In reply to LT Lyn Nipay (msg # 50):

There would be time to mourn later--when they got out of this mess. Parry-Jones closed her eyes for a moment. "What's the status of the serum?"

Fabulous. A Romulan or a Kilngon ship with Romulan tech. Parry-Jones turned to ch'Pertha. "Have you received any intelligence--even heard any rumors in bars--that the Romulans have been active in this sector?"

With the arrival of security staff, all active engineering crew turn thier attention to the impulse engines.

ch’Pertha turned towards the Captain with a curious look,
“Actually, Captain, Ltn Borden of the Titanic was talking about something interesting”, when he and ch’Pertha and a few others were playing poker, “a few weeks ago when we were at Starbase Horizon.
He was saying ...”


Cue Starfleet Command
- rolled 2,1.  Insight+Security (Espionage) 15.
I used Espionage Focus, we knowing rumours about your enemies seems to be appropriate.
And does a ‘1’ on a Focus give even more successes????     I doubt it, so:
= 4 successes

ch'Pertha dispatched teams to both the med labs and Engineering.  They rushed to the scene, eager to help.

LT Nipay turned from the Captain to her board.  "Checking, ma'am," she replied when asked the status of the serum. "They're still picking up the pieces down there," she reported, obviously not getting any definite answers from Sickbay yet.

Down in Engineering, with the arrival of ch'Pertha's teams, JavKer and his group can turn their attention to the matter of propulsion.  At the moment, there's no power, and everything is down.  Shutting down the warp core should NOT have caused this... there's been an overload somewhere.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:39, Tue 05 Feb 2019.

Nipay's face was a mask of controlled disappointment as she turned back to Captain Parry-Jones.  "Ma'am..." she said, the tone in her voice giving away that the news wasn't good.  "They're still sifting through the mess, but the nurses report that it's bad.  Large quantities of the serum are ruined, their casings shattered. They're trying to ascertain how much of it they can salvage."


Cut to Commercial Break...

OOC: And with that we will close Scene 1 "DOWN THE WORMHOLE" and open Scene 2... "PICKING UP THE PIECES".  The significance of the scene change is, -1 Momentum... but all 1/scene abilities are now refreshed, such as the Captain's "Rally" action.  I would recommend using a bit of Momentum before such a Rally, however... the cap is still 6, and you currently have 5 Momentum.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:44, Tue 05 Feb 2019.

SCENE 2: "PICKING UP THE PIECES"

The Independence hurtled towards the Klingon border, out of control, many of her systems down. They had only 3 hours (relative, ship-board time) before they crossed the border... and into Klingon space.  The precious serum they carried to the colony on Dourap IV's status was uncertain, their CMO dead in the turbulence from the wormhole and their emergency drop out of warp.

Before he could relay his rumors and intel to the captain, ch'Pertha's comm panel beeped.

"Sir, Stirling here," came the steady, deep tones of his lieutenant.  "Down in the Med Labs.  Looks like a freight train hit the place.  Doc's been crushed under crates of the serum.  A lot of it's smashed, spilled all over the floor.  But there's something odd..."

"The restraints designed to hold the shelving in place, and the crates, they've been cut," he reported.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:59, Tue 05 Feb 2019.

Damage Report: Decker, using the ship’s computer, can make a Reason + Science Task at Difficulty 1 to determine what caused the wormhole. Analyzing the sensor logs has an Interval of 5 minutes.

Armed with this knowledge, Jav'Ker can perform a Reason + Engineering Task at Difficulty 1 to discover more data... this survey also has an Interval of 5 minutes. Both these Tasks are assisted by the ship’s Sensors + Engineering.

These Tasks must be attempted before anything else, and the second one cannot be attempted until the first is complete.

Momentum may be spent... 1 Momentum buys you an extra die, or 3 Momentum can buy you two dice.  I doubt you need to spend such at this point, but FYI.

Have at it! :)

ch’Pertha listener to Stirling’s report, then replied, “Understood, Lieutenant.  Continue the cleanup, I’ll be down shortly”.

Returning his attention to Captain Parry-Jones, ch’Pertha continued thing the answer to her question:
“... the Klingons and Romulans have been onwn to exchange of technology, Captain.
We know, for example, that the Klingon Empire has sent the Romulans several older D7 hulls”.

