New Face, Who Dis?

Posted on Tue Aug 11th, 2026 @ 7:57pm by Lieutenant JG Varinity Atoro & Commander Sthilg & Commander Alicia Kelea-Salik & Lieutenant Myne Redal & Lieutenant Camryn Shepard & Lieutenant J'airesh Mora-Heath & Petty Officer 1st Class Kara DeSotto [ADMIN NPC]

Mission: Season 6: Episode 7: Crossroads of Destiny
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: MD4 :: 1830
1990 words - 4 OF Standard Post Measure

Varinity glanced at the PADDs in her hands as she walked to sickbay. With Gary and Kyle working with Sam on a rescue plan, she’d been tasked with briefing the four who had been called upon to play a serious and potentially deadly game of dress-up. She left her usual easygoing charm behind so she could at least try to feel better about chancing arrest with four more people. The PADDs contained copies of the mission briefing, one for each person, a fifth contained additional information on Lonian biology for the medics, and the sixth was for her to read off of.

Focusing herself, the Italian woman watched the doors part to let her into sickbay, seeing that the team appeared to have arrived right before her and were awaiting instruction. Thanks to further research, they discovered that the tallest reasonable height for a Lonian could be 5’8, which was good because there weren’t many short officers aboard who could successfully blend in with the Lonians. She had already heard a grievance or two about the “ideal candidates” for this mission being unavailable because... well, they were already on the surface. In jail. Standing before her was the chief counselor, Alicia, the acting chief of operations, Myne, and the bridge yeoman, Kara DeSotto. The chief engineer, Camryn, was missing, as was J'Air.

Talk about a motley crew.

“Alrighty,” Varinity began, to get their attention. She had really only interacted with Alicia and Camryn, but she certainly recognised all of the other faces, especially after staring at their personnel files for the last hour. Looking to Sthilg, she handed over the PADD with medical information before passing out the four intended for the team. “We have enough information and the green light to run an infiltration mission into the detention centre. You four were chosen because... well, you meet the height restriction to pass as Lonian.” At that, she offered an apologetic little smile for effectively calling her peers short. “The computer is finalising the details on the guard uniforms, and I asked Avalon to send them here once they’re ready. Your PADDs contain known information on mannerisms and what we know about the prison. While the doctor is adjusting your faces, I’ll go over what sensors have been able to pick up, thanks to Lieutenant Shepard’s adjustments, as well as the mission scope.”

Myne was engaged in a Earthly tradition from the dawn of Human society, called... chewing gum... or so she thought that the habit was something ancient. True to form, Humans were still the most confusing race that the old, ancient Trill in a young body ever encountered. Either that or she still refused to be reasonable and stop misinterpreting everything about Humans in general. Still, the operations officer was on her personalized PADD and actually checking some of the equipment in the room as if crossing some of her duties off of her list since she was here already. Her own forehead ridge already stuck to her face, and her trill dots mostly covered.

The Trill turned to Varinity and accepted the PADD, simply touching it to her own, and then setting it aside. Reading the briefing on her own PADD instead. Her device was... well, a unusual thing to say the least. "Soooo, this is a mission for shorties I take it?" Myne chuckled and smiled as she read through the briefing. Already she was going over the mannerisms provided in the briefing, and sorting through her previous experiences and hosts to find a good match. "Oooh, Kalani, a good name, I think I'll use this for my guise."

"As amusing as it would be to watch Commander Reece try to blend in..." Varinity responded with a little smile. She remembered an old musical where someone played the short king character by waddling around on their knees. Lord Longthighs or something like that. "Since crew conditions are still unknown, we're erring on the side of caution."

“Caution is good” Alicia offered as she sat letting the medical staff do what they needed to do. “Who knew we’d end up in this pickle when we got here.”

Kara stood silent, waiting for the next order, while everything screamed at her she should be outside the Commodore's medical door.

Seeing that the modifications were already decently underway, Varinity turned her attention to the PADD in her hands. "At present, there are still too many unknowns about the prison and our detained crew. Your mission is to infiltrate the prison and collect as much information as you can. A map of the prison, defenses, where the crew may be held, anything like that."

“Can’t say I like this idea but if it gets our people back so much the better” Alicia added as she looked at the PaDD in front of her. “So how are we supposed to walk in there as guards, no doubt every guard is known by sight and if they’re not expecting anyone new we’ll be stuffed before we start.”

Varinity gave a slight smile. "It turns out that a group of new recruits are getting their tour of the detention centre this evening. We were able to find a 'hypothetical acceptance letter' from the public records that Intelligence was able to duplicate."

A whistling that could only come from the gorn echoed around the room as Sthilg stepped in. He held a box containing more of the fake forehead ridges. " Pleassse form an orderly queue. " He added as she pulled on a pair of gloves.

When a Gorn said that, you did it. Kara moved to stand in line. She listened as others chatted.

Alicia moved to stand behind Kara, she just hoped everything would go to plan once they got to the surface.

"Your PADDs provide an idea of the mannerisms expected in a royal guard. Civilian reports have described them as cold and impersonal." Varinity watched the doctor adhere the prosthetics into place. In the same moment, her own PADD beeped, alerting her that the uniform modifications were done. She had the computer materialise them into nestly folded piles on an unoccupied biobed nearby. The uniforms were a dark blue with silver accents, a single pip on their collars. "Your new uniforms. As you are posing as newly recruited officers, you'll all be seargants, their lowest rank. I know it makes the mission harder, and I apologise for that, but Lady Sama's defense structure is thorough and this was the easiest way for you to blend in."

" Now remember thessse don't have any blood in them sss pleassse avoid damging them." Sthilg said as he went about his work.

"I don't intend of damaging it Sir" Kara said as she took the information in while her face was altered.

Varinity continued to watch the transformation. It was weird knowing who they were but also gradually becoming unsettled as they looked more and more like the guards. She dreaded seeing them in uniform. "You'll join a group of recruits in the town of Jekasp, and when you're done you'll meet up at the coordinates on your PADDs. I cannot guarantee that the Elysium can maintain a transporter lock while you are in the prison, but you all have the tracking chips so we will know where you are at all times. If you have any questions, now is the time to ask them."

Cam entered sickbay and walked towards them, replying with haste, "Sorry I'm late. I had some last minute preparations to do."

Looking around the room, she checked her datapad and nodded, placing the PADD down. She got the last bit of Varinity's update and raised her finger, "I assume we have a bit of a backup plan in case it all falls?"

She eyed the Gorn CMO and smiled, awaiting her turn to undergo surgical adjustments. If there was anything she hated, it was adjusting her cranial ridges. Being part Klingon, they had to adjust for the bump but it gave her a headache. Fortunately, she appeared more El Aurian than Klingon, which meant despite some proper calculations, she still could pass for a Lonian. The engineer passed the height requirements. Barely. Making her probably the tallest Lonian in the group. She'd have to bend her knees a lil.

J'Airesh also arrived a little late and with sincere apologies and an explanation about a last minute admission, joined the queue to have her boss, the CMO, alter her appearance too. As a half-Bajoran she already ridges at the bridge of her nose but hopefully the softening that her half human heritage offered, might assist when the new shape was applied by the expert skills of the Gorn surgeon.

A little thrown off by the tardiness, Varinity looked to Camryn. "If the mission fails and you are able to get out, disperse into the forest. Like I said, Elysium can track you via the tracking chips. If you're captured... well, do whatever it takes to survive. The information you're looking for is critical for the plan Captain Taylor, Commander Reece, and Captain Woolheater are formulating."

“Let’s hope nothing goes wrong, last thing we need is to add more prisoners to their collection” Alicia added.

Varinity gave Alicia a faint smile. "Please don't jinx it, Commander."

J'Air smiled and held up both her hands with the first two fingers tightly crossed to attempt to undo the idea of a jinx.

Kara shifted and wanted to scratch at her new face, it itched but she shoved her hands into the pockets of the clothes she would be wearing planet side. "This is going to work" She said softly. "Has to."

People continued to chatter. Camryn sighed, rolling her eyes at the idea of a "jinx" and focused her attention on the PADD. Her daughter used to nag her about it. With the idea of a backup plan from Varinity at the back of her mind. she felt ready for the mission as the doctor applied the surgical changes on her face. Hopefully, the Lonians wouldn't ask her about her height. The thought of it brought her height insecurities back.

J'Air approached her boss. "Can I be of any help, Sir?" she offered. "Perhaps start at the back of the queue and work forwards to meet you in the middle? Then you won't have so many to get through and you can do mine last when you get to me, if that's of any help?"

" A very good idea J'Air. " Sthilg said, though he didn't look up as he concentrated on his job. There was a fine line between making it up look realistic yet not drawing attention to it.

As Sthilg and J'Air worked on the prosthetics, Varinity couldn't help but stare as the group transitioned into the very people who sketched her out. As they changed into the guard uniforms, an unwelcome shiver crawled up her spine. "Wow... I mean this respectfully, but you all look very punchable."

"Erm, Is that a backhanded compliment?" J'Air smiled, keeping on working as it was a jocular, rhetorical comment, more than a question.

Narrowing her eyes, Cam turned to Varinity. "Excuse me?" She replied, unsure on how to take the comment. Already stressed with everything including the rescue, everything had to go right. A slight misalignment to her altered appearance and the mission would go out the airlock. The comment felt inappropriate and out of place. Electing to not say anything further, the hybrid El Aurian Klingon refocused her attention on her PADD, reviewing the schematics on the small LCARs screen.

The remark from Camryn made Varinity's eyes briefly widen as she realised it wasn't the time, place, or people to really make such a comment to. She raised her hands, "apologies, Lieutenant, Commander. The disguises are convincing, disturbingly so. That's all I meant by it."

They finished up and headed for their beam down point.