Oz Has The Last Word

Posted on Thu Mar 7th, 2013 @ 4:18pm by Suresh & Commander Oralia Zeferino

Mission: The Struggle Within
Location: The Hammond's Brig

While everyone on 900 was celebrating the return of the Hammond and with it the rescue crew, along with Admiral Wegener and Li, there was one man not so happy to be home. There were several reasons for his unhappiness at the return. The first was that he was most assuredly going to be sent straight to the brig. They had him pretty well red-handed. Then there was the fact that any close interaction with Seyla would be impossible. Everything they did now would have to take place through a force field. Granted, he could still oversee things, assuming he was kept here.

But that’s not the worst is it? a small voice from deep inside him whispered.

He growled at the voice but there was no denying the truth of its words. He doubted he’d ever lay eyes on Li again, much less touch her, and that was unacceptable. His rash action had screwed the one thing he wanted.

Do you really think you ever had a chance?

Suresh bellowed aloud and slammed his fist into the bulkhead. That little voice was really beginning to piss him off in a big way. He had to think, remain rational. He would be here for a while at least, until his trial was over. He could demand to see the station XO, and he fully intended to do just that. As for calm and rational, however, that was about to be sorely tested as the doors that had until now been sealed, slid open.

Oralia, looking far calmer and far less bloody than she had a few hours ago, thanks to a cup of hot, strong, black coffee and a shower, grinned at Suresh as she entered. “Well look what the cat dragged in. Bless your heart, Surie, I do appreciate you messin’ things up so much and making it so easy to toss you in prison and throw away the key,” her Georgian accent was coming through strongly.

He crossed his arms and glared at her with his dark eyes. “Get out. Before I begin to scream about brutality.”

“Get out?” She laughed, a touch too gaily. “Well, much as I might like to leave you in there to rot, the Hammond’s crew wouldn’t much appreciate it, since they’d be the ones having to feed you and clean up after you. So, go ahead, scream about brutality!” She glanced at the officers with her. “But these guys are here to take you to the Station’s brig, where you’ll await trial. The prosecutor promises it’ll be a quick one.”

That caused Suresh to begin laughing. It started soft but soon overtook him completely. Finally, he managed to get a grip and wiped his eyes. Looking at the officers with Oz, he spoke. “Leave us alone. She is in no danger, I have no weapons. Darwin made sure of that.”

With a roll of her eyes, she nodded at the officers; they turned and left the room. “Finally, alone, Suresh... if only this forcefield didn’t separate us....” Oz smiled tightly, her expression hardening with anger.

“Pity, but you’re really not my type Oz. I hear you prefer the pretty boys. What did you have to do to finally lure Jackson in? I’m curious since none of the girls ever had a single stroke of luck. And yes, pun intended.”

She kept her smile. “I didn’t lure him in and you know that very well. I hear that you have to pay to get a girl to stroke you. And the one you wanted so much you tried to kill for her? She wouldn’t even let you touch her. That’s pathetic, Surie.”

Suresh raised an eyebrow and then a slow smile lit his face. “You might want to check your facts before making conclusions, Oz. We’ve been gone for some time. A lot has happened on the other side that you know nothing about, including some personal things between me and Li. Very personal.”

“Sure, long talks and romantic walks on the Promenade, right?” Again, Oz rolled her eyes.

“As a matter of fact, yes.” His smile lingered. “Have you ever kissed a Betazoid, Oz? Ever had one get in your head and really light your fire until you knew you’d be consumed? The feel of her body against mine was beyond description.” His words were slow and leisurely. “I saved her life too, you know? And she was most grateful.”

“You saved her life? Do you recall that she wouldn’t have needed saving if you hadn’t tried to kill her and Admiral Wegener?” She gave him a look usually reserved for only the craziest of the crazies. Which, she realized, Suresh just might qualify for that designation, especially if he thought she’d believe that Li would allow him to get intimate with her.

“That was never intended, and that will carry in court. Unforeseeable circumstances. Do you know that the Admiral offered to let me stay over there? What do you think of that?”

“You should have. Here, I’m asking the prosecutor to send you to the Klingon Ice Mine Penitentiary. And the failure of the weapon was foreseeable due to the weapon’s age and the known propensities of that kind of weapon. Besides, why else would you have and fire a disruptor in the Admiral’s office? To tickle him?”

“No, I simply wanted to make him squirm and fear for his life for almost ruining mine. He took the one thing I really ever wanted from me.” The light-hearted tone had left Suresh’s voice and now it had grown steely. “And I didn’t stay because without Li, there was nothing for me there.”

“Even with Li here, there’s nothing for you in this universe either,” Oralia smirked at him. “Since you’ll be gone and she’ll be here.”

“At least there’s a chance. The other way? Nothing. As fickle as you are, I don’t suppose you’d understand what it’s really like to have your soul starving for someone, to be willing to do anything to have them.” Suresh crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, watching her. “Unlike you, I’ll never settle. Or was the doctor just a fill-in till the other one came around?”

If Suresh were telepathic, he might have crowed with glee as his volley of hate hit a touch too close to home for Oralia's temper. Was Connor the placeholder or was that position now Jackson's? Sneering and ignoring her own thoughts on the matter, she warned him, "If you're not careful, Suresh, you just might find yourself having an accident. And out here? Accidents can be just shy of deadly. Maiming, disfigurement... All sorts of horrible things could happen in the Brig."

“You value your position too much Oz. The great Lt. Commander Oz who got to sit in one of the big chairs for a while. How was it? I’ll bet you were just grand, and to be honest? I’m sorry that Li and I are back here and you didn’t get to keep it. Another day or two and she would have been mine. Rescuers can be so inconvenient at times. Still, I’m betting she will never forget our time together there. If you think I’m lying, ask her.” He smiled at Oz once more, but deep inside, the longing had cranked up several notches. “You’ll take me to the brig but I demand to see the XO as soon as I’m in.”

“That’ll be fine, Suresh. You do that. For the next few hours, I’m still the acting XO. Medical has to clear Li and Admiral Wegener. Whatever your demand to see the XO is about, go ahead and tell me,” she smiled at Suresh, hiding that he’d hit close to the nerve again. She did value her position, perhaps even too much, as he said; and yet, she’d just killed a man and was standing here, wishing she could come up with the same sort of scenario with Suresh. He didn’t know how lucky he was that there was an energy field between them.

“I’ll wait for her.” He held out his wrists. “I suppose you want to restrain me...if you’re brave enough to lower the force field that is.”

“As if,” Oz scoffed. It wasn’t bravery she was lacking; it was stupidity. “I’m not going to handcuff you and parade you through the Station.” With that said, she stepped away from his cell, called the other officers back in and, once they had secured Suresh, called for a site-to-site transport.

**************
Suresh
Still Making Demands

Lieutenant Commander Oralia Zeferino
Unsettled but not Stupid