AT/E00 - USS Callisto - Deck 1

[GM-01]

==Bridge==

Calleja, Miller, and Crawford materialised on the Bridge. Emergency lighting cast long shadows in the dim red light, and far from finding a startled Cardassian, they found it empty. The hum of the turbolift behind them indicated that they had missed their quarry by mere seconds - had they transported in any earlier, one of them may have materialised inside the unfortunate soul with very messy consequences.

Every console except that on the Captain's armrest was dark; either powered down or burned out by power surges. The helm and engineering consoles appeared to be intact, and would be easy to reactivate and provide control the entire ship from the Bridge.

Curiously, the Cardassian PADD was still connected to the Captain's chair by a cable. It appeared to be compiling data and compressing it ready for transmission, retaining a two-way datalink with the Cardassian station. It was possible, to anyone with sufficient clearance to know such things, that the Cardassians had been unable to totally bypass the ship's computer security and therefore had to transfer any data to the PADD prior to transmission.

Why they hadn't simply taken the PADD with them was anyone's guess.

The viewscreen, thankfully active, showed the Callisto's course; she was currently locked on a parabolic trajectory towards the sun. It would slingshot past Parhelia I and then launch itself into the primary star's gravitational field where the intense heat would melt her alloys and leave little trace that she was ever there. 

==Ready Room==

Arriving with so many people in the Ready Room at the same time made for an uncomfortably cramped experience. Deveraux actually materialised in the Captain's Head rather than the Ready Room itself. The lights were off, so the assembled members of the group would have to use flashlights to see that the room had been thoroughly trashed - scavengers and trophy hunters had ripped most of the fittings away; a discarded picture of Admiral Jal and her family, surrounded by glass from the frame that someone had pilfered, was the only evidence that this had once been an orderly Ready Room. 

Given the lack of weapons fire, profanity, or explosions from the Bridge, it seemed that maybe they'd all made it in one piece.

[Aeryn Miller]

<< Computer Core <<

== Bridge ==

The moment that Aeryn materialised on the bridge alongside Calleja and the Captain, the Security Chief instantly began assessing the situation. Everything around them was cast in shadows thanks to the dim red light of the emergency lighting while confirming that they were all alone. The lone Cardassian that Robin had mentioned was nowhere to be seen, although it didn't take a genius to realise that they had made their escape mere seconds before the initial team's arrival. " They've gone" she announced, knowing that the others would have heard the familiar tone of the turbolift engaging.

Aeryn wasn't going to be too cut up about missing the opportunity of catching the Cardassian and startling them in the process. No, they had more important things to worry about as the COS looked over the darkened consoles, noting that the Captain's armrest was still functional. Her gaze then swept over the helm and engineering consoles, which, thankfully, appeared to be intact. Those in theory should be easy to reactivate for their purpose before she settled on the PADD that had been left behind.

'Odd' was one word to describe it, but that was quickly replaced by either the Cardassians forgetting it or them being too lazy to unhook it from the cable that it had been connected to. " The PADD's still here" she pointed out, still uncertain why it was left behind but then figured that it was a blessing in some way, allowing them to find out what they had been doing with it.

Aeryn's attention then turned to the active viewscreen, immortalising their intended fate if they didn't act quickly, and for the first time, the redhead felt scared, more than she had before all of this. Taking a deep breath, Aeryn looked away and awaited further orders and the arrival of the second part of the team.

== Tags ==

[Mara Calleja]

As the 3 materialised, Mara finished letting out the breath she’d drawn in. Dark eyes took in the otherwise empty Bridge and she holstered her weapons again.

“Turbolift is still going,” she reported, having heard the mechanism in the background. “We didn’t miss ‘em by much.”

[The PADD's still here] Aeryn said.

“What PADD?” Calleja asked. “Why do they have a PADD here anyway? Surely they’ve already nicked what they need?” She was so focused she hadn’t caught herself slipping into slang again, although ‘nicked’ meaning stolen wasn’t exactly obscure.

She switched to the channel used for all team communications so that she could be heard by anyone who cared to listen.

“Calleja to Coleman and Elias. The Cardies are gone, it’s just us here. I’m gonna sweep now for any hidden surprises.” She looked around and frowned at the dark consoles. “Looks like everything is powered down here except the viewscreeen and the Captain’s chair,” she added, hoping to give Elias that little bit of extra time to prepare.

“Hey boss,” Mara added, addressing Aeryn. “Do those consoles power up? Can we get in and do anything, or have we got to go via the Captain’s chair?”

The Bandaran drew her tricorder. For a moment, she nearly left it in passive mode, but if the massive energy spike of a transport hadn’t raised the alarm then her scanning for anything nasty was going to be a drop in the ocean. Mara’s instincts for spotting traps had been honed from a ridiculously early age, and between those and her tricorder she was confident she could at least confirm or deny that the Bridge was safe.

== Tags to Coleman and Elias!

GM input please. Does the tricorder pick up anything that might indicate booby traps? Can Mara see anything that would give her cause for concern? ==

[Lucy Devereaux]

== Deck 1 – Ready Room – Captain’s Head ==

Lucy materialised into darkness. It wasn’t the darkness of space as she couldn’t feel a pressure on the suit. If there hadn’t been an urgency to reclaim the Callisto she would have been happy to remain where she was until someone enquired as to where she was. She replaced the phaser at her hip and felt for her wrist-torch. She recalled that her half of the Away Team was to arrive in the Ready Room, yet she was alone.

Once Lucy had activated her writst-torch she took in her surroundings. A little small, but she did recall some called it the smallest room in the house. Somehow she had materialised in the Captain’s Head, Certainly a part of any ship she hadn’t expected to see. There were cosmic pranksters in the universe, so Lucy reluctantly ruled out blind chance. She liked the idea that she had given some powerful being a moment of amusement.

Lucy cautiously approached the door. She couldn’t remember who had been in her half of the Away Team, so kept her wrist-torch pointed down as she opened the door. They hadn’t been on a shoot to stun policy with this mission, so getting shot was best to be avoided.

The Ready Room was a sad sight. The previous Captain’s personal items that hadn’t been taken were scattered and smashed. A sight that certainly moved Lucy. It was a little crowded, but there were no sounds of violent action from outside. It was a little curious, but she decided to speak up, so the group could move onto the Bridge.

“Somebody wanne get the door. I think we’re in the clear, this time.”

== tag ==

[Miles Grant]

<<Callisto-Ancillary<<

Miles soon found himself in what he believed to be the Callisto's Ready Room, if the layout was correct. Right where they were supposed to be. It was trashed, that much was true, and it felt more cramped. Understandable, given that it was smaller than the Artemis' Ready Room.

Doing a quick head check, he noted they were missing someone from this current team. At first, a mild panic set in, fear that something bad had happened to Lieutenant Devereux.

That fear was quickly eased as the Science Lieutenant came out from the Captain's Head moments later. Miles breathed a sigh of relief that their group hadn't lost anyone. With that, he focused his attention on any sounds coming from the other side of the doors that led to the Bridge.

When he heard nothing, he began to approach, right at the time Devereux made the comment about getting the door and being clear at this time.

Miles did take precaution as he readied to open the door, eyes out for anything that might be a trap or trigger.

==Tag. GM input: Anything that would keep the Ready Room group from entering the Bridge? Are they able to leave the Ready Room?==

[GM-01]

There were no booby traps, or anything preventing people moving about Deck One normally. It seemed as though, with typical Cardassian arrogance, things had been left alone once the occupying troops had vacated the premises.

[Aeryn Miller]

== Bridge ==

Mara soon confirmed what Aeryn had heard, but there were other things to focus on as her fellow security officer queried the PADD that the COS had indicated, and raised a very good question. " No idea, but it meant something to them, especially if they couldn't access everything that they needed" Aeryn theorised, which was all either of them could do until someone accessed the device. As Mara made contact with the second team led by Coleman and gave them an update about what they had seen so far, Aeryn took another look around the bridge.

It was a little strange to be standing on the bridge of a ship that everyone didn't think they would see again, a ship that once was full of life and people going about their duties without knowing what lay ahead. Some of those people had now become prisoners, and there was little that the strike team could do about it. Her attention moved to Mara again as the Bandaran spoke to her directly. " That's a good question and something worth trying out, because if we can get them activated then it'll be easier to retake control of the ship".

Aeryn might not be a qualified pilot but hopefully, those who could, would be with them soon enough. Which left the engineering console, meaning that she and Mara could check both and report back. " You take the helm, and I'll check the engineering console".

Until the Captain said otherwise, Aeryn wanted to continue being proactive as she moved to the engineering console and, to her delight, activated it without any issues. " Engineering is working".

== Tags ==

== GM input. Can Aeryn glean any information that might be useful? ==

[Mara Calleja]

Mara’s sweep of the Bridge came up clear and she was quickly back on the open channel.

“Calleja to away team, Bridge secure. Come on out. Doesn’t look like the Cardies even considered the possibility of hostile forces comin’ aboard.”

With the all clear given to the rest of the team, the Amazonian Security officer looked over as Aeryn answered her questions.

[That's a good question and something worth trying out, because if we can get them activated then it'll be easier to retake control of the ship.] There was a moment’s pause. [You take the helm, and I'll check the engineering console.]

“Got it,” Mara answered.

The helm console switched on easy enough, and seemed to confirm what they were seeing on the viewscreen.

“OK, helm station appears to be functional, but I’m gonna leave it to the 2 actual experts to start messin’ with it,” Calleja replied. “Matches what we’re seein’ on the viewscreen. They’ve locked the ship on a long course towards the sun.”

As the rest of the away team started to emerge from the Ready Room, she looked over at the Captain.

“I remember from the briefin’ material, the Cardies got the jump on Callisto in the first place because they hid the ship in interference caused by the binary stars. You think we could use the same effect to get clear? I don’t know how close we’d need to get, but that might be a play we could use.”

