The Sergeant remained standing with the rest of the squad as MGen Alderez and 1Lt. Lopez spoke. As they did so, GSgt Arbor thought to himself, I sure hope Hudson keeps me mouth shut. but unfortunately that just wasn't possible.

LCpl Hudson: Are you shittin' me!?! Sounds like he needs his ass kicked, General!

GSgt Arbor: Shut your mouth, Corporal!

LCpl Hudson: Sorry Sarge, but that's gotta be the stupidist shit I ever heard!

GSgt Arbor: I said shut it, Hudson.

Cody looked over at the rest of the Marines standing around him, making sure they all knew to keep quiet and let MGen Alderez deal with the situation directly. The Sergeant was glad there was only one mouth in the group that never knew when to keep shut. Now if there only was a way to control LCpl Hudson, life would be a whole lot more pleasant.
_________________
Master Sergeant Cody Arbor
Marine Detachment Sergeant, USS Infiniti

Lt. Graham was briefly startled by the sudden amount of people that entered the Cargo Bay on Deck 8 and looked a bit embarrassed at the weapon he was holding when he heard MGen Alderez demand for an explanation.

Lt. Graham: I was merely admiring it's design General.

Peter regained his posture and confidence as he continued.

Lt. Graham: As you can appreciate, I have my fair of experience with weapons, being a Security Officer and all. It is a fine weapon.

Peter casually walked over to the General and with apparent ease handed the weapon to him. Marines, always so formal. he thought to himself. Peter never appreciated the way they always seemed to interfere with his work. Let's hope they will prove me wrong. he thought as he joined the other Marines to be addressed by MGen Alderez. With a slight nod he added:

Lt. Graham: Lieutenant Graham at your service.
_________________
Lt. Commander Peter Graham
Chief Security/Tactical Officer, USS Oriskany

Rex turned to address Oriskany's wayward Chief Tac/Security Officer along with Infiniti's detachment of Marines. With the Phaser Rifle in his hands, he pointed out the modifications that were made.

MGen Alderez: Be that as it may, Lieutenant, it best be wise to listen up. What you see here is a modified Type 3-C Phaser Rifle that has been designed to fire into the same dimensional realm the Deltaurans exist within. The Phasers fired at them previously were completely useless because those damned things don't exist in the same realm as us. These rifles attach by conduit to a portable power supply you'll all need to wear on your backs. The Modulator here on the top scans ahead of your weapon to detect their dimensional frequency, so all you need to do is aim and shoot.

The General walked over to the crate Lt. Graham opened and removed a portable power supply and attached the conduit to the Phaser Rifle he was holding. Tapping the small console on the power supply brought it online and a moment later the display lights on the rifle lit up, indicating that it was ready. Rex placed his arms through the shoulder straps and walked back towards the squad.

MGen Alderez: Now the weapon is ready to fire...and as you can see...

As Rex continued speaking, he randomly fired the weapon towards the Marines and Lt. Graham. The look of panic on their faces were mildly entertaining as they scattered about.

MGen Alderez: ...the weapon isn't harmful to us at all. The plasma that's being fired from the rifle has been modulated for their dimensional frequency range. It won't damage the interior of our ships either, so there's no worry of colateral damage along the way. Just find your targets and then terminate them. It's that simple folks. Any questions?

The General stood there, Phaser Rifle in hand, and waited on any questions to come his way after the demonstation. He figured there would be at least a few. Since Rex developed the weapon along with Adm Arayuss and Prof Brewer, he felt more than qualified to field anything they might ask.
_________________
Major General Rex Alderez
Fleet Marine Force Commandant, Gamma Fleet
SFMC, United Federation of Planets

Chris stepped forward and cleared his throat before speaking to MGen Alderez. He was amazed that nobody was injured by the weapon as well as there not being a single mark on any of the walls inside the Cargo Bay.

1Lt. Lopez: What kind of energy is the weapon firing, General? That didn't seem like ordinary Phaser fire to me, Sir.

The Lieutenant looked towards the other Marines and motioned for them to ask whatever questions they had on their mind as freely as he had done. As far as upper brass went, MGen Alderez was very informal and easy to talk with.
_________________
Marine Captain Christopher D. Lopez
Marine Detachment Commander, USS Infiniti

Peter Graham pondered for a while and with the encouragement from 1Lt. Lopez he asked his question.

