabulary, he projected the authority that was due his uniform. O’Flagherty didn’t really feel that much though. He was irritated more than anything, but thankfully his gruffness was being used on people he didn’t know. That way they just thought he was accustomed to getting what he wanted. “Yes, that’s right. I’ve come to remove my man from jail. Please have all of his belongings placed in the vehicle that you impounded and have it out front when I’m ready to leave.” “Yes, Captain, but according to our law, he must be arraigned before I can release him on bail. The local magistrate is already here and ready to begin as soon as we can awaken the prisoner.” The desk sergeant never looked up from the mound of paperwork in front of him as he spoke. It was easy to see why he would be so focused. “Then, my I have a moment with the prisoner? I’ll have him ready for you in a heartbeat.” The constable considered it a moment and then motioned for another officer to guide the captain. As they passed from the booking room into the detention wing, the lighting changed dramatically. Mostly, it was an effect of a different texture in the walls which had changed from boring earth-tones to stark white, giving the room an institutional feel.There were only two cells with active restraining fields, the first held a member of a species O’Flagherty didn’t recognize. It looked as if he had been in a bar fight, only if “in” meant “used as a punching-bag;” his body was covered with bruises and his facial features didn’t appear to have originally designed to be at those angles. In the last cell Christopher Vaughn, the XO of the USS Atlas as well as the CEO and principle shareholder of Vaughn Industries, was sprawled on his back over the shelf used as a sleeping surface. His mouth was hanging open with drool coming from the corner, one shoe was under the bunk and his sport coat was being used as a pillow. If not for the amount of trouble he was in, the captain would have laughed at the sight. Part of him wished he had a holo-imager. “May I have a moment of privacy with the prisoner?” He asked. The junior constable, who hadn’t said a word the entire time the captain had been in the building, nodded and deactivated the force field before walking back to the other end of the detention wing. As O’Flagherty stepped in, the first thing to hit him was the smell of so much perfume. There was no one scent to be picked out, instead it all melded together into a sweet, disgusting cloud that had been trapped in the room. Vaughn continued to snooze and so the he gave the reposed drunk a good kick on his still-shod foot. “I see you had an interesting night.” “Ah, captain. How nice of you you come see me on such short notice.” Chris said as he sat up slowly. His hand shielding his eyes from that harsh glare of the corridor light. “Yes,” he replied while folding his arms across his chest. “Please tell me what the hell you were thinking? You had narcotics in your system, Chris. Do you have any idea how much work I had to do to keep this away from JAG already?” “Poor effort.” Chris nodded. “I know.” He followed Tom out of the cell. “Just trying to enjoy short leave before some crazy admiral tries to get us killed again.” He tossed his jacket over his shoulder as they walked. “So back to the ship and I solemnly swear I will not park a Ferrari in front of the casino again. Although in fairness they really should have labeled that as a no parking zone.” “Didn’t you hear me?” O’Flagherty asked incredulously. “There is an arraignment. You aren’t done here. You could end up facing some serious infractions by their law.” “Serious infractions of the law.” Chris replied in a mock Scottish accent as they continued to the courtroom. “Oh my.” The captain gave his friend a sideways look as they walked towards the door. “I hope you are up for this. You don’t even know how their system works. It could be totally different from ours.” He pushed open the doors to a room that wasn’t much bigger than a normal office. There was a desk that was tall enough to stand behind, where someone was standing and waiting, presumably the magistrate. To the right was another acting as something like a bailiff. “Well, this looks different.” “Oh, the room maybe. But ‘justice’ is ‘justice.’” he said absently. Stepping up to the podium he gave a slight wave. “Chris Vaughn representing the defendant, Chris Vaughn.” The magistrate looked less than pleased. “Are you prepared to give words in your defense?” Chris looked toward the bailiff, “Maybe, your honor.... but first I would be interested in speaking with the