USS Penumbra Sim Narrative, SD 202110.29
The Penumbra was at Yellow Alert and under MIRAGE as they approached a habitable, but apparently uninhabited, planet on the outskirts of the Breen Confederacy. They had followed a "bread crumb" trail apparently left intentionally by Galex to this location where they had discovered to their surprise that Galex was rendezvousing with the Zhenkarian Corsaire, V'rot Ka'Gun. There did not appear to be any other ships in the area.
Meanwhile, back at the Breen Scout Ship that had brought Thot Yurl to meet with Galex, the Penumbra had many of their Marines trying to take possession of the Scout ship. Before departing, the Penumbra had launched four of their Delta Flyers to provide the Marines "air support" and emergency evacuation, if needed, and then sent their Pathfinders aboard. But, they did not know just how many Breen they might face on that small ship.
Cdre. Zak Taylor sat in the Command Chair on the Bridge. He glanced to his left to the Reconnaissance Area, then to his right to the Sciences Area, and said, "Dillion, Relok, see if you can get a read on that Corsaire and Galex's ship. What the hell's going on out there?"
While the Sergeant at the Recon Station simply nodded, Relok answered, "I have been attempting to scan Galex's ship. We're still getting many of those sensor glitches all over his ship. I don't think he likes being scanned."
Zak said, "Tabby, how's our MIRAGE? We're still invisible, right?"
LtCmdr. Tabeshk Tibris, at the Operations Console, checked his readings and answered, "Yes, sir."
About that time, LtCmdr. Jason Carter stepped out of the Turbolift onto the Bridge. As he did he was clenching and unclenching his right hand, the android-like prosthetic. He spoke, "Apologies for my tardiness, Commodore." He wriggled his fingers at the Commodore. He'd just had to have his prosthetic reconfigured due to some arthritis-like stiffness he'd been noticing in the joints.
Zak turned and nodded at him, "Take your post, Commander."
Carter gave a nod and moved to the Helm, tapping Ens. Proximus Filler on the shoulder. "I've got it from here. Thanks for keeping the seat and engines warm." Filler just grinned and relinquished the seat and the controls.
Down in Sickbay, LtCmdr. Katarina Hawke was alone. She and her brother, LtCmdr. Denovan Hawke, had been returned to "light duty" after the medicine that Dr. Shadow K'Trevala and LtCmdr. T'Lin had put together had diminished their hallucinations to a controllable level. Shadow had decided he would take some much-needed rest in his office and Den had started back for the Bridge. T'Lin was probably in her quarters meditating. Kat was feeling a little bit better after the second dose of nausea meds she'd taken, and was putzing around Sickbay trying not to listen to the little imp that wouldn't go away. She moved around cleaning and straightening up so that Shadow wouldn't have to worry about it at all.
Back on the Bridge, Lt. Re'Libel Standin was still filling in at the Tactical Station until Den finally arrived. He commented, "The Corsaire shows significant armament, but none of the weapons are currently energized. He certainly seems like he was expecting friends."
Zak asked, "Tabby, can we get any comm feeds from Galex? We listened in on him when he picked up that Breen. Got anything now?"
Tabby responded, "I'll look into it." But as he did, they saw Galex's ship maneuver towards the Corsaire, then flip upside-down and docked belly-to-belly with the larger ship.
The Turbolift doors slid open and Den stepped out. "I could be of some use," he said stepping towards the Tactical Station.
Standin turned to his department head and said, "Commander, it is agreeable to see you on the Bridge. Have you been cleared for duty, sir?"
Den answered, "Light. But, not withstanding, I believe just standing and pushing buttons counts." He turned towards the Commodore. "Sir?"
Zak smiled at him. "Welcome back, Commander." He gave a nod and the Vulcan, Standin, stepped back with a gesture as he relinquished the Tactical Station to his superior.
Suddenly, their comm system crackled with Galex's voice. "Well, do you have her?"
Tabby glanced around, whispering softly, "Her?"
The gravelly voice of the Zhenkarian, Ka'Gun, came over their comms, "Sure I do, what'dya take me for, an amateur?"
Zak said, "Nice job, Tabby! How'd you get their comms?"
Tabby stammered, "I ... uh ... I didn't. They ... just came through on their own!"
Relok commented, "I suspect our Ferengi friend is sharing his comms with us again. I have to wonder, though, how he is sending them to our ship. He never left the Observation Lounge when he was aboard."
Carter spun his chair, raising an eyebrow. "You think he left something in there?"
