On Mon, 24 May 1999 16:37:22 GMT, smilodon@h2net.net (VanitySeven) writes to

USS Galileo <galileo@ucip.org>;:



<OOC> This is somewhat a backpost of the meeting outside galileo prior

to the meeting setup by Lt.Cmdr. Davis.



~~~~Outside the Galileo~~~~



The meeting with the strangers was very stressful and confusing for

Tar'a. She fought with her rational better half but was unable to

connect. Something blocked her neural pathways, and forced her to act

upon her instincts. In all these years she had successfully suppressed

her Klingon half, but now flooded with drugs she was no longer able to

contain herself. It was something her captain had warned her for, but

she was too confident in herself to really acknowledge.=20



Now it was too late and she was swept away by the paranoia that formed

her behavior, that controled her in a way she -- under normal

circumstances -- would never allow.



She was very much aware of the reactions from the strangers by seeing

them and the ship and somehow this feeling filled her with a power she

never experienced. For once in her life she was in control, and she

was hungry for more.



The strangers appeared to be uncomfortable and a sway of annoyance

breached the air around her. Tar'a didn't care, she had all the aces

in her hand.



Information was exchanged in a formal and emotionless manner, but

underneath the charade she laughed in her self. Tar'a processed all

the information through her padd and would check the small crew with

the ships computer. She could open a direct link, but she wanted to

discuss these matters with the others.



Lt. Cmdr Davis handed her the padds with additional information and

urged her to look over them in order to settle this in the shortest

amount of time. Tar'a agreed under the condition that they would

reside in empty quarters until they verified the information she was

given by the strayed away team.



Tar'a nodded to Ruckwood and they both beamed back on board using the

electronic arm bands. In the transporter room they quickly discussed

the matter.



~~~~Transporter Room One~~~~



"Tar'a, once they are aboard this ship we do need to treat them with

the same respect any guest is eligible to receive. Before you

transport them here, please put away your phaser."



Tar'a pressed her fingers against her soft lips and frowned somewhat

to indicate that she was thinking deeply. "Alright Ruckwood, under one

condition."



"Which is," he asked.



"That you take responsibility for the stray cats. You seem to trust

them more than Atlanta and I. I only trust them as far as I can smell

them."



Ruckwood sighed deeply. "That sounds... ah... reasonable. Now please

get them aboard. They've been waiting out there for far too long."



Tar'a nodded and put her phaser away as she walked over to the control

panel of the transporter room. She received a lock on their comm

badge, however she had some problems with Ktryna's signature. The

scanner refused to lock on her. Tar'a cursed as she compensated and

changed the setting to scan for a wider range and area. A gentle beep

alerted her to a positive lockon and soon the familiar soft chiming

sound of the transporter indicated that the stray party was beamed on

board, successfully.



"Welcome aboard the USS Galileo, Lt.Cmdr. Davis of the USS

Intrepid,"

Tar'a said poorly attempting to be nice and curtious, but she tried.

Ruckwood gave her a small pat on the shoulder, knowing how difficult

it was for her to be in this position, as a fresh graduate from the

academy with no prior experience to such an event. "Please follow

Mister Ruckwood. He will be your personal guide for the next couple of

days."



Ruckwood apologized for the discomfort and negative encounter with

both Atlanta and Dach and tried to glue some of those impressions with

a more rational approach. The three stepped down from the transporter

pad obviously appreciating the gentle words of the intermediator.



"Ruckwood, please show our 'guests' to their temporary quarters if you

will."



"Lt.Cmdr., follow me please," and the small party left the

transporter

room. Several minutes later Ruckwood informed Tar'a that the guests

were situated and pressed on the matter of the investigation. The

three of them would meet on the bridge to discuss further.



~~~~Bridge~~~~



Atlanta was pacing back and forth when Ruckwood and Dach arrived at

the bridge. It was obvious that she was upset.



"What is wrong, Atlanta," Tar'a asked the tactical officer.



"I feel violated, by those... those...," she stated annoyed and

upset

as she pointed in the direction of the newcomers's quarters. "I don't

like this one bit," she said in a deep sigh.



"I understand, Atlanta...," Tar'a replied, "I don't like

telepaths

either, but we also have to realize that we need them. Unfortunately.

With just the three of us there is no way in the universe that we can

get ourselves safely home. We can not place that much trust in the

automated systems. Although I am not sure if I can place any trust in

Davis and his team."



"Indeed," said Ruckwood. "We need to work together and

concentrate on

getting back home." Then he turned towards Tar'a and asked, "What

is

the result of the information they provided you with."



"I was only able to retrieve small parts of the information. The rest

of the files are corrupted which indicated a large amount of

electro-static charges. There was still some sub atomic residue. I

measured them with my tricorder and consulted the board computer with

my findings. These particles can only be found in highly energetic

phenonema."



"Like a wormhole," Ruckwood asked.



"Yes, or like a portal as how Davis described it."



This was good news. So far the information provided by the strangers

were correct, but it rose more questions on the 'why&what' scale. Soon

they were engaged in a fierce discussion to find the answer why the

strangers were here, and for what purpose. Ruckwood had some distrust

but what he felt paled in comparising with his fellow crewmembers.



"Why are you two so dense," he complained. "Is it so hard to

believe

that they in fact stranded here against their will, and that they are

not some kind of renegades or worse, some spies!?" Both Atlanta and

Dach just stared at him. "As far as we know they are now forced to

work with us, and they may have the same apprehension as we do," he

concluded.



The board computer interupted their investigation.



<Diagnosis of acquired information system completed>



"Alright," said Dach as she walked over to the control panel.

"Let's

see what we have."



They came to the conclusion that the information provided by the

LtCmdr. was true. All three of them sighed relieved. This was at least

a good beginning.



Ruckwood informed the guests about their findings and concluded that

they were free to roam aboard and try to make themselves at home.

Davis made a suggestion to meet in the conference room and see if they

could work together at a solution to bring everyone back home again.

They all agreed.



"Ruckwood," Tar'a said seriously,"remember your promise. If

they screw

up, I will hold you personally responsible."



<OOC: This is where Steven's post picks up. I hope I did it right and

that everyone is happy about it. If not, feel free to do a backpost

and rewrite your dislikes.>