JP - CPO Ral Shal, Sec Off M.Nilsen - Snitches get stitches, so don't tell Sherlock - Part 3
Lhandon Nilsen
(( Boatswain’s Office, Deck 6, USS Artemis ))
Ral rubbed her temples as the screen went dark with Lt. Nilsen's face changed to a saver with the Federation insignia. One problem solved, only to be replaced by five more.
She took a deep breath, took two of the empty PADDs on her desk, and began copying the results of her inquiry into their memory. While she watched the percentages rise towards the end of the copying, there wasn't much else she could do, so she tapped her chest and activated the communicator.
Ral: =/\= Ral to Nemik, any news? =/\=
Nemik: =/\= Ahh, I forgot about you, Chief; yeah, there is news. We called Kerynitis, but got answered by Bajoran Militia. Our team fell into some muddy situation, and they are transported to a local hospital. I already informed the medical and kicked a thing up the ladder. =/\=
Ral slammed her fist on the table and silently lashed out with a few obscene words in Bajortian.
Ral: =/\= Ok, good work, Nemik. Do we know who’s wounded and how critical things are? =/\=
Nemik: =/\= Human Ensign and Trill enlisted. Nothing more. They are taking them to Rakantha Central. =/\=
oO So, Chevalier and Renirs, this day is just great… Oo
Ral: =/\= Yeah, I know whom. Ok, thank you for the information. And Nemik, can you prepare for me a shuttle and let Chevalier’s kid know his ensign is in RCH too? You know who I mean. Blue…Red…his surname is some color…he’s a barista in Brew Con? =/\=
Nemik: =/\= Black? Yeah, I can send a message. And that shuttle, will You fly to Bajor? =/\=
Ral: =/\= No, DS9. And call the station I need to speak with their Security, with Officer Madison Nilsen specifically. =/\=
Nemik: =/\= Aye, Chief. Will do. One eleven will have your name in the hangar. =/\=
Ral: =/\= Thank you Nemik. Ral out. =/\=
Chief Ral closed the channel, closed her eyes, and tried in vain to meditate to get rid of all the negative, destructive thoughts that were running through her head. After the lamp on her desk shattered against the wall opposite it, Ral gave up and pulled the PADDs, which had been successfully updated with information about their investigation, from her computer's dock.
((Replimat, Deep Space Nine))
Madison Nilsen had been having a good day. There was simply PADD work to do. There had been very little for the security officer to deal with, and he dared not say that it was too “Q-word.” He was eating his meal alone, and he quite enjoyed that. There were maybe one or two people in the quadrant that he wouldn’t mind joining him, but he deliberately did not pick the larger table. Empty chairs invite social interaction, and he didn’t want social interaction when he was eating.
He was also happy with his posting on DS9. By choosing to be employed by Bajoran Security rather than Starfleet, he could remain on DS9 and be near Elys Varaan, a Bajoran archaeologist with whom he had struck up a relationship two years prior. It also meant that he would not be randomly posted somewhere else; he left that lifestyle to Lhandon. It suited his older brother better.
So it was a nice, calm, orderly day.
Nothing can ruin it.
OPS: =/\= Officer Nilsen, you have an incoming call for the USS Artemis asking if you can meet with a visitor from the ship. =/\=
Well there goes that. His eyes rolled backwards. o0 just for once, can I eat in peace? 0o
M.Nilsen: =/\= Send them to the security office. =/\=
And Ops did just that. As he walked across the promenade, he thought, why was he getting such a request from the Artemis? He had no connection with that ship. He didn’t even know what class it was. He didn’t care for the nerdiness of some officers who geeked out over the difference between the Excelsior and its refit. Again, he left that to Lhandon.
He wondered also if Lhandon had been transferred to a new ship; he wouldn’t be surprised. The stereotype says that the older brother should be the responsible one, while the younger brother, in this case Madison, should be the rebellious one, but it would seem that neither of them should get the message.
Was Lhando in trouble again?
He sighed.
((Security office, Deep Space Nine))
His boss, the constable of the station was not in the main office, this meant that he had the run of the place, he press a button on the door and was greeted by Chief Petty Officer Ral Shaw.
M.Nilsen: You asked to see me.
Madison seemed less friendly than Lhandon. He was much more stoic and reserved than his older brother. Shorter and more slight too, and nowhere near the rugby player build of Lhandon. He acted like he was born as a middle-aged middle manager, with all the grumpiness that comes with it.
Not like Ral looked more welcoming. Although she was no taller or shorter than Madison, the position of her shoulders and body posture clearly indicated that there would be more muscle and strength behind that fit figure than would be known by looking at that Bajoran grandma in her late forties or early fifties.
