<USS Avalon> "Meeting of the Minds" Ketchum and Skyler


"Meeting of the Minds"
by Commander Skyler & Captain Keith Ketchum

"Captain Ketchum we are in standard orbit around Vargus II and Ensign 
Henderson is beginning scans of the planet to search for Lt Thomas as well as 
get us 
a report on the planet. I suggest if we send an away team down that they go in 
all weather gear to protect themselves. Skyler out." 
 
Skyler sat and waited to hear from the captain and to hear from Henderson 
about the planet. 
 
"Ma'am, I have that report you requested about the conditions on Vargus II." 
Skyler turned her head waiting for Ensign Henderson to speak. "Well, don't 
just sit there; tell me what you have discovered."
 
Henderson was more than a tad more nervous than usual for some unknown 
reason. 
 
"Well, the temperature is extremely cold. If you were to go outside without a 
functioning thermal suit, it wouldn't take long before you froze to death. 
There is also nothing but ice and wind on the planet surface. The wind is so 
strong that what snow there is doesn't appear to have time to stay before it is 
blown away."
 
Skyler sat there listening and thinking to herself that the information she 
just heard did not sound very promising at all. She had to wonder if Lt Thomas 
had survived this long at all. "Is there any other information you can give 
me? Have you found the shuttle that Lt. Thomas was in or at least Lt. Thomas?"
 
Henderson resumed scanning, fine tuning his scanners to make sure he didn't 
miss any thing.  He continued to scan for at least another 15 minutes, while 
Skyler waited for both the results and for the Captain to come to the bridge.
 
"Commander, I have located the shuttle, however there are no life signs 
present. It is approximately 15 kilometers of the research station. If anyone 
did 
survive, and if they had a working thermal suit they would have a very 
difficult time reaching the facility without some sort of transportation."
 
"I want you to keep scanning for any sign of Lt Thomas and the rest of the 
team that went with him. We are not going on the assumption that they are dead. 
Somehow they have to have survived and we are going to find them and bring 
them back. So keep scanning in every possible direction and don't stop until 
you 
find something. Understood?"
 
"Yes, Ma, am" Henderson's fingers began flying over his console making sure 
that it was fine tuned and continued to scan.
 
Skyler again paged the Captain to the bridge to report her new information.  
Now all she had to do was wait for him to appear.
 
Keith had been waiting in the corridor from Deck 2 to the bridge, hearing the 
update that Skyler was getting and giving.  He walked onto the bridge.  "Of 
course if we do find them, we won't be able to beam them off the planet."
 
Skyler looked at the Captain perplexingly.
 
"Because my dear Commander, the planet has high levels of electromagnetic 
electricity that is thrown about by the asteroids about 20 kilometers above the 
surface, this causes the inability of getting any sort of transporter lock on 
the crew members.  Hopefully though, Ensign Henderson's flying abilities are 
suburb, as she will be flying a shuttle down to the surface.  Please alert 
Commander Sierra that he will be assisting."

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