Post Number: 283 *Meeting the Ocampa*
Posted on Tue Jul 29th, 2025 @ 11:23pm by Captain Marius Pontmercy & Lieutenant JG Fara Galaway & Lieutenant JG Celine Quinn & Lieutenant Commander Michael McMahon & Major Charlotte Thrace & Lieutenant Paul Eschenauer & Lieutenant Peter McMahon & Lieutenant Jude Haines & Lieutenant Marty Stokes & Lieutenant JG Lirian Tarel & Staff Sergeant Amy Bell
5,022 words; about a 25 minute read
Mission: A New Beginning
On:
If truth were to be told Charlotte wasn't entirely looking forward to this one, she always preferred to know what she was going to find when she went in somewhere, that was a large part of keeping people safe, this time there was no way of knowing what they were going to find when they got down to Ocampa or when they went down below the surface, this time they were going in blind. It was on a paper a simple enough list of things that needed to be done but the unknown as always influenced the composition of the away team. While she waited in the transporter room for the rest of the people beaming down she and Amy were going over the coordinates for the beam down point, they were going as close as they could to one of the shafts that according to the Voyager logs led down to the Ocampa's underground settlement.
Marty walked throught the doors of the transporter room with a full medical bag. “What do you think we’ll find down there?”
Celine entered the room right behind the doctor, and frowned.
"I'm not sure," she answered, knowing the question hasn't been meant for her specifically. "Hopefully we find a way to reach the Ocampa quickly, but we know that nothing has been going our way lately."
"Sounds like we're due a bit of good fortune then." Charlotte said "In truth we have no idea what's down there, we hope that the Kazon packed up and left and we hope that the Ocampa figured out that they needed to ration the energy resources that the Caretaker left them with."
Mike entered the transporter room just in time to catch the tail end of Charlotte’s comment. He adjusted the strap on the equipment case over his shoulder and gave her a brief nod of acknowledgement.
“Hope’s nice,” he said, voice even, “but we’re planning for the opposite. Unknown terrain, potential structural instability, and no confirmed friendly contacts. That’s three red flags before we even energize.”
He looked toward the coordinates on the console. “I’ve rerouted emergency beacon frequencies to punch through the underground layers, but don’t expect miracles. Communications could still be intermittent once we’re down there.”
Paul strolled in behind Mike, a field tricorder already in hand and a hint of his usual half-smirk in place.
“Going in blind,” he echoed. “That’s always a good sign. Means no one’s had a chance to ruin it yet.”
He looked at the transporter pad, then the rest of the team. “Flight data from Voyager’s logs gave us a rough topography, but it’s decades old. There’s a chance the shafts have collapsed—or worse, been repurposed.”
He gave Charlotte a glance and offered a shrug. “Best we can do is trust the readings and adjust fast. You know the drill.”
Then, more lightly: “Besides, if the Kazon are still hanging around down there, at least we’ll have something to shoot at.”
Peter arrived last, his expression more tightly composed than his brothers’. He offered a curt nod to the group and set his equipment pack down for a systems check before speaking.
“If the Ocampa are still alive down there, they’re either very resourceful… or very desperate.” He paused a beat. “Probably both.”
He checked the phaser rifle slung across his back. “I've reviewed all tactical scenarios we have on subterranean engagements. The risk profile’s high—limited visibility, restricted movement, unpredictable energy signatures. We stay in tight formation, eyes on all sectors.”
"We start on the surface" Charlotte said "First job is verifying if the Kazon are still there or not. If they're not on the surface then that means one of two things - they're either not on the planet or they're below the surface and if they're below the surface then chances are that the Ocampa aren't. If we confirm no surface presence we immediately make entry into one of the shafts and proceed down to the settlement, we don't know the status of the shafts but we're bringing all the climbing and caving gear with us. Once we get down to the settlement we'll find out what's happened to the Ocampa, if they're still down there then we do what we can and it's over to Celine to start talking with their leadership, if they're not down there then this becomes an investigation type situation." Celine nodded, and glanced over as Lieutenant Tarel entered the room.
