Posted by Gamemaster Maniacal Mother Hen (GM) in New Sim: Prologue (Vaila Colony)

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To: Star-Fleet Command
From: Captain Yirziad Ries, Executive Officer, Vaila Colony
Re: Vaila Colony
It is with deepest regret that I feel compelled to write this report. There have been a number of strange occurrences since we arrived to set up the colony here and certain matters have arisen which I must now bring to your attention…

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Ries paused writing his message for a moment and took a swill from the glass of whiskey that he had been nursing for the past hour. As he held the old school handmade glass that his great grandfather had given him upon his graduation to his temple, wild images were still flashing in his head that he couldn’t ignore. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, knowing what must be done. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes again. In front of him stood his best friend, Cal, with a visible ligature mark around his neck.

Ries’ hand began to tremble and the glass clattered to the floor, tumbling across the deck before shattering against the bulkhead. He stood, frozen in place, shaking his head in disbelief at his friend who stood smiling before him. Still shaking, Ries pointed at his friend. “You…you…c…c…can’t be!” he quivered, his pulse racing and breathing shallow. “…you’re…d…d…” he stammered, shaking like a leaf.

His friend stepped towards him and put an ice cold hand on his shoulder, whispering in his ear. “Dead?” he offered helpfully. Cal’s skin was pale blue and his eyes sunken, there was no doubt he was dead, yet he seemed to be conversing remarkably well for a corpse.

With Yirziad’s hands quivering and his eyes still fixed on Cal, he nervously tapped his comm badge. =^= …Ries….Ries to…Lt Lazoh…he…he’s…here…here again… =^=

A softly spoken woman’s voice came back through the comm channel. =^= I’m on my way… =^=

Ries slowly sat down, not taking his eyes off Cal. He gripped the side of the chair and took some deep breaths as he tried to calm himself down.

Moments later the door slid open to reveal a young El-Aurian woman, the resident counsellor. She quickly came and knelt in front of Ries, careful to avoid the broken glass on the floor. She gently put her hands on his face and eased him round so he was looking at her. His eyes were wide with fear as he quivered and tried to focus on her. She spoke calmly and slowly as she looked him in the eye. “Yirziad, it’s me, it’s Nirim…you’re ok…” she said softly as he tried to turn back to look at Cal. “No, no, no, keep looking at me, you know he’s not there…” she added gently. “Just focus on my voice, can you do that?” the counsellor asked, making sure she kept her eyes fixed on his. This was the third time Captain Ries had reporting seeing their deceased colleague since his death a week ago but Ries and Cal had been extremely close friends and it had been a huge shock to them all. It was so rare to see a suicide in this day and age and it had hit the colony and in particular Captain Ries extremely hard.

Yirziad began to sob and leant his head on the counsellor’s shoulder. Nirim instinctively stroked his hair to try and calm him. “It’s ok, he’s not really there…” she whispered quietly. Just as Yirziad’s breathing began to slow and he started to relax, a tornado like wind materialised out of nowhere and objects started flying around the room. As the two frightened officers desperately clung to each other, Cal’s voice spoke on the wind. “No counsellor, you’re right, I’m not there…I’M IN HERE!!” his voice screamed in their heads like a siren as the wind picked up more and started to blow the furniture round the room as well. In the chaos, the two officers were torn apart but Nirim somehow managed to tap her comm badge.

=^= LT LAZOH TO ADMIRAL ALDRIDGE =^= she hollered over the wind and the voice in her head. =^= WE HAVE A SERIOUS SITUATION HERE, I THINK IT’S TIME WE CALLED COMMAND FOR BACK UP! =^= she added, her throat aching from screaming.

As quickly as it started, the wind stopped and Nirim breathed a sigh of relief as everything clattered to the floor. She winced as a chair hurtled from the ceiling and landed on her leg. Gritting her teeth through the throbbing pain in her leg, she turned back to Yirziad to make sure he was ok. About 5 feet away she saw him motionless and face down on the floor. She gingerly crawled up to him and put a hand on his shoulder to give him a reassuring pat. “It’s ok, it’s all over now,” she panted as she carefully rolled him over. A pair of lifeless, terrified eyes greeted her, his face frozen in horror and a huge gash across his neck where his throat had been slit with frightening precision. As a pool of blood slowly crept across the floor, Nirim sat in front of Ries with her mouth open in shock as a single tear rolled down her cheek. A medical team, followed quickly by the CO, Admiral Aldridge, frantically bundled into the room having detected a drop in life signs but it was too late to save Ries. Still motionless and staring at the body, her uniform now drenched in the Captain’s blood, Lazoh spoke in a barely audible voice. “Admiral, we need help…” she whispered as another tear rolled down her cheek.

From the far corner of the room, as soon as Captain Ries’ lifesigns terminated, a notification popped up on his console which simply read,

{Message Transmitted}

Mother Hen

The Admiral stood like a statue, staring at Captain Ries’ body in stunned silence. He cautiously made his way over to Nirim and knelt down beside her. “Counsellor?” he asked softly. “I think we should get you checked out?” he suggested, gently turning her face away from the dead body in front of her. “Let’s let them do what they need to…” he added as the medical team did the final checks to confirm time and cause of death. Nirim was frozen, tear drops slowly trickling down her cheeks as she turned to face the Admiral. “I…I don’t…don’t…know…” she whispered between sobs. Admiral Aldridge didn’t really know what to do with himself so just pulled the young woman in close to offer some comfort. She gratefully buried her head into his shoulder, both of them abandoning all standard protocol. As they embraced, a young Ensign popped his head round the door as the medical team gently placed a sheet over the corpse out of respect.

“Um, excuse me Admiral?” Ensign Daniels said as he cleared his throat. He didn’t really want to interrupt but knew he had to. Aldridge turned to face him, still holding the young counsellor. “Yes? What is it Ensign?” he asked quietly. Daniels nodded and checked the padd in his hand. “Sir, we’ve just had a message from Star-Fleet, they are sending the USS Viking to assist us…”

Aldridge gestured for a medic to come and take his place comforting the counsellor and slowly rose to his feet, muttering under his breath about old joints. He walked swiftly across to Ensign Daniels and took him by the arm, leading him out of the room. “What do you mean they’re sending a ship?” he asked, slightly puzzled. “We didn’t request any assistance?” he added, wondering how they had even heard about the incident. Daniels shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. “Sorry sir, I was just asked to relay the message.”

Aldridge gulped and paced the corridor for a minute, rubbing his forehead before nodding and returning to the Ensign. “Tell them we don’t require any help…” he said sternly. Daniels bit his lip and shook his head. “Apologies sir but command sent them, they are already on their way and will be here by 1600 hours…” Aldridge sighed and closed his eyes, taking a moment to think. A single bead of sweat formed on his forehead and trickled down the side of his face. “Of course Ensign, I’m sure we could use the help in this difficult time, tell them we look forward to receiving them…” he added. Daniels nodded and scurried off back to the command centre. Aldridge returned to the room and looked once again at the carnage. The medic, still with his arm around Nirim gently eased past him to take her to sickbay as Aldridge gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. The body had already been beamed to the mortuary as Aldridge stood alone in the decimated quarters. “What the hell is going on here…?” he quietly asked himself as he bowed his head.

Mother Hen (GM)