prosecutor if possible.” “Are you aware of the charges against you?” the magistrate asked. “Painfully so.” he glanced at Tom. “Very well, you may speak with the prosecutor.” the judge nodded and the bailiff escorted them to a side room where the prosecutor was waiting. “You have five minutes.” the guard said. “Well justice moves swiftly on this world.” “I just hope it is still blind,” O’Flagherty said as they closed the door. The prosecutor was small, slight looking man who carried himself with a very important air. He seemed to think really highly of himself. “Well, Mr. Vaughn...or is it...O’Farraday?” the prosecutor said with a satisfied grin. “Admittedly not by best alias.” Chris said, more to Tom then the prosecutor. “Although the ‘admiral’ part felt very natural. “Great...this just gets better and better.” He looked towards the prosecutor. “Is there a charge for the alias, or are we just talking about the other infractions of the evening?” “If you drop these charges,” Chris began, his tone taking on the theatricality of a Vaughn in court. “I will insure you never have to campaign for funds again for any public office you run.” “Elections just passed.” the prosecutor replied, unimpressed. “Won’t need to run for another six years. But that was a nice attempt at bribery. It will go well with the rest of your charges.” “Great,” Tom said through clenched teeth. “I think I’m about to take the Ferrari and go. Sounds like you will be having a great morning, Admiral.” “That wasn’t a bribe!” Chris answered quickly. “There are some planets were the defendant is legally required to offer to financially assist the prosecutor. I simply assumed the laws here were similar to Ferranginar.” “It’s not.” “Well if it was - just as an example of course - it would completely appropriate for me to offer to ‘shower the prosecutor’ with gold pressed latinum to make these charges go away. And since I am not from this world and completely ignorant of the laws you would have to tell me if such a rule applied here, which I very much wish it did.” “It isn’t.” the prosecutor said. Chris looked to Tom for help but got an annoyed grimace in response. “Federation law will prevent any such charged from being levelled against me and force a change of venue.” “Doubtful.” said the prosecutor. “I have clerks looking into charging Starfleet officers.” Chris looked at the display on the law library PADD the prosecutor held. “I can see why they are still working. You are using an antiquated law database.” “It’s fine, lets talk about your charges shall we?” the prosecutor let out a long sigh. “Lets talk about your office’s substandard equipment.” Chris demanded, seeing an opening. “There are courts on Tellerite that shit out better legal databases. How many cases does your office lose every year because of these relics.” he tossed the legal PADD to the floor. O’Flagherty jumped when the padd hit the floor. Clumsily, he reached down to gather it off the floor as if it were a precious object. “Could you please not break the equipment. It’s all they’ve got.” “I’d be doing them a favor.” Chris said slapping the PADD out of Tom’s hand. “We have an entire Federation Law Library on the Atlas even as we speak. And it sits there completely unused. I won’t sit here and let you piss away your time squabbling with me over one little case- which you will lose - when you could have to tools to win a Supreme Court trial. Once the public, to say nothing of the other prosecutors under you, learn about how you have shackled them with antiques they will run you out off office faster than I can get arrested on Risa.” There was a long moment of stunned silence. “How do I know your legal database is any more complete than mine?” “You know the Atlas is the newest and most advanced ship in the fleet yes?” the prosecutor nodded. “Well, the Federation wouldn’t send her out unless she had the best of everything.” He looked at Tom. “Have someone shuttle down the Federation Law Library and Database for our friends here. Assuming we have an accord?” The prosecutor nodded. “But if this is a trick I will have you extradited, no matter what quadrant you’re in.” Tom turned to activate his communicator, and as he did, he gave Chris one of those looks that said, “What the hell do you think you’re doing giving me orders?” The computer services division watch officer promptly acknowledged the order without asking any questions, thankfully. As he looked back, he nodded to Chris to let him know it had been done. “Sir, your new Federation law database will be here in just a moment. As he finished speaking, a