"I believe it would be helpful to have the Counselor there with me during the talks. I think a calming presence might be important, especially with what we're asking."
"Agreed." Charlotte said as she did another head count they were still waiting on a couple of people but considering what they were doing there was something to be said for taking time to prepare.
Lirian entered with calm poise, her expression serene but focused as she took in the conversation and the tension that simmered beneath the surface. She inclined her head slightly toward Celine in acknowledgment of her mention, then stepped into the group’s circle with measured grace.
“I’m glad to join you,” she said, her voice quiet but clear. “If the Ocampa are still alive down there, they may have endured years of isolation, fear, or worse. Whatever state we find them in, they will not be untouched by it.”
She turned her gaze to Charlotte. “In situations like this, presence matters. Words may fail when trust has long since eroded. But if they see that we are not only armed for defense, but also open to listening… we might have a chance.”
Then, with a slight smile toward Celine, she added, “I’ll stand beside you when the time comes. If they’re willing to speak, we’ll make sure they’re heard.”
Lirian glanced around the group, her tone softening. “We carry the burden of caution, yes—but let’s also carry the hope that there’s something left to build on. Even in the deepest dark, a little light can guide the way.”
It was a last minute switch, and one that Fara had NOT been expecting. She ran down the corridor, hoisting her bag higher onto her shoulder as she rounded a corner. Stopping just outside the door to the transporter room, she took a few breaths to calm herself and then walked through the door.
"Hello," she said quietly, "I am sorry for being late," she said. "Lieutenant Cruz decided that she had a few things she needed to attend to, so she sent me instead." She glanced around the room, noting who had already arrived.
Only seconds behind her, Marius entered the room.
"I'm crashing the party," he announced. "I decided that I'd like to see firsthand what is waiting for us."
Charlotte gave Amy a look that basically told the staff sergeant that her job was to stick close to the Captain. "Ok then." Charlotte said doing another headcount as the remaining stragglers made their way into the room "Weapons on stun, don't wander too far and let's do this."
Marius nodded, complying. He may have rank, but it was Thrace's show. He glanced at the transporter tech, an Ensign who he had not yet met. They would go down four at a time, and he wasn't foolish enough to think that he'd be in the first group.
Celine waited for orders, having been assigned to the second group to beam down. She took a few breaths to calm her nerves, knowing that so much was riding on this going well. She glanced over at the Captain, and took reassurance in his calm and collected body language.
Rather predictably, if only because it was entirely within protocol, Charlotte and Amy were in the first group to go down, materialising on the wasteland surface of the planet they and the others in their group had their rifles up, Amy was glancing at the scanner that was strapped to her forearm "All clear." she said
"Thrace to Obsidian" Charlotte said tapping her combadge "Clear to send down the next group."
Celine stepped onto the platform along with Fara, Lirian, Jude, and a few of his security officers. She took a deep breath, and as the order was given for the transport to begin, she prepared for what they were about to see. She had been expecting the desert atmosphere, but the heat that hit her was oppressive. The group moved to the side to allow the Captains group to come, along with Jordan, V'Lar, Chambers, and Stokes.
Within a few moments everyone had been transported to the planet, and they looked to Charlotte for their next steps.
"Ok is anyone picking up any life signs on the surface?" Charlotte asked knowing the tricorders had a better range than the wrist scanners.
Mike, already crouched near a cluster of broken rock and scanning with his tricorder, answered first, his tone clipped and professional.
“Negative on surface life signs,” he reported. “No humanoid readings within a kilometer radius. Ambient radiation levels are within acceptable range, but fluctuating—might explain some interference in signal clarity.”
He stood, slinging the tricorder back onto his belt. “We’ll keep an open channel to Obsidian, but don't count on it being consistent underground. Recommend syncing all local comms to mesh network fallback—if the main link drops, at least we keep talking to each other.”
Then, with a glance toward Charlotte: “No hostiles. No allies. Just heat and silence. Let’s hope it stays that way.”
