Star Trek Sim: Star Trek RPG:LOGS: More Questions than Answers Episode 9

The Lady Alara glided elegantly toward the armored flitter almost as if in regal procession. Her beautiful, long, black hair and her ornate, blue robes flowing gracefully with her movements and the gentle breeze. Her robes and eyes were a most extraordinary shade of blue. Both twinkled in the Galadon sunlight. The iridescent robes sparkled silver from the sun and her eyes from her thoughts. She was happy to be back home on Galadon Twelve.

There was a lightness in the step that had not been there before during the failed negotiations on the USS Eagle with the hated enemy of the Galadons, the Tureth.

There were, however, things that were bothering her deeply underneath her momentary elation. Besides the mounting conflict and tensions with their enemy, the Tureth, the Galadons had been engaging in many deceptions.

Although she could easily not have participated in a certain one of these deceptions, she felt that she should set a good example and obey the orders that she herself had made.

She had ordered the Galadons onboard the USS Eagle to become friendly as possible with the crew. The problem was that she really cared about this alien that she had pretended to like initially. Now her feelings for this male alien were genuine. He was intelligent, kind, polite, handsome, yet it was his reaction to her that intrigued her the most. Despite her obvious attentions, he did not seem to notice the flirting and never fawned all over her like most other males she had met. He was not at all like the humans on which she had been briefed.

She thought about how wrong the reports of her intelligence operatives had been about the Federation peoples and especially humans. They had likened them to those vile Tureth animals. Given her new, personal insight, she wanted to be able to tell this human walking next to her who she really was and other things that both she and all of Galadon were hiding from the Federation. She also wanted to welcome him more openly to Galadon.

Instead, she smiled sadly and continued the walk.

Duty comes first.

Captain Kematsopoulos looked around at the Galadon Twelve as he walked toward the flitter. The planet was beautiful, but plagued by these unusual storms. A gentle breeze wafted through the alien trees. It was the sort of welcome, gentle breeze enjoyed by most humanoid races, but it would also be last of its kind for some time.

A storm was coming to Imperial City. You could feel the storm's precursors in the air. The birds sang a warning song, carried far by the breeze, like beautiful messengers racing before a foul deed to come. The air was electric and the tension was high.

He turned to gaze at the enchanting Lady Alara. He thought how she and the planet were suited to each other. Both seemed to have much more going on than either was telling.

The Lady Alara was intelligent and beautiful. Nouri liked her very much. He knew very little about her despite all the hours they had talked. He knew from her Starfleet dossier, and by talking with her and the other Galadons that she was distantly related to the royal house and a moderate ranking diplomat.

The Captain had been still grieving deeply the loss of his wife for these past years. He never imagined he could enjoy a woman's company again, as he had just been doing. She was brilliant and most intriguing to him. But this would end soon. The Galadons were delivered safely to their homeworld. He was just here for parting diplomatic pleasantries in his official capacity as Captain. He would likely never see the enchanting Lady Alara again.

Had things been different, he would have spent even more time with her. But they were not. He was a Starfleet Captain now and responsible for hosting the negotiations between the Galadons and the Tureth. He could not give the appearance of partiality, even at the expense of his own happiness. He looked at her and those mesmerizing blue eyes of hers again, wanting to tell her something.

The Lady Alara and Captain Kematsopoulos continued walking towards Ambassador Garne's armored flitter. Everyone entered the flitter. Its engines thrummed to life and it hovered smoothly in the air.

The Galadonese Ambassador gave the tour of the city, starting with the Gahn Building and the glorious Fountains of Imperial City. The pleasant tour was suddenly cut short, after the Ambassador received a most disturbing message. Ambassador Garne told everyone that they must get to the palace quickly because the storms were arriving much sooner than anticipated.

As the flitter got closer to the palace, the Away Team was shocked to see angry protesters. The mob gathered with hate gleaming in their eyes and signs that said. . .

"Death to the Tureth"

"Leave aliens from the Federation before it is too late"

"Keep Galadon Pure"

Ambassador Garne turned to his aide and whispered, "It's bad, very bad . . . we have to prepare ourselves . . . but first, get them to safety."

As the clouds broke releasing a torrent of hail, the angry mob scattered.

The occupants of the flitter were drenched from the rain, but able to make it safely inside the palace.

Once inside the palace another aide rushed to the Ambassador and whispered in his ear.

The Ambassador listened carefully to aide and said to those with him, "Hurry! Go below! Take those stairs. It is best to stay in the basement for protection from the storms. It is the only way that we can assure our safety."

BOOM! A loud noise reverberated in the palace halls. The Lady Alara became frightened and moved closer to the Captain as she descended the staircase.

Captain Kematsopoulos noticed the acrid scent in the air and easily deduced that the loud noise was not the result of thunder. He turned and saw the Lady Alara's reaction. Nouri instinctively and protectively moved closer to her, as they all arrived in the basement.

BOOM AGAIN! This time the lighting went offline in the palace, including the basement where the away team was located and someone screamed.

Meanwhile back on board the USS Eagle, the ship's computers were finally able to sift the explosions from the storm data.

"Sir??!!" I am reading explosions in the palace in the immediate vicinity of the Away Team," Ensign Barton exclaimed.

CDR Bond, "Try the new randomizing filter from engineering and science.

Attempt beam up anyway!"

"Yes, sir!" the Ensign replied.

As the Ensign transferred the program to the transporters, another explosion rocked the palace, shaking it to its very foundations. The basement ceiling weakened. A sick groan was heard. The supports of the ceiling rebelled at the impossible task of keeping the ceiling up.

"Everyone take cover! The ceiling is going to collapse," the Captain ordered.

The Lady Alara however had other ideas and she ran into another room.

"NO!" the Captain yelled as he ran after her. The ceiling heaved again.

Captain Kematsopoulos threw the Lady Alara to floor and covered her with his body. Barely in time, he was able to protect her from the shower of debris that rained down upon them as the ceiling gave way. When the rubble had finished falling, the Captain lie there, unconscious and pinned under slabs of the ceiling.

Others in the basement were more lucky and had made it to safer places.

But all were trapped under the rubble. The terrorists continued their assault on the palace.

Back on the USS Eagle, the life signs of everyone in the palace basement winked out.

"Sir something is wrong . . .," the Ensign replied quite disturbed.

"What!?" asked CDR Bond.

"They are gone sir," he replied, the truth as he saw it finally sinking in.

"So the beam was successful?" CDR Bond asked, hoping against the odds.

"No sir, no life signs at all. I cannot read any life signs where the AT was at. We didn't get them . . . Sir, given the proximity of the bombs . . .

I can only speculate that . . . Well, they are dead, sir. All dead. I am reading no life signs at all for our people and the Galadons with them," the shaken Ensign finally finished.