The Few, The Proud, The Marines "
By: 2^nd Lieutenant Scott Taylor , Marine Tertiary , [NPC]
Margaret Rose MacAlister , Marine CO, [RNPC]

Stardate: 58208.07 1500

"They don't look too bad, Major...." Cpt. Marcus “Campi” Campanili, the Marine XO observed.

The Major and her XO were watching the Zion's Marine compliment as they ran through their paces. The first thing Mac and her boys had done when they joined the Zion was to update the onboard training programs. The Marines were finding it rather tough going.

Madge snorted softly and glanced at her XO. "I wounae say they looked Good either, Captain. They can do better," she assured him in her soft Scottish brogue. "Have t'lads show them how it's done and run them through it again."

The Marine division aboard the Zion was discovering that having a woman CO wasn't going to be a walk in the park like a few of them had thought. She was turning out to be as tough if not tougher than any CO they'd had in the past. She had a high level of expectation, but at the same time, they'd all quickly come to know that she didn't expect anything of her men that she wasn't willing, and able to do herself.

"Aye, Ma'am," Campanili nodded and pressed the comm. bud in his ear, relaying the request to the Tertiary Officer who was in charge of the training simulation.

2^nd Lieutenant Taylor, the designated Team Leader and aka "Rescue-Six" for the purposes of this mission, adjusted the shades on his face and then ordered his men to fall back and reset for another run at the mission. The Major was pushing them hard. Today they were working on precision extraction simulations. Their job was to get into the prison facility, locate, and then extract some unnamed VIP. It was one of his favorite training sims.

The holodeck shimmered as the program reset. Taylor pressed a small button on his sunglasses and a small timer appeared in his field of vision. One at a time, they moved effortlessly and silently through the jungle until they were at the edge of a clearing just outside the facility. Using hand signals Taylor called for Beckett to move forward and open the door to the prison facility. The rest of the team kept their eyes open for any sign of trouble, and their weapons at the ready.

WO Al "Beck" Becket (aka Rescue-Two for the purposes of this mission), gave a slight nod of his head in acknowledgement and moved stealthily forward until he reached the prison door. There wasn't a lock he couldn't pick, mechanical or electronic, and the Marine moved silently and very precisely as he accessed the locking mechanism and made short work of it. The door clicked open from his efforts and he crouched off to the side, motioning to Taylor that his mission was accomplished.

Taylor quickly flashed hand signals to the rest of the team and one at a time they carefully crept toward the door. Taylor waited until the last member of his team was at the door and then followed. He nodded at Chords (aka Rescue-One), who drew a large knife and soundlessly slipped through the door and into the facility.

It seemed to Taylor like a whole year had past since Chords went through the door, but in reality it had been less that a minute. When CW05 Peter 'Chords' Singer finally returned, he gave Taylor the “all clear” signal and gestured for them to follow him into the building after returning his knife back to its sheath.

They entered the building together, pausing only to step over the bodies of two dead Federation guards. The group made their way down a corridor that, according to their intel maps, led to the command and control center of the prison.

Taylor grimaced, this was going way too easy, he thought. The training simulations were programmed with a random surprise event. He had a feeling that this was going to get difficult.

All eyes were on Taylor as they prepared to assault the command room. He help up 5 fingers and began a count down. When his last finger fell, they would attack.

Just as Taylor's last finger started to go down, the door to the command room opened and two guards stepped halfway through the doorway, their unscheduled appearance costing the team the element of surprise. It was a heartbeat before the Federation guards spotted the team. One of them managed a strangled, gurgling cry that ended abruptly with his death. It was enough to alert the men inside. The other guard fell under Chord's knife before he could utter a single sound.

The team stormed the Command center then. Chords and Beck each used a dead guard for a shield as they stepped into the room first, guns firing at the men inside, taking out another two but four more advanced with firing weapons for the rest of the team to deal with.. Taylor spotted a fifth man who was ignoring the advancing team and turning back to the main prison console.

