Something's Afoot (Part 1)
Posted on Mon Dec 19th, 2022 @ 10:12am by Captain Akeno Misaki & Commander Mashiro Munetani "Shiro" & Lieutenant Sidney Harper & Lieutenant Ileah & Lieutenant Avery Coyle & Lieutenant Commander Raelyn Mckenzie & Lieutenant Rosaleen O'Donnell & Lieutenant Commander Mark Johnson & Lieutenant Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok
Mission:
When on Risa...
Location: Risa
After the relaxing time in the hot springs, Akeno was making her way back to her room. She was back to wearing her white and blue crop top and blue mini-shorts. For some reason it seemed appropriate to show some skin on Risa, even if she was still concious about how her belly looked.
However, something was wrong. As she walked through the front desk, there were Risians running around everywhere. They seemed frustrated if not scared. The manager of the resort was stood behind the front desk tapping furiously at the hotels main console. Akeno over heard him giving his staff orders in a hushed tone to seal off a certain room and to keep guests away.
That caught Akeno's attention.
"Excuse me..." Akeno said as she approached the manager. "Captain Akeno Misaki, USS Wayfarer. I can't help but notice something seems to be wrong. Is there anything my crew or I can do to help?"
The manager looked around nervously as he made his way around the end of the desk. Gently he put an arm around Akeno's shoulders to lead her into a quieter corner.
"Captain. We've just found one of our guests has been murdered. We've contacted the authorities, but right now the island is on lockdown. All transporters and shuttles have been shut down or stopped" he told her in a hushed tone. "Unfortunately, the Risian police have been told to stand down. The guest in question was a Starfleet Officer from the Starship Halland. Starfleet are sending a security investigations team, but they won't arrive until tomorrow"
Akeno nodded. "I understand" she replied. "May I use your comm system?".
The manager nodded and led Akeno into his office.
[A few minutes later]
Akeno emerged from the office. "Manager" she approached the Risian and passed him a isolinear chip. "I have been authorised by Starfleet Security to begin the investigation. Starfleet believe that since we're here we might be able to find something before the security teams arrive. However they have made it clear that we are to not be identified, as the killer could still be here amongst us. Therefore we will not be using ranks and keeping equipment hidden."
"Thankyou..."
"Akeno" Akeno replied. "Please have your staff vacate the area and keep anyone from going near. I will gather my staff and we will then investigate."
The manager nodded. "The body is in Room Sixty Three on Floor Five" he said. "I will update your crew's ID cards so they have access to all areas".
"Thankyou" Akeno replied.
Akeno returned to her room, she made her way to the bedside table and pulled out her comm badge. Even when off duty and on shoreleave, all Starfleet Officers were required to have their comm badge should something go wrong. It didn't need to be worn or necessarily be on their person at all times, but it was required to be with them in case of emergencies.
She activated her comm badge by pressing her thumb down on its smooth surface.
"This is Akeno" she said simply into the small device. "There's been an emergency. Due to the nature of which, you must not identify yourself as Starfleet Officers, first names only. I have been given authority by Starfleet Security to deal with this emergency. I need you all to report to my room immediately. Room Fifteen, floor three."
[Floor Three]
Mashiro was sitting out on her balcony, casually sipping on a Mai Tai as she admired the beachside view, when she was promptly alerted to a loud banging noise coming from directly outside her suite.
"Coming, coming..." she sighed, getting up to answer to door.
She was clued in to the first sign of trouble when she opened the door to find two staff members standing outside, their arms neatly folded and a look of unease readily apparent in their expressions.
"To what do I owe the occasion, gentlemen?" she remarked, raising her brow suspiciously.
"There has been an... incident in one of the guest rooms," one of them explained, trying his best to stay calm. "At the behest of Starfleet Security, we've been ordered to evacuate the floor pending an investigation. Please leave all your personal belongings in the room; they will be returned to you once the investigation has been concluded."
"If I may be so inclined to ask, gentlemen, what sort of situation would necessitate Starfleet combing through my personal belongings?" Mashiro was quick to point out.
Of course, it wasn't like she had anything she didn't want Security to find- no contraband or other materials prohibited by Starfleet regulation- but this seemed an awfully suspicious procedure for a regular old "incident."
The staff member gulped as he debated on what he was about to disclose.
"There's been a, um... a murder in one of the rooms," he sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "I'm afraid I can't go into much greater detail without the proper security clearance-!"
"You're looking at the Executive Officer of Starbase 12, buddy," Mashiro stated plainly. "You can cross-check my records, but they'll certainly back me up."
The staff members blinked in surprise at Mashiro's suddenly taking charge of the situation.
"The, um... the victim's located in Room 63," one of them confessed, albeit reluctantly. "He was left exactly as the cleaning staff found him."
Mashiro glanced down the hall towards where Room 63 was located.
"Have one of you stand guard over the crime scene, make sure no one gets in there and contaminates the evidence," she instructed. "I'll get in touch with Admiral Sutok and get his permission to conduct my own investigation."
Nodding, the two of them parted ways and set about fulfilling their respective tasks.
"What's all this ruckus out here?" Hiromi asked, poking her head out into the hallway.
"There's been a murder in Room 63," Mashiro informed her. "We need to set about procuring the floor before any crucial evidence is tampered with or destroyed."
Hiromi's eyes widened in shock. "A murder? on Risa?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Mashiro replied. "Get yourself dressed; it looks like this is going to be a long week..."
Raelyn was in a small alley that held a market, about to buy supplies for her adventure. As soon as she got the message, she turned on her heel and ran towards the resort. An emergency wasn't normal on Risa, let alone one that Starfleet Security was keeping an eye on. She was somewhat far from the resort, but she knew she could make it to Akeno's room pretty fast.
Luna had just finished bathing when she heard Akeno's call. "What in Kahless's name could we need to be involved in an emergency?" Luna wondered as she donned a black and red top, pantaloons, and black boots, slipping a knife apiece into each after securing her comm badge in a secret pocket she had sewn into her pantaloons. Luna raced to the third floor and nearly bowled over two female staffers as they scurried in the opposite direction.
Rosaleen had been caught bathing as well, but she was in a public bathhouse with a small group visiting from Earth that she had met the night before. She politely excused herself upon hearing the comm chirp emanating from one of the rings she wore (a carryover from her time on Starbase 80), dried herself off, and slipped on the white sundress that she had worn to the bathhouse. In the right light you could pretty much see through it, but Rosaleen never worried about that, as modesty was not one of her species traits. Quite the opposite in fact...
As she exited the building she tapped the ring, which sent the audio from the recorded message via bone conduction to where she could hear it, then immediately headed for Akeno's room.
To be continued...
