Melissa Wells
Up Phoenix Rising Pandemic Intruder Alert! Enya By Starlight Black Ice The HanI’Rhy Mystery Passion Fruit The Object Tombstone Trek City Under Glass The Witch Hunt Spindizzy Turn Off the Lights Trekkin' Flying Cloud What The Hell's... Survival Of The Fittest On The Edge Candescium Blindsided Shore Leave Melissa Wells The Listening Post Nostalgia The Artifact The Darkness Within Let The Games Begin Enemy Action Here's Mud In Your Eye

 

Table Of Contents


Mission 22: WHO KILLED MELISSA WELLS?

 

The contents of the Ship Logs are considered to be a "compilation" under the provisions of Title 17, U.S. Code (known as the Copyright Act): that is, "A work formed by the collection and assembling of preexisting materials or of data that is selected, coordinated or arranged in such a way that the resulting work as a whole constitutes an original work of authorship." As such, it is the property of the ship’s Captain; however, automatic transfer of ownership to STARSHIPS OF THE THIRD FLEET is effected upon publication of this mission by the ship’s Captain ipso facto.

As outlined in Circular 1 (Copyrighted Basics, Library of Congress, Washington DC, USGPO 1989-262-309/12), "copyrighted in each separate contribution to a periodical or other collective work is distinct from the copyright in the collective work as a whole and vests initially with the author of the contribution."

This mission may not be reproduced in any form without the express, written authorization of STARSHIPS OF THE THIRD FLEET.

Prologue

"Are you happy to be back aboard, Captain?" Asked Stryker as he sipped a cup of coffee. The bridge was quiet tonight. Everyone was busy at their stations or in quiet conversations.

Lawrence looked up from the PADD she was signing and smiled. "It amazes me how much I missed being out here in space when not too long ago I just felt I had to get off this ship before I went crazy. Guess I’ll always feel that the PHOENIX is my home and, like anyone who’s been on vacation, I’m happy to get back."

"Bridge, Chief Security Officer." Mon’Teith’s voice came over the intercom.

"Captain, speaking."

"Captain, I’m in the botanical gardens; I think you better get down here."

Lawrence gave a quick glance at Wolf, who shrugged his shoulders. "On my way. Stryker, you have the Conn."

When Lawrence entered the botanical gardens, she saw a group of people standing around one of the larger pools. Mon’Teith had a security team around the perimeter of the pool. TE elbowed her way through the crowd. One crewmember pushed another out of the way when he saw the captain heading their way. As TE stepped pass a security guard, she could see a body floating among the Sacred Lotus plants in the pool. It was a female with blonde hair. She was lying face down and the water around her was red with blood.

"All right folks! Clear the area! Those two standing over there found the body, Captain."

The crowd began to move off muttering back and forth to each other as they left the area.

"Do you know who it is?"

"I didn’t want to touch anything until Dr. Natevera checked her out."

"Good idea."

At that moment Kora Natevera, the ship’s Chief Medical Officer, arrived with two corpsmen following behind.

"Well, well, what have we here?" Kora asked as she surveyed the scene.

"Nothing good I can tell you, Doc." Lawrence commented.

"Let’s see what we’ve got. Stan, Kirby, take her out of the pool."

The two men stepped into the water. One took the woman’s arms and the other her feet. When they placed her face up on the ground Captain Lawrence gasped.

"My God, that’s Ensign Melissa Wells from Logistics. She’s our Recreation Officer!"

Kora squatted down to get a better look. "This woman has had her throat slit, Captain. You can rule out an accident. She was murdered. I won’t know more until I get her back to medical." Kora stood up. "We have a killer aboard the ship, TE."