Taylor snapped off two quick rounds from his plasma rifle and the main guard fell to the floor. Moving over to the console, he scanned through the information on the holding cells until he found the one he was looking for. "He is in C wing, cell 32. Let's move! Beck, you keep watch here. The rest of you follow me." He keyed in the commands to drop the security field on their target's cell.

Beck gave a quick nod. "I'm on it, Six," he responded and moved to the main console, checking the security cameras and guard placements.

Taylor led them through cell block C. All appeared quiet at first but as the prisoners noticed his armed team they began to stir. When he reached cell 32 he paused briefly to look into the cell. The only occupant was their target, Vice Admiral MelChir. His men took defensive positions as he entered the Cell. "Admiral, Maquis Marines. We are here to get you out Sir," said Taylor.

The blue Andorian stood up, "I am afraid that will not be possible. I'm not leaving." The Admiral then began shouting and calling for the guards.

The sounds of phaser blasts echoed in the hall way and Taylor did not need anyone to tell him that they had just walked into a trap.

"We got company Boss," shouted Chords.

Taylor's orders were to bring back the Admiral. He considered his options and then with one quick moiton punched the Admiral in his blue face. The Admiral began to collapse and Taylor caught him up and tossed him over his shoulder. He made his way out of the cell. The noise out in the cellblock was defening. All of the inmates were now shouting and the Federation guards were coming down the hall. They had not yet blocked their route back to the command center however, so Taylor ordered his men to fall back to the command center. His Marines unleashed massive firepower toward the enemy position as the team made its way back. WHen they were almost there he called Beck up on his comm link. "Beck it's time for all the inmates to get their daily excersize. Let them all out. Once we are in the CC seal it off and call in our ride outta here."

“As you wish, Six," Beck responded through the comm. link and then switched over to his external comm.. "Green Leader, Rescue-Two. Standby for emergency evac."

"Affirmative, Rescue-Two. Green Leader escalating to Evac Protocol One and commencing on your =GO=," came the response.

As soon as the Marines were back in the Command Center and even before the door fully closed, Beck opened all the cells doors, freeing the inmates and thus occupying the Federation guards.

"Green Leader, Rescue-Two. GO. GO. GO," Beck called for their ride. "Welcome back, Boss," he smirked a half smile at Taylor and eyed the slumbering Andorian Admiral slung over his shoulder. He didn't so much as twitch in reaction.

"Affirmative, Rescue-Two. We have a GO. ETA two minutes at Primary LZ."

Out in the prison cellblocks, a riot was growing exponentially. The guards were quickly overpowered by the released prisoners with the resulting injury and death of more than one on either side. The prison sirens were wailing in the darkness. The prison compound was suddenly full of light as the guard towers bloomed to life.

Major MacAlister leaned against the railing of the observation deck and quirked a brow over at her XO. "This.. is much better," she nodded her approval. "Was the.. umm.. trap.." she motioned to the holodeck simulation with a wave of a fluid finger, "Your idea, Campi?" she asked him with a small grin.

"You *did* say to run them through their paces, Voice," Campanili grinned at her and then turned his gaze back to the Marines in the prison's Command Center.

Taylor and his men left the command center by the same route they had entered. All of them were running as fast as they could. Chords started to take a step outside in to the illuminated compound only to be pulled backwards by Beck just seconds before several phaser cannon blasts flew through the door.

The shock of the blast knocked all of them to the ground. The still unconscious admiral landed on top of Taylor. He quickly shoved the Andorian off him and got back to his feet. "Beck," he snapped, "We need to go that way," Taylor gestured in the direction of the landing zone. "That tower is targeting our movement."

"As you wish, Sir," said Beck.

"Introduce that tower to your girl friend there." Taylor pointed at a small object that Beck carried on his back."

"Oh yeah, babe," Beck grinned and kissed the object as he pulled the handheld photon missile launcher from his back. "Come to papa, Big Bertha," he snickered a little and fixed his sights on the tower.

