S02 E02: Chronicles of T'Avaya: Operation SALKAR

 

Mission log. Stardate 45129.7. Agent T'Avaya reporting. Starfleet Intelligence has picked up a communique from the planet Romulus to a Romulan science vessel. The communique mentioned something called “Operation SALKAR”. SI has not been able to find the meaning of the word "SALKAR" in any Romulan or Vulcan language database. The science vessel that received the transmission has been making frequent trips to the planet Voilina IV in Romulan space. Voilina IV is uninhabited, except for native wildlife and a Romulan research station. The nature of that research is unknown. SI has reason to believe the codeword "SALKAR" is associated with the research station. My mission is to find out the meaning of the codeword and any operations related to it. I have been assigned a teammate for this mission, a Changeling named Neta Valerine. I met Neta during my previous mission for Starfleet Intelligence, and I know that she is a trusted SI agent. She is part of the Hundred--a group of one hundred Changelings who were scattered throughout the galaxy by the Founders in the Gamma Quadrant. Unlike some other members of the Hundred, Neta is very adept at assuming various humanoid likenesses, a skill that most certainly has come in handy for intelligence missions.

 

               The seemingly middle-aged Romulan woman was tall and slender with a slight hump in her shoulders. She looked around at the city. Releth had never been to Ki Baratan, the capital city of Romulus, before. It was beautiful, just as she had heard. She looked for her friend, Larak, who had already headed for the building towards the west. Larak had been to the capital city before, so she was a little less enthralled by it. But then, Larak was a Vulcan pretending to be a Romulan, so Releth didn't expect her to have an emotional response. Releth, on the other hand, was a Changeling who had been raised by humans. She grew up keeping her emotions close to the surface, but now, as a Starfleet Intelligence agent, especially one disguised as a Romulan, she kept her face austere and serious--and slightly depressed, as her guise was that of a citizen, not a haughty soldier or politician. Releth's real name was Neta Valerine, and as an intelligence agent, she could be depended on to play her covert part perfectly. T'Avaya, who was undercover as Larak, also knew how to perfectly emulate Romulan mannerisms, as she had been trained to act emotional when the situation called for it.       

               They arrived at the Institute for Biological Studies and entered the front door. Larak told the attendant they were there to see Dr. Su'Bor. They were led down a hallway to a large meeting room. The attendant left and closed the door. There was one person sitting at a large table, facing the back of the room. He turned around in his chair to face the two females.

               "Dr. Su'Bor, I presume," said Larak.

               The male Romulan nodded. "I was told I would have visitors." He said, "How can I help you?"

               The doctor was a biochemist at the institute. He was also an informant for Starfleet Intelligence. Larak asked him if he knew the meaning of the word “Salkar”. He said he had never heard of it. She asked if he knew anything about the Romulan research station on Voilina IV. He did know of it. It was a base for some type of chemical/biological study, but he knew nothing else about it. Larak (who was actually T'Avaya) knew that most Romulan citizens kept to themselves and didn't know much more than their own families and jobs, so it was not surprising that Su'Bor didn't know much that could help them. When asked if it could be arranged for them to see Voilina IV, Su'Bor said he could have them sent there as research techs.

***

               As the Romulan shuttle approached Voilina IV, Releth (who was really Neta) saw the lush vegetation on the surface. The planet was uninhabited, except for some wildlife. The research facility was a single building with only three resident scientists. Romulans had their own reasons for building research stations on remote planets, usually because there was something about the research that they wanted to keep secret.

               The shuttle landed, and they were met by the station manager, Vrikak. He greeted them with a smile and said, "Please, come in. It's been awhile since we had any visitors. It's just the three of us here. We're glad to have more help." Releth and Larak both smiled politely and followed Vrikak from the shuttle bay into the main facility. As they were leaving, they heard the shuttle depart, as the shuttle pilot had to move on to the next stop on his itinerary.

               Vrikak led them to a lab with grey walls, two computer terminals, and a table filled with vials and petri dishes of different colored substances. There was a woman working at the table who was clearly not Romulan. "Miadere," said Vrikak, "This is Larak and Releth. They are the research techs sent to help us. Miadere is one of our bio-toxin researchers. She is half Orion and half Deltan. She was hired for her brilliant scientific mind." Miadere had pale green skin, a bald head, and quite a lovely face. She wore a plain grey jumpsuit. "Jolan-tru," she said, showing off the Romulan greeting she had picked up. "We can use the help. I hope you two will find it pleasant here." Most Orion females had strong pheromones that affected males of most species. Even as a half Orion, Miadere probably had such pheromones. Deltans had pheromones that affected both males and females of most species. Miadere, with the heritage of pheromones both species, must have very strong pheromones that could affect both genders. They would have no effect on the Changeling, Releth (Neta), but Larak (T’Avaya)—even though she was Vulcan—could feel a slight presence on her senses. Larak wondered if the pheromonal effect was the real reason Vrikak thought so highly of Miadere.

