Snatch and Grab

Posted on 09 Feb 2018 @ 6:08am by Captain Stovvan & Lieutenant Commander Geraldine "Geri" Severide

1,579 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Errand of Mercy
Location: USS Dark Star, sitting off from the USS Redemption
Timeline: ED7: 0635, during "Distractions and Aftermath"

ON:

Stovvan sat, finger steepled, in the pilots chair of the Dark Star. They we're currently cloaked in high orbit of Hadronus. He kept his eyes closed as he centered himself and waited. This was always the hardest part of any mission. The acting was easy, enjoyable even, but the waiting was tiresome. He meditated on that unexpected truth as he waited for the signal from the Redemption that would allow him to grab his target. The errant Ensign Marshall, or as he was known by SFI Agent 210.


---USS Redemption

PALLAS observed the occurrences going on inside the science lab with a certain satisfaction. That lasted all of .0034 seconds before she acted. She contacted the Captain and inquired about his orders. While doing this she also activated a subroutine that was installed by SFI, she opened a burst com link to the ship she knew was shadowing the Redemption and had helped to rescue the Major. Attaching the coordinates of Marshall's body, including the warning that he was dead but had been infected by the Ee virus, and the shield frequency of the Redemption's shields she encrypted the transmission with the most current SFI encryption and sent. She knew this would be a gamble as Captain Ashcart would not look kindly on her actions, maybe this would help her convence him that the base programming put in by SFI needed to be removed. He was smart enough to figure out why she did it, even if she, herself, couldn't talk about the hidden SFI protocols.

---Intelligence Hub

It was not long before the intelligence department was alerted to the activation of the dormant SFI protocols. The Dark Star was making a move on Marshall's body. Her concern however was not with the ensign but rather his target. Captain Stovvan was not too forthcoming with details and was now willing to expose herself for whatever Marshall was after.

"Ma'am, it appears the AI in our system has activated SFI protocols. It has broadcasted a set of coordinates and our shield frequencies. We should alert the Captain."

"No." Geri replied sternly. "You will simply monitor the situation and do nothing. I will brief the Captain."

"Ma'am, I'm picking up something. I think it's a craft. Whatever it is it is nearly matching our shield frequency." the analyst reported.

"Like I said, monitor the situation and send the data to my office." Without further direction, she walked out of the main area to her office.

---USS Dark Star

The panel beeped in-front of Stovvan and the Dark Star's unique famine voice spoke up. "Captain, incoming transmission from USS Redemption."

Stovvan straightened imperceptibly as he opened his eyes and looked at the forward window. "Put it on screen." With that the forward screen that showed the USS Redemption hanging next to a large celestial body blinked away to be replaced with coordinates as well as the ships current shield frequency. There was text underneath both. "Marshall is here, get here quick his neck is snapped and he's infected. Shield Frequency will remain locked for one minute." Stovvan blinked then raised an eyebrow and sprung into action his fingers dancing across the controls as only time and familiarity will allow.

"Star, set our shield frequency to match that of the Redemption's." then he paused "Scratch that, set our shield frequency .03 GHz lower." he wanted the distraction that a shuttle passing through their shields would cause. He knew enough that it would trigger a Red Alert which would hopefully cause everyone to be looking away when Marshall's body disappeared. "Once were inside the shield bubble correct the frequency so that we can pass out smoothly."

He brought the cloaked ship in at an oblique angle coming in just off of a shuttle's flight path to the shuttle bay. One hand gripped the edge of the console as the readout counted down the distance before they would be within transporter range and the ship bucked as it's poorly modulated shields touched, flared and passed through the Redemption's. Once through the cloak snapped back on and they were once again invisible. He scanned the coordinates and found the infected dead body.

"Star, once transport begins store the pattern in the high security buffers. I do not want him to re-materialize until we are back at SFI and have enough of Afton's cure to keep him from turning completely. Maybe if we time it right we can get him alive but keep him from getting the Ee's powers." Stovvan said and the computer acknowledged.