Private Edwards picked up the fallen Admiral and slung him over his shoulder, taking over the burden for Taylor.

By the time all the Marines had gotten back to their feet, Beck's "girlfriend" had already been fired and the tower was exploding in a rain of falling rubble and debris, it's paser cannons now inoperable.

"All clear, Boss," Beck announced, and slung the missile launcher back over his shoulder.

"Ok Marines, Let's go. Form up around Edwards. It will not be long before the inmates get out here. We do not want to get caught up in that. Move!"

The men cut back through the thick jungle towards their pre-designated landing area. They moved together as one unit thought the dense foliage. Slowly the jungle opened up into a clearing. Sitting right in the middle of the clearing was the C331 Marine SuperFly Troop Transport; it already had its doors open.

The Marines each entered the transport and took their place inside, Edwards sitting after he secured the Admiral on one of the medical stretchers. When his team was aboard and the door was closed, Taylor opened his comm. link, "All set let's get outta here."

"Roger that, Rescue-Six. SuperFly has left the building," the pilot announced as the transport left the landing zone.

The holodeck simulation shimmered and disappeared, leaving the Marine Company standing in a group with the Andorian Admiral's form still unconscious on a stretcher nearby. MacAlister and Campanili were positioned by the arch with the former standing with her hands on her hips, looking rather sternly at the group.

Taylor stood at attention, "Mission completed Sir!" He checked the time that had been running and thought to himself that they had set it in record time, but he did not share that with the Major.

"Lieu-ten-ant," her accent drew out Taylor's rank, softening the harsher edges of the word. She nodded to him and clasped her hands behind her back as she approached the group and quirked a brow in the direction of the prone Andorian. "What have ye been doin' tae my Admiral, hmm?" She 'tsk-tsk'd' softly as she shook her head at the sight of the unconscious man. "Isn't he supposed tae be more... upright?" She looked back at Taylor and arched a questioning brow. She was barely holding back the smile that threatened to peak out, but managed to keep that rather stern look for the sake of the rest of the troops who really didn't know what to expect from her and were fully prepared to watch the 2nd Lieutenant get ripped up for slugging an Admiral.

Chords caught Beck's eye and made a small nod of his head, which Beck eagerly returned. The two of them moved over next to the slumbering Andorian. Grabbing the admiral by the back of his uniform they hauled him to his feet. "Up you go now Admiral," said Beck. "You’re safe as a babe in the woods."

Taylor flashed a brief smile at his men, however, when he turned back to face the Major his face was all business again, "Is that better Sir?"

Taylor could hear the collective intake of breath coming from the new recruits who were now in complete shock. Taylor had been under the Major's command long enough to know when she was really upset and this was not one of those times. The new recruites did not know that yet.

Standing to the side and slightly behind the Major, Captain Campanili didn’t register any shock whatsoever at what Beck and Chords had done. Matter of fact, judging by the look on his face, it was questionable if he’d even seen it even though he was watching the pair the entire time..

On the other hand, the Major had not directly watched the pair. She’d kept her gaze on Taylor during the Admiral’s change of position. It was only after he’d addressed her again that she turned to look at the Andorian Admiral being held upright by a grinning Chords and Beck, who both had the decency to take on a more sober appearance when her gaze fell on them. She tilted her head a bit as she examined the Admiral and then finally turned back to Taylor.

“Ach now, ‘tis much better. Thank ye, Lieu-ten-ant. That…” she extended a hand towards the Admiral, her tone and body language slipping easily into ‘instructor’ mode as she addressed not only Taylor, but the Marine company behind him, her gaze traveling over each in turn. “Is how a rescued Admiral should look when ye bring him back. Had this been real and not an exercise,” her blue eyes rested once more on Taylor. “T’lads would be escorting the Admiral tae t’brig about now,” she added and finally smiled at him. “Yer lads did a good job. I’m proud.” It was high praise from her. “And ye bested yer time, dinnae ye?” Not much escaped her notice.

