The Game is Afoot...

Posted on 04 Sep 2014 @ 3:22am by Lieutenant Commander Amynta Markos & Petty Officer 1st Class Siren Hex Saalm & Maria Drake
Edited on on 24 Sep 2014 @ 1:53pm

2,057 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: Lyshan III - Mining Colony Admin Section
Timeline: MD 06 - 1000

ON:

Lieutenant Amynta Markos frowned as she looked around, walking through the part of the mine reserved for administration. Call it a hunch, or orders...part of this was finding out what was happening here. There was even a possibility in her mind that someone was testing a weapon on the miners. So with permission, she had taken Hex down and they were going through the files. But it was slow work. More because different things were stored on different computers and some weren't hooked up to the main system.

"Call me cynical, but do you think this network is setup to be the most complicated maze to find anything on?" Siren sighed with a frown, sitting back in her chair as Amynta came back in. She'd been at it for a good couple of hours now, and just as she'd thought she'd finished one little corner of reports and files, she'd discover a completely separate virtual 'pile' of them.

"I think this network is set up so that one individual who knows it can navigate it...whereas people with no business in it are stuck," Amynta said and shook her head, frowning. "I asked one of the ladies to bring us something to drink." She walked to sit down, rubbing her own neck for a moment before accessing the files. "The...Cardassian has been somewhat helpful though."

Siren glanced across to her with interest, shaking her head. "More use than this I hope. I haven't found any reports or files that add to the overall picture of what has been going on. It's all been by the books so far. Well, by the books for a pretty much Cardassian run facility that is."

Amynta smiled weakly, nodding as she looked over the reports from the miners. She frowned, tilting her head slightly. "Red...do you remember that report on how to spot duplicated files?" she asked, thoughtful. "Wasn't there some sort of trace left?" She was trying to remember as she stared at the list of files.

"Yep, hang on..." Siren leant forward to work the controls. She sighed, sifting her way through the system, glancing down to the tricorder she'd hooked to the system. "Here," she frowned, motioning to the main screen and then to the corresponding information being shown about the properties of the files on the tricorder.

Amynta nodded as she frowned, sitting back to watch it before shaking her head. "Run the decryption programme. I'm not sure, but the original access dates look weird on this."

"Sure thing," Siren nodded, working quickly, used to the info analyst work at her grade. She rested her head in her hand, sighing softly as the programme ran, but she suddenly lifted her head, blinking. "Amynta?" she reached for her arm to get her attention back, motioning to the tricorder, frowning. The information was changing even as they watched. "It's all being accessed, copied and downloaded....right now, as we speak..."

Amynta looked at her, arching an eyebrow. "Oh, someone is going to be regretting that. Can you see where it is being downloaded from?" she asked, standing and quickly making sure the pins in her hair were secure. And while she hated the trouser uniform, she was wearing it for convenience.

Siren started tracing it back, frowning with concentration, silent for a long moment as she worked, pushing herself faster in case they stopped. "It's close," she said quietly, but with surprise, glancing to Amynta. She stood, using the tricorder to lead them out into the corridor. She moved quietly down the length of it, past heavy, closed doors. "Here," she whispered, shaking her head as she opened the door with a single, fast movement.

The human woman looked up from the computer station, her eyes wide. There was calculation in them, and it was clear to people like Amynta and Siren; did she try to blag it or run. When she clocked the Starfleet uniform and the beeping tricorder, it was plain enough to her; she was busted. She grabbed the small device that had been pressed against the computer and jumped neatly over the table, pushing through the interconnecting door to the next office and out, sprinting down the corridor.

Amynta rolled her eyes, annoyance crossing her features before she ran. One thing she could do, even if she felt like a bloody security officer. She kept a sight of the woman, her long legs carrying her easily in the pursuit.

Siren ran hard and fast at Amynta's side until they reached an intersection and she split off from her to run down the other corridor, slapping Amynta's arm as she made her move away to assure her she still had her back.

The agent glanced back over her shoulder, swearing under her breath, sprinting as fast as she could in the coarse, colonist jumpsuit and heavy boots.

Amynta tried to breathe evenly as she ran, turning the corner. She made herself run faster, the last desperate sprint to catch the woman.

The agent's lungs were burning as she tried to push herself harder, tunnel vision kicking in as she drove straight ahead. She didn't see the turning on her left. Siren ran fast from it, catching up just in time to grab the woman roughly, swinging her down onto the ground, sending them both falling heavily to the floor without care. Siren grabbed onto her as they rolled, using her weight to make sure she ended up on top and to pin her onto her front, grabbing her hair. "Stay still!" she shouted, using the grip to keep her face pressed to the ground, adrenaline pumping.

Amynta stopped when she got to them, trying to catch her breath. "This...is really...not what I wanted to...do today..." she managed to get out before moving to the women, watching them. "Get her up."

Siren yanked the woman up, keeping a grip on the woman's arm and hair. The agent didn't struggle though, just looked silently between them, steel and determination on her features. To remain silent.

