Episode 2.01: Brushfire!

[Patrick Goodman]

Sometimes the other guy is just quicker than you are....

[Davy, aka GM]

Tyreen Camp, Pre-Dawn Hours
Captain Styles, Ensign Reed, and four other members of the Rostov's security deparment dressed in local garb materialize on Neural, a short distance from the Tyreen camp. Next to them, several wooden crates also appear, and the captain has the men start to move them. Tyreen sentries see the new arrivals and step in to help the security specialists take the crates into the cave where their companions are stored.

While this is being done, Styles walks over to the shooting range to find four Tyreen hunters, including a hunt leader named Pelel.

"You came," the hunt leader says.

"You know I would," Styles answers. "How many did you recruit?"

"All six of my hunting parties are willing and able. We won't be missed."

Styles nods, though the curl of his lip betrays some concern. "Thirty'll do. Have them grab their kits and leave quietly; we'll meet past the east side of camp."

The Tyreen men depart to prepare and Styles heads to the armory cave; the Rostov security specialists emerge, each carrying a kit. Reed hands an extra one to Styles, giving his commanding officer a nod, and they wind their way around the edge of the camp to a small clearing east of it. The Tyreen hunters soon join them, and they silently head off together.

Aboard the Drake...
Ship's Armory
Ensign Katarina Schrepferman stifles a yawn as she enters the armory in the early hours of the shift day. Shaking her head, she mentally kicks herself for volunteering to help out with the manufacture and delivery of the repeaters, so she could finish her armory officer qualifications ahead of schedule. She had no idea it would include middle-of-the-night inventories on top of her regular work shift.

So, with 'Nique beside her - and looking much too energetic for oh-dark-thirty, she notes with mild disgust - she heads to the aft storage compartment to do a count of the next outgoing batch of slug throwers. Keying the authorization code to enter, Katya stops short when the door slides open. All of the wooden boxes are gone, and an electronic clipboard sits on the floor in their place...

Neural, above an Apellan camp...
Three dozen figures slip into position behind a group of rocks that overlook the Apellan encampment. It's a good spot about 40 meters up the hill from the camp, with useful cover, open sightlines, and a quick escape route. The hunters had  earlier quietly silenced a pair of sentries at the crest of the hill, and Styles briefly wonders if the sentries' position was something the Apellans developed on their own in response to adapting, or if it was taught to them by the Klingons. A dozen papers could be written on the societal and psychological changes the contamination wrought.

With a sigh, the captain motions Pelel and Ensign Reed over. "Remind your men to take careful shots; don't waste ammo," he says. "Hit a target and move to the next; it isn't necessary to kill each man - wounding is enough. When you get your sixteen, get behind cover and reload.

"Mr. Reed, leave the advisors alone, we're not here to start a war with the Klingons; have our men aim first for the Apellan sentries, then any group leaders you can identify. For this foray, we're just a few extra Tyreen hunters," he continues. Turning to face both men again, Styles adds, "Once we've all reloaded, we'll retreat..."

Aboard the Drake...
Cole's Quarters
Around the end of Hour 40 (about 0500 ship's local time and an hour before his morning alarm), Cole is awakened by Ensign Schrepferman from phaser control at his quarters door.

"Sorry to cut your sleep short, sir, but I thought I should inform you that Captain Styles and his security team escorted a shipment of repeaters down to the Tyreen camp," she reports, trying hard to lock her eyes on his and away from the sculpted frame beneath his bedclothes. "We weren't scheduled to deliver them for another four hours."

She offers him an electronic clipboard.

Tobin's Quarters
At the same time, the comm panel next to Tobin's bunk wakes him. He taps and answers groggily and is met by the voice of Lt. Thadis.

"Mr. Les, I was getting a little sensor calibration work done in the lab when I noticed something strange," he says. "I saw repeated flashes of light in close succession over one of the Apellan campsites. It lasted about a minute, then stopped.

"I went over the data a second time, and it looks like gunfire - more than five hundred shots in that short span. I scanned again and found the Apellan camp in total chaos...about 150 dead and wounded, including all three Klingon advisors."

OOC: Over to Renny & Nolmir...

[Renny]

Cole takes the proffered clipboard, his fatigue slipping away as the implications of the Ensign's words settled.

"Ensign, I want everyone in the department not on shift up now. Have them mustered for briefing in fifteen minutes. I'll wake the Captain."

Seeing the Ensign's confusion, he urges her on his way. "Move it, Ensign!"

As the doors to his quarters close, Cole reaches for the intercom panel. "Captain Treyva, this is Cole"....

OOC: While waiting for the Captain to respond, Cole looks at the clipboard.

[Davy, aka GM]

The clipboard shows that Ensign Reed of the Rostov signed for the shipment of repeaters for transport to the Tyreen encampment. The signature shows a time of 0330 ship's local time.

OOC: The Rostovs's security department was given the authority to accompany shipments down, since manufacturing is an all-hands-on-deck situation.

