Failure to Report

Posted on Thu Aug 1st, 2019 @ 3:51am by Commodore Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri (*) & Commander Adamya Ryon & Lieutenant Junior Grade Karis

Mission: Cosmos
Location: Cosmos Bridge, Deck 1
Timeline: MD04 14:00
2387 words - 4.8 OF Standard Post Measure

The first day on the job was relatively easy. He was a Strategic Operations Officer stuck on the Bridge of a docked starship. It offered Ryon a good chance to catch on news from around the Task Force, but nothing else. It was then that his console chirped a bit and a notification popped up on his console. He gave it a look before turning to face Ledeya, "Captain, the away team has not reported in. They are about thirty minutes late."

Ledeya had changed back into a uniform after the meeting with Ryon and doing a quick walk of the ship found nothing untoward anywhere. Most of the crew were either just to busy to get into mischief or on the planet's surface. "Have they answered communication Commander?" Ledeya asked turning to look at the man and give her fall attention.

Shaking his head in a negative, the newly minted Chief of Strategic Operations replied, "No. That is strange..." His voice trailed off as he tapped some commands on his console to confirm what he was seeing. "Captain, I'm not picking up the team at all. Their comm badges appear to have been turned off, like some kind of dampening field has been turned on over the facility."

The woman frowned as she took in what the man was saying. She was starting to regret the request of sending so many people down to the old Seabase. "When did they disappear? Can you get a science Officer up here as well." She pointed to the duty station that had no one on. It would be a good time for someone from science to be there.

Tapping the internal communications command, Ryon called out, "Science officer to the Bridge." As the channel closed, the Bajoran went through the logs. "Here, they reported that they were going to enter the Seabase, they were lost to sensors within five minutes of boarding the seabase." It was concerning that this was not caught by the junior officers on deck.

Karis sucked in a breath and headed for the turbolift. Sure. . . . the bridge, that was nothing to worry about. Except she'd rarely been on the bridge of the Rhea, and Ryon might be there. And she might say or do something stupid. She spent the ride talking to herself because thankfully there was no one else in the lift. When the doors hissed open she stepped out, "You needed assistance Captain?"

Ledeya turned and saw an unfamiliar Officer stood there. "I don't know you, Lieutenant. But this is your lucky day I need you on Science. I need to know what is happening on the Seabase." The woman said directing the woman to the science console before turning back to Ryon. "I want the specs on the viewscreen."

"Yes, Ma'am." Or maybe she preferred Sir? This wasn't exactly the time to ask, Karis took the station she'd asked and glanced very briefly at Ryon before turning her attention fully on what she was doing. She rubbed her forehead and tried to make sense of the readings she was getting back from the seabase. A bunch of officers missing was nothing to laugh at, no, not missing, just . . . incommunicado. Karis reminded herself.

"Of course, Captain," Ryon responded as his fingers danced on the console. Within a few seconds, the last known coordinates, time since last communication, and last recorded vitals of the away team popped on the screen along with filed blueprints of the station from the Task Force database. With his current job finished, he gave Karis a slight nod before returning his attention to the Captain. "If I were to plan an away mission, I would have split the team into the Bridge and Engineering, with another split for an interesting wildcard," he offered.

"I need to introduce you to my Chief of Security. I think you would like her." Ledeya commented on looking at her PADD thinking Alexis and Gavin would have done the same. Ledeya looked at the blueprints and frowned something wasn't right about the specs. "How long ago were these blueprints last checked Commander? Lieutenant, can you start scanning the base? I want to know how powered up it is."

Quickly checking the date of filing, Ryon shook his head as he replied, "Not anytime recently. The date is a decade old with a minor refit three years later." Looking back toward the Captain, he added, "I look forward to meeting them."

Huffing out a big sigh, Karis spoke. "Well, that's just really helpful. Please tell me there's some kind of secret room with a dampening field over it and the people didn't just disappear? I'm detecting what I would consider sensor ghosts, but I'm not able to lock onto anything permanently." She was mostly talking to herself but knew the others were listening.

"Sensor ghosts are good," Ryon added. He had no experience with Operations but his past as a Tactical/Security officer told gave him a little knowledge into the phenomenon. "Perhaps those ghosts could represent our lost crew. Is there any way to count them individually to see if it matches our numbers?" he left unsaid the possibility that more ghosts could mean the crew was not alone while less meant that their people were missing.

"No, it fluctuates between a couple to as many as a dozen at one time. It could be them, or it could be just a side effect of whatever's going on down there. I'll keep trying to narrow things down though." Karis never looked away from her screen as she said all of this.

The Captain had stayed quiet as the pair theorized and at that moment she knew she had made the correct assumption and decision in bringing them both to her ship. "Keep trying Lieutenant." Ledeya moved over to Ryon and held out the PADD that she had taken the specs from. "I want to know what this area is." She indicated the science area that didn't line up to what she knew of a Seabase.

"It looks like a science lab, but the scale is not anything factory-built," Ryon replied as he gave the schematics a look. He pointed out the EPS relays and base's reactor system, then stated, "It must eat energy, whatever they've been doing." His voice showed some concern, though his time as a Captain taught him to turn his emotional response down more than a few notches.

The pair exchanged a look that only Captains or former Captains could that. Both knew how bad the situation was and how much worse it could get before it was over. "Communications get me a secure channel to Starfleet Command." Ledeya was going to find out what kind of experiments were going on and what Starfleet had walked them blindly into.

