Beg, Steal or Borrow – Little Fingers
by Lieutenant JG Petro & Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Lieutenant JG Opaka Jo'el
Post Details
ON:
Lahy sen'Shuhs left the table with the transporter signal in hand. He had been listening to Cordova's conversation with the Bajoran looking woman. He had seen a lot of people in his day, and a good many of them Bajoran, and he could tell by the way she carried herself that she was not one of them. She might have been human or trill or any number of species but she was certainly not Bajoran.
Regardless of who she was, the object in question was the Romulan Ambassador and the money. He waited in one of the thousand or so places for him to hide in until the right time. Now, it seemed, was his opportunity. The Marine something or other had left and the only person in with her at the moment was some VIP guard with a Sword. Normally, this sort of activity would wait until things got quiet, but time was of the essence. He had to figure out how to get in, attach the device and get out again without being noticed. Given that he had never been in there before, it would take some quick thinking, and action, on his part to get the job done. Never the less, he would succeed. Failure was never an option and a man like Cordova never gave you one.
---
"That should tell you all that you need to know about your superior officers," Isha said as she settled down on one of the sofa's in the seating area. "as meetings go that was one of the most entertaining I've experienced in a long time. Do sit down, Ensign, I can't bear you hovering there like a lone bookend!"
"Begging your pardon, Madam Ambassador," Jo'el said, turning a chair around and sitting backwards to allow room for his sheathed sword. "Relaxation and vigilance are a mismatched combination."
Isha shrugged. “We’re stuck here for the duration, we might as well be comfortable. There’s one way in and one way out – two actually,” she admitted. “My predecessor was exceptionally paranoid and he made sure there was another exit from the ambassadorial quarters, but we needn’t worry about that, unless of course someone hostile gains access to the consulate, like Gabriel, for instance. Oh I do apologise, the man is now your boss, isn’t he,” Isha chuckled to herself as she extended a hand and held it at arms-length as she examined her fingernails.
"Captain Tahir has my first allegiance. Following that Commander Davies; Lieutenant Gabriel seems to only want his current post in the interim, and I haven't formed an opinion of him yet. I either case, I'm here with you for the duration. Ma'am."
“Let’s talk about your assignment then. I don’t know who you have worked with in the past, that hardly matters, what you should know is that I am quite used to working with personal security. Should you require me to do anything for my own safety and require me to do it without question use my name, Isha when you give the instruction rather than calling me Madam Ambassador; I will comply. Given that the majority of ladies who have cause to employ a bodyguard develop an unnecessary degree of intimacy with them, nobody listening will recognise it as a warning.”
"Understood," Jo'el nodded. "And if there is anything you notice before me, noises Bajoran ears might not register, for example, please keep me informed."
“Naturally,” Isha said tucking one leg beneath her, “you’ll soon be so tired of me feeding you snippets of pertinent information that you’ll want to strangle me yourself,” she added cocking her head to one side.
Jo'el smiled slightly. He liked the lady, she seemed a lot less intimidating than the labels "Romulan" and "ambassador" suggested. "I'll try to restrain myself." He leaned forward on the chair back.
"May I ask you a question?"
“Of course.” As she waited, Isha studied him with her bright green eyes, wondering if this slightly reticent young man would shed what seemed to be an innate hesitancy or shyness when he was confronted.
Jo'el swallowed slightly to work up his nerve. "You mentioned my hair color when we met the other day. Does it strike you as... unprofessional?"
“Does it prevent you from doing your job?” Isha shook her head, “You know, Ensign Opaka, there are two types of people, those to whom regulation is paramount, and those who understand that appearance is a tool to be used like any other. One cannot always tell easily who falls into which category, so it is often better to err on the side of caution when it comes to being unique, particularly early in one’s career.”
"Yes, ma'am, it's just that your words were something to the effect of 'unnatural to my race.' I don't modify the color of my hair, I just like wearing it longer. I feel like it gives some sort of extension to my nerve endings. I'm more sensitive to changes in wind, direction, temperature." Jo'el fidgited with his earring a bit. "I figured as long as my CO approved, everything would run smoothly, but then I heard your statement, and one of the Betazoids was giving me the business about it earlier today..."
Isha shifted so that she sat resting her elbows on her knees. Was that evidence of a retentive memory or had he been wounded by the comment, she wondered. "Then I have learned something new today," she said. "I thought it rather striking. How fascinating that you feel it gives you an advantage ... when out in the open. You are not in my direct employ, of course, which I think gives me limited influence over your appearance. Do your job and you will receive no complaint from me."
