Star Trek RPG - Mission #3: "Some Other Side of Paradise"

Kylah doesn't wait for Graham to respond. "The evidence certainly seems to point to him," she says evenly, then looks from Mr. Hsu to his wife. "Thank you for making the announcement, Mrs. Hsu. If I may ask, how are you both faring? You have been up longer than we have. I understand there is much business you must undertake as a result of this tragedy, but I hope you will find time to get some rest, or at least some quiet time to allow yourself to contemplate all that has happened."

She glances back to Mr. Hsu. "Did you have something on that datapad you wished to bring to our attention, sir?"

Mrs. Hsu chuckles a little shakily and says, "Well, we're both exhausted and dealing with the murder of our boss, which is the biggest crisis this place has ever faced, but I guess we're doing all right. I could definitely use a nap."

Mr. Hsu glances at the datapad. "No, nothing in particular. Just trying to keep track of what's going on."

"Of course," Kylah says, and turns to Mr. Graham. "I wonder if in addition to the nightclub employees, it might be useful to get depositions from all other staff members who worked during the period in question--security guards and cleaners, any restaurant staff who worked late to close up, people like that? Perhaps the Hsus could assist with gathering those names and sending them to Ensign Mahmoud?"

"That's a fine idea, Mr. Kylah," Graham replies. Midway through his response he smiles and almost laughs out loud, as an image pops into his head of he and Kylah having an otherwise normal conversation with their hands up in guard position like boxers, each wary of an unexpected sneak attack by the other.

He clears his throat and regains his composure. Turning back to the Hsus, he shrugs slightly and adds, "You never know who might have seen what."

"Mr Graham, would you like the rest of us to continue with our other assigned tasks?"

Rangin isn't sure why they are all waiting around and is eager to go and find out why the spores lost their effect, if indeed it was caused by something more than just a shock. He will not be much use in any interviews, whether it be of Lord Fastolfe or Mr Hsu, and would prefer to be doing more than exchanging pleasantries.

Graham is momentarily irritated, but resists the urge to ask Rangin if he was planning instead to hang around chit chatting or perhaps making the Hsus some tea...of course everyone should continue is the first thing that comes to mind.

But as far--at least as far as he can tell--Rangin is not being intentionally snarky. Graham takes a second to make sure his voice is modulated like a polite answer to a perfectly reasonable question. "By all means," he replies, nodding slightly.

Kylah clutches the edges of the table, preparing to stand up while trying to determine whether Graham plans to allow Mr. Hsu to join them, or if he'll tell them to leave the interviewing to Starfleet. She most definitely does not want Hsu along with the Fastolfe interview. If Hsu himself is guilty, he's been trying to frame someone else for this crime. He should not be allowed to join in to sabotage an innocent man--no matter how obnoxious that innocent is.

She makes up her mind to address this herself. "Mr. Hsu, Mrs. Hsu," she says with a nod to each of them as she rises. "We thank you for keeping us updated. If you could please coordinate those additional staff questionnaires with Ensign Mahmoud, we would greatly appreciate it. And perhaps after that, you might be able to find some time for a brief rest," Kylah adds with an understanding look at Mrs. Hsu before returning to her husband. "Later, we will need to speak with Mr. Hsu in person, but until then, we will contact you via communicator if anything urgent comes up."

Finally her attention grazes the mission leader. "To save time, Mr. Graham, perhaps you, Dr. T'Var and I should discuss our tactics for the next interview while the three of us are on the way?" She knows she is taking far too much control over the meeting, but Graham does seem oddly detached and passive--which, admittedly, is somewhat of a relief from his more aggressive behavior. Kylah certainly hopes he agrees with her pointed omission of the Hsus.

"Right," Graham replies. "No point wasting time." He nods toward the Hsus and extends a hand toward the door. "We appreciate the help. We'll be in touch later. Doc, Mr. Kylah, we should be getting along as well."

The Hsus look at each other and then leave. Before she goes, Mrs. Hsu says, "I'll provide the witness forms to all employees, then, and not just those in the nightclub, as Ens. Kylah suggested."