"Channel open," Ryon nodded before going quiet. He had used a Task Force channel for high priority communications with Fleet HQ. He leaned back a little in his chair so he could get a better sense of the conversation, his little nook by the front of the Bridge offered a bit of an obstructed view of the viewscreen.

Karis stared at the screen in front of her until she felt an emotional response from Ryon. She resisted looking at him, however and turned her attention to the main viewscreen also. A hand reached up to rub the side of her neck. She wished she could help but she honestly had no idea what was going on down there.

A Bolian appeared on the screen his expression going from confused at the summons to a smile as he saw who was on the communication. "Good Day Captain Ehestri. What can I do for you?"

"Good morning Sir. My crew seem to have hit a roadblock with the Daucina Seabase. They haven't checked in and they are uncontactable along with the plans not quite adding up." The Captain announced and wasn't surprised when she saw the Bolian looked to the side and whispered words that she couldn't quite make out.

"Captain can we speak privately." Ledeya looked at Ryon and indicated the console he was sat at and pulled the metallic Feinberg receiver to her. The Admiral waited patiently but Ledeya wasn't leaving the Bridge at that moment.

"We suspected as much Captain. Why we sent an Intelligence Operative down with your team." The Bolian told her. The annoyance didn't pass over her features but she certainly felt it.

"So he isn't just working for me after all then?" Ledeya asked knowing that not one of the Bridge crew would repeat anything they heard but they wouldn't know the who. The Betazoid held up her hand to stop his explanation she didn't need it there and then she needed answers.

The Bolian Admiral gave a regretful look as he stated, "I am afraid not." Giving a smile as if he were talking to a person who needed to be talked down to, "Now Captain, you know that Starfleet Intelligence matters are above your security clearance level."

Ledeya found herself smirking as she realized that the Admiral was trying to talk down to her of her people. She was raised where women were the ones in charge and not one man in her life had bested her. "I am sure his wife who lost him for five years would wholeheartedly agree with that statement Sir."

"As unfortunate as that is, it is part of wearing the uniform," the Admiral replied. He obviously was not one to be moved by something as little as an officer's family. "You do not have the clearance to get the details of the experiment."

"I will remind your own wife of that Admiral. She is based at Starbase 621 isn't she?" Ledeya said pointedly feeling frustrated. Something was very wrong with the base and goddess help her crew down there. "If you will not give me any information to get my crew out I will investigate myself and hope and pray my crew are alive when I get there Admiral."

Karis was listening, she always listened. It wasn't always to her advantage to have good hearing though it proved useful on occasion. Kriosians were not known for being a strong physical species. They made do but they were more likely to break bones and sprain ankles than most. She let herself briefly think on the events of the Yorktown, how she had been hurt during the battle but also how she had been rescued by Ryon. A small beep made her concentration focus back on the screen in front of her. The away team had reappeared. "Captain," Karis said softly hoping the admiral had not heard her. "I have something."

Ledeya glanced in the other woman's direction before she indicated to the comms operator and made a cut the connection gesture. "I am sorry Admiral you are breaking up. We will have to discuss this another time." The woman said putting the earpiece on the console rising to see what the Lieutenant. "What have you found?"

"The away team has reappeared," Eden said. "I can't quite get a lock on them but I can read their life signs and see where they are," Karis replied, looking up at the Captain and awaiting further instructions.

"But what are all of these?" Ledeya asked as other signals started to jump around all over the base. Ledeya glanced back at the other bridge crew as the scan appeared on the view screen for them all to see.

"I'm not sure, I thought they were the same sensor ghosts from earlier but they appear slightly different." Karis sighed and rubbed a hand across her forehead. "I wish I could be of more help Captain, but I feel like the only clear way to get an answer is to open a window and shout down there, ask them what they're up to." She hoped the little joke would be tolerated.

Ledeya's lips curved into a small smile. She appreciated anyone who could bring humour to a situation where 90% of the senior crew were missing. "I think Lieutenant that is a fantastic idea." The Betazoid commented on a plan forming in her head as she thought on who best to pilot.

"I can take a shuttle down," Ryon offered. "My command codes should open the station and a shuttle would help give the crew an out." Shaking his head slightly, "I don't trust the transports with that dampening field. Something doesn't seem right."

Ledeya nodded just once to let him know he had permission to go. At least a shuttle could see from the outside with the glass. It was a logical option to able to see in.

"And what if the same thing happens to you once you get down there? What if we can't contact you?" Karis didn't want to sound too worried, she knew Ryon would want to help in any way he could and Starfleet was incredibly important to him.

"I'll have my phaser and a shuttle," Ryon replied as reassuringly as possible. Pointing out a past experience, he said, "Remember when Haulval took me through the Badlands and we got captured? I've been through worse." The mission that he was referring to was a moment back on the Rhea when the two officers were captured and tortured by an unknown group of insurgents.

"True," Karis replied, turning back to her screen. There was no need to tell him to be careful, she knew he would be as much as possible.

“Risk is part of the uniform,” Ryon added. Of course, he would be careful, but there were no guarantees. He stood and nodded to the Captain. “I’ll take one of the Type 9 shuttles,” he requested as he made his way to the turbolift.

Though she had not sensed any large emotions over the subject, his comment still felt sharp to her, as if he'd been reprimanding her for forgetting that fact. She let out a breath and determinedly did not look at the turbolift doors as she heard them open and close.

OFF::

Captain Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri
Commanding Officer
USS Cosmos / TG 72-B
(PNPC Gregnol)

Commander Adamya Ryon
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
USS Cosmos
(PNPC McIntyre)

Lieutenant (jg) Karis
Science Officer
USS Cosmos
(PNPC Bowers)