A warning

Posted on 17 Aug 2009 @ 2:46am by Commodore Da`nal of the House of Varal

826 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: M2: Aggressive Negotiations
Timeline: Backpost - prior to attack

The door to his quarters closed once again as the T'Pal left. He was having a busy evening. After recycling her glass he returned to his chair to complete the letter to Ayren. No sooner had he leaned back when the comm sounded. ~Now What!~

"Captain we have an incoming transmission. Code 47."

~47? That's for Captain's eyes only...." While Da`nal did not hold the rank of captain his duties and access were equal to that of a starship captain. Getting up from his seat he moved quickly to his desk activating his terminal. As it began to rise from the desk's surface, "transfer it to my station here."

"Understood sir."

As he took is seat the monitor displayed the seal of the Federation while the computer spoke. "This is an emergency communiquÃ©. It is not to be discussed with fellow officers unless deemed absolutely necessary. There will be no computer record of said transmission."

"Acknowledged," was Da`nal's only reply.

"Proceed with voice print identification."

"Da`nal, of the House of Varal, Commanding USS Freedom."

"Voice print verified."

The emblem faded to be replace by Admiral Rittenhouse from Starfleet Command. He assumed that a communication coming over this frequency was bad news indeed. It was very likely the Merlin's mission had failed and they were being recalled. "Good evening Admiral."

"Evening Commander. No doubt you are curious as to the nature of the call?"

Arching an eyebrow, "You could say that Admiral. I'm sure the bridge crew are wondering what is going on. Especially with us heading towards Romulan space. I assume the Merlin was unsuccessful?"

The admiral waved off his assumption. "There has been no word on the Merlin. As for your crew I expect you to handle the rumors."

"They know their duty, sir. But rest assured I will remind them."

Nodding. "Very well. And your guests?"

"One still locked away, the other under escort. We did manage to flush out a Romulan agent but he killed himself with a felodesine chip, before we could get any useful information from him."

"Good to here. Any idea how he managed to infiltrate federation security?"

"I have my Chief Security officer looking into his prior movements now." This wasn't what Da`nal had expected. The Admiral was beating around the bush for some reason. "Sir, surly you did use such a high level channel for a status report?"

With a deep breath he looked around again. Before he had even initiated the call he had secured the room and swept for monitoring devices. He didn't find anything but there was no way to be sure; it was a risk he would have to take. "You are correct Commander. For some time now I have been aware of the existence of an organization. An organization that operates outside the control of the Federation Council...."

The expression on Da`nal's face turned to one of skepticism. "Admiral..?"

"Commander, my investigation has lead to operatives and uncovered certain 'activities' that took place during the war. I believe that are also planning to take action on this new Romulan issue. And just as the Romulan agent tried to use the Freedom to either aid your prisoner or just get home. It is possible that this organization got one or more operatives aboard at Starbase 47."

"We took on a number of new crew members at Starbase 47, not to mention my First Officer."

"I know...all I can say is be careful of who you trust. They people maybe Starfleet personnel but they have higher orders and the safety of your ship and crew could very well be secondary."

"Sir I have to be able to trust my crew. Do you have any idea who this person or person are?"

"Unfortunately no. Nor have I been able to figure out what they might be up to. It could be nothing, or the integrity...the honor of the Federation could be at stake."

Da`nals frustration was climbing the more he listened. "So it could be nothing or it could be vital. The person in question could be a crew member that came on at SB47 or even a last minute addition at DS5."

The Admiral shrugged slightly. "That's pretty much it Commander."

"Orders?"

"See if you can find out who they are and what they are up to. Before they have a chance to leave your ship."

"Sir! We are due to rendezvous with our Romulan escorts in literally a matter of hours."

"It's shitty deal I know, just do your best. Rittenhouse out."

Da`nal stared at the black screen for a moment. Leaning forward he cursed, "Ghay'cha'!" Who could he trust? There was only a few people that have been here since the beginning, but who to choose...or should he handle this on personally?

As he began to review his options his chime to his door sounded again.

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Cmdr Da`nal
CO

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