As he spoke, ch’Pertha continued operating his console: coordinating Security reinforcements around the ship, and scanning for threats.
“Some of that exchange seems to have included some cloaking technology.
But there's been no evidence that the Klingons have actually implemented it ... yet.

Our current understanding, though, is that the cloaks the Romulans gave are too weak to cover a D7 K'tinga class cruiser.
Even in Romulan service, the cloaking device doesn't work as well on the D7 as it does on the older, smaller War Eagles”.

After a brief pause, he continued ... almost as a secondary thought:
“However, Orion pirates have been known to steal Romulan cloaking devices in the past, and outfit a select few of their raiders with them”.


“Captain, Lieutenant Stirling reports something suspicious in Med-bay.
With your permission, I’d like to take a look?”
This message was last edited by the player at 16:11, Tue 05 Feb 2019.

Having relayed his bad news, Decker returned to his station. He frowned at the forward display for a moment, and then got to work. After setting up the long-range sensors on a continuous loop scanning for warp signatures, he accessed the recent sensor logs and began a rigorous analysis of all data during their recent encounter looking for any anomalies that might explain the warp engine imbalance.

Reason (12) + Science (5) assisted by Sensors (9) + Engineering (2). Technical Expertise allows for 1 re-roll.
Today: LCDR Christopher Decker rolled 24 using 3d20 ((2,9,13))
Today: LCDR Christopher Decker rolled 15 using 1d20 ((15)) - re-rolling the 13.
Total of two successes. Will immediately spend the generated momentum to Obtain Information if there is an obvious question generated by the base results.

Decker's scans reveal that the wormhole was caused by a warp field imbalance on the Independence... not an outside source or influence.  Relaying this to the Chief Engineer takes a touch of a button.

OOC: No need for Immediate Spend, adding to the Momentum Pool.  JavKer is up... see post #61. :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:55, Tue 05 Feb 2019.

In reply to Starfleet Command (msg # 64):

"Captain, after a thorough analysis of the sensor logs, I'm convinced that whatever is out there was not responsible for the wormhole event. There are no signs of any external fields or energies that influenced our warp field. I've already notified Lieutenant Commander JavKer."

Today: LCDR Gullak JavKer rolled 15 using 2d20 with rolls of 12,3.  Reason 8 + Engineering 5. Target 1.

OOC: That's three successes, but you forgot to add the ship's die for help.
07:17, Today: Starfleet Command rolled 2 using 1d20 with rolls of 2.  Ship's Sensors + Engineering.
That brings you to a total of 5 successes.  Momentum tank is full!

For now.

I directed any excess Momentum towards an Immediate Spend to Obtain Information, which gives you the following, below... ;)


Armed with Decker's sensor data, JavKer is able to track down the source of the problem. The field imbalance was due to a damaged plasma injector about halfway up the starboard nacelle pylon. There’s also very little in the way of actual physical damage to the ship; most of the systems were taken down by an overloaded power grid.

JavKer knows it will take at least 60 minutes for the nacelle pylons to cool so that the plasma injector can be replaced; warp drive is impossible until that's done.

The plasma injector was damaged by an overload in the power system, which also disabled the safety interlocks that would normally have taken the ship out of warp when the problem was first detected. It’s essential that this be repaired, or the problem may happen again the next time the ship goes to warp. Damage control teams have isolated the overload to a section on the starboard side of the engineering section, on three decks. That section is a maze of junctions and Jefferies tubes, and with the power out, it has the Complications Dark and Difficult to Navigate.

Numerous engine control relays were taken out by the overload, disabling the impulse engines and maneuvering thrusters, as well as making it dangerous to go to warp. Repairing or replacing them is an arduous and time-consuming process...
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:27, Wed 06 Feb 2019.

[Overcomms] captain, the warp drive malfunction has been identified but its at least an hour before we can begin repairs.

With your permission, we'll put our efforts towards resettimg impulse drives and restoring power and non-essential systems until. The warp drive has sufficently cooled.

Parry-Jones stood and tugged at her uniform. "Suspicious, Mr. ch'Pertha? Let's go."

"Permission granted. I have every faith in your ability to get things done as quickly and safely as possible. Please keep me apprised of any changes."

"Shields are a definite plus, Mr. Mcreeg." They are so adorable and young at this stage of their careers, she thought. I don't think I was ever that young.

"You have the console, Ltn E'Detra", ch'Pertha said, and strode out of the Bridge alongside the Captain.

