Meeting the Green Legacy

Posted on Sun Jun 27th, 2021 @ 8:49am by Captain Yasmine Carrington & Lieutenant JG Nerinath zh'Rhilror [Lalor] & Captain Garrett Lovejoy [ Taylor] & Captain Gary Taylor & Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea & Lieutenant JG Miraj Derani & Commander Kyle Reece & Chief Warrant Officer Man'darr [Naxea] & Gunnery Sergeant Luxa Gami [Naxea] & James Green

Mission: Season 5: Episode 2: Operation Save Humanity
Location: New Canaan
Timeline: MD 5 13h00
4687 words - 9.4 OF Standard Post Measure

Previously:

"Yes, but there was 7 million of them," the historian pointed out. "Phillip Green's followers numbered at most 150 we can be sure of. With a skew to the male as well. I don't think they've put on nearly six million people in 300 years somehow."

"Which is even more of a reason to tread carefully and to keep our guard up when interacting with them." Gary spoke from the rear of the bridge.

"Indeed." Carrington replied. "Mr Taylor, You, Dr Wells-Smith, Commander Lovejoy, are with me, once Ensign Derani parks us, we will take a shuttle down. Ask Our Marine Chief to join us with two of her Marines."

And Now...

***MAIN SHUTTLEBAY***

Gary arrived in the shuttlebay, surprised to see he was the first one here. He expected Carrington or Lovejoy to be the first. As he waited he thought on this meeting. He felt they were treading in dangerous waters given Colonel Green's past of wholesale slaughter. Whether his followers continued to follow in his footsteps was another story and one they would soon get their first glimpse at.

"Colonel, you can't go down there!" Man'darr spoke in a loud voice as he, Azhul, and Staff Sergeant Gami entered the shuttlebay. "You're not cleared for active duty!"

Naxea was dressed in her utility uniform, and not the Assault Armor that Man'darr and Gami currently wore and she had a holstered Type 2 phaser on her hip as opposed to Man'darr and Gami's Pulse rifles. The weight of the assault armor would hinder her even more with her weakened arm. "It's alright Man'darr, I had medical lend me the temporary use of a motor assist band that I'm wearing on my arm under my sleeve," she explained. "Besides, orders are orders."

"I still don't like it," Gami spoke up in protest, wondering why the hell the ship's CO thought it was a good idea to request Colonel Azhul on a damn Away Mission when she was still on Administrative Duty. 'Damn stupid Fleeters,' she thought bitterly.

Gary stepped from around the shuttle, a smile on his face as he looked at Gami.

Commander Kyle Reece was next to enter the shuttlebay. He was still getting used to being back aboard the Ely. It had been several years but, it was like returning home again. "Afternoon, everyone." He gave everyone present a friendly grin as he spoke.

"Commander." Gary greeted the newcomer.

Seeing the ship's Envoy, Kyle moved over and extended his right hand in friendship. "Commander Gary. It's a honor to meet you, Sir. Know that, though I may be a stranger to this command team, Ely was my home. I've given her plenty of my blood during her first missions, under Admiral Sharr. I have heard the rumors. Rest asxured, I am not of the camp that believes the lies."

Gary clasped Kyle's hand in a firm but warm handshake. "The pleasure is mine Commander and that's good to know."

"If Admiral Sharr chose Captain Lalor to replace him, then she is above reproach. I'm sure the truth will come out. It always does. Especially on this ship. Perhaps later, you and I could have a few drinks, compare Ely stories."

"I'd like that very much." Gary admitted. "And as far as Captain Lalor you are absolutely right."

Kyle nodded, relieved that he was correct. Before he could say more, the Marines approached both he and Gary.

"I'm Lieutenant Colonel Azhul," Naxea introduced herself. "Sixty-Second Marine Detachment Commander. With me are Warrant Officer Man'darr--my XO and Staff Sergeant Gami."

Harry Wells-Smith wandered over, a satchel hanging from his shoulder, and a nervous expression on his face.