Rangin looks across at Crewman Dobson. "Ready?" he enquires politely.

'Aye, Sir" Dobson responds as she rises. "On your six."

After thanking Mrs. Hsu, Kylah starts to the door herself. She feels a twinge of discomfort at leaving with Graham, although it is allayed somewhat when she remembers T'Var will be with them. She nods a goodbye to Delaney and Markovich, and then turns to Velir and Dobson with a quick farewell look, her gaze taking in the other woman courteously before alighting on Velir.

She cannot keep some of her nervousness from showing through, as well as regret. He may think that he would be of no use during their meeting with Fastolfe, but Kylah greatly disagrees. Velir's calm, rational and compassionate demeanor, coupled with his quick-thinking intelligence, would make his presence an asset to any interview situation. And it would certainly make her feel better--not that Kylah's nerves should be a factor in allocating personnel.

But it seems that she and Velir are not destined to work together on this mission. It is a shame, for she genuinely believes they would make a good team. We took on a Denebian slime devil; I should think we could handle Lord Fastolfe.

Mrs. Hsu returns to her office. Mr. Hsu and Delaney decide to return to Wilson's suite.

It takes Ens. Rangin and Crewman Dobson only a few minutes to walk to the Infirmary. Dr. Halsey is working at his desk, and looks up. His expression at once becomes guarded. "Yes? May I help you?"

Ensigns Graham and Kylah, and Dr. T'Var, walk towards the guest house occupied by Lord Fastolfe. They have the chance to talk along the way.

Remember that you may ask as many questions as you wish in a single post, and then follow up based on any answers given.

"So, ah...that was weird," Graham says to T'Var and Kylah. "Are the Hsus anxious? Fishing for information on what we've found? Is it innocent because they're just worried and feeling under pressure because they're in charge, or something else?"

He shakes his head. "And pointing at Fastolfe...I do have a hard time squaring the circle on how Fastolfe could be impulsive enough to attack Wilson in public, then methodical enough to pull off the complex plan we're uncovering... Thoughts?" he asks, glancing at both of his crew mates.

Kylah gives T'Var a swift sidelong look before returning her gaze to the path ahead of her. "To address the Hsu question, did you notice that Mr. Hsu never looked at his wife? I do not recall having seen such distance between them before. It is possible she has just told him of the affair--perhaps due to our meeting," she adds regretfully. "Or he already knows of it and is under such stress that his anger is showing. Whichever the case, their impromptu visit seemed to me like an attempt both to gain information and to present a united front, even though they are very much apart. If I do speak to him alone, it will be instructive, to say the least.

"As for Lord Fastolfe," she goes on flatly, "I have never believed him guilty of the crime. His persona--real or feigned--is that of an arrogant, petulant, spoiled, egomaniacal peacock. But he is not a fool, and he would have to be a halfwit to leave his own highly-identifiable knife behind, courteously including fingerprints as well." She shakes her head in dismissal of the notion. "As you say, there is too much calculation in this crime. I would only believe his involvement if he were an accomplice, to create a plausible diversion that covered up whatever the real motive and whoever the real killer would be. If he is innocent, on the other hand..."

She hesitates and walks a little faster, her thoughts spurring her onward. "If he is innocent I think he may be in danger of more than a mere frame-up. The real killer would have every reason to get him out of the way in some method that cements his apparent guilt--a death that looks like suicide or drug overdose, for example. I do not recall if anyone has seen him at all today." Kylah tucks her hair behind her ears nervously. "In any event, sir--Mr. Graham--I know you are likely to be assertive with him, and it is not for me to tell you your job. But I hope you will keep in mind that an unlikeable personality does not make him a murderer." Now her eyes shift to give him a pointed look. "Even someone whose temper occasionally lapses into violence may not be guilty of someone's death."

