Operation Veilstrike (Interlude 2)

Posted on Mon Oct 28th, 2024 @ 2:12am by Captain Forest Patton
Edited on on Mon Oct 28th, 2024 @ 2:13am

1,140 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Mystery at Ryloth
Location: Ryloth- Slum district
Timeline: Approximately 2 weeks after Part 3

Previously on Star Trek: Oceanus...

Forest carefully considered his options. "While I agree that the second option would be more economical, I think we still need to ascertain whether or not the location is out of the range of the transporter inhibitors before we relocate the bulk of our operations there."

He turned to Jessica. "To that end, I think Miss Stewart should scout out the farmstead, determine if we can safely beam an object back up to the Oceanus if we need to get out of here in a hurry."

Connoe smirked, "Since I know where it is I'll be tagging along, along with miss Fortin."

"Might I suggest that Lieutenant Hiiragi tag along with the test object in question:" Tazuko offered. "A crate of medical supplies would fly under the radar easier than munitions would."

"I agree," Forest nodded before turning his attention to Alisa. "Commander, would you care to offer your two cents before we set things into motion?"

"There may be a way to relocate and cover our tracks," Alisa said. "If we make it look like we've left and packed up. Then the Romulans will be more at ease." She explained. "We can have the Oceanus break orbit, hide her behind one of the planet's moons out of sight of their sensors. After we beam everything up and over to the new location. Hopefully they'll think we've left and their guard will drop a little. That'll give us opportunity to move in and snatch them."

"We are officially outside transporter inhibitors, but I'd like to mess with anyone whose followed us by chance by taking a sight seeing ride keeping anyone guessing on our exact numbers that this is little more than a small operation at the moment." Connor said as he reached for his backpack again.

"A clever bait-and-switch tactic; I like it," Forrest grinned, before turning to address the gathered assemblage. "Alright, everyone, listen up! So here's how things are going to go down..."

And now... the continuation!

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==== INTERLUDE ====

Location: Ryloth – A Dimly Lit back-alley located deep within the slum district

Due to the nature of their... business, Divir and Kimith could not afford to be meeting up in the same location for too long, lest they risk prying ears listening in on their conversations. One could never tell here on Ryloth; it seemed that everyone had their own agenda these days. So to that end, the two of them had agreed to meet up in random, nondescript locations throughout the city, usually chosen by their scouts on the basis of how secluded it was, theretofore negating the risk of an unwanted eavesdropper.

Divir himself was not too terribly fond of the location his scouts had chosen for him- a cramped, malodorous corridor nestled between a drug den and a bordello, and what little ground there was to be had between the establishments was littered with sewage, contraceptives, and drug paraphernalia.

Simply revolting. He almost felt as if he would contract some disease simply by remaining here.

"You're late," he remarked as Kimith's shadow loomed behind him.

"My apologies," Kimith expressed. "But we appear to have a slight... complication."

Divir turned. "Spare me the formalities and get straight to the facts, Kimith," he issued sternly. "I take it this has to do with our good friend, Mister Patton?"

"That's just the thing," Kimith responded. "Our surveillance teams have credible evidence to believe that Patton and his team are amidst preparations for a swift exit from Ryloth."

That seemed to get Divir's attention.

"Most curious..." he surmised, pacing back and forth as he pondered this newest development. "It's barely been two weeks, and Starfleet is already preparing to abandon their operations here?"

"Our informants have articulated the possibility that one of our assets may be a mole for Starfleet," Kimith speculated. "They're unfounded rumors at present, but given our current lack of understanding, it may be worth taking at face value."

"But we should have gotten Camille out of the picture!" Divir argued. "Her true allegiances were made clear to us well over a week ago!"

Kimith shook his head. "It is entirely possible that we may have another mole in our ranks; a fallback in case Camille's position was compromised."

"The scarred Admiral..." Divir muttered, almost immediately recognizing that he may have had something to do with this. "Who was to say that Camille was his only operative? Patton's arrival is only the latest piece in a larger puzzle..."

He looked up at Kimith. "One that we shall have to figure out sooner, rather than later... lest our entire operations here become compromised. What do our surveillance teams have to report in regards to Patton himself?"

"Patton has been been keeping a low profile these past few days," Kimith reported. "He rarely emerges from the warehouse, if at all ever; his overall presence appears to have been superseded by this woman:"

He held up an image of a slender, silver-haired humanoid with striking blue eyes.

Divir leaned in closer to inspect the image. "Who is she?" he asked.

"Our operatives are still trying to work that out," Kimith replied. "We know she's Starfleet, and she appears to have a high level of authority amongst her peers, so she is likely of similar or equal rank to that of Patton. However... our assets have been unable to identify an officer matching her description, which leads us to believe that she may have been a recent promotion to Command."

Divir carefully pondered his options. "We cannot afford to let them onto the fact that we're monitoring them. Instruct our operatives to continue surveying the warehouse, and focus your efforts on identifying this woman; she could pose just as much a threat to our operations as Patton did if we lack any information pertaining to her."

"It shall be done," Kimith nodded. "What about Camille?"

"Have Larek and Mazar continue to tail her," Divir instructed. "I have a suspicion that this is more than simply a hasty evacuation on Starfleet's part... and Camille could be the key to determining their true agenda."

"I shall relay your orders to Larek and Mazar," Kimith promised, right as a loud bang sounded from directly behind them.

Startled, the two of them turned towards the source of the commotion, but upon seeing nothing, Kimith redirected his attention towards Divir.

"We'd best get going," he suggested. "The longer we continue to linger here, the more likely it is that we'll be spotted."

"Agreed," Divir nodded before the two of them split off and disappeared into the night.

To be continued...

 

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