ORIGINS: USS Hood October 2009

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ORIGINS: USS Hood Story Posts
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[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: Fly By

by Andy Catterick

SD: 2260.275

MD. 5.1330

Scene: Bridge, USS HOOD

"Captain I have a suggestion."

Jack set his coffee down on the armrest and scrutinized the helm officer. Ming had only been aboard for a few days but seemed to be fitting into the HOOD team seamlessly.

"What do you have on your mind lieutenant?"

"Well sir, given the lack of results ship's sensors are providing I suggest sending a shuttle down into the lower atmosphere. We could get low enough that we could do sensor sweeps of the area in the hopes of gleaning more information."

Jack rubbed his chin and considered the request. Ming was right, they were having trouble with ship board sensors. Something down there was definitely interfering. But was it necessary? Not entirely, he decided. They already had a large survey team down at the site and so far at least their tricorder's seemed to have no problem with sensor scans. On the other hand the tricorder's range was somewhat limited and they still had no idea what they were facing. And there was the small matter of the dead bodies the team had just reported. That discovery had had a disquieting effect on the crew especially given the doctor's inability to determine what had happened to them. Still it wasn't really necessary. He looked back at the expectant Lee. Of course it wouldn't hurt either.

"I take it you're volunteering to pilot the shuttle?"

"Yes sir. I'll take a long a science officer with me."

Jack nodded. "Do it."

<<<NRPG>>>

Just a quick post (see how easy it is? HINT HINT)

so everyone has a job. XO, CMO and ENG are on the planet. CSO and SCI haven't really been placed anywhere so I leave it to you two to decide. And of course everyone can field a NPC either on the team or on the ship.

Also, last week I removed our NAV and HELM officers form the mailing list as they obviously decided against joining...and didn't feel it necessary to reply to any of my emails. Scott in his ORIGINS CO hat has written them one last time in the hopes there was some confusion and they will be able to jump in. I'm hopeful, but sadly think they are not with us. So given our small numbers it is increasingly important that we all keep up the posting levels...and if you can find someone to join us you get a medal! ;-)

Ok I'm doing final preparation for my vacation so I am likely now offline...try not to miss me!  ;-)

Respectfully,

Andy

CAPT Jack Steele

CO, USS HOOD NCC 1703

ASR ORIGINS

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: "What Was That?"

by Scott Lusby

SD: 2260.277

MD: 5.1426

Setting: Planet surface, Velorum IV

<<snip- from Andy's last psot, entitled "The First Discovery">>

"Commander!" He said coming to a halt and turning back to look down the dry river bed. "I'm picking up three humanoid bodies 50 meters ahead. They're given off readings I don't really understand but it looks like their dead sir."

Two minutes later a crouching Dr. Corbett looked up at Sean. "It seems I have to concur with Mr. Lowl's diagnosis. These poor bastards have been dead for several days."

"What killed them doctor?" Merrick asked.

Stile rose from his crouch and snapped his tricorder closed. "I have no idea."

<<snip- new material>>

Gar Th'elenth strode up next to the crouching doctor. "What do you mean, you have 'no idea'?"

Corbett looked up at the blue-skinned engineer. "I mean that, according to the readings I just got, this man should still be buckin' broncs. There is nothing wrong with this person. Nothing at all."

Th'elenth's antennae pitched forward slightly. "That's impossible."

Stile stood up. "I know that," he said. "I need to do a full autopsy on this man before I know anything more definitive- I hope," he added. Then, the doctor turned and had a corpsman begin preparing the body for removal.

Gar turned around, and, wiping his brow, regarded the pyramid in the distance. As he stared, trying to make sense of its massive form levitating off the ground, a slight breeze brushed past his moistened neck, causing the white hairs on the back of his pale blue skin to stand.

At least he **thought** it was a breeze.

"What was that?" he hissed, a little more panic in his voice than he'd like to admit.

His eyes darted to and fro, but all he noticed was the wind pushing the sandy bottom of the dry riverbed in the general direction of the pyramid.