"Fastest time yet Sir," said Taylor.

“Aye, I thought so.” The smile of approval not only curved the corners of her lips, but also sparkled in the depths of her eyes. “Congratulations, Visor. Ye and t’lads have earned a wee bit of down time. Don’t do anything I woudnae do, eh?” She winked at him before she turned a mock disapproving look onto Chords and Beck who both gave her a wide grin and a smart salute while still maintaining the Admiral’s position. She returned their salute and then turned on her heels and strode towards the arch. Campi gave Taylor a grin and nod of approval before he turned to follow the Marine CO.

“Dinnea forget to clean up yer mess,” Mac called over her shoulder before she and her XO stepped from the holodeck.

Taylor watched as the Major and Campi left. When she had gone he turned back to his men. Beck and Chords let go of the admiral, who collapsed to the floor with a dull thud. "Good work boys, let's get cleaned up. It's time to check out this ship's lounge. Drinks are on me tonight."

Chords moved over to the arch and punched a few buttons on the LCARS panel. The remaining simulation disappeared, taking with it the Admiral, his stretcher, and all the weapons the Marines had been carrying, leaving them in just their uniforms and personal gear.

Outside in the corridor, Major MacAlister and Captain Campanili strode towards the Marine section of the Zion. “I received a friendly reminder from t’head doc that we havnae reported in with our records.” She looked over at him and quirked a brow.

“I’ll send out a memo?” he replied with a grin.

“I dinnae think Beck and Chords **read** memos, Campi. I thought they ate them,” she chuckled. “I’ll be in sickbay at oh-eight-hundred tomorra mornin’.” The message was clear. Make sure the boys who hadn’t already reported in showed up at sickbay in the morning with their records in hand.

Miranda And The Marines "
By: Peter Singer , Marine , [NPC]
Miranda, Lounge Manager, [RNPC]
Al Beckett , Marine , [NPC]
Scott Taylor , Marine TO , [NPC]

Stardate: 58208.07 2000

The Marines descended on Miranda's in waves. Technically, it wasn't an assault, but it had all the formations and earmarks of one. Until they stepped inside that is, and then a different story emerged as the group of hardened men shifted their focus to relaxing and having a good time.

Taylor, Chords, and Beck settled in seats at the bar and all three scanned the room and its occupants, each in their own way. Beck was rather obvious and grinning at half a dozen ladies as he'd spot likely candidates. Chords was a little more circumspect and his gaze quickly settled on the barmaid.

"Shut your mouth Marine," said Taylor as he watched Beck eye the ladies. "You are going to get drool all over the bar." Taylor gave Beck a hard time about it but in truth, he was enjoying the scenery as well. Wearing dark sunglasses all the time had certain advantages.

"Who cares?" said Beck who was now watching the bartender as she mixed up a rather exotic drink for another customer.

"You will care when she has to come down here and wipe up the bar after you drool on it," said Taylor trying to suppress a grin.

"He's right, Beck. You don't want to make a bad impression on the ladies. And man, drooling all over the bar will turn even the ugly ones off. Not that there's any ugly ones around here..." Chords grinned as he eyed the female patronage of the lounge, his gaze eventually settling on the bartender that Beck was drooling over.

"Fifty credits..." Chords offered as he continued to watch the barmaid. It never failed, anytime Chords and Beck got within a hundred yards of a pretty girl, there was a wager as to who could get a date first. "But it has to be a =real= date. Not that pitiful thing you tried to pass off as one last time," he added.

"Only fifty? How about an even hundred," replied Beck.

"A hundred, hmm?" Chords glanced from Beck back to the barmaid and smiled. She was easily worth it. "Sounds good."

Taylor took a good look at Miranda and then back to his men, "You boys are way out of your league with this one." He put extra emphasis on the word "boys" as he spoke. He chuckled as the barmaid spotted them and moved in their direction.

"Do we have a bet, Beck?" asked Chords.

