Episode 2.02: Rivulets of Copper, Eyes Aflame

[Renny]

"OK Chief, you and Noles are with me. Mr Lear..." Coles turned to his deputy, " You and Welsh, hold position here and see if you raise the XO and fill him in."
Adjusting his grip on the phaser in his right hand, he pointed to the right of the stone platform directly in front of the team.

"O'Neill, you, Mattin and Obi go right and give us cover."

He moved alertly forward. "Phasers on stun, people. Stay alert."

[Davy, aka GM]

The crewmen nod their understanding of their orders. O'Neill and his team peels away from the rest to go around the crystal reflecting pond; as they pass, the group realizes the "water" is actually a crystalline inlay instead of water, and the footing solid enough to safely cross (which Obi takes advantage of, setting up behind the cover of the fountain).

Lear flips open his communicator and contacts the ship. "Chief, connect me to Commander Sorak," he says.

Meanwhile, Cole leads his two security specialists forward, where he finds a form stretched out in the shadows near a two-meter-tall privacy hedge. To his horror, he recognizes the standard issue Starfleet security body armor hanging awkwardly off the torso, and the maroon and tan of a duty jumpsuit peeking out from behind it.

Sorak
Sorak is awakened by his communicator beeping. T'Kiri is stirred by the sound, as well.

OOC: For the light blue "reflecting pond" area to the right of the map, I envisioned as a Vulcan aesthetic some sort of grown crystalline structure or an acrylic-like inlay that appears water-like, but is solid and can be traversed without difficulty. This way, Vulcans can appreciate the color and design of their ancient fountains and pools without wasting the water required to maintain it.

[Renny]

Meanwhile, Cole leads his two security specialists forward, where he finds a form stretched out in the shadows near a two-meter-tall privacy hedge. To his horror, he recognizes the standard issue Starfleet security body armor hanging awkwardly off the torso, and the maroon and tan of a duty jumpsuit peeking out from behind it.

Fighting the urge to rush forward, Cole first uses hand signals to direct Noles and the Chief to take positions to the left and right of the fallen form. Once satisfied they have a clear field of view, he holsters his phaser and leans down to turn over the body.

[Doug Burke]

Sorak is awakened by his communicator beeping. T'Kiri is stirred by the sound, as well.
 

Sorak flipped open his communicator, "Sorak here." He then listened as Lear filled him in on the situation. "I see. I will inform the Captain and will be arriving in scene shortly. Please keep me updated on the situation."

[Davy, aka GM]

Spalan Estate
As Cole confirms to his horror that it's Ally Banks on the ground, Morais and Noles take up positions on either side of their downed comrade. Chief immediately notes, "I've sighted her communicator, behind the privacy hedges."

Ally is, thankfully, still (barely) breathing, but she has a major slashing wound across her chest and what appears to be a puncture just below her ribs. The amount of blood that has already exsanguinated means she's in dire straits.

Sorak & T'Kiri
T'Kiri is up in an instant and getting dressed as she comms the precinct closest to Sorak's childhood home, warning them to expect Starfleet to be on the scene when they arrive.

[Doug Burke]

Sorak ends the connection to Lear and initiates a new one to the ship, "Sorak to Drake, priority call for Captain Treyva."

While waiting to be connected, he turns to his wife, "Please attempt to contact my parents. I will arrange to have us transported to the estate."

Once connected, the engineer explained the situation to Treyva with the economy of words and stone-cold demeanor of a Vulcan tightly controlling his emotions. "As yet, there has been no contact with my parents. I will have the Drake transport T'Kiri and I to the estate to assist Cole's team."

[Patrick Goodman]

"Confirmed, Sorak," Treyva responded. "We'll scan the area and try to find anyone attempting to flee. Treyva out." Punching the comm panel again, he said, "Treyva to Les. I hate to wake you, Tobin, but we have a situation. Meet me on the bridge on the double."

He turned to Asha as he headed for the door. "You're welcome to come along if you want, beloved, but it's going to be pretty busy for a while."

[Nolmir]

Punching the comm panel again, he said, "Treyva to Les. I hate to wake you, Tobin, but we have a situation. Meet me on the bridge on the double."

"Aye sir," the science officer responds groggily and rolls out of bed, quickly changing into his uniform and heading for the bridge.

[Renny]

Ally is, thankfully, still (barely) breathing, but she has a major slashing wound across her chest and what appears to be a puncture just below her ribs. The amount of blood that has already exsanguinated means she's in dire straits.

Cole looks down at his fallen crewmate, his expression hardening.

"Noles, stay with Banks and beam her back to the ship immediately. Have the transporter room get medical to meet you there." He grasped the forearm of the junior crewman and fixed him with a direct gaze.
"Do what you can, Noles. I'm relying on you."

He turned to Morais. "You're with me Chief, let's keep moving."

[Davy, aka GM]

Sorak & T'Kiri
As Sorak ends his call, T'Kiri says, "Your father and mother are in their bedchamber; she has taken cover in the lavatory, and he is taking up a defensive position in the bedchamber itself."

She affixes her police-issue sidearm* to her uniform belt and picks up a second^, offering it to her mate.

