Negotiations (Part 2 of 3)

Posted on 10 Sep 2021 @ 5:22pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Commander Allyndra illm Warraquim & Commander Luke Wyatt & Lieutenant Commander Ryan Alexander & Lieutenant JG Sofie Ullswater & Commander Andreus Kohl & Petty Officer 3rd Class Jeysa Zeror
Edited on on 10 Sep 2021 @ 5:29pm

3,377 words; about a 17 minute read

Mission: Episode 17 - Crystal of Life
Location: Latari B III High Orbit, USS Galileo-A
Timeline: MD 05, 0030 hrs

Previously, on Negotiations (Part 1)...

Kohl watched the Tholians' movement as Allyndra and Evry worked to shift the direction of the conversation. He kept his eyes on them, only glancing away to catch the point Evry was making about the simulation. Feeling Lirha's eyes on him, Kohl shrugged helplessly. All Kohl could think to say to the Tholians was the bottom line truth: "Plus... Biologically speaking, humanoid life is inferior. You're correct."

The two Tholians turned their bodies to regard each other in momentary silence. Their glowing white ocular polygons contained no discernible semblance of pupils making it difficult to interpret their interpersonal behavior or communication. One of the Tholians maneuvered its legs and re-faced the humanoids, then shrieked.

"Proceed."

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

The Orion captain exhaled a long breath and grit her teeth with relief. It could have been much worse, she reasoned to herself. Rasmussen could've opened his fat mouth and started spewing antiquated Starfleet rhetoric about 'Federation sovereignty'. But thankfully the other captains - especially the Tellarite - were comprehending the nuance of their current situation.

As ordered by the Tholians, Saalm refocused on the planetarium's projections and continued the presentation. "Commander Warraquim's theory, despite the language, is correct," she revealed. "Resume simulation."

The holographic projections of the Alpha Quadrant's early celestial bodies quickly started to mature until recognizable constellation stars began appearing. The LCARS interface continued to highlight multiple systems stripped barren by the proto-lifeform, until the wave of destruction crested at the front then disappeared. The universal time reading in the simulation's chronometer read negative 9.1 billion years. "Pause."

"The proto-Tholians became functionally extinct at this time -- five billion years before Earth formed. As the galaxy expanded and star clusters matured, planets drifted further apart. Interstellar propagation became impossible for their kind, for they were too primitive to achieve warp travel. Their reproductive rate was unsustainable without access to new worlds to conquer."

Lirha's voice turned stoic. "They lived, conquered, and died." She pointed at the area where the Latari system was forming. "But now they've returned."

Lieutenant Diego maintained his position as security detail, keeping wary eyes on the foreign silicon guests. The entirety of the scientific presentation was overwhelming for a simple security officer, but as he listened to Captain Saalm's explanation, he now understood what she was attempting to convey. "...Genesis," he mumbled with disdain.

The room was quiet enough that Saalm's acute hearing picked up what the gold-collared security officer whispered. "Yes," she confirmed. "The USS Reliant's debris is contaminated with Genesis proto-matter. Its impact on the surface of Latari A III sub-atomically rejuvenated and transformed life...as designed. But not humanoid life."

Evry couldn't help but feel the hairs on the back of her neck prickle as the briefing continued - that instinctual fear of things that exist on such orders of magnitude. Horror stories and fairy tales told over generations had warned us all of this exact scenario. Ancient monsters resting for billions of years only now coming back from their slumber thanks to the Federation's hubris - Genesis, a long legacy of bad news. The captain rubbed her neck sheepishly and took a deep breath to steel herself for the rest of the analysis.

Folding his arms over his abdomen, Kohl's expression darkened. Perhaps Rasmussen was right all along, he supposed, and their destructive actions on this day held value in the end. "It's truly the explicit reason for the Genesis Protocol," Kohl remarked. "It's everything we feared."

"Thus this proto-Tholian. I am wondering about the patient we recovered for a bit. At this point then I am speculating that perhaps said patient may have been close enough to the debris or perhaps activated something thus partially transforming himself and also activating and or transforming this proto-Tholian. If that is the case, then the colonists on Latari B should be uncontaminated currently and we could rescue them before having to destroy the planet, that is if that is what is decided." She cast a glance at the Tholians. She was not sure just how the mental processes worked with them. If possible it was just part of her ethics and her sworn duty to try to protect life, however, she knew at this point that perhaps it was not going to be possible and already the fights between them and the Tholians had cost lives and would cost more if a path forward could not be worked out.

