Fandom Star Trek: USS Freedom

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Senior Chief Conrad

John gave a polite and respectful nod at the Lieutenant's explanation for not shaking his hand. In his few interactions with Vulcans they rarely shook hands anyways, but he wanted to see if Savir would be different given his diverse upbringing and training.

"No offense taken, and thank you for that. But I'm sure you wouldn't have found anything all to interesting anyways." John finished with a friendly smile and wink, tapping the side of his head. He was certain he had forgotten more information then three officers put together. Well maybe not Lieutenant Jotai, but certainly the other two.

John looked to his new boss. "Sir, I can show you to your...."

"All hands, Red Alert. I say again, Red Alert. Man battle-stations and await further orders. All senior officers to the bridge."

"Office. Check that. Get to the bridge sir. I better get armed up and get the Unit recast to deploy." And not waiting for permission to leave the Senior Chief took off at a trot to the armory. Tapping his com-badge. "Jenkins, the Unit had better be in full kit by the time I get there."

Petty Officer First Class Jenkins was the second highest ranking enlisted crewman in the Tactical Unit and was John's right hand woman. She had been helping to train the Unit since the beginning. She was capable and John could see her going on to get her commission or becoming a chief. Either way she would be a asset to Starfleet. "Already on it Chief," Jenkins huffed, as she strapped on the body armor. "Squad 1 is manned and ready, Squad 2 and Squad 3 are manned not ready." She looked across the bay to the other squad leaders, both Crewman First Class.

"Understood. Light a fire under their asses." John rounded a corner to the turbo lift, yelling in a manner to be heard through the corridor. "Make a hole!" Crew, officer and enlisted alike, quickly moved to the edges of the corridor to make way for the Senior Chief. The rest of the crew had learned, some the hard way, when the Senior Chief or one of his security personnel shouted that phrase, to get out of the way or get run over.

John stepped into the turbo lift and road it up a few decks, taking the time to slow his breathing and regain some composure.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the USS Freedom, this is Captain Markus White. We have been informed that the USS Liberty has been out of communication and is currently heading towards Starfleet Command at warp 9.5."

John pushed through the turbo lift doors before they were fully opened.

"Our orders are to stop the ship at any cost and board it. The Liberty is less than 45 minutes from the Lunar Ring. We're off to a running start folks. I expect your best. This is not a drill."

Senior Chief Conrad stepped into the armory bay and looked around, Squad 1 was doing their last buddy and gear checks, while Squad 3 was just finishing getting their gear on. Squad 2 was only halfway through getting all seven personnel geared. But he did not need to step to 'motivate' a faster turnout, Jenkins was all over it. Shouting and informing the crewman squad leader in no uncertain terms that her one armed, blind grandmother would be doing a better job then he was.

Senior Chief stepped over to his great locker and started to get geared up. Like everyone else in the Unit he had a belt the held a Starfleet Ka-Bar, two stun grenades and two photon grenades, a holstered Type-2 Phaser, and a tricorder. This set-up was based on the old MACO equipment belt, but since the Type-2 Phaser did not require a separate power cartridge, he was able to add in two additional grenades. And he had also changed out the stun baton for the more aggressive Ka-Bar combat knife.

"Jenkins, status!" John yelled without looking back as he pulled his body on.

"Chief! Squads 1, 2, and 3 manned and ready, standing by!" She called from across the armory bay.

John noted the time and have a single nod. 'One of the better dress out times. Adrenaline is an amazing thing.' He thought as he tightened down his armor. By now the ship had cleared the station and made the jump to warp. He turned to the 21 members of the Tactical Unit, moving to the weapons rack and pulled out the Type-3 Phaser rifle. They all had mounted light, holographic sight and forward pistol grip and a sling. "You all heard the Captain, we are going to board and secure and reclaim the Liberty. There are a lot of unknowns in play, but you can handle them." Looping the phaser rifle over his chest he shouted a single word that hung in the air for a second.

"ADAPT..."

All three squads shouted in unison. "OR DIE!" John smiled with pride. They were ready. Tapping his com-badge. "Bridge, this is Senior Chief Conrad, Tactical Unit standing by."

Tempestus MechanicalSnake RikuXIII Nuitari Delphiki

 

[Nuitari Delphiki]

"Franklin, set Helm to 126 mark 7, warp 9.6." Frost stated, and the ship immediately went to warp. The moment the Helmsman came in Franklin gave her chair back, and stood near the Captain. The captain then tapped his com-badge. "Senior Chief, i don't want any fatalities unless absolutely necessary. Make sure you're set to stun. Once Lieutenant Kimberly has their warp core offline you will board. The strategy is up to you. 2 minutes after you board, Franklin, Kri'Tak, Kimberly and I will board and join you. Once we're all clear Savir will join us. We'll figure out what happened and retake control. From there, we'll take the Liberty back to port for assessment and detain any prisoners." Frost stated. "Kimberly, once we're ready to intercept try to shut down their warp engines. If the attempt fails we'll attack and try to bring down their engines. We need to get them out of warp. Either properly or violently." Frost conferred to the Android. "Once the Tactical Team has control we'll figure out exactly what happened. I also want a message repeating on all channels priority one ordering the ship to power down at the order of Captain Markus White. If they fail to comply we will engage and destroy the Liberty, if necessary." Frost stated, and turned back to the viewscreen. "Bring up the Liberty when we are in range to see it."

Franklin walked down to the Armory and went to the Senior Chief. "I need a weapon. I'm Lieutenant Franklin." He stated to the Senior Chief. "Whatever weapons you have available for myself, Kimberly and Kri'Tak. I wouldn't be surprised of you already gave a Phaser to Frost, he typically likes to keep one in his chair."

RayPurchase MechanicalSnake Error 420 Epiphany RikuXIII Elucid AllDirectionBlind Grim Wraithe Stjerna Theo713

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Savir rewarded Conrad with an almost-smile, as he couldn't sense any hint of awkwardness or offense in the air. He didn't believe he wouldn't have found anything interesting in the Chief's mind; from his experience, everyone had secrets. But, even confronted with the possibility of having his mind looked into, this man was not afraid of Savir in the slightest, which alone made him the most interesting person the Vulcan had met in a long time. Allowing the others to get acquainted, Savir turned back to Lieutenant Jotai, opening his mouth to tell her he was ready to follow her to the bridge, when what he assumed must have been the Captain's voice cut through the hall.