Plus, her Starfleet uniform somehow didn’t fit the looks. Somehow, that statue of the woman looked more like those Militia veterans who never transferred to a peaceful life after the liberation, always tense and ready to rip someone's head off, than a softened member of Starfleet spoiled by a carefree life.
Ral: Chief Petty Officer Ral Shaw, USS Artemis. I’m here to report the crime which happened onboard my ship.
Even her strong South Bajoran accent, spoken in a fed standard - that wasn’t UT - referred to a certain pride in her own origin.
M.Nilsen: I see. Have you alerted security on your ship?
Ral: Not yet, although I'm going to grant it once we're done here. Your brother, Lieutenant Lhandon Nilsen, recommended you as a contact person, as this also concerns his ship.
Chief crossed from the wall to the constable's desk and placed a kind of black box on it.
Ral: And newly, your station too. This was found by one of my people in the crate we transported from this station as Starfleet supplies. For your information, inside were no supplies, but smuggled contraband.
M.Nilsen: And what steps have you taken so far?
Madison avoided judgment at this point, wanting to get the facts first, he asked question, just plain simple questions.
Ral: Okay, long story short, Mr. Nilsen. We found two crates of contraband on board Artemis; at least one was meant for Butler as a filler for transport from Betazed. The crate should hold plasma line decouplers, but when we opened the crate; we discovered the crate was empty. Guessing by crate fillers, they smuggled circuit boards of some kind. After the inventory was made, we found a second with fuzes for fusion power generators under EPS control units. And so we come to this ::picks up the box from the table:: The third crate, from YOUR station, should contain empty plasma containers and contain… ::paused:: lateral sensors secondary spare parts. Plus, this little thing. ::throw box back on the table:: Even without that, I believe even you see the problem of someone not making some ‘random mistake’ but obviously is using Starfleet Supply Chain for smuggling.
He nodded and thought to himself o0 the butler, of course, that’s going to lead right to Lhando…great, now my idiot brother is going to get involved. 0o
M.Nilsen: Yes, they are clearly not mistakes. It looks like someone is trying to make it impossible to follow a trail. What is this?
He gestured towards the box that Ral put on the table and with a cautious amount of curiosity, took hold of the box.
Ral raised her eyebrows in a doubtful look.
Ral: Hell, if I know. Some sensor scrambler or something like that, given that thing totally fooled our tricorder scans. We found it an hour ago, so we just take basic analytics for our Security. However, given the fact that my OPS contact I wanted this pile to report is all over some Bajor cave, literally, I will need to conclude who I should report this to get it out of my table.
She really looked like she needed to speak with someone and poor Madison just was in the wrong place at the wrong time to be an unfortunate victim of her rant.
Ral: And there comes my solution - Your crate with this device was found in a box coming from your station, so I made it now your problem—there it is, happy to be your work to take it apart and examine it. One third of the problem is gone; time to celebrate in Quarks, and a bottle of Kanar will do so. Plus travel, plus kicking into some unfortunate OPS officer…give or take, you have an hour, maybe an hour and half, before Starfleet Security will come to visit and start to exercise their authority as all beloved Federales.
M.Nilsen: Just an hour?
Chief added one of the PADDs she was holding next to the instrument.
Ral: Don’t give me that look. Happiness is mandatory, Officer Nilsen. All we found, every detail, every insight, every idea, and every thought I or my people had. Everything on all three crates we were able to put together. Take a look, call your brother. If this is all, I have another work to do, small details like picking what’s left of my little happy enlisted gnomes who are stepping on the antipersonnel mines on this lovely planet into a matchbox, et cetra, et cetra.
Ral stepped to Officer Nilsen and tapped him twice on his chest before she took his hand to shake. Madison knew the gesture. An old soldier’s gesture. He knew this to be a gesture some resistance fighters used, a secret handshake if you will. He returned the gesture in kind, even though a human, Bajor had quickly become his home and the Bajoran’s his people.
Ral: ::taps on her insignia:: Never get promoted. Enjoy the simplicity of footwork. It was nice to meet you. My contact details are on the PADD.
Chief let go of Madison's hand, gave one last smile, and walked out of his office. The door closed, and Madison stood up and took the box. He spoke out loud to himself
M.Nilsen: ::to the box:: An hour with you. What secrets do you have for me?
TBC
--
Chief Petty Officer Ral Shaw, PNPC
Boatswain & Quartermaster
USS Artemis-A
Simmed by Jaseb Chevalier, A240009JC1
&
Officer Madison Nilsen,
Deep Space Nine
as simmed by
Lieutenant JG Lhandon Joseph Nilsen
HCO & Acting Asst. Chief
USS Octavia E Butler
O240007LN1
He/Him/His (Both player and character)