Star Trek: Season 7 - Masquerade

[Geekyfanboy]

The U.S.S. Arabella hung there in space dock as support crafts moved slowly away.

"Captain, all docking moors are released," Aeric said from his seat at the operations station. " Umbilical are detached. The Arabella is now functioning on internal power. We are clear for departure."

A standing Quinn smiled and looked towards the andorian female that was currently at the Conn. "Miss Thela, bring us ahead at one quarter impulse."

"Aye Captain," the young lieutenant junior grade said. With a few keystrokes and an almost poetic flare, her light blue fingers danced over the console."

The Arabella slowly began to clear the space dock. Work Bees and other facility support craft paused in their duties to turn their attention to the exiting ship. Reaction control thrusters flared intermittently to maintain course while the ship freed itself of its birthplace.

Back on the bridge of the vessel, Quinn finally took his seat, but kept his attention on the view screen. With a smile to his executive officer, he activated the communications systems from his chair. "Mr. K'arath, how are things looking in engineering?"

"You will have warp power at your order captain," replied the gruff Klingon voice of the Chief Engineer.

"Thank you Mr. K'arath, I would like to see just what the Arabella is capable of." Quinn said. "Lieutenant Thela. Set a course for Grid 26, Quad 02, Sector 75."

"All stations are reporting ready status Captain," Commander Sevryll said after a cursory glance at her console.

Thela responded with another series of keystrokes. "Course laid in Captain."

"Prepare to go to warp at best sustainable speed."

"Yes Sir."

The majestic ship swiftly altered its heading to the new direction. Soft blue light radiated from the warp nacelles as they rapidly moved into warp configuration.

"Engage!" said Quinn with a nod.

The soft blue glow swiftly grew in brilliance as the ship leapt into warp and departed Vulcan in a flash of light. Inside the ship, the Chief Engineer smiled as the warp reactor swirled and pulsed into life. It was perhaps one of the smoothest transitions to warp that any aboard had ever felt. K'arath smiled at the sound of the new engines, it was a low purr that made the ship seem both alive and eager to be in motion.

Crewmen and officers moved about their stations as the Arabella began her maiden voyage. The members of the bridge staff readied themselves for what might lay just beyond the horizon. On Quinn's shoulders rested the hopes and anticipation of not just the crew, but the Federation.

"Adventure awaits." Quinn said with a smile as he glanced over to his number one.

joint post Startrekfanatic5 & Just X

[institches]

Spring stepped into her new quarters and automatically reached for something to hold on to. The gravity was off! Or, she realized a moment later, very light. She settled to the floor and tapped her com-badge. "Ensign Farmer to Engineering," she sent through the scent-vocalization translator.

"Engineering here," came the short minty response.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but the gravity isn't working in my quarters."

"Belay that," came another, much closer voice. "Never mind, Engineering. Computer, set gravity to normal." A hand came out of nowhere, or rather down from the ceiling. It was attached to a freckled arm, which in turn was attached to a freckled and rather small person. She was hanging from a metal framework set into the ceiling. "Ensign Ginny Sikes, engineering, nice to meetcha. You're my new roommate, Spring Farmer. You're a botanist and you're fertillian. Also, you like jelly beans. But I couldn't get any information on those." The rapid changes in Ginny's vocal odors almost slurred together, they came so fast.

"But why--"

"Why was the gravity set low?" She jumped down and straightened her disheveled clothes.  "I like to challenge myself. You never know when something might surprise you. I thought all fertillians were bald."

Ginny's abrupt change of subject surprised Spring. "I am. This is just--"

"And their gills were on their faces, not on their necks, like you. Are you genetically engineered? My father was. I'm not, but I got some of his bonuses. I took that room," she hooked a thumb over her shoulder. "Lucky it's soundproofed, if you know what I mean."

Ginny gave off no sexual aura, but she did notice something strange in the young woman's personal odor. No serotonin. "You don't sleep, do you?"

"Nope. Part of Daddy's inheritance. I feel like grape juice." She bounded to the food replicator. "Do you want a drink?"

"Perfect."

"Funny. I haven't had grape juice in months, but I want some now. I can't handle stimulants like coffee or raktijeno. Even chocolate. You know, obvious reasons." Ginny laughed, a high-pitched whinny that smelled like tart apples. "Two grape juices, please." The drinks appeared and Ginny handed one to Spring.