transporter beam started humming, depositing a data block on the desk in the room. “There you go.” Looking over the database with a critical eye he finally nodded. “Fine. Charges are dropped. But next time you slip up down here...I’ll make sure you spend some time turning big rocks into little rocks.” he tapped the database lightly. “Fair enough.” Chris replied as he turned to leave brushing past the guard. “We’ll make our own way out. Thanks for the room.” Going back to the magistrate was a perfunctory movement where the prosecutor dropped the charges and Vaughn was released. It took really no time to sign all the paperwork and then they were standing on the curb waiting for the impound lot to bring the car around. “So, you were right in that we are going to the far end of the galaxy. The ship is going to be getting the first real chance to explore all the area between Kendrassa Prime and Xul Space. It should be a yearlong deployment.” “Son of a bitch.” “Yeah, it should be really groundbreaking.” The car was delivered to them as they waited. The attendant came around with the keys, and the captain took them before Vaughn could reach out. “I’ll handle this.” Chis stared at Tom as he slid into the driver’s seat. “Well, I guess that’s fair.” He slowly seated himself as the passenger. “Just...be careful.” “Consider it payback for all the favors this evening.” Tom started the engine and made sure it revved high before pushing in the clutch and putting the car in gear. “At least...consider it part of the payback.” Before Vaughn could reply, he revved it high and dumped the clutch, spinning the tires as the car shot off into the dark. A JP with Chris Vaughn Edward was passed out on the couch in his quarters. The newly appointed Warrant Officer was so exhausted from the promotion party he barely was able discard his uniform and get into bed. After the last mission the entire crew was resting and taking a well needed break. Edward on the other hand was not. He found himself in a unique position. Being a Warrant, he was in between the crewman and the line officer, though being an officer himself. He was in intelligence ans security as well as he and his brother were proprietors of cigars and bourbon to several quadrants. This side enterprise while keeping him extra busy provided him with some spare pocket change and much needed intelligence. Edward could not sleep. He sat at his desk reading bios of their sector and looking at shipping manifests for the latest shipment of liquor. Some how as it often does, life choices seemed to come in and out of his head. All of his failures in life and love just seemed to come from out of no where. There was only one solution. He put on a pair of overalls and put a dip in his mouth and walked to the holo deck. “Play Hog Island Alpha.” Before him lay the James River of Virginia and behind him was a wood. He picked up the pole with bait and cast out into the dark blue water. As he set on the log in front of the fire the sky to his left opened and Master Chief Billy Sunday walked in pole in hand. “Well Warrant how are they biting?” “Oh Master Chief about how you would expect a simulation. Quite regular.” “James river? I figured you would have some stream back home in England to frequent.” “Nope, this has always been my spot. I read about it in a holo magazine and been fake fishing here for years.” The Master Chief pointed to the wood box and bottle next to his gear. “New stock?” “I say Master Chief, you have either a keen eye of a drinking problem.” “Well sir, prolly a bit of both. You wanna pass me some or you doing some self loathing?” Edward tossed him the bottle. “Nope just reflecting on my failures and how insufferably alone I am. Maybe I should get a dog or targ. What are your thoughts?” “Hell sir, why not get you a woman? We are in port I hear tell of some pretty accommodating places for that sort of thing.” “Nay Master Chief, I am a officer now and I must act respectable!” The Master Chief Laughed. “Ha ha, I forget you come from high class. But still you if you have that issue why in the name of Spock are you setting here fishing?” Just then Edwards pole bent fully forward. “Ho shit......that's why.” Edward fought and pulled up a great big old cat fish. “Oh sweet Moses how pathetic I must look. Fine I will explore the station and see what I find.” Edward walked through the door and into the P way toward his quarters. He walked through his hatch and filled a glass with whiskey and chugged. He thought to himself, “If I am going to be conversing with the local birds there is no earthly war Im gonna do this