               Then Vrikak went on to tell Larak and Releth about the project they were working on. A Romulan science vessel had discovered a new species of aliens that were cosmozoan--living strictly in space and not needing air to breathe. It was discovered that the aliens had an epidermis that could be extracted and used to make a bio-toxin that was lethal to most humanoid species. The scientists believed that they could perfect the toxin to be easily distributable in a gaseous form and make it completely untraceable once inside the victims. Larak and Releth looked at each other, pretending to hide their shock. The Romulans could not be allowed to finish this project. Larak asked for more details such as how long until they were finished, where they specifically planned to use it, and if the scientists were causing harm to the aliens. Vrikak just shook his head and said, "There's no need for you to worry about anything. This is for the glory of the empire. The Emperor has approved everything. Follow me, and I'll show you." He nodded for Miadere to go back to her work and led Larak and Releth out of the lab.

               They followed Vrikak into an elevator and down one level. They left the elevator and walked several meters down a long corridor. Then Vrikak led them into another room. In the center of the room was a large brown creature, oval-shaped, about two meters in height. It was surrounded by a force field, which was inside a transparent aluminum booth. The brown alien was moving, pulsing, ever so slightly. Other than the pulsing, the force field kept it immobile. It was a living being. "This," Vrikak said, "is a Salkar. A spaceborne entity. There are dozens of them outside the Saldiavoth system." Larak said, "It is in pain. You're holding it against its will."

               Vrikak retorted, "It's not sentient. And it's contributing its life to the empire. We can use its epidermis to make a bio-toxin that will rid us of all our enemies. And I will get the highest commendation from the Emperor." Vrikak had spoken proudly as Larak and Releth tried not to show the revulsion they were feeling. Has Vrikak no empathy towards this creature? 

               Vrikak announced that the Romulan science vessel that had brought this cosmozoan would bring three more in a matter of days.

 

               Miadere turned over the next Pixmit card. It had a picture of a hand with fingers outstretched. A landscape could be seen in the background. “The hand of destiny,” Miadere said. She turned over the next card. It had a red circle with points coming out from the center. “The naked sun. This means nothing can hinder your efforts.” The next card was called "The Other", which was about finding friendship. T’Avaya/Larak had seen Romulan Pixmit cards before. The use of the triangular-shaped cards could be used to form a puzzle, play games, or to tell a fortune as Miadere was doing. “Very interesting,” T’Avaya said. “How long have you studied Romulan fortune telling?” she asked the Orion/Deltan hybrid. “Collecting Tarot cards has been a hobby of mine for awhile. Many cultures have them. They’re a fascinating study, really. They show how all cultures have their myths and beliefs in spirituality. Peran, the other scientist here, loves when I pull  these cards out. We play Tri-Pix with them. She usually wins.”

               Just then, a white furry quadruped walked up to Larak and cooed. "Ah," said Miadere, "That's Chio." Larak leaned down to pet the animal. It was twelve centimeters high with a head like a bird. "These creatures are native to this planet?"

               "Yes. There are many of them in the woods nearby. Chio here came inside the lab once and never left. We started feeding him. He likes being petted for awhile, then he goes off somewhere to be alone. We call the species Kt'Chraann." Larak petted Chio, its cooing sound seemed to show that it enjoyed the attention.

 

               Later on, T'Avaya and Neta went back to the chamber where the Salkar was imprisoned. The chamber was not locked or guarded. T'Avaya now understood the name “SALKAR”. The creature was found in the Saldiavoth system. “Karael'hen” was the Romulan word for “spaceborne entity”. "Salkar" was the combination of the first syllable of the two words. The intel agents knew they needed to stop this research and free the alien. Neta gazed at the alien in the force field. It looked like a giant pulsing rock. The human family she grew up with had taught her to respect all life forms. She looked at the force field controls and the controls for the transparent aluminum containment booth. “The controls are locked by a compression algorithm,” she said to T’Avaya. “We can’t set them free or beam them out unless we can unlock the controls.”