Kyle extended a hand to the Marines, with a friendly smile. "Always a pleasure to meet more Marines, Colonel, Mister Man'darr, Sergeant Gami. My Grampy would always tell my of the adventures he had during his time in the Corps, especially when he was the CSM of the Corps during the Dominion War."

"Ah, your grandfather was Sergeant Major Reece? He was known as Wild Bill Reece," Man'darr explained. "Never met him personally but I have heard of some of his missions during the Dominion War."

"Was?!" Kyle laughed. "Don't let him hear you say that! He may be retired, but he is still as feisty as a rattler in mating season." He didn't tell them that, at this very moment, his Grampy was leading a black ops outfit that had its birth during the Dominion War.

Man'darr grinned. "Sounds like a man I would like to meet someday, Sir."

Kyle tipped his head forward. "Once we get through this mission. I'll reach out to him. Last time he was on the Ely, we had just been sent both back in time and over into the Mirror Universe. He helped us escape back home, after taking two of our tricobalt devices and detonating them in the middle of an armada of twelve old Constitution class Starships. I don't know how, but he made it outta there and spent some time here, once we returned home."

"We had our own encounter with the Mirror Universe not too long ago," Naxea stated.

Kyle nodded slowly. "I read a few of the reports. Im sorry you all were subjected to that treatment. Apparently, the Mirtor universe of today is far more vicious than the one of the mid 2200's, that I was in." He took a breath and then added, "If any of you ever want to talk about your experiences, warrior to warrior, I'd be honored to listen."

"Thank you, Commander. But the counselors aboard the ship have been helpful," Naxea replied, wanting in no way recall the treatment she had gone through. The thought of hunting and killing the Elysium's own crew still gave her a cold chill.

Kyle dipped his head forward, respectfully, before responding. "Perfectly understandable. And please, call me Kyle. We are both O-5s, afterall." He gave her a friendly grin as he spoke.

"Very well, Kyle," Naxea replied just before hearing the doors to the shuttlebay open once more.

Captain Carrington came through the doors to the bay in her dress uniform. She was reading a PADD.

Harry Wells-Smith wandered over, a satchel hanging from his shoulder, and a nervous expression on his face. "I'm ready Captain. But I hope you're not expecting me to do the talking. I'm a historian, not a diplomat."

"No I am bringing you along as eyes and advisor." Yasmine replied with a smile.

"That I can do," the historian said with relief, and stepped on board the shuttle

"Okay, everyone into the shuttle" Yasmine stated.

Gary stood to one side to allow Naxea to board the shuttle first, then her Marines could follow.

Naxea, Man'darr and Gam,i entered the shuttle, taking their positions in the rear cabin.

Kyle waited as well, though, he waited until everyone was aboard, before boarding and sealing the shuttle hatch.

Ensign zh'Rhilror sat at the helm and once the hatch closed she brought the shuttle up and got clearance to leave.

The ride to the planet took 20 minutes, and Neri was careful to stay in the course given.

Kyle gazed out the view ports around him, taking in the martial discipline of the fighters that were escorting the shuttle down to the planet below.

The shuttle landed gently in the landing Padd.

"Ensign, stay here" Yasmine said

"Aye captain" Nerinath replied. She was not eager to go out there at all. She was alien after all.

The hatch released with a soft hiss, and Yasmine led the way down the ramp.

Behind the captain was the large form of Man'darr and then Gami as Naxea brought up the rear. Gami paused off the ramp. She scanned the surrounding area with her armor's sensors. It was hard to get an accurate reading. She reached out with her mind, getting only a jumble of thoughts in return--none seemed hostile.

"Everything good, Staff Sergeant?" Naxea asked her long time friend, coming up behind her.

Gami nodded. "Yeah, just checking the area, ma'am."

Kyle followed, staying close to Harry. "Remember. You stick by me me. No exceptions. "Understand?"

