The Adventure of the Reigate Squire [Part One]

Posted on Sat Oct 5th, 2013 @ 8:36pm by Lieutenant Ciaran McIntyre & Lieutenant Horatio Hawke

Mission: Character Background
Location: Holodeck

[ON]

Horatio arrived at Holodeck 4 to find a program was already running. After checking the console to make sure it was McIntyre inside, he tapped the comm and buzzed in; it was the height of poor etiquette to waltz in on a crewmate's program while it was running.

"Hello?" Came the slightly warped voice of Lieutenant McIntyre.

"Ciaran, it's Horatio," he replied. "Wally at the bar said you were here. There'd better be a bar in there!"

The chief helmsman had arrived at the ship's lounge with high expectations of a few drinks with the security chief, but instead was given the message from Wally - the barman - that his intended drinking buddy was down at the holodeck.

"Oh, I'm sure we can find something. Come on in!"

The door to the holodeck slid open and Horatio stepped inside. Immediately, he found himself standing on a expanse of lawn that rose up a gentle slope towards a large house atop the hill. To his left the estate stretched as far as he could see, the grass eventually giving way to forest. On his right was a gravel path bordered by hedges and, every now and then, a white wooden bench.

Sitting at the nearest bench was a man in a grey suit and a peculiar hat. He had his back to Horatio and seemed to be engrossed in watching a family of ducks that were waddling along the edge of a nearby pond. Tendrils of blue smoke rose up above the man's head as Horatio approached, his footsteps silent on the grass beneath him.

"You know," the man began, removing the hat, "it's an oft-ignored fact that Sherlock Holmes, the world's greatest detective never wore a Deerstalker or smoked a giant pipe."

There was a splash in the pond followed by another, smaller splash as the two items were discarded into the water. "He did- however- spend his off time smoking cocaine."

Another plume of blue-hued smoke rose into the air as he replaced the pipe with a short, black clay one. "Have a seat, Horatio. Or, should I say, Watson."

Horatio looked down at his sleeves to find that the holodeck had created a costume for him. It was a brown suit with a slightly different tone of brown waistcoat and a brown-ish, yellow-ish tie. Mustard, perhaps?

"Right then," Horatio said as he got used to his holographic costume. "Well, I've never read any of the stories so I just always assumed. Now," he continued, "Watson was a doctor, right? Or is that another cruel inaccuracy spun by centuries of retelling as well?" He took sat down on the bench and twirled the cane he found resting against the armrest.

"Oh yes, quite so. Late of the Army Medical Department. A veteran of the Second Anglo-Afghan war where he received," McIntyre prodded Hawke in the shoulder, causing the Lieutenant to wince with pain, "a jezail bullet to the shoulder."

Horatio held his shoulder and shook his head, "And what is a jezail bullet?" he asked. Just as McIntyre was about to answer, he held up a hand and shook his head again, "Wait! No, it doesn't matter. So he's a military man? I'll do my best to simulate that," he said with a crooked grin.

Hawke rolled his shoulders and sat bolt upright, his head high as he surveyed the grounds around him and did his best to become Watson. "Well, what are doing here, Holmes?"

McIntyre did his best to affect the upper crust nature of Holmes' accent. "It's been three weeks since we completed a rather, shall we say, strenuous case in France and you've brought me here to Colonel Hayter's estate, near Reigate for some rest and recuperation."

"Ah, yes," Horatio said, doing his best at an English accent. "Hayter's a top sort of chap. We served together back in Argentina."

"Afghanistan, Watson. Afghanistan."

"Right you are, Holmes," he replied. "Must be my shoulder acting up. Should we head up to the manor or are we going to dither around the garden all morning. There must be some tea somewhere."

"Colonel Hayter has requested our company in his study so we should make haste." McIntyre leapt to his feet and began to make his way around the pond, "Come along, Watson!"

Horatio got up after him and followed, though he wasn't as quick. "Hold up there, Holmes," he called. "I'm not as sprightly as I used to be before the jazzie bullet you know."

"Jezail, Doctor. Jezail." He called back from halfway up the path.

[Colonel Hayter's Study]

Colonel Hayter finished his oratory about the mysterious burglary at nearby Acton Estate just as the Butler burst forth into the room. McIntyre didn't know much about the etiquette of an English country manor but he knew enough to know that such a thing was out of the ordinary.

"Colonel, I am so sorry to intrude." The Butler began, before addressing McIntyre and Hawke in their guise as Holmes and Watson. "There's been a murder. At the Cunningham Estate, sirs."

Horatio clapped his hands together and turned to McIntyre, "What tremendous luck that the great Sherlock Holmes is here to solve it for us!" He grinned, rather enjoying himself.

"Cool yer jets, Hawke." McIntyre had slipped very much out of character. "Let us go there, forthwith. Colonel, I trust you will permit us the loan of a carriage?"

[OFF]

Lieutenant Horatio Hawke
Chief Flight Control Officer

Lieutenant Ciaran McIntyre
Chief of Security
USS Endeavour