Paul, less serious in posture but no less focused, was sweeping his own scanner in wide arcs, muttering quietly to himself before speaking up.
“Temperature’s well above what the Voyager logs had on record. Either the planetary climate’s shifted… or something’s changed the atmospheric balance.”
He gave a low whistle and turned the scanner toward a jagged outcropping. “No life signs, but there’s evidence of prior movement—scorch marks, disturbed dust layers. Could be weeks old, could be hours. Hard to say with the winds here.”
Then, with a sidelong grin to Mike: “So we’ve got mystery footprints in a frying pan. Lovely.”
Peter was more methodical, kneeling beside a ridge overlooking a shallow basin. He didn’t look up when he spoke, still focused on adjusting the filter settings on his tricorder.
“I’m detecting faint residual energy signatures—dilithium traces, low-level decay trails. If I had to guess, I’d say someone had a vessel or a power system operating here not too long ago.”
Now he looked up, his expression sharp.
“No life signs, but someone was here. And they didn’t want to be found. I suggest we proceed under the assumption that the Kazon—or someone like them—left in a hurry.”
He stepped forward, facing Charlotte. “We hold formation, keep phaser sweeps low and controlled. If anything’s underground… they might already know we’re here.”
He was glanced briefly toward Marius before concluding: “Permission to designate flank security rotation, Major?”
"Do it." Charlotte said, if the alarm bells hadn't been ringing before they were certainly ringing now and they were getting louder, if a Kazon ship had left the surface recently and if their life sign readings were accurate then there was logically only one explanation and it was the one that she didn't like. "Amy you've got the locations of the other entry shafts in the vicinity?"
"Yes boss." Amy said, already stretching her hamstrings and calves, she knew what was coming.
"Do a lap." Charlotte said "Make it quick, no heroics and don't make me come find you."
"Back before you know it." Amy said before setting off on what would otherwise be considered a perimeter sweep but she was basically taking a ten minute jog around three other entry shaft points.
Charlotte sighed "All right then, no Kazon surface presence that we can detect so..." she said looking at where the shaft they'd beamed in right next to was "Let's open it up and see what's down there."
As the group was speaking Fara had been running scans of her own. She frowned as she read the information being returned, none of it making sense. Maybe it was interference?
"If I'm reading this right, I'm picking up energy signatures and trace particles indicating weapons fire. I don't recognize the weapon signatures, but that would make obvious sense being that we are in the Delta Quadrant. Based on the rate of decay I'd say it happened between 12 to 15 hours ago."
"That's a little worrying." Charlotte said as she set about digging through the rubble that covered the shaft entrance "The Ocampa are a peaceful people if Voyager's logs are accurate they didn't have particle weapons or ships."
"This is definitely originating from the surface. I doubt the Ocampa had anything to do with it." Galaway frowned, and after a moment holstered the tricorder and got to work helping to move the debris.
"I hope you're right Fara." Charlotte said looking around as Amy returned and promptly downed about a third of her water bottle "Well?"
"I don't know." Amy said "I've got nothing that says the entrances have been forced open but it's not like covering tracks is impossible."
"If someone's been firing a weapon on this planet in the last 15 hours then who on earth were they shooting at?" Charlotte asked "We didn't pick anything unusual up on the sensors coming in did we?"
Marius squinted in the bright light, and tugged at his collar, stifling a little in the heat of the planets surface. He glanced around at the other members of the away team and knew that they were feeling the same.
"We did not," he confirmed. "Everything seemed normal."
"If the Ocampa are alive and well they very well could have the answers we seek," Celine offered.
Peter rose from where he had been kneeling, brushing dust from his gloves. His brow was furrowed, his tone clipped.
“If those weapon discharges are twelve to fifteen hours old, then whoever fired them had time to leave—or go to ground. Either way, that’s tactical sloppiness or intentional evasion. I don’t like either.”
He glanced toward Amy, then at the shaft. “If there’s no sign of forced entry, that just means they were either subtle… or they came and went through another route. We have to assume someone’s down there—armed, experienced, and possibly still active.”
