Breen in a Cave

Posted on Fri Feb 26th, 2010 @ 5:37am by Commander Fala Awen & Vice Admiral Iluvar

Mission: Episode 1.1 - "Now Boarding"
Location: Holodeck 1, USS Pandora
Timeline: Day 3, 1100

ON: [[Holodeck 1, USS Pandora, Day 3, 1100]]

Awen stood quietly, surveying the scene in front of her, with Korina (NPC) next to her. The holodeck had been transformed into a dimly lit network of underground caves. The rock that made up the walls was generally a dark greenish-grey color, with some red, blue, and gold colors intermixed as well. Some was a bit sparkly, most was a dull flat color. Stalactites and stalagmites graced the floor and ceiling of the cave the two officers were currently in. Every so often, a faint dripping sound could be heard as well. The caves were a bit drafty and damp, but not extremely so.

"Anything else we should add?" the Trill asked, looking over at Awen. They'd already spent the better part of two hours preparing the program and she thought they were nearing completion.

Pausing, Awen considered the question. The important details were in place and the subtleties had been added. Still Awen wanted to make sure she wasn't missing anything. "I don't think we need to add anything else, but we may want to run through the exercise ourselves to see if we missed something or should modify something. I don't want to make this too easy..."

Korina nodded and was about to speak when she heard the holodeck doors swish open.

"I certainly hope that I am not interrupting anything," Iluvar said, noticing the two women standing in the cavern. He paused just inside the archway as the doors slid closed behind him. A moment later, the archway vanished, replaced by another tunnel that led into darkness.

The Bajoran turned to see Iluvar standing inside the holodeck, "Not at all, Admiral. Ms. Vek and I were just preparing a holodeck program. What can I do for you, sir?"

Intrigued, Iluvar began to survey the surrounding cavern. It was certainly a detailed program, most likely designed for training purposes. Admittedly, however, he hadn't had much time since accepting the commander as his new Chief Security/Tactical Officer, to see how she was settling into her position. Now was as good a time as any, he figured.

"I just finished making a visit to main engineering," the admiral explained casually, "Lieutenant Bishop seems to be settling in quite nicely there. Since I was in the neighborhood, so to speak, I figured I'd stop by and see how things were going."

Not wanting to intrude on the conversation, Korina said, "If you'll excuse me ma'am, sir, I'm going to check on some details with the program."

Nodding, Awen watched briefly as the Trill set off down one of the dark tunnels before turning back to Iluvar, "I appreciate you stopping by, sir. As you've likely noticed, Lieutenant JG Vek and I were putting some finishing touches on a training program we developed for the Security/Tactical department. We should be bringing the rest of the department in this afternoon to run through it."

"Perhaps we should give it a once through," Iluvar suggested with a twinkle in his eye, "just to be sure everything is in order."

The Bajoran paused, considering his suggestion. It was something she would have expected of Earlond, but not Iluvar. However, she also didn't know Iluvar as well. She certainly couldn't condone him putting himself in danger on an actual away mission, but this was only a training program and it did need to be tested anyway. "That was certainly in my plans. Might as well go ahead and do so."

Drawing a phaser, she handed it to Iluvar before also drawing out a second one. "You'll be needing this. The scenario at hand is a group of Breen have been tracked to this cave system and they have hostages. Our mission is to find them, neutralize any threats and retrieve the hostages."

"Find and neutralize Breen...free hostages...got it," Iluvar said with a quick smile. He automatically adjusted the setting on his phaser as he mentally prepared himself for the scenario the commander had just outlined for him. It would be interesting to see how she handled the situation. While Iluvar was completely confident in her abilities, he had noticed the slight hesitation with which she had considered his offer to assist in the test run of the program. No doubt, like many executive officers and security chiefs, she felt that it was not necessarily a commanding officer's place to be in a dangerous situation, to say nothing of a flag officer. It was something that Iluvar had realized he would have to confront ever since he first agreed to assume command of the Tethys.

Giving him a nod, Awen said, "Computer, begin program Fala Sigma One." Her eyes glanced down at the setting on her phaser and her fingers brushed against her leg ensuring the dagger was in its place as well. Though she had programmed the scenario, she had set the parameters such that the actual cave system layout and location of the Breen would be randomized - within certain limits. Hearing the computer beep to acknowledge that the actual training scenario had begun, Awen headed for a tunnel across the cavern.

Iluvar fell into step behind the Bajoran, keeping an eye out for any sign of Breen. He felt it best to let her take the lead, given that it was her program to begin with. The sound of water dripping could be heard echoing through the tunnel, but there were no other sounds to be heard.

