Ensign Alok Munshi - Heartbeat of the Graveyard
Alok Munshi
(( MFT Maximum Thrusters ))
Alok adjusted the strap of his sand-coloured utility vest, the rugged, non-regulation fabric a constant tactile reminder of their undercover status. He sat in the aft space of the Maximum Thrusters, surrounded by the hum of cooling fans and the scent of recycled air. His eyes remained locked on the scrolling telemetry from their intelligence drone, watching the erratic red pulses of the minefield map themselves across his display. It was a high-stakes equation; as the bridge crew navigated the "open lane" toward the Temurian trading post, Alok was busy calculating the variables of the dead zones that Ysatch and Mi'shune were dodging above.
S'zurak: Do we have any more intel about Drakosss Prime’s atmospheric events? Who knows what else could be concealed here.
Sol, looking every bit the merchant spymaster in her form-fitting tunic and leather jacket, shrugged slightly.
McLaren: If he's down there... he picked one of the best spots for it. Enough atmosphere to survive... but just inhospitable enough to keep all but the most determined of prying eyes away.
S’zurak: Commander. It may be nothing, but I am picking up a very faint energy signal coming from this region.
Alok leaned forward, his fingers dancing across his PADD to boost the drone’s narrow-band emitters. He cross-referenced the signal with the gravimetric data he’d been scrubbing.
Munshi: ::His eyes narrowing as he filtered out the background radiation of the planetary collision:: It’s definitely an outlier, Commander. Most of the emissions in this sector are chaotic—residual energy from the shattered planetary cores. But that signal has a precise, low-frequency pulse. It’s not a natural byproduct of an antimatter storm; it’s the heartbeat of a sustained magnetic bottle. Someone is holding back a lot of pressure down there.
Sol studied the readouts a little closer, eyes tracing over the information as it poured in. She tapped a region of the planet and expanded the view of it. It was a region of vapor ocean along what probably could have been termed a beach, if it were for the fact that it was actually a sheer cliff that fell off directly into the vapor. She tilted her head.
McLaren: Does this look strange to anyone else?
S’zurak: I think it warrantsss a closer inspection.
Munshi: The geography doesn't make sense for a standard outpost. That sheer drop into the vapor ocean creates a massive amount of kinetic energy from the crashing waves. From an architectural perspective, it’s a brilliant way to mask the sound—and the vibration—of a high-output power core factory. The ambient 'noise' of the cliffside would swallow a facility's thermal signature whole.
S’zurak: I suspect a sssubterranean facility. Reence would not remain on the surface.
McLaren: Response(s)?
Munshi: If I were Reence, I’d use the density of that cliff rock as a natural insulator for the singularity containment. It would explain why the signal is so faint. We aren't seeing the facility itself; we're seeing the 'bleed' through millions of tons of silicate.
S’zurak considered the mines surrounding the planet. He knew the Orion Syndicate's history of using deterrents to protect their most sensitive assets.
S’zurak: This may be a trap. The signal could be a lure… or one of many falsse leadsss. ::a low rumble:: We should not commit to anything until we are certain.
McLaren: Response(s)?
Munshi: Sir, I can modulate the drone’s secondary sensor array to perform a 'reflected' scan. We bounce the pulse off the frozen riverbeds and read the return delay. If the rock is hollow or contains refined alloys, the math will betray the gap. It’s a bit of 'scavenger logic' I’ve been working on—using the environment to do our dirty work so we don't trip any more duranium alarms.
S’zurak: We’ll keep the drone ssscanning to hunt for other optionsss. Perhapsss I am being too paranoid, but I do not think so.
Alok kept his fingers moving across the holographic interface of his PADD, adjusting the drone’s secondary sensor array to perform the reflected scan he’d just proposed.
Munshi: ::Monitoring the return delay as the pulse bounced off the frozen riverbeds:: I’m modulating the frequency now. If there’s a vacuum-sealed laboratory under that rock, the delta in the return signal will be unmistakable. Rock is consistent; a hollow laboratory with reinforced bulkheads creates a specific acoustic resonance.
He paused, a faint smirk touching his lips as the data began to resolve in grainy, blue wireframes.
Munshi: It’s a bit like mechanical archaeology, really. We aren't looking for a building; we're looking for the gap where a building should be. If I find a section of that cliff that isn't vibrating in sync with the vapor ocean’s kinetic output, we’ve found our 'still' spot. It’s the only logical way to hide the heat-sink requirements of an active forced quantum singularity.
S'zurak/McLaren: Response(s)?
Munshi: ::His hazel eyes brightened with the challenge:: We don't park, Commander. We 'fail.' I can introduce a controlled surge to the port impulse manifold. It’ll make the ship look like we’ve suffered a guidance failure due to atmospheric interference. If we drift toward the coordinates in a tumbling descent, it gives us a logical reason to land near the facility. We’re just a 'clumsy' Lurtz Enterprises freighter trying not to crash into the ocean.
S’zurak/McLaren: Response(s)?
Munshi: Exactly, sir. The 'clumsy merchant' is the most stable variable we have. I’ll start prepping the manifold surge script—just in case the drone finds what we’re looking for.
S’zurak/McLaren: Response(s)?
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Ensign
Alok Munshi
Engineering Officer
StarBase 118 Ops
A240204AM1