He looked to Charlotte. “We go in quiet, controlled, and ready. Recommend rear guard rotate in five-minute intervals once underground. Tight quarters mean we don’t get second chances if someone’s waiting in ambush.”
Mike, who had remained silent up to that point, tapped his tricorder and brought up the telemetry Fara was referencing. He frowned deeply.
“She’s right. Decay rate on those particle residues suggests they’re not Starfleet, Kazon, or Ocampan in origin. I cross-referenced against the Voyager logs—closest match is from a race called the Trabe, but even that’s a stretch.”
He looked at Charlotte. “It’s not just weapons fire. There are faint but complex EM scatter patterns in the vicinity—someone used a targeting system with layered tracking. That’s not Kazon tech. They prefer brute force.”
He exhaled slowly. “Whatever happened here wasn’t a skirmish. This was precise. Controlled. Someone was hunting something—or someone.”
Then, quieter: “And they wanted it done before anyone could notice.”
Paul Eschenauer, leaning against a rock with his tricorder hanging loosely from his hand, whistled low and shook his head.
“Well, this just gets better and better,” he said, more to himself than anyone else. “Unidentified weapons, no known contact, no sign of bodies or wreckage… it's like the desert swallowed the story whole.”
He straightened and pointed to the shaft. “I vote we stop speculating and start getting answers. This place already feels like the opening act of a bad horror holonovel.”
He gave Charlotte a wry smile. “Don’t worry, we’ll keep it tight. But if anyone finds a life sign that’s not an Ocampa, let’s make sure we ask questions after we’ve secured the perimeter, yeah?”
Then, in a more serious tone: “Something happened here—and the longer we stay topside, the more time whoever’s down there has to prepare.”
"There were two possibilities before we came down." Charlotte said "Number one the Kazon were still on the surface, if that was the case then it was likely that they hadn't ventured underground. Option number two, if the Kazon weren't on the surface then they likely went underground and very likely looking for the Ocampa, remember Voyager never did find out exactly what the Kazon wanted with the Ocampa." she and the others were still shifting debris "Now a third party being in the equation raises the same sorts of questions - if the Kazon aren't here then the implication is that the Ocampa, assuming they're still alive, are the ones being hunted or they know who is. Either way we don't find the answers up here." at that point Amy shifted the last rock out of the way "We find them down there."
"Lowering the ropes." Amy said as she anchored two ropes to two different secure places and checked that they wouldn't shift before lowering the ropes down into the shaft followed by some glow tubes.
"Anyone who's not done this before watch carefully." Charlotte said indicating Amy who did what Charlotte explained "Climbing belt on around your waist make sure it fits snugly, clip the rope into carabiner, and walk yourself backwards over the edge slowly, keep a consistent pace, do not showboat, when you get to the bottom give two tugs on the rope that will signal the next person to descend. The rope should not give if it does get hold of the nearest section of the shaft wall, find a handhold and either myself or Amy will get to you as quickly as we can." At this point there were two tugs on the rope indicating that Amy had reached the bottom of the shaft. "Let's get down there."
Over the next few minutes the away team made their way down the ropes two at a time, Charlotte was last and when her boots hit the dirt at the bottom of the shaft she looked around, they were relying on torch light.
"Am I on point?" Amy asked
"Yes." Charlotte said "Everyone stays close we have no idea what's down here."
Celine carefully descended, and was silently thankful when her feet once more were on solid ground. She was not scared of much, but there was something about swinging into a void that sent her heart racing. She glanced around the dark tunnel, and mentally prepared herself to speak to whoever they found.
Fara, on the other hand, had done this a number of times, and quickly made her way down the shaft with ease. When she reached the bottom, her tricorder was once again in her hand, taking readings and trying to get answers.
"I am not reading any of the particle residue down here," she said after a moment. "If there was indeed a fight underground, it didn't happen nearby."
Marius, hearing this as he came to rest beside them, let out a breath and nodded.
"I do not like having more questions than answers. Hopefully whoever is still here can provide what we are missing."
