Current RP year is 2402
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NPC Arrain (Centurion) Taheen t'Raghaellh of the New Romulus Republic[ChR S'ten (Meret-class warbird) - leaving Chaltok system - personal quarters](1 and a 1/2 days later)The S'ten was on it's way back to the Tryka system with supplies to assist with the rebuilding after the attack on Deutus Alliance's headquarters. Taheen still didn't quite believe that the Federation ship, Discovery, wasn't somehow involved but apparently the Romulan traitors had been caught 'red-handed' by the Alliance ships, proving the Fed's innocence.She was finalizing her day's reports before calling it a night, when her personal computer pinged with a private message. Something, perhaps it was the timing or a sixth sense, had her knowing that this was the return message from the human, Tess. Saving her work for later, Taheen got up from her desk to ensure the door to her quarters were locked. The use of the Romulan signal jamming device was not paranoia, it was standard protocol now for any encrypted message received. With so many different factions vying for control of the territory, it was important to keep any orders received as secret as possible. Though these weren't orders she was receiving it was encrypted so she would follow protocol. Once protocol was met, Taheen pressed play on her viewscreen and the image of the human woman appeared. She had been correct on the message's source. The human woman once more offered a proper Romulan greeting, though she used the Federation term rather than the Rihanssu rank. She went on to thank Taheen for her willingness to help. It was only when the woman, named Tess, spoke the name of the individual she wanted information on that Taheen realized that she probably shouldn't have gotten involved. 'Talen tr'Lhoell?... What were the odds that Taheen would be asked by a complete stranger about information on her long lost fiancé's father? Taheen was sure her face must register no small amount of shock. Thank the Elements that this was not a live communication. So Talen had been imprisoned at Faicol-lhui? The Romulan officer couldn't help a brief spur of discontent. Her father had been executed and her family ostracized for his traitorous activities, yet the Proconsul only got imprisoned? Faicol lhui was a prison reserved for the worse type of criminals - traitors if not killed outright were often sent there to serve and die. Her attention returned to message as the woman on it continued speaking. The woman, Tess, noted what information she was looking for and then in an unwelcome turn of called on Taheen's mnhei'sahe to not take negative action against the s'Lhoell clan. This obviously meant a lot to the human. Was that because of her Romulan husband? Taheen couldn't help but draw an assumption of who that could be. Since Hobus there were few of the Lhoell line left and only a handful directly related to Proconsul Lhoell. A long forgotten ache formed in her chest. Could it be him? Was Rayek truly alive... and married to a human? The ache turned to a momentary flare resentment.Was there anyway she could find out for certain? Who should she contact if it was him? To her knowledge he'd gone missing prior to Hobus... at pretty much the same time as his father...Realization struck. He must have been imprisoned too. But how had he ended up with a human woman? Had he been among the prisoners she and the ship she served on had been ordered to retrieve? Taheen closed the now finished message, a pensive look on her face. There was no way she could respond at the moment. She needed time to think... to plan. This had the potential to be big news. 'Who could she contact?' she wondered.It was nearly 14 years since Taheen had last spoken to Kemala - just after she'd learned of her father's arrangement with Proconsul Lhoell to bind their two families together to tell her the good news.... and just before her father was charged with treason and executed. In the aftermath of that terrible day, Taheen had tried to get a hold of Rayek, her newly arranged fiancé, believing he and his family would take her in - perhaps shelter her family from some of the social stigma of having a treasonous father. Yet he had refused her calls, despite his tender attentions from just earlier that week. Taheen and her family were forced to leave the capital. It had taken a nearly a year before things settled and she was able to apply for the Military Academy. Her application nearly rejected at the time. She would see Kemala in the grade higher... but the two never spoke. While it was understandable, the family of the Proconsul couldn't be seen in such company - it still hurt.Things improved after Hobus, fewer people remembered or could afford to turn their nose up at Taheen and her family, who had relocated to an outlying colony world. Now she had status and was on her way to possibly becoming a Sub-Commander. Kemala as Commander of her own ship, should be able to overlook the past and be willing to take her call.It was late in the evening but Taheen wasn't sure the conversation would go any easier if she waited. She opened an encrypted comm line to Kemala's ship, the Vauthil. "Riov t'Lhoell" she greeted formally with a respectful nod of her head towards the screen. "Thank you for taking my call. I have some information that I believe will be of interest to you personally as well as professionally." Taheen paused a moment to ensure she had the Commander's attention. "I have received a request from human woman asking for information about the fate and whereabouts of Talen of the clan Lhoell. I am told that this woman is married to a 'relocated Romulan'. She claims that Talen, your father, was imprisoned at Faicol lhui about 15 years ago... maybe less. She contacted me because the ship I served at the time was assigned to deal with the riots there.I thought you should know before I investigate for any information. The request for information was announced as a matter of mnhei'sahe by Sub-Commander t'Movel herself so it is nothing I am able to ignore without direct order from someone higher." There was another pause before Taheen spoke again towards Kemala on the screen "What would you have me do, Riov?"