Siren glanced to Amynta, catching her breath as she licked her lips. "Maybe we should take this somewhere more private," she said quietly, motioning her head to one of the office doors. The section was virtually empty. It was clear no one really cared about admin, or at least, not with a crisis going on in the mine.

Amynta nodded, moving to open the door for them. "Where we can have a nice, little talk," she said, lightly, arching an eyebrow as she glared at the woman on her way past.

Siren pushed her and pulled a chair out, sitting her down. She pulled two chairs opposite her, sitting in one as she let out a long, tight breath, her body still tense though and starting to ache from the fall now the adrenaline was easing off a little. "She can bloody run fast enough...."

"Luckily, so can you," Amynta said and sat delicately, crossing her legs as she watched the woman. "I am Amynta Markos, this is my associate, Siren Hex. And we would very much like to know what you were up to..."

"I'm sure you would," the woman replied easily, but that was all. She closed her mouth, even pressing her lips together slightly as she watched them calmly.

Amynta watched her before leaning closer, searching her eyes. "Now, don't worry...we're Starfleet. Meaning we don't torture or find creative ways of getting information out of you," she said, lightly. "Not officially anyway. So instead we talk. I'd like to talk to you about the way you've been copying information. And your interest in the files...well. It intrigues me."

The silence was heavy in the room, until Siren sighed gently, rolling her head to the side. "Well, she's human," she said lightly, having checked it on the tricorder. "And she was clearly copying the files," she motioned to the woman's pocket. "With that neat little hacker."

Amynta smiled at that, chuckling softly. "Well, that makes this easier," she said and stood. "I mean, we can just hand her over to the Cardassians. Since she is taking their files. I am sure that Taurus would have something to say."

The woman's jaw tightened at the words, her eyes narrowing as she looked between the other two women, trying to size them up. "You wouldn't."

Amynta's eyes got cold as she watched her and she arched an eyebrow. "You have no idea what I am capable of. It's only this uniform that is keeping me from burying the heel of my stiletto boot in your shoulder and twisting until you speak. So. You give me nothing, then we give you over to the Cardassians. And I hear they're not as restricted as I am."

The woman pursed her lips in thought, glancing to Siren then back to Amynta. She believed her. Hell, she knew where she was better off. No way did she want to be hand delivered to the Cardassians as a spy. "I'm on your side. SF Intel operative."

"Well we'd worked that much out," Siren assured with a roll of her eyes, impatience creeping over her.

Amynta stood, moving behind her. "What I want to know is what your orders are, and why your superiors didn't contact us when they heard we were coming. And also, why you were stupid enough to start copying the files now."

"It seemed the perfect time, with your ship being a clumsy distraction," she replied with an easy shrug, glancing around the room. "Your mission has nothing to do with mine."

"And yet you got caught," Amynta said and shrugged. "And you're just lucky it was us and not Taurus."

"Perhaps," she conceded, pressing her lips together, considering her options. "The figures don't add up here," she finally said, quietly. "But I don't think it has anything to do with your mission."

Amynta glanced over at Siren before sitting down, studying the woman. "What's your name?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Now that, you definitely don't need to know," she said firmly, leaning forward to them. "Play the game, you know how it is," she nodded to the intel grey that Siren and Amynta wore. "I've been generous."

Siren looked across to Amynta with slightly wider than usual eyes, a look that was communicating her. "Well....how about you give us a copy of that data and we won't hand you over to the Cardassians?"

The agent frowned, clearly not happy about it as she took the small, circular device out of her inside pocket, offering it over. There was nothing that would hurt for them to see.

Siren plucked it from her fingers with a small smile, copying it across to her tricorder. "Thank you," she said softly.

Amynta watched the other agent, studying her closely, taking her in. "You're doing well," she suddenly said. "Keep doing it. And come find me once you're done."

"I'll let you know if there's anything...important you should be aware of," she assured her, frowning as she stood. "Something's going on here. And it's not ghosts."

Amynta nodded, standing and smoothing down her uniform. "Anymore of your lot here?"

"Now that, I can't do," the woman replied firmly, shaking her head with a frown as she took the device back from Siren, moving for the door without waiting to be told to go.

Amynta took a deeper breath, watching her leave before a small smile pulled at her lips. "I like her."

Siren rolled her eyes with a soft chuckle, putting the tricorder away with a sigh. "Careful, I'll get jealous...."

"Don't worry, I prefer you, Red," Amynta said and turned to meet her eyes. "I think there's more of them here. She can't be here solo. Her handler needs to be relatively close too. Maybe posing as a family member."

Siren nodded with a frown, squeezing Amynta's arm as she stood, her body finally starting to relax. "You're right. Let's get this back to the ship to take a proper look at it."

Amynta nodded, heading for the door with a determined step, frowning. "Yes. Whatever she is looking for, I want to find it."


OFF:

LT Amynta Markos
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo

PO2 Siren Hex
Intelligence
USS Galileo
[PNPC Blake]

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