SB118Ops Mission Logs/Sal Taybrim/Honey, I Shrunk The Crew
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 ACTIVE STATUS | ||
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The artifact – the orb – did not overload. It lapped up the energy hungrily, like water given to a parched man. And it flared to life with a deep purple flash.
The applause died, suddenly.
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Mission Summary
Act I: Ebony And Gold
The Galactic Antiquities Exchange and Roadshow Convention is being held on Starbase 118 Ops, and all the senior crew are asked to attend the opening Gala to continue to foster positive relations between the GEC and Starfleet. Because of an assassination attempt on his life, Commodore Taybrim has been ordered by Admiral Hauke to remain out of the public eye, leaving Commander Dal to represent him in his stead.
On the night of the gala, Starfleet crew come dressed in a wide array of finery to enjoy the fellowship with each other as well as with the scientists and merchants that make up a large portion of the membership of the GEC. The crew greet each other, then start to spread out, some dancing, food, and even a first look at not only the antiques on display, but some of the recent artifacts discovered by archaeologists. A stranger arrives, seemingly interested in the First Officer, but is escorted out of the Ballroom by security and not allowed to enter.
Meanwhile, Empress Serena Lurtz arrives with her daughter, Katarina, with great pomp and circumstance. Determined to match her daughter, she tracks down the Commodore and left Katerina and Taybrim alone to connect. Taybrim proceeds to take Katerina on a tour, mainly of the Narendra, first to the warp core, then to the bridge.
During the course of the evening, dinner is called and everyone sits down to enjoy a delicious meal. Afterward, Professor Bissk Jevan presented an amazing find - another Bajoran Orb, called the Orb of Perspective. Unbeknownst to the GEC and the Officers, a band of pirates had made plans to disrupt the event and secret away with enough antiquities and artifacts to avail themselves of a tidy profit. Three Kobeerians, telepathically dark to prevent discovery from those with such abilities, hide beneath the auction stage, then employ a Romulan made electromagnetic disruptor which short circuits and scrambles all non-organic computer equipment in the vicinity. The newly revealed orb reacts to the sudden surge, and everyone on the ballroom floor suddenly passes out and shrinks. Upon the discovery of the new state of the event’s guests, the pirates elect to take advantage of a new opportunity, and one of the Kobeerians gathers the miniature people, stuffs them into a live sample case, and, along with the others and their newly acquired goods, hurry back to the pirate ship, The Drowning Band.
| Notable Sims | |
|---|---|
| [1] | Welcome to the Ball |
| [2] | So Excited |
| [3] | The Heist |
Act II: Kidnapped
Everyone awakens to varying degrees of headaches, dizziness, and hangover-like symptoms, but all seem intact and unharmed. They quickly discover they have been shrunk and are in a live sample case, non-shocking forcefield bars preventing them from escaping. Commander Dal calls upon Lieutenant Rue Blackwell, Ensign German Galven, and Taelon to somehow get the bars disabled. The trio succeed quickly, and First Officer Alora DeVeau sets about handing out tasks.
Lieutenant JG Ashley Yael, Lieutenant Sheila Bailey, Crewmember Alistair Bailey, Ensign German Galven are tasked with finding the orb. DeVeau also tells them to take Federation News Service Reporter Alex Harper with them to assist. The group make their way toward one end of the room in an attempt to figure out how to get out of there. Something draws Yael’s attention, and a moment later, they are face to face with a giant cat. Rather than consuming them, however, the cat is friendly, and Yael recognises Sachiko, DeVeau’s wayward feline. Getting an idea, he climbs up and encourages his team members to do the same. Once everyone is secured with some rope found in the room, he manages to get Sachiko to move and the cat trots over to another wall where the cover of a vent lies upon the floor, leaving an opening quite large enough for the feline and her riders .