Senses now on full alert, Gar walked forward, toe to heel, phaser drawn in one hand and tricorder extended in frotn of him with the other.

He noticed the new body at the same moment the tricorder chirped.

"Hey Doc!" Gar shouted. "I have another one here!"

The body was sprawled out, face-down in the river bed, arnms thrown foreward, as if he was cut down while in a dead run...

As if he were fleeing something.

Instinctively, Gar's eyes rose fromt he body, back in the direction from which the man run.

Once again, his eyes settled on the pyramid.

As Doctor Corbett arrived, Gar said over his shoulder, "I hope we have plenty of security with us."

"Why?"

Gar's gaze never left the pyramid. "I have a feeling we'll need them."

Privately, he hoped they'd make a difference.

<<TIMELINE>>

MD 5.1426- Th'elenth finds another body and gets spooked by the pyramid.

<<NRPG>>

All- Come on, let's get this thing going...

Steve- dropped a hook or two in there for you. Let me know if you want to do anything special with this.

Respectfully Submitted,

-- Scott Lusby

/\ LCDR Gar Th'elenth

Chief Engineer

USS HOOD NCC-1703

ASR: ORIGINS

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: At The Mouth That Eats People

by Brian V. Mansur

SD: 2260.276

MD. 5.1440

Scene: Floating Pyramid Object, Planet Velorum IV

Merrick considered the pyramid's forbodding access tunnel and supressed a shiver. The scene was very, very quiet. Dead quiet in fact, what with the bodies they had found in the nearby riverbed. A barely perceptable breeze emanated from from the opening. The way it caressed his face reminded him of cave breathing, such as he had felt in the Carlsbad Caverns on Earth. It was like a ghost letting him know it was there.

Presently he began looking around for a Redshirt to have the first look. Whatever else that pyramid might be, it likely had a deep interior network and he didn't like to think of what might be waiting in there.

"DeSimms, you want to do the honors?"

"Mind if I throw in a grenade first?"

Merrick forced a chuckle. "Ghosts probably won't be harmed by grenades. But why not carry one just in case."

DeSimms nodded and boldly stepped to the mouth of the tunnel. He positioned some shades over his eyes, threw on some gloves, and didn't move another inch for almost a minute.

Merrick, feeling a bit impatient, finally asked, "Something wrong?"

"Naaht sure." DeSimms drolled, twitching a finger spasmodically.

"You look as if you don't want to go in there," Merrick poked. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were afraid of the dark."

DeSimms frowned. "About that Sean."

"Yeah?"

"I think we may have to go in on foot. The bot isn't booting."

Merrick threw up his hands, "Oh you got to be kidding me."

"Nope. GImpy Joe is not coming online." DeSimms removed his VR goggles and gloves and stepped up to the rover in the tunnel entrance.

"Gar!" Merrick called. "Don't suppose you could help us find out why the hell the recon bot isn't working."

In a matter of seconds Gar was there, running a tricorder diagnostic. Aside Merrick said, "Wouldn't you know this is the last one in inventory after the Klingons had at us. Remind me to ask for an expedite on the resupply order."

Gar looked asconce at the FO. "I thought you already had Sean."

"Don't start with me. I'm not looking forward to going in there blind."

Politely, Gar dropped the subject and concentrated on the bot. Finally he made his diagnosis. "The circuitry seems fine. The power is on. But the internal computer isn't operating. I'd say the software is corrupted."

"Like the bodies around here?"

Gar gave Sean a "Let's not go there" look and said, "I'll have to reload the drive through the tricorder."

He looked suspiciously at DeSimms. "What did you do to this thing?"

"Tried to turn it on."

"Uh huh. And before that?"

DeSimms remained silent. He knew perfectly well as a Security Chief not to say anything incriminating. Gar snarled.

"Damn it John, why do you keep breaking my stuff? Was it working on the ship before beam down? When did you last check it?"

DeSimms put up a pleading hand, "It was working fine after the last drill. That's all I know."

"Bottom line, Gar," Sean interjected, "How long will it take to fix?"

