Deception: The lesser part of Valour – Confessions, Part 2
by Commander Rakka & Lieutenant JG Jonathan Riley
Post Details
Rakka popped in the chip and started the program, curious and more than a little nervous at what Lt. Riley had left for her--or was it for her at all? She would soon find out.
Rakka walked through the double bay doors and saw a small room, similar to any other room on the station. On the left and right walls, were two doors. The doors were plainly labeled in Starfleet fashion; 'Love' and the other door 'War'.
She let out a long sigh. "You first," she decided, walking through the door marked 'War'.
She entered into a misty green field. The sweet smell of wet grass cooled the senses as she walked further into the deep mist. It wasn't long till she heard the footsteps of soldiers. Behind a tree line to the left they marched on nearby.
She was aware suddenly of a man walking towards her, dark blue coat securly fastened with gold buttons from beltline to his neck. The man had an odd hat with a flat top crumpled forward that matched in color his coat. His lighter blue pants tucked securely into his black worn boots. He cocked his head to the side as he approached her and asked the question, "Everything ok sir?"
Rakka was startled for a moment, and searched for a response. "Erm... fine! Status report?"
The man scratched at his scruffy beard and continued, "Well sir, the third and fourth platoons are almost in position, We also gots some more boys coming in from Massachussetts first thing tomorrow," He said.
"Shall I prepare your gear and horse sir?" He inquired
"By all means," Rakka replied, deciding she might as well play along for now. She could use a distraction anyway.
Rakka walked a few paces behind the man, trusting he was heading in the right direction. She came through some brush and headed into a large camp, most of the men were dressed in similar style of outfit, a few had larger hats, and more gold decorations. She assumed they were officers of some sort. They all saluted as she passed, which she returned in kind. The soldier led her to a large tent where a beautiful horse, no doubt hers, was being saddled and prepared. She entered into the tent where another man led her to a stool where she was seated and the man began putting on her new uniform. The computer no doubt adjusted for her, because much to her amazment everything fit snug and proper. The man finally strapped a pistol and sword onto her hips and smiled at her as he let himself out of tthe tent
Rakka took a few moments to inspect her new uniform before turning to the horse. "All right, beast," she began. "I'm new at this, so be nice."
She had seen this done before but had never attempted it herself. Carefully she placed one foot in the stirrup, took hold of the saddle, and swung herself over. She held on tight to keep from slipping right over the other side, but in a few moments, had found her balance. Fortunately the program did plenty for her, and she was able to steer the animal without too much skill.
One of the men she had passed earlier rode up next to her. "Sir, I was told to give you this message," He held out a folded peice of parchment, sealed with a wax seal.
"Paper," Rakka muttered. She fumbled with the wax bit for a few moments and then realized she was supposed to break it. Having done so, she unrolled the parchment and read:
Dear Rakka,
I hope your enjoying this so far, I bet this is the first door you tried isn't it? Well I always thought of you as a fantastic leader, especially when it came to the art of warfare. So I decided to share one of my favorite battles with you. It's customized a bit, tailored to fit your style. I hope you like it and Happy Birthday!
Love,
Riley
"Birthday," Rakka whispered. He was making her a present. Her birthday wasn't exactly imminent, but she was far too intrigued to stop now. She hadn't gotten a birthday present since she had been in foster care on earth, where she was mainly gifted with standard girl-toys that held no interest for her.
Pocketing the letter, she urged the horse forward to join her soldiers and get some sense of what to expect from this battle.
The commanders led forward and Rakka lingered behind a bit to hide her confusion with all the turmoil behind her. They made there way up along side a full batallion of soldiers, all carrying long rifles. Rakka recognized them from what limited knowledge she had of earth's history. They were long barrel muskets, it finally dawned on her that she was in a civil war battle.
Rakka took a deep breath and examined the weapons on her belt. First, she got a feel of the sword, then examined the workings of the pistol. She was reasonably certain she could work with them.
Rakka rode along the front line of men and noted many of them looked pale and frightened, some were shaking so hard they could barely hold onto their rifles. Then she heard it, that familiar grunting gutteral language that she had tried so hard to forget. She heard the deep grunts of, Nausicaans. From the sound of it, hundreds, or even thousands of them.
They growled and groaned as they worked themselves into a fury. She understood now why her 'men' were so afraid.
Rakka nearly dropped her own pistol. This had definitely moved beyond the realm of history. She knew it wasn't real, but it still filled her with a profound sense of dread. But when she looked around at the equally frightened faces of 'her' soldiers, the leader in her came out.