Relok frowned slightly. "It just seems odd that we can pick up his transmissions so easily without doing anything on our end. He may have set some kind of repeater in there. But ... wasn't Khal'Gon watching him the whole time?"
Carter gave a short nod, turning back to the front to hide his concern. He said, "And Patterson for most of the conversation."
Den scanned his console, then said, "Should be able to find the frequency if that's the case, isolate it and put a dampening field on it. Probably a lower end band."
Zak turned towards Den and said, "Let's hold off on dampening the transmission. It's coming in handy at the moment. Although ... we should probably find it to make sure it's not also sending data!"
Den nodded, scanning his controls. He muttered, "That little bast-," then cut himself off with a sigh. He'd work with Sciences to find that signal's source.
The voice of the Ferengi came over their comms again, "I'm certainly not paying amateur fees! The Thot is anxious to see her again. Send her over. Oh, and remember the difference in gravity direction. I'm upside down to you. I swear, sometimes getting cheap construction isn't worth the savings."
A moment later, the Zhenkarian's voice came over their comms again, "She's on her way. How long we giving them this time? I sure don't want some Breen patrol to find her here. We'd be in some deep bilge if that happens, even with the Thot's pull."
Galex responded, "The Thot paid for a full hour, he gets a full hour. A deal's a deal."
Tabby spun his chair. "Hey, Relok, can you look at the bio signs of Lex's ship? This 'Her' character seems important. Who is she? That IS your job, right?"
Relok raised an eyebrow at Tabby before responding, "It does seem like she could be a crucial element of this meeting. And if we're going to find her, it should be before she gets deep into Galex's ship."
Zak asked, "Can you differentiate bio-signs by sex only? We don't even know what species this 'her' is."
"True," Tabby said, "We don't know, do we?"
Relok said, "It will be a challenge, sir, but ... Galex has conveniently given us the location to focus our scans: his airlock with the Corsaire. Carshel, get a high-res scan of that interlock."
Den cut in, "Isn't there a way to differentiate regardless of sex? The transporters would have that bio-DNA profile." But no-one reminded him that the person they sought hadn't been through the Penumbra's transporters to be on file.
After a moment, Carshel said, "My scans show the Ferengi, the Breen, the Zhenkarian, and ... a Cardassian."
Zak turned his head, "Cardassian?"
"Yeah," Carshel said simply.
Relok stepped over to Carshel's station. "Galex the Ferengi, Yurl the Breen, Ka'Gun the Zhenkarian .... so, the Cardassian is the female they're referring to?"
Carshel mumbled, "Uhh ... probably, sir."
Tabby mused, "Who is this 'Her', and why is she important? Also, what the hell is a Cardassian doing here?"
Zak rubbed his chin, then said, "So, from what we heard Galex say, they'll be sitting here an hour while the Thot has some interaction with a Cardassian female. Are we supposed to just sit and wait?"
Tabby grumbled, then said, "Not sure, sir."
Relok said, "Sir, I seriously doubt this is just some sort of prostitution enterprise. Galex wouldn't take this sort of risk just for that. A Cardassian in Breen space? After the way the Dominion War ended?"
Carter agreed, "Extremely unlikely. And a Breen General aboard a scout vessel? There's more at play here ... there has to be."
But Den said, "Why don't we bait them with something, sir?"
Zak turned to his Chief of Security and Tactical Operations, "What's on your mind, Den?"
Den groaned a bit, holding his stomach. Then there was a rumbling sound and a rancid stench filled his general area. Relok, sitting at his station almost directly behind Den, made a sour face. Tabby, on the far side of the Bridge from Den, stifled a chuckle at Den's flatulence and Relok's response.
Den spoke as if nothing had happened, "So, if there's Cardassian's ... the Breen ... as Relok said about the Dominion War ... they are not going to be happy at the betrayal." He paused and then said, "We can mock up offering one of them."
Relok fanned the air and said, "And, just how do we offer the Breen a Cardassian? We don't have one available, do we?"
Den said, "We do have our own people, and a good plastic surgeon, though."
Zak looked momentarily confused. "But ... there IS a Cardassian here, on Galex's ship ... WITH a Breen General!" He paused and then said, "Galex brought us here for a reason. Was it ... to know the Thot and a female Cardassian are together?"
Den mused, "Hmm. However, even if that's true, not one of the ones that betrayed them. We've got those names in the database."
Relok said, "Commodore, this is pure speculation but ... what if that Thot served on Cardassia during the War, and worked with this female Cardassian before the uprising and developed ... a relationship? And then, after the rebellion ...," he trailed off.
