Isa Interrupted

Posted on Sat Jun 18th, 2016 @ 10:37pm by Rafael Hernandez & Jarad & Kaeli & Isaura Panossian & Drekkar & Patch
Edited on on Sat Jun 18th, 2016 @ 10:46pm

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: RIS Opius

* RIS Opius *

For the moment, Isa was dressed, even though she was in her quarters. She’d just returned from the Bridge, where she’d left Zarv in control of the ship. He knew she was off to spend time with Rafe and had growled at her when she’d told him not to disturb them. She unbuckled her holster and sat on the edge of the bed. “Rafe? Zarv’s on watch for a few hours.”

“Good.” Rafael had followed her into the bedroom. “I’ll be glad to relieve him later. I don’t expect any problems getting to Romulus, especially in a Romulan ship. How soon will we enter the Neutral Zone?”

“In about twenty minutes,” she replied. She smiled at him and pulled him close for a kiss. “I have an idea how we can spend the time.” She was reaching for the waistband of his pants when the comm chimed, announcing a subspace call. “Let’s hold that thought,” she said, moving to open the channel.

Drekkar was the caller and he was obviously unhappy: his face was crunched together in an angry scowl. “Isa! You are on your way back to SB900, correct?”

Her mood soured as she frowned at him. “No, we’re not on our way back. I have Rafe with me and we’re going to enjoy some time together.”

Rafael, hearing Drekkar’s voice, moved over to stand opposite Isa, behind the monitor and out of sight of Drekkar. When Drekkar began to speak, Raf began to silently imitate the Cardassian’s words and his familiar, annoyed expression that went with his current tone.

Isa couldn’t help but laugh at Rafe’s antics, which only made Drekkar angrier - he thought she was laughing at his concerns for her well-being. “Drekkar, really, we’re just moving leisurely, that’s all. Once we see Boroca, we’ll head right back.”

The Cardassian went apoplectic with rage. “Once you see him? You’re lying to me, Isaura! Boroca is already dead!”

“Oops...,” Isa winced and shrugged at Rafe. “Is he already?”

Rafael shook his finger at Isa, mimicking Drekkar’s words. He put his hands on his hips and scowled. He then had to cover his own mouth to keep from laughing out loud. He finally stepped around beside Isa, visible to Drekkar.

“Boroca is dead? Are you serious?” he asked.

Drekkar didn’t acknowledge Rafe, as if by ignoring the human he could make him go away. “Yes, he is already. What have you done?”

“Oh, no, don’t point a finger at me! I didn’t lift a finger against the old man,” Isa protested, somewhat truthfully: she’d lifted a phaser against him and then a knife but never a finger. Plus, Zarv had done the actual killing. “And... on that note, I’m hanging up.” Her actions followed her words, cutting Drekkar off in his wind up to a rant.

She laughed and turned towards Rafe, “Brat.”

“He just makes it too easy, you know?” Rafael smiled at her. “You didn’t lie. You think he believes you?”

The console began to chime again. “I’ll guess: no, he doesn’t,” she said resignedly. She rejected the call and beckoned to Rafe before taking off her top.

“Would he believe Kaeli? Assuming she answers? I think she is still blocking anyone incoming to avoid Jarad. You may want to forward Drekkar to her.” He reached out, resting his hands on Isa’s shoulders, then leaned down to brush her bare skin with a kiss. As he did so, the terminal beeped again, giving the priority alert. “He will keep calling, might want to take this one.”

Irritated, Isa reached up and pulled Rafe down by his shirt. She switched places with him, making him sit. She held him there by sitting in his lap. Knowing the picture they presented, she opened the comm channel and turned to kiss Rafe as the screen changed. Let him get this message, she thought to Rafe.

“Have I called at a bad time?” Jarad’s face was visible in the monitor. “Kaeli is still refusing to answer.” An edge of anger crept into his voice with his last words.

Isa yelped and turned her bare back to the camera. She looked over her shoulder at Jarad and said, “I thought you would be Drekkar! If Kae isn’t taking your calls, that’s between you two.”

“It is but you need to talk sense to her, Isa. I need to speak to her about this Boroca situation. You too actually, so go put something on. It’s important.”

“Might as well get this out of the way,” Rafael murmured at her ear. “He’ll be more reasonable than Drekkar.”

“Ugh... you men,” she muttered, reaching over to the desk to grab her shirt. She didn’t put it on, she just held it to her chest and faced Jarad. “What about this Boroca situation? I know you know he’s dead. Trust me, Kaeli didn’t do it.”