NPC Major Telmuk tr'Lhoell [Tryka system - Tryka IV - capital city] Following his conversation with his sister, Telmuk found it difficult to not become distracted thinking about his sister's theory. It got so distracting that the agent at one point lost sight of his informant and had to use the bio-tracker he'd placed on the man earlier to locate him once more. Having reacquired the Republic officer, Telmuk decided to expedite his making contact. It was a bit of a risk but Telmuk didn't have the focus to maintain his observation any longer. The meet up was brief. The information was obtained and the man paid. Later, if the intel proved false, the man would be found dead due to a custom-tailored contact poison that had been applied to the payment. But if the information was good, then Telmuk would make arrangements to have the antidote discreetly added to the man's meal before the poison could take affect. With the meet done, Telmuk returned to his rented apartment and found himself staring at the image of the human woman. Dark-haired, blue-eyed with an expressive face. She likely would be an easy person to read just by facial expression. The background appeared to be a non-descript interior - lit completely by artificially lighting. The image gave very little away as to it's location and Telmuk pondered momentarily if that had been intentional. Undeterred by the lack of locale detail, Telmuk uploaded the image to his computer and opened a high resolution image editing program. Through this program he was able to study the image in finer detail. He was pleased to note that the image itself hadn't been altered in any way - that would make finding slip-ups easier. Since the background gave him very little information, he decided he needed to attempt to get an idea of what was behind the camera. To do that he checked for reflections... on the surface of her eye... on the metal bracelet at her wrist. What he found was disturbing. Reflected in her eye, was the image of a room interior that had the style of not only the Federation - which was honestly to be expected she was human after all - but also the design layout of a Starfleet officer's quarters. And if that were not enough, what at first he'd thought was simply a generic piece of wall art... turned out to be way more when he enlarged the speck in the reflection.He recognized the central image as being that of his sister, Kemala - with a likeness of himself set just off to the right. With even fainter representations of their father and mother more in the background. That a human woman would have such an image displayed made no sense... except that it was a depiction of her husband's relatives. The only member of the family not represented was Rayek. Telmuk's anger flared. Somehow Rayek WAS alive, yet rather than return to his family to help them through their loss after Hobus, he was off somewhere in the Federation as a refugee married to some Starfleet officer? It was so ludicrous! But the evidence was staring him in the face. Kemala had been right... yet he doubted that her dream of bringing Rayek back home would ever see fruition. Their brother had every opportunity to return home - yet instead had chosen to sleep with the enemy - quite literally. He wondered if there was anyway he could hide this truth from Kemala.