Zak looked at his Chief of Science. "An illicit affair? Now THAT does sound like something Galex could profit from! And he wants US to know about it. But ... why? What intel is gained from knowing this?"
Tabby speculated, "Protection?"
Carter smirked. "Bribery? Blackmail? If the Breen Confederacy were to find out one of their Generals was mated with a Cardassian ...," he trailed off too.
(Note: There is a slight time differential between these events, played out this week, and the events in the Bridge section above, in that the assault on the Breen Scout Ship should have taken place at the same time as events from the previous sim, 2021-10-15. The two parts will synchronize going forward.)
The Assault Team for the Breen Scout Ship was Col. Travis Patterson, SgtMaj. Derek Hines, MstSgt. Khal'Gon, SSgt. Will Davies, and Cpl. Homer Kyle. Each was wearing the standard Marine Combat Armor, which was a self-contained EVA suit, was armored against physical attack, and shielded against energy weapons, as well as energized against the Kyrathian Plant Spores or other cloud-like pathogens. But instead of the usual Marine-issue Warp Assisted Railgun (WAR) rifle, Patterson had instructed them to bring Type 3 Phaser Rifles so they could make use of the heavy stun setting.
Patterson materialized, along with the rest of his assault team, aboard the Breen Scout Ship in an auxiliary accessway just outside the Bridge. Quickly he lifted his rifle and whispered, "Maximum stun, gentlemen ... the more we can take alive, the more intel we can get out of them."
Hines gave a nod and made a final check on his weapon, then prepared a concussion grenade for the center of the Bridge, once the hatch had been opened.
Kyle consulted a tricorder-like scanner, then held up three fingers and gestured towards the Bridge door.
Khal'Gon nodded at Kyle and then growled softly, "This'll be over in 10 seconds or less. Try to stay behind me."
Kyle grinned back at him and quietly said in his Carolina twang, "Y'all can count all the way ta ten? Gaw-ly!"
Patterson glanced at Davies. "Davies, if you'll do the honors ...," he gestured with his rifle towards the door to the Bridge. Davies nodded and placed a breaching charge on the panel by the door, then stepped back.
Kyle tapped Patterson's shoulder and showed him his tricorder. There were three dots on it moving slowly towards them from the other direction. Patterson nodded, "Khal'Gon, Kyle, entryways. Go!"
Kyle turned, glanced at Khal'Gon to make sure he'd heard the instructions, and together they turned to guard the rear.
Making eye contact with the lead members of his team to make sure they were ready, Davies activated the breach charge and the doors flew open. An instant later, Hines tossed his concussion grenade into the center of the Bridge and they all ducked back. A second later the force wave swept past them and Hines, Patterson, and Davies took the Bridge.
Kyle and Khal'Gon merely back stepped until they were inside the door, then each grabbed the disabled door beside them and dragged the panels back together. Once closed again, Khal'Gon set a lock-out device on it, hoping it would seal the door.
Seconds later, the three men had secured the three stunned Breen with arm locks and Patterson let out a sigh, then a chuckle. "Well, step one complete. Kyle, get an aerosol nerve agent through the vents into the rest of the ship. See if that takes care of the ones banging on the doors. Hines, get on Ops and see if you can't figure out a way to choke them unconscious. Life support, their suits, whatever. Khal'Gon, nobody enters the Bridge. Davies, keep an eye on these three. I'll take the Helm and get us moving."
Davies nodded, gesturing at the bound Breen just now beginning to shake off the concussion grenade. "They won't be going anywhere."
Kyle nodded as well, "I'll gets 'em snoozin' Colonel." He pulled off his shoulder pack and started digging in it for the canister he needed. Then he paused and said, "But ... dem suits might has filters or sumpin."
Davies said, "I actually was going to mention that. They do wear them for a reason."
Patterson settled into the Helm controls as he said, "Triple the lethal dosage if you have to, Kyle."
Kyle gave a slight shrug and said, "I's always been told dem Breen wears dem suits 'cause they gots to stay cold. But ... this ship ain't that cold, that I's can tell ennyways."
Hines took the Operations station. "Hmm," he muttered, then said, "Engineering hasn't locked us out yet. We certainly caught them by surprise." He grinned then, "Let's make sure they can't take that away from us, then." He began shutting out all other stations from Bridge controls.
Davies said then, "I have an idea. We've got control now right? Lock down the gravity on the rest of the decks. Can't move, can't retaliate."
