Final Messages

Posted on Fri Aug 13th, 2021 @ 9:55am by Commander William Gerhard & Lieutenant Samantha Leyton

Mission: Mission 4 - Eden
Location: Deck F - Chief Armory Officer's office
Timeline: Day 166 - 2000
Tags: #MonthlyChallenge
1184 words - 2.4 OF Standard Post Measure

William sat in his relatively small office just inside the main armory. He was writing up the transcripts of his interviews with Major King and Ensign Sloan. He sat back in his chair and rubbed his eyes as he sighed. The investigation had been moving quickly, but they were starting to stall. He looked down at the data module that sat on his desk and wondered what could be on it.

Samantha entered as she had been informed that Lieutenant Gerhard needed to ask her a few questions about Aurelius' death. She hadn't seen the reason for it as she had no issue with Aurelius and had even grown close to him. "You wanted to see me?" she asked.

William looked up at the XO as she walked in. He nodded slightly and motioned toward the data module on his desk. "XO, thank you for stopping by. I wanted to let you know that when we were inventorying Mr. Davis's quarters we ran across this data module that he indicated was to be given to you," he said. He then looked sympathetically at her, "It hasn't been opened or seen by anyone. I felt it was not our place to pry."

"Why would he leave a message for me?" she asked, curiously as she took the offered seat across from him, taking the data module into her hand.

William was aware of the relationship between the two, but he had not partaken in the usual scuttlebutt. He tended to leave people's personal lives to themselves and not pry. Pressed a few buttons on his keypad and brought up his notes, "Before you go would you mind answering a few questions for me?"

Samantha wasn't in the mood to answer questions but she nodded anyways as she turned the data module over in her hand. "Sure."

William nodded and pressed a few buttons on his terminal to begin a fresh recording. He noted the time on his notes and looked up at the XO, "When was the last time you were with Mr. Davis? Did he tell you why he was going over to the other ship?"

"I last spoke with him just before my duty shift that morning and no, he didn't mention anything to me about going over to that damned ship," she replied. She still thought the best answer was to blow that damn thing up but the captain had disagreed so now she was forced to go along with the current established plan.

William nodded and made a note of her answer. He honestly agreed with her feelings on the alien ship, but until they could determine what happened he knew they would not be leaving anytime soon. "And nobody told you they were with him or saw him going over there," he asked as he looked up at her.

"No," she shook her head after a moment of thinking. "I can't think of any reason he would be over there. Especially alone."

William wrote a few notes down before continuing, "When you last spoke with him did he mention meeting with anyone here?"

Samantha thought for a moment, biting her lip lightly in the process. She shook her head slightly. "No, we mostly just talked about everyday stuff."

William nodded slightly. At this point in the investigation the picture was slightly becoming clear. No one could explain why Aurelius was over on the alien ship. "Do you know of anyone that was having problems with Aurelius? Was there anyone who might wish him ill will," he asked.

"Just that the captain and Aurelius had bad spell," she began somewhat hesitantly. She knew the captain couldn't have killed him but she wanted to be truthful. "But that was because Aurelius and I were starting a relationship."

William stroked his chin as he listened. This information jibbed with what the Captain had told him earlier. "Were you aware of their previous history prior to you and Mr. Davis beginning your relationship?"

She again shook her head lightly. "No, I wasn't."

William took a moment before continuing, "Is there anyone you can think of that is capable of committing a murder like this?"

"No," she said again tiredly. "Nobody on this ship anyway."

William sat back in his chair and looked up at the XO. He could tell that she was emotionally drained from the ordeal. "Ok, one last question. Do you think that he discovered something over there and he was killed to prevent him from informing us?"

"Why else would he be killed?" she snapped. "And if you'd ask me, it was that damned AI over there. It's the perfect murderer--able to appear anywhere at anytime without making a sound, and can't be hurt by normal attacks."

William did not react to the XO's sharp reply, "While I do agree with you that the AI may know something about what happened, the evidence shows far more brutality than I think the AI could be capable of. Why would his body be left to be easily discovered?" He kept his tone calm and firm. He was hoping he could try to get her to see that while the AI may have played a part, there was something else about that ship that may have been responsible.

Sighing, Samantha looked up at the ceiling as she sat back in the chair. 'This damned ship is cursed,' she thought, dreading ever being assigned to the Atlantis. Yet, she was here and she was assigned as the Chief Helm and First Officer of the ship. "Well then, I suggest you find them for his or her safety," she replied, knowing if she found out the killer first, she would return the brutalization.

William furrowed his brow when he heard the the XOs response, but he agreed with her sentiments. A ship's crew was a family, and one had been savagely murdered. He nodded slightly before replying, "Rest assured, we will. I don't think I have anything else for you ma'am. If you think of anything else please let me know." As he said this, he made a note of the time on his PADD. He then pressed a few keys deactivating the recorder on his computer. As he watched the XO leave he knew that things were heating up in the investigation, and he had a sinking feeling time was running out.

Samantha felt a wave of relief wash over her as she exited Lieutenant Gerhard's Office. Looking down at Aurelius' data module, she wondered what he had to say and what caused him to write it. After a few minutes, she stepped into her quarters and sat at her desk, hesitating on whether or not to access the module. Feeling there might be clues, she slid the module into her desk computer. After a moment, the image of Aurelius appeared on the monitor of him sitting behind the desk in his quarters. "Hey Sam. I'm just sending this to you in case I don't see you before I leave for the alien ship..." she listened to his message as she fought back tears.