sober!” On The Station Edward, like most deep space sailors, went from drinking in his room to drinking in a bar. He saw all manner of species of female. Some very attractive, some not at all. He found himself talking to a blonde science officer from some tiny stick of gum space ship going to study algae of something else. He was staring at her face so at least she would think he was interested, but oh no he certainly was not. “The species we found procreates by splitting off parts of itself to form more of the organism and.........” All Ed thought was “blah blah blah” and well he just desperately wanted to get out of there. “Excuse me love I'm going to grab a refresher.... hold that thought.” He left her went strait from the bar into an official looking hallway. He wasn’t to sure but hell he was seeing doubles. As he walked to the front desk there was a little mousey looking girl with her brunet hair pulled up and wearing glasses. She seemed a bit taken aback be she said, “Welcome to the station's library, How can I help you Sir?” Next Morning Edward couldn’t think, he just wished the person banging on his would stop or just finish him. He was laying under a table with holo novels everywhere. He looked next to him and there was a gorgeous girl with brown hair wrapped up in his uniform. She opened her eye and sweetly said...”Good morning.” '''USS Atlas Deck 8 Crew Quarters ''' One of the things Roger hated the most after joining Security is performing an inventory check on the weapons and ammo supply in the armory. It seems his commanding officer wanted to benefit from his experience in doing inventory while he was in operation. Roger was standing in front of his quarter holding several pads in his hand, he figured that checking them in there will be better than sitting in the armory with peoples around him. He barely managed to open the door, and fast put all the pads on the small desk to the right and turned left toward the replicator to order something to drink. "Nothing better than hot chocolate while reading" Roger thought to him self before grabbing the now materialized white mug. He picked the only small chair in his room, put it near the desk and relax his body after putting the mug in front of him. there were 7 pads for him to read; he holds the first one, lift the mug to his lips, take a small sip and start reading. 1 hour passed since Roger start reading, the mug is now almost empty and his head start to feel heavy. He put the pad on the desk, stood up and went toward the replicator to get another mug; A picture of his family was there on the wall, both his sisters, his mother and his father and in the background, the farm where he was born and raised between horses, cow and other animals. Roger removed the picture and takes it with him to sit on his small bed where pictures from his past start hitting his memory. His older sisters, Darine and Rosette, helping in feeding the cow, his mother Katia preparing food inside the kitchen and finally the voice of his father Joseph, yelling at him to come help him moving the horses inside the barn. Roger never liked the idea of working with his father, he like everything that involved technology in it but for his father, he wanted to follow the way of the family that follow traditional method and only use technology when needed and being the only son in the family, bring in many problems between father and son which increased with time and the fight start when Roger take the decision to join Starfleet and never follow the step of his father in the family business and it end with him leaving his family and never speaking with his father since. =/\= Ensign Mitri, you are needed on deck 5, holodeck 3 =/\= The voice that came from his badge remove the Ensign from his old memories, he went up toward the replicator. Put the picture of his family back on the wall; check him self in front of the mirror, then exit the room heading toward deck 5. Blackstar Lounge Ana broke the kiss. “Wow, I’ve been wanting to do that all day.” She confessed breathlessly. “Oh? Just with me or with any guy you ran across?”, he said, teasingly. “Truth be told I’ve been wanting to kiss you too. I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve gotten to spend together since the last mission began.” “Why would I limit myself to just guys?” She teased back. Then smiling she said. “And I’ve enjoyed our time together too.” She’d been trying to take things slowly, though she’d loved Josh, their relationship had moved too fast and she’d ended up feeling trapped, she didn’t want that to happen with Draka, but