Lt. Graham: Are they solid enough? I mean what if we get into a hand to hand combat with those creatures when there is a power failure? Not that I am saying that's likely to happen, I was merely wondering if the rifle and the power supply can take a beating.

Peter paused a minute to let his question sink in and then resumed.

Lt. Graham: As for the Deltaurans, what strategy are we using besides aiming and shooting? Has there been any attempt to make contact with them?

Peter awaited MGen Alderez's answer patiently.
_________________
Lt. Commander Peter Graham
Chief Security/Tactical Officer, USS Oriskany

The General rested the stock of the Phaser Rifle on his hip as he answered the questions that were put to him.

MGen Alderez: These weapons are actually firing plasma beams at them. The energy obliterates them on contact.

Rex heard the questions from Lt. Graham and turned to face the officer as he gave his answers.

MGen Alderez: The weapon and power supply are sturdy enough to take a beating. As for hand to hand combat, make no attempt to try it since they can phase in and out at will. They'll be able to strike you down and rip you to shreds of meat in a matter of seconds. All the while you'll be unable to strike back at them. As for contacting them, Professor Brewer has been working on that for quite some time. Unfortunately he hasn't been successful in doing so, but his studies reveal that the Deltaurans have a hive-like mentality and they communicate telepathically amongst themselves. They see us as a means to propagate their species, nothing more.

The General waited on any other questions to come his way. He was going to shoot straight from the hip and be as honest as possible. Rex did not want to mislead any of the Marines into a false sense of security. The Deltaurans were to be feared for their threat was quite real.
_________________
Major General Rex Alderez
Fleet Marine Force Commandant, Gamma Fleet
SFMC, United Federation of Planets

Chris was extremely impressed with the technology behind the new weapon. He was also thrilled that there was no chance of collateral damage along the way.

1Lt. Lopez: I am very impressed, General. Are we going to be Transporting over to Oriskany to retake it, or are we going over by Shuttles?

The Marine Detachment Commander looked over at the others and encourage them to ask whatever that was on their minds. Once they left for Oriskany, it was going to be too late to start making any inquiries.
_________________
Marine Captain Christopher D. Lopez
Marine Detachment Commander, USS Infiniti

The General looked towards 1Lt. Lopez and answered his question.

MGen Alderez: We'll going over in the Drop Ship in the Shuttlebay, Lieutenant. Admiral Arayuss doesn't want anybody using the Transporters since they cannot screen out when somebody has been compromised. While we're all over there cleaning out Oriskany if you come across anyone unconscious, consider them a FleshPod to be. There's no way to save them so the best thing you can do is set your Phaser on dematerialize and use it on them. We cannot allow one of them to infect Infiniti. This ship is our only way out of this area.

Rex walked over and opened the remaining crates as he continued speaking.

MGen Alderez: Let's get these weapons on your backs and get ready, it won't be much longer till we're there. Once we've cleared Oriskany, most likely we're going to have to clear off Whitestar as well so stay frosty!

The General began connecting the weapons to the power supplies and waiting for the Marines to walk over and take possession of them. Rex knew that with Infiniti moving at maximum speed, it wouldn't take long at all for them to rendezvous with Oriskany and Whitestar.
_________________
Major General Rex Alderez
Fleet Marine Force Commandant, Gamma Fleet
SFMC, United Federation of Planets

Peter Graham felt the tension rise as he saw the Marines collect their weapons from the General. He knew the Infiniti was getting closer and closer to the Oriskany and Whitestar. He waited patiently and hoped that he too would get a weapon even though he was not a Marine. Lt. Peter Graham always felt naked without being armed.
_________________
Lt. Commander Peter Graham
Chief Security/Tactical Officer, USS Oriskany

The General watched as each of the Marines put the power supply on their backs and readied the Phaser Rifle in their arms. He was quite pleased with the speed of their readiness in getting themselves armed and ready. Rex looked over towards Lt. Graham.

MGen Alderez: We would be honored if you would join us, Lieutenant. Oriskany is your assigned vessel and it's only fitting to have you with us to get her back for your Captain.

Rex reached into the crate and removed a power supply and Phaser Rifle for Lt. Graham. He attached the conduit to the mobile power source and began adjusting the straps for the Lieutenant to place on his back easily.
_________________
Major General Rex Alderez
Fleet Marine Force Commandant, Gamma Fleet
SFMC, United Federation of Planets