She was speaking to the team in general, not just Tyra. Calleja was no Tactical officer and if her suggestion was a viable plan, it would need better minds than the Bandaran’s to make it work.

== Tags all!

Couple of very quick GM input requests please. How long do we have before the Callisto gets close enough to the suns to put us in danger? And is the air clear enough on the Bridge to lose the helmets? ==

[Tyra Crawford]

>> Ancillary Location >>

As they materialized on an empty, desolate bridge, Tyra didn't immediately move as the other sprang into action. Maybe it was the almost undeniable urge to slam her boot into the nearest console in sheer frustration or maybe, it was the pounding of blood in her ears as her blood pressure no doubt hit an all time high as the situation sank in.

Not only had they been sent on this errand based on terrible Intel but it has ultimately been for nothing. She and Elias' careers were likely over for the sake of reacquiring a ship that was so demolished and torn apart it likely would be scuttled by the Fleet anyway. Despite the presence of the PADD downloading information, she couldn't help but suspect even without that information, the Cardassians no doubt had gotten enough information to still do them harm. And the hostages were who the Hell knew where.

Essentially, her crew had and continued to risk their lives to reacquire a ship that the Cardassians would have scuttled for them. It was a fucking waste and all Tyra could think about was how much she wanted to absolutely beat the living shit out of the first admiral she encountered.

Her feet carried her on auto-pilot towards the command chair, formerly belonging to someone just as worthless as the idiots that had sent them here. Hell, if she hadn't been worthless in the first place, they wouldn't have been sent on this wild goose chase.

Her fingers tapped over the console to try to determine what she could access from there under the ship's current operations. She could hear Calleja calling for the rest of the team and for that she was grateful.

“I remember from the briefin’ material, the Cardies got the jump on Callisto in the first place because they hid the ship in interference caused by the binary stars. You think we could use the same effect to get clear? I don’t know how close we’d need to get, but that might be a play we could use.”

Tyra paused, the pounding in her ears subsiding. "Possibly if we come up with a way to simulate the necessary debris. We'd also need to go ahead and have our escape route mapped out because we can only hide for so long."

As the second team came out of the ready room, she started to direct people to assignments. "Grant, grab helm. I need to know how long we've got before we hit the point of no return. And whether we can bring weapons and engines online when needed."

"Calleja, talk to Elias and find out how we can sever that PADD's connection without triggering every alarm possible."

"Miller and Star, we need to figure out what hostages were kept here and where they went. If they're somewhere accessible, we might have to go fix that issue," she ordered, trying to ignore her surprise that it seemed the team had gotten a little mixed up. Something must have gone wrong with the transporters.

"Everyone else, find some work," she said as she took her own orders and began working on the command console once more. She began to work through Calleja's idea, knowing if it had been done once, it could be done again. They just needed the correct details to make it work because she couldn't very well cram her boot up anyone's ass if she died on this rust bucket.

== GM Input: How close would they need to get to the stars to hide in the interference? How long could the ship remain? And what is the travel time from that hiding place to the edge of the system? ==

[Benjamin Elias]

Benjamin materialized on the bridge and went to the engineering console, nodding at Aeryn as he moved in. "Lieutenant Deveraux," he called to the scientist, "the slipstream was beamed to a transport a day or two ago, at coordinates I'm sending to the science console now." He suited actions to words, and the coordinates appeared on the console. "See if you can find it again?"

That done, he turned his mind back towards the padd. He waved Calleja over as he started enacting his plan. "I'm isolating the padd by starting a level 2 diagnostic," he told her. "That isolates the system in a test environment, so it can't access any of the files it's trying to download, which should leave them incomplete and corrupted wherever they're being sent. If I'm right, though, the link to their system should still be active." He indicated the nearest console, inviting the tall woman to take a seat. "You should be able to get into the padd's software and storage from there; see if you can figure out anything useful from it. I'm going to try and invade their system and do the same."

Minimizing the diagnostic window, Benjamin opened a console and started trying to burrow into the Cardassian file system. He knew that it would be difficult going, since it was very different from Starfleet LCARS, but at its root it was still just files and folders. He looked for anything, anything at all, that could be useful.

==Tags Devereaux and Calleja==

==GM Input: Can I even get into the Cardassian system? I'll dig better if I can==

[Mara Calleja]

[Possibly if we come up with a way to simulate the necessary debris. We'd also need to go ahead and have our escape route mapped out because we can only hide for so long.]

There was a thin smile on Mara’s lips as she listened to Tyra. The CO’s frustrations were no doubt bubbling away just below the surface again but she seemed in a slightly better place now the team actually had something they could be doing.

[Calleja, talk to Elias and find out how we can sever that PADD's connection without triggering every alarm possible.]

The Bandaran nodded and moved to the centre chair as the engineer waved her over. Mara had to immediately focus so that she could follow as he outlined his plan. She could do a passable impression of a gold shirt with some handholding, and had done recently with the booby-trapped transporter on the last mission, but it took a lot of concentration.

[I'm isolating the padd by starting a level 2 diagnostic. That isolates the system in a test environment, so it can't access any of the files it's trying to download, which should leave them incomplete and corrupted wherever they're being sent. If I'm right, though, the link to their system should still be active.]

He indicated the nearest console, inviting the tall woman to take a seat. She was only too happy to oblige.

[You should be able to get into the PADD's software and storage from there; see if you can figure out anything useful from it. I'm going to try and invade their system and do the same.]

“OK, got it,” Mara replied. She snuck a glance at the readout on her suit’s forearm, keen to see if the air was clear enough up here to let her lose the helmet.

I mean, there might not be enough of Callisto to rescue. I don’t know, I ain’t a tactical officer or engineer. I can’t do the damage assessment. But it seems like we got the core of a functionin’ ship here, and I’d rather we took this back home than get crammed on the Waverunner or that bunk room again.

Oh shit. Waverunner!

“Hey boss,” Calleja said, looking over at Crawford. “About that necessary debris. We got the Waverunner sat in the dock, and plenty of junk in the corridors. Between all that, there’s enough to simulate a decent wreck, right? It doesn’t have to survive a clear scan ‘cause the Cardies are expectin’ it all to melt anyway. Means we gotta make a call on which ship we leave on though.”

She turned back to the console, waiting until Elias had set the PADD into diagnostic mode before working through a list of queries if she was able to.

OK. Focus on this.

How did they gain access to the PADD and the computer system in general? If we can identify the back door they used we can better protect our systems in the future. What files did they access from here? What were they trying to download? Have they uploaded anything into Callisto’s computer that might come back to bite us? We know they took the slipstream drive. Did they go for anything else?

== Tags all!

Sorry GM, more input requests please in addition to the one about whether the air is clear. 

Assuming Mara is able to follow Elias’ instructions and access the PADD, what can she tell from it? Specifically, will it tell us:
- How did the Cardassians gain access to the PADD and the computer system in general?
- What files did they access?
- What were they trying to download?
- Did they upload anything into Callisto’s computer?
- Did they try to remove anything else other than the slipstream drive?

Thank you! ==

[Miles Grant]

Once Miles had done his initial sweep and determined there was nothing preventing them from entering the Bridge, he made motioned for the rest of his team to join, activating the door to open...just as Calleja called out for them to join. As he entered he took a look around, noting how dark everything was, with only two noticeable things active: the Captain's chair and the viewscreen.

Miles could tell their current trajectory was not promising, especially with the earlier report. It would still fall on Miles or Harriman to take over and try to get them out of their current situation. Though, he listened to the ends of a discussion regarding creating a debris field and finding an escape route. Crawford then indicated for Miles to take the helm and check on their timetable until the point of no return as well as status of weapons and shields.

Miles quickly went about following the Captain's orders, taking the Helm and booting up the diagnostics and helm control. He would need to try to take control while seeming like they were drifting towards the initial trajectory, but needed to make sure he would have time for a plan to form.

He overheard Calleja bring up the Waverider and other objects that could possibly be used for the necessary debris, and asking the question of which ship they would prefer to keep.

Miles wasn't sure if they were at the point of sacrificing either ship to make their escape, but also understood that it could still come to that. As he mulled it over awaiting the results, his initial response would have been the Callisto. It had already caused them enough trouble as it was, and the Cardassians were already expecting it to be destroyed. He wasn't quite at the point of butting into the conversation between Calleja and Crawford, as he had more important things to focus on at the moment.

==GM input: Is Miles able to retake control of the helm? What is the ETA before the Callisto reaches a point of no return and are weapons and shields available?==

[GM-01]

==Sincere apologies for the delay, folks! Life started lifeing, and that meant no hobby time for poor old GM-01!==

==Calleja==

The air was breathable so they didn't need the helmets. The PADD was of Cardassian design, and had been connected to the computer via an adapter. Whether this had been done by a Cardassian or Prisoner was unknown, but whoever had linked the two had to have been a competent systems architect to mate the usually-incompatible technologies.

The Cardassians had accessed virtually every file using some form of worm; it had scoured the databases, identifying and downloading things that might be of interest to a second-rate military power looking to return to glory: the Slipstream specifications, all logs pertaining to the Callisto's Delta Quadrant voyage, and Starfleet Intelligence's best guesses about where the fleeing Planet Killers from the Megasphere battle had disappeared to.

Nothing else of value had been removed apart from the Slipstream Drive. The Luna-class was a 20 year old design, and Obsidian Order agents had likely already stolen anything else of interest - the Callisto being one of only two outfitted with Slipstream Drive had made her special.

==Crawford==

The Callisto was already entering an area of radiation that would mask their position, but they would need to dive deeper if they were to take the time to hide. With shields up and relevant innoculations passed among the crew, assuming Sickbay was still operational, they could hide in the radiation field for a few hours before they started to suffer from radiation exposure. Without operational shields, that would be reduced to mere minutes as they entered higher density radiation areas. At Impulse, it would take an hour for the Luna to transit out of the system with her damaged engines. An intra-system warp jump, plotted extremely carefully as to avoid any stellar objects that might be in their way, would take only minutes.