it was hard work keeping her hands (and other parts of her anatomy) off of him. “Now now... keep that sort of talk up and I’ll end up imagining all sorts of naughty things.”, he said, winking to her, taking her hand gently, giving it a soft squeeze. “The last mission was a bit rough on us, too many questions raised and the brutal fighting. I think this will do us some good, spending some time together, relaxing.” Ana laughed. “I hope you have a vivid imagination.” she said and winked back. She liked the way he held her hand, he was firm but gentle. Her mind wandered to ‘naughty things’, but returned to the here and now when he mentioned the last mission. “Agreed.” She said. “I was starting to forget what relaxing meant.” “If it doesn’t mean ‘shoot insurgents’ or ‘run ship based targeting protocols’ I think I’ve almost forgotten myself. Anything you’d like to do after dinner? See a show or something?”, he says, smiling warmly to her, gazing into her eyes. Ana laughed again. “After dinner entertainment? Let me think. Well I heard about a Orion burlesque show, that should be fun, or we could find a hotel room and I could give a private show.” She said with a wicked grin. Draka perked a brow, thinking a moment, searching his knowledge of the humans’ English language before speaking,”I’m not sure I recall hearing that word before. What is a ‘burlesque show’? I’m thinking your offer to demonstrate privately, and that sexy little grin, leads me to believe I’ll enjoy either prospect.” Ana was surprised that Draka didn’t know what a burlesque show was, but then she remembered that neither was he from Earth nor did he grow up in the late 22nd century when such show had a revival. “Then, the burlesque show, it is, I can give you a private show any time. It is an Earth invention that among other things, includes slapstick comedy and scantily clad women dancing provocatively.” “Well.. I ~do~ enjoy lovely women dancing. That sounds like a good plan, Ana.”, he said, lifting her hand to gently brush a kiss across her knuckles, as the waitress approached with their food. “Thank you, miss.”, he said, as she set the plates down and made her way off to let them eat in peace. Ana giggled softly at the feeling of his lips on her knuckles. She felt safe with Draka, but a little nervous. Since joining Starfleet, she’d found it difficult to re-acclimate to ‘polite society’ after so many years in the ‘wilderness’ and she’d hurt a few people in the process, most notably Jacey and Josh. Now that her implant had been removed, she was starting to feel more like a Starfleet officer, than a merc. She guessed this must be what it felt like to be a teenage girl on her first date. Something that she’d not been able to experience when she was a teenage girl. Her ‘innocence’ having been forcefully taken from her. She banished all thoughts of the past and stared into the Tactical Chief's eyes, only stopping when the food arrived. Draka met her gaze, eating the food set before him, nodding in approval. “Very good food. A good choice, Ana. Thank you.”, he said, smiling to her, sipping his drink. “I’m glad you like it.” Ana said before trying her own food. They ate in relative silence, not taking too long before the dinner portion of the meal drew to a close. Draka smiled to her, setting his fork down,”Now what would a sexy Security officer want for dessert?” Ana had to think, what she really wanted for dessert was him, but since she was determined to take things slow this time, she’d have to settle for something that was on the menu. Her first thought was Yabluchnyk, but it wasn’t on the menu, which was fine, she would much rather make her grandmother’s Ukrainian Apple Cake for him, herself. In the end she said. “Flesh targ’s heart.” Then she laughed. “Just kidding, I’ll have the chocolate cheesecake. What about you?” “I have found I enjoy the Earth dessert.. banana split. I’ll have one of those.”, he said, ordering the desserts from the waitress, smiling back to Ana as she moves off to place their order. “Alright, should be ready soon enough. I hope we can do this again sometime.. I’ve enjoyed dinner with you.” “I’d like that, but next time I’ll cook for you.” She told him. She hoped he wouldn’t be too disappointed when she told him she wasn’t going to sleep with him tonight. “I think I’d like that. Not much beats a home cooked meal.”, he said, smiling warmly to her, finishing off his drink, before setting the glass back down. Before the dessert arrived, Ana put down her glass, reached across the table and took both Draka’s hands in her own. Then looking him straight in