Never Rains

Posted on Wed Apr 8th, 2009 @ 12:30am by Lieutenant Commander Wesley Kemmer & Captain Elsie Halliwell

1,874 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Wolves in Sheep's Clothing
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: Current

After ensuring Commander Lane was actually in his ready room, Wes Kemmer looked over the reports as he made his way there. Callahan was right about one thing, he couldn’t quite bring himself to believe that this was all the information they had pertaining to a supposed Starfleet Captain. Reading on the other PADD, he looked over the information once again so that he was able to give a verbal report to Lane as well; time was short and with Commander Arkham being transported back aboard soon, his presence was required on the surface.

From what he had read and heard, Citadel Prime was a remarkable place to behold; nice warm climates, blue skies and wonderful architecture that almost sang if you were listening hard enough when the breeze passed by. Certainly a lot nicer than some of the other dark, cold and dingy places he had served previously. However, a certain level of darkness had shrouded itself around the planet, as negotiations had broken down early and there was a general unease once again in the general populace.

Passing through and across the bridge hardly taking in any of the scenery or glances from the bridge staff, Kemmer headed straight for the ready room and without taking his eyes from the PADD’s in his hands, pressed the button to ‘ring the bell’.

"Come," the Trill said as he swiftly tapped at the controls of the righted console before him, darkening the screen.

“Just checking in with you before I headed to the surface, Commander.� He finally looked up to Commander Lane’s virtually worried looking face as if a dark cloud had come over his mind; he was obviously thinking about other material. “Is everything alright?� he asked as he took a seat, mainly to take pressure off of his leg.

"Yes, Kemmer, thank you," he said with a wince. "I, uh, I'm just a bit preoccupied at the moment is all." Switching to a more direct and business-like tone, he said, "What do you have for me?"

“I’m sure things will pan out alright, they always do in these situations,� there was an excessive pause in Kemmer’s speech at that moment, his mind back on track for the news he was about to deliver, “eventually.� He finished. “I’m afraid that I can’t offer any ease to your concerns right now though.� He said, offering the PADD’s to the commanding officer's opened hand.

Taking it, Lane thumbed at the bottom button as the text scrolled down, chirping as it did so. "Go on," he said, not looking at him but casting his blue eyes downwards, skimming the pages.

“To give you a summary,� he started, “Alexandra Harwood, blonde hair, blue eyes, born in 2352, began service in Starfleet at the tender age of twenty-one, at least six months ahead of schedule due to her outstanding performance at the Academy and her graduating early due the Borg incursion in early 2373. Notice I say serving in Starfleet, not for Starfleet.� Kemmer took a breath and swallowed before going on. “Her service record then gets a little sketchier even more than it was. Her actions in Starfleet have for the most part been described as exemplary, however it has been noted by a few that she has either taken the ‘high-ground’ so to speak a bit more than necessary either by her own authority or by something higher.�

"Oh?" he replied, cocking his head slightly and raising his eyebrow.

“I’m afraid that I’m unable to disclose the details as they’ve already been classified as Level 5.�

"Level 5?" Lane exclaimed, placing down the PADDs onto the desk in front of him. "Wow, there's some weight behind that order." He held his chin in the cup of his hand, and as he fixed his eyes onto his chief intelligence officer, he narrowed them. "Do you have access to that secured file, Kemmer, or is that also out of reach for you, too?"

Wes looked down and then back at Commander Lane, as if he didn’t entirely like what he was going to say. “Once Intelligence classifies something to Level 5, only Admiral’s are able to view that information, and even then some things are denied or done so on a need to know basis.� He paused considering the alternatives, all things being equal then this would be fine, however things were not equal, and they needed to know. “I do have a possibility, but it’s slim and questionable at best.�

"Are you a poker man, Wes?" he asked, with a glint in his eye.

Seeing what Lane was actually asking, to attempt to break into classified material; “Are you ordering me to do so?� Kemmer asked knowing the ramifications.

Lane simply nodded.