"You should probably go check out your digs. Most people can only handle a few minutes until they get used to me."

She was right. Spring could barely sort out the complex smells coming from the wiry young ensign. It was like participating in five conversations at once.

She was still talking as Spring crossed the room. "Maybe that's why I got through academy so quickly--the teachers wanted to get me out of their classes. No, just kidding. It's that no sleeping thing. I got eight more hours a night than everyone else--great time to study, read, exercise, dance, clean..."

Spring shut the door to her room and leaned against it. "Computer, activate olfactory interface."  She stripped off her gland covers and used her native language to more quickly locate and contact her friend.

The familiar cotton candy voice came. "Heya, Mackie, all settled in?"

She laughed. "You're not going to believe this..."

[X]

Shortly after the Arabella began her voyage, Aeric departed from the operations station, leaving his new assistant at the post. While he wanted to be on the bridge at the departure, his duties required him to spend some of his duty hours within his office.

As the Chief of Operations, it was his job to make sure that power distribution, the allocation of sensor usage, and the crew assignments flowed smoothly.

Aeric quietly left the turbo lift and made his way to his office. His PADD already contained several request for lab usage and access to the various sensor suites. He reviewed the PADD as he continued down the corridor hardly paying attention to his surroundings. He knew this ship as well as he knew the Aurora. He was one of the handful of current crew that had been involved in the construction of the ship.

The doors to his office slid open and he entered into the vanilla and lavender scented room. While not as spacious as the offices of the captain or XO, his office was more than functional.

A replicated desk made of a deep red vulcan hard wood served as his primary work station. A work station and communications unit rested on the desk next to a stack of blank white paper and a matching wooden cylinder that contained several styles of ink pens.

Behind the desk was an almost overstuffed chair in the same color scheme. The room also contained a similarly colored couch with a glass table before it. It was from there that he could entertain visitors and use the larger surface area of the table to hold briefing materials. A zen sand garden sat on the table beside vulcan meditation candles.

One of his office walls contained a bookcase made of the same wood that was filled to capacity with various novels and bound versions of the regulations. As somewhat of a linguist, the books from the various cultures were written in their native languages. The teaching of the vulcans, humans, klingons, and others rested beside each other in a peace that was often hard fought to maintain. The top shelf of the bookcase contained a remote controlled replica of the Tiberius that rested on a transparent aluminum stand.

Aeric moved to his desk and allowed his office door to close behind him. He slipped into the chair and closed his eyes. With minimal effort, his mind connected to his work station and he began to process the various request as rapidly as his abilities allowed him.

"Computer, dim lights by 45% and play Earth artist Louis Armstrong song title Mack the Knife at ambient levels."

He had fallen in love with the smokey vocals when he attended a holodrama of The Threepenny Opera. While he also enjoyed the original german version Die Moritat von Mackie Messer, this one was by far his favorite.

Aeric divided his attention between completing his work and enjoying the comforts of his office. It was another of the benefits of the machines in his body. He could merge both work and pleasure if he multitasked and it made no sense to not take advantage of that.

[iceman]

Casey had been in his office for hours, well past the end of Alpha shift, he had been going over the medical records of his new crew and helping his medical staff complete the crew medicals which was mandatory for all crew starting a new assignment.

The only members left to do was the senior staff and he had purposely left that to the end. He sent the following communiques out to Captain Quinn, Commander Syvrll and Lt Commander Margon. This would be the first time he would have seen them since his wedding and the first time for Commander Syvrll to meet his wife Myella.

With that done, he finally left sick bay and headed back to his quarters to have a late dinner with his wife.

[Bryancd]

K'ararth stood at his station in Main Engineering as the Arabella began to accelerate. His staff were intently monitoring their systems as the thrum of the warp core began to increase in intensity. The soft blue glow pulsed with the power of matter/antimatter controlled annihilation. The deck plates vibrated slightly beneath his feet, imperceptible to most but it was a personal conversation between him and the ship.
K'ararth looked over at young Ensign Took, the newest member of his engineering team. The young man was quiet but came with the Captains recommendation and that was good enough for him. He walked up behind Took and glanced over his shoulder at his work station.
Took didn't turn around but noticeably stood up straighter and squared off his shoulders.
"Mr. Took!"
"Sir!" Took spun around, ramrod straight.
K'arath leaned forward and grinned, "Fast ship, Mr. Took."
Took hesitated for a moment trying to figure if this was a rhetorical question or not.
"Yes sir..." he tentatively replied.
K'arath let out a loud laugh, drawing everyones attention. Took noticeably relaxed.
"Fast ship indeed! Let's show our Captian what she can do!"
A cheer resounded through the room and if had they all been Klingon, a song would have ensued.

