PNPC 1LT Alene Torado — Jenga
Naxell
((Holodeck 2, Deck 5, USS Khitomer, approaching DS33))
Torado: Right. That was a hover-lift back there, but it could have been anything. If you don’t have intelligence about what’s behind your target, too, the TR-82 might not be the tool for the job. Unless it’s the only one you’ve got.
The goal here was to familiarize Morda with the toolset the marines had available to them, not to necessarily convince Khitomer’s Security forces that they had to use them. Alene’s marines understood themselves to be supplementary to Starfleet’s mission, and while the Lattice War gave them plenty of reason to fight, there was a reason Torado encouraged each and every one of her infantrymen to develop a variety of hobbies. If everything was going according to plan, generally she and her marines had little else to do but keep themselves both sharp and sane.
Morda: Any limitations or bizarre events when fired in a vacuum or non-M-class atmosphere?
Torado: Vacuum’s peachy. Generally, same hazards as firing a phaser rifle. Only bigger.
There were standard warnings about firing particle weapons like phasers in certain environments, like a planet with a primarily methane-based atmosphere. Attempting to do so would blow up in your face. Attempting to do so with the TR-82 would blow up in everyone else's, too.
Morda: ::Gesturing toward the TR-82:: And after firing this one -- just seat another charge and it’s good, or do other components burn out after each use?
Torado: In theory, that's the only thing you'll need to change out. In practice, especially for an extended deployment with environmental factors, if you don't give it a deep cleaning I wouldn't count on more than a dozen cycles before something gives.
Morda: Response
That was partly a function of the number of components built into this deceivingly complex weapon, and partly a function of the kinds of places a marine would typically find herself firing from. Muddy ditches, wooded shrubbery, the occasional mostly-uncleared minefield…
Torado: Alright, you slot in the next pack, and I'll sight in the next target.
Morda: Response
Torado: Precision, with the set’s structural analysis feature. We'll use half strength on this one.
Alene shifted her weight in a slight roll to her right, which had the paired effect of making more space for Morda to maneuver the bulky battery, and easing some of the pressure building up from laying prone on an only somewhat comfortable foam pad. Holding the binoculars to her eyes again, she quickly found the next structure. An observation post, of similar architecture as to the barricade and gate they'd previously attacked. It was built up as a high tower, but was supported by a system of scaffolded beams, pillars, and cross-beams, around a spiraling staircase that descended from the compartment at the top of the tower.
As with the previous target there was no activity. No personnel wandering around or descending. It was nothing more than a set piece to train on. In her sights, the structure received faint digital highlights, tracing over every line and shadow the device’s computer suspected of being part of the structure. She kept her sights trained on it so that Morda's scope could do the rest when he was ready.
Morda: Response
TBC
——— ▯ ———
1st Lieutenant Alene Torado
Marine Officer
USS Khitomer (NCC-62400)
As simmed by
Commander Nax-Ellarneii-Tellargo
Commanding Officer
USS Khitomer (NCC-62400)
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