Observations, part 3

Posted on Mon Nov 1st, 2010 @ 3:41pm by Captain T'mpest Michaels & Lieutenant Commander Dylan Blake & Lieutenant JG Jason Fisher & Lieutenant Jimmy Cooper

1,500 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Structured Shoreleave - Marchwiel

ON

[OLD]

His body felt tense as he peered through the fading light to make out the rough outline of the approaching figure... still unable to make out its face Dylan remained cautious, tense and ready to defend himself if needed.
Until, carried on the gentle, cooling breeze he could hear the soft, unmistakable bleeping from a Starfleet tricorder.
"T'kaarch?" he whispered, "is that you?"

It was.


[NEW]

[Back at the Observation Post]

The wagon came to a stop at the edge of the base camp. T'mpest climbed down hoping whoever came out to greet them would be in character.

Zhukov had heard them coming, and had gotten the message from T'kaarch. He told Fisher to stay hidden in the well disguised OP while he went to investigate. Vladimir wasn't sure WHY T'mpest was on the cart with the two locals, but he was sure there was a good reason for it.

Zhukov had his hands on his belt as he walked up to the wagon. He saw two people on it, a man and a woman, and T'mpest was standing beside it.

"Ah, there you are. I've been worried about you darling." Zhukov said as he walked towards the wagon. "I hope you are not injured. Who are these travelers?" he asked the man on the front of the wagon.

"I am Retock, and this is my wife, Helda. We are going into the city, and your wife saved us from being attacked by roadside bandits. I'm not sure how she did it but she scared them off." said Retock who had not witnessed the entire fight between T'mpest and the bandits.

"Ahh, Retock. My name is Zutov and I see you have already met my wife." said Zhukov.

"Well Zutov, in light of the situation, I must insist that you and your wife accompany us into the city. Don't you know it isn't safe out here after dark?" Retock asked him.

"Retock, it has been many years since I have been in this area. I know that in other cities, it is safe for many miles outside the walls. Why is it not safe here?" Zhukov asked him.

"Well, ever since King Farwon took over the city-state about a decade ago, and we fought in the wars, most of the good young men have left to fight or have died. Now, only the lower class remains." Retock replied. "I myself only came home from the front a year ago, though I was in the supply branch. Are you from Eyton?" asked Retock.

Zhukov cleared his throat and replied, "Um, no. I visited here once many years ago and wanted to bring my wife here, but it appears that things certainly have changed." he said to Retock, trying to skirt the question.

Retock nodded. "Indeed, they have. Now, please, I beg of you to come with us and abandon your camp here." he said.

His wife nodded. "Yes, we have a spare room for you to stay in. Please? It is the least we could do." she added.

Zhukov looked at T'mpest. There was no getting out of it without insulting them or maybe even telling the guards at the city entrance about their presence.

"Very well." Vladimir said, "But can you give us a moment or two to gather a few items from the camp before we leave with you?" he asked.

Retock nodded. "Yes, but hurry. Those bandits might be back soon." he said.

Zhukov motioned for T'mpest to come over to him. She began to walk towards him and as she came up close he put his right arm around the back of her and pulled her close as they walked away.

"T'mpest, I hope you don't mind me getting a little close to you. We do need to appear to be together." he said to her as they began to walk back towards the camp.

"I'm more human than Vulcan," she assured him. "I don't flinch when someone touches me." She was mildly surprised that he even felt the need to ask such a question when they all knew there was a chance of their running into locals. And he obviously didn't know that she was a tactile person.

"So what the hell happened that got you involved with the newlyweds here?" Zhukov asked her.

Since there wasn't a lot of time for explanations, she stopped and faced him, placing a hand gently on his cheek so that she could communicate with him telepathically. From the outside it would look like a loving caress. In a moment she showed him what had happened.

Zhukov took a deep breath. It had been many years since he had made any telepathic contact with anyone. "Well, under the circumstances, I don't see how you could have done anything different. I hope the Captain will see it that way. I um...I sent T'kaarch out looking for you." Zhukov was still trying to clear his mind and get his thoughts straight.

He managed to say, "What do you want the other four to do while we go spend the night in the city?" he asked her as they walked up to one of the tents.

"Continue on as planned. It's bad enough that we have to go into the city; I don't want the others involved. I chose to accompany Retock and Helda: to minimize contamination." She grabbed her pack then grinned. "This isn't what I expected, but it's a fabulous opportunity to learn more about the people."

Zhukov nodded in agreement. "Absolutely. It's almost a Holodeck program come to life. From what I've seen, these people are somewhere in what we would call the Industrial Age. There are factories, gunpowder firearms, and even something resembling a crude railroad, but their political system is still several hundred years behind where Earth was at this point technologically. Imagine if the ancient Greeks had muskets and I think that's what were in for." he said to her.

"Yes," she replied. "I've done extensive research on this planet. They resemble the Tunarans in many ways. I hope to have a look at some of their history and literature, if I can."

As he placed his pack on his back he squatted down, turned around, and activated his communicator on his wrist. "T'kaarch, Blake, Fisher, Marstin, this is Lieutenant Zhukov. If any of you can hear this message, listen up. Commander Michaels and I are heading into the city with two natives. The four of you are to remain here and OBSERVE. Do not engage the locals unless they attack first. Try and remain hidden. We will be back tomorrow during the day to meet back up with you. If we fail to report back in three days, return to the Ranger and list the two of us as missing. As senior officer, Lieutenant Blake is in charge until we return. Zhukov out."

T'kaarch, without activating his communicator, snirked at the Lieutenant's name. Then he answered. "Underrrstood, everyone herrre hearrrd you... good luck."

The colour faded from Blake's face at the news. This was just wonderful...everything so far the Captain did not want to happen was taking place. Things couldn't really become much worse could they?

T'mpest quickly tapped her combadge that looked more like a decorative pin at the moment. "T'mpest to T'kaarch. You're in charge of the research. Get as much information as you can. T'mpest out."

"Rrrogerr commanderrr... be carrreful out therrre." T'kaarch then turned off his communicator, and looked at Blake. "Let's go."

With that, Zhukov stood back up and turned to T'mpest. He reached out, took her hand, and the two of them walked back towards the wagon.

"Whatever happens now, T'mpest, I'm glad we are going in together." said Vladimir.

She gave him a bright smile before composing her expression as they walked back to the wagon. She couldn't help be excited at the prospect of going into the city. There was so much she wanted to see and learn. Zhukov said they'd return in the morning, but if she could, she wanted to stay until afternoon and have a good look around. She looked over at Vladimir again and smiled. She had to admit, she was glad she wasn't alone in this.

Jason Fisher watched the two officers walk away from the camp and back towards the wagon. Part of him had hoped that he would have been able to speak to them before they departed, but he knew the importance of remaining unnoticed. As such he had remained quiet. He was now alone at the camp. Not that that bothered him, although he would have felt better if he hadn't given the only phaser the team had to T'kaarch. Speaking of whom, Fisher offered a silent prayer that the Caitan would find Blake and Marstin soon. The light was drawing in and a four-person party at a camp-site were much better equipped to fend off an attack than four individuals roaming around the locality.

 

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