Star Trek: Season 7 - Masquerade

[iceman]

Dr. Peterson Stepped back for a moment and and watched as the new mother held her baby for the first time, this was one of the few things he really enjoyed about being a doctor, being able to bring new life into the world.

Casey walked over to the blue man, Roflilio and extended his hand, " your wife shall be fine and your baby as far as I can tell is perfectly healthy".

Roflilio extended his hand, replying "I can see that, You must be a very talented Doctor for having delivered our baby without the regulator."

The Blue man continued to explain that it was given to them by another healer, who was killed in a raid on their village,.

Peterson thought about the words Roflilio  had said then asked the man if he still had the regulator. He replied " Why yes I do let me get it for you, it is in the back of our wagon"

Peterson thought to himself quietly, Hoping that the device was not Federation in Origin. .....

[Jen]

Doctor Drett and Doctor O'Leary-Peterson were about to implode due to information overload. Ryla was certain that the mousy holographic man had recited the entire contents of the medical database during the surgery. "It would be an understatement to say that his social skills are deficient," she thought.

"The bone-knitting laser, also referred to as a knitter, is a specialized medical instrument used for..."

The trill cut in with a forced smile and a quick word, "Though we do so appreciate your help, I think we can handle it from here, doctor.  Computer, deactivate EMH." A surprised expression washed over the Mark III's face before he blinked out of existence.

"Thank you, Ryla. If you hadn't stepped in when you did, I would have carried out my plan to suture his mouth closed," said Myella in a clipped Irish accent.

Ryla laughed as she moved their patient to the recovery area, "I would have gladly held him down for you. It would have been much more satisfying than simply deactivating his program."

Myella brushed a lock of hair away from Joseph D'Callan's forehead before attaching a Neuroelectric suppresser to inhibit his pain. Nurse Caine stepped to her side and tucked the sheets around him. There was something in the young woman's eyes that told Ryla that the care that Nurse Caine was providing the Chief Of Security was more than just an obligation to duty. Doctor Drett observed her a second longer before stepping into her office. She was exhausted... but before she could close her eyes for a short nap, she owed the Captain an update on the Lieutenant's condition. Ryla removed her surgical coat and cap then tapped her com badge, "Sickbay to Captain Quinn,"

"Quinn here."

"Sir, D'Callan's surgery went well. He's in critical, yet stable condition. It's too soon to say if he will make a full recovery, but I'm optimistic."

"Thank you, Doctor. Let me know if there's anything I can do. Inform me if there's any change."

"Of course, sir." She uttered before lying back on the cluttered couch and closing her eyes.

[Jen]

The girl, who looked no more than seven Earth years old, watched the exchange with a mature bearing, which contradicted the playful, mischievous manner that she exhibited earlier. Sevryll found the change in the child's demeanor suspicious. Having two emotional children of her own, the vulcan was attuned to their means of non-verbal communication. More often than not, their facial expressions telegraphed everything they were thinking. Yet this child was an enigma.  She continued to observe the youngster, as the magician  haggled over the number of coins that K'ararth would impart to him.

After a lengthy debate the wizard accepted K'ararth's payment and began his demonstration. The group watched as he removed a ring from his sleeve and then picked up a single gourd from a table near by. With a flourish he dropped the gourd through the ring and caught it in his right hand. Sevryll observed, unimpressed, until she noticed the membrane inside the ring, undulating. A moment later, it produced a copy of the fruit from mid-air.  The magician moved to the tall vulcan woman, and placed both gourds in her hands. "Which is which? Which the mimic and which the original?" he inquired. Sevryll instinctively quirked an eyebrow and lifted her dark eyes to meet the Ter'Ossick's.

The little girl giggled and clapped impishly as the commander turned her gaze from the magician to K'Tan. Lieutenant Commander K'ararth noted the First Officer's unspoken communication with the Chief of Security and squared himself before the door, to block the Ter'Ossick's exit; then slowly began to join the child's applause. The girl's laughter tapered along with her clapping. In a small voice she repeated her father's question, "which is which?"