Gar slapped his tricorder shut. "Done. Try it now."

DeSimms did. And to everyone's great unease, absolutely nothing happened.

"Gar?" Merrick said with a note of alarm. Already the engineer had his tricorder back out.

"I don't fragging believe this." the blue skin said, antennae wiggling in agitation. "The program is corrupted again and I am certain that it was fine just 20 seconds ago."

"Virus? Short-circuit?"

"If the tricorder can believed, then no to both."

Merrick sighed heavily. Well he thought to himself. At least I have two Redshirts to draw Karma's fire.

Steeling himself, he said, "Well, we're not going to find answers standing around here. Let's peek inside."

NRPG: Spooky spooky spooky spooky. Is Dr. Corbett coming along? Dan, you want point? Let's go see the undead or whatever is in there.

Respectfully Submitted,

Brian V. Mansur

LCDR Sean Merrick

FO, USS HOOD NCC-1703

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: "Who Knew Death Was So Fatal"

by Steve Apple

SD: 2260.279

MD: 5.1426

Setting: Star Fleet Tent, Planet Surface, Velorum IV

Corbett pulled the tent flap back and walked in. The makeshift morgue held a portable exam table with the nude body of a dead man on it. To the right side of the tent was specialized medical equipment and to the left side was another corpse sealed in a body bag awaiting his turn on the table. Pushing his cowboy hat to the back of his head Corbett bent over the body and did a full visual inspection of the corpse.

“Don’t you think we should get in biohazard suits for this doc?” Crewman Bates asked his voice rife with anxiety.

“What’s the matter Frank you scared you might catch something?” Corbett jibed. “If he is infectious we’ve already been exposed. We’ll suit up just before we cut into him.”

“Is that supposed to be reassuring Stile?” Bates asked.

“No it’s just the truth.” Corbett said as he finished his physical examination of the body. “Hand me that blue light will you.”

“Sure,” Bates said handing the light to Corbett. “If you want I can have them beam down a portable surgical lamp.”

Corbett looked up at the man and smiled. “You have no idea what I’m doing, do you?” He asked.

“Uh well you asked for a light, so I thought it wasn’t bright enough in here for you.” Bates said.

“No I asked for a blue light.” Corbett said shaking his head. “When you shine a blue light on a body any presence of blood will show up black. Since I have checked this man for external wounds and found nothing I want to make sure I haven’t missed something before I cut into him and destroy any evidence.”

“That’s a bit of overkill isn’t it?” Bates asked.

“Maybe,” Corbett said as he passed the light over the front of the man’s body. “But since I don’t have an explanation for why this man died I’m going to check every possibility.”

“I can’t believe the tricorder didn’t show anything.” Bates said.

Corbett turned the body over and followed the same visual, physical, and blue light examination on the prone figure. “Hmm.” Corbett said as he pulled back the hair to the base of the man’s scalp.

“You found something?” Bates asked excitement in his voice.

“Look here at the base of the neck and tell me what you see.” Corbett answered.

“Nothing, looks like hair and skin.” Bates replied.

“Yeah I agree, but the area feels a bit raised. Let’s see if the blue light shows us anything we haven’t seen.” Corbett said shining the blue light on the back of the corpses head.

“Looks like little black bumps. That couldn’t have killed him, could it?” Bates asked.

“It’s called petechia.” Corbett said. “And no it didn’t kill him. It’s usually caused by some kind of traumatic hemorrhaging. I’ve seen a similar pattern on strangulation cases when I was in residency on Orion. Why this man has it I’m not sure. He has no other signs that I can see that he was choked to death. Let’s get tissue and blood samples and then get suited up, I want to take a look inside and see what killed this man.”

Setting: Outside The Access Tunnel, Floating Pyramid Object, Planet Velorum IV

Corbett exited the tent and walked over to where he saw Sean talking with DeSimms and Gar. He thought the Andorian Engineer looked agitated, but with his temperament one could never tell.

“John, did you break one of Gar’s toys again?” Corbett asked as straight faced as possible.