the eye. “Draka.” She said. “I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve spent together and I’ve grown quite fond of you and I find you very attractive, but I’m not ready to jump into bed with you just yet.” Draka squeezed her hands and nodded,”I didn’t think that was something implied. I don’t want to go anyplace with this, that you don’t want to yourself. Being as we’re stationed on the same ship, I think we can take this as slow as you like, Ana. I find you quite attractive and want to get to know you better. So, don’t worry about expectations tonight... there are none.” Ana smiled. “Thank you for understanding, I had a difficult time re-adjusting to ‘polite society’ and giving into my desires probably wasn’t the best way to go about it. I have a reputation for being promiscuous, which has led me to question why people want to be with me.” Then she laughed. “Enough seriousness, let’s finish our dessert and then go have some fun.” <> '''Caloris Station Docking Gangway''' Traffic was relatively light in comparison to other parts of the day. Between shift changes was the perfect time to make use of ones feet for getting from ship to ship. Rarely was there enough interference during these times that would make it much faster to use a transporter. Besides, getting the lay of the land was always a good tactical maneuver. This would be the first time that either O’Flagherty or Vaughn had set foot inside of the USS Integrity. Getting a feel for how the crew was working by taking the long way to their meeting with Fleet Captain Sala would be a good insight. “So, have you had a chance to look over our mission profile?” O’Flagherty asked. Though much of it was classified, the captain and his friend would be able to talk it over without breaking operational security. Chris turned to look at the styling of the curving corridor of the Integrity as he replied. “Skimmed it.” he said, running a finger along the polished titanium plate of the hall. “Bottom line it for me. Anything important?” “Who do I look like? Your yeoman?” His brow creased in surprise, the captain looked incredulously at his XO. “We are being sent on the first real exploration mission in years. We have to take the long way back from Xul space. It’s going to be a year long mission away from Caloris and the rest of the Fleet.” “I knew it.” Chris said. “See, I tried to warn you about something like this back on shore leave.” Chris ran a hand through his hair. “Did you mention anything about hidden weapon catches or maybe Federation sponsored mercenaries?” “This one comes from Maddigan, not Farraday.” Tom added. The people in the corridor looked as if they were moving with purpose. Extremely efficient, if nothing else. One thing that was noticeably absent was small talk or conversation. “I actually trust him. That’s the big difference. No one is cutting him out.” Chris made snorting sound from his deep throat. “Phew. Never trust an Irish man in command. Maddigan is Irish from what I understand.” “Just like O’Flagherty,” the captain added with a crooked smile. “The big difference is, he’s actually commanded a ship. This one to be specific.” At the end of the corridor, the boarded a turbolift and called or their destination on deck 3. They were the only ones inside. “Have you noticed that while everyone here seems to be doing their jobs, they don’t seem to be very energetic? It’s like a bunch of androids or something.” “You say your Irish but frankly your accent is a little iffy.” Chris looked at a passing crewman as he stepped onto the lift. “Yeah, now that you mention it the crew over here does seem a bit drab. You might trust Maddigan but how about this Fleet Captain?” “That’s part of the reason for the walk,” Tom explained. “I figured you could get a good handle on a CO by the way his crew goes about their work. I’ve never met him before, but I’m betting that he is a by-the-book type. Make sure you are on your best behavior.” “I’ll be the model of an officer and a genital.” Chris smiled as Tom gave him a sharp look. “Gentleman...gentleman...I always mix those two up.” The lift slowed as it reached its destination, and as the doors opened, Tom turned to his friend. “I know that acting can be difficult. I would say do what comes naturally, but genital isn’t going to help us any.” “As long as the man isn’t a complete tool we will get along famously.” “Now that is something I can agree with.” A couple of crewmembers looked at them sideways, but having not heard everything, they kept moving. Upon reaching the conference room doors, Tom smoothed the wrinkles out of his