[Nolmir]

Tobin stifles a yawn, but snaps awake at mention of dead Klingon advisors. "That is ... concerning, lieutenant. I'll be right down."

He quickly dresses, his mind racing through the possibilities, then hits the comm panel. "Les to Cole. Did we have an offensive engagement planned for this morning? It seems someone attacked one of the Apellan campsites. Lt. Thadis says the casualties include three Klingon advisors."

[Renny]

Cole's panel chimes at the incoming message from Tobin

"No sir, as far as I can tell this has been initiated by personnel from the Rostov. I'm calling the captain now to inform him of the situation."

[Patrick Goodman]

Treyva looked up from the latest letter from his wife Asha and punched the intercom button. "Treyva here," he answered calmly. "What can I do for you, Lieutenant?"

[Nolmir]

"Alright lieutenant," Tobin responds to Cole. "I'm heading to the sensor lab to confirm what's going on."

Tobin walks at a brisk pace to the sensor lab. As the door opens, he quickly greets Thadis and walks over to him. "Is there any sign of Starfleet technology or personnel near that Apellan camp? I'm afraid we might have a diplomatic incident on our hands."

[Davy, aka GM]

Tobin
The Andorian looks up from his work and nods to Tobin as he enters. His antenna perk up sharply when his superior mentions the potential for a diplomatic incident.

"I wasn't looking for it when I first detected the gunfire," Thadis admits, "but, if anyone was using advanced technology during the attack, I probably would've noticed."

The astronomer calls up the data from his earlier scans and the two men scour through it together. They find no evidence of Starfleet or any other advanced technology being used during the fight; however, the scans Thadis made of the aftermath in the ambush shows Klingon technology was in use for less than a minute.

It was a communicator on a tight-beam call.

Tight beam calls are directional.

They can extrapolate the direction of the call from the data they have in the archived scan.

A Klingon ship or outpost is probably along that line.

OOC: Extrapolating data will be a Reason + Science task vs. Difficulty 1. Thadis will assist with a Reason + Science (10/4) roll, and the ship will assist with a Computers + Science (7/2) roll. Because a secondary character is assisting a main character, you get the benefit of the "Well-Oiled Machine" Advantage, reducing the Difficulty to 0.

Current
Momentum 6
Threat 11

Well-Oiled Machine Advantage (when a PC or supporting character assists a PC on a shipboard task)
More Aggressive Strategy Advantage (Tyreen)
Educated Guess (when using ship's sensors to actively scan for cloaked ships)

[Nolmir]

OOC: Tobin's roll -- Reason (11)+Science (5)

Rolled 2d20 : 14, 18, total 32

Thadis' assist: Reason (10)+Science (4)

Rolled 2d20 : 17, 9, total 26

Ship's assist: Computers (7)+Science (2)

Rolled 2d20 : 5, 7, total 12

[Davy, aka GM]

OOC: The assists are only 1d20, so I'm going to take the first die for Thadis and the ship assist.

1 Success for Tobin, no help from Thadis, and 1 Success for the ship assist. A total of 2 Successes vs. adjusted Difficulty 0. Success, plus 2 Momentum generated.

Both Momentum must be spent or lost.

Any questions that Tobin wants answered?

[Renny]

Treyva looked up from the latest letter from his wife Asha and punched the intercom button. "Treyva here," he answered calmly. "What can I do for you, Lieutenant?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you, sir but I think we may have a problem. Captain Styles and some of his people have already beamed down with the repeaters and there has been an attack on the Apellans. Three Klingons are apparently among the casualties. I was not made aware of the change in schedule, sir, and I assume you were also not aware that Captain Styles was taking this action. Mr Tobin is trying to confirm the details but I thought you should be informed."

[Nolmir]

OOC: Whoops, dangit. I keep forgetting that. As for questions, other than the direction of the tightbeam, I can't think of any at the moment. If anyone else has suggestions, I'm open to it.

[Patrick Goodman]

Success, plus 2 Momentum generated.

Both Momentum must be spent or lost.

Any questions that Tobin wants answered?

OOC: For the two generated Momentum, I suggest some sort of Advantage, or a Complication for the Klingons. I'm thinking of possibilities.

Still working on ideas for the Obtain Information spends he gets because of Talent and Role. My brain is kinda spongy the last couple of days, though, so please to bear with me.

[Nolmir]

OOC: Heh, I know the feeling.

After thinking on it some over the weekend, I have two questions for Tobin's free Obtain Informations: Which side fired first? And how well does the timing of the start of the firefight, cross-referenced with Styles' transport to the surface, fit with Cole's theory that crew from the Rostov took part? (Obviously we know the answers, but the characters wouldn't.)

I'm still not sure what to do with the 2 Momentum. I'm not loving it, but maybe an Advantage having to do with dealing with the fallout of the wounding/deaths of the Klingons? Something like "Styles acted on his own"?