"They are indistinguishable," replied the vulcan as she handed the gourds to Ensign Farmer for her assessment. "I am interested in the device you utilized to create the second fruit. Perhaps you would allow us to examine it?"

"A magician never reveals his secrets," he replied. 

[Bryancd]

K'arath new he and K'Tan were going to have to prevent this man from escaping if things began to go wrong. He positioned himself before the door while K'Tan slowly began to move in the opposite direction in an effort to get behind the magician. Clearly the magician was in possesion of replicator technology and there could be only one explanation for it's presence here.
The small girl looked very nervous, her eyes darting from her father to the members of the away team. At first K'arath felt she was attempting to size them up in case of a confrontation but then he realized it was something else. It was almost a look of....recognition.

[wraith1701]

K'Tan felt the tension building as K'arath moved to block the magician's path.  If this wasn't one of the missing scientists, he was at least in some way connected to them.  His cleverly disguised replicator device was a dead giveaway; it was most definitely not native technology.

K'Tan slid slowly to the side, positioning himself behind the magician.  I'd hate to resort to violence in front of the child, but if it comes to that, so be it, he thought. 

K'Tan smiled as his heart raced; his pulse quickening in anticipation of a possible scuffle.  D'Callan would probably love to have a piece of this action, he thought.  I wonder how his team is doing?

K'Tan glanced at the child, whose applause slowly tapered off.  As her eyes darted to the different members of the away team, her expression seemed to flicker. 

K'Tan did a double-take.  For a split second, it was as though the girl was wearing a mask of innocence that temporarily slipped, revealing a cold and cunning mind lurking below the surface.  Noticing K'Tan's stare, the child broke into a grin, but the smile failed to reach her eyes. 

"What's the matter," she said as she edged closer to the magician.  "Didn't you like the trick?"

[X]

Joint post by Jen and Just X

With the mummy between them, Lieutenant Commander James and Ensign Tev-Awash made their way back through the dark corridors and toward the entrance of the hidden tunnels. They had created a make-shift stretcher from the thin, metal lid, of one of the surrounding coffins and strapped their friend to it to ensure that he did not slip from the surface.

Sweat beaded from Aeric's brow as he carried his portion of the weight. "This is lighter than I expected."

He had not even considered the possibility that they would become grave robbers during the mission, but Nareen had done well to secure the body and all that was left was to acquire transport. "I'll send a signal to one of the ships when we get closer to the surface.

The young ensign's nervousness fled when the time had come for Nareen to focus on her duty, but she wanted to make sure it didn't come back. She believed the best way to keep her discomfort at bay, within the cold dark, passages, was to maintain a conversation. "Do you believe the technology you sensed is located in the mummy, sir?"

"Yes, I do." Aeric said as they continued. "I can sense it clearly now. We've got our target. Now we just need to see how all of this makes sense."

"If you were to guess at what was producing a signal, what would you say it was?" Any answer he gave would be pure speculation, but she was curious, and other than personal questions, it was all she could come up with to keep herself from focusing on the eerie cry created by the wind as it blew through the cave.  She nervously sidestepped a shadow on the floor that turned out to be a rock, and strained to see any indication in the distance that they were nearing the exit.

Aeric thought about it for a moment. "Now that you ask, I'd have to say it was either a implanted comm device or universal translator. I wouldn't normally be able to make it out, but the lack of technology makes the faint signal stand out."

Shadows hungrily consumed them as they continued to trudge through the infinite black. Even if his back wasn't facing her, Lieutenant Commander James would not have been able to see Tev'awash's eyebrows shoot up in epiphany, "Maybe he was murdered..."

Aeric nodded slowly as another turn took them closer to the surface and moonlight lit opening. "That might be the case, or it could have been an accident. We'll have to see what they say when they look over the body."

Using his hidden communicator as a relay, Aeric transmitted the recall code to the hidden runabout. "I've sent for our ride."