DeSimms shot Corbett a dark look and Gar just grumbled as he fiddled with the tricorder.

“We were about to go into the access tunnel when the recon bot went down.” Merrick said turning toward Corbett trying to suppress a smile. “Do you have a report doctor, or are you just here to be an instigator.”

“A little of both, but I think you better hear what I found before we blindly go into that tunnel.” Corbett said.

“So you know what killed those men?” Gar asked looking up from the tricorder.

“Yes and no.” Corbett said pulling his hat down a bit.

“You either know what killed them, or you don’t.” Gar said angrily.

Corbett turned a steely gaze on the Andorian and said. “Well sar I know how they died, but I sure as hell don’t know why.”

Merrick held up a hand to silence Gar’s raising anger. “You want to be a little bit more specific Stile.”

“I wish I could be Sean. When I did a full autopsy on that first body we discovered I found that he died of natural causes otherwise known as old age.” Corbett said.

“How is that possible, he didn’t look any older than 24 or 25.” Merrick shouted.

“According to the colony records his name was DeLuca and he was a 23 year old crew chief on this dig.” Corbett said shaking his head.

“Stile you’re not making any sense, how can a 23 year old die of old age?” Merrick asked.

“I wish I knew Sean, but the facts remain. I’m telling you his cellular and tissue structure were consistent with that of an 87 year old man. While he may have looked young on the outside his organs and vasculature painted a different picture altogether. I confirmed it with the computer twice.”

“What about the other man the one we found face down, did he die of old age too?” Gar asked skeptically.

“No, his death was different. It was as if his cells were depleted of all energy sources.” Corbett said then paused for a moment before he continued in a venue the Engineer would understand. “The human body is basically run on electrical power. It’s a complex series of gated channels that utilize the influx and efflux of sodium, potassium and calcium to generate the charge. His body, hell every one of his cells had an absence of them. Literally this man was burned out.”

“Is there anything that connects them?” DeSimms asked.

“There is sar, but I’m not sure what it means yet.” Corbett said. “Both bodies had an area of petechia at the base of the neck. These are flat round red spots under the skin surface caused by bleeding into the area. They are usually caused by intradermal hemorrhage due to some kind of trauma. I’ve seen these kind of marks before during strangulation cases. My examination of both bodies showed that these men had hairline fractures of both the hyoid bone and upper thyroid horns consistent with self strangulation.”

“If that wasn’t the cause of death was it a contributor?” Merrick asked trying to piece this together.

“No sar, the fractures were days old as was the sub-dermal bruising to the laryngeal tissue.” Corbett said then paused for a moment. “I can’t say for sure but by the position of the injuries it was as if these men were strangling themselves in an effort to force something out of their throats.”

NRPG: I’m sorry it took so long to post guys, but I got the H1N1 flu that turned into pneumonia. I’ve been bed bound for the last 1 ½ week and today was the first day that I felt well enough to actually write something. It’s not my best, but it should move the plot along. Andy, Brian and Scott great job moving things forward.

Respectfully Submitted,

Steve Apple

Stile Corbett, MD

CMO, USS HOOD NCC-1703

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: "Anyone Got An Energizer?"

by Scott Lusby

SD: 2260.284 MD: 5.1438 Setting: Tunnel outside pyramid, Velorum IV

<<snip- from Steve's post, entitled "Who Knew Death Was so Fatal">>

"Is there anything that connects them?" DeSimms asked.

"There is sar, but I'm not sure what it means yet." Corbett said. "Both bodies had an area of petechia at the base of the neck. These are flat round red spots under the skin surface caused by bleeding into the area. They are usually caused by intradermal hemorrhage due to some kind of trauma. I've seen these kind of marks before during strangulation cases. My examination of both bodies showed that these men had hairline fractures of both the hyoid bone and upper thyroid horns consistent with self strangulation."

"If that wasn't the cause of death was it a contributor?" Merrick asked trying to piece this together.