"All hands, Red Alert. I say again, Red Alert. Man battle-stations and await further orders. All senior officers to the bridge."

Even though it was completely illogical, Savir's first thought was that the ship was under attack, which his brain immediately discarded as nonsense, considering the fact that they were still docked. Instead, he pulled the layout of the ship from his memory and, with a quick nod to the others, bolted towards the bridge. Brought on by impending danger, the emergency lights painted the halls red as he dashed for one of the turbolifts, passing officers in various stages of hurry, stopping only briefly as more orders came in through the comm.

A Federation ship was heading towards Starfleet Command at warp 9.5?! According to his knowledge, that was the theoretical maximum for most engines, even though several ships had reportedly briefly attained warp 9.9, yet were unable to sustain the velocity. The most logical scenario that offered itself indeed suggested that the ship had been boarded by a hostile force, but Savir was far from jumping to conclusions. From his studies, he could readily recall several cases when the crew itself had been under influences of various alien substances, viruses or energies and behaved in a non-stndard manner. Plus, the ship could have been flying at maximum speed in order to escape from a battle, their communications having been disabled. At any rate, intercepting it at such a speed was not going to be an easy task.

Then the door of the lift whooshed open, just in time for Savir to catch something about engaging and destroying the USS Liberty. Briefly wondering whether other options had been listed during his absence, he familiarized himself with the entire space and its occupants with one, all-encompassing glanced and walked up to the Captain and First Officer. "Junior Lieutenant Savir reporting for duty," he announced, automatically catching the duffel bag that was about to slide off his shoulder. "Please accept my apologies, my transport had been delayed due to an emergency situation."

 

[Nuitari Delphiki]

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Feel free to reply!!!

 

[RikuXIII]

{Teyla Jotai - Helmsman}
Teyla laughed at Caldera's observation and shrug.
"That it would." she said.
She paused a moment to see if Savir would elaborate, but he didn't.
"Luckily, we won't be having such problems on this cruise." Teyla continued. "You got one of the best pilots in starfleet and a crack team of engineers to keep this girl running for me."
The young Trill's smile became a little less formal when Chief Conrad arrived.
"Nothing I'm ready to admit to, chief." She teased.
The jovial attitude vanished when the Captain called for Red Alert. Teyla made double time for the bridge, smoothly taking her station, taking a quick stock of the situation.

 

[Epiphany]

Kimberly #49

"Aye sir," the android acknowledged as she heard Captain Frost's orders and began preparations to execute them. Having an order of attack helped. It prioritized the Liberty's engine schematics and Kimberly took her time optimizing the Communications terminal interface for executing the attack. Although her mind was many orders of magnitude faster at calculation than organic life, her robotic physiology wasn't much faster. Stronger, yes, and far more durable but not much faster.

Which is why she built macros. The first was automating every step required to hail the USS Liberty once they were in range. A second macro was put in place to activate the Prefix system, including automation of the 'Are you sure' style prompts, engage the Liberty's comm system and sending the code. Upon confirmation of remote access, her third macro should toggle through 27 separate screens to find the warp core, automate more 'Are you sure' prompts and shut the core down. It was a bit technically complicated. And it was very tedious, or would be if she hadn't shut off that part of her EEE for the duration of the Red Alert.

By the time the Freedom reached the Liberty, she'd be ready to send her hail and execute her macro series, hopefully shutting down the engine core before those on board had any idea they'd even been signaled at all.

As Kimberly readied a backup macro series for shutting down the Liberty's shields, the android tilted her head slightly as she heard the Captain mention her name. So he wanted her for the boarding party? Excellent! She wasn't a Galorian tactical model but she'd synched much of their combat data and she'd been through all of the mandatory Starfleet security and weapons training provided to officers. This could be valuable field experience!

Pleased, Kimberly continued her preparations.

 

[Error 420]

Kri'tak was silent. The implication of weapons meant the possibility of violence. The possibility of violence meant the potential for combat. On a Klingon vessel, every crew member was a warrior. Her father had the sick sense of humor to place her in Engineering; a field which she had the skill and experience to excel in, but one which was relegated to the monotony of life aboard a vessel, away from the action, behind screens and panels instead of swords and shields. Her working subconscious had taken over the mindless preparation of coming out of warp while her mind was alight with bloodlust. Blood was her birthright as a Klingon, and the thought of seeing it once more was a great deal more attractive than performing repairs.

 

[Theo713]

He wouldn't be going over? But what about the booty? What about the loot? What about his latinum!? He had to think, and quickly, about how he could get himself situated on this away mission to start earning latinum. But how? His specialties weren't exactly away mission worthy. Maybe he needed to raise in the ranks to be considered for such missions. And if that were the case “Captain.” he started, turning his attention towards the man in charge of the ship. “I suggest we keep a transporter lock on the away party. Rule 243. Always leave yourself a way out.” He had already run through a few hypothetical situations mentally, and none of the things he could think of ended well for the away party.

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Senior Chief Conrad

John's com-badge chirped, followed by the Captain saying. "Senior Chief, I don't want any fatalities unless absolutely necessary. Make sure you're set to stun. Once Lieutenant Kimberly has their warp core offline you will board. The strategy is up to you. 2 minutes after you board, Franklin, Kri'Tak, Kimberly and I will board and join you. Once we're all clear Savir will join us. We'll figure out what happened and retake control. From there, we'll take the Liberty back to port for assessment and detain any prisoners."

Senior Chief nodded as he listened to the instructions. They made sense and were in line with what he had come to expect from his friend. "Understood, Sir." He tapped his com-badge to end the communication. "You heard him, set both primary and secondary phasers to level 3.1." This would be high-enough setting to knock even an angry Klingon warrior in a blood-lust unconscious and cause a changeling to loose solidity, without causing any injuries more serious than mild thermal burn, for at least an hour. If he was not able to kill his target, he did not want them getting up to kill him.

