Unstable

Posted on Thu Aug 25th, 2011 @ 1:06pm by Captain qeraQ'

Mission: In Our Time of Need
Location: Divitia Prime surface.
Timeline: SEVEN HOURS AFTER MINI-RIOT

DIVITIA PRIME SURFACE

Lorenz did not like the way events were unfolding on the surface of Divitia Prime. First the near destruction of the data relay then the scare over Commander Frost had put the Marines in a very twitchy and foul mood. Combined with the fact that there were hardly any usable supplies the Divitians shared with Starfleet made for a lousy first contact/humanitarian/whatever-the-fuck-you-wanna-call-it mission. Lorenz had issued orders to keep the Fleeters safe and let the Divitian Constabulary do the grunt work.

qeraQ' sat in his quarters frowning at the after action report that had been sent by the Marine Captain. The fact that there had already been action irked him, especially after the situation that had evolved with Frost. People on the planet were scared, that was self evident, and while he had always used hard tactics to manage situations like this, the situation here was different from any other he had experienced. They weren't an occupying force, they were here to provide assistance. These people had trouble enough facing the death of their planet without becoming terrified by the Starfleet personel on the planet. They needed to go carefully, and leave the order to the Divitians. It was time to talk.

Lorenz rolled his eyes as his comm badge beeped. =^=qeraQ' to Lorenz, we need to have a discussion.=^=

"On my way, sir," David gritted through his teeth.

A few moments later the image of the Marine Captain appeared on the view screen. "David," he began, "Things are getting out of hand. You've been down there less than 24 hours and I am already getting after action reports. We are here to provide assistance, not to enforce law and order."

Lorenz looked at the craggy face staring at him on the monitor. "Starfleet property was being threatened by an unauthorized group of individuals, one or more of them was armed. I took appropriate action to stifle the unrest."

"I understand, jI'aj'a', but we cannot be causing fear, that will only lead to more unrest. These people are already facing the death of a civilisation. I expect disobedience, but while we will be robust in our response, we will not open fire against members of the general population."

Lorenz's temper began to flare. "With all due respect, sir, you aren't the one on the scene, I am! I saw what was happening and I acted within the limits established by my standing orders! You can sit on your ass in that goddamned ship and second-guess me till the ordover's come home, but as long as I am here I will continue to operate within the limits of the orders given to me by the major! Sir!" Lorenz knew that if he was still aboard the ship, the old Klingon would more than likely have interpreted his insolence as a challenge to his authority. At the present moment David didn't care.

"YOU WILL REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO Ha'DI'baH!" qeraQ' exploded, wishing he was on the surface to smack the man for his ignorence and his lack of self control. "Remember that I have been where you are a thousand times, that I was a Marine the same as you and commanded a Division. I may only have one arm but that DOES NOT stop me from dropping you to the floor and treading on you harder than a herd of targh's in heat! Do you know why I am on the ship rather than down there?!?!?! Because someone has to keep perspective, someone has to watch to ensure that this works out. I would rather be bashing heads any day of the week but I have to rely on you to do that and to do it at the right time!" He took a deep breath before continuing, calming his frustration and his temper. "Remember who you are Marine, and who I am. If I need to find someone who can remember then I will. I outrank the Major, especially out here."

Lorenz took the chastising stoically, as Marines were supposed to do. "I am aware of your standing in the Corps, Commander, else I would not have spoken to you as I did. However, I want to go on record as saying these people don't want their homes saved, they want a 'quick fix', a fast solution to the problems they themselves have caused. It's a far cry from Praxis exploding, commander."

"Nothing seems as simple as it used to Captain, especially where politics are involved. Your instincts are a warriors and I have no doubt that you shot for a reason, there was a weapon and you neutralised it. We need to trust our Divitian colleagues, though, let them do the shooting if it has to be done. We fire as a last resort or once the Divitians have already opened fire. Work with them, they will respect that."

"Thank you, commander. I noticed on our initial survey that there is a series of caves about .16 km outside the city proper and well within the shield perimeter. With your approval, I'd like to set up base camp there and coordinate ground operations from there. The gubernatorial building is just too old and decrepit for our gear, sir."

"Understood, send a recon team in and scope it out first to be safe and ensure it does not harm our ability to work with the Divitian forces."

"Aye, commander,"

a post by

Commander qeraQ'
Grouchy Ol' Klingon

&

MCPT David Lorenz
Young Hothead