Senior Staff Briefing (Part 1 of 2)

Posted on 13 Mar 2014 @ 9:53am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Captain Jonathan Holliday & Commander Scarlet Blake & Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Commander Allyndra illm Warraquim & Lieutenant Theron Rhodes & Lieutenant Asahi Kita & Commander Norvi Stace & Lieutenant Jacob Pendleton & Lieutenant JG Delainey Carlisle & Lieutenant Commander Amynta Markos & Command Master Chief Markum Quinn & Lieutenant Teth Miir & Petty Officer 1st Class Oliver Morris

3,292 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 7, Observation Lounge
Timeline: MD -07 - 0840 hrs

[ON]

With a swish of the doors, Lirha walked into Galileo's new observation lounge which had been strategically moved down into the bowels of the ship on Deck 7. Glancing around and noticing she was the first to arrive, she took a few moments to slowly pace around the room, all the while admiring the pleasant view through the large wall windows which contained the familiar mesmerizing sight of streaking stars while the ship was at warp. It had been six days since their departure from San Francisco, and although their current destination was Deep Space 9, new developments in their upcoming mission had made it prudent to brief the ship's senior staff sooner rather than later. Patiently, she moved to the nearby replicator to procure a beverage while she waited for the rest of the crew's senior officers and NCOs to arrive.

She was followed by Oliver with his nose down toward a PaDD. He was typing away and sending messages to various departments. Taking his usual seat, he found himself in a zone until the doors opened and Jacob walked in.

Jacob was back (at least to a casual observer's glance) to his "regular" self. He strode with purpose to the new observation lounge. He secretly hoped that the piano was still in the far corner and that there was still a stage. He walked in the portal, his massive frame seeming to take up almost the entire width of the door. He saw Lirha and walked up to her. "Commodore, good to see you."

Quinn walked into the large room. He looked at Jacob first, "God morning Lieutenant. Nice to see you." he then he grinned at Lirha as he sat down and fiddled at his wedding band. "Morning, Ma'am. Beautiful day for exploration."

The Captain was the next to join the group, stopping for a moment to look at yet another new facility that had made its way into Galileo's bag of tricks. In a way he was pleased that so far only the Chief and Commodore were present - between them they had the longest time in service on Galileo under their belts, which felt right in a strange way that they would be here alone, if only for a short moment.

"Commodore, Chief. Glad you could make it."

As Dea made her way to Galileo's Observation lounge she straightened her uniform. The rank still felt odd but she'd get used to it. Entering the room she nodded to those already present, "Good day." Walking over to the table Dea took a seat.

Teth filed in behind Lt. Milan, avoiding eye contact with the senior staff. He was concerned about being called to a senior staff meeting since he definitely was not a member of the senior staff and was in fact, quite happy to be devoid of the level of personal responsibility that came with it. He took a seat and quietly waited for the briefing to begin, worried that his status as a lowly and unimportant junior officer was threatened.

Asahi found it a little odd that he kept getting himself called down to the senior staff meetings. He wasn't going to complain about it, by any stretch, but it didn't bode well for him being able to meet the actual head of the department. He had always found it odd that neither of the department heads he had at the time were able to report to these meetings, as they had instead relied on the 'newcomer.' Well, he had been relatively new at the time.

His eyes followed the Caitian he had come in after, more intrigued by the other's fur color and ears. If he had more tact, he would have probably brought up how interested he was, purely in an educational sense, but he didn't want to scare off someone who could potentially be another department head. Asahi did, however, take a seat next to the man, giving him one last curious look, before smiling at everyone else in the room.

Allyndra had been glad she had already familiarized herself with at least part of the new layout of the ship. She almost absently went to a different deck, but remembered the move at the last minute. She had gotten to the deck early, but instead of waiting in the lounge and instead gone to the arboretum. It too was fresh and she had spent the time fighting the urge to take advantage of the empty place and do a little water dancing. That was really hard, and she went for a very quick hopping flight. It was so pleasant she let the time get away from her and ran to the lounge when she realized it was almost on the dot. Arriving she stopped outside, made sure she looked presentable and then entered. Normally she avoided anything but a nice hot sweet tea sounded suddenly delectable and she got one nodding to the others and glad to see the meeting had not quite started.

Lt. Rhodes entered the Briefing Room with a medium sized PaDD unders his arm. He nodded to a few of the officers as he entered. He glanced out the windows. For some reason he felt it strange to have the briefing room located at this part of the ship, but he would get over that. He sat down and rested the PaDD on the table before him.

Stace then entered through the door, her propensity to be usually a little late compounded by the fact that she was walking into what seemed to be crowded room. "Apologies," she called out, locating Pendleton across the room and making a bee-line for him, her strung up ponytail bobbing about erratically as. "Am I late?" she said under her breath, shielding her mouth from both the captain and the commodore.

Jacob smiled down at her and whispered, "No worries Stace, no worries. Heck, I thought we were all here so we could have a staff-wide karaoke contest." He playfully (and gently) nudged her with his elbow and then looked back at the forthcoming presentation.

She returned a warm and eye-rolling smile to him. Quietly, and almost under her breath, she said, "I sing like strangled cats, so let's hope not, eh?"