"No sar, the fractures were days old as was the sub-dermal bruising to the laryngeal tissue." Corbett said then paused for a moment. "I can't say for sure but by the position of the injuries it was as if these men were strangling themselves in an effort to force something out of their throats."

<<snip- new material>>

Gar scratched the white tuft of hair on top of his ice-blue skin. "You said the second body's been drained of energy?"

Doctor Corbett nodded. "That's right, Gar- nothin' left."

Gar took a step closer, and his antennae twitched. "As if he had been used as a giant battery and then discarded once he was drained?"

Corbett thought about that. "I suppose that would be one way to describe it," he said.

Now, Merrick chimed in. "Could that also explain the unnatural aging of the first victim?"

Corbett pursed his lips. "Well, in order to do that, he would have to have been 'drained and re-charged,' as it were, several times. That could prematurely age a body- in theory, anyway."

DeSimms shook his head. "That's a hell of a theory," he deadpanned.

"Theory's all we got right now," Merrick countered. He turned back to Stile. "What about the petechia?"

Before Stile could answer, Gar interrupted. "Could simply be one of the places where they were 'connected' to whatever it was they were powering," he offered. "Of course, there would need to be a corresponding connection, drawing an opposite charge in order for the circuit to work."

Merrick glanced back at the doctor. "You find anything like that?"

The Texan shook his head. "No, can't say that I have," he said. "'Course, I may have seen it and not noticed it without the context." He turned and began making his way back towards the tent where the bodies were. "Let me look at 'em again, and I'll let you know."

Gar turned his attention back to his tricorder...and immediately noticed something funny. "Hey- I'm getting another reading- this one's coming from inside that pyramid."

Merrick moved a few steps and stood next to Gar, glancing at the tricorder. "What kind of readings?"

"Definitely EM, Commander," he said. "Something was masking it; I can't tell if the masking agent is natural or otherwise, but it was there. It's still there- but we're obviously close enough to the source to pick it up."

They both looked down the darkened tunnel that led into the pyramid.

"DeSimms," Merrick called, glancing back at the Andorian engineer. "How about sending a couple of scouts down there for us?"

<<TIMELINE>>

5.1438- Gar Th'elenth comes up with a possible theory about the bodies, then picks up an EM signal from inside the pyramid.

<<NRPG>>

All- Just something to move this thing along some.

Daniel- PING!!!! We've got you all set up here!

Respectfully Submitted,

-- Scott Lusby

/\ LCDR Gar Th'elenth

Chief Engineer

USS HOOD NCC-1703

ASR: ORIGINS

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: DeSimm's Rules of the Away Mission

by Dan Belin

SD: 2260.284

MD: 5.1438

Setting: Tunnel outside pyramid, Velorum IV

DeSimms dressed into his BDU behind some rocks. As he put on his Land Warrior kit, he thought 'this is going to make one hell of a thriller movie if it ever gets declassified'. Two of the redshirts that had already changed were helping themselves to the shipment of weapons and equipment that beamed down. Gar and Merrick were conferring with the Lieutenant from Sciences, who DeSimms hadn't yet been formally introduced to.

He popped out from the rock and took a Pulse Rifle from the pile of equipment. Along with that he took several Plasmonic grenades, a set of explosive charges, and what security people and Special Ops called 'a can on a string'. DeSimms walked back to the group, looking like John Rambo except bald. He looked at the younger ensigns and jay-gee's and asked, "How many of you have been on an away mission before?"

Out of the group of approximately ten, two raised their hands. Ensign Roth and Crewman Jody, both in security. At least his security detachment knew what it's like. As for the rest of them, DeSimms went into full intimidation mode. He was going to tell them how it is, and not in the way they sugarcoat at the Academy, "OK boys and girls, listen up! We are going into whats known as a danger zone," DeSimms put emphasis on the last two words, "here are my rules for danger zones. ONE, I am taking point and Roth is taking rear. At no point should you be in front of me or behind Roth. Second, leave the blasting to the professionals. Friendly fire is NEVER friendly.Third, we stay in groups. We DO NOT go exploring off into the dark or playing with aliens, as that leads to accidents. Finally, if you feel at any time threatened or have any suspicions, recommendations, whatever, tell a senior crew member immediately. I don't care if you saw something in the shadows, or have a gut feeling. TELL US."