Kyle stared open-mouthed at Davies a second. "We gonna make 'em too heavy to move! I likes it. Then only Khal'Gon will be strong enough to get 'round, huh?"
Hines blinked a moment, then gave a smirk at Davies. "You're a cruel bastard sometimes, you know that? That's what I like about you." He didn't wait for Patterson to approve before he just went with the plan to increase the gravity on all sections of the ship with exception of the Bridge.
Davies smiled. "We get the job done, Sarge."
With the remainder of the Breen on the Scout ship unable to move due to the severe gravity, the Assault Team now in control of the Breen Scout Ship, and with the escort of Deltas 1-4, jumped to Warp to rendezvous with the Penumbra.
Patterson turned to Khal'Gon, "How's your Breen? Think you can figure out how to shoot if need be?" He gestured to what he thought might be the Tactical station.
Khal'Gon grunted, scoffing, "It's the big red button. I'll figure it out." He stomped over to the station and set to work.
Kyle just took up his post near the Bridge doors, doing guard duty now that they'd secured the ship. After a moment he asked, "Any y'all thinkin' this was way too easy?"
Davies looked at him from the other side of the door, "Because it is, Corporal?"
"Wayull," Kyle drawled, "I knows they wadn't 'spectin' us, but still ... ain't Breen sposed to be bad-asses? Ol' Khal'Gon didn't even break a sweat!"
Patterson grinned, "And none of us fired a single shot. As the saying goes, 'The only good days are the ones you never pull the trigger', isn't it?"
"Usually, Colonel," Davies agreed. "We're missing something, now that got me thinking. Are there any irregular heat build ups in a non-essential area?"
Suddenly, the tiny Breen Scout ship came to a complete stop and went into "standby" mode. Several screens around the Bridge seemed to be requesting some sort of command authorization protocol, and it seemed they would only respond to spoken commands, in Breen, with a Breen's voice, and probably only one whose voice-print was on file.
Davies cursed then said, "Or that."
Patterson slammed a hand onto his console, mumbling several choice curses under his breath before turning, "Hines?" Hines turned to the Colonel, shaking his head.
Kyle said, "What da heck? Which one y'all can talk Breen? I sho' cain't!"
Davies turned to the Corporal and said, "Actually ... we can. We don't need to use the language, we just need the helmet."
But Hines shook his head again and said, "But we don't have the command codes, Davies."
Hines glanced around the Bridge, then noticed their prisoners, one of whom wore a helmet with different-colored highlights. Hines smiled as he pointed at the officer, "But he does."
Davies gave a shrug, "Or, well, that too."
Khal'Gon stomped over to the Breen officer with a grin on his face, drawing his Daq'tagh. "You," he grunted at him, "The code ... now!"
Strange buzzes came from the officer's helmet for a second or two before their Universal Translator kicked in. "Go ahead and cut me, Nausicaan," The Breen officer said. "This ship will self-destruct in an hour and you'll be dead too."
"If that's true," Davies said, "and I don't know much, but ... if we cut power, that's not going to shut that off. What will?" He looked over at the Breen officer. "And you're six seconds away from me slowly pulling finger nails out and then shoving needles under your toe nails."
Khal'Gon smirked, licking at his fangs, then glancing at Hines with a ... very peculiar expression on his face. It implied an intent to indulge in a rather extreme taboo, and the placement of his loose hand just below his belt further showed the intent.
Hines raised an eyebrow at the half-Nausicaan, half-Klingon. "No. No, Khal'Gon. There ain't enough sludge to get THAT image outta my head!" He was referring to the home-made alcoholic beverage some of the Marines cooked up with stills down in the Barracks, stuff strong enough to take the ablative coating off the outer hull.
Khal'Gon continued to grin lasciviously and said, "Always more than one way to make a piggy squeal, isn't there?"
Kyle blanched at the look on Khal'Gon's face. "I ain't gonna watch, that's fer sure! But ... Sergeant Davies was gonna pull off faingernails and stuff ... only, does dem Breen even HAVE faingernails?"
Davies shrugged, "Pretty sure they do."
But Patterson stood from his seat and raised one hand. "Threats and torture don't work on the Breen. They don't work on Klingons either." He shook his head at Khal'Gon then walked over to the Breen officer. "I've got four escorts that can easily beam us off this ship well before it detonates. We'll be fine. Thought we'd rendezvous with that Ferengi yacht on this ship and have a word with your General. Figured you'd be kind to help us get there. I mean, it's that, or would you rather be a piggy for a Nausicaan for the last hour of your life?"