Lahy sat poised in the alternate entrance/exit listening to their converstation. ~how long must they prattle?~ he thought.
"Oh, I meant no offense, it's simply that the word 'unnatural' has a negative connotation in most translations. I appreciate your candor, and I thank you for the compliment." Jo'el straightened up in his seat.
"Tell me about your Betazoid," Isha said, "though I find it impossible to trust anyone who is capable if dipping inside one's intimate thoughts and then claims that they would not think of looking - I know I would if I had that power. What did she say?"
"That's exactly what she said!" Jo'el started with a mutual understanding. "She said that she's morally bound to not read other people's thoughts. She's- her name is Mackenzie. Lieutenant Claire Mackenzie. She's about me age, very tall for a typical female. Not hard on the eyes, either." He shrugged, feeling a tug on the right corner of his mouth. "But, obviously that's not the point."
Lahy rolled his eyes. He had seen the woman he mentioned and had to agree. Still, she was someone he would stay away from. Morale obligations only meant that someone had something they could use to deny their actions with.
Isha smiled, "You're a young man, Opaka, of course that's the point, though perhaps not the one you'd planned to make. And she found fault with your appearance?"
He squirmed slightly. "She and Lt. Ayren just seemed to be ganging up on me, saying my appearance was 'unprofessional.' That and I had a strong suspicion they were talking about me telepathically."
"Was it that which upset you, or did you fear that she would catch you thinking something you would prefer her not to be aware of? Don't look so shocked, Opaka, I have sons older than you are, I know the way that young men think ... and older ones."
Jo'el managed to close his mouth before thinking of a reply. "I... I just felt like I was cornered. I felt like they waited for the captain to leave the station so that I wouldn't have anyone to reach further up the chain of command. They made it seem like I was now under their jurisdiction in the Diplomatic Corps instead of a security officer. Maybe I should have this conversation with Lt. Gabriel, you don't need to worry about my problems with everything going on right now."
Isha's jaw tightened, though the smile remained on her lips, "The diplomatic officer is the worst of her kind, she can keep a secret but fails to obscure the fact that she is obfuscating," she said. Isha's lasting impression of Kelan, formed in the few minutes that they were together with Tahir was of a woman who relied more on her looks and her telepathic gifts than on any actual talent. "I doubt Gabriel would view your situation with a sympathetic ear, though I am certain that he would view interference with his department very dimly - perhaps you should raise it with him," Isha suggested.
He ran a hand through his hair and tilted his head slightly to untangle his earring. "I'm sorry to further burden you, ma'am. It's my job to make your job easier and safer, and instead of only offering complications." Jo'el smiled at her teasingly. "You know, this never would have happened if I hadn't sat down."
Isha lifted an eyebrow, "You may be right," she agreed, "perhaps whilst you are on your feet being vigilant you could see your way to replicating me some tea," she said wryly.
Jo'el stood up and returned the chair to its proper position. "My pleasure, how do you take it?"
"Plomeek tea please, as it comes, do help yourself to something too."
"Does your replicator take requests in non-Romulan languages?"
"Find me one system on this station that doesn't," Isha remarked. "Through that door there is actually a small kitchen, my predecessor would not touch anything created by a Federation replicator, he imagined that the matter was poisoned or some such rot. Taking paranoia a bit too far if you ask me."
There wasn't much time to act, but the opportunity was still there with the Bajoran's back turned away from the target. He slipped out of his hiding place, crept swift but quietly towards Isha, keeping his eyes actively bouncing from her and her guard. With the skill of a pick-pocket, he placed the device on Isha's person. If she felt anything, it would be as a breeze and nothing more.
Jo'el leaned on the replicator's wall and bent down toward the opening. "Computer, one Plomeek tea and one large kava juice."
The replicator shimmered with the standard Federation whiteness of the transporter buffer. Lahy froze for a moment, watched and just as he came he left, leaving the Ambassador alone with her Bajoran guard. Despite Jo'el's time off world and at the Academy, he still wasn't used to the way non-Cardassian replicators looked. Everything should come in on an aura of gold.
"Here you are," Jo'el said, setting the tea on Isha's desk in a small metal circle he could only assume served as a coaster to prevent spills from reaching her computer terminal or documents.