* Equivalent of a Phaser Type-1 -Ed
^ Also a Phaser Type-1 equivalent -Ed

Moments later, the Drake informs Sorak they're ready to transport, and the Vulcans dematerialize from their bedchamber.

Treyva
"I'd just be in the way up there," Asha responds with a kiss to her husband's cheek. "You go, and I'll keep at this algorithm."

Cole
Noles' fear and worry are poorly hidden, but he responds to Cole's encouragement with a nod and croaks out, "Aye, sir. Won't let her down."

As the specialist kneels next to Banks and contacts the ship for emergency transport, Cole and Chief Morais move into the privacy hedge, where Ally's communicator lies. A side door into the house is nearby, which the chief thinks leads to the kitchen, based on his recall of the floor plans.

A quick examination shows the communicator to be intact. The security chief knows that the assigned bodyguards' communicators were tuned to emit a keycode for unlocking the exterior doors of the estate, and only proximity to the door (about a meter) is necessary to allow access.

Sorak and T'Kiri materialize near Specialist Welsh, and he and Lt. Lear turn at their arrival. The lieutenant reports, "Specialist Banks is down. Lt. Cole is investigating ahead." He points toward the other side of the atrium. As he does so, they hear the whine of the ship's transporter (and the darkened features of the garden are illuminated by its effect).

Lear takes a couple steps toward the crystal "pool" and adds, "Looks like we just beamed Banks up."

Meanwhile, O'Neil and his team move forward to maintain support for Cole and Morais.

Treyva & Tobin
Lt. Cmdr. Les exits the turbolift onto the bridge, where Lt. j.g. Addaron instinctively stands to be relieved. When Tobin points toward the science station to relieve Ensign V'Las, the Tellarite armory officer seems to frown slightly before she sits back down...

...and jumps right back up when the captain arrives shortly after.

"Lt. Cole, Lt. Lear, and the protection detail RRT are on site at the Spalan estate," she reports. "Spec-1 Banks has just been beamed up for emergency medical care; we don't know her condition at this time." Addaron expectantly takes a step away from the conn.

OOC: A little background you gents would know.

Ally's shipmates in security department are known to adore her, often referring to her as the "belle of the ball" for the positive attention she gets from the senior staff. She takes the good natured ribbing for what it is (and she's known for giving as good as she gets), even occasionally breaking into a "royal wave" when someone calls her out. (There's also scuttlebutt that a pool is going around as to when she's going to be meritoriously commissioned.)

[Nolmir]

OOC: Tobin will be watching the compound for lifesigns aside from the away team.

[Doug Burke]

Sorak and T'Kiri materialize near Specialist Welsh, and he and Lt. Lear turn at their arrival. The lieutenant reports, "Specialist Banks is down. Lt. Cole is investigating ahead." He points toward the other side of the atrium. As he does so, they hear the whine of the ship's transporter (and the darkened features of the garden are illuminated by its effect).

Sorak nods, "My parents are in their bedchamber on the upper level and my father is taking a defensive position there. By all means, carry on. We will will follow your lead."

[Renny]

Cole forces his thoughts away from Banks and concentrates on the job at hand. He signals for O'Neill and his team to move up in support before whispering to Chief Morais.

"We need to get in there, Chief. I'll go first, you cover me."

He moves towards the side entrance in a half crouch, phaser gripped in his right hand with the communicator retrieved from the hedge, attached to his belt, allowing him to keep his left hand free. He moves cautiously forward, and moves for the door.

[Davy, aka GM]

Spalan Estate

Sorak nods, "My parents are in their bedchamber on the upper level and my father is taking a defensive position there. By all means, carry on. We will follow your lead."

"Aye, sir. Lt. Cole is ahead, and O'Neil's team is providing cover on that side of the building" he says, pointing toward the other side of the atrium. Sorak knows the kitchen entrance is in that direction. "Welsh and I are maintaining the command post and covering this side of the structure.

"As a family member, your biometrics should already be keyed into door controls, sir, and you probably know this house better than the rest of us," Lear admits. "We'd appreciate any guidance you can provide. If you wish to enter, I'd recommend following Mr. Cole."

At the kitchen entrance, Cole hears the door unlock on his approach. Chief splits his attention between the door and the hedge opening until O'Neil passes by to take up a position covering the side of the house; Morais then places a hand on the lieutenant's shoulder, letting him know he's ready to follow.

The door slides open at a touch of a side panel, revealing a small, advanced kitchen, the ancient stone contrasting with the thoroughly modern amenities. An open door just ahead appears to lead to the main dining room, and a stairway next to the entrance appears to lead upstairs. A single-serve cooking vessel sits on an inductor, steam rising up from a liquid within. An indicator on the inductor control is flashing periodically, as if it shutdown due to being left on.

Bridge
Training the ship's sensors on the estate, Tobin records 12 life signs; seven are human, and five are Vulcan. All the human and two of the Vulcan life signs are on the east side of the house; three are upstairs in the northwest side...

[Nolmir]

Tobin looks up from the sensor hood. "Sensors show three Vulcan lifesigns on the northwest side of the upper floor," he informs Treyva. "I also read seven humans and two Vulcans outside on the east side -- presumably our away team, plus Sorak and T'Kiri."