We Few, We Happy Few

Posted on Tue Mar 17th, 2020 @ 2:30am by Captain Daniel "Karass" McKnight & Commander Jerome Cable & Commander Patricia Kingston & Lieutenant Commander Tanya Stevenson & Major Sir Bruce "Scorch" Fraser, 15th Baron Fraser of North Cape & Lieutenant Commander Lia Circe & Lieutenant Commander Monique Deepshadow & Lieutenant T'Lee Duval & Command Master Chief Petty Officer Maiev Shadowsong & Lieutenant Commander Oriana & Lieutenant JG Joachim Kolowrat

Mission: Mission 98: Building Our New Home
Location: Various Locations - USS Dreamcrusher
Timeline: 0930Hrs - June 5th 2393

Captain Daniel McKnight smiled as he was beamed aboard the USS Dreamcrusher. "Commander. Is everything ready?" He inquired of his Executive Officer.

"Yessir, as soon as you give the word." Commander Jerome Cable answered, the two men had only met a few days earlier and McKnight had found that he had missed Celeste Yamaguchi-Hobbs but he knew she needed some serious stability in her life so he would not begrudge her the posting to the starbase, plus he knew her mind in a way that only a few others could and while he knew she was a happy woman most of the time, quietly, however, he envied her spouse. "Very well Jerome, the word is given. we're to sweep this system."

"Understood skipper." Cable answered before he lightly tapped his combadge. "Cable to Bridge, the skipper is aboard, break orbit and begin the sweep of the system."

"Understood Commander, we're on it. Bridge out." came the dulcet tones of Master Chief Petty Officer Maiev Shadowsong. McKnight turned to Cable as the two men walked down the hallway. "Let's keep Lieutenant Duval busy, she needs to be focused on something other than her missing sibling," McKnight commented.

Cable nodded. "A good idea, I'll look for things for her to handle." as the two men entered the turbolift and moments later they were on the bridge of the Dreamcrusher. Cable went over to his chair while McKnight went over to the Master System Display at the back of the bridge. "Lieutenant." he addressed Kolowrat. "Initiate a weapons systems readiness test. I want to make sure that everything is good to go."

"Aye, weapons are now online and ready." Kolowrat acknowledged.

"Okay." McKnight nodded. "Its been quite some time since you and I served together. How've you been?" he inquired with a smile.

"I've seen better days Captain. Nacheyev really did a number on my career. At least you survived." Kolowrat replied.

McKnight paused as he regarded his old crewmate. "Actually. You got the better bargain," he commented in a quiet tone. "I was made to serve evil and vile men. What do you know of Captain Sebastian Davoust or Captain Aiden Torel?"

"No, I never heard of those officers. What operations were you involved in?" He asked.

McKnight sighed. "Be grateful. They operated for Starfleet Intelligence but they were actually Nechayev's toadies." he paused as he shook his head. "Aiden Torel was..." McKnight paused. "a control freak, he was mean-spirited and if you pissed him off, he would have you arrested and left to languish in cells for weeks at a time. Davoust, well he was just violent. How they are still in Starfleet after the fall of Nechayev, I don't know."

"You did get your command back though. At least that happened." Kolowrat told McKnight.

"Aye." McKnight nodded. "Nechayev got away with murder for years and nobody ever held her to account. Apparently now she's under lock and key, with the JAG guys crawling over everything she's done for years. It'll be a circus."

"Yeah, I'm not sorry to see her go down." Kolowrat agreed. "So what are we doing? This is kind of odd for a shakedown cruise."

"We're looking for two missing Runabouts, Arrow Class. Both have their transponders turned off so they may be hard to find." he paused. "As for the rest. Well, you'll find out at the briefing I'm going to hold in about five minutes." as he tapped his combadge. "McKnight to all senior staff. There will be a mission briefing in the observation lounge in ten minutes."

Oriana gave her position to a nearby Ensign and moved to the lounge. There, a large number of the senior command had already gathered.

McKnight walked into the room. "Thanks for coming. I'm sorry to pull everyone from whatever it was they were doing but an emergency situation has come up. We've been asked to help search for a missing company of marines who disappeared about this time yesterday, they were doing a simple readiness drill when they boarded two runabouts as of oh five hundred hours, they have since disappeared, runabouts and all. Command wants them found so we will be assisting with this endeavor. The USS Heart of the Tiger, the USS Coral Sea, and the USS Incheon are also assisting with this effort. We are going to sweep all the planets and moons in this system that can support life." he paused. "Ms. Duval, you'll have several security teams ready, if something looks funny then you'll send a team to deal with it as needed," he commented.

T'Lee Duval nodded her head. "It'll be done, skipper."

"Oriana, I want you to work out a flight plan that lets us sweep this system clean in as little time as possible, this could be nothing but it could also be something stupid."

"Consider it done, Captain." She replied. Oriana was mindful that although she was McKnight's girlfriend, he was still her captain.

McKnight then turned to Stevenson. "Doctor, make sure that sickbay is ready for whatever comes. I'd rather be prepared and not need it then the other way around," he commented in a quiet tone of voice.