“Can you swear that Isa?” Jarad asked. “It’s essential that she didn’t do this. Not for me, since I could care less about Boroca, but in case it comes up. His staff knew he was on your trail since he thought you’d kidnapped Nyyar. I have to know exactly what happened if I am to cover you, especially cover you with Drekkar.”

“Jarad,” she spoke slowly, cajolingly, “Kaeli didn’t kill Boroca. Neither did I. I swear it.”

“I see.” He sighed aloud. “Drekkar seems convinced that she did and oddly, between us? I think he is glad. You realize he is next in line don’t you?”

She nodded, looking down. “I do. He could return to Cardassia and take Boroca’s place. That would be odd for us. Uncomfortable, really. Who would have thought that I... uh, nevermind.” She shook her head, thinking it was strange that she would be the one to put Drekkar back in power.

“It would get him out of our hair in the best way,” Rafael pointed out. “Something you’ve wanted for a long time, Isa.” It was also what Rafael wanted desperately, before he lost his temper and strangled Drekkar.

She kissed his cheek, I know. To Jarad, she asked, “Would he go to Cardassia?”

”I expect the offer to come in within the next couple of hours.” Jarad shrugged. “I’ll settle him down, don’t worry. I’ll smooth it over for you but you have to do something for me.”

“What... pull Kaeli out of her funk and make her talk to you?” She shook her head. “There are some things even I can’t do, friend.”

“Try? I have some concerns about that Cardassian. I don’t like assuming the worst when I am probably wrong.” Jarad’s frown returned. “I suspect she is going to Romulus too, and that worries me.”

“Romulus? Really?” Her voice rose a fraction of a tone. “Going to Romulus would be news to us, right, Rafe?”

Rafael shrugged. “Last I heard, we were going to Vulcan. She wants to see her mother. Weird isn’t it? She’s so tough and secretive, it’s hard to imagine her with a mother. I always suspected she was constructed in a lab somewhere.” Rafael knew that would annoy Jarad and it did.

“You do not know her like I do,” he muttered.

“What is it about ‘that Cardassian’ that worries you? That he’s here with her and you’re not?” Isaura wasn’t trying to annoy Jarad - just get information. If there really was a concern with Patch... she’d like to know.

“Isn’t that enough?” he answered. “If she is going to Romulus, and I can guess why, I don’t want her to. It’s too dangerous. For all of you,” he added, hoping that concern for all the crew might be more likely to motivate Isa to action.

“If we are on our way to Romulus, there’s no way you could catch up to us and stop us,” Isa pointed out. “But, we’re going to Vulcan.” She smiled at him. “So don’t worry.” What Jarad had missed was that their ‘crew’ currently was Kaeli, Patch, Rafe, Zarv and her, all folks she knew to be capable of taking care of themselves. “Really, we’ll be home soon.”

“Will you talk to her?” He asked once more. “Please?”

“Yes, I will,” she conceded, nodding. “I promise.”

“Thank you. I’ll call once I’ve settled Drekkar and he’s made a decision.” Jarad nodded and closed the channel.

“So... where were we?”, she smiled at Rafe.

He plucked her shirt away and dropped it to the ground. “Right...about...here.”

* Kaeli’s Quarters *

Kaeli’s terminal beeped again for perhaps the fifth time. With a growl, she left the small kitchen and hammered on the terminal until it was silent. She then moved over to the small bar and poured two glasses of wine. “Maybe that will be the last time,” she commented to Patch as she returned to the kitchen where he stood before the replicator.

“You know it’s Jarad. Why not just answer him? I’ll stay out of sight if you need me to,” Patch offered. He traded her a plate for a glass.

“Thanks. This looks good.” She set her glass down and picked up a few of the french fries from the plate. “You know me well.” She smiled as the terminal began to beep once more. “It probably is. Whether you are seen or not is up to you but he has a long memory.”

“Whatever. I won’t make a point of being in front of the camera, nor hidden from it.” He shrugged and sipped his wine. He waited to see whether she was going to answer the comm.

She rested her hand on his chest, then turned and stepped back into the living room. Settling herself at the desk, she took another sip of wine, then pressed the panel. Jarad’s face appeared on the screen. His expression went from angry to relieved and back to angry.


“Avoiding talking to me? That’s adult,” he complained. He looked her over as much as he could, looking for any signs of injury. He didn’t see any. “Boroca is dead. How did you do it?”

“I didn’t, as much as I wanted to. Which really pissed me off for a little while there. Someone else got to him first.” Kaeli shrugged. It was mostly the truth. “And yes, I was ignoring your calls. Do you really have to ask why?”

“No,” he shook his head, more sad than angry, “Someone else got to him first? That’s a big coincidence. Who was this someone else?”

