---
"Keeping Little Eyes on a Very Big Problem"
(Previous Post: "Troubled")
---

Setting: VALLA ROYAL, Ambassadorial Quarters
Stardate: 63077.0245

Once the shape-shifted Shillian had managed to find a quiet spot to oversee the action in the Casino without either being discovered or trampled, the small primate had been able to locate several members of the crew of the ANUBIS.  Most notably had been the crimson-haired Captain herself, a woman who had vanished from NEW ALEXANDRIA to search for something that could only be found deep within her own psyche, a sentiment that the Chief Science Officer had been all too familiar with.

The small Trusa had managed to keep track of the redheaded Commanding Officer of the USS ANUBIS turned Dabo girl as she made her way through the station arm-in-arm with a young-looking diplomat.  There had been something about the way that man moved and kept Sabrina close to him that the Shillian did not care for, as if he had been controlling her in some way.  What truly bothered the polymorphed Starfleet Officer had been that Captain Rikar seemed to be following the lead and commands of this man of her own free will.

Had Sabrina Rikar lost herself so completely in her search for the meaning of her life that she had forsaken what had made her the person that she had been?  Had the Captain somehow forgotten, either by choice or accident, the strong and confident woman that she had been, a person who had survived countless ordeals and repeatedly faced death to emerge as the Commanding Officer of one of the most powerful vessels in Starfleet?

Ironically the Shillian thought for a moment that Captain Rikar might have spoken similar words on behalf of the Chief Science Officer had the seductively dressed woman been aware of the presence of the Trusa and the reasons and chain of events that had brought it here.  Had the shape-shifted primate, in its more diminutive form been in search of something that could only be found within her or had she been trying to run away from the pain the world around her seemed to have ample supply of?

The answers to those questions would have to wait for both of them; in the meantime the Shillian Scientist turned miniature extinct primate had decided that she would make sure that no harm came to Captain while this process unfolded.  So the shape-shifted woman followed the submissive Dabo girl to the Ambassadorial quarters where the pair quickly engaged in activities that required privacy that the Shillian had been most then happy to accomodate.

In time though the Shillian ventured an inquisitive glance after a peaceful silence had settled into the room.  This had allowed for the shape-shifted Scientist to see the Captain walk through the shadow filled darkness only to suddenly fall to the ground as if something unseen had hit her.  Although the first reaction had been to jump down to the rescue, the Chief Science Officer remained still and continued her observation of the situation suspecting that there had been more than the eyes could see.

Blood turned to ice as the Chief Science Officer saw two unmistakable forms phase out of the shadows and into view, the black exoskeleton and nightmarish figure only added to the foreboding aura that had suddenly filled the room.  Without any care for the lack of clothing of the unconscious woman, the trans-dimensional beings lifted the limp form and carried her to another location.

With all available haste the Shillian proceeded to follow the Locustat invaders as they moved through the corridors with inhuman speed and agility, not appearing in anyways concerned for the wellbeing or comfort of their captive.  The Trusa had to use every ounce of skill and speed at its disposal to keep pace with the alien creatures so as to insure that the whereabouts of Captain Rikar would be known to someone.

---
Setting: VALLA ROYAL, Quarters
Stardate: 63077.0310

Ensign Eve Dalziel, currently known to those on the VALLA ROYAL orbital space station as the Dabo girl Dulcinea, stepped into her quarters, tired and aching.  The night had been a long one, not because of the work that the undercover Officer had been forced to do as part of her new identity, but because of the dirty and all too often smelly company she had been required to endure.

The plan had been a simple one, the Counselor of the USS ANUBIS would return to the quarters that had been secured for her, take a much needed shower and get some rest before she resumed her efforts to reach the subdued persona of Captain Rikar.  This plan had been perfect save one detail; a PADD that had not been there before had for a yet undetermined reason been left on the floor for the tired woman to find.

Only a few words had been made to appear on the small device, [/\] Rikar captured H-0101 extreme danger, [/\] but what truly caught the attention of the fatigued Officer had been the security codes that had followed the cryptic message identifying it as being genuine from someone with direct links to the Senior Staff of the USS ANUBIS.

Upon rereading the content of the device Eve decided that her need for a shower and rest were no longer important, something far more urgent had surfaced and required her immediate attention and action.

---
Jessica Solarik
Lieutenant Commander Maya
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS

"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."