Lieutenant Commander Wyn Foster, Lieutenant Commander Ishani Kasun, Blackwell, and Ensign Ariana Amaase are tasked with finding a way to contact Starbase 118 Ops in an effort to request help. The three put their heads together and decide they need to get higher up in order to get a better sense of where they are and where other things are. Foster points to an old fashioned broom and they proceed to go over and decide to hack handholds in the handle in order to climb up without toppling it over. Blackwell suggests they gather other things that might be useful, and Amaase notes that scrap metal and stone are likely to be around there somewhere. Blackwell joins her to search. Together, they find a screw and some metal. After a quick alteration to her dress in order to make it easier to move, the group prepares to use their tools and resources to create a way up the broom handle. Because of Lt. Commander’s resourcefulness, they were able to use a laser cutter in the medkit he had to cut notches and get to the top. Once there, they were able to use some found boxes to create a stairwell to access a console. Once there, they’re able to open the panel and manipulate the circuitry to send a message to the Narendra. As soon as they finish, a pirate appears.
To Commander Dal, Major Tatash, Ensign Drevas, and Ensign Andrews, DeVeau gives the task of guarding the civilians who were kidnapped along with the officers and protecting them from their kidnappers if and/or when they return. They discover that the cage is not high up as expected, but actually on the floor. Unfortunately, Andrews realises that there’s something else in the room with them - an Alterian Sand Lizard - and it consumes a Nausicaan in the employ of Empress Lurtz. It was decided to move all the civilians and the officers guarding them to a more advantageous position. Once everyone is out of the cage, the lizard returns, only to vomit up the previously consumed guard, now covered in lizard slime. Andrews tells the other officers to get the rest of the people, and the regurgitated guard, to a safe place, then turns to run at it, then proceeds to use its collar to grab a hold and mount it like a horse. Tatash leads the rest of the group over to a container laying on its side, the lid popped open just enough for them to enter, but not the lizard. He realises it’s a lunch box, and inside he finds a ham sandwich. Meanwhile Ensign Andrews is bull riding the lizard, but gets thrown off into some of the collected artifacts. There, he finds an ancient laser pointer and discovers that the lizard is distracted by the to created from the beam. Andrews proceeds to entertain the lizard with the new found toy. Meanwhile, Dal insists they get to better safety, and finds a hatch that leads to a tunnel. As they are getting everyone in, a pirate comes into the room and manages to swipe Tatash, just before he’s able to join the others.
Lastly, DeVeau assigns Lieutenant Commander Arturo Maxwell, Lieutenant JG Eireen Bryne, and Lieutenant JG Taelon to join her in an effort to find a way to turn the ship around and head back to Starbase 118. The three climb out of the cage and make their way in one direction. Eventually, they come to a set of doors, but are unable to open it due to their size. Fortunately, a pile of boxes and crates are against the wall, and Taelon and Maxwell are assigned to scale it. They make their way up to the panel, and Taelon not only gathers some information, but manages to get the doors open. Finding a long, cylindrical object, DeVeau enlists the aid of Bryne to push it over the threshold and prevent the doors from closing all the way. They are successful, and once Taelon and Maxwell rejoin them, they move into and down the hallway. As they progress, they feel footsteps and hurry over to a slightly open hatch. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough room for all of them. Leaving them there, Alora hides behind a raised lip of an archway in the hall. She and the others manage to avoid detection and continue on their way - only to discover that to access the bridge, they have to go right through the mess hall which is full of pirates.
Back on the Base, Ensign Talas Beck, Ensign Dunamis and Lieutenant Solaris McLaren discover an empty ballroom - or so they thought. Upon further inspection, they realise that the guests are still there, they have just shrunk! After getting a count, they also realise that several guests and senior staff are missing. Calling Cadet Kherys Harper, McLaren asks that she bring a medical team to the ballroom. They arrive and begin to scan and stabilise the miniature people, while Kherys inquires of the officers already there as to what had happened. They discover that the orb is the source of the strange shrinking and, after Dunamis checks the ship manifests, concludes that the Drowning Band was the only ship that had the proper timing for the dirty deeds. McLaren orders everyone to get into uniform, tells Talas to get the Drowning Band’s flight plan and find their warp trail, has Dunamis begin a tactical analysis of the ship, indicates Harper should join them for medical assistance, then contacts the Commodore and requests use of the Narendra.
