Damn the White Knight

Posted on Thu Nov 17th, 2011 @ 5:32pm by Commander Oralia Zeferino & Captain Li Hawke

* * * Back Room - Saturnalia, Deck 531 * * *

Suresh stood by the small portal that looked out on the vastness of space, his back to the two gentlemen so recently departed from The Wormhole.

"So where is she?" His voice was low and menacing in the dim room. "I hope you have simply laid her aside to come and tell me you were successful?"

One looked at the other and, with both a hand gesture and a tilt of his brows, 'encouraged' the other to speak up. The other frowned, then thought better of that expression as a bloodied, not-yet-tended cut was centered on his frown line, and finally responded, "Uh... no, Boss, we wasn't successful."

"You weren't." Suresh's voice was deceptively calm. They were both familiar with the tone, it usually preceded bad things where he was concerned. "How...'not successful'? And I am sure you are going to give me a very good reason?"

"Ah...," the one who'd been mute a moment ago spoke up now, after having been kicked by his cohort, "...yes, ...ah... we had her, we were bringin' her here... but...." He looked at his cohort and rubbed a black eye; his tongue snaked out and touched his lip where it was split.

His cohort continued the thought, "...but a friend of hers, Jackson Banning of the Nexus Club--"

"An' somma his goons!"

"-- grabbed her from us," he nodded slightly at the other, approving of the addition of 'goons' to the story.

"Goons....is that so?" Suresh turned, leaving the portal behind as he moved towards his boys. Standing close, he examined their various cuts and bruises. In a movement too fast to be avoided, he reached out, taking the cut lip of the first and twisting it tight in his fingers. "How many?"

"Ow!Oww!oWWWW!" The first whined and rolled wide eyes at his cohort. "Ah... I dunno! The attack came so fast! Coulda been four... five... maybe two... I dunno!"

He continued to hold the man's lip, then turned to his associate. "How many?"

"Ermm...," the associate looked like he wanted nothing more than to melt into the floor as he eyed the pain his cohort was in. "Well... it did happen fast. Maybe... maybe it was just Jackson. I dunno, maybe some barflies got involved, too."

Suresh let go of the man's bloody lip, then wiped his hand on the guy's shirt with a grimace. "So the dear Chief of Security has a white knight, does she? And he is better than the two of you by himself?" There was a moment of tension before Suresh began to laugh, though the sound was far worse than his words had been. "I'm a reasonable man, so I'll tell you what. I know that sometimes, unexpected things can happen, plans don't quite work out as we might hope. So I'm willing to give you a second chance." He graced them with a chilly smile. "I want her...here...unharmed. That means untouched by either of your grubby paws. Is that clear enough?"

Their eyes went wide. They'd been expecting that one or the other wouldn't be walking out of here this evening, as an object lesson to the other. They exchanged quick glances, nodded and answered in unison, "Oh, yeah, Boss."

The one whose lip had been twisted added on, "Crystal. Yup."

"Good. You have three days. Fail me again and I'll let my plaything have her way with you."

That threat earned pale looks of fear and fast nods of agreement.

"Good. Given that explosion that happened up above, she should be stretched thin, and thus an easier target."

The two smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah."

"You will report directly to me, whatever happens. Now get out of my sight."

Relieved to have survived the meeting intact, the two vacated their boss's office as fast as they could. Later, they'd work on a plan to secure the Chief of Security.

Suresh watched them go, then turned back to the portal. He was silent a moment, before reaching to the comm panel to summon Lazan. His tension level was creeping just a little too high, and he needed the man to deliver a message.

*********
Suresh
Watching From The Shadows

The Goonies