They continued on in silence until Nareen felt the need to ask another question, "how much further? I don't think I can stand being down here much longer. I'm claustrophobic." In the distance Nareen could see the first rays of daylight light piercing the inky void; it teased her with an offer of fresh air and freedom.

"Maybe ten meters and then we're home free." Aeric said softly. "Once we get our guest aboard, we can get it to the Arabella and finally find some answers."

It was not much longer until the two officers finally exited the catacombs. Hovering silently and invisibly above them, the Aurora waited to retrieve the body.

[iceman]

Dr Peterson Held the Object that had been given to him by Roflilio , he had no doubt that it was of alien origin, but could not determine wether it was of Federation origin. To determine this and discover what the objects function was, they would need to return to the shuttlecraft.

Roflilio , looked at the doctor with gratitude, "We have no money to pay you for your services, so please take the Regulator as payment for your services".  Dr. Peterson thanked the blue man for his generosity before heading over to Margon.

After a long discussion they decided to escort Roflilio and his wife and newborn to their dwelling before deciding to headback to the shuttlecraft, Peterson and Margon fiqured that this course of action would be most prudent as Lieutenant Witko's injury needed tending too in order to prevent unwanted attention to his red coloured blood.

Peterson also wanted to examine the alien object to determine if the Federation was responsible for the planets improper advancement in technology or if someone else was.

The landing party said their goodbyes to their new friends and decided to look in on them in a few days if time permitted and headed back to the shuttlecraft under the cover of darkness in order to avoid any further unwanted contact.

[institches]

Mackie sniffed. Something didn't smell right. Or someone. Human, she thought. They all carried so much salt in their bodies that they smelled like their own oceans. Not the magician--she had already established that he was definitely Ter'ossic. Human female... but not a mature female. It was the child; the Ter'ossic child! She moved closer and noted a stale pastry odor, one she normally associated with great age. Interesting. An olfactory puzzle, not unlike the riddles posed in her childhood. When is a child not a child?

In a Starfleet philosophy class, Mackie had learned about Ophiucus IV, a beautiful Earth-like planet colonized by humans in the early 2100s. A Federation ship, she couldn't remember which, arrived 150 years later to find a planet populated only by children, children who had benefited from a life-extension project. The actual science behind this was banned, much like the bio-mimetic gel, due to the possibility of dangerous applications.

The passage had devolved into discussion of the ethics behind life-extension, more general than specific. But what had become of those children? The more she considered this possibility, the more convinced she became: this child, despite her blue skin and pointed ears, was a human, and well over two centuries old.

[X]

Joint post by BryanCD, institches, Jen, Just X, and Wraith1701

Sevryll had to exert considerable effort to maintain her calm; her heart beat excitedly in her side.  She held out a hand to the magician, and asked calmly, "May I see the ring?"

Finally noticing K'Tan and K'arath closing in on him, he clutched the device protectively to his chest.  Glancing about like a trapped animal, the man stepped behind the little girl.  "Stay back!"

Commander Sevryll turned to K'Tan.  "I believe that the ring is stolen property.  We had best return it to its rightful owners."

"With pleasure," K'Tan replied, grinning evily.  As he lunged towards the magician, the little girl sprung forward, wrapping her arms around his leg.  When the Lt. Commander stumbled, the magician took the opportunity to pulled a small, rectangular object from his robes.  Grasping the device in his fist, he held it before him at arm's length.

"Behold the power of my magic!" he yelled.  "Mirror Spawn, I summon you!"

The air before the magician wavered, and in a flash, a shimmering collection of light motes coalesced into a dark-robed duplicate.  Strapped to the doppleganger's arm was the device formerly held by the magician.

K'Tan smiled in recognition as he eyed the device.  "A remote holo-emitter!"

The ter'ossik child released her hold on K'Tan, and darted back to the magician's side.  Fists clenched in fury, she glared up at her alleged 'father'.  "You incompetent imbecile!" she raged.  "Your idiocy has undone all of my planning!"