They started to discuss a plan when Peran, the third member of the research team, approached them. "You must be the new techs, " Peran said. "Could you please come to the lab and help me with some samples? Vrikak will be unhappy if he doesn't see more results soon." Peran, a Romulan female, led them to her lab and showed them that the epidermis samples needed to be carefully placed on the analyzer and then scanned. As T’Avaya started working on the samples, she was thinking of the Salkar. As soon as she could leave this lab, she wanted to go back to see if she could help it. She asked Peran how the epidermis samples had been obtained. Peran said the samples were taken by using an epidermal oscillation unit. Peran did seem sympathetic to the creature. She seemed reluctant to continue her work, but carried on as though she didn’t have a choice.

 

               T’Avaya went back to the underground chamber to visit the Salkar. The creature was constantly kept in restraints by a force field. It was also shielded behind transparent aluminum in a vacuum, as the creature did not breathe air. The computer console in front of it showed that it still had lifesigns, though it was no longer pulsing. It was probably sedated. Peran had stated she sedated it with drugs periodically to ease the pain, but it would be harmful to keep it sedated continually. T’Avaya touched the transparent aluminum and attempted a Vulcan mind meld. She found that it was conscious, but fatigued. It told her the epidermal extractions were painful. It told her its species traveled through space, and that they must travel to the Eiteraa nebula soon or they would die.

               Right after she ended the mind meld, Miadere entered. Miadere asked Larak what she was doing. Larak replied that she was interested in studying the life form. Miadere said she knew the Salkar was sentient, even if Vrikak didn’t believe it to be. Larak asked her why she kept working on the project. The Orion/Deltan said that when she first came to Voilina IV, she did not know they would be working on a sentient creature, or that they would be developing a bio-toxin. She had been told they would be developing an anti-toxin instead. Ever since she had learned the truth, she had been trying to come up with a way to shut down the project. She knew that Vrikak and the Emperor didn’t care if they were harming the Salkars.  She and Peran were hoping they would eventually discover some reason that the toxin would not be usable or feasible to produce.

 

               “Keep an eye on those two new research techs. They did not like seeing the Salkar in captivity. They may be opposed to what we are doing here,” Neta heard Vrikak tell Peran. Neta had transformed herself into a prostea, a Romulan fly, to eavesdrop on their conversation. That was the advantage of being a Changeling, and a necessary part of being an intel agent. Peran said, “As you wish.” Then she continued. “As the Salkar gets weaker, its epidermis seems to be degrading. We may not be able to use it much longer.”

               “Then find a way to use it.”

               “Don’t you see? This project may not be viable. We don’t know if we can produce enough of the toxin.”

               Vrikak dismissed her. He needed this to work. His last scientific “breakthrough” was a failure. He had become an embarrassment to his family, the Marrus clan. His clan had many successful scientists, including both his parents and his brother and sister.

               “You will make this work or I will expose you. Shirking the military is no small crime.” He knew Peran had been drafted into the Romulan military. She had a strong build, keen senses, sharp eyes, and steady hands. Qualities the military needed. But she had never been the soldier type, at least not emotionally. She did not like violence or killing. She had had a friend erase her name from the military draft database. That friend was later arrested for an unrelated crime, but since she couldn’t depend on him anymore, she always lived in fear that she would be found out. “You could expose me,” she said back. “But I could tell your father that I was the one who discovered that blood thickening drug you marketed, not you.” The drug had only been a minor victory for Vrikak, but it meant something to him.

               “And do you think he would believe you? Someone with half the experience of mine and from a lowly family?” Peran knew he was right and that it was useless to argue.

 

               Once Vrikak had left the room, Releth (Neta) approached Peran. Now that Neta knew the truth about why Peran was working for Vrikak, she wanted to get her help in getting this project shut down. She was able to convince Peran to admit to her that she was against this whole project. Not all Romulans were amoral and power hungry. Peran also admitted that she knew Miadere felt the same as her.

 

               Mission log. Supplemental. Agent T'Avaya reporting. Project Salkar has been formed to create a deadly bio-toxin, and, worse, is doing so by harming an innocent alien. Agent Neta and I have discovered that the Romulan Vrikak, the research lab's manager, is pushing this project because he is trying to make a name for himself within his family. He has not been as successful a scientist as everyone else in his family. He has blackmailed the Romulan Peran into working for him. Miadere--the Deltan/Orion hybrid--has been trying for several weeks to find a logical reason to have this project shut down. Neta and I are looking for a way to free the Salkar.