As she made her way down the tunnel, it narrowed considerably. The sides glistened slightly and were mostly smooth. This version of the program kept the lighting dim, but not fully dark. Awen noticed the tunnel widening slightly and paused as they came to a fork in the path. Glancing one way, then the other, she listened closely, but didn't hear anything that would offer any clues. She turned back to Iluvar, "Which way would you like to go, Admiral?"

Glancing between the two options, Iluvar paused to think a moment. If given nothing but the strict option of one path over the other, there would be a fifty-fifty chance of his being correct. However, as he continued to look down the left tunnel, which sloped downwards ever so slightly, he knew that there were other factors to consider. "To the right," he replied, pointing down the selected tunnel with his phaser.

Awen nodded and moved down the right tunnel. She had no way of knowing for sure if they were headed in the correct direction, though she could argue either way. The Breen may have gone down the left path to go further underground and therefore potentially further into the cave system. Or, they may have seen a disadvantage at being too far from the surface and used the right path. For all she knew, both paths could lead to the same cavern regardless. Hearing a sound up ahead, Awen moved back against the wall.

Iluvar also pressed himself against the worn rock of the tunnel wall, peering through the darkness in an attempt to determine what might have been the source of the sound. For a moment, he didn't hear anything more. Another sound echoed in the darkness, closer this time and from up ahead. He and Fala were at a disadvantage in the dimly lit tunnel compared to an armored Breen. Though it was said that no one had ever seen under a Breen's helmet, Iluvar had a pretty good idea that there would be some sort of visual enhancement for situations like this. He glanced toward Fala to see where she had positioned herself.

Not hearing anything more, Awen moved forward quietly to appear around the bend in the tunnel. She mentally calmed herself slight as she saw Korina. Looking at the Trill questioningly, Awen awaited a form of response.

Knowing that Awen wanted a report Korina nodded and pointed up ahead. She held up her hand to signify 5 Breen. Korina waited, then started off to lead the way as Awen indicated. Luckily there weren't too many other forks for her to remember - they passed through two caverns and one other fork before Korina held up her hand to indicate they should slow down.

Awen paused, listening. She could hear more dripping in this area of the cave system and had seen more stalactites and stalagmites as well. Waiting for a time that seemed much longer than it really was, she finally heard sounds coming from the cavern ahead. Though the enemy seemed a bit cautious still, they weren't nearly as quiet as they would have been in a more exposed area.

The Breen's lack of concern for the noise they were making could have been indicative of several things. They could have been unaware of the presence of three Starfleet personnel so close to their location. It was well known that the Breen felt themselves superior to many of the Alpha Quadrant powers, which would lend itself to them feeling that they would not have to conceal themselves as well. Another possibility was that they were confident in the support provided by more personnel that the team was unaware of. Each of these possibilities crossed Iluvar's mind in an instant, each one as valid as the next.

Assessing the situation, Awen stayed where she was. Carefully she peered around and eventually saw a single hostage near the back of the cavern. It was certainly the most secure portion of the cavern, comparatively. Two Breen were guarding the hostage - indicating the hostage's apparent importance. Another pair of Breen seemed to be studying something off to the side; it was likely either a map of the cave system or the location of where they were headed next. The final Breen was systematically checking each tunnel leading into the cavern.

Korina tensed as she noticed the single Breen - he would soon be upon their tunnel. Her instincts told her they would have to take out this one Breen first, then go for the others. Hopefully the hostage would be important enough that they would try to protect him, but not kill him to keep the Federation from rescuing him.

Quietly Awen motioned for the others to retreat further into the tunnel. She wanted to be able to whisper without being heard. Once they were back far enough, the Bajoran spoke softly, "We need to take out the single Breen first, silently. After that, the pair off to the side will likely come to investigate, which is when we need to take them down. We can then go for the hostage.... Hopefully one will come forward to challenge while the other remains with the hostage. If not, there should be at least two of us free by then so we can take on both."

"Agreed," Iluvar said. From what he had seen so far, Fala had done a fine job stepping into the role of Chief Security/Tactical Officer. It was clear to him that she knew how to get the job done, which was why he had approved of the posting in the first place. He brought his thoughts back to the task at hand and glanced down the tunnel toward the cavern where they had located the Breen. The plan was a sound one and, providing that there weren't any other Breen lurking around that they didn't know about, Iluvar saw no reason why it shouldn't work.