Jacob winked at her and chuckled quietly but made sure not to let the presenters notice.

Delainey entered the newly located observation lounge feeling refreshed from shoreleave and that same sense of excitement she first felt when she joined the crew. The new location coupled with the medical department's absorption of counseling services contributed to those feelings, and she wondered what her presence at this meeting meant for their upcoming mission, as she was technically no longer part of the senior staff. Carlisle supposed the move made sense based on sheer numbers, as two people did not traditionally make up a department elsewhere, but it was just as important to her to speak up for the emotional needs of the crew, a distinct, though related issue, to their medical needs.

Amynta Markos frowned as she walked in, taking a deeper breath. She wore her hair up today, in her skirt uniform as always and with her boots almost being regulation. She looked over at Saalm for a brief moment, studying the Orion. It had to be strange, not being the CO anymore. She could not quite get used to the change herself. She walked to take a seat, crossing her legs as she sat there.

Scarlet marched into the room, the uniform looking crisp and her long, dark hair pinned back in a simple, military style bun. She held her PADDs clasped close to her chest as she made her way to the chair, her features cool but not giving away what might or might not be making her so...starchy. She nodded in greeting, offering a small smile as she slipped down into her chair, setting the PADDs out alongside each other, almost compulsively in line with each others edges.

The Orion commodore politely greeted the crew members who entered with a simple nod and waited for them to take a seat, then -- with her mug of hot chocolate clasped in her green hands -- proceeded to get the briefing underway.

"As you all already know, we are currently en route to Deep Space 9 to acquire some new science personnel as well as to test the functionality of Galileo's new systems. After completing our shakedown cruise and docking at the station, we were scheduled to proceed to the Lyshan system to investigate a labor disruption on Lyshan III, a joint Federation-Cardassian mining colony. Apparently, the colonists on the planet have been experiencing a series of strange phenomena, including inconsistent sensor readings, bizarre underground rock formations, and...in the words of Starfleet Command," she paused to take a sip of her drink, "metaphysical manifestations."

John had read the same reports that Lirha had been given coming in from the Lyshan system. The very specific way that Command had mentioned what were for all intents and purposes being called 'ghosts' to the miners was typical of an Admiralty who didn't know how else to phrase it. Keeping quiet he allowed the Commodore to continue on her mission of words.

Stace, however, was not so tactful in allowing the commodore to continue unchallenged. "Ghosts?" she questioned, her face screwed up with such confusion that she barely could control the contortion. "Sorry," she then interjected herself, snapping out of her day dream. "But 'metaphysical manifestation'?

The Tandarans believed that there was life after this one on a different plane or level of existence. Theron knew that these 'Ghosts' could be a true element to deal with. Unfortunately, conventional weapons, that they used, had no effect on elements on a different level. He actually hoped that this was something that they could determine and deal with in their own reality.

Looking at Galileo's Chief Science Officer, Lirha couldn't help but slightly agree with the woman's initial reaction. Her own first thoughts had been very similar, and the more she had investigated the reports, the more skeptical she had become. "Ghosts is perhaps not the correct word. Metaphysical refers to that which cannot be explained by science, and the definition of 'manifestations' is very broad. I do not believe ghosts are involved...instead, it is possible that the colonists are experiencing some sort of planetary anomaly, yet simply lack the scientific equipment or means to explain it," she replied.

Stace raised her eyebrows and widened her eyes, nodding subtly in agreement with the commodore. "The causes of this could be almost infinite: A pocket of hallucinogenic gas escaping into the atmosphere from the mining, a fracture in subspace, a contaminated water supply. Anything. But we'll know more when we get there."

Dea listened to the briefing so far. Some of it sounded to out there to be real, but then she'd seen a lot during her time in Starfleet. At the moment she didn't say anything, instead opted to just listen to what others had to say.

Delainey was in silent agreement with Stace. She chose not to read too much into the words used to describe the issues observed. It was important to keep an open mind, as obviously something was going on.

Lirha cleared her throat and looked across the faces of all the assembled crew members while also being fully aware of the unorthodox nature of such a report. "Our original orders were given to us five days ago when we departed from San Francisco, but now, the situation on the colony appears to have worsened," she continued.

"A situation report I received from Command early this morning reported that the colonists are now on a widespread labor strike and are refusing to enter the mines. There have also been reports of several injuries and missing colonists, and it is clear the situation is rapidly escalating. As such, we do not have time to reach Deep Space Nine, and we have been ordered by Starfleet to divert course and head directly to the Lyshan system to investigate."

The Commodore set her mug down gently on the corner of the large briefing room table then unclipped her PADD from her belt and linked it to the main wall display with a few delicate taps on the slim device. A sector map suddenly displayed for everyone to see which detailed both the Lyshan system's location in the quadrant as well as planetary data of Lyshan III.