“I’m glad you at least figured out why I was not happy with you. Refusing calls is just as adult as planting tracking devices without telling me. As for Boroca, watch the news. They say it was some animal attack. That will teach him to go to such remote areas alone. I didn’t lay a finger on him.” Kaeli crossed her arms as she faced down Jarad. Seeing his unhappiness really shook her but she had an excellent poker face and refused to let it show.

“Mea culpa, Kaeli,” he agreed. “An animal attack? I read that in the report, but couldn’t believe it. Still can’t.” He paused, thinking, then said, “It was Zarv, wasn’t it?”

She was silent for a few seconds, then finally nodded. “Zarv knows what he did to Isa back then. There was no containing him from what I heard, but I didn’t see it. Isa knocked me out before Zarv’s attack. Will you tell Drekkar?”

“She knocked you out?” He stared at Kaeli incredulously. “And she’s still standing?”

“It was touch and go there for a few but we worked it out. I understand why she did it. She’s also paying me back so it all works out. You didn’t answer my question.” She reached for her glass of wine which had been refilled. She looked towards the kitchen and smiled at Patch.

“Will I tell Drekkar? No. He doesn’t need to know that.” Jarad could justify quite a few things; hiding something like this was nothing, in the grand scheme of things.

“Thank you. She deserved to be the one to take him out after what he did. It was her right, don’t you think? Besides, Drekkar should be overjoyed. It opens things up for him doesn’t it?”

“Oh, I’m sure he is - he’s likely celebrating, in private of course. Legate Drekkar,” he shook his head. “Isa wondered whether he’ll pick up and go back to Cardassia. He could but I have the feeling he’s going to stay out here, to be close.”

“To her? Really? Even after she’s made it clear that it isn’t happening?” Kaeli frowned as she considered that. “Besides, won’t he need to be there to oversee the Order?”


“He could appoint an agent to carry out his orders while he stays in the Delta Quadrant. Remember that he’s completely in love with her - obsessed, most of us would say. He might try to take her with him.”

“Do you think he would?” The possibility worried Kaeli and it was something she intended to bring up with Isaura. “Obsession can be a dangerous thing. It leaves the realm of trust and goes right off the cliff to crazy.”

“Exactly. We’ll keep an eye on him once you’re home. Speaking of, how soon will that be? You’re on the way back from Cardassia... so... a week?”

“Not exactly,” she hedged. “We’re stopping by Vulcan for a day, no more. Then we will be home. There’s something there I need to do. Why? Getting anxious?”

“Yes,” he admitted. “Vulcan? Really? To see your mother?”

Kaeli nodded. “Just briefly. Nothing to worry about.” Kaeli realized she was twisting a lock of hair that had fallen over her shoulder and immediately dropped her hand. It was her one giveaway around Jarad that she was lying. She hoped he hadn’t noticed, but his admission that he was anxious, which meant he missed her, had thrown her off her game. “We won’t be there long. You have my word on that.”

He had noticed the hair twisting, but chose not to mention it. “Hurry home,” he said.

“Why?” she countered. “What then?” She paused, then shook her head. “No, never mind, don’t answer that. I need to go.”

He frowned but nodded. “Like I said, hurry home,” he said and closed the channel.

“That went better than I expected,” she said as Patch entered the living room.

“Did it? You had low expectations, didn’t you?” Patch smiled, winking.

Kaeli nodded. “I did. He’s playing nice because he knows he fucked up and has a lot to make up for.” She smiled up at Patch. “How long till we are back on shift?”

“Few hours,” he said, handing her a glass of wine. “We could spar in the hold or take a run around the ship?”

“We need to make some plans. I’m going to call Isa, get her here. Now might be a good time.” She sipped the wine, then stood and wrapped her arms around Patch. “That will leave a little time for us after.”

“Let’s get going on that talk, then. Sooner that’s done, the sooner we’re ...doing other things,” he grinned.

“Yeah.” She reached up to touch his cheek, then ordered the computer to open a channel to Isa. “Hey Isa? Can you and Raf meet us for a bit? We need to make some plans and we’ll be there before long.”

Scrambling for a shirt or a sheet to cover her breasts, Isa stammered, “Ah... yeah... yeah, sure. We’ll be there in a few... Soon as we... um... few minutes.” She reached over and closed the comm.

A few minutes later, she and Rafe entered the common room. “What is so bloody important?”, Isa grumped at Kaeli.

“Rekar,” Kaeli answered. She motioned to the wine bottle and the extra glasses on the coffee table. “I want this to go as fast as possible so we can get the hell off of Romulus. All our transmissions lead anyone eavesdropping to think we are going to Vulcan, except Rekar, who will arrange clearance for us.”