[X]

Aeric mind raced rapidly through the incoming information at blinding speed. He has completed in minuted what it would have taken hours for someone without his gifts to accomplish. It was during his interface with the Arabella that he realized the benefits that constantly maintaining that connection would allow. Even a mild subconscious connection would improve his efficiency by several factors.

Using his innate abilities in conjunction with his machines, he could easily maintain a read only connection to the ship's systems. This would allow him to rapidly process changes in operational information without overwhelming his mind. The interface would also allow him to access the databases of the ship and have intuitive access to that information. It was perhaps the best way to entertain a mind that always found itself drifting towards warp field and subspace calculations. He didn't know it was because of the unique nature of his birth or his father's race When his mind was not involved in active thought, it was drifting towards subspace theory.

Aeric could feel when a ship was at warp, not from some tangible information, but from the warp field of the vessel. He had learned to trust those abilities when designing the Aurora and it had yielded warp field capabilities that made the vessel the fastest of her size. It was that same sense of subspace that had propelled him into being one of the best pilots in Starfleet. It was also the ability that concerned him most.

He knew nothing of his father's people and even less about his father. In all of his timelines, he had never been able to learn more than the name of that species. It was that very instinct that constantly pushed him to go further and faster. Somewhere there would be answers to those questions. Someday he would need to seek them out.

Today wasn't that day.

Today he needed to complete his shift. Today he needed to push aside the loneliness of being unique. Today he needed to enjoy life. If only for a moment, he needed to push away the truth and look upon the crew as more than just faces that would grow old and die around him.

He had to remind himself that it was alright for them to pass with time. He had seen so much death in his short life. To look at the shorter lived races and see their lives snuffed out so soon pained him, but each day he needed to push past that. His life might allow him to serve beside the great great great grandchildren of those that he currently served with.

When they were nothing more than dust on the wind, he might still be around and that terrified him. Perhaps the thought of subspace and warp fields were a blessing if it kept thought of love and mortality at bay.

[Jen]

The captain glowed with a zeal that Sevryll mused could be utilized as an alternate source of illumination, should the lighting suddenly fail aboard his new vessel. It was good to see Nathan happy again. The vulcan successfully restrained the smile that threatened to sink her stoic air, and turned her gaze back to the view screen.  It was difficult to leave Vulcan, but circumstances allowed for no other alternative. That crisis had been averted for the time being, but it was logical to assume it would return to plague her once more. In the mean time, she and her children had begun a new chapter in their lives—one that she hoped would hold a better ending than the last. 

The Arabella was headed to Starbase 35, to drop off four vulcan refugees. Among them were her parents, who would then travel to Earth where they would remain until her return. Sevryll was troubled by her recent conversation with her father. He was displeased with their sudden departure, for he was not a man who heeded warnings or ran when he was threatened. This fact was evident by the mental scars he bore. Romulan torture techniques had proven to be a challenge for the vulcan masters, yet he had made progress and would continue to improve, she was sure of it.

Despite the results of her actions, Sevryll would do anything to ensure that her father never suffered again... even if that meant forcing him to run and drawing his disapproval. Yet, as his only child, she was precious to him; and as his only daughter she was a treasure.  More often than not the bonds that fathers and daughters share are evergreen, and Sevryll was aware of this fact. He may have been displeased in that moment, but his displeasure would soon drift like dust carried away by arid gusts over golden dunes.

[Omra]

Korridan entered the brightly lit Main Shuttle Bay, though the deck plates throbbed with power from the ships engines there was little ambient sound.  He cast his eyes about for the man he was to meet, and they fell upon two legs sticking out from beneath a sleek looking runabout.  He walked towards it, as he neared he could hear absentminded humming coming from beneath the Volga Class Runabout.  He stopped next to the wiggling boots and his gaze went to the old beaten toolbox next to them.  He smiled when he read the name on it, and a mischievous grin spread across his face.

