The Fatal Simulation: Part One

November 9, 2006

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<title>The Fatal Simulation</title>

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<h1>The Fatal Simulation</h1>

<h3>Sendai Riko</h3>

<p>Riko held the tricorder out in front of him, slowly swinging it about in a 180 degree arc as he scanned the wooded landscape around him. Walking beside him was Engari Trilaso, who had his phaser out and held it comfortably in his left hand as his eyes surveyed the land in the same fashion as Riko's tricorder. On their left and right flanks were pairs of security personnel. Behind them walked the rest of the team, which included the team commander Terrence Shaw and another four security people.</p>

<p>They had received a hurried, broken distress call ten hours ago, and had rushed at maximum warp to the small M class moon. A few hours before they arrived the beacon was interrupted and lost, and as they maneuvered into orbit, they were unable to pinpoint where it had come from. There were also high concentrations of ceramide in the soil, which made scanning difficult, so the best that they could do was draw a two kilometer circle around the likely location. The away team formed and headed to the shuttlebay; the ceramide deposits also made using the transporter entirely too risky.</p>

<p>Shaw piloted the shuttle down himself, and landed in a small clearing a few hundred meters from the midpoint of the search area. They disembarked, and Riko was ordered to the front to scan for any signs of those who left the distress signal. It didn't go well at first; the ceramide deposits made the tricorder nearly useless in its standard configuration, so they returned to the shuttle so that he could make some modifications to the tricorder. With that done, they set out once again.</p>

<p>The progress was very slow, for even with the modifications, the tricorder required data from several different angles to narrow down the correct bearings. So they wound through the heavily forested area in a serpentine crawl, getting bitten by at least four different types of flying insects constantly along the way. Having grown up in a similar environment, Riko was less bothered by it than the others. For the umpteenth time since they set out, Engari smacked his phaser arm with his free hand, then wiped the purple goo splattered on it over his pants.</p>

<p>"Whoever programmed this simulation had entirely too much fun," he muttered.</p>

<p>Riko snorted. He was forced to agree, though he was quite impressed by the realism of it. Most of the ship-based simulations seemed so bland. "It could be worse," he finally responded quietly.</p>

<p>Heading again to the left to try to triangulate the latest readings, he heard a thud behind him and a curse. Stopping, Riko looked back and saw Shaw had tripped over a tree-root and had fallen forward into a rather muddy puddle. He didn't feel bad about it at all. Shaw was a constant pain in the neck, and was as arrogant a person that Riko had ever met. If the fool wasn't going to watch his footing while hiking through the wild woods, he deserved what he got. He waited just long enough for Harrison in the back to help him to his feet before he started up again. Shaw would have to wipe himself off on the move.</p>

<p>They traveled another 300 meters when Riko's tricorder began beeping. Their winding, difficult trek had finally paid off, and the sensors were able to pinpoint what appeared to be a small shuttlecraft off to the northeast. Engari leaned over and studied the data with his own eyes.</p>

<p>"Nice work," he said, his smile genuine if a bit belabored by the hiking and bug swatting.</p>

<p>"Sir, I've pinpointed the source," Riko said as he turned back to Shaw. "Looks like a small shuttle, approximately 450 meters bearing 330."</p>

<p>"It's about damn time! Get us there, and try walking in a straight line for once!" Shaw replied.</p>

<p>"Yes, sir." Riko headed off to the northeast, and the team walked in silence for a while. When they were about a hundred meters away from the craft, he looked over to Engari and spoke quietly. "Are we just going to barge in without any precautions?"</p>

<p>With a wry smile, the Trill cadet turned his head and called back to Shaw in a muted voice. "Sir, we're just about there. Should we stop here and send out a scout?"</p>

<p>"No! The sooner we get there, the sooner we can rescue them and get out of here," Shaw called back, not so mutely.</p>

<p>"You heard the man, Cadet Sendai. Lead on," Engari said. After a moment, he leaned in and whispered to the Bajoran. "Keep sharp, and find the nearest boulder to hide behind if things go sour."</p>

<p>Riko nodded, and continued to lead the team toward the shuttle. A few minutes later, they crested a small hill and could see it. The small craft was crumpled and burned. The combination of the ceramide and the plethora of vegetation made scanning for lifeforms nearly impossible. He practically had to jab the thing into Engari's chest earlier to get a reading on him. So when the Trill asked if he was detecting any, he could only shake his head.</p>

<p>Now that glory time had approached, Shaw moved forward right past Riko who had slowed down as he tried to scan the area for anything of note. Marching straight for the crashed shuttle, his head held high and a very feigned look of concern on his face, the team leader got within ten meters of it before Engari caught up to him.</p>

<p>Riko and the remainder of the team were not far behind when the leaders arrived at the shuttle. They maneuvered around it, until they came to the open hatch. Engari could clearly see more than one set of footprints leading away from it in the soft dirt. Coming up from behind, Riko continued to scan.</p>

<p>Engari turned in the direction of the retreating footprints, trying to see the feet that made them, not to mention anything else attached to the feet. Shaw, however, was looking into the shuttle.</p>

<p>"Well, let's see if anyone's home." he said as he lifted his foot to enter the shuttle.</p>

<p>Turning, Engari protested. "I don't think we should..."</p>

<p>An enormous explosion rocked the shuttle, the shockwave followed by plasma and burning debris.</p>

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The Fatal Simulation: Part One

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