The Professor gave him an annoyed look. "the level of paranoia and prejudgement being shown by this crew is getting vexing. Closed minds won't achieve anything."

Reaching out, Kyle laid a large, strong hand on the academic's shoulder and squeezed. Not a full strength squeeze, just enough to get the smaller man's attention. "Professor," he said in a no-nonsense tone. "Closed minds have nothing to do with it. Experience out here, with unpredictable people is what I'm refering to. Your safty is my mission. If, at any time, I feel things are not safe, I will be pulling you out. My orders come from the C-in-C and the President, themselves. My word, as it relates to you and your fellow scientists on this mission, is scripture. Do you understand me?"

the professor glanced at the hand on his shoulder, and realised that obviously no-one around here understood how to be professional, and politeness would fall on deaf ears. He shrugged the hand off. "Fuck off, you self-important patronising arse. I don't care who gave you your orders. And I doubt the president has heard of either of us, so don't pull that bullshit with me." And he stomped down the exit ramp to join the captain.

---

Off in the distance, a pair of eyes watched the whole event with interest. Lowering his binoculars, Gregor considered what he had seen. Would these new humans be friend? Or would they help the topsiders hunt him and his brother and sister Outkasts? Only time would tell. Without a sound, he disappeared back into the safety of the underground.

---

Yasmine moved with confidence. She trusted the marines and the other officers to keep this group safe.

The landing coordinates given to the Elysium were just inside the outskirts of the capital city, within the protection of a solid-metal border wall. It was six meters tall and one meter thick, made of metal very similar to steel, one that was abundant in this world. It wouldn’t stop a Starfleet phaser for long- or a torpedo at all- but it was more than enough to keep out wild animals.

The area itself was a mixture of concrete landing pads, six in total, and a few grassy areas that hadn’t been civilized between the border wall and the first of the outskirt buildings. There were several large, round buildings to the east of the landing area, easily identified as grain storage. To the west were several closed-off single-story buildings of non-descript function.

Directly ahead from the shuttle’s open doors, and a single man came walking around the corner of the closest building, down what appeared to be a side alley of the industrial block. There was no one else, just him. A human male, caucasian, fully dressed in a military-looking outfit. He waved toward the shuttle crew that had been fanning out from the shuttle.

“Hello, there!” He shouted as he approached. As he came closer, the man’s uniform was easier to see. The left breast pocket was adorned with a multitude of shiny metal pieces to show he was decorated with military honours, and the shoulders had an embroidered line of five golden stars. The majority of the uniform was black, with dark green accents and silver linings.

This single man, all alone, finally came to a stop within a few meters of the group. The smile on his face was that of a child, undoing any sense of decorum that his station might suggest. “I can’t believe it…”

Yasmine gave him a polite smile. "I am Captain Carrington of the USS Elysium. We understand that is is quite shocking for you to see other humans from Earth after all this time."

He moved forward towards Captain Carrington, reaching out his dominant right hand to offer a handshake, "James Green." It was almost an afterthought for him as he added, "Uh, President James Green. I lead our efforts here to grow our colony for the betterment of mankind."

Yasmine did the polite thing and shook his hand. "President Green." She smiled. "From what we saw from orbit, your colony is extensive. "

Kyle pulled up the rear of the group. Looking around, he could see that the colony was indeed extensive. However, there was something...a bit too sterile about everything. And why had the supposed leader of the colony come to greet them, alone? Maybe it was his years of extensive combat but, something was bothering him about this whole situation.

"We," James nodded, "pride ourselves on constant progress. Hopefully, before long, we may even have grand..." He looked up towards the sky, as if looking for the Elysium, "space ships, like yours!"

A group of voices could be heard in the distance. President Green's eyes went a little wide.

"Grand- er- Mr. President!" A uniformed officer called out as he came from the same direction James had. Another officer appeared, and then two more.

James looked into Yasmine's eyes, breaking out into an attempt at an innocent smile. "I, uh," He scratched the back of his head, "I may have given my escort the slip."