He let his heavy and battered toolbox slip from his fingers, it landed with a loud crash.  It was immediately followed by a surprised yelp, and the sound of the mechanics head impacting the dorsal fin of the runabout.  Cursing in an ancient Terran tongue soon followed.

An old Mountain Man with wind and sun etched features and long grey and white hair pulled back into a ponytail shimmied out from under the dorsal assembly muttering angrily, "By the Old Ones,.. who the..."  He saw Korridan and shook his head while rubbing it, "I should have known it was you, you old grease jockey."  He chuckled while rubbing the pain from his forehead.

Korridan smiled at the sight of the old Hunter, "When Rina told me there was actually someone here older than me, I was hoping it was 'Hillbilly'."  The Trapper grinned at the mention of his old nickname, "Yeah well I won't be getting any older if you keep THAT up," pointing to Korridans scuffed up behemoth of a toolbox.  They both laughed.

The tall old man slowly got to his feet, his knees popped loudly as he stood, "I can't believe O'Brien actually allowed you to transfer," he shook his head, "that old Cardassian roulette wheel is always breaking down..."  Korridan just grinned, "I was getting too good at darts," and then he shrugged, "and he owed my money..."  They chuckled.

The Master Chief grabbed his PADD and began transmitting data to Korridans PADD, "You can start with the Type 10's," he nodded in their direction.  Korridan looked in the direction indicated, and saw the spotless shuttlecraft.  The Chief sat his PADD down and continued, "Remove the governors, and then reset the factory defaults to those spec's I sent you..." he pointed to Korridans PADD.

Korridan tore his eyes from the virgin shuttlecraft and looked at the Chief, "Their all new?"  The Former Colonist smiled, his gleaming white teeth a sharp contrast to his dark features, "Still got the protective plastic wrap on the seats!"

Korridan shook his head in amazement, as he hefted his old and familiar toolbox and made his way to the new and unblemished shuttecraft.  He felt so old and out of place among all the gleaming new ships and hardware.

As he approached the nearest shuttle with its shrouded matter collectors, he called back over his shoulder, "I'll try not to make too much noise, I know how you like your afternoon naps..."  The Chief laughed and retorted, "By noise I assume you mean snoring..."  They laughed.

The Mountaineer threw an accusing glare, "Speaking of napping; remember now, your on a ship," he wagged a tool at him, "not a station full of hiding places."  He gestured with the tool as if it were a Hunting Rifle, "You try and duck out of work, and I will hunt you down and find you..."  He gave him a vicious grin, "I am a Hunter after all!"

Korridan waved away his old associates jest, "Yeah, yeah, I hear you 'Hooch'..."

The Notorious Still Maker pretended to be hurt by the name, "That's 'Moonshine'", he threw back a mock insult, "Orb-polisher!"

The Shuttle bay echoed with raucous laughter.

[Geekyfanboy]

Joint post Jen, Rico and Startrekfanatic5

Nathan Quinn called his senior staff to the observation lounge and left Lieutenant Tucker in charge of the bridge. "After you," he said to his first officer with a smile and he gestured to the door at the rear of the bridge.

Sevryll rose from her chair and was joined by Lieutenant K'Tan as she strode with a purposeful gait toward the exit. A moment later the three officers entered the lounge and took their seats. One by one, the department heads filed into the room and bathed the atmosphere with optimism. The senior staff looked forward to their new assignment with the buoyant enthusiasm of a green recruit. Their eagerness presented itself in smiles and handshakes as each officer greeted one another and seated themselves around the glossy black surface of the conference table. It had been a year since most had seen each other—they had come a long way and were finally home again.

Counselor Margon cracked a joke and the room erupted in chuckles... even K'arath favored the blue man with a smile. The humor was lost on Sevryll, yet she felt it would be rude not to acknowledge Margon's wit. So the Vulcan raise an eyebrow as the Bolian as his grin turned in her direction.

A moment later, the multiple conversations were lulled to a hush as the captain stood and addressed the officers. "I was very pleased that many of you accepted my offer to return to serve under my command once again. I would like to introduce you to a new member of our senior staff. Lieutenant Joseph De'Callen, he will be taking over the Chief of Security position." Quinn stood behind Joseph and gave his shoulder a squeeze. There were several friendly "Welcomes". Quinn cleared his throat and continued. "I would also like to acknowledge the promotion of one of the finest officers I have had the pleasure of working with, Lieutenant Aeric James. Not only is he our new Chief of Operations but Sevryll and I have chosen him to be our Second in Command." Quinn gave James a nod and a smile as everyone clapped and gave their congratulations.

