Lt Alex Storm - Here and Gone Again - A Tactical Officer's Tale
Karen Morris
(( Bridge - Deck 01 - USS Artemis-A ))
The map that Alex had originally displayed swiveled around and zoomed in on one warp trail - an obscure one. As it focused on a specific area, Alex could feel a sense of unease begin to permeate the bridge. The Captain let out a low groan.
Jetripar: A complication, Captain?
Storm: Or another in a series of unfortunate events?
Munro: That’s Nascaik territory :: beat :: If they reach that border, we won’t be able to follow them.
MacKenzie: ::shaking her head, trying to make sense of it:: Why, though? So they think they'll be free or we'll stop pursuing them?
Jetripar: No no. We can't let them just cower behind a border.
Munro: Hopefully it won't come to that, Secretary.
Jovenan: If we don’t follow the third trail, they would be able to reach the Nascaik territory before we can intercept them. Would we be allowed to keep pursuing them beyond their border?
Storm: Secretary, No one said anything about cowering.
oO I can’t even imagine that that word is in MacKenzie’s vocabulary. Oo
MacKenzie raised a finger.
MacKenzie: Not so fast. I did help mediate their non-aggression pact with the Thama after all. The Nasciak are a difficult people, but I think they owe me one.
Jetripar: Now that's the reason we called Starfleet! Famed for their connections, quadrant-wide.
Jovenan: Havun and the others might not know this. They might have picked the Nascaik under the impression that we won’t pursue them there.
Alex stared at her console, trying not to grimace. Something about the Secretary grated at her. She raised her eyes and studied him a moment. The Da’al were supposed to be an isolationist people. She understood that it put them in a position of needing someone to help bridge the relational gap between them and the rest of the quadrant, but why did the Secretary seem so eager for it?
Storm: Starfleet may have sway with some, Secretary, but not with everyone - by far.
MacKenzie: So, I suppose the question is: do we follow the obvious paths, or the outlier? Which way do we think they went?
Jetripar: I can see a case being made for any one of them. Though I will admit I can't see him even thinking of visiting a foreign territory he has no relationship with. I also wouldn't expect him to hide somewhere closely aligned with the Romulans, given some of the technology aboard his stolen vessel.
Munro: Unless you know something we don't know, it's unclear who he's been in contact with :: to MacKenzie :: But I do agree we should consider the most likely options based on the evidence we have.
The only thing that was making itself blindingly clear was that the perpetrators were going to great lengths to try to deceive their pursuers. Right now, the question as to why didn't matter - that would be answered once they could apprehend them.
Jovenan: On the other hand, they might have gone to one of the other options, expecting us to fall for the likeliest one, whichever that is.
Storm: So, knowing your people, Secretary Jetripar, which place do you think is most likely for them to go?
Jetripar: Yes, I would say the Klingons seem the most likely candidate to me. Though I fear that Havun may not consider how unlikely they would be to let him leave.
MacKenzie raised an eyebrow.
Munro: Not the Romulans?
Jovenan: Didn’t you also find planted Klingon technology on the site? Would they use the same bluff twice?
Alex turned to gauge MacKenzie’s response, but responded to Jovenan.
Storm: It depends on whether they thought you bought it the first time or not, Commander.
MacKenzie: I'm not so sure I believe that...
Alex’s brows knit together. oO Is the Captain talking to me? Oo
Jetripar: You see, we had an... arrangement with the Romulans. The Barol system, while not officially under Romulan jurisdiction obviously, still has enough of their influence that they would likely turn the Afalqi over to one of their own rather than to us. They would not be pleased to learn we had allowed their technology to slip out of our hands.
Munro: An arrangement?
Another raised eyebrow from the commanding officer.
Munro: What route do you think Havun has taken?
Jovenan: The Barol system and the ngeb Station are more obvious options, but that could only make them better bluffs. The Nascaik route seems so much more unlikely that it wouldn’t fool us on itself, so it could be where they’re actually heading, just to get us off their tail.
Storm: And the other two are in the opposite direction from this option.
Alex didn't appear to be the only one unsure of the Secretary. She caught several looks in his direction.
Jetripar: Havun was never known for his organisational skills, and I don't see him having the courage to barge into unknown space and ask for shelter. No, I still think ngeb Base seems the most likely option.
Munro: Why would Havun do this? :: to MacKenzie :: I can't help but feel we're missing ‘the why’. If Secretary Jetripar is to be believed, Havun doesn't seem like he could pull this off by himself?
Storm: Do you think Hauven is being used by another group - that this scheme is actually mercenary?
Jetripar: Response
Munro: Klingons don't feel right to me. They don't go in for this level of deception. Someone has been pushing them since we got to Meranuge IV and we have no evidence of their involvement. Are we willing to risk antagonising the Klingons and getting them involved? They wouldn't mind getting their hands on an experimental ship full of Romulan technology, I suspect?