On the Narendra, Commodore Taybrim has taken Princess Lurtz to the bridge where she learns more about the little ship of Starbase 118. While there, they receive notification of what has transpired from Commander McLaren, and Princess Lurtz insists on helping, fearful for her mother. Taybrim gives the help to Talas and orders McLaren, Zel, and Harper to prepare to board the pirate ship, but in the meantime, everyone should try to get as much information about that ship as possible. Using her contacts and monetary influence, she is able to find out more information regarding the ship and its crew. Cadet Harper picks up the ship’s warp trail and is able to discern how to follow after them. Between them, they’re able to find the ship and make contact.
On the Drowning Band, pirate Fenfri had found a random cat running after him while on the base. He scooped her up and brought her to the ship. After taking her to his quarters, he turns his back only to discover when he focuses on her again that she has disappeared! He thinks she’s hiding and hurries off to acquire food, only to run into pirate Smeagle. The two go have dinner and talk about taking a few of the mini people for themselves to get extra profit. After eating, Smeagle intercepts a call from the pirate Captain Vaapan. After Smeagle tantalizes her with interesting goods, she agrees to meet with them in two hours. Smeagle announces the rendezvous to the ship, then speaks to Captain Killian Farrow directly. Farrow orders Smeagle to meet him in the cargo bay to go over the booty that has been acquired. Smeagle takes a detour to the now empty bridge and it is there where Yael and his team arrive. Fortunately, they are not immediately noticed by the pirate, and after some finagling, they are able to send out a distress signal. This triggered an alarm which caught the attention of the pirate. The team scrambled back on Sachiko, who whisked them away just in time to get away from the pirate and back into the vent.
| Notable Sims | |
|---|---|
| [4] | Shrink, Shrank, Shrunk! |
| [5] | Shrunken Discoveries |
| [6] | Trapped Like Rats |
Act III: Creating Chaos
The Narendra crew has found the Drowning Band and approached, then made contact with the Captain, indicating there was someone who had escaped and all ships leaving the sector were being checked. The Captain refused assistance from the Narendra and indicated he would sweep the ship and contact them if they found anything, then cut the communications. Cadet Harper, however, was able to sense their people, particularly Lieutenant Bailey and Commander Foster, confirming their presence on the pirate ship. Afterward, she joins McLaren, Dunamis, and Zel on the other side of the bridge to discuss how to board the ship. Together, the crewmembers come up with a plan, and McLaren takes Dunamis, Zel, and Harper while Talas, Lurtz, and Taybrim remain onboard the Narendra.
Blackwell, Amaase, Foster, and Kasun successfully get a message to the Narendra, then are surprised by the arrival of one of the pirates. The pirate notices the people and goes on a rampage in the room, tearing it up to get at them. Blackwell gets separated from the group and manages to make it out into the hallway. Kasun grabs a gear and manages to fling out off toward another side of the room in an effort to make the pirate who is still rampaging think they are elsewhere so they can escape. Quickly, those who are left slide down the broom pole and hurry over to a pipe. The pirate follows and peers in. Thinking rapidly, Kasun grapes a piece of scrap metal and charges forward, ramming it into the pirate’s eye. Angry, the pirate goes on a rampage and the three hide in a corner behind a broken cleaning robot and some buckets where they could see the door. While contemplating their predicament, they hear a shout from the pirates about Starfleet and realise that help is on the way, but how do they get Starfleet’s attention? They make their way out into the hall.
Finding themselves faced with passing through the mess hall, Alora gets the idea to hitch a ride on a pirate’s shoes. She approaches the doors to trigger them open several times until a pirate comes to investigate. Quickly, everyone jumps aboard the shoes and are whisked away into the mess hall. Bryne makes the suggestion that they start a food fight. When the pirate settles at a table, the group jumps down and goes about putting together some fallen utensils in order to launch some of the food that’s dropped on the floor and hopefully do just that. Using some scraps from Bryne’s dress and a thread from a pants leg that Alora procured, Taelon puts together a catapult, and the quarter begin loading and launching food. Their attempts succeed and soon the mess hall erupts into a chaotic food frenzy. Taking hands, the officers run as fast as they can to the doors and manage to avoid being trampled, fairly collapsing and catching their breath in the corner of the threshold. After they recover, they set about finding the door to the bridge, but realise they can’t just waltz in. Alora spies a vent and Taelon suggests they use force to open it and squeeze through. The group do so and, under the direction of Bryne, begin to work on taking control of the engines. While they are doing so, they hear the captain call the bridge and talk about a Starfleet vessel. DeVeau suggests they bring down the shields, and once more, with Bryne’s guidance, they do just that.