Cmdr. Tess t'Lhoell (7 months pregnant)[Katra Station - Promenade - Morning of day 5]Rigidly Tess stepped down from the podium, so tensed up as she waited for the reaction of the crowd to her leaving that even the fine hairs at the back of her neck started to tingle in fear of hell breaking loose behind her now. But that fortunately did not happen. Yet, just as she wanted to let out a sigh of relief, Captain Noh'ves stepped up to her. Instantly, Tess felt the tension gripping her once more in anticipation of yet another disapproving or sarcastic comment from her Klingon superior. She was aware that it didn't go as well as she had hoped and it would be reason enough for Beja's father to feel he had been right in wanting to go a more strict route - but to her surprise and even more to her relief, Noh'ves did something unexpected. The words of recognition was very welcome and gave Tess back some of the confidence she had struggled to maintain. At Noh'ves order to inform him when the meeting with the Meridians would be and that they would continue to do things 'her way' Tess let out a breath and as the tension fell off of her, she gave a smile to the Klingon. She made sure to catch his eyes as she nodded her head in acknowledgement, knowing it was him declaring his support to her suggestions - for now."Yes, Sir", Tess said dutifully, but felt more light-hearted now. Also, because now her brain was more open to register that indeed the crowd had not turned into an angry mob as she had been afraid it would. "I will arrange a meeting right away."Giving a respectful parting nod to Noh'ves, Tess turned away from the crowd a little bit, for one to get some space between the crowd that was about to dissolve slowly, but also to seek a more quiet spot to make a call to the President Tarin's assistant. "Commander t'Lhoell to Miss Keshara." Tess wetted her lips, but it was her mouth that felt very dry. She wondered if she or the President had heard of the crowd's reaction already. "I would like to arrange a meeting with President Tarin at his earliest convenience. There are some things regarding the most recent events we would like to discuss with him." After her conversation with Keshara, Tess caught sight of the new Ensign Sula Niri. Now that she wasn't that much under pressure anymore she recalled that they had an addition to the medical department and that Ensign Sula had already arrived the day before. Walking up to her, Tess gave the Bajoran woman a smile. "Welcome to Katra Station, Ensign. I'm afraid you came here at a rather ... enthralling time. It is due to this that I haven't had time to welcome you here as I try to with new personnel as best as I can." It was a habit she had picked up from her husband really. While his motivation mainly might have been other reasons, Tess thought it was a nice way to give it a more personal touch. "I would like to assign you to the team that works on researching on the Meridian illness. Every additional hand to help with it is welcome. Your task will be to re-evaluate the brain scans and patterns of all scans we have from the Meridians from the very beginning. Have Ensign Kumar assist you if you need to." Tess smiled at her again and then nodded. "Dismissed, Ensign. I will pop in to sickbay as soon as I can."Riov (General) Vandar - Tal'Shiar Operative[Tryka system - Tryka IV - Capital city - secret Tal'Shiar headquarters]Vandar had just taken a sip from the Trykan drink when the doors to his office opened and revealed the figure of Telmuk tr'Lhoell. The General made no move to interrupt his savouring of the pleasant drink while the other Romulan greeted him with a proper salute. Only when Vandar had set down the tumbler on his desk did he acknowledge Telmuk and prompted him for the reason of this meeting. Vandar had made sure to have his mental shield raised up, especially when he dealt with a known to him telepath. Not there was concern at this point that the Major would use his abilities on him, it was more Vandar's paranoia about it that had only grown over the decades. Vandar accepted the intel Telmuk had collected from the republic officer. He would check for the verisimilitude of the information himself. He then regarded the Major questioningly for a moment, wondering if this had been the reason to arrange a meeting with him even at this late hour. This surely could just as well have been forwarded to him via secured channels. So why had Telmuk insisted on a personal meeting?He didn't have to wait long for the answer to that. While he had regarded the inferior with cautious curiosity at the announcement that he had received news that were better not intercepted by others the expression on his face hardened instantly at the mention of the man's brother being alive. The confusion very soon made space for suspicion and wariness, but yet the notion of Rayek possibly being alive had Vandar raise to his feet and round the desk to pace the room slowly while he listened to Telmuk's report about the many contacts that had been made that day. Hearing about this for the first time, it all sounded a little muddled and Vandar had to concentrate to get the details right - there were many persons involved in this. The more were involved the more complicated it became to keep track with every single person's actions.Would he have heard a story like this, Vandar's wariness likely would have kept him from believing this in the first place. What did he care about the inquiry of some random human woman? Right now he even doubted it was directly connected to the Lhoell clan and wondered why Telmuk believed this would prove his brother was alive - which he was not. That Vandar did know. His despite for Rayek tr'Lhoell had never really worn off. Vandar had kept tabs on Rayek ever since their ways had parted and Praetor Chulan had assigned the telepath to a mission involving the Federation. He had waited to get the chance to satisfy his hateful sentiments toward Rayek, but was denied this when Rayek had been imprisoned in Faicol lhui. While it had not been what Vandar had envisioned for the telepath, it gave him a small amount of satisfaction at