Beck nodded and the two of them slammed their closed fists together to seal their wager.

Miranda smiled warmly at them as she approached, "Welcome to the Zion boys, I'm Miranda."

"Hello Miranda," said Beck. "Has anyone ever told you that you have beautiful eyes?"

Miranda almost rolled her eyes, but managed to resist the urge. "At least five times a day; ten when new Marines join the ship," she replied wiping the top of the bar in front of him with a rag. "Besides, your eyes have to move in a more northerly direction to actually see my eyes. You probably do not even know what color they are."

Taylor let out a quiet chuckle but did not say anything.

She looked at Beck for a moment, "Just a sec." She went to the shelf behind the bar and pulled down a couple bottles. When she returned, she placed a faintly red colored drink in front of him. It had a red cherry floating in it. "There you go. Enjoy!"

Chords shook his head and laughed as he watched her set the cherry drink down in front of Beck.

"Oh man... That's harsh.." Beck looked from the drink to Miranda and smiled good-naturedly. It wasn't the first time he'd been shot down and probably wouldn't be the last. It wasn't like it was going to stop him from using a different approach. The game was just getting started.

Turning to face Chords she stared at him and waited for his best shot.

Chords gave her a winning smile. "That was priceless. It's a pleasure to meet a woman of quality, Miranda," he told her. "The name's Peter, by the way. Peter Singer. But everyone just calls me Chords. The guy crashing and burning over there is Al Beckett, or Beck," he motioned to Beck, who raised the glass she'd given him in a partial salute. "And this is our TO, Lieutenant Taylor, or Visor," he motioned to Taylor. He was trying to win her over without blatantly coming onto her. "It'd be my pleasure to buy you a drink if you'll let me. When do you get off work?"

Miranda giggled, turned and went to work behind the bar. When she returned, she placed a mug of steaming hot chocolate, topped generously with whipped cream. "I am afraid it will be well past your bed time before I get done with work tonight."

"We'll probably just bet getting up when you go to bed then," Chords grinned back and scooped up a finger full of the whipped cream to plop in his mouth. "As sweet as you are, Miranda."

"Oh man... that one's older than dirt. And soooo lame," Beck chuckled and shook his head at Chords.

She looked at Taylor, who had not said much. "How about you?"

"Brown ," he said.

"Brown?"

"Your eyes," he said, "they are brown."

She smiled at him and once again went to work behind the bar. She grabbed a single bottle and a large shot glass. Placing the glass in front of Taylor, she uncorked the bottle and poured the glass full of the amber liquid. "Scotch, Neat," she said. Miranda produced two more shot glasses and left them on the bar with the scotch bottle. "I'll leave you kids," she said glancing at Beck, "alone to enjoy your drinks."

Beck winked at her and saluted her with his drink again. "I love cherries. You know they're the color of your lips." He was teasing and serious at the same time.

"Talk about old..." Chords laughed. "And lame..."

"I'm saving the good stuff," Beck grinned back.

"Man you better dig deep and get it out quick cause you're goin' down fast," Chords teased.

Taylor grabbed the scotch bottle and poured Beck and Chords a drink. "You guys are in for a long night," he said sliding their drinks over to them. "You might as well start getting drunk right now."

"I have reserves you boys haven't even seen yet," Beck insisted as he took the offered drink and tossed it down with a "Hooha!" and thumped the empty shot glass onto the bar.

"You better have another, boy because my odds are going up by the minute," Chords grinned at Beck and tossed back his own drink, adding a "Hooha!" when he finished and thumped his glass on the bar.

"The night is SOOOO young," Beck laughed as he rubbed his hands together and pulled up his sleeves. He looked down the bar at Miranda. "Hit me again, Visor," he pushed his glass towards the TO, never taking his eyes off the barmaid. "Then I'm going to mosey on down to that end of the bar. I think she's softening..."

Taylor poured him another drink, shaking his head he said, "She is out of your league boys...out of your league."

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