==Elias==

It took a moment, but with their plans almost at an end it seemed like the Cardassians had gotten sloppy, and he was able to access the system.

==Grant==

The helm wasn't locked out, the Cardassian seemingly hadn't figured that was a priority, so he could quite easily disengage the autopilot. At their current velocity, the Callisto would plunge into the star's gravity well within five minutes if the course wasn't adjusted. Power would need to be routed to the relevant generators would require charging, but diagnostics indicated weapons and shields were available.

[Aeryn Miller]

Remaining where she was for the time being, Aeryn listened as Mara gave the rest of the team the all-clear before confirming what they were seeing on the viewscreen. Hopefully, they could stop the Callisto from being incinerated, otherwise it meant trying to get to the Waverider before it was too late. Trying not to think about being burned to a crisp, Aeryn focused on what she could do, as Mara spoke directly to the Captain and offered a suggestion. Tyra was quick to answer about how it could work and what they needed to do to make that happen as the others entered the bridge.

Orders were then issued, and Aeryn would be working alongside Star to find out more information about the hostages, specifically who had been kept and where they had been taken. Easy enough to do, if there was an available console other than where she was currently standing. " Acknowledged Captain" she replied, gesturing for Star to join her just as the rest of the consoles sprung to life. To some, it may seem like a miracle. Still, Aeryn didn't have to figure out who was responsible for making things a little easier as Commander Elias materialised on the Bridge. Aeryn immediately stepped aside to allow the CE access to Engineering.

Returning his nod with a smile, Aeryn moved to an available console while Elias spoke to Lucy and Mara with specific instructions, so they could try and locate the slipstream drive and stop the Cardassians from gaining access to the information that they were downloading. A smirk crossed Aeryn's pale features briefly, imagining the chaos it would cause. That'll teach them she thought amusingly, before speaking to Star.

" It should be easy enough to access the files about the hostages," she remarked, as she began to search the database. It was then that Aeryn overheard Mara's next idea and, again the notion of getting one up on the Cardassians, appealed to the security officer regardless of which ship they ended up using for their escape.

== Tags ==

== GM input, are we able to find out what hostages were kept on Callisto, how many, and where they went? ==

[Mara Calleja]

With the readout on her suit indicating the air was clear, Mara didn’t hesitate. There was a faint hiss as she disengaged the helmet and took it off, clipping it to her belt. She blinked a couple of times as her eyes adjusted. It was a relief to be able to rely fully on her own senses again, instead of what the suit fed her. She knew how good the equipment was but she still preferred to see and hear for herself.

All data slates looked so alike that Calleja didn’t realise this one was Cardassian until she started to see alerts and overlays in their language. She had taken a couple of courses in Cardassian but she was a long way from being able to translate anything remotely technical. Luckily though, it was still connected to the Callisto’s computer and showing the Federation standard interface, which she could read.

As she worked, Mara was finding it hard to stay focused. This mission was bringing out the bitterly cynical part of her and it was really starting to bother her. She had worked hard to appreciate the sanctity of life. That had meant spending time around spiritual and religious people, reading all sorts of writing on the subject, getting lectures from tutors back at the Academy. All of it to undo what her home world had done to her perspectives.

And yet. Here I am, still proposin’ what amounts to a fuckin’ war crime executin’ a bunch of unconscious prisoners. The worst part of it all is, I’m still not convinced I was wrong. Cuttin’ their throats would make our escape so much easier. And they’re soldiers. Part of the job is knowin’ that if the enemy gets you at blade’s end, you probably ain’t comin’ back.

She let out the breath she’d been holding in an irritated hiss. Once she got back to Artemis - and there was no doubt whatsoever in her mind that she was going to get back - this whole mission was going to need a lot of mental and emotional unpacking. Until then, she buried it all deep deep down within herself so she could get her mind back on the job at hand.

It looked like the Cardassians had been through the entire computer. Calleja knew a worm program from cyber-security lessons, and this was a particularly crude example. She wasn’t remotely surprised to see that it had really focused on anything connected to the Slipstream Drive and the Delta Quadrant. According to the data, that’s all they were after - nothing else had been taken from Callisto except the drive itself and the fuel.

“They figured out how to link their systems to ours,” Mara said aloud, tapping the adaptor at the base of the PADD as she gave her report. “As for the rest, about what you’d expect. They went through the whole computer but most of what they took was Slipstream Drive and Delta Quadrant related. Doesn’t look like they took anything else off the ship, it was just the drive they were after.”

She looked around to see how everyone else was getting on. And more importantly to her, how they were going with the whole not-crashing-into-a-star thing.

“You get much?” Calleja asked Elias.

[Miles Grant]

It didn't take long for Miles get the necessary information on what he needed. It was helpful, though definitely not all great news. Fixable, but very time sensitive. Luckily, he wasn't locked out of the Helm, so was quickly able to gain control of the ship. He reviewed everything before giving his update to Captain Crawford.

"I have control of the Helm," he reported. "We've got about five minutes before we get into the star's gravity well. The generator's need to charge, but we've got access to weapons and shields. Shields should help us avoid radiation for a few hours if need be. If someone can confirm, I believe we should have enough interference now to be able to stay out of the gravity well and get what we need done to make it out of system."

As he gave his report, he did what he could to ensure they avoided the gravity well while not making it obvious they were avoiding the gravity well until he got his confirmation that they had the interference needed to avoid detection.

==Tags==

[Aeryn Miller]

While Aeryn was hopeful that accessing the information would be relatively straightforward, the security chief was also mindful of the time that they had left. She couldn't be lackadaisical about her task, not when the Captain was relying on them to get answers as quickly as possible. The familiar hiss of a helmet being disengaged, provided some reassurance to the redhead, telling her that it was safe to take hers off, which would make things a lot easier when it came to communicating with those on the bridge. 

" That's better," she remarked, enjoying the sensation of the relief that came with removing the very thing that had kept her safe thus far. Everything seemed a little clearer as she refocused on the console, before hearing Mara's report which was quickly followed by Grant giving them an update regarding the helm.

Five minutes was all it was going to take, but they had also been given an additional lifeline if they chose to stay on the Callisto with a few hours of protection from the inevitable radiation poisoning. Not exactly the way that Aeryn would want to go, but at least they had an option. Better than nothing she thought to herself as she and Star awaited the results of the database search. Her mind ticked back to earlier before the team had engaged the Cardassians, specifically Robin, and how the CMO had been scanning since they had left the Waverider. Trying to remember what was said about the hostages, and surely it wouldn't hurt to check in with her friend to see if any of the data she collected was relevant to what Aeryn needed.

" Robin might be able to give us a hand with the information that the Captain wanted, while we wait for the search results to come back" she suggested, tapping the comm to speak to the CMO.

" Miller to Mayfair, can you send me the data that you collected about the prisoners that were beamed away when we first got here? The Captain has asked me, and Star to find some additional information about them, and I remembered that you picked them up on your scans".

It was worth a shot, and it was a chance that Aeryn was willing to take if it helped her and Emily. 

== Tags ==

[Robin Mayfair]

Robin's voice came back in quick reply.

[Understood, Lieutenant. Transmitting the data now.]

Moments later the requested information uploaded into Aeryn's tricorder.

== Tag Aeryn ==

[Lucy Devereaux]

After the other half of the Away Team had exited the Ready Room the Captain gave instructions to some and basically told the remainder including Lucy to find some work, preferably out of the way. At least that was how Lucy interpreted her tone. Ben had requested that Lucy try and track down the last known location of the slipstream drive. He’d sent what he’d found from his time rooting in the Computer Core to the Science Console for Lucy to track. It was curious that the drive had been removed only a day or two before they had arrived.

It wasn’t like the Cardassians had been expecting them, so the timing was quite strange. Depending on the vessel used to transport the trail shouldn’t have dissipated much. The issue would be if the trail left the system. With the usually capricious nature of the Cardassians what they could have done with it was anyone’s guess.

Lucy started a diagnostic of the sensor array. She was hopeful that the Cardassians hadn’t shown any interest in the sensor palettes. The risk was she’d need to run an active scan of the where the drive had been transported to. It kept her occupied.

“Captain, requesting permission to run an active sensor sweep of the last known location of the slipstream drive. Not certain if it has been taken out of the system.”

I hate probability.

== GM input request, are the sensors in working order for scientific purposes? ==

[Benjamin Elias]

Attempting to gain access to a hostile system isn't exactly difficult. But it's also not a simple process, either. He had learned some about the process at the Academy, and having to make disparate parts from disparate cultures all work together while in independent service also helped, particularly since he was working his way into a Cardassian system. Different cultures all had different ways of making their systems work, and sometimes a xenopsychology degree was of more use than one in computer engineering. You had to know how they thought, how they viewed the world, in order to make heads or tails of their systems - Federation systems were fairly open and easy to navigate, for instance, while Ferengi systems hid much of their capability behind paywalls. It wasn't difficult, if you knew how computers work, but it wasn't simple.

Of course, the fact that they had left their only-slightly-metaphorical back door open with this link made matters a lot easier.

Still, he was surprised whenever he got in and saw just how accessible the Cardassian system was. His hands came up from the console just a bit as he watched the file system propagate and fill his screen, and considered where he should go next.

[You get much?] Calleja asked Elias from nearby.

"Yeah," he said a little breathlessly, a smile on his face. "It looks like I've got everything. Or at least can get it."

His fingers hit the console again as he pulled up a couple of data mining protocols from the engineering toolkit. They were normally used for forensic diagnostics on broken equipment, but he thought they'd be useful here. He tasked them with searching the databanks for specific items. 

The first, he sent looking for anything that looked like it was limited-access. If there were files that could only be accessed from certain locations, he wanted to know because that likely meant they were doing something at that location he wanted to know about. 

