Posted by Captain Orvos Legen (Commanding Officer) in Bridge- Main Sim

Posted by Gamemaster Fossa (Gamemaster) in Bridge- Main Sim

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Daggum Hammor (Chief Engineer) in Bridge- Main Sim
Posted by… suppressed (39) by the Post Ghost! 👻

<snip>

Serena took her seat next to him and nodded. A hint of a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. She’d had her misgivings about the ship and crew when first assigned. It had been sudden and hectic. But having settled in and been through a few crazy situations, she knew the crew was up to the task. They always shined when things turned stormy.

“The Athena stands ready for some good hunting,” she said.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Janna took a deep breath and inwardly braced herself for the myriad of things that could happen. She knew hers was a more precarious position, but it no longer made her worry or even panic the way it once had. There was a level of acceptance that had settled into Janna’s life, and she suspected it had happened on that mission to the alternate Risa.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

After a long period of deep scanning, one of the larger asteroids was discovered to be hollow, and have metal structures inside.

-GM

“Captain, detecting one of the larger asteroids are hollow and metal structures inside.” Liam stated as he brought his discovery to the attention of the bridge.

-CSO, Liam J. Madison, Sci.

From the tactical station, confirming what CSO Madison announced, Lt Ducante started looking into if any part of the structure was safe for an away team, in case the captain wanted to send a team down.
Lt. Ducante, CoS

The CoS discovered that the structures were lightly shielded, save for one large piece underneath, which seemed to have a removable connection to the rest of the structure.

Serena turned in her seat toward Liam. Everything within three lightyears was close enough for high-resolution scanning. They could get more detail than that, but they were on a hunting mission. Best not to spook the deer yet by looking too hard or making too much noise. Unless the Captain wanted more to go off of. Assuming that was even their target’s clubhouse.

She turned her attention to Captain Legen, her face full of ‘up to you.’

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

The captain listened as he gave his plethora of thoughts room to air out in his mind. Seeing the look on his first officer’s face, he responded. “Let’s not show all our cards yet, but let’s also not look like an easy meal either. People don’t like directness all too often. Let’s try hailing them.”

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

There was heavy silence. And then someone answered. He was tall, lean, and he had a scar over his left eye. His hand rested on a disruptor pistol strapped to his belt. =How can I help you?=

-GM

Liam already made some theories, but he didn’t let them slip into assumptions. A hidden structure usually meant someone didn’t want to be found. However, the reason was unknown. He kept his peripheral vision on the viewer screen while still focusing on his station. Whoever these people were, he noted the defensive behavior and knew how dangerous that could be.

-CSO, Liam J. Madison, Sci.

OOC: Pasting the list back in here so I don’t have to hunt for it.
IC:
Starfleet - USS Indiana (All crew deceased)
Starfleet - USS Mandrake (All crew deceased)
Starfleet - USS Leopold (All crew deceased)
Private Contractor - SS Dawn Treader (Crew missing, status unknown)
Private Contractor - SS Half Moon (Crew missing, status unknown)

All 5 ships were registered and classed as cargo ships.

Faye eyed the list and silently agreed with Stone that it seemed on the surface as something against Starfleet. There were numerous directions she could look in, but for the moment she wanted to investigate the Private Contractors. Using her high credentials, the CIO dug to see if she could find out more about these contractors.

~Faye Calloway, CIO

Serena studied the man on screen, seemingly male, human, with skin tones and features that might be described as Grecian. Dark eyes, and stress lines, the kind of person who’d been through a lot and very little of it good. Her experience in security wanted to label him immediately as likely an outlaw. Certainly the disruptor didn’t help. But she knew those were her own biases. Still, people often fit into certain types. It was worth the benefit of the doubt. The man was living in a rough neighborhood so to speak. It usually took rough and rugged types to make it out in the Wild West parts of space.

She turned her attention to the captain. It was his ship, after all.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

((bump))

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Orvos stood up and stepped forward facing the viewer. “This is the USS Athena. We’re currently conducting an investigation of several ships disappearing in this region. Any help from folks here would certainly be of service. We’d like to know if anyone has heard or seen anything strange going in these parts? Missing crews or ships showing up?” He paused expectantly for an answer. No matter what they said, Orvos was confident it would bring them at least a step closer to figuring things out.

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

Lt. Ducante looked up from the tactical panel at the man on the viewscreen, interested in his answer. He was also still preparing for if the Captain wanted to send an away team down.
Lt. Ducante, CoS.

The figure shifted and became visibly tense. “Everyone in our settlement is fine.” He pressed a small button on his belt, though its precise effect was not immediately known. “Good luck in your search.”

-GM

Serena frowned as he touched the button on the belt. At her arm controls she tapped out a quick message for Madison. =^=Scan that rock again and run comparative analysis.=^= Message sent, she returned her attention to the main viewer.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Liam’s eyes glimpsed the XO’s message. Subtly, his attention shifted to his console and he began to run the requested scan. Something didn’t feel right here.

-CSO, Liam J. Madison, Sci.

A deeper scan seemed to show the interior structure to be made of a variety of metals that would have been sourced from 4 or 5 different ships. Parts were Starfleet, parts were Ferengi, parts were Romulan.

-GM

OOC: anything further to be found in Fayes’s digging?

~Linds

Liam’s eyes widened in surprise at the discovery. Keeping his face schooled, his hand moved and sent a message back to the XO. =^=Interior structure aren’t unified. There’s a variety of metals that would be sourced from four or five different ships. Scans shows parts from Starfleet, Ferengi, and Romulan. =^=

-CSO, Liam J. Madison, Sci.

Hammor listened intently to the tense exchange. Something was off, for certain. Seeing the button press, he scowled. That’s a signal. But for what? he thought.