"Perhaps, if I may suggest, we can check each colonist for any contamination and if clear and certified by both sides let us evacuate those people before sterilizing the planet and any contaminated."

Saalm pondered the doctor's proposal with the mindset of neither captain nor commander, but instead as a fellow Starfleet officer. "The planets in this system are lost to us. Saving the remains of this colony is our priority," she concluded. It was also the primary reason she'd left her post to negotiate with the Tholians. Without the temporary cease fire agreement in place, there could be no chance of rescue for the thousands of Federation inhabitants still on the surface.

"The survivor we first rescued," Saalm recalled Elegy who'd spaced himself attempting to cling to her shuttle departing from the launch bay, "is believed to have been exposed to high levels of proto-matter. According to the Tholians, silicon and carbon-based life are incompatible." The Orion captain shook her head from side to side, her dark black hair bouncing across her green cheeks. "But that is the power of the Genesis device - to make the impossible possible."

Turning her focus to USS Kali's captain, Saalm requested a planetary surface update. "The Tholians report Commander Blake is on your ship. What is her and the away team's status? What did they discover at the colony site?"

The Tellarite gave an affirmative nod "Commander Blake is on Kali at the moment along with most of the away team that landed on Latari B III. From what I've been told they gathered data on the vulcanicity and environmental changes as well as from examples of silicon based life discovered there. I also understand they were able to make contact with a group of colonists numbering over a thousand. Your science officer..." it was then Navrin realised she hadn't had time to learn her name or at least didn't remember it coming up "The lieutenant - she has begun transferring the gathered data, it should be available for analysis soon."

Kohl interjected with, "Let me check with the Bridge, sirs," and he stepped aside from the gathered officers and Tholians. It didn't take long for Kohl to return, waggling a finger at one of the LCARS consoles. "We should be seeing the data here now," he offered.

Ryan typed away at the console in front of him, bringing up the data that had been sent from the bridge. "I am accessing the data now, give me a moment." he started as he started to scan through the information. Quickly, he displayed the information, allowing those gathered to see the results from the away team.

Giving the Tholians a wide berth Jeysa approached the console and downloaded the data onto several Padds, one for her self and several sat on the console for the officers if they wanted one.

The astrometrics bay's holographic display swiftly zoomed in on the third planet orbiting the system's second star. Latari B III, a large Class-M terrestrial world, now presented itself to the Starfleet and Tholian teams. The super-Earth-sized planet displayed lush vegetative and habitable zones along each of the major ocean coastlines. The computer magnified the Federation's colony site on the equatorial western hemisphere and the new projection showed a devastating picture: all outlying agricultural zones appeared decimated by volcanic activity which had also consumed the small city's center. What remained of the original colony was negligible, yet the data collected from the away team showed a new colony site on the far side of the coastline - several hundred miles to the east. Makeshift residential and logistical districts looked to have been established, but the path of volcanic proto-destruction swiftly approached across the ocean. The small remains of the colony were on the verge of being exterminated by geological destruction.

At the heart of the planetary devastation moving towards the colony, was a single, massive proto-Tholian lifeform which appeared as a glowing red thermal entity on the holographic display. Based on its size and location, there was no question the Federation colonists on the surface were ill-equipped to deal with any such lifeform or incursion.

"It's worse than I predicted..." Saalm whispered to herself, trying to hide her emotions of distress and anger. The green-skinned captain turned angrily back to Kali's commanding officer. "How many colonists are still alive? How old is this information?"

Evry could see something of the anger seething in the other captain and felt pity. Still nestled in the Tellarite's mind was the reality that Saalm had turned coat and her deadly actions in helping the Tholians were not easily ignored. But it was clear that she cared about saving these lives, which was more than could be said of some people in the room. "Commander Blake's team collected this around 10 hours ago. They estimate around one thousand and five hundred colonists on the surface." After answering the questions Evry turned with an accusatory glance towards Kohl and Rasmussen. The cold reactions she had received when relaying this data to them earlier fuelling the bitter tone of her next statement. "Though I believe our current orders do not currently encompass any rescue attempts."