A second one was tasked with finding any files that seemed to have Federation origin. He wasn't sure if they would have converted any files they stole from Callisto to Cardassian file types, but the old ones were likely lurking on the network still, somewhere. He gave another dataminer the task of looking for anything that looked like a schematic. For a moment, Benjamin considered giving it the Slipstream schematic to compare against, but he didn't want to expose that to potential Cardassian scrutiny any more than it already had been. He'd just have to sort them out himself on this side.

The last dataminer he programmed, he set to crawl for any delivery or shipment records from the past two weeks. It was going to be a large dataset, but he fed the results of that one back to an analysis program that would look for anything that was out of the ordinary in it: things that were going by military vessel rather than a cargo ship, consignments that seemed strange for what they were stated to be, or anything else peculiar.

It was going to be a lot, but he knew if they could find where the Cardassians were researching the drive - particularly if it was in-system - then it could mean the difference between keeping the drive out of the enemy's hands, or this mission being yet another fiasco.

==GM Input:

1) Do I find anything like a location that has a lot of sealed-off files related to it?
2) Can I locate the Slipstream plans, either the original Federation files or Cardassian copies, or maybe both?
3) Are there any shipments that seem out of place (e.g., not food or regular supplies)?==

==Tag Calleja==

[GM-01]

==McKenna==

The hostages had been kept in the enlisted barracks, packed in like sardines. According to the logs, anyone who had survived outside of the Engineering department had been moved elsewhere. Only engineers had been kept aboard.

==Devereaux==

Yes, but short-range only. Long-range sensors would be suitable for navigation but little else.

==Elias==

Any classified files appeared to have already been erased from the system; there were partitions where files had been, but they were empty.

The slipstream files and their Cardassian copies were easy enough to locate simply by tracing the outgoing communication link back to the source file.

Most of the shipments to the area had been made by freighters, but two had been made by warships. One had been personnel, not long after the Callisto's capture, and the destination had been a penal colony deep within Cardassian space. The second had been listed only as "hardware", with the destination listed as the Kelvas System.

[Robin Mayfair]

[Mayfair to Crawford. I've found where the Starfleet hostages were kept, Enlisted Quarters Deck 7, and I'm going to investigate since the internal sensors aren't working there. Harriman is going to guard the prisoners. D'Mar's beamed to Engineering.]

[Aeryn Miller]

Aeryn quickly thanked Robin and then returned to the task that had been given to her and Star. " There were about two dozen human life signs when we first arrived," she remarked to Emily as the information from Robin came through. So much had happened since then, that she could be forgiven for not remembering the exact number, but this was why you had other members of the crew to assist when needed. That number of people didn't seem like a lot considering the crew compliment for Callisto. However, where the other survivors had gone, was soon answered by their search of the database.

At first, Aeryn wanted to curse out loudly about the way the crew had been treated but forced herself to bite back the expletive as she processed what she was seeing. The lack of a destination as to where the hostages were taken was equally frustrating, ruling out the possibility of them launching a rescue attempt. Whether that would be a blessing or a curse she didn't know, but at least she had something to tell the Captain, even if it wasn't pleasant.

Then again considering everything, it shouldn't have come as a surprise as she turned to face Tyra, speaking loud enough for the entire team to hear. " They kept the hostages in the enlisted barracks, packed them in like they were sardines" she began, ignoring the bad taste in her mouth.

" All engineers, according to the logs and anyone else who survived outside of engineering were moved elsewhere. When we first arrived, about two dozen people were beamed away, which suggests that they were the engineers. What we haven't been able to find is where they were all taken".[/color]

Logic dictated who they were, thanks to the data that had been provided by both Robin and the logs, so Aeryn had no issue with relaying that to the Captain and the rest of the team.

== Tags ==

[Tyra Crawford]

Tyra's brow furrowed as she worked through information on the command console. They were currently hidden in radiation, which they could borrow deeper into to hide for a few hours of they could get shields online and hope Mayfair and Star could work their magic. But what did they gain by hiding? They might be able to get systems online that they didn't have time to mess with now but there was a taskforce out there ready to smite the system, which meant they either needed to sneak out quickly before the Cardassians truly became alert or they could wait and hope the taskforce took the brunt of their attention.

What she did know was that limping out on impulse power want an option. They either hide long enough to get engines online more fully or go all in on a gamble with their lives and the structural integrity of this stupid ship

"I have control of the Helm," Miles reported. "We've got about five minutes before we get into the star's gravity well. The generator's need to charge, but we've got access to weapons and shields. Shields should help us avoid radiation for a few hours if need be. If someone can confirm, I believe we should have enough interference now to be able to stay out of the gravity well and get what we need done to make it out of system."

"How proficient are you at intra-system jumps?" She asked, weighing her faith in her rather young CTO. She would have had no doubts in Jenny or Eli but they were both pilots in the strictest terms. Miles was a bit more of a jack of all trades and with FUBAR experience.

“Captain, requesting permission to run an active sensor sweep of the last known location of the slipstream drive. Not certain if it has been taken out of the system," Devereaux asked, drawing her attention momentarily away from Grant.

The redhead paused for a moment before shrugging. It was likely a toss up on whether the scan would register through the radiation but she also didn't like the idea of blasting out of the sun blindly.

"Granted. While you're at it, tag any obstacles between us and safety and give me an idea on the taskforce position."

Her blue eyes shifted back to Grant but before she could say anything further, her helmet relayed a message from Mayfair

[Mayfair to Crawford. I've found where the Starfleet hostages were kept, Enlisted Quarters Deck 7, and I'm going to investigate since the internal sensors aren't working there. Harriman is going to guard the prisoners. D'Mar's beamed to Engineering.]

She wanted to order one of her security officers down to her but a quick glance told her everyone was occupied trying to get this **** show under control.

"If you need back up, holler. Report what you find," she answered, her tone grim and set. She didn't suspect there would be anything pleasant found in the search and wondered if Mayfair would rethink her opposition to their handling of the Cardassians after seeing what they were capable of.

Miller's following report just piled onto her suspicions, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth. They'd been too late to save the hostages and too late to stop the drive from being ripped out. They'd taken this risk for nothing, it seemed.

What a way to flush a career down the toilet...

"Understood. I doubt this ship is in shape to go chasing anyone down but if we can find a location, maybe someone else can locate them. Same with the drive if it's not nearby."

"Right now, we need to focus on getting out of here. The faster the better...Grant, intra-system jump. Doable?"

== Tag everyone! ==

[Mara Calleja]

"Yeah," Benjamin replied, a little breathlessly, a smile on his face. "It looks like I've got everything. Or at least can get it."

“Go you,” Mara said with a wicked grin. “Maybe we can get enough intel back off them to make this catastrofuck of a mission worth the effort.”

The Bandaran looked around again, taking in the comm chatter and the exchanges amongst the rest of the team. She held the image of the Callisto in her mind, slotting in where the team was and what they were up to. They were starting to spread too thin and that was a worry. If there were Cardassians still on board it would be way too easy to sabotage what was left.

"Right now, we need to focus on getting out of here. The faster the better...Grant, intra-system jump. Doable?" The Captain asked.

“Alternative suggestion?” Calleja said, speaking up. “It really sticks in my fuckin’ throat to make it. I would really, really like to ride this wreck back to DS9 with our middle fingers raised out the starboard windows. But I’ve been listenin’ to the same reports you have. It’s junk. The Cardassians got what was worth anything. Let Elias get everything he can outta their system, then we retreat back to the Waverunner, use Callisto to cover our escape and get outta here. Hell, maybe we got enough time to dump anythin’ incriminatin’ into the bay before we go.”

I wasn’t kiddin’. That did hurt to say. But we gotta evaluate all our options right now and that to me is the best way of keepin’ us all breathin’. However much I fuckin’ hate it.

== Tags! ==

[Jay D'Mar]

== Opps did it again, doh! ==

The calm voice of D'Mar came over the comms, [Acknowledged, captain.]

[Robin Mayfair]

== You must be punished. Your agonizer, please. ==

[Robin Mayfair]

[Mayfair to Star. Prepare 70/30 hyronolin/lectrazine radiation treatment and administer it to everyone up there on the Bridge. I'll take care of everyone else.]

== Tag Emily ==

[Tyra Crawford]

== Miles, assume I told you to get shields up as well. I meant to. ==

[Benjamin Elias]

On the one hand, Benjamin was ecstatic to find what he had. The files for the slipstream were all here, both in Federation and Cardassian versions, and he made sure to delete them post-haste as soon as he found them.

However, he couldn't in good conscience believe that he had actually prevented them from acquiring anything. As he mind through the file system, he found entire drives and partitions of the network that looked that like they had been recently reformatted and erased. They had some evidence of tight security, but only remnants of it which didn't actually function anymore. Whole archives were simply gone, which meant - most likely - that they had been physically backed up and moved.

The shipping lists, however, did turn up something. He copied them out to his own padd, but turned to appraise the captain of them as well. "Captain, best I can tell this is a bust. I was able to destroy their copies of the slipstream plans, but they also have whole sections of what looks like formerly-classified data that just are gone, and I didn't do it. I also found shipping manifests - because if there's one thing you can count on from the Cardassians, it's record-keeping - showing that Callisto's crew was taken to a penal colony deeper in Cardassian space proper, and then one much more recently sent to Kelvas just labelled 'hardware'. Best guess is that's where the drive was sent, along with any data they did have."

He stopped and listened to D'Mar's report, and looked at the diagnostic report on his console while Mara gave her own idea of what to do. Benjamin just sighed and gave his own report. "Looks like the warp core is operational, but it's got some issues that mean we're gonna be making short hops only. I hate to say it, but Calleja may be right - the Waverider is our best escape route. The cloak is still functional, and we've got more than enough explosives aboard to make a fantastic distraction."

He used one hand to dig through the Cardassian file system again, seeing if he could determine the most vulnerable and, almost as important, explosive locations they could work with.