 

               Vrikak, Peran, and Larak set up three more booths for the Salkars that the Romulan science vessel Vhorani was going to bring. Larak had thought about sabotaging the booths and telling Vrikak they were unusable, but he was watching her and Peran too closely. They received a signal from the science vessel that they were ready to beam down the Salkars. Larak watched as the three Salkars were simultaneously beamed into the transparent aluminum vacuum booths. They were beamed directly into the force field restraints within the booths. “Excellent!” Vrikak said. “Get the epidermis samples and start your work immediately.” He commanded as he left the room. Peran beamed a remote controlled tool inside the booths, one booth at a time. She used the tool to extract the dermis.

               Then, she went back to her lab. She extracted the cells she needed from the epidermis. She had needed a large quantity of cells to produce the amount of bio-toxin that Vrikak wanted. This was going to take some time, so she had Larak help her. Once they had all the cells, Peran added the larger quantity of cells with her other chemicals to produce the toxin. She activated the airless device to propagate the toxin. She watched the reaction and monitored the readings. She programmed it to add an oxygen/nitrogen atmosphere, as the toxin would have to work in an atmosphere that most humanoids breathed. She looked at the readings again. What is this? She looked again. She discovered that the toxin broke down in large amounts when exposed to an oxygen/nitrogen atmosphere, rendering it useless for their purpose. Of course, she was happy with these results, but she had to be careful. She had to make sure she documented her work carefully and triple-checked, or Vrikak would think she had sabotaged the tests.

 

               “You must keep working,” Vrikak told Peran and Miadere. “Find a way to make it work!” They were all in the chamber with the four Salkars.

               “I tested it three times,” Peran pleaded with him. “There is nothing else we can do.” Miadere said. “Vrikak,” Larak said, “You must report back to the Romulus Institute for Biological Studies that the toxin cannot be produced effectively.” Vrikak looked at the lifesign readings on the display panel. He increased power to the field generator and said, “If we increase the core neutralizer in the force field, we can extract more from them in less time. We can…” Miadere tried to pull him away from the controls. “Please stop,” she said. “You are hurting them!” He pushed her away. Peran activated the release switch from the second console, turning off the power from Vrikak’s console.

               “Noooo! You will make the toxin! Or you will suffer!” he said as he pounced on Peran. Releth tried to stop him as he put his fingers around Peran’s neck. Releth transformed her right hand into a gold gelatinous form and stretched it to strike Vrikak’s head. Vrikak fell to the ground, unconscious. Peran coughed and gazed at the ground at Vrikak and then at Releth. “Are you alright?” Releth asked Peran. “Who…what are you?” Peran asked Releth, as she massaged her own neck. “I am a Changeling. But don’t worry,” she said. “I am here to help you.” Releth explained that she and Larak were sent by Starfleet Intelligence. Miadere and Peran were thankful for their intervention.      

               Miadere said, “Now that the project has failed, I will call back the science vessel Vhorani and tell them we are finished with the Salkars and to take them back to the Saldiovoth system where they found them.”

               Peran said, “And I will report to the biology institute that we were not able to manufacture the toxin. They will report back to the Emperor. It will not be pleasant news. But they are used to setbacks.”

               Larak asked, “How long before the science vessel returns?”

               “Another day,” Miadere answered. Larak said, “We should set the Salkars free until then. We should turn off the restraining fields and beam them into space. They will be happy there and free of pain.” Larak had read the reports on what the Romulans knew about the Salkars. These four Salkars here would not be able to travel back to the Saldiovoth system on their own before the rest of their species left for the Eiteraa nebula. They needed the science vessel, or some other vessel, to take them back. There were no space vessels on the planet or in the vicinity.

               “I have already tried to free the first Salkar,” Miadere said. “The controls are locked by Vrikak. He is alerted each time someone tampers with the controls. When I tried to disable the alarm, it triggered extra exertion in the force field and caused more pain to the Salkar. I have been developing a work around, but Vrikak has been keeping a close eye on me. Now that he is out of the way, I will try again.” She started working the controls.

               Vikruk started to regain consciousness. Larak pulled out a disruptor and pointed it at him. “Do not move,” she told him. Neta quickly found some wire and tied his hands behind his back. He looked up at T’Avaya from his position on the floor. “Where did you get that disrupter?” he exclaimed. She told him she had brought it with her. No one had checked her for arms on the transport to the planet. No one had reason to. She then told Vrikak she was with Starfleet Intelligence. There was no need to keep it secret any longer. He still did not know her real name. He had not seen her real face, as she had used a holodisguise during the entire mission.