The magician looked down at the girl in confusion; she returned his look with a kick to his shin and gestured at the disguised Starfleet Officers.  "They know!"

The duplicate magician echoed the original copy's apologetic response as they circled the room in an effort to avoid K'Tan. "A thousand pardons, your liege—I suspected as much. But you are infinitely more knowledgeable than I, and when you did not stop me from performing the demonstration, I decided my suspicion was unwarranted."

"Shut up...both of you," said the girl. "Do something before they put an end to our plans!"

It was obvious the girl was his master, for he and his holoclone jumped at her words and quickly carried out her order.  Both the magician and his duplicate pulled razor-sharp, meter-long daggers from their robes, and slowly advanced on the away team members.

K'Tan glanced from Aria to K'arath, his grin broadening.  "I'll dispose of the hologram!  The others are up for grabs!"

Aria nodded slowly before drawing the twin daggers from her waist. She wasn't quite in the mood for a fight, but it was either fight or get hurt. She moved towards her prey with feline grace and the blades for claws. She would deal with the wizard. She crouched low to the ground when she reached combat distance and spoke flatly. "Surrender or bleed, but choose quickly."

The holoclone sprung at K'Tan, his arms spread to engulf the tactical officer.  K'Tan dropped into a crouch, simultaeneously sweeping his leg out in a scything motion that caught the duplicate at the ankles.  The faux-magician vanished into a cloud of sparkeling light particles as he fell, only to reapper seconds later standing over K'Tan.

Tricky little program, K'Tan thought.

His musing was cut short by the elbow of the holographic Ter'ossik as it came crashing down onto the top of his head.  A galaxy of stars exploded across his sight, and quickly dispersed as K'Tan shook his head to clear his vision.  He chuckled in amusement, thankful for the many headbutts he had recieved from his Klingon peers over the years.

"You have to do better than that, petaQ," he growled.  "I've received firmer blows from my closest friends!"

The magician had evidently chosen to improve upon nature as a second set of arms unfolded from beneath the first, armed with a quarterstaff. He continued to grapple with K'Tan but swept the staff in a wide arc, catching Mackie on the temple. Her eyes crossed as she crumpled to the ground, senseless.

Hesitation gripped the heart of the Ter'ossik. The young female before him, one that he had dismissed so easily, faced him with no fear on her face. It was the coldness that worried him. She looked almost bored at the situation and that terrified him. It was in that moment he knew her to be a killer. The fear made his voice shake. "It is you that should fear my magic!"

Aria danced towards her foe, the light clothing that she had selected did nothing to restrict her movement. The magician struck out at him only to find her no longer where he thrust his blade. She ducked under his blade and retaliated quickly. A backhanded strike combined with a slight twist of her wrist focused her enhance strength into the pommel of her blade. The focused blow stuck the under arm pressure point with surgical precision, but her simulations had not been as accurate as expected. What should have been a blow to render him unconscious had only yielded unexpected affects.

Pain blurred the vision of the wizard and forced his weapon from his hand. Had she applied more force or the pointed end of her weapon, her blow would have been fatal. She had struck the first blow, but the fight was far from over.

The "girl" who had commanded the wizard with such authority used the skirmish as a cover for retreat. Yet Sevryll kept an eye on the brat as she evaded Aria's fight with the magician. The willowy vulcan seized the ancient child as she started out the door. The girl tried to bite the science officer in self defense, but Sevryll was quick and swiftly disabled the livid fiend with a focused grip that instantly brought the void of slumber upon the little monster. She slumped in the first officer's arms and Sevryll scooped her up as if she were one of her own children.

[X]

With their cargo safely aboard the Aurora, Rory brought the vessel into higher orbit. Aeric and Nareen, worked in the medical quarters of the ship to process the cellular extractions of the corpse. They had even managed to retrieve Dunn before heading back into space.

Soon the shuttle would be far enough out of the atmosphere to relay their finding. Their mummy was not a native, he was human. Aeric knew that finding one scientist was not the end of their mission, but it was a step closer to completion.

