Steiner: Unable to connect...
Posted on 17 Jun 2023 @ 1:40am by Chief Deputy Marshal: Ridge Steiner - FMS
Mission:
M3 - Into the Deep
Location: USS Pathfinder: Chief Security Officer's Office
Timeline: M3 D10 1710Hrs
1136 words - 2.3 OF Standard Post Measure
Immediately after leaving the Mess Hall Steiner took the turbo lift, made his way to the Security Chief's Office and let himself in. He had barely used the room during the mission, mostly hanging out in the main Security compartment. It was partly as he felt a little out of place occupying it, it was really the domain of a proper Starfleet Security Chief, rather than just a temporary Stand-In, but now he wanted some privacy to think and plan his course of action.
He sat at the desk and activated the panel, leaning back in the chair as it came online, to gather his thoughts and review the information he had just heard, setting it in order and context.
According to Chief Petty Officer Ibis Xeri; surviving crewmember of the USS Sunrise; and teenage civilian, Oliva... he realized he did not know the girl's last name yet... both enslaved prisoners on the planet Korix; homeworld of a subjugated species of the Pyrryx; approximately four years earlier, so around 2392, a Federation Marshal had been brought to the planet.
The Marshal was identified by the name Cubo, and as being a Bajoran male; unknown if that was a first or family name at this time.
Cubo was not part of the USS Sunrise crew.
Cubo was brought to the prisoners location, known as Camp Sunrise by an unidentified craft, but believed to have been of a local type.
Cubo was reportedly very badly beaten, possibly deliberately tortured, the injuries were serious. life-threatening and beyond the medical capabilities of the prisoners at that time.
Evidence of torture included Cubo being severely beaten, burnt or branded with an FMS badge, no badge number was known at this time.
Terminology used had included beat up like a pineapple; cut up like ribbons; branded with his own badge;...
Cubo had been treated differently to the other prisoners, they had been searched for devices and technology; handled roughly in the process but none had been branded or brutalized...
Cubo's injuries had proved mortal. He drowned on his own blood reportedly a day or so after his arrival at Camp Sunrise
Cubo had been buried by the other prisoners after death, an image of the FMS badge burnt onto his body, had been placed on the grave marker. Grave site was unknown but believed to be within close proximity of Camp Sunrise and site held the remains of other prisoners who had perished during enslaved captivity.
He though back to his brief visit to Camp Sunrise. He had not noticed a graveyard, even if he had, would they have had time to look it over and record it during the storm and the urgency to find a trace of a signal of survivors.
he was well aware that neither individual informant had actually witnessed or encountered Cubo. Chief Ibis had been sick, Olivia had been too young. The information they recounted was based on what they stated they had heard from other prisoners after events.
He would count Chief Ibis as being reliable, Olivia possibly less so due to age at the time, but even so what they said was not first hand.
No other prisoners from the USS Sunrise were known to be still alive, besides Marine Major Porter Wallace, currently seriously wounded in Sickbay. He was not even sure the major would survive.
Stiner breathed out slowly and tapped the arms of his chair. He had too little information and too many questions.
Who? Who was Cubo? Was he a Marshal? Who had captured him? Had the Pryyx done this? Had the Korix done this on Pyrryx orders? Who had more information?
Where? Where had he been captured? Where had he been before being taken to Korix? Where exactly was his body now?
What? What exactly happened to Cubo? What was the reason for his capture? What had been his cause of death?
When? When, exactly, had he been captured? When, exactly, had he been brought to Korix?
How? How had he been captured? How had he been transported to Korix? How could Cubo be positively identified?
Why? Why had Cubo been taken prisoner? Why had he been beaten and / or tortured? Why had he been treated differently to other prisoners?
There were more, dozens more, in his mind but for now he had a start point, probabbly the most important thing to determine. Who was Cubo?
Sitting forward he activated his panel, switched into the communications screen, went to initiate a link to the Marshal's Service Personnel database and swore. "Sonofabitch!"
Unable To Connect: Subspace Communications Unavailable At This Time the screen flashed at him.
He flipped over to internal communications and contacted the Bridge. The duty Operations Officer's reply was not helpful either.
=^=I'm sorry Sir, subspace communications are not available, we are still out of range. No Sir, I am unsure when we will be in range, it should be within the next thirty six hours though. Would you like me to log your comms-link request when we are in range? =^=
Steiner shook his head =^=No thanks Ensign, I'll check back later =^=
He rocked back in his chair, that was tiresome, more than tiresome, like any good investigator Steiner did not like loose ends and not knowing, combined with the fact that the case might involve a fellow Marshal, meant it would gnaw on him until he could start finding answers.
He had been on two other in-service death investigations, the Service would provide all the resources needed to find the guilty parties and prosecute them the the fullest extent. But right now all that was out of range and that did not sit well.
"Alright" he decided, "Do what we can for now" At least he could do something positive, he opened up his personal screen and created a Case file.
He would need to wait until he had a communications link to allocate it an FMS Number and reference and place in with the FMS registry, but for now he tapped in the information he had; listed the known witnesses; locations, approximately timescale and set out an investigation plan to work through the questions that needed answers.
Finishing up he sat back and read it over, making a couple of corrections.
"I'll tell you this Cubo," he muttered to himself as he closed up "I don't know you, but if you were really Marshal's Service brother, I'll do everything I can to nail the bastards responsible."