==Tags Calleja and Tyra==

==GM Input: can I find an appropriate location?==

[Aeryn Miller]

Brushing the crushing sense of frustration firmly where it belonged after giving the Captain a not-so-perfect update, Aeryn doubted that she would be able to find anything else useful in the remaining time that they had left. Tyra's response reminded the COS how much that could have been achieved if they had gotten here sooner. Naturally, she was happy to deflect blame on the poor intel and lack of proper organisation by those who had sent them on this proverbial wild goose chase, but there was some small comfort in hoping that someone else could rescue the hostages, and locate the missing slipstream drive, with the information the Artemis team had managed to retrieve.

" Agreed, Captain", Aeryn replied to everything that Tyra had said, including the need to get out of there, something that Aeryn was all for, not to mention going to a proper Sickbay to finish getting mended.

The Captain then made a query to Grant, asking if an intra-system jump was possible before Mara gave an alternative suggestion. Given the current state of Callisto, it made sense to Aeryn, who also understood why Mara had suggested it, even if it hadn't been easy for her to say it out loud. This whole mission had been a disaster from the moment they had arrived, so as much as Aeryn liked shoving Callisto down Command's throats, the strike team could walk away from this with their dignity intact and leave Callisto to its fate.

Elias and D'Mar would know for certain whether it was worth the risk to continue on Callisto or not. Either way, that decision would fall to the Captain, as Aeryn put her helmet back on in anticipation of what that outcome would be, and to save precious seconds if they did have to fall back to the Waverider.

== Tags ==

[Miles Grant]

With Miles giving his report and getting confirmation on a few things, the Captain had addressed him, first to instruct getting the shields up and running, which he quickly went about putting into motion, and then on his proficiency on intra-system jumps. He paused for a moment to answer in the best way possible.

The truth of the matter was that all of his "intra-system" jumps had been simulated trainings or with smaller warp vessels in his studies up to this point. Nevertheless, he had done well in those, so he was confident he could rise to the occasion. Before he had a chance to answer, however, more reports came in that the Captain needed to address.

As he waited for the opportunity to update Captain Crawford, he did take time to consider his position on the ship. He knew he was where he wanted to be, where he believed to do the most good for himself and the ship. There was a small part of him miffed about the fact that, right after obtaining the Acting Tactical Chief's position, with a part of the conversation focusing on the necessity to separate himself from Security, he had been thrust into acting as Security for a good part of this mission.

He felt a little easier over the fact that it wasn't something he had volunteered for like the last mission, but he wanted to prove his capability not just to the Captain, but to himself as well. But those were thoughts he could delve deeper on once everything was said and done. He went about preparing trajectory and telemetry for the aforementioned intra-system jump.

He overheard Calleja's suggestion about everything being a bust, and they should just use the Callisto as a cover while they escaped on the Waverunner. He agreed with her evaluation that the mission had felt like one bust after another. He found himself disagreeing that they should scuttle the Callisto. He wanted to. Had wanted to from practically the moment they had set foot on the ship.

"I think bringing the Callisto back with us is the better option," Miles stated his opinion. "As much as I, too, would prefer to scuttle the damn thing, I believe having it would be better off for us in the long run. But that's just my view." As he finished, it appeared Crawford had also finished addressing the other reports and had returned to get Miles' answer.

"Aye, Captain," he responded, "It's doable. Setting up trajectory and telemetry now."

==Tag. GM input: How well is Miles able to plot an intra-system jump with the Callisto? Time until shields are charged and up? Please. Thank you. ==

[Lucy Devereaux]

Lucy was glad that her orders were sufficiently clear. If she was being honest, she’d completely forgotten about the taskforce. Seemed a bit overkill, but then Starfleet Intelligence had seen fit to send them out here on the basis of an outline that matched the Callisto. There had been the appropriate prep time, but this one stank of not enough recon work. There were enough complications with each step and they still had a few gaps to clear in the to do list.

Lucy stacked her sensor sweeps. Checking the last know area of where the Cardassians transported the slipstream drive to. Followed by a standard map of area for impediments.
Lastly, she ran a long-range sweep for Federation vessels. If the task force was in range she should hopefully detect them. She’d reconsidered her line of thought. Sensors were in relative working order. She hadn’t been listening about the rest of the Callisto’s functions, so they might need more than luck to make a clean exit.

Lucy sat back and waited for the results of her scans. The seemed to be concerns about radiation exposure. She wondered what the suits were rated for. Taking off her helmet had negated any level of protection the suit might have afforded. It was either proximity to the star or damage that had been incurred by the Cardassians pulling out whatever they wanted. Radiation poisoning seemed to be the icing on the proverbial cake. Long as them had sufficient medication it should be manageable.

They had the Callisto, but not the slipstream drive. There was also the matter of who the Cardassians had been using as slave labor. Once the crew took the Callisto out of the system coming back was going to be very complicated. Having the support of a taskforce would make the exit cleaner than how it currently looked.

Just breathe and do ****.

== GM input request, is there a detectable trail for the vessel that took the slipstream drive, how is the surrounding area for impediments, and any sign of a federation vessel or more within scope of long-range sensors? ==

[Tyra Crawford]

"Captain, best I can tell this is a bust. I was able to destroy their copies of the slipstream plans, but they also have whole sections of what looks like formerly-classified data that just are gone, and I didn't do it. I also found shipping manifests - because if there's one thing you can count on from the Cardassians, it's record-keeping - showing that Callisto's crew was taken to a penal colony deeper in Cardassian space proper, and then one much more recently sent to Kelvas just labelled 'hardware'. Best guess is that's where the drive was sent, along with any data they did have."

Tyra was fairly sure she would have a chip in a tooth if she kept gritting her teeth like this but the bad news just seemed to continue piling higher and higher. The hostages were out of reach and the drive, while not as far away, was still pretty unattainable. And while knowing about the hostages was half the battle, she didn't trust command to do what needed to be done to rectify the situation on either count.

No, this had likely been for nothing.

“Alternative suggestion?” Calleja said, speaking up. “It really sticks in my fuckin’ throat to make it. I would really, really like to ride this wreck back to DS9 with our middle fingers raised out the starboard windows. But I’ve been listenin’ to the same reports you have. It’s junk. The Cardassians got what was worth anything. Let Elias get everything he can outta their system, then we retreat back to the Waverunner, use Callisto to cover our escape and get outta here. Hell, maybe we got enough time to dump anythin’ incriminatin’ into the bay before we go.”

Elias was close on Calleja's heels. "Looks like the warp core is operational, but it's got some issues that mean we're gonna be making short hops only. I hate to say it, but Calleja may be right - the Waverider is our best escape route. The cloak is still functional, and we've got more than enough explosives aboard to make a fantastic distraction."

Grant brought up the rear but with a dissenting opinion that surprised her. As a tactical officer, she'd assume he'd agree with the engineer on their odds in this bucket of rust.

Her blue eyes shifted between Elias, Grant and Calleja, weighing their opinions before letting her eyes sweep the rest of the team assembled. She tried to ignore the weight settling on her shoulders and chest as she considered that this was another decision with no right or wrong, just better or worse. And yet, she wondered if anyone but her understood the magnitude of it beyond their own survival.

From a purely tactical stand point, it was a draw based on the information they currently possessed. The Waverider would be able to escape easier if the system remained quiet and the strike team didn't begin their campaign to take over Parhelia before they left but if they did, they would need active sensors to avoid the conflict, at which point they might be discovered and were then on a vessel with no defenses and no offenses. The Callisto could not make a stealthy escape but given its condition, the Cardassians might be too focused elsewhere to care about it. It also had some defense and offense.

And taking the Waverider back meant that Elias and herself would most definitely be ringing the death knell of their careers but she couldn't consider that a valid consideration. Her career was a small price to pay for doing right by her crew.

Yet, there were more considerations than just tactical. Tactical was an easy thing for her to mull over, twisting to see each possible option and its possible conclusion. She could do it in her sleep. What she didn't have as much practice considering was the political and professional considerations. Usually she left those to people with more bars on their collars and more ***** to give about such things. However, what they did here would echo on that field and she'd be a fool to not consider what action would give them the most protection.

On the surface, Callisto was undeserving of the salvation waiting on the horizon, marred and tainted by the inaction and cowardice of her captain and senior leadership. The mere idea that their job was to somehow atone for their failures left a bitter taste in Tyra's mouth but like most things, it wasn't that simple. It could never be that simple.

The acquisition and return of the Callisto had the potential to serve two purposes. The more obvious was that its return would bring back to the surface the rightful scrutiny of what had happened to it in the first place and why heads hadn't rolled when a Starfleet ship had been taken by the Cardassians and command hadn't batted a single eye at until it was practically too late.

However, it was the second purpose that was more interesting to Tyra. The Callisto served as tangible proof of what the Cardassians had done, both in taking her, holding her crew and ripping her to shreds. It was virtually a manifesto of war crimes and dropping it at the feet of the admiralty would be akin to dropping a gauntlet at their feet and daring them to ignore it, daring them to continue their pattern of weak, spineless behavior. Daring them to punish them for doing exactly what had been asked of them.

Yes, bringing Callisto back would expose what they had done and it would likely make them the opening shot of a brewing conflict. However, it was a conflict that should have been set off by the taking of the Callisto and the slaughter and capture of her crew. Instead, the admiralty had tip toed around, pretending that if they ignored it, maybe the Cardassians would be satisfied. They wouldn't be, they never would be and all weak leadership would give them was more time to match Starfleet, to make it a more even fight. But maybe having to look at the Callisto, the evidence of what her crew had endured for years while the admirals' heads were up their asses would fix something... Anything.

Tyra was by no means a fan of war, having served in far too many to pretend that war didn't eat their youth alive with no real reward, but that also gave her the understanding that sometimes war was unavoidable. While greed and power were poor and pathetic reasons for war, someone needed to be willing to call evil by its name and hold its feet to the fire. Because otherwise, it would fester and grow in the darkness and shadows, like it had here in Parhelia.