Stevenson nodded. "Aye skipper. We'll be ready."

"Captain, I can run a tactical program meant to find unguided craft or cloaked ships. It may take a while but it is thorough." Kolowrat suggested.

McKnight nodded his head. "That sounds good Lieutenant, proceed as you think best," he commented. "Questions?"

It was Monique Deepshadow who asked. "Sir, do we know if the Marines had any gear or supplies with them?"

McKnight paused as he had never asked that question of Garibaldi. "It was not mentioned Monique but considering the General made this one official quickly, I would assume they don't have anything with them," he responded.

Kingston nodded her head. "Alright then. Sounds like we'd best get to work."

With that, everyone rose to their feet and quickly departed the conference lounge, as they returned to their posts.

Kolowrat was back at his tactical consul. He put a few things in and then smiled. "Captain, I think I may have two runabouts."

"Shall I lay in a course Captain?" Oriana asked.

"By all means. Let's do this." McKnight answered both officers, before sitting down in his chair.

"Aye Captain. Setting course." Oriana replied as she piloted the ship.

"Captain, two arrow class runabouts about twenty kilometers ahead. I'm not picking up any life signs." Kolowrat reported.

McKnight and Cable traded an uneasy look. "Joachim, do a full scan of those two ships. Let's assume its just me having a
flashback to the San Fransisco but let's make sure." he paused. "Bridge to Engineering?" McKnight inquired, the com system automaticly activated.

"Deepshadow here skipper." came the voice of his new female chief engineer. McKnight smiled. "We have our two missing runabouts. Could you spare a few guys to give them the once over?"

"Right away skipper." the response came back.

"Monique, I want you to take these ships apart, piece by piece, I want to know their entire histories as soon as you can get it to me."

"Willdo sir." came Deepshadow's dulcet tones.

McKnight turned. "T'Lee. Don't you have some computer science experience?"

"I do." the Vulcan-looking female answered. "You wish for me to assist Monique with her demolitions work?"

"Very much so, it'll let you get out of the bridge and keep you busy for a little while," McKnight answered. "Oriana lets bring those runabouts aboard after Joachim has finished soothing my paranoia."

"Aye Captain," Oriana responded and brought the Dreamcrusher into range.

"I scanned the two runabouts. I can't find anything." Kolowrat reported.

Oriana then, with a tractor beam, brought the two runabouts aboard the ship.

McKnight smiled as T'Lee turned over her post to one of her subordinates before she departed the bridge in silence.

Cable regarded McKnight. "You okay skipper?" he inquired in a quiet tone of voice.

"I am concerned about my crew Jerome. T'Lee's sibling is among the missing marines." McKnight answered quietly.

"Ahh.. I.. I uh didn't know." Cable answered quietly

"It's okay. T'Lee just needs something to focus her efforts on, to feel like she's doing something, anything to help her sibling and I intend for her to do so." McKnight smiled. "The guys will dismantle those Runabouts and we'll carry on with the sweep," he commented. "Oriana. How are we doing?"

"The two runabouts are aboard. Continuing the sweep of the planet." She informed her commander.

"Excellent. Proceed as planned." McKnight answered with a wide smile on his face. "I love my job."

Meanwhile, in the Hanger, the two Runabouts were sitting side by side. Monique Deepshadow smiled. "Let's do this boys. Tear these ships apart and find out everything they know," she said to the dozen or so engineers and operations personnel present. T'Lee Duval was standing here as well, a bemused look in her eye. "I want the computer cores of both ships. You think the skipper will nag us for answers?"

"The skipper?" Deepshadow answered. "Not a chance in hell, he knows we'll get it when we get it." and with that, she tapped the display once, the hatch slid open and she boarded the runabout, followed by several others.

T'Lee smiled as she took a seat at the conn station, with that said she went to work.

Back on the bridge. Cable regarded McKnight. "If those runabouts are here. Then the missing marines could be as well."

"I had that thought too," McKnight responded. "Joachim, anything?"

"No, nothing yet Captain. I'll alert you if anything comes up." Kolowrat replied.

"Thanks, Joachim," McKnight answered evenly. "Send a note to General Garibaldi and inform him that we've recovered the two missing runabouts, we'll have something for him really soon," he added with a grin.

Lt Commander Lia Circe nodded her head. "Right away skipper," she answered evenly, her delicate looking fingers went over the board.

McKnight knew that this was going to take a while, so he settled back to keep from pestering his people further.

Monique Deepshadow smiled as she watched her people work on the runabouts, she was busy trying to call up the computer records, many of which had been erased except she didn't believe in failure. "Come on... come on... there must be something." she worked.

Suddenly the name of the mission commander displayed before her. "Deepshadow to McKnight?"

"Go ahead?" came the voice of the ship's skipper. "What do you got for me, Monique?"

"I have a name for you and where he is presently staying." Deepshadow regarded the display before her. "His name is McElroy Sternwald the Third and he's apparently staying at the Circe De Lyon in New Reims planetside sir."

"Excellent. Thanks, Monique. We'll pass it along to Heart of the Tiger as they are closer to the planet then we are. They can assist us with this effort."