“Okay,” Isa poured a glass for herself then looked at Rafe questioningly. She poured one for him when he nodded. “So getting onto Romulus will be easy. Getting in to see Rekar will be easy. Same plan as you had for Boroca?”

Kaeli considered for a moment. “It could work. He won’t be suspicious if I...if I touch him.” She glanced at Patch, then looked back to Isa. “But it would be better if it it was slightly delayed, long enough for us to get out before he drops.”

“How can we delay the poison then?” Isa thought about it. “Maybe put the poison on his cup or his clothes, so when he goes to drink or dress, he’ll dose himself?”

Rafael smiled suddenly. “Clothes would be simple, assuming you can get him out of them, attach it inside. If he has to re-dress in a hurry, he won’t notice.”

Isa caught Kaeli’s conflicted feelings about that. “Or... we could put it on a bottle, like a bottle of wine, something he’d be thrilled to receive? But then there’s no guarantee he’d be the one touching the poison. I’d hate for us to kill an innocent.” She amended that: “Like a servant or maid...?”

“His assistant. Perhaps Tindam even,” Kaeli agreed. “There is no antidote so I need to be sure it goes where it is supposed to and Rekar doesn’t see the disc. He will recognize it.” She was silent for a second, then an idea hit her. “Tindam. Or you Isa. If he is distracted, you can attach it.”

Wincing, Isa paused before saying, “You know... Tindam might not be thrilled to see me. I mean, he’ll remember things... things I sort of made him do? So he might not leave me alone. But, of course, I’ll try.”

A wicked smile lit Kaeli’s face now. “What if he’s the one who attaches the disc without knowing?”

“How?” Rafael asked. “Are they that close?”

“Maybe. But what if he jumped in to break up a fight?”

“A fight between you and Rekar?” Isaura looked and sounded doubtful. “How could we be sure he didn’t touch you with the poison?”

“Good point.” Kaeli frowned. “So we are back to Rafael’s idea. Rekar will be expecting it anyhow.” She sounded glum. “But if all goes well, I can avoid getting too...ahh...close. What about Tindam? You know he’ll be around when he hears we are coming.”

“I’ll handle him,” Isa said. “He’ll be angry, but I can distract him.” She glanced at Rafe, knowing he knew exactly what she meant. She shrugged slightly at him.

He frowned back at Isa but didn't comment on Tindam. “What about Patch and I? Here? Down on the planet?”

“Zarv can handle transporting us. I don’t know. You might attract too much attention.” Kaeli shrugged.

“I think it should just be us, Kaeli,” Isa said. “Leave the men on the ship. You’ll handle Rekar and I’ll deal with Tindam.” She glanced at Patch as he shook his head and frowned.

Kaeli nodded, then turned her attention to Patch. “What is it? You don’t like that idea I see.”

“No, I don’t. I don’t have a different plan, though. But I don’t think you two should go alone. Take me along as a ‘prisoner’, as if you’re going to turn me over to him for something... perhaps information I have on the Cardassian fleets. While you two distract the men, I can plant the poison.”

Isa scoffed, unkindly, “Oh please, Patch, Rekar would have you shipped off to the prison sooner than let you stick around. And then what? Kaeli and I would have to rescue you? Kaeli, I’m a little sick of rescuing men in distress.”

“She’s right, sweets,” Kaeli admitted. “He might go so far as to shoot you on sight and I cannot have that. Understand?”

Grimacing, he nodded and looked at Rafe. “So the men stay home.”

Isa nodded, “Yup. Safest place for you boys.” She patted Rafe’s knee and grinned at him.

Rafael rolled his eyes. “Left at home again. Maybe I’ll take up knitting or something. Learn to cook Chinese maybe?” He grinned at Patch. “We can take up Pilates and make quilts.”

Isa nodded enthusiastically, “Exactly. You can make a new blanket for me and when Kaeli and I get back, wrap me up in it.” She leaned over and kissed him.

Rafael laughed and shook his head. “Apparently I need a sarcasm sign. Alright, but make sure you have that device I gave you. And keep your comms channels open so we can monitor you. We can be down there in an instant.”

“Kaeli, we have something of a plan, then?” Isa looked at her friend.

“Yeah.” Kaeli nodded. “We’ll have to play the rest by ear once we are there. How soon will we hit Romulus exactly?”

“Another ten hours,” Patch answered.

“Alright.” Kaeli looked to Isa and Raf. “Go, relax. I’m taking over the bridge from Zarv soon. I’ll call when it’s time to get ready.”

“Oh, we’ll be relaxed,” Isa laughed and stood, taking Rafe’s hand.

****************
Cap’n Isaura Panossian
Rafael Hernandez
Kaeli
Patch
Legate Drekkar
Jarad