"Good afternoon Dr Halsey, I certainly hope you can help us." Rangin answers cordially, "We are here to ask for your assistance in a matter you will probably find of interest. As you are, no doubt, aware of the issues concerning a couple of your guests and the fact that they appear to have lost the effects of the spores for no apparent reason."

Rangin wanders casually up to the desk to get a closer look at the Doctor.

"What we would be interested in is running some medical diagnostic tests to see if there is any untoward reason as to why this may have occurred, above and beyond the usual cause. especially given that of the ones we know about, none have admitted to any kind of trauma that would cause such a loss. Our hope is that you would be able to determine whether such an event passed unnoticed to them or perhaps some other coincidental action has been at work. "

Rangin smiles down at the Doctor in his seat. "What say you Dr Halsey, interested in trying to work out what happened?"

Dr. T'Var says thoughtfully, "It has been my experience that those who seem impulsive or foolish may actually be quite cunning. Once when I was on Elysium... but no, that is a tale for another time, perhaps. I am not necessarily ready to declare Fastolfe our prime suspect, given the other individuals who had both motive and opportunity, but he is the only person we know of who displayed a definite physical hostility towards Mr. Wilson, and the willingness to use a weapon to try to get his way."

In the Infirmary, Dr. Halsey smiles and reaches for a data pad. "Certainly. I was just preparing a study protocol, as it happens. I'd like to bring in each of those who lost the effect of the spores overnight for a battery of tests and scans."

"To try to get his way, yes, Doctor," Kylah says. "But that was a threat over his desire to attain the house--and even that attack seemed like a performance to me. More showmanship than genuine rage. Consider how quickly he returned to his indolent attitude." She turns T'Var's comments over in her mind. "If you are suggesting some sort of double-bluff--where Fastolfe has made the crime point so obviously to him that we dismiss it as a frame-up--then he would be extraordinarily reckless. This is no spur-of-the-moment crime, Doctor. He would have to have such an air-tight alibi that this carefully constructed crime scene would be unraveled to 'prove' his innocence. He might indeed fake an attempt on his life. He must do all the things another murderer would do to frame him, and yet be so certain that his allegedly obvious guilt would be disproven."

Kylah scowls in doubt, shrugging. "I grant that this is all possible, just as almost anything else is possible. But for this to be true, he would have to be an entirely different creature from the person apparently known throughout the Alpha Quadrant. Lord Fastolfe the superstar musician would also have to be a security expert and stealth criminal extraordinaire, with a premeditated reason to kill Mr. Wilson, the technical skills to attempt to breach the security via subspace, the ability--despite his notoriety--to stealthfully access the security video system in order first to show a pre-recorded image to the guard on duty... and of course, he would have had to record that data in the first place as well... and then to replace that image with static for some reason I still cannot fathom.

"Then he must also somehow arrange a meeting with Mr. Wilson, who would presumably be on his guard from someone who'd attacked him earlier that day, meet him in a conference room again without anyone noticing, kill him without getting blood on himself, and then go to the transporter or have it programmed to transport both the weapon and the body. Finally, after all this--he would go back and clean the room to such a degree that there is not only no speck of blood nor DNA remaining, but none of the fingerprints or other trace elements one would expect to find in a regular conference room! And he must return to his quarters, still unseen or recognized despite being one of the most famous men in the Quadrant!"

Kylah pauses and takes a deep inhale, having said all this in practically a single breath. "If Lord Fastolfe managed all that despite having only arrived on the planet the same morning we did? With respect, Dr. T'Var, while I appreciate laws against murder, this would be a man of such intelligence, technical genius, tenacity and cunning that rather than arrest him, I hope the Federation elects him President."

...her eyes shift to give him a pointed look. "Even someone whose temper occasionally lapses into violence may not be guilty of someone's death."

Graham freezes and an image of Elizabeth--younger than Kylah is now, but not all that much in the grand scheme of things--with a similar type of look.

Those looks were prompted by his occasional attempts to act like a real father despite being absent most of the time and worse a brooding fool or a drunk when he was around. He doesn't really remember the specifics--asking her about some friends of hers who seemed squirrelly.