It would only be a matter of minutes before they cleared the field blocking the transporters. Once they transported the corpse to the ship they could return to the planet and complete their mission.

[institches]

Joint post by Institches, Jen, Wraith1701, Just X, Bryancd


Mackie lifted her head and looked around at the other grass-eaters. She became thoughtful as she chewed. Their gentle green eyes and damp noses communicated so little. One evidenced a flutter of eagerness as she found a patch of particularly sweet clover, but not a one thought much beyond their noses, much less beyond the pasture itself. But not her: she wanted to explore, to push her boundaries, to fly!

And with that thought, the two spots on either side of her withers spread out, becoming wings. She trundled forward, gathering speed, flapping her bovine wings, and jumped into the air! She circled the pasture, smelling exotic grasses, exhaling her joy!

Other flying creatures joined her: turquoise snakes, tiny energetic mammals, birds with four wings. This was her family: not those happy on the ground,but these who dreamed and strove and became. At last she belonged!

The gland covers Mackie habitually wore as part of her Starfleet uniform, and now in her Ter'ossic guise, had slipped when she was knocked unconcious. The spicy smell of her happiness and sense of belonging flooded the enclosed space.

The magician breathed deeply of the seductive scent. He smiled and stepped back, deactivating his holo-emitter and tossing it into the air. Both the device and the hologram vanished. He gazed at his tiny benefactor asleep in Sevryll's arms and shook his head. "This is ridiculous. We must be able to come to some kind of agreement."

With the disappearance of the hologram and the magician's change of attitude, the away party relaxed. Each reacted in their own way to the joyous odor. Sevryll's hold on the child became more tender, the child herself smiled in her sleep, her jaw loosening. The first officer felt a peace she had not experienced all her fifty years. Her face seemed to glow as an enigmatic smile pushed the corners of her mouth upward. She braced herself against the wall as she held the smiling child in her arms.

K'arath felt a wave of serenity wash over him. A feeling of complete and utter satisfaction, of calm. It was a feeling he hardly ever felt. Only those few time when he had challenged himself to the extreme and prevailed had he known such peace as he felt now, the forces which drove his life were suddenly silenced. Perhaps, he thought, this is what Stovokor was like.

K'Tan felt a tickling, tingling sensation that seemed to start in his nose and then spread slowly from his head to fill his entire body.  Along with the curious tingling came a gently spreading feeling of warmth and well-being... his face relaxed into a smile, and his fists slowly unclenched.

He inhaled deeply, trying to place the scent that seemed to be the source of the curious sensation.

The smell was elusive; trying to pin it down felt like trying to grab a handfull of fog... one moment, it brought to mind cinnamon and wildflowers; the next, it made him think of the heady, enticing scent of a woman's skin. 

K'Tan's vision blurred with unshed, bittersweet tears.  He couldn't recall ever feeling so whole and at peace with himself, and he feared that once the feeling passed, he would never experience it again. 

Ensigns Fissual and Talen-Bawers nodded to each other and looked around the tent. Aria knelt by Mackie to check her vitals and inhaled concentrated levels of the scent. The pounding of her heart slowed in response to the chemicals that caused calm to wash over her. Threshold warnings of excessive emotion that echoed in her head were easily ignored in favor of the feel of peace. It was not unpleasant and easy to allow herself to feel it.

Satisfied that Ensign Farmer was unharmed, Aria gently shook her awake. Her eyelids fluttered. "Mmmm... grass," her translator vocalized.

[Geekyfanboy]

Joint post Jen and Startrekfanatic5

"Are you positive sir?" asked Quinn as he sipped a cup of hot tea and gazed at the monitor before him in his quarters. "I can't believe this." The door chimed. "Well Thank you Admiral for the update. I will contact you when this mission is complete. Quinn out."

Nathan turned in his chair to face the door, "Come".