OFF:
Ambassador Isha t'Khellian
Ensign Opaka Jo'el
VIP Bodyguard/Master-At-Arms
Lahy sen'Shuhs
by Lieutenant JG Petro & Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Lieutenant JG Opaka Jo'el
Post Details
| Title | Little Fingers | |
| Mission | Beg, Steal or Borrow | |
| Author(s) | Lieutenant JG Petro & Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Lieutenant JG Opaka Jo'el | |
| Posted | Sat Mar 21, 2009 @ 5:20pm | |
| Location | Romulan Embassy | |
| Timeline | 13:45 |
Lahy sen'Shuhs left the table with the transporter signal in hand. He had been listening to Cordova's conversation with the Bajoran looking woman. He had seen a lot of people in his day, and a good many of them Bajoran, and he could tell by the way she carried herself that she was not one of them. She might have been human or trill or any number of species but she was certainly not Bajoran.
Regardless of who she was, the object in question was the Romulan Ambassador and the money. He waited in one of the thousand or so places for him to hide in until the right time. Now, it seemed, was his opportunity. The Marine something or other had left and the only person in with her at the moment was some VIP guard with a Sword. Normally, this sort of activity would wait until things got quiet, but time was of the essence. He had to figure out how to get in, attach the device and get out again without being noticed. Given that he had never been in there before, it would take some quick thinking, and action, on his part to get the job done. Never the less, he would succeed. Failure was never an option and a man like Cordova never gave you one.
---
"That should tell you all that you need to know about your superior officers," Isha said as she settled down on one of the sofa's in the seating area. "as meetings go that was one of the most entertaining I've experienced in a long time. Do sit down, Ensign, I can't bear you hovering there like a lone bookend!"
"Begging your pardon, Madam Ambassador," Jo'el said, turning a chair around and sitting backwards to allow room for his sheathed sword. "Relaxation and vigilance are a mismatched combination."
Isha shrugged. “We’re stuck here for the duration, we might as well be comfortable. There’s one way in and one way out – two actually,” she admitted. “My predecessor was exceptionally paranoid and he made sure there was another exit from the ambassadorial quarters, but we needn’t worry about that, unless of course someone hostile gains access to the consulate, like Gabriel, for instance. Oh I do apologise, the man is now your boss, isn’t he,” Isha chuckled to herself as she extended a hand and held it at arms-length as she examined her fingernails.
"Captain Tahir has my first allegiance. Following that Commander Davies; Lieutenant Gabriel seems to only want his current post in the interim, and I haven't formed an opinion of him yet. I either case, I'm here with you for the duration. Ma'am."
“Let’s talk about your assignment then. I don’t know who you have worked with in the past, that hardly matters, what you should know is that I am quite used to working with personal security. Should you require me to do anything for my own safety and require me to do it without question use my name, Isha when you give the instruction rather than calling me Madam Ambassador; I will comply. Given that the majority of ladies who have cause to employ a bodyguard develop an unnecessary degree of intimacy with them, nobody listening will recognise it as a warning.”
"Understood," Jo'el nodded. "And if there is anything you notice before me, noises Bajoran ears might not register, for example, please keep me informed."
“Naturally,” Isha said tucking one leg beneath her, “you’ll soon be so tired of me feeding you snippets of pertinent information that you’ll want to strangle me yourself,” she added cocking her head to one side.
Jo'el smiled slightly. He liked the lady, she seemed a lot less intimidating than the labels "Romulan" and "ambassador" suggested. "I'll try to restrain myself." He leaned forward on the chair back.
"May I ask you a question?"
“Of course.” As she waited, Isha studied him with her bright green eyes, wondering if this slightly reticent young man would shed what seemed to be an innate hesitancy or shyness when he was confronted.
Jo'el swallowed slightly to work up his nerve. "You mentioned my hair color when we met the other day. Does it strike you as... unprofessional?"
“Does it prevent you from doing your job?” Isha shook her head, “You know, Ensign Opaka, there are two types of people, those to whom regulation is paramount, and those who understand that appearance is a tool to be used like any other. One cannot always tell easily who falls into which category, so it is often better to err on the side of caution when it comes to being unique, particularly early in one’s career.”
"Yes, ma'am, it's just that your words were something to the effect of 'unnatural to my race.' I don't modify the color of my hair, I just like wearing it longer. I feel like it gives some sort of extension to my nerve endings. I'm more sensitive to changes in wind, direction, temperature." Jo'el fidgited with his earring a bit. "I figured as long as my CO approved, everything would run smoothly, but then I heard your statement, and one of the Betazoids was giving me the business about it earlier today..."
Isha shifted so that she sat resting her elbows on her knees. Was that evidence of a retentive memory or had he been wounded by the comment, she wondered. "Then I have learned something new today," she said. "I thought it rather striking. How fascinating that you feel it gives you an advantage ... when out in the open. You are not in my direct employ, of course, which I think gives me limited influence over your appearance. Do your job and you will receive no complaint from me."