The four military men approached, cursing under their collective breath and clamoring to reach their leader.

"Oh! Hi, guys! Sorry, I think I got lost on the way. Good thing you found me." The act continued.

"Mr. President, please," The man heaved a heavy breath, "we can't protect you if you don't stay," Another labored breath, "with us."

Yasmine was a good actress, she knew when things were false. "I fully understand that it can be constraining having one's movements so closely monitored. May I introduce my officers?"

James had focussed so much on their leader, he'd barely seemed to notice anyone else. "Of course, Captain! Introduce, away."

"My executive Officer, Commander Garrett Lovejoy." she indicated to Garrett.

James seemed to tense up a little as he looked at Garrett, observing him from top to bottom. "I think my men could learn from your posture and composure, Commander," he said with a glance back at his still-recovering escort, "It's good to meet you." He offered his hand.

Garrett offered a polite smile and extended his had to shake Green's "Mr. President." He answered simply.

"Our ships diplomatic Officer, Commander Gary Taylor."

With a step towards him, James offered his hand, "That's quite the jawline you've got there! Strong and prominent. I'm jealous!" He smiled.

That was the last thing Gary expected to hear and offered a little awkward smile. "Um, thank you sir." Gary answered as he shook Green's hand firmly.

"Our ships Marine Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Azhul, along with several of her detachment." As Naxea was Bajoran, her nose was probably going to set him off but Yasmine chose not to care.

The four officers behind James went silent as they saw the Marine Commander. One of them stepped forward, his hand near his weapon going stiff.

President Green reached a hand in front of his subordinate, halting his advance. They exchanged a look.

"S-sir, I-" The man seemed to realize he was out of line, attempting to backtrack as his hand relaxed and moved away from his holstered weapon.

"All of you." Green turned and waved them away, "get going. If I can't trust you to keep our guests safe, you can go back to base."

"But the Vice Marshal-"

"Remember who you report to. Go. Away. I'll talk to you, later."

At once, the four men nodded with respect and turned to leave.

With a sigh, James took a step towards Naxae, "Please, Colonel, you must forgive my people. They may need time to..." he seemed to search for the right word, "adjust." He offered her his hand.

Man'darr and Gami kept their eyes on the military officers. One false move and neither would hesitate to fire.

Looking at the men walking away, to the captain and then to the president, Naxea wondered if the Captain had known that these humans were xenophobic. If so, there was going to be some questions answered. Naxea stepped forward and shook the president's hand. "While I can understand their hesitation, let us hope it doesn't take them too long," she mentioned, not letting the president know that both of her Marines next to her were also aliens though to look at them, they appeared more human than she--especially donned in their Assault Armor.

"Don't you worry, Colonel," James locked his gaze with hers, a firm grip on her hand, "I've got everything under control."

"And this is Commander Kyle Reece and Dr Wells-Smith, our Historian. Commander Reece is the Doctors primary Bodyguard."

James nodded to the two of them, "Hello," He said to Kyle, then he turned to the civilian, "Mr. Smith, was it? A historian? I'd love to speak to you about what's happened since we left Earth."

"A pleasure, Mr President," Harry nodded, "I'm sure we can fill you in, though it might take a while. We're just as interested in your own history."

"Mister President." Kyle replied politely. There was something about the man's eyes that he just didn't trust. But he kept it to himself, for now.

Yasmine smiled politely. "Mr President, how many people are in your colony?"

"Ah, Yes!" James brightened, raising a hand in gesture towards the city behind him, "our population, across the colony, was projected to reach twenty thousand by this time. However," He declared, pulling back his hand and pointing the index finger up into the sky, "in the intervening centuries, we have changed our fate, increased our population growth, and reached a staggering one hundred thousand!"

One hundred thousand and why did she have a feeling they were all going to be fanatics. "That's amazing." She said honestly. "To have achieved that with such a small start."

"It wasn't easy," He admitted, "but now we can show Earth the fruit of our labor." With a deep breath, he smiled once more, "Would you care to take a tour of our capital city?"

"We would love to, the scans we got coming over shows that this is a thriving city." Yasmine said with a smile. He was playing her she was sure of it.

"Excellent," James flicked his wrist to free the watch-like device from its' housing within the sleeve. The small screen glowed green on contact as he gripped it between his middle finger and thumb, "Vice Marshal, I require another escort."

A dead-pan response came out of the device, "I thought you might,"

"Just-"

"-which is why I've arranged for more amiable company, President Green. They've been waiting for your signal."

Shaking his head, James sighed, "Of course, I should have realized you would be ready for me. My apologies, I'm a little distracted after the first incident."

"I assure you, Mr. President... it won't happen again." The signal cut and the green light faded.

With another flick of the wrist, the comm device disappeared. James looked to Yasmine with anticipation, "Will all of you be joining us, today?"

She smiled easily. "If possible. My executive officer does not like me wandering around on my own. He and my Marine commander get very irate when I do. Something about having my own ransom note," she said lightly. "And I am sure Dr Wells-Smith is eager to see your wonderful city."

The President shifted his gaze to Commander Lovejoy, then to Colonel Naxea, "I can relate. I probably give my Vice Marshal more headaches than he cares to admit. Speaking of headaches..." He looked back, raising his voice, "Stop hiding and get out here!"

Yet another group of men had arrived, six this time. The rank insignias on their shoulders indicated seniority with a special silver stripe. They did as they were told without a word, appearing from around several locations and converging on the President before snapping to attention in formation. They were stood straight as poles, unmoving and staring straight ahead.

James looked back to Yasmine, "Ready? Let's get going." He began walking in the direction of the main road. The escorts took positions several meters around the front in a half-circle, like a shield bubble, not even paying attention to the Starfleet crew behind them.

Yasmine stepped to his side, careful to keep a gap between herself and him. She knew the rest of her team fell in behind her. "I noticed the reaction to my Marine captain. You have not had contact with Aliens yet?"

"We've kept to ourselves, which does most of the work for us." James explained, "on the very few occasions where outsiders have noticed our existence, we," he looked up for a moment, as if giving it some thought, "warned them off."

"yes we saw your automated defense systems. Quiet advanced." She paused. "And we were surprised that you had not attempted to return to Earth."

Naxea was right behind the captain as her eyes kept watch on the president as the captain moved closer. The new escorts had caught her attention at their discipline. 'Not the ordinary soldier,' she thought before turning to catch Gami's attention. 'Gami, keep frosty,' she thought to her betazoid friend. 'Especially on our new escorts.'

Gami simply nodded slightly as she studied the sensor readouts on the HUD display in her helmet.

The large group reached the main road and turned onto it. The President raised his hand in a grand gesture towards the center of the city up ahead. "With the assistance of automated construction drones," He explained to the group,"in combination with our population growth, we have managed to build a magnificent capital, roughly five square kilometers in size. I'm pleased to welcome you all," he looked back towards the alien Marine Commander, "to our shining jewel, Viridey City!"

Yasmine caught the intentional wording and knew those in her team had too. She gave a smile. "It is lovely."

"Thank you!" He beamed.

Harry looked at the metropolis ahead, and sucked in a breath. It was very beautiful, but the whole thing reminded him of the Emerald City in the Oz books. "Was this where the Abraham landed? Did the whole crew survive? What were those first few years like?"

James answered each question in turn, "Yes, yes, and it was very difficult, for sure."

As the group continued down the main road, the horizon inched slowly away until it was almost entirely obscured by buildings of various heights and designs. The landing pads were far behind, now, as the first of the larger structures were on display to the right of the road. It was a large and open amphitheater, like some sort of arena for training or sport.

Three columns of troops were performing exercises in the center of it. They swung their rifles' front-mounted blades around in a three-step pattern before returning to their starting positions. Instead of dummies or thin air, the troops had other soldiers for targets who would take each and every hit with an equally drilled set of defensive blocks and parries. With each movement and collision of blades, the pair of trainees would loudly grunt. As a group, the grunts sounded strained and harsh, yet focussed. It was a harmony of testosterone that easily broke a hundred decibels when done in unison.

"Our troops train daily," President Green explained as he walked by, "which keeps them sharp and ready. Our last drill had an entire Company ready for battle in seventeen seconds. It's quite the record," He declared with a beaming smile, "and a bounty has been put out for any Captain who's Company can beat it during the next drill. From what I hear, the competition has been fierce."

~Great!~ Thought Yasmine. Her Betazoid senses were screaming at her to get them out but she had to see this through. "Your capital is surely a sight to see Mr President, It is a shame only a small part of my crew have been able to witness it."

"You're here, now," James countered, "that's all that matters."

Several minutes later, the Viridey escorts came to a sudden halt, forcing the entire group to stop. James looked to the lead escort with a puzzled look in his eyes. The puzzlement cleared after they shared a quick word in each others' ears. "Really?" James said loud enough for those near him to hear. "Is now really a good time- okay, fine, have it your way."

With a dramatic turn, he addressed the group. "Please, forgive me, my troops require daily evaluations and... my Vice Marshal is a pain in the ass, to be frank. I'll be right over here, filling out the paperwork. It'll only be a moment!" He ran to the side of the road and grabbed the tablet that his man had handed him. James appeared to be in a heated argument with the leader of his escorts. From time to time, he would pull out the watch and talk into it.

"oh this is not good" Muttered Yasmine out of the corner of her mouth to her executive officer.

"I agree Captain." Garrett whispered to her while watching Green. "We need to regain control of the situation. I feel we're being played here and I don't like being played."

Gary had been walking behind Carrington and Green, his eyes taking in every detail without speaking. Hearing Garrett's comment he stepped up to the pair. "Quite right Garrett, we are being played. Have yo noticed their practice? THis isn't a mere exercise this much more. It's life and death to them." He faced Carrington. "Captain we're dealing with fanatic's. They only see their cause. Nothing else and will do whatever they can to further their cause. We don't need to help them along. I think you need to cut the visit short so we can get back to the ship, our home turf, where we have control and we can plan our strategy."

"Make something up" Yasmine said. "We need a diplomatic reason out of this."

Gary nodded, "Captain? Are you feeling alright? " He questioned her, concern in his voice. He looked to Garrett and said, "The Captain's Albright-Salzman syndrome is acting up. Look at her color! We need to end the sight seeing now and get back to the ship.... now!"

The escorts all turned to look. James noticed the change in their stance and, after giving the tablet back to his lead, walked back towards the Starfleet crew. "Hey, is everything alright over there?"

Gary turned to face James "NO! We need to get the Captain back to the ship now. I'm afraid we'll need to cut the visit short." He turned back to Yasmine and Garrett, "Captain, slouch and appear disoriented. Garrett put your arm around her to support her." He whispered.

Yasmine had already started to wilt. She let her eyes half close and wobbled on her feet.

The President stopped when he saw what was happening. There was a hesitation as he observed. His left thumb twitched, finally revealing the exact motion that activated his watch communicator. It sat there out in the open on his wrist for another moment before he appeared to change his mind. Another thumb twitch and the watch slid back into the sleeve.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Captain," Was all he said as he stared with a placid expression, waving his men back to get them clear of the visitors. They respectfully obeyed, giving Yasmine and crew some breathing room.

"We will be in touch with you again shortly I'm sure Mr. President." Gary replied as he and Garrett walked Yasmine back to the shuttle with the rest of the away team.

Still watching from a distance, President James Green waited patiently for his visitors to leave before getting out the watch once more. Raising it to his lips, he gripped it until it glowed green. "Vice Marshal Reigh... the situation has changed."