Quinn then activated the screen at the head of the lounge and the Starfleet insignia emerged from the field of black, only to be replaced an instant later by Admiral Talbot's wise visage.

"Captain Quinn, my fellow officers and friends aboard the U.S.S. Arabella. I regret not being able to see you off on your new exploratory mission to the Beta Quadrant. Getting back to Vulcan from my uh, previous location took somewhat longer than I anticipated." The Admiral said, with a wry grin.

"However, I wanted to pass along a few words of wisdom that I have acquired over my time in Starfleet. Nathan, you are a good captain. Trust your instincts even when presented with little information. Which is something that comes with the gold braid more times than you might like. Sevryll, I know the past year has been a difficult one. But know that you are needed, maybe now more than ever. And remember every experience shapes us and helps us grow stronger." Talbot said and then took a short pause to gather his thoughts as he rubbed the day old stubble on his chin.

"As for the rest of your fine crew, I know this is an exciting time. You are now going into an area where truly no one has gone before. I wish I could be there with you to explore these strange new worlds and new civilizations. But this is your time, savor it and learn from it. Always remember you are not only Starfleet officers but also representatives of the Federation. I expect all of you to give your best." Talbot said and then leaned a bit closer to the recording scanner.

"May the wind always be at your backs. Talbot out," he said, moving to shut the recorder off.

The admiral was quickly replaced by the Starfleet insignia and a moment later an image of their destination transitioned onto the screen. It was a beautiful green and blue world hugged closely by two rocky moons.  Quinn neared the screen and turned to face his senior staff that still smiled at the admiral's comments. He grinned and glanced over his shoulder at the screen, "Before we departed space dock, I received orders to investigate the apparent disappearance of several Federation Scientists. There are ten in all who infiltrated the native population in order to study the culture. Three have failed to report to their superiors at the designated six month interval." Nathan clasped his hands behind his back and began to circle the room, occasionally glancing to various officers whose collective attention followed him around the table.

"The civilization of this world could be compared to medieval age of ancient Earth.  Since the researchers' arrival, this society has undergone advances that are unachievable without outside interference. Our assignment is to locate these missing Anthropologists, and investigate the reasons behind the native's sudden progression in agriculture, architecture, philosophy and medicine. It is suspected that these researchers have contaminated the culture, but we cannot rule out the possibility that other sources are to blame." Quinn stopped beside Sevryll and turned his gaze to Margon and then to K'Tan and Joseph D'Callen.

"The populace consider these new technologies to be magic. Mass hysteria has resulted and certain governments have enacted witch-hunts and inquisitions. Their society has been thrown into chaos and both the researchers and the native population is in great danger. We too will be in danger." He turned his gaze to Sevryll, who was still seated in her chair, and nodded.

The vulcan parted her hands, which had been folded before her on the table, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "The geology of this planet obstructs orbital scans, thus making an away mission our only viable option. The use of tricorders will be limited—preventing scans of broad areas. They will only be useful when in close proximity to the subject, and even then... the data collected may be deficient.  The captain and I will lead two teams during the away mission. My party will be comprised of medical and science officers and a small contingent of security officers. We will seek evidence that will explain the technological advancements in these fields and search for the missing scientists. The captain's group will be comprised of engineering, tactical and security officers. They will seek the researchers and look for data that will clarify their advancements in war and industry."

Sevryll gave Quinn a nod as she finished. Nathan continued to pace around the room. "It is imperative that we do not cause anymore damage to this culture. We need to get in there, locate our missing scientists, see if they are responsible for what is happening and get out." Quinn stopped at the head of the table. "Are there any questions?" Aeric caught Quinn's eye. "Yes lieutenant." Aeric cleared his throat, "What if we find out that these scientists are responsible for what is happening to this civilization." Quinn took a deep breath, "Well have to cross that road when we get to it. Anything else?" Quinn waited a moment. "Good, we will be running simulations using our new Camelot holoprogram to help us integrate into this civilization at 1800 hours.... Dismissed!!"

[iceman]

Joint post between Iceman and Moyer777



Dr. Peterson stayed behind to Talk to Commander Sevryll and the Captain, to ask if perhaps it would be prudent to modify some of the crew members appearance including the Commanders in case of capture.