It slid open to reveal an absurdly large man flanked by and two small vulcanoid children. "Captain." said the man as he greeted Nathan in a voice so deep that it seemed to resonate within the corridor. "I wanted to make sure they made it to your quarters safely. I'll be in the After Burner if you need me." He said to the children. The hologram sentinel gave the captain a slight salute and dramatically spun into an about face before marching to the Afterburner for a cup of coffee and some "innocent flirtation".

"Bye," said the children in unison.

The door closed behind the twins as they walked into Quinn's quarters. A smile crossed the Captain's face as he kneeled down on his knees. "Well hello M'rynn, N'vall. You're right on time." The young boy held out his hand for Quinn to shake.

"Mommy says punct...punctu..."

"Punctuality?" asked the captain.

"Yes. It's very important," replied N'vall.

Quinn shook the boy's hand. "And she would be correct."
His sister poked her head from around her brother's shoulder. "Where are Phil and Grant?" She asked softly.

Quinn smiled and stood up. "They're here, and they're very excited to play with you guys." Nathan made his way into his bedroom while N'vall and M'rynn followed behind.

"I really appreciate the two of you coming over everyday. I don't have much free time and they do enjoy their playtime with you." Quinn bent over a large cage and removed a rather large, fat brown and white rat. "Here you go M'rynn, you can play with Grant" He bent over the cage again and pulled out a slimmer and slightly smaller black and gray rat. "And N'vall, you can play with Phil." The two children gently took the rats from Quinn's hands and proceeded to the nearby couch where they both climbed up, while both rats sat on their shoulders. M'rynn giggled as Grant whiskers tickled her pointed ear. Quinn smiled and walked back into his living quarters, sat down and picked up a PADD to begin reading the updates the away teams had recently sent.

"When is mommy coming home?" asked N'vall as Phil climbed to the boy's head where large brown curls waited to hide him.

[X]

With Nareen and the corpse safely aboard the Arabella, Aeric returned his attention on the world below and deftly directly directed the Aurora back towards his team. He now resided in the pilot's chair with Dunn at the controls of the sensors and communications systems.

Rory, having spent most of the mission alone on the Aurora had been granted a few hours leave and chose to spend that time socializing. She deserved a bit of social time to herself and he now needed to get information on the progress of his team.

"Sir," Dunn said from his position. "I believe that we're getting a little less interference from the planet surface. It's not enough for sensors and transporters to function yet, but it's the first time that I've seen things in flux."

"Nice catch ensign. Relay that back to the Arabella before we get too far into the atmosphere. They might be able to use that information." Aeric said.

Dunn's fingers moved over the controls to transmit the data back to the larger ship. While the loss of his CO had been an emotional setback, the young ensign had found a way to refocus himself and find the strength to complete what they had started. "Data sent."

Aeric nodded and directed the ship towards that last reported location of his remaining team members. He wasn't sure how much they would be able to accomplish where they were, but it was his hope that those remaining on the planet had made progress in their tasks.

[Jen]

Joint Post by Jen, Institches, Wraith1701 and Just X

Aria was seated next to her in the lush grass muttering something to her about 'covers'. Spring chewed her cud contently and stared glassy-eyed at Ensign James a moment.  Each time Aria repeated herself, her voice seemed to become clearer in tone and in meaning.  Reality eventually washed over the young Fertillian like an unexpected summer shower. Suddenly alert and aware, she couldn't help but gaze at each of her crew mates. They were like a small mob of happy drunks milling about the room that had been a field of dreams moments before. For reasons unknown to Spring, Ensign James was the only one unaffected. The commander's daughter handed the gland covers to Spring, and she wasted no time putting them back on.

After a moment, Commander Sevryll's cheery expression slackened and she donned her mask of stoicism once more.  The Vulcan pushed away from the wall that she had been leaning against, and straightened to her full height.  She felt refreshed. It was a sensation she had not experienced since the day the virus stole her ability to maintain a reticent air. As sobriety returned to K'Tan and the others, Sevryll gained their attention. "We must clear the room of any technology foreign to this world."  K'Tan commandeered the devices and he and K'arath subdued the magician who was still tipsy. With the unconscious child in her arms, Sevryll continued, "we're going back to the runabout. Bring them with us... We'll decided what to do with the Ter'Ossick later."

