Security Action Plan - Part One
Posted on 30 Jul 2022 @ 3:45am by Chief Deputy Marshal: Ridge Steiner - FMS
Mission:
M3 - Into the Deep
Location: USS Pathfinder
Timeline: MD05 15:20hrs
1782 words - 3.6 OF Standard Post Measure
Steiner had found the Pathfinder's Assistant Chief Security Officer, young Lieutenant Junior Grade Andrea Knowles and the veteran Master At Arms, Senior Chief Matthew Drummond and introduced himself.
Neither had looked too impressed on having him as their new, if temporary, boss. He knew it was something that would need to be addressed, but he would wait until the full security team was all together and get it over with once.
They paid a lot more attention when he showed them the video of the Pyrryx slaying the Vulcan crewman. They both sat there shocked.
"Seen anything like that before?" He asked the pair.
Knowles shook her head, possibly too stunned to speak, Drummond said quietly "I've fought the Borg, once, the Jem'hadar and the Gorn a couple of times. That thing makes those look like pushovers...."
"We don't get to choose the opponent but perhaps we can choose how we fight them. Which is where I'm relying on you and the rest of the team" Steiner said "Get everyone in here and we'll go through it with them"
Fifteen minutes later the Pathfinder's entire Security crew were crammed into the office. There was not that many off them Steiner noted. "We're a science-focused explorer and scout, not a combat vessel" Knowles reminded him. He nodded grimly,
He gave them his introduction, openly acknowledged his Starfleet inexperience, and seeing some skepticism on their faces concluded with. "But I've been around the block and I don't mind getting my hands dirty, however," He gestured to them "Until I get fully up to speed, you are all my experts!
I promise you all, I will listen to you and take heed of any suggestions and advice any of you may have."
That got him a little credit he hoped and he moved on to the Pyrryx. He gave them the approved briefing material. An unknown, aggressive, violent, powerful, expansionist species, previously kept confidential but now apparently getting closer to Federation territory and now an open threat. He concluded with the video of the armored warrior.
They sat in stunned silence as expected and he set the video on a loop.
"Keep watching. Tell me what you see, what you've faced in the past that's even remotely like this and how do you think we can beat it. I don't care how off-the-wall your ideas are, put them out here and we'll talk through all of them. This is our task, if some of these try and get aboard, we need a plan to stop them and I don't think they take prisoners..."
It took a few minutes for them to warm up to the idea he was open to listening to them, but once they had got over the video they started thinking and talking.
"We can use the force-fields to confine them, slow them down. Block off whatever compartment or corridor they get into"
"We'll need numbers, can't go up against that thing alone, need at least four or six of us as a team"
"Go to focus fire, concentrate on one target at a time"
"No chance if they get close, we can't match them physically, so we need to keep our distance."
"Maybe come at them from multiple directions? If they're in a corridor get in front and behind them, use internal transports to move around fast"
"And get our ass out of there, if they do get close!"
"Can't we just beam them back out into space?"
"I might be able to help with that" Steiner added to the discussion "Marshal's Service has a 30MM Transporter Round, it will stick into most things and activate a pre-set transport pattern. We could set that to be just outside the hull..."
"Assuming that armored suit isn't an EVO as well" Drummond noted ":But worth a shot"
"We'll need the Type Three rifles, with the heavy barrels and upgraded batteries. We've got twenty in the Armory."
"We can modify some of the Type Twos and Engineering can boost up all the batteries. They'll drain out quicker but the charge will be better"
"As well as the forcefields, what about barricades? Maybe we can block off some of the corridors, put in some chicanes near Engineering, Life support and the Bridge, try and stop them getting control of the vital areas of ship"
"We've got a bunch of cargo containers in Number Two hold full of those rock samples for a couple months back when we surveyed that asteroid field, could use those? Maybe weld some together across the corridor and at junctions, so there's much less room to pass?"
"How about antipersonnel mines? Rig up some to work like old style claymores, on a trigger?"
"I've got some Flash-Stun grenades, those might work," Steiner added "I've got the technical specs for those and the Transporter Rounds if Engineering can make them up?"
"They might be able to" Knowles agreed "I can ask them"
"I've got stun-cuffs too, but I don't think they'll fit or how we even get them on"
"Might be able to adapt the principle to something else" Knowles offered "I'll try Engineering on those too"
"Ok now lets get right out of the box" Steiner tried "How do we stop a hulking great armored warrior if everything we just suggested fails?"