Hammor, CE

It took time, but Faye found information on the contractors. The ships were each owned by their (presently missing) Captains. They were regularly contracted by the Federation to do things like haul supplies to colonies and outposts. Their business records seemed legitimate. Faye did however recognize the name of a crew member on the SS Dawn Treader. It was a well-worn alias of an Intel colleague. Their real name was Silas Morgan. They were a human Intel operative still using the name “Caden Falls” as an alias. Beyond that the companies, ships, and crews appeared average.

-GM

Orvos, allowing his crew to do their part, quickly pointed out the obvious to everyone involved. Speaking to the man on screen he spoke in a perhaps dramatized manner. “And that is absolutely grand to hear! No assistance required! That’s good news. But…that’s not what I asked. Now, if you’d be so kind as to tell us if anything strange has been happening out here? Missing crews? Find anyone in desperate need of assistance? Anything would really help us out you know. So…?” he said with a curious eyebrow raised at the viewscreen. He was feeling more confident now. His command took a deeper root as the puzzle before him unfolded. And he was feeling more…himself…in these new command shoes.

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

The figure on the screen responded “I don’t keep up with the affairs of outsiders, but if you’ve lost a crew, they’re not here. All I do is provide for the people here. Whatever Federation business you’re on, leave us out of it.” He held a genuine disdain for the Federation, that much was obvious.

-GM

LT. Ducante started another security scan of the asteroid, and a security sweep of the area for any ships that might decloak and attack after he hit the button on his belt. The Lt. didn’t want to have any surprises.
Lt Ducante, CoS

Aside from the one section of the structure inside the asteroid that seemed capable of detaching, there was no sign of a ship. There was however evidence that some significant amount of the population of this asteroid was carrying weapons.

-GM

Orvos’s grin broadened. “Well, that’s actually quite fascinating! Can you tell me anything about this particular area of space? Perhaps you haven’t found any crews, but that’s not to say crews haven’t gone missing here. Anything out of the ordinary we should be wary of? People? Ships? Anything?” He was prying for more information. The more this man talked the better.

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

Not very neighborly, Stone thought. For the moment it was best to let Captain Legen do his thing, while she observed as close as she could. With a long career in security, she’d learned much about listening to people’s body language, micro-expressions, and so on. While not exactly foolproof, as say a telepath might be, it was quite hard to lie to someone like her. So for the moment, she simply watched to see what jumped out at her.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Hammor began to scan and map the asteroid and the ship. He also looked for power sources, critical infrastructure locations, and also began trying to ascertain it any of the cannibalized Federation ships may have been Star Fleet. If so… that could give them a clue as the background of this… ‘community’.

Hammor, CE

Hammor would discover that the structure seemed indeed to be made out of starfleet ships’ hulls. The figure on the screen spoke. “We are the only settlers in this area. Lots of ships pass through, but none stop off to create a settlement. And they’re probably better for it.”

-GM

-bump-

-GM

((Any indication of the age of those hulls or their construction methods/materials? Something that might indicate their source/age/nature?

What about any other tells or micro-expressions, anything like that from our contact on screen?))

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

The hulls seem to vary in age, the oldest being about 150 years old. The contact on screen seemed to be holding a great deal back, mainly hostility towards the Starfleet personnel.

-GM

Serena surreptitiously started a facial recognition scan on the man. A positive ID was a long shot but at least then there might be an answer for his hostility and open dislike. Or was he just that unneighborly?

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Hammor continued his scans and mapping, but also sent Stone a message. If we need to go in, I volunteer. An Orion may be more ‘acceptable’ to that particular… environment.

Hammor, CE

There was no direct ID leading to a name and personal history. There was however a positive match for security footage captured on Outpost 42, when a shuttle was hijacked from the launch bay and went missing- along with its cargo. The cargo wasn’t anything of special monetary value, it was emergency relief supplies being sent to the site of a natural disaster on a nearby world. The shuttle was never recovered.

The structure appeared to be a patchwork of ships and small stations designed for long term living in hostile environments. It was all pressurized and fed breathable air to compensate for the absence of atmosphere. The one ship that seemed to detach from the larger structure and maintained flight capability was old and had been subjected to upgrades and maintenance that allowed it to outlive its natural years.

-GM

While the crew was busy analyzing, he continued to keep the man busy. “Better for not settling? Why would that be?” he asked with intense curiosity. He could tell there was unspoken words there, and Orvos was driven to draw them out.

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

bump

“Natural resources are difficult to access in this area.” The man answered. “Our settlement gets by, but it was a challenge to get to where we are now. But we’ll be fine on our own.”

-GM

Daggum sent the information to the XO and CO, and then he began tracing power signals and looking for a generation station or command center.

Hammor, CE

Hammor would find a power flow to a central control room. It approximately matched the origin point of the transmission being received on the viewscreen. All signs pointed to that being the command center.

-GM

Orvos grinned and bowed. “Very well, good sir! Should we have any other questions, we will be in touch.” He waited to see if the man had a counter response.

When the transmission was cut, he then turned to his crew in a more serious tone. “They very clearly had to know something given they’re the only ones here. Have we detected anything warranting attention? Thoughts on all of it? Speak up!”

-Captain Orvos Legen, CO

Hammor turned and said “Well, the whole place is a conglomeration of old- sometimes really old- ships and such. I didn’t find any registries or sign of our missing ships but I did get a match to a stolen shuttle out of Outpost 42. That might give us just cause to investigate further. Oh, and one ship in there still has flight capabilities and can detach. It is located… here.” He put up his preliminary map of the facility on the main screen with the shuttle, the detachable ship, and the command center marked.

Hammor, CE