One of Our Scientists Is Missing (part 4)

Posted on Wed Jan 27, 2021 @ 11:16am by Lieutenant JG Brianthe Oaxaca & Commander Caleb Ryan & Civilian 'Arrival' Roger Templar & Lieutenant JG Ace Cannon

1,243 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Si vis pacem, para bellum
Location: DS5 & Pangaea
Timeline: MD -01

[PREVIOUSLY]

They arrived at the shuttle bay and found their way to Travis.

"Ready to go?" she asked.

"I am always ready," Ace replied confidently, giving Bri a secret smile.

[CONTINUED]

“Yes, sir,” Travis said, handing an away team kit consisting of a Type II phaser, tricorder, and small emergency kit to Brianthe and Ace. He frowned at the civilian, not having known he needed more, and giving Starfleet equipment to a civilian was a whole other level of red tape beyond an impromptu mission like this. “Ensign Mayhew is filling out the paperwork for this little excursion so we won’t get in trouble,” he told Brianthe. “That means someone knows where we are if we run into trouble.”

Bri ignored Ace's smile and its implication. "Thank you," she said to Travis. "This gentleman works with intelligence and may be of use." She looked around at the others. "Shall we?"

"Ladies first," Ace insisted.

“There should be an extra away team kit in the shuttle,” Travi said, lowering the rear door of the shuttle so they could board. He assumed Ace would want helm. “You want co-pilot?” he asked Brianthe, since she was the senior officer and mission leader.'

Ace tried not to snicker when Travis asked Bri if she wanted to co-pilot, but thought better of it, and held onto a satisfied smirk. When he almost immediately collected himself, he took the controls of the helm and replied, "She has to. She has the coordinates for this adventure."

Brianthe smiled at Travis. "Thank you. Yes, I should enter in the coordinates once we reach Pangaea." She still was uncertain about her decision, but she had to find out for herself why Alanna hadn't called her back, or even said she would be busy. It wasn't like her to just disappear.

Calling back to everyone, Ace announced, "Strap in folks, we're going to go in strong and fast."

Travis settled down in the back. “Is there a reason for that?” he asked. “We aren’t looking to surprise anyone, or under fire.”

"You never know," Ace returned. "Cardassians are getting itchy, and I see no reason to treat this like a luxury cruise when someone may be missing. The sooner we have answers, the sooner we can do something about it."

Brianthe strapped in. "As long as it doesn't get us unnecessary attention. We're heading north."

"No such thing as unnecessary attention," Ace replied to Bri, grinning back. Before she could scold him or grimace, he said, "I understood what you meant, but you're definitely taking the fun out of a shuttle ride."

“It’s meant to be fun?” Travis asked, securing himself.

Ace turned back to Tavis and said, "Clearly you have not been doing it right."

Bri just shook her head.

Ace snickered as he called out to the docking bay, "This is shuttlecraft NCC-70478. We are requesting clearance on our flight to Pangaea."

"This is DS5, shuttlecraft NCC-70478. You have clearance. Safe travels."

Giving Bri a mischievous smile, he said, "Shuttlecraft NCC-70478 is now debarking." Out loud he said, "Thrusters on." The shuttlecraft lifted off smoothly and started moving out of the tunnel. Nothing was amiss.

DS5 called back, as the shuttlecraft left DS5, "You have cleared the station, you are free to proceed to impulse."

Ace smiled at Bri and said, "Better start programming those coordinates!" as he thrust the shuttlecraft down into a sharp dive towards Pangaea.

Could this man carry on any conversation without using at least one innuendo? Bri wondered. "Head for the portal complex first. I'll put in the coordinates as soon as we enter the atmosphere." She wanted anyone watching from the station to think this was a routine trip.

"Coordinates programmed." The shuttlecraft sharply changed its course towards the portal coordinates. "We should reach the atmosphere in no time," he told his co-pilot, Bri. He looked at her expectantly.

She nodded and entered in a flight path that would take them just past the portal site and around to a spot near Alanna's retreat. From there Bri could give verbal directions. "Okay. Once we get near the complex, the new coordinates will kick in."

"Are you putting me on auto pilot now?" Ace asked with some innuendo and disappointment.

"Not yet. You're in control until we're four clicks from the compound. You've still got about fifteen minutes to impress me."

Travis rolled his eyes. Everyone thought Security was bad. They were nothing compared to pilots.

"I did not realize you were an exhibitionist," Ace replied with a loud laugh. Knowing he would get a wry look from Bri, he said, "Don't even give me a look. How could I not say that in response to your comment? Live a little!" He sent the shuttle into a plunging set of loops. "Have some fun."

"Live a little? With you at the helm?" She rolled her eyes. "I am not an exhibitionist. I'm a botanist. There's a difference." She was deliberately misunderstanding him.

"I'm well aware of your dirty side," he replied with a snicker.

Travis held on as his stomach did flips. Being enlisted in a room full of officers sucked!

"Only when it rains in the arboretum," she replied, primly. Then she turned her focus to the forward window.

"I'll keep that in mind," Ace responded with a small chuckle.

The trip to the planet was uneventful. When they approached the portal complex, the new coordinates popped up. "That should get us to Alanna's," Bri said.

"Alright, I'll let you take over from here," Ace told Brianthe.

“Thank God,” Travis murmured under his breath.

Bri flashed Travis a smile. She'd let Alanna or someone else pilot the last few times she'd been down here, but she could handle a shuttle as long as there were no complications. Fortunately, the weather was fine today. However, as they approached the woods where Alanna built her cabin, clouds began to form. They were the white, fluffy cumulonimbus variety that meant little wind and no rain.

As they got closer, she noticed something that seemed to go from the ground to the clouds in the distance. "That's odd. It wasn't there before."

“What is it?” Travis asked, leaning forward. “It looks a bit like...rope? Green rope?”

Having spent a couple of days in the arboretum with Bri and Alanna, Ace responded, "I don't think that's rope. That's a vine, isn't it, Bri?"

The botanist was surprised by Ace's comment. "Yeah. It's a vine. And, based on the distance, it's huge." She adjusted the direction of the shuttle. "It's close to Alanna's. She must've gone to check it out." That still didn't explain why she wasn't answering comms. "Let's see how far up it goes."

She flew into the clouds, still keeping a safe distance. But when the shuttle came out in the sunshine, there was no sign of the vine. "That's odd." She checked the sensors. "It doesn't register on the sensors, either. Not from up here, anyway."

Brianthe flew over the top of where the vine was and then down through the clouds. When the shuttle circled back, the vine was still there. "I think we should take a closer look." She glanced at the other two. "We'll check Alanna's place first."

(To be continued...)

Lieutenant JG Brianthe Oaxaca
Assistant Chief Science Officer

Lieutenant JG Ace Cannon
Assistant Chief Operations Officer

Chief Petty Officer 3rd class Travis Nottingham
Security Officer

Roger Templar
Intel

 

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