Once his weapons were on the appropriate settings, John slung his phaser rifle around his back and signaled his squad leaders to join him at the computer terminal "The Liberty is an Intrepid class ship," John's fingers pulled up the schematics for that class. "Which means she's smaller than us. So compartments and passages are going to be tighter then what you're used to." He tapped a few buttons on the screen to shift the view to a side cutaway view showing the various decks. "Squad 1 you're with me and we'll be securing the bridge, transporting four personnel to cover the bridge, while the other four will be split between the Captains Ready Room and the briefing room." Jenkins nodded acknowledging the plan.

"Squad 2, you are going to beam directly into Main Engineering, once Lieutenant Kimberly has remotely disabled the Warp Core, I don't want anyone trying to get it going again." John looked the young man in the eye with a very intent look. "Put them down hard if need be, but you keep that engine room secure. You hear me?"

"Aye, Aye Senior Chief." The young man gave a small and squared his shoulders to seem more confident, even though there was a small bead of sweat running down his temple that hinted at the opposite.

"Good. Now Squad 3, you'll be securing the main transporter rooms and the security complex. Once you own those break off a sweep team and secure the deck to allow the officers to come aboard." Senior Chief nodded to the Crewman First Class in charge of Squad 3. "If I get transported into space.... There'll be hell to pay when I get back." The Crewman swallowed hard and nodded.

John looked at all three of his team leaders and gave a small smirking smile. "You can do this. We've trained for this. Brief your teams." They each had a mixture of excitement, nervousness, and shock. "Everyone feels this way the first time." He said to himself as they walked away to their teams.

It was then that the door opened and a young Lieutenant entered in a very business-like manner. "I need a weapon. I'm Lieutenant Franklin." He stated to the Senior Chief. "Whatever weapons you have available for myself, Kimberly and Kri'Tak. I wouldn't be surprised if you already gave a phaser to Frost, he typically likes to keep one in his chair."

John turned his attention to the door at the telltale hiss of air and nodded to Franklin as he entered, hiding his mild annoyance at the barging in and demanding weapons for personnel he had trained or cleared for their use. But Markus had told him to expect this to happen. ‘Officers.’ Was the only thought to run through his mind. Outwardly he smiled and reached out to shake Franklin’s hand with a firm grip. “Aye sir, there are several Type 2’s ready for issue in the service locker.” John walked over to the locker and keyed in his security code and pulled out a drawer containing 10 phasers with the grips out. “All are preset to level 1 power setting as per regulation.” Stepping out of the officers way, Franklin would see inside the locker, racked next to the Type 3 Phasers, a well used and cared for Bat'leth. There had been a previous incident, and the Bat'leth had to be removed from a certain officer's possession and secured. But the Senior Chief had made an arrangement that it could be removed for dangerous away missions. “And I’ve tried to talk the Captain out of that particular quirk, but I’m sure you know how hard it is to change his mind.” A playful smirk flashed on his face as he checked his Type 3 Phaser was set to the correct stun setting.

Nuitari Delphiki Error 420 Epiphany MechanicalSnake

 

[Nuitari Delphiki]

"Thanks Senior Chief." Franklin stated, grabbing the first type 2 phaser and checked it's power setting, and placed it on his belt. He grabbed 2 more and pointed to a type-3 rifle. "You mind if i grab one?" He asked. He had no intention of stepping on the Senior Chief's shoes, in Franklin's eyes, he was the senior command of the mission. If he didn't want Franklin carrying a rifle, then that would be it. "Burns and I are both trained in hand-to-hand and weapons. If you ever need a hand we're both willing to help." Franklin said. "All hands, prepare for rapid deceleration." Frost stated over the comms. "Looks like that's our cue. Nice Bat'leth, by the way. I've got a d'k tahg myself." Franklin said. "Let me know if you want me to check it in with you, the USS Pike required me to do so."


Frost took note when Savir arrived. "Not a problem. Though i'm afraid out introductions will have to wait. Commander Ash had to return to his quarters, some trouble at home. He asked to be temporarily relieved. Until he returns, you're my First Officer." Frost stated. "Oh and i'm sorry that this couldn't have happened in a more peaceful environment." Frost stated, and handed Savir a red box. Inside was his new rank medals. "Congratulations Lieutenant Commander." he stated, pointing to the chair next to him. "Take a seat." he said. The radar soon picked up the Intrepid Class ship on the scanners, and Frost turned to Kimberly. "Shut them down and start the communications." Frost stated, tapping his com badge. "All hands, prepare for rapid deceleration." He said, and re-positioned himself in his seat. He was calm and cool on the outside, as though he had done this a million times. On the inside, he had a million things running through his mind. He didn't want his first mission to be a bloodbath. There was a group of admirals in firm opposition to his command and what he could do. There was a reason he was called Frost. Something no one knew but Franklin, Burns, and the Starfleet Disciplinary Command. "Good thinking Sovak." Frost stated, and tapped his combadge. "Tayla, we'll be on our way to get beamed onto the ship. Make sure you keep a lock on everyone over there in case we need to quickly evac." He stated. "Caldera, make sure we're ready to destroy the Liberty if necessary." Frost stated, starting to turn to the Tactical station.

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RayPurchase Let us know when you come back. Until then we'll keep you in a "family emergency" status so you can quickly rejoin.

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Savir was quite certain that if he were human, his jaw would have dropped at the sudden promotion, but as it was, only his eyes gave away hints of surprise. The Captain's actual number one was a man with more experience under his belt than any two officers on the ship could put together with their careers combined; he hadn't quite expected to ever replace him, albeit temporarily. But an opportunity was an opportunity, no matter the circumstances, and he would welcome it. "Thank you, Sir," he said simply, accepting the box without touching the Captain's hand in the process. "The environment cannot always be chosen, but formal honors are of little importance to me. I will perform my duties to the best of my abilities."