Yael, Galven, Bailey, and Alex Harper find a brief respite in the vent. Eventually, their steed, Sachiko, is directed into another shaft and out into a room. There, they are ambushed by the previous pirate who had suspected they would follow the system. Taking Yael and putting him in his pocket, he carries the netting bag full of cat and people to take to his captain. Bailey attempts to get Alistair to claw at the netting, but it does no good, so she attempts a distraction by screaming. The pirate ignores her and meets up with the captain who takes the bag and releases Sachiko, then places the three captive officers into a box after shooting holes into the lid to prevent them from suffocating. He then leaves his room, the officers stuck inside the container. Once gone, they discuss how to get out, only to have assistance from Sachiko who knocks the box over, freeing them. Once free, Sachiko briefly tries to comfort a visibly upset Alex Harper, then gently grabs Alistair and trots to a room. Come to find out, it is the Captain’s bedroom where the orb has been safely put away.
Stuck in a lunchbox, Fenfri takes Tatash with him as he ponders how to go about looking for the escaped miniature people. After a conversation with Smeagle about the escapees, both decide to go looking for them. In the hallway, Fenfri discovers Blackwell and manages to capture and puts her in the lunchbox where he is keeping Tatash. He carries both to Smeagle’s quarters and he and his friend put the mini people into the care and keeping of Smeagle’s daughter, Effie. Delighted with her new toys, she takes them to her dollhouse and opens a closet full of doll clothes - mostly women’s. Tatash uses his mechanical arm to set fire to them. Angry, Effie wraps him up in tape, then brings out her "Easy-Make Dress-o-Matic." Using it, she puts Tatash in a blue gown with white lace. Yael goes in next and comes out in a pale green fiber optic wedding dress. Meanwhile, Blackwell is trying to figure out how to get closer to the dress-o-matic in order to see if she can do anything with it. Without realising it, Effie provides the opportunity by placing Blackwell in it for a new outfit. It is then discovered the machine is out of polymer and needs to be refilled. Blackwell tries to get Effie to run an errand to get more in order to have more time to work with the box.
After Fenfri carries the Gorn away, Andrews takes shelter from a no longer distracted lizard. Dal orders Drevas to take the Civilians deeper into the ventilation shafts and get to a safer area. Finding a way to get around to a vent opening closer to Andrews, Dal suggests they open it just enough for Andrews to slip in, though he’ll have to do so quickly. Using a marble to distract the creature, Andrews rushes to the vent and he and Dal are able to open it for him to get inside and slam it shut just as the lizard rams into it. They then make their way back to Drevas and the civilians. Once there, they hear a shriek and turn to find a robot vacuuming up civilians one by one.
McLaren and Zel are transported into a cargo area aboard the Drowning Band and, after being signaled with firelighters by Andrews and Dal, find a vacuum robot sucking up civilians and. Zel manages to cut open the bot and free them and discovers the rest. Most of the team is beamed up, though Zel remains behind to look for others.
After squeezing through the Vent, DeVeau, Maxwell, Taelon, and Bryne make their way through and find themselves on the bridge. They then pull away some rusted metal to gain access to one of the main consoles, and DeVeau suggests they rewire and try to take control of the ship. The group doesn't exactly accomplish it, but they do disable the shields. After hearing a conversation from the pirate about an arriving Starfleet vessel, the group move on to another console where they rewire and manage to get a signal out on a broad frequency, hoping the Federation ship will answer.