She stared up at him, all elbows and eyeballs: "I don't have anything more to say, am I free to go, officer?"

He can't think of anything to say and is grateful when T'Var speaks in her typical thoughtful and steady manner.

He clears his throat when she's done. "Ah, you and Delaney both, I guess," he mumbles in response to Kylah's comment. He rubs his jaw. "He's an actor," he adds, more confidently, addressing both of his colleagues. "Maybe what we saw with the knife was an act somebody paid him to put on--or maybe he did it for his own amusement." He exhales a deep breath.

Shrugging, he adds "we'll have a go at finding out soon enough."

Dr. T'Var smiles at Kylah's final jest. "You make excellent points, Ensign. But he would have to take a pay cut to serve as President, and I suspect he would be reluctant to do so. Of course he would not be the first celebrity with political aspirations, in any event."

The three soon make their way to the park and the guest houses around it. Fastolfe's house is large and ultramodern.

"Excellent, I'm glad to hear it Dr Halsey. Would you mind if I had a look at what you think is appropriate." Rangin gestures to the datapad.

"I believe there are currently three guests how have been affected. That is correct isn't it? It should be simple enough to ask them to visit. I'm aware of at least one guest who would be willing to be examined in the name of finding out what may have happened. Perhaps I could assist in asking them here for the medical exam?"

Rangin waits to see what Dr Halsey has planned but realises he is being slightly rude and turns round to face behind him. "Crewman Dobson, if you have any ideas, I'd like to hear them." he mentions politely.

"Sir" Dobson is tentative for the first time this mission. "If the spores' influence is lost during great stress or extreme emotion, couldn't all three be involved in the crime?"

Rangin is no doctor, but the resort medico's study seems appropriate to him, at a glance. Dr. Halsey says, "It was four guests, wasn't it - Vice Adm. Hardin, Lt. Cmdr. Ebling, Rosemary Calvin the author, and the businessman, Fellim Palver - who had lost the effect of the spores?"

Kylah almost smiles at Graham's reference to Delaney's highly odd esteem for Lord Fastolfe, but she is still too edgy around him to appreciate his humor. T'Var, on the other hand, surprises her by displaying a sense of humor. She's never seen a Vulcan show much propensity for wit, even dry wit.

When they arrive at Fastolfe's house, she defers to the mission leader and waits for him to initiate the contact. Perhaps he will at least attempt civility in order to get along with this potentially difficult man? Besides, if Fastolfe is still under the influence of the spores--bucking the trend of almost all the other newcomers from yesterday--he might actually be relatively pleasant. The change in his demeanor once he inhaled the spores was quite stark.

She stands looking at Graham with eyes wide in hopeful expectation.

"I'm not including the Vice Admiral," Dobson states, then adds, "Perhaps we should."

"Do you have the details of when the guests registered the loss of effect and anything else they might have said about it, please Doctor, and I'm curious as to why Lord Fastolfe is perhaps not on the list as well as the only other person who was also present at the initial introduction meeting."

Rangin turns to Dobson, "We should keep all our options and ideas open until they can be firmly and thoroughly ruled out. We will also need to gather all four of them here, though I am tempted to suggest we test them one at a time privately to prevent any contamination of the results. "

Graham still isn't fully used to such jocular behavior from a Vulcan, but finds it less disconcerting that Kylah staring up at him.

He flushes slightly and quickly turns toward the door to Fastolfe's house. "Uh, all right, he's a suspect, that's how we play it. Nothing, ah, extreme either way kissing his ass or busting his b-- ah, never mind."

"Ready?" he asks and if there are no objections he rings the chime.

"Ready," says Dr. T'Var, after adjusting the strap on her medical tricorder.

Dr. Halsey frowns thoughtfully. "I haven't heard anything about whether Fastolfe is still under the influence of the spores. I assume he is. Has anyone in your group talked to him since yesterday?"