Nodding, Awen turned to go back down the tunnel. She certainly hoped there would not be another group of Breen, but she knew it was a possibility. If there was, they had at least something of a chance of being in a good position to deal with them. The Bajoran moved forward slowly as she drew her knife. The first kill had to be silent. Staying in the shadows, she paused to wait for Korina to come up next to her.

As the Breen stepped into the tunnel, Korina grabbed one shoulder to hold him back while Awen grabbed the other. Quickly the Trill used her other arm to tilt the Breen's head back, exposing an unarmored section. Her eyes met Awen's as the Bajoran first stabbed, then slit his throat before allowing him to slip to the ground.

Efficient, Iluvar thought to himself as he prepared to face the next two Breen to emerge from the cavern. Sure enough, as they had predicted, the two Breen came to see what was taking their associate so long. Iluvar stepped up behind one of the soldiers and brought the edge of his hand down sharply against the Breen's neck. The force of the blow caused the Breen to stagger slightly. A second strike and the Breen collapsed toward the floor of the tunnel. Reaching out, Iluvar caught the soldier before he impacted the ground so that his collapse would not make any further noise.

As the second Breen rushed forward, Awen brought her knee up into his stomach, then slammed her elbows into his back. With the suit, the moves were more painful than usual, but she gritted her teeth and kept composure.

Seeing the effect of the blows Awen had delivered, Korina moved forward to catch the Breen's head. She twisted it quickly to the left, then dropped him the short distance to the ground. Looking back at the other two, Korina gestured forward. While if they were lucky one more Breen might come their way, both of the last two certainly wouldn't - at least one would have to stay with the hostage.

Iluvar moved forward with the two women, his phaser ready. It would be very simple for the Breen to kill the hostage, once they realized what was going on. Time was of the essence. Perhaps, if they were lucky, the remaining Breen would not act hastily.

Awen rushed through the end of the tunnel into the cavern system with her phaser drawn. The remaining Breen were obviously anxious due to the disappearance of the others, but still seemed slightly surprised at the group now coming at them. The Bajoran was pleased to see that the hostage was remaining calm for the time being; he was pushed back as one Breen stepped forward.

Taking account of the hostage's location, Iluvar made an adjustment to his phaser setting and took aim at one of the two remaining Breen. Typical Breen arrogance meant that these two individuals were wearing only the typical isolation suit of the Breen and not protective armor. It was going to make subduing them much easier than their companions had been.

Seeing that Iluvar had fired upon the closer of the Breen, Korina aimed at the same one to get him out of the way. As she fired at his leg, he was left unbalanced and dropped to his knees. The Trill nodded to Iluvar to indicate he should finish taking down the Breen as she turned to address the other one.

While Korina and Iluvar concentrated on one of the Breen, Awen moved closer to the one keeping the hostage. The Bajoran, confident with her skill, aimed for the Breen's shoulder. As the phaser fire impacted, the Breen was slight spun away from the hostage, releasing his grip on the man's arm as he grabbed at his own shoulder. Seeing that the hostage had frozen, Awen quickly moved forward to push him out of the way as she fired directly at the Breen's chest.

The moment the Breen was down, Iluvar surveyed the cavern to be sure that there were no hidden surprises waiting for them. He saw nothing, but that didn't mean there weren't more Breen in other tunnels. Iluvar holstered his phaser and approached the former hostage, who was getting to his feet. "Are you alright," Iluvar asked, giving the man a visual once over.

Nodding slowly, Andrew (NPC) replied, "Yes, thank you." He was still somewhat overwhelmed with everything that had happened.

After the hostage's response, the lighting became noticeably brighter and the hostage was still.

Awen turned to the others, "I would say that was a successful test run. The difficulty can be increased for larger groups, which I may do for this afternoon's training - or perhaps for their second run.... Thank you for your assistance, Admiral."

"It was a pleasure, commander," Iluvar said, turning the phaser over in his hand so that he was presenting her with the grip, "I agree. The simulation appears to be well constructed." He gave the Bajoran a small smile to show that he approved. It seemed that she was settling into her role well, which was something that he wanted to be sure every member of his crew had the opportunity to do.

"Thank you, sir," the Bajoran replied as she took the phaser. "Feel free to stop by again sometime if you'd like a test of your skills." While she still didn' t like the idea of Iluvar going on away missions, it would still be good for him to be prepared and from what she'd seen, he'd done well.

OFF:

A JP by

Rear Admiral Iluvar
Commanding Officer
USS Pandora

Lieutenant Commander Fala Awen
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Pandora

and

Lieutenant JG Korina Vek (NPC)
Assistant Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Pandora
Played by: LtCmdr Fala