Back on the Narendra, Taybrim, Princess Lurtz, and Talas watch as another ship comes to join the Drowning Band, though it lingers back a bit. Uncertain as to the purpose, they stay in the Band’s way, preventing them from escaping and preparing to take any necessary actions to make sure the pirates don’t get away. Princess Lurtz points out that the pirate ship is going to expect them to take a diplomatic route and not shoot first after Taybrim indicates he would prefer such a tactic and suggests they fly right at the pirates, possibly even using the Narendra to ‘tap’ their ship. They discover the shields have dropped and are able to lock on and beam to some of their people aboard. Commodore Taybrim notifies Lieutenant Munger that they need assistance in restoring people to their normal size and to meet Ensign Dunamis and Cadet Harper in Sickbay.
Ensign Dunamis and Cadet Kherys find themselves transported into a dark room. Eventually, they find their way out into a hallway. Despite attempts to remain unseen, they come face to face with two of the pirates. Dunamis shoots one, but the other hurries away. He slams into a communications panel long enough to get half a message before Dunamis stuns him as well. The two decide to look in the cargo hold since that’s where the pirates were likely to take all the stolen goods, but as they are in the lift, Kherys is able to feel the presences of familiar people closer. They stop the lift and get off on the next level and she follows the sensation. Another pirate confronts them, but they stun him quickly. Coming to a stop at a door, Ensign Dunamis is able to get them access and the two hurried in. Following her senses, Kherys leads them to a bedroom where they find Bailey, Galven, and Journalist Alex Harper trying to figure out their next move. The group grab the orb and all, including the cat, are beamed aboard the Narendra and taken to Sickbay.
On the Narendra, Sickbay is hoping as Ensign Dunamis brings Lieutenant Bailey, Ensign Galven, and Journalist Alex Harper while Commander McLaren brings in Empress Lurtz, Ensign Andrews, Ensign Drevas, and Commander Dal. With so many people, Cadet Harper asks Ensign Dunamis and Commander Dal to look after some of them in other areas of sickbay while she puts an unconscious Empress Lurtz, who has a heart condition, into stasis. She and Lieutenant Munger then discuss how to go about reversing the effects of the orb. Over the course of time, those who were taken are returned and another Starfleet ship brought in to arrest and process the pirates. On the Narendra, Lieutenant Munger and Cadet Harper find a way to spur the Orb to reverse the process and, as they make their way back to Ops, the people are returned to normal.
| Notable Sims | |
|---|---|
| [7] | Which way did they go George? Which way did they go? |
| [8] | Risky Ideas |
| [9] | Search and Rescue |
Dramatis Personae
| Dramatis Personae | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Species | Status | Created/Simmed by | Bio |
| Smeagle | Unknown | Alive | Ashley Yael | Brief desc |
| Fenfri | Kohbeerian | Alive | Alora DeVeau | Short, stout, Fenfri comes off as an idiot by most people, and he's certainly a man of simple tastes. However, no one has a head for computers like him and he's a crackerjack of a hacker. |
| Vaapan | Unknown | Alive | Sal Taybrim | Pirate Captain of the IKS Vanity of Death, she is ruthless and not the sort of person to cross. |
| Captain Killian Farrow | Boslic | Alive | Alora DeVeau | Recently acquiring the Drowning Band, Killian Farrow was frustrated with some of the less capable members of his crew. He was taken along with the rest of the pirates after Starfleet captured his ship. |
Participating Crew
| Participating Crew | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Position | Notes |
| Sal Taybrim | Commanding Officer | |
| Alora DeVeau | First Officer | |
| Arturo Maxwell | Chief Tactical Officer | |
| Isaiah Andrews | Security Officer | |
| Drevas Matthel | Security Officer | |
| Prudence Blackwell | Comm/Op Officer | |
| Talas Beck | Helm Officer | |
| Sheila Bailey | Chief Medical Officer | |
| Ashley Yael | Counselor | |
| German Galven | Science Officer | |
| Taelon | Science Officer | Joined halfway through |
| Tatash | Marine Intelligence Officer | |
| Solaris McLaren | Intelligence Officer | |
| Zel Rohan | Helm Officer | Played by Sal Taybrim |
| Ishreth Dal | Marine Liaison Officer | Played by Sal Taybrim |
Gallery and Quotes