As the relatively-junior officer in the compartment, Commander Andreus Kohl physically recoiled from the look Evry tossed his way. Still, he stopped himself from actually taking a step back. In agreement with Evry, Kohl remarked, "That's also my understanding of the Captain's orders, in keeping with the Genesis Directive." --Kohl's lips thinned as soon as he said it and he kept his eyes fixed on Lirha, turning his head to keep Rasmussen out of his peripheral vision-- "Orders that were given before we had come to an... arrangement with the Tholians. With so few tricobalt warheads, we assumed we would only have minutes, maybe only seconds to act, before our ships would be disabled."

"We did what we had to do," Rasmussen added, no remorse present in his authoritative tone. His pudgy balding face was full of stress creases which pronunciated his advanced years.

Luke had at the request of Lirha kept his distance for along as he could, he had been running several tactical analysis on the bridge just in case they needed a Hail Mary but he had run out of options and was now due to be with the rest of them. He stepped into the room quietly with a nod towards Lirha before he dissolved into the background and waited for the conversation to continue. What he couldn't ignore or keep from his mind was how things between them had gone down, Nesh had already given him what for and he was certain Lirha would too. He didn't like to second guess himself but in this case maybe he could have done something different.

The next thing that he couldn't avoid was of course the Tholians. He'd seen many different races including the Borg but the Tholians gave him a mixture of awe and fear. Of course he had heard stories but nothing could really prepare you for actually seeing one for the first time, and a 'Tholian web' made sense now, they were very similar to an arachnid cross praying mantis except they were as majestic and fine cut diamonds. He wondered if they would have ever stood a chance against them.

The hiss of the nearby entrance door opening then closing was just barely loud enough to permeate through the momentary silence. Standing in the darkness at the other end of the room, Captain Saalm noticed a distinctive Human silhouette approach then stealthily stand to the side in observance. Even before the man acknowledged her, the Orion could recognize his muscular build and unique gait anywhere - Luke Wyatt.

The last time she'd seen the security chief's face had been on the bridge of Galileo< several days ago; after giving an order which, as acting XO, he refused to obey. The memories of the mutiny were still as vivid as they'd when it'd happened, and emotions of anger and distrust started to quell within her. But Saalm also knew what she had done was outside the realm of sane reasoning, and even if it wounded her pride to admit, it was hard to fault anyone for their skepticism and distrust of her. She returned to the briefing and said nothing to the lieutenant commander.

"We can attempt to evacuate the remains of the colony but we can't ignore the Genesis Directive," Saalm sternly proclaimed. "We must destroy this proto-Tholian and any lingering traces of Genesis matter. That will mean...devastating this world and making it geologically extinct." The truth of the savagery was difficult for the Orion to say out loud, causing her gaze to fall to the deck plating beneath her feet.

"With the creature infecting this planet, it's impossible to save it. We-" Saalm looked up to the two Tholians standing nearby, "simply don't possess the technology. The Tholians' tetryon weapons are ineffective against this lifeform and they need our help -- our phasers and tricobalt torpedoes. They observed Galileo's successful strike against the proto-Tholian on Latari A III and have," she took a breath, "agreed to assist us with another assault on this planet.

"But as old as this new intelligence is, we'll be lucky if we can get to the colonists in time," Saalm continued, shaking her head with doubt. Her light green eyes were focused on the surface topography and the movement of the proto-Tholian signature. "Any rescue attempt will put us all at great risk," she warned.

Allyndra knew exactly what she would try to do if she was in charge. "If anything is possible we should try to rescue the colonists." She looked toward the Tholians. "Not sure how much capacity but what if sent the Tholian ships along with a few of ours transported as many as possible with whatever ship or ships with the tricobalt tropedos coming in right behind. I know that makes it even tighter but the more time we argue about the less time that we have."