uniform before activating the sensors that would open the portal. Inside, there was a collection of faces, some even acquaintances from the past. Tom took a moment to walk directly up to one, a Vulcan with Commander pips on his collar. “Commander Sonnek, welcome back to the Gamma Quadrant. And congratulations on your promotion.” “Thank you, Captain O’Flagherty.” Sonnek, the ever stoic Kolinhar master droned as he dipped briefly at the waist as a gesture of welcome. “It is agreeable to see you again. I heard that the Atlas had a difficult mission that it just finished. My condolences to you and your crew.” “Condolences are an emotional response, Sonnek.” Tom smirked as he jibed at his old colleague. “Don’t you think that is an inappropriate statement?” “Not at all,” the Vulcan responded quickly. “I was merely using a cultural idiom that would be more appropriate to your...affections.” “Too much more of this and you I’ll have to advise the two of you to get a room.” Chris said as he listened to the Vulcan and Irishman ‘banter.’ He wasn’t sure if the Vulcan was attempting some vague attempt at humor or if the entire conversation was merely an academic exercise. Before he could say anything more he noticed a familiar female face approaching from the corner of his field of view. “Oh, shit.” he mumbled. Tom looked over at the athletic blonde in command red who was making her way over with a cup of coffee in her hand. Immediately, he recognized her and wondered and what Chris was on about. “Commander Bishop. It’s good to see you again.” The fiery woman had also been an acquaintance of the Atlas crew when her former ship, the Scimitar had engaged in a wargames exercise against the Vesta-class explorer. “How are adjusting to life in the Gamma Quadrant.” “Well, I was doing alright until I saw you here, Academy boy. Mr. Vaughn, the feeling is mutual.” “And here I figured we would let bygones be bygones.” Chris said with as much pleasantness as he could slather into his voice. Before there could be any verbal jousting, another Commander walked into the conference room. Here bearing was all business as she snapped to attention and announced to the room. “Fleet Captain on deck.” Everyone froze where they were and assumed the position, as it were. The Saurion, Sala, walked in with a stiff back and a smooth gate. Tom got a glimpse to see that the man wore no boots, typical of his reptiloid race. He moved and stood next to the chair at the head of the table. “Take your seats.” Chris and Tom settled into chairs next to one another as the meeting began. The Saurian wasted no time with pleasantries as he activated the holographic projector on the table. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m glad you all could make it. I won’t waste time with introductions because I know who you are and you know who I am. You can talk amongst yourselves after this meeting. As you can see, this is a holographic representation of a standard Starfleet sensor array. We will be assembling and deploying this apparatus on the border of Xul space.” Touching a few keys on the display by his chair, the image shifted to a star chart of the region in question. “We will be deployed through the Caloris Gateway and begin our installation here. The Paulsen and her teams will be taking point on this part of the mission. The rest of us are to provide operational security during the construction. No ship, from any government, is to be allowed closer than three AU to the sensor array. The Defiant-class ships will be our primary forward scouts, the Integrity and Broadhurst are the heavy hitters, and the Atlas is to be our rapid response ship.” One final press of a key and the holographic image disappeared. “Due to repair times on the Atlas, we have been delayed in our departure by 48 hours. Caloris Station has doubled the amount of people working on your ship, Captain O’Flagherty, to make up some lost ground. When this meeting is adjourned, you are to recall all of your personnel from shore leave effective immediately. Any questions?” “Sir,” spoke up a Tellarite from the far end of the table. Tom surmised it was Captain Bonthor glev Meel of the Broadhurst. “If my ship is to be a heavy-hitter, then the sensor dome should be replaced by a tactical pod. It would greatly enhance our combat capabilities.” “Quite right, Captain. I’ll have Caloris get on it immediately, have your people standing by to assist. The change out should take no more than a few hours.” The Fleet Captain took one more look around the room at the assembled commanders. No one else spoke, much of what he had said