least knowing Rayek carve out a miserable existence in the infamous penal facility. After Hobus, Vandar had learned about the violent riots there and had investigated on the prisoner Rayek tr'Lhoell. The information he had been given was clear. Rayek - like many other prisoners - had been killed during that event. So Vandar wasn't keen on Telmuk's assumption that Rayek could be alive. But Telmuk would hold a surprise for him, Vandar just didn't know it yet.One of the things that prevented him from dismissing the story right away was the apparent involvement of Commander t'Movel. Vandar didn't usually venerate a person, but t'Movel had been one of the officers that had served the Empire - well, the former Empire - greatly, and it would be a name that would be spoken of highly in many generations to come. What did her involvement in this mean? What had moved her to help the human woman? This was puzzling to Vandar. When Vandar's computer beeped with the message of the picture Telmuk had just forwarded to him, Vandar stopped his pacing and called out to the computer to open the message and show the picture. He took a long moment to regard the human woman on the screen. He didn't waste time to look at her to take in the impression she made on him - no, his only focus was on searching and finding useful details. He picked up on the same things like Telmuk - the background that gave away nothing, or well - not nothing. The design looked very Federation-like. But he too noticed the absence of anything that might give away personal details about that woman - or her husband. He noticed the Romulan wedding bracelet at her wrist. It didn't look fake. But then again it was hard to tell from a mere photo.Turning his attention then to the highlighted detail of the picture at the wall reflecting in the woman's eyes, Vandar's face became actually astounded. He knew the Lhoell clan and he saw at the first glance that the Lhoell family was pictured there - without Rayek. Vandar's mind began to race to make things make sense. It had been confirmed to him that Rayek tr'Lhoell had been killed, but the fact that this human woman possessed a portrait of the tr'Lhoell family with Rayek the only person not on it and that the woman inquired about former Proconsul Talen, made the assumption that Rayek was still alive and lived among the Feds now was a valid one. Despite the reaction that most might have expected from him, Vandar began to grin to himself. If there was one thing he could take pleasure in this, it was the chance for him to give Rayek what he deserved after all - even with a valid reason now. Besides of being a telepath, he was a traitor - an ex Tal'Shiar agent who defected the Empire. Even these days that was a no-go. Telmuk's words that followed then showed to Vandar that his brother's fate had been unknown to him as yet. He likely assumed Rayek had been killed during Hobus. Vandar tore his gaze away from the screen to look at Telmuk as he stated his view on things. With satisfaction, Vandar acknowledged that Telmuk set his priorities right and did not shy away from eliminating any defectors and traitors - brother or not. There was a possibility that he could have withhold all of these information and try to save his brother. But apparently Telmuk's loyalty to the Rihanssu was stronger than family ties. Holding the man's gaze, the grin on his face gone, Vandar turned away from his desk and moved to the sideboard that held a half-empty bottle of the Trykan Votacus and three empty tumblers. The fourth one of the set was sitting on his desk. He answered deliberately while he pushed one of the empty tumblers closer to him and then opened the bottle that contained the bright orange beverage. "Your brother was imprisoned in Faicol lhui - just like your father. He had failed to meet the Praetor's expectations. My investigations after Hobus had revealed that he had been killed during the riots that had wiped out almost the whole prison shortly after that." Vandar picked up the bottled and poured some of the Votacus into the tumbler, his eyebrows knitting briefly. "At least that had been told to me." He definitely would investigate on the person who had given that false information to him, whose life would become significantly more unpleasant now. Who knew if the misinformation had been given deliberately - which would mean having helped a traitor. But even if it had happened not on purpose, this was a mistake that must not happen. Vandar put the bottle back down and picked up the tumbler to hand it to Telmuk, stopping right in front of the young Major. "As you can see we can't trust anyone. Can't rely on others." With the drink given to Telmuk, Vandar turned to pick up his own one from the desk and resumed in filling Telmuk up about his brother. "Rayek was in service for Praetor Chulan himself. Like you, he had been trained in his abilities and been assigned for special operations the Praetor thought him useful for. That was how we met, as the Praetor's right hand he had to report to me." Yes. He missed those times. He pondered briefly if he should mention to Telmuk about his dynamic with Rayek but chose not to. "At one point, your brother had failed to live up to the Praetor's expectations and so had met the end he deserved, along with your father for having had ties to a Senator who was associated with a conspirator who was planning an attempt on the Praetor's life."With the tumbler in hand, Vandar observed Telmuk's reaction to all of this. "You are nothing like your brother." He deliberately let the younger one of the Lhoell sons know his recognition. It was all about psyhocholgy. "You have chosen the path we had wanted for your brother as well, but he had opted against it. You though have proven your loyalty to the Rihanssu." He raised his glass, holding Telmuk's gaze for a moment before he took a sip."Your work here on Tryka IV will end now. You will solely work on tracing his steps and finding him. I want reports daily. When you have found him - eliminate him. And when you have done so, I want proof of it. What that proof will be is up to you, but I won't get fooled again."