Lahy sat poised in the alternate entrance/exit listening to their converstation. ~how long must they prattle?~ he thought.
"Oh, I meant no offense, it's simply that the word 'unnatural' has a negative connotation in most translations. I appreciate your candor, and I thank you for the compliment." Jo'el straightened up in his seat.
"Tell me about your Betazoid," Isha said, "though I find it impossible to trust anyone who is capable if dipping inside one's intimate thoughts and then claims that they would not think of looking - I know I would if I had that power. What did she say?"
"That's exactly what she said!" Jo'el started with a mutual understanding. "She said that she's morally bound to not read other people's thoughts. She's- her name is Mackenzie. Lieutenant Claire Mackenzie. She's about me age, very tall for a typical female. Not hard on the eyes, either." He shrugged, feeling a tug on the right corner of his mouth. "But, obviously that's not the point."
Lahy rolled his eyes. He had seen the woman he mentioned and had to agree. Still, she was someone he would stay away from. Morale obligations only meant that someone had something they could use to deny their actions with.
Isha smiled, "You're a young man, Opaka, of course that's the point, though perhaps not the one you'd planned to make. And she found fault with your appearance?"
He squirmed slightly. "She and Lt. Ayren just seemed to be ganging up on me, saying my appearance was 'unprofessional.' That and I had a strong suspicion they were talking about me telepathically."
"Was it that which upset you, or did you fear that she would catch you thinking something you would prefer her not to be aware of? Don't look so shocked, Opaka, I have sons older than you are, I know the way that young men think ... and older ones."
Jo'el managed to close his mouth before thinking of a reply. "I... I just felt like I was cornered. I felt like they waited for the captain to leave the station so that I wouldn't have anyone to reach further up the chain of command. They made it seem like I was now under their jurisdiction in the Diplomatic Corps instead of a security officer. Maybe I should have this conversation with Lt. Gabriel, you don't need to worry about my problems with everything going on right now."
Isha's jaw tightened, though the smile remained on her lips, "The diplomatic officer is the worst of her kind, she can keep a secret but fails to obscure the fact that she is obfuscating," she said. Isha's lasting impression of Kelan, formed in the few minutes that they were together with Tahir was of a woman who relied more on her looks and her telepathic gifts than on any actual talent. "I doubt Gabriel would view your situation with a sympathetic ear, though I am certain that he would view interference with his department very dimly - perhaps you should raise it with him," Isha suggested.
He ran a hand through his hair and tilted his head slightly to untangle his earring. "I'm sorry to further burden you, ma'am. It's my job to make your job easier and safer, and instead of only offering complications." Jo'el smiled at her teasingly. "You know, this never would have happened if I hadn't sat down."
Isha lifted an eyebrow, "You may be right," she agreed, "perhaps whilst you are on your feet being vigilant you could see your way to replicating me some tea," she said wryly.
Jo'el stood up and returned the chair to its proper position. "My pleasure, how do you take it?"
"Plomeek tea please, as it comes, do help yourself to something too."
"Does your replicator take requests in non-Romulan languages?"
"Find me one system on this station that doesn't," Isha remarked. "Through that door there is actually a small kitchen, my predecessor would not touch anything created by a Federation replicator, he imagined that the matter was poisoned or some such rot. Taking paranoia a bit too far if you ask me."
There wasn't much time to act, but the opportunity was still there with the Bajoran's back turned away from the target. He slipped out of his hiding place, crept swift but quietly towards Isha, keeping his eyes actively bouncing from her and her guard. With the skill of a pick-pocket, he placed the device on Isha's person. If she felt anything, it would be as a breeze and nothing more.
Jo'el leaned on the replicator's wall and bent down toward the opening. "Computer, one Plomeek tea and one large kava juice."
The replicator shimmered with the standard Federation whiteness of the transporter buffer. Lahy froze for a moment, watched and just as he came he left, leaving the Ambassador alone with her Bajoran guard. Despite Jo'el's time off world and at the Academy, he still wasn't used to the way non-Cardassian replicators looked. Everything should come in on an aura of gold.
"Here you are," Jo'el said, setting the tea on Isha's desk in a small metal circle he could only assume served as a coaster to prevent spills from reaching her computer terminal or documents.
OFF:
Ambassador Isha t'Khellian
Ensign Opaka Jo'el
VIP Bodyguard/Master-At-Arms
Lahy sen'Shuhs