A Bad Bargain

Posted on Sat Mar 5th, 2016 @ 10:28pm by Captain Li Hawke & Ensign Reva Madhava & IKS Ning'Tao

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: Romulus

* RIS Sidus *

D’nar Lerius rose from the captain’s seat and addressed the officer at the conn. “Time to arrival?”

“Two hours, sir.”

“Very well. Inform headquarters and arrange for a security detail to be waiting. If I am needed, I’ll be in sickbay.” He reached the door of the lift and stopped. “Begin long-range scans for any ships that don’t seem to fit the area or seem to be staying close. I want to know if anyone is following.” The lift doors opened and he stepped inside.

A few minutes later, the doors parted and he stepped into sickbay. “Take a break Baier,” he ordered. Once the man left, D’nar turned to look at the woman behind the force field and crossed his arms. “Well?”

Picking up on the game, Isaura, dressed in dark mauve scrubs, including a surgical cap holding her dark curls back, adopted a stance just like his and looked at him. “Well.... I find your hospitality is rather atrocious. Room service is particularly abysmal.”

“Sucks to be you,” was D’nar’s reply. “The accomodations in my quarters are just fine.” He frowned at her and shook his head. “What does Kaeli see in you that makes you important enough to chase after and put her life at risk? Our intel was spot on but I am really curious.”

She grinned and winked at him. “Kaeli loves me for my exquisitely talented tongue. Drop the force field and lemme show you.”

“I don’t share much with Cardassians but their loathing of your inferior species is one of them. If Kaeli would so debase herself, for a Cardassian and a Bajoran, that’s all the more reason to drain her mind and lock her away. She barely survived her last treatment, she won’t last through this one. Then again, her Butcher isn’t on hand to save her...or you.”

“Oh, come on, don’t be a stuffed shirt. She’s not debasing herself. Not the way you do, kowtowing to the Rommies above you. I bet if they told you to bend over and grin while they screwed you, you would. You’d probably like it, too.” She laughed and mimicked him, knowing he couldn’t touch her without lowering the force field.

He had his disruptor out and pointed at Isaura in a flash. “One more word and the force field comes down and you’ll have a large hole in your middle,” he growled.

“Really? What word should I make it?” She laughed again. “Maybe I could remind you to lube up before presenting either me or Kaeli to your boss? Admit it, you like getting screwed that way.” She had sensed that joking that he was homosexual was what really pissed him off.

“Computer drop --” His command was interrupted by a call from the bridge.

“Colonel, we have detected an Orion ship on our same course, approaching at….warp 9.6.”

D’nar blinked and asked the officer to repeat that. When he did, D’nar answered. “Cloak and get us home at top speed. Alter course to cross the Neutral Zone near Federation Outpost 19. D’Nar out.”

Confused and off-balance, Isaura wondered how Kaeli had scored an Orion’s ship. Was there now going to be an angry Orion after her? Male or female? It made a difference - she could disable a male Orion if he didn’t get a hand on her first, but a female? She shook herself and tried to go back to needling D’Nar, “Oo... look at you, bringing home an Orion, too! I bet the powers that be will be so happy about that.”

“We’ll see, won’t we?” He smiled now and lowered the disruptor. “Relax, we’ll be there soon.” He turned and left sickbay.

* Romulus *

Two hours later, Baier returned with several other men. “Computer, lower force field,” he ordered. “You will come with us,” he instructed Isaura. “No funny stuff unless you want to be disintegrated where you stand.”

“Oo... you promise such amazing things to a girl, Baier. And look at you, with all this backup, just for lil ol’ me. I’m flattered that you’re so scared of me.” She clapped her hands together and grinned. “Oh, and it’s cute that they all have body armor, as if I could hurt them.” They had good reason to be afraid; Isa was sizing each one up and trying to decide which one she’d take out first. During her long hours sitting in the sickbay, she’d found a medkit with a scalpel and a couple of other tools in it. The surgical tape had come in handy, allowing her to tape those things to her belly under the voluminous scrubs she wore. She appreciated engineers who stocked ships as if the replicators might fail.

“If you’re not careful, and Kaeli doesn’t arrive soon, you may wish you were back in my hands,” he growled in response. “Take her to the holding cells,” he ordered the guards. “And secure her hands.”

“Does this mean that I might get a shower and a change of clothes? You should be really glad that this force field has kept my stink in here with me, instead of out there with you.”

Baier smirked as he looked down at her. “See that she is run through decon and de-loused. You never know what vermin she might be carrying. Good enough, Isaura?”

“Geez, Baier... I can shower myself, you know. Decon and de-lousing? Little bit of overkill there. But, just maybe I can rub some these vermin off on your little crew here before they get me to decon and de-lousing.” As the first man stepped forward to secure her hands, she danced back a step then brought out the scalpel and lunged forward at him. She drove it between the panels of his armor and into his shoulder joint.

He howled and tried to knock her off her feet. Losing the scalpel to his shoulder, Isa rolled over the bio-bed and landed on her feet on the other side. Two of Baier’s men rushed forward. She ripped another instrument off her belly tape and swung at one of them. She caught his face with the sharp end but his buddy caught her unawares with a taser, taking her down with a pained scream.

“I see you want to play it that way? Fine. Skip the holding cell. I’ll take her to Rekar’s.” Moments later, they were transported out.

Isaura began to come to on a cold metal floor with a grid that promised to leave interesting patterns in the side of her face. A booted foot nudged her. “Open your eyes, I know you’re conscious.”