"Understood Captain, bringing High Security Storage Buffers online." there was a seconds pause before the Computer confirmed that they were ready. "Ready for transport at your leisure Captain." He locked the transporters onto the body and energized. He felt more than heard the transporter's whine as the body on the Redemption disappeared in a column of white light and was stored in the Star's highest security transport cell. A modified transporter buffer designed to keep the pattern or a person in stasis as energy indefinitely without degradation of the person's pattern. It was tech that was adapted and improved upon from Captain Scott's idea back on the USS Jenolan and immensely useful in the Intelligence gathering field. He didnt use it often as there were drawbacks, namely a high enough drain on the warp reactors that caused the Dark Star to drop from warp 9.4 down to 7.1, lower if he had to keep defensive and offensive systems online.

Once the transport was completed he checked that the shield modulation now matched the Redemption's and shouldn't cause any issues when he exited and pivoted the ship around, dropping the cloak for a second before raising the shields and passing back through the Redmeption's protective bubble. Once on the other side the shields fell and the cloak resettled over the ship as they headed back to Earth.

That done he locked in the autopilot and set the course for Star Fleet Headquarters. He engaged the warp drive at 7.1 with instructions that after an hour, which would put them well outside the Hadronus system, the computer would drop the cloak and raise the warp speed from 6.2 up to 7.1 which, he looked up at the chronograph, would put them back at Earth in two days give or take a few hours.

The door behind Stovvan suddenly swished open as the Redemption's Chief Intelligence Officer appeared. She gingerly strutted towards the seated Captain, a smirk spanning her cheeks as, clearly impressed with herself over her appearance on the shuttled, undoubtedly unwelcome. She stopped only a few feet behind him, crossing her arms over her chest. "So, Captain Stovvan, you want to tell me why you went to such lengths for a dead body?"

Stovvan raised an eyebrow "Star, what is she doing on board?" he asked as he spun around and dropped the ship out of warp before turning back around to look at the Lieutenant Commander.

"The Lieutenant Commander deployed Company access codes to quarry and..." the voice was saying before Stovvan cut it off. "That will be enough Star." his eyes returned to the Commander before he begain speaking.

"To answer your question Maverick, I was ordered to."

"Who gave you the order? Why is Marshall so valuable?" Geri questioned.

He raised an eyebrow "Who do you think Commander, the same person who has been giving you orders. As for why, 'Ours is not to question why, ours is to do or die.'"

"Unlike you I am not a blind puppet whom will willingly plunge to demise without thought or background of the situation. We have marines for that....How do you expect me to keep Ashcart in the dark if you kept overtly conducting operations against him, he's already asking questions." Geri commented in frustration.

He snorted "Not a fan of Tennyson I take it. Oh well, I dont expect you do to anything Commander, and I'm not the one overtly conducting operations against anyone other than those that would harm the Federation. By that logic we want Marshall's body because..." he let the question hang in the air to help her follow the logic process.

Geri's eye perked up. "Captain Stovvan, what happened to Marshall?" she asked knowing now that the only way he could still pose a threat is if he was a biological threat.

He shrugged "I don't know, that is for higher ups to decide. All I was told was to get him, dead or alive. I will say that given he was exposed to the virus his death is possibly less than final and we may get the answers were looking for."

"You do realize this is not something you can control. Once again, you are playing with an entity you cannot fathom." Geri commented.

He snorted and just looked at her. "You dont want to delve the fathoms of my creativity, Commander."

"It would be a short journey." Geri retorted with a snicker.

"Indeed it will be." he turned to the helm console and pressed the button that would signal PALLAS to lower the shields of the Redemption for just long enough to transport the Commander back to her ship. "Good day Commander." he said impassively as the transporter beam plucked her off of the deck. After she disappeared Stovvan turned back to the main console "Star, return to previous course and speed."

OFF:

Stovvan
Captain
Tempest of The Company

&

Lieutenant Commander Geraldine "Geri" Severide
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Redemption

 

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