Jovenan: The Klingon Empire is still our ally. Could we ask them for help?
MacKenzie: I could reach out to Klingon High Command, but I agree with Commander Munro - this doesn't feel very Klingon to me at all...
Storm: Klingons aren’t known for their subterfuge.
Jetripar: Response
Munro: Captain, if we select the one trail for the Artemis to track and send out the Atlas and the Prometheus to track the other trails at maximum warp, its unlikely that they would have been able to sustain the false trail for long and we can divert course?
MacKenzie nodded.
MacKenzie: I was thinking the same thing - they have a decent head start but surely they can't be too far ahead if we're still picking up the warp trails... but any false readings will fade out pretty quickly...
Storm: It’s the best idea so far and covers all of our bases at the same time.
Jetripar: Response
Jovenan: The Argo class transports have the maximum speed of warp 7.5. It’s a question of how that compares to the Afalqi’s smallcrafts’ and drones’ performance.
MacKenzie looked to Jetripar and waited to see if he'd be able to reveal any information that might be able to help her weigh the best path forward.
Storm: Maybe the secretary can fill us in on that, or at least what their maximum’s were purported to be.
Jetripar/Munro: Response
Jovenan: The Afalqi and its decoys have considerable headstart, but with our and the Argos’ sensors, we can negate a large portion of it. With their speed, the Argos would be able to reach a negative recognition in… two hours or less. The Artemis takes significantly less. Assuming the decoys don’t have other means to manipulate their signature.
Jetripar/Munro: Response
Jovenan: There’s also the possibility that if either of the Argos find the Afalqi, the Artemis needs to turn around to come face the Afalqi and help our transport. The further we’re apart, the longer it takes for the assistance to arrive.
MacKenzie: Is there any way to calculate how far off course we'd be if we chose the wrong path, and how much longer it might take for us to regroup with either of the shuttles if they find the Afalqi first?
It felt like the Captain was proposing a math problem. If shuttle A was traveling at warp 5.3 and shuttle B was traveling at 4.7, how long would it take before shuttle A overtakes shuttle B? Alex tipped her head and grinned. That was exactly what the Captain was proposing. Fortunately, computers were allowed to aid in solving this problem.
Her fingers arced in calculated movements across her console, and Alex’s eyes jumped from one number to another as she input the parameters.
Storm: According to my numbers, if the Artemis slows down to warp 5 and we send out the Atlas and Prometheus at warp 7.5, and if the false trail or trails are lost within the first hour that the shuttles are out, we stand to put ourselves in the best position to catch the culprits, no matter which way they go.
Jetripar/Munro/Jovenan: Response
Alex watched the Captain as her finger tapped against the armrest of her chair. It wasn't long before a decision was forthcoming.
MacKenzie: Commander, mobilize the shuttle pilots and have them prepare the Atlas and the Prometheus for immediate launch.
Munro: Response
MacKenzie: The Atlas should proceed to the Barol system, and the Prometheus to ngeb Station. We'll head for Nasciak territory. I can't afford anyone but the Artemis to get caught near their territory - at least I'm confident in our ability to diffuse any situations that might come up.
Storm: I’ll concentrate my scans on the area ahead of us, then, but if they are under cloak…
Alex shook her head. A cloak was no excuse for not finding a ship, but it would certainly complicate her search.
Jetripar/Munro/Jovenan: Response
After she initiated her scans, Alex opened an LCARS panel on her console and looked up information on Nasciak and their ships. She would need to know what they were up against. But when the LCARS only produced two small paragraphs on them, her head turned toward the CO.
Storm: I’m unfamiliar with the Nasciak or their territory, and the information on the LCARS is spotty at best. Could you fill us in, Captain?
Jetripar/Munro/Jovenan/MacKenzie: Response
oO Well, at least that’s something. Oo
A blip crossed Alex’s screen. She blinked twice.
Storm: Captain? I have….
But the contact flickered away as quickly as she spotted it.
Storm: I’m sorry. I had something, but either I lost it or I never really had anything to begin with.
Jetripar/Munro/Jovenan/MacKenzie: Response
Storm: Wait. I have it again, but it’s in a different location. It’s almost…
Alex studied the blip until it dissipated again.
Storm: It’s almost like a … reflection. It’s the same signal, but displaced somehow.
The Tactical Officer shook her head.
Storm: I’m not sure how to explain it better. Commander, Jovenan, I’m sending you my sensor data to see if you can figure out what to make of it.
Jetripar/Munro/Jovenan/MacKenzie: Response
~*~
Tags / TBC!
~*~
Lt Alex Storm
Tactical Officer
USS Artemis
O240103SK2