Their surroundings were as expected, rocky, dark and damp. They had their flashlights showing the way but that was it, but still things were bugging Charlotte - assuming the Kazon had always wanted the Ocampa for something but the Caretaker had prevented it then it was logical to assume the Kazon wouldn't willingly leave the planet without the Ocampa. She made sure to keep herself as close to where Amy was leading the way as she could. The closer they got to the Ocampa settlement the more she was getting a very bad feeling about what they were walking into.
Then it happened, Amy rounded a corner and her flashlight fell on the settlement. "Doesn't look like they've got power." Amy said
"That's as expected." Charlotte said "They only had approximately ten years worth in 2371." she took a breath "Life signs?"
Fara scanned the area and then took a moment to evaluate the readings she was getting. She frowned, and checked again.
"I am reading multiple lifesigns, but I am unable to determine how many or their species."
"Give me a twenty metre lead." Charlotte said as she went passed Amy who nodded, this was what they were trained for Charlotte was scouting a little ahead, a sensible move for if there was a trap laid for them or someone else it was better not to fall right into it. Charlotte moved into the outskirts of the settlement and then ever so slightly further her phase pistol out and in her hand. She heard the sound first and rounded a corner to find a group of Ocampa huddled around fires for warmth, by the looks of things their guesses about the energy levels had been proven right, tapping her combadge Charlotte took a few breaths while the eyes of the Ocampa trained themselves on the uniform, none of the group in front of her had been alive when Janeway had come through here but that uniform, that badge, that was the sort of thing that got passed on. "Captain we've got Ocampa." Charlotte said "Not seeing any threat at this point."
Jude took up the rear behind them. "I am getting the readings as well." He spoke quietly. "They do not appear to be threatening but we will not know for certain until we get there." He was not picking up any signs of weapons engaged or ready to fire.
Marius, hearing the call from Charlotte glanced over at Celine.
"It's now or never," he said to her quietly. She nodded, and with a look at Tarel the pair walked down the path towards the Marine, with Pontmercy trailing them. When she reached Charlotte, she took a deep breath, and approached slowly.
"Hello, my name is Lieutenant Celine Quinn, of the Federation Starbase Obsidian." She paused a moment to take in the expressions of the Ocampa. While they had originally viewed the away team with fear, her words and their uniforms seemed to calm them. "You may remember stories of a Federation crew, the USS Voyager, and Captain Janeway, who visited your planet a long time ago. She, and us as well, come in peace and friendship."
Lirian approached quietly, her steps measured and non-threatening as she joined Celine at her side. She let her eyes pass over the gathered Ocampa—tired, cold, wary. There was fear there, yes, but also something deeper: resilience. She could feel it in the air, like a thread that had been stretched thin but not broken.
She offered a small, warm smile before speaking, her voice gentle and even.
“My name is Lirian,” she said, keeping her hands visible and posture open. “I’m a Counselor. I came to listen—to learn. Not just from the past, but from you, here and now.”
She glanced toward the fires and the thin cloaks wrapped around the shoulders of those who sat closest.
“We can see your strength. That you’ve endured much… and likely with little help. We didn’t come to take anything from you. We only wish to understand what’s happened—and to offer whatever help you might allow us to give.”
Her eyes met those of an older Ocampa woman sitting closest to the fire, then softened.
“You don’t need to trust us now. But you’re not alone—not anymore.”
Then, stepping slightly back beside Celine, she added quietly to her, “They’re frightened… but they’re not hostile. With time, they may listen.” Celine nodded, and glanced behind her at the others.
"If you are able, could you tell us what happened on the surface? There were signs of a battle of sorts, but we couldn't figure out what occurred."
Being a marine Charlotte had been in more than her fair share of crisis zones and she'd seen more than enough things that she wished she hadn't, she wasn't a doctor by any stretch of the imagination but just by looking at the Ocampan people sat around the fire she could connect the dots they weren't in the best condition which was to be expected, they likely didn't have much in the way of food, there was no water on the planet, and clearly the settlement had either none or limited power.
