Stealth Training 101 - Part I
Posted on Fri Aug 14th, 2026 @ 11:09am by Lieutenant Junior Grade Mira Jayde & Petty Officer 3rd Class Emiko Marley
Edited on on Sun Aug 16th, 2026 @ 7:59am
1,556 words; about a 8 minute read
Mission:
Episode 18 - The Edge of Darkness
Location: Holodeck 2 - Deck 5 - USS Pioneer
Timeline: MD003 1400 hrs
Jayna sent a message to Emiko to join her on a holodeck to begin her training to be a better covert operator. It would take time, but she hoped this first session would give her an idea of what skills she should work on first.
The holodeck was set to be a nondescript room with two long strips of rice paper. The program was set to replace the rice paper as soon as whoever was walking on it stepped off. That would allow both of them to have several tries before moving on to the next task.
Jayna arrived first, dressed in a simple black ship suit and soft-soled shoes.
Emiko had little idea of what she would expect for training. However, the fact that Jayna called her, excited her. Whatever Jayna wanted to teach her, she silently swore that she would be the best student ever.
She came in dressed in her normal uniform. Eagerly, in her high pitched voice, she told Jayna, "I'm here, Lieutenant. I'm ready for whatever you have for me." She briefly lifted up onto her tiptoes, showing her eagerness.
"Good." Jayna couldn't help smiling. Emiko sometimes reminded her of an eager puppy. "Today we're going to learn to walk and pay attention."
She led Emiko over to the two strips of rice paper. They were both two feet wide and twelve feet long. "The goal is to walk as carefully as you can across the rice paper. Ideally, you are to arrive at the other end without leaving any tears or indentations. To show you what I mean, I'll go first."
She went over to the end of one of the two strips of paper and paused for a moment. Then she began to walk softly across the paper, leaving no trace.
When she got to the other side, she turned to Emiko. "Now, you try."
Emiko screwed her face up as she watched Jayna walk across the rice paper. Emiko was diminutive and light, so she did not figure that she would have a great deal of difficulty doing this, but watching Jayna accomplish this feat with soft soled shoes was marveling.
She took off her uniform issued shoes and left on her socks. Her feet were lithe and tiny. She walked over to the rice paper and inspected it carefully. Emiko stuck out a toe and let it feel the weight of the paper before stepping onto it. Immediately, she worked out that walking normally on it would likely cause it to indent or rip. So, what was the trick? What did Jayna do that she did not see? It had to be an issue of balance, did it not?
Bending her knees slightly and spreading out her arms, she started to make her way across the rice paper. She got about a quarter of the way and turned her head around to see how she was progressing. Unfortunately, that motion caused the rice paper to rip. Emiko scrunched her face and growled like an angry tiger kitten.
"Keep your arms to your sides. Walking like that will draw attention," Jayna said quietly. "Walk toe to heel. Lightly. It will take time and practice, but you can do it. Keep walking. Don't turn around, and don't watch your feet."
She walked along her strip of paper until she was parallel to Emiko. "I'll walk with you." And then she proceeded to walk slowly so Emiko could keep up. She knew that Emiko would be unable to do it. Not yet, anyway. But this was one way to show her how to begin.
When Jayna got to the end and stepped off the paper, she turned to watch Emiko.
"Toe to heel...?" Emiko mused. "So, sort of like wearing high heels but the pressure starts from the front rather than on the back. Opposite stability, then?" She blinked at Jayna a couple times, eager for a positive response.
"Yes. Or put your whole foot down, if it's easier," Jayna replied. "You're not going to get this right away. This is to show you how you walk. Now. Turn around and go back. But this time, listen to the sounds your feet make."
Emiko furrowed what little eyebrows that she had. Jayna said she could not get this right away. Whether that was true or not only spiked her determination. Telling Emiko that she could not do something was the greatest challenge for her to prove otherwise.
The diminutive petty officer tried again, this time lightly placing her toe down on the rice paper and gently shifting her weight to allow the paper underneath her to settle. As the one foot started to settle down, she slowly lifted her opposite foot and continued the momentum, placing her toe down first and carefully allowing her weight to shift. Each time, she could hear a slight sound from the rice paper as it settled underneath her. Emiko suspected that was because she was not yet quite used to this awkward style of walking, but she determined that she would practice night and day until she got this correct.
Ultimately, Emiko got about half way across the paper before stumbling. To right herself, she reached her second foot out. Once again, the rice paper ripped. Another high pitched, primal growl escaped her. "I was so close...."
"Not really. Turn around." Jayna pointed out the small indentations along the way indicating where Emiko passed. "It's not just about tearing or slipping. And I heard each step. That's just as important. So, are you ready for me to show you what you need to practice before you're ready to try this again?"
"Yes!" She leaned slightly towards Jayna. Her eyes widened and there was a fierce determination to her tone of voice.
"Computer, end program."
Jayna led Emiko back into the corridor. "One of the things I do every day is walk the corridors of the ship and observe. I practice walking silently and I practice observing. Silently means no rustling of clothing, no footfalls, no loud breathing. You don't want people to hear you coming or to notice if you're standing behind something. Look for anything out of the ordinary. Pay attention to who you pass or who passes you. Note details about what they're wearing, what they look like, how they behave. As you do it every day, you'll find you notice more."
She looked at Emiko to make sure she understood. "When you're ready, we'll walk. Then we'll talk."
Emiko listened raptly. Her head bobbed up and down lightly. "I'm ready. I'll do whatever you tell me to do!"
"All right. Let's go." Jayna began walking down the corridor as she did most days. Only this time, she was paying as much attention to what Emiko did as she was everything else.
Emiko started to walk down the corridors. While she had a unique look to her, she knew that most people ignored the enlisted unless they were directly useful. The first thing that she noticed was a man, maybe six feet tall, olive skinned, stubble beard. He was in a blue top uniform, so either he was in science or medical. He had a gold ring of some design on his right index finger. Why is that? she wondered.
The man raised an eyebrow at the two intelligence officers, then ignored them.
Silently, Emiko cursed herself. I was not circumspect enough. He noticed me looking at him. Lieutenant Jayna is going to be disappointed in me. I have to do better this time. Coming towards the two of them was a woman with short auburn hair. She had silver hooped earring, a short, flat nose and light colored eyes. Blue? Green? From this distance, she could not tell. The woman was maybe about five foot eight and thin boned. Her hips did not reach evenness with her shoulders. Was she maybe 130 pounds? What struck her was that as the woman gently swung her hands was possible webbing, yes, webbing between her fingers. That meant that the woman was Zaldan, since she was not blue colored. No pleasantries with that one. It will send her into a rage.
Jayna just nodded to the Zaldan as they passed. She knew Emiko was overthinking this, but she wasn't going to say anything right now. She was going to do exactly what she told Emiko to do. Observe and be quiet.
When they'd walked for about twenty minutes, Jayna opened the door to a lab she knew was empty at this time of day. "Have a seat and tell me what you observed."
Emiko bowed her head lightly, as she explained, "The first person that I observed, noticed that I was watching them. In being unnoticed, I was a failure. I am sorry. I failed you there. However, I was trying to ascertain why he had that ring on his right index finger."
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Jayna Tremble
Intelligence Officer, The Cure
USS Pioneer
Petty Officer Third Class Emiko Marley
Intelligence Communications Specialist, USS Pioneer
RSS Feed