"Well, quit pissing yourselves and ready your weapons!" she snarled. "Let's take these bastards down!"
Those few words seemed sufficient as the men began loading and readying their rifles. They were settling back down when they heard the horns. The horns of an enemy advance....
Rakka turned and saw only the mist on the field, but she could hear them, feel them as their huge bodies thundered in unison as they marched forward. Guns at the shoulder she finally saw them, an odd sight at the least.
There in front of her was an entire army, dressed in similar, albiet greycoated uniforms. The problem was, there were no humans, they were all Nausicaan. An entire regiment marched through the mist and into her sights. This was a battle not just for fun, but for her very soul.
Rakka drew her sword and rode out in front of her troops. "They feed off of your fear!" she roared out. "They pick out your weaknesses! I want to see a united front, and I want to see courage. I want to see you crush these drooling troglodytes! NOW!" She kicked her horse's sides and rode out in front, leading her soldiers into the fray.
**************************
At the end of it all, Rakka sat heavily in her horse's saddle, in the centre of the sea of purple-stained Nausicaan bodies. Her sword still dripped. Everything inside her felt like it was trembling. Her eyes snapped back and forth, looking for any one left alive. She thought she saw movement to her right, and quickly jammed the tip of her sword into an eye socket.
"Sir?" called one of the many remaining bluecoats left on the field.
Rakka looked up with surprised, prepared to attack again.
"It's over."
She looked across the carnage, and it was over. She allowed her soldiers to lead her back to the tent, where she shed her weapons and climbed down from the horse, immediately collapsing onto her knees. She let out a long breath, still shaking.
"Ha!" she let out briefly, the closest she had ever come to laughing. She often used the holodeck to get out pent-up agression and other negative feelings, but it wasn't until now she realized just how therapeutic it could be. It had been a long time since she felt something this close to satisfaction. And freedom.
"Thank you," she whispered to the absent Riley.
Getting back into her uniform slowly, she left this portion of the program and exited the door marked "War". Looking across the little room to the door marked "Love", she realized she didn't have the courage to go in. Not now, anyway.
"Computer--end program," she said. Pocketing the chip for some unknown later date, she left.
*************************
Lt. Cdr. Rakka
with help from Lt. JG Jonathan Riley (from beyond the grave)
by Commander Rakka & Lieutenant JG Jonathan Riley
Post Details
| Title | Confessions, Part 2 | |
| Mission | Deception: The lesser part of Valour | |
| Author(s) | Commander Rakka & Lieutenant JG Jonathan Riley | |
| Posted | Sat Jan 10, 2009 @ 3:23am | |
| Location | Holodeck | |
| Timeline | SD 3 - 2030 hrs. (Backpost) |
Rakka walked through the double bay doors and saw a small room, similar to any other room on the station. On the left and right walls, were two doors. The doors were plainly labeled in Starfleet fashion; 'Love' and the other door 'War'.
She let out a long sigh. "You first," she decided, walking through the door marked 'War'.
She entered into a misty green field. The sweet smell of wet grass cooled the senses as she walked further into the deep mist. It wasn't long till she heard the footsteps of soldiers. Behind a tree line to the left they marched on nearby.
She was aware suddenly of a man walking towards her, dark blue coat securly fastened with gold buttons from beltline to his neck. The man had an odd hat with a flat top crumpled forward that matched in color his coat. His lighter blue pants tucked securely into his black worn boots. He cocked his head to the side as he approached her and asked the question, "Everything ok sir?"
Rakka was startled for a moment, and searched for a response. "Erm... fine! Status report?"
The man scratched at his scruffy beard and continued, "Well sir, the third and fourth platoons are almost in position, We also gots some more boys coming in from Massachussetts first thing tomorrow," He said.
"Shall I prepare your gear and horse sir?" He inquired
"By all means," Rakka replied, deciding she might as well play along for now. She could use a distraction anyway.
Rakka walked a few paces behind the man, trusting he was heading in the right direction. She came through some brush and headed into a large camp, most of the men were dressed in similar style of outfit, a few had larger hats, and more gold decorations. She assumed they were officers of some sort. They all saluted as she passed, which she returned in kind. The soldier led her to a large tent where a beautiful horse, no doubt hers, was being saddled and prepared. She entered into the tent where another man led her to a stool where she was seated and the man began putting on her new uniform. The computer no doubt adjusted for her, because much to her amazment everything fit snug and proper. The man finally strapped a pistol and sword onto her hips and smiled at her as he let himself out of tthe tent
Rakka took a few moments to inspect her new uniform before turning to the horse. "All right, beast," she began. "I'm new at this, so be nice."
