From: naomi_lara_at_optusnet.com.au
Date: Tue Jan 16 2007 - 15:03:02 PST
('binary' encoding is not supported, stored as-is) "Some Leads" continued from "To Whom Fortune Favors" Location: USS PATRIOT Stardate: 2.70117.1000 Scene: Bridge -> Intel Office Catherine stepped off the turbolift and flattened herself against the wall as Kenta and McKlellan exchanged places with her. Kenta didn't even swap glances with her, but Kel gave her a little sympathetic look just as the doors closed. The woman turned and walked onto the Bridge which was a hive of activity, Jones was the conductor. Helice was rattling off instructions and orders, sending the Bridge crew into a mild frenzied state. Catherine quietly watched from the back of the activity. Her eyes and ears peeled for any information. At the moment, there was no contact yet with the planet. There had been a huge increase in atmospheric ionization that was interfering with the communication transfers. They were trying to compensate, but the levels were constantly altering, which made it difficult. But they had managed to isolate the area of the blast. It wasn’t where Daniel had been stationed. And for that, Catherine breathed a sigh of relief. It just would have been a cruel twist of fate if he were at the blast site. Her anxiety relieved, she sat back and listened. It seemed that the blast had been a chemical one, causing massive causalities. Designed for maximum impact, and visually frightening. At the moment, the Patriot’s efforts were of a humanitarian nature. No place for her. The intel officer turned and silently slipped from the Bridge. And began the walk back towards her office. They had to find the person responsible for the blast, and find them quickly. There was no way that it was an act of the gods. It was definitely man-made. “Computer, do we have any visuals of the blast site immediately prior to the accident?” Catherine began, asking the computer even before the doors closed behind her. It showed up the images of the temple in question minutes before the explosion. There were tens of thousands of people in the compound, all crowded together, all united in their beliefs. They were celebrating. The priest gave a signal that the solemn prayer was over, and they erupted into cheering and whooping. Catherine tilted her head and leaned against the edge of her desk. In the back of her mind, she was aware that this only happened ten minutes ago. These people no longer existed. It didn’t bother her though. Sometimes things like this just happened. She watched the scenes unfold in front of her. There was a release of white balloons, that hung heavily in the sky. There were spires of flowers being thrown and waved around. People were jostling each other to find the best vantage point. The screen suddenly went white as the explosion overloaded its sensors. “Computer, rewind to a couple of frames before the explosion, and play it forward slowly.” She asked it softly. The computer complied, slowing down the images to one frame every .2 of a second. She studied the images intensely, trying to pinpoint the exact source of the explosion. It wasn’t easy. It seemed to happen above the crowd, but much of the view was obstructed by those opaque balloons. The woman paused, and squinted slightly. She wasn’t quite sure, but it seemed that there was a little yellow spark inside the balloon just before the image went white with the blast. Was it even possible? Explosive balloons? “Computer, has the communications uplink been re-established?” Sterling asked softly as she slid off her desk onto her feet. She had to tell someone to look at the records. Who had brought those balloons into the area? They would have to work quickly before the guilty party went underground. [[For priority messages only.]] Catherine mentally crossed her fingers. “Then connect me through to Colonel Maverick.” She asked. As much as she wanted to talk to Daniel, she really had to divulge the information to his superior. [[Access denied.]] “This is important!” Sterling cried out in exasperation. There was no point in arguing with the computer, she had been locked out of the priority system. Still, there were other ways to get the message through. “Sterling to Jones.” [[We’re a little busy, Catherine.]] Jones sounded like she was a little tense and distracted. The Bridge must have been a bit of a madhouse if easy-going Helice was sounding so wound up. “It’s about the explosion. I think I know how to track the person down.” Sterling stated, trying to keep things succinct. “We need to get the records of the person or persons that delivered or dealt with those balloons. We need to find them.” Catherine wrung her hands, hoping that Jones would understand the importance. Maybe Catherine was thinking too much like the ex-security officer she once was, but she knew time was so critical in a case such as this. [[It’s going to have to wait until we deal with the current crisis. Jones out.]] Helice said before killing off the communications. At the moment, the humanitarian concerns far outweighed the criminal ones, but still, Catherine couldn’t help but feel stonewalled. She would have to figure it out for herself. Somehow get the information she needed and conduct an investigation while confined to the ship. It was going to be a challenge. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NRPG: Right, I’ll get another one out either Friday or Sunday. I would write more, but I'm doing this at work whenever I can snatch a moment :) Naomi Lara Lt. Catherine Sterling-Jade ILO USS PATRIOT And Lt. Tellah Cal Ops USS PATRIOT From HyperNews_at_youth.net
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