And eventually, it would become her problem again, the question was just what kind of advantage she'd have in such a fight. There was no escaping this, no escaping the brewing clouds of war but this was her chance to gain control, to have just a little say in how things went instead of just being another piece on the chest board.

Her breath escaped in a puff before she drew another breath in, forcing herself to hold it for a second before speaking. "No. We are here because everyone else has taken the easy way out. The Callisto's command staff took the easy way out. The Admirals took the easy way out and pretended like this didn't fucking happen until they didn't have a choice not to. Hell, the Cardassians are taking the easy way out chucking this thing instead of getting caught with it."

"This ship and crew deserved a reckoning and the only way that happens is if they don't have a choice but to see what their inaction caused. Because if they aren't forced to look, they'll just sweep the existence of any POWs and the loss of the drive under the rug. They might be spineless but I'll damn force them to find, at least, a vertebrae."

"What I need are options. The intra-system jump is going to be our best bet and with any luck, we'll take the Cardassians by surprise so much that they can't scramble a chase vehicle. However, luck doesn't seem to be on our side so I need more… a distraction or a way to blind the Cardassians to us flying out of here. We just need enough to make it to reinforcements."

"I also need us to start shunting power. Shut off all systems we don't need, including to decks we are not occupying. Everything needs to go into the engines, shields and weapons," she spoke with a confidence she didn't quite feel. Oh, this was the decision but it didn't mean she didn't consider that she was making the wrong decision. She just couldn't let anyone see that.

== Tag guys! ==

[Mara Calleja]

Her reputation, a lot of it justified, certainly seemed to suggest some kind of volcanic response from Mara to being disagreed with. There was not so much as a hint of it as she listened to Miles and the rest of the crew. She was truly listening, taking in what everyone was saying and figuring why they were saying it, which was arguably more dangerous.

The Bandaran was making a real effort to shift her focus. For most of her career she had been purely interested in what was going on from a Security perspective. What did she need to do to keep everyone safe, and what did she want from others to make that happen. Now she was just as interested in how Security fitted into the bigger picture. What actions were being taken that would have an impact on her, and could she start to understand and maybe even anticipate those to be in the best position?

Long way to go, and it took that stupidity on the Philly to give me the incentive to get my head straight. But I’m actually glad it happened, however stupid that sounds right now. Without it, I might still be holdin’ myself back and just thinkin’ small picture.

With the Captain issuing the orders, Calleja tried to read between the lines. They needed to reduce risk and unnecessary system use, and they were going to run. That meant a solution had to be found to the Cardassian prisoners. Crawford had vetoed killing them so a plan B was needed, and probably a plan C and D as well just in case.

Taking up a console, Mara started to run some system queries to see what she had to work with. Her first thought was to load the prisoners on board a shuttle and fire them back at the Cardassian installation. Even an escape pod or two would work - the Cardassians wouldn’t be out there long before they got picked up, and if any of them were claustrophobic then that was just tough luck.

Probably not literally fire ‘em back at the station. Can imagine gettin’ an earful from the boss if I tried that. Although it would be pretty satisfyin’...

“Cap’n, I’m gonna try and sort out those prisoners. Load ‘em up and send ‘em back to their friends so we don’t have to worry any more about ‘em,” Mara said. “Then we can get Harriman up here and reduce the number of decks we need functional.”

== GM input please. Are any of Callisto’s shuttles still aboard and functional? If not, how about escape pods? Are there enough for the unconscious Cardassians we have around the computer core? ==

[Benjamin Elias]

Tyra's decision was as simple as it was final.  "No," she said, and continued almost like she was telling herself as well as the rest of them why she'd gone this route. He couldn't argue with her - there had been too much cutting and running throughout this mission and everything leading up to it. A line had to be drawn somewhere, and here was as good a place as any. Besides, sticking it to the admirals who had bungled this entire situation just made it that much sweeter.

"What I need are options," she continued. "The intra-system jump is going to be our best bet and with any luck, we'll take the Cardassians by surprise so much that they can't scramble a chase vehicle. However, luck doesn't seem to be on our side so I need more… a distraction or a way to blind the Cardassians to us flying out of here. We just need enough to make it to reinforcements."

He wasn't sure he agreed with that, but it had as much of a chance to succeed as anything else did. His first instinct was to lurk in the area around the twin stars until they could maneuver to the far side of the system and warp out unseen. Of course, that course would take them deeper into Cardassian- held space, so maybe that wasn't the best idea. But that's why he wasn't in command.

"I also need us to start shunting power," she added. "Shut off all systems we don't need, including to decks we are not occupying. Everything needs to go into the engines, shields and weapons." This, at least, he could handle.

He stood up and nodded at the captain. "I'll get down to engineering and get started on that. I'll also see what we can do about the warp system; I'll keep you appraised as best as I can."

Before he beamed out, though, he walked over to the helm, called up a control screen on his padd, and set it down for Grant. "You can remotely control the Waverider from these controls," he said, "in case you need it. You can either navigate in real time, or just give it a pre-programmed course and send it off." He indicated a pair of extra buttons to one side. "These control the cloak" - he pointed to the top one - "and the other one... well, don't use it if it's anywhere near us. It gives a thirty second countdown to a warp breach. If you've got any questions, just call."

That done, he walked back to the engineering console, tapped a control, and beamed to engineering.

==Tags Tyra and Grant==

>>Callisto Engineering>>

[Aeryn Miller]

The decision was made, and there would be no going back or arguments from anyone and if there were, they wouldn't see the light of day, because the Captain was right, they couldn't take the easy way out. The strike team's fate was sealed and should they succeed and return Callisto to its rightful home, then they could stick it to Command for sending them on a fool's errand. As Tyra continued speaking, that instinct to fight, persevere, and do what was right, regardless of how difficult it was to reach this point, rose within Aeryn like a moth to a flame. This was the plan, and she sure as hell wasn't going to stop doing what she could to assist their chances of success, to show up and ensure that Callisto and those who had been taken by the Cardassians wouldn't be forgotten or left to suffer any more than they had.

As the Captain continued and asked for options, along with what else she needed from the team to boost the odds, Aeryn's mind shifted to the negative, more so what she could do to help, should they not be able to reach safety and provide all the evidence that they had found in person. As much as the COS hadn't wanted to think this way, she had to be practical while Mara came up with an idea of how to deal with their prisoners.

Her Assistant Chief's idea was sound considering how everything had changed for them as soon as they'd discovered the truth about what the Cardassians had done to the ship. While other options had been previously discussed, it solved the problem without resulting in dealing with additional trauma. Elias then left for Engineering, to do what he could down there, so Aeryn then looked into the possibility of launching a probe containing all logs and information about Callisto, as well as the potential whereabouts of the hostages and slipstream drive.

If it was possible, then she would bring her idea to the Captain, because at the very least there should be some standard probes left on board, or so she hoped.

== GM input. Are there still some probes on board, and if so, can they be launched? ==

[GM-01]

==Calleja==

Most of the Escape Pods were still functional, aside from a few on the secondary hull that had been destroyed when the ship had been attacked. The shuttles were intact in the hangar, but there was no power to the Shuttlebay to raise one onto the launch platform.

==Miller==

The Callisto had been travelling with a full complement of probes. Power would need to be routed to the torpedo launchers, and someone would need to calibrate the probe for use for one to be used, however.

==Devereaux==

The Callisto's proximity to the system's primary was wreaking havoc with the sensors, and range was limited to only a few dozen kilometers in each direction. This meant that there were no detectable traces of ships, friend or foe, and no sign of hazards beyond the one they were currently flying towards.

This was probably a good thing, however, as going active with the sensors would have alerted every ship within sensor range that the Callisto was scanning and not dropping into the star as intended. Given her current state, that would have gotten the crew very dead, very quickly.

==Grant==

Plotting any warp jump, in theory, was a simple matter of entering a start point, end destination, and waypoints in between to avoid navigational hazards. This close to a gravity well, however, was another proposition. Every First Year Cadet was told that intra-system jumps were something you only ever did in the most dire of circumstances, and even then when all other options had been exhausted. One particularly talented but socially-awkward guest instructor of Captain Crawford's acquaintance had called it "suicide by starship".

First the points would need to be entered manually, compensating for the ever-increasing gravitational pull of the star. and the motion of the planets around it. Then the warp drive's safeties would have to be overridden to even generate a warp field in such close proximity to such a gravitational force. Assuming that had all been done correctly, success and therefore survival would have to be left to fate and chance.

So while Grant could plot a course, the only way he'd know he was successful would be after he'd done it.

Weapons, on the other hand, would be charged within the next minute. Shields twenty seconds after that.

[Lucy Devereaux]

m‘kay.

The proximity to the system’s star limited the range of the sensors to a few dozen kilometers. Mixed result for sure. Nothing within that range presented a problem to the Callisto. Small miracle stopped them from catching the attention of the Cardassians. Flipside was no taskforce. There was the small matter of not being able to pick up the trail whatever had taken the slipstream drive. With a little luck they’d hopefully blow it up through trial and error. One could hope.

Time to cut and run? Or was it limp?

“Captain, nothing within sensor range. Neither friend, foe, or debris. Proximity to the star is limiting our sensor range.”

Once the Callisto left the proximity of the star things would likely get bad interesting. Taking what remained of the Callisto back would be worth not a lot, but it beat taking the Waverider back. Cramped conditions and the difficulty of explaining certain ‘modifications’ to Starfleet Intelligence were definitely best avoided. She’d go to the mattresses for the Captain and crew.

It was S.I.’s fault the crew was out here, though they mightn’t see it that way. Using frowned upon methods was frowned upon, even if you didn’t get caught by anyone who would raise a fuss, outside of Starfleet. Losing the Waverider would be beneficial, but that would be somebody else’s plan.