The Doctor was in-fact concerned for his friend, Commander Sevryll, due to the witch hunt and high paranoia of the planet culture they were going into, and did not want the commanders appearance to garner any unwanted attention and put her life in danger.

Both, the Captain and Commander were both appreciative of Casey's suggestion and Commander Sevryll suggested that they could discuss this when she came to sickbay for her physical before the mission began.

Doctor Peterson headed back to sickbay to await the Arrival of his good friend Counselor Margon and began to tackle the paperwork that was mounting up on his desk.

Meanwhile...

Margon scratched his cat's ears just in the right place.  The animal purred and nudged him for some more. 

"Sorry Mr. Mouse, I need to visit our friend the Dr." he said with a smile.  "It's time to get reacquainted."

Margon stood up, "Computer, while I am away from my quarters please attend to Mr. Mouse"

The computer chirped and a bowl of feline supplement 77 materialized next to a water dish by the scratching post.

"Mr. Mouse will be taken care of" said the computer dryly.

Margon straightened his uniform and walked out into the corridor.  He observed the various life forms around him, smiling at them as he passed.  Some he stopped and introduced himself too, others he nodded and smiled at.

He entered the turbo lift and spoke out, "Sick Bay"

The familiar whir of the turbo lift ensued and the doors hissed open on deck 5.

The Counselor walked slowly down the corridor taking in the new ship and it's crew coming to Sick Bay, he entered to see Dr. Peterson in his office.

"Casey!"  the Bolian raised his voice happily, "How are you?  How is married life?"

Dr. Peterson got up from his desk and walked over to his friend and gave him a big hug and replied " Married life is great. It has been too long my friend. I have really missed you"

While they talked Dr. Peterson casually waved his medical Scanner over the Counselor and watched the readings. After awhile Casey closed the scanner and reached for a hypo. The hypo was placed on his friends shoulder and the familiar "HISS" sound of the hypo emptying its contents into his friends shoulder and the relief in the Margons face ensured Dr. Peterson that his diagnosis was right.

"This should take care of the touch of Arthritis you have in your shoulder Casey said" as he handed Margon a Red coloured Lollipop.

Margon thanked Dr. Peterson then smiled as he said. Cherry, My favorite, how did you know."

They both laughed as they talked about the upcoming mission and caught up on a years worth of events. After about an hour Margon left to prepare for the mission and Casey informed Myella of his up coming away mission Planetside as he waited for Commander Sevryll to Arrive.

[Jen]

Joint post by Jen and Just X

The first patients Doctor Drett saw during her shift, were two vulcaniod children. They were fraternal twins, a boy and a girl with similar features but unique personalities. A familiar face brought them to sickbay for their check-up. She recognized the man who accompanied them as the individual who helped her investigation on Tiberius, by hacking Doctor Lucas's encrypted logs. Because the man broke the encryption, Lieutenant K'tan was able to learn valuable information about the virus that had killed so many on Tiberius. The man had only offered her his first name and she never saw him again.

"Hello," she said with a warm smile.

"Hi doc," said Dennis as he encouraged the children to follow him into the room.

"Long time no see," said Ryla. Dennis shrugged in response. "Still a mystery she thought," as she looked up at the towering hulk standing before her. Her features softened and her dimpled smile grew as she glanced down at the children.

"My name is Doctor Drett," said the trill. "But that's sometimes hard to say... so you can call me 'Doctor D'" if you'd like." The boy surprised her with a smile of his own—she had expected the commander's children to be more reserved, like Aria.

Ryla noted how the little girl was careful to keep Dennis between herself and the strange doctor. Her wide eyes roamed the room and after a few seconds she asked, "Where's my sister?"

"She's here...somewhere. Would you like to see her?" asked the pretty lady in the blue coat. The little girl nodded enthusiastically and Ryla tapped her combadge, "Drett to Ensign James. Please report to main sickbay."

"On my way," came the soft alto over the com.

Ryla motioned to the bio beds and Dennis helped the three-year-olds onto them as she prepared her medical tricorder. The little girl watched her nervously as the trill neared.