               “I did it! I broke through the code!” Miadere shouted as one of the Salkars became free of the force field. Once it was free of restraints, it broke through the locked door of the transparent aluminum booth. Then, in the air-filled room, it started writhing in pain and making a screeching noise. Peran reached into the pocket of her jumpsuit. She still had a vial of the sedative for the Salkars. Before she could make it to the one that was free, it floated quickly over to the prone Vrikak and landed on his back. Vrikak screamed as some type of energy from the Salkar enveloped his body. Then, the screaming stopped and the Salkar fell over, no longer screeching, not moving at all. Peran found a tricorder and scanned the Salkar. “No lifesigns from Vrikak or the Salkar,” she said.

               “Let’s get the Salkar into a booth!” Miadere said. They lifted the Salkar and carried it to a spare vacuum booth. They closed the booth. Miadere operated the controls to suck the air from the booth, but didn’t activate the force field. They all waited. After about ten minutes, the Salkar started moving. Peran scanned it with her tricorder. She saw that it was alive. She thought it would be fine after a few more minutes.

               As they tended to the Salkar, Neta scanned Vrikak once more for lifesigns. He was dead. The Salkar and emitted electrical energy that caused him to have a heart attack.

               “Maybe we should go ahead and beam the Salkars into space as soon as I release the others from the force fields. That way they won’t attack anyone else,” Miadere said. They all knew that Vrikak had been singled out by the Salkar because he had been the one who truly didn’t care about them. But knowing that all the Salkars could be dangerous made everyone aware they needed to be extra cautious. Larak said, “I will mind meld with this one again,” indicating the one that had just been revived. “I will let it know we are beaming them back into space where they will be safe until the science vessel arrives.”

 

               “You are both Federation spies?” Miadere asked Larak and Releth. Larak said, “Yes. We were sent here to learn the nature of Operation Salkar, determine its risk to Federation citizens, and to stop it if necessary.”

               Miadere gave a half smile and said, “I am also an intelligence agent. I work for the Interstellar Commerce Protectorate.” T'Avaya had heard of InCom. It was a secret intelligence organization formed by non-Federation worlds to gather intel on the Orion Syndicate. As the organization grew, its purpose expanded to intel concerning other non-Federation worlds, such as the Romulan Empire. InCom sometimes worked with SI when their interests intersected.

               "Why would InCom send an agent here?" asked T'Avaya.

               "Same as SI," Miadere said. "To learn about Salkar. Once I reported my findings, I was assigned to shut the operation down. Not easy with Vrikak. He was insane. He was determined to snatch a success from this at any cost. I needed to give the Romulans a reason to shut it down. Just destroying the research lab would only have made them start over again."

               "You were wise to stay and find a nonviolent solution," T'Avaya said. As she spoke, Chio sauntered into the room and looked up at her. "I think he likes you," Miadere said. T'Avaya said, "What will happen to him when the lab is shut down?"

               Peran answered, "He will probably be set free in the woods again. I would take him home with me on Romulus, but my sister hates pets." T'Avaya picked up the animal. It cooed softly at her.

 

               Mission log. Supplemental. Agent T’Avaya reporting. Our mission has been accomplished. Operation SALKAR has been shut down. The science vessel Vhorani has been ordered to pick up the Salkars and return them to the Saldiovoth system. The Emperor has been informed that the project was a failure. Vrikak's body will be returned to his family on Romulus. Peran will continue her work on Romulus as a scientist. Now free from blackmail, she should be able to prosper in her career. Starfleet Intelligence has verified with the Interstellar Commerce Protectorate that Miadere is indeed an agent of theirs. We will be taking a transport back to Romulus, and from there, Neta, Miadere, and I will take a private transport back to Federation space. I will also be bringing a new pet, a Kt'Chraann. It has been scanned and shown to be free of disease. It is house trained and very friendly. It is very much like the pet shaltah that I had as a child. I believe it will make a welcome companion.

 

 -by the Honorable Kavura

 

Thank you for reading my Star Trek Adventures: Captain’s Log mission report. Captain’s Log is a solo role-playing game by Modiphius Entertainment. Acknowledgments to Last Unicorn games mission briefing "Codeword SALKAR" and any other miscellaneous sources I may have used.