"We don't know what happened on the surface." one of the Ocampa said "Some of our people tried to go to the surface through some of the old entrances even though we're taught not to go up there. We haven't seen them come back." the response raised a few questions though the one on both Charlotte's and Amy's mind was perhaps one of the less urgent ones - there was no reason for the Kazon to abandon their settlement on the surface unless they'd been forced to by the other party in the battle and that begged a far more concerning couple of questions - did this other party know the Ocampa were here? And if so what did they want?
Celine nodded, thinking.
"Well regardless, we are here to help." She glanced over at Amanda and Marty. The two doctors began to spread out amongst the gathered, and soon was joined by Fara. Marius approached Charlotte.
"If they do not know what happened on the surface we can assume it was another entity. If we are going to use the surface as a base we need to make sure we fortify and prepare for a potential return."
Charlotte was leaning against a stone rockface at this point, looking around using her flashlight as best as she could to get an idea of just what the situation was "We will but we're not wholly there yet sir." she said "The surface isn't ideal in habitation terms and the Ocampa are on borrowed time down here, first thing we need to be thinking about before we fortify the position on the surface is terraforming the planet and that means getting the Ocampa off the planet, temporarily housing them on base and then giving them the home they should have had for the last thousand years and more. If someone comes looking around we've got a fairly decent position in orbit at the moment and once this world is ready we can add another layer to that defensive line. This is the last bastion of the Federation, this is our sanctuary, we need it habitable and sustainable before we put down roots and defenses. We came down here with an offer to help them, let's make it."
Marius nodded, appreciating the words of wisdom. He turned and grabbed Celine's attention, and the woman made her way towards the Captain.
"Let's make them the offer, and see what we can do about relocating them as soon as possible." Quinn nodded her understanding, took a deep breath, and made her way back towards the Ocampa.
"Who is in charge here," she asked? There was a moment of silence before an older looking woman rose to her feet, several others standing soon after.
"My name is Elder Martis," the first woman spoke. "We are ruled by a council, and I am among them," she said, gesturing towards the others that had stood. Giving a small smile, Celine walked closer.
"As we said, we come from a Starbase that is now orbiting your planet. I know that you have been underground for many generations, but without the Caretaker here, there is another option for you." She began to lay out the Obsidian's plan, carefully and making sure not to offend or frighten them. "You deserve your freedom, and you deserve to live above the ground." After several moments, Martis spoke.
"How long would this take? How long would my people need to be on your- your starbase," she asked, searching for the word? Celine glanced at Thrace.
Charlotte somehow managed to avoid the half smile, that wasn't a question she was best placed to answer "In truth I don't know." Charlotte said "I'm a marine not a scientist. What I do know is that I trust the scientists who are working on this, I've seen them work miracles, I've seen them do the impossible so if anyone can figure out how to do this safely, properly and quickly it's them." Celine looked back at the Ocampa with a smile.
"Alright," Martis said after a brief hushed conversation with her Council. "I believe it is time for us to start a new path- one that sees us on the surface."
Marius approached the group with a small smile.
"We are glad to hear it. It will take some time to get you all to the Starbase, but we will make you comfortable, treat any injuries, and then get to work on the planet." He glanced around at the away team. "Alright, everyone. Let's get to work."
Off:
Captain Marius G. Pontmercy
Commanding Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Commander Michael McMahon
Second Officer / Chief Operations Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Major Charlotte Thrace
Marine Commanding Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Paul Eschenauer
Assistant Chief Flight Control Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Peter McMahon
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant David Chambers
Chief Engineering Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Jude Haines
Chief Security Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Amanda Hemsley
Chief of Surgery
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Marty Stokes
Chief Medical Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Junior Grade Fara Galaway
Assistant Chief Science Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Junior Grade Celine Quinn
Chief Diplomatic Officer
Starbase Obsidian
Lieutenant Junior Grade Lirian Tarel
Chief Counselor
Starbase Obsidian
Staff Sergeant Amy Bell
Marine
Starbae Obsidian
RSS Feed