“Shuck off,” she mumbled, part of her mouth catching on the floor’s grid. “Good gods.... Have I at least been decon’d and de-loused?”

“Oh yes,” the voice from above answered. It wasn’t D’nar’s, though now he spoke. “We did all the necessary things. You are much more agreeable when you’re unconscious.”

“Mmhphf... I hope it was fun for you.” She started to gather herself to stand. On her first attempt, she stepped on the front of the sack-like dress they’d put her in and pitched forward. Baier caught her and stood her upright. “Gee, my hero,” she said, patting his arm; one hand was checking his waist. She was looking for something she could pilfer from him; she didn’t find anything before he turned her around and pushed her to stand on her own.

She rubbed her face, feeling the indents of the floor on one cheek. “Like I said, D’nasty, you have some fine hospitality,” she laughed.

“Be glad it wasn’t worse,” he answered her, then nodded to the other man. “Chairman Rekar, leader of the Tal Shiar.”

The man who stood looking down at her had a stern, hard face. He was tall and broad-shouldered, his presence intimidating. “So you are the bait. Any as small as you, I’d normally throw back but in this case, I suspect it will get me exactly what I want.”

“Hmm... I prefer to dress for the occasion when meeting dignitaries. Apparently D’shit there felt you weren’t worth the effort, Chairman.” She had to look up to see his face. “I’m Isaura Panossian, Captain of the Ning’Tao. So nice to meet you. I think, sometimes, little packages hide just how dangerous something can be.”

“They also apparently hide medical equipment, and old spies who are now our enemy.” Rekar’s smile was a wry one. “Please, have a seat. I had a report that our little fish has been spotted. Her ship arrived while you were snoozing.”

“Medical equip... oh, right. Will that fellow’s shoulder work again?” His latter words hit her and she swallowed. “If Kaeli is a fish... I think her type is piranha.” She gnashed her teeth and winked at Rekar.

“I am well acquainted with her,” he snarled. “She’s the reason I was passed over for D’nar’s rank years ago. She was, to use the old human phrase, the one that got away….when she was supposed to be confessing.”

“Oh, wait... I thought you were the brains here. You mean D’snot over there outranks you? He doesn’t really have the brains to be the mastermind in this operation.” Isaura glanced at D’nar. “He doesn’t even have the brawn for this. I could take ‘im.” She nodded. “Wait... Kaeli’s here? Here, here or just orbit here?”

“I do outrank him,” Rekar answered. “This was years ago when we were both starting out.”

He looked to D’nar and nodded. The man turned and crossed to the main doors, opening them. There was a soft conversation then he stepped aside. Two guards entered, with Kaeli between them.

“Aw, Kaeli! What did you do, walk in and just give yourself over?” Isaura lamented seeing her friend here. How the hell were they going to get out of this now? “Hey, Zarv didn’t happen to come with you, did he?”

“Yes and no,” Kaeli answered the questions in order. I had to or they would have killed you. I know these men, Isa. But try not to worry. I’ll get out of it somehow. “It’ll be alright,” she spoke, this time aloud.

“I was trying to get them to kill me, but pansy-ass over there wouldn’t!” ’twould have been better than having you tortured. I’ll launch a rescue, don’t worry.

Rekar eyed Kaeli suspiciously. “I see the neural inhibitor hasn’t been placed yet.”

D’nar nodded. “Sickbay is the next stop.”

“Could I stop by a laundry at some point? Maybe on the way to Sickbay?” Isaura looked from one Romulan to the other.

“You can release her,” Rekar ordered, meaning Isaura. “Give her some credits to get some clothes and a meal and leave her in the city.”

Kaeli frowned at that. “Alone? On Romulus? She’s a Federation citizen.”

“Then I suggest that she behave,” Rekar snapped. “Or I could lock her in a cell till she’s too old to remember where she is. Your choice Queen Kaeli.” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

“Alright, take it Isa. Trust me.”

“What and just lea--OW!” Isa turned and looked at Baier, who had pinched her. “Oh, that wasn’t nice.”

“It’ll be worse if you stay with us,” Baier said.

“Oh. Um... Kaeli, love you dearly, but I do want to see the sky again.” She went over and hugged Kaeli, despite the Romulans trying to stop her from doing so. “Could I have enough for clothes, a meal and a hotel room? That decon... wooo... I feel sticky. It is the decon, right?”

“Yes,” Rekar answered. He nodded to D’nar. “Make the arrangements and get her a room at the hotel on the square.”

Kaeli hugged Isa tight. Don’t worry. Also, we picked up Zikar’s ship headed this way but they are a lot of hours behind us. Stay out of sight.

Will do. We’ll come for you. Isa nodded then was pulled away by two Romulans and followed by Baier.

The doors closed behind Isaura and Kaeli stood, resolute, in the quiet of the room as Rekar stared back at her. “It’s been a long time, Kaeli.” He moved closer to stand before her and reached out to touch her face.

“Not long enough.” Her dark eyes met him and she spat in his face.

Kaeli was rewarded with a slap that left a distinct red handprint on her cheek. Rekar wiped his face, then turned to D’nar. “I want Isaura’s hotel room watched. If she leaves tonight, follow her. By tomorrow morning, I want her dead,” he growled, then looked at Kaeli. “Be careful what you do or Ronin will be next. Go!” he ordered D’nar, who hurried out of the room.

********************
Isaura Panossian
Kaeli
Baier
D’Nar Lerius
Chairman Rekar