It remained to be seen what that entailed; it was his understanding that, for this particular mission, the Captain didn't want him in the first line, but put himself there. And generally, it should have been Savir's job to remind him not to do so, but he felt like that wouldn't have been the most glorious start on his new post. It didn't take more than the most superficial empathic read to figure out that he was already firmly decided about all the steps he would take, which meant the only thing left for Savir to do was have his back. He sat down as instructed, bracing himself against the sudden drop out of warp that was to come, briefly checking the scanners. There was nothing non-standard about the ship's signature, but any hostile life forms or damage wouldn't reveal itself until they got closer.

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Senior Chief Conrad

John nodded respectfully. “Not a problem Sir.” When Franklin pointed to the rifle, John shock his head. “I’m afraid not sir. If you were part of the primary boarding party, I would consider it.” John reached out and rested a hand on the locker door. “But you’re going in on the second wave after I give the all clear there really isn’t a need for it.” He tilted his head slightly and raised an eye brow. “Is that so?

“All hands, prepare for rapid deceleration."

Senior Chief looked to see what his Squad Leaders were doing. And that was exactly what he had trained them to. Take charge of their squads and get them into position, weapons at the ready and in a defensive bubble, ready for beam out. “I may have to take you up on that,” Turning his attention back to the officer. “Just to make sure someone else will be able to watch over the Captain, if I’m not around.

John closed the weapons locker and escorted Franklin to the door. “Thank you, make sure you tell the Chief Engineer that.” He said with a slightly devilish smile. “After this little party is over I’ll be accepting all personal weapons from all newly arrived crew.”

The Tactical Unit stood ready. All three squads formed up and ready. John tapped his com-badge. “Transporter Room, Tactical Unit is ready and standing by for beam out to pre-set coordinates.” John pulled his rifle up and into a high ready position, with the stock in his shoulder and holographic aiming device just below his sight line. His feet set just a little wider then shoulder width apart, his right foot slight back and both knees bent. he glanced over to Jenkins and gave a wink and a nod. "On me kid."

"Aye, Aye Chief." Jenkins said, grinning a little with excited anticipation. She lowered her cheek back onto the shoulder stock, ready to take aim at a target.

John felt the rapid, and somewhat bumpy, shift from Warp to normal space, noting that Jotai was really giving the Freedom a hard run of it. 'This ship is tough and new, but we do this often. We won't look it.' He thought as he took a half step forward to keep his balance.

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[Epiphany]

Kimberly #49

At the Captain's command, Kimberly nodded at her station and said, "Opening communications," as she triggered her first macro with a couple of keystrokes. "Sending prefix codes and initiating warp core shutdown."

The second and third macros were triggered, each in turn, assuming the USS Liberty's communication system was open, the prefix code was accepted (i.e. those on board didn't know about it and disable it assuming they had the local overrides) and there weren't issues with the warp core shutdown command.

If it went successfully, Kimberly went to work on their shields before bracing herself for the Freedom's sudden deacceleration.

Once the Captain issued the "Let's go" command for a landing party, Kimberly would signal her relief to fill in at Communications before sliding out of her seat and joining Captain Frost in the turbolift.

 

[RikuXIII]

{Teyla Jotai - Helmsman}
Teyla brought the Freedom in close to their target, angling the starship to give them an easy escape vector, just in case. On the captain's orders, she slowed the ship down to a holding position.
"Don't worry, Captain." She called over her shoulder. "I'll have you locked and the engine revved, just in case."
With the boarding party departing, Teyla glanced back at Savir.
"First time in The Chair?" She asked conversationally, as she remained focused on her displays.

 

[Nuitari Delphiki]

Frost watched on the main display at the Liberty suddenly powered down and stopped in its tracks. "Good work Kimberly. Jotai, beam our boarding party aboard. In 2 minutes send Myself and my team aboard." Frost stated, standing from his chair. Franklin had walked in during Frosts order. Frost reached into his chair compartment and grabbed his Phaser. "arm them." Frost stated, and Franklin handed a Phaser to both Kri' Tak and Kimberly. Franklin then grabbed his d'k tahg out of his bag and placed it on his belt. "I like to keep this for close encounters." Franklin said some-what quietly, quoting an early 21st century video game, one he had managed to get a copy of and play. Frost then tapped his Com Badge. "Chief, let us know of any surprises, i'll be teleporting to your boarding co-ordinates in 2 minutes." Frost stated. He went to the transporter room conveniently located directly off the bridge and stood on the transporter pad. He checked the watch he had on, it was an early century watch with a classic 12 hour hand. He waited for it to hit the 2 minute mark so he could beam aboard. Franklin readied himself for the inevitable battle. It wasn't the first fight he had been in and hopefully wouldn't be his last. "I guess the Liberty will be the first to experience the furry of the man called chuch ghIDIna (veins of ice) before anyone else." Franklin stated, getting a smirk out of Frost. "I guess so." He replied, checking his watch. He prepared to wave his hand and order energize as his com-badge chirped. "Go." He stated after tapping his com badge.

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[Epiphany]

Kimberly #49

The Galorian Android nodded in satisfaction as the Liberty successfully shut down. No response to hails so far, though. That was...concerning.

As her relief occupied the Communications chair, Kimberly joined the Captain at the bridge transporter room's entrance and accepted the proffered phaser from Franklin with a "Thank you, sir." Frost's choice to put a Klingon melee weapon on his belt surprised her, as she was given to understand Starfleet tightly regulated the use of such weapons to ritual or ceremonial use and only in the context of dealing with Klingons. Did the Captain have intelligence he hadn't shared with the rest of the crew? Or did he have experience with the weapon and chose to use the prerogative of his rank? The Android's human-seeming face showed no sign of her inner thought process but, to a perceptive eye, a faint light flickered beneath her uniform shirt.

When Frost ushered his team in to the transporter room, she took her position on the transporter pad. Per regulations, Kimberly then checked her phaser's settings and adjusted them to the mission parameters before thumbing the safety off. When transporting into an unknown situation, every second could count.

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Senior Chief Conrad, Ready room and Bridge:

Once the Freedom was out of warp and in position with the Liberty's shields down, and the Captain gave the order. "Chief, let us know of any surprises, I'll be transporting to your boarding coordinates in 2 minutes."
John acknowledged the captain.