“I’ve never had a problem following orders per se, Commander. Every once in a while, there will come an order that questions moral integrity, and then it’s up to the individual to decide whether it’s right or not.� Kemmer took a deep breath thinking whether to follow an illegal order or not. “I don’t think its right for an entire service personnel record to be classed as Level 5, parts of or classified maybe, but not to that degree. I’ll try to find a way to make this work, sir.�

"Asking you to do this would mean that we were breaking Federation law in the process, not to mention the code you should honour as a Starfleet officer." He sighed and looked away from his second officer. "However, I happen to agree with you, and don't think that such a heavy lock should be used for someone I am about to take advice from. Should anything come of what I am about to order you to do, I shall bear the brunt of anything Command wields. I'll protect you and your career, Commander."

Kemmer wasn’t sure how much ‘protection’ Lane could truly offer. In truth he wasn’t all that worried what Command would have to say about things, as it wouldn’t be the first time he’s had to hack into classified documents, even the Federation’s, but all Wes could say at that point was more of a rhetorical question “Have you ever heard the old adage, shit rolls down hill?�

There was a heavy silence then, before Kemmer went on. “For now then, the only other information that I could dig up is that Miss Harwood was incommunicado with the Federation for almost a year from September 2381 to July 2382, and that she has served with our first officer in the past, though the confirmation on that is null and void, and the capacity of which is only based on rumour.�

"I knew about her past professional history with Rowena, but I wonder what Harwood was doing during for the time she was… out of touch. Any inclinations?"

“None. I’m afraid the tracks to form any sort of basis on that one are very well covered. It’s not like the Level 5 thing, the information just isn’t there.� Taking in Lane’s disappointed look, he didn’t like not knowing who he was serving with just like Kemmer didn’t, and he went on with some brighter news, however insignificantly. “I can provide a little more information on the other subject though. My staff has done a fine job of finding information out about our escort and the pirate activity of the sector, and the reasons why our approach has been so quiet.�

"Hit me," Lane said, rolling his eyes. "This could prove interesting for the road ahead for us all."

“With this I’m sure I will; it’s a lot shorter but more telling. From what we’ve been able to determine, the Turian’s sent the escort to meet up with us almost five days prior to our arrival at Citadel Prime, that ship was not actually cancelled but destroyed, and a falsified report was filed that detailed the escort being cancelled and recalled.�

"Destroyed?" Lane sat back in his chair and blew out a mouthful of air from his cheeks. "Do we know by whom?"

“It was destroyed by mercenaries sent by the under-guard of the Salarian Chief of Staff...� And another pause happened, the air seemingly becoming thicker before Wes finished this part of the report off with “backed by members of the Asari government, though who we don’t know.�

"So, the Salarian's and Asari are in bed together?"

“Scary thought isn’t it; I don’t even know how it would work... I’m afraid that’s not quite all though. For matters better or worse, the Citadel government wanted the Archimedes to arrive at Citadel Prime untouched and undamaged, and so large amounts of funds were paid off to the pirates and mercenary groups in this sector to stay away. They then hit the Nagasaki on more than one occasion due to two main reasons, one; they were leaving and so became a trivial target and two; to make us think they were still in the area, and still a threat. The Citadel unrest factions knew that you would be sending Commander Arkham to the surface, and I suspect they knew that something like this might happen, perhaps even planned it.� Kemmer took a breath, “I don’t think that everyone is as ready for peace as they would let us believe, commander.�

"It's starting to look that way, isn't it?" he asked, scratching his forehead with the pads of his fingertips. "Good work, Kemmer. And, thank you. I owe you one. But, with this new information, are there any further provisions that you will require before heading down? I think that you should maybe take a larger detail for protection." His mind quickly flashed back, flooded with the light of this development. "I just can't see how a Federation presence was requested if they are not interested in peace. And I still think that there's a more pressing reason why the Archimedes is here. But, I just can't quite put my finger on it."

“With this information, I think that that the Archimedes may not have been the reason we specifically were sent, but your first officer, and based on what we know or don’t know about the involvement of Miss Harwood and her connections with Commander Arkham, I wouldn’t trust them alone for too long.� Wes thought about the provisional affairs but stated, “As for provisions, perhaps a few more security but that’s all. Given the situation and events, we want to protect our people down there more, but not tip our hand as to how much we know about the situation we find ourselves in.�

He cleared his throat and leant in slightly. "I have a subspace conference with Command in about twenty minutes. Apparently, the top brass are not happy with the way the situation is developing. It looks like we're in the spotlight already. I just hope that we can get things back on-track."

“To tell you the truth neither am I. I hope they have something up their sleeve for you.�

 

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