As a pediatrician, Dr Drett was use to treating some children with kit gloves. Many shared M'ryn's phobia, a fear that was once called 'white coat syndrome.' Ryla usually began by explaining, in general terms, how things worked and then allowed the child to conquer their fear by holding the device.  "This box makes a funny noise but it won't hurt you. She flipped open the tricorder to demonstrate the whirring, chiming sounds the device made. M'rynn had seen many tricorders during her short three years, but Ryla showed her anyway.  "When I wave it around like this," Ryla passed the tricorder over herself, "it will tell me what I look like on the inside. See?" She showed the girl the data on the tricorder. " I'll let you use it on me after we're finished, and then we'll look at the pictures over there." The petite blond motioned to a monitor near by, where the images would be examined.

"M'rynn doesn't like doctors anymore," said N'vall as his sister shook her head adamantly. During the disaster aboard Tiberius, the children had contracted the virus and were placed in cryostasis, to slow the progress of the disease while the inhibitor was developed. M'rynn had panicked when the lid to the cryotube was sealed. She had slapped at the glass wildly until the gas overcame her and she slipped into a deep sleep. The timid little girl had been traumatized by that event and the quarantine that followed had been particularly difficult as treatments were administered and exams were routinely performed. This was the primary reason Sevryll had moved her children from the space station to the nearby surface of vulcan, the second quarantine was lifted.

"I see..." said Ryla. Just then Aria entered sickbay and the children's faces brightened. Drett greeted Sevryll's cloned daughter and passed her the tricorder. "I think Ms. M'rynn would prefer if you preformed her physical."

"I'd be happy to help," Aria said as she turned her attention to her younger siblings. It was obvious how nervous M'rynn was. People healed in their own time, but her little sister had made little progress with her phobias. Perhaps it was best to just open a dialog. Aria opened the tricorder and removed the sensor. She slowly ran it over her sister's form as the little girl watched. "Why don't you like doctors anymore?" The little girl leaned to the right to look around her much older sister. The pretty lady in the blue coat was watching them from across the room. The little girl's brother started to speak for her, as he often did, but Aria silenced him, "let M'rynn tell me," she said gently.

Aria extended delicate fingers and gently pushed back a lock of whispy black hair that had fallen into the toddler's eyes. She tucked the strand behind the girl's small, pointed ear, and said, "it's OK, you can tell me."

M'rynn's eyes welled up with tears and she shook her head in refusal. Dennis, who had been standing near by, put a massive hand around the little girl's shoulder to comfort her, "she just doesn't like them," he said firmly. "But... she likes you, and she likes Margon and I'm sure one day the two of you will help her overcome her fear... though that ain't about to happen today."

"Babysitter, bodyguard and councilor... You are indeed a Rhodes Scholar." Aria winked at Dennis. She was happy to see how protective he was of her sister. She took M'rynn's small hand in her own and said, "You don't have to talk about anything you don't want to. You also have the right to not like anyone that you choose, but if you get to know Doctor Drett, I think you'd find her to be a great friend. I've also had my own problem with doctors, but we shouldn't rush to judge people without getting to know them first."

She then leaned in and whispered softly while she finished her scans. "If you ever want to talk about anything, your big sister is here for you. I promise. In fact, I think that you, N'vall and I are overdue for a holo adventure. If mother doesn't mind, we can use one of the holosuites after my shift. I'm sure there are things that Dennis would like to do while we are having fun. We can even bring Beth."

As Ryla watched from the other side of the room she saw the little girl smile for the first time. "I wonder what Aria said..." the trill thought to herself.  Soon after the exams were complete, the twins said good-bye and followed Dennis into the corridor. Doctor Drett joined Aria at the bio bed as the younger woman put away her equipment. "Have you ever considered pediatrics?" she asked with a smile.

[KingIsaacLinksr]

Rava Ronan looked around in his quarters.  They were small and quaint, but would serve him nonetheless.  He could hardly believe how things had changed so quickly.  He though bitterly upon the events at GJ-100, how the mission had gone badly and the Captain had pretty much thrown him off the Trident.  He could not figure out whether his luck had gone up or down.  He could feel the ship going into warp which meant they had left space dock.  "Maybe it is a good thing that I'm going on this mission.  It will be a fresh start to a new life." 

Rava Ronan had little to do until his first shift so he went to the Lounge.  He sat at the table nearest to the windows watching the stars fly by.  Little to think of but home, he wondered how he would ever regain his faith in a faith that had been used.  That betrayal would never leave him.  He did not know the answer to his dilemma.  As he sat there, he heard someone walk up behind him.