“Understood sir. Two minutes.” He tapped his com-badge to signal the transporter chief. “Energize!”

The transporter room energized and began the dematerialization process of the Tactical Unit and targeted and directed each team's molecular data to the location that was their responsibility. The rematerialization process was over in almost the same moment as it began.

Senior Chief and one other member of Squad 1 materialized inside the Captains ready room, on opposite sides of the door. Both of them made a quick primary and secondary sweep of the room. It was empty. "Clear left." John called.

"Clear right." Called the crewman.

"All clear." John tapped his com-badge. "Jenkins, two coming out."

"Come out. All clear on the Bridge. One unknown." Jenkins responded.

Senior Chief and the crewman stepped onto the bridge, his eyes swept from left to right, nodding at how his team had taken up dominant positions covering the whole room. Jenkins was standing next to the captains chair. In which was seated a very smug and equally unhappy looking Vice Admiral. "Sir." John looked to Jenkins. "Get status from the rest of the Unit." She nodded and stepped away from the Vice Admiral and Senior Chief. John stepped closer and shouldered his rifle, while the crewman he was with took up a covering position at the Vice Admiral's 10 o'clock position. "Admiral, care to explain what is going on?"

The Vice Admiral sat back comfortably in his chair, crossing one leg, and steepling his fingers as he looked to the Senior Chief. "I am Vice Admiral Henry, Chief of Starfleet Security. As your team will confirm, I am the only one on this ship." He stood, keeping his hands in plain view of the chief. "This is an unscheduled and unannounced test of the USS Freedom's response and of her Captain."

By the look the Vice Admirals face John could tell he thought he was in the right. "So... You're telling me to took control of an entire ship, jumping to max warp, plotting a course direct for Sol, and risked a violent confrontation. Just to test the Captain?"

The Vice Admiral Henry nodded. "That is correct chief. I am within my jurisdiction to conduct these types of tests."
-------------------------------------------

Squad Two, Main Engineering:

The Crewman First Class brought his Type 3 Phaser Rifle up to a high ready position as soon as the rematerialization process was complete. He moved to the left, along the starboard side of the main level and moved aft around the Warp Core, along with one other crewman. Both of their weapons up and moving in slow constant motions, wherever their eyes looked, so their weapons pointed. Their feet rolling smoothly from heel to toe fashion, while their legs were bent, using just the lower part of their legs to walk. Their upper bodies leaned forward slightly. It would look like they were trying to get below something hanging low and imitating a duck walk at the same time. But this posture allowed them to keep a steady aim while they moved. Moving around corners their lower half would turn after the upper half had already swiveled to orient the weapon the in the direction of travel, moving in a similar style as a turret on a tank. This was how Senior Chief had trained the entire Tactical Unit to move so they could maintain a stable shooting platform while they kept moving.

The Squad Leader tapped his com-badge, calling the rest of his team. "Main level, starboard clear."

"Main level, port clear." Came a reply.

"Upper level, all clear. There's no one here." Came the next report.

"Lower level, all clear. Even checked the science labs. This is kinda creepy." The last crewman reported. She sounded a little agitated.

The Squad leader double tapped his com-badge and called into Jenkins with his report of Engineering secure.
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Squad Three, Transporter Room and Security Complex:

Half of the squad materialized in Transporter Room 1 and the other in Room 2. The Squad leader took point, meaning she was the first one off the pad and through the door. She swept to the right, staying just off the bulkhead and moving forward in the same duck walk as the Engineering team moved. As soon as she was through the door, the second member of her team was right behind her. Checking down the opposite direction and getting a thumbs up from the other Transporter room team. He quickly caught up to his Squad leader as she approached the door leading to the security complex. "On me. Door left." She said, and he fell in behind her, his hand on her shoulder. She tapped the door control and as it opened she quickly stepped through the threshold and to the right, sweeping her rifle from corner to just past the center of the room. Her squad mate was in right behind her, sweeping from the left corner to just past the center of the room. "All clear!" She called out.

Her com-badge chirped and then her squad was reporting in. They had secured the main transporter rooms, the security complex as well as the Primary EPS Distribution Nodes. Her squad reported finding no personnel on board.
-------------------------------------------
Senior Chief Conrad, Bridge:

Jenkins stepped up just then. "Chief, Squads Two and Three both report all clear. No one other personnel on board." She looked to the Vice Admiral, holding her rifle at an alert ready position, which meant it was held securely in her hands, but pointed at the deck. "It looks like he commandeered the ship and took control of all systems from the bridge."

"She's not wrong, Chief." Henry looked to Jenkins and gave a respectful nod. "I did not think Markus would handle it this well." Sweeping his hand around to the various consoles, indicating that they were functional, but disabled thanks to Kimberly's use of the Prefix Codes.

John shook his head and tapped his com-badge. "Captain, we're all clear on the Liberty. All Unit members up, one Unknown secured, no shots fired. And Markus,” John almost never used the Captains first name, unless it was important. “You are not gonna believe this, but I’ve got the Chief of Starfleet Security here."

Nuitari Delphiki RikuXIII MechanicalSnake Tempestus Error 420 Epiphany Theo713

 

[Nuitari Delphiki]