She had seen this done before but had never attempted it herself. Carefully she placed one foot in the stirrup, took hold of the saddle, and swung herself over. She held on tight to keep from slipping right over the other side, but in a few moments, had found her balance. Fortunately the program did plenty for her, and she was able to steer the animal without too much skill.
One of the men she had passed earlier rode up next to her. "Sir, I was told to give you this message," He held out a folded peice of parchment, sealed with a wax seal.
"Paper," Rakka muttered. She fumbled with the wax bit for a few moments and then realized she was supposed to break it. Having done so, she unrolled the parchment and read:
Dear Rakka,
I hope your enjoying this so far, I bet this is the first door you tried isn't it? Well I always thought of you as a fantastic leader, especially when it came to the art of warfare. So I decided to share one of my favorite battles with you. It's customized a bit, tailored to fit your style. I hope you like it and Happy Birthday!
Love,
Riley
"Birthday," Rakka whispered. He was making her a present. Her birthday wasn't exactly imminent, but she was far too intrigued to stop now. She hadn't gotten a birthday present since she had been in foster care on earth, where she was mainly gifted with standard girl-toys that held no interest for her.
Pocketing the letter, she urged the horse forward to join her soldiers and get some sense of what to expect from this battle.
The commanders led forward and Rakka lingered behind a bit to hide her confusion with all the turmoil behind her. They made there way up along side a full batallion of soldiers, all carrying long rifles. Rakka recognized them from what limited knowledge she had of earth's history. They were long barrel muskets, it finally dawned on her that she was in a civil war battle.
Rakka took a deep breath and examined the weapons on her belt. First, she got a feel of the sword, then examined the workings of the pistol. She was reasonably certain she could work with them.
Rakka rode along the front line of men and noted many of them looked pale and frightened, some were shaking so hard they could barely hold onto their rifles. Then she heard it, that familiar grunting gutteral language that she had tried so hard to forget. She heard the deep grunts of, Nausicaans. From the sound of it, hundreds, or even thousands of them.
They growled and groaned as they worked themselves into a fury. She understood now why her 'men' were so afraid.
Rakka nearly dropped her own pistol. This had definitely moved beyond the realm of history. She knew it wasn't real, but it still filled her with a profound sense of dread. But when she looked around at the equally frightened faces of 'her' soldiers, the leader in her came out.
"Well, quit pissing yourselves and ready your weapons!" she snarled. "Let's take these bastards down!"
Those few words seemed sufficient as the men began loading and readying their rifles. They were settling back down when they heard the horns. The horns of an enemy advance....
Rakka turned and saw only the mist on the field, but she could hear them, feel them as their huge bodies thundered in unison as they marched forward. Guns at the shoulder she finally saw them, an odd sight at the least.
There in front of her was an entire army, dressed in similar, albiet greycoated uniforms. The problem was, there were no humans, they were all Nausicaan. An entire regiment marched through the mist and into her sights. This was a battle not just for fun, but for her very soul.
Rakka drew her sword and rode out in front of her troops. "They feed off of your fear!" she roared out. "They pick out your weaknesses! I want to see a united front, and I want to see courage. I want to see you crush these drooling troglodytes! NOW!" She kicked her horse's sides and rode out in front, leading her soldiers into the fray.
**************************
At the end of it all, Rakka sat heavily in her horse's saddle, in the centre of the sea of purple-stained Nausicaan bodies. Her sword still dripped. Everything inside her felt like it was trembling. Her eyes snapped back and forth, looking for any one left alive. She thought she saw movement to her right, and quickly jammed the tip of her sword into an eye socket.
"Sir?" called one of the many remaining bluecoats left on the field.
Rakka looked up with surprised, prepared to attack again.
"It's over."
She looked across the carnage, and it was over. She allowed her soldiers to lead her back to the tent, where she shed her weapons and climbed down from the horse, immediately collapsing onto her knees. She let out a long breath, still shaking.
"Ha!" she let out briefly, the closest she had ever come to laughing. She often used the holodeck to get out pent-up agression and other negative feelings, but it wasn't until now she realized just how therapeutic it could be. It had been a long time since she felt something this close to satisfaction. And freedom.
"Thank you," she whispered to the absent Riley.
Getting back into her uniform slowly, she left this portion of the program and exited the door marked "War". Looking across the little room to the door marked "Love", she realized she didn't have the courage to go in. Not now, anyway.
"Computer--end program," she said. Pocketing the chip for some unknown later date, she left.
*************************
Lt. Cdr. Rakka
with help from Lt. JG Jonathan Riley (from beyond the grave)