was in the briefing already which made most of it mute. “Then we are dismissed. Have a nice day.” Gracefully, the Saurian rose from his chair and exited into the corridor. His XO stayed behind as the doors closed and noticeably relaxed. It didn’t take long for people to begin discussing amongst themselves. “What do you think of our new boss?” Tom threw towards Chris. “I think he is boring.” Chris said in a low tone. “But what can you expect from a flag officer.” he finished with a shrug. “Good thing I’m not a flag officer.” Tom rose from his chair and looked around for a cup of coffee. If he was going to come all this way for that meeting, he at least wanted to leave with something. “Give me a sec to contact Mari and have her bring back the people on leave. Why don’t you go and talk with Commander Bishop? I’m sure she would love another crack at you.” “Ships passing in the night.” he replied, decidedly avoiding the issue. “No need to belabor the the matter.” Commander Bishop was across the room talking with the Tellarite captain as Chris walked up. “I’m looking forward to this. It will be a real chance to see something new. How long has your ship been in the Gamma Quadrant?” “Three years,” the Tellarite replied gruffly. He didn’t seem to be enjoying himself, but then again, it was difficult to tell if a Tellarite was enjoying themself until you insulted them. “Mostly convoy duty from DS9. The station is a long way from the rest of the Federation. To far if you ask me. We’ve over-extended, and this mission is more proof of that.” “So, you think we’ve gone too far?” Bishop feined incredulity across her features. Now, she was having fun. “Should we have stopped exploring after discovering Tellar Prime? I’m sure Commander Vaughn here is excited to see the far end of the Gamma Quadrant.” “While I wouldn’t mind pissing off the far edge of the galaxy I am inclined to agree, prehaps the Federation is moving too quickly.” Chris replied. “I’m sure your captain would love to hear you say that,” Bishop countered. The young commander looked at Vaughn slyly as she continued, almost completely ignoring the Tellarite. “You don’t like it out here, Commander?” “What are you going to do, tell Tom I have an opinion differing from the brass?” he shrugged. “Go for it. You might find his response lackluster. And my opinion has nothing to do with liking or disliking, more to do with the Federation still having a colony in open revolt and yet we push further.” “Megiddo had a legal right to call for secession. Whether we agree with it or not is moot. Why should Starfleet’s original mission of exploration stop because Rena Morris can’t see beyond her own desires?” “According to the most recent charts more than 60 percent of the Alpha Quadrant remains unexplored. The number is even higher for the Beta quadrant.” Chris said. “Surely Starfleet would be better served by filling in the rest of our maps closer to home before sending large and expensive task forces to parts of the galaxy that are too far away to be of any damned use to anyone.” “But what of the scientific value that comes with exploring them? Just because a mining ship won’t be able to carry dilithium back from their in our lifetime doesn’t mean that we might not learn something important from what’s out there, and besides, we have to keep an eye on the Xul. What if they are engaging in a military buildup as a prelude to another attack?” Finally, the Tellarite captain got sick of the discussion and decided it wasn’t worth listening to anymore. “Thank God. I thought he was going to stand there and glare at us the rest of the meeting.” “Well, admittedly the scientific/economic theory behind Federation exploration is hardly a riveting conversation to have this early in the morning.” Chris said. “We will simply have to agree to disagree.” “Bullshit,” she countered, throwing him off balance. “You were enjoying that. I could see it in your face.” “Sorry, no.” he said. Looking over he saw Tom edging toward the door. “Well, Commander. This is starting to bore me. I’m going to go do something else now.” he gave a pleasant smile and walked toward Tom. “Interesting conversation?” Tom asked as Chris arrived near the door. “Exact opposite.” Chris replied, ushering Tom out of the briefing room. “I really need a better yeoman who will keep me out of meetings like this.” '''A JP production with the CO and XO on their best behavior. '''
 * 04-25-2013, 10:38 PMTom O'Flagherty
 * 04-27-2013, 10:10 PMEdward Pellew
 * 05-01-2013, 02:11 PMJamil Mrad
 * 05-01-2013, 07:32 PMDraka
 * 05-01-2013, 10:57 PMChristopher Vaughn