Kylah gives the door a quick glance, as if it's another member of the team, before saying "I am ready too, sir." She realizes her mistake in address and, swallowing, turns to address the insignia on Graham's chest. "Before you correct me--I know you are not a superior officer. But I think it is proper to address you thusly, especially in front of suspects and witnesses, as long as you are acting mission commander."

And hopefully you'll start acting like a mission commander as well, she adds silently in almost fervent prayer. Kylah still feels guilty insulting Collins, even merely to herself, but the truth is the truth, and Kylah cannot fathom how anyone would believe Collins or Graham were good candidates for leadership. So why is a highly respected captain like Singh making such unfortunate choices? Is there some unspoken de facto belief that Security officers are the only ones capable of leading? The First Officer's bias toward Security makes sense, but Singh should know better--unless she too was once Security as well. Kylah makes a mental note to learn Singh's Starfleet career history.

She pushes her fleeting thoughts aside and forces her gaze back to Graham's. "I hope that is acceptable to you, even if it is not Starfleet policy. I just believe that, psychologically speaking, it will help our dealings with these people if they are aware there is a hierarchy. We need them to afford you the respect that yo--the position deserves."

Graham pauses, his finger just a few centimeters away from the chime. The position deserves respect.

Not necessarily the person--as an officer or a father.

He turns toward Kylah and he imagines a conversation with Elizabeth. She'd be graduating this year, and assuming she even wanted me to attend he could see her looking up at him: "Look, I'll call you 'dad' in front of everyone because otherwise it would be weird, but don't let that go to your head..."

He frowns just slightly. Kylah, maybe T'Var too are probably worried I want to take Fastolfe for a walk around the block, when all I want to do is...

What?

It hits him with some force: make up for everything. That's what I want to do.

But how?

He blinks. Well, not by standing around, anyway, he thinks.

"Right," he says, quietly, his mouth dry, slightly emphasizing the word "position." "The position deserves respect."

He turns and hits the chime.

"Not yet, I believe some of my colleagues are doing that now." Rangin says while still facing away towards Dobson. He frowns thinking that if Fastolfe had lost the effect of the spores he would probably be shouting it from one end of the resort to the other. Unless he was guilty of course, but then it would be easy enough to find that out anyway.

Rangin turns back to Dr Halsey. "Doctor, the list of times when the guests reported in, please? We may as well use that as the order in which we see them. If you are ready to set up the tests, it would be no problem for one of us", Rangin gestures at Dobson and himself, "to escort each guest here and brief them on the way as to what is going to occur, so that hopefully they will be willing to undergo such tests."

The chime sounds and there is no response from within Lord Fastolfe's guest house.

Dr. Halsey checks a data pad. "All of them went through spore introduction yesterday at 2pm." He taps on the screen. "I've sent messages to the comm account of each, asking them to stop by anytime this afternoon for testing."

Kylah grows more and more uncomfortable the longer they wait. Anxious, she glances over to find a window, both to peek inside as well as to see if she can sense anyone through the glass. Of course, the house is large enough that she knows it is unlikely she would feel anything but a particularly strong emotion.

"He might be anywhere at the resort," she says over her shoulder to Graham and T'Var, more to reassure herself that nothing need necessarily be wrong. "Can he be contacted or located by the hotel staff? Or perhaps his ship's crew? His yacht is still here, is it not?"

Graham unlimbers his tricorder and scans Fastolfe's house for life signs.

Dr. T'Var says, "The last report we had from the Yorktown, his yacht was still in orbit. I'm sure we would've been told if he had left, or tried to."

Graham sees from his tricorder scan that there are seven life signs inside. He rings the chime again and, after a long time, a man in dark business clothes answers the door. "Yes?" he asks, a little crossly.

Kylah is somewhat relieved and returns to the doorway, apparently not having seen anything from the window. She must clamp on her tongue not to speak up, however. Graham is the leader and is considered to have expertise at this sort of thing; he will, presumably, wish to handle the initial contact.

"Good afternoon," Graham says professionally. "Ensign Graham, Starfleet Security. We're here to speak with Lord Fastolfe." He pauses and cocks his head slightly. "Something got you out of sorts, Mr...?" he asks.

