From: Shawn _ (alamo_nate_at_yahoo.com)
Date: Mon Feb 18 2008 - 12:11:59 PST
=Explosive Toothpaste, Part 1=
(cont'd from "115"
LOCATION: ANDARA
SCENE: Woods Outside Elcar Village
STARDATE: [2.8]0218.1216
Crichton and Kor made their way carefully, balancing the blinded Thomas Varn between them. Crichton thought that Varn was handling the situation very well, under the circumstances- he'd been mysteriously blinded by, presumably, the same force that was driving Andaran children crazy, and had no way of knowing when or if his sight would return. Yet, despite the confusion that Crichton assumed the CSciO *must* have been feeling, he remained quiet and, seemingly, collected.
Once, when Kor and Crichton had stumbled on some rocky terrain, Varn even managed to make a joke: "Hey, *I'm* the blind one, remember?"
Crichton had bantered back with, "Feel free to upgrade to some better seeing-eye dogs at the first opportunity", but his heart wasn't really in it. He was thinking about the Window... and how much he *really* wanted to take that thing apart.
Mowree had suggested that the transmissions from the Window were probably responsible for the rash of violence by children across Andara, and after seeing the way the transmission had affected Kor, Mowree, and Varn, Crichton tended to agree. If that were the answer, then the solution ought to be simple- destroy the Windows or cease the transmission, and presto! Problem solved.
**Right,** Crichton thought. **Just ask the Andarans to completely rethink their way of life by destroying the one piece of technology that links them all together. Simple.**
"I think we're far enough away now," Kor said, glancing around to make sure they were alone before taking her comm-badge out from an inside-pocket of her vest. "CHANTICO, this is Kor."
[[We read you, Commander.]]
"One to beam directly to Sick Bay," Kor ordered. "He's bringing back a sample with him- a bird, apparently killed by the same thing that blinded Mr. Varn."
[[Understood.]]
"Don't worry, Lieutenant," Kor said, patting Varn on the shoulder, a strangely affectionate gesture that seemed almost out of place for the no-nonsense Eishnala Kor. "They'll take good care of you."
"See you around," Varn said, managing a weak smile before fading away in a beam of blue light. Crichton and Kor stood for a moment after he'd gone, before turning and heading back towards Elcar Village.
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SCENE: Elcar Village
When Crichton and Kor returned, the village no longer resembled the peaceful little farming community they'd discovered when they'd landed. The town-square was filled with Andarans, all seeming very agitated, and the air was full of Andaran voices, shouting and crying. For a brief moment, Crichton thought that the transmission had broadened its effectiveness, and that the whole town had gone mad. But then he noticed the stand at one edge of the town-square.
It was a large wooden platform, raised on stakes so that it was a full head taller than the tallest Andaran there. Standing on it was an Andaran dressed in what looked like official looking robes, holding his hands out as though he were trying to calm the crowd, and clearly having little effect.
In all the hubub, Crichton noticed Drake standing at the edge of the crowd, watching the scene with a grave look on his face.
"What's going on?" Kor asked, stepping up beside him.
"It's not good," Drake said, shaking his head. "The fellow on the platform is the new village elder, Jalik. He apparently arrived only last night, so the town isn't used to him yet."
"Sounds more like they want his head," Crichton mused.
"He wants to put in a call to the Andaran capitol city," Drake continued, his frown deepening. "After the attack this morning, Jalik thinks that Elcar Village is no longer safe from its own children, and he wants an increased security force stationed here to curtail any further violence."
"An increased security force?" Kor asked.
"Right," Drake nodded slowly. "Of course, Andarans don't really *have* a planetary security force... so right now, bringing in more security means-"
"Jem'Hadar," Crichton finished.
"Right," Drake nodded.
"Damn," Kor said. "Its going to be a lot harder to remain undercover if we have Dominion troops breathing down our necks."
"The town doesn't look too happy about it, either," Crichton observed.
"They aren't," Drake said, shaking his head. "The Jem'Hadar sort of have a reputation for *increasing* violence, not reducing it. And the townspeople know that, if another child *does* go crazy, the Jem'Hadar will shoot first and not bother asking any questions later."
"Figures," Crichton said. "Typical changeling solution to a problem- eliminate it entirely, no matter who you hurt in the process."
"What does this do for our timetable, Commander?" Drake asked, looking at Kor.
"We have to speed things up considerably," Kor frowned. "Mr. Crichton, I need a diagnostic of the Window by tonight. Mr. Drake, we need to find a way to get in to see one of the affected children."
"Right," Crichton and Drake nodded in unison.
"Where are the others?" Kor asked.
"I have them mingling with the Andarans," Drake said. "I thought we'd need as much intel as we could get."
"Find Lt. MacNeil and Counselor Mowree," Kor said. "I want their medical input on the scans we take of the children. Crichton, find Lt. Palandora- she will assist you in your infiltration of the meeting hall."
"Aye sir," Crichton nodded.
"We will rendezvous at the freighet at 0600 hours tomorrow morning," Kor said. "Do you know when the Jem'Hadar are scheduled to arrive?"
"At about 1200 hours tomorrow," Drake said. "The Jem'Hadar are irritatingly punctual, so I wouldn't count on them being late."
"Boy, I'd sure feel a lot safer knowing I had, oh I don't know... some kind of pen-phaser or something to defend myself with," Crichton said.
"No can do," Drake shook his head, grinning. "I might be able to hook you up with some explosive toothpaste, though."
"Nah," Crichton said. "Thanks anyway, but knowing me, I'd get it mixed up with the real stuff and wind up blowing my jaw off one morning."
"The hazards of modern-day life," Drake observed.
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SCENE: Elcar Village
TIME INDEX: Later that night
It had taken over an hour for Jalik to calm the Andarans enough that they were willing to return to their usual business, but even then, the rest of the day had passed with an unmistakble feeling of tense anxiety in the air. *Nobody* wanted the Jem'Hadar here, and it was amazing how quickly the announcement of their approach had changed the mood of Elcar Village. It almost felt like a prison-camp now, even though the guards weren't due to show up until tomorrow afternoon.
Crichton and Trella Palandora made their way casually down the empty street of Elcar Village, doing their best to look like they were out for a peaceful evening stroll. The only other people on the street were the two or three Andarans on night-watchman duty, and it was clear that they were unaccustomed to this detail. Crichton assumed that, before the rash of violence that had swept ANDARA, Elcar Village had never even bothered to *have* night watchmen patrolling their streets.
"This is it," Trella said as they approached the large meeting hall. She stepped up to the door and tried it, and frowned. "Locked."
"Thought as much," Crichton said, fishing a small metal tool out of his pocket. He slipped it into the lock and jimmied it a few times, until finally hearing a soft *click!* from inside the door. "Got it."
They took a final look around to ensure that nobody was watching, then slipped quickly into the Great Hall and closed the doors behind them. The interior of the building was large enough to provide seating for the entire village, as well as any visitors who might happen to be there as well. It reminded Crichton of a church, with the rows of seating serving as the pews, while the Window itself occupied the front of the chamber like an altar.
The Window was currently covered by a large sheet, which Crichton supposed the Andarans had put up after the last transmission had ended in violence. Perhaps they had already begun to suspect that the weekly transmissions were the source of their troubles, but Crichton doubted that they were truly ready to do away with the device entirely.
Trella stood guard by the door, peeking out the window to see if anyone was coming, while Crichton approached the covered screen. As he did, he noticed a few specks of blood on the floor of the chamber- likely belonging to Mykel, the villages previous Elder and the first victim of the Andaran violence. It was clear the Andarans had done their best to wash away all traces of the murder, but a few tell-tale droplets of dried blood still remained, almost as if they refused to wash away until the mystery had been solved.
"The coast is clear," Trella reported. "Go ahead."
Crichton nodded to her before pulling out the tricorder he'd disguised as a 'surveying device'. The modifications had made the tricorder much bulkier and far less aesthetic, but the basic functions had not changed. He began by scanning the Window itself.
"No reading," Crichton said. "It's not giving off any kind of signal right now."
The next step, of course, was to try to activate the thing. He found a large button on the Window and pressed it. Nothing happened. He pressed it again, and then again, and the Window remained quiet.
"Hmm," he said, glancing at his readings again.
"What is it?" Trella asked.
"It looks like the Window doesn't power on unless it detects an incoming signal," Crichton said. "You can turn it on or off with this button here, but unless there's something for it to detect, the Window automatically turns itself off. Probably a way for them to conserve power or something."
Crichton sighed. So far, he hadn't really learned anything of value. He was hoping it wouldn't come to what was next, but it now appeared he had no choice.
"We're still clear out there, right?" he asked.
"It appears so," Trella nodded. "Why?"
"Because," Crichton said, frowning as he pulled out a tiny Engineering kit and laid out the tools in front of him. "I'm going to have to take this damn thing apart."
====================================================================
NRPG: Sorry to leave it there, but that's all I've got time for right now. I'll try to get the second part out tomorrow.
Shawn
a.k.a.
Jake Crichton, Lieutenant
Chief of Engineering
GATEWAY Station, GS-2
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Wed Nov 19 2008 - 03:10:47 PST