Commander Merrick looked at DeSimms, and then at the newbies. He concluded, "I think DeSimms summed it up very gracefully," he gave an almost imperceptible wink to DeSimms, "remember, stay frosty."

DeSimms lowered his Land Warrior eyepiece. He switched the visual overlay to a combination of Night vision, thermal, and EM detection. He marveled for a moment at the scope of the Land Warrior project. He could lower his goggles and use them for anything from night-vision to binoculars, he could send text messages by wiggling fingers minuscule distances, he could whisper so only he could hear it and have it broadcast to any Land Warrior unit. The Warrior also had a HUD for monitoring vital health statistics, a direct tie-in to his and any other tricorder within 500 feet. Long gone were the archaic days of asking "Whats your tricorder reading, Doctor?" now you just looked. He could look through the optics of his or any other team-members gun, and tie-in to any sensor or camera within five-hundred feet. Those guys at SF Engineering deserved a Latinum Star for their efforts.

He gestured to his security guys to move forward into the tunnel. He told everyone else, "Wait here until we figure out how to turn on the lights."

When he saw everybody but the Redshirts moving along he charged into the tunnel. He asked Petty Officer Forward if he could find a local junction, and the Petty Officer replied, "Thirty meters down the corridor to the right, sir."

He started walking along the corridor, and suddenly hit something with his boot. He looked down and saw a hard, crystallized human caught in mid stride. The other security personnel looked and saw the same thing. There were several arched eyebrows and drawn phasers. DeSimms knelt down and flicked the statue, and it shattered almost as glass would. He then hailed Corbett with Land Warrior, "Uh Doc....we got um.....another dead body...."

<<Sar, you're gonna need to give me some more details>> was the response

"He's crystallized, almost as if he was bathed in liquid nitrogen or something."

<<What!?>> Corbett cried with an air of surprise. In all his time as a combat doctor, he'd never heard of this.

With that wonderful note, he continued until he reached the Engineering Junction and looked around. According to his readouts there was no burnout, no nothing. Just a switch flicked off. He flicked it on, and expected the lights to turn on. Nothing happened, and DeSimms dented the console by slamming it with his fist. He talked into the communicator, "Gar, get down here, and bring two phasers. Doc, if you want to come too, move along. Take the first corridor on your right and walk till you see the junction with the glow sticks illuminating it. We need some help."

NRPG: I apologize for the long interval from my last post. DeSimms hasn't encountered anything...yet. So I guess its an open invitation for Gar and Corbett to move down the tunnel of death :).

With all due respect,

Dan Belin

LT. John DeSimms

SEC Officer

U.S.S HOOD

NCC-1703

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: Oh You Just Know Someone is Going to Die Here Soon

by Brian V. Mansur

SD: 2260.285

MD: 5.1450

Scene: Pyramid Object, Valorum IV

DeSimms wrinkled his nose at the musty odor wafting up from the shattered crystal body. It acted like it had been frozen but his HUD heat view said it was room temp cool. Warily he looked all around him, above and below. The room was quiet and bland. Nothing remarkable aside from the carved stone.

It didn't take long for the gang to arrive. Corbett took one look at the shattered corpse and whistled. Nearby, Merrick started to mouth "What the Hell" over and over again. Gar's antennae stood up on end and his teeth were visibly clenched.

"Corbett?" Merrick demanded.

"Your guess is as good as my gosh, Sean. This isn't anything I've heard of." He handled a chunk of someone's dead face. A single frozen eye, full of desperate fear, gazed up at them.

"The poor bastard knew something bad was happening," Corbett commented.

"This doesn't make a damn bit of sense." Merrick complained. "Where is the thing that did this? Why haven't we seen it yet?" He looked at DeSimms who merely shrugged and snapped his fingers. Like well trained dogs, the security formed up and they started down the cooridor again leaving the trio to puzzle out the latest dead body.