"Our transporters won't function from orbit," Saalm regretfully countered. If only it could be that easy. "The solar radiation interference which initially blinded our sensors is the result of the proto-Tholian's naturally ability to convert geothermal radiation into suborbital ionization." It was advanced particle theory knowledge the Orion shouldn't be able to comprehend as a non-scientist, yet somehow the words flowed from her tongue without second thought. "That means our only option would be a shuttle evacuation."

"By the Twins Captain!" Allyndra actually stamped one foot slightly. "I cannot see about leaving the lot of the colonists...." She knew there were not enough shuttles but why a shuttle why not the Galileo itself it was capable of planetary landing.

"Wait, I know you might think this daft, but what if we used the Galileo? It is Alert Blue capable. Perhaps the rest of the ships can from orbit keep the creature distracted for the Galileo to land without the entity attacking it and we could always come around to the island without having to go over the entity. The Galileo is the biggest 'shuttle' we would have. Then get off. This ship is not the only one capable of using those tricobalt torpedos."

Luke also wanted to have his voice heard but everyone in the room knew where he stood, he had stood by his morale and look where it had gotten him, alienated from the rest of the crew and his closest friends. Maybe he should suggest he'd take a shuttle down, maybe one of the Tholian ships could help evacuate. He just didn't have much regard for himself anymore after recent events.

Saalm shook her head while identifying the major flaws in Warraquim's plan. "Negative, doctor. The same radiation degrading our sensors and transporters also affects the ship's targeting scanners. The data from Commander Blake's team shows the proto-Tholian will soon overrun the remains of the colonists - which means any orbital fire mission would be danger-close even in the best atmospheric conditions. To fire inaccurately near the colony with such powerful weapons would certainly kill them all with one misplaced impact. I won't take that risk."

'Typical' he thought and Hypocrtical', Coming from the woman who was willing to risk the entire crew before for people who couldn't be saved she now wouldn't when people could be. Luke hated how he felt, his thoughts both angered and saddened him yet he remained silent, waiting for his orders. He was too tired to really do anything anymore.

There was a throaty rumbling from Lagrange's captain who now seemed highly displeased. "And neither will I," Rasmussen agreed then stepped forward. "In fact, this whole plan is insane," he gesticulated to the large holographic projection of Latari B III. He'd watched and listened to Captain Saalm's briefing yet despite finding it informative and terrifyingly fascinating, it was unconvincing in making the case for potential further failure.

"Saalm, your team just showed us all how deadly this proto-thing is. And the importance of destroying it. Now you want us to risk the rest of our task group to save 1,500 colonists who might not still be alive? There are almost as many Starfleet crew aboard our ships as on the surface!" Rasmussen countered. "Executing the Genesis Directive must be our priority. If we fail...then far more than the number of those colonists will die."

Rubbing the back of his neck as he sneered at their impossible situation, Kohl asked, "With respect sirs, how are the lives of the next colony world a greater priority than the lives of these colonists? The ones right here. There's no meaningful difference between the two. Either we're going to save lives from the proto-Tholians or we're going to run. Fifteen hundred or fifteen million. Morality can't be measured with math..."

Navrin gave much of the impression of closely following the back and forth but standing there her mind was back to half an hour ago when she had counted off her three priorities to the Galileo officers on her bridge. Even then she had doubted herself. Already today she had lost officers and friends in battle — she wouldn't stand to lose any more. But right now the thought of that third duty, to protect the lives of the colonists... It wasn't something she could ignore.

"What all this amounts to," Navrin mumbled half heartedly "All of what we are saying is that more people will be lost." She paused for a moment and rubbed the bridge of her nose as if making a last ditch effort to convince herself not to say what she was about to. The captain turned to Saalm "You said that a rescue attempt would put us all at great risk. That tells me you have thought about it and that you think there is a way. Is that right?"

The Orion nodded. "There's an opportunity for rescue - a single one we must execute in a small window." Saalm reflected for a silent moment, her green features eventually turning severe as she voiced her primary concern. "But I warn all of you, we will suffer losses if we attempt this. I estimate close to twenty percent."

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

All Crew, USS Galileo-A

Lieutenant Diego
Security Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Saalm]

CAPT Navrin
Commanding Officer
USS Kali
[PNPC Ullswater]

Captain Rasmussen
Commanding Officer
USS Lagrange
[NPC Saalm]

Tholians
[NPCs Saalm]

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