"As you can see, the Lyshan system is located along the Federation-Cardassian border near the Neutral Zone," she said, motioning towards the monitor. "It is a trinary star system with six planets, but only two -- Lyshan II and III -- are habitable. Lyshan III is a Class K world with similar surface and atmospheric conditions as Mars, but about ten years ago, it was discovered that the planet contained large deposits of uridium ore below the surface. Uridium ore is a very valuable mineral used for Cardassian starship construction, specifically for their ship's sensor arrays. However, uridium is also very unstable and can be volatile if exposed to electrical pulses. Due to our current progressive diplomatic relations with the Cardassian Union, Starfleet thought it prudent to establish a joint-venture mining colony, with the Federation providing most of the terraforming technology and safety equipment, while the Cardassians would provide the majority of the labor force, transportation, and logistics. Up until now, the colony was extracting large amounts of uridium and was exporting large quantities of the ore, and it has turned into the second-largest uridium source for the Cardassians in the entire quadrant. As you can all imagine, when a mining colony of this much importance suddenly reports a labor strike, it is a very big deal," she paused and picked up her mug, then took a couple more sips of her frothy beverage before continuing.

"Our job, as a planetary science vessel, is to proceed to Lyshan III and determine the cause of the labor disruption. If the reports from the colonists and Starfleet Command are accurate, we will need to not only survey the planet and the mines for any unusual planetary activity, but also assess the mental health and well-being of the colonists. Counselors, that is why I asked you to join us in this briefing, because perhaps there is some unknown mental factor which is afflicting the miners. I do not like the word 'metaphysical', and it is our job to determine what exactly is occurring. There are over three hundred workers on this colony, and we need to find a rational explanation for their troubles." She paced her PADD down on the table. "Questions?"

John had been unaware of the diversion to Lyshan directly - this was obviously something that had come into the Commodore above his head and with simple reasoning - something had to be done, and done soon.

"The Cardassian Union is still fragmented at best - do we have any information on their own responses? My experience with Cardassians has always been shoot first and ask questions later - they proved that during the Wars well enough."

Holliday had asked a very good question, and Lirha slowly nodded then picked up her PADD to read off the additional mission notes Starfleet had provided her with. "The Cardassians have already dispatched one of their own cruisers to the Lyshan system, and it should be arriving several days before us. A Galor Class called the CDS Aldara. The vessel unfortunately does not have the same scientific capabilities that Galileo has, so we will have operational authority to conduct our survey and research once we arrive. I expect the Cardassians to assist us especially given the nature of the joint-mining operation...it has been fifteen years since the Dominion War, and our treaty with them stipulates full cooperation on both sides."

Jacob had been in a very focused train of thought throughout the briefing. He then looked at the Captain and Commodore and asked, "Some might think it not appropriate but I will ask this anyway. If there is any chance that this might be otherworldly manifestations or apparitions then should we not at least inquire to have the temporary services of say a paranormalist or paranormal investigator to assist with this mission?" Jacob's voice and facial expression was one of absolute seriousness.

Asahi had to keep himself from piping up with theories on ghosts and 'paranormal types' up until now. There had been enough stories through his Starfleet career that he couldn't help but at least be a little excited. "... How's it not really appropriate to ask?" He almost physically scrambled to put the words back into his mouth, but refrained, continuing on in a more tactful manner. "... I mean, wouldn't it be optimal to have someone who has... some knowledge on the topic pop up and rule out any sort of gho-ah... metaphysical manifestations?" He really wanted to say ghosts. "Or rule them in again, depending on what happens..."

Oliver shifted in his seat, "An expert in the paranormal or even in the metaphysical? One is a pseudoscience and the other is more for saints and philosophers. There is a whole history of stories on file where Starships came in contact with what we could call metaphysical manifestations. Some where caused by temporal events that caused problems with the transporters. That engineer and a colleague on Enterprise was once sent out of phase with the rest of the universe. It could be a similar situation."

Teth stared dead ahead, listening to the conversation. Ghosts? In a mine? Before he would likely have written it off as some kind of mass scale delusional state. Maybe they had been drugged or tampered with in some way. But his own experience with an apparition of sorts, quite recently, changed that. That night on Vulcan. A long dead corpse generally is not able to hold a conversation so well. Of course he knew, logically, that he was likely hallucinating. His mind drudged it up out of guilt and anxiety.

"Ghosts aren't real." the caitian counselor said, mostly to convince himself. "Isn't it more likely that these 'apparitions' are maybe the result of some kind of mass delusional state. They're likely just hallucinating. Maybe something environmental is causing it? Or, you know, it could also be some form of unknown alien life that we aren't necessarily familiar with. In any case, wouldn't our efforts be better spent investigating it in a scientific way? And even if we want some kind of expert on metaphysical apparitions, where would we find them? I don't remember that course being offered at Starfleet Academy."

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Jacob Pendleton
Chief Research Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Asahi Kita
Assistant Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Theron Rhodes
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Cmdr Allyndra illm Warraquim
Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Norvi Stace
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

1PO Oliver Morris
Chief Yeoman
USS Galileo

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

LT CMDR. Dea Mialin
Chief Flight Control Officer/Second Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Amynta Markos
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Teth Miir
Counselor
USS Galileo

CMCPO Markum Quinn
Chief of the Boat
USS Galileo

LT Delainey Carlisle
Counselor
USS Galileo

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