"Bodkins, Maces, Hammers, Dirks and Daggers" A quiet young female Ensign offered. There were a couple of chuckles from others
"What was that?" Steiner asked her "Bodkins? And Hammers?"
"My Grandfather is a History Professor, he would tell me old war stories. In medieval warfare, when battles involved knights in armor, they invented several ways to defeat them" She explained "Bodkins were specially shaped arrow heads that could penetrate everything but the thickest plate armor.
Since swords didn't do much against armor, they used battle hammers and maces to beat on the armor, applying blunt physical force. If you couldn't get through it, you pounded the plate into the wearer, smashed the helmet in or their chest.
And they used dirks and daggers to get into the weak spots, the joints, like the shoulders, neck or groin or the eye slits in the helmets. Groups of un-armored men, like archers, could swarm a knight, get them down and got to work on the weak spots...
I'm not saying that would work on these... things... but those are techniques used again armor.." She trailed off looking a bit embarrassed.
Steiner stepped in quickly "Hey, no that's good stuff and you're doing exactly what I asked, thinking outside the box." he gave her a nod and smile, then turned to the rest "So how do we apply those techniques now?"
They thought for a bit.
"Make a duralloy arrow-head projectile maybe?" somebody offered "Don't know how we'ed propel it though Bow and arrows not going to work..."
"We can focus fire on their joints maybe?" They pointed to the video, "See the knees and arms are sort of articulated, that can't be as thick as the main armor right? The neck bit is different too"
"So, aim at the knees, take their legs out?" That could work
"Then we rush in and pound them with hammers? Really?" Somebody joked
"Why not? If a phaser doesn't go through...."
"We've got some sledge hammers, picks and rock-spikes, they're with all those rock samples!"
"You can't be serious?"
"Why not, might be a last resort, but if a phaser doesn't go through the main armor and they don't take prisoners, I'd rather try getting one down and pounding the crap out of it, than waiting to be torn apart like that poor guy!"
"Rock-spikes might go through the joints too, they're chromium hardened tungsten tipped"
It sounded a bit outlandish Steiner thought, but it just might come down to old fashioned brutality. They would still need to get one of those things down before they tried anything like that, upright on two legs the average Humanoid was simply no match. How else could they get one down? he wondered
"Sticky Foam!" He said aloud "Sticky Foam... that might work"
The group looked questioningly at him and he explained. "History Professor Grandad got me thinking. Part of Marshalls training is the history of law enforcement, including weaponry and the development of non-lethal devices. They used to have something called Sticky Foam, it's an incapacitant.
You had a compressed tank of this sort of gluey-goop you sprayed at people, once exposed to the air it becomes this thick sticky mass, it completely binds them up. Sticks your arms to your body, sticks your legs together, you fall over and it sticks you to the floor!
There's got to be a formula for that stuff around somewhere. I'll ask Science if they can find it. We come up with something like that, it might be a way to slow these guys down so we can pick them off"
"We going to be using glue guns and hammers?" Somebody asked "Seriously? Is this some kind of sick joke?"
"Cut that out!" Drummond snapped
Steiner held up his hand. "No, it's ok. I understand it sounds maybe a little dumb and even stupid right?
We're facing an enemy here that nobody had ever really encountered, you can all see what they can do given the chance.
You also all know, our normal tactics can't stand up to them. If several of those get lose on this ship, they have the potential to kill everyone aboard. No doubt about it.
Those of us here in the room have to prevent that. But, right now, we don't know what will work to stop them and what won't....
Of course, we're going to apply every technical weapon we have at our disposal. But we're not going to dismiss something that might have a even a small chance at success, just because it's a tactic or weapon from a thousand years ago or some gloopy spray foam.
We clear on that?"
There were nods and acknowledgements from the group and he wound it up.
"Thank you, for you input and suggestions. All of them. For now," He pointed to Knowles, Drummond and himself. "we're going to review those and start work on some plans and tactics. We'll also start some counter boarding drills and training. Anyone has any further ideas, do let us know.
Get some rest tonight, we'll be starting double shifts from Alpha Shift tomorrow morning. I look forward to working closer with all of you over the coming days. Dismissed for now"
The group filled out and Steiner turned to Knowles and Drummond. "Alright let's get an action plan drawn up"
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