Franklin and Frost froze. "What?" Franklin asked. "Son of a bitch." Frost muttered. "Energize." Frost stated, and waited the moment for his team to materialize. He briskly walked through the door. Calmly to most people, but to Franklin, he knew Marcus was completely furious. "Care to explain yourself, Admirial?" Frost calmly asked, standing in front of him. "As I told your senior chief, I am the Chief of starfleet security and I am Authorized to test..." "Stop. You aren't authorized for anything. You have absolutely no command of the Freedom and have no authority to test its abilities without following the proper command authorization. Which requires my approval. You have no control over how my vessel operates and have no authority here." Frost stated, turning to Franklin. "Get a message to Admiral Thompson, update him so far." Frost said to Franklin, who nodded. "Senior Chief, until this moron's command authority is worked out, take him into custody and take him to the brig." Frost stated. "You can't just.." The admiral started. "That's where you're wrong, Vice Admiral. You have absolutely no authority over my vessel. You have no authority over my crews. Senior Chief Conrad is loyal to me and me only. He follows my orders, not yours. You have no control over any part of my ship." Frost was saying, as he noticed the presence of Savir. Oh well. Now was as good a time as any to witness the authoritative side of him. "You had no choice over who I appointed to my ships operations. Do You hate that I took some of your best officers? Is this some temper tantrum over my command of this ship? Well get over it. We're at war, Vice Admiral. I have the absolute authority to conduct my ship and crew however I damn well please." Frost stated, setting his hands on either side of the Admirals chair and leaning into the man, getting nose to nose with him. "You're making a big mistake." The vice admiral stuttered, a sound of fear in his voice. "It wouldn't be the first time." Frost stated. "Heed my warning. If somehow you manage to avoid charges and cross my path again with a stunt like this, I will not hesitate to destroy your vessel with you in it." Frost stated. "And thats a promise." He then leaned off the chair and stepped back. "Go ahead Conrad." Frost stated. He was calm. He felt calm. His first time at the mound and he felt that he had just struck out the Vice Admiral. The look of fear on the man's face as he was taken into custody confirmed it all. He had just realized why Frost's ship and crew were off books and why he had no command authority. Because Frost would not hesitate to kill the enemies of Starfleet, with or without command authority and without any regard to rank. "Kimberly, retake control of the vessel. Franklin will stay here with you and fly the ship the last leg of the journey back to Starfleet. Kri'tak, make sure the Liberty is good for warp 4. That Will get us back to base in a couple hours." Frost stated.

Franklin had already grabbed a station and saw a ship on short range. "Sir, there is a ship approaching. It's Admiral Thompson. He's hailing the Freedom." "On screen" Frost stated. "Admiral, I've taken command control over the Liberty and arrested the man responsible for this belligerent and foolish undertaking. I intend to charge him with dereliction of duty and anything else that sticks." Frost stated. "Energize." The admiral stated, obviously to someone on his bridge. Suddenly he appeared on the Bridge of the Liberty. "Good work Captain. I want you to know, this test was never discussed with me nor is it approved. As I got closer one of my good friends informed me that this had just gotten to them. Apparently, the Vice-Admiral was working alone. You can take the Vice Admiral back. I have a crew who can handle the Liberty and will take it back to it's rightful Captain." He said, as a few uniformed Officers beamed aboard the Liberty. "Captain." A young commander stated as he beamed aboard. "Permission to take command of the Liberty." He stated. "Permission granted." Frost replied. "Captain Frost, I will ride back to starfleet with you." Admiral Thompson stated. "Yes Sir. Jotai, bring back the boarding party, plus the Admiral." Frost stated over his com badge. He was soon back aboard his own vessel, The Admiral standing next to him. Frost calmly walked back aboard his bridge. "Savir, you have the bridge. Plot a course back to Earth. Warp 5. Go underway once the Senior Chief reports all clear and ready." Frost stated, and walked with the Admiral to his ready room.

"Definitely a conversation i want no part of." Franklin stated, and walked down to the Brig. Once he arrived, He saw the Senior Chief working on processing the Vice Admiral. He stood back, watching the Senior Chief take command. Franklin could see why Frost chose the Senior Chief as his tactical lead. The man was just as loyal as the rest of Frost's inner circle.

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[MechanicalSnake]

The Captain has left the bridge, his departure followed by complete silence; no one seemed to be keen on moving on from the situation or commenting on it. Savir could understand that; he felt somewhat confused and dissatisfied himself. The whole ordeal had been entirely unasked for and offensive on several levels for everyone involved. However, he had to give the others an example of professional indifference, and so he allowed himself to sink back into the comfortable Captain's chair, running his eyes over the present officers.

"You've heard the Captain," he said in a calm voice. "I recommend that you all take this episode as a valuable lesson. Jotai, plot the course. Kimberly, I want a full report on every step the USS Freedom has taking during this test. It might have been unapproved, but we will still hand in a proof that we would have passed it with flying colors."

It had been a lesson in several meanings of the word, at least for him. He might have been sitting in the Captain's chair, but he didn't feel like he was in command. For the first time, he could see the Captain handle a difficult situation, and while his authoritative approach turned out to have been the correct choice, Savir had his doubts about it. Being ruthless to one's enemies was one thing, but trying to put an Admiral in his place could have cost Frost his job. Somehow he doubted the man would have acted differently if the test had been approved, given that he couldn't have possibly known this with a certainty. And while he had been largely left out of this incident, he could see that in the future, his main job would be to make sure the Captain's temper would not land the Freedom in trouble...

 

[Epiphany]

Kimberly #49

Nuitari Delphiki
The conflict between the Captain of her ship and the Vice Admiral was among the most fascinating exchanges the Galorian Android had ever seen in her years of operation. Kimberly couldn't wait to upload the memory to her other selves. Well, at least the memories they were authorized to have. As a condition of serving on a Starfleet vessel, she'd agreed to follow Starfleet protocols up to and including classifying any memories that would be considered confidential, even from herselves. Kimberly looked forward to reexamining the pertinent regulations at her first opportunity; surely this wasn't covered in them!

The Captain's clearly issued order spurred her to action at last. "Aye sir," she responded, proceeding to an Ops terminal and logging in via the Prefix override she'd established. Kimberly took a minute to identify and lock out the Vice Admiral's authorization aboard the USS Liberty. Then she released the command lockout, hailed the USS Freedom and uploaded a copy of the security profiles for every crew member aboard the ship. "Command is yours, Lieutenant Franklin," she said, tilting her head in the direction of the Captain's chair. "All crew should be free to access any and all systems, though we'll probably want to thoroughly investigate ship's telemetry and security logs to see if the Vice Admiral left any other surprises for us."