As they walked to Med Lab, he explained his thoughts to Parry-Jones,
"Ltn Stirling informs me that the strapping that should have been holding the medicines secure have been cut.
And from what I just heard from Engineering, the issue that sent our ship spinning could likely have been ... engineered.  I'm no engineer, but it seems to have been caused in an out-of-the-way locations, easily reached without much chance of having been spotted.  But would create great effect throughout the ship; causing turbulence.

Obviously, whomever cut the strapping knew that such an incident was imminent ... one wouldn't compromise the straps on the mere hope that they would get shaken around.

It may have been some of the regular crew,", ch'Pertha continued, but he didn't think so: he trusted Starfleet members.
"But more likely, some of those who came on board while we were at Starbase 24.

The strapping could have been cut by anyone.  But the engineering incident, I am guessing, took skilled knowledge.  But it was likely that the culprit was able to get access to the location without seen.

Whomever cut those straps, however, would have had to be very careful.   Med-bay is a well populated and monitored area.
Thus, I'll be going through the logs and footage looking for anyone who should not have been there", he said.

Also:  he knew, the culprits had to still be on board.  With nowhere to run if they were discovered.  And so they had a plan ... and they'd want to know how close Security was on their tail.
And the only way to do that would be to keep an (albeit subtle) watch on Security.

So as ch'Pertha and the Captain walked to, and entered, the Medbay, ch'Pertha was on heightened watch for anyone acting suspicious: working where they shouldn't, or too close, for no reason ... and for anyone trying to subtly watch him.
- rolled  3,16,7.  Insight+Security (15) +Momentum die.
- 'Espionage' Focus
- Constantly Watching:   When you attempt a Task to detect danger or hidden enemies, reduce the Difficulty by 1.

= 4 Successes at -1 Difficulty

In reply to LCDR Naryss ch'Pertha (msg # 72):

In a low voice, Parry-Jones said, "We have to find out if the saboteur is still aboard. I hate to think it's one of the crew, but it's possible. Pull everything you can from our time at Starbase 24--starbase personnel, visitors, civilian medical staff. And especially that blonde who slept with half the maintenance crew and broke the food synthesizer. As far as med-bay goes, if you don't see anything out of the ordinary in the logs, I'd say we have two possibilities: it's one of us, or it's someone who is invisible to current security measures. I don't like either."

She paused. "Fair play, Mr. ch'Pertha--this doesn't reflect poorly on you or your team. Someone worked very hard to circumvent the security you've put in place."

Decker hates to step away from his station at a time like this, but knows that it needs to be done. He calls his second to the bridge to take his place OCC: presumably the next most skilled officer on the ship at operating the main sensors and as soon as she arrives, he moves to the command chair.

"Obviously you need to keep a close watch on the border - we may not have a lot of options right now, however it would be a poor ending for us if we didn't even see it coming - but that cloaked ship, or whatever it was, may still be out there. Keep a sharp eye out for it."

Wary of any additional malfunctions, the engineering team activate and test each impulse drive subsystem individually before they can activate the drive fully.

On one of the few active monitors, a display runs down the time to the border

Unsure of what to help even as the Captain's comment is still ringing in his ears, he turns to face the acting deck officer "There must be something I can do, some way I can help?" Xanato's tone of voice making him sound a bit younger than he actually is.

In reply to LT JG Xanatos Mcreeg (msg # 76):

Decker smiled slightly, "One of the more difficult lessons they should have taught you at the Academy, Lieutenant, is that sometimes there's nothing you can actually *do*. Man your post. Stay sharp. Keep an eye on your instruments. Once the Impulse engines are back online, or if someone shows up before then, you'll need to act on a moment's notice."

He shrugs, "For the moment, that's all we can do. That's our duty. That's why we're here."

Presence (7) + Command (2) - you really shouldn't leave Decker in charge...
In fact, we'd better throw in a Momentum die...
09:59, Today: LCDR Christopher Decker rolled 20 using 3d20 with rolls of 10,5,5.  Reassuring Xanatos and the rest of the bridge. Presence (7) + Command (2) + 1 Momentum.
2 Successes!!!

Nodding to show both that he listened and as a sign of respect, Xanatos responds "You're right, that was probably the hardest thing to learn, and I still have issues, but I'll make sure I'm ready for anything that needs our..my attention" He turns back fully to his station, eyes moving, hands at the ready.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:02, Sun 10 Feb 2019.