Kylah could see nothing through the curtains at the window, and sensed nothing with her psi talent, either.

"Do you have an appointment?" the man asks Graham.

"I'm afraid it's a matter of some suddenness and urgency," Graham says, shaking his head sympathetically. "He's inside?" he asks, pointing with one hand about waist height, and taking a half-step forward.

Kylah watches both men closely. When Graham closes the gap between him and the--bodyguard, gatekeeper, manager, Kylah isn't sure what this person is to Lord Fastolfe--she keeps her breathing as even as possible. It appears the Security officer is holding back information, perhaps intending to surprise his suspect, but Kylah doesn't see the point under the circumstances. With the softest voice she can produce that might be audible to Graham, she murmurs to him: "They may have already seen the announcement, sir."

Rangin looks across at Dobson with a concerned look. Dr Halsey seems to know exactly who has been impacted, but despite being asked twice has not produced the details he was asked for. How we would he know these details unless the residents had come forward. Either that, or one of the Hsu's had told him.

Rangin wanders across to Dobson and speaks to her quietly out of Halsey's hearing. "Dobson, head out, find a nurse and see if you can get a hold of the list of people who have contacted the infirmary as having lost the impact of spores."

He then wanders back to Dr Halsey, "So have you had any response to your requests, Doctor?"

"Yes, sir" Dobson goes looking for a nurse as ordered.

The man in the doorway doesn't budge. He stares back at Graham, who has the impression he's no stranger to confrontations with authority. "I'm sorry, you'll have to be more specific. Why do you wish to see Lord Fastolfe, exactly...?"

Dr. Halsey looks a little annoyed as Dobson steps around him, but she finds no one else in the Infirmary. He says to Rangin, "Let me check these reports again. There's been so much going on today I feel like I'm just at sixes and at sevens."

Graham tilts his head just slightly toward Kylah, acknowledging her comment. "The resort's administrator was murdered last night." He spreads his hands disarmingly. "We'd just like to clear up a few questions about Lord Fastolfe's contact with him yesterday."

"Certainly Doctor and if there is anything I can do to help, please let me know." Rangin waits to see what Dr Halsey does next.

Dobson reenters the infirmary. "Sir,' she address Rangin, "I couldn't find anyone else. Perhaps I could help retrieve the files from the computer?"

The man in the doorway does not noticeably react to news of the murder. "Wait here," he says, "and I'll see if His Lordship wishes to speak with you." He closes the door in Graham's face.

Dr. Halsey snaps, "I'm perfectly capable of accessing computer records, thank you." He picks up a data tablet and scrolls through its display. "Hmm. I guess there were three people who lost the spores' effect: Hardin, Palver and Calvin. Just three. Not Ebling; my mistake." His comm panel beeps, and he reads the screen. "Mrs. Calvin says she's free now and is coming to be scanned. The vice admiral and Mr. Palver haven't responded yet."

While they are waiting, Kylah thinks of Rangin and wonders if his interview with Halsey is going any better than her own. And then she realizes he does not even know she met with the doctor--she only told Graham and T'Var. Fool! she thinks, angry that her distraction over the incident with Graham prevented her from doing her duty. She excuses herself from the others and quickly sends a message to Velir.

"Now, now, Doctor," Rangin admonishes him gently, "we are only here to help out. There is no need to take that tone with Crewman Dobson. I would suggest taking a moment to compose yourself before Mrs Calvin arrives. Now, perhaps you might like to say why Lt. Cmdr. Ebling was on your mind..."

Rangin looks down at his communicator and sees it alerting him. "If you would excuse me a moment, I'll just take this.", he comments before heading somewhere more private.

"Rangin, this is Kylah," Kylah says with a quick glance at her colleagues. "I just have a moment--it is not an emergency, but I did want you to know about a conversation I had with Dr. Halsey earlier. I should have briefed you before, but I was--I forgot. Is this a bad time for you?"