<Katra Station - Deck 21 - Security Offices>Just pleased that this request had not been delayed for reasons of scheduling, Paul replied in a professional manner befitting the circumtsance. " Aye aye, Leftenant. I'll be there momentarily. Wessex out. "Leaving the small security office, grabbing his PADD as he did so, Paul re-entered the busy hubbub of the station's Promenade, relieved that the recent public wave of discontent had receded. Not that he truly believed the problem had gone away. He had seen parallels during his time in NavPat - the Plankton Poisonings, for one.And that whole 'AquaKhan' business.The memory of that particular thorny issue produced a conflicted emotion, but he opted for the more positive of the two and allowed himself a bemused grin."Hello Officer" called out one of the shopkeepers as he strolled casually by. He smiled warmly and ducked his head in reply. "Afternoon, ma'arm""Good to see you, Officer Wessex!" called out another, and Paul found himself paraphrasing his greeting to the burly man standing outside his establishment. The pattern of unsolicited welcomes continued as he passed through the Civilian Zone and he was surprised how quickly the merchants had come to know him in such a short space of time. In many ways, he was buoyed at the acceptance of his presence, although there had been scant reasons to be treated otherwise as yet.And yet the home truths of Jacobs echoed in his head. Why was he here? After all, being a Security Officer on an outpost in the Gamma Quadrant, days away from even the remarkable wormhole and any meaningful Starfleet support, was about as remote from the test trials of the USS Varuna as was possible. Who exactly would think to offer him the opportunity to be a key member of Bridge crew at its commissioning; the skills he had acquired over the years had yet to be even remotely demonstrated. At this time, he'd be lucky to be considered for a night-shift ordnance supervisor. Indeed, Katra's own Commanding Officer was yet barely aware of his existence, the station's First Officer had been understandably preoccupied with the developing medical situation, and the Exchange Chief of Security had been largely concerned with more important matters, as befitting her senior position, while he continued his investigation into the rumoured criminal underworld of shoe thievery and thuggery.He blew a mildly despondent breath through his nose as he told himself to focus on the job at hand. At the end of the day, he wasn't some glory-hound, seeking mentions in dispatches. Certainly he had never felt this way in the Patrol, and so he was surprised Jacobs's words had stung him so profoundly. Was he so at sea up here that even the smallest ripple risked capsizing his otherwise stable morale? Or was it something else he had yet to quantify.Nevertheless, despite the turbulent undercurrent beneath the surface, Paul continued to smile, nod and conduct himself towards the numerous salutations from the civilian populace as he made his way to the turbolift.If he was making a difference to these peoples' lives, then perhaps that should be justification enough.<Katra Station - Deck 3 - Temp. SOO's office>Standing outside, his internal doubts submerged beneath fathoms of professionalism, Paul straightened himself and keyed the chime on the door to Lt Moreno's office, holding his PADD with the latest.