Then another starship showed up, surprising her again. Kimberly watched with undisguised interest at the exchanges between the Captain and another Admiral. When the new ship sent crew over and Captain Frost turned over control of the ship to them, she simply noted the new source of orders accordingly. Once Frost made his intentions clear about his boarding party returning to the ship, Kimberly opened the command panel for the man the Admiral had assigned to command the Liberty and beckoned him to it, so he could enter his own codes (she certainly didn't have access to his security profiles, not even knowing who he was after all).

MechanicalSnake
Once she'd returned to the ship, Kimberly resumed her post at Communications before turning at Savir's request. "I'll put that together at-"

At which point the Chief Engineer requested her presence. With a raised eyebrow seeking permission from the Lieutenant Commander, Kimberly finished by saying "-as soon as I see what the Chief Engineer needs assistance with. You'll have it before we return to port, sir."

Error 420
Assuming Savir had no issues with her leaving the bridge, Kimberly took the turbolift down to engineering and reported before Chief Engineer Kri'tak. "Reporting as ordered, sir," she said. Now that the state of emergency had passed, Kimberly allowed her lips to quirk in amusement. Her Emotional Emulation Engine suggested most humanoids would find it surreal and thus humorous when confronted by a woman who was both Klingon and much smaller than herself. "How can I be of service?" she asked politely.

 

[Error 420]

The reveal of an unarmed Vice Admiral was a disappointment, but an expected one. Kri'tak made no hesitation before moving to the turbolift and down towards the engine room. The silent parade downwards made Kri'tak shudder with how identical the Liberty was to the Freedom: They were different ships with different specifications and different designs, but they all felt the same. A Warbird was unique: they were either built hundreds of years apart or designed piece by piece by her captain. It was forged from rock into starcraft, honed by a warrior. They were, in essence, a giant Bat'leth with warp capability. Kri'tak chuckled, figuring that making them think it was just a big sword would get her idiot brothers to learn basic engineering. She also chuckled at the bitter irony of Starfleet's ship design. Humans, Andorians, Tellarites, the rest, were always seen as nothing more than sentimental children to the Klingons, obsessed with morality and their precious emotions. When a Klingon forged their Bat'leth or built their Warbird, it was the closest to the human idea of building something with love. A Starfleet vessel had no love in it, a characteristic accentuated by the empty corridors and the pure silence of a dead engine. A Starfleet vessel was always the same, no matter who built it or who commanded it.

This apparent sameness frustrated Kri'tak greatly when she arrived in the engine room. Every terminal was dark, every conduit silent. Had this been the Freedom, she would have no difficulty running a diagnostic from any terminal in the room. However, she couldn't even hit a power button without encountering the blaring androgynous voice of the ship's central computer. "Authorization Denied."

After muttering a variety of Klingon death prayers, she tapped her comm badge. "This is Commander Kri'Tak to Lieutenant Kimberly, I need some assistance down in Engineering."

Kimberly 47 arrived in Engineering to Kri'tak under the central terminal, desperately trying to phaser through a panel, a broken screwdriver on the ground beside her. The panel fell open just after she spoke. Kri'tak turned to the android. "The Admiral jury-rigged a bypass to control the engines directly through the bridge. See if you can get past it with your... you know."

Kri'tak was sure to conceal the gash on her arm made from a ricocheting broken screwdriver, attempting to hide her intense frustration at not having security clearance for even the most basic operations on any vessel besides the Freedom. A tear of anger was wiped from her cheek, disguised as a wiping of sweat from the brow. She wasn't lying about the bypass, but even an ensign in Starfleet would be able to turn on a terminal to override it.
Epiphany

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Senior Chief Conrad, USS Liberty Bridge / USS Freedom Brig:

"Senior Chief, until this moron's command authority is worked out, take him into custody and take him to the brig." Frost stated as he continued to stare down the Vice Admiral.

John nodded. “Aye, aye sir.” Senior Chief looked to Jenkins and gave a nod. Jenkins, who was as loyal and respectful to the Senior Chief as he was to Frost, slung her rifle out of the way and approached the Command Chair. She stopped short as the Captain leaned in and asserted his authority over the Vice Admiral. There was a short unspoken exchange between Jenkins and Conrad, just body language.

Jenkins shrugged as she raised a eyebrow with wry smile. ‘That sucks.’

Conrad shrugged and nodded slowly. ‘Yeah.’ He raised a open hand for her to wait until Frost was done.

"Go ahead Conrad." Frost said as he stepped away from the sufficiently cowed Chief of Starfleet Security.

With a flick of his wrist and pointing from Jenkins to the Vice Admiral. “Sir, if you would accompany my Petty Officer...” John said as he stepped up next to the Command Chair on the opposite side across from Jenkins, not giving the Vice Admiral any avenue to escape. Not that he was really considering it an option at this point. He continued to stare at Markus, in disbelief, shock, fear, and frustration, but he complied wordlessly. The Senior Chief and the rest of Squad One moved to the aft end of the bridge and out of the way of the oncoming bridge crew as the took charge of the USS Liberty.

Once he got a positive check in from the other two squads, John signaled to Jotai they were ready for her to transport them back to the Freedom. Once all three squads were back on the Freedom, Squad One helped to escort the prisoner to the Brig. After they were in the Brig the Squad One members conducted a security search, which in addition to the standard sensor scan checking for anything that could be used to escape or cause harm, his personnel did a physical search of the Vice Admiral. Which clearly was not comfortable or something he was expecting. John stood back, silently watching and assessing his Unit's actions and nodding as they carried out a textbook search.

With the prisoner searched and placed in a cell John tapped a few keys on a nearby console to call the bridge. “Bridge this is Senior Chief Conrad. The prisoner is secured.” He looked to his Squad and gave them a smile and an approving nod. “Well done. Get your gear restowed.” As they filed out and returned to the Armory Bay, he stopped Jenkins and pulled her to the side. “Debrief the Unit and ensure the after action report is taken care of.” His smile still on his face. “You did good kid, make sure they all know they did as well.” Handing her his rifle and Type-2 Pahser to get secured properly.

“Sure thing Chief.” She gave him a wink and nod and followed the last Unit member out, already shouting something about double-time and jogging after them.

John shook his head in good humor and made his way to his stateroom, giving Franklin a polite nod as he passed the Lieutenant.