K'Tan and K'arath each took one of the magician's arms and they exited the building. As they walked, they laughed and joked about the Ter'Ossick's inability to hold his liquor. With the festival in full swing, no one paid any attention to them as they left the grounds and began their journey to the base camp.

Night was descending as the group arrived at the clearing housing their cloaked runabout.  K'Tan looked at the magician and the disguised child, his eyebrow quirked in puzzlement.  An insipid grin was still plastered on the Ter'Ossik magician's face, and the girl dozed contentedly in Commander Sevryll's arms, sucking her thumb.

"I wonder why these two are still loopy?" he asked K'arath.  "It seems as though the rest of us have more or less recovered from Ensign Farmer's 'happy spray'."

As the disguised Klingon engineer shrugged noncommittally, Sevryll glanced back at the pair.  "I suspect that we are all being exposed to trace amounts of Ensign Farmer's pheromones on a continuous basis.  It is possible that over time, we have built up a slight resistance to their effects.  Our guests, on the other hand, have not had this opportunity."

As the alien sun dipped below the horizon, a cold wind whistled through the few, rust-colored trees surrounding the clearing.  K'Tan suppressed a shiver as he and K'arath led the magician towards the clearing's center.  A few strides ahead of them, Commander Sevryll paused and raised a hand before her, her fingers nimbly tapping a tatoo on apparent thin air.  With a beep and a hiss of escaping air, a brightly lit vertical seam of light appeared directly before her, hovering in the air.  The crack in the air widened, spilling light out onto the gathered away team members and their two guests.


Standing in the middle of the growing pool of light, the magician's eyes widened.  His calm suddenly washed away, he struggled frantically against the hold the two starfleet officers kept on his arms.  His jaw dropped as he gazed into the waiting doorway of the Shadowfax.  "Whe-where are you taking me?" he stammered.

"Please calm yourself," K'Tan replied.  "You will not be harmed.  It's just that you and your people have been exposed to some potentially harmful things, and we want to try to repair any damage that may have been done."

Ensign Farmer worked her magic and the Ter'Ossick and his miniature master once again became amenable. Within the Shadowfax, they would be questioned about the remaining scientists, and when the away team obtained the information they desperately needed to complete the mission, Ensign James would then step in to take care of the magician's memory of the entire event and plant new ones to cover their tracks.

[Jen]

Tears streamed down the child's face as the funny lady asked again, "Who are you?" Her inquisitor wasn't smiling and that was humorous for some reason; in fact the girl couldn't stop laughing. The woman's face did not change, she simply glanced to another woman and raised an eyebrow. The individual she exchanged looks with was shorter in stature and much more animated than the inquisitor, which was also hilarious to the girl. The other people, who were standing nearby, took a step away from the girl as the animated lady puffed out her neck. A moment later, the girl ceased her uncontrollable laughter—she felt relaxed, happy and completely at ease with her interviewer.  These were nice people. The question came again in a flat, impassive tone, "Who are you?"

"Bella," said the girl.

"That is a beautiful name. Am I correct in my assumption that your name is of Earth origin?"

"Yes."

The lady nodded. "Are you human?"

"Yep."

"How old are you little one?"

The girl giggled... "older than you."

"Why are you here?" asked the lady as she studied the girl's face curiously.

"I was sent to work here, but my job has become very boring," said the girl as she stuck out a bottom lip and crossed her arms.  "Make-believe is much more fun."

The woman glanced to the men standing behind her before turning her gaze back to the girl, "What work did you perform before it became too boring?"

"I studied boring people. I was an anthropologist. But that's not fun... I want to be a princess instead." She pointed to the dozing magician, "he was going to help me... but he's not as smart as I am, and it's hard to explain things to stupid people."

"Did you know other anthropologists?" asked the animated woman, standing beside the one who never smiled.