Solving the Mystery (part 2)

Posted on Thu Jun 7th, 2018 @ 7:44am by Admiral Kathryn Burke & Commander Hans Munich & Lieutenant T'Pral & 1st Lieutenant Lilliana Bourne

874 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Pulling Together
Location: Vulcan

[CONTINUED]

[OLD]

"I have tried to see if the ordering has gone through the official channels by a Federation Operastions account here on Vulcan for raw materials that were used in the construction of these devices." Gink explained ."THere is not a high chance but Ishould rule it out. The Romulans bring all their items for any operation to remain self-contained. This is not the case here ; local materials were used and orderd...locally."

[NEW]

"What have you found?" Sam asked T'Pral.

T'Pral made an unreadable face at Gink's revelations. "Yes I was injured in the explosion," she answered Burke, "I am well enough for duty." The way she leaned on her cane suggested that may not be entirely the case. She turned to York, "Commodore, there is a fringe group called Guardians of Surak who may be behind the attack. They do not abide Romulans on the planet. The village within which the attack ocurred is mostly Romulan emigres."

Walking up to the group, Lily stood to one side listening to the officers talk. She was surprised to see an admiral standing among them, but she assumed that ment the situation was worse than they thought initially.

Sam nodded. "I've heard of them. But I thought they were using more peaceful methods?"

"They were," Burke said. "But we've seen recent activity among the more militant fringe. And they are being helped by a group in Starfleet. That's why I'm here."

"For my time on Vulcan as an investigator this is the first time I will have that group involved; the incidents on the Security Investigations have always been a peaceful protests in the past. I do not have much more information on the group as they have not come up on the Radar until now." Gink confirmed.

“Why hasn’t the Vulcan Security Ministry felt with these extremists yet? They may be peaceful, but the surely could have talked with them?” Lily asked

"We have," Burke said. "And they claim their group wasn't responsible for this--or any--attack. However, they have become more vocal of late. Rumors say that this is due to influence from outsiders. Until we can prove otherwise, we can do nothing further. What concerns me is that we have evidence that a group of Starfleet personnel has been involved in buying and transporting explosives to a shadow group on Vulcan. We believe it is they who are inciting the Guardians of Surak."

"That is... troubling," T'Pral commented with her brow furrowing. "I did not suspect outside influence, given their penchant for isolationism. However, that may only be directed towards our genetic cousins; those who strayed from Surak's teachings." Her gaze lifted upwards for a moment in thought, "Are there any indications of a particular Starfleet vessel being involved?" she asked.

"The Exeter is still in orbit," Sam said.

"Indeed," Burke replied.

She turned to T'Pral. "Nothing concrete. Yet. But the Exeter has been reported in many of the areas where the Guardians of Surak have been most aggressive."

T'Pral took a deep breath and thought for a moment, her eyes drifting downwards and into the middle distance. Her lips pursed slightly, and the muscle in her jaw quivered as the mental gears worked. At last, she caught York's gaze once again. "The Exeter's Vulcan compliment is the most likely source. I would not expect Starfleet Vulcans to support such extremism, but the facts, however circumstantial, are compelling." She paused for a moment, as if convincing herself of something. "I will need to speak with my husband. He serves aboard the Exeter, and may know more."

Sam had to agree with T'Pral's logic. The Exeter was the most likely ship. She sincerely hoped her engineer's husband was not involved. "Go, and let us know what you find out. And if you need any help from us."

T'Pral nodded sharply, "Yes, Commodore. I shall do so." She turned to walk away, but paused. "Thank you," she offered over her shoulder before limping off.

When the engineer was out of site, Kathryn shook her head. "What is she not telling you?"

Sam watched T'Pral for a long moment, mentally reviewing key events since arriving at Vulcan. "I have an idea, but I'm not going to guess. I have to trust her to let me know when the time is right."

Kathryn nodded. She respected that. She herself was hesitant to offer opinion in some circumstances. "Until then, shall we find a less public place to talk?"

Sam wished Damon were here. She wanted to talk to him and get his insight into what was going on, but he'd been called away on another assignment. "Yes. I think that would be prudent."

She glanced at Gink. "Do you know of a good place?"

"My office is not far away and is free of any devices." Gink suggested. "I hate to have others listen to me talking out problems to myself, it is quite secure and ..." He smiled. "I have a fridge and upgraded replicator."

Sam nodded to Liliana to join them, then turned back to Gink. "Lead the way."



____
OFF

Commodore Samantha York
Commanding Officer

Gink
Criminalist

T'Pral
Chief Engineer

Admiral Kathryn Burke
Commander, Theta Fleet

1st Lieutenant Liliana Bourne
Marine CO

 

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