Plot Log | "The loss of Majesty"

Posted on 241407.29 @ 1:37pm by Fleet Admiral Kerry Malone

Mission: Insurrection [Fleet Plot]

=/\= Admiral's Quarters - USS Ticonderoga =/\=

It had been the first time in several days that Malone had found the time, or the inclination, to return to his quarters. He was tired, he was worn out and he needed a rest. The naps he'd had on the couch in his office between calls and decisions had merely kept him going. The ship's CMO had demanded he actually sleep, or be relieved there and then.

Struggling out of his uniform, Malone stood in the shower for several minutes, basking in the warmth of the water that cascaded over him, scrubbing away the impurities on his body - and in his mind. He felt cleaner than he'd felt in days, and after climbing into clean uniform, at the last moment, decided to remove the undershirt and jacket, toss them to the side, and lay on his bed, falling asleep.

It only felt like he'd been asleep for five minutes when the comm beeped at him insistently. He had to wipe the sleep from his eyes as he tapped the comm badge on the bedside cabinet. "Malone." He replied, groggily.

"Sorry to wake you, Admiral, but we've intercepted a TV transmission from Earth." Came the disembodied voice of his Chief of Staff. She would only have woken him if it had been important, and that saved her having her head bitten off.

"What is it?" Kerry asked, as he pulled on his red undershirt, and tried to find his rank pins.

"Sir, they executed former President Ryan on live television." His Chief of Staff said, with emotion in her voice. "Shot him in the head."

"I'll be right up." Malone said. "Summon the staff."

= Observation Lounge =

The footage was grim, and disturbing, as President Hutchins gave a stark warning to those thinking of supporting those he called "rebels", by saying that distension wasn't going to be tolerated. He'd warned that those who would use the criminal Ryan as a rallying point would be disappointed, and it was at that moment that a UFP Soldier had hauled Ryan out, who had looked weak and malnourished, and thrown him forward.

In that next moment, Hutchins himself pulled out an old projectile pistol of some sort, and shot Ryan in the head. The blood splatter had gone everywhere, and it was a very dramatic piece of theatre. Ryan moved so that the camera focused solely on his face.

"I say to you now, that these rebels will all face justice, and that my government will not tolerate rebellion from the one true government of the people." Hutchins said. "For every soldier of mine you kill, I will kill tenfold of your own."

The transmission ended at that point, and all eyes turned to Malone, who was at the opposite end of the long curved table to the screen. The implications had been stark - that despite the plans that had been put into motion - the would be unable to rescue President Ryan now.

But something else was far more important with this development, and it was obvious that their enemy was unable to control Hutchins' antics. That broadcast would be his downfall, and that same-said broadcast was the best piece of ammunition that the enemy could've given his forces.

"Get feelers out to every member world that saw that." Malone said. "Get me an indication of how the people responded to that, and if they didn't see it, show it to them. Hutchins just made a massive error - he just showed that he and his people do not represent the values of the Federation he claimed to be upholding - and in so doing - he's given us the very tool we need to win the member worlds to our cause."

"But what about Ryan..." Someone said.

"If this works the way I think it will, his death will be the most lamented loss in UFP history. I hate to be callous about this, but his murder on live TV is the single most important thing that's happened in this entire campaign to date." Malone said. "Make it happen."

= End Log =

Fleet Admiral Kerry Malone
Starfleet Loyalist CinC