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[Epiphany]

Kimberly #49

Upon arriving in engineering, Kimberly noted the damaged tools and the endangered panel, which caused her to frown at the unusual situation. It wasn't something she'd ever seen in her service tours thus far. But the commander's explanation was plausible so Kimberly simply shrugged off the spectacle and said, "Of course, Sir."

The Galorian Android stepped up to one of the computer terminals and input her security code, which was still functioning with admin permissions for the time being. The Vice Admiral had been rather clever in hiding the source command but the actual intersection with the engines made tailing the code relatively easy, or at least cutting off its access and restoring control to the Chief Engineer. "Engines are yours, Sir."

Finding the last bit of code and shutting it off, Kimberly turned to face the emotional Klingon woman with a smile on her face. "It wouldn't hurt to conduct a physical inspection, just in case the Vice Admiral had a manual backup of some kind. I'd be happy to assist you, or we could leave it to the crew of the other ship. Given this whole situation appears to have been engineered as a test for our ship, we may be needed for debriefing sooner than later."

Kimberly then folded her arms behind her back and stood at attention, plainly game to go along with any approach the Chief Engineer cared to take.
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[Nuitari Delphiki]

Franklin nodded back to the Senior Chief, and walked out of the room behind him. He could hear the Vice-Admiral shouting as he left the room. He intercepted a Security member approaching the Brig. "Ask the doctor to give him a physical check up when he can, we don't want the Vice Admiral dying on us." He then went back to the armory to turn in his Phaser and d'k tah which he still had attached to his belt. Albeit short, he was happy to have been in a combat situation with Frost again. The last time they had fought together was a bloody day. This one was much less bloody, but way more tense. He was surprised at how the Admiral had challenged his authority. Clearly, he hadn't studied his opponent. Frost was fierce, and strong as a leader. He stood up for his men and crushed anyone who challenged him. That was the only thing that scared Franklin. How willing Frost was to destroy his enemies, regardless of the Uniform they wore. Franklin soon entered the Armory and waited for the tactical team to finish putting their weapons and armor away. It was a great idea, having a boarding party that was able to rapidly board and secure an enemy vessel. They were obviously well trained. He would have to read up on the Senior Chief. He trained them well. He watched as the team put their weapons away. Once they were finished, he walked up to the obviously in charge petty officer. She seemed like a strong leader, a woman who could take care of herself. And a quite cute woman, although Franklin immediately suppressed it. "Jenkins, right? I need to turn in my Phaser and my d'k tah." He said kindly.

Frost leaned against his desk as the Admiral walked in. "So, Admiral, what brings you out here? You and I both know you were outside of the system. You were either heading back to earth or coming to see me." He said. "You're correct, i was coming to see you. Susan's Mother is asking some questions. Specifically about the man she loved and was going to marry." The admiral stated. "Oh." Frost muttered, looking down. "What does she know?" He asked. "She knows her daughter was in love with another Officer. That she had been proposed to, and that she was trying to get some vacation to take you back to Earth and take you to her. Susan never said your name. She wants to know who you are. I wanted to know if you're OK with me telling her." The admiral replied, taking a seat on the couch Frost had in his Ready Room. "Yeah. You can tell her. It's probably time that we told her." Frost stated. "I do have something else. She left all of her assets in your name. Everything that she had. I can tell she loved you. You would have made a perfect Husband for her. I would have loved to have had you for a Step-Son." The Admiral stated. "Well, she was one hell of a woman. I just wish she was still here." Frost replied. "Me too." The Admiral said. "Let's get back to work. I want to get a debriefing before we get back to Jupiter Station. Then we'll get you launched and out there defending us from real threats." The Admiral said, and stood up. "Yes sir." Frost replied, giving a smirk, and followed him out onto the Bridge. "Status report." Frost stated as he entered the Bridge.

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[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Petty Officer First Class Jenkins, Armory

Jenkins closed her locker door, her eyes sweeping the room. Noting that Squad 3 was done before Squad 2. 'Need to see what's slowing them down.' She thought as she zipped up the front of her uniform and adjusted her duty belt, ensuring the phaser rode in a comfortably close at hand spot. She was on the first shift to roam the ship as one of the ready response security personnel, in the unlikely event they were boarded, placed under attack, or the more likely scenario of some of the crew getting into an altercation of some sort. She always made sure roam and linger in the Engineering section.

Jenkins walked over to the weapons lockers control console, double checking inventory when a Lieutenant approached her with a friendly smile.

"Jenkins, right? I need to turn in my Phaser and my d'k tah."

Tapping a few buttons, she nodded and looked up at the taller officer, as the locker drawer slid open with a quiet click and soft hiss. "Yes, sir. Petty Officer First Class Jenkins. And I will happily accept the turn over of your personal weapon." Both of her hands were palm up, waiting for Franklin to hand them over. "Rest assured it will be safe and secure in this room." She smiled in a warm friendly manner at the man.

Senior Chief Conrad, Security Office

John settled in behind his desk with a fresh hot cup of coffee in one hand and a data pad in the other. He was reviewing his after action report and those of his squad leaders. Noting any critiques or high points they had. He had drilled into them to always complete the AAR after each drill, simulation, and exercise. This would help ensure that after an actual boarding or operation, when they were coming down off their adrenaline surge, they would be able to accurately recall events, data, facts, and time line of events.

The Senior Chief sipped on his coffee as he read through the reports. Happy with the reactions of his team, but knew they could get better. He would ensure they would set a new standard for Starfleet, and make Markus proud of them. Leaning back in his chair he kicked his feet on the desk and skimmed through the AAR's, making notes, codifying and formatting into a single data file for the ships official logs and for the First Officers report on the event. He had gotten the impression, though their meeting had been brief, that this Hybrid-Vulcan wanted a tight and orderly ship. John knew Commander Ash wanted it that way and sometimes tried to keep his fingers in all the pies. Just like a crusty old bastard was want to do. John had a feeling he would butt heads now and again with all the officers. But if he did his job the right way, he would make them upset, but they would grow for it.