IKS Lod Qan - BridgeZex had asked the question expecting Solluk to say no. She had asked though because it was her duty as a diplomatic officer to always attempt a peaceful outcome. And because she was scared - really scared that this would be their end.So for a moment, she simply stared back at the Vulcan blank faced. But that moment passed quickly. So in one swift move, she removed the blue ice pack atop her head and stood before starting the visual message.-/\-IKS Lod Qan to the Gregari. We are a federation crew on an exchange program with Klingon's which should explain why we are aboard a Klingon vessel. I am Deltan and it is not how habit to lie. So I am being honest when I say that our ship is in need of repair. We are venting heat because our environmental system in an effort to prevent us dying from heat exposure. We could use your help in making repairs to our ship. We would also like to make contact with you. To open a dialog with you. To learn about you and your culture. We come in peace. Please respond in kind-/\- she said.She ended the transmission. Blew out some excess air she was holding in. Then sank back into her chair. "I gave it all that I have. Without revealing our mission. I hope it was enough to resolve this peacefully" she said, more to herself than anyone else.
IKS Lod Qan - EngineeringThere were days when Catherine Goodspeed really wished she'd gone into corporate catering. She was pretty sure replicating sandwiches and handing round small gold wrapped chocolate and nut sweets was a lot less taxing on one's heart and less likely to result in possible death.A cold start. Bloody hell. Cat knew about those. Cat had always tried to be fairly pragmatic growing up and didn't have many fears at her age now. In fact she only had 2 recurring nightmares that seemed to have stuck with her from her late 20's. One involved being a child again and at home as The Borg struck and not being able to find her parents. The other was being forced to initiate a cold start.It was always the same dream. Some faceless humanoid shaped thing had killed her Father and all her beloved cats and pets. It held a plasma rifle to her Mother's head and counted down from 5. Cat would hit the switch then watch in terrifying slow motion as her flesh peeled away from her body and watch from dead eyes as planets boiled and burned from the explosion she had caused.Both nightmares seemed to last for hours and always resulted in her screaming herself awake."no" Cats lips set a firm thin line under her mask, one that meant her mind was made up."no... No cold start. We may be getting our arse handed to us on a plate out there at the moment but the risks are too bloody great for that!"Torpa had not taken her eyes off Cat " But Cat Lagh. We may not last 10 minutes!"A Klingon, who Cat did not recognise and who she assumed was one of the cannon fodder muscle crew laughed "Perhaps the aging female human is too afraid or too weak to perform such a task!"Cat turned her body to face him and removed her mask. The look on her face was not a pleasant one."Shut up you stupid excuse for a Klingon. A dead Targ is smarter than you and has more head ridges than your Mother!" Cat knew that last insult was severely uncalled for and would normally result in death for one of them but she was past caring.Cat snorted "You know nothing! That man who performed that stunt was born with a universe of luck on his side. Only once before was it achieved, all others have failed!!""Even if it was a success it may not last long enough to help then we are dead in the water"Cat was shaking in anger now. "We may not even last a second if we try a cold start! Or end up 3 days back in the past or forward in time. Or blow up this entire system!!" "Then no new world for you and no rescue mission for the Tholians, just a lot of dead bloody us and dead bloody planets. All a waste!"Cat shook her head "Normal restart now. Bleed as much power to the Bridge... " Cat let herself have a small smile. "And sod normal safety algorythms Torpa! We go fast and dirty, like our Fathers did before us. If it was good enough for them, it's good enough for us!" Cat smiled and nodded to Torpa and watched her get to work. Cats eyes locked onto the Klingon she had insulted."This old man can handle bypassing most of them. Fast and dirty is in his bones. Trouble is these days Klingon's have picked up bad health and safety standards from Starfleet". Cat kept her eyes locked on the Klingon she had insulted in case he went for a weapon and hit her com badge. Captain, Cat here... Should be up in 4 minutes! All available power is being diverted to your command. We've sealed off and shut down non essential areas to reroute more power to you. We're going as quick as we can down here sir! Cat closed the COMM and started on calculations to try and speed things up her end.She knew that if she survived this she would have another nightmare to add to her list but this new one would not be some made up fear; it would merely be her reliving the next 4 minutes over and over again.