Wherever it was, DeSimms mused, it was almost certainly ahead.

NRPG: A quick one to keep me on the board. I'll write more as time allows. I think we're about to make "the encounter."

Respectfully Submitted,

Brian V. Mansur

LCDR Sean Merrick

FO, USS HOOD NCC-1703

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: wild guesses.

by David Martens

SD: 2260.285

MD: 5.1515

Scene: USS HOOD, Ready Room

Hemux was in the science lab. She was constantly updating the data the away - team was sending in as a new report popped up on her console. It as a transcription of the security team on the surface.

<Snip from Bryan>

"Corbett?" Merrick demanded.

"Your guess is as good as my gosh, Sean. This isn't anything I've heard of." He handled a chunk of someone's dead face. A single frozen eye, full of desperate fear, gazed up at them.

"The poor bastard knew something bad was happening," Corbett commented.

<End of Snip>

Hemux added the `frozen eyeball' to the other pieces of the puzzle. Some idea was starting to build in her head. The small fractures on the base of the skull, the frozen eyeball, the idea that energy was drained of the body…

It sounded impossible but it had to be.

She walked out to the Comm and asked for a connection to the away – team. "Hemux to Corbett"

[Corbett here, what you have for us, Hemux?]

"It's just a wild guessk, but my idea is your dealing with a creature that feeds on brain energy and bodyheat. That would explain why it would go for the mouth to attack. Near to the brain, some major arteries there to drain the body heat. That would also explain the frozen body parts, draining a body quickly of energy and heat can make it freeze all up. And if you drained brain energy and bodyheat it also will make the body age more rapidly. Drain the victim till it is unconscious or even in coma, leave it alone for a few hours so it can build up his bodyheat and restore some of his energy. In that way you would have a easy source of food."

[Any suggestions on our approach?]

Hemux thought about that for a few moments "Suggestions only. Since we have no real cues about what our opponent can or can't do it's a l a wild guess. I would say put on thermo-suits to keep your bodyheat undetected, also put up a metal helmet or metal foil or so around yor head. This might block energy-signals from your brains to be picked up. But again, I have no idea if it will be suficient."

She checked her data again and added "Oh and look for something small and flexible. If that hostile being is able to enter it's victims through the mouth then it can't be very big or fat. Imagine a worm or snail like being I guess. But again that's only a guess, it might be as well a fluid huge mass that is able to slide through the most narrow holes or a energy being or just anything you can imagine. Hemux out."

ARr'Rhiana leant back in her chair as she pushed a PADD over her desk with a fingertip. Something was missing, but she could not say what, she just hoped Corbett and the rest would be safe.

<<<NRPG>>>

Hi All,

I know I am slow in posting, but real life keeps be more intense and busy then I ever thought. Anyway, maybe this is something to work with.

Respectfully,

David Martens

Lt ARr'Rhiana Hemux

CSciO , USS HOOD NCC 1703

ASR ORIGINS

[ORIGINS] USS HOOD: New Fears

by Andy Catterick

SD: 2260.289

MD: 5.1545

Scene: Inner Chamber, Pyramid

For security crewman Gene Lowl the party was definitely over. It had all started so well. He had excelled in Basic Training and been assigned to one of the elite units in Starfleet, a CONSTITUTION class starship that was so new the paint on the hull was barely dry. It wasn’t his dream assignment, USS EXETER but given how badly they had just kicked the Klingon’s asses he was certain people would be begging to get aboard HOOD. Sure Jack Steele was no Ron Tracey but by now everyone knew that HOOD was a ship not to be messed with. Now barely a month into his first deployment he had been tapped for his first landing party. And it was a real landing party not some fluff assignment where he was detailed to baby-sit a bunch of self important geologists and botanists as they oohed and ahhed over some rocks on a dead world. No this mission was classified and it concerned the security of the Federation. It was a mission where he could make a name for himself. It had all gone so well. Once they beamed down he’d been assigned point which quickly led to him finding the first major discovery of the mission. Which is where it began to go down hill.