[Meds]

Joint Post by HawkeyeMeds and Bryancd

Joseph held the Chief of Security promotion certificate carefully. Slowly he let it go and there, pride of place in his new office, on the wall, it hovered securely. Smiling he turned round and surveyed the room. He had placed several personal possessions such as his cricket bat in the cabinet next to the replicator.

"Coffee , hot, one sugar"

The replicator buzzed and there in front him appeared his drink.

"Ah first drink of the day"

Taking his hot beverage Joe turned round and scanned his monitor. It had his tasks of the day that he had written the night before.  He hummed and then tapped his communicator badge.

"Ensign Dunn to Chief of Security's office".

It only took a less than twenty seconds for Dunn to appear in his door way. He had very little contact since coming aboard with the new Security Chief and new the man only through reputation and rumor of a tragic past.

"Excellent time keeping, Ensign. I want a full report on the status of the armory, you have clearance to enter"

"Yes Sir" Dunn turned to leave but Joseph stopped him.

"Oh, Dunn. Report back to me what the guards ask you. We don't want to give the Captain anything to complain about aye". And Joe gave him a sly wink.

Dunn gave a relived smile. He had heard from the other security personal that Joseph could be hard and to see some humor come from him was welcome. Having gone through the entire Tiberius incident, Dunn appreciated the need to repsect and trust the man who would send him into harms way to protect the ship and her crew. The Lt. was that kind of man.

Once Dunn had left his office Joseph sat down and drank a sip of his coffee , and whispered.

"Excellent"

[Bryancd]

K'arath made his way from the Ready Room to his quarters. The doors parted to allow him to enter and he strode into his somewhat sparse yet somehow appropriately appointed officer quarters. On the walls hung his various traditional Klingon bladed weapons as well as trophy's and certificates of recognition form the many athletic events he had participated in over the years, his proudest being the completion of a 377 year old race on earth known as the Ironman. He proved it certainly wasn't limited to just humans.

He reflected back upon the Captains briefing. Earth during the middle ages, he thought. A time of the beginning of basic industry, metal working, monarchies, and war. Wars fought without the benefit of many ranged weapons, fought in close proximity, more often than not, hand to hand. His Klingon heart raced at the prospect of facing a true enemy skilled  in the use of bladed weapons of an ancient time that were not so different from the ones which hung on his walls. Honor was a concept well regarded at this point in Earth's history and he wondered if it would be the same here and the thought began to boil his blood in anticipation...

Until he remembered his duty as a Starfleet officer. That honor was found in the preservation of all life not in the ritualistic combat of taking it. This mission would provide him with a great challenge, to balance those two conflicting responses. He strode over to the replicator.

"Blood wine and gagh!" he commanded. At least he could satiate his Klingon appetite, if nothing more.

[wraith1701]

As the briefing came to a close, Lt. Commander K'Tan felt his pulse quicken with anticipation.  The chance to venture into uncharted space spoke to his warrior's soul... this was one of the things that had initially drawn him to Starfleet.

After gathering up his PADD, K'Tan headed out into hallway, quietly drinking in the subtle beauty of his new home.  As he walked, he found himself quietly marveling at the efficiency of the starship's design.  The Arabella seemed to somehow turn functionality into a form of art. The corridor he now walked down traversed a level of the ship's primary hull, and the outermost wall of the corridor followed the hull's gentle downward curve.  That same wall featured a series of elliptical, evenly spaced portals looking out on the starscape, which lent an air of open spaciousness to what would have otherwise been considered by many to be a relatively cramped hallway. 

"This is truly a fine ship," he said quietly.

Resisting the urge to linger and gaze out of one of the windows, K'Tan stepped into the nearby turbolift.  As the door quietly slid closed, the computer gave a soft warble prompting him to give his destination.  "Deck 14," K'Tan replied.    The newly minted Chief Tactical Officer had yet to organize his office to his liking. I need to make sure that the relevant tactical and security personnel are briefed on the upcoming mission as well, he thought.

  As the lift smoothly accelerated towards his destination, K'Tan pondered the upcoming holodeck training session.  Camelot, eh?, he mused.   Ancient Earth History was never his strongest subject back at the Academy.   I think I have some research to do, he thought to himself.