== tag. ==

[Mara Calleja]

Mara tilted her head as she read through the answers to her queries.

OK. We got a winner. I’m firin’ them through space in escape pods. Sucks to be them.

“Shuttles are there and apparently workin’, but because the shuttle bay isn’t powered up, we can’t launch,” Calleja said, adding to her earlier report. “But we do have escape pods. I’m gonna go down there now and load our victims up, get Mayfair to help me keep ‘em under. I won’t fire anyone into space until you give me the signal. The homing devices should carry them back to the station safely once they’re free.”

And if not? Well. We tried.

The aCOS looked over to where Aeryn was working, the Bandaran reading over the redhead’s shoulder and picking up what she was trying to do.

“Hey boss. I’ll send Harriman back up,” Mara said. “She won’t be needed on guard duty any more, and she can help you get those probes launched. If you need me, yell, I’ll be right back up.”

The Security officer unclipped her helmet and pulled it back over her head, waiting for the seal to re-engage with a hiss before she followed Elias’ actions to beam herself away.

>> Callisto Ancillary Locations >>

[Aeryn Miller]

Aeryn's results from her query weren't as dire as she had been expecting. Not that anyone could blame the COS for thinking that way, considering the residual frustration over everything that they had come up against since their arrival. So the news that Callisto still carried a full complement of probes was indeed encouraging, even if they had to reroute power to the torpedo launchers. While the redhead would require assistance in calibrating said probe, it could be done as Mara reported what she had found regarding her idea about sending the prisoners back.

If anything, it was still a viable option as the Bandaran then offered to send Harriman to help her, which Aeryn was grateful for and the COS quickly acknowledged her friend. " That's great, thank you, and I will".

Then she went to carry out her idea with some help from Robin, leaving Aeryn to pitch her idea to the Captain.

" Captain, I've been doing some digging to see if we can send a probe out, as a way to not only make contact but also as a backup with all the evidence and information that we've found. The good news is that the ship has a full complement of probes, although we'll need to route power to the launchers. The probe will have to be calibrated but with some help from Lieutenant Harriman, I'm confident we can launch it on your say so".[

Aeryn knew that she didn't need to add why she was suggesting it because there was still a good chance that they would make it out of there. However, it wouldn't hurt to give Tyra all the details, so they could be ready for when the Captain gave the go-ahead.

== Tag Tyra ==

[Miles Grant]

Setting out his trajectory and systems updates, Miles noted how volatile intra-system jumps could be, even moreso given their circumstances and their location in proximity to the star and it's gravity well. It could easily be death by starship.

As it was, Captain Crawford had agreed with his assessment of taking the Callisto back. Her reasoning was along the same line as his, though far more detailed, and with far more bite, which he could appreciate. She brought up the need for a distraction, and things began to move in motion with further updates from Calleja, Elias, Miller, and Devereux.

A good idea from Calleja that could also work as a distraction was putting the knocked out Cardassians in the escape pods and sending them off to get the other Cardassian's attention. It could work. It also ran the risk of bringing the Cardassians to intercept the Callisto. Miles thought it was worth the risk, though, as he gave an updated report.

"The intra system jump is doable," he repeated. "The one issue that arises is how close we are to the gravity well could mess up telemetry." He gave a pause. "It's a big risk that could fail...badly." He didn't think he needed to explain what "badly" meant, but he continued.

"Any distraction would be good," he stated. "Anything that keeps attention away from us long enough to get us far enough away that the inherent risk of trying the jumps now would be mitigated or eliminated altogether. We also have access to weapons and shields in about a minute."

==Tags==

[Carol Harriman]

Carol arrived to the bridge as quickly as she could. On the trip she'd been thinking about the probe Mara said they wanted to launch. She took a look around, noting who was on the bridge. Her stomach again signaled its want to her, as she went to report to the security chief.

"Mara said you were wanting a probe launched..." she began as she started looking to the nearby console. "Let's get it ready... shall we?"

Carol's forehead wrinkled as she began looking over the probe details and what was needed to prepare the probe for launch, working alongside the security chief.  She then started calibrating said probe.

[Tyra Crawford]

There were no arguments with her decision and anyone that thought otherwise kept it to themselves. Truthfully, Tyra wouldn't blame any dissenters -- she didn't particularly like it either -- but as a group, they had developed a fairly deep rooted trust that allowed her to have the final say on most things. It did help that she was willing to admit wrong or change her mind when warranted but this situation has no right nor wrong, just less unappealing.

People scattered as they begun working on their exit and the group on the bridge became much smaller.

" Captain, I've been doing some digging to see if we can send a probe out, as a way to not only make contact but also as a backup with all the evidence and information that we've found. The good news is that the ship has a full complement of probes, although we'll need to route power to the launchers. The probe will have to be calibrated but with some help from Lieutenant Harriman, I'm confident we can launch it on your say so," Miller reported.

"Get that done. We won't launch it until we're ready to move."

"The intra system jump is doable," Grant repeated. "The one issue that arises is how close we are to the gravity well could mess up telemetry." He gave a pause. "It's a big risk that could fail...badly."

"How much distance do we need to put between ourselves and the gravity well before we reduce the risk of it altering the telemetry?" She asked.

At his mention of a distraction, she considered what Elias has said before departing the bridge. They could remotely fly the Waverider, utilizing the cloak to remain undetected. From their initial planning, she was well aware of how much damage the Liberty Bell could cause as a projectile itself. Ramming it into the Callisto in just the right area had been one of their very last plans to take out the Callisto if all else failed and adjusting that plan to a new target would be just as effective.

From studying the system prior to their arrival, she knew that the Nor could be reached from their current position in the sun in about 30 minutes at impulse. It was longer than she would have wanted to wait but it would give Elias and D'mar time to get as many systems online as possible for their gauntlet run. And their escape would be a lot easier if they could cripple Nor and the vessels docked there from responding.

"Make sure the Liberty Bell is cloaked still and prepare to drop it."

She paused for a few moments, her fingers gliding over her console. "I just sent you the flight plan for the Liberty Bell's last ride. Double check it. It'll likely be blind but we came in that way so it should still work. It's final destination is the Nor's dock, preferably the ships docked or docking control itself. As soon as it detonates, we're green lit to run."

[Aeryn Miller]

" Acknowledged Captain", Aeryn replied when Tyra gave her the go-ahead to get a probe ready for launch, the moment that they were ready to move. Turning back to the console that she had commandeered, Aeryn then overheard the report from Miles and the subsequent response from the Captain. Harriman promptly arrived following Mara's promise to send her to the Bridge, and Aeryn had to admit that she was pleased to see the Tactical officer.

" I am, and now that we've gotten the green light from the Captain, it needs to be ready to go once we move" Aeryn confirmed as Harriman spoke to her. Despite the situation, this would be a learning opportunity for the COS, as she normally wouldn't get to do such things, and working alongside Harriman was exactly what was needed right now, to get it right. 

" Once it's calibrated and the data transfer is complete, we also need to route power to the launchers" Aeryn went on to explain as she assisted Carol with getting the probe ready. Meanwhile, it appeared as though they were about to cause a big distraction by flying the Liberty Bell into the Cardassian space station, which caused the ghost of a grin to appear on the redhead's lips, as she remembered the previous discussion and how they could rid themselves of incriminating evidence.

For the first time since arriving, Aeryn felt a little more positive about it all, although she remained fully aware of how they weren't out of the proverbial woods just yet.

== Tag Tyra & Harriman ==

[Benjamin Elias]

[Elias to bridge,] the overhead opened up with the chief engineer's voice. [Warp engines are on a thread, and there's not a whole lot we can do about it with just two guys and hand tools. As it stands now short hops will be easier on them, with low-speed being the easiest. You'll get eight or so at warp 2, cut to maybe half that if you go at warp 6 or 7. Anything longer than five minutes or so runs the risk of burning them out altogether. If we take it easy on the warp drive here in system, we should be able to make the rendezvous; I wouldn't bet on anything past that. We're still working, though, so updates as they happen.]

[Mara Calleja]

[Calleja to Bridge. Prisoners loaded in escape pods 86 and 87. Standin’ by to launch on your order.]

[Damien Coleman]

== alright, time to get back into this without making waves ==

There wasn’t much thought as to why he’d tucked himself away from the rest of the crew. Though it was obvious that Damian was avoiding conversation and busying himself with trivial things, feigning interest at anything that would distance himself from the core group. Coleman never was prone to the feelings that seemed to be sloshing around inside his chest and brain. Anxiety was just not something he often experienced.

Yet as the mission went on, the more that the feelings seemed to intensify. If he were a young Midshipman or Ensign, he could have easily blamed it on the cluster of a mission that they were on. Even then it was plain to see for anyone with half a sense for such things that the whole thing was a debacle before they’d even left the Artemis. That part couldn’t be blamed on them, though they might try. That wasn’t the issue though. That wasn’t the dark cold waters of the well that the feelings Damian felt were being drawn from.

Voices from the past echoed between his ears, reverberating and harmonizing like the walls of a well-designed, acoustically engineered, cathedral. It wasn’t their present problems in the Callisto, or some oddities since being aboard the Artemis. It went further back than that. Damian had thought he’d put that all behind him. He had thought. Now, though, his restlessness was proving it wasn’t the case. What had dredged it all up was the situation they found themselves in. If they made it back to Federation space, which was a big if, then there’d be plenty of scrutiny to go around. It didn’t matter if they laid formal charges or not, the investigation itself was going to bring unwanted attention into everything they’ve done since they put on the uniform. Everything.

That is what gripped his heart, despite being so far removed from those moments now. The specter of the past seemed to loom large over everything else that was going on. It wouldn’t have mattered much a few months ago. An investigation into what had happened aboard the Atlanta would have seemed trivial if not for recent developments. They’d look into things, uncover some truths that were better left where they lie, and some consequences might be doled out with few the wiser. But now? The board had changed. Pieces had moved, pawns captured, the outcome changed, and now there was one interposing person who could get caught in the exchange. Someone that Damian was growing particularly fond of.

The source of the anxiety wasn’t the person, but their feelings, and what they might think should an inquiry not end favorably for Coleman. Seeing her hurt because of something he’d done, even if that thing had been far in the past and had nothing to do with them, was almost an unbearable thought. Yet if they managed to get out of this cursed system, and off of the ill-fated Callisto, and somehow made it back all safe and sound…? Well it wouldn’t be safe and sound. There would be plenty of eyes looking at everything. Everything that had happened. Oh and surely they’d be avoiding the brass and SFI, looking instead for something else to pin this whole clusterfuck on. It’d start with Tyra and work down the chain of command.

Internally Damian damned his old captain, Peck. There, was a relationship that was hard to describe in singular terms. All at once he despised, admired, appreciated, and distrusted the old man. To say that whenever he thought of his old captain that there was cognitive dissonance would be an understatement. Comparatively, his relationship with Tyra was totally and completely rosy. Were there decisions, especially as of late, that he didn’t agree with when it came to Crawford? Sure. But it was nothing like Peck and his damned ego. At least Tyra was almost always trying to do the right thing, except in one particular circumstance. The particular circumstance that got her caught in a trap. Though her use of the cloak on the Liberty Bell could also be a source of future issues, unless it was used against the Nor. At least that Damian could cogitate away as trying to keep her crew alive on a dangerous incursion.

What they were planning now though, what Damian gleaned from the conversation and the suggestions… if there wasn’t going to be an inquiry before, there would certainly be one if they carried out what Tyra was obviously planning to do. And yet, Coleman said nothing. She was right. They’d obviously been left out to dry by someone at the top; some brass who had it out for Tyra, or perhaps had ulterior motives, or even loyalties outside of the Federation. Or maybe it was a group within SFI. Who or whatever was at blame for their current situation, it was perhaps their best choice to bring the whole thing into the light. At least then someone would have to do some digging, because they’d have no choice. Even if that digging meant it would uncover skeletons better left in peace.

Gulping down what was left of the negative energy that still jostled within him, Coleman approached Tyra and stood by her shoulder. He said nothing. There was nothing to say. While he didn’t want to condone any choice that might lead to increased hostilities, which was to say that it would probably lead to war, it wasn’t really a choice. A real choice would have been one free from immediate fatalistic outcomes. Even what they were planning on doing wasn’t a guarantee that they’d make it off of the Callisto alive, it just changed the odds to something closer to being in their favor.

Instead, he silently supported Crawford by standing next to her; with her. A slight furrow of his brows, something almost ever present for the entirety of their doomed excursion, was the only thing that outwardly showed any of his roiling emotions.

[Tyra Crawford]

== Grant is having some connection issues due to recent storm damage so I will be moving us along with his blessing. ==

Grant acknowledged the flight plan she sent him and after a few checks, confirmed it's accuracy. He also confirmed the Liberty Bell was still cloaked and ready to drop.

With that information in hand, she nodded her head slightly. None of this was ideal but it was better than the alternative.

"Launch her and treat it just like you did on our entry. We've got a little bit of time to work out what velocity we need for maximum distraction. We just need to get her there without detection," she said, punctuating the statement with a nod of encouragement.

"Liberty Bell has been launched," she informed Elias over the comm link. "We've got her travel time to get everything ready."

A second later, she opened a channel to Calleja. "We just launched the Liberty Bell for a distraction. We'll launch the shuttle as we start our mad dash so stand by."

She wasn't sure when he'd joined her in the center of the bridge but Coleman, his expression almost entirely controlled, was just off her left shoulder. She gave him a nod and the tiniest of smiles, not a particularly happy expression but an appreciative one.

"We need to make sure the probe and the shuttle with the Cardassians on it launch as we start our run, not a moment before. We're going to need every bit of luck we've got to pull this off," she said as she turned towards the captains chair.

She eyed the seat wearily as she approached, idly wondering if she would be a better caretaker of it than her last two occupants. At least, she was trying, which was more than she could say for them. Whether that paid off or not, they'd find out for better or worse

The waiting was the worst, she quickly decided. The calculations on when to increase velocity had been fairly easy and passed onto Grant within the first few minutes, leaving her to twiddle her thumbs. On her console, she could see Grant's display as he piloted the Liberty Bell in, inching along at a speed that she found damn near unbearable. However, patience was needed for this and she'd be damned if that was what got them killed.

She was fairly certain her lower lip was raw from gnawing on it as she watched, providing occasional updates to the crew as a whole. It was the latest update that was by far the most crucial though.

"Five minutes to execute. Repeat, five minutes to execute. Everyone get your tasks wrapped up and ready to go. I need an all clear from the probe team, shuttle team and engineering."

== Tag All ==

== GM: If there's any crucial information we need, we'll take it. ==

[Aeryn Miller]

As Aeryn worked alongside Harriman, the COS concentrated on getting everything just right, including an impromptu insight into rerouting enough power to enable the probe to be launched successfully. It also didn't stop her from talking to Carol or Emily while keeping updated about what was happening elsewhere. That involved hearing the comms from both Elias and Calleja and with the prisoners loaded up and ready to go at the Captain's command, Aeryn didn't want to cause unnecessary delays on her team's part.

The Liberty Bell was then launched, bringing about the first phase of their plan to cause enough of a distraction for them to get out of there. This also meant that the rest of it needed to be timed accordingly otherwise the distraction would have been for nothing. " Let's get this finished," she remarked, as the Captain responded to the earlier calls and laid out the next phase of what she wanted to happen.

There were further updates from the Captain and Aeryn listened to each one until the final update gave them a window of five minutes. " I think we're ready, don't you?" she said, ignoring the pain that had crept in from where she had been burned. She could grin and bear it for the time being as she answered Tyra.

" All clear from the probe team Captain".

== Tags ==

[Carol Harriman]

Carol nodded to the security chief as she worked on the console in front of her. It wasn't altogether difficult, but she went slow making sure to check and double check everything. She didn't say this to anyone, not advertising that she was double checking. While she knew she was careful and cautious, she liked keeping the reputation of being reckless.

As she continued, a few people tried talking to her. She nodded her head as needed but didn't talk a lot. She offered a few yes or no sirs, but there wasn't really a need for much talking. Carol found she needed to slow down to allow for a few things to happen first. Just as she was about to finish, the security chief announced to the captain the probe team was ready.

Carol couldn’t help but snort after the announcement as a smile cracked the seriousness of her face. She couldn’t help it. What she was doing was serious, but the fact she was being a part of a probe team made her want to laugh. She was able to stifle her laughter from bursting, but inside she was dying.  The momentary laughter helped calm any anxiety she was feeling a bit less and helped her to finish up the work on the probe and finally she could agree they were ready. 

== GM Input: Anything of note with the preparation of the probe?  ==
== tag ==

[Robin Mayfair]

[Mayfair to Crawford. The prisoners are in pods, Captain, not shuttles. Sorry for any miscommunication. We're all clear and ready to go in the Computer Core.]

[Damien Coleman]

Noting Tyra’s expression Damian couldn’t help but give her a nod back. The gesture was just something that was ingrained in his brain, a salutation or acknowledgment between anyone who’d ever worn a security uniform. That left the smile that had cracked along the very edges of her lips, barely forming in the first place. It caused a reaction from him as his brows unfurrowed for a moment. There was so much that Damian and Tyra had to talk about. But if they even managed to get out of their current predicament, then there’d be plenty of time for that. Though there’d certainly be other things that would come before that chat. A lot of things.

Crawford had mentioned needing luck as she had turned to go to the Captain’s chair. That had left Coleman wondering if that was prudent, considering how cursed that particular seat felt to him. Tyra wasn’t wrong about needing Lady Luck on their side. The plan that had been formulated had a margin for error quite vast, but it was also better than many of the other choices they were faced with. It was obvious the moment they began contemplating their actions, that there was plenty of forethought on the part of Tyra. Anyone that could read between the lines would see that she wasn’t just planning for their escape; she was also planning for their return.

Letting out an inaudible sigh, Damian approached the Helm consoles and studied what Grant was working on for only a moment or two. He didn’t want to loiter over the man’s shoulder, particularly because he didn’t want Miles to become self-conscious with what he was doing. Though he was fairly sure that Grant wouldn’t have cared, having sat at the front of a Bridge many times with eyes on him.

From behind Coleman there was a snort and what was likely some held chuckling after Tyra’s announcement. That caused Damian to turn in spot and begin moving over to where Miller and Harriman were. With long strides he covered the distance quickly. First his eyes went to Aeryn, trying to determine how she was doing from earlier. Mayfair was good but Damian still worried. It was one of the things he hated most about security; seeing people getting injured or worse. Coleman reminded himself that not only was Miller upright, but active. Certainly that was a good sign, and like Tyra before, he flashed both Miller and Harriman the tiniest of smiles. Then his focus fell on Carol, who seemed to still be working on containing herself.

Coleman’s smile widened and he shook his head as he completed the puzzle for himself. Humor in tense situations was something of a hallmark for officers, particularly those who had ever been stuck in. Though, for others, it was also a trait of nervousness. Damian had to wonder which of those it was for Carol. There wasn’t much time to think about it as Miller quickly answered the Captain.

“All clear from the probe team Captain.”

“Good job,” he said in response, addressing both Aeryn and Carol.

Turning back to the center of the Bridge, Coleman made his way back over to Tyra and sat in the chair to her right. It felt wrong to be there and even left him with an uncomfortable sensation. Damian choked down his feelings though and focused on their countdown. It was Mayfair’s reply to Tyra that caused his brows to furrow again. A rather loud sigh had managed to escape his mouth before he realized it, while his right hand jumped up to his forehead and began to rub his temple.