Mists of the Mind (Constitution)/Full Report

--Stardate: 239112.20--

With the newly recommissioned USS Constitution-B finally staffed and space-worthy, Commander Shelter Faranster ordered the ship to the Sotra System. The ship would testing its "sea legs" on a relatively easily first mission - a basic supply delivery to the isolated Sotra Orbital Research Station or SORS and its two scientists. Over the six day journey to the remote station, the crew began to bond and work together.

After arriving at the station, the two researchers a Ktarian named Aralo Onil and a Denobulan named Morely Rin greeted the crew. Commander Faranster informed the two scientists that a reception was being thrown in their honor and they would be offered a guided tour of the Constitution's science labs and facilities. Both were eager to leave the station for a short amount of time as the effects of such a long period of isolation were beginning to take their toll.

While being led around the ship, the Constitution found a contradictory report stating that SORS was actually staffed by seven researchers. Confused by this and somewhat alarmed, an away was dispatched to investigate the station.

At around the same time, the tour of the Constitution ended and a party in the newly renamed bar "The Black Hole" began. Meanwhile, several shuttles arrived at the Constitution to deposit new crew members who had missed the initial transfer at Starbase 118. One of these shuttles was the M'Ress. Upon approach, the shuttle experienced strange mechanical failures and was towed into a Shuttlebay for investigation.

With the party in full swing, the security detail that had been assigned to the researchers on their tour finished their shift. As they made their way towards the elevators, one of the crew, a Bajoran, experienced a strange hallucination and fired on his fellow officers, killing one of them. He is in turn was gunned down. Several other officers aboard the ship began reporting headaches, visions, noises, odd smells, and nightmares. Other cases of violent behavior were also reported throughout the ship. It became apparent that something was very wrong.

As the Away Team returned to the ship, both their findings and the investigation into the M'Ress proved troubling. The Away Team had located several researchers in suspended animation in status pods and it was learned that the M'Ress was carrying illegal cargo, bound for the station. Suspicion immediately turned towards the visiting scientists and they were detained in Sickbay.

In the attempts to wake the cryogenically frozen researchers for some answers as to what was happening proved difficult, conditions aboard the ship worsened. Crew members all over the ship reported coming down with symptoms. The Commander ordered all non infected crew to stay in their quarters. Several medical teams and security teams were also infected as they reported to various situations. In a matter of hours, nearly the entire ship was overrun with these unknown symptoms.

The bridge crew began to pull their information together and investigate the hypothesis that, perhaps, this wasn't a random sickness. The theory that this was a targeted and planned infestation gained traction as it was discovered using a seldom considered scanner that there were surges in invisible energy every time symptoms were experienced. Those surges had a clear, direct pattern and were slowly working their way through the ship.

Whatever they were dealing with was sentient. However, nothing matched Starfleet records. They were forced to improvise. Using isotropic radiation to flood the ship, the crew was able to "mark" the energy clouds. Now able to see their assailants as gaseous clouds, the crew acted. When the Commander and members of his Senior Staff began interviewing the two researchers, a troubling revelation was revealed.

One of them had been suffering from symptoms in the days before the USS Constitution-B had arrived at SORS and had lied about it.

TBC.........