Granted these were the first dead bodies he had ever seen. But he was in security and death was part of the job. He didn’t welcome it but he could deal with it. Or so he thought. He’d expected that these people had been killed by some sort of weapon. Something they’d obviously not been trained to deal with. But he had been trained and he was good at his job so if someone was lurking out there waiting to attack they were going to be very surprised. But it wasn’t a weapon that had ended their lives. In fact the doctor not only couldn’t determine what killed them he couldn’t explain why they weren;t alive. Then the equipment started to fail. That got the officers bitchin at each other. As far as Gene was concerned, given the circumstances, that was the first step on the road to panic. Panic was one thing they didn’t need.

Now they found themselves standing inside the pyramid in room so dark their portable lights could barely cut through it. The tension among the party was rising and he had to admit to himself. Training or not he was scared.

Gene had two main fears at this point. The first and most pressing one was that he was going to die. Things had gone from good to bad. Now more then ever before he was acutely aware of the colour of his shirt. It had long been a joke in Starfleet but his instructors in Basic had been very clear. Red shirts, especially security red shirts die more then mustard and blue combined. A lot more. Especially nameless red shirted security crew members the joke continued. He darted a quick look at both the executive officer and then the doctor. He was pretty sure the X/O had no idea who he was and he was completely certain that that cowboy wannabe doctor wouldn’t be able to pick him out of a line up as a fellow HOOD crew member. Lieutenant DeSimms probably knew he was but he was the security chief he was supposed to know. But that was about it. *Oh God,* he thought to himself. *I’m the nameless red shirt and I’m going to die.*

Which brought him to his second fear. Failure. He’d come this far, made it to a starship and was ready to make his mark on Starfleet and the galaxy. He didn’t want it all to end on his first mission. So it didn’t matter that there were dead people who shouldn’t be dead, failed equipment that shouldn’t fail and that the officers were spooked. He wasn’t going to die, nameless red shirt myth be damned. He faced it all and knew he could take it.

Then it got worse.

He swore they hadn’t been there a second ago. But they were certainly here now and he felt the adrenaline rush through his body. He was only barely aware that he had drawn his phaser by instinct. “Uh sirs!” He said insistently to Commander Merrick and the doctor who were a few meters away and deep in conversation.

Sean immediately recognized the three humans as senior members of the archeological team they were sent here to find. At first glance he was certain it was them but then he wasn’t so sure. “Doctor?” To his left Stile ran his medical tricorder over them and frowned. He ran it a second time and then a third. “Doctor?” Sean asked again.

“Same as the others.”

“Meaning?” Merrick asked.

“Meaning according to this they are dead. But there is no medical reason that my tricorder can identify.”

“Gene lets slowly lower the phaser.” DeSimms asked. And it was all Crewman Lowl could do not to jump out of his skin at hearing the security chief. He had been clear across the chamber and Gene had no idea how he had made it here so quickly and quietly. He turned his attention back to the doctor. “They don’t look dead.”

“Do they look alive?” Stile replied.

Sean took a step forward. “I’m Commander Sean Merrick, USS HOOD…” He stopped in mid-sentence as the mouth of the middle figure slowly opened.

“Go back.” It whispered in a raspy voice that Gene Lowl knew he would never forget.

<<<NRPG>>>

I’m officially back and I really enjoyed the posts that you all created. It’s nice to see such a productive week for us, maybe I should go on vacation more often. I’m really enjoying the story we’re creating.

Reading your posts I kept thinking of the TOS episode Cats paw so when I sat down to write I kept seeing this scene. Course I’m not looking to continue along those lines but it just kind of wrote itself.

I look forward to see what happens next.

I’m assuming Gene wasn’t present for Stile’s conversation with Hemux…

Please don’t kill Gene…

Respectfully,